Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
A Masonic Yarn Told At Sea.
procured accommodation for me in n well-conducted inn , and tlie next morning 1 met him by appointment at the contractors' offices . As it liuppened the only post open was of n somewhat different character to what I had expected , still anything was better than nothing . I was required to drive the surveyors from one section to another and help to inn tlie chain in taking measurements ; when -this part of the day ' s work was over I had to drive the contractor from the small
town to his house about three miles outside and take him back the next morning . As I had no grooming or stable-work to do , I had apartments provided in tlie village carpenter ' s house , and altogether 1 was not so badly off ; however , my evenings were not of tho lively kind to which 1 had been accustomed , and many a time I went over the various ceremonies sotto voce while walking along the village lanes , so that I kept the Masonic work well in mind .
" I soon discovered that the contractor was a Freemason , also the clergyman and a solicitor who resided in the village , and several times when driving them home after a Lodge meeting , I Jiave been amused to hear one or the other , when any Masonic matter was mentioned , give tlie others a caution , pointing to me at the same time . I longed sometimes to let them know that I was perhaps better
acquainted with the matter than they were , but I deemed it prudent not to do so in my then position . At length tho day of installation came round ; my governor was the Worshipful Master elect . Being considered a handy sort of fellow , I was asked to render assistance to the hotel keeper during the banquet , which was an event of some importance in the town . The stage coach running from a town some eighteen miles distant and passing on to the railway town some
thirteen miles beyond , came rattling over the roughly-paved street during the afternoon , and pulled up at the hotel . Out rushed several of the Masonic body , evidently expecting the arrival of some important personage ; but instead of an individual , the guard handed to one of them a small parcel , which 1 afterwards learnt contained the information that the brother who should have arrived by the coach , and on whom they had relied to perform the installation ceremony , was prevented from coming through some cause or other .
li After a good deal of consultation amongst themselves and with the landlord , it was decided to have the banquet and adjourn the ceremony ; but on passing me in the entrance hall my employer laughingly remarked'" Well , William , you are pretty handy in most things , but this is a difficulty vou cannot help us out of . '
" 1 shall not forget liis face when I replied " ' Well , sir , 1 am not so sure about that . ' " ' Hang it , man , ' said he ; ' you are not a Freemason . ' "' Try me , ' I replied ; but he did not stop to do this , us he hurriedly rushed upstairs . " In a few minutes I was sent for , and ushered into the ante-room ,
A Masonic Yarn Told At Sea.
where I found the parson and several Past Musters . The examination did not take long , as 1 soon proved that I was qualified and able to do the work . The requisite clothing was borrowed , the lodge opened , and I took the chair at the proper time . Now my previous
education proved of the utmost use ; I felt in good form , and , to my mind , I never did a ceremony so well . I was congratulated on all sides , nrore especially so as it certainly was a novel position for a Worshipful Master to be installed b y his coachman .
' On leaving the Lodge room I was raminded b y tlie Tyler that I had not signed the attendance book , and now canto the event which was of such subsequent importance . 1 was so elated that I thoughtlessly signed my proper name as P . M . I declined , though strongly pressed , to sit down to the banquet ,
and when the visitors toast came round and the attendance-book was handed to the Worshipful Master , I saw at a glance the mistake Iliad made ; but he , with true Masonic spirit , respected my secret and passed it over without a word , though , as it turned out , lie had noticed it .
"At this time there was no public library in the town , tlie only stationer in the place had set apart a small room for a few subscribers to read the Times and one or two other London papers , where they arrived the day after publication .
About three weeks after the installation 1 was just starting off with the surveyors when 1 was called into the private office , where I found my employer with tho Times supplement before him . He at once drew my attention to an advertisement to the effect that if W I , who left London about ei ghteen months before ,
would apply to a solicitor s firm ( naming my father ' s old firm ) , Jio would learn particulars of his mother ' s death . " 'I think , ' said my employer , 'tin ' s may refer to you as it is tlie same name you wrote in the attendance-book of the Lodge . ' " 1 was bound to admit such to be the fact , and acting upon his advice , I made the best of my way back to London as quickly as
possible , and placed myself in communication with the solicitors . 1 found , however , that although I had a good round sum at my disposal 1 had been unfairly dealt with by my brother ; so as soon as it could be done , I realised my share and started off to Montreal , where 1 had relations living . I was not long in proenring a situation ns usher in a . school , where 1 not only taught , but studied hard .
until 1 hud gamed a professorship in one of the Universities , which I hold until two years ago . So you sec , said our old friend , if I had not been able to instal my employer J should not have signed my rig ht name in the attendance-book , and , as newspapers were not then so p lentiful as now , 1 might have gone without any knowledge of my mother ' s death for some years . " J . H . S .
