Newspapers / Masonic Journal (Greensboro, N.C.) / Sept. 16, 1875, edition 1 / Page 4
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THE MASONIC' JOURNAL Masonic Punctuality. The following article from the Lo-idon ./■Vec??iaso7J is 80 applicable to many of our lodges that we copy it, hoping that it may tend towards a much needed im provement, especially hereabout : It is said that “Parsons” are the most unpunctual of men ; we are a little in clined to believe that Freemasons run them very close. j?\.lter a somewhat long apprenticeship to Freemasonry, we hard Iv ever remember a meeting or gathering which began at the time spec fled in the programme. We remember once, in deed, an old W. M. who used to say. As the cloch strikes, I open my lodge,” and he was as good as his word, and it is, per haps, that trained in that sound old school, we retain a great admiration for punctuality. We do not know anything y Ise Under the sun which so tries the tern per, or affects the day’s proceedings, as want of punctuality. And what makes the matter worse, some of our good breth reu glory in their unpunotuality. With them, three means four, four means five, and so or.. In vain, punctual and pre cipitate, you have reached the "trystiiig place.” In vain have you, believing in the punctuality of others, been punctual voursull, and hurried away from duties and claims elsewhere, from the domestic hearth, from your own dear, dear wife. Vou said, “Freemasons are punctual, I am. my dear, always punctual, and punctual will I be.” And so you haste away. Pufortuiiate brother, those whom you greet in the “tiring room” have no sym pathy for you, not a bit. You have put them out. Your puuctuelity shames their unpunotuality, and you are confid ingly and all but reprovingly told, that ..“three means four, and that the brethren are not particular about half-an-hour or so.” Pleasant information for 'you, who have donned your Masonic gear, and like the hero of old, are ready for the “fray.” Ilalf-an-hour passes, an hour vanishes, an Lour-and-a-half shortly disappears, and vou who have been patiently waiting all this time, see at last, w'hen hope was all but gone, that the real time for work was nearly an hour aiid-three-quarters after till appointed hour. Everything is put out. The work begins late, and ends late, and you find when you reach your home Edeii, that you have miscalculated your advent by nearly two hours, and that you have to deal with a somewhat suspicious, and certainly irate sister. Such is a very common condition of af fairs. Can nothing be done to teach our good brethren the great advantage of punctuality. There are some people and brethren who are always unpunctual, and whom nothing will ever render puno. tual. Whatever the time you appoint, they will always be late, a.iid always have the same unmeaning excuse, “I did not know it was so late,” or “I did not think that you wert so punctual,” We once had a friend who, though inditferent to work, was particular about the refresh ment hour. He was naturally the most unpunctual of men, but, somehow or oth er, always managed to tumble in for that important ceremony, that final degree. One day we were late at work, and later still was the witching hour of release an.l “refrigerium.” Great was his indigna tion. ‘ Yever did see such iinpunctualitv such unpunctual people ; bless my heart and soul, three-quarters of an hour too late ! The supper will be cold,” Such is human nature, we fear, selfish to the bottom. Hu could not understand punc tuality ill work as conducive to the ben efit of others, but he could realize person ally the trial of unpunotuality in refresh ment to himself. Now, we think this little anecdote may point for us all the moral, unpunotuality is after all only self ishness personified. It will greatly add to the comfort of our brethren, and con duce to the suooe-ss of our work, if we will be punctual, but it interferes with our own individual inoonveiiienoe in some w'ay or other, and so W’e are indifferent to the claim upon us. More than one most pleasant meeting has been utterly spoiled by unpunctuality, and we cannot impress too often on all our lead ers, that there is, after all, no Mii.sonic excellence so great or so praiseworthy for many reason.?, as that of Masonic pua-'- tuality. Footprints of Masonry. To the deciples of Freemasonry our fellow-countrymen are indebted for most of those splendid and majestic structures which even at the present Jay point their aspiring domes towards the heaven of heavens, and beneath which man breathes his prayers ot peace and glad • ness; and to their predecessors in the craft mankind are indebted for those stupendous monuments of human skill— the pyramids of Egypt—which, though many thousands of years have passed away,still exist; the temples of Mem phis and thebes, whose collosal ruins are to this day the wonder and admiration of the traveler ; Persepoli.s, with its splen did palat-al edifices of cedar : Babylon, and her hanging gardens; Nineveh, with her mighty walls ; Balbec and Palmyra, still majestic even in their ruins; the labyrinths of Egypt, Crete and Lemnos, and the marble glories of Greece, .