Note: This material was scanned into text files for the sole purpose of convenient electronic research. This material is NOT intended as a reproduction of the original volumes. However close the material is to becoming a reproduced work, it should ONLY be regarded as a textual reference. Scanned at Phoenixmasonry by Ralph W. Omholt, PM in June 2007.
THE COLLECTED "PRESTONIAN LECTURES"
1925-1960
(Volume One)
THE COLLECTED PRESTONIAN LECTURES
1925-1960
(Volume One)
Edited by Harry Carr
LONDON
LEWIS Masonic
Quatuor Coronati Lodge
First published in collected form in England in 1965
by
Quatuor Coronati Lodge No 2076
This edition published in 1984 by
LEWIS MASONIC, Terminal House, Shepperton, Middlesex members of the
IAN ALLAN GROUP
Published by kind permission of
The Board of General Purposes of the United Grand Lodge of England
Printed in Great Britain by
Butler & Tanner Ltd, Frome and London
ISBN 0 85318 141 1
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
The Collected Prestonian Lectures 1925-1960 Second edition
1. Freemasons
1. Carr, Harry, 1900-1983 366'.1 HS-395
CONTENTS
Page
List of Illustrations viii
List of Abbreviated References Viii
Introduction ix
Index . 481
1927 Brother William Preston: an Illustration of the Man, his Methods
and his Work Gordon P. G. Hills . 1
1925 The Development of the Trigradal System Lionel Vibert . 31
1926 The Evolution ofthe SecondDegree Lionel Vibert . 47
1928 Masonic Teachers oftheEighteenth Century Dr. John Stokes 63
1929 The Antiquity of our Masonic Legends Roderick H. Baxter 95
1930 The Seven LiberalArtsandSciences H. T. Cart de Lafontaine 121
1931 Medieval Master Masons and their Secrets Rev. Canon W. W.
Covey-Crump 141
1933 The Old Charges in Eighteenth century Masonry Rev. Herbert Poole . 155
1934 The Art, Craft, Science,or `Mistery' of Masonry F. C. C. M. Fighiera 183
1935 Freemasonry and Contemplative Art Walter J. Bunney 195
1936 Freemasonry, Ritual and Ceremonial Lewis Edwards 213
1937 The Inwardness of Masonic Symbolism in the Three Degrees Rev. Joseph Johnson 229
1938 The Mason Word Douglas Knoop 243
1939 Veiled in Allegory and Illustrated by Symbols G. E. W. Bridge 265
1940-6 Lectures suspended during the War years
1947 The Grand Lodge south, of the River Trent Gilbert Y. Johnson 283
1948 The Deluge Fred L. Pick 297
1949 Our Oldest Lodge Col. C. C. Adams 317
1950 Lodes of Instruction, their Origin
and Development W. Ivor Grantham 331
1952 `Free' in `Freemason', and the Idea
of Freedom through six Centuries Bernard E. Jones 363
viii CONTENTS
1953 What is Freemasonry? G. S. Shepherd Jones 377
1954 The Freemason's Education Bruce W. Oliver 385
1955 The Fellowship of Knowledge John R. Rylands 399
1956 The Making of a Mason George S. Draffen . 413
1957 The Transition from Operative to
Speculative Masonry Harry Carr . 421
1958 The Years of Development Norman Rogers 439
1959 The Medieval Organization of
Freemasons' Lodges (Some notes
on Medieval Freemasonry) Rev. Canonj. S. Purvis . 453
1960 The Growth of Freemasonry in
England and Wales since 1717 Sydney Pope . 471
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
William Preston, as P.M. of the Lodge of Antiquity Frontispiece Page Thomas Ruddiman, Grammarian and Scholar (1674 - 1757) 3
Robert Edward, 9th Lord Petre, Grand Master (Modems) 1772 - 1776 7
James Heseltine, Grand Secretary (Modems) 1769 - 1784. 10
John, 2nd Duke of Montagu, the first Noble Grand Master, 1721 49
William Preston as a young man 62
William Hutchinson, 1732 - 1814, Author of The Spirit of Masonry 73
Diagram: the right-angled triangle . 147
„ the 47th Proposition of Euclid . 149
„ the Tetractys, or the Shem Hamphoresh . 152
Two Sections of the Fortitude MS. of the Old Charges, .c. 1750 173
Nineteenth century Tracing Boards and Symbols 268
Graphs: the Growth of Freemasonry in England and Wales, since 1717 474
LIST OF ABBREVIATED REFERENCES
A.Q.C. Ars Quatuor Coronatorum. Transactions of the Quatuor Coronati Lodge.
B. of C. Book of Constitutions.
I.M.A. Installed Masters Association.
M.A.M.R. Manchester Association for Masonic Research. Misc. Lat. Miscellanea Latomorum.
Q.C.A. Quatuor Coronatorum Antigrapha. Masonic Reprints of the Quatuor Coronati Lodge.
INTRODUCTION
EXTRACT FROM THE GRAND LODGE PROCEEDINGS FOR DECEMBER 5TH, 1923.
In the year 1818, Bro. William Preston, a very active Freemason at the end of the eighteenth and beginning of the nineteenth centuries, bequeathed ú300 3 per cent. Consolidated Bank Annuities, the interest of which was to be applied "to some well‑informed Mason to deliver annually a Lecture on the First, Second, or Third Degree of the Order of Masonry according to the system practised in the Lodge of Antiquity" during his Mastership. For a number of years the terms of this bequest were acted upon, but for a long period no such Lecture has been delivered, and the Fund has gradually accumulated, and is now vested in the M.W. the Pro. Grand Master, the Rt. Hon. Lord Ampthill, and W. Bro. Sir Kynaston Studd, P.G.D., as trustees. The Board has had under consideration for some period the desirability of framing a scheme which would enable the Fund to be used to the best advantage; and, in consultation with the Trustees who have given their assent, has now adopted such a scheme, which is given in full in Appendix A [See below], and will be put into operation when the sanction of Grand Lodge has been received.
The Grand Lodge sanction was duly given and the "scheme for the administration of the Prestonian fund" appeared in the Proceedings as follows APPENDIX A SCHEME FOR ADMINISTRATION OF THE PRESTONIAN FUND
1. The Board of General Purposes shall be invited each year to nominate two Brethren of learning and responsibility from whom the Trustees shall appoint the Prestonian Lecturer for the year with power for the Board to subdelegate their power of nomination to the Library, Art, and Publications Committee of the Board, or such other Committee as they think fit.
2. The remuneration of the Lecturer so appointed shall be ú5. 5s. Od. for each Lecture delivered by him together with travelling expenses, if any, not exceeding ú1. 5s. Od., the number of Lectures delivered each year being determined by the income of the fund and the expenses incurred in the way of Lectures and administration.
3. The Lectures shall be delivered in accordance with the terms of the Trust.
x THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES
One at least of the Lectures each year shall be delivered in London under the auspices of one or more London Lodges. The nomination of Lodges under whose auspices the Prestonian Lecture shall be delivered shall rest with the Trustees, but with power for one or more Lodges to prefer requests through the Grand Secretary for the Prestonian Lecture to be delivered at a meeting of such Lodge or combined meeting of such Lodges.
4. Having regard to the fact that Bro. William Preston was a member of the Lodge of Antiquity and the original Lectures were delivered under the aegis of that Lodge, it is suggested that the first nomination of a Lodge to arrange for the delivery of the Lecture shall be in favour of the Lodge of Antiquity should that Lodge so desire.
5. Lodges under whose auspices the Prestonian Lecture may be delivered shall be responsible for all the expenses attending the delivery of such Lecture except the Lecturer's Fee.
6. Requests for the delivery of the Prestonian Lecture in Provincial Lodges will be considered by the Trustees who may consult the Board as to the granting or refusal of such consent.
7. Requests from Provincial Lodges shall be made through Provincial Grand Secretaries to the Grand Secretary, and such requests, if granted, will be granted subject to the requesting Provinces making themselves responsible for the provision of a suitable hall in which the Lecture can be delivered, and for the Lecturer's travelling expenses beyond the sum of ú1 5s. Od., and if the Lecturer cannot reasonably get back to his place of abode on the same day, the requesting Province must pay his Hotel expenses or make other proper provision for his accommodation.
8. Provincial Grand Secretaries, in the case of Lectures delivered in the Province, and Secretaries of Lodges under whose auspices the Lecture may be delivered in London, shall report to the Trustees through the Grand Secretary the number in attendance at the Lecture, the manner in which the Lecture was received, and generally as to the proceedings thereat.
9. Master Masons, subscribing members of Lodges, may attend the Lectures, and a fee not exceeding 2s. may be charged for their admission for the purpose of covering expenses.
Thus, after a lapse of some sixty years the Prestonian Lectures were revived, in their new form, and, with the exception of the War period (19401946), a Prestonian Lecturer has been appointed by the Grand Lodge regularly each year.
It is interesting to see that neither of those two extracts announcing the revival of the Prestonian Lectures made any mention of the principal change that had been effected under the revival, a change which is here
INTRODUCTION xi
referred to as their new form. The importance of the new form is that the Lecturer is now permitted to choose his own subject and, apart from certain limitations inherent in the work, he really has a free choice.
Nowadays the official announcement of the appointment of the Prestonian Lecturer usually carries an additional paragraph which lends great weight to the appointment: The Board desires to emphasize the importance of these the only Lectures held under the authority of the Grand Lodge. It is, therefore, hoped that applications for the privilege of having one of these official Lectures will be made only by Lodges which are prepared to afford facilities for all Freemasons in their area, as well as their own members, to participate and thus ensure an attendance worthy of the occasion.
The Prestonian Lecturer has to deliver three "Official" Lectures to Lodges applying for that honour. The "Official" deliveries are usually allocated to one selected Lodge in London and two in the provinces. In addition to these three, the Lecturer generally delivers the same lecture, unofficially, to other Lodges all over the country, and it is customary for printed copies of the Lecture to be sold‑in vast numbers‑for the benefit of one of the Masonic charities selected by the author.
The Prestonian Lectures have the unique distinction, as noted above, that they are the only Lectures given "with the authority of the Grand Lodge". There are also two unusual financial aspects attaching to them. Firstly, that the Lecturer is paid for his services, though the modest fee is not nearly so important as the honour of the appointment.
Secondly, the Lodges which are honoured with the Official deliveries of the Lectures are expected to take special measures for assembling a large audience and, for that reason, they are permitted‑on that occasion onlyto make a small nominal charge for admission.
Of necessity the Lectures are given orally to different kinds of Masonic audience (ranging from ordinary Lodges to Study Circles and prominent Research Lodges). The subjects are usually popular and simple themes, or at least capable of being expressed in clear and uncomplicated language. In three cases within the period covered by this volume (1924‑1960) the Lectures dealt mainly with esoteric matters‑always of the highest interest to the listeners‑but the nature of their contents prevented them from being printed and they are necessarily omitted from this collection. They are: 1924 W.Bro. Capt. C. W. Firebrace, The First Degree P.G.D. 1932 W.Bro. J. Heron Lepper, The Evolution of Masonic P.G.D. Ritual in England in the Eighteenth Century 1951 W.Bro. H. W. Chetwin, Variations in Masonic P.A.G.D.C. Ceremonial xii THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES
Despite unavoidable limitations and omissions, the range and scope of the twenty‑six lectures reproduced here is a very ample justification for this unique publication, and the Committee of the Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No. 2076, takes this opportunity of expressing its thanks to the Board of General Purposes for their kind permission to proceed with the work.
The prime reason for a collected edition was because the vast majority of the lectures are out of print. Practically all of them have been published in successive years (usually at the Prestonian Lecturer's expense‑for private circulation) and most of them have appeared at intervals in the Transactions of some of the research Lodges and study groups where the lectures were delivered. In nearly every case, however, the lectures were out of print within a year or two, and even when they are preserved in the printed Transactions, they are only accessible in the larger Masonic Libraries. Yet there is a steady demand for them, both from students working on particular subjects, and for Lodges and study circles who need this kind of material for their research and education programmes. It is hoped, therefore, that the collected edition will prove a valuable aid in every field of Masonic study as well as a stimulus to further work.
Our collection therefore comprises all the Prestonian Lectures from 1925‑1960, inclusive, and the only omissions are those noted above. The choice of the terminal date 1960 was governed partly by the size of the prospective volume, but also because each of the Prestonian Lectures after 1960 has been published in the Transactions of the Quatuor Coronati Lodge, and they are, therefore, readily accessible to students.
Treatment of the Texts. The lectures are reproduced here in order of their dates but with one major exception. For the first lecture in the book, we have selected "Brother William Preston: An Illustration of the Man, his Methods and his Work", by Bro. G. P. G. Hills who was the Prestonian Lecturer for 1927. The reasons for this arrangement are twofold. First, because Bro. Hills' lecture was the only one which dealt solely with the life and work of the founder of the Prestonian Lectures, and it has remained to this day by far the best over‑all study of the man and his work, thereby forming a particularly apt introduction to the whole collection.
The second reason was a purely practical one. Throughout the years it became the custom for the Prestonian Lecturers‑whatever their choice of subject ‑to preface their Papers with a biographical sketch of William Preston. Of necessity they all covered the same ground, in more or less detail, and to have reproduced all this repetitive material twenty times or more throughout the book would have been both extravagant and monotonous. By placing Bro. Hills' comprehensive study at the beginning of the book it became possible to eliminate all the biographical Prefaces, and that has been done in every case, except where the Preston references form an integral part of the lecture itself.
INTRODUCTION Xiii
Other editorial emendations may be listed very briefly. Some of the lectures which ran to two or more printings, have appeared with minor variations in the texts. In all cases we have used editorial discretion, but we reproduce only such versions as are known to have been used as Prestonian Lectures. Mis‑spellings and errors of punctuation have been corrected; the excessive use of initial capitals has been curbed; quotations, often carelessly copied or printed, have been checked wherever practicable and corrected where necessary. Charts or diagrams appearing in the original texts have been reproduced exactly, and the Frontispiece and several illustrations have been added which did not appear in the original Papers.
In a few instances (e.g. Bro. L. Vibert's Lecture for 1926) certain brief portions of the text were unsuitable for printing; in such cases the lectures were recast by their authors for the purpose of their first publication, and our reproduction has followed those texts.
The statements, theories and opinions expressed in the lectures are of course those of the authors, and wherever possible, the versions used for this publication have been prepared and corrected by them.
Most of the eminent writers honoured by Grand Lodge appointment as Prestonian Lecturers have been, and are, Brethren who have distinguished themselves in all branches of Masonic activity, and whose Masonic ranks and titles might easily fill several lines of print. In most cases we have quoted only the principal ranks given on the original prints of their lectures. Many of the lecturers were, and are, Past Masters of the Quatuor Coronati Lodge (either before or after their year as Prestonian Lecturer), and in the majority of cases that title alone has been used in conjunction with the holder's Rank. ‑ The collection as a whole, and the individual Lectures, are copyright. All precautions have been taken to obtain permission of the Lecturers (or their heirs) for this publication, and the help which the Quatuor Coronati Lodge has received in this respect from all concerned, is here gratefully acknowledged. All the Lectures are freely available to Lodges, study groups and individual Brethren for use as Lectures to regular Masonic bodies, but reproduction in print‑either in whole or in part may not be undertaken without proper permission.
H. CARR.
London, October, 1965.
BROTHER WILLIAM PRESTON: AN ILLUSTRATION OF THE MAN, HIS METHODS AND HIS WORK (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1927)
BRO. GORDON P. G. HILLS P.M.
Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No. 2076; P.A.G.Supt. Works Librarian to Grand Lodge
Let me preface my address by an illustration of Brother Preston's character: At the most hopeless hour of his Masonic career, when, as a consequence of his championship of the immemorial rights of the Lodge of Antiquity, Brother Preston had been expelled by Grand Lodge, yet all the same he wrote: "To the institution of Masonry, I shall ever bear a warm and unfeigned attachment; I know its value, and I am convinced of its utility. To the Society of Free Masons I profess myself a true and stedfast friend." Ten years later came a reinstatement equally honourable to all parties concerned, and when at last after many more years happily devoted to the service of the Craft that useful life was closed, it was found that Brother Preston had left handsome legacies as pledges of his lasting attachment to the institution, including the foundation of the Prestonian Lectureship, in perpetuation of which I have the honour to address you this evening.
So Brethren I now claim your attention whilst I endeavour to outline within the limits of a lecture, what the personality of Brother William Preston means for the Craft by an attempt to illustrate the Man, his Methods, and his Work.
Our chief sources of information are Brother Preston's own writings, and the biographical notes of that sincere friend and admirer, Brother Stephen Jones, from both of which sources I shall quote at length.
We have besides much information made readily accessible in two handsome volumes of history of the Lodge of Antiquity, in which Brother Capt. Firebrace has furnished a worthy sequel to Brother Rylands' labours. To researches bearing on the subject by Brothers Hextall and Wonnacott,
2 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES
both now lost to us as all Masonic students must deplore, I feel special obligation. To Brother Songhurst, whose ever ready help enabled me to borrow so many rare volumes from our Quatuor Coronati Library, and to my colleague Brother Makins, who so readily helped me to the treasures of the Grand Lodge Library, I am also much indebted and grateful thanks must be offered.
William Preston was born at Edinburgh on July 20th, 1742 (O.S.), the second son and only surviving child of William Preston, Writer to the Signet, in practice in that City. The father, blessed with the advantage of a liberal education, a good Greek and Latin scholar, and credited by his friends with some poetical facility, had attained a recognized position in his profession. As one might expect, special care was devoted to the education of the son. We are told that "in order to improve his memory (a faculty which has been of infinite advantage to him through life) the boy was taught when only in his fourth year, some lines of Anacreon in the original Greek, which he was encouraged to recite for the amusement of his father's friends, when the novelty of this performance was enhanced by the fact that it did not imply that the young genius understood with what wonderful accuracy he uttered." At the early age of six young Preston is said to have made such progress in his English education as enabled him to be entered at the Edinburgh High School, where he made considerable progress in the Latin tongue. Thence he proceeded to College and was taught the rudiments of Greek.
Whilst at the University his studious habits and aptitude attracted the attention of Mr. Thomas Ruddiman, then looked upon as Scotland's representative scholar, who owing to blindness needed an assistant in his work, and he left College to take up the duties of an amanuensis to this gentleman, to whose guardianship he was consigned on the‑death of his father in 1751. The loss of considerable property in Edinburgh through the mismanagement of Trustees, and becoming involved in difficulties through his attachment to friends who had espoused the Stuart Cause in 1745, brought about reverses of fortune and ill‑health which led to the death of the elder William Preston. Ruddiman, too, had similar political leanings, but he satisfactorily weathered the stress of that crisis.
Young Preston was apprenticed to his patron's brother, Walter Ruddiman, partner in their printing firm in Edinburgh, but spent the greater part of his term of articles in assisting Mr. Thomas Ruddiman. This was a great advantage and extension of his educational opportunities, as he was employed in reading to the blind scholar, transcribing works not yet complete and correcting those in the press. These occupations prevented him from making great proficiency in the practical branch of his calling, but after Mr. Ruddiman's death he went into the office and worked as a compositor for about twelve months, during which time he finished a neat Latin edition of Thomas i Kempis (in 18mo), and an edition of Ruddiman's standard work, the Rudiments of the Latin Tongue, whilst his literary abilities were further
4 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES
exhibited in a catalogue which he prepared of his friend's library under the title Bibliotheca Romana.
Thus equipped by birth and education William Preston proceeded to London in 1760 furnished with letters of recommendation and introduction from his master and other friends to those who would be likely to help him to start a career in the southern metropolis. Here good fortune attended him, for on presenting his credentials to his compatriot Mr. William Strahan, the King's Printer, he promptly found employment in that printing firm, a connection maintained to the end of his life. Dr. Johnson, who maintained a cordial friendship with Strahan, said that his was the best printing house in London.
A biographical note in the Freemason's Magazine, March, 1795, refers to him thus: "The uninterrupted health and happiness which accompanied him for half a century in the capital, proves honesty to be the best policy, temperance the greatest luxury, and the essential duties of life its most agreeable amusement." Soon after Preston's arrival in London, a number of Masonic Brethren from Edinburgh desired to found a Lodge under a Constitution from the Grand Lodge of Scotland. They were informed that this could not be done, as it would be an infringement of the rights of the English Grand Lodge, but the petitioners were referred to the Antients' Grand Lodge in London. This body granted the Brethren a dispensation to meet as a Lodge, and William Preston was their second initiate, probably at a Meeting on April 20th, 1763, held at the White Hart in the Strand, when the Lodge was formally constituted by the Grand Officers and became No. 111 on the roll of the Antients. Brother Preston and some other members, dissatisfied with the status of their governing body, soon became members of a Lodge meeting at the Talbot Inn, in the Strand, under the other Grand Lodge of England, and prevailed on their friends of No. 111 of the Antients to transfer their allegiance to the older Grand Lodge. So, under the Grand Mastership of Lord Blaney and for a second time, on November 15th, 1764, the Lodge was constituted in ample form as No. 325 "the Caledonian Lodge", under which name it flourishes as No. 134 on the roll of Grand Lodge to this day.
Brother Stephen Jones tells us that circumstances combined to lead Brother Preston to turn his attention to the Masonic Lectures; and explains how, to arrive at the depths of the Science, short of which he did not mean to stop, he spared neither pains nor expense. "Wherever instruction could be acquired, thither he directed his course, and with the advantage of a retentive memory, and an extensive Masonic connection, added to a diligent literary research, he so far succeeded in his purpose as to become a competent Master of the subject. To increase the knowledge he had acquired, he solicited the company and conversation of the most experienced Masons from foreign
BROTHER WILLIAM PRESTON 5
countries, and in the course of a literary correspondence with the Fraternity at home and abroad, made such progress in the Mysteries of the Art, as to become very useful in the connections he had formed. He has frequently been heard to say that, in the ardour of his enquiries he has explored the abodes of poverty and wretchedness, and, when it might have been least expected, acquired very valuable scraps of information. The poor Brother in return, we are assured, had no cause to think his time or talents ill bestowed".
Brother Preston used to meet with his friends once or twice a week, in order to illustrate his version of the lectures; on which occasions objections were started, and explanations given for the purpose of mutual improvement. At last, with the assistance of some zealous friends, he was enabled to arrange and digest to his satisfaction the whole of the First Lecture.
Arrived at this stage in 1772 he organized a Gala Meeting in order to submit the work to the approbation of the Grand Officers and leaders of the Craft. An Oration which he delivered on this occasion was so well received that he determined to print it, and with a description of the proceedings and other matter this formed the first edition of his Illustrations of Masonry, which was published the same year. Encouraged by the successful reception of this first venture our Brother proceeded with his plans to complete the Lectures for the three Degrees.
Having accomplished this, proposals were issued for their delivery as public Lectures to the Craft, which took place at the Mitre Tavern, Fleet Street, during 1774. In further support of these revised workings a pamphlet was issued, entitled "Private Lectures on Masonry by William Preston", giving an account of the Three Lectures which, very slightly elaborated, formed the leading matter of the Second Edition of the Illustrations of Masonry published the next year (1775). Meanwhile in this prospectus, through the medium of the preliminary remarks addressed to the Encouragers and Promoters of Free Masonry, he presented his ideals and objects to the following effect: "No Society ever subsisted which was raised on a better principle or more solid foundation than Free‑Masonry ... It is indeed true, that in some Lodges the WORK of MASONRY is much neglected, and little or no regard shown to the fundamental principles of the Society; arising partly from the inexperience and partly from the inability of those Brethren who have the honour to preside over them ... Thus MEN of LETTERS have been discouraged from pursuing a study which might otherwise have proved of public utility; by giving sanction to the Society, and employing their genius in the elucidation of Mysteries, the greatest Monarchs have not been ashamed to countenance.
As the neglect is owing, in a great measure to a want of method, which a little application might easily remedy, Brother Preston is
5 6 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES
induced to offer his assistance to ALL REGULAR MASONS desirous of making a progress in the Art ... If Brother Preston succeeds in his expectations of giving his Brethren a just idea of Masonry, or promoting an uniformity in the Lodges under the English Constitution, he will be perfectly happy in the attempt he has made, and will spare no pains faithfully to fulfil his engagements with every gentleman who is inclined to encourage his design".
Annexed were the following CONDITIONS.
I. Every Degree to consist of Twelve Courses.
II. One guinea to be paid on admission into every Degree.
III. Any Brother not perfect in any one Degree at the expiration of the Twelve Courses, shall have the privilege of attending six more, without any additional expence.
IV. Books of the Courses will be given to every Brother at the com mencement of his instructions.
V. Instructions will be given Three times a week at an appointed hour.
I have already explained that Brother Preston's book Illustrations of Masonry took its rise from the Grand Gala Performance of the First Lecture on May 21st, 1772.
The first edition of the book differs very considerably from its many successors and is now a very rare volume. The title page bears the following lines by Dr. Blacklock: The Man whose mind on virtue bent Pursues some greatly good intent, With undiverted aim; Serene beholds the angry croud Nor can their clamours fierce and loud, His stubborn honor tame.
The quotation is wonderfully apt under the circumstances for already, as Preston himself wrote, the methods adopted had excited in some "an absolute dislike" of what they considered as innovations, and in others "a jealousy" which the principles of Masonry ought to have checked.
The volume bore the imprimatur of Grand Lodge over the signatures of the Grand Master Lord Petre, Deputy Grand Master, Wardens and Secretary.
In the Preface it is explained that the first design was only to publish the Oration delivered at the Gala, but the entertainment being to be annually repeated, certain particulars were put on record to serve as a precedent for future exhibitions of the same kind. The plan being thus extended beyond the bounds of a pamphlet, Preston explains: "I resolved to select some of the best
8 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES
pieces on the subject I could find; and to annex a few commentaries to answer the end in view. To this was added an Appendix containing many articles never before published, compiled from the most authentic records, and the best authorities I could procure".
The Second Edition of the Illustrations of Masonry appeared in 1775, again with the imprimatur of the Grand Master and his Officers.
In this Edition the particulars of the proceedings at the Grand Gala in 1772 "are entirely omitted to make room for more useful matter", so runs the preface, and from being denominated an "entertainment to be annually repeated", it is put aside "as it was a temporary affair".
The book now commences with "A vindication of Masonry including a Demonstration of its Excellency", which in later editions came to be headed "The Excellency of Masonry displayed"; then follow "Remarks on Masonry including an Illustration of the Lectures", and a great deal of fresh matter especially under the heading of "History of Masonry in England", which carries it from the days of the Druids to the reigning G.M. Lord Petre. Special stress was laid on the Hall building project in which Brother Preston took great interest. Contrary to the usage of Masonic publications of those days, no songs except those sung at the Gala accompanied the First Edition, but "as the description of that performance was now omitted several others which are usually sung in the course of the ceremonies were explained in this Work".
In the form thus arrived at Brother Preston's book achieved its success, and did a great work for the Craft by bringing together scattered matter in a harmonious whole and making it generally available and, by presenting the institution in a dignified and worthy manner, rendered it acceptable even to those who were not members of the Society. There is no doubt it did much to raise the general estimation of Freemasonry, and whilst we must differ from some of its presentments. of history and theory, many useful lessons are inculcated equally applicable to our days. There remains, too, above all an engaging enthusiasm, a genuine love for the order and the Brethren and the spirit pervading it, which is at the very roots of our institution and must ever insure among Masons an affectionate feeling of gratitude to our worthy Brother for his labours.
The book ran through twelve English editions during its author's lifetime, and then, under the editorship of Brother Stephen Jones and finally of Dr. Oliver, reached the seventeenth English issue in 1861. There were published also from 1776 onwards German translations, American re‑issues (1801, etc.) and a Dutch translation as late as 1848, but no French edition seems to have been called for. In the English Craft it was frequently given to initiates, and became an almost indispensable Lodge possession, ranking only after the V.S.L. and the Book of Constitutions. Old copies evidence by their well thumbed condition their constant use for reading the ancient charges at the opening and closing of the Lodge.
BROTHER WILLIAM PRESTON 9
During the Grand Mastership of the Duke of Beaufort (1767‑1771) Brother Preston was employed by the Grand Secretary to assist in arranging the general Regulations of the Craft, and in revising the foreign and country correspondence. This led later on to his being appointed Assistant or Deputy Grand Secretary at a salary of ú20 per annum under Brother Heseltine in 1769. This post did not amount to Grand Office, but Preston's name was associated with those of the Grand Officers as "Printer to the Society"; all the same, he carried on the chief part of the Secretarial correspondence, entered Minutes, attended Committees, completed and corrected the Calendars with the History of Remarkable Occurrences, and prepared an Historical Appendix to the Book of Constitutions as issued in 1776. All this work gave him access to special sources of information which he was able to turn to good account in historical matter introduced in the later editions of his Illustrations.
Brother Preston took an active part in proceedings as a member of the Hall Committee of Grand Lodge, and to this period belong his subscriptions of ú20 to the Hall Fund and the like amount to the Masonic Charity for Girls.
He resigned his Secretarial appointment at Christmas, 1777.
Outside the Craft, Brother Preston prospered in his business as a printer and corrector of the press in connection with Mr. William Strahan's firm, on whose death in 1785 he became recipient of an annuity of ú30 for life and took the position of chief reader and superintendent to the son, Mr. Andrew Strahan, who succeeded to the business. That his literary capacity was considerable is clear. We are told: "His critical skill as a corrector of the press led literary men to submit to the correction of style: and such was the success of William Preston in the construction of language, that the most distinguished among them honoured him with their friendship as presentation copies in his library including such names as Robertson, Hume, Gibbon, Johnson and Blair bore testimony".
Within the craft, as we have seen, Brother Preston had now reached an honoured, or what he would have called a `truly respectable' position, and was known by his various activities to a wide circle as the Order then existed. He attended various Lodges of Instruction to propagate his system. He had already been Master of several Lodges when circumstances, which we must consider in some detail, led him to the Chair of the Lodge of Antiquity.
Among those taking a leading part in assisting Brother Preston at his Gala Performance of the First Degree Lecture in 1772 was Brother John Bottomley, Master of the Grand Stewards Lodge at that time, who was Master of the Lodge of Antiquity from 1771 to 1774, when attendance was very poor and the Lodge in flagging condition. Another member was Brother John Noorthouck, who joining in 1771, was Senior Warden from 1772 to 1774. Brother Bottomley's membership dated back to 1768.
BROTHER WILLIAM PRESTON
Brother Noorthouck, the son of a well known London bookseller of Dutch origin, was in a very similar walk of life to Brother Preston, in fact, like him largely in the employment of the Strahans, and a few years later to be the recipient of an annuity of ú20 on the elder Strahan's death, when ú30 a year was left to "my present Overseer" William Preston.
These two Brethren, Bottomley and Noorthouck, conceived the idea of introducing Brother Preston into the Lodge of Antiquity to retrieve its fortunes by his activities and zeal.
Brother Preston appears already to have attended a Meeting of the Lodge of Antiquity in February, 1772, as a visitor hailing from the Lodge of Prosperity, when on March 2nd, 1774, he was proposed as a joining Member. He was duly elected a Member on June 1st, when he was not, however, present, and so was not, as often stated, elected a member and the Master of the Lodge on the same day. It was at the following Meeting of Antiquity on June the 15th that he made his first attendance as a Member and was honoured by election to the Chair.
Under Preston's Mastership the prosperity of the Lodge was rapidly restored. He was greatly impressed with the importance of his position as Master of the first Lodge under the English Constitution and threw himself heart and soul into the work in what he conceived to be the best interests of the Lodge. He studied its past records and tried to establish a position by which the fullest prerogatives of a Lodge acting by immemorial constitution might be preserved intact under its allegiance to Grand Lodge. Unfortunately, the activities of this new member did not meet with the approbation of the very men who had been responsible for his introduction, and when the discontent of their party within and without the Lodge had developed into an attack upon Brother Preston, we find Brother Noorthouck writing to complain that "Brother Preston after being not only admitted but honour'd with the Master's Chair, crouded in such a succession of young masons, as totally transferred all the power of the Lodge to him and his new acquaintance and enabled him to keep possession of the Master's Chair for three years and a half ... During this time Bror. Preston kept up private weekly meetings of these young Brethren, under the name of a Lodge of Instruction, in which meetings, he occasionally as your memorialists have been informed propagated matters of peculiar original powers residing in their Lodge, exempt from the authority of the Grand Lodge, pretensions of which your Memorialists and the other Old Members of the Lodge never before entertain'd any idea . . ." It strikes one as less than generous that Brother Preston should be blamed for holding the Mastership during a period of three and a half happy and prosperous years when his predecessor, Brother Bottomley, had occupied the Chair for an exactly similar period under the depressed circumstances then
12 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES
prevailing in the Lodge. Brother Noorthouck's version of the proceedings speaks for itself, and it is amusing to note that he evidently did not attend the Lodge of Instruction as its procedure was only hearsay to him and his friends. That the lectures were not to his taste may be clearly illustrated from his letter to the Master, Brother Preston's successor, at this crisis, in which he wrote: "I am but a dull and awkward schoolboy in my responses, but nevertheless I claim some LITTLE acquaintance with the PRINCIPLES of the Order: and these reach beyond the meer catechisms, which require only a disengaged mind with a retentive memory".
Evidently Brother Preston's working of the lectures and powers of memory annoyed Brother Noorthouck.
At a Meeting in October, 1776, Preston received the thanks of the Lodge because he had maintained the precedence of the Lodge of Antiquity No. 1 at a Lodge he had visited, where it had been challenged by a member of the Stewards Lodge, then No. 60. Brother Bottomley's opinion as a P.G.Stwd. does not appear.
We can gather, then, there was a current of dissension inside and outside the Lodge waiting only for an opportunity to get vent. The pretext arose when some of the Brethren of the Lodge went to St. Dunstan's Church, Fleet Street, to celebrate St. John's Day, December 27th, 1777, by hearing a sermon by their Chaplain. They put on their Masonic Clothing in the Vestry and sat together in the same pew; one, at any rate, Preston by his own account, arrived late, and put on his Masonic Clothing when he had entered the reserved pew. It was only a few steps across the street to the quarters of the Lodge at the Mitre Tavern, as the Church then projected into the road considerably to the South of its present position, and so, after the service, the Master queried should they take off their clothing or wear it across to the tavern ? Preston tells us that he said, "I should certainly, I was not ashamed of it, I was then invested and should not divest myself till the business of the day was finished ... We accordingly returned to the tavern in jewels and clothing as representatives of the Lodge, preceded by the Beadles but without any formal procession as Masons".
Brothers Noorthouck and Bottomley were not present, but they and their friends alleged that the proceedings constituted a public procession of Masons in their Clothing, and made this the subject of complaint to Grand Lodge. Unfortunately, Brother Preston attempted to justify what at the worst was a mere error of judgment by pleading inherent rights peculiar to the Lodge of Antiquity. I must not now attempt to set out the history of what followed; to do it adequately and to do justice to all concerned makes a long story and by no means a pleasant one, and has quite as much to do with the history of the Lodge, in whose records it may be followed, as with our Brother. It is with Brother Preston that we are now dealing, and to put the matter briefly I would say that there is no room for doubt that he was very hardly and unfairly treated. It was for his championship of the Lodge rights, as he
BROTHER WILLIAM PRESTON 13
conceived them, that he suffered; for himself he had no consideration, he was simply determined that he would not be a party to betraying the trust of those immemorial privileges. All the same, his theory was incompatible with allegiance to the Grand Lodge, as the sequel clearly demonstrated.
Procedure and forms were strained against Preston and his supporters, and at last, on January 29th, 1779, they were expelled by Grand Lodge. Yet worse was to follow, for by their action in carrying on the Lodge independently and in alliance with the Grand Lodge of All England at York, and yet further by forming themselves into a new Grand Lodge for England South of the River Trent, the offenders seemed to have put themselves hopelessly beyond any chance of future reconciliation.
The two parties of the Lodge of Antiquity pursued their several ways, and Brother Preston summed up his version of the affair in a pamphlet dated June 3rd, 1778, and entitled, "State of Facts", in which, despite his recent harsh treatment, occur those memorable words which I quoted at the commencement of my lecture: "To the institution of Masonry, I shall ever bear a warm and unfeigned attachment. I know its value and I am convinced of its utility. To the Society of Free Masons I profess myself a true and stedfast friend".
In his statement Brother Preston claims to have introduced as many as three hundred initiates into the Order, and proceeds: "I have been employed upwards of fourteen years in establishing a system for the honour of the Society, in the course of which I have consulted the best authors, ancient and modem. I have now in my possession extracts from above two thousand volumes on the subject. These I intend to arrange under the title Adversaria, and publish under sanction, with a few cursory observations; but the present dispute I believe has effectually baffled my intention". Another "work I have long had in contemplation" was "A Digest of all the laws which have subsisted since the establishment of the Grand Lodge". A very unfriendly pamphlet on the other side, Masonic Anecdotes of little Solomon: a Caution to the Fraternity, appeared about 1788.
Our Brother took part in the activities of his section of the Lodge of Antiquity and in the brief existence of the newly constituted Grand Lodge for the South, yet evidently the turn of affairs had come as a heavy blow and disappointment. In fact, at one time he even determined to bid "a complete Adieu to the Society". Hence we find that he had not attended the Lodge for over a year when on October l7th,1781, his resignation was tendered, and in other respects his Masonic activities were in abeyance, so that, as his biographer quaintly comments, he was enabled "to direct his attention to his other literary pursuits which may fairly be supposed to have contributed more to the advantage of his fortune".
14
Meanwhile, the Lodge got into very low water, but at length the earnest entreaties of his friends and doubtless the warm interest he had felt in the Lodge prevailed on him to rejoin. This was on October 23rd, 1786, and for a second time Antiquity was revived by the accession of Brother Preston to its ranks.
This renewed interest in the Craft led to the organization of a special scheme by which Brother Preston determined to propagate his System of Lectures ‑ the so‑called "revival" of the Antient and Venerable Order of Harodim, which was, in effect, a dignified Lodge of Instruction to render his Lectures, inaugurated by a Meeting at the Mitre Tavern, Fleet Street, on January 4th, 1787.
The Lodge of Antiquity adhering to the Grand Lodge passed through its vicissitudes, but when, at a Meeting on December 2nd, 1789, we find Brother Preston attending as a visitor, a happy ending to the division was in view, for Preston and his friends, having made an apology to Grand Lodge "signifying their concern that through misrepresentation they should have incurred the displeasure of Grand Lodge ... to the Laws of which they were ready to conform", had only a month since been reinstated and restored to their privileges in Masonry, as Preston himself acknowledged, "in the most handsome manner". Following this, in November, 1790, the reunion of the two Sections of the Lodge of Antiquity was most auspiciously accomplished.
In our survey of Brother Preston's career to this point we have reviewed some of his work and touched upon many of his methods in general, but I will now consider a little further in detail what is recorded of his own presentation of the lectures and their matter.
From his own account of the manner in which the first Lecture was rendered at the Grand Gala in 1772 we can see that he spared no trouble to make the ceremony as impressive as he could, and the musical accessories both vocal and instrumental‑are particularly worthy of attention. The first edition of the Illustrations gives full particulars with a plan of the room which indicates besides the ceremonial arrangements an ample table accommodation for the liquid refreshment wherewith the toasts were duly honoured.
The Lodge was opened in due form by command of the G.M. in the Chair, Brother Preston officiating as Master.
The S.W. rehearsed the Antient Charges on the Management of the Craft in Working and then read Laws for the Government of the Craft, followed by the Toast.
THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES
Brother Preston delivered his Oration, thus laying the foundation stone of his future Illustrations of Masonry.
Toast. The GRAND MASTER‑flourish with Horns.
The Six Sections of the first Lecture were then rehearsed accompanied by songs and duets and instrumental music with the appropriate toasts.
"The King and the Craft", which was honoured by a "Flourish of Horns".
BROTHER WILLIAM PRESTON 15 At the Close of Section VI., The Charge on the Behaviour of Masons was rehearsed by Brother Preston, and then came the Toast. May the cardinal virtues with the grand principles of Masonry always distinguish us; may we be happy to meet, happy to part, and happy to meet again, followed by the Entered Apprentice's Song, the first verse, altered to a rather more dignified form for the occasion: Come let us prepare, We brothers that are Assembled on noble occasion: Let's be happy and sing, For Life is a Spring To a Free and an Accepted Mason.
Then, Brother Preston records, "the Grand Master in the Chair expressed his great approbation of the regularity of the whole proceedings." "The Lodge was closed and the Grand Officers preceded by the Stewards for the occasion, and attended by several respectable personages adjourned to supper, an elegant entertainment being provided at the expense of the Stewards, and the evening was concluded with the greatest joy and festivity". There was, of course, no novelty in Lectures or the use of catechism, which in days before books were available had been the only means for imparting general instruction in the Arts and Sciences. The old methods by which the Speculative or theoretical side of the Craft had been taught, survived in the Lodge "Work", though, as the exposures demonstrate, much degenerated and fast approaching a mere residuum of tests and catch words. There were also addresses, charges, eulogies such as were connected with the names of Bros. Oakley, Martin Clare, Dunckerley, Edmondes, Wellins Calcott and many others. Lectures on Architecture and Geometry, Science and other interesting subjects, were given in Lodges in which there were members of intellectual attainments.
The prevalence of such customs is confirmed by strictures of the pugnacious Grand Secretary of the Antients in his Ahiman Rezon (1764) at this date, where he complains that, amongst the degenerate Modems, the old custom of studying Geometry in the Lodge was likely to give way to the use over proper materials of a good knife and fork in the hands of a dextrous brother, and the use of the globes might be taught and explained, amongst the degenerate Modems, as clearly and briefly upon two bottles as upon Mr. Senex's globes of 28 inches diameter.
The Minutes of the Lodge of Antiquity from 1756 onwards record Lectures in various Degrees as when (1757) "The Master gave an Extraordinary joyous lecture" or (1762) when "The R.W.M. was pleased to favour 16 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES us with a Noble Lecture in the Third Degree" or that of the First (1763) "was given in a most Excellent & Explicit manner", which might be paralleled by extracts from many other old Minute Books.
Brother Preston did not invent lectures, but he carried on the old traditions, endeavouring to correct, refine and amplify the old workings, welding together lectures, addresses, eulogies, in a complete system according to his method.
The Minutes of the Lodge of Antiquity record a performance of the Lecture of the Third Degree with musical accompaniments on a scale similar to the setting of the first Lecture. In this case, however, Brother Preston officiated as Chief Ruler and was supported by his S. and J. Wardens as Senior and Junior Rulers.
To Brethren who have not studied the subject the names of the leading Officers may suggest a further step beyond the Third Degree, but in the ancient working as carried on by the Lodge of Antiquity and exemplified at the Lodge of Promulgation and by its propaganda, so soon as the Brethren have proved themselves Craftsmen the principal officers become for that, and for the higher Degree, a Chief Ruler and Senior and Junior Assistant Rulers instead of Master and Wardens. These usages disappeared under the workings of the Lodge of Reconciliation.
This is the only record of this elaborated ceremony being worked that occurs in the Minutes of Antiquity.
Neither Brother Bottomley nor Brother Noorthouck were present.
It was when, encouraged by his friends, Brother Preston determined to resume his Masonic activity that his Lectures received the full elaboration of their setting in the Harodim Chapter method. Our Brother is said to have "revived" the Antient and Venerable Order of Harodim, that is of Harods or Rulers, but we have yet to determine its origin, possibly the ceremony of being "made free from Harodim", still nominally in existence, may point to a source, but I must leave that issue aside for the present, nor can I dwell upon the details of its organization, which are set out in full detail in the Plan and Regulations of the Grand Order of Harodim printed in 1791. It was described by an ardent supporter as an "institution which certainly claims respect and deserves encouragement; inasmuch as, while it preserves all the ancient purity of the Science, it refines the vehicle by which it is conveyed to the ear; as a diamond is not less a diamond but is enhanced in its value, by being polished".
The Harodim Chapter died out about 1801, having served its purpose as a means of propagating Brother Preston's version of the Lectures which at that period were regularly worked in the Lodge of Instruction attached to the Lodge of Antiquity and illustrated at the Lodge Meetings.
It remains for me briefly to outline what these famous lectures were. Preston's own Lectures necessarily cover very much the ground of those with which we are familiar today, but there is a good deal of difference in BROTHER WILLIAM PRESTON 17 Thus we define the friendly salutations we intrust amongst Masons, and thus we demonstrate this truth‑That from the eyes of Masons the beauties of Heaven are never screened.
Clause 5 defines the key which opens our Treasures and which every faithful Brother bears with him.
SECTION II. in six Clauses carries the Initiate from preparation to the end of the Obligation:‑ the verbiage and the order of the matter, and there are besides considerable portions which have no exact counterparts today.
The First Lecture consists of Six Sections, the Second of Four, and the Third Lecture is prolonged to no less than Twelve Sections. Each Section is further sub‑divided into Clauses.
The three Lectures are each of them prefaced by preliminary dissertations‑paragraphs which were published in the Illustrations and which appear in print in connection with workings of the lectures in vogue today.
After such introduction the first lecture starts in the usual method of question and answer, and we are taught: That a Mason is never too wise to leam‑that the wise seek knowledge and more travel to find it from West to East.
The Master is placed in the East.
Because it ever has been, and continues to be, and always shall be the situation of the Master when he. acts in that capacity.
"Why is he placed there?" and further questions elicit: Because Man was there created in the Image of his Maker; there also knowledge and learning originated, and there the arts and Sciences began to flourish . . . Other men may gain knowledge by chance or accident but Masons must acquire it, otherwise they cannot obtain preferment ... the best use is made by Masons because the knowledge they have acquired they will improve to the best advantage, and thence once improved they will evidently dispense it for the general good.
Clauses 2, 3 and 4 deal with familar matter and the last enlarges on the symbolism of the Sun at its various stations The J.W. "placed in the South at high 12 invites the Brethren to the cool shade, there to enjoy rest and refreshment." In the West the Third Grand Natural Object is "still the Sun in a scene equally pleasing setting in the West, closing the day, and lulling as it were all nature to repose".