A Ballad.
A Ballad .
A CHILD'S VOICE .
Father and inofJier and little . son , Stood on the p ier when the day was done ' . He kissed his wife with his bearded lips , As the sun-glow faded beyond the ships ! " Father ! Father ! oh take mc 1 pray To sail with vou o ' er the waters grey !"
The father held up the little hid , [ sad ; And his eyes were bright though his face was "You must stay with your mother sit home , " said lie "And love her . and watch her , dear son for me " '
¦ Mother and . son ; t . s the night fell down , Went haud-in-hand to the white-walled town ! At daybreak the mother and son were there , The one asleep and the other in prayer ! She toiled and span and the hoy p layed on , As day-by-day of the weeks were gone ! Morning b y morning and night by night , They prayed for him ' mid the icellocs while !
A Ballad.
The Autumn faded to winter drear , And 'Xniiis chimes rang the knell of the year ! 'Xiiuis glad with its liyinu of peace , [ cease ! When all the years auger and strife should
Oh ! 'Xmis chimes that ring out so sweet , When friends and sweethearts may love and meet ! Oh ! 'Xuias chimes that sound sad and drear , When of all that love us not one is near !
It wanted a day and it wanted a night To the 'Xniiis morn , and the snow fell white . The sea m-ide m un on the harbour b . tr Where the lighthouse g leamed like a lonely star . The little house ' neath the snow clad hill , Stood dark and silent and lone and still !
' . Mother " ! the lad cried out in his sleep , '' There ' s death and woe fo-nig lit on tludoep " ! " Sleep , sleep , my child , as she sniiotlied his hair , " Her lips a-treinble with silent prayer ! She kissed the bid , and so like was he To him wlio battled the wild North SJ ; I !
A Ballad.
At dawn she rose and she sought his bod , With ii heart of terror the boy had ( led ! A boat Wiis missing from out the pier , " Oh husband , " she sobbed , " Oh darling , dear !" Back she silently went her way , As the bells were ringing-in 'Xmas Day !
And she sat in her cottage alone and apart , With a strife at her brain , and sore grief at her heart ! Wild as the waves moaned so moaned she , Of the cruel bitter death-dealing sea ! [ cheer Neighbours they came with their pity and
She sat as one deafened who will not hear ! At dead of night on the third dread day , She wandered down to the storm-girt bay ! Out sit , sea ' mid the tempest wild , Hose faint the wail of a little child !
' bather ! Father ! " the voice but , craved ! The father heard and the child was saved ! On through the murk , and the blinding wrack , The vessel she piviyed for and hoped , came back !
le ather and in it-her ain ' t little son , St-v . vl O-A UYM piw for the voyage is done . WII . I . MnWAiiiiKs-Si'i . 'A . ' i : i-:.
Ad01905
A DOOR OF HOPE . Field Lane Refuges and Ragged Schools WORK AMONGST THE POOREST CLASSES—50 YEARS' EXPERIENCE . The Committee earnestly appeal for Funds lo enable them to Continue their beneficent WOrk . / 700 to 800 Christinas Dinners for the Homeless SPECIAL HKLP is asked for so that we may provide j Dinner for 600 Deserving- Families (¦ New Year ' s Dinner for 800 Poor Children FUNDS are also urgently needed for "The Refuges for the Homeless Poor . " ¦ £ 7 , 000 required before Christmas . TltEAsnto , W 1 LFII 1 JJ A . UK VAX , Esq . UAXKKHS , . MKSSIIS . liAHCLAV , UKVAN A Co ., 5-1-, Lombard Street , KC unit 1 l ' ull . Mull Kasl S . W SKCUKTAUV , Mil . PEHKdltlNE I'LATT , l- 'iclil Uino Institution , Vine Street , L'lui-keuwell llouil , K . C . By any of whom Contributions will he thankfully received .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
A Masonic Yarn Told At Sea.
