Reformation Theory Of The Origin Of Freemasonry.

tury when I Avas fighting the battle of freedom , there Avere no " brethren of the mystic tie" in existence . No ! Speculative Freemasonry was then still in the womb of futurity . In the 16 th century I fought the battle against priestly

domination . In the 17 th century was fought the battle against kingly domination ; then when both had been shaken to their foundations there sprang up a new vox populi or the strong feeling as Burns expresses it , that

A man ' s a man for a' that . And upon the site of the old operative Masonic lodge there began to arise a UBAV , glorious and noble structure , beatiful in its ideas , and humanizing in its influences , and that structure was Speculative Freemasonry , whose end

is—That man to man , the warld o ' er , Shall brothers be for a' that 1 Many have asserted that previous to the 17 th and ISth centuries the old operative Masonic lodges practised speculative Masonry , but that is a mistake , and no real evidence has as yet been

brought forward to prove the assertion . So far as being made speculate Freemasons Avas concerned and thereby receiving the " secrets , " rituals , doctrines , ideas , ceremonies , or degrees of speculative Freemasonry , men might about as well have

j oined the then tailors , shoemakers or weavers societies . In the 1738 Bull of Pope Clement XII . He says that a " society has been formed , under the name of Freemasons , into Avhich persons of all

religions andall sects are indiscriminately admitted " as brethren . Such being tlie case Rome soon felt that a UOAV poAver Avas rising up against it , and accordingly the young idea soon felt the Aveight of Papal anathemas . Had Freemasonry existed in

the 16 th century as an exponent of our ideas , & c , it Avas bound to clash with some of the then powers that were , and Ave Avould have heard of it . In 1425 A . D . Ave find certain meetings of the Masons " in their general chapters and assemblies ' '

classed as an infringement of the " Statutes of Labourers" ( vide page 145 ) consequently said meetings were mere " Labourers , " or workmen ' s meetings , and we have not the least substantial reason for considering them to have been any thing else .

So much for the reformation being the forerunner of Freemasonry ; however much or liOAvever little the reformation may be proved to have had to do , directly or indirectly , with the rise of specu-

Reformation Theory Of The Origin Of Freemasonry.

lative Freemasonry and its ideas , & c , one thing . I consider is pretty certain viz . —that as to time Speculative Freemasonry is a post—reformation institution and if it can be proved to be a little older than A . D . 1717 , I shall be glad to add a feAV years to 152 .

Masonic Archæological Institute.

MASONIC ARCH ? OLOGICAL INSTITUTE .

In the " Gentleman s Magazine for May a very sensible and apposite letter has been inserted referring to the Masonic ArchtBological Institute , and we are quite sure that the claims Avhich such an institution has upon the thinking portion of the Craft , will be a sufficient excuse for our insertin . o- it in extenso : —

" CORRESPONDENCE OF SYLVANUS URBAN . "Masonic Archaaological Institute" Mr . Urban , —It has been the privilege of your ancient and valuable Magazine to record many words and deeds of past generations , and to

tell the sayings and doings of many societies and ' associations of men , the Masonic fraternity occasionally not even excepted . It is UOAV 116 years since you published ( Vol . 23 , p . 417 ) " Certayne questions Avith answeres , " pretended to have

been" Avryttene by the hande of Kinge Henrye the sixthe of the name ; " yet long as has been thetime since then , our advance , until a very few years ago , in the true knoAvledge of our Masonic history has been almost nil . Since about the

beginning of last century , one would imagine there had been a regular manufactory someAvhere of pretended Masonic charters , ivrits , and ancient

documents of ail sorts , legends , traditions , & c-., & c , included . Then if any writer dared to call in question the Adamite foundation of Freemasonry , he Avas immediately denounced by some spokesman on behalf of the craft , either as a

pretentious knoAv-nothing , or as a perjured villain . AnyAvay , therefore , his assertions Avere totally unworthy of a moment's regard . The plan taken to prop up the system of faith in the immense antiquity of our Order , and to knock down any

opponent , was certainly clever so far . If the unbeliever were a CoAvan—that is , not a member of the fraternity—then , of course , he was simply a knoAv -nothing ; for not being a member , how could he tell anything about it ! Then if he were

a member , it was— "How can anybody believe what he says , when he must perjure himself before he can explain anything ? " The consequence