Hidden Mystery—No. 5.

same word Hnyy appearing both in the Arabic and Hebrew languages , signifying not only life , but also the clan which embraced all those who were united together by blood-brotherhood . This belief is not confined to any part of the globe , the most remote races of human beings have the same f orm of shedding the blood of a life as a sacrifice to the Great Unknown . Now , each Arab tribe is , and has been from time immemorial , called by the

name of a special animal called its " Totem , " whose blood is supposed to run in their veins ; in fact , the whole idea of Oriental sacrifice is based on t he conception that the Priest , the victim ( Totem ) , and the God b = come one f amily , namely , having the same life in common , by blood sacrifice . The p rincipal objects of sacrifices we know is propitiation for sin . What then issin t hat it requires blood to be shed and life destroyed ? How came sin into the

world and how can it be possible to wipe it out by destroying life ? Let us try and f athom this mystery by considering its analogy on the material plane . The greater the light we have , the darker must be the shadow , provided matter i s present ; without matter there could be no shadow . The greater the knowledge the greater must be the ignorance necessitated by the finiteness of onr material senses . The greater the goodness , purity , and perfection , the

greater must appear the sin , uncleanness of thought , and imperfection of our finite material senses ; we see then that all these come under the category of what we call plus and minus , equal and opposite to each other . The plus is the reality , the minus is the shadow made manifest by the material , and which increases in the same ratio—and now , with this in mind , let me ask you to consider what is the great underlying principle of all known forces

connected with the physical sciences ; it is what is called the law of the Conservation of Energy ; namely , that " every force must have another force equal and opposite to it . " Let me give you one simple example—when you dash your fist down upon the table , why does it hurt your hand ? Because in obedience to the above law the table hits up against your hand with the same force as you strike it ; if then we may follow the analogy of

this great fundamental basis of the material creation , we seem to come to the conclusion that what we call sin ( the minus or negative of our analogy ) is a necessary result of the presence of goodness , that divine afflatus within us , which we have seen is the only reality and which is the plus of our analogy . It was between this plus and minus , good and evil , this knowledge and ignorance of the Deity ,

that freewill was to choose . Goodness does not create sin , it only brings it into evidence as light does not create but makes manifest the shadow ; and we can now perhaps understand in a way not hitherto appreciated those mysterious words of Christ— " I bring unto you not peace but a sword . " ( . ) His whole life and teaching , by raising the level cf moral laws , made certain acts sin which were not sin before , because , as

the Philosopher Paul tells us , without law there can be no sin ; the higher the level of morality , the more stringent become these laws , and new sins are brought into evidence . The Creator then who , in His infinite love , gave us freewill , made Himself responsible , as it were , for this state of things , and it was only He who could bring the remedy . As , in the old Jewish customs ,

once every year a goat was taken , and , after all the sins of the people had , by a priestly act , been placed on its head , it was driven out of the camp with curses into the wilderness , so was it " fore-ordained from the beginning " that the Creator should , in the fulness of time , fulfil that old law , and remove from the human race the burden of that minus , in order that only the pl-ss , or that which was perfect , should be left .

The rite of blood sacrifice and destruction of the Animal Life foreshadowed and represented therefore the destruction of that matter upon which alone rested the very existence of these negatives , because as we have seen , without the presence of the material with its finite bounds , there could be no shadow , no ignorance , no death , no evil . What then is this marvellous pins or that which is perfect , which alone is to be left when the final

sacrifice ( I' the material is consummated and matter ceases to exist ? . . . Planted within each one of us there is a divine seed capable of germinating and , if su ' tably nourished , of growing in strength and in the likeness of the deity , and if you have followed me in these demonstrations you will , I think , recognise that the gradual growth of that inner self , which brings us nearer and ever nearer to perfect harmony with God , is the plus , and the existence of that knowledge of Him within us is Life Eternal .