procured accommodation for me in n well-conducted inn , and tlie next morning 1 met him by appointment at the contractors' offices . As it liuppened the only post open was of n somewhat different character to what I had expected , still anything was better than nothing . I was required to drive the surveyors from one section to another and help to inn tlie chain in taking measurements ; when -this part of the day ' s work was over I had to drive the contractor from the small
town to his house about three miles outside and take him back the next morning . As I had no grooming or stable-work to do , I had apartments provided in tlie village carpenter ' s house , and altogether 1 was not so badly off ; however , my evenings were not of tho lively kind to which 1 had been accustomed , and many a time I went over the various ceremonies sotto voce while walking along the village lanes , so that I kept the Masonic work well in mind .
" I soon discovered that the contractor was a Freemason , also the clergyman and a solicitor who resided in the village , and several times when driving them home after a Lodge meeting , I Jiave been amused to hear one or the other , when any Masonic matter was mentioned , give tlie others a caution , pointing to me at the same time . I longed sometimes to let them know that I was perhaps better
acquainted with the matter than they were , but I deemed it prudent not to do so in my then position . At length tho day of installation came round ; my governor was the Worshipful Master elect . Being considered a handy sort of fellow , I was asked to render assistance to the hotel keeper during the banquet , which was an event of some importance in the town . The stage coach running from a town some eighteen miles distant and passing on to the railway town some
thirteen miles beyond , came rattling over the roughly-paved street during the afternoon , and pulled up at the hotel . Out rushed several of the Masonic body , evidently expecting the arrival of some important personage ; but instead of an individual , the guard handed to one of them a small parcel , which 1 afterwards learnt contained the information that the brother who should have arrived by the coach , and on whom they had relied to perform the installation ceremony , was prevented from coming through some cause or other .
li After a good deal of consultation amongst themselves and with the landlord , it was decided to have the banquet and adjourn the ceremony ; but on passing me in the entrance hall my employer laughingly remarked'" Well , William , you are pretty handy in most things , but this is a difficulty vou cannot help us out of . '
" 1 shall not forget liis face when I replied " ' Well , sir , 1 am not so sure about that . ' " ' Hang it , man , ' said he ; ' you are not a Freemason . ' "' Try me , ' I replied ; but he did not stop to do this , us he hurriedly rushed upstairs . " In a few minutes I was sent for , and ushered into the ante-room ,
A Masonic Yarn Told At Sea.
where I found the parson and several Past Musters . The examination did not take long , as 1 soon proved that I was qualified and able to do the work . The requisite clothing was borrowed , the lodge opened , and I took the chair at the proper time . Now my previous
education proved of the utmost use ; I felt in good form , and , to my mind , I never did a ceremony so well . I was congratulated on all sides , nrore especially so as it certainly was a novel position for a Worshipful Master to be installed b y his coachman .
' On leaving the Lodge room I was raminded b y tlie Tyler that I had not signed the attendance book , and now canto the event which was of such subsequent importance . 1 was so elated that I thoughtlessly signed my proper name as P . M . I declined , though strongly pressed , to sit down to the banquet ,
and when the visitors toast came round and the attendance-book was handed to the Worshipful Master , I saw at a glance the mistake Iliad made ; but he , with true Masonic spirit , respected my secret and passed it over without a word , though , as it turned out , lie had noticed it .
"At this time there was no public library in the town , tlie only stationer in the place had set apart a small room for a few subscribers to read the Times and one or two other London papers , where they arrived the day after publication .
About three weeks after the installation 1 was just starting off with the surveyors when 1 was called into the private office , where I found my employer with tho Times supplement before him . He at once drew my attention to an advertisement to the effect that if W I , who left London about ei ghteen months before ,
would apply to a solicitor s firm ( naming my father ' s old firm ) , Jio would learn particulars of his mother ' s death . " 'I think , ' said my employer , 'tin ' s may refer to you as it is tlie same name you wrote in the attendance-book of the Lodge . ' " 1 was bound to admit such to be the fact , and acting upon his advice , I made the best of my way back to London as quickly as
possible , and placed myself in communication with the solicitors . 1 found , however , that although I had a good round sum at my disposal 1 had been unfairly dealt with by my brother ; so as soon as it could be done , I realised my share and started off to Montreal , where 1 had relations living . I was not long in proenring a situation ns usher in a . school , where 1 not only taught , but studied hard .
until 1 hud gamed a professorship in one of the Universities , which I hold until two years ago . So you sec , said our old friend , if I had not been able to instal my employer J should not have signed my rig ht name in the attendance-book , and , as newspapers were not then so p lentiful as now , 1 might have gone without any knowledge of my mother ' s death for some years . " J . H . S .
