Pillars Of Masonry.

and illustrate before we are called by high noon from labour to refreshment . While our institutions bring into relief the five orders of architecture , they particularly revere the three which

obtained among the Greeks , namely , the Ionic , tho Doric , and the Corinthian , they have much in common , and the ingenuity which distinguishes the first ; blends with the massiveness of the second , and these are crowned with the

ornament that adorns the third . Thus , in the conduct and teachings of a Lodge , and particularly in fche formation of personal character , which is the supreme purpose of Masonry—these are not to be separated , bufc are to be

combined and unified . As in nature contrivance and design , exhibited everywhere , evince the qualities of durability aud permanence , and clothe themselves with tho loveliness of flowers and light , so similar harmony should reign between the distinctive features of our institutions .

While I shall for the sake of clearness consider these singly , ifc is with the hope that they may ever be actualised unitedly . Ifc is a sign of wisdom both in the ceremonies aud life of

Masonry that it recognises the supremacy of the spiritual and moral . Ifc is no materialistic system , denying the Creator , the authority of virtue , and the immortality of the soul . While it honours the visible universe , and while ifc

admires every temple that human skill has reared , ifc reverently employs them both to e < alfc and initiate , to converse witb tbe Unseen , and to figure forth the glorious duties which he should zealously perform . The significant

letter " G gleaming in the east , the sacred altar with the open Bible bearing the square and compasses , the checkered pavement , the blazing star , the tessellated border , and the ladder of Jacob , with the direct inculcation of love , truth ,

temperance , fortitude , prudence , justice , emphatically teach that God reigns ; that He has revealed Himself to His creatnres ; that He is to be worshipped ; thafc He providentially cares for the race , never abandoning it to despair ;

thafc He has opened the way to heaven ' s blessedness , and that He has magnified goodness above all tho distinctions of earth and time . Masonry is no devotee at the shrine of perverted science and destructive criticism . It has not

reached the deplorable stage of mere philosophy that robs man of his soul , degrading him to the level of a machine , seci'eting thought , love and sense of right as the liver does bile : and neither has ifc reached that degree of

phosphorescent intellectuality in which Divine Revelation is counted unreasonable , and prayer and a future existence are set down as foolish superstitions . All over tho world , wherever its morning bell calls to labour , and its noon and

evening chimes to refreshment , it raises its magnificent protest against the entire brood of atheists , scoffers and rationalists ; against the doctrine of a universe without a ruler , and of a man begotten of nature , identical with

nature , ancl destined at last to be confounded and exterminated among the ruins of nature . And in thus grounding its very being in the reality and sovereignty of the spiritual , ifc displays its eminent wisdom ; for the highest welfare of

mankind intimately related to confidence in these verities , and where they are maintained , and only there is society blessed with law-abiding citizens , and with such fortitude and hope as serve to overcome difficulties and triumph in

disaster . Where they are obscured , and particularly where they are obliterated , the ties that usually bind men are broken , rights of property and rights of other kinds are easily ignored , and lawlessness and anarchy come to

prevail . Masonry is wise in that it discerns the real source of progress and happiness , and impresses a knowledge of the same on fche minds of its members , and in this manner not only perpetuates its own order , bub contributes to the advancement and well-being of the outside community .

But I have intimated that in this respecfc its influence is exceedingly helpful and elevating to fche individual . And so it is : for he is tanght in tho light of spiritual supremacy thafc the true life , the imperishable life of the soul , is the

life of morality . Other ideals have prevailed , and the brethren of the mystic tie have nofc always been consistent with their own , but wherever heresy has occurred on this subject it has in time led the unfortunate to query , "

whether life is worth living ? " I do not hesitate to say that , as frequently led , it is not . When it is spent in carousing and dissipation it is not ; for excess deadens the

sensibilities , diminishes vitality , and contracts the dimensions of this vast universe to the dimensions of a sty . Physical indulgence tends to animalise the soul , and deprives it of its noblest

functions and sweetest joys . Nor is that the real life

Pillars Of Masonry.