Let me in conclusion recall to your memory the plan of argument laid down at the commencement of the series and the reason why I have given you illustrations from each of the physical sciences . I have confined myself to laying only fuels before you and have concluded each demonstration by suggesting certain deductions which I trust have not only interested you but have also helped to elucidate some of the mysteries by which we are

surrounded . The foundation stone , upon which the whole structure of my argument rests , is that great truth upon which the science of Masonry stands and which is acknowledged by every true Mason throughout the world , whatever his nationality or religion may be , namely , the existence of the Great Architect of the Universe . It was for the express purpose of trying to gain a clearer knowledge of Him who is the head of our Order , that I have

ventured to address you at each of the meetings held during my year of oflice . At the outset we had to acknowledge that our finite minds cannot grasp the infinities of perfection of the Godhead and we were , therefore , obliged to examine them under the finite material forms as depicted in His works around us . This is so obviously the window through which we are meant to

look , that I did not think it necessary to explain further , but we have good authority for doing this ; if we go back to the most ancient times we find the highest thinkers maintaining that" everything in Heaven had its counterpart on Earth , " and if we once more turn to Paul , whom we must acknowledge as one of the greatest thinkers of his time , we find him writing to the then greatest nation upon the earth in the following words :

" For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men , who hold down the truth in unrighteousness ; because Ihat which may be known of God is manifest in them ; for God manifested it unto them . I ' or Ihe invisible things of Him since the creation of llie world are clearly seen , being perceived th rough the things that arc made , even His everlasting power and divinity , so thai Ihey may be

without excuse . — ( Romans I ., is to 20 , R . V . ) In my installation address , we examined in this way the two marvellous infinities omniscience and omnipresence , and in these demonstrations I have tried to lead you , by the same process of thought , to the appreciation of the third and greatest of them all , ¦ ' Infinite love . " To do this we have taken the wonderful tracing board of

the Great Architect , and have examined thereon the principal lines and curves of that beauty or sympathy which is the reflection of Divine love on the material plane . What has been the result of our investigation ? We found that throughout the whole of nature , as depicted by the physical sciences , the one great universal power was sympathy j in fact , no work could he

Hidden Mystery—No. 5.

maintained without sympathetic action : what a marvellous conclusion to our investigation I Let us see where it leads us . The whole of creation is the materialisation of the thoughts of the Deity , we have , therefore , in the forces of nature , the impress of the very essence of the Deity . Our innermost self is an emanation from that Deity , and it would seem that prayer , which , at the beginning , is only a striving to bring ourselves into harmony

with the Deity , must , as the soul grows in strength and knowledge , become a great power working under the wonderful principle of sympathy . True prayer then , indeed , becomes love in action , and we almost seem to grasp that under certain conditions prayer might be looked upon as the greatest physical force in nature . But let us carry this one step further ; can we by our analogy understand why " the knowledge of God is everlasting-life ? "

Look at the first iron bar and watch how , as long as it keeps on vibrating , the second . bar , because it is in sympathy , will be kept in motion ; if it were possible for the first bar to vibrate for ever , the second bar would , speaking materially , have everlasting life , through its being in sympathy with the first bar ; without this connection the bar would be lifeless . Now apply this to our innermost self ; it is being nourished ; the plus , or

knowledge , of God is increasing ; it is at last pulsating in perfect harmony with the Deity , and , when the material universe disappears , and the minus is swept into oblivion , its affinity to infinite love must give it everlasting life , everything that has not this connection is but a shadow , which will cease to be manifest when the volition of the Deity is withdrawn and matter ceases to exist . Nothing can then exist except that which is perfected , that which

is of the essence of God , namely , the Spiritual . Beauty will then reign supreme , such beauty as cannot be described in earthly language nor even imagined by our corporeal senses , hence in the many passages we possess referring to that wondrous life hereafter , we are not told what Heaven is like but only what is not to be found there— "Eye hath not seen , nor ear heard , neither have entered into the heart of man , the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him . " ( 1 Cor . II . » 9 . )

Dunckerley's " Charges," 1757.

DUNCKERLEY'S " CHARGES , " 1757 .

