Masonic Notes And Queries.

MASONIC NOTES AND QUERIES .

- - THERE ' S A WORLD WHERE ALL ARE EQUAL . The stanzas under this heading , given last week by "T . G . P ., " form the 4 fch , 6 th , and 7 th verses of "The Level and the Square , "—a song composed some years ago by Bro . Rob . Morris , and set to music by B . IT . Leavens . I possess a copy of the music ( 2-4 time ) , with pianoforte accompaniment ( kindl y forwarded to me

by Bro . Morris himself ) . The air is pleasant , and well suited to the words . —D . MURRAY LYON . —[ We have re- „ ceived the music from Bro . Stebbing , Bro . Maokinnon , -and two or three other sources . We will publish it in an early number . ] ROB . aiomns ' s ALMANACKS . [ We have lately received a parcel containing Bro . Bob . Morris ' s almanacks for 1860-63 , some extracts from which we now place before our readers . ]

The JSditor to his Readers . " It is now thirty-one years since the publication of the Masonic Almanacks of Isaiah Thomas , at AVoreester , Mass .,- —the last work of the kind , it is believed , in this country—was discontinued . The storm of anti-Masonry , which then raged through the land so chilled tbe zeal ; and discouraged the pens of the Craft , that the statistics of their drooping and waning forces were little sought after or valued . Through all this period of

thirty-one years , no one has come forward to east- into a cheap and popular form the everyday facts of Freemasonry . Is it not time , then , that a new series of Masonic almanacks should be commenced , and this vast engine of popular usefulness again set in motion ? " It is unnecessary to enlarge upon the fact , that the Masonic Institution at the present dayand especiallin the United

, y States and British Provinces , is riding upon the highest wave of prosperity . Its lodges number 4750 ; its membership , 200 , 000 . Its gavels ring , its jewels gleam , its good deeds fructify in every town , village , and hamlet in the land . Eclectic in the selection of its materials ( soundness in body , mind , and heart being the ancient prerequisites of its membership ) , rigid in the

• exercise of its discipline , tender in the nurture of its faithful , it stands forward in the eyes of the community , venerable for age , respectable for members , admirable for the perfection of its doctrines , beautiful in its ritualistic ceremonies . The voice of such an association , in any shape , commands attention . It has spoken from the mouths of lecturers ; it has had utterance in books and periodicals—shall not the million-tongued Almanack , that whispers in familand hangs b firesideand

every y , y every , in every workshop , give an echo to its voice ! " There is a special reason wh y the influence of almanacks -should be courted in the diffusion of Masonic knowledge , viz ., that of all the engines employed by our enemies against us iu the cruel warfare of 1826 to 1836 , none accomplished so much -evil as the anti-Masonic almanacks of Giddins and others , which were distributed by waggon-loads through the length and

breadth of the country . They were a blight upon the Masonic Order not yet wholly healed ; and , as the best counteracting influence to the peculiar evils they disseminated , the same class of instrumentalities is now employed , of which the present almanack is the exponent . Should it prove successful , it will be continued from year to year , with whatever emendations or additions may add to its value . " —ROB . MORRIS , Louisville , Ky .

Peace in the Lodge . " It is all-important to Masonic usefulness that there should he peace in the lodge . And this is not so difficult as some think . Any brother can be courteous , patient , and forbearing in another lodge ; what is so natural and easy abroad is equally so at home . " "Work for the Common Gavel .

"' The statue which enchants the world' lies within the block . The statuary's part is but to remove the superfluities . So , within many a mass , encrusted with warts and knobs and unsightly excrescences , lies a noble soul , fit for the highest place of Masonic honour and usefulness . It is but to apply vigorously , but skilfully , first the common gavel , after that the chisel . " Use of the Square and Compass . "A settler in early days , in the AVest , marked his cattle with a brand representing the Square and Compass . It was noticed

by his neighbours that , while the Indians made the most serious depredations upon the stock of others , his were never harmed , nor was hide or hoof ever missing . After tbe war ended , the Indians admitted that their chiefs had instructed them to respect that emblem as holy , wherever they found it . " Aid the Distressed . " If you see a brother bending under the cross of adversity and

disappointment , look not idly on , neither pass by on the other side , but fly to his relief . " Difficulties of Masonio Laws . "The chief difficulty under which a Masonic jurls-consult labours in teaching the correct law and usage in controverted matters lies in this , that heretofore , in this country , every Grand Lodge and almost every lodge and brother has been a law to itself in such things . The labourer in this field must therefore look for opposition in the pride and prejudice , as -well as the ignorance of those be would instruct . "

Tiie Model W . M . " The master of a lodge should be a well-read man , very familiar with the Constitution , rules and usages of his Grand Lodge , understand thoroughly the bye-laws of his own lodge , be skilful in the rules that govern ordinary deliberative assemblies , be well read in the Masonic literature of the day , and be personally and intimately acquainted with each member of his own lodge . "

Masonry and the Pihle . " Any intelligent man who enters the Masonic Order , after reading its Monitor , and learning the reverence with which the Holy Scriptures are regarded in Masonry , stands committed to a belief in the Divine authenticity of that volume . Should he afterward declare that he never believed it , he must be ranked as ignorant , treacherous , or mendacious . "

Against Local Tests . "Brethren anxious to work the work of Masonry to the honour of our common Lord , should beware of inventing or perpetuating local tests . Nothing weakens the Masonic tie so effectually as for one lodge to practice customs not known to the rest . There are many of these unphilosophic and dangerous tests in vogue . "

Of my Own Free Will and Accord . "No solicitation of any sort can be lawfully used in inducing men to become Masons . The only allurement proper is so to act toward all men , so to reverence God , so to obey the laws of the country and the divine injunctions , and so to honour Masonry , that outsiders may admire the institution which contains such men , and the bond that unites such men , and become

earnestly desirous of connecting themselves with such men . " Value ofthe Bible . " The Bible may well be prized among Masons and Masons ' wives , for it has banished idle worship , abolished infanticide , put down polygamy and divorce , exalted the condition of woman , raised the standard of public morality , created for families a home , and caused benevolent institutions to spring up as with the wand of enchantment . Oh , let the Bible be in the centre of your lodge , honoured , opened , accessible to all ' . "

Mutilated Candidates . " The class of men from which Masons are selected is that which is sound in mind and body , and unrebukable in morals , having at least average attainments in education , and sustaining more than an average character for sobriety and virtue . Much in behalf of social and moral reform is justly expected of such men . The practical argument against the reception of maimed

and mutilated persons into Masonry is , that such persons can only be learners , aud never teachers . Masons are required to be both , and to be teachers of Masonry requires the mens sana in sano eorpore . The blind , the one-armed , the one-legged , the deaf , the dumb , can never travel as Masons , for no lodge having a proper understanding of the principles of the Order would take a single step toward their examination . The materials

proper for the mystic walls on which the Craftsmen labour , are the good and sound , and none other . " Increase of Freemasons . " Masons have ineve-Ased faster , much fastei . than Masonry . The means of instruction are in a very low ratio with the demand and necessity for it . "