The Senior Warden renders to every brother the just reward of his merit to enable him to enjoy a comfortable repose, the best effects of honest industry when they are properly applied.
Each Clause ends with a summary such as is appended to this: 18 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Thus we demonstrate our regular possession of the invaluable and inestimable secrets of Freemasonry and the advantages to be derived from the faithful observance of them.
SECTION III. in six Clauses continues the Ceremony. In Clause 3: The Ancient Clothing of a Mason is described as white gloves and white leather apron, the first denoting Purity and the second Innocence, both considered as the badge of Innocence and the bond of Friendship.
In the next Clause the advantage of laying a foundation stone is explained: That should the ravages of time or violence destroy the whole superstructure, this stone when discovered will prove that such building did exist, the name of its founder, and the purpose of its being erected.
How can this apply to the N.E. comer? Because should the influence of virtue cease to operate amidst the corruption of men and the depravity of manners, the original principles which were impressed on his mind on that spot, will never be obliterated, but will guard him from the dangers of infection and preserve his heart untainted in the general corruption of the world. Clauses 5 and 6 traverse the Master's address to the Candidate and the Charge: Masons live to improve and improve to enjoy. Thus the admiration which is excited by the display of talents and virtues is a pleasing sensation; curiosity is gratified by marking the steps of fortune; the views of men are enlarged by tracing the effects of conduct and the heart is meliorated when it contemplates the principles whence good actions proceed.
In SECTION IV.
Clause 1 refers to the methods of the Egyptians, the great lights. In Clause 2, the form of the Lodge, a parallelogram, is explained.
Clauses 3, 4 and 5 deal with the Site, the situation of the building and its construction, the covering of the building and its supports, leading up to the description of the Mystical Ladder in Clause 6.
In SECTION V.
The first three Clauses explain the internal omaments, the furniture and jewels, the fourth the Dedication of the Lodge, and the two final divisions exemplify matter in the nature of charges.
In SECTION VI.
Clause 1, we learn that we meet on the level and part on the square, and where to find a brother.
BROTHER WILLIAM PRESTON 19 Clauses 2, 3 and 4 deal with Brotherly Love, Relief and Truth, the Cardinal Virtues, and in the final Clause, Day, Night and the Wind in Freemasonry are considered.
The dissertations on Brotherly Love, Relief and Truth which appeared in the Illustrations are familiar to workers of the lectures today.
We are taught with regard to the Master that: The Master should be hailed with homage and respect as Master of the Art, clothed in Royal Robes of blue purple and scarlet, that by this testimony he might display his skill and talent before the world ... With becoming grace he would receive all this ... but the Lodge no sooner formed than he would lay all aside for the Badge of Innocence and Friendship.
THE SECOND LECTURE is divided into FOUR SECTIONS.
The Five Clauses of the First SECTION deal with the Fellow Craft's progress from his preparation till his charge at the S.E. comer of the Lodge. In the Second SECTION, Clause 1 treats of the number of Degrees, the establishment of the Order, qualifications and service.
. In the Second Clause "we define the lodge held and the number of which it was originally composed", and some interesting points arise: The Lodge in the 1st degree is said to be assembled because there is an assembly of all the degrees of the order virtually represented.
The Lodge in the 2nd degree is said to be held because only a deputation from the General Lodge can be authorized to hold such a Lodge, and no Entered Apprentice is there permitted to assemble.
Five are necessary to hold a F.C. Lodge, three M.Ms. and two F.Cs. who represent all the absentees of the 2nd and 3rd Degrees and allude to the division of the Science into five branches and the five years employed in learning the rudiments of these Sciences, which was the time fixed to constitute a F.C.; there is also an allusion to the five senses (seeing, hearing, feeling, smelling and tasting) for they are the channels by which external objects are obtained and like signs in the natural language, have the same significance in all climates, and in all nations.
The Master's place is in the East where he denotes that Wisdom, represented by the column having the light in the East, which was before all things and is over all the works of the Creation.
Clause 3 deals with Geometry.
Clause 4 with The Rise of the Orders [of Architecture]. and the concluding Clause exemplifies the "Five Senses".
The THIRD SECTION includes five Clauses devoted to: 1. Classes at the Temple.
20 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES 2. Periods of labour and division of Time.
3. The two great pillars.
4. The staircase and foundation of the system.
5. The Sacred Symbol at the centre of the Lodge.
The FOURTH SECTION is intended to exemplify the Sciences as symbolized in the Temple; and the five Clauses illustrate: 1. The general description of the Temple.
2. The Temple religiously considered.
3. The Temple morally considered.
4. The Temple scientifically considered leading up to the origin of the present establishment at its building.
Several of these Sections contain a large amount of unfamiliar matter which only quotation at large could do justice to.
The THIRD LECTURE according to Brother Preston's 2nd Edition of the Illustrations consisted of Twelve Sections. Later on its matter seems to have been re‑arranged so as to be comprised under seven Sections. The length of the lecture is to be accounted for by the inclusion of the Installation Ceremony, Consecration of a Lodge and public functions beyond the Legendary History and actual ceremonies of the Degree.
The Working is very ceremonious and slow in development; the main headings must suffice for our present purpose. An introductory Section is succeeded by THE SECOND SECTION, which contains a History of the Order, in seven Clauses, of a very speculative character: 1. History of the corruption of Mankind.
2. Progress of the Institution to remedy or prevent that corruption.
3. Remedies adapted to each of those evils.
4. What types were adopted to teach the nature of our Soul.
5. How (the) System of Society was purified at the building of the Temple.
6. Organization of the Society at the building of the Temple.
7. Explains how the System has been adulterated since that period.
In SECTIONS III. and IV., each of seven Clauses, the History of the Degree is set forth in a method which, while it considerably lengthens the recital, does not materially add to the information.
SECTION V., in seven Clauses, again deals with the Mystery of the Third Degree, the Lodge, Ornaments, Tracing Board, Steps, Circumambulations, fall and raising.
BROTHER WILLIAM PRESTON 21 SECTION VI. treats of the Government of the Society in the Constitution and Consecration of a new Lodge, explanation of the jewels, and Installation of Masters.
SECTION VII. relates to public Ceremonies, the Laying of a Foundation Stone, Dedication of a Masonic Hall, Burial Service of a Mason, with the conclusion of the History of the Third Degree.
And now, with a few more words about our Brother himself, I must bring my remarks to a close.
Brother Preston was for many years Editor of the London Chronicle, and, as has been mentioned, since 1804 a partner in the firm he had served so well. It was said that he might be designated a "pioneer in literature", having conducted through the Press of the house of Strahan some of the most celebrated works of the eighteenth century writers. He certainly was a pioneer in his Masonic work.
An excellent Portrait of Brother Preston in the prime of life was painted by Samuel Drummond and engraved more than once. It appeared in the Freemasons' Magazine of 1795 to illustrate the biographical note by Brother Stephen Jones. This engraving omits the Past Master's jewel of 1778 which appeared in the original; it shows a fine intellectual face with a determined mouth. Another portrait in crayons, which hung in his parlour at the time of his death, depicts him a little softened by time, with a very happy expression, and there is yet another oil painting by Drummond, of which engravings were published‑a very pleasant picture of his later days‑showing him as an old gentleman full of vigour and alertness, of which engravings appeared in the European Magazine, 1811, and in subsequent editions of the Illustrations of Masonry. The originals in the last two cases are in the possession of the Lodge of Antiquity at Freemasons' Hall.
The Lodge also has there a plaster bust founded on a death mask, taken two days after death by Giannelli, of Snow Hill, under the supervision of Brother Sir F. C. Daniel.
Brother Preston's later years in Masonry were bound up with the history of Antiquity which he served so diligently until ill‑health limited his powers. From 1790 he was annually elected Deputy Master, except when another took his place on account of illness in 1802 and 1807, and when in 1809 the Duke of Sussex accepted the Mastership he appointed him his Deputy Master. It was in 1813 that William Preston, Citizen and Stationer, made his Will, when his Masonic bequests of ú500 Consols to the Girls' School, the same amount to the General Charity Fund, and ú300 to found the Presto 'an Lectureship, showed him, as he had professed, the true and steadfast friend of the Craft to the end of his life.
His last attendance at the Lodge of Antiquity was at the Installation Meeting, January 17th, 1816.
22 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES After an illness of nearly five years Brother Preston passed away at his residence, No. 3 Dean Street, Fetter Lane, on April 1st, 1818. The funeral took place at St. Paul's Cathedral, where he was buried on April 10th. An appreciative notice in the Gentleman's Magazine ends by describing the funeral as "of the most handsome description ... In consequence of the rain the Female Orphans belonging to the Freemasons' Charity in St. George's Fields were not able to follow in procession but mustered at the Church under the care of the Treasurer ... and returned to the house of the deceased where they partook of wine and cake".
Let us close with a quotation from a letter which the M.W.G.M. of those days, H.R.H. The Duke of Sussex, addressed to the Lodge of Antiquity in 1813, conveying an appreciation of Brother Preston and a commendation of his example equally applicable for us today: "Long has the Lodge of Antiquity been remarkable for its zeal in Masonry, and greatly is that Lodge and the Craft indebted to the diligence and example of my worthy Brother your Past Master Preston, whose name must be dear to every admirer and well wisher of our ancient Order. I have therefore only to recommend your following his steps, when I may anticipate the most glorious Result".
APPENDIX A DETAILS OF THE RENDERINGS OF THE FIRST AND THIRD LECTURES.
As regards the First Lecture we have the account of the occasion several times referred to of the "Grand Gala in honour of Free Masonry held at the Crown and Anchor Tavern ... on Tuesday the 21st Day of May 1772" fully set out in the First Edition of the Illustrations with a plan of the room, which we may take as situated East and West, which was arranged as follows An oblong room, nearly twice its width in length had a passage way reserved across the West and entered at the South West corner of the room; two L. or square‑shaped tables ranged with their long arms parallel to the Western portions of the North and South walls, and their shorter lengths running across and only leaving room at the centre for a passage way between the ends of the tables‑"The Grand Entrance for the Procession" to the Lodge enclosure. At these tables the rank and file of the Brethren were seated on both sides of the boards. At the further end of the Hall in the East sat the Grand Master "on a Throne, elevated 1' Foot," his Deputy and the Past Grand Master to his left and right with two seats beyond on either side for Past Grand Officers. Opposite the three principal Chairs was "a rich carpet" on which stood "the Pedestal, with the Furniture, Regalia, etc., on a crimson velvet cushion with Gold Tassels".
On either side about in a line with the Pedestal approaching the centre archwise were the Grand Wardens' Chairs supported in each case by six seats, BROTHER WILLIAM PRESTON 23 three on either hand for "Respectable Personages". Further Westward the walls were lined with a table on each side North and South with six seats at each for the Stewards for the Gala distinguished by their white rods. The centre of the floor space was occupied by the Lodge‑the Lodge Board‑the Master of the Lodge sitting at the centre of the end furthest from the Grand Master‑the West end apparently‑and two Assistants at either of the sides North and South. The East end of the Lodge Board was unoccupied, but along the South side were placed "The Three Great Lights properly elevated", one at the centre and the others at the angles of the Board, South East and South West.
To minister to creature comforts, tables were provided in front of the Wardens and their supporters, and there were stands before the three chief seats specified to be covered like the various tables already mentioned with green baize; there were two side tables "properly furnished" in the North Fast and South East comers of the room, and an enclosure described, "Repository for Wine", occupied the North West comer opposite the entrance. A gallery for Musicians was placed at the South East of the room.
The Lodge was opened in due form by command of the Grand Master in the Chair, Brother W. Preston as W.M., Bros. Gliddon and Pugh as S. and J. Wardens.
The Senior Warden rehearsed the Antient Charges on the Management of the Craft in working.
Masons employ themselves honestly on working days, live creditably on holydays; and the times appointed by the law of the land, as confirmed by custom are carefully observed; seven clauses which the ten clauses today in our Book of Constitutions elaborate with additions.
The Senior Warden then read: Laws for the Government of the Lodge. You are to salute one another in a cautious mannerNo private Committees are to be allowed.
These Laws are to be strictly observed [and so on.] Amen. So mote it be.
Clauses represented under "Behaviour" in our present version of the Antient Charges.
Toast. The King and the CraftFlourish with Horns. Brother Preston delivered his Oration, thus laying the foundation stone of his future Illustrations of Masonry. Toast. The Grand Master Flourish with Horns.
24 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Ode, sung by three Brethren accompanied with the instruments Wake the lute and quiv'ring strings, Mystic truths Urania brings; This was succeeded by the Toast. The Deputy Grand Master and the Grand Wardens.
The six SECTIONS of the FIRST LECTURE were then rehearsed accompanied by vocal and instrumental music with the appropriate toasts.
SECTION I.
Song (duet) Hail Masonry Divine Glory of ages thine Long may'st thou reign, etc. Toast. All Masons, both ancient and young, Who govern their passions and bridle their tongue.
SECTION II.
Solemn Air Toast. The heart that conceals, and the tongue that never reveals any of the Secrets of Masonry.
SECTION III.
Anthem.
Grant us Kind Heav'n what we request In Memory let us be blest, etc.
Toast. All Masons who honour the Order by conforming to its rules.
SECTION IV.
Trio. Clarionets and Bassoon.
Toast. May we arrive at the summit of Masonry, and may the just never fail of their reward.
SECTION V.
Song.
Arise and blow thy trumpet Fame! Free Masonry aloud proclaim, To realms and worlds unknown, etc.
Toast. To the memory of the Holy Lodge of St. John.
SECTION VI.
Air (sprightly).
The Charge on the Behaviour of Masons was rehearsed by Brother Preston, leading up to the final toast "May the Cardinal Virtues, etc.," as recorded in my lecture.
During Brother Preston's Mastership of Antiquity in 1777 it was decided "that a Chapter of the Order should be held," and the Minutes record as follows: BROTHER WILLIAM PRESTON 25 Lodge opened in the Third Degree in an adjacent Room. Procession entered the Lodge Room, and the usual ceremonies being observed, the Three Rulers were seated. A piece of Music was then performed, and the 12 Assistants entered in procession, and after repairing to their stations the Chapter was opened in solemn form. Bro. Barker then rehearsed the Second Section. A piece of Music was then performed by the instruments. Brother Preston then rehearsed the Third Section. An Ode on Masonry was then sung by three voices. Bro. Hill rehearsed the 4th Section, after which a piece of solemn music was performed. Bro. Brearley rehearsed the 5th Section, and the funeral procession was formed during which a solemn dirge was played and this ceremony concluded with a Grand Chorus. Bro. Berkley rehearsed the 6th Section, after which an anthem was sung. Bro. Preston then rehearsed the 7th Section, after a song in honour of masonry, accompanied by the instruments, was sung. The Chapter was then closed with the usual solemnity, and the Rulers and twelve Assistants made the procession round the Lodge, and then withdrew to an adjacent Room where the Masters' Lodge was closed in due form.
APPENDIX B THE ORDER OF HARODIM.
A copy of the advertisement of the inauguration of the Order of Harodim preserved in the Grand Lodge Library is as follows: PLAN of the ANTIENT and VENERABLE ORDER of HARODIM To be INSTITUTED at the MITRE‑TAVERN, FLEET‑STREET Under the GENERAL DIRECTION of BROTHER WILLIAM PRESTON PAST MASTER of the LODGE OF ANTIQUITY Acting by IMMEMORIAL CONSTITUTION.
This Order is to be under the management of a Chief Ruler and two Assistants, with a Council of twelve Companions to be elected annually, on the Festival of St. John the Evangelist.
26 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES The Order to be composed of five Classes: First Class First Degree Second Class l Second Degree Third Class i to include Masons Third Degree Fourth Class in the Master of Arts Fifth Class Royal Arch Each Class to be under the direction of skilful Companions, selected from Brethren of established reputation in the Literary, Moral, and Philosophical World.
The first Meeting to be on Thursday, the 4th of.7anuary, 1787, at Six in the Evening when a preliminary Lecture will be delivered by Bro. Preston; after which the Meetings to be regularly continued every Thursday during the Months of January, February, March, April, October, November, and December, at Seven in the Evening, in a private Room engaged for that purpose, at the Mitre‑Tavern.
As Bro. PRESTON'S intention is to promote the general good purposes of Masonry throughout the World, on the Genuine, Original, and Constitutional Principles of that truly Antient and Honourable Institution without interfering with the Government of the Society either at home or abroad; and, if possible, to unite all Classes of his Brethren in one universal System, he flatters himself his Plan will be approved: And as nothing can tend more effectually to promote the intended design, than the proper application of such sums of Money as may be received on the admission of Brethren into the Separate Classes of the Order, Brother PRESTON engages that all such Sums, with the surplus of Accounts that may be settled by the Council, shall be deposited in the hands of an eminent Banker in the City of London, to be at the disposal of the General Meeting on the Festival of St. John the Evangelist, for the relief of poor and distressed Companions of the Order; and that the proceedings of the different Weekly Meetings, with the Names of the Companions as they are Enrolled, and the State of the Accounts, shall be regularly printed and distributed among the Members on the first Thursday of every Month, for which each Member shall pay one Shilling annually.
SUCH Brethren as are willing to encourage the Plan, and to be enrolled as Companions of this Venerable Order, are requested to favour Brother PRESTON with their Names, Professions, and Places of Residence, at his house, No. 3, DEAN‑STREET, Fetter‑Lane; or inclosed in a Letter, addressed to Mr. THOMAS CHAPMAN, Secretary to the Committee of the ORDER OF HARODIM, at the Mitre‑Tavern, Fleet‑Street, where the Committee Meet every Thursday, from Seven to Nine in the Evening; and if the said Brethren are approved by the Committee, they shall be enrolled, on paying Half‑a‑Crown, which will entitle them to attend all future Meetings in the First Class, free of Expence, and to rank as Companions of the Order for Life.
BROTHER WILLIAM PRESTON 27 When the reunion of the two bodies claiming the title of the Lodge of Antiquity had been happily accomplished, the Harodim Lodge was warranted by Grand Lodge on March 25th, 1790, designed by the petitioners to enable the Chapter to preserve a correspondence with Grand Lodge and to authorize it to practise the rites of Masonry under the auspices of this Lodge.
The Plan and Regulations of the Grand Order of Harodim printed in 1791 supply full particulars of its constitution and relationship with the Lodge.
We are told: The Order of Harodim is totally independent being established on its own basis; and as a Chapter, is no otherwise connected with the Society of Free Masons, than by having its members selected from that Fraternity. The Mysteries of the Order are peculiar to the Institution itself, while the Lectures of the Chapter include every branch of the Masonic System, and represent the Art of Masonry in a finished and complete form.
There are different classes in the Order, and particular Lectures restricted to each. The Lectures are divided into Sections, and the Sections into Clauses. The Sections are assigned to Companions in each Class who are denominated Sectionists; who distribute the Clauses of their respective Sections to Companions who are then denominated Clause‑holders. Such Companions as by assiduity become possessed of all the Sections in the Lecture, are called Lecturers ... In the case of death, sickness, or nonresidence in London, of any Lecturer, Sectionist or Clause‑holder, a Companion is immediately appointed to fill up the vacancy. Thus the Lectures are always complete; and once in every month during the Session they are regularly delivered in open Chapter.
The Chapter was composed of a Grand Patron, who must be a Nobleman, and two Vice‑Patrons; a Chief Ruler or Harod and two Assistants; a General Director; a Council of Twelve Respectable Companions (who must all be Master Masons); Six Assistant Council; two Examiners; an unlimited number of Lecturers, Sectionists, Clause‑holders and private Companions; Fifteen Honorary Members; an Organist; a Robe‑Keeper; and one or more janitors. The Acting Grand Officers of Grand Lodge and the Principal of the Grand Royal Arch Chapter for the time being were always to rank as Honorary Patrons upon proper application for that purpose. The Treasurer and Secretary who were also to hold the same offices in the Harodim Lodge were elected from the Members of the Assistant Council.
Candidates for the Chapter must be Free and Accepted, that is Entered Apprentice Masons, their further advancement could be effected by the Chapter in conjunction with the Lodge.
28 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES The Companions were divided into Five Classes:Free and Accepted Masons, Fellow‑Craft Masons, Master Masons, Masters and Past Members of Lodges, and Royal Arch Masons.
Subscriptions and fees are all set out in great detail, as are the duties of the Officers. The Bye‑laws of the Harodim Lodge really placed the Lodge under the control of the Chapter; the initiation fee was ú5‑5‑0, the joining fee ú1‑1‑0, all subscriptions to be paid in to the Chapter Fund, and the Jewels and Furniture were vested in the Chief Harod and Assistant Rulers for the time.
The Order of Procession going to and returning from the Chapter Room was laid down as follows: Janitor robed.
Two Stewards, with rods.
Clause‑holders, Sectionists and Lecturers each grade two and two with rods.
Two Examiners robed.
Past Council.
Past Chief Harods.
General Director, robed and covered.
Present Council, robed, with gilt rods; Juniors first ranking according to Initiation.
Treasurer and Secretary in surplices and scarfs. Two Assistant Rulers, robed and covered. Chief Harod, robed and covered. Two Vice Patrons, with batoons. Grand Patron with the Ensign of Office. Assistant Council with Rods.
There seems to have been great difficulty in making the Harodim Chapter and Lodge pay their way. In 1792 the Harodim Lodge united with Antiquity bringing an acquisition of new members, whilst the members of that ancient Lodge were welcomed as bringing to the Chapter a further membership of "those trained and educated on the Old System on which the Harodim Lectures are founded". In 1793 the Harodim Lodge Constitution was surrendered and Antiquity passed resolutions to sanction and support the Chapter.
BROTHER WILLIAM PRESTON 29 Brother Stephen Jones, to whom reference has been made, was a prominent member of the Harodim Chapter and Lodge who joined the Lodge of Antiquity at this time. He had originally been attracted to Freemasonry by studying Brother Preston's Illustrations; by his marriage with Mrs. Preston's niece he became a family connection. Later on he was Master of Antiquity and became the first Prestonian Lecturer.
The prosperous days of the Chapter seem to have culminated about 1795, when Lord Macdonald presided as Grand Patron, supported by Bros. James Heseltine, William Birch, John Spottiswoode, and William Meyrick as Vice‑Patrons.
It is pleasant to note that this list of supporters includes Brother Heseltine, no longer estranged, and Brother Noorthouck's reconciliation with Preston is evidenced by his Ode "performed at every meeting of the Grand Chapter of Harodim", which appears in the later editions of the Illustrations.
On August 7th, 1793, when the Chapter of Harodim celebrated the annual feast at Grove House, Camberwell, under the presidency of Brother Meyrick, Most Excellent Chief Harod, the Freemasons' Magazine tell us, in the words of Brother Stephen Jones From a discovery being made in the course of the entertainment that it was the natal day of Brother William Preston, who was present, and whom the Companions revere as the renovator and chief supporter of this ancient Order, a glow of sentiment was awakened in the minds of the company that burst forth in a transport of fraternal congratulation which must be highly gratifying to him, and certainly did honour to their own feelings as brethren and disciples of a great master in the art.
Schemes were proposed and tried to promote the working of the Chapter under the auspices of the Lodge of Antiquity, but financial difficulties seem to have baffled all endeavours. In 1799 Vice‑Patron Preston "according to his own proposition and engagement....... gave a draft for the entire sum of ú32‑19‑1" to meet that deficiency. In 1800 the Lodge of Instruction which had been in abeyance for two years resumed its meetings weekly, and Minute Books are extant showing that it was meeting as late as February, 1836. The latest record appearing in the Lodge of Antiquity Minutes seems to be in October, 1801, and about this time the Chapter evidently dissolved. "As a means of spreading a knowledge of Preston's Lectures", comments Brother Capt. Firebrace, "it had served its purpose. These were now worked in the Lodge of Instruction, and one or more Sections were regularly illustrated at the Lodge Meetings".
In the European Magazine for 1811 there is a reference to the public Meetings of the Harodim Chapter which "were" held at Freemasons' Hall, and the writer proceeds 30 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES "We say were held because from circumstances as difficult as unnecessary to account for, the Chapters of this Order have for some time ceased to be convened; though they certainly placed the moral and Scientific Lectures of Masonry in a most pleasing and advantageous light".
APPENDIX C SYLLABUS BOOKS, ETC.
We first hear of the publication of something in the nature of a Syllabus of the Lectures in the prospectus for Private Lectures about 1774. Such "books of the courses" were distributed and in use, but at the present time the Syllabus books of the Prestonian Lectures, of which a good many copies are extant, are, though pre‑Union, of a much later date. It is the case with several copies in the Grand Lodge Library, Quatuor Coronati Library, and a copy in my possession, that they go no further as regards printed matter, than the end of the first Lecture of the Third Degree. A later edition on paper dating 1831 is equally disappointing.
These Manuals indicate the details of Opening, Closing, Calling Off and On, and the questions and procedure of the Lectures, and are interleaved with blank sheets on which the owners have made pencil or other notes of the working chiefly of a very fragmentary kind. My remarks are chiefly based on a copy which was in use by my grandfather (Brother T. J. Pettigrew) when S.W. of the Lodge of Antiquity in 1821, and a later edition which was in the hands of Brother Burckhardt of that Lodge in 1833, now at Grand Lodge, which gives most of the working in full and some further particulars of the Third Degree from the same sources.
An aid to the Lectures was published by Brother Preston, entitled: "The Pocket Manual or Freemasons' Guide to the Science of Freemasonry, containing a Syllabus of the Lectures and a Particular Detail of the subjects treated in each Section, with Many interesting Remarks".
Part I. The First Lecture, was published in 1790.
Part II. The Second Lecture in 1792.
Copies of Parts I and II are extant, but I have not so far heard of a copy of Part III.
THE FIRST DEGREE (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1924) Bro. Capt. C. W. FIREBRACE, P.G.D., dealt exclusively with ritual matters and was never printed. It is therefore omitted from this collection.
THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TRIGRADAL SYSTEM (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1925) by BRO. LIONEL VIBERT, P.A.G.D.C. P.M., Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No. 2076, London The Three Degrees, as we have them in the Craft today, are a development at the hands of speculative craftsmen of a Gild system which consisted originally, as far as we can ascertain, of a simple oath of admission for the apprentice, a lad in his teens, and a formal ceremony of admission to full membership, with possibly a secret rite associated with the mastership. By the days of Grand Lodge this had come to be a system of two degrees only, the Acceptance and the Master's Part. In, or just before 1725 the Acceptance was divided up to form the E.A. and F.C. degrees, and by 1730 the trigradal system was definitely established. But the form of working which we practise today cannot be said to have come into existence until after the ritual had been agreed on by the Lodge of Reconciliation. That ritual was rehearsed at the Especial Meeting of Grand Lodge, held on the 20th May, 1816, but it is probably the case that the L. of R. did not arrange a set form of words for the whole of each ceremony and did not intend to do so.
It was not till 1838 that Claret published his first ritual‑his name was first appended to the edition of 1840‑he having been present at two meetings of the L. of R. as a visitor acting as candidate. He was P.M. of Lodges 12 and 228, and the work appeared in successive editions till 1866. The most that can be claimed for it is that it represents the form into which the working had settled down by this time in Claret's own Lodges. For all practical purposes it is our present‑day working, as taught in the Lodges of Instruction, and the statement that the system as we have it today is the system as agreed on after the Union of the two Grand Lodges is after all sufficiently accurate for most people, for we are pretty safe in assuming that such modifications as were introduced after the L. of R. had ceased to function were all addressed to matters of detail; but there were subsequent modifications, and the claims put forward today to an absolutely exact knowledge of the ceremonies as they were rehearsed in 1816 were not unfairly described by Bro. Hextall, is A.Q.C. in 1910, as illusory, for the very reason that in 1816 they were not stabilised in their entirety.
31 32 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES And it should be clearly understood that the Ritual as rehearsed in 1816, with or without later modifications, was not by any means universally adopted, and it is not universal under the United Grand Lodge today. It was not enjoined by G.L., although the contrary is frequently asserted. At the present time the two leading schools of Instruction differ in their version of the Obligations, while in the Provinces the phraseology is often still further departed from, and was probably never adopted verbatim, nor was it taken that it was intended to be so adopted. Variations in the opening ceremonies exist in many Provinces which are of considerable interest, as a wording is often preserved which is to be found in mid‑eighteenth century exposures, and has clearly been maintained unaltered from pre‑Union days. The phrase of the official record of the meeting of G.L. in June, 1816, when the final result of the labours of the L. of R. was dealt with, is that the several ceremonies recommended are with two alterations approved and confirmed; not by any means enjoined. The L. of R. were strongly opposed to any part of them being reduced to writing and an attempt to do so by a certain Bro. L. Thompson was visited with severe censure. And the Craft as such was by no means unanimous in approval. Certain brethren declared that the L. of R. had not done what they were directed to do by the articles of Union, and had altered all the ceremonies and language of Masonry and not left one sentence standing. And while this is no doubt the language of controversy, it is clear, if pre‑Union exposures are at all to be relied on, that the ceremonies were not merely recast but were substantially varied in material particulars; and the phraseology used by the members of the L. of R. themselves certainly suggests that they considered they had been given a free hand with regard to the material at their disposal.
It was in 1730 that Samuel Prichard published his Masonry Dissected, the first occasion when the Third Degree purported to be exposed; and this was the commencement of a whole series of these exposures, many of which were reprinted over and over again in edition after edition. It would be misleading to accept these publications at their face value; but we can avail ourselves of them as affording some indication of what may have been the practice of the Lodges of the period, correcting them by our own experience. We have then, in Masonry Dissected, first published in 1730, Jachin & Boaz 1762, Hiram 1764, Shibboleth 1765, and Tubal Kain 1777, a series in which, except for certain changes in the Third Degree, the text is preserved, almost verbatim from 1730 right up to just before the Union, and it purports to be the working of the Grand Lodge of the Moderns. Jachin & Boaz also specifies certain points in which the Antients and Modems differ, and gives the Antient working as well. Another exposure, Three DistinctKnocks, first published in 1760, expressly claims to give the Antient ritual, but is practically identical with Jachin & Boaz, except with regard to the words of the two first degrees and the prayers used by the Antients. These two also give an Installation Obligation, with a word and grip for the Master; the Wardens THE TRIGRADAL SYSTEM 33 take the Obligation but are not given the word and grip. It is generally understood that this ceremony was practised by the Antients but neglected by the Modems.
Other alleged exposures are translations from the French, such as Solomon in all his Glory, and yet others are manifestly mere catchpenny productions of no validity, such as the Master Key to All Freemasonry of 1760. All these need not detain us.
But with this body of evidence in our possession we can gather a very good idea of the practice in both Grand Lodges before the Union, and we can appreciate that what then took place was more than a mere reconciliation of two systems not in themselves really very dissimilar, as far as the Craft degrees were concerned.
It would be outside the scope of this lecture to enlarge on the changes then made, but I shall very briefly summarise the actual developments that took place in the ceremonies as disclosed by a comparison of the exposures from Prichard in 1730 to Claret in post‑Union times, only referring however to the most conspicuous of these modifications. And while the changes themselves are manifest enough, it is in respect of most of them not possible to suggest with any approach to accuracy the dates at which they were effected.
The brethren originally sat round a table with the Master at one end and both Wardens at the other. The South was occupied by a Senior Entered Apprentice. During the century the junior Warden moved to the S. and Deacons were introduced; after the Union the table disappears and the I.P.M. is recognised and given a share in the opening. The candidate, who previously passed outside the brethren seated at the table, now passes round in front of them. The Opening in the First Degree is modified as the officers change their positions, but the essentials are there in 1730 except that there is no prayer. Until towards the end of the century there seems to be no special opening for the other degrees. The First Degree Obligation is all along closely similar to the present one, the penalty being identical; but there is no reference to the more effective penalty originally. The ceremony is, however, far shorter because much that we now introduce by way of charges or addresses was imparted by way of question and answer in lectures. The Antients had a prayer for the can., but it is quite different from what we are today familiar with. The method of advancing as usually described is much simpler, and this applies to all three degrees; but a passage in the preface to the first edition of Ahiman Rezon suggests that the Moderns had something more resembling what we are today familiar with. The exposures, however, have no indication of this. Prichard mentions two Names, and refers to both as being communicated in the First Degree, the second alone being used in the F.C. The Modems reversed them while the Antients retained this order, and at the Union their practice was maintained, with one word only for each degree. The can. was originally restored to light in the midst of a circle of swords. This, which is Irish 34 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES working today, is still preserved in some Provinces, but was eliminated from‑the ritual as recommended after the Union. The working tools of the First Degree are the same but only one, the 24 inch gauge, is moralised in the exposures. There is no reference to W.T. in the other degrees, but they almost certainly were known and were in all probability moralised in extempore addresses.
In the Second Degree there appears originally to have been no distinct obligation and when it does come in it includes some provisions that now form part of that in the Third. But there was an addition to the ceremony in that the newly made F.C. re‑entered the Lodge to receive his wages, which he did from the Senior Warden between the Pillars after having passed a test. The earlier rituals also include a set of verses on the letter G., and other indications that part of the working may have originally been in rhyme. The earliest account of the penalty gives it as we have it.
The changes that took place in the Third Degree both before and at the Union are much more considerable. It does not appear that prior to the Union the Lodge was darkened; indeed there is direct evidence to the con trary in the various plates which show the ceremony in progress with the candles all lit. The original narrative as we have it described the F.C. discovering the Master decently buried in a handsome grave. It is not till Hiram and, `. & B. that he is found in a mangled condition, etc. Then the blows given by the first two villians were originally reminiscent of the penalties of the first two degrees, while the whole narrative was different in many particulars. The obligation, as given in Hiram, has the chastity point, but not the f.p.o.f. These are found, however, in another connection in the ceremony from the very first. A phrase which I may designate by the letters MACH is the first given; then we get the other form with the remark that Mach is the more general. From this time onwards according as the exposure is A. or M. it gives one phrase or the other as the more usual, but always mentions both. In this respect our system today is a manifest compromise. We tell the can. that one is the A. and the other the M. working. It is clear that in this particular point neither G.L. would give way, and the only solution of the difficulty was to carry forward into the combined system the workings of both G.L. But in other respects what appears to have happened was that the G.L. of the Modems gave in on all points where their ceremonies differed from those of the Antients and the sister Grand Lodges (Wonnacott, A.Q.C., xxiii, 261).
The only distinction in the 18th century as regards the apron was apparently that the edging for Grand Officers was blue. The apron itself was plain, but from about 1760 the custom came in of decorating it with any designs the owner fancied. The Master Mason may have worn it with the flap down, as we do today; the E.A. and F.C. keeping the flap up, buttoned to the waistcoat, the E.A. further turning up one comer. The tassels are not earlier than 1814; the rosettes with us are later still, but may THE TRIGRADAL SYSTEM 35 have been adopted in Germany in the 18th century; they seem to represent original buttonholes for the turned‑up corners (Hills, in Som. Master Trans. 1916, Masonic Clothing).
If then we compare the system as disclosed in 1730 with the system as recommended by the Lodge of Reconciliation in 1816, we find that the changes that have been introduced are that the form of the Lodge is altered and the way in which it is officered; that the opening formerly only used for the First Degree is now required, with appropriate modifications, in all; that the clothing has become more elaborate and eventually the aprons of the degrees and of the Past Masters are discriminated; and that there has been a certain amount of transference of ritual matter from lectures to the actual degree ceremony. The First Degree is not otherwise materially changed; the Second is deprived of the incident of the receipt of wages by the new Fellow‑Craft, but now has its own obligation; and in the Third the narrative has been considerably re‑written and the signs would also seem to have been added to, as the only ones given in pre‑Union editions of jachin & Boaz are the grip, p.s. and Grand and Royal. The pass‑words are now introduced between the degrees; they were hitherto part of them. But these are in every case changes of detail only. Substantially the system of 1730 is the system today; that is to say, we still have the trigradal arrangement of that period, the Third Degree of which was concerned with the Hiramic Legend. We must now take our enquiry back a further stage and endeavour to ascertain how that threefold system itself came into existence and what was the source of the materials of which it was constructed.
A consideration of the phraseology used by Anderson in Regulation XIII, and by the G.L. two years later, when they repealed the rule there laid down as to the Master's Part, makes it certain that when Anderson drew up the Regulations of 1723 there were only two degrees. There was the admission or acceptance, which made the candidate an apprentice, or as the phrase now became, Entered Apprentice. There was a further degree, the Master's Part, which conferred on the candidate the rank of Fellow and Master. In order to qualify to be a Master of a Lodge the brother had to be "among the Fellow Craft". Of the nature of this further degree in 1723 we have no evidence; the disclosure that was printed in the Flying Post in that year merely refers to the further degree, by the title entered Fellow, and says that the two test questions are: to an E.A., "Have you been in the Kitchen?" and to the E.F., "Have you been in the Hall?" These are not framed like test questions, since a simple affirmative is a sufficient answer to either, nor can they be said to give us much information.
It is equally certain that by February, 1725, there were three degrees being worked. We have it definitely on record than an Association which called itself Philo‑Musicae et Architecturae Societas was founded on February 36 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES 18th, 1725, by eight persons, masons, four of whom are recorded in the minute‑book as having been regularly passed Masters in the Lodge at the Queen's Head in Hollis Street. And, the record goes on: "Before we founded this Society a Lodge was held, consisting of Masters sufficient for that purpose, in order to pass Charles Cotton, Esqr., Mr. Papillon Ball, and Mr. Thomas Marshall, Fellow Crafts." Here are three degrees clearly indicated. What then is the history of the period in which this momentous change took place ? The part of it that is material to our enquiry can be reconstructed with some degree of certainty.
In 1721 Grand Master Payne read over in Grand Lodge a new set of Articles to be observed. The text of these has not come down to us; what we have in their place is the Regulations propounded by Anderson in 1723, which are admittedly a revision of them and also contain additional matter. But we can form a fairly clear idea of the problem for which Payne was legislating. We know that after a period of no particular distinction and no great increase in numbers the Craft suddenly leapt into popularity and the inevitable result was that the Four Lodges which at this time, with an undetermined number of unattached brethren (St. John's Masons as they were called), alone constituted Grand Lodge, could not absorb the people who now clamoured for admission. The question then arose whether it was possible to form new Lodges. To us this is no problem at all; we see it done every week. But it was in 1721 an entirely new departure on the part of G.L.; we must recognise that it was quite definitely an arguable matter with much to be said on the side of the Old Lodges. It is, however, quite clear that from the meeting of June, 1721, G.L. recognised the necessity for new Lodges and legislated for them. We know the dates of most of those that were now constituted. But the power to form new lodges was narrowly restricted. It was the prerogative of G.L. alone, and each had to be constituted by the G.M., if not in person then by a formally authorised deputy. The fact of its having been constituted was notified to all the other lodges, its first Master having been approved by the G.M., and installed by him on the occasion of the constitution.
And it would seem that that was not the only way in which G.L. kept control over the new accessions. The Master had to be among the Fellows. G.L. now directed that the degree of Fellow and Master could be conferred in G.L. alone. This perhaps did not matter as far as the new Lodges were concerned. It meant in practice that G.L. retained in its own hands all the patronage, since it could if it chose prevent any particular brother in a new Lodge becoming qualified for the Chair. But even if the Degree itself was only now invented, the rule operated to infringe the privileges of the old Lodges. And it was the law of the Craft for at all events four years. We have no record of G.L. actually conferring the degree; but that proves nothing. But we can, I think, appreciate that in any case the old Lodges would be by no means in sympathy with this piece of legislation. Now it is THE TRIGRADAL SYSTEM 37 just while the law stands thus that we find a new degree comes into existence, and it comes in between the Acceptance or Admission and the Master's Part. Moreover it is, as a consideration of it today at once shows us, not in any way connected with the Third Degree of a later date, but is in every way complementary to the First Degree, the original Admission. In the 1723 exposure the candidate is made to say: "An enterd mason I have been, ‑ and ‑ I have seen," while the Grand Mystery of Freemasons discovered, of 1724, speaks of the first of two names as the Universal Word. Prichard's account of these has already been referred to. Tubal Kain repeats it in 1777. So that it would seem that the new degree appropriated one word of two, both of which had originally been given to the candidate in the admission ceremony, and that this usage persisted for half a century and more.
The rule as to the new Lodge being constituted by the G.M. or his Deputy was soon found unworkable. The Craft expanded in a way that its rulers had not foreseen, and when there were Lodges coming into existence at Bath, Bristol, Norwich, Chichester, Caermarthen, Portsmouth, and Congleton in Cheshire, as was the case in 1724, the directions as to Constitution had necessarily to be modified. The business of constituting new Lodges was now entrusted to deputations and the Brn. selected were usually local members of the G.L. But with regard to the rule that restricted the conferring of the Master's Part, G.L. took an entirely different course. Instead of delegating its powers in this respect also, which is what we would have expected, it repealed the legislation absolutely on 27th November, 1725. By so doing it purported to restore to all Lodges, new and old alike, the privilege that had been the rule before 1721, that namely of selecting their own Masters. But the concession was an empty one, for while the law still was that the Master must be among the Fellow‑Craft, that was now complied with by his having taken the new intermediate degree that went by that name. The Third Degree, as it can now be styled, was in fact all but superfluous. It conferred some amount of dignity no doubt, but while not now necessary for the mastership of the private Lodge, it was not as yet a pre‑requisite for any post in Grand Lodge, and indeed ran no small risk of passing entirely out of existence. In 1730 we read: "There is not one Mason in an Hundred that will be at the Expence to pass the Master's Part." We have here, I suggest, the key to the reason for the introduction of the Fellow Craft Degree.
At a later date we meet with a constructive degree, introduced to give brethren the qualification then required for the R.A. In exactly the same way, I submit, the genesis of the Fellow Craft degree was that it was a con structive degree, introduced to enable the Private Lodges to give their own members the necessary qualification for their Master's Chair; without involving a recourse to G.L. The qualification was that he was to be among the Fellow‑Craft; this is the phrase of Anderson in 1723, at a date when no such degree was in existence. The law of the day was that the Master's 38 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Part was only to be conferred in G.L. The solution of the difficulty is readily arrived at. We shall in our Lodges confer a chair degree, and we shall call it Fellow‑Craft, and in order to avoid any suggestion of trespassing on G.L.'s province we shall construct it exclusively from material available to us in the existing Acceptance, or associated with it. The degree itself complies absolutely with this description of what it was necessary it should consist of if it was to serve its purpose. It does not appear that originally it had so much as a separate obligation of its own. It was simply a chair degree arrived at by repeating the Entered Apprentice degree and emphasising one of the two words already associated with it, so that inevitably in a very short time each degree took exclusive possession of one of the two words. Other differences were introduced as time went on, but with regard to the names we still talk of their conjoint signification; we still re‑assemble the emblems which were in 1725 disrupted to suit the purposes of the Private Lodges of the period. And we can, I think, assume that there was not at this stage either in the Fellow Craft or in the Master's Part, now become the Third Degree, any introduction of entirely new material. Had there been any such innovation we may be quite certain not only that the old masons would have been up in arms, but that G.L. would have made it a pretext for condemning the new departure. There was apparently some discontent and we can see the reasons for it, but there was as yet no suggestion of any disunion, nor do we get any accusation of departing from old customs until G.L. itself changes the order of the words in the first two degrees after 1730.
In course of time the Second Degree gained in character and in incident. But it was long before the Third Degree arrived at the position that it now holds in the system. So late as 1752 it was not required as a step to any rank or promotion, for we find in that year that the first Prov. G.M. of Cornwall was installed, and the Brother who presided on the occasion was only a Fellow‑Craft. At the present day there is nowhere in the Book of Constitutions any direction that the Master of a Lodge or any holder of Grand Rank, except the Tyler and two other officers, shall be a Master Mason. For years, therefore, it was merely a luxury, but fortunately one that gradually became increasingly popular. What happened was that the degree was only conferred for special reasons at special Lodges of Masters summoned by the W.M. An ordinary Lodge had every right to confer the degree but it would only do so very occasionally. Not all the members took the degree. And as a necessary consequence in a number of Lodges they were unable to work the ceremony, and we find as early as 1738 eleven Lodges in London specifically described as Master's Lodges. This does not mean that they alone might work the degree; but it does imply that they specialised in it and apparently conferred it for the benefit of other Lodges who were not familiar with the working of it (Hughan, Origin of the English Rite, page 53). It is not till 1738 that we find the distinction made of speak ing of the admission to the Master's Part as raising. But in course of time the THE TRIGRADAL SYSTEM 39 Lodges generally took over the degree and by a natural process it became the rule to select the Master from the brethren with the higher qualification. Preston says: "From this class of the Order the Rulers of the Craft are selected," and exposures of the years just before the Union say in terms that the first qualification for the office of Master is that he be regularly and lawfully raised. This still suggests that he was only raised when it became a question of having the qualification, because Preston also remarks "The Third Class (i.e., M.M.) is restricted to a selected few," but we may, I think, take it that by the Union it was the usual practice to take the degree.
The course of development then, apart from any reasons for it, is that in 1721 G.L. recognised two degrees, an Acceptance and a Master's Part, and that from 1725 there were three, a new degree being dovetailed in. The Master's Part is the true predecessor of the Third Degree today. The 1723 exposure has the phrase: "I know the Master's Part full well, as honest Maughbin will you tell." The allusion is one we can still appreciate, and it involves the inference that the Master's Part was concerned with the Hiramic Legend. We are often told that both legend and degree were constructed in the early years of G.L., presumably therefore in or before 1721. But it is to me, at all events, difficult of acceptance that so drastic an innovation‑for such it would assuredly have been‑was not only permitted but was endorsed by the Antients when, in 1751, they came to restore the old systems and remove the alterations introduced by the Premier G.L. Not only do the minutes of Haughfoot and Kelso, of 1702, unmistakably indicate two degrees, but we have the records of the London Acception which show in 1635 members paying for admission, and making a second payment to become masters. I think we can assert unhesitatingly that the Master's Part, and therefore the Hiramic Legend, antedates the G.L. era. Let us therefore move the enquiry yet one more stage further back and endeavour to ascertain what can be said as to the Craft when the Lodge was still the workroom of a gild of working masons, engaged on some great cathedral or abbey of medieval England, and by what process it gathered together that wonderful accumulation of legend, symbolic morality and philosophy that was surely already part of the system when the first Grand Lodge assembled at the Apple Tree in Charles Street, Covent Garden.
