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Mr . D . laughed , and when he had recovered his breath , said , " You didn't take me for a Mason , did you . " "Yes . I supposed you were , or else j r ou would not have interested yourself in my Masonic associations and actions , " said Tom . " Oh , no indeed . I know nothing about Masonry , excepting what I've found in this little book , " D . replied and he opened his valise

and took out a copy of " The Freemason s Monitor , with a variety of tools , all of which he placed upon the table . He then continued : " I heard you were a Mason , but I doubted it . I had an idea that you were an eligible candidate for admission into an order to which I belong , but as no good Mason , could belong to that , I thought I'd come and satisfy myself . "

" But , Mr . D ., why may not a man belong to Freemasonry and to your Order as well V " Because , my good fellow , it is the province of Masonry to build up . and it is the province of my Order to tear down , to destroy , to degrade , to ruin . What are the working tools of an Entered Apprentice . ' " " The twenty-four-inch , gauge and the common gavel . " '

"How do you , use them ? " Mr . D . inquired , with emphasis and significance . " I don't think I understand yon , and I cannot really say , " Tom replied , not a little disconcerted . "Shall I make a suggestion ? " Tom assented . "You use the twenty-four inch gat ge for ignoble and inglorious purposes .

Emblematical of the day , you divide your day into two unequal parts . You find a half-dozen hours for the vocation by means of which you gain your living , and thrice that time for excess and luxurious living . For God and a distressed brother you find nothing ?" " Sir , " said Tom , indignantly , " I protest against all this . " Mr . D . smiled . " Will you kindly let me see that document lying

by your elbow' Tom shook his head and tried to keep it from his visitor ; tried to put it out of sight , but all his efforts were in vain , and Mr . D . took the document and opened it . " A mortgage , isn't it . '" he asked , and something in his tone made Tom ' s heart sink within him . He bowed his head in silence , and doubted if he could have said anything , even if his life had depended on it . "A

mortgage , " continued Tom ' s visitor , " and securing a note at a very high rate of interest . Five hundred dollars would satisfy the debt , while the property is worth at least four times that , and yet you are going to foreclose your claim , are you not ?" " Of course I am , " said Tom sullenly , and rather against his will . " What would you have a man do , if it were any of your business ?" " I may make it my business , my dear fellow , before I am done

with you . This debt is one you could afford to lose , so far as that is concerned , but there is no danger of your having to lose it . The interest has always been paid promptly , and the principal will be paid eventually , if you will only wait patiently . What are the working tools of a Fellow Craft . " " The plumb , the square , and the level , " replied Tom , promptly and unhesitatingly .

" Please explain their symbolic meaning , said D . with a piercing look . Tom opened his mouth and he heard the words spoken , but he could hardly believe that it was himself who was speaking . His heart protested , vainly , against the words he uttered , but he went

Reports Of Lodge Meetings.

relentlessly on . Never had he imagined the words could be so perverted and misused : " The plumb permits us to walk proudly , giving heed to neither God nor a humbler brother , squaring our accounts with the unfortunate by means of the pitiless square of the law . and—"

Mr . D . laughed . " You re frank , my dear fellow , to a most praiseworthy degree , though little else about you is praiseworthy . There is no doubt that you live up to what you have said . I think this mortgage is against the estate of a deceased Freemason , and for his widow to pay it , at once , would be to take food from the mouths of his orphan children , and— But enough of that ! What is the use of the trowel . ' "

" I cannot say , " stammered Tom , " and I think I never knew . " " I know you never did , " said Mr . D . savagely , as he arose to his feet and leaned across the table until his hot breath fell upon Tom ' s face . "I know you never did . Who ever knew you to further friendship and accord when you could coin money out of men ' s contests ? Who can think of brotherly love and of you in the same

connection , you impudent , self-sufficient , time-serving fellow ? " Mr . D . paused for a moment , as though to get breath . Then he reached over , caught Tom by the collar , and dragged him slowly up over the table , at the same time saying slowly and significantly , "You are no Mason , no matter how many degrees you have taken , and you never will be . The Order which pulls down and builds not up again—the

Order which destroys and puts nothing in the place of that which it ruined—the Order which magnifies self , and which never heard of fraternity—that is the Order for you , and this very night you sh all be initiated therein . " Tom struggled violently , cried out incoherently—and awohe . Mr . D . and his visit had been only a dream ? The fire was out . the room was cold , and it was already twilight

—a twilight which was rapidly darkening into night . Tom put away the mortgage ; wrote a letter to his debtor , generously giving her more time , and then burned , without opening and re-reading is a letter of a different tenour which he had written earlier in the day . " Thank God is was only a dream , " he said , gratefully , as he hurried along the street , " but such a dream—such a dream ! " he added ,

with a shudder . " Thank God it was only my other self , my better self , that attacked and humbled me , instead of being what it might have been ! Thank God that I have not been a bad man , and that now I shall not be ; thank Him that His heaven-sent vision found me at the parting of the ways—at the crisis of my life . " Tom called upon James Jones on his way home and handed him

another twenty-five dollars . Mr . Jones seemed astonished . " I supposed you abided by your decisions 2 " said he . " What induced you to change your mind ?" Tom laughed , which spoke well for the salutary effect of the lesson he had received , and he pleasantly replied , "A little thoughtful

consideration of the principles of Freemasonry . " " I've been saving money for some time , " said James Jones , suddenly , " with the intention of applying for admission to the Masonic Fraternity . I am going to try to be a Mason , and I hope I can gain acceptance . Will you get me a petition and recommend me ?"

" I will , said Tom , and then , as he walked slowly and thoughtfully homeward , he said to himself : " I have had an escape , to-day , which I will never forget . Jones is going to try to be a Mason , and so am I ! "

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