‘Whose 1) 'Util'S a bngi.t shadow ca.st And the 1 a halo round the iiiiglity past.” story is told of a Master of a certain country Lodge, who, between times, would go to the Lodge room and look himself ill, and then open the Lodge, in a fragmentary way. initiate and lectuie to the empty benches with becoming grav ity, close the Lodge, re-lock the door and retire to his home, at peace with the workl and the rest of mankind. Some other Masters and Wardens might foUow I his example without injury to themselves I or the members of their Lodges.—Ma- i sonic Jewel How to Send Boxes. Boxes, sacks, barrels, bundle.? and packages, intended for the use of the Orphans at Oxford, should ba marked Orpii-In Asylum, Oxford, N. C., and there should be no other mark-s to mis lead. Inside of the box or package should be a list of the articles with the name oi contributors. If sent by railroad or steamer, the receipt of the freight agent should be sent by mail —Light aud val uable articles should be cent by Express. Articles intended for the Orphans at M.irs Hill should be marked Orphan Asylum, Mars Hill, N. C. If sent from the West, they can be easily for warded from Asheville. If from the East, they should he sent by Salisbury and Old Fort, and in every case the receipt should be sent by' mail. These directions seem to be simple: but valuable contributions have been lost, because they have not been observed.— Orphan’s Friend. The Masonic Alms Chest- Ours is a charitable institution. Like other benevolent societies, it has a treas ure and a treasurer, but its deeds of char ity are by no means to be measured by the amount paid out of the treasury. Far from it. When it makes a man a Mason, it gives to every brother through out the world a key to it. \\ hen a broth er dies, he leaves this golden key to hi.s widow and orphans. Silently are these alms chests unlocked. The world hears not the, lid creating up on its hinges. Here are found not gold and silver alone, but what is sometimes a great deal more valuable^—a ,«mile of sympathy, a note of timely warning, and a word of cheering enoouragement—the aid of a friend when such .s needed and deserved. There is no other alms chest of human construction, fastened with one lock, to which there are ten thousand keys in ev- erypart of the world. This is tlie grand dist-ingui.shing characteristic of this frater nity', wherin it diff-srs from all other so cieties.—Bishop liandall. Take It To-Hight. Our Lodge had met to make arrange ments for burying a much esteemed de ceased brother. His disease was violent, and had swept him olf with fatal rapidity. Although he had received brotherly care and attention in his last illness, all sup posed that his oircam-'tances were easy, and all that was needed was fraternal sympathy and as.sistance in the burial rites. What was our surprise when a brother stated that lie had just learned that there was absolutely nothing left for the family’s present necessities. The sis ter and ohilJreri had uo suitable clothing in which to attend the funeral, and were without a morsel to eat for breakfast. It ivould have done you good to hear motions made for relief, seconded and passed, uttered as one sentence by differ ent persons. Food, clothing, etwere ordered in abundance. The brother ap pointed chairman stated that he would have them at the house by 5 A. M., in time for breakfast. A brother rose and said: “Take it to night, and let the poor sister have it to sleep over.” And it was done before the clock struck nine. Oh, brethren, do you know a case of want, of any in distress or in need of sym pathy? Can you do anything? can you speak a word of comfort? Then Jo it, aiid do it at once, and save the burdened heal t as much sorrow as you can. G. : —Masonic Jewel. Cryptic Masonry. The Masonry that is embraced in the Royal and Select degrees is called “Cryp tic Masonry'’’ from the Greek work Knjpte which means a concealed place or sublera- ncan vault. The caves oi cells under ground in which the primitive Christians worshipped, and the vaults beneath our modern churches, are called crypts. The exi.stenoe of crypts under the temple of Solomon is te:stifi8d to by the earliest as well a.s by the most recent topographers at Jerusalem.