Professor Donaldson On The Position Of Architecture.

blamed , rarely encouraged except by his own bright star of hope and faith . Let us , then , work ou with the consciousness of something within us , which may , sooner or later , before or when in bhe grave , be ab length understood , admired , and honoured by our fellow man .

Masonic Notes And Queries.

MASONIC NOTES AND QUERIES .

IMIEEMASONRY AND THE INQUISITION . Our brethren at the present day have no idea of the persecution that Freemasons underwent at the hands of the Roman Catholic priesthood , on the continent , about the end of last century . This having been doubted by a young and zealous brother , who says , if it is printed in THE MAGAZINE he shall see it , I send an extract from

The Sufferings of John Goustos , for Freemasonry , in the Inquisition , as it maybe interesting to the brother alluded to , as well as to many others . Coustos says : — "During my stay in this miserahle dungeon I was taken three times hefore the Inquisition . The first thing they made me do was , to swear on the Bible that I would not reveal the secrets of the Inquisition , hut declare the truth with regard to all such

questions as they should put to me : they added , ' That it was their firm opinion that Masonry could not he founded ou such good principles as I , in my former interrogatories , had affirmed ; and that , if this society of Freemasons were so virtuous as I pre--tended , there was no occasion for their concealing , so very industriously , the secrets of it . ' " I told them , ' That as secresy naturally excited curiosity , this induced great numbers of persons to enter into the society

-, that all the money given hy members at their admission were reserved for works of charity ; that , by the secrets which the several members practised , a true Mason instantly knew whether a stranger , who would introduce himself into a loelge , was really a Freemason ; that , was it not for such precautions , this society would form confused assemblies of all sorts of people ,

who , as they were not obligee ! to pay obedience to the charter of the lodge , it , consequently , would be impossible to keep them within the hounds of that decorum and good manners which are exactly observed , upon certain penalties , by all Freemasons . "' That the reason why women were excluded this society was , to take away all occasion for calumny and reproach , which woulel have been unavoidable hael they been admitted into it . Further , that since women hadin generalbeen always considered as

, , not very well qualified to keep a secret , the founders of the society of Freemasons , by their exclusion of the other sex , thereby gave a signal proof of their prudence and wisdom . ' They then insisted upon my revealing to them the secrets of this art . 'The oath / says I , ' taken by me at my admission , never to divulge them , directly or indirectly , will not permit me to do it ; my conscience forbids me , anel I therefore hope your lordships are

too equitable to use compulsion . ' They declared— 'That my oath was nothing in their presence , and that they would absolve me from it . ' 'Your lordships / continued I , 'are very gracious , but , as I am firmly persuaded that it is not in the power of any heing upon earth to free me from my oath , I am firmly determined never to violate it . ' This was more than enough to make them order me hack to my dungeon , where , a few days after , I

was seized with a violent sickness . A physician was sent to me , who , finding me exceedingly ill , made a report thereof to the Inquisition . These , on being informed of it , gave immediate orders for my being removed from the frightful dungeon , into another which admitted some glimmering of daylight . They appointed , at the same time , another prisoner to look after me during my sickness , which , very happily , was not of long continuance .

" Being recovered I was again brought before the Inquisitors , who asked me several new questions with regard to the secrets of Masonry ; ' and whether , since my abode in Lisbon , Iliad received any Portuguese into the society ? ' I replied ' that I had not : that it was true , indeed , that Don Emanuel de Sausa , Lord of Calliario , and captain of the German guards , hearing the person was at Lisbon who had made the Duke de Villeroy a SYeemason , hy order of the French King , Louis XV ., Don Emanuel had desired M . de Chavigny , at that time Minister of Prance at the ] Portuguese court , to inquire for me ; but that upon my being told that the King of Portugal would not