The Gild which from the first inception of Gothic architecture kept the secrets of the construction of that art as its monopoly, must have always been distinct from. any other Craft Gild in three material points. In the first place the usual system was that in each large town there was for each Craft a permanent local Gild, a Gild independent of any other Gilds of the same Craft existing elsewhere in the country. But the work of the freemasons lay outside the towns and, moreover, they were never in any given locality more than the few years required to construct the particular work that 40 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES had brought them together there. Their organisation must therefore at a very early date have assumed the form of a single Fraternity for the whole Kingdom, with local associations in each locality in which Gothic building was in progress, and these bodies met in the workroom which from its very first appearance in the records is always styled the Lodge. And between Lodge and Lodge the brethren travelled, proving themselves by secret means of recognition; they also convened periodical meetings of the whole craft over large areas for the business of the Fraternity. All this organisation is quite unknown in any other trade in the country.
In the second place the Freemasons alone among Craft Gilds had not merely the consciousness of their own antiquity that would necessarily follow from the very fact that the cathedrals and abbeys built by their pre decessors centuries earlier were still there for all men to see, but they had given that feeling concrete form and possessed a regular history of the Order. This, when we first come across it, is to the effect that Masonry was founded in Egypt by Euclid the worthy clerk, that it came to England, and that there, after many years, Athelstan reformed it. In exactly the same way the corresponding association of the building crafts in France, the Compagnonnage, had their legend that Solomon founded their Craft at the Temple, that a certain Maitre Jacques brought them to France, and that a personage known as Pere Soubise organised them in that country.
In the third place, since all the artistic life of the community centred round its church, and all the learning was confined to the ecclesiastic and the monk, the art of the builder of Gothic was the one craft of the period which offered to intellectual men something worthy of investigation. We read accordingly, at a very early date, of persons who, having acquired some theoretical knowledge of the subject, came to the masons to study its practical applications, and these people are already in the 15th century called speculatives. When first they were admitted to be members of the craft we cannot say, but they seem to be suggested in the 13th century, and we can appreciate that they would make their appearance very early indeed in the history of the Gild. The very existence of our Freemasonry today depends on the circumstance that the Gild from its earliest days extended its privileges and communicated its secrets to men who were not masons by profession. The history of the Craft is the history of a body into which a continually increasing number of these speculative members gained admission. We have from the 13th to the 17th century, then, a working trade gild with its own legends and ceremonies, but to it is introduced an element which keeps it in touch with every new development in thought, every accession to knowledge in the country as it arises. And we can appreciate how the ceremonial, in the hands of this speculative element, would tend to take on a deeper and deeper symbolic, moral and philosophic character, and tend to lose its original direct connection with the affairs of a purely operative fraternity.
THE TRIGRADAL SYSTEM 41 We next have, from the time of James I or so, a profession that is moribund, but a society that keeps alive because of its non‑operative members, whose aims are now frankly philosophical and ethical, and all trace of actual contact with the trade of building is fast disappearing. It is this society which in 1716 forms the Grand Lodge and then tells us that Freemasonry, despite its external appearance and its terminology, is no longer a trade organisation, but purely and simply a system of morality.
Now, the various influences to which this Fraternity was subjected throughout its career, through its speculative members, have only to be stated, and it will at once be obvious that there must have been constantly at work an irresistible impulse towards accretion, the taking in of further symbols, the further elaboration of the ceremonies, the emphasising of what was eventually to become the principal function of the Fraternity, the teaching of moral duties and truths, to the entire disregard of technical knowledge or skill. We can review these influences very rapidly.
We begin with the Crusades, and we know that architects from Western Europe actually worked in Palestine, and the local knowledge they acquired had a marked influence on contemporary Gothic. Next we have the develop ment of the study of Hebrew and Hebrew literature that heralded the Renaissance; we have for a period that terminates in 1453 a constant intercourse with France and French building fraternities; we have during the days of the Hanseatic League a fairly constant intercourse with Flanders and Lower Germany, where the Vehmgerichte were still flourishing as late as the 16th century; we have next the first appearance of the Bible in English, which took place in 1535; we have from about 1614 onwards the individual philosophers who styled themselves Rosicrucians and Hermeticists, who were still to the fore in the next century and some of whom definitely were Freemasons; we have from 1685, the date of the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes, Huguenot refugees from France; and finally we have right into the days of Grand Lodge itself the political and civil dissensions between the Jacobites and the Hanoverians. All through the centuries there are lesser influences also constantly at work, bringing us learning of one sort or another from Spain or Italy or the East; what wonder then that in our system today enthusiasts have traced analogies and claimed identities with every philosophy or religion ever known to civilization or before it.
And yet, while the results of the process are now before us in our Lodges, and the true historical explanation of it seems to be fairly clear, we cannot in fact date our first adoption of any single symbol or interpretation. We do not know in detail what was brought forward into G.L. by the Four Old Lodges and the old masons of 1717, and the two exposures that precede Prichard are so obviously fragmentary that nothing can be founded on them. But the general character of the Admission or Acceptance is fairly clear, and it is preserved in our First and Second Degrees today. They are concerned with the things of this world; the secret means of recognition 42 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES are an essential part of them, as also the obligation taken in open Lodge; they teach secrecy, obedience, loyalty, and the duty of educating oneself. They moralise the ordinary working tools; their symbols are the two pillars, the porch or entrance, the winding stairway, the middle chamber, the stream of water, the rough and perfect ashlars, and the admission to light. Some of this suggests Rosicrucian ideas, but in some of it we seem to see a reminiscence of the very earliest craft lodge workroom. But it is all available, if not in that lodge room itself, at least in one or other of the sources of possible influence I have detailed. There is, however, one feature of the ceremonies which can hardly have found a place in the original Gild observances, and that is the penalties. They have their counterpart in actual treason and Admiralty Court punishments of the days of the Tudors and earlier; and the Vehmgerichte were a secret tribunal that did in fact hang and stab its victims.
The course of events seems to be that the operative Gild custom was to admit the apprentice by a simple oath, but to make the apprentice out of his indentures a freeman and full member of the Gild by a ceremony which included the imparting of the all‑important secret means of recognition, the conferring of the mark and a moral lecture, and concluding with a feast. The Speculatives made these two occasions into one; they would proceed at once on admission to full membership. They also elaborated the actual ceremony considerably, but it is hopeless now to attempt to dissect out what is in fact accretion due to speculative influence and what is genuine survival from the days of the first cathedral builders.
But in the Master's Part we are confronted with a ceremony of an entirely different character. We have in the first place a narrative, the story of the murder of the builder; in the second the teaching of a great religious truth, not one, however, that was at any time the special property of builders; and we also have an entirely distinct form of greeting, the f.p.o.f. It seems to be the case that legends of the murder of a builder, which are widespread in folklore, are to be explained as survivals or reminiscences of original completion sacrifices, sacrifices of a human being with the object of giving the newly completed edifice a soul or a protecting demon; and an individual so intimately connected with the building as its architect would be likely to be selected as peculiarly appropriate for such a sacrifice. It is probable that building communities generally have had such stories, and we find in fact that in France one has at a very early date crystallised into the narrative of the murder of Maitre Jacques, the Master who brought the craft itself from Palestine to France. The existence of similar legends in our own country is attested by stories such as that of the Roslyn Pillar. Palestine and K.S.T. did not form part of our original legend. But they had been adopted at all events by the 15th, and it would appear that during the 16th and 17th centuries the scribes who copied the various versions of our Old Charges THE TRIGRADAL SYSTEM 43 had scruples as to writing the name of Hiram the builder, and substituted Anon or Amon or the like for it.
As had been pointed out by Wor. Bro. Morris Rosenbaum, the double name Hiram Abif was found in the three first English Bibles of 1535 and the following years, but it disappeared from the Great Bible which superseded them in 1539. In 1723 it would, in the ordinary course, have been known only to Hebrew scholars. Yet it is clear that the craft was familiar with it in that year, and this appears to involve that it had come down as a tradition in the Lodges. Again the explanation we give of MACH is one that cannot be justified philologically; no Hebrew scholar would arrive at such an interpretation independently. But the word actually occurs in the Bible as the name of a captain of the host. Now to the Geneva Bible of 1580 there was appended a concordance in which the Hebrew names were explained, and in that we read that this word means, among other things, "the smiting of the builder". The only plausible interpretation of this fact seems to be that the compiler has met with this meaning in some circle to which he belonged, and inserted it on that ground regardless of the philological question. These various considerations make it difficult to avoid the conclusion that there was not merely a murder legend among the Craft in this country from a very early date, but that for two centuries at least it had been definitely a Hiramic Legend. And as such it was the peculiar property of the Masters; and the ceremonies connected with it, whatever they may have been, constituted the Master's Pan. Now, the culmination of the f.p.o.f.
is the whispering of certain words and they refer to the narrative. But they are today explained in a way that is obviously unsatisfactory. We raise the can. from a figurative tomb by their means, which is very well; but what we recite as the narrative is a manifest incongruity. Nevertheless it is in Prichard, so that the mistake, as I suppose we may call it, is one of long standing. Now the Compagnonnage have two elaborate forms of greeting very similar to each other and to our f.p.o.f., and in each, words are whispered. One is gone through between the compagnons at funerals. The true state of affairs appears to me to be that just as the Masters had a special ceremony of a distinct type, they also had an elaborate form of greeting and salutation, with which the newly made Master was received. The Fellow had his simple grip, part of the means of recognition, and we may be fairly certain that the various forms of it that we meet with today as we proceed in the Order, are but variations of late introduction. But the Masters used the f.p.o.f., an essential part of which was the communicating of certain words.
But what was the function of this special ceremony in pre‑Grand Lodge days ? By the Gild it was no doubt associated with the Master of the Work; and the Masters of the Gild were men of definite standing and authority. But the speculative Craft in the 17th century was in a different position. The language of Ashmole suggests that he was never more than a Fellow and took only one degree. But the phraseology of the Dublin 44 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Tripos of 1688 with its reference to being freemasonized the new way, is very suggestive of a special speculative ceremony, and this may have been a Master's Part. It would appear as though prior to 1721 there was very little occasion for the ceremony and little use made of it. Stukeley writes: "We had great difficulty to find members enough to perform the ceremony"; and this was in London on January 6th, 1721. He can hardly be referring to the ordinary acceptance. Moreover, it is to be noted that from an allusion in a MS. of 1714 we know that certain features of the ceremony were related to what is today our Installation. What appears to have happened is that in 1721, with the introduction of the hitherto undreamt of feature of new Lodges, Masters were necessarily required for them. The Master's Part accordingly became of great importance. The Installed Master was given certain portions of the working, but the Part itself was still the pre‑requisite for the holding of the office. There is undoubtedly a contemporary confusion in the terminology which it is not easy to unravel, but when in 1723 Anderson speaks of making Masters and Fellows only in Grand Lodge he is, as we have already seen, referring not to two degrees, but to the Master's Part alone.
We are now in a position to assess, at all events roughly, the material brought forward to the Grand Lodge which was to form the basis of all that is contained in our ceremonies today.
In the first place: A body of symbolism and teachings based on architecture, working tools, and other material emblems; representing an apprentice admission and the fellow admission of the operative craftsmen greatly elaborated, but fused into one ceremony of admission or Acceptance in the speculative period that preceded Grand Lodge. This was split up in 1725 to form our present First and Second Degrees, and their subsequent history and development has already been described. Parts of the operative material, such as the conferring the mark, were preserved in Scotland but laid aside in England.
Secondly: A murder legend of great antiquity associated at some date undetermined with K.S.T. and Hiram Abif; and a peculiar form of greeting including the whispering of words referring to the legend. Both these are restricted to Masters and they came forward as the Master's Part, but one small detail may have been detached from the ceremony in 1721 to meet the requirements of the new office of Installed Master. This Master's Part is our Third Degree today. But just when it took the actual form in which we now have it is not ascertainable; it underwent a process of modification to which I have already alluded, which continued right up to the time of the Lodge of Reconciliation.
In this analysis of our wonderful system I have, of necessity, proceeded from the known to the unknown, and much must unavoidably be, and remain, matter of hypothesis and opinion. I fully realise that my various hypothetical suggestions invite criticism; if they do not survive it will be because they do THE TRIGRADAL SYSTEM 45 not deserve to. But I shall be at one with my critics if I conclude in the words of that worthy old Master, to whose generous provision of more than a century ago, the very delivery of this lecture is due: "He who has studied our teachings in a regular progress from the commencement of the First to the conclusion of the Third degree must have amassed an ample store of knowledge, and will reflect with pleasure on the good effects of his past diligence and attention." THE EVOLUTION OF THE SECOND DEGREE (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1926) by BRO. LIONEL VIBERT P.M. 2076, P.Dis. G. W. Madras (It will be understood that part of what was delivered in Lodge is unsuitable for printing, and has had to be recast for this publication) The condition of Freemasonry in England by the end of the 17th century appears to be that there were isolated bodies of Freemasons scattered over the country, survivals of a widespread system, derived from a craft that was now moribund, independent, but aware of one another's existence, and still looking upon themselves as all one Society. Dr. Robert Plot, writing in 1686, speaks of meetings held in the moorlands of Staffordshire, meetings which he tells us were in some places called Lodges, and though he does not specify any, he had clearly come in contact with definite bodies of Freemasons possessing old records; the custom, he says, is spread more or less all over the nation. And we have evidence of these associations at Warrington, Chester, York‑a body which appears to have met not only at York itself but at various places in the county‑and Alnwick; to which can be added with much probability Swalwell, in the county of Durham. In the south, outside London and Westminster, we have only one 17th century indication of the making of masons; the first Duke of Richmond was stated in 1732 to have admitted Edward Hall a mason at Chichester in or about 1696.
In London itself there is categorical evidence of one such body, namely that held in connection with the London Company of Masons, which was in existence before 1620; it was an inner circle of the Company, with its own officers, and was known as the Acception. But after 1676 there are no references to it in the Company records, and we hear of it only once more. It met at Masons Hall on 11th March, 1682, and Ashmole was a visitor and has left an entry of the incident in his diary. Then we read of a great convocation of Freemasons at St. Paul's on Monday, 18th May, 1691, but there is no indication of the particular body concerned. The only other evidence we have is that of tradition; Anderson in 1738 refers to seven 17th century lodges of which the meeting places were remembered. At the same time, the fact that such a Society existed was well known; it was understood to have secret ceremonies and means of recognition, to recruit its members from all ranks of society, and to look after poor and distressed brethren. And it 47 48 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES would seem that, in London at all events, these associations, by a natural extension in meaning of the word used by them to describe their formal meetings, had in course of time come to speak of themselves as Lodges.
In 1716, four of the London and Westminster Lodges, bodies of whose previous history we know nothing, came together and organised themselves as one association. Almost certainly there were not merely individual masons but other lodges in London at the time who took no part in the movement. But exactly what their motive was or what objects they proposed to themselves is by no means clear. Anderson in 1738 speaks of the movement as the revival of the Grand Lodge neglected by Sir Christopher Wren. This is merely nonsense; the terms Grand Master and Grand Lodge had never before been used by the Fraternity. There was nothing political about the matter and nothing literary or philosophical. The actual membership of the society at the time, so far as the metropolis was concerned, can not unfairly be described as undistinguished. As it appears to me, originally they had in mind nothing more ambitious than that they should form a sort of unofficial City Company. The Society had ever since the disappearance of Gothic been gradually drifting apart from the actual trade. We still find the term freemason in the 17th century as a trade designation. But there is a midcentury enactment known as the New Articles, which reflects the feeling that the links between the operative and the speculative Freemason are weakening. The first of these New Articles directs that there can be no one accepted a mason unless there is present at the meeting a craftsman in the trade of freemason. We know nothing of the occasion when, or the authority by which, these New Articles were promulgated, or even if they were ever in force, but they can fairly be taken to indicate the direction in which their framers felt that the Society was tending to move if not regulated. In London, in 1716, it was thirty years and more since the Company had had any association with the Fraternity.
It continued to look after the concerns of the trade, but the non‑operative Freemasons were left to their own devices. In 1716, after a long period of unrest, the assurance of the Hanoverian succession brought about a restoration of confidence and a wonderful development of social and intellectual activity. It is just at this time that we find the Four Old Lodges come together; they proposed, as it seems to me, to give themselves in some sort the standing the trade derived from the Masons Company. The City Companies had their Masters and Wardens; the Freemasons already had these designations in the Lodges. They therefore hit on the expedient, a very natural one, of calling the officers of the new body Grand Master and Grand Wardens, and the body itself by analogy became a Grand Lodge. For the first few years there is nothing to show that it did more than meet annually for the Feast at which each year a Grand Master presided; whatever there was in the way of ritual continued to be carried out in the Lodges themselves.
EVOLUTION OF THE SECOND DEGREE 49 PLATE 4. John, 2nd Duke of Montagu The first Noble Grand Master, 1721 From a painting by Kneller, in 1709 50 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES But by 1720 it had attracted the attention of antiquaries, and learned men, members of the Royal Society, and also of various persons of high social standing. In Ireland and Scotland lords and lairds were no strangers to the Craft and had been members of it long before Grand Lodge was invented. So also in England in the previous century it had included many of the landed gentry. But we are now considering, not the Craft in general, but its particular developments in London and Westminster, where between June, 1720, and June, 1721, there was a great increase in the numbers, so much so that for the Feast of 1721 special arrangements had to be made. The great feature of this Festival was that, in consequence of the recent accessions to the Order, the Craft was now, for the first time in its history, in a position to install as its Grand Master a peer of the realm.
In the 1756 edition of the Book of Constitutions, Entick, as editor, lays much stress on the benefits that accrued to the Craft by the influx of persons of social consideration, and he gives the credit of introducing them to Mr. George Payne, the outgoing Grand Master at this Feast. Mr. Payne had been Grand Master in 1718, which would not, however, seem to have been an eventful year. The Grand Master of 1719 was the Rev. J. T. Desaguliers, a learned and distinguished man, a member of the Royal Society. But in 1720 the Grand Master was once more Mr. George Payne, and this implies that as yet there was no one more distinguished to be selected. Stukeley was made a Mason at the Salutation Tavern on 6th January, 1721, as we learn from his autobiography. And he goes on to say that immediately after it took a run, and ran itself out of breath through the folly of its members. The phrase indicates almost the very month when the Craft emerged from obscurity. There are, however, good reasons for considering that the actual increase in numbers had still not brought the total membership of the new Grand Lodge up to more than 150 brethren. But even that number was far in excess of the capacity of the Goose and Gridiron, where the Feasts of previous years had been held.
But the necessity for greater accommodation was only part of the problem that was raised by the new accessions. Lodges that had hitherto held aloof may very well have now desired to come in, and individuals seeking admission would also be intending to join one or other of the Private Lodges. Now the very fact that all the Lodges of the period met at taverns would tend to make an individual membership of more than say 40 inconvenient to deal with, and we can understand that at the close of his second year of office as Grand Master, Payne must have realised the necessity of dealing with what was an entirely unforeseen state of affairs. That he did something we know, for Stukeley tells us that, at this Feast, Grand Master Payne read over a New Set of Articles to be observed. These have not come down to us, for, although in the 1723 Constitutions Anderson asserts that the Regulations he there gives were compiled first by Mr. George Payne and approved by the Grand Lodge at Stationer's Hall in June, 1721, he admits that he has EVOLUTION OF THE SECOND DEGREE 51 re‑drafted them, and it is impossible to say to what extent they were varied in the process. But we can see that they must needs have been directed to the problem of the rapid increase in the membership of the Craft, and a consideration of Anderson's Regulations, and of the history of the period will, as it seems to me, indicate very clearly just how that problem was dealt with.
The Grand Lodge was founded by four Lodges. The records disclose no further addition to that number till 11th July, 1721, with one possible exception, and only one. That is to say that until after this Feast of June, 1721, the Craft had no experience of new Lodges. It seems to be quite clear that Grand Master Payne not merely took steps to enable existing Lodges as yet outside Grand Lodge to come into the Society in its new form, but also made what must at the time have been looked upon as an entirely new departure, in that he decided to recognise and to legalise the formation of new Lodges. Once more we perceive an analogy with the City Companies. It had been their prerogative, in days gone by, to control their particular trades, and to prevent anyone not a freeman of a Company from following the trade controlled by that Company within the Bills of Mortality. Those days had for all practical purposes passed away. But Grand Lodge had originally assumed the same territorial jurisdiction, and Payne proposed that it should retain in its own hands, not indeed the admission to the Fraternity, but at all events the control of all bodies that had that privilege. All Lodges were to be registered in the Grand Master's Book. Payne, as it would appear, further proceeded to authorise the formation of new Lodges, and prescribed the way in which this was to be done. In Anderson's Reg. VIII. and in the Manner of Constituting a New Lodge, as he gives it, we can probably discern the gist of Payne's original directions.
A new Lodge could be formed at any time by any set or number of Masons. They might be actually members of an existing Lodge who proposed to swarm, in which case the G.M. was to be satisfied that the original Lodge had become too numerous, and he would then grant a dispensation. But otherwise the only requirement was the G.M.'s formal sanction to the Brethren's action in joining to form the new Lodge. It was then solemnly constituted by the Grand Master in person or by a Deputy, who, having approved of the Brother selected by the Lodge as their first W.M., proceeded to install him. The Lodge was then registered in the Grand Master's Book, its existence was notified to all the other Lodges, and it forthwith took its position in the Society.
It is important to realise that this was an entirely new departure, and we can appreciate that the Four Old Lodges, while willing, perhaps, to admit to the Society other Lodges already in existence in London and Westminster, might well argue that the deliberate formation of a Lodge as a new body was a thing unheard of in Masonry.
It introduced to the Craft a new conception of the Lodge itself. Originally the Lodge at an Abbey or Cathedral was merely the workroom of 52 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES the freemasons engaged there; the individual in any locality was ipso facto associated with the Lodge attached to the building on which he was at work. That work being finished, the masons dispersed and that particular Lodge ceased to exist; but it must be noted as an exception to this statement that in a few of the larger foundations a permanent staff of masons was maintained with, of course, permanent quarters. The dispersing masons might migrate as a body, in which case they would abandon the Lodge at one place and proceed to form and occupy the Lodge at the next. The freemasons assembling to construct some new edifice would arrange their concerns in their time‑honoured manner; they would carry out their traditional ceremonies; they might be so fortunate as to possess their own manuscript of the ancient history and charges. And they would have a very definite consciousness of their membership of a Fraternity that extended throughout the Kingdom.
When the days of Gothic had passed away the Fraternity continued to meet. The various bodies preserved the term "Lodge" which they now applied to their meetings, and these they held at taverns, probably for the simple reason that, now that Lodge rooms had ceased to exist, it was only in taverns that they could find the accommodation they required for their ceremonial work. But they continued in existence only by virtue of the traditions that they were preserving; they were the direct descendants of actual associations of builders of an earlier day. The Swalwell Lodge affords a specific instance of the tradition of such a descent being preserved, and we have traces of similar traditions among the London Lodges themselves. The brethren did no doubt at times migrate from one tavern to another in a body; the individual association in the Fraternity had now assumed rather the form of a club. But the common tie that united the members of each such association was the fact that as a body they were preserving usages handed down to them from an immemorial antiquity. And the indications are that during the century there were many such associations which passed out of existence, leaving no trace. Those that did survive can have done little more than maintain their numbers. There can have been no swarming of surplus brethren from any of these bodies to form a new one; and in a Fraternity so circumstanced such a thing as a new Lodge could never have arisen.
The conditions of 1721 made it imperative that the newcomers, with no tradition behind them, for whom there was no room in the original associations, should be able to constitute themselves into Lodges, the officers of which were to be members of Grand Lodge on a level in every way, except the antiquity of their origin, with those of its founders. Anderson's phrase, "true Lodge", in the Fast Regulation indicates that by this time Grand Lodge had arrogated to itself the right to control the whole Fraternity in London and Westminster and was prepared to stigmatise as False Masons all who had not admitted its authority. Stukeley's phrase implies that Payne imposed his New Set of Articles on Grand Lodge by his own authority, and EVOLUTION OF THE SECOND DEGREE 53 while it is true that Anderson in 1723 speaks of their being compiled by him and approved by G.L., we may doubt if as yet G.L. had assumed any administrative functions. Indeed, there had been till now nothing to administer. But it would appear that Payne's legislation was at the time accepted.
Various detailed provisions in Anderson's Regulations suggest that Payne also legislated for the internal administration of his new Lodges. But on 25th November, 1723, it was agreed nem. con. in Grand Lodge that the Masters and Wardens of the several Lodges have power to regulate all things relating to Masonry at their Quarterly Meetings. To whatever extent this phrase "all things relating to Masonry" may have operated to annul Anderson's provisions, there was one very important restriction definitely in force at the time, which was unaffected by the resolution, and that was the enactment which Anderson includes in his Reg. XIII: "Apprentices must be admitted Masters and Fellow‑Craft only here, [i.e. in Grand Lodge] unless by a Dispensation." Before discussing this injunction it is necessary to clear up the ambiguity of its phraseology. At first sight two degrees beyond that of Apprentice appear to be referred to, because we are accustomed today to associate each of these terms with a distinct degree. But there is no doubt that only one degree is intended. We must note first the order of the words "Masters and Fellow‑Craft." Now the rule was formally repealed by Grand Lodge on 27th November, 1725, and the text of that resolution is A Motion being made that such part of the 13th Article of the Gen" Regulations relating to the Making of Mars only at a Quarterly Communication, may be repealed, And that the Mars of each Lodge with the Consent of his Wardens, And the Majority of the Brethren being Mars may make Mars at their Discretion.
Agreed, Nem. Con.
There can be no doubt that by this resolution the whole of the sentence in the Regulation was annulled. For if it were the case that it was annulled in respect of the Master's Degree, but left untouched in respect of the Fellow‑Craft, we would have the absurd position that Grand Lodge retained in its hands the intermediate degree, while restoring the higher one to the Lodges. Accordingly the position, at all events at the end of 1722, was that there were two degrees, the Apprentice and the degree that conferred the rank of Master and Fellow, and only the former could be given in the Private Lodges. The resolution of 1725 restored the original conditions; but the very fact that it was considered necessary to repeal the sentence in Reg. XIII. by this formal resolution shows that it was accepted as good law; it was none of Anderson's devising. Now, what was this degree? From the text of the Old Charges we can derive a certain amount of information as to the practice in the days of the Gild; and we have further 54 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES the analogy of other Gilds to help us. We may safely assume that the apprentice, a lad of 14, was admitted with no more ceremony than an oath of loyalty, secrecy and obedience. The mason who was admitted to full membership was sworn to obedience to the Charges General and Special. These are laid on masons, Masters and Fellows, Masters separately, and Fellows separately, but the mason on admission is sworn to all alike. The distinction that they indicate between the Master and the Fellow is one purely of Gild standing; the Master is the Gild Master, entitled to take contracts, and employ the Craft, fellows and apprentices, on the work he is in charge of. There is no indication in the Charges of any secrets restricted to Masters; but this omission will assume its proper significance if we recollect that the reading of them was part of the business of admitting a mason as a fellow and full member of the Gild. Of the further ceremonies that now took place we know nothing; but we can see that they must have included the imparting of the secret means of recognition. The way in which the texts, from the very earliest of them, introduce references to two Pillars suggests that there was always some special significance attached to them, and from analogies in other Gilds we can hazard a guess that the Ashlars played their part in the ceremonies; but beyond that even surmise cannot safely go.
Now we can understand that a non‑operative member joining the Craft would not be called on to spend any time as an apprentice; he would proceed Fellow and full member of the Gild forthwith. His admission would, therefore, consist of one ceremony and no more. Nevertheless, in the London Acception, we have it clearly on record that in 1635 the members, for a further fee, might proceed Master. The standing of the Master in the Gild we can appreciate; but what was implied by the standing of Master in the speculative bodies of a later period such as the London Acception ? What distinction did the Society draw between Master and Fellow in London before the days of Grand Lodge ? It is difficult to discuss this with absolute freedom except in a Lodge of Installed Masters, but the conclusion I have come to provisionally is that the Master of this period was the predecessor of our Master in the Chair. It must be understood that the conception of the Installed Master is itself of late development. The Lodge as a workroom was presided over by a senior who might be either a Fellow or a Master; we see from the Fifth Special Charge that a Fellow can admit to masonry with the consent of six of his companions. The Master in the Gild was independent of the Lodge workroom, and Gild practice generally suggests that he had a right to attend meetings of his craft anywhere on proving his mastership. Possibly the Masters in the Gild were always a body apart from and above the Lodge and Fellows. They were men of great skill and recognised social status; it is by no means impossible that they had amongst themselves special customs and cherished traditions, to put it no higher, of great master builders of antiquity.
EVOLUTION OF THE SECOND DEGREE SS But what became of these people and their customs when the Gild ceased to function? The body, who within the Lodge had preserved and developed the old usages, left the trade to go its own way and constituted associations of their own. The London Acception remained within the Company but had its own existence and made its own Masters. In just the same way, as it seems to me, the Fraternity generally maintained the distinction of an inner rank of Masters, superior to the ordinary membership. There is undoubtedly a confusion in the contemporary terminology which makes the question difficult to unravel, and which has led Bro. Poole to suggest, in a paper recently read in Q.C. Lodge, that there were two systems side by side, an operative and a speculative. The latter at all events took to calling the ordinary member an Accepted Mason. This nevertheless involved that he had taken the degree that in the Gild would have made him a Fellow, the degree associated with the Pillars. The 17th century Speculatives seem, on the other hand, to have associated the acceptance with apprentices, and then not unnaturally to have made a distinction between the accepted Mason or apprentice and the Fellow, who had been entrusted with the secrets of the original Master in the Gild. In Anderson's day the Apprentice is a full member of the Society. The further entrustment to the Fellow was known, quite appropriately, as the Master's Part. But by the days of Grand Lodge it had come to be described as giving the rank of Master and Fellow.
The function of these Masters we can gather from the 17th century New Articles, from which I have already quoted. The Lodge, that is to say the meeting, is incomplete without the presence of one. Here is just what we are in search of, the transitional stage between the Master in the Gild, who perhaps left the Lodge Fellows pretty much to their own devices, and the Master in the Chair of the modem Lodge, whose presence is essential to its working. The more loosely organised bodies of pre‑Grand Lodge days were in an intermediate condition. And it seems to be the case that this state of affairs continued well into the days of Grand Lodge itself. Anderson, in 1738, describing the original meeting of 1716, says: "having put into the Chair the oldest Master Mason (now the Master of a Lodge) they constituted, etc." and again, in 1717: "Before Dinner the oldest Master Mason (now the Master of a Lodge) in the Chair, etc." This is as much as to say the official who in those days took the place of what we now know as the Master of a Lodge. Not till we get to John, Duke of Montagu, do we have anyone designated as actually a Master of a Lodge, and that is at the Feast of 1721 itself. I hesitate to say that the Installed Master was unknown until Payne's New Set of Articles, but at all events the need for giving brethren the qualification was only created by the advent of new Lodges. Now the Master and Fellow was inherently an Installed Master; that is to say he was of the rank which entitled him to be in the Chair of a Lodge, or in the conditions of the preceding century he was the person without whom no Lodge could function. Accordingly we now see that a distinction is made. The Master in the Chair, 56 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES a Master and Fellow by ancient practice, has, as Installed Master, a further ceremony, and secrets, and these are selected from the Master's Part, from which of course they are now eliminated. I cannot discuss this freely, as I have already said. But from a text of 1714 that has come down to us we have clear indications, that at that date, the Master's secrets included features that are today restricted to the Installed Master. The position after 1721, as I see it, appears to be that we have an Acceptance, the degree that was associated with the Pillars, that beyond that we have the Master's Part, which conferred the standing of Master and Fellow, and that the Installed Masters, persons who only came into prominence after new Lodges had arisen, have been given certain details eliminated from the Master's Part as their special portion. This is the condition of affairs that lies behind the phraseology of Anderson's Reg. XIII. The Masters and Fellows retain in their ceremony a special form of greeting which is still associated today, not with Mastership but with Fellowship, since it was not made over to the Installed Masters. They also have the Hiramic Legend, and words, or a word at all events, which by its meaning indicates that it is associated with that narrative. The rule of the Craft continued to be that no one could be Master of a Lodge unless he was of the rank of Master and Fellow; but beyond that the degree conferred no privilege; it did not, for instance, confer membership of Grand Lodge, and at the Annual Communication the youngest Apprentice was as much entitled to vote as the Grand Officers. An exposure of 1723 speaks of the two degrees as Enter'd Apprentice and Enter'd Fellow.
But when it became the law of the Craft that the degree which gave the Lodges persons qualified to be Masters in the Chair was only to be given in Grand Lodge, the privileges of the Private Lodges were seriously invaded. It meant in practice that the choice of their Masters by all Private Lodges was subject to the approval of the body of Masters, headed by the Grand Master, which constituted Grand Lodge at the time. Yet it was undoubtedly the law from 1723 to November, 1725, and if it was of Payne's devising‑as I think it must have been‑then it had been the law since June, 1721. New Lodges had no doubt to accept whatever Regulations were made for them, but Lodges of immemorial date and possessing the rights and customs that that implies may well have seen in the new enactment a serious innovation.
I should, perhaps, have pointed out that when in Reg. XIII. Anderson speaks of Masters and Fellow‑Craft, and everywhere else in the Book of Constitutions where he uses this term, he is applying a Scotticism hitherto unknown to the English fraternity, to the rank that in this country had always been, and still was being, called Fellow only.
What was Payne's motive? It is possible that the conception of the Society as an unofficial City Company was in his mind, and in that case he would be keeping the selection of the freemen who were to be admitted to the Livery in the hands of what corresponded to the Court of Assistants.
EVOLUTION OF THE SECOND DEGREE 57 It may be remarked that the very fact that for the Feast of 1721 the Society was allowed the use of Stationer's Hall suggests that their aspirations were not resented by the citizens, and also that they were taken quite seriously and not by any means looked upon as a caricature of the Company system. However that may be, at this time no one dreamt that the Society was so soon to extend far beyond the limits of London and Westminster, and if new Lodges had not sprung up as they did all over the country, the rule might never have been abrogated. But in 1723 the Society had reached Greenwich and Richmond, and during 1724 Lodges were constituted so far afield as Bath, Bristol, Norwich, Chester and Caermarthen. The scheme of control was bound to break down. Even in town itself the Grand Master had already deputised his duty of constituting the new Lodges; and as far as this part of the system was concerned the difficulty was got over by an extension of the method of deputations; the business was in the Provinces delegated to local Brethren, who were constituted Dy. G.M. pro tempore. As a matter of fact the present law as to constituting a Lodge is the law as laid down by Anderson, and today Article No. 120 of our Book of Constitutions echoes the actual wording which introduced Wharton's "Manner of constituting. . .", in 1722.
But there was no delegation of the right to confer the higher degree, the degree necessary for every Installed Master, and in the nature of things there could not be any. The Grand Master might delegate personal functions; the Grand Lodge could not delegate duties entrusted to it as a body. Now the rule which related to these duties was not abrogated till November, 1725, but clearly it must long since have been a dead letter; no one would go about to form a Lodge in Caermarthen, for instance, if they had to send every Warden Elect up to London to be given his qualification. Can we discover just how it was that the rule had become of no effect ? I think we can.
By February, 1725, there was in existence a new degree, a degree intermediate between the Acceptance and the Master's Part, and it was known as the Fellow‑Craft; it had taken the term which we see used in Reg. XIII. for its title. Clearly if the law of the Craft is that the Master must be among the Fellows, or, as Anderson has it in the "Manner of constituting a New Lodge," among the Fellow‑Craft, a brother who has taken a degree called FellowCraft has qualified for the Master's Chair. In the Fourth Charge, Anderson repeats the rule; the Master must have acted as Warden; the Warden must be a Fellow‑Craft. The direction in Reg. XIII. is that the Apprentice must be admitted Master and Fellow‑Craft only in Grand Lodge, but the reference is to a degree the actual name of which was the Master's Part. Thus there is bad drafting and the law lent itself to evasion. Had Anderson said plainly that the Master in the Chair must have taken the Master's Part, he would have avoided all ambiguity. He would also in all probability have stated what Payne intended that the law should be. But the phrase was "among the 58 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Fellows," and this undoubtedly represented a tradition that was older far than either Anderson or Payne, a tradition that Payne was careful to preserve. The suggestion I have to make is that what happened was, that the Lodges, being confronted with an injunction that was not merely unworkable, but in the case of the Old Lodges a definite trespass on their immemorial usages, took advantage of the terminology of Anderson's Constitutions to substitute for compliance with the new rule a verbal conformity with the ancient law of the Craft, and thus recaptured for themselves the right to select their own Masters. They did what was done many years afterwards in the Royal Arch, they devised a Chair Degree. An examination of the degree itself and of such information as is given by contemporary exposures shows that its character accords singularly well with this hypothesis.
Our present three degrees are not constructed on a scheme A, B, C, that is to say we have not got a Fast Degree, a distinct Second, and yet another distinct Third. The two lower degrees are closely related, and it is the Third only that is distinct; it deals with a different set of ideas and deals with them in a different manner. The scheme is Ai, Aii, B. The First and Second Degrees have to be considered together to appreciate their symbolism, and indeed we still teach the conjoint signification of their principal symbols. Now, the contemporary exposures show us unmistakably that in 1723 the two degrees known were the Enter'd Apprentice and the Enter'd Fellow, and while the former had both the principal features of our present First and Second Degrees, the latter was concerned with matters which are unmistakably related to the subject of our present Third Degree. The distribution then, was A, now represented by Ai, Aii, two degrees, and B, now represented by the Third. In 1725 there comes another exposure and we still have two names, treated as part of the one degree, which today each have their own. In 1730 comes the first exposure of the three degrees, and even now both names are given in the First but in the Second one is repeated; the Degree has no special opening, nor even an Obligation of its own. All this is strongly suggestive surely of the origin that I propose for the degree. It was constructed by a re‑arrangement, which at first was hardly more than a repetition of the Acceptance. In Irish working the charity test today is in the Second Degree, not the Fast. (Vide Lepper, in a paper comparing the two rituals, read to Dublin Lodge of Research in 1915). The only plausible explanation of such a variation seems to be that this detail which was part of the original ceremony, was misplaced in Ireland when the degree material was divided up to form two ceremonies, and it therefore serves to confirm the fact of a division having taken place.
It would never have done to have incorporated in the new degree any material from the Master's Part, for that would have been to render the brethren liable to a charge of infringing the Regulation, and the monopoly of Grand Lodge. And what happened was that almost all through the century the degree, although technically a further degree, was given to the candidate EVOLUTION OF THE SECOND DEGREE 59 on the same night as he took his First. Lodge after Lodge shows us that this was the regular practice; and very often the individual went no further; he remained a Fellow‑Craft all his days. The very Constitutions themselves treat the two degrees as one. In the edition of 1767, Art. II. says that no Lodge shall ever make a Mason without due enquiry into his character; neither shall any Lodge be permitted to make and raise the same Brother at one and the same meeting without a dispensation. So that Grand Lodge itself in 1767 held that making a mason meant giving him at one time the double degree. Not till 1777 was it decided that the First and Second Degrees must be given on different evenings. The records of the Lodge of Antiquity have frequent references to dispensations obtained for giving all three degrees on one night. At a much later date the two degrees were still so definitely considered as parts of one ceremony that we actually get a combined Tracing Board, which is figured at p. 208 of Heiron's Ancient Freemasonry, and is there dated 1790. It was the Second Degree that was the qualification for the Master's Chair; and it still is, according to the Constitutions, although the ritual has come to impose the further requirement. The whole of the Installation ceremony, prior to the proceedings in the Bd. of I.M.'s, is taken in the Second Degree. Not till 1764 do we find it stated that the Masters are to be selected from the Brethren with the higher qualification.
Accordingly when in 1725 Grand Lodge allowed the rule of 1721 to be repealed they in fact restored to the Lodges what had become an empty privilege. They may well have realised that the restrictions now merely operated to discourage anyone from taking the Master's Part; and it did actually run no small risk of extinction. Only gradually did it attain to its present standing; for years it was almost in the position of a side degree, a luxury, not necessary for advancement in the Craft.
I have had the advantage of discussing this hypothesis of mine with several skilled brethren, who have made various criticisms and suggestions. It is important at the outset of any examination of it to guard against the error of looking on the transactions of 1725 as though we were dealing with the Craft as it is today when Grand Lodge is a distinct governing body. The Grand Lodge of the years up to 1725 and for some time after, was merely the Lodges themselves in Council, represented by their Masters and Wardens, and it would be quite fallacious to look on it as having at this time the authority that we associate with it today. For years there were lodges outside the Society. It is possible that all the apparatus of Anderson's Constitutions, while well adapted to impress new comers, who would not realise that the work was not official, would be taken less seriously by the older lodges, which knew the man and the genesis of his book. The G.L. Minutes show us that during all this period the authorities were troubled by the activities of what they called irregular or clandestine Lodges; the tendency to restore privileges and eliminate restrictions must have been very strong. It has been objected that if the Lodges were making their own masters in the fashion suggested, Grand 60 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Lodge had in its hands the obvious weapon of refusing to recognise them as belonging to it, and what was to prevent it taking this course? Well, the answer to this, as it seems to me, is that it must very early have been recognised that to confer the higher degree only at Quarterly Communication was impracticable; (we have, in fact, no record that it was ever done, but that proves nothing); but when the Craft extended to the Provinces the absurdity of the rule must have been patent to everyone. Actually they had found another means of maintaining the supply of qualified masters. And eventually, when the Lodges generally were giving, or getting for their brethren, the new degree, when they met in council as Grand Lodge, the question having been raised, they agreed without difficulty to repeal an obsolete enactment. It is quite likely that the rule had been ignored by general consent long before it was formally abrogated. But to set up the Grand Lodge in opposition to the Private Lodges in this way is to make the very error I have referred to, and to ignore the conditions of 1725.
Then, assuming that this device of an intermediate degree was in fact hit on by the Lodges, the question arises: which Lodges ? Was it an organised business ? In this connection it is significant that the first mention of the new degree occurs in connection, not with a Lodge, but with a musical society, founded in February, 1725, the members of which were to be Masons. At the meeting of May, 1725, Grand Lodge appears to have summoned certain members of the Society before it, but they never came. We find Payne visiting them in September; in November the Regulation is repealed; but in December Payne is writing to them accusing them of making masons irregularly‑letters which they ignore. And we hear no more of any interference with them. This suggests that the London Craft, rather than have an open breach with Payne, who was, after all, still a Grand Warden, put the new scheme in action in the first instance, not in Lodges the Officers of which were members of Grand Lodge, but in bodies not technically under its jurisdiction.
We must guard against assuming that the Lodges of the period practised a uniform ritual even in London itself. A great deal of the ceremony, right up to the Union, was in all probability left to be extemporised. Indeed, the Lodges did not all follow the same system as to the degrees themselves. The Lodge assembled at the Swan and Rummer, as late as 1729, has no reference in its minutes to the Second Degree, so that if it was worked it was regarded as not essentially separate from the degree that preceded it. And the early exposures are so obviously fragmentary that we can make no deductions as to matters to which they do not allude. Undoubtedly all through the century the whole apparatus of the ritual was being expanded, and to some extent re‑arranged. The Working Tools of the degree are mentioned in Prichard's exposure of 1730 as the movable jewels. They are, of course, the jewels of the three officers, and they are found on the first T.B. today. Early exposures mention penalties which today remind us of EVOLUTION OF THE SECOND DEGREE 61 all three degrees. It is generally stated that in consequence of the exposure of 1730, G.L. reversed the arrangement of the secrets as between the First and Second Degrees, but that the original order was restored at the Union. By the days of, if not at the hands of, the Lodge of Reconciliation the degree became a complete entity. But it never lost and still shows unmistakable signs of its original connection with the degree that now precedes it. As to the beauty of its symbolism there can be no question; but that the whole of this, as we now have it, formed part of the original Acceptance, I neither assert nor deny. For the present my suggestions are merely theories; I hope that they will, however, be considered worthy of critical examination at the hands of the Craft.
BROTHER WILLIAM PRESTON: AN ILLUSTRATION OF THE MAN, HIS METHODS AND HIS WORK (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1927) by Bro. GORDON P. G. HILLS The Prestonian Lecture for 1927, under the above title, should have appeared in its proper rotation at this point, but, for reasons explained in the Introduction, it forms the first Lecture in our collection. Ed.
MASONIC TEACHERS OF THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1928) BRO. JOHN STOKES P.G.D., Asst. Prov. G.M. of Yorkshire, West Riding SYNOPSIS Contemporaries of WILLIAM PRESToN‑Masonic Teachers of the Eighteenth Century.
Preston acknowledges his indebtedness to one brother only by name, but had doubtless been acquainted with most of the other writers of the period.
1. WELLINS CALCOTT‑A Candid Disquisition of the Principles and Practices of the Most Ancient and Honourable Society of Free and Accepted Masons‑"the first extended effort to illustrate philosophically the science of masonry".
A general outline of his teachings.
2. WILLIAM HuTCHINsoN‑The Spirit of Masonry remains to this day as the finest exposition of the inner and spiritual ideas underlying the symbolical design of the Craft. Brethren of any faith can appreciate the beauty and truth of this ideal as exemplified in his explanation of the Third Degree‑"Thus the Master Mason represents a man, under the Christian Doctrine, saved from the grave of iniquity and raised to the faith of salvation".
3. CAPTAIN GEORGE SMITH‑The Use and Abuse of Freemasonry is to a great extent based on the work of the previous writers, but is also interesting from the personality of Bro. Smith.
4. J. LADD‑‑The Science of Freemasonry Explained, is valuable for its various explanations of the characteristics of the ideal mason.
