Why Bro. Gould Discredits Wren's Connection With Freemasonry.

can at present be urged by the said defenders of Wren ' s Masonry simply amounts to this , " Well , after all , Sir Christopher Wren may have been a Mason . " Wron ' s Masonry , then , rests upon no better foundation than the Grand Mastership and Mastership of the Saints

John ; the Grand Mastership of Henry Price ; Oliver ' s notion of the mutilation of tho third degree ; Preston ' s assertion that words were changed ; tho " Compagnonage " theory , by Bro . Gould ; tho assumed connection of Cose with Philadelphia Masonry in 1731 ; the Malcom Charter ;

the Athelstan Charter ; the Cologne Charter ; the Frederick the Great Charter ; the Edward 3 rd Constitution ; the Masonryof DeMolay ; the Locke MS . ; the Henry Bell Letter ; the new notion of the Keystone that part of its recent discovered record is in Franklin handwriting * aud its older uotious

that Franklin ' s silver fish knife is not a fish knife but a Masonic Troivel . In short , with " may be " and " may have been , " we can easily defend even ghosts , witchcrafts , astrology , fortune telling , spiritual mediums , and all other kinds of superstition . " May have been " and "may be "

should therefore be discarded as-evidence by every historian . Hence , as long as the believers in Wren ' s Masonry can bring forward no better argument than " he may have been , " Wren ' s connection with Freemasonry cannot be classed among Masonio facts . j

Must Be Immortal.

MUST BE IMMORTAL .

THE careful investigations which are constantly being made into the origin and gradual development of Masonry have awakened new interest throughout the world , and the untiring zeal with which these researches are being prosecuted is bringing forth from the hidden recesses ot

the past , evidences of so conclusive a nature that will ere long establish as facts many of those beliefs which , founded upon symbolism and allegory , have in the minds of many been considered more of a traditional than of a substantial

character . The general belief in the great antiquity of Masonry , for which some of the ablest of its devotees have contended , bids fair to be rescued from the shudowy realms of doubt aud to be finally enshrined upon the altar of truth .

The organization of primitive Masonry established n nucleus around which the generous sentiments of humanity formed , developed , and at last crystallised into formulas and united action for the freedom of mankind from the thraldom of ignorance and the power of superstition . The formation of brotherhoods was the first check to

irresponsible power , and the freedom of thought , encouraged by harmony of action and mutual desire , aroused a spirit of inquiry , stimulated investigation , encouraged mental culture , and thus paved the way for discoveries in science and the arts , and all the beneficial results which flow from careful deliberation and research .

This practical principle being recognized and established naturally awakened a keen interest in the minds of men , and the rapid increase in numbers , and the growing influence of its adherents at last produced a marked effect upon the governments of the earth , and gradually moulded law

and literature into a spirit of magnanimity tempered with mercy . The growth of such a power could not escape the vision and careful inspection of governmental rulers , and as all primitive governments were founded upon the reli gious sentiment , the early struggles of Masonry constitute a

history of combat with ecclesiastical dogma . The records of these long years of arduous and unremitting opposition by every species of religious creed and political power present for the consideration of the careful

student of history a spectacle of sublime resignation , determined perseverance , and the most remarkable exhibitions of heroic sacrifice . It is impossible to conceive the baneful effects of the successful assaults upon the early efforts of the Masonic brotherhood .

Must Be Immortal.

It is beyond all human calculation to compute the benefits to mankind which have resulted from the persistent efforts and stern integrity of the founders of this organization . Passing its probationary period at a time when every principle of justice was aroused ; when man was a

slave and the rulers alone had rights ; when political government was merely an attendant upon the supreme authority of Church ; when civil governors were the servants of priests ; when the thunders of ecclesiastical power reverberated throughout the world , aud all temporal

power crouched at the feet of clerical dominion in abject submission ; what a mighty work was here to be accomlished , ancl what fearful consequences were to be entailed upon mankind by the efforts of heroic men and sterling advocates of humanity , in struggling through years of

adversity and despair , against the vengeance and vindiotive retribution of a herculean power thoroughly established and determined to crush with relentless hand the slightest opposition to its authority ?

Through ages of persecution and outrage has the Masonio spirit struggled for existence , and its triumphs have crowned every noble sacrifice , every successful principle , and every grand display of intellect , physical energy , and political and moral advancement .

"To suffer woes which hope thinks infinite ; To forgive wrongs darker than the death of night ; To defy power whioh seems omnipotent ; To love and bear ; to hope till hope oreates

From its own wreck the thing it contemplates ; Neither to change , to falter , nor repent ; This like thy glory , Titan , is to be Good , great and joyous , beautiful and free ; This is alone , life , joy , empire and victory . "

The true principle which inspired the noblest of sacrifices , and the grand exhibitions of physical and moral courage , have become blended with the spirit of every age , increasing in power as time advances , and giving fresh vigour and a new impetus to each succeeding epoch . The spirit of

magnanimity and freedom and tho thirst for knowledge which have thus been encouraged have given to the world its present liberal jurisprudence , and excited the genius of enterprise . The purity and beauty of architectural adornment which were established under Operative Masonry

have never been improved . From the time that the Tyrians were first renowned for architectural taste , 1100 B . C ., Operative Masonry has presented new styles of beauty , more chaste and refined . From Tyre and the Temple the

art passed to Greece , and from thence to Rome ; but the Corinthian column is as much to-day the standard of taste as when the marble piles of Athens were the pride of Greece and the admiration of the world .

The spirit of free thought and mutual protection under Masonic teaching has advanced the world in a ratio imposisble to compute . The human mind , relieved from the bondage of superstition , advances to the accomplishment of

its wonderful results . The arts and sciences , and all branches of useful learning and their practical application , go hand in hand with moral development under true Masonic teaching , and he who is not imbued with the full measure of appreciation of both is merely a Mason in

name . It is the duty of all Masons to cultivate knowledge in every department . Perfect freedom encourages investigation ; and the downfall of despotic power and ecclesiastical dominion permits the exercise of mental culture without

fear of physical punishment . When men are controlled by fear , inquiry is at an end , and knowledge is supplanted by ignorance , and all power will soon pass from the ignorant many to the cultivated few . In such a condition of mental

servitude men soon become the victims of the political or spiritual priesthood , who , in the person of a demagogue on the one band and a prelate on the other , are always standing ready to resume the sceptre of power which knowledge takes up and ignorance lays down .

Unanimity of sentiment is a sure evidence of intellectual retrogression . When men begin to think they begin to differ , and from the friction of thought and discussion result those magnificent evolutions which the spirit of Masonry has always encouraged and supported .

While the necessities of Masonic union and Brotherhood for mutual protection against the vengeance of despotic power have tet a great extent disappeared , the danger of

apathy is to be guarded against . " Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty , " and when men no longer experience the effects of tyranny they are apt to forget that the cause which produced the effect is still iu existence .