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Masonry. What a Great American Mason Can Believe

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Masonry. What a Great American Mason Can Believe inclined to think that too much is expected of Freemasonry, WHAT IS EXPECTED OF FREE- and we refer to the case mentioned above in proof of this MASONRY. theory. That Freemasonry should be called to account for the death of one who, in days gone by, was regularly THE peculiar system of morality, veiled in allegory and received as a member is to us absurd , as also are the refer- illustrated by symbols, which is known to the world ences which are occasionally made to the Masonic connec- by the name of Freemasonry, is regarded in very different tion of criminals and others. It is impossible that Free- lights by different people. There are some who look upon masonry should make all who enter its portals good men ; it as the essence of all that is evil, and its members as the all that we as Masons claim is, that ifc is likely to improve most depraved of the human race ; while others consider it a man—not that it is certain to do so, and if others would the embodiment of truth, virtue, and every good that is regard the matter in the same light we think more rational known to the world, and almost exhibit a desire to fall ideas of what is due from Freemasonry would beoome down and worship those who are in any way associated general, and .the few black sheep to be found among its with it. Some men regard its members as though they membership would not be made so much of by those who breathed a different existence to themselves, removed from seem to desire the downfal l of Freemasonry. When so all the troubles and cares of life, and sure of attaining much is made of one slip does it not prove that the greater their every desire, while others again look upon Free- number of Freemasons are equal to, if not above, the masons as being so bound together as to be answerable general average ? for the misdeeds and mishaps of all who are, or ever have been , members of the Craft. That these extreme views of the power and responsibilty of Freemasonry are erroneous we need hardly inform our readers, but no doubt there WHAT A GREAT AMERICAN MASON are many among them who, like ourselves, have occa- sionally felt a desire to convice outsiders on the point. CAN BELIEVE. Within the last few weeks a misfortune occurred in our BY BROTHER JACOB NORTON . midst which, thanks to the desire of the press to satisf y the public taste for sensational news, has been widely cir- BRO. ROB MORRIS is an LL.D., a P.G.M. of Ken. culated throughout the country, and in not a few in- tucky, a linguist, a scholar, an orator, an author, stances has called forth comments both unnecessary and and a poet. I think that up to 1868 he claims to have disparagmg to the Masonic Order. We refer to the sad either written , annotated, or published more than seventy case of death from exposure which recently took place on Masonic books ; and as to his Sunday School and Masonic Plumstead Common, and to which "VIGIL " referred in orations, I think they could be counted by thousands. In the correspondence columns of our issue of the 8th inst. theology, however, he is not quite " sound on the goose," We sincerely regret the sad end which betel the unfortu- for, in his " Freemasonry in the Holy Land," published in nate brother to whose death reference is made, but we fail 1879, on page 223, he says •. to see why Freemasonry is, so to speak, to be called to " The Bible is to be judged by its general scope and account for the mishap, or its members in any way held intention—not by a few isolated passages, and these responsible for the death of this one of their number. Yet possibly misconceived in the process of translation from a the most unkind things have been said of Freemasonry in language highly idiomatic and poetical to one extremely connection with this case, by some of the self-appointed practical. Many of Us traditions and teachings were delivered critics who have given their attention to the subject, and orall y, and awaited for years the pen of the historian ; bow in not a few instances most ludicrous mistakes have been easy then to mistake their meaning." made as to the scope and action of Masonic charity. Bro. Morris's admission above—which I italicise— We do not wish to bring any special knowledge we may strongly shows his disbelief that every word in our present have of the facts to bear on our remarks, but simply bible was inspired. However, though a strict Calvinist desire to consider the case as it was made known to the would not call Bro. Morris a Christian saint, yet, if saint- world. An unfortunate member of society, who was ship consists in believing without reason and against a member of the Masonic Order, died from exposure and reason, Bro. Morris will be placed in the firs t rank of want, and among the articles found on his body was a Masonic saints ; for, when writing about Masonic legends, Masonic certificate. Now some of those who have criticised there are no bounds to his faith. It matters not to Bro. this case at once assume that the unfortunate man had Morris when Masonic traditions originated, nor in what appealed in vain to his brother Masons, and argue that his language they first appeared , or how many years after they death is convincing proof that the boasted charity of the were promulgated they were first written down by a his- Masonic Order is a myth, whereas there is nothing to torian—if it is only a Masonic tradition, he is sure it is show that he had not long since resigned his membership true. Bro. Morris's appetite was not satisfied with the tradi- of the Order, and had perhaps never said a word to any of tions he got in all the Masonic degrees in creation , which he his fellow Masons as to his need for assistance. A writer had taken, but he even made pilgrimages to the Holy Land who would refer to the subject at all may be assumed to and other countries, iu order to pick up more traditions ; know that Freemasons have the credit of being charitable, and in the course of his travels in the Holy Land, or in else he would have no reason for mentioning it. Now, it Arabia, he was initiated into a Dervish Lodge, whose cere- seems to us very strange that any one having such know- monies he described in one of his lectures in Boston, as led ge should not be aware that the Benevolence of the almost identical with our own Masonic ceremonies. Bro. Order was a recognised fact rather than a matter open Morris not only collected many Masonic traditions in the to doubt. Orient, but while there he chiselled the square and com- Looking at the subject calmly and without bias, we are pass on every rock, tomb, cave, and old ruin which he visited. He must have used up a great many chisels in following ancient tradition, which our good Bro. Morris, I the course of his work, and these, if he preserved and presume, picked up in the Holy Land ? Bro. Morris, on labelled each of them with a memorandum of the work it page 199, says : had performed, would, one day, be of great value to Masonic " It seems, from the traditions of the Craft, that various curiositv hunters. questions in regard to the construction of Freemasonry-— Some of our distinguished English brethren have recently ' Speculative Masonry ' as we call it—were made subject of been excited over a discovery in the Bodleian Library, which discussion by the three Grand Masters, and settled, from proves that the Hiramic legend existed 500 years ago. Bah ! time to time, at their conferences in Jerusalem. One of That is a mere fleabite to what Bro. Morris can prove ; for the most interesting of these was that of an appropriate instance, on page 45 of his book I find as follows :— colour. Upon this point the minds of the three philoso- " bailing near Crotona, on the Eastern coast of Italy, 1 phers were strangely diverse. King Solomon preferred recalled the name and labours of Pythagoras, commemo- red or scarlet, emblematic of fervency and zeal, so strik- rated in the Freemasons* Monitor l Hiram ^ in these words :—' Our ing y illustrated in his own character ; King ancient friend and brother, the great Pythagoras, who, in expressed his choice for the royal colour, purple, a hue his travels through Asia, Africa, and Europe, was initiated associated with his own metropolis, Tyre, ever since the into several orders of priesthood, and raised to the sublime purple shell had been utilized as emblematio of the. noblest degree of Master Mason.' " precepts ; Hiram Abif was partial to blue, as suggestive of Thus, the Masonic Monitor furnishes evidence that the that expansion and universality which they all hoped would Masters' legend existed , not only 500 years ago, but about become characteristic of the new society. Standing here, 2,400 years ago. Bro. Morris, of course, believes that the on this lofty point of rocks, and gazing over the vast sea two Saints John were Masons ; these he respectively styles before him—a sea famed in all ages for its depths of blue— as the " June St.
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