5. W. MEEsoN‑An Introduction to Free Masonry, is almost unknown. Meeson looks at Freemasonry from the moral aspect and by means of clever geometrical illustrations and deductions from the Working Tools brings out points which have been incorporated in the explanations given in the modem working.
The study of these writers shows the gradual development of the philosophical side of masonry and their ideas were largely used in the post 63 64 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES union workings of the ritual. Many of their phrases persist to the present day.
[A biographical note on William Preston is omitted from our reprint‑Ed.] Contemporary with William Preston were other writers and lecturers on Masonic ritual and philosophy. None of them attained to the popularity which Preston enjoyed, a popularity due probably as much to his personality as to any intrinsic superiority.
The fact that so many similar works could be printed and circulated amongst such a limited public, or audience, affords ample evidence of the keenness and toughness of the Masonic fraternity towards the close of the eighteenth century. An examination of these books discovers many points of resemblance between them, not necessarily due to conscious copying but with great probability owing much to the similar conditions under which most of the authors were trained. Literary plagiarism was not then looked upon with the same disfavour as it is at the present time, so that a writer thought himself justified in using other writers' ideas and even their very words without mentioning the source from which they were derived. Preston says in the preface to the 1775 edition of his Illustrations, p. 10: "The principal articles are compiled from authentic records and the best authorities I could procure. I have not always particularly specified the different sources of my information; because the facts I have adduced are well known to the majority of the brethren who are conversant with the ancient practices of the Society. To my friends I am indebted for many extracts from old MSS. which tend to illustrate my subject, particularly to my worthy brother Captain George Smith, Inspector of the Royal Military Academy at Woolwich, from whom I had the pleasure to receive many valuable annotations." The strong feature of Preston's work was that he brought order out of a somewhat chaotic method of looking at Masonry and put his notions into practice. His division of the ritual working into sections enabled the various officers to see at a glance where their part of the ceremony came in and was of material assistance in memorizing. Preston's labours made possible the revision of the ceremonial work and ritual carried into effect by Hemming after the Union.
Furthermore Preston, together with his contemporaries and followers, undoubtedly created the true speculative spirit and initiated the teachings which have borne such ample fruit. In this they were following the trend of the time which gives evidence of the urgent need and widespread desire for some further extension and instruction in the underlying principles of the Craft. Up to Preston's era the brethren had been nurtured almost entirely upon the very dry bones of ritual or upon utterly fallacious historical matter.
The lectures which were delivered and published by William Preston in the form of Illustrations of Masonry ran through at least nineteen editions, without reckoning several issues in the U.S.A. and translations MASONIC TEACHERS OF THE 18TH CENTURY 65 into German, Dutch, etc., and have probably been the most successful and widely read of any Masonic literature. Other writers, such as Oakley, Francis Drake and Martin Clare (for whom see the paper in A.Q.C., xxviii, by Bro. Wonnacott) had preceded him. The success of Preston stimulated many brethren to follow his example. It is hoped that a short account of some of the writings of Preston's contemporaries will prove an instructive commentary on Preston's own works.
Theceremonies of Initiation, Passing and Raising used in the 18th century differ very little in the essentials from the ceremonies of today. The brethren whose works we are about to discuss did, however, introduce some useful features which we still in great part retain. These were in all probability incorporated into the Ritual by the Lodge of Reconciliation which worked from 1813 to 1816. There is no doubt, also, that the Lodge of Reconciliation dealt with ceremonial questions as well as ritual. It is important to bear in mind the point that it is impossible to make any definite statement on this matter because the ritual for which Dr. Hemming was mainly responsible, or at any rate, for which he got the credit, was never written down. It was transmitted orally and is supposed to be the foundation of the work used by the Emulation and Stability Lodges of Instruction. Trained up fortunately in neither of them, it is not in my power to state which is the Simon Pure. The chief additions appear to have been certain parts which are not actually necessary, i.e. the respective degrees can be conferred without them‑such as the explanation of the working tools, the Charges (usually only the one in the first degree is given, which came from Ireland somewhere about 1725). All these can be given or omitted at the discretion of the Master.
In a similar way in 1827 a committee sat to revise and arrange the Installation Ritual. The Moderns had probably altogether dropped an Installation ceremony, though the Antients had certainly worked one. A good deal of the work of the Lodge of Reconciliation consisted in obligating Modems as Installed Masters.
It will be noticed that various phrases used by the writers of these books have been adopted with slight and unimportant modifications by the revisers of the ritual. It is advisable to remember, however, that some of the material may have been in use long before these brethren put it into print. Preston and the others, it is quite possible, only took what they found and expanded it or modified the language. In any case they deserve our grateful thanks.
The first work to come under consideration is Wellins Calcott's Candid Disquisition, the title page of which is as follows : A Candid Disquisition of the Principles and Practices of the Most Ancient and Honourable Society of Free and Accepted Masons; together with Some Strictures on the Origin, Nature, and Design of 66 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES that Institution. Dedicated, by permission, to the Most Noble and most Worshipful Henry Duke of Beaufort, etc., etc., Grand Master. ... Ab ipso Ducit opes animumque ferro.
Hor. Od.* London: Printed for the Author by Brother James Dixwell, in St. Martin's Lane. A.L.5769. A.D.1769.
We react in the Introduction: If we duly consider Man, we shall find him a social being; and in effect, such is his nature, that he cannot well subsist alone: For out of society he could neither preserve life, display or perfect his faculties and talents, nor attain any real or solid happiness.
This reflects the teaching of that period, based on the writings of Hobbes in the Leviathan. On p. 7 he defines "the ancient institution of free and accepted Masons" as "an establishment founded on the benevolent intentions of extending and confirming mutual happiness, upon the best and truest principles of moral and social virtue". This definition being thus amplified on p. 13. "By this shall all men know that you belong to the brethren if your hearts glow with affection (not to masons alone but) to the whole race of mankind".
An account of the ancient professors of the royal art leads on to a description of the Tabernacle and Temple (p. 25).
Though the almighty and eternallEHOVAH has no occasion for a temple, or house to dwell in, for the heaven of heavens is not capable of containing His immensity, yet it was his divine will that a tabernacle should be erected for him ... after a pattern which the Lord himself had given.
(p. 29). Solomon likewise partitioned the fellow‑crafts into certain lodges, appointing to each, one to preside as a master, assisted by two others as guardians, that they might receive commands in a regular manner, take care of the tools and jewels, and be duly paid, fed, clothed, etc.
These necessary regulations being previously settled, to preserve that order and harmony which would be absolutely requisite among so great a number of men, in executing so large a work: He also took into consideration the future agreement and prosperity of the craft, and deliberated on the best means to secure them by a lasting cement. Now, brotherly love and immutable fidelity, presented themselves to his mind, as the most proper basis for an institution, whose aim " Horace, Odes. Lib. iv. 59‑60. "(through losses, through carnage Draws means and spirit from the steel itself)". Lonsdale and Lee's Translation. The Ode relates to Claudius Drusus Nero.
MASONIC TEACHERS OF THE 18TH CENTURY 67 and end should be to establish permanent unity among its members, and to render them a society, who, while they enjoyed the most perfect felicity, would be of considerable utility to mankind. And being desirous to transmit it under the ancient restrictions as a blessing to future ages, SOLOMON decreed, that whenever they should assemble in their lodges to discourse upon, and improve themselves in the arts and sciences; and whatever else should be deemed proper topics to encrease their knowledge, they should likewise instruct each other in secrecy and prudence, morality and good fellow‑ship; and for these purposes he established certain peculiar rules and customs to be invariably observed in their conversations, that their minds might be enriched by a perfect acquaintance with, and the practice of every moral, social and religious duty, lest while they were so highly honoured by being employed in raising a temple to the great JEHOVAH, they should neglect to secure to themselves an happy admittance into the celestial lodge, of which the temple was only to be a type.
Thus did our wise grand master contrive a plan by mechanical and practical allusions, to instruct the craftsmen in principles of the most sublime speculative philosophy, tending to the glory of GOD, and to secure to them temporal blessings here and eternal life hereafter; as well as to unite the speculative and operative masons, thereby forming a two‑fold advantage from the principles of Geometry and Architecture on the one part, and the precepts of wisdom and ethicks on the other.
(p. 31). The next circumstance which demanded Solomon's attention was the readiest and most effectual method of paying the wages of so vast a body of men, according to their respective degrees, without error or confusion, that nothing might be found among the masons of Sion, save harmony and peace. This was settled in a manner well known to all regularly made masons, and therefore is unnecessary, as also improper, to be mentioned here.
(p. 33). With respect to the METHOD which would be hereafter necessary for propagating the principles of the society, SOLOMON pursued the uniform and ancient custom, in regard to degrees of probation and injunctions to secrecy; which he himself had been obliged to comply with before he gained a perfection in the royal art, or even arrived at the summit of the sciences; therefore, tho' there were no apprentices employed in the building of the temple; yet as the craftsmen were all intended to be promoted to the degree of masters, after its dedication; and as these would secure a succession, by receiving apprentices who might themselves in due time also become master masons, it was determined that the gradations in the science should consist of three distinct degrees, to each of which should be adapted a particular distinguishing test, which test, together with the explication, was accordingly settled and communicated to 68 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES the fraternity, previous to their dispersion, under a necessary and solemn injunction to secrecy; and they have been most cautiously preserved, and transmitted down to posterity by faithful brethren, ever since their emigration. Thus the center of union among freemasons was firmly fixed; their cabala regulated and established; and their principles directed to the excellent purposes of their original intention.
Chap. 2 gives an ideal account of Freemasonry, and we note the happy phrase that in its assemblies "'tis wisdom in good‑humour". We then come to an interesting topic.
(p. 38). . . . we shall proceed in taking some notice of the several accusations frequently brought against it.
And first; As none can venerate and esteem the fair sex more than free‑masons do, we cannot but reckon it a misfortune that the ladies should be offended at their non‑admission into this order; and the more so, as they no sooner learn with what moderation the masons comport themselves in their assemblies, but without knowing the reason why they are not admitted, they censure us with all the severity their delicate minds are capable of. This, we must beg leave to say, is intirely owing to mistaken prejudice, for a little reflection would convince them, that their not being received in this institution is not in the least singular. They stand in the same predicament with respect to the priesthood, and many other particular societies; the solemn assemblies of the ancients, the senates of Pagan, and the conclaves of papal Rome, all national senates and ecclesiastical synods, universities, and seminaries of learning, etc., etc., with which they might with equal propriety be offended.
If the learned brother had lived today he would have had to find some other excuse.
Freemasonry is defended with regard to its secrecy; its loyalty is affirmed; and: These topics [religious as well as political matters] are never suffered to be agitated; for it is a fundamental maxim of this institution to prohibit such disputes. The God of heaven, and the rulers of the earth, are by them inviolably respected. (p. 39).
The antiquity of swearing oaths is traced.
... supposing (for the sake of argument, but not granting) that one is required, as set forth by the adversaries of masonry; (Very ingenuous but rather specious).
(p. 42). If we examine the laws and regulations of free‑masonry, it will appear that the end and purport of it is truly laudable, being calculated to regulate our passions, to assist us in acquiring knowledge of the arts and sciences, and to promote morality and beneficence, MASONIC TEACHERS OF THE 18TH CENTURY 69 as well as to render conversation agreeable, innocent, and instructive; and so to influence our practice, as to make us useful to others, and happy in ourselves. With regard to the relation we have (as members) to society in general, it will appear equally evident from the said regulations, that a free‑mason is to be a peaceable subject, conforming cheerfully to the government under which he lives, is to pay a due deference to his superiors; and from his inferiors is to receive honour rather with reluctance that to extort it.
(p. 47). A voluntary oath is the more binding far being voluntary, because there is no stricter obligation that that we take willingly on ourselves. (Praelect, 4 Sec. 11).
(p. 52). The Druids in our own nation (who were the only priests among the ancient Britons) committed nothing to writing. And CAESAR observes that they had a head or chief, who exercised a sort of excommunication, attended with dreadful penalties on those, who either published or prophaned their mysteries. . . . The general practice and constant applause of the ancients, as well as the customs of the moderns, one would naturally imagine should be sufficient to justify masons against any charge of singularity or innovation on this account [i.e. secrecy]; for how can this be thought singular, or new, by any one who will but calmly allow himself the smallest time for reflection.
Do not all incorporated bodies amongst us, enjoy this liberty without impeachment or censure? an apprentice is bound to keep the secrets of his master; a freeman is obliged to consult the interest of his company, and not prostitute in common the mysteries of his profession; secret committees and privy councils are solemnly enjoined not to publish abroad their debates and resolutions. In courts martial the members are bound to secrecy; and in many cases for more effectual security an oath is administred.
(p. 54). Yet notwithstanding the mysteries of our profession are kept inviolable, none are excluded from a full knowledge of them, in due time and manner, upon proper application, and being found capable and worthy of the trust. To form other designs and expectations, is building on a sandy foundation, and will only serve to testify that like a rash man, their discretion is always out of the way when they have most occasion to make use of it.
(Chap. 3; p. 57). Perhaps it will be said that the moral and social principles we profess, are equally necessary to the support of every well regulated society; how then came masons to appropriate the merit of such principles to themselves? I answer, they are not only deemed necessary, but taught and brought into practice in the lodge; they are familiarized to us by such a plain, pleasing and 70 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES peculiar method, that they seem no longer lessons or rules, but become inherent principles in the breast of every free‑mason.
(Chap. 4; p. 60). The last accusation brought against free and accepted masons, which I shall take any notice of, is that they make use of hyerogliphic figures, parabolical and symbolical customs and ceremonies, secret words and signs, with different degrees of probation peculiar to themselves; these are also censured. . . . ORIGEN tells us (Origen Contra Celsum) "The Egyptian philosophers had sublime notions which they kept secret, and never discovered to the people, but under the vail of fables and allegories; also other eastern nations concealed secret mysteries under their religious ceremonies, a custom still retained by many of them." With regard to symbols, he says: (p. 65). Likewise the famous pillars before SOLOMON'S temple, were not placed there for ornament alone; their signification, use and mystical meanings are so well known to expert masons, that it would be both unnecessary, as it is improper for me to assign them here; neither are the reasons why they were made hollow known to any but those who are acquainted with the arcana of this society; tho' that circumstance so often occurs in scripture.
A long note follows on the heights, reconciling the various readings.
(p. 75). And as FREE‑MASONRY is in like manner a progressive science, not to be perfectly attained but by time, patience, and application, how necessary is it, that testimonies of proper qualifications should be required for the respective degrees, before the candidate can attain them; both in regard to science and morality; as the honour of the institution should always be a principal object in view to every free and accepted mason, who ought to be well instructed in the scientifick knowledge, and moral and social virtues peculiar to an inferior, e'er he will be admitted to the more sublime truths of the perfect and well qualified MASON.
As to the name Freemason, he says: (p. 76). . . . this did not arise merely from our skill in architecture, or the principles of building, but from a more comprehensive acquaintance and knowledge of the sublimest principles of philosophy and moral virtues.... Therefore the name of mason is not to be considered in the contracted implication of a builder of habitations, etc. But figuratively pursuant to the method of the ancient society on which this institution is founded; and taken in this sense, a mason is one who by gradual advances in the sublime truths and various arts and sciences which the principles and precepts of free‑masonry tend to inculcate and establish, is raised by regular courses to such a degree MASONIC TEACHERS OF THE 18TH CENTURY 71 of perfection as to be replete with happiness himself, and extensively beneficial to others.
As to the appendage free, that evidently owed its rise to the practice of the ancients, who never suffered the liberal arts and sciences to be taught to any but the free‑born.
Actually it is generally recognized today that this word "free" occurs in three different connotations. It may mean (1) not attached to a gild restricted to a certain definite locality; (2) free of his gild or Company; or (3) a freestone mason (macon de franche pierre), as distinguished from a rough mason.
In an Appendix he gives us (p. 79) the history of Free‑masonry in England from Athelstan; (p. 84) the Leland Locke MS. and the Notes; this has been copied by every later writer; (p. 94) a list of G.Ms. and Dy.G.Ms. from 1721, ending with the Duke of Beaufort, 1767; (p. 98) Deputations for Provincial Grand Masters were granted: 1726 To Sir Edward Mansell, Bart., for South Wales: Hugh Warburton, Esq., for North Wales.
1738 By the Marquis of Carnarvon, now Duke of Chandos, G.M. to William Horton, Esq., for the West Riding of the County of York.
1740 By the Earl of Kintore, G.M. to Edward Rooke, Esq., for the West Riding of the County of York, in the room of William Horton, Esq., deceased, and so on, the list ending on p. 103 with: "1767 J. J. de Vignoles, for foreign lodges where no provincial is appointed." On p. 104 is an Account of the establishment of the Present Grand Lodge of Scotland, with a list of G.M's. from 1736 to 1769. On p. 116 he prints a letter from Bro. James Galloway, dated Oct. 1, 1768, making a proposition of a plan for raising a fund to build a Masonic hall in London, thus bringing before the body of the craft the necessity for a central place of meeting, the erection of which was carried into effect by Lord Petre in 1775. This letter is referred to by Preston in his 1772 edition at p. 250. On p. 122 we have a description of the Banquetting Hall of the Lodge at Marseilles intituled the Lodge of St. John, another item that was copied by all Calcott's successors, but for no obvious reason. On p. 135 we begin a series of Charges, describing "The Duties of a Free‑mason," as delivered in the regular Lodges, "held under the Constitution of the Grand Master of England." A few quotations will show that we owe some of our most familiar phrases today to these productions.
p. 141. On Charity. "It should therefore by no reason lessen the dignity and excellency of the royal craft, because it is our misfortune to have bad men among us, any more than the purity and holiness of the Christian religion should be doubted, because too many of the wicked and profligate approach the holy altar".
72 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES p. 150. Such is the nature of our constitution that as some must of necessity rule and teach so others must of course learn to obey; humility therefore in both becomes an essential duty, for pride and ambition, like a worm at the root of the tree, will prey on the vitals of our peace, harmony and brotherly love.
On p. 157, a Charge by Wellins Calcott himself, which is curiously modern in style.
"Right Worshipful SIR. By the unanimous voice of the members of this lodge, you are elected to the mastership thereof for the ensuing half‑year.... What you have seen praise‑worthy in others, we doubt not you will imitate; and what you have seen defective, you will in yourself amend. [Now part of the address to the Wardens.] For a pattern of imitation, consider the great luminary of nature, which, rising in the east, regularly diffuses light and lustre to all within its circle. In like manner it is your province, with due decorum, to spread and communicate light and instruction to the brethren in the lodge". and (p. 163) ". . . nothing more contributes to the dissolutions of a lodge than too great a number of members indiscriminately made".
Finally, as a Postscript, we have a set of model Bye‑Laws, from which one may be quoted, as to visitors. "That every visiting brother being a member of a regular Lodge, shall pay on every visit Is. 6d., but if only of the lodge of St. John shall pay 2s." This phrase was used to describe either unattached brethren, or members of Lodges not under the jurisdiction of G.L.
Wellins Calcott was originally a bookseller (the D.N.B. says he was the son of a member of the Corporation of Shrewsbury), who blossomed out into an author. In 1756 he wrote a book entitled Thoughts Moral and Divine; 1st ed., London, 1756; 2nd, Birmingham, 1758; 3rd, Coventry, 1759; 4th, Manchester, 1761; 5th, Exeter, 1764. He was P.M. of the Lodge of Regularity, London (now No. 91), in 1755. He appears to have gone about as a lecturer on Masonic subjects and incidentally engaged in getting subscribers all over the country for the Candid Disquisition. Bro. Wonnacott's notes show him to be delivering lectures in 1761, at St. John's, Kilwinning, Haddington, and also at Edinburgh and Dumbarton; in 1762 at Norwich; in 1767 at St. Ives and Hereford; in 1776 at Oxford, etc. There was some trouble experienced by the Bristol subscribers in getting their copies, for details of which see p. 3 in the Report of the Quarterly Communication held at Freemasons Hall on Wednesday, April 11, 1781; and the printed circular in the Grand Lodge Library of date June 7, 1781. A curious circumstance arising out of this is that if this book was not in the hands of its subscribers until 1780 or later then possibly Hutchinson's Spirit of Masonry was in the field earlier, as that was published in 1775.
However this may be, Calcott deserves every credit for his book, which is the first work in which the philosophy of the craft is seriously considered, MASONIC TEACHERS OF THE 18TH CENTURY PLATE 6. William Hutchinson (1732‑1814), author of The Spirit of Masonry, first published in 1775 From the Title‑page to the 1802 edition (By kind permission of the Board of General Purposes) and in which a genuine attempt is made to co‑ordinate the various ceremonies. His work was that of a real pioneer and led the way to, and prescribed the manner of, most of the successors in this line. Many of the words and phrases used in his lectures were adopted by Hemming and made part of the ritual which we use today. Whether these expressions are due to Calcott or whether he took them out of some old working is immaterial; at any rate Calcott put them into print, and so ensured their continued existence in exact phraseology; for this service alone he merits our thanks and our remembrance.
We next come to Hutchinson and his work.
The Spirit of Masonry in Moral and Elucidatory Lectures; by Wm. Hutchinson, Master of the Barnard Castle Lodge of Concord. London: Printed for J. Wilkie, No. 71 in St. Paul's Churchyard, and W. Goldsmith, No. 24, Paternoster Row. MDCCLXXV.
73 74 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES The work is dedicated to Lord Petre. It is perhaps the most noteworthy of all the treatises on Masonic philosophy; it is also noteworthy for its numerous scriptural quotations and for its copious use of capitals in the first edition.
William Hutchinson (1732‑1814) was a well‑known solicitor in Barnard Castle. He was the author of many valuable works on topographical subjects, the best of which is his History of Durham, published in 1785. His portrait appears as the frontispiece to Vol. VIII of Nichol's Literary Anecdotes. The Spirit of Masonry was published in 1775, and was re‑issued in 1796 and 1802, and re‑edited by Dr. Oliver in 1843. There is a frontispiece; a five‑pointed Star with interlaced Triangle with the letter G in the centre on a rayed background. The first edition has pp. 237, and appendix pp. 17. The Second Edition has as title page: The Spirit of Masonry [Star as in 1] in Moral and Elucidatory Lectures, By Wm. Hutchinson. The Second Edition. Carlisle: Printed by F. Jollie. MDCCXCV.
The signatures suggest a small quarto, but it is octavo in size. It has the sanction and the preface with verbal changes. The dedication is to Benevolence. The lectures are the same with constant small verbal modifications. After the glossary come "Remarks", then a list of lodges under the G.LL. of England and Scotland. The Third Edition has as title: The Spirit of Masonry. By Wm. Hutchinson. The Third Edition with additions. [A portrait. R. Scott Sculp.] Carlisle: Printed by F. Jollie, 1802.
There is no star, but a frontispiece, a plate of various masonic emblems. The printing and paper are much inferior to the first edition; the capitals are replaced by italics. The text is identical with the second edition. The sanction is retained but the dedication and preface are omitted. After the Lesson, this edition has a Short Defence. It ends with the Funeral and has the table of contents at the end; in the first edition it is at the beginning. There are 149 pages of text, and the pagination is continuous through the appendix which goes on to p. 359. The "I" of the first edition is replaced in the second and third by "we"; and the verbal alterations are usually trivial and not always for the better.
In the first Lecture, The Design, starting with Adam, the progress of Freemasonry is divided into three stages. (1) In the forming of this Society when mankind had experienced that from religion all civil ties and obli gations were compacted, and that thence proceeded all the bonds which could unite mankind in social intercourse. (2) is grounded on the Temple at Jerusalem which owns the probation of craftsmen. (3) The members of our Society at this day, in the third stage of masonry, confess themselves to be Christians.
MASONIC TEACHERS OF THE 18TH CENTURY His philology is rather weird, for he sees the origin of the word Mason in the French word Maison, which he says (p. 20) "signifies a family or particular race of people". It seems as if the name was compounded of MaQ‑1cuav=Quero salvum; and the title of Masonry is no more than a corruption of Me0ovpavew=Sum in Medio Coeli, etc. He then goes on to quote some Greek words apparently to carry on his idea of the derivation at any rate to his satisfaction, "which conjecture is strengthened by our symbols". As a result of this method of reasoning he comes ultimately to this conclusion: (p. 21). I am inclined to determine, that the appellation of MASON implies a member of a RELIGIOUS SECT, and a professed devotee of the Deity "WHO IS SEATED IN THE CENTRE OF HEAVEN".
Equally interesting, if not convincing, is his statement that: (p.21). . ..the Druids, when they committed anything to writing, used the Greek alphabet‑and I am bold to assert, the most perfect remains of the Druids' rites and ceremonies are preserved in the ceremonials of masons, that are to be found existing among mankind. ‑My brethren may be able to trace them with greater exactness than I am at liberty to explain to the public.
In this paragraph there is no doubt of his boldness, the only doubt is with regard to his accuracy. The Druids committed nothing to writing, every word of the ritual was committed to memory, and no record remains to show what these rituals were. It follows therefore that whilst our ceremonies may be an exact copy of those of the ancient Druids, nobody knows what those were and hence nobody knows if ours at all resemble them in any single point. I am afraid that some of these old writers have a lot to answer for.
Lecture II is on the Rites, Ceremonies and Institutions of the Ancients, and a similar criticism will apply to his disquisition on Basilides, the Essenes, and Gnostics. The ingenuity of his suppositions is worthy of the utmost praise, but so much ability might have been devoted to a better purpose. The lectures on the furniture of the Lodge show clearly the lodge symbolism of the period as also that on the Apparel and Jewels.
"The raiment which truly implies the innocence of the heart, is a badge more honourable than ever was devised by kings‑the Roman Eagle, with all the orders of knighthood, are inferior:‑they may be prostituted by the caprice of princes; but innocence is innate, and cannot be adopted". (p. 123).
75 (p. 153). As I before declared it to be my opinion, that this Society was never formed for, or of, a set of working architects or masons; but as a religious, social and charitable establishment, and 76 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES never were embodied, or exhibited to the world as builders, save only under Moses, and at the Temple of Jerusalem, where with holy hands they executed those works of piety, as the patriarchs erected altars to the honor of the Divinity, for their sacrifices and religious offices; so I am persuaded, that the adoption of geometry by masons, or any emblem of that science, implies no more than a reverence for such device of the mind of man as should demonstrate the wisdom of the Almighty in his works, whereby the powers of Abrax are defined, and the system of the starry revolutions in the heavens determined.
He has a long note on Abrax, or Abraxas, which is a mystical name of God, the numerical value of which is 365, invented by a second century Gnostic called Basilides, and taken by the Gnostics as the principle from which was derived all their hierarchy of spirits and heavenly bodies. But the opinion here expressed is rather startling, though we are denied the source of his statement because he does not give any authority for this opinion, which obviously is a very pious one.
He certainly was not affected by the deistic tendency of his masonic successors, for his definition of a master mason is: "Thus the MASTER MASON represents a man under the christian doctrine, saved from the grave of iniquity, and raised to the faith of salvation". (p. 162).
The chapters on Charity and Brotherly Love reach a high standard of eloquence but introduce no controversial points. Lectures 13 and 14 contain a summing up of his ideas.
"Why the title of FREE is annexed to our society, or that of ACCEPTED, I hope I may be allowed to conjecture was derived from the crusades. There the volunteers entering into that service must be FREEMEN, born free, and not villains or under any vassalage; for it was not until long after the crusades, that vassalage and feudal services, together with the slavish tenures, were taken away.
They were entitled to the stile of ACCEPTED, under that PLENARY INDULGENCE which the pope published, for all who would confess their sins, and inlist in the enterprize of the holy war; whereby they were accepted and received into the bosom of the father of the church." This is distinctly original. As Gould has pointed out, there is no evidence for the Papal Bull so often asserted to exist. An Appendix contains the letter from the learned Mr. John Locke, and a few more extracts from the body of the work will be sufficient to give us an idea of the man and his teachings.
(p.115). ... furnished with unerring rules, whereby he shall form his conduct‑THE BOOK of his law is laid before him, that he may not MASONIC TEACHERS OF THE 18TH CENTURY 77 say through ignorance he erred; whatever the great ARCHITECT of the world hath dictated to mankind, as the mode in which he would be served, and the path in which he is to tread to obtain his approbation; whatever precepts he hath administred, and with whatever laws he hath inspired the sages of old, the same are faithfully comprized in THE BOOK OF THE LAW of MASONRY. That book, which is never closed in any lodge, reveals the duties which the great MASTER of all exacts from us‑open to every eye, comprehensible to every mind; then who shall say among us, that he knoweth not the acceptable service ? (p. 128). Pity and pain are sisters by sympathy.
(p. 148). . . . the letter G wherewith the lodges and the medals of masons are ornamented.... To apply its signification to the name of GOD only, is depriving it of part of its MASONIC import; although I have already shown that the symbols used in lodges are expressive of the Divinity's being the great object of Masonry, as architect of the world. This significant letter denotes GEOMETRY, which to artificers, is the science by which all their labours are calculated and formed; and to Masons contains the determination, definition, and proof of the order, beauty and wonderful wisdom of the power of God in his creation.
(p. 161). The acquisition of the doctrine of redemption is expressed in the typical character of Huramen (Hvpaliev ‑inveni) and by the application of that name with masons, it is implied, that we have discovered the knowledge of God and of his salvation, and have been redeemed from the death of sin, and the sepulchre of pollution and unrighteousness.
(p. 176). Assuredly the secrets revealed to us were for other uses than what relate to labouring up masses of stone; and our society, as it now stands, is an association on religious and charitable principles; which principles were instituted and arose upon the knowledge of God, and in the christian revelation.
(p. 221). . . . we have furnished our lodges with those striking objects, which should at once intimate to us the mightiness and wisdom of God, the instability of man, and the various vicissitudes in human life, and have set before our eyes preceptors of moral works; and to strengthen our faith we have enlightned our lodge with the emblem of the Trinity.
(p. 126). To walk uprightly before heaven and before men, neither inclining to the right or to the left, is the duty of a Masonneither becoming an Enthusiast or a persecutor in religion, nor bending towards innovation or infidelity.‑In civil government, 78 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES firm in our allegiance, yet stedfast in our laws, liberties and constitution.‑In private life, yielding up every selfish propensity, inclining neither to avarice or injustice, to malice or revenge, to envy or contempt with mankind; but as the builder raises his column by the plane and perpendicular, so should the Mason carry himself towards the world.
(p. 233). . . . I have attempted to examine into the origin of our society and in many instances wand'ring without evidence, I have been left to probability in conjecture only.‑It doth not now seem material to us what our originals and predecessors were, if we occupy ourselves in the true SPIRIT OF MASONRY; in that divine spirit which inspired the patriarchs when they erected altars unto the Lord; if we are true servants to our king, faithful and true to our chartered liberties, christians in profession and in practice, and to each other, and mankind in general, affectionate and upright.
(p. 237). . . . with attention endeavour to arrive at the utmost knowledge of your PROFESSION, the end of which, I presume to proclaim to you, is to work out THE WORKS OF RIGHTEOUSNESS.
Our next author is Captain George Smith, the title of whose work is: The Use and Abuse of Free‑masonry; A Work of the greatest Utility to the Brethren of the Society, to Mankind in General, and to the Ladies in Particular.
By Capt. George Smith, Inspector of the Royal Military Academy at Woolwich; Provincial Grand‑Master for the County of Kent, and R.A.
[Drawing of three interlacing circles with the Hebrew letters A.B.L. and the words] Spiritus Jehovah Elijah Elohim Fiat London: Printed for the Author; and Sold by G. Kearsley, No. 46, Fleet Street, 1783. (Price Five Shillings in Boards.) Kearsley printed the unauthorized edition of the Book of Constitutions in 1769.
The book has two dedications‑(1) To His Majesty Frederick the Second King of Prussia‑reciting the whole of his hereditary titles, and ending with Protector of Freemasons. (2) To His Royal Highness Henry Frederick, Duke of Cumberland and Strathern, Earl of Dublin, Ranger of Windsor Great Park, Admiral of the White Squadron, and Knight of the Most Noble Order of the Garter; Present Grand‑Master of Masons in England.
MASONIC TEACHERS OF THE 18TH CENTURY 79 In his preface (p. xv) he states "Elegance we have sacrificed to brevity", and then goes on to show what "brevity" can be lengthened out to. Smith's main thesis is framed on the philosophical teachings then in fashion, that man is formed to be a sociable being, and that men must of necessity form associations for their comfort, friendship and defence as well as for their very existence. Of these associations the best is the ancient institution of Free and Accepted Masons, an establishment founded on the benevolent intentions of extending and confirming mutual happiness, upon the best and truest principles of moral and social virtue.
In the chapter on the Antiquity of Freemasonry in general he follows the current opinions of the day and traces the development from Adam onwards. "After the Flood, the professors of this art (according to ancient tradition) were first distinguished by the name of Noachidae". His philology is not very sound, for there are no proofs that "The titles therefore of Mason and Masonry most probably were derived from the Greek language, as the Greek idiom is adopted by them in many instances". Though where the Greek idiom is adopted in Masonry is sadly to seek. He also says, "I am bold to assert, the most perfect remains of the Druid rites and ceremonies are preserved in the customs and ceremonies of Masons, that are to be found existing among mankind". We agree that he was bold to assert, but we do not agree with his assertion and we should like to have known where he got his information from. It ought at any rate to have been a very reliable quarter to stand the use of the superlative. On p. 35 he says: "The original names of Masons and Masonry may probably be derived from or corrupted of Mvs77pcov=res arcana, mysteries, and Mv~r)s=sacris initiates mysta, those initiated to sacred mysteries". This is an obvious misprint for Mva‑r~s (o)=one initiated. His Greek is rather weak. It should be To p,varrjpcov= a mystery or sacred rite, rite, generally in the plural Td p.va7~pta.
After describing the building of the Temple (p. 45), Solomon is credited with establishing general distinguishing characteristics by which the craftsmen after their dispersal over the whole earth should be able to pass on to their descendants those principles which they had cultivated to such perfection.
Various circumstances contribute to prove that Freemasonry was introduced into Britain by the first inhabitants about 1030 years B.C. It began to revive under the patronage of Charles II, who had been received into the Order while on his travels. In 1694 King William was privately initiated into Masonry. These historical statements are from Anderson, and there is no justification for them.
A list of the various Grand Masters follows, and a full account of the ceremony observed at laying the Foundation of Freemasons' Hall on Monday, 1st May, 1775, by Lord Petre. This is of especial interest to those of us who were at the laying of the Foundation Stone of the new Freemasons' Hall last year by the Duke of Connaught. The ceremony of the dedication 80 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES of the Hall on Thursday, 23rd May, 1776, is also given at length. We may hope that we shall be present at the dedication of the new building though the progress of erection will not be so rapid as in the 18th century.
Smith then reviews the history of Freemasonry in the various countries of the world, and alludes to the Papal Bull and the Edict of Berne. and to this latter he gives far greater prominence than it ever merited. He gives the number of Lodges in the world as, in Europe 1,247; in America 187; in Asia 76; and in Africa 13‑a total of 1,523‑and he says: "On estimating the lodges one with another, at 30 members in each, makes 45,690 Masons in all".
He next embarks on a defence of Masonry in general. He admits that "All sovereigns have the authority to determine the actions of their subjects, provided that they are by a necessity, as well natural as moral, or by the fundamental laws of the place, capable of an obvious determination". He proceeds to show that "It is nowhere to be found ... that they ever bore a part in the intrigues and troubles, etc." and cites as an instance the conduct of the Freemasons in the Gordon Riots of 1780, and concludes, p. 251: "Far from degrading the authority of sovereigns, masons are, have been, and ever will be faithful, steady, and zealous defenders of it".
Masonry, he goes on to say, is the daughter of heaven, and happy are those who embrace her, and he proceeds to a vindication of Freemasonry from all general aspersions.
"Men of all religions and of all nations are united. The distant Chinese, the wild Arab, or the American savage, will embrace a brother Briton.... Masonry teaches us to be faithful to our king, and true to our country; to avoid turbulent measures, and to submit with reverence to the decisions of legislative power. It is surely then no mean advantage, no trifling acquisition, to any community or state to have under its power and jurisdiction a body of men who are loyal subjects, patrons of science and friends to mankind".
Wisdom seeks the secret shade, the lonely cell designed for contemplation.
"As we ought to be irreproachable in our own demeanour so we ought to be certified that our candidates for freemasonry have the requisite qualifications, which indispensably ought to be a good reputation, an honest method of living, sound morals and a competent understanding".
On Masonic Secrecy he writes "Does not Solomon, the wisest of men, tell us He that discovers secrets is a traitor, but a man of a faithful spirit concealeth the matter ? In conducting worldly affairs secrecy is not only essential but absolutely necessary and was ever esteemed a quality of the greatest worth . . . the ancient Egyptians had so great a regard for silence and secrecy in MASONIC TEACHERS OF THE 18TH CENTURY 81 the mysteries of their religion that they set up the god Harpocrates, . . . who was represented with his right hand placed near the heart, and the left down by his side, covered with a skin before full of eyes and ears, to signify, that of many things to be seen and heard, few are to be published". (pp. 286‑7).
Instances are given from Pythagoras onwards which "should be sufficient to justify masons against any charge of singularity or innovation on this account.... Do not all incorporated bodies among us enjoy this liberty without impeachment or censure". (p. 291). He then goes on to discuss the origin of swearing oaths and the different customs adopted by the ancients. We then get (p. 298): ... a free‑mason is to be a peaceable subject, conforming cheerfully to the government under which he lives, is to pay a due deference to his superiors; and from his inferiors is to receive honour rather with reluctance than to extort it.
(p. 301). . . . if a number of persons, who have formed themselves into a body with a design to improve in useful knowledge, to promote universal benevolence, and to cultivate the social virtues of human life, have bound themselves by the solemn obligation of an oath, to conform to the rules of such institution, where can be the impiety, immorality or folly of such proceeding? ... As for the terror of a penalty, it is a mistaken notion to imagine that the solemnity of an oath adds anything to the obligation; or that the oath is not equally binding without any penalty at all.... A VOLUNTARY oath is the more binding for being voluntary, because there is no stricter obligation than that we take willingly on ourselves".
In speaking of the lodge and its furniture, etc., he says: "A LODGE is the place where all business concerning the society is transacted, and where masons meet to expatiate on the craft". Further on he tells us that mosaic work is to remind us of the precariousness of our state on earth, and the "book of his law" is that whereby the mason shall form his conduct.
To aid the conduct of every mason the GRAND MASTER holdeth the compass, limiting the distance, progress, and circumference of the work ... assigning to each his province and his order ... the square is presented as the probation of his life, proving whether his manners are regular and uniform ... our three lights are typical of the Holy Trinity. (pp. 324‑6).
Masons ... profess innocence; they put on‑white apparel as an emblem of that character.... The raiment, which truly implies the innocence of the heart, is a badge more honourable than ever was devised by kings; the Roman eagle, with all the orders of knighthood, are thereto inferior; they may be prostituted by the caprice of princes, but innocence is innate and cannot be adopted.
82 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES To walk uprightly before heaven and before man, neither inclining to the right or to the left, is the duty of a mason, neither becoming an enthusiast or a persecutor in religion, nor bending towards innovation or infidelity.... To steer the bark of life upon the seas of passions, without quitting the course of rectitude, is one of the highest excellencies to which human nature can be brought, aided with all the powers of philosophy and religion. (pp. 327‑32).
Finally on Masonic Charity he writes CHARITY is the chief of every social virtue; it includes not only a supreme degree of love to the great Creator and Governor of the universe, but an unlimited affection to beings of all characters and every denomination.
After reminding us that the present committee of Charity of the G.L. of England was constituted in 1725 in consequence of an old regulation established at the revival of the G.L. in 1717, and giving a list of benefactions abroad and at home, he concludes: To heaven's high Architect all praise, All gratitude be given; Who deign'd the human soul to raise, By secrets sprung from heaven.
And so the work of Captain Smith ends on the lofty note of prayer, praise and thanks to T.G.A.O.T.U.
All the arguments and most of the text are taken from Calcott and Hutchinson verbatim, the historical details‑which are mostly inaccurateare copied from Anderson, and the addresses from various sources. Smith says (p. 22) : With this view I have made it my business for many years to collect a great number of passages from writers eminent for their learning and probity, where I thought they might serve to illustrate my subject. The propriety of such proceeding is too obvious to need any apology.
The last sentence is distinctly appropriate in view of the fact that most of the book is copied without any acknowledgment, and even this is a paraphrase of Preston. The work is well worth reading; Captain Smith has faithfully followed in the footsteps of the original workers, and his writing gives a good summary of their ideas, though he does not take the trouble to correct their mistakes.
Captain George Smith served in the Prussian army under Frederick the Great, and was probably initiated into Freemasonry somewhere in Germany, but the time and place are unknown. On his return to England he was appointed Inspector of the Military Academy at Woolwich, which meant that he was headmaster of the school of cadets. In 1778 he was Provincial MASONIC TEACHERS OF THE 18TH CENTURY 83 Grand Master of Kent. In 1780 he was appointed junior Grand Warden. This appointment was strongly objected to by the Grand Secretary, James Heseltine, who was a champion objector, on the ground that no one could hold two offices in the Grand Lodge at the same time; though at that time there was no regulation forbidding this. (Const. 1784, p. 347). He occupied the chair of the Royal Military Lodge, No. 371, for four years, and came into a certain amount of notoriety by holding a lodge in 1783 in the King's Bench Prison, and conferring degrees on some of the inmates, thus contravening the rule that "it is inconsistent with the principles of Freemasonry for any Freemason's Lodge to be held in any prison or place of confinement". For this escapade he was solemnly censured by Grand Lodge. (See Constitutions 1784, p. 349). His excuse was that the Royal Military Lodge was an itinerant Lodge.
In 1783 he published The Use and Abuse of Freemasonry. The Grand Lodge, prompted by Heseltine, refused its sanction to the publication on the general policy of opposition to the publication of masonic literature. (Const. 1784, p. 347). In 1785 he was expelled from the Society for "uttering an instrument purporting to be a certificate of the G.L. recommending two distressed brethren".
No record is available of his subsequent career or when and where he died.
He was one of Preston's strongest supporters, and at the famous Grand Gala performance in honour of Freemasonry, May 21, 1772, he was one of the Stewards (fourth in the list) and took part in Section III of the First Lecture and was first in the list of Assistants. (Preston, 1772 Ed., p. 38).
In addition to the Use and Abuse he wrote several works on military subjects, one of which, the Universal Military Dictionary, published in 1779, was for many years a standard work and is of value yet as a reference for military terms of the 18th century.
He must have been an able and cultured man, even if in masonic affairs he usually appears to have been "agin the government".
We come next to J. Ladd, the title of whose work is: The Science of Free‑Masonry Explained: In Four Lectures on the Beauty, Antiquity, Rise and Progress of Free‑Masonry, from the earliest Period, down to the present Time; Shewing That Scriptural Faith and a Knowledge of the Sciences, are the Fundamental Principles of a true Mason: Which may be of great Use and Benefit to the Craft, or any other Persons who study the Sciences.
Selected, Abridged and Compiled from eminent Writers on that Subject.
London: Published for and sold by the Compiler, J. Ladd, in Heddon Street, near Swallow Street, St. James's. (Name on the door.) Who 84 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES teaches Drawing and Painting in all its Branches, also practical Geometry, Architecture, Perspective, Surveying, Dividing and Mapping Land, Measuring and Valuing Timber, and Mensuration of Artificers Work, etc., etc.
Sold also by J. Dixwell, No. 148, St. Martin's Lane, near Charing Cross. (Price Two Shillings).
[Dixwell published the Candid Disquisition].
The title page is fairly comprehensive, but the preliminary part relating to Masonry fades into insignificance when we come to the multifarious occupations of the gifted author. He gives more ample details later on in "An Address to Free‑Masons in Particular and My Friends and the Public in General", which is frankly in the nature of an advertisement of his qualifications for employment as a surveyor, etc. He also desires to teach others and invites parents and guardians to call on him, "Or a line post paid will be duly answered. N.B. He engages with no more than eight pupils at the same time".
Nothing is known about Ladd; there is no mention of him in the G.L. Records, and no books or record of him at the British Museum.
Bro. W. R. Makins has looked through many papers and has found, in the Wonnacott collection, only two references to anyone named Ladd.
(i) Ladd (Modem) visited Old King's Arms Lodge (now No. 28), 7 and 19 December, 1769. His own Lodge not stated.
(ii) Ladd, John (Modem), Mariner, age 35, made in Emulation Lodge (now No. 21) 26 Sep., 1774.
Ladd begins his lectures with a definition of the characteristics of a perfect and good Mason: A good mason then is an honest man, and, as Pope says, one of the noblest works of God. One, who duly pays his duty to his great Creator, and his allegiance to his king‑one, who studies to subdue his inordinate passions and natural perverse will, in proper subjection to all superior degrees and orders of men and all civil constitutional policy‑One, who strives by honest industry to excel in that profession, trade, or science he is called to‑one, who is just in all his dealings and dependencies; temperate, faithful, fortuitous, and steady, cultivating his mind and behaviour with social adepts and brotherly benignity in all the duties of life‑ One, who would willingly do to all men as he would have them to do to him‑ Nay, one, who studies excellency in all moral and religious duties‑to which laudable end, he particularly avoids all party or partial tale‑bearing, which, generally out of a frail, ill‑judged design of entertaining or pleasing, animates incorrect sensation, leads people into irrecoverable difficulties, and generally proves a bane to society‑ He avoids, with equal care, censoriousness, MASONIC TEACHERS OF THE 18TH CENTURY 85 perverse contradiction or captiousness, which often produce discord, or at least uneasiness‑ He would not be seen in the throng of the vicious, nor intemperately sip the cup of ebriety‑ A good mason is like a rock washed whiter, but not shaken with the storms and waves of life‑ He carries that erect, even deportment and disposition of mind, that never inclines to give or exaggerate offences, but strives to facilitate conviction by argument, in the gentlest manner and softest language, not by a haughty overbearingness, or an inflam'd debate; considering, that amity and social harmony ought to flourish and abound in all human societies, but particularly among the fraternity of free and accepted masons‑whose names are enrolled in the books of everlasting scientific records, to maintain and ever kindle that mysterious zeal, which enlightens us to see, with feeling compassion, the turbulent disquietudes, and vitiated principles of most of the unselected and uncivilized part of mankind.
