Masonic Symbolism,

MASONIC SYMBOLISM ,

LONDON , SATURDAY , DECEMBER 29 , 18 G 0 .

tTITH BEFEBUZrCI ! TO TUB jrEAHIJra- AJTD OEIGIS' OP THE AVOKDS " TBEEJTASOlf" AND " COWAKV ¦ PABT III . ( Continued from page 426 . ) G-adicke informs us that "the name originally waa only Mason ; hut the privileges which were granted unto

certain real architects arid artists induced them to adopt the title of Ereemasons , to distinguish themselves from those who were merely operatives . " During the Middle

Ages the whole of Europe was traversed by hands or lodges of travelling artizans , under the name of Eree and Accepted Masons , for the purpose of erecting religious edifices . These Masons , when about to commence any large building , first erected habitations for themselves around the base of the proposed building ,

where they held their lodges , and carried out the p lans designed in lodge . In the third year of Henry YI . an Act was passed against the Craft ; but instead of dissolving the corporation , the " general chapitres assembley , " the Act forbids all chapters and other

congregations to be held ; this was repealed by an Act passed in 5 Eliz ., cap . 4 ; andinl 54 S , stat . 2 & 3 Edw . VI . c . 15 , s . 63 , an Act was passed allowing Freemasons to practise their craft in any town in England , although not free of that town . This may be one reason wh y they were

call Eree , since they were free to work anywhere ; but this last-mentioned statute is important , as showing the recent application of the term Ereemason to operatives , or those who practised the actual art . In the year 1500 , John Hylmer and "William Vertue , Ereemasons , were engaged to " vaulte , or doo to bee vawlted , with freestone , the roof of the quere of the College Boiall of our

Ladie and St . George , within the Castell of Wyndsbrej according to the roof of the body of the said College . " I glean this information from an indenture dated 6 . Tun . 21 Henry VIII ., copied from the ori ginal in the archives of the Dean and Chapter of Windsor , by Ashmole ( MS . Ashm . 1125 , fol . 11 , vo . 12 ) , lately printed in the Beli gince

Antiques , vol . ii , p . 115 ( Halliwell ' s Historg of Freemasonry in England ) . Clavel , in his Ilisloire Fittoresgue de la Franc-magonnerie , has traced the organisation of these associations to the " Collegia Artificum , " instituted at Some by 2 \ ~ uma , u . o . 714 . These

associations existed in Some in the time of the Emperors . They had certain " peculiar privileges ; their meetings were private ; they were divided into three classes ; their presiding officers were called Magistri ; thev admitted persons not by profession operative Masons ;

and they used a symbolic language , derived from the implements of their profession , and were in possession of a secret mode of recognition . In time , says Mac-key , the Collegia Artificum became the repository of all the rites which were brought to Eome from forei gn countries ,

and thus we may suppose the Hebrew mysteries , or Temple Masonry , to have been introduced into that country . This supposition may derive some sunport

from the fact , that in the time of Julius Gsjsar the Jews were first } 3 ermitted to open their synagogues and worship the G-od of their fathers without any restraint at Eome—a toleration for which they were probably indebted to their fraternization with the members of the Collegia Artificum ; and in the reign of Augustus many

ofthelloman knights embraced Judaism , and publicly observed the sabbath . Others , again , say that Ereemasons should labour free and unconstrained ; liberty and truth are the principal gifts which Plato ( Phasdrus ) assigns to those perfect philosophers who have become

worthy to enter into the superior region , above the seven inferior probationary degrees . Others imagine that those persons , not being operative Masons , who were admitted into the Order were exclusively called Eree

ancl Accepted Masons , which title has been continued . In a MS . in the British Museum , Sib . Fcg . 17 , a 1 , if . 32 , it says : — The twelfclie poyntys of grot ryolte , Ther as the sembic y-hoklc sclml bo . Ther schul be maystrys and fellows also

, And other grefco lords xnony mo ; Ther schal bo the sctioref of that centre . Ancl also the meyr of that syte , Kuyztcs and squoycrs ther schul be , Ancl other aldermen , as ze schul se . Again : —

Eorthermore , yet that ordeynt he , Mnystyr y-callncl , so schnldo lie bo ; So that he were -most y-worschepede , Tliemie sculclo lie ba so y-clepedo : Bub Mason schuldc never won other calle ,

Tv ithyuuo the cral ' tc amongus hem alle , 3 fy sogot , uy servaud , my dour brother , Thayht he be not so poriyt a * ys another ; Uchon senile callc other [ blows bv cuthe For cause they coiuo of ladyos burt-ho . As he says , the appendage " Eree" evidently owed its rise to the practice of the ancients , who never suffered

the liberal arts and sciences to be ! ::: u- ?; hi- to any but the free-born . The union of operative and speculative Ereemasonry is generally ascribed to the building- of King Solomon ' s Temple , in which work wo ILP . that ao person who was not free-born was er . iployed .

There is one more derivation of the word Mason , which I do not think has been mentione-d by any previous author , but which appears to me to have quite as ranch significance , and entitled to equal weight , with many of those already cited ; in the 2 Eun // , ?/ ALagonique ,

the name is derived from the Hebrew . ncssor , tradition ; whence they deduce massors , or lnas . jorifes . rraditiouists , because our ancient art lias dacewlc-d through r . ges by oral tradition . The usages and customs of the ancients in

tneir secret societies were called mysteries , n ' jcrijpta , and who one practised them , uwrros . l \ tr , r , this is not derived from jiveu = z-to be initiated , but from o . ua , to close , he shut , the root of which is /»« > which is pronounced b y closing the lips , mu . i \ " ow , one of the cliief characteristics ! of a Ereemason is silence ; and we find in Sophocles and

other authors the word used in this sense , ^ ucras , - vy . ith one ' a mouth or eyes shut ; so that from silence being a characteristic of a person or sect , from the root , !¦•<> , might be