which is abandoned to greed and selfishness , which stirs up the angry passions of others by success and is depre . s-ed to madness by failure . There is no abiding comfort , no fellowship with the most exalted pursuits of the race , and

everything becomes small and paltry . Let these and other misconceptions cease , and let a man array himself on tho side of righteousness , and cling to it , and be moved by ifc as the poet is by form of loveliness , and be will feel himself allied with the noblest and most enlightened minds of

all ages ; with the vast commonwealth of heroes and martyrs—and with God Himself . In such goodly fellowship as this he will have joy , and as he accustoms himself to the thought that the moral is the grandest of all

forces , be will believe thafc it must prevail ; that fche entire universe must be on the side of right , and thafc justice must infallibly triumph . The sacred mysteries of the Lodgo deepen this impression . Hirara Abif— Hiram the

fathermay be foully assassinated , and his body may be securely hidden , but some moaning of the murderer , some sprig of acacia , will reveal the terrible secret , and Justice unsheath her sword . The guilty shall not escape , and the innocent

victim shall be honoured through all time in the annals of the Craffc . Bufc virtue is not only crowned in such historic scenes , but culture , refinement , intelligence , the sisters and allies of virtue are commended . The aspirant is led into

the domain of knowledge , he is taught thafc he has entered the empire of power . The arts ancl sciences are unfolded to his wondering sight , and he is encouraged to persevere to ascend the steps , in a word , to be a man . And ho who

is constantly seeking enlightenment , and who is ever purifying himself through virtue , has attained to manhood , aud has within himself the real sweetness of existence ; and such an one is a genuine and wise support to any society or community . ( To be continued . )

Scottish Freemasonry.

SCOTTISH FREEMASONRY .

rpHE Grand Lodge of Scotland celebrated Sfc . Andrew ' s - * - Festival on Friday , the 30 fch ulfc ., in the Freemasons ' Hall , Edinburgh . Amongst the toasts , the Grand Master

and the Graud Lodge of Scotland was given by Sir Chas . Dalrymple , M . P ., and the Grand Master , in replying , thanked the brethren of the Grand Lodge for having re-elected him for the fourth time to his high

office , and he assured them all his energies would be devoted to furthering the interests of the Craffc . Having referred to the death of the Earl of Mar and Kellie , and the serious illness of Lord Rosslyn , the Grand

Master said he was glad to inform them thafc during the past year they had received 4584 new entrants—and their income had been £ 4543 . Nine new Lodges had been added to the roll in Scotland , which showed that Masonry

in that country was prospering . While they had added to the daughter Lodges in Scotland , they had lost a large number of their daughter Lodges by the formation of a new Grand Lodge in South Australia . Speaking of the new

scheme of benevolence , he said tbe Grand Lodge had passed rules for administering the fund , and what they now wanted was £ 10 , 000 to enable them to place it on such a footing as to enable them to carry comfort to many

deserving homes , and he believed that if every Province was represented by a stall in a great bazaar next year , they would exceed that sum , Lord Salfcoun , in proposing

the New Grand Lodge of New South Wales and its Daughter Lodges , said there were 130 Masonic Lodges in the Colony , of which 57 were Lodges holding from the Grand Lodge of Scotland .

Bro . Francis George Barns , S . W . of the William Preston Lodge , No . 766 , is one of the candidates for the vacant seat in the Common Council for the Ward of Cripplegato Without . The Election will take place on the 21 st inst .

The Fifteen Sections

THE FIFTEEN SECTIONS

"WliL BE "WORKED By the members of the Percy Lodge of Instrnction , No . 198 , afc the New Concord Lodge of Instruction , No . 813 , held at the Jolly Farmers ' , Southgate Road . N ., on Wednesday , tho 19 th instant , at 7 o ' clock p . m . Bros . I . P . Cohen P . M . 205 VV . M ., J . A . Powell 186

S . W ,, T . G . Hodges S . W . 1695 J . W . First Lecture—Bros . Pa . k , Bfjker , McNamara , Witte , Da Costa , Fenner , Hodges . Second Lecture—Bros . Brown , Lone , Da Costa , Powell , Moss . Third Lecture— Bros . Galer , Oldis , Langdale . Brother E , Heslop is the Secretary .