These are, brethren, the united qualifications of a good and true mason, which, in short, is a fund of scriptural knowledge, adorned with the practice of social and religious virtue.
It must be admitted at once that Brother Ladd has given us here a fairly comprehensive list; the possessor of all these qualities would indeed be perfect.
The concluding paragraphs with their Christian allusions point out to us that at this period Freemasonry had not yet lost its definite Christian characteristics: "Let us therefore have a lively faith in Christ, be in perfect charity with all the world, and as brethren, with one another, let us study heartily to do good to all mankind". (p. 21).
The prayer ends: "This we most humbly beg in the Name and for the sake of Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour. Amen".
The Second Lecture is described as containing a short Historical Account of Masonry, from Adam down to the Building of Solomon's Temple.
(p. 29). Geometry is, beyond all doubt, the basis and foundation of Masonry, as well as ... all mathematical and mechanical learning.
(p. 37). After the temple was finished, many of the master masons travelled into all parts of the world, and constituted lodges; teaching the liberal arts, but would not unfold their mysteries to any but gentlemens sons, who were born free‑ From whence came the name of Free‑Masons.
(p. 38). The Egyptians constituted a great number of lodges, but, with assiduous care, kept their secrets of masonry from all strangers.... They wrapt up their mysteries, in disguised allusions, enigmas, fables, and allegories; From whence arose the various obscure questions and answers, and many other disguised obscurities, 86 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES which lead to the royal craft; the true sense of which are practised by thousands, tho' understood by few.
(p. 39). Geometry, in former times, dwelt as it were in a sanctuary, where every one was not allowed to approach‑they were mysteries known only to a few‑The truths they contain are simple and clear; but cannot be perceived without labour and attention, and a patient study of their long connections; for such a truth or such a supposition, can be only clear to him, who has already unfolded an hundred others.
(p. 43). Our love and fear of God, founded in the belief of the Gospel, inspires us with spiritual discernment, illuminates our faith, and will enable us to square our principles, level our desires, and plumb our actions.
In the Third Lecture, giving the Opinion of Some of the Ancients on Free‑Masonry, Geometry and Architecture, which are the Fundamentals of a Perfect Mason, after citing the practice of many ancient writers the author refers to English Masonry as follows (p. 56). The Trojan race of Britons built many temples, towns and castles, under the direction of Ebrank and Bladud, kings of the Britons and grand masters; the latter of these built the city of Bath, whose statue and inscription, as builder, remains there to this day; nor do the masters of the lodges in that city ever fail, on lodge‑nights, after their lectures are over, of giving a toast to the memory of king Bladud; and as I have frequently visited the lodges there, I cannot help saying, in justice, to the honour of my brethren at Bath, that their lodges were kept in more decorum, decency, good order, polite behaviour and brotherly friendship, than many lodges I have visited in this metropolis.
Through the kindness of Bro. Vibert I have obtained the following details of Ladd's visits to Bath. Minute Book No. VI of the Royal Cumberland Lodge, No. 41 (No. 59 of the 1755 List, then without a name), meeting at the Bear, until December, 1767, when it moved to the White Hart, Stall Street. Ladd's name appears as a visitor, paying 1/6, on Nov. 3, 1767, and Nov. 17, and Dec. 13; also on Feb. 2, Feb. 16, and May 3, 1768. He may possibly have visited on other occasions when the names of visitors are not given in detail.
Geoffrey of Monmouth, 12th century, Historia Britonum, traces English history from the arrival of Brutus of Troy to 689 A.D.
(p. 57). In Carausius's reign, St. Alban, steward of the household and ruler of the really, was grand master; he got a charter for the free‑masons, constituted a grand lodge, made masons himself, and gave most instructive charges.
MASONIC TEACHERS OF THE 18TH CENTURY 87 Carausius, "a Menapian of the meanest origin" (Gibbon), revolted A.D. 286. He was commander of the Roman Fleet in the Channel, stationed at Boulogne. He assumed the imperial purple and title of Augustus, and for seven years governed well; Diocletian and Maximian acknowledged his sovereignty. He was assassinated by his minister Allectus A.D. 293.
(p. 58). Prince Edwin, brother to king Athelstone, held a grand Lodge in York; where he brought Oriental records of the mysteries, and formed the constitution of the English Lodge.
The list of Grand Masters, the early ones hypothetical, is given up to date, ending with: "and Lord Peter, the present grand master" (generally spelt Petre). The following is distinctly modern: (p. 64). I cannot help thinking ... that were we so prudently cautious of raising master masons, as our fore‑fathers were, the desire of knowledge in the mysteries of masonry, would be much more power fully inviting; and the principles and qualifications of persons in the craft would be better known and approved, as being more worthy.... It is an apparent degradation to masonry in general, that some hundreds have been raised so imprudently and precipitately to be master masons, without the knowledge or understanding of hardly any one part of the order, or the least part of science.
From those, and the like causes, many unguarded and consequential mischiefs have arose.
The Fourth Lecture is described as "containing some definitions on Knowledge, the Liberal Arts or Sciences, and Geometry". The previous lectures have been given in the ordinary lecture form, but in this lecture the author reverts to the old method of question and answer. In this way there are described the various kinds of knowledge, the trivium and quadrivium and the principles of geometry. The work ends with a postscript of which the concluding words are: (p. 96). It is not every dish that pleases every palate; I tossed up this, in the first place, for my own table, which agreed extremely well with my constitution, and if my readers have a mind to take a part with me, they are kindly welcome; but I hope the guest that partakes at another body's table, will not quarrel with his supper.
The title of the last work that we shall consider is: An Introduction to Free Masonry: For the use of the Fraternity and none else. In four parts. Among the several Particulars of which are contained Choice and Select Songs, used by Free and Accepted Masons; The Bye Laws of a Lodge; the Memento; the Free Mason's Perpetual Almanack; a Demonstration of the Foundation of Masonry; HS THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES a Specimen of Moral Geometry; and the Desiderata. By W. Meeson, M.M. Birmingham: Printed by Pearson and Rollason. M. DCC. LXXV.
This is a most interesting work looking at Freemasonry from the moral and mathematical aspect. It begins with the Preparation.
(p. 7). Of the Necessity of Self Government.... Thus in every circumstance of life, the contented, affable, obliging, complaisant, sincere man, enjoyeth the reward of his virtue, and liveth in peace and safety.
An Introduction to Free Masonry. Part the First. The Apprentice only ... (p. 11). Chap. 1. How a Man may Govern himself.
(p. 11). Let then him that is fully resolved to part with every vitious habit, and every evil thought, directly and without delay, put his hand to the work; and with the keen Chisel of Reproof, and true Gavel of sincere Penance, force them off: and at this work let me advise you to be both ingenious and industrious, nor give it over until you have formed yourself into a perfect Square; and this rather by your own hands, than the skill or labour of others.
Chap. 2. How a Man should Square himself.
(p. 13). This Square, if well applied, will perfectly show where the Gavel and the Chisel should be employed and how far their use is necessary.... The Square then is the theory of universal duty, and consisteth of two right lines, forming an angle of perfect sincerity, or 90 degrees; the longest side is the sum of the length of the several duties we owe to the Supreme Being; the other is made up of the lengths of the several duties we owe to all men, And every man should be agreeable to this Square when perfectly finished.... When this is done, the Stone, or Rough Ashlar, is compleatly finished; and the Gavel and Chisel may be laid aside till the Square discovers some other irregularity.
Chap. 3. Of the Improvement of our Time.
Let the several parts of our work be measured out only by the Rule of one Day; allowing to every part of our work its just and proper quantity of length and breadth; for he that taketh care of his measure is more likely to bring his work to perfection than he who neglects it; notwithstanding he may still be doing something towards it.
Part the Second. The Master or Journey‑man. Chap. 1. Of Moderation.
(p. 21). As the husbanding well our time is the only way to acquire a competence suitable to our station here; and as this competence well managed may conduce towards our everlasting MASONIC TEACHERS OF THE 18TH CENTURY 89 On P.
happiness, it will thence follow that we should always maintain frugality and keep within the Compass of Moderation.
22 there comes an interesting digression into medicine.
Intemperate or immoderate watching dissipates the spirits, weakens the fibres, and exhausts the fluid parts of the blood; whence great disorders may arise, concomitants to a sluggish inactivity. And most certainly, Weakness of the fibres and a tenacious blood produce obstructions, which tend to various diseases, as inflammations, fevers, dropsies, etc.
But the immoderate drinking strong drink or spirits is by far more pernicious, as it tends to produce dropsies, atrophies, consumption of the lungs, hectics, the jaundice, anorexy, and langour of the whole body; also pains in the head, the apoplexy, epilepsy, palsy, &c., whence the ill consequences of such intemperance are fully manifest.
I shall add only a word or two more on this head (by way of comfort to the valetudinarian drinkers, if such there be amongst us) & that from a worthy doctor.
"It often happens (says he) to hard drinkers, that the glands of the liver which separates the bile from the blood, are sometimes so hardened or stopped as to resist the strongest deobstruents; whence the motion of the blood in the liver is so impeded, and to such a degree, as forces it into the gastrick arteries (which go or branch off from the hepatic) that it breaks into the stomach. And from hence it is that such unfortunates are subject to vomit blood, which in this case is a very fatal symptom, & such as does not admit of a cure".
Surely the weirdest words of comfort to a valetudinarian drinker ever written unless the comfort consists in the fact that the condition described "does not admit of a cure". In which event the sufferer would at once know the worst, if he did not previously suspect that something was wrong with him.
Chap. 2. Of Sincerity.
(p. 26). Sincerity is an universal duty; neither can that man be said to be so, who cannot stand the test of the true Plumb Line of gospel sincerity.
And he that is truly Square, well polished, and thus uprightly fixed, is well qualified, and fit to be a member of the most honourable society that ever existed.
Chap. 3. Of Beneficence.
(p. 27). He that expects the kind assistance of others, should by all means endeavour to deserve it by contributing all in his power to the happiness of all men.
90 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES He should put his hand to the Trowel of peace and beneficence, and not lay it by so long as he is able to join one stone to the building.
Chap. 4. Of Example and Emulation.
(p. 30). And as we are to set others a good example, so let us emulate and endeavour after the greater attainments of others; striving with all our might to overcome the corruptions of our nature; and to come up to the true Level of prudence, virtue, and piety, along with the most exalted patterns of purity and perfection.
These will cause us to be esteemed by the truly generous and impartial, who love that which is good, whether it be in a mason or any other name.
The mathematical demonstrations of the next part have been worked out in extenso, and will be published at some later date, probably in A.Q.C. The title is: "Part the Third, Of Moral Geometry. The Master only". It begins with Definitions copied from Euclid with added moral reflections. Thus 9. Every line representing a duty to be performed, may be supposed to contain all the particular branches of that duty; for the branches or parts of any duty must of consequence make up the whole duty itself.
26. A Triangle is a plain (sic) surface, contained by three right lines: An emblem of friendship.
The author proceeds to give Postulates, Axioms, and illustrates his method by moralizing Euclid, Book 1, Prop. 1.
Part the Fourth, the title of which is "Miscellaneous. A Demonstration of the Foundation of Masonry", continues this method. Thus the 47th Proposition of the first book of Euclid's Elements "is the foundation of all masonry, of whatever materials or dimensions", and Ward and Descartes are quoted. Then follow two "mental problems".
An Almanack from 1764 to 1854 is followed by prayers of a definitely Christian character, and we then have a Short Charge to be given to new admitted Brethren, varying somewhat from ours. Then come the Memento, and Masonic Aphorisms, etc. An example may be given.
Faith, Hope and Charity are the three principal graces, by which we ascend to the grand celestial Lodge where pleasures flow for evermore.
Let every true Mason knock off every evil disposition by the Gavel of righteousness and mercy: measure out his actions by the Rule of one day: fit them to the Square of prudence and equity: keep them within the bounds of the Compass of moderation and temperance: adjust them by the true Plumb‑line of gospel sincerity: bring them up to the just Level of perfection and spread them abroad with the silent Trowel of peace. &c....
MASONIC TEACHERS OF THE 18TH CENTURY 91 It will be noted that he speaks of the Compass, not the compasses, in this following Smith. The work concludes with a set of model Bye Laws, and a list of Regular Lodges, under the E.C.
In the valuable library belonging to the Quatuor Coronati Lodge there is a small book, Fcp. 8vo., originally Crown 8vo. cut down, half brown calf, red label on back, M.P. sides, in which are bound up the following books: Illustrations of Masonry, by William Preston. 2nd Edition 1775. pp. 300.
(2) Private Lectures on Masonry in Twelve Courses, by William Preston. No date. No printer's name. pp. 72.
(3) Meeson; the work just described.
(4) The Science of Freemasonry explained in Four Lectures, by J. Ladd. pp. 96.
I know of no other copy of Ladd's work; and the only other copy I can trace of Meeson is in the Worcestershire Masonic Museum. Pearson and Rollason were well‑known printers and, publishers, and Meeson's book is recorded as published by them in 1775 in The Bookmakers of Old Birmingham, by Joseph Hill. This information was courteously furnished to me by the Chief Librarian at Birmingham, Mr. Walter Powell. Alibone, in 1870, quotes: Meeson, W. Introduction to Freemasonry for the use of the Fraternity and none else. London: 1776. 8vo.
Unless this is an error, both as to date and place of publication, it means that there was a second edition, published in London. But it is otherwise unknown.
Concerning Meeson, the man and his masonic career, no information is obtainable. There is no record of him at the British Museum or in G. Lodge, and the Provincial G. Secretary of Warwickshire can find no mention of his name anywhere. My endeavours to obtain information in the Province of Worcestershire have not met with success. It is to be desired that further research may reveal some details about him, for he was most certainly an original thinker. In Remains of the Early Masonic Writers, edited by Dr. G. Oliver, D.D., "Masonic Institutes by Various Authors", published by R. Spencer, London, MDCCCXLVII, Lecture VIII, on p. 157, is entitled "The Masonic jewels illustrated by the aid of Moral Geometry". (Anonymous). This is an epitome of the book we are treating of. It is therefore probable that Meeson lectured upon this topic as was customary at that period. In a footnote at the end (p. 75), Oliver says: "This lecture is an admirable illustration of the manner in which our ancient brethren inculcated the duties of morality from the terms and propositions of geometry; and I regret exceedingly that all my efforts to obtain the author's name have been unsuccessful". Oliver does not give any indication as to where or how he 92 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES got the lecture. The question naturally arises: was the source a MS. copy or did Meeson publish it in lecture form before elaborating his material into a book ? One clue remains to be investigated. On p. 53, Mental Problem II., we read: "The ideal or magical working of the desire, and the ideal or magical working of the will, to produce the same effect, oppose and are contrary to each other:‑Quere a mathematical demonstration. (See Behmen on the six great points, chap. 1). N.B. The above was inserted in the Birmingham and Wolverhampton Chronicle of July 19, 1770; and the editor gave six weeks for its investigation, but as no solution appeared in that time I sent (according to promise) the following, which appeared in the Chronicle of Sept. 13th". A diligent search has been made by several friends residing in the Midlands for a copy of this newspaper, but up to the present without any result. Odd copies of later dates have been found but hitherto not one of the dates specified.
The interesting fact emerges that he was acquainted with the mystical writings of Jacob Boehme, 1575‑1624, who worked as a shoemaker at G6rlitz. Apparently Boehme had periods of religious exaltation in which he received divine revelations tracing the parallelism between the visible physical and the invisible metaphysical world and demonstrating in everything its necessity by tracing its origin to the attributes of God. Meeson probably had read the admirable translation into English by William Law, whose Serious Call had such a profound influence on the religious teachings of his day. It is this strain of thought that predominates in Meeson's work. He approaches his subject in a most unusual manner; it is not so much a discussion on Freemasonry as it is an enquiry into questions of conduct and thought. The central idea is an attempt to connect morality and mathematics, and by the use of mathematical formulae to arrive at an estimate of moral values. Here he is distinctly original, though it is somewhat of a shock to find that when worked out in full some of the various parts of the Decalogue to which we attach great importance‑or at any rate are supposed to do‑are not estimated, from the mathematical point of view, at the same value as some of the commandments which we perhaps think should not be given such a high position.
The first thinker in mathematical philosophy was Pythagoras (c. 530 B.C.), who taught that there must be certain axioms of faith, a construction of the "seen" order capable of providing for the needs of the unseen. The Universe, in fact, is informed by a moral order; and the fruit of contemplation is the reproduction of a corresponding order of beauty and goodness in the philosopher's soul. This is to become like God. Similarly the synonyms temperance, moderation, self‑control, enshrine the notion of the duly tempered mixture of opposites and the mathematical conception "means" and "extremes" led on to Aristotle's famous theory of virtue as the mean between two extreme or opposite vices.
MASONIC TEACHERS OF THE 18TH CENTURY 93 From his theory of numbers Pythagoras deduced a frame of reality sufficient to provide an intellectual representation of the moral and religious truths from which he starts. Our English philosopher Hobbes maintained that all our thinking consists of addition and subtraction, i.e. in bringing new ideas together and in detaching them from one another. From the time that the principles of mathematics were discovered there has always been maintained a close relationship with the principles of morality. For at the same moment men were working at mathematical problems; men were acquiring some knowledge of the properties of numbers; men were trying to fathom the laws governing moral life, conduct, and action. And just as the highest type of intelligence was requisite for the new science of mathematics, so was it also natural that this intellect should be devoted to metaphysics; hence it followed that mathematics and morals were studied and elucidated by men working under similar conditions. In addition to this it was seen that the principles of mathematics were fixed, so that when certain conditions were laid down‑for it is manifestly absurd to attempt to solve a problem the factors of which are unknown‑certain results invariably followed, so it appeared to these thinkers that the results of obedience or disobedience to moral laws should likewise produce definite consequences which could be expressed in terms corresponding to mathematical formulae. The earliest worker in this field, Pythagoras, still excites our wonder and admiration for his famous demonstration of Euclid I, 47. It is noteworthy that in our present‑day teaching the child is instructed how to prove the theoretical statement by practically making the respective squares, cutting up the two to exactly fit on the one, and so getting an ocular proof of the correctness of the proposition.
This connection has been carried on from the days of Pythagoras down to the present time. In fact the terms of all philosophers can be stated as mathematical problems and argued out as such, and it is here that failure of pure reasoning occurs because it leaves out of account the question of the individual human being and the curious complex of motives, environment and heredity which collectively make up the human element.
The special content of the action must be left to the influence of the developmental conditions governing every single moral act in the infinite course of the moral life.
These problems are always relative ideals. They represent something more perfect than the existing state of things, but never absolute perfection. Their comparative value is, however, sufficient to transform them into motive powers that must finally prevail, despite all disturbances and fluctuations in the ebb and flow of moral life. If we were not sure of their final victory, moral endeavour would have no object, either ultimate or proximate, and the moral world would be transformed from a reality into the greatest of all illusions. A certain affinity thus exists between the ideal of ethics and the fundamental hypotheses of mathematical science. They are not facts immediately demonstrable in experience, but postulates upon which we find 94 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES it necessary to base our experience in order to make its coherence thinkable. If the moral ideal were done away with, each individual end would be a passing illusion, and the history of the world a disjointed comedy, forgotten as soon as the curtain falls.
The examination and criticism of these old writers affords ample evidence of the serious way in which Freemasonry was studied in the 18th century. These brethren had thought out carefully the different problems belonging to Freemasonry, and, as a result of much reflection and a genuine desire to diffuse light and information, had printed these lectures which had been given by them in their own lodges.
We must not judge their erratic ideas of what constituted history or their attempts at the derivations of various words too harshly‑future writers may pick similar holes in our coats. The 18th century was an age of philo sophy; all sorts and conditions of men evolved all sorts and kinds of systems which were to reform a world which as a general thing did not want to be reformed but desired greatly to be let alone. England was chiefly dominated by the school of Locke, more especially because he was free from that curious rationalism which rendered the much greater thinker Thomas Hobbes unacceptable to the orthodox; then the sentimental notions of the continental writers became prevalent and the transcendental philosophy of Rousseau came into prominence. The Law of Nature and the primeval happiness of the noble savage and such like theories became the fashion.
It was therefore quite the correct thing to philosophize over the origin and practice of Masonry and to endeavour to read into it those things which they wished to see in it without any great sense of proportion or probability. All the same there is frequently more than a grain of truth in their speculations. Above all things our brethren held fast and foremost to the real teachings of the Craft‑the belief in God, the practice of charity in thought, word and deed, and the principles of brotherly love, relief, and truth.
The accentuation of these axioms is made more evident by the circumstance that Freemasonry at that period was on its defence. The popularity of later years was yet to come and so these men felt the necessity of entering into elaborate statements in justification of the oaths, the secrecy, the ceremonial and the very existence of the Order.
Greatest of all is their recognition of the fact that the permanence of Freemasonry is and must be due to its spiritual aspect and its profound realization of the truth that "In God is all our Trust".
THE ANTIQUITY OF OUR MASONIC LEGENDS especially in relation to THE LEGEND OF THE THIRD DEGREE (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1929) by Bro. RODERICK H. BAXTER, P.A.G.D.C.
P.M., Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No. 2076, London My purpose this evening will be to try to interest you in the subject of the Antiquity of our Masonic Legends, and, although that is a subject which might cover a wide field, I shall endeavour to comply, so far as possible, with the terms of the Prestonian bequest by confining my remarks to those legends only which apply to our first three degrees, and more especially, to that relating to the Master Mason's ceremony, for it has to be admitted that the actual ceremonies of initiating and passing have little or no real story attached to them, and it is only in what may be called the trimmings, such as the addresses, charges and explanations of the tracing boards that these are introduced.
THE NUMBER OF DEGREES To begin with, let me say that even at the present day there are Masonic students who believe that in pre‑Grand Lodge days there was only one ceremony of admission into the Craft, and that an exceedingly simple one, consisting of little more than the reading of the Old Charges, or portions of them, and the communication of a grip and word. (For the time being I am not concerned with the date of the creation of Grand Lodge, which is generally assumed on the authority of the Rev. Dr. James'Anderson‑the author of the first two editions of the Book of Constitutions‑to have taken place in 1717, but which need not have been the beginning of regularly organized Freemasonry. Anderson, although I do not doubt his sincerity and honesty, was never very reliable, and in fairness to him it must be remembered that he describes the events of 1717, as a revival).
95 96 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES And whilst, for my own part, I am prepared to admit that degrees as we now practise them are outgrowths of modern Freemasonry, I am, nevertheless, firmly convinced that the legends and matter around which these degrees have been built up are, at least, medieval in their origin. The probability‑amounting almost to certainty‑is that there were at least two degrees.
There may, indeed, even in the Middle Ages, have been two distinct classes of Masons‑operative and speculative, or perhaps workmen and designers‑who had different forms of reception, and [it is possible] that our own ceremonies are an amalgamation of both systems.
THE ANCIENT MYSTERIES The attempts which have been made to trace the descent of our own order from the ancient mysteries of Greece and Egypt (which in turn were derived from mysteries in still older and now forgotten nations), in my opinion, entirely fail, for whilst there may be a general similarity in the run of the narrative, that can hardly, in any way, prove a connection.
BUILDERS' RITES AND CEREMONIES Ever since the earliest period of which we have any record, builders (possibly in common with other classes of the community) practised rites and ceremonies, and many of these are not without significance to presentday Freemasons.
Human sacrifice at the laying of foundations, which was the earliest form of giving a building a soul or spirit so that it might survive through the ages, gradually changed to more humane methods. Thus, animals became substitutes for human beings, as in turn did eggs, which contain the germ of life, and effigies, which resembled the human body. Other substitutes were used from time to time until now, in our own days, we are content to use the current coin of the realm, which always bears on the obverse the representation of the reigning monarch.
We have thus in our foundation‑stone ceremony a real example of old customs dying hard. The popular idea that current coins are placed under the stone so that when the building comes to be demolished a record may be found of the date of its erection is quite erroneous. The last idea of the old builders was that their structures should ever perish. As already pointed out, the depositing of coins bearing the effigy of a living person, under the foundation stone, is simply a development of the early idea of animism or giving the building a soul by immolating a human being.
And at the completion of an edifice certain rites seem to have been observed to propitiate the gods, consisting of a food offering. We see traces of the survival of this custom in many places, but particularly in Gothic structures in the form of hip‑knobs and finials, which are really representations of bunches of flowers, fruit and corn, carved in wood and stone.
ANTIQUITY OF MASONIC LEGENDS 97 In these more enlightened days we are content with a ceremonial opening, but have not entirely forgotten the food‑offering, for there is generally a certain amount of feasting and revelry associated with the event, so that here again we have preserved an old custom.
Students of this subject cannot do better than consult a pamphlet containing a couple of lectures on Builders' Rites and Ceremonies,* delivered by the late Bro. George William Speth before the members of the Church Institute, Margate, in 1893, for whilst these were obviously not addressed to Freemasons, they were, by the very nature of the matter embodied in them, of considerable interest to Masonic students.
The point, however, that I am endeavouring to make is that, in connection with early buildings, there was a death which ultimately led to a rejoicing.
THE ORIGIN OF OUR THIRD DEGREE LEGEND But, to return to my subject. All these mysteries, myths, legends and rites, hardly, in my opinion, concern us in our quest for the origin of our principal Masonic legend.
It is generally acknowledged now that the present‑day Speculative Freemasons are the legitimate descendants of the medieval Operative craftsmen who built our Gothic cathedrals, churches, castles and keeps, and the theory which I want to lay before you is that these old Masons, being so closely in touch with all the rites of the church, simply applied the gospel narrative to their trade in a symbolical way, just as they moralised on their working tools and implements.
This theory (so far as it concerns the antiquity of our Third Degree Legend) it now becomes my duty to develop to the best of my ability, and, although such a task must, of necessity, be a difficult one, owing to the paucity‑and perhaps still more to the ambiguity and cryptic characterof written records, I hope I may be able to satisfy you that my hypothesis is not without some justification.
THE OLD CHARGES In an enquiry of this kind it is not possible to leave out of consideration the importance of our Old Charges, a wonderful series of documents ranging in date of transcription (though obviously not of origin) from the end of the fourteenth to well into the eighteenth centuries, which we may claim as our title‑deeds of inheritance proving our descent from our operative ancestors. And whilst these MSS., if taken at their actual face value, are not very illuminating so far as my theory is concerned, they, nevertheless, if studied with a certain amount of imagination, supply some points which will help in my argument.
"Quatuor Coronati Lodge, Pamphlet No. 1, price 5/‑ post free.
98 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES The Introductory (Trinitarian) Prayer, the Charges for Masters, Fellows and Apprentices and the Additional Orders and Regulations, which really, for the most part, comprise moral teachings, trade rules and matters of or ganization, may be left out of account, and it is only the Legend of the Craft, or the Story of the Guild, with which we have to deal. Truly, this is such a mix‑up of false history and chronology that, at first sight, it might be deemed unworthy of treatment. But when viewed in the light of our present quest some rays may be found to dispel our darkness.
THE OLD CHARGES AND THE RITUAL I have already shown, in a paper on the "Old Charges and the Ritual", read before the Quatuor Coronati Lodge, in 1918, that the beginning of the legendary history, wherein the antiquity and dignity of the science of Masonry are extolled, forms a very good prototype for our present‑day Charge delivered to a newly‑made Brother. And, further, that the general run of the story concerns itself with two pillars, the building of King Solomon's Temple at Jerusalem, the loss of certain secrets by a calamity, and their subsequent recovery.
In minor details we have: (1) the prominence given to the seven Liberal Arts and Sciences; (2) Lamech, with his two wives, Adah, Zillah, and their childrenJabal, Jubal, Tubal‑Cain and Naamah; (3) the writing of the sciences on the two pillars; (4) the swearing of a great oath; (5) the method of its administration by superimposing the right hand on the Bible, and afterwards kissing the Book; and (6) the use of several words and signs.
Our present‑day customs arising out of these old legends comprise: (1) the injunction to make a daily advancement in Masonic knowledge, and, without neglecting the ordinary duties of our station, to study such of the Liberal Arts and Sciences as may lie within the compass of our attainments; (2) the importance of certain names or words; (3) the suggestion that a certain other pair of pillars served as archives for Masonry; (4) the administration of the obligation; (5) the method of taking it and rendering it binding; and (6) the communication of the secret modes of recognition.
THE BIBLICAL AND MASONIC ACCOUNTS OF THE BUILDING OF KING SOLOMON'S TEMPLE But, above all, I must call your attention to the peculiar‑and, it seems to me, significant‑discrepancy between the Masonic and the Biblical accounts ANTIQUITY OF MASONIC LEGENDS 99 of the association of Solomon, Hiram of Tyre, and the Tyrian craftsmen who were responsible for the building of the Temple at Jerusalem. We read in 1 Kings vii. 13, 14: v. 13. And King Solomon sent and fetched Hiram out of Tyre.
v. 14. Hiram was a widow's son of the tribe of Naphtali, and his father was a man of Tyre, a worker in brass: and he was filled with wisdom, and understanding, and cunning to work all works in brass. And he came to King Solomon, and wrought all his work.
And again in 2 Chronicles ii. 11‑14: v. 11. Then Huram the King of Tyre answered in writing, which he sent to Solomon. Because the Lord hath loved his people, he hath made thee king over them.
v. 12. Huram said moreover, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, that hath made heaven and earth, who hath given to David the king a wise son, endued with prudence and understanding, that might build an house for the Lord, and an house for his kingdom.
v. 13. And now I have sent a cunning man, endued with understanding, of Hurarn my father's.
v. 14. The son of a woman of the daughters of Dan, and his father was a man of Tyre, skilful to work in gold, and in silver, in brass, in iron, in stone, and in timber, in purple, in blue, and in fine linen, and in crimson; also to grave any manner of graving, and to find out every device which shall be put to him, with thy cunning men, and with the cunning men of my Lord David thy father.
There is no hint in either of these places of the master‑craftsman being the son of King Hiram. How much different is the case in our Old Charges! The Regius MS. (A) of 1390, circa, does not mention the incident at all, but, taking the next oldest three in order of transcription (although as I have already pointed out that does not necessarily imply priority of origin) we find Cooke MS. (B.1) 1425‑50, circa.
And the Kyngis sone of Tyry was his master‑mastn. (That is to say, of course, King Solomon's master mason).
Grand Lodge, No. 1 MS. (D.a.l), 1583.
And further more theare was a kyng of another reigne that me called Iram and he Loved well king Salomon and he gave him Tymber to his woorke and had a soonne that height Aynone and he was mr of geometrey And was cheife master of all his Masons.
100 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Lansdowne MS. (DA.2.), 1600, circa.
And then there was a king of another region which men called IRAM and he loved well KING SOLLOMON and gave him Timber to his work and he had a Sonne that was called a Man that was Master of Geometry and that was chiefe Master of all his Masonrie.
It would be wearisome to quote from all the MSS., but I hope I may be forgiven if I add another, as the actual document happens to be one of my own prized possessions: Langdale MS. (D.b.40), 1670‑80, circa.
& furthermore ther was A King of another region yt was cald Hyram he loued well King Salomon and gave him timber to his worke and had a son yt was cald ... and he was Mar of Geometrie and he was cheife Mar of his Masons and was Ma of all his graving and carving and of all other Maner of Masonrie yt belonged to the Temple.
Now, although it must be admitted that the name of the Master‑craftsman varies in the different documents‑even being corrupted to Apleo in the Stanley and Carson versions‑it seems to me that taking the story generally, we have the important points that whatever the real name may have been, he is consistently described as being the son of Hiram (which in itself means, according to the Genevan version of the Scriptures, the height of life), and that he was Solomon's Master‑mason.
Bro. J. E. S. Tuckett, in a paper entitled "The Old Charges and the Chief Master Mason", published in A.Q.C., xxxvi., shows that generally there are two forms of the name, which he designates as the M. and N. forms respectively (let us say Aymon and Aynon), and that the M. form is, undoubtedly, the older.
An ingenious suggestion is made in the course of this paper that the name Aymon‑or its variants‑was a corruption of the Hebrew word for the general superintendent of building operations.
Bro. the Rev. Herbert Poole, the present Master of the Quatuor Coronati Lodge (i.e., 1929), and the greatest living authority on the Old Charges, in a criticism of Bro. Tuckett's paper confirms the priority of the M. form by a study of the MSS. as classified in groups, so that we may accept the point as settled.
AMON [AYMON] IDENTIFIED Bro. J. E. S. Tuckett, in the paper already mentioned, gives instances of the use of the word Amon in the Hebrew Bible, and quotes examples of translations in the authorised and revised versions, such as a master‑workman and cunning‑workman. And Bro. the Rev. W. W. Covey‑Crump, in some valuable comments on Bro. Tuckett's paper gives examples of the name Amon. These references prompted me to look up the "Table of Proper Names" in the Genevan Bible, where I found: ANTIQUITY OF MASONIC LEGENDS Amon, faithfull, true, etc., as Amnon.
Amnon, faithfull or true, or an artificer, or nourisher, or schole‑master.
And in my own authorised version: Amon, a‑m6n (1) a master workman. (2) a god, the secret one. Amnon, dm‑n6n, faithful.
Now, in connection with Amon, King of Judah, we read in 2 Kings 23, and 2 Chronicles xxxiii. 24, that his servants conspired against him and slew him in his own house. And further, in 2 Kings xxi. 26, he was buried in his sepulchre in the garden of Uzza.
Amnon was the first‑born son of David (2 Samuel iii. 2). The meaning of his name was singularly inappropriate, for the story of his dealings with his sister, Tamar, is far from being a nice one. Retribution overtook him at the hands of his brother, Absalom, who "commanded his servants, saying, Mark ye now when Amnon's heart is merry with wine, and when I say unto you, Smite Amnon; then kill him, fear not: have not I commanded you It is not entirely without significance that Amon was the father of Josiah who was responsible for the repair of the Temple.
Now, as I have already pointed out, there is a considerable amount of confusion in the Old Charges. It is not altogether impossible that much of it is intentional. In the particular case under consideration, there can be no doubt that the Biblical narrative relating to the building of the Temple was quite well known to the church‑building masons of the Middle Ages, but either by accident or design Amon got substituted for the other craftsman who superintended the erection of the Temple. The details and explanations already given can easily account for a mistake having been made, or can equally excuse an attempt to conceal the identity of Hiram Abif, whose name, it should be added, has dropped out of the Scriptures from the issue of the first edition of the Genevan version, in 1560, to the present day, although it was to be found in Bibles of older date.
A reference to the chronological list of Old Charges at the end of my paper will show that both names, Amon and Amnon, are to be found, and that Hiram Abif does not anywhere appear until the later transcriptions are reached. [See the notes printed in capitals. ED.] If I have thus, as I firmly believe, established the identity of the MasterMason, the contention of Bros. Hughan, Murray Lyon, and others that there is no hint of the Hiramic Legend in the Old Charges goes by the board.
THE MASTER'S PART All this, taken in conjunction with the meaning of the words which are communicated to a Master Mason at his raising, seems to substantiate my theory that the application of the Gospel story to the Craft of Masonry‑ 101 102 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES or Freemasonry, if you prefer the term‑has been made out. And if we accept this conclusion we shall have to admit that the contention of Bros. Speth, Tuckett, and other students that the Master's Part of old days was not merely the part of a Master Mason, but actually the Master‑builder's Part itself, will need some intensification as being applied to another and more important Master.
MASONIC PROPER NAMES I am assured, on the authority of a Hebrew Brother, that the words of the Third Degree as now used are ******** said to mean the d**** ** *** b****** and ********** the b****** ** s******. But in spite of this assurance I am inclined to think that the correct words are Scriptural proper names‑as indeed are nearly all our other Masonic words‑for we find that in 1730 Prichard prints the word exactly as we have it in the Bible.
Now, if we refer to 1 Chronicles ii. 49, and xii. 13, we find two names, which, according to the table in the Genevan version, are said to mean "Pouertie, the smiting of the sonne, or the smiting of the builder," and "a wretch, or my poor sonne, or the pouertie of understanding". And turning to the table of proper names in a modern copy of the Authorised version in my possession, the names similarly mean‑"cloak?" and "clad with a cloak ?" These definitions are so divergent that it is hardly possible they can both be correct. The questions then arise, "Were these explanations put into the Genevan version by people who understood their Masonic use?" or, conversely, "Were they adopted from that source by Masons of the period ?" And, further, "Did the compiler of the table in the Authorised version, to which I have referred, simply wish to cloak or conceal something which he thought it undesirable to reveal ?" However these things may be, I hope you have not missed the point that the son is given in these translations as much prominence as is Aymon the son of Hiram in the Old Charges, and that there is the very definite suggestion of a calamity in association with him. On this subject of names at least two papers should be consulted. The first by the Rev. C. J. Ball, appeared in A.Q.C., V., and was entitled, "The Proper Names of Masonic Tradition," and the second in the Transactions of the Leeds Installed Masters' Association (also issued as a separate pamphlet) called "Masonic Words and Proper Names", by the Rev. Morris Rosenbaum.
The first of these papers can only be consulted in its entirety on application to the Secretary of the Quatuor Coronati Lodge, and then only, of course, by duly accredited Masonic students.
Bro. Rosenbaum's explanation of a possible Gaelic origin of a word and an association with the Jacobite cause are, in my opinion, hardly tenable, but it is not my duty at present to offer criticism of the authors ANTIQUITY OF MASONIC LEGENDS 103 named. I leave you to study the papers for yourselves and to form your own conclusions.
Nothing in all this, however, quite establishes the fact that the word or words (for you must remember that it is alleged the two Grand Lodges before the Union used different words, and that the use of both was one of the compromises reached by the Lodge of Reconciliation) was, or were, in use in the days anterior to the Revival in 1717. So the task now remains of bringing evidence on that point.
"THE FREEMASON EXAMINED" For this purpose I think I may first call your attention to a publication of 1723, for, although this is posterior to the establishment of the first Grand Lodge of which we have any knowledge, it is at least probable that the matter was considerably older than the date of the printing. The print referred to is called The Freemason Examined (1), and the passage to which I wish to draw your attention reads An enter'd Mason I have been, Boaz and,7achin I have seen; A Fellow I was sworn most rare And know the Astler, Diamond, and Square: I know the Master's Part full well As Honest Maughbin will you tell.
In order to link this up definitely it will be necessary for me to bring three documents under review.
THE HAUGHFOOT RECORD, 1702 First of all we have in a Minute Book of the old Lodge at Haughfoot, Scotland, a fragment of what appears to be a kind of ritualistic instruction (preceding pages have been torn away). It reads: "of entrie as the apprentice did Leaving out (The Common Judge). Then they whisper the word as before‑and the Master Mason grips his hand after the ordinary way." (The Common judge probably means the common gauge.) THE CHETWODE CRAWLEY MS., C. 1700 The above extract would not help us very much were it not for the fact that the advent of the Chetwode Crawley MS., now in the Library of the Grand Lodge of Ireland seems to complete the record: ". . . Afterwards, he must go out of the Company with the youngest Master to learn the words & Signs of ffellowship. Then Comming in (1) Now always known as A Mason's Examination, a heading supplied by Gould when he reprinted it in his History of Freemasonry, Vol. III, p. 487.
104 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES again, he makes the Master‑Sign; and Says the Same words of Entry as the prentice did, only leaving out the Common Judge. Then the Masons whisper the word amongst themselves, beginning at the yowngest as formerly. Afterwards, The yowng Master must advance & put himself in the posture wherein he is to receive the word. . . ." We have thus established that as early as 1702 the Master‑Mason's word was communicated in a peculiar way, and the only point remaining for solution is to define exactly what that word was. If evidence on that point were lacking my case might fall to the ground.
TRINITY COLLEGE, DUBLIN, MS., 1711 It is, therefore, fortunate, that I am able to quote from a MS. bearing date, February, 1711, discovered in the Library of Trinity College, Dublin, by the late Bro. W. J. Chetwode‑Crawley.
The Masters sign is ********, the word ********. The fellow craftsman's sign is ********, & sinues ye word ********. The Enterprentice's sign is sinues, the word ****, or its hollow. Squeese the Master by ye ********, put your knee between his & say ********, &c., &c.
What clearer evidence could we possibly have than this of the early use of something resembling our f.p.o.f. ? RECAPITULATION My evidence is now before you, but, before I conclude, it may be desirable that I should run over my main points again.
I began by pointing out the differences of opinion amongst scholars as to the number of degrees in pre‑Grand Lodge days, and drew attention to the possibility of different ceremonies amongst operative and speculative Masons (the suggestion being that actual workmen were admitted to the Craft in a different form to the geometricians or designers of buildings). I then reminded you that any connection between the ancient mysteries and Freemasonry was unlikely. I next passed under review some rites and ceremonies of old‑time builders, which may have had an influence on our customs, and next I laid before you the theory that the close association of builders with the church possibly actuated Masons to apply the Gospel narrative to the ceremony of making a Master‑Mason. I pointed out the similarity of the general run of the story in the Old Charges to that told in our ceremonies today, and then exhibited the divergence between the accounts of the building of the Temple at Jerusalem, as recorded in the Bible and the Old Charges.
In the latter the Master‑craftsman is almost invariably described as being the son of Hiram (the height of life‑or, dare I suggest as an alternative translation‑the Most High?); that the name meant faithful, or true, or a ANTIQUITY OF MASONIC LEGENDS 105 teacher (or something of that kind) just as Jesus might be described; that he was the Master of the workmen and suffered death by violence, if we are to accept the translations of certain proper names as given in the Genevan version of the Scriptures; that the word (or words) was (or were) communicated in a manner corresponding to our f.p.o.ú, and therefore indicating that there had been something in the form of a "Raising".
CAUTIONARY That is my case, but before I resume my seat I am anxious to issue one or two notes of warning. I do not wish it to be understood that either the word or the method of communicating it was in these early days (any more than they are now) the culminating point of a Master‑Mason's education. And, furthermore, whilst the trend of my paper has been to show that the basis and origin of the Craft were definitely Christian, I am far from contending that it either retains or ought to retain that character exclusively now. Possibly ever since the so‑called Revival of 1717, and certainly since the publication of Anderson's Book of Constitutions, in 1723, the Craft has been non‑sectarian. All good men and true, whatever their race or creed, so long as they believe in the Great Architect of the Universe and a resurrection to a future state, are eligible for admission within its fold.
That is a great and noble ideal in which we may justly take pride, and it is to be hoped the Craft may long be preserved on this sure foundation.
NOTES MASONIC LEGENDS An interesting little book by the late Bro. J. Finlay Finlayson, entitled, The Symbols and Legends of Freemasonry, was published by George Kenning, London, in 1889.
Further articles on Legends have appeared in A. Q.C., as follows Vol. I., 25, "An early version of the Hiramic Legend," 7'. Hayter Lewis.
Vol. I., 59, "The Legend of the Quatuor Coronati as given in the Arundel MS.," Rev. A. F. A. Woodford.
Vol. L,116 : IL, 52, "A word on the Legends of the Compagnonnage," W. H. Rylands.
Vol. III., 81, "The Mummers or Guisers," W. Simpson. Vol. IV., 73, "Alban and Athelstan Legends," C. C. Howard. Vol. IV., 158, "The Legend of Sethos," B. W. Richardson. Vol. V., 37, "Remarks on the Craft Legends of the Old British Masons," W. Begemann.
Vol. VI., 34, "The Nimesian Theory and the French Legends," John Yarker.
106 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Vol. VIL, 135, "The Two Saints John Legends," Jacob Norton. Vol. VIII., 156, "The Two Saints John Legends," W. J. Chetwode Crawley.
Vol. X., 72, "A Russian Masonic Anecdote," G. W. Speth.
Vol. XIV., 172, "The Testament of Solomon‑A Contribution to the Legendary Lore of the Temple," Rev. W. E. Windle.
Vol. XVI., 4, "Some Notes on the Legends of Masonry," W. H. Rylands.
Vol. XVIII., 179; XIX., 45, "The Naimus Grecus Legend," E. H. Dring.
Vol. XXI., 264, "Two Ancient Legends concerning Solomon's Temple," John Yarker.
Vol. XXIL, 6, "The Prince Edwin Legend," E. H. Dring.
Vol. XXVI., 45, 146, 221, "The Templar Legends in Freemasonry," W. J. Chetwode Crawley.
Vol. XXVIL, 158, "The Legends of the SS. Quatuor Coronati," W. J. Chetwode Crawley.
Vol. XXVIII., 115, "Some Usages and Legends of Crafts kindred to Masonry," Gordon P. G. Hills.
Lastly, I hope I may be forgiven for mentioning a little work of my own, "Masonic Legends," issued by Lodge 3392, Manchester, and reproduced in Merseyside Transactions, VI.
THE NUMBER OF DEGREES The following papers, all of which have appeared in A.Q.C., should be consulted: X., 127, "The Three Degrees of Freemasonry, especially in relation to the oldest known records of the Master Mason's Ceremony," W. J. Hughan.
XI., 47, "The Two Degrees Theory," G. W. Speth.
XVI., 28, "The Degrees of Pure and Ancient Freemasonry," R. F. Gould.
THE ANCIENT MYSTERIES A whole volume might easily be written on articles dealing with this subject, but the ordinary Masonic student will probably find sufficient for his purpose in Gould's great History of Freemasonry, the same author's Concise History of Freemasonry, and Frederick Armitage's Short Masonic History. Several papers scattered throughout the pages of A.Q.C. may also be consulted if desired; see my own list of Papers and Essays, contained in A.Q.C. Vols. I.‑XXX.