One of the rarest Masonic works that I know of is the little book containing the two " Charges , " or Orations , by the R . W . Bro . Thomas Dunckerley , published in 1757 . The only copy that has been traced of late years is the one in the valuable Library of the " Ouatuor Coronati "

Lodge , No . 2076 , being the First Edition . The last line on Title is rubbed out , and originally read " Price six-pence , " I believe , as in the second edition of 175 S , which is preserved at Worcester . This is also the only one I know of ( second edition ) , and is No . 116 in the " Catalogue of the Worcestershire Masonic Library and Museum , " ( ISQI ) .

Although the Dedication is signed by " Tho . Dunckerley , M . M . " i . e ., Master Mason , he was undoubtedly Master of the Lodge at the time , as the Title states , which follows herewith : " The Light and Truth of Masonry explained , In a Charge deliver'd to

the Antient and Honourable Society of Free and Accepted Masons at The Pope's Head Tavern in Plymouth , On the Dedicating and Opening A New Lodge Room , April the 28 th 1757 , Also The Moral Part of Masonry Explained In a Charge Deliver'd at the same Lodge on the 24 th of June , 1757 ; being the feast of the nativity of St . John the Baptist . "

By Thomas Dunckerley , Master of the Lodge . Printed , for the Author , by Andrew Brice , Printer in Exeter ; and sold by Messrs . Davy and Law , in Ave-Mary Lane , London ; and by R . Haydon in Plymouth . MD CC LVII . I ? price obliterated ] . " The little books is 24010 ., and pagination runs continuously to " ( 40 ) . "

It is dedicated to the Earl of Chesterfield " From on board His Majesty ' s Ship Vanguard at Plymouth , June 30 , 1757 " by the Author . The first Charge was reprinted , in part , in the " Freemasons' M igazine , " Aug . 1794 , from which Bro . Sadler reproduced it in his able volume on " Tho-nas

Dunckerley , His Life , Labours , and Letters ( 1891 ) . The portion omitted refers to " the present flourishing state of Masonry in Plymouth , " and the " choice of so good a Master to succeed me in the Chair ; " the date at end being " Monday , April lS , 5757 . Tho . Dunckerley , M . M . "

The second Charge was " Deliver d to the Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons . Held at the Pope ' s Head in Plymouth , By Thomas Danckerley , Master of the Lodge , June the 24 'h , 5757 , " pages 23 1040 . The lodge was constituted at the "Pope ' s Head , " Pike-street , Plymouth ,

on ist May , 1748 , according to Bro . Jno . Lane ' s invaluable " Masonic Records , 1717—18 94 " ( Freemasons' Hall . London , 1895 ) , and was origi-• nally numbered 203 . It was called the " Prince George Lodge " later on , probably because of its meeting at the " Prince George" for some years .

H . R . H . the Duke of Clarence , afterwards William IV ., was initiated in this lodge in 1787 , and , as the members were so liberal in their donations to the Freemasons' Hall Fund , their Master had the right to wear the handsome " Freemasons' Hall Medal , " suspended from the square , during the existence of the lodge . All its honours , however , failed to keep it on th ' Roll after 1828—which is much to be regretted .

There was another lodge formed in the same year in Plymouth , about which a curious error in the enumeration is noted by Bro . Lane ( page 90 ) 1 and the "Lodge of Fortitude , " No . 105 , 0 ! 1759 origin , has been credited with having initiated the third son of George III . and brother of George

IV . ; but erroneously so . The Duke of Clarence was W . M . of the Prince of VVales Lodge from 1827 to 1 S 30 , when , as William IV ., he became Grand Patron . —See " Royal Freemasons , " by Bro . G . W . Speth ( 1885 ) , and other works . I should like to know of the whereabouts of copies of the two Editions , if others are known , either in Great Britain or elsewhere . W . J . HUGHAN .

? - LADY GEORGE HAMILTON has consented to open a sale ol work on behalf of' ?' Barefoot Mission of the Ragged School Union in the Marlborough Rooms of the ro'r " teel nic , Regent-street , on . Wednesday afternoon , the 9 th pro * .