A Ballad.
A Ballad .
A CHILD'S VOICE .
Father and inofJier and little . son , Stood on the p ier when the day was done ' . He kissed his wife with his bearded lips , As the sun-glow faded beyond the ships ! " Father ! Father ! oh take mc 1 pray To sail with vou o ' er the waters grey !"
The father held up the little hid , [ sad ; And his eyes were bright though his face was "You must stay with your mother sit home , " said lie "And love her . and watch her , dear son for me " '
¦ Mother and . son ; t . s the night fell down , Went haud-in-hand to the white-walled town ! At daybreak the mother and son were there , The one asleep and the other in prayer ! She toiled and span and the hoy p layed on , As day-by-day of the weeks were gone ! Morning b y morning and night by night , They prayed for him ' mid the icellocs while !
A Ballad.
The Autumn faded to winter drear , And 'Xniiis chimes rang the knell of the year ! 'Xiiuis glad with its liyinu of peace , [ cease ! When all the years auger and strife should
Oh ! 'Xmis chimes that ring out so sweet , When friends and sweethearts may love and meet ! Oh ! 'Xuias chimes that sound sad and drear , When of all that love us not one is near !
It wanted a day and it wanted a night To the 'Xniiis morn , and the snow fell white . The sea m-ide m un on the harbour b . tr Where the lighthouse g leamed like a lonely star . The little house ' neath the snow clad hill , Stood dark and silent and lone and still !
' . Mother " ! the lad cried out in his sleep , '' There ' s death and woe fo-nig lit on tludoep " ! " Sleep , sleep , my child , as she sniiotlied his hair , " Her lips a-treinble with silent prayer ! She kissed the bid , and so like was he To him wlio battled the wild North SJ ; I !
A Ballad.
At dawn she rose and she sought his bod , With ii heart of terror the boy had ( led ! A boat Wiis missing from out the pier , " Oh husband , " she sobbed , " Oh darling , dear !" Back she silently went her way , As the bells were ringing-in 'Xmas Day !
And she sat in her cottage alone and apart , With a strife at her brain , and sore grief at her heart ! Wild as the waves moaned so moaned she , Of the cruel bitter death-dealing sea ! [ cheer Neighbours they came with their pity and
She sat as one deafened who will not hear ! At dead of night on the third dread day , She wandered down to the storm-girt bay ! Out sit , sea ' mid the tempest wild , Hose faint the wail of a little child !
' bather ! Father ! " the voice but , craved ! The father heard and the child was saved ! On through the murk , and the blinding wrack , The vessel she piviyed for and hoped , came back !
le ather and in it-her ain ' t little son , St-v . vl O-A UYM piw for the voyage is done . WII . I . MnWAiiiiKs-Si'i . 'A . ' i : i-:.
Ad01905
A DOOR OF HOPE . Field Lane Refuges and Ragged Schools WORK AMONGST THE POOREST CLASSES—50 YEARS' EXPERIENCE . The Committee earnestly appeal for Funds lo enable them to Continue their beneficent WOrk . / 700 to 800 Christinas Dinners for the Homeless SPECIAL HKLP is asked for so that we may provide j Dinner for 600 Deserving- Families (¦ New Year ' s Dinner for 800 Poor Children FUNDS are also urgently needed for "The Refuges for the Homeless Poor . " ¦ £ 7 , 000 required before Christmas . TltEAsnto , W 1 LFII 1 JJ A . UK VAX , Esq . UAXKKHS , . MKSSIIS . liAHCLAV , UKVAN A Co ., 5-1-, Lombard Street , KC unit 1 l ' ull . Mull Kasl S . W SKCUKTAUV , Mil . PEHKdltlNE I'LATT , l- 'iclil Uino Institution , Vine Street , L'lui-keuwell llouil , K . C . By any of whom Contributions will he thankfully received .