BUILDERS' RITES AND CEREMONIES In the course of my paper I have drawn attention to Bro. Speth's two lectures on this subject, and, although these are both admirable so far as they ANTIQUITY OF MASONIC LEGENDS go, they really deal for the most part only with ceremonies connected with the beginning and completion of works. Many other rites remain to be handled, particularly those relating to the admission of apprentices, the completion of indentures, and the trade secrets relating to the preparation of templates and the setting out of works. Bro. Sir C. Purdon Clarke's paper, "The Tracing Board in Modern Oriental and Operative Masonry", A.Q.C. VI., 99, and Bro. W. H. Rylands' "Remarks" on the same subject, VI., 124, to some extent, cover this ground.
THE ORIGIN OF THE THIRD DEGREE Although it is generally acknowledged that the standard work on this subject is Bro. W. J. Hughan's Origin of the English Rite of Freemasonry (G. Kenning, London, 1884) with two later editions issued by the Leicester Lodge of Research, a new and revised edition (Johnson, Wykes & Co., Leicester, 1909), and third edition (Johnson, Wykes and Paine, Ltd., 1925), I, personally, have a feeling that there is a considerable amount of important evidence which has not been brought under review. Some of it is indicated in my paper.
THE OLD CHARGES I attach so much importance to these old documents that I have compiled a list of all the known copies, arranged as nearly as possible in chronological order, and giving the classification, date of transcription, location, information as to where reproductions may be found, and, lastly, the name of the mastercraftsman. [The Classification letters and numbers, shown in () immediately after the name of each text, are explained at the end of the list, pp. 1178. ED.] I have to acknowledge my indebtedness to Bro. the Rev. Herbert Poole for assistance in this compilation. I cannot possibly do better than recommend his little book, The Old Charges (The Masonic Record, Ltd., London, 1924) for a concise account of the value and importance of these precious documents.
[Note‑Some twenty additional texts of the MS. Constitutions have been brought to light since Bro. R. H. Baxter compiled the following list. They all fall into one or other of the standard classifications; and as none of them adds any vital or controversial evidence upon the subjects under discussion in this Lecture, they are omitted from this list. ED.] (1) Regius (A), 1390 circa: duced in J. O. Halliwell's Early Introduction of Freemasonry into England, 1840 and 1844; by Dr. Asher at Hamburg, 1842; the late Bro. H. J. Whymper (Spencer & Co., London, and Clarke & Co., Boston, U.S.A.) in full facsimile (six copies on full vellum, thirty‑four on vellum paper, as well as ordinary paper copies were issued); Q.C.A., L, now in the British Museum. Repro 107 108 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES with a commentary by Bro. R. F. Gould, and a glossary and maps by G. W. Speth; a modernised version by Bro. R. H. Baxter in the Leicester Transactions for 1914‑15, reproduced again in Vol. IV. of the Merseyside Transactions. THE AYMON INCIDENT NOT RECORDED.
(2) Cooke (B.1), 1425, circa: now in the British Museum. Reproduced by Bro. Matthew Cooke in History and Articles of Masonry (Spencer, London, 1861); G. W. Speth in Q.C.A., II., full facsimile with a modernised version and fine commentary. One hundred copies on vellum, bound in oak boards in exact imitation of the original, were issued. NOT MENTIONED BY NAME.
(3) Grand Lodge, No. 1 (D.a.l), 1583: now in Grand Lodge Library. Reproduced in Hughan's Old Charges, 1872; Sadler's Masonic Facts and Fictions, 1887; and in Q.C.A., II.; also one hundred copies in roll form. AYNONE.
(4) Lansdowne (D.d.2), circa 1600: now in the British Museum. Reproduced in Freemasons' Magazine, 24th February, 1858; Hughan's Old Charges, 1872; and Q.C.A., II. A MAN.
(5) York No. 1 (D.c.3), first half XVII. century: now in Lodge 236, York. Reproduced in Hughan's Old Charges, 1872; Masonic Magazine, August, 1873; and Ancient York Masonic Rolls, 1894. AMON.
(6) Wood (D.6), 1610: now in Worcestershire Masonic Library. Reproduced in Masonic Magazine, June, 1881; and Q.C.A., VI. AYMON.
(7) Yohn T. Thorp (E.a.16), 1629: now in Bro. Thorp's Library at Leicester. Reproduced in A.Q.C., XI., 205. AYNON.
(8) Sloane, No. 3848 (E.b.1), 1646: now in British Museum. Reproduced in Hughan's Old Charges, 1872; and Q.C.A., III. AYNON.
(9) Sloane, No. 3323 (E.b.2), 1659: now in the British Museum. Reproduced in Hughan's Masonic Sketches and Reprints, 1871; and Q.C.A., III. DYNON.
(10) Grand Lodge No. 2, with the Apprentice Charges and New Articles (F.2), second half XVII. century: now in Grand Lodge Library. Reproduced in Q.C.A., IV.; also one hundred copies in roll form. ANNON.
(11) Harleian, No. 1942, with the Apprentice Charges and New Articles (F.3), second half XVII. century: now in the British Museum. Reproduced in Freemasons' Quarterly Review, 1836; Hughan's Old Charges, 1872; and Q.C.A., II. ANON ANTIQUITY OF MASONIC LEGENDS 109 (12) G. IV. Bain (D.a.39), second half XVII. century: now at Leeds. Reproduced in A.Q.C., XX., 249. HYNON.
(13) Harleian, No. 2054 (E.b.3), second half XVII. century: now in British Museum. Reproduced in Hughan's Masonic Sketches and Reprints, 1871; Hughan's Old Charges, 1872; Masonic Magazine, September, 1873; and Q.C.A., II. AYNON.
(14) Phillips, No. 1 (D.a.4), second half XVII. century: now at Cheltenham. Reproduced in Q.C.A., V. AYNON.
(15) Phillips, No. 2 (D.a.5), second half XVII. century: now at Cheltenham. Reproduced in Kenning's Archaeological Library, Vol. 1; and Q.C.A., V. ANNON.
(16) Lechmere (E.b.4), second half XVII. century: now in Worcestershire Masonic Library. Reproduced in Masonic Magazine, December, 1882; and Q.C.A., VI. THIS PART OF MS. MISSING.
(17) Buchanan (T.3), second half XVII. century: now in Grand Lodge Library. Reproduced in Gould's History of Freemasonry; and Q.C.A., IV. AYMON.
(18) Kilwinning (D.a.8), second half XVII, century: in Lodge No. 0., Scotland. Reproduced in Murray Lyon's History of the Lodge of Edinburgh, 1873 and 1900; and Hughan's Masonic Sketches and Reprints, 1871. AYNON.
(19) Ancient Stirling (D.i.9), second half XVII. century: in the Lodge at Stirling, Scotland. Reproduced in the Freemason, 27th May, 1893; and one hundred copies privately by Bro. W. J. Hughan. AMON.
(20) Beswicke Royds (E.b.21), second half XVII. century: now at Manchester. Reproduced in A.Q.C., XXVIII., 189. AYNON.
(21) Atcheson's Haven (T.2), 1666: now in Grand Lodge Library, Scotland. Reproduced in Murray Lyon's History of the Lodge of Edinburgh, 1873 and 1900. AYMON.
(22) Aberdeen .(D.i.11), 1670: in Lodge No. 13, Aberdeen. Reproduced in the Voice of Masonry, Chicago, December, 1874. AMON. (23) Melrose No. 2 (D.12), 1670, Lodge No. 12, Melrose. Reproduced in the Masonic Magazine, January, 1880, and Vernon's Freemasonry in Roxburgh, Peebles and Selkirkshires, 1893. NOT NAMED.
(24) Henery Heade (C.4), 1675: now in the Inner Temple Library, London. Reproduced in A.Q.C., XXI., 161. NOT NAMED. (25) Stanley (13113), 1677: now in West Yorks. Library. Reproduced in West Yorks. Masonic Reprints, 1893. APLEO.
110 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES (26) Carson (D.ú14), 1677: now at Cincinnati, U.S.A. Reproduced in the Masonic Review, Cincinnati, July, 1890; and the Freemason's Chronicle, 23rd August, 1890. APLEO.
(27) Antiquity (D.d.15), 1686: now in the Lodge of Antiquity, No. 2, London. Reproduced in Hughan's Old Charges, 1872. A BLANK SPACE.
(28) Col. Clarke (D.b.16), 1686: now in Grand Lodge Library. Reproduced in The Freemason, 4th and 11th February, 1888; and in Conder's History of the London Masons' Company, 1894. AYNON.
(29) William Watson (C.2), 1687: now in West Yorks. Masonic Library. Reproduced in the Freemason, January, 1891; West Yorks. Masonic Reprints, 1891; Q.C.A., III.; also 100 copies in roll form. YE KINGS SON OF TYRE.
(30) H. F. Beaumont (T.4), 1690: now in West Yorks. Masonic Library. Reproduced in West Yorks. Masonic Reprints, 1901; and Baxter's General and Historic Notes on Freemasonry, 1908. AYMON.
(31) T. W. Tew (T.1), second half XVII. century: now in West Yorks. Masonic Library. Reproduced in West Yorks. Masonic Reprints, 1889 and 1892; and in Christmas Freemason, 1888. HYMAN.
(32) Inigo Jones (G.2), second half XVII. century: now in Worcestershire Masonic Library. Reproduced in the Masonic Magazine, July, 1881; and in Q.C.A., VI. HIRAM ABIF. (33) Dumfries, No. 1 (131.21), second half XVII. cenuryi in Lodge No. 53, Scotland. Reproduced in Smith's History of the Old Lodge of Dumfries, 1892. AYNON.
(34) Dumfries, No. 2 (D.h.24), second half XVII. century: in Lodge No. 53, Scotland. Reproduced in the Christmas Freemason, 1892; and in a pamphlet by W. J. Hughan. AYNON.
(35) Dumfries, No. 3 (D.g.25), second half XVII. century: in Lodge No. 53, Scotland. Reproduced in Smith's History of the Old Lodge of Dumfries, 1892. NOT NAMED.
(36) Hope, with the Apprentice Charges (E.c.5), second half XVII. century: in the Lodge of Hope, No. 302, Bradford. Reproduced in Hughan's Old Charges, 1872; and West Yorks. Masonic Reprints, 1892. AMON.
(37) T. W. Embleton (E.d.7), second half XVII. century: now in West Yorks. Masonic Library. Reproduced in the Christmas Freemason, 1889; and West Yorks. Masonic Reprints, 1893. AYMON.
ANTIQUITY OF MASONIC LEGENDS (38) York, No. 5 (D.c.17), second half XVII. century: in Lodge No. 236, York. Reproduced in the Masonic Magazine, August, 1881; and in Ancient Masonic Rolls, 1894. AMON.
(39) York, No. 6 (D.h.18), second half XVII. century: in Lodge No. 236, York. Reproduced in the Masonic Magazine, March, 1890; and in Ancient York Masonic Rolls, 1894. AYNON.
(40) Colne, No. 1, with the Apprentice Charges (D.e.19), second half XVII. century; in the Royal Lancashire Lodge, No. 116, Colne. Reproduced in the Christmas Freemason, 1887; and in A.Q.C., XXXIV., 59. HIRAM OF TICUS, a mason's sonne.
(41) Clapham, with the Apprentice Charges (D.e.20), second half XVII. century: now in West Yorks. Masonic Library. Reproduced in the Freemason, 29th March, 1890; and in the West Yorks. Masonic Reprints, 1892. HIRAM OF TICKUS, a masons son.
(42) Hughan (D.b.22), second half XVII. century: now in West Yorks. Masonic Library. Reproduced in the Freemason, 3rd September, 1892; and West Yorks. Masonic Reprints, 1892. HAM, not stated to be the King's son.
(43) Dauntesey (D.23), second half XVII. century: now at Manchester. Reproduced in the Keystone, Philadelphia, U.S.A., 20th March, 1886. AMMON.
(44) Harris, No. 1 (D.g.26), second half XVII. century: in Lodge No. 136, England. Reproduced in the Freemason's Chronicle, 22nd and 29th April, 1882. NOT NAMED.
(45) Langdale (D.b.40), second half XVII. century: now at Rochdale. Reproduced in the Christmas Freemason, 1895; and in the Manchester Transactions, 1913. BLANK SPACE.
(46) David Ramsey (E.c.18), second half XVII. century: now at Hamburg. Reproduced in the Freemason, 31st March, 1906. AINON.
(47) Taylor (E.a.19), second half of XVII. century: now in West Yorks. Masonic Library. Reproduced in A.Q.C., XXI., 211. MS. INCOMPLETE.
(48) Waistell, with the Apprentice Charges (E.c.8), 1693: now in West Yorks. Masonic Library. Reproduced in West Yorks. Masonic Reprints, 1892. AAMAN.
112 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES (49) York, No. 4, with the Apprentice Charges (E.c.9), 1693: now in York Lodge, No. 236. Reproduced in Hughan's Masonic Sketches and Reprints, 1871; and in Ancient York Masonic Rolls, 1894. AMON.
(50) Thomas Foxcroft (D.d.42), 1699: now in Grand Lodge Library. Reproduced in the Freemason, 6th January, 1900. (BLANK SPACE).
(51) Boyden (D.f.44), circa 1700: now in Iowa, U.S.A. Reproduced in the New Age, Washington, U.S.A., February, 1926. AMON.
(52) Wallace Heaton (D.g.45), circa 1695‑1715: now in Grand Lodge Library. Reproduced in the Masonic Record, VIL, 192. ANON.
(53) Brook‑Hills (D.g.46), circa 1695‑1715: now in Grand Lodge Library. Not yet reproduced. ANOCK.
(54) Talents (D.a.47), circa 1695‑1715: now in Grand Lodge Library. Not yet reproduced. MS. ENDS before this incident is recorded.
(55) John Strachan (E.a.17), circa 1700: now in Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No. 2076. Reproduced in Leicester Transactions, 1900. AMON.
(56) Newcastle College (D.c.37), first half XVIII. century: now in Newcastle Rosicrucian College. Reproduced in facsimile by the College, 1894. AMON.
(57) Alnwick (E.a.10), 1701: now in Lodge at Alnwick. Reproduced in Hughan's Masonic Sketches and Reprints, 1871 (American edition); Old Charges, 1872; and Newcastle College Transactions, 1895. AJUON.
(58) York, No. 2 (D.c.27), 1704: now in York Lodge, No. 236. Reproduced in Hughan's Masonic Sketches and Reprints, 1871; Old Charges, 1872; and Ancient York Masonic Rolls, 1894. AYNON.
(59) Scarborough (E.11), 1705: now in Grand Lodge, Canada. Reproduced in the Philadelphia Mirror and Keystone, 15th August, 1860; the Canadian Masonic Record, February, 1874; the Masonic Magazine, September, 1879; Ancient York Masonic Rolls, 1894; and in Q.C.A., V., also 100 copies in roll form. AYNON.
(60) Colne, No. 2 (D.e.28), first half XVIII. century: in Royal Lancashire Lodge, No. 116. Reproduced in A.Q.C., XXXIV., 59. HIRAM TICKU . . . masons son.
ANTIQUITY OF MASONIC LEGENDS 113 (61) Papworth (D.b.30), first half XVIII. century: now in London. Reproduced in Hughan's Old Charges, 1872. BENAIM.
(62) Macnab, with the Apprentice Charges and New Articles (F.5), 1722: now in West Yorks. Masonic Library. Reproduced in West Yorks. Masonic Reprints, 1896; Merseyside Transactions III. ANNON.
(63) Haddon (D.b.32), 1725: now in Grand Lodge Library. Reproduced in Hughan's Old Charges, 1895. AYNON.
(64) Songhurst (G.5), circa 1725: now in Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No. 2076. Not yet reproduced. HIRAM ABIF.
(65) Phillips, No. 3 (D.b.31), first half XVIII. century: now at Cheltenham. Reproduced in Q.C.A., V. AYMON.
(66) Dumfries, No. 4, with the Apprentice Charges (H.1), first half XVIII. century: in Lodge No. 53, Scotland. Reproduced in A.Q.C.. VI., 36. HIRAM (not called a son).
(67) Cama (D.a.29), first half XVIII. century: now in Quatuor Coronati Lodge. Reproduced in Q.C.A., III. HIRAM (not stated to be the king's son).
(68) Portland (T.5), first half XVIII. century: now at Welbeck Abbey. Not yet reproduced. AYMON.
(69) Dring‑Gale (D.a.43), in the handwriting of Samuel Gale (16821754); now at London. Reproduced in Merseyside Transactions, V. AYNON.
(70) Fisher‑Rosedale (G.6), circa 1725: now in Grand Lodge Library. Reproduced in A.Q.C., XXXIII., 5. HIRAM ABIF (not stated to be a son).
(71) Spencer (G.1), 1726: now at Cincinnati, U.S.A. Reproduced in Spencer's Old Constitutions, 1871. HIRAM ABIF (not stated to be a king's son).
(72) Thomas Carmick (H.7), 1727: now in Grand Lodge, Pennsylvania. Reproduced in A.Q.C., XXII., 95. ANNAS.
*(73) Woodford (B.2), 1728: now in Quatuor Coronati Lodge. Not yet reproduced. INCIDENT NOT RECORDED.
*(74) Supreme Council (B.3), 1728: now in Supreme Council Library, London. Not yet reproduced. INCIDENT NOT RECORDED.
(75) Bolt‑Coleraine (T.6), 1728: location private. Not yet reproduced. AYMEN.
* NOTE‑Nos. 73 and 74 are merely transcripts of the Cooke.
114 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES (76) Gateshead, with the Apprentice Charges (H.2), first half XVIII. century: in Lodge of Industry, No. 48, now at Durham. Reproduced in the Masonic Magazine, September, 1875. INCIDENT NOT RECORDED.
(77) Rawlinson (F.4), first half XVIII. century: now in Bodleian Library, Oxford. Reproduced in Freemasons' Monthly Magazine, March and April, 1885: Masonic Magazine, 1876; and A.Q.C., XI., 17. AMMON.
(78) Probity (D.d.33), first half XVIII. century: in Probity Lodge, No. 61, Halifax. Reproduced in the Freemason, 30th January and 13th February, 1886; and in West Yorks. Masonic Reprints, 1892. AMON.
(79) Levander‑York (D.b.41), circa 1740: now in Lady Lever Art Gallery and Museum, Port Sunlight. Reproduced in A.Q.C., XVIII., 161. Merseyside Transactions, 1936. AYNON.
(80) Drinkwater, No. 1 (T.7), in the handwriting of Arnold Drinkwater (1679‑1755), stated to be copied from a MS. written in 1695: now in Lancashire. Reproduced in Manchester Transactions, XV., 125. HYMAN.
(81) Drinkwater, No. 2 (F.6), in the handwriting of Arnold Drinkwater (1679‑1755), stated to be copied from a MS. "writ in Queen Anne's Reign" (1702‑1714): now in Lancashire. Reproduced in Manchester Transactions, XV., 125. ONLY THE CHARGES GIVEN.
(82) Holywell (E.d.22), 1748: now at Colne, Lancs. Reproduced in Poole's Old Charges, 1924. AYNON.
(83) Thistle (M.3), 1756: in Lodge No. 62, Dumfries. Reproduced in A.Q.C., XXXV., 41. NOT MENTIONED.
(84) Melrose, No. 3 (D.35), 1762: in Lodge No. 12, Scotland. Not yet reproduced. NOT NAMED.
(85) Harris, No. 2 (D.g.34), second half XVIII. century: now in British Museum. Reproduced in Q.C.A., IV. HYRAM THE SON OF AHIBBAL KING OF TYRUS ... WAS A MASTER MASON.
(86) Tunnah (E.b.14), 1828: now in Quatuor Coronati Lodge. Not yet reproduced, but identified by Bro. Poole as a copy of the Beswicke Royds MS. AYNON.
ANTIQUITY OF MASONIC LEGENDS 115 PRINTED VERSIONS (87) Plot (C.1), 1686. Printed in Plot's Natural History of Staffordshire. Reproduced in West Yorks. Reprints; Baxter's General and Historic Notes on Freemasonry; and several other places. INCIDENT NOT RECORDED.
(88) Roberts, with the Apprentice Charges and New Articles (F.l), 1722, a pamphlet. Very scarce indeed, only one perfect copy being known. Reproduced in Cox's Old Constitutions, 1870, and by Richard Spencer as a separate pamphlet. AMON.
(89) Briscoe (E.b.15), 1724, a pamphlet. Reproduced under the auspices of the Quatuor Coronati Lodge by G. W. Bain, in 1891. AYNON.
(90) Cole (G.3), 1728‑9, &c., engraved from copper plates and also in ordinary letterpress. Reproduced in Hughan's Constitutions, 1869; and by Richard Jackson, 1897. HIRAM ABIF.
(91) Langley (H.4), 1738, printed in Langley's Builder's Clerk's Assistant. INCIDENT NOT RECORDED.
(92) Dodd (G.4), 1739, in pamphlet form. Reproduced in Q.C.A., IV. HIRAM ABIF, but not stated to be a son of King Hiram.
(93) Krause (H.5),1808, printed at Hamburg. Reproduced in Hughan's Old Charges, 1872. HIRAM ABIF (not stated to be a son).
(94) Dowland (D.b.36), 1815, printed in the Gentleman's Magazine. AYNON.
(95) Hargrove (H.6), 1818, in the History of the Ancient City of York. The reference is only a fragment, possibly, as Hughan suggests, from the missing York, No. 3 MS. INCIDENT NOT RECORDED.
MISSING MSS.
(96) Dermott's MS. (X.4), stated to have been of the XV. century. Formerly in possession of Lawrence Dermott, Grand Secretary of the Ancients. Produced in Grand Lodge, 6th December, 1752.
(97) Melrose, No. 1 (X.I), 1581: formerly in possession of Lodge No. 12, Scotland. Melrose, No. 2, is stated to be a copy.
(98) Morgan's MS. (X.3), date unknown: supposed to have been removed by John Morgan, first Grand Secretary of the Ancients, when he left the country. Hughan suggests that it may have been the Scarborough MS.
116 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES (99) Baker's MS. (X.2), Dr. Rawlinson mentions that he had seen a roll of the Old Charges in the possession of a Mr. Baker, a carpenter in Moorfields. It is not impossible that the Rawlinson may be a copy, or it may be one of the rolls since discovered.
(100) Wilson's MS. (X.5), stated to be of XVI. century date. Referred to in a marginal note on a "Manifesto of the Right Worshipful Lodge of Antiquity, 1778." (101) Mason's Company MS. (X.7), referred to by Sir Francis Palgrave in the Edinburgh Review, April, 1839, as having been included in an inventory of the Worshipful Company of Masons and Citizens of London.
(102) York, No. 3 (X.6), 1630, formerly in possession of the Lodge of All England, York.
(103) Newcastle Lodge MS. (X.10), only known by a reference in an Inventory of Property belonging to the Newcastle‑on‑Tyne Lodge of Freemasons, No. 26 (now 24). It has been sug gested to me that this is the William Watson MS., but Bro. Watson himself scouts the idea.
(104) T. Lamb Smith MS. (X.11). This MS. was in the possession of the late Thomas Lamb Smith, of Worcester, but could not be found at his decease, and all efforts to trace its whereabouts have failed.
(105) Anchor and Hope MS. (X.12). The late Bro. James Newton, Prov. G. Secy., found a reference in the records of Lodge No. 37 to a MS. which was probably a version of the Old Charges, but no further information is available.
*(106) Crane, No. 1 (E.d.12), second half XVIII. century: formerly at Chester. Reproduced in the Freemason, 8th November, 1874. DYNON.
(107) Crane, No. 2 (C.3), second half XVIII. century: formerly at Chester. Reproduced in the Freemason, 11th and 18th October, 1884. THIS PART OF MS. MISSING.
(108) Wren, with the Apprentice Charges (E.d.13), 1852: formerly at Chester. Reproduced in the Masonic Magazine, December, 1879. BLANK SPACE.
*This MS. has been unearthed lately by Bro. S. L. Coulthurst. (NOTE‑Although the Crane No. 2 and Wren MSS. are missing, their contents are known, and so they are classified in their proper groups).
ANTIQUITY OF MASONIC LEGENDS 117 CLASSIFICATION OF THE OLD CHARGES A. applied only to No. 1 (p. 107 ante) the Regius MS., a class by itself. B. the Cooke Family, with three representatives‑Cooke, Woodford, Supreme Council.
C. the Plot Family, with four representatives‑Plot, William Watson, Crane No. 2, Henery Heade.
T. the Tew Group, with seven representatives‑Tew, Atcheson's Haven, Buchanan, Beaumont, Portland, Bolt‑Coleraine, Drinkwater No. 1. D. the Grand Lodge Family, with eight representatives in the Grand Lodge Branch, a., Grand Lodge No. 1, Phillips No. 1, Phillips No. 2, Kilwinning, Cama, Bain, Dring‑Gale, Talents; Dowland Branch, b. (eight representatives)‑Dowland, Clerke, Hughan, Papworth, Phillips No. 3, Haddon, Langdale, LevanderYork; York Branch, c. (four representatives)‑York No. 1, York No. 5, York No. 2, Newcastle College; Lansdowne Branch, d. (four representatives)‑Lansdowne, Antiquity, Probity, Foxcroft; Colne Branch, e. (three representatives)‑Colne No. 1, Clapham, Colne No. 2; Stanley Branch, f. (three representatives)‑Stanley, Carson, Boyden; Harris Branch, g. (five representatives)‑Harris No. 1, Dumfries No. 3, Harris No. 2, Wallace Heaton, Brook‑Hills; Dumfries Branch, h. (three representatives}‑Dumfries No. 1, York No. 6, Dumfries No. 2; Stirling Branch, i. (two representatives)‑Stirling, Aberdeen; and Sundry Versions (four), Wood, Melrose No. 2, Melrose No. 3, Dauntesey.
E. the Sloane Family.
Thorp Branch, a. (four representatives)‑Thorp, Alnwick, Strachan, Taylor; Sloane Branch, b. (seven representatives)‑Sloane No. 3848, Sloane No. 3323, Harleian No. 2054, Lechmere, Tunnah, Briscoe, Beswicke‑Royds; Hope Branch, c. (four representatives)‑Hope, Waistell, York No. 4, David Ramsey; Embleton Branch, d. (four representatives)‑Embleton, Crane No. 1, Wren, Holywell; and Sundry Version (one)‑Scarborough.
118 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES F. the Roberts Family, with six representatives‑Roberts, Grand Lodge No. 2, Harleian No. 1942, Rawlinson, Macnab, Drinkwater No. 2.
G. the Spencer Family, with six representatives‑Spencer, Inigo Jones, Cole, Dodd, Songhurst, Fisher‑Rosedale.
H. Sundry Versions, with seven representatives‑Dumfries No. 4, Gateshead, Thistle, Langley, Krause, Hargrove, Thomas Carmick.
X. Missing Manuscripts, with ten representatives‑Melrose No. 1, Baker, Morgan, Dermott, Wilson, York No. 3, Mason's Company, Newcastle Lodge, T. Lamb Smith, Anchor and Hope.
CONCLUDING HEADINGS My own paper on the "Old Charges and the Ritual" can be consulted in A. Q.C., XXI., 33.
The Bible itself and the various reproductions of the Old Charges deal with the subject of the building of King Solomon's Temple.
The "Master's Part" is dealt with in Bros. Speth's and Tuckett's papers, already cited.
Bros. Ball's and Rosenbaum's papers deal extensively with Proper Names.
The Freemason Examined (A Mason's Examination) is reprinted in Gould's History.
The Haughfoot record and other details of two degree working in pre‑Grand Lodge days can be found in Vernon's Freemasonry in Roxburgh, Peebles and Selkirkshires.
An article describing the Chetwode‑Crawley MS., by Bro. W. J. Hughan, appears in A.Q.C., XVIL, 91, and photographs of the document are to be found in the principal Masonic Libraries.
The Trinity College, Dublin, MS., 1711, had not yet been published when Bro. R. H. Baxter compiled his Prestonian Lecture, but that text, with the other three documents noted above, have all been reproduced in Early Masonic Catechisms, by Knoop, Jones and Hamer. (First Edn., 1943; Second Edn., 1963). [Ed.] ANTIQUITY OF MASONIC LEGENDS GENEALOGY OF THE OLD CHARGES REGIUS Cooke Plot Family Tew Original Tew MS.
Missing Intermediates Atcheson's Haven Missing Intermediates Missing Intermediates Buchanan Beaumont Portland Coleraine I Roberts Family Sloane Family Grand Lodge Family including Cama Spencer Family THE SEVEN LIBERAL ARTS AND SCIENCES (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1930) by BRO. H. CART DE LAFONTAINE, P.G.D. P.M., Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No. 2076, London A present‑day writer has well said that it has been generally accepted that every great artist is the child of his time, which means that in his work we shall find reflected something of the spirit of his age. Thus the religious faith of the middle ages is embodied in the noble art of Norman and Gothic cathedrals; the painting of the Renaissance mirrors the graceful Papalism of the period; and in the poetry of Shelley and Wordsworth we catch echoes of the revolutionary voices that were making themselves heard in France at the close of the eighteenth century. And since, for example, we find a sermon in stone in the cathedral of Chartres, and the faith of an epoch frozen into the verse of the Divina Comedia, we are tempted (sometimes too hastily) to believe that in any masterpiece of art its creator has recorded, not only his own inspiration, but the very spirit of his time.
The truth is that art must be mainly subjective, and this is especially true of music. Certainly, in his choice of form the composer may be influenced by his age. Bach could hardly have escaped writing fugues had he wished to do so. Fugue‑writing was then `in the air'. But that which constitutes the permanent value of a Bach fugue is that he breathed into its seemingly narrow confines so much of his ampler, richer spirit, that in his hands `The Thing became a Trumpet, whence he blew Soul‑animating strains'. Beethoven chose to fancy that in his "Eroica" symphony he was saluting the triumph of democracy, personified in the figure of Napoleon; actually the symphony is an expression of his own rugged, independent character, and might have been composed without the external stimulant of a revolution to inspire it. So we perceive the pride and fastidiousness of the aristocrat in the pages of Chopin; Brahms's hatred of wearing the heart on the sleeve accounts for the uncompromising nature of so much of his work; and what is all Wagner's music but the magnificent, the triumphant betrayal of his own titanic energy and passionate eroticism ? And if we turn to our own age, which may be described as the age of science and applied mechanics, it may well be possible that posterity will regard the engineer and the mechanic as the artists who were best able in their work to reflect 122 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES the age we now live in; and we ourselves even in this our day are prompted to consider whether the products of the factory and the workshop are not more representative of the genius of the time than anything that present‑day art can show.
The arts and sciences seem to revolve in cycles; this is pre‑eminently, as we have said, the age of science, but this year's exhibition of Italian pictures in this metropolis carries us back to a magnificent art cycle. Great names of the past, belonging to that land of artistic enchantment, Italy, once more rise before our eyes; that past reveals the cultivation of the arts and sciences, but art predominates. Occasionally we find the two intermingled, and a notable instance presents itself in the person of that wonderful man who exhibits in his own dual nature art wedded to science. I allude to one of Italy's great sons, Leonardo da Vinci. He accomplished much in his time; he had the ambition for greater conquests, but he was hindered oft‑times by a want of concentration. Is he painting his great picture of the Last Supper in the Milan monastery, then of a sudden he is called away to the setting‑in‑order of some heating‑apparatus at the Ducal abode. Is he meditating earnestly on where to procure a model for his Christ, then his attention is diverted by the necessary preparation of some diagram illustrating part of the mechanism of his flying‑machine. Is he engrossed in a problem which concerns the genesis of motion and the primary force which sets all in action, then he is called by his friends to witness the destruction, by a brutal French soldiery, of the model for his great equestrian statue, intended to be erected in the Palace square, as a testimony of devotion to the Duke, his patron. And so he moves on through life, his brain seething with thoughts and ideas which, owing to the finiteness of human life, cannot be translated into actualities. Two traits there are in his character which are of a touching and picturesque nature, his love for little children, and his unwearying efforts in instructing his pupils. It is true that at times there were moments of fierce, almost ungovernable, consuming rage, but at other periods the peace of Heaven seemed to possess his innermost soul. I have chosen to bring before you this man, because, as I have premised, he shows us, like the facets of a well‑cut stone, gleams of art and science; and as art and science are the theme of this lecture, I think he serves as one who can appropriately introduce us to a consideration of such matters.
Mr. George Godwin says, in an article entitled "The Florentine Superman": "Recently there has been a tendency to deny the greatness of Leonardo, both as man and artist, but the truth is that we forget that many of the achievements of our own age are but the mechanical development of ideas conceived and worked upon five hundred years ago by the Florentine superman. That that age of superstition, of belief in Black Magic and the efficacy of the necromancers, should have produced a mind purely scientific is astonishing. Leonardo's great intellect blazed like a torch, exposing fearlessly fallacious ideas, bringing into view new beauties, throwing light upon hitherto SEVEN LIBERAL ARTS AND SCIENCES 123 uncomprehended laws. No other figure in history stands out with such purposeful domination; no other brain, perhaps, has teemed with such marvellous activity, no other imagination has been so fecund as that of this humble Florentine. Painting and modelling were but a small part of his lifework. The passion of his life was mathematics, and he saw everywhere in nature obedience to mathematical law. In his diary he writes: `The waves of light and sound are governed by the same mechanical law as that governing the water; the angle of incidence equals the angle of reflection.' Light waves, then, are no new discovery, it would seem; the forerunner forestalled our age by five centuries. The problem of the possibility of human flight was one that occupied Leonardo many years. He believed, despite the failure of his machine to rise, that his achievement was but a matter of time. In his diary he wrote: `There shall be wings.' Drawings of his flying machine are extant. They prove that he was working upon the right lines, taking the streamline of the bird as his model." In a letter which Leonardo addressed to the Duke of Milan, whom I have already mentioned as being his patron, he enumerates with an astounding assurance his mechanical capabilities as regards warlike engines. These are so varied that they are worth quoting. He says: "I have a method for bridges, very strong, easy of transport and incombustible; new means of destroying any fortress or castle (which hath not foundations hewn in solid rock) without the employment of bombards; of making mines and passages, immediately and noiselessly, under ditches and streams. I have designed irresistible protected chariots for the carrying of artillery against the enemy. I can construct bombards, cannon, mortars, all new and very beautiful; likewise battering rams, machines for the casting of projectiles, and other astounding engines. For sea combats I have contrivances both offensive and defensive; ships whose sides would repel stone and iron balls, and explosives unknown to any soul." This shows the many‑sided character of the man, and although the days of stone and iron balls, as formerly used in warfare, have passed, yet there is something almost prophetic in the mention of the "irresistible protected chariots for the carrying of artillery against the enemy," for we have in that modern engine of warfare, the armoured tank, the fulfilment of Leonardo's project.
Leonardo realised the significance of fossil remains, and indeed hinted at evolution of species. And this was three centuries before Darwin! Inventions that were conceived by the brain of this marvellous man are the telephone, the steamboat, the aeroplane, canals, hydraulic engines, and tree‑grafting. The mention of canals may seem a new departure in the long list of Leonardo's accomplishments, but it is to be remembered that he spent the last years of his life in constructing plans to connect the Loire and Saone rivers by canal, besides designing pleasure castles for his royal master, Francis I. Leonardo in his meteoric career may be said to have acquainted himself in the highest degree with all the liberal arts and sciences then in vogue. His writings 124 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES prove that he was no mean grammarian; his public disputation exhibits him as a more or less successful rhetorician; the principles of logic guided his conclusions; geometry was the basic principle on which he worked; music was to him a sweet solace, he being a lute player; and astronomy was ever with him an abiding passion. I am not sure that he was equally strong as an arithmetician‑he may have been so scientifically, but in the largesse which he bestowed on all around him, even the most worthless, he was numerically unsound. And now let his spirit rest in peace.
In the fourth volume of the Transactions of the Authors' Lodge there is a short paper by Sir John Brickwood on the Liberal Arts and Sciences. In this he records that in an address given by the Pro Grand Master to the Brethren of the Grand Master's Lodge, Lord Ampthill said that insufficient attention is paid to the Second Degree and the Liberal Arts and Sciences. The candidate is enjoined to study these, but has no opportunity given him for such study. The paper goes on to say that the old Liberal Arts and Sciences, compiled some two hundred years ago, are scarcely up to date now, and instead of grammar, rhetoric, logic, arithmetic, one could place engineering, electricity, languages, history, geography, still keeping music and astronomy as more appropriate to the present day. I am afraid I do not see eye to eye with Sir John in this somewhat involved passage. I would boldly maintain that the cultivation of such arts and sciences as grammar, rhetoric, logic, arithmetic, geometry, music, and astronomy, was never more necessary than in the present day, not only to raise people to a noble ideal, but to encourage art, to sustain religion, to promote intellectuality, to secure a proper nicety in speaking and writing, to revive an old‑time eloquence in the assemblies of the great, to enable us to think in proper sequence, to cultivate the organs of hearing, to give us a proper sense of numerical values. Such things as engineering, electricity, and the like have their proper cells in the great beehive of life, but do not let us meddle with our ritual, even in order to change names and phrases for those we think more apposite. We may remember that recently an ecclesiastical manual, well‑known to most of us, did not emerge too happily from such a process.
"We are indebted to the Scholastic philosophers of the Middle Ages for the nomenclature by which they distinguished the seven sciences then best known to them. These they styled the seven liberal arts and sciences, to separate them from the mechanical arts which were practised by the handicraftsmen. The liberal man, `liberalis homo', meant, in the Middle Ages, the man who was his own master. The Masons of those days, always anxious to elevate their profession above the position of a mere operative art, readily assumed these liberal arts and sciences as a part of their course of knowledge, thus seeking to assimilate themselves rather to the scholars who were above. them than to the workmen who were below them. Hence in the Old Constitutions we find these liberal arts and sciences introduced at the beginning, as forming an essential part of the body of Masonry. It is not therefore SEVEN LIBERAL ARTS AND SCIENCES 125 surprising that on the revival of Masonry these subjects were made a part of the system of instruction." Dante, the great Florentine poet, speaks in the early part of the Inferno, when he, with Virgil, is traversing the region known as Limbo, of arriving at a mighty fortress. These are his words: "We came unto a noble castle's foot, Seven times encompassed with lofty walls, Defended around by a fair rivulet." This was the abode of the classic sages of antiquity. Longfellow, in his note on this passage, says, "This is the Noble Castle of human wit and learning, encircled with its seven scholastic walls, the `Trivium,' Logic, Grammar, Rhetoric; and the `Quadrivium,' Arithmetic, Astronomy, Geometry, Music." The word "trivium" is used to indicate the three liberal arts which in the medieval system of academic studies constituted the first portion of the curriculum, being the undergraduate's course before proceeding to the degree of bachelor. The "quadrivium" carries us a step further on the way of learning, for it represents the second portion of the curriculum, being the graduate's course in the acquisition of a knowledge of the four other liberal arts during the three years between the bachelor's and master's degree.
In order further to acquaint ourselves with the system of education that was pursued in those days, let us consider the course of study at a great university, and as we have begun the Lecture in an Italian atmosphere, let us once more breathe the air of Italy, and transport ourselves to the city of Bologna, which was then and subsequently renowned for the possession of a most famous University. It has been computed that in those bygone days the number of students in residence at one time was as high as ten thousand. They were of all ages, from sixteen to forty, some of them men of wide experience, many of them ecclesiastics.
The courses in the liberal arts corresponded to the academic department of an American university; they were the final instruction in the subjects which boys studied at school; they formed the completion of a literary education, and also fitted young men for practical service in many walks of life. We shall understand better the study of the liberal arts in this university if we treat them as a part of ordinary education. First of all, children heard the romantic tales of ill‑fated Troy and of all‑conquering Rome, and studied their letters at home in an A.B.C. book, an `abecedarium,' which served both for Latin and Italian; next they learned, without understanding the meaning, to recite Psalms in Latin and to sing Latin hymns. When a little older, boys went to school. The schools were grammar schools. In the lower departments little was taught beside grammar, and some rhetoric. Latin grammar was the only door for those who wished to have any education, and every schoolboy had to study Latin grammar. For those who were not to study law, rhetoric was the main part of a civil education.
126) THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Brunetto Latini, whose writings greatly impressed the mind of Dante, both as a youth, and as a man, says in what may be called his encyclopxdic work, Le Livre du Tresor, that rhetoric is a science that teaches us to speak fully and perfectly both in public and in private, and that the aim of the art is to teach the speaker to speak in such a way that those who hear him shall believe what he says. He follows Cicero in dividing the subject into five divisions. "The first thing is to find out what you are going to say; the second, to marshal your arguments; the third, to suit your words to the matter; the fourth, to cultivate the memory so that you can learn your speech by heart; and last, to study bearing, gesture, diction, and the subject of delivery." Of the "quadrivium," the mathematical sciences, Brunetto says: "The first is arithmetic, which teaches us to count, to compute, to add, to subtract, multiply and divide; it also includes teaching the use of the abacus" [a Roman instrument for counting by means of beads strung on wires which were stretched across a frame] "and algorism. The second is music, which teaches how to make tunes and songs in accord with one another on zithers, organs, and other instruments, for the pleasure of the listeners or for divine worship in church. The third is geometry, by which we know the measures and proportions of things in length, breadth, and thickness. The fourth science is astronomy, which teaches us the order of the heavens, of the firmament, and of the stars, and the courses of the seven planets through the twelve signs of the zodiac, and how weather changes to hot or cold, or to dry time, or to wind, according to a law that is established in the stars." You will notice that in this passage two words are used, "abacus" and "algorism," which are somewhat unfamiliar. We generally understand by the word "abacus" an architectural term; it is interesting to note that its original Latin meaning is "a square tablet for counting on," and thence "an ancient contrivance still used in nursery and infant schools to teach arithmetic," called in classic language, "Abacus Pythagoricus," and thence it appears as an architectural feature, and is described as "a table constituting the upper member or crowning of a column and its capital". The word "algorism," as its name suggests, refers to a symbolic method of numeration. Before leaving our good friend, Brunetto, I should like to quote some lines which seem to me so apposite that I cannot neglect them "And we make prayer to the Lord God; That he take from our hearts all darkness, That we may acquire knowledge and learning, That we may have His grace and love, And so drink of learning that we shall gain honour." And now we will turn to a ritual as used and practised in some Lodges today. Let us see what allusions we find there regarding the subject of this Lecture. You will remember that in the Charge delivered after the admission SEVEN LIBERAL ARTS AND SCIENCES 127 these words occur, "To study more especially such of the liberal arts and sciences as may he within the compass of your attainment." This is laid down as an impending duty, but, owing to lack of understanding, it becomes in too many cases a negligible quantity, and the hapless aspirant is left in some degree of wonderment as to why the injunction was ever uttered. Again in another Degree, you find these words: "As a Craftsman, you are expected to make the Liberal Arts and Sciences your future study, that you may the better be enabled to discharge your duties as a Mason, and estimate the wonderful works.of the Almighty." Here you may see that we have advanced a step. In the Charge it is a recommendation that you should study these arts and sciences, now it is actually made a matter of obligation. The word "expected" is used, and this is far stronger than a recommendation.
And in the meantime, who has been looking after the newly‑made Brother? Who has told him or taught him that the few answers he has to learn by heart in order that he may repeat them in parrot‑like fashion and without understanding, when questioned by the Master, prior to receiving a further Degree‑who has taught him that these represent a very small part of the Masonic knowledge which day by day he is supposed to be acquiring? In too many instances I am afraid the answer must be, "No one". The absence of definite Masonic teaching in present‑day Masonry, especially in our London Lodges, is lamentable. I know that in our Lodges of Instruction we have invaluable adjuncts for the training of Masons, and that the three Craft Lectures, with their various Sections, are most useful forms of instruction, but instruction in the proper rendering of the ritual and explanations of its form cannot be said to demonstrate what a vast and complex system of science Masonry unfolds to us. What we really need is a school for Masons, both young and old, a species of academy in which they may be instructed and taught that the taking of degrees, and the satisfying, sometimes the over‑satisfying, of bodily needs, is only the fringe of Masonry, and a very torn and tattered fringe it sometimes proves to be.
In a Lecture on the Second Tracing Board we have the statement that seven or more make a perfect Lodge, in allusion to the period of time involved in the construction of the Temple, and there is also a further allusion to the seven Liberal Arts and Sciences.
In the fourth Section of the second of some Craft Lectures we have an explanation of the character, purpose and use of these arts and sciences. I will first briefly recite some of the actual words used in the Section, and then proceed, as occasion may serve, to give an amplified explanation of each in turn. Let us therefore proceed in that order: "Grammar teaches the proper arrangement of words according to the idiom or dialect of any particular kingdom or people, and that excellence of pronunciation which enables us to speak or write a language with accuracy and precision." 128 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES "Rhetoric teaches us to speak copiously and fluently on any subject, not merely with precision alone, but with all the advantages of force and elegance, wisely contriving to captivate the hearers by strength of argument and beauty of expression, whether it be to instruct, exhort, admonish, or applaud." "Logic teaches us to guide our reason discretionally in the general knowledge of things, and to direct our inquiries after truth. It consists of regular trains of argument, whence we infer, deduce and conclude, according to certain premises laid down, admitted, or granted; in it are employed the faculties of conceiving, reasoning, judging, and disposing." "Arithmetic teaches the powers and properties of numbers, by means of letters, tables, figures, and instruments." "Geometry treats of the powers and properties of magnitude. By this science, the Architect is able to execute his plans and estimate his designs; the General to arrange his soldiers; the Engineer to mark out ground for Encampments; the Geographer to give the dimensions of the world, delineate the extent of seas, and specify the divisions of empires, kingdoms and provinces. By it also the Astronomer is enabled to make his observations, calculate and fix the duration of times and seasons, years and cycles." "Music teaches the art of forming concords so as to produce a delightful harmony by a mathematical and proportionate management of acute, grave and mixed sounds; this art by a variety of experiments is reduced to a demonstrative science, with respect to tones and the intervals of sound." "Astronomy is that Divine art by which we are taught to read the Wisdom, Strength, and Beauty of the Almighty Creator in the sacred pages of the Celestial hemisphere; assisted by Astronomy, we can observe the motions, measure the distances, comprehend the magnitude, and calculate the periods and Eclipses of the Heavenly Bodies; by it also we learn the use of the Globes, the system of the world, and the primary laws of Nature." Now let us expand these very excellent, but somewhat quaintly‑expressed definitions. And first as to Grammar: According to the definition of the late Dr. Henry Sweet, a grammar gives the general facts of language, whilst a dictionary deals with the special facts of language. To the ordinary man, grammar means a set of more or less arbitrary rules, which he has to observe if he wants to speak or write correctly; this may be called `prescriptive' grammar. To a scientific man, the rules are not what he has to observe but what he observes when he examines the way in which speakers and writers belonging to a particular community or nation actually use their mother‑tongue; this may be labelled `descriptive' grammar. The nineteenth century furnished us with another form of grammar, 'comparative historical' grammar, and this should always be supplemented by (separative' grammar, which does full justice to what is peculiar to each language, and treats each on its own merits. Many things of grammatical importance, such as intonation, stress, etc., are not shown in our traditional SEVEN LIBERAL ARTS AND SCIENCES 129 spellings. Dialect grammars and grammars of the language of uncivilized races deal of necessity only with spoken words. Grammar being the basis of all the liberal sciences, it particularly concerns us as Masons to know its rules, for without this knowledge we cannot be acquainted with the beauties of our own Craft lectures, nor can we speak with correctness or propriety. When I reflect on the present slip‑shod manner of speech, on the ungrammatical nature of letter‑writing, on the loose phraseology of the ordinary novel, and on the atrocious spelling exhibited in letter‑writing, I am led to recommend wholeheartedly a return to the study of grammar.
