Masonry's Humanity.

accept theni with a reference to nothing else except their positive use and meaning as developing Masonic dogmas . — " New Zealand Craftsman . " * * * There should be no dissensions among us as to our

beliefs or duty . They are plain enough to any one seeking light . Let there be no strife among us , except as to who can L _ st carry out the precepts of the Fraternity , and bur plain duty as laid down in the Great Light in all the degrees of Freemasonry—the Holy Bible . —Lee S . Smith , Pennsylvania .

.: Our beautiful temples are reared , not as Aladdin palaces by the fiat of the slave of the lamp . They are builded stone by stone with infinite toil and patience . Their walls are

tried , by the plumb , proved by the level and must conform to the square . The trowel and the setting maul are wielded by strong right arms , and these arms belong to freemen . — " Keystone . "

* # * Through the savagery and ignorance of antiquitythrough the darkness and bigotry of the middle agesthrough calumny and aspersion , brave hearts . have protected

the secrets of our Fraternity , cultivated the graces of a noble and lasting friendship , and contributed to the highest ideals of honour and to the development of the sublimest qualities of the soul . —Willis G . Emerson , Colorado .

* * * Secrecy of plot and execution are wrong only when the objects and ends are nefarious . Every family is a secret society , or at least , ought to be ; so is every business firm

and every banking and insurance institution . Those men who have no capacity to keep a secret are unfit for positions of trust anywhere . There is a time to keep silence as well as a time to speak . —Rev . Morgan A . Peters , Pennsylvania .

(¦¦¦ ¦ ¦ * * * The best man for Master is not always the best ritualist . It takes magnetism and executive ability to successfully rule and govern a Lodge . The Brother who aspires to become a

Master- should consider well whether he can afford the expenditure of time and labour which such a . position .. in-r volves . In many cases he must neglect either , his business or his Lodge , and a man with limited means can scarcely afford to neelect his business . —Exchange .

* * * Institutions , like men , may be judged by their fruits . It is . only by the recognition of this principle that we are able to form an accurate opinion and put a just estimate upon men arid things . God judges actions by their motives : we can

only infer their nature and quality from the exhibition before us . . "By their fruits ye shall know them , " is the language of one whose omniscience scanned all motives , and whose infallible judgment weighed in the scales of a righteous decision , all acts . —Ex .

* * * There is a vast deal more in Masonry than mere signs , grips and words ; and the ability to recite the esoteric and monitorial work . There is no fiction in the assertion you are all- familiar with , that " no institution was ever raised on a

better principle or more solid foundation , " nor that there were ever more useful maxims and rules laid down for usefulness is vast and illimitable for those who can intellectually grasp the beauties and properly assimilate the teachings of our ancient Order . —E . M . Showalter . .-:,

* * * It is not the . knowledge of Lodge Room form that distinguishes the true Mason so much as his good deeds in his associations with his fellowmen . A true Mason is a true man and . is , distinguishable as much outside the official

confines as within . The mere Lodge Room Mason is a blot upon the Fraternity , for his constant attendance at the meetings is sure to be known to his friends and

acquaintances , and , when they see that his life has no higher aims than other men , they are not slow to conclude that the practical education of the Order is not what they had always believed . —" Boston Ideas . " * * # _ Masonry believes in the divine presence acting upon individual existences . God is above , we are beneath : there-

Masonry's Humanity.

fore let us be humble and our words few . We must believe that when we invoke a blessing on our undertakings , He ifi Heaven hears us . His presence is with us , and to Him we shall answer at the last , and be rewarded or unrewarded

according as we have shaped the course of our lives , and , above all , as His divine principle of justice will decide . The living Spirit of God must ever be the true Sp irit resting oh Masonic life and conduct . If this is lost , sig ht of there is only chaos and confusion . — " American Freemason . "

There ought to be no prouder moment in a man s life than when he is declared to be a Master Mason . He may continue and take all the Masonic degrees , including the wonderful thirty-third ; he may win renown , become governor , TJ nited States senator , or even President of the United

States ; he may accumulate millions of dollars , may become the richest man in America—but if he fully learned the import of the real spirit of his first three degrees in Masonry , he will never realise a moment when he stood higher in his own estimation than when the announcement was made that he was a Master Mason . — " American Freemason . "

What are the truths especially for which Masonry stands ? First , it stands for Reverence . The solemn recognition of God is seen in the first symbol which meets the eye of the candidate as he gazes upward . Reverence is a principle which uplifts the human soul . It is , moreover , the conserver of law .

Without Reverence for Deity , the human race would relapse into lawlessness ; without Reverence man would sink to the condition of the brute ; without Reverence , all authority dies , all States crumble , all family life becomes debased , all fraternities lose their cohesive power . I would , therefore , place Reverence as the first cOrner-stohe of Masonry . —Bishop M . N . Gilbert .

* * * The cardinal principles of Freemasonry are the theological virtues of Faith , Hope , and Love . Faith in God , Hope in immortality , and Love- with all mankind . In my interpretation of Masonry , I give Love the highest place . As the- sun

is the centre of the solar system , as the heart is the centre of life , so Love is' the central , all-conserving and enliftihg principle , of our noble Order . Love will outrun benevolence ; it will tarry longer than sympathy . Love will stand at the

door and knock andwait with expectant heart arid wide open eves long after sentiment has fallen into a deep sleep . Love is born for adversity , for the storm , the night , the sick chamber , the solitary hours , for poverty and disaster . ;—Edward Michaelis .

The Brother who speaks of Freemasonry as ah Order displays a woeful lack of Masonic information . In no sense is Freemasonry an Order . It is , however , a society , a fraternity , an institution . Freemasonry is a Brotherhood , the like of which does not exist . The present age has been

fruitful m the multiplication of mushroom orders , and by the profane Freemasonry is classed with them . They are totally ignorant of the fact that the organisation , laws and regulations of Freemasonry are original and unique . Its

counterpart cannot be found , and for this reason it lays claim to the distinction of being a fraternity in the broadest sense of the word , an institution without a parallel and a society par excellence : Nowhere in our ritual Or ceremonies is the word " Order " used . — " Illinois Freemason . "

The insidious desire for innovation arises largely from the influence of other societies to which so many Masons belong . Modern societies are all but numberless , but no one of them cpvers Our broad field . Each has its special mission of good , but every effort to incorporate the peculiarities of any one of

them in our Institution has a weakening tendency . If every Mason fully realised how infinitely higher Blue Lodge Masonry is than any of them and how entirely unimprovable it is , there would be less trouble . When a Brother is an active

officer of some other society it is , of course , very hard for him to divest himself of views with which he has become saturated but he should be very careful not to urge them on an institution whose landmarks forbid change . ' —J . W . Eggleston , of Virginia .

» # » We frequently hear of a great boom striking a Lodge , and sometimes as many as twelve or fifteen petitions being received in a single evening . It would be interesting to learn the exact influences which brought about this sudden