Freemasonry And The Pope.

"' Do you find in this law any mark of the misdeeds which we stand charged with ancl convicted ofbyyour declaration ? - "•' You charge us with being a politico-religious society . You are addressing the wrong party .

'To cause our adepts to resign their most cherished right , viz ., liberty of conscience and opinion , in - favour of a leading ambition , this is impossible ; iheir spirit of independence would never admit of "the pcrindc ac cadaver .

" We have never said that the practice of benevolence was our sole object ; other societies * may shelter themselves behind this exclusive designation . You know better than wc do thafc they are -dissimulating a portion of their programme .

"Masonic mcetingsnever adjourn withouthaving e-one through a collection in favou * of the poor , ¦ however they think that alms are but a sad palliative that may be done away with by free labour , ¦ order , and habits of saving * .

" We teach the existence of God , and without pronouncing a judgment on the respective merits of the various creeds that embody it , Masonry says to adepts , ' Preserve respectfully the creed your fathers have taught you , as a homage to

those who have preceded you in life / " In adhering to tho immortality of the soul , we teach man the unconditional respect of his

' ¦ di gnity . " in reference to politics , we are citizens abovo aAI , and consider nationality and the defence of the native land fin * above party contentious . "Our chemists have analysed the blood that

comes down from the crusades as well as that which rises tip front the clod ; but with all then * ability they have never discovered such differences as tend to justify tVie prejudices of nobility trad < casfce . With us , all men arc equal , and the

standard for tlio value of a man is formed by his actions and his conduct , but nothing else . " A would-be orthodox impious prejudice , called slavery , has , for a long time , permitted man to sell his equal iu the market , even after having

had him baptized as a christian . Our fathers , tlie lawgivers of the French revolution , have expunged slavery from our codes . In the great straggle that lias just come to a close , we took the part of the liberty of human flesh , and we took to mourning over the fall of its last victim , our brother , Abraham Lincoln .

" For a long time it has been taught that the necessity for working represented a degradation and punishment . By this doctrine , he who worked was thought inferior ; idleness was a sign of superior breed , labour was a disgrace . But our

fathers have said to us , ' Labour is the sole means of rendering man moral , and civilising the world . ' We have proclaimed that labour is honourable ; by us it has been honoured . When Freemasons meet they wear the apron as a symbol of labour .

" We say , ' Family , father , mother , wife , children form an indissoluble circle round man , and he cannot isolate himself therefrom . - He must think of them first , of himself afterwards . Man owes to his kindred bread for mind and body . Morals

are taught by example only . "To new comers Masonry offers bread and water . She says to them , ' Sobz-iety is a virtue , it is a duty of self-preservation ; by ifc your

intellect will last as long as yourself , and your old age will be the evening of a fine day / " Need we give you the explanation of our motto ? " In our opinion , liberty is a right that cannot

change , and has for its absolute limit the liberty of others . " AVo have told you that all men are equal , ancl by what standard we measure their individual value .

' ' Yon call all -men brethren , and wo need not teach you that egotism is short-sighted cleverness . Mutual affection should convict all men ; they owe support to each other , and we remind them that the rights of each have a strict equivalent that is

called duty . " Wo think we have pretty correct notions of what is just and what unjust . With us , the object does not justify the means . ' " ¦ Our adherents and our associations count by

thousands . "If this resume of our doctrine be inaccurate , it will call forward loud denegatious . We are waiting for them . " You ask , ' AVhy do these men of all op inions

and creeds meet ? ' This is very simple . They know that these political and relig ions contentions that havo so long stained the earth wifch blood , are still forming deeply marked lines of demarcation between men . They are looking for a point

of contact , a neutral ground on which they may know and respect each other , and shake hands without resigning any of their principles or opinions . Is this a crime ?