The founder of rhetoric as an art was Corax of Syracuse. He gave rules for arrangement, dividing the speech into five parts, proem or introduction, narrative, arguments, subsidiary remarks, and peroration. He also illustrated the topic of general probability, showing its two‑edged use; thus, if a puny man is accused of assaulting a stronger, he can say: "Is it likely that I should have attacked him?" and vice‑versa, the strong man can argue: "Is it likely that I should have committed an assault when the presumption was sure to be against me ?" This topic of what was called in the Greek `eikos' was, in its manifold forms, the great weapon of the earliest Greek rhetoricians. Aristotle says that rhetoric is a popular branch of logic. Logic may be more persuasive with the more select hearers of rhetoric, but rhetoric is for the many. Speakers incapable of showing the ghost of an argument have sometimes been the most completely successful in carrying great audiences along with them.
What is the use of the art of rhetoric ? It is fourfold, Aristotle replies. It is useful, first of all, because truth and justice are naturally stronger than their opposites. Rhetoric is then corrective. Next, it is instructive, as a popular means of persuasion for those who could not be reached by the severer methods of strict logic. Then it is suggestive. Suppose that I am going to plead a cause, and have a sincere conviction that I am on the right side, the art of rhetoric will suggest to me what might be urged on the other side, and this will give me a stronger grasp of the whole situation. And lastly, rhetoric is defensive.
It would take too long to detail the various phases through which the art of rhetoric has passed, but one may mention among its early exponents Cicero, Quintilian, and Hermogenes of Tarsus. During the first four centuries of the Roman Empire the practice of the art was in greater vogue than ever before or since. Then there came a lapse, and it was not until after the revival of learning that it again began to hold its own. The general aim at this period was to revive the best teaching of the Ancients. At Cambridge in 1570 the study of rhetoric was based on the works of Quintilian, Hermogenes, and Cicero. An Oxford statute of 1588 shows that the same books were used there. The decay of rhetoric as a formal study at the universities set in during the eighteenth century. The function of the rhetoric lecturer passed over into that of correcting written themes, but his title remained long after his office 130 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES had lost its primary meaning, and the college prizes for `declamations' helped to keep alive in some measure the old classic traditions. The conditions of modem life, and especially the invention of printing, have to some extent diminished the importance which belonged in antiquity to the art of speaking, though modern democratic politics and forensic conditions still make it one which may be cultivated with advantage.
Logic is the name given to one of the four main departments of philosophy. It is the science of the processes of inference. There are three types of inference, the first being from particular to particular, which is called analogical inference; the second is from particular to universal, which is inductive inference; the third is from universal to particular, which is deductive inference. We will illustrate these three types in order to give a clearer meaning, and we will employ the names of three Greek cities in the illustrations, though any others might quite as well be substituted. Suppose I say, "Border war between Thebes and Phocis is evil," and then make the further statement that "Border war between Thebes and Athens is similar to that between Thebes and Phocis"; from these two I draw the analogical inference that "Border war between Thebes and Athens is evil". Again I may say that "Border war between Thebes and Phocis is evil," and follow up that assertion with the assertion that "All border war is like that between Thebes and Phocis"; from these two statements I draw the inductive inference that "All border war is evil". I now start with this inductive inference that "All border war is evil," and I follow on with the statement that "Border war between Thebes and Phocis is border war," and draw the conclusion by deductive or syllogistic inference that "Border war between Thebes and Athens is evil". You will see that this is rather like an algebraical problem; by eliminating certain factors, you arrive at a definite conclusion. We owe to Aristotle this triple distinction of analogy, induction, and deduction.
Grammar and poetic criticism, rhetoric and dialectic preceded logic and out of those arts of language arose the science of reasoning. The comprehensive genius of Bacon widened logic into a general science of inference. That great philosopher, Frederick Denison Maurice, says: "The science of logic is of purely Greek invention. Though logic, in a formal and narrow sense, is considered as the antagonist of poetry, yet only a most imaginative and poetical nation could have given it the statue‑like perfection which it has attained in Greek hands. Zeno is believed, on the best grounds, to be the inventor of logic." Zeno is said to have studied under various philosophers for a period of twenty years. At its close, he opened his school at Athens in the porch known as the `Stoa Poecile,' so named from its having been the place in which poets formerly met. From the fact of Zeno's disciples assembling in this porch or `Stoa' they were called `Stoics,' a term still in use today. We often employ the words `logical' and `illogical', sometimes without thinking that they have reference to one of the most fascinating and intricate of the liberal arts and sciences.
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Arithmetic was originally looked upon as the science or theory of numbers; at present it is regarded as the art of computation. With regard to the numerical measure of a group, as the result of counting or computing, the term `cardinal number' is used, as when we say that there are five persons in a room. With respect to number as designating position in a sequence, the term `ordinal number' is used, as when we speak of the third page of a book. The spread of Greek culture and commerce carried the Greek numerals into all the regions bordering on the Mediterranean Sea, and the still more extensive development of the Roman civilization made the Roman numerals dominant in the Occident for many centuries. In the tenth century the entry into Europe of the Indo‑Arabic numerals (those that we generally use today) was followed by a slow acceptance of the convenient system of place value by which, with only the numerals, but with an indefinite number of `places' (units, tens, hundreds, and so forth) any number could conveniently be written. The symbols went by the names of `characters' and `notae', and at a later period by the English names `figures', `numerals', and `cyphers'. The grouping of objects for purposes of counting led to the use of the same device in the writing of numbers. A grouping by 'fives' is called a `quinary system', and is said to be based upon the `scale' of five, or to have five as a `radix'. Since man has five fingers on each hand and five toes on each foot, he has a natural counting abacus arranged on a scale of five, ten, or twenty. While there are traces of the early use of these and other scales, the predominant one has been the denary or decimal scale, wherein ten is the prominent number. A familiar relic of grouping by twenties is seen in the English word `score', and the French `quatre‑vingt' for eighty. On the scale of ten the English counting proceeds as follows: One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, `oneteen' (one and ten), `twoteen' (two and ten), thirteen (three and ten), and so on till we arrive at twenty (two tens). The fact that twelve is scientifically a more convenient root than ten (having its half, fourth, and third easily expressible) seems to have led to the use of `eleven' and `twelve', instead of `oneteen' and `twoteen', after which the denary scale was followed. This art or science may be usefully employed by a Mason in order to subtract nothing from the character of his neighbour, to multiply his benevolence to his fellow‑creatures, and to divide his means with a suffering brother.
Geometry, one of the three principal branches of mathematics (the other two being algebra and analysis) may be described as the branch which deals with the properties of space. Like most other departments of knowledge, geometry arose originally in response to man's practical needs. It seems to have had its birth in ancient Egypt, where the periodic inundations of the Nile made the surveying of the land for the re‑establishment of boundary lines a necessity. This early geometry consisted of a number of crude rules for the mensuration of various simple geometric figures. The ancient Greeks developed this crude beginning into the science which is now studied in the
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schools under the name of demonstrative geometry. One cannot mention tl:e word `geometry' without thinking of Euclid, the cause of much annoyance and much smarting to recalcitrant schoolboys. The celebrated `Pons Asinorum' has caused many a heartbreak to a struggling intellect, and the wet towel has often been used as an incentive to mental effort.
The Elements of Euclid consists of thirteen books, the first six and the last three being devoted to plane and solid geometry respectively. The great achievement of Euclid was the arrangement of the material handed down to him into a coherent logical system. It is one of the marvels in the history of mathematics that the Elements should have maintained itself as a text‑book for over two thousand years. With Euclid, Archimedes, and Apollonius of Perga, geometry reached its highest development during ancient times.
Geometry and Operative Masonry have ever been found together, the latter carrying into execution those designs which were first traced according to the principles of the former. Speculative Masonry is, in like manner, intimately connected with geometry. In deference to our operative ancestors, and, in fact, as a necessary result of our close connection with them, Speculative Masonry derives its most important symbols from this present science. Benjamin Franklin, in an address which he is said to have given to the Brethren of his Lodge, and which was afterwards printed as an editorial in his Pennsylvania Gazette, says: "As to the usefulness of geometry, it is certain that no curious or mechanic work can either be invented, improved, or performed, without its assisting principles ... Though Plato's censure that those who did not understand the 117th proposition of the 13th book of Euclid's Elements ought not to be ranked among rational creatures, was unreasonable and unjust; yet to give a man the character of universal learning, who is destitute of a competent knowledge of the mathematics, is not less so ... Philosophers do generally affirm that human knowledge to be most excellent which is conversant amongst the most excellent things. What science then can be more noble, more excellent, more useful for men, more admirably high and demonstrative, than this of the mathematics?" "The invention of musical instruments is ascribed, in the book of Genesis, to Jubal, who is mentioned as being the `father of such as handle the harp and organ'. What was the nature of the instruments invented by Jubal can only be matter of conjecture; for the words `harp' and `organ', used in our translation of the Scriptures, are not to be held as meaning the instruments now known by these names. The translators of the Bible, possibly knowing little of the instruments used by the Hebrews, seem at times to have employed the names of modern instruments almost at random." Thus writes Mr. Hogarth in his book on Musical History.
During the reigns of David and Solomon the art of music seems to have been at its height amongst the Hebrews. David's inspired lyrics, the Psalms, were set to music for the purpose of being performed by the "chief musician", with the band or orchestra under his direction, aided by a choir of both sexes.
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The music probably resembled the rude, but frequently grand and imposing strains still to be heard in various parts of the East, consisting of a very simple melody, sung by a single voice, intermixed with choruses in the unison or octave, and accompanied by instruments, a really primitive form of what is now known as oratorio music. During the period of their prosperity, the Hebrews appear to have excelled their contemporaries in music, for in the beautiful lamentation composed during the period of the Babylonian captivity, the captives are described as being importuned by their oppressors to entertain them with the "Songs of Zion". "For they that led us away captives required of us a song, and melody in our heaviness, saying, `Sing us one of the songs of Zion'. How shall we sing the Lord's song in a strange land? If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning." The mention of the cunning of the right hand leads us to associate the allusion with proficiency on some stringed instrument which was afterwards developed in process of time into that graceful and too‑often neglected instrument, the modern harp.
"The poems of Homer are full of allusions to music, which he represents to us as having been in constant use at the time of the Trojan war. At that period, the music of voices, accompanied by the lyre and the flute, is described as being always employed, not only on public, solemn, and festive occasions, but also as a favourite amusement of private life." William Wallace, is his Threshold of Music, points out that, as an adjunct to Christian worship, it was in the Eastern division of the early Church that music was first organised, and that even before the fall of the Roman Empire various schools had arisen for the cultivation of the art. "Imported into the West, it found its patron in Ambrose, Bishop of Milan, who, according to tradition, established upon it a system derived from that of the Greeks. Music found a more stable basis when Gregory turned his mind to it, and we may be within measure of the truth in ascribing his interference to his zeal for the prestige of the Church rather than for the salvation of the art. We can be certain that all music of this period was not purely of the Church. The transmission by ear and voice of the tunes of the people may have brought down to Gregory's time many a stave that had been sung by a lonely shepherd on Thessalian slopes, many a snatch of song thrown into the air by the winepressers as they trod the Chian grape, many a wild hymn chanted at the secular games‑and these even now may be woven into themes that re‑echo through our cathedrals." While the state of society in the revival which followed the dark ages was favourable for the erecting of great cathedrals, music was developed just so far as was necessary for ritual purposes, and although folk‑music must have existed, it was transmitted mainly by oral tradition, for the means to write it down still remained obscure and complicated. The discovery of printing gave a means of recording with precision the ideas of composers and ensuring for their works a wide circulation.
134 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES In the age of Elizabeth, which many have recognised as the Golden Age for music in this country, the art seems to have been in universal cultivation, as well as in universal esteem. Chappell, in his Popular Music of the Olden Time, informs us that not only was it a necessary qualification for ladies and gentlemen, but even the city of London advertised the musical abilities of boys educated in Bridewell and Christ's Hospital, as a mode of recommending them as servants, apprentices, or husbandmen. In Deloney's History of the Gentle Craft one who tried to pass for a shoemaker was detected as an imposter because he could neither sing, sound the trumpet, play upon the flute, nor reckon up his tools in rhyme. In those days tinkers sang catches; milkmaids sang ballads; carters whistled; each trade, and even the beggars, had their special songs; the base‑viol hung in the drawing‑room for the amusement of waiting visitors; and the lute, cittern, and virginals, for the entertainment of waiting customers, were part of the necessary furniture of the barber's shop. They had music at dinner; music at supper; music at funerals; music at night; music at work and music at play. An old writer recommends the country housewife to select servants that sing at their work, as being usually the most painstaking and the best; and in an old play, one called Merrythought says, "Never trust a tailor that does not sing at his work, for his mind is of nothing but filching." Byrd, one of the great musicians of this epoch, gives the following eight reasons why everyone should learn to sing: (1) It is a knowledge easily taught, and quickly learned; (2) the exercise of singing is delightful to nature; (3) it doth strengthen all parts of the breast, and doth open the pipes; (4) it is a singular good remedy for hesitancy in speech; (5) it is the means to procure a perfect pronunciation, and to make a good orator; (6) it is the only way to know where nature hath bestowed a good voice; (7) there is not any music of instruments comparable to the well‑assorted voices of men; (8) the better the voice is, the meeter it is to honour and serve God therewith. At the end of these reasons we have this distich: Since singing is so good a thing, I wish all men would learn to sing.
A new admiration for the power of music over the emotions comes into literature in Shakespeare's age. Shakespeare's outlook on music was pure. For him, music was a synonym for sweetness. A brook makes "sweet music with the enamell'd stones". Love is "as sweet and musical as bright Apollo's lute". You will recall the celebrated passage from the Merchant of Venice: The man that hath no music in himself, Nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, Is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils.
The motions of his spirit are dull as night, And his affections dark as Erebus.
SEVEN LIBERAL ARTS AND SCIENCES 135 Shakespeare believed with Plato in the Music of the Spheres, the music of which we hear so much in Dante's Paradiso. There are many references thereto in his plays. The most magnificent‑again from the Merchant of Venice‑surpasses the common conception of the eight spheres humming in solemn diapason. It is, I suppose, the most tenderly‑delicate piece of imagery ever penned by the hand of mortal man. TtLare is sentence. List how it runs music in every Look how the floor of heaven Is thick inlaid with patines of bright gold; There's not the smallest orb which thou beholdest But in his motion like an angel sings, Still quiring to the young‑eyed cherubins. Such harmony is in immortal souls, But, whilst this muddy vesture of decay Doth grossly close us in, we cannot hear it.
"Shakespeare is the supreme type of a truly cultured poet, free from pedantry, but blessed with such power of observation that the things seen become materials for the building up of characters and plots. The golden age of English drama was the golden age of English music, and in Shakespeare that music receives its tribute of appreciation." We may now ask ourselves, what part does music play in regard to Masonry? We may turn for answer to an excellent paper on "Masonic Musicians" that appeared in the Quatuor Coronati Transactions in 1891. The writer was the well‑known musical critic, W. A. Barrett. In the course of that paper we meet with these remarks: "There were many worthy musicians who wrote pieces of high Masonic tendency, but as they require the exercise of a certain amount of musical skill, they, in common with a vast number of like compositions, are only occasionally heard, and then not always in connection with Masonic assemblies. The charms of the social circle in Masonry and the good‑natured readiness of musicians to add to those charms by the exercise of those gifts and talents has been one of the chief reasons why musicians have taken a large interest in the Craft. Our ancient and honourable institution owes no little of its attractive power in the social circle to music, but except at the time of the consecration of a Lodge, music, which could greatly augment the dignity and impressiveness of our ceremonies, is not encouraged to the extent that it might be. The general apathy of the brethren towards the use of vocal music in the several degrees has damped the ardour of the most enthusiastic, who have perceived the advantages which might have accrued by the use of solemn music. Unless, however, music can be introduced into the Lodge in a manner worthy of its high mission it should never be done at all. For it should not be dragged forward and exposed to ridicule like a blind Samson brought out and exhibited to the scoffings of the multitude." 136 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES I am afraid I have been led away by my passion for music to write at greater length that I have done with regard to the other arts, and have thus disturbed the harmonic progression of my subject. Music has been called the Cinderella of the arts; if that be true, then I would rather sit by the lonely hearth, and dream dreams of celestial harmonies, than consort with the votaries of fashion in the crowded ballroom. To one and all I say: "If you have an ear for music, cultivate it with all might and main. If you cannot be an executant, you can educate yourself in its history, you can study the principles of composition, you can add to your education by listening to the masterpieces of the great, and (though I write these words in anguish of spirit) you can even learn much by listening to gramophone or wireless. Music will be a solace, a delight, a constant friend, at all times and in all seasons." And now, Muse of Music, flee from me, or thou wilt be my undoing! A practical acquaintance with the elements of astronomy is indispensable to the conduct of human life. Hence it is most widely diffused among uncivilised peoples, whose existence depends upon immediate and unvarying submission to the dictates of external nature. Having no clocks, they regard the face of the sky; the stars serve them for almanacs; they hunt and fish, they sow and reap, in correspondence with the recurrent order of celestial appearances. But these, to the untutored imagination, present a mystical, as well as a mechanical aspect; and babaric familiarity with the heavens developed at an early age, through the promptings of superstition, into a fixed system of observation. But no genuine science of astronomy was formed until the Greeks sublimed experience into theory. Among the Grecian astronomers of antiquity two great names stand out with unchallenged preeminence, Hipparchus, and Ptolemy. There are others who might be mentioned, such as Thales, and Pythagoras. Hipparchus is the man who is said to have catalogued 1,081 stars, a remarkable maximum in those early days of the science. A noteworthy personage, who may be said to be intermediary between the Greeks and the Romans, was Posidonius of Apamea, a Syrian. After travelling in Spain, he settled in Rhodes, where he founded a wellknown school. He was learned in both astrology and magic, and became so famous that Pompey visited him and Cicero attended his lectures.
With the capture of Alexandria by Omar the last glimmer of its scientific light became extinct, to be rekindled a century and a half later on the banks of the Tigris. Arab astronomy, transported by the Moors to Spain, flourished for a time at Cordova and Toledo. Meantime a radical reform was being prepared in Italy. Under the searchlights of the new learning the dictatorship of Ptolemy was no more inevitable than that of Aristotle; advanced thinkers promulgated what were called Pythagorean opinions; they were more eagerly and fully appropriated by Copernicus during his student years at Bologna and Padua. Although Copernicus can scarcely be called an astrologer, his researches did much to influence the art which developed side by side with SEVEN LIBERAL ARTS AND SCIENCES 137 astronomy. Copernicus was in the early stages of his life a student of medicine, but he later on turned his attention to science. He finally took Holy Orders and became a canon. He was educated at the University of Cracow. The first of his great discoveries relates to the rotation of the earth on its axis. He proved that the air must accompany the globe and that the sun was the centre of the system.
Two names next engage our attention; they belong to men who were almost contemporary, Galileo Galilei, and the famous Kepler. Johann Kepler inherited the wealth of material amassed by Tycho Brahe, whilst Galileo unquestionably ranks as the founder of descriptive astronomy. The importance of Kepler's generalisations was not fully appreciated until Sir Isaac Newton made them the corner‑stone of his new cosmic edifice.
Kepler wrote concerning the relation between astrology and astronomy: "Astrology is the foolish daughter of a wise mother and for one hundred years past this wise mother could not have lived without the help of her foolish daughter." Although the tenets of astrology are now generally regarded as belonging to a past age, it has left an impression on our language of the present day. Thus we speak of the `martial', `mercurial', or `saturnine' person, without perhaps remembering that these terms are derived from and related to the supposed influence of Pagan deities. The `ill‑starred' individual is often referred to in literature, and allusions are frequently made to those whose `star is in the ascendant' or to some person who was born under a `lucky star'. The belief in the influence of the planets on the fortunes of the new‑born child belongs to astrology, and you may remember that passage in Shakespeare's Henry IV, where Glendower says: At my nativity The front of heaven was full of fiery shapes Of burning cressets; know, that at my birth The frame and huge foundation of the earth Shak'd like a coward.
And the sarcastic answer of Hotspur: Why, so it would have done At the same season, if your mother's cat Had kittened, though you yourself had ne'er been born.
Let us take, by way of contrast to this, one of the beautiful allusions to the heavenly bodies made by Milton in Paradise Lost. The angel is speaking to Adam concerning the universe: To ask or search I blame thee not; for Heaven Is as the Book of God before thee set, Wherein to read His wondrous works and learn His seasons, hours, days, or months, or years. This to attain, whether Heaven move or Earth 138 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Imports not, if thou reckon right; the rest From Man to Angels the Great Architect Did wisely conceal, and not divulge His secrets, to be scanned by them ought Rather admire.
"Poets of all ages have sung of the romance of the stars that scintillate in the celestial vault, which, like a circling canopy of sapphire hue, stretches overhead from horizon to horizon. Who can look up at the deep azure of the sky at night, with its myriads of planets and stars of varied brilliancy, without wonder and awe? There we have poetry written in letters of gold on the purple vestment of heaven, music in the gliding motion of the spheres, and harmony in the sweep of the sun, planet, and satellite." How truly has it been said that the heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament showeth His handiwork! It is when we look up into the vault of the heavens that we realize the insignificance of the earth in the scheme of the material universe. Our sight penetrates beyond space, reaching world beyond world of unimaginable grandeur, and the greatest of these orbs is but as a speck in the vast intervening void. The moon is a smaller body than the earth, which it attends as a satellite. The sun stands to our earth in much the same relation as the earth does to the moon. The sun is the ruler, and the earth a subordinate globe travelling round nearly in a circle under the controlling force of the earth's gravitational attraction. The amount of matter constituting the sun is equivalent to 300,000 earths rolled into one. This great mass is maintained by means which are still very largely a mystery, at enormously high temperature, so thzt it continually pours forth the unceasing stream of heat and light which are of so much importance to terrestrial life.
There is little doubt that the most remote object in the heavens which can be seen without telescopic aid is a small fuzzy patch of light in the constellation 'Andromeda'. At first glance this would be taken as one of the fainter stars, but the diffuseness of the light is distinctive, and telescopes show it to be a great spiral nebula. The light which we see today left that nebula more than 100,000 years ago.
The study of the heavenly bodies falls naturally into two divisions, the solar system and the stellar universe, the latter comprising all that is beyond the solar system. To the solar system belong, besides the sun and the earth with its moon, the planets or `wandering stars'. Such of the planets as are visible to the naked eye are ordinarily mistaken for true or `fixed' stars; they can usually be distinguished by the fact that their light does not twinkle. But that is by no means an infallible test, since it depends a great deal on atmospheric conditions.
I will conclude our consideration of astronomy by a peculiarly appropriate passage which may be found in Ashe's Masonic Manual: "Astronomy stands confessedly the most exalted and sublime science that has ever been cultivated by man. This noble science may justly be said to comprehend the whole of the other six; as by Grammar we correctly express the substance of our observations; by Rhetoric we forcibly impress the truths therein contained; by Logic we proceed to demonstrate those truths; by Arithmetic we make our calculations; by Geometry we measure the magnitudes and distances of those vast orbs; and, finally, we cannot but subscribe to the harmony of the whole, where there is not the least discord to be found in any of its parts." We have now come to the end of our brief survey of the liberal arts and sciences, and I hope that the time spent in their examination has not been unprofitably occupied. It is certain that even a little knowledge of these things will tend to make us more enlightened as men, and more helpful as Masons. "The Brother who understands enough grammar to write a paper to be read to his brethren; who has studied enough rhetoric to learn how to speak well in open Lodge; who has so disciplined his mind by logic as to think straight and clear; who has the appreciation of a fine art like music, so as to be mellowed and softened by the charm it throws about one's personality; who has had his mental outlook broadened and his store of knowledge enriched, so as to have useful information to place at the disposal of the Craft; such a Brother is one who exemplifies the Masonic love of light and learning." And so my task comes to an end, and as a conclusion to this Lecture, I venture to say, in the words of a writer belonging to a past generation "I, who though dabbling in authorship, rank not among the inspired; who can neither uphold the arts with the hand of a sovereign, nor praise them with the pen of a poet; who can only, athwart the din of trade, the bustle of politics, and the clamour of self‑interest, raise in favour of the Fine Arts a feeble voice, have done all I could; but the most general flame may begin in a single spark; and should I succeed in kindling for the arts a purer, a more intense, a more universal love; should I be instrumental in promoting nobleness of mind and feeling, most copious and most lasting, I shall think myself the humble instrument of the greatest good that can be conferred on humanity; and when comes the hour of death, I shall think I have not lived in vain." MEDIEVAL MASTER MASONS AND THEIR SECRETS (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1931) by BRO. REV. W. W. COVEY‑CRUMP, M.A. P.M., Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No. 2076, London In 1813‑that annus mirabilis in Masonry‑Bro. William Preston put into his will a bequest which, on his death five years afterwards, became the foundation of the Lectureship that bears his name. Its income was to provide for a Lecture annually on one of the Craft Degrees as practised in his Lodge of Antiquity, London. The motives which prompted that bequest can only be guessed; they partly depend upon what Bro. Preston and his contemporaries understood by the term "lecture" (in a Masonic connection) and also upon the ritual then worked in Antiquity Lodge. Masonic admission ceremonies were not so frequent then, and were subservient to courses of symbolical instruction effected by so‑called "lectures" catechetical in form; to the systematizing of which lectures Bro. Preston had for forty years been devoting much consideration and research. The impending Union of the rival Grand Lodges was sure to involve some changes in those lectures, and a possibility of official authorization was in the air. But it is well to notice that, although Preston lived on for several years after the Union, he took no active steps to alter his bequest; and in 1819 the United Grand Lodge endorsed the opinion of the Grand Master that an insistence on uniformity in regard to the Lectures was not desirable in the interests of Masonry.
Since that period more than a century has elapsed. Tempora mutantur. Our Fraternity has extended its ideals as well as its interests; and its modes of imparting Masonic tuition have been altered to meet modem requirements. Nowadays we rely more upon impressiveness of ceremonial and hortatory addresses. The "lectures" have become occasional discourses on diverse subjects. And, inasmuch as members of the Craft are not all antiquarians, the Prestonian Lecturer is expected not only to venerate ancient landmarks in its Past but also to visualize some potentialities of its living Present: "heart within, and God o'erhead"; an elasticity of which I cannot think Preston himself would disapprove today. The lecturer may get criticism, but he must stimulate enquiry. On his part originality is called for; and his hearers, on their part, must make 142 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES allowance for his predilections. A sense of relative value causes evidence, sufficiently convincing to one person, to be unsatisfying to another. Moreover, all parts of a lecture are not equally provable; yet its time‑limits make minutiose digressions impossible. Nevertheless I hope any Prestonian Lecturer can be trusted to be cautious in utterance and accurate in research; and therefore, if, in what I am about to say, some details may not seem fully proved, you will receive them as reasonable inferences based on a balancing of probabilities.
Brethren! It is with such thoughts in mind that I ask you now to consider the significance of that familiar phrase‑"the mysterious secrets of a Master Mason". For the phrase itself I claim no high antiquity. In its present context it may not be earlier than the ceremony drafted by the Lodge of Reconciliation. I admit that some 18th century evidences presuppose the lost arcana to have been just a word‑"the Master Mason's Word".' This, however, may indicate that the secrets of a Master Mason were at that time not merely regarded as lost, but that their very nature had been forgotten. To restrict those secrets to formal tests or tokens of recognition would be absurd. Mysteries in Masonry are more concerned with principles than with pass‑words. Its genuine secrets (like those of Life) are complex, and are revealable only to those who by patience and perseverance prove their title to a participation in them.
I regret that I cannot range myself with the many erudite Brethren who seek an ancestry for those secrets in Hellenic mysteries, or in puberty rites of primitive races. Where some obscurity is inevitable the research methods of the "authentic school" yield safer criteria than analogies derived from anthropology. The "secrets of a Master Mason" are not necessarily identical with any pertaining to a Collegium Artificum at Rome; nor with those for which a well‑known architect is said to have given his life during the building of Solomon's Temple at Jerusalem. Even in the year 1717 we dive into deep water. For, to those London Masons who then federated as a Grand Lodge, "the Master's Part" (with which these secrets were connected) was said to be lost. We get no hint from Anderson in 1723 that he had ever heard (either in Scotland or in England) of an assassination of Solomon's architect, though he eulogises his ability.
Nevertheless, I think we all intuitively feel that the "Master's Part" was already there; and a "Master's Part" without the Hiramic Tradition seems almost incredible. Anderson's second Book of Constitutions contains a suggestive allusion to it in 1738, whilst Prichard's Masonry Dissected (1730) and the Rit de Bouillon assert that its theme was the murder of a Master, and because that Master refused to reveal certain secrets.
What those secrets were supposed to have been can only be surmised. But, if we grant that the Tradition had any historical basis at all, the secrets therein referred to must have been of a tectonic kind‑secrets connected with I Flying Post (1723) and Verus Commodus' Letter (1725).
MEDIEVAL MASTER MASONS 143 the practical art of building; they would not be academic pass‑words, or Divine Names, useless to anyone except dabblers in sorcery. In Solomon's time proficiency in various arts‑architectural, metallurgical, and the likewas closely confined to hereditary clans of artificers. Those men had technical secrets, which they jealously guarded and seldom communicated to other men. The view presented in the Hiramic Tradition, therefore, is that the superintendent of Solomon's work possessed an exclusive knowledge of certain technical matters which some inferior craftsmen desired likewise to know. Hence their alleged determination to obtain possession of them by some means, and, if necessary, to have recourse to violence in order to achieve their object. That through their misdeed the secrets might perish was clearly an unforeseen and undesired catastrophe which need not detain us now.
Having prefaced thus much about the substance of the Hiramic Tradition, and the secrets referred to therein, let me again emphasize the point that, without going back to the days of King Solomon, or supposing an unbroken continuity of specific secrets from that time through all the succeeding centuries, we can indisputably say that there were secrets among the medieval Master Masons; and that those secrets were jealously cherished and formally communicated, quite possibly under a supposition that they had a Hiramic origin.
But let us ask‑Who were those medieval Master Masons ? As far as our present Masonic fraternity is concerned, we can safely assume that, as an organization, it is derived from bands of more or less illiterate artisans who rendered manual labour in building the minsters and churches in ‑our land. This seems abundantly clear from such of their Old Charges as have come down to us. Those operative masons had lodges‑isolated yet allied lodgesin which they transmitted certain customs and ordinances, ceremonies and a legendary history, inherited from time immemorial, and in each of those operative lodges there was, of course, at least one "Master Mason".' In the 13th and 14th centuries the term "Master Mason" meant an experienced architect, who undertook to carry out certain structural work to the satisfaction of the ecclesiastical lords who supplied the requisite funds. The Master Mason was the man who not only drafted its innumerable details; he also superintended their execution by means of craftsmen whom he selected and paid. Such was the custom in those times. In many lodges there may also have been a few other craftsmen possessing similar qualifications, who were capable of taking the Master's place at any time should such an emergency arise. But to him and to them the mysteriousz secrets of 1 Mr. Wyatt Papworth's Arts. in Misc. Lat. XV should be read in this connection. 2 i.e., Secrets of the "mystery" or craft.
144 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES a Master Mason meant geometrical and mechanical principles of construction relating to stresses and strains, to vaulting and ornamentation, and other such like details of ecclesiastical architecture.
But a period of transition followed. The dissolution of the monasteries and the doctrinal Reformation in the 16th century swept away the patrons of those migratory masons. For a time the art of church building became moribund; and the Master Masons had to seek other avenues for exercising their talents. In many cities there were local craft gilds; and we may safely say that not a few Master Masons settled down as permanent citizens and joined the local gilds. Now these gilds likewise cherished certain peculiar customs and ordinances; they too may have had ceremonies and a legendary history of their own; they certainly were each banded under a "Master" or Wardens, who were elected by the members from time to time.' But the Gild Masters had purposes very different from those of the former Master Masons. Their main concern was with local conditions of employment, with equable rates of wages, mutual help, and prevention of unfair competition between rival employers in the same town.
We can therefore see why, in these changed circumstances, the "genuine secrets" of the Master Masons became lost so far as artisan craftsmen were concerned. These too kept up vestiges of periodical assemblies, though necessarily transferred from workshops to taverns. Then, to eke out their finances and promote conviviality, they admitted to their sodalities sundry non‑operative associates‑persons who were not stone‑masons by occupation, but whose membership was mutually desired. Moreover the "acception" of such quasi‑masons involved a ceremony‑a ceremony covering two grades E.A. and F.C.‑and those two grades conveyed full privileges in the lodge except probably a right to installation in the Master's chair. But the employers' gilds (or "Companies" into which they had by that time developed) took no account whatever of those lodge proceedings. Membership of the Company was seldom open to journeymen masons, and never open to their "accepted" associates (as such); and the conflicting interests between masters and men gradually widened the breach between them. Consequently, although the Gild Masters would (because they had formerly been apprentices) be familiar with a secret ritual practised in the lodges, the men could know practically nothing about what was done by the Masters in their Gildhalls.
When therefore, in 1717, the London Grand Lodge was constituted (or "revived" if you prefer that term), its members, although well aware that Master Masons at that time possessed secrets, were unaware of the details of them; but at the Apple Tree Tavem, by placing in the chair "the oldest Master Mason present who was also Master of a Lodge," they implicitly claimed a right of succession to them.
1 Cf. Touhnin Smith's Eng. Gilds (Early Eng. Text Soc., xl.) and Knoop's art. on Gild Resemblanees in A.Q.C., xhi, 259 et seq.
MEDIEVAL MASTER MASONS 145 Meanwhile, however, there is another factor to be considered in this connection. During the 17th century many gentlemen‑men of erudition, culture and social position‑joined the Fraternity. We are therefore bound to ask what was the attraction which induced such literati to take that step. Mere convivial relaxation is too inadequate an incentive to suffice, even if we could say (which we cannot) that they joined select Masters' Gilds, not ordinary Masons' Lodges. To them membership of a society then so obscure offered no entree to a superior social circle, nor did it imply any superior standard of ethical form. Yet these men were not Utopian "visionaries,"' though certainly they were seekers for truth. And I submit to you that what drew them into Masonry was the desire to participate in certain mysterious secrets known (or supposed) to be embedded thereinsecrets of such a nature as to be specially interesting to them. What those secrets really were we will therefore proceed to consider.
More than thirty years have passed since first this inquiry was broached by W. Bro. Sydney Klein in two remarkable papers, entitled The Great Symbol and Magister Mathesios, and advanced in an esoteric demonstration which he gave in the Quatuor Coronati Lodge and afterwards repeated (on 18th January, 1898) at a meeting of distinguished experts held by invitation of the Board of General Purposes in Freemasons' Hall, London.2 I need not say I was not present in those somewhat critical assemblies, of which very few veterans now remain; but it is from Bro. Klein himself that I have obtained much valuable information, which after testing and augmenting by personal research in other directions I am now about to propound to you.
The first of those "geometric Masters' " secrets to which I would direct attention is concerned with the Tracing Board. By this I do not mean either of those conventional diagrams to which Freemasons now usually apply the term. I mean that Tracing Board which is referred to in the First Lecture, as used by the Master "to lay lines and draw designs on". "To lay lines!" The Board, when about to be used for designs, was not entirely plain. It was first covered by a series of parallel diagonal lines, intersecting one another at definitely fixed angles. In days before the advent of Gothic architecture the intersections constituted squares (perhaps chequered)3 or possibly rhombs based on the principle of a right‑angled triangle having sides in the ratio of 3 : 4 : 5. This 3 : 4 : 5 triangle was an ancient arcanum. It was extolled by Philo Judxus4 as "the foundation of t Notwithstanding Bro. Gould's stigma, Hist. ii, 119.
2 A.Q.C., X, 82, etc., and xxiii, 107, etc. The original MS of the esoteric demonstration, showing the discovery of the genuine secrets of M.M., is preserved in the Library of Grand Lodge.
3 Hence the present Lodge floor‑cloth is its counterpart. 4 Philo Jud., Vita Moysis, iii, 4.
146 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES the creation of the universe" and was said by Plutarch' to have been wellknown to the Ancient Egyptians, an assertion now confirmed by evidence from their monuments. It certainly had come down from prehistoric times, and we can readily see that to be enabled to construct a right‑angle in any required position without possibility of error would always have been a matter of importance and consequently a secret to be cherished by men engaged in building and in kindred crafts. The method employed was apparently by using three rods of proportionate lengths, or‑when something on a larger scale was required, such as marking out the ground for an intended structure‑by a cord accurately divided into 2 , 2 and and stretched 12 by three people at those points simultaneously. Hence the Greeks called the possessors of this simple yet secret method of obtaining a right angle 'Ap,TESova7r‑rat‑ix., "rope‑stretchers".
But the advent of the architectural style which we know as "Gothic" involved an entire revolution from this old principle of the 3 : 4 : 5 triangle. The identity of the architects who superseded the Norman style throughout western Europe, and the manner in which they accomplished their task, are controversial matters into which we cannot enter now. Suffice it to say that as part of that architectural revolution a new geometrical canon of proportion was adopted‑a new right‑angled triangle‑one in which the angles rather than the sides maintained a simple ratio, viz., 1 : 2 : 3 (or 30░ :60' : 90░). This right‑angled triangle is obtained by bisecting the base of an equilateral triangle (as laid down in Euclid I, 10), the perpendicular thus halving the triangle into two right‑angled triangles each having angles of 30░, 60░ and 90░, and sides in the constant ratio of 1 : ‑,/3 : 2.
Why was this triangle substituted ? In the view of those Masters of Gothic architecture the equilateral triangle had two all‑important symbolical applications which strongly commended its use as an appropriate factor in sacred architecture. First of course there was the fact that an equilateral triangle is an obvious emblem of the Holy Trinity. And, secondly, an equilateral triangle is obtained by describing two equal circles intersecting each other through their respective centres, and forming thereby that well‑known figure the vesica piscis, which was an apt symbol of the Incarnation of the Eternal Logos in the womb of the B.V. Mary. Moreover, the two generating circles represented the past and future Divine eternities, and the Vesica the present temporal Dispensation. One curious property of this geometrical figure is that its perimeter is equal to that of each of the remaining arcs of the two circles‑thus presenting another appropriate symbol of the Holy Trinity. For these reasons the Vesica Piscis had even from the time of the Primitive Christians possessed a sacred symbolical significance, though the purport of that significance was variously interpreted owing to the secrecy of its transmission. By many early Christians the Vesica was supposed to represent a fish, and as such it 1 Plutarch, Isis et Osiris, 1 56.
MEDIEVAL MASTER MASONS 147
figures on their monuments in the catacombs. By taking the Greek names and titles 'h7oovg Xpta‑r6.9 O" EoO Tog EwTrjpI and combining the initials of those words they obtained the word IXOTE which means a fish. From this occult circumstance the Christians sometimes spoke of themselves as pisciculi (little fishes), with reference to their regeneration in the waters of baptism. Tertullian says "After our IXOTE we are pisciculi, born in the water"2; and Clemens Alexandrinus, in discussing ornaments which might consistently be worn by Christians commends the Vesica engraven on a ring.3 Modem attempts to associate the vesica with the yoni may be disregarded; but Dr. Oliver, however mistaken he may have been in suggesting for it a Platonic origin, is quite right in saying "this mysterious figure possessed an unbounded influence on the details of Gothic architecture, and constituted a great and enduring secret of our ancient brethren" : and everyone who has read that anonymous book The Canon (published in 1897) must have been struck by the numerous instances therein adduced to show that the proportion 1 : ‑\/3 (which is that of the axes of a vesica) was employed by the cathedral builders in their work.
1 =Jesus Christ, Son of GOD, Saviour. 2 Tertullian, De Bapt. i.
3 Clem. Alex., Paed., iii, 11. 4 Oliver, Discrep., 109.
148 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES One of the most direct evidences of the idea of planning Gothic buildings on a Tracing Board criss‑crossed in the foregoing manner is to be found in Cesariano's translation of Vitruvius, published at Como in 1521. In that re markable volume there are illustrated a plan and sectional elevations of Milan Cathedral (commenced in 1386), exhibiting these geometrical intersections which determined the proportions of that wonderful structure, and which are obviously based upon this principle of a right‑angled triangle having its sides in the ratio 1 : ‑,/3 : 2, and its angles 30░, 60░ and 90░. This graphic illustration may therefore fittingly conclude our notice of the ancient Master Mason's Tracing Board.
The time at my disposal will not permit of a detailed examination of other analogous geometrical principles which, though now familiar to every schoolboy, were in those illiterate days regarded as masonic secrets, and taught as such. I can only notice two as illustrations. The first of these is the principle that the angle in a semi‑circle is invariably a right‑angle. In other words‑if from the ends of a diameter lines are drawn to any other point in the circumference those lines will always form a right‑angle. One allusion to this still survives in the familiar phrases "Q. Where (I think it should be "How") do you hope to find them (i.e., the Master Masons' secrets) ? A. With a centre.
Q. Why with a centre ? A. Because that is a point from which a M.M. cannot err." The Master Mason of those days had merely to describe a semi‑circle having a given point at its centre and its circumference cutting the point where the right‑angle was needed, when two lines drawn to the extremities of the diameter would complete his operation. This furnished a distinct advance on the older gnosis of the 3 : 4 : 5 triangle; because by its means the ratio of the sides became negligible. The right‑angle so constructed would always be true, irrespective of any ratio of the sides containing it; and this constituted a secret which Dante said Solomon himself might well have longed to know.' Another is that usually known as the 47th Proposition of Euclid, although its alternative name "Theorem of Pythagoras" reminds us that it may have been discovered two centuries prior to Euclid's time. It is that "in any right‑angled triangle, the square upon the hypotenuse is equal to the sum of the squares upon the two sides containing the right‑angle". According to 1 Dante, Parad., xiii, 101.
MEDIEVAL MASTER MASONS 149
Proclusl (A.D. 450) Pythagoras was unaware that this is a universal principle; he only knew of its truth in certain cases, and consequently his proof differs from that of Euclid. There are, in fact, several methods of proving the proposition, but we need not discuss them because the proof depicted on the P.M.'s jewel has always been that supplied by Euclid himself. In medieval times not much concern was felt for a mathematical proof of it. Knowledge then was almost entirely empirical; and therefore such a geometrical principle would be transmitted confidentially as an esoteric truth, explainable only in some philosophical or mystical manner.
The same reasoning may apply to the mysteries of the catenarian arch, and the stone rejected by the builders; but since these are matters not directly associated with ordinary "Craft Degrees" we may pass them without comment, and turn our attention to secrets of quite another kind and of a different parentage.
The secrets which hitherto we have been considering were secrets of geometry; we have now to consider secrets of gematria. Gematria is an Aramaic term [:znmwl a metathesis of the Greek word ypalutca‑rs%a 2 in the sense of letters as representing numbers, and is applied to the most frequently used hermeneutical rule in literal Kabalism.
I must not embark on a disquisition about the nature of the Kabalah; for we are here concerned only with the connection of gematria with Freemasonry, and even that covers an area too extensive for us to examine more than a part of it. Fifty years ago that pre‑eminently cautious author, Bro. Freke Gould, after disputing at considerable length the hypotheses of Buhle and De Quincey3 (then being advocated by Bro. Woodford), was constrained to admit that during the 16th and 17th centuries Kabalism and Rosicrucianism profoundly influenced many secret societies; and that Freemasonry in England "may have received no slight tinge from the (Kabahstic) pursuits of some of its adherents at that time; who were possibly more numerous than is generally supposed, and the larger their number the greater is 1 Proclus, Comm. Eucclidi Elem., p. 426 (Friedlein's Ed.).
2 Literally 'writing‑tablets'.
3 Buhle: Des Ord. d. Rosenk. and Freimaurer (1804).
De Quincey: Hist. Crit. Inquiry into Origin of Freem., Lond. Mag., ix (1824).
