The Rights Of Freemasons.

tion of a brother . Nothing is to be taken for grantedcategorical answers must be required to all that is deemed important to be asked . No forgetfulness is to be excused , nor is the want of memory to be accepted as a valid excuse for the want of knowledge . The Mason who is so unmindful of his duties as to have forgotten the instructions he has receivedmust pay the penalty of his carelessnessand be

, , deprived of his contemplated visit to that society whoso secret modes of recognition he has so little valued as not to havo treasured them in his memory . AVhile there arc some tilings which may be safely passed over iu the examination of one who confesses himself to bo " rusty , " or but recently initiated , because they are details which require much study

to acquire , and constant practice to retain , there arc still other things of groat importance which must be rigidly demanded , and with the knowledge of which the examination can not , under tiny circumstances , dispense . Should suspicions of imposture arise , let no expression of these suspicions be made until the final decree for rejection

is pronounced . And let that decree be uttered ill general terms , such as , "I am not satisfied , " or , "I do not recognize you j" and not in more specific terms , such as , "You did not answer this inquiry , " or , "You aro ignorant on that point . " The visitor is only entitled to know , generally , that lie has not complied with the requisitions of his examiner . To

descend to particulars is always improper , and often dangerous . Above all , the examiner should never ask what tire called "loading questions , " or such as include in themselves an indication of what the answer is to bo ; nor should he , in

any maimer , aid the memory of the party examined by the slightest hint . If he lias it in him , it will come out without assistance , and if he has it not ho is dearly entitled to no aid . ^ Lastly , nei'er should an unjustifiable delicacy weaken tho rigour of these rules . Let it bo remembered , that for the wisest and most evident reasons , the merciful maxim of the

law , whieh- says , that it is better that ninety-nine guilty men should escape , than that one innocent man should be punished , is with us reversed , and that in Masonry it is better that ninety and nine true men should be turned away from the door of a Lodge than that one cowan should bo admitted .

SEC . IV . —Of Vouching for a Brolher . —A . \\ examination may sometimes be omitted wlien any competent brother present ivill vouch for the visitor ' s Masonic standing and qualifications . This prerogative of vouching is an important one which every Master Mason is entitled , under certain restrictions , to exercise ; but it is also one ivhich may so materiall

y affect the wellbeing of the whole fraternity—since by its injudicious use impostors might be introduced among the faithful—that it should bo controlled by the most stringent regulations . To vouch for one , is to bear witness for him ; and , in witnessing to truth , every caution should be observed , lest falsehood should

cunningly assume its garb . The brother who vouches should , therefore , know to a certainty that the one for whom he vouches is really what he claims to be . He should know this not from a casual conversation , nor a loose aud careless inquiry , but , as the un written law of the Order expresses it , from " strict trial , due examination , or lawful iiif ' ormatisii . "

Of strict trial and duo examination I have already treated in the preceding section ; and it onl y remains to say , that when the vouching is founded on the knowledge obtained in this way , it is absolutel y necessary that the brother , so vouching , shall be competent to conduct such an examination , and that his general intelli gence and shrewdness , and his knowled

ge of Masonry , shall be such as to p lace him above the probability of being imposed upon . The important and indispensable qualification of a voucher is , therefore , that he shall bo competent . The Master of a Lodge has no ri ght to accept , without further inquiry , the avouchment of a young and inexperienced , or even of an old , if ignorant , Mason .

Lawful information , ivhich is the remaining ground for an avouchment , may be derived either from the declaration of another brother , or from having met the party vouched for in a Lodge on some previous occasion . If the information is derived from another brother , who states that he has examined the party , then all that has

already been said of the competency of the one giving the information is equally applicable . The brother giving the original information must bo competent to make a rigid examination . Again , the riorson giving the information , the one receiving ifc , and the one of whom it is given , should all be present at tho time ; for otherwise there would be no

certainty of identity . Information , therefore , given by letter or through a third party , is highly irregular . The information must also be ]) ositive , not founded on belief or opinion , but derived from a legitimate source . And , lastly , it must not have been received casually , but for the very purpose of being used for Masonic purposes . For one to say to another in the course of a desultory conversation , " A B is a Mason , " is not sufficient " . He may not be speaking with due caution ,

under the expectation that his words will bo considered of weight . He must say something to this effect : " I knoiv this man to be a Master Mason , for such or such reasons , and you may safely recognize him as such . " This alone will insure the necessary care aud proper observance " of prudence . If the information given is on the ground that the person

vouched has been sitting in a Lodge by the voucher , care must bo taken to inquire if it was a " Lodge of Master Masons . " A jiersou may forget , from the lapse of time , and vouch for a stranger as a Master Mason , when the Lodge in which he saw him was only opened in the first or second degree .

SEC . V . —Of the Eight of Claiming Belief . —One of the great objects of our institution is , to afford relief to a worthy , distressed brother . In his want and destitution , the claim of a Mason upon his brethren is much greater than that of a profane . This is a Christian , as well tis a Masonic doctrine . "As we have therefore opportunity , " says St . Paul , "let us do good unto all men , especially unto them who are of the household of faith . "

This claim for relief he may present either to a Lodge or to a brother Mason . The rule , as well as the principles by which it is to be regulated , is laid down in that fundamental laAv of Masonry—the Old Charges—in the following explicit words , under the head of "Behaviour towards a strange Brother : "

" You are cautiousl y to examine him in such a method as prudence shall direct you , that you may not be imposed upon by an ignorant , false pretender , whom you are to reject with contempt and derision , and beware of giving him any hints of knoivledge . " But if you discover him to be a true and genuine brother ,

you are to respect him accordingly ; and if he is in want , you must relieve him if you can , or else direct him how he may be relieved . You must employ him some days or else recommend him to be employed . But you are not charged to do beyond your ability , only to prefer a poor brother , that is a good man and true , before any other people in the same circumstances . "

This law thus laid down includes , it will bo jierceived , as IAVO important pro-requisites , on ivhich fco found a claim for relief , that the person applying shall be in distress , and that he shall be worthy of assistance . He must be in distress . Ours is not an insurance company , a joint stock association , in which , for a certain premium

paid , an equivalent may be demanded . No Mason , or no Lodgo , is bound to give pecuniary or other aid to a brother unless he really needs ; The word "benefit , " as usually used in modern friendly societies , has no place in the vocabulary of Freemasonry . If a wealthy brother is afflicted with sorrow or sickness , we are to strive to comfort him ivith our sym-