Science And Scripture.

to inspire you with a holy confidence that ' the Lord of Life will enable you to tread the king of terrors beneath your feet , and lift your eyes to that bri ght morning star , whose rising- ( once more ) shall bring peace and salvation to the faithful and obedient of the human race . ' Such should be the knowledge , nnd such should be the practice also of each and ei'eiy one belonging to this honourable fraternity . As for myself 1 am stronglinclined to beliei'e

, y that its institution dates from a more ancient period than that in which lived tho three Grand Masters ; ( for the close connection of thc operative and speculative arts at the first , anil the precedence of the former at that time was only casual ) , and I am convinced that its object from its commencement was , as J . have defined it , to be a blessing to the world at large , "

Architecture , When Defective With Regard To Ornamental Taste.

ARCHITECTURE , WHEN DEFECTIVE WITH REGARD TO ORNAMENTAL TASTE .

SOME peculiar cases of excessive latituclinarianism are standing in the broad field of architecture as scarecrows to affrightcn good taste and refined judgment . NOAV , where architecture regarded as the , mere assortment and disposition of bricks , mortar , and stone into a convenient position , instead of as being that sublime science which , when properly applied , is capable of imparting liveliness , grace , and beauty to the insensate sod , ive should not feel surprise at di

gressions from harmonious arrangement which we might attribute to ignorance , - unhappily , hoivever , we have no other alternative than to set down various monstrosities which just now occur to our mind , as the results of mere caprice—a fantastic fancy engrafted upon presumption . _ Is it not ridiculous , ire would inquire of any person capable of drawings distinction betwixt riht and to

g wrong , perceive men ( laity erecting , at an enormous expense , edifices tire only merit of which consists in their inapplicability to the ordinary purposes of a human habitation ? It is true , they look very like good houses —have handsome and novel exteriors , with bold and finely proportioned facades , and are conveniently and conspicuously situated . All these things , doubtless , tell well with an intending purchaser ; they serve the and serve out thc pocketButbesides

eye . , mere eye service ^ a man should look for more substantial qualifications in tlie edifice consecrated to his domestic purposes . Durability , convenience , cleanliness and health are among tlie results which he should impure of himself whether his intended abode is capable of producing or maintaining . 'The mere circumstance of prettiness , too often confounded with pettiness , can never secure tiny of these ; nor was it in former ages—thc style ofthe architecture of which is dail

y being perpetuated on reduced and ridiculous scales —the principle , as it seems to bo supposed , to sacrifice , by means i a ' n , t ! , e rcsorts " adopted , utility to display . The Gothic , the Tudor and the Elizabethan styles seem to be , at present , principally marked out , as thc shields beneath which architectural pretenders retreat for shelter from ivell merited odium—striving to persuade people that their application is in all cases warranted ! What , we ivould ask , ivould these gentlemen think of an Ionic pigsty , or a Tuscan theatre ?

In our suburban rambles wc often , now a days , meet with some very pretty specimens of rural architecture ; ' but while we eel mcfmcd to praise the meritorious spirit to ivhich they owe tlicrr origin , ive cannot at the same tune , shut our eyes to many defects whicli such edifices most glaringly exhibit . It is not onr intention on the present occasion to compose au elaborate list of grievances , mid . to bring to light minute errors ivhich it ivonld require microscopical to

a eye discover ; our object'is to instruct rather than to censure , anil , when possible , io correct rather than to condemn . It seems to be the prevailing taste of the architects of the present clay to concentrate even to the point of absmdity ; and accordingly , wc find Liliputian residences comparativel y speaking , adorned with all thc sombre massiveness and heavy grandeur ofthe castellated structure : thus the iihn of a mansion designed to hundred

cover a square yards of " -round is imfbmkmgty adopted with regard to one designed to cover perhaps scarcel y as ninny feet . This exposes a sad want of iuiVmeirt . _ Such buildings can never look well to the eye , nor plcasinoto the imagination of thc spectator ; but . like serine dwarf attired m tlie garments of a giant , only produce a ridiculous effect these remarks ive believe to be Justand ive doubt not but

, that lew will be found opposed to our opinion . An edifice constructed laithiulty , according to the pure and simple principle of any styl e ot architecture , is ahvays to be commended ; but ivhen ive find a six roomed house constructed as a castle , with battlements and turrets , it positively becomes too bad . to let pass mmotirm !

Architecture , When Defective With Regard To Ornamental Taste.