nermit any of his subjects to he Freemasons , I had desired two of the brethren to wait on M . de Calliario above-mentioned , and acquaint him with my fears ; and to assure him , at the same time , that in case he could obtain the king ' s leave , I was ready to receive him into the society ; I being resolved not to do any thing which might draw upon me the indignation of his Portuguese Majesty ; that M . de Calliario , having a very strong desire to enter into our society , declared that there was no foundation

for what I hael observed in regard to his Majesty ' s prohibition , it being unworthy the regal elignity to concern itself with such trifles . However , heing certain that what I had mentioned proceeded from very good authority , and knowing that M . cle Calliario was a nobleman of great economy , I found no other expedient to disengage myself from him , than hy demanding fifty moidores for his admission ; a demand which , I was persuaded , would soon lessen , if not entirely suppress , the violent

elesire he might have to enter into the society . ' " To this one of the Inemisitors said , ' That it was not only true that his Portuguese Majesty hael forbid any of his subjects to be made Freemasons , hut that there had been fixed up , five years before , upon the doors of all the churches in Lisbon , an order from his Holiness strictly enjoining the Portuguese in general not to enter into that society ; anel even excommunicated all such as were thenor should afterwardsbecome members of

, , it . ' Here I besought them to consider that , ' If I had committed any offence in practising Masonry at Lisbon , it was merely through ignorance , I having resided but two years in Portugal ; that further , the circumstance just now mentioneel hy them , entirely destroyed the charge brought against me , viz ., of my being tbe person who introduced Freemasonry in Portugal . ' They answered , ' That as I was one of the most zealous partisans of this societyI could not hut have heardduring my abode in

Lis-, , bon , the orders issued by the Holy Father . ' I silenced them by the comparison I made between myself and a traveller ( a foreigner ) , who , going to their capital city , and spying two roads leading to it , one of which was expressly forbid ( upon pain of the severest punishment ) to strangers , though without any indication or tokens heing set up for this purpose ; that this stranger should thereby strike accidentally , merely through ignorance , into the forbidden road .

" They afterwards charged me with drawing away Homan Catholics of other nations residing in Lisbon . I represented to them , ' That Roman Catholics must sooner be informed of the Pope ' s injunction than I who was a Protestant ; that I was firmly of opinion , that the severe orders issued by the Eoman Pontiff , had not a little induced many to enter into the society ; that a man who was looked upon as a heretic was no ways qualified to win over persons who considered him as such ; that

a Freemason who professed the Romish religion was , I presumed , the only man fit to seduce and draw away others of the same persuasion with himself ; to get into their confidence and remove successfully such scruples as might arise in their minds , both with regarel to the injurious reports concerning Masonry , and to the Pope's excommunication ; of which a vile heretic entertained an idea far different from that of the Itomanists . ' They then sent me back to my dungeon . Being again ordered to be brought

before the inquisitors , they insisted upon my letting them into the secrets of Masonry ; threatening me in case I did not comply . I persisted as before , in refusing to break my oath , and besought them to write , or give orders for writing , to his Portuguese Majesty's ministers both at London and Paris , to know from them whether anything was ever clone in the assemblies of Freemasons , repugnant to decency and morality , to the dictates of the Romish faithor to the obedience which every good

Chris-, tian owes to the injunctions of the monarch in whose dominions he lives . ' I observed further , ' that the King of France , who is the eldest son of the Church , and despotic in his dominions , would not have ordered his favourite to enter into a society proscribed by Mother Church , had he not been firmly persuaded , that nothing was transacted in their meetings contrary to the state or to religion . ' I then referred them to Mr . Dogood , an

Englishman , who was both a Roman Catholic and a Freemason . This gentleman had travelled with , and was greatly beloved hy , Don Pedro Antonio , the king's favourite , and who ( I observed farther ) , having settled a lodge in Lisbon fifteen years before , could acquaint thern , in case he thought proper , with the nature and secrets of Masonry . The inquisitors commanded rne to he taken back to my dismal abode . "Appearing again before them , they did not once mention the secrets of Masonry , but took notice that I in one of my examinations had said , that it was a duty incumbent on Freemasons