—Dalton {Ga.) Enterprise. DeWitt Clinton on Freemasonry In an address made in 1S25, DeWitt Clinton said : “ In every nation of Europe we have passed the ordeal of persecution. The inquisition has stained it with blood ; despotism has pursued it to destruction ■ and everywhere, except in the land of liberty, it has felt the arm of unjust and tyrannical power, and even here where liberty Haunts her glorious banner and freedom of thought, the pride of our iirstitutions, Masonry has been denounc ed and 1 ilsified ; but, my brethren, with a steady, growing popularity, it lias overshadowed all opposition, has silenced the VICIOUS lisping of its bitterest ene mies, andgives^ perfect confidence a-id laith to a skeptical world. Yet it vaur.t- eth not itself, is not puffed up • but standing upon the lone tombs of departed enemies, it drops the silent tear of Pari ty and sympat by, and leaves the reckon ing of the so'-l alcne to the God who gave it. Masonry in The Old World. In England Freemasonry has, from ear ly times, occupied a piomi'.ent position, a direct line of Grand Masters being trac ed back to A. D. 597, at which time Aus tin the monk, was Grand Master, and from that time many eminent men have occupied the Oriental chair. The office bearers for 1874-5 are :—Grand Master, His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, K. G. ; Deputy Grand Master, the Right Hon. the Earl of Garnarvoii ; the Right Hon. Lord Henry Thynne, M. P., Senior Grand Warden. Under the registry of England there are 1,345 lodges and 91,- 750 members, which membership includes lodges in Australia, New dealaiid, India, China, New South Wales, Spain, South Africa, Burmah, Jamaica, Barbadoes, Demarara, Brazil and other counti ies. SCOTLAND AND IRELAND. The Grand Lodge of Scotland has for its Grand Master Sir M. R, Shaw-Stewart Bart. ; Deputy Grand Master, the Pdght Hon. the Earl of Roslyn, 419 Lodges and 21,000 members. The Grand Master of Ireland is Ilis Grace the Duke of Leinster; Deputy Grand Master, Robert William Shekleton : Senior Grand Warden, Lord Viscount Powerscourt, K. P. ; 3'.’2 lodges and 18,400 members. GERMANY, ITALY, SPAIN AND PORTUGAL. The Grand Lodge of Prussia has for of ficers His Royal Majesty King William 1„ Protector ; The Crow.i Prince Frederick William, Deputy Protector ; 309 lodges and 35,193 members. Italy has 05 lodges and 4,200 members. Portugal s chief officers are Comte de Paroty, Peer of the Kingdom, Sovereign Grand Com- mander ; Conseillepr Jo.se do Silvu Mends Leal Kciior, Minister -^f State Deputy Grand Commander ; 5V lodges, and 2,800 members. MASONRY IN OTHER COUNTRIES. France has 226 lodges, 10,800 members; Belgium, 74 lodges, 2,185 members ; Switzerland, 28 lodges, 1,800 members ; Norway and Sweden, 25 lodges, 10,800 members ; Hungary, 33 lodges ; Turkey, 14 lodges; Luxemburg, 2 lodges; Den- maik, 9 lodges ; Greece, 8 lodges ; the Netherlands, 06 lodges ; Turkey in Asia. iO lodges ; China. 9 lodges ; India, 42 lo'lges ; Burmah, 8 lodges; Egypt, lo lodges ; Singapore, 3 lodges ; Japan, 6 lodges ; Jerusalem, 1 lodge ; South Atii' c.a, 25 lodges ; Liberia (Africa), 2 lodges ; Persia, 50,000 members ; Arabia, 2U,000 members; New South Wales, 31 lodges ; New Zealand, 50 lodges; South Australia, Tasmania aud Victoria, 95 lodges. SUMMARY. Following are statements of the num ber of lodges and membership in North and South A.tierica and adjaaent islands, carefully compileU from the most reliable , sources of information ; United States, I 8,069 lodges, 524,649 members ; Nova Scotia, 63 lodges, 3,113 members; Brit ish Columbia. 10 lodges, 510 members ; Canada (Ontario), 323 lodges, 14,530 members ; Quebec, 37 lodges, 1,780 mem bers ; New Brunswick, 30 lodges, 2,038 : members ; Mexico, 13 lodges. 626 inem- ' bers ; Hayti, 18 lodges ; Cuba 7 lodges ; Costa Rica. 2 lodges ; Nicarauga, 3 lodges; Venezuela, 56 lodges ; New Grenada, 244 lodges ; Chili, 23 lodges ; Paraguay, 17 lodges ; Uraguay, 13 lodges ; St. Domin go, 6 lodges ; San Salvador, 1 lodge : Gautemala, 1 lodge ; Panama, 3 lodges ; United Stales of Columbia, 26 lodges ; Peru, 71 lodges ; Argentine Confedera tion, 12 lodges ; Brazil 104 lodges ; Sandwich Islands, 3 lodges ; Prince Ed ward s Islands, 6 lodges; Nassau, G lodges. Subscribe for the Masonic Journal
Masonic Journal (Greensboro, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Sept. 16, 1875, edition 1
4
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