Again , with regard to chimney pots , ive cannot at all see what there is to be ashamed of in them , and why they should be uniformly converted into such odd looking , unmeaning masses . Everybody is aware that they are very useful if not necessary appendages to a house , unless the inmates choose to be smoked ' out—then why arc they constructed as turrets ? It certainly seems more odd to see smoke issuing from a sort of dwarf sentry

box , than a genuine old English chimney pot , which has so longpresided over our fireside . Another objection which ive have to urge is one against the preposterous manner in ivhich hall doors arc often placed—sometimes at an immense distance above the level of the footpath . The reason for this we know not , except it is for the saving of a slight expense in digg ing the foundation deeper , which is by no means adequate to the inconvenience thus It is

created . One more stricture , and ive have done : — no uncommon circumstance to see houses erected in the Elizabethan style , furnished with railings ornamented cither with the acanthus or Gothic foliage ; such patchwork as this is abominable iu the extreme—it is not variety but contrast , and that not of the best description . Thc fact is , that such matters as this generally escape the notice of the architect , and the error is only left to be detected by thc critic—Universal , Decorator ,

Reminiscences Of Olden Days.

REMINISCENCES OF OLDEN DAYS .

IT is not often in these degenerate days that wc find Craftsmen who have worked with mystic implements threescore years and upwards . Amongst thc fe ' iv is Bro . Johnston , of Dayton , Ohio , who led a Masonic procession in honour of AAs-ishington , sixty 3 'ears since , and who had wrought amongst the quarries five years before that time . Hear his valued words . "I am pleased to find there is an effort making to publish the , the

Masonic life and character of AVashington . It is among rare felicities of my own long life , having \> ftcn beheld the person of that great man . I ivas a clerk in a public office in Philadelphia thc last two years of his being in power , and heard Inni'deliver his last speech to both Houses of Congress , in December , 177 ( i . It was his custom always to address those bodies in person , and this practice was continued by his immediate successor , John Adams ,

and omitted by Thomas Jefferson , and the example of the latter has prevailed to the present daj T . " jAIy position as Secretary to one of the Masonic Lodges in the city of Philadelphia , made me familiar with the doings of thc Craft . AVashington did not during my time visit 11113 ' ° '' ^ Lodges in thc city , but it was bis practice to contribute in 11101103 ' to the general charity fundwith a written communication . . Such

, communications may yet be found among tbe records of the Grand Lodge of . Pennsyfvania . George A . Baker ivas Grnnd Secretary at the time , and the Hon . Jonathan Bayard Smith , one of thc judges of Pennsylvania , was Grand Master . My Masonic diploma , on parchment , issued sixty-one years ago , and still in good preservation , has the signature of both , LIT .. _ p , ... .... -1 , ., •, 1 _ I . IT _ : „ ,, ... SI .,. Ill after lot ivas cast in the service in the

. " years my public wilds of the northwest , among the Indians , and for a period of thirty-one years I had not the opportunity of visiting a Lodge , so ivhen I returned , as I might say , to civilized life , and mixed again with my Masonic brethren , I was an A B C scholar in all that concerned thc Craft . It is sixty-four years since I was initiated into the mysteries of Freemasonry , under thc jurisdiction of the

Grand Lodge of Virginia , and therefore had the high honour of being cotemporary in the Craft with the great and good Washington ; for , as we all know , he continued a member of Fredericksburg , Va ., Lodge , No . I , until the clay of his death . My father was a Freemason , as was also 3113 ' brother Stephen , who was killed in the war of 1812 , while carrying despatches to General Harrisonat head quartersThe latter was admitted bmyself

, . y , during a short period of my presiding over a Lodge in Pennsylvania . " For a number of years now past , I have been a member of McMillan Lodge , No . 141 , Cincinnati , and although by reason of my advanced years , eighty-five , and infirm health , I am not a veiy regular attendant on its meetings , still I consider it my duty , as it ought to be with all true brethren , to have my name on the

record , and punctually pay my clues . If a brother is too poor , let thc Lodge remit his dues ; but no true Mason should ask for a demit , unless removing to another jurisdiction . " As Secretary of a Philadelphia Lodge , and in the command of a military company , I attended the funeral honours paid to thc memory of AVashington in that city , in the winter of 17911 and 1 SD 0 , probably the ili ' ncl of February , the anniversary of his birth . "—American Mirror and Keystone .