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the probability that some did indoctrinate their brethren with their peculiar knowledge," and thereby introduced Kabalistic ideas into Masonic ritual. I Since Bro. Woodford's time much further evidence on this subject has come to light, and today few Masonic scholars care to dispute the truth of this hypothesis. The analogies between Freemasonry and Kabalism are too numerous to be dismissed as fortuitous, and are too direct to be unintentional, although I frankly acknowledge that this constitutes merely circumstantial evidence and, consequently, not equal in value to that which would be furnished by authentic documents if we had them.2 Kabalism is a peculiar system of philosophy, and its votaries have included many distinguished Freemasons: notably Ashmole and Moray, Louis de Saint Martin and Pasqually, besides such later students as Lessing and Starck, Eliphas Levi, Pike, Westcort and Waite; and it is with the work of such Hermetic Brethren in England more than two centuries ago that we are here concerned. In accordance with the mental vision of that period they ingeniously combined two distinct factors: viz., (1) certain profoundly speculative ideas touching that most interesting of all human studies‑the knowledge of ourselves‑ideas expressed by special symbols; and (2) a coherent correlation of the names of those symbols with the ideas, secured by means of gematria; both symbols and names being dealt with after the manner of Kabalism. Besides the use of an alphabetical cypher which undoubtedly was known to Cornelius Agrippa and Athanasius Kircher, we find special prominence given to such peculiar symbols as the Blazing Star and the Tetractys, three pillars, a ladder of virtues, Seven Stars and the All‑seeing Eye. Some of these symbols may have been already in the system, but some were certainly then superinduced into it; and my point is that their selection for prominence in Masonic teaching was accompanied by a particular notice that the Greek names of those symbols bore an appropriate correspondence with the symbols themselves, and with the ideas which those symbols were intended to inculcate, in accordance with the Pythagorean aphorism omnia in numeris sita sint.
You will recollect that each individual Greek word was also a numberthat number being the sum of the numbers represented by its component letters. Each symbol therefore involved a number; and the mystery lay in the mental association of that number with the idea represented by the symbol. Thus, as the Middle Chamber was assumed to be a square apartment, so, too, its name MEaov Talteiov,3 which has the gematrial value 841, is the square of 29. Similarly in Hebrew its name 11tDIP ‑V52 has the value 676, which is the square of 26. Again, the form of the altar was a t Gould, Hist., ii, 138‑237. See also Bro. Hughan's opinion in A.Q.C., vii, 42. z The oldest allusion is in the Letter of Verus Commodus (1725), reproduced in Gould's History (iii).
3 Literally `Middle Treasury'.
MEDIEVAL MASTER MASONS double cube; so, too, its name To evataar~ptov 1 has the value 1728, which is the cube of 12 and is also the cube of 6 multiplied by the cube of 2.
But for examples more distinctively Masonic let me direct your attention to the Blazing Star. This symbol was a French immigrant‑L'Etoile Flamboyante‑a bright star with many points. Subsequently, however, the points were reduced to seven or five, to correspond with the seven liberal arts or the five Points of Fellowship. Now the Greek term for Morning Star is 'Aa‑rip 'OpOprtvds,‑'AoT~p being =609, and OpOptvog being =609. Both words therefore are multiples of 29, a unit very appropriate to Masonic symbolism because the Greek term Q K~ (a point) has the value 29.
Nor was this all. The two words 'Aa‑rip 'OpOpwos when added together represent 1218, which presents another curious Masonic correspondence. For 1218 is the sum of the names of the three cardinal virtues‑HiaTtg, 'EA7rt'g, 'Ayd7r772‑which are the three principal staves or rungs in the mystical Ladder of ascent to the Blazing Star. And we have only to subtract the cube of 6 (which we may regard as equivalent to the Perfect Ashlar or Cubic Stone) from this number 1218, to be left with that of `H KA"dla6 'IaKf~fl, the Ladder of Jacob.
My statement about the Perfect Ashlar being associated with the cube of 6 (i.e., 216) may perhaps need defence, since 6 is not a numeral so significant in Masonry as 3 or 5. But we must remember that, whereas the original reference was to a perpend ashlar, it was during the 18th century altered to a perfect ashlar, meaning a stone cubical in form, and therefore contained by six equal squares. For such a stone the only available Greek name was o KvPLKO9 A(Bos,3 which has a curiously symmetrical equivalent 1111.
Consider next the three pillars‑Wisdom, Strength and Beauty‑which somehow became substituted in the First Degree for the two earlier pillars B. and J. Architecturally the introduction of three pillars as supports for an oblong edifice is obviously a monstrosity, as is likewise their arrangement E. W. and S., instead of being in a row. Such incongruities clearly indicate a non‑tectonic origin, and a signification that was purely symbolical. Had the conventional Orders of Architecture been three, that might have supplied a clue; but they are five. The Ionic, Doric and Corinthian have been applied to the pillars, but their appropriateness lies really in their nameswhich in Greek are Ed0ta, "IaXvs, and KaAAog,4 and have the gematrial values respectively of 781, 1410, and 351‑making a total of 2542. For, just as these three pillars join two worlds, the visible and the invisible, so too the number 2542 is twice the equivalent of their names Koaltos and Ilapa8eiaos.5 1 Literally `the Altar'.
2 Literally `Faith, Hope, Love'. 3 Literally `The Cubic Stone'.
4 Literally `Wisdom, Strength, and Beauty'. 5 Literally `The World, and Paradise'.
152 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES
My time will only allow of one more example. Let it be that which is termed "the Sacred Symbol" par excellence. Whether originally the adjective was "sacred" or "secret" is of little consequence, since this symbol is both. Nor does it seriously matter what symbol (if any) was depicted in the Middle Chamber of Solomon's temple. The symbol intended by those who introduced the reference to it into Masonic ritual was undoubtedly the Pythagorean T E‑rpaKrv s, which in medieval magic frequently appears as Abrac or Abracadabra, and which consisted of the Hebrew Tetragrammaton written in a peculiar tri angular manner called Shem Hamphoresh.
In that extended form its gematrial value became 72 (not 36, as Plutarch supposed). Long before its introduction unto Freemasonry this symbol had been disguised as an All‑Seeing Eye‑an emblem of the omniscient Being Who Himself in the absolute is TEAETH (=Perfection) and Who therefore has both 72 and 81 as factors of His number, which is 648.
In conclusion may I repeat that the mystery which our Craft thus derived from those anonymous Masters is not just a medieval method of juggling with letters and numbers introduced for the sake of mystification. Ancient mysteries were dealt with according to the ideas of that day. To us, with a different bias, some of those ideas may seem unworthy of the importance which they attributed to them. But though their ways were not our ways they builded better than they knew, and the result is a system of symbolism which has proved to be a world‑wide inspiration to all that is best in and for the human race.
Subsequent developments in the Craft have led to an undue concentration upon rigid accuracy and an impressive rendering of its ceremonies. But that daily advancement in Masonic knowledge which we urge upon our neophytes means something more than a monotonous routine of ritual. It implies an ever‑widening outlook on the true meaning of Masonry, an intelligent grasp of its symbolism. And, although Masonic instruction by means of "lectures" such as those for which Bro. Preston laboured is now antiquated beyond revival, something could and should be done to restore the former balance in our Lodge‑work‑so as to instil in every member a general knowledge of the mysteries inherent in the Craft‑and thereby to preserve the pristine ardour of ordinary Master Masons. In every Lodge the Master Masons are an overwhelming majority. Lack of opportunity or bent may debar many from taking office; but so long as they continue so woefully ignorant about the system their interest in it will inevitably wane. Special Lodges of Research attract a few, but only a few of them; perhaps because the many 1 Plutarch, Isis et Osiris, 1 76.
MEDIEVAL MASTER MASONS 153
feel that definite and detailed instruction ought to form part of the curriculum of every Lodge. Who will say that in this they are wrong? I will not remark upon what is being done in other jurisdictions to meet this laudable longing for light; but, as a practical outcome of the Prestonian bequest, I earnestly plead that those wise Brethren who direct our Craft administration will combine in their vision of its potentialities some really constructive scheme for promoting this ideal.
Thereby as our members continue to increase, so in proportion will their knowledge increase; and through their influence Freemasonry will become a power mightier yet for good throughout the wide, wide world.
S. M. I. B.
THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1932 entitled THE EVOLUTION OF MASONIC RITUAL in England in THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY by Bro. J. Heron Lepper, P.G.D., P.M. Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No. 2076, dealt exclusively with Ritual matters and was never printed. It is therefore omitted from this collection.
THE OLD CHARGES IN EIGHTEENTH CENTURY MASONRY WITH THE TEXT OF THE FORTITUDE MS.
(THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1933) by BRO. THE REv. H. POOLE P.M. Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No. 2076 It must be now almost exactly twenty years since I first came under the spell of the "Old Charges"‑that remarkable series of documents, some of a very venerable antiquity (as we reckon the literary remains of Masonry) which have for some half‑century been the happy hunting ground of the Masonic antiquary, and can still be appealed to for fresh light on theories, old and new, on the organization and character of the Craft in all its phases.
Hitherto most of my study of them has consisted in looking back from the eighteenth century towards their origin; and attempting to trace the connection between MS. and MS., and to show how and where they were evolved. But there is a view in the forward direction too. Dethroned from their first high importance as a necessary part of the equipment of a Lodge, these documents now claim a higher place still in our Museums and Libraries, as among the earliest of our legacies from the past. The eighteenth century was, Masonically speaking, above all a period of transition; and it was during this period that the change took place. And it will be my object in this Lecture to attempt to trace the change; to examine the extent to which, and the manner in which, these old documents have left their mark in the Masonry of today; to answer the question‑What part, if any, the Old Charges played in eighteenth century Masonry; and, last but by no means least, to show how, curiously enough, Bro. William Preston himself may justly be claimed as the last champion of the old use and the first exponent of the new.
In case‑which I think is not unlikely‑there may be some Brethren who are not acquainted with these documents, I propose to give a very short account of their nature and contents. I t The text of the Fortitude MS. is given in full below, and may be taken as typical, except for its omission of the Euclid story.
155 156 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES The "Old Charges," or MS. Constitutions (to give them a more correct name) normally consist of three parts: First a Prayer, addressed to the Holy Trinity, for what our Prayer Book calls "Grace to live well".
This is followed by a loosely connected series of legendary episodes carrying the history of the Craft from before the Flood to the reign of King Athelstan. The origin of the Seven Liberal Sciences is ascribed to the four children of Lamech, who ensured their survival after the Flood by engraving them on two great pillars. The next scene is the building of the Tower of Babel; after which we are told how Abraham introduced the Craft into Egypt, where Euclid proved a `worthy scholar', and did much to organize and develop it. Thence, we are told, it was carried by the Children of Israel into the Land of Promise, where its greatest achievement was the building of Solomon's Temple. The Craft is next traced to France, brought thither by a `curious mason' who had been at the building of K.S.T.; and there Charles Martell accorded to it his royal patronage. We next see it flourishing in England, under St. Alban, who greatly improved the pay of the Mason; and the history ends with an account of a great Assembly held at York by Edwin, son of King Athelstan, at which a book of Charges, based on existing customs and usages of the Craft, was drawn up, and was ordered to be `read or told' when any Mason was made.
The last section of the document consists of an actual code of 'charges,'usually divided into two parts‑'general' charges, which are chiefly concerned with what we may call the `morals' of the Mason; and a series of a more operative character for the `Master or Fellow', which relate to the organization of work, the taking of apprentices, and so on.
Such are the normal contents of these documents, which range in date from late fourteenth century up to well into the eighteenth, though the earliest of all is rather different in character and arrangement.
One detail requires a little more notice. In almost every copy the code of charges is introduced by a paragraph, usually in Latin, which may be rendered as follows: "one of ye Eldr taking ye bible shall hold it forth that hee or they which are to be made Masons may impose Or lay their right hands Upon & then their Charge shall be read." (Clapham MS.) This, it may fairly be said, makes it clear that the whole contents of the document were intended to be read at admissions, the concluding portion taking the form of an Ob., and if there were any doubt as to this, it would be set at rest by the closing words, which usually read somewhat as follows: "THESE Charges that we now have rehearsed to you & all other yt belong to Masons you shall keep unto your power so help you God AMEN." (Hughan MS.) THE OLD CHARGES IN 18TH CENTURY MASONRY 157 The very large number of copies of these MS. Constitutions which date from the seventeenth century seems to point to their having played, during that period, the part which their contents suggest‑to the reading of a copy having formed an integral part of the ceremony of admission. But we have evidence of another type, in the existence, for example, of the Sloane 3848 MS., written on the 16th October, 1646, the very day of Ashmole's initiation, and so probably (one can put it no stronger than that) used at the ceremony; while the Scarborough MS., of 1705, is endorsed with a note of a meeting held in that year, at which six gentlemen were admitted.
That some definite purpose was served by the Old Charges is made clear by their repeated revision, as well as by their having been amended in small ways from time to time in accordance with current legislation. That they were by no means a dead letter in mid‑seventeenth century appears from the introduction, at about that date, of the so‑called "New Articles", reflecting the steady alteration of the character of the Craft from `operative' to 'speculative,' the first of which enacts that: "Noe pson of what degree Soever be accepted a ffree Mason vnlesse he shall have a Lodge of five free Masons art ye least, whereof one to be Master or Warden of that Limitt, or division, wherein Such Lodge shall be kept and another of the Trade of ffreemasonry." (Grand Lodge No. 2 MS.) Writing of the Freemasons in 1686, Aubrey tells us that "The manner of their adoption is very formall"; but, apart from inference from the contents of these documents, and the rather slender evidence of the Sloane and Scarborough MSS. already quoted, we have, as a matter of fact, no knowledge of the ceremony of admission as practised during the seventeenth century and earlier. Towards the very close of the century, however, evidence of an entirely different character begins to appear, in the MS. rituals and catechisms, of which the earliest at present known‑the Edinburgh Register House MS., of 1696‑came to light a few years ago. These vary considerably within limits, though there is a very strong family likeness running through the whole group, which consists of four or five MSS., followed by five or six printed versions, culminating in Prichard's Masonry Dissected of 1730.
In one small detail, there is a fairly close agreement between the two classes of documents. The Oath administered at admission is given in several of the catechisms, and there is wide variation in the forms. All, however, are linked with each other and with the few examples found among the Old Charges by similarities of wording. It is difficult to exhibit this fully without quoting a number of examples at length; but I will content myself with two'‑the Drinkwater No. 1 MS., a late seventeenth century 1 The remaining examples from the Catechisms, and a representative selection from the Old Charges, are given in Appendix I.
158 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES copy of the Old Charges, and the Sloane 3329 MS., an early eighteenth century catechism. The Oaths in these two MSS. are as follows: "The signs & Tokens yt I shall declare unto you, you shall not write in Sand, paper, or Green leaves; And you shall not tell it to any Dumb Creature in y░ hearing of any person, Neither to Stick, Stock nor Stone in ye hearing of any person, Neither to Man, Woman, nor Child but to such as you find to be a Mason. So help you God." (Drinkwater No. 1 MS.) "The mason word and every thing therein contained you shall kzep secrett you shall never put it in writing directly or Indirectly you shall keep all that we or your attendrs shall bid you keep secret from Man Woman or Child Stock or Stone and never reveal it but to a brother or in a Lodge of Freemasons and truly observe the Charges in ye Constitucon all this you promise and swere faithfully to keep and observe without any mannr of Equivocation or mentall resarvation directly or Indirectly so help you god and by the Contents of this book." (Sloane 3329 MS.) In two small points, moreover, the forms of Oath given in the catechisms reveal a familiarity with the Old Charges. The form found in the Sloane 3329 MS. (of just about the beginning of the eighteenth century) is alone in including a clause enjoining the candidate to "truly observe the Charges in ye Constitucon," which seems to imply that his attention is to be, or has already been, directed to them, even if they have not actually been read over to him.
Perhaps even more interesting is a phrase used in the Grand Mystery Discovered, of 1724‑the second printed exposure to appear. , Here the Oath is of an altogether different character; but the phrase "be a true liege man to the King" must have been taken directly from a copy of the Old Charges. Two printed versions of these had appeared by that date; but the earlier (the Roberts) has a different and quite unusual form; while the later (the Briscoe) has a curious misreading‑"You shall bear true Agement to the King". Thus the phrase in the 1724 catechism suggests strongly that its composer was familiar with an orthodox version of the Old Charges, though the form of the Oath perhaps also rather suggests that it is a short summary intended to replace the longer form of earlier days, which included all the `charges' in detail.
Apart from these versions of the Oath, the two groups of documents ‑the Old Charges and the catechisms‑have so little in common that one might be tempted to believe that there was no connection between the bodies of men who used them, were it not that one of the latter‑the printed Mason's Examination, of 1723‑explicitly refers to a `reading' as a part of the ceremony of admission, though the subject‑matter of the reading is concealed by a tantalising blank‑"he is," we read, "to have the THE OLD CHARGES IN 18TH CENTURY MASONRY 159 belonging to the Society read to him by the Master of the Lodge". So far as I am aware, there is no other such reference in any of the numerous rituals and exposures which appeared during the eighteenth century.
Probably a fairly safe summary of the position at about the time of the foundation of Grand Lodge would be that the ritual was in process of elaboration; that the traditional reading of the "Constitution" (which included the history) was not forgotten; but that, as a matter of fact, it was not by any means always carried out in practice. Perhaps an indication of a changing custom is to be found in the Alnwick Minute Book, of 1701, where the Lodge copy of the Old Charges was signed by all members at their admission.
The year 1723, which saw the publication of the Mason's Examination, saw also the publication of a much more momentous work‑the first Book of Constitutions, by Bro. James Anderson. Apart from a number of extracts or quotations in the work, and the statement of Desaguliers in the Dedication as to Anderson's `compiling and digesting this Book from the old Records,' two features seem to link it with the Old Charges. One is the general scheme of the book, which starts with a history of the Craft‑a great deal longer, but in many places little less legendary than that of the earlier documents‑and ends with "Ancient Charges".
These represent, substantially, a genuine revision of the charges, general and special, of his originals. Taking as typical the series which is found in the Grand Lodge No. 1 MS. (of 1583),1 there are only five charges which have not a more or less exact counterpart in Anderson's version. These are the charges prohibiting theft, adultery, and the playing of games of chance, and that which enjoins honest payment for meat, drink and board and at least two of these may fairly be considered as covered by the general injunction that all persons made Masons must be "no immoral or scandalous men, but of good report". To these we should add the charge prohibiting the visiting the town at night "without ... a Fellow with him that might bear him witness that he was in honest places." which no doubt helped to suggest to Anderson the injunction "You must also consult your healch by not continuing together too late or too long from home after lodge hours are past: and by avoiding of gluttony or drunkenness, that your families be not neglected or injured, nor you disabled from working".
It would, I think, be fair to say that Anderson has been more faithful to his originals here than in any other part of the book; and, as a result, we may fairly claim that, in the form of his "Ancient Charges", which have undergone little alteration since he first put them out in 1723, the substance of the code of conduct laid down in the old MS. Constitutions has survived up to the present day: and, if it is not universally read to every candidate 1 The reader may find it of interest to make a similar comparison of the Charges in the Fortitude MS. with the `Ancient Charges' on pp. 3ff of the modern B. of C.
160 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES
at his initiation, it at least forms practically the opening portion of the book which is placed in his hands, and which is `recommended to his serious perusal'.
The other link between Anderson's book and the Old Charges is the instruction found on p. 1, that this work is "To be read at the Admission of a New Brother"‑an injunction, startling enough in this matter of a mere 70 quarto pages, which was repeated in the 1738 edition, where it must have applied to over 170. I do not suggest that it was ever so read; but I do suggest that a clear indication is provided that such a reading was a recognized portion of the ceremony, though possibly seldom practised.
If further evidence is needed, it may perhaps be found in the various printed versions of the more orthodox Old Charges which appeared at about the same time. In 1722 appeared the Roberts print‑a version on the whole of standard type, but somewhat revised in (probably) mid‑seventeenth century. In 1724 came the Briscoe‑a fairly normal specimen of a centuryold text. This was followed in 1728 by the Cole engraving, representing a revision completed in 1726; and the same text appeared again in the Dodd print in 1739.
It cannot, however, be assumed that all of these were intended primarily, if at all, for use in Lodge. Bro. R. F. Gould has expressed the opinion' that the Briscoe print may have been put out by Masons to throw dust in the eyes of the general public, after the exposure which appeared in the Flying Post in the previous year. Again, the Roberts version appeared almost simultaneously in The Post Man and Historical Account and in pamphlet form; and it is very unlikely indeed that the newspaper print could have been intended for Lodge use, though the pamphlet might have been. The Cole engraving seems definitely to have been produced by Masons for Masonsit is dedicated to the Grand Master‑and there is no reason to doubt that the Dodd print was also.
But there is a certain amount of evidence that already the Old Charges were looked upon in a somewhat antiquarian light‑as relics‑in some quarters. The usual form for these documents was the `roll'; but there are several early copies in existence in `book form', which, by their `make up' as well as by what is known or can be inferred as to their production, suggest that their main purpose may have been the interest of their owners. Thus, the so‑called Wood MS., of 1610, is a beautifully written version, occupying sixteen pages ruled with a double margin in red, and furnished not only with marginal notes and titles, but also with a complete index (running to another ten pages) to the subject‑matter of the text. This, it need hardly be said, could have been of little use in a copy intended solely for reading in Lodge ceremonies. Again, the Phillips Nos. 1 and 2 and the Bain MSS. form a closely related group in book form, very similar to each other in arrangement and style. The first of these was almost certainly copied by Mr. Hammond, 1 A.Q.C., xvi., 37.
THE OLD CHARGES IN 18TH CENTURY MASONRY 161
who was Clerk to the Masons' Company of London in 1677‑8, for Mr. Richard Banckes, a member of the Company, who was elected to the Court of Assistants in 1677. The Phillips No. 2 MS. is in the same handwriting; while the Bain MS., though not in the same hand, was certainly copied from the same, or an almost identical, original. It is, of course, by no means impossible that all these copies were intended to enable their owners to hold private meetings and work ceremonies; but such copies do certainly suggest their production for interest rather than for use.
When we come to the eighteenth century, we are on rather firmer ground. Stukeley in his Diary records' (under date June 24th, 1721) that, "The Gd. Mr. Mr. Pain produc'd an old MS. of the Constitutions which he got in the West of England, 500 years old"; and a tracing which Stukeley made of the opening and closing portions of the text enables us to identify it with the MS. which we know as the Cooke. It was evidently exhibited as a curiosity in 1721. A letter from the Duke of Richmond to Martin Foulkes, of 1725, has recently come to light,2 which reveals something of the same attitude. "I thanke you," he writes, "for the Old Record you sent me, it is really very curious, & a certain proof at least, of our antiquity, to the unbelievers." Again, in 1728 William Cowper thought it worth while having a copy made of the Cooke MS.; and the MS. known as the Woodford accordingly bears the following inscription in his handwriting:‑"This is a Very Ancient Record of Masonry wch was copyed for me by Wm. Reid Secretary to the Grand Lodge 1728." These references may well suggest, at first sight, that the Old Charges were generally unfamiliar to the `Rulers of the Craft' in the third decade of the eighteenth century. We do not know what MS. Foulkes sent to the Duke of Richmond, though the allusion leaves little doubt that it was a copy of the Old Charges: but it must be remembered that the Cooke MS. was then almost exactly 100 years older than Anderson's book is now; and might well have been regarded as a curiosity by men perfectly familiar with late seventeenth century copies. It is extremely unlikely, in any case, that antiquarian interest, any more than their appeal to a sensation‑loving public, could account for the printing or engraving of no less than four texts within twenty years‑in 1722, 1724, 1728 and 1739.
It must be borne in mind, also, that these MS. Constitutions not only contained the traditional history of the Craft, but also the only set of Regulations, By‑Laws, Charges, or whatever we like to call them, which, up to 1723, had ever been codified‑a series claiming (and not without some measure of likelihood) to have been drawn up by our Royal Patron Edwin, at his great Assembly at York in the reign of King Athelstan. The inclusion of this code would alone be sufficient to necessitate the reading of at any rate a portion of the document at admissions; and it is by no means unlikely 1 Stukeley's Diaries and Letters (Surtees Soc., 1882), vol. i, p. 64. 2 Misc. Lat., xvii, p. 31.
162 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES
that it was this portion that called for the services of an editor in 1723, when the opportunity was taken of revising the whole of the history as well.
That the first Book of Constitutions was not altogether well received is more than a suspicion. Bro. W. H. Rylands has suggested that the Roberts print of 1722 was published on the eve of Anderson's venture as a definite challenge; and he explains' the extreme paucity of surviving copies by the possibility that it was deliberately suppressed and destroyed by authority. And it seems more than likely that the Spencer group of texts (issued first in MS. in 1725‑6, and appearing in the Cole engraving in about 1728 and the Dodd print in 1739) represented an attempt to supersede the semi‑official work, though it may be a mere coincidence that, just as in its earliest forms it appeared about two years after 1723, its latest form was printed in the year following the second edition of the Book of Constitutions. I may mention in passing my conviction that some such attempt was actually the case; and that a most interesting chapter of Masonic history will be opened when or if we ever identify the hand which put forth the Spencer MSS. into the world.
I have, I think, said enough to show that the Old Charges, whether in their early form or in the shape of the "Ancient Charges" of Anderson, played some definite part, in theory if not in practice, in the Masonry of the early eighteenth century, though exactly what that part was is not so clear. At least one early code of Lodge By‑Laws2‑those of the Lodge at the Black Bull at Spalding, of 1739‑made considerable use of Anderson's charges in its phraseology and arrangement; and it is extremely likely that the reading of that portion of the B. of C. must have been a common feature of Lodge practice. When we look for evidence of such readings in the Minutes of early Lodges, it must be confessed that we find but little. In the Old King's Arms Lodge (now No. 28), a Minute3 of 1733 states that "A Part of the Constitutions was read by the Master".
At the Old Lodge at Lincoln (constituted 1730) on 3rd December, 1734, we read :4 "After which the Master went thro' an Examination and several of ye Regulations out of the Book of Constitutions were read and the Lodge was closed with a Song." This instance is of more than ordinary interest, as Bro. W. Dixon (author of Freemasonry in Lincolnshire) hints that it is not unlikely that this Lodge was a survival of an operative one.
Bro. H. Sadler, in his account of the Mourning Bush Lodges (1742‑1780), does not give the Minutes in detail, but is evidently summing up when he writes: "It was an almost invariable custom to finish the business of the even ing by the delivery of one or two Lectures, the practice being occasionally 1 Records of the Lodge of Antiquity, vol. i, p. 37. 2 See Appendix II.
3 Not in print.
4 W. Dixon, Freemasonry in Lincolnshire, p. 5. 5 H. Sadler, The Lodge of Emulation, p. 31.
THE OLD CHARGES IN 18TH CENTURY MASONRY 163 varied by reading a portion of the Book of Constitutions, which book was also frequently borrowed by the members for home perusal . . ." Bro. A. Heiron records' that the 1756 B. of C., still in the possession of the Old Dundee Lodge (No. 18) has the reference "Charges 269" written inside the front cover, evidently to enable the Master to turn up quickly the eight pages of "Old Charges" for use at an Initiation; and that "these eight pages are badly stained, thumb‑marked, and show signs of constant use". He also quotes an interesting Minute of 1810, at a time when the Lodge was adopting the resolutions of the Lodge of Promulgation: "Br. Thos. Spence, P. M. proposed, which was 2nd. That the Charges to our New‑Made Brethren be Read on the Initiation as usual, which was carried." As late as 1761, an early Minute (14th January) of the Golden Lion or Talbot Lodge, of Leeds, records :2 "Opened an Apprentice Lodge in due form and order; reading the proper articles, both in the old and new regu lations in the Book of Constitutions, as also of the By‑Laws made for the Good Government of our Lodge, and after working it in a regular manner, all Businefs being over, we have closed the same." These examples are the fruits of a search through the published histories of some 15 or 20 early Lodges. At first sight they do not appear to be a very rich haul; but if we bear in mind the scarcity of early Minutes, the large number of early Lodges with no published histories, and the comparatively few such which print Minutes in any detail or quantity, they are not so meagre as they appear. Moreover, it must be borne in mind that if the reading of Charges was a more or less normal feature of the ceremony of admission (as I have shown reasons for suspecting), then no mention of it would ordinarily be expected in the Minutes. The examples quoted are sufficient, at any rate, to show that, in spite of the absence of any provision in any printed ritual of the latter part of the eighteenth century, the tradition of the reading of the Old Charges never entirely died out; but was observed at various times and in widely‑separated places throughout the first fifty years after the foundation of Grand Lodge. It is worth mentioning that there are many Lodges which observe the same tradition today, though I have in no case been able to discover evidence of continuity from early times. I am inclined to suspect that such a custom in some cases really represents a revival; and that it is to Bro. William Preston that we owe the revival.
The somewhat sporadic examples which I have quoted have brought me chronologically to the time of that worthy Brother, to whom the Craft owes a debt which it is almost impossible to estimate. And, as Preston is careful to explain, his whole system was inspired by, and had its origin in, 1 A. Heiron, Ancient Freemasonry and The Old Dundee Lodge, pp. 181‑183. 2 Leeds I.M.A. Trans., 1916‑18, p. 115.
164 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES the Old Charges, in the form in which they had been promulgated by Anderson. "Directed", he says' in the earliest edition of the Illustrations, and the passage is worth quoting in full, "by an assiduous study and careful perusal of our ancient charges, which we established as the basis of our work, our first step was attentively to consider the nature of the institution. To imprint on the memory their excellence and utility in the faithful discharge of our duty, we reduced the more material parts of them into practice, and prosecuted our enquiries after still more useful knowledge.
"To encourage others to join in our great undertaking, we observed a general rule of reading, or ordering to be read one or other of these charges on every regular meeting; and of offering our sentiments in elucidation of such particular passages as seemed to be obscure. This practice we still retain," he goes on, and I do not think that his language could be improved on, "persuaded that a recital of our duty can never be disagreeable to those acquainted with it; and to those to whom it is not known, should any such be, it is highly proper to reconunend it.
"Such was the method we followed in the introduction of our plan, which being favourably received, we gradually improved, and brought into form, the several sections which compose the first lecture of mason y." It would be interesting to learn just what did actually take place at regular meetings of the Caledonian Lodge (of which Preston was a member until he transferred his allegiance to Antiquity, in 1774); but unfortunately the Minutes for the period are wanting. It is not, however, surprising to find that the reading of the Ancient Charges took a very prominent place in the programme of the "Grand Gala", organized by Preston, which made the occasion for the publication of the first edition of the Illustrations. In that Gala, which in spirit must have somewhat resembled the `Festival' of one of our Lodges of Instruction, the business of the evening consisted of a rehearsal of the six sections of the first Lecture by a `team' of twelve Brethren, interspersed with toasts and with vocal and instrumental music; but two of the Ancient Charges‑‑"On the Management of the Craft in working," and "Laws for the Government of the Lodge"‑were read immediately after the opening, and another‑"On the Behaviour of Masons"‑before closing. "A rehearsal of the ancient charges of the society," he says in a later edition,2 "properly succeeds the opening, and precedes the closing, of every Lodge"; and he inserts these three in their places in his remarks on the ceremonies.
And so we draw towards the end of the eighteenth century, and the interesting period at which the ritual was more or less stabilised as we have it today. I do not propose to go further: for there is no reason to suppose that the Old Charges were used either more or less in the closing years of the century, unless it be that the influence of Preston's work‑and it went 1 Illustrations of Masonry (1772), p. xxii. 2 Illustrations of Masonry (1788), p. 34.
THE OLD CHARGES IN 18TH CENTURY MASONRY 165 through not less than six editions before 1800‑led to a certain amount of revival. This is by no means improbable, though it would be difficult to prove. What we can state without any fear of contradiction is that, in the ritual of the early nineteenth century we have substantially the ritual of today; and there is no place in it for the Ancient Charges.
As I said at the outset, the eighteenth century was an age of transition. At its beginning there must have been many Lodges in which the Old Charges, history and all, constituted almost the entire ritual: at its close, no room could be found for them, in spite of the gallant effort of Bro. Preston to restore them to a place of honour. Yet they have never ceased to be an integral part of what I may call the `official literature' of the Craft: many Lodges today read portions of them regularly‑perhaps in some cases following a custom descended unbroken from the earliest times; and, most important of all, we are still true enough to the original principle to make a point of placing inthehands of every initiate, with a special recommendation to study it, a true lineal descendant of these documents‑the code of conduct which may well have been originally drafted before the Norman Conquest.
Today we cherish early copies of the Old Charges as among the most precious relics of our past. The monumental works of such great Masonic scholars as Hughan, Gould and Begemann would alone be sufficient to show the value that we place on them. And I want now to show how, though it was many years before the idea gained strength, it was Bro. William Preston who was the first student to use the Old Charges as we use them now ‑to recognise them as valid sources for the history of the Craft, and to build up a constructive argument on the basis of material found in them.
So far, we have seen him interesting himself in the "Ancient Charges" in the form in which they had been `digested' by Anderson in 1723. It is true that in his book he quotes a number of extracts from copies of pre‑Grand Lodge type; but, up to a certain point, these are simply copied from Anderson. But in 1774, two years after the publication of the first edition of his illustrations, he became a `joining member' of Antiquity Lodge; and thereafter, so far as we know, the Lodge at the Queen's Head, Holborn, his Mother Lodge, seems to have seen little more of him. It is an old story how he was immediately elected Master of his new Lodge, though actually this did not take place, as is often stated, at the very meeting at which he became a member. But it is an interesting fact that one of the first Minutes of the Lodge after he took the Chair records the provision of a tin case for an old MS. in the possession of the Lodge. The Lodge, in fact, possessed a perfectly good late seventeenth century copy of the MS. Constitutions; and it looks very much as if one of Preston's first acts as Master of the Lodge was to draw attention to it and to make provision for its safe keeping.
166 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES So at last this worthy student has got back to the originals; and not only does he quote from the Antiquity MS. in later editions of the Illustrations, but he also makes use of these old documents as we use them today.
It is a matter to be regretted that the chief use which he made of them was to support the case of York v. London as the true "seat of masonic government"; but this does not prevent us from hailing him as foremost among the pioneers in this new view of the Old Charges. It is also matter for regret that in a few places Preston shows little more sense of responsibility to his readers as to correct quotation than did Anderson himself. He quotes in full from the Antiquity MS. both sets of Charges; but he inserts them as a footnote to the ceremony of Installation, to compare with the revised form (substantially the same as that read at Installations today). All goes well until the very conclusion is reached, when he wrote:' "These be all the charges and covenants that ought to be read at the installment of master, or makeing of a free‑mason or free‑masons," in which the reference to the `installment of master' is an interpolation made simply to suit his purpose, and devoid of any authority whatever. He is also‑ guilty of a small, but significant, alteration in one of Anderson's "Ancient Charges". Anderson had reproduced an ancient regulation very faithfully when he enjoined the Master and the Mason to "be faithful to the Lord, and honestly finish their Work, whether Task or journey; nor put the Work to Task that hath been accustomed to journey": it is hard to find any excuse for Preston when we read his version :2 "The Master, Wardens, and brethren receive their rewards justly, are faithful, and honestly finish the work they begin, whether it is in the first or second degree; but never put that work to the first, which has been accustomed to the second degree." Fortunately‑or perhaps unfortunately, as it might have helped to identify the MSS. which he had before him he does not actually quote passages in support of his argument for York. Besides various other authori ties noted in the margin of his "Manifesto of the Right Worshipful Lodge of Antiquity", of 1778, he refers to an "Original MS. in the Lodge of Antiquity, A.D. 1686", "MS. in the British Museum" and "O[riginal] MS. in the hands of Mr. Wilson, of Broomhead, near Sheffield, Yorkshire, written in the reign of K. Henry 8th".
As to the identity of the first of these, there can be no doubt whatever. The so‑called Antiquity MS., still in the possession of the Lodge, actually bears an endorsement to the effect that it was written, evidently for "William Bray, Free‑man of London and Freemason", by Robert Pagett, "Clearke to the Worshipful Society of the Free Masons of the City of London" in the year 1686.
The British Museum MS. is less easy to identify. There are at present no less than eight copies of the Old Charges in our National Collection, 1 Illustrations of Masonry (1788), p. 103. 2 ib., p. 36.
THE OLD CHARGES IN 18TH CENTURY MASONRY 167 which in Preston's time probably contained six: the Lansdowne MS. having been added in 1807, while the Harris No. 2 MS. is bound up with a calendar of 1781, and this was presumably done before it was acquired by the Museum. Of the remaining six, Preston's authority cannot have been either the Regius or the Cooke MS., neither of which contains the reference to York; and we are left with two MSS. in the Harleian Collection (Nos. 1942 and 2054) and two in the Sloane (Nos. 3323 and 3848), any of which might have been his source.
The last of the three MSS. mentioned by Preston is still recorded in the list of `Missing MSS.' drawn up by Bro. W. J. Hughan, as the Wilson MS. The collection of MSS. which belonged to Mr. John Wilson, of Broomhead Hall, was sold in 1843, and many of the items came into the possession of Sir Thomas Phillips, of Cheltenham, though no trace of the Wilson MS. was found by Bro. G. W. Speth when he searched the Phillips Collection. A MS. catalogue made in 1806 of the Wilson Collection refers to "A Collection of papers relating to Free Masons", which leaves us little the wiser as to whether this particular item was still in the collection. Now the Master of Antiquity at the time of the Manifesto was Bro. John Wilson, solicitor, of London, the eldest son of Mr. John Wilson, of Broomhead Hall. As the latter died in 1783, leaving the Hall as well as the collection to his eldest son, it is by no means improbable that this MS. never went back into the collection, but may well have been given away by its new owner; and so far it has not been traced. I may add that if the missing MS. were really of the date stated by Preston‑"written in the reign of K. Henry 8th" (i.e., between 1509 and 1547)‑and Mr. John Wilson (Sen.) seems to have been a serious student of the MSS. which he collected‑then its loss is most unfortunate, as it must have been some 40 years older than the Grand Lodge No. 1 MS., which is senior to all copies at present known except the Regius and the Cooke. Some of my remarks on this MS. may seem irrelevant; but I do not hesitate to use this opportunity to set forth all that is known of its history at some length, in the hope that some clue may serve to get us on its trail again.
Whatever his sources, Preston seems to have recognised the Old Charges as good Craft history; and his summary of the case for York, based on these and other authorities, is worth quoting at length, as a carefully‑considered opinion, which, it is interesting to notice, he allowed to remain unaltered in subsequent editions of the Illustrations, even after his reconciliation with the London Grand Lodge had been effectedl: "There is every reason to believe that York was deemed the original seat of masonic government; no other place has pretended to claim it, and the whole fraternity have, at various times, universally acknowledged allegi ance to the authority established there; but whether the present association in that city is entitled to that allegiance, is a subject of enquiry which it is not my province to investigate. To that assembly recourse must be had for information. Thus much however is certain, that if a General Assembly 1 Illustrations of Masonry (1788), pp. 182‑6, note.
168 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES or Grand Lodge was held there (of which there is little doubt if we can rely on our records and constitutions, as it is said to have existed there in Queen Elizabeth's time), there is no evidence of its regular removal, by the consent of its members, to any other place in the kingdom; and upon that ground the Brethren at York may probably claim with justice the privilege of associating in that character. A number of respectable meetings of the fraternity appear to have been convened at sundry times in different parts of England, but we cannot find an instance on record till a very late period, of any general meeting (so called) being held in any other place beside York....
"As the constitutions of the English Lodges are derived from this General Assembly at York; as all masons are bound to observe and preserve those in all time coming; and as there is no satisfactory proof that such Assembly was ever regularly removed by the resolution of its members, but that on the contrary the fraternity still continue to meet in that city under this appellation, it may remain a doubt, whether, while these constitutions exist as the standard of masonic conduct, that Assembly may not justly claim the allegiance to which their original authority entitled them; and whether any other convention of masons, however great their consequence may be, can, consistent with those constitutions, withdraw their allegiance from that Assembly, or set aside an authority to which not only antiquity, but the concurrent approbation of masons for ages, under the most solemn engagements, have repeatedly given a sanction."' I do not claim this as a weighty contribution to the history of Masonry: it is a very slender one, and one which sadly lacks the support of such evidence from outside sources as we are accustomed in these days to bring to bear on our historical reconstructions. But I do claim it as the first of its kind, and as a worthy beginning. Anderson had dug in the same field for his material; but he merely extracted `facts' for his compilation. Preston was the first student to adduce them in support of a theory. It was many years before a successor carried on the work; but Preston seems to have realised, as we realise today, that, apochryphal though their history may be, they still provide almost the only light which we have on the earliest days of Freemasonry in this country.
The 'ritualist' and the research student are not usually the same person; but Preston was an outstanding figure in the Masonry of his time. And he was not only the last to organize a serious attempt to preserve a `ritual' use of the Old Charges, but also the first to point the way, however slightly, towards the much more important position which they were one day to occupy. I welcome the opportunity‑provided by himself‑of paying a tribute to his memory.
1 It is interesting to observe that substantially the same note appeared in the previous (1781) edition of the Illustrations, but with a significant difference in the final paragraph, which there reads:‑"If the constitutions ... and all masons ... and there is no satisfactory . . ." (italics not in original). One fears that it was not additional research which turned possibility into certainty! THE OLD CHARGES IN 18TH CENTURY MASONRY 169 THE FORTITUDE MS. D (d). 48.
This copy of the Old Charges, which first attracted attention in January, 1934, has been for some time in the possession of the Lodge of Fortitude, No. 281, Lancaster. It is the 99th version of the Old Charges to become known, eight of these existing in print, either complete or in the form of extracts or references. The Lodge of Fortitude is one of only eight `ordinary' English Lodges which possess such treasures, there being also five in Scotland.
The document is on paper, and consists of eight sheets measuring about 124 in. by 84 in. stuck together so as to form a roll which is in all about 7 ft. 2 in. long, though a few inches are missing from the final sheet if it was originally as long as the rest. At both ends the paper is somewhat frayed, as can be seen from the illustrations. At a comparatively recent date the whole roll has been mounted on a paper of poor quality, evidently to save it from cracking at the joints where the sheets were stuck together; but this backing is now itself very rotten.
The text is well and effectively written with a number of words, names, etc., in red. It is also furnished with a double red‑line border throughout the roll; while at the head appears a drawing of the Masons' Arms, fairly normal save that a Latin motto has been introduced into the shield itself. Expert opinion at the British Museum has pronounced the handwriting to be of about 1750. The roll has suffered a good deal from damp‑stains, but is legible throughout, except for a few of the words in red ink, some of which have completely disappeared.
The text belongs to the Lansdowne Branch of the Grand Lodge Family, and follows the Antiquity and Foxcroft MSS. very closely. It must, indeed, be a very near relation to the latter, as there is a strong likeness between the coats of arms drawn in these two MSS., while the concluding paragraph is set out in exactly the same way in each. Like the Foxcroft, the Fortitude MS. originally had something after the concluding 'Amen'‑perhaps a name and date‑but whatever it was has now disappeared.
The text of the Lansdowne Branch is of a fairly normal type; one of its principal deviations from the standard text of the Grand Lodge Family being the omission from the historical portion of the story of Euclid‑the Euclid Charge having been (no doubt inadvertently) given to Nimrod. But the Fortitude MS., though it follows the Branch text very faithfully, has three unusually interesting additions to the text: (i) In the account of Solomon, the passage commencing: "(for his ffather Davids sake . . . " and ending: " . . . of the Daughters of Dan)" 170 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES is almost entirely interpolation. This, on the whole, looks extremely like the influence of the Cole engraving, or that of some other member of the Spencer Family; though the reference to Dan cannot have come from that source, and might be taken either from the Bible or, more likely, from the Book of Constitutions. The reference to "Huram or Huram" in the same section of the history also points rather to the latter source.
(ii) in the second `general Charge' we find: "true Liege‑man to the Present King of England and Successively" where the usual reading is simply "true liege man to the King of England".
It is difficult to see the purpose of the addition in the middle of the eighteenth century, though it might have been quite natural in the last decade of the seventeenth, to which period both the Antiquity and Foxcroft MSS. belong.
(iii) In the same charge we find an explanation of a `Mason allowed': "yt is to say have entred into the Society by passing a Lodge and being approved by ye Single Charges." This is without parallel in any known copy of the Old Charges, and is of great interest. It is not easy to see the exact meaning of the phrase `being approved by ye Single Charges'; but if, as seems likely, these are identical with the `Charges Single' (usually `Singular'), or the code which follows the `Charges Generall', the whole clause seems to suggest a Mason who has reached the status of `Master or Fellow' in a regular manner according to ancient custom‑i.e., in a Lodge where the reading of the `Old Charges' is still the prominent feature of the ceremony of admission. The use at such a late date of the term `Society', whose vogue was before, rather than after, the days of Grand Lodge, points perhaps in the same direction.
It is, of course, possible that both (ii) and (iii) came into the text in (say) 1690‑1700, and that the Fortitude MS. is merely a copy of some fifty years later. But the interpolation (i) would seem to belong to a date not much earlier than 1730; and the similarity to the Foxcroft MS. in the drawing of the coat of arms suggests that both were direct copies from their common original.
I consider myself singularly fortunate in having made the acquaintance at just this moment of a MS. which is not only so nearly identical in text with the copy which must have been most familiar to Preston himself, but which, by the interpolations in it, shows more strongly than anything which I said in my lecture how far from being a `dead letter' the Old Charges must have been even in mid‑eighteenth century. And I am very grateful indeed to the Lodge of Fortitude, by whose courtesy I have been allowed a free hand in my use of the text.
THE OLD CHARGES IN 18TH CENTURY MASONRY 171 In the transcript which follows, it has been impossible to reproduce all the variations in lettering; but words in a larger and somewhat ornamental type are distinguished by capitals, while words written in red are indicated by a heavy type. Italics are used wherever the MS. is illegible, either through the fraying of the paper or owing to the effects of damp: in these cases the missing portions are supplied from the Antiquity or Foxcroft MSS.
THE FORTITUDE MS.
On the Coat of Arms‑Vir, ne perjura teipsum Time Deum Honora Regern On scroll below‑Fear God and keep his Commandments For this is the whole Duty of man IN the name of the Great and Holy God of Heaven the wisdom of the Son and the Goodnefse of the Holy Ghost three Persons and one God be with us now and ever AMEN GOOD BRETHREN and Fellows here begineth the Noble and Worthey Science of Free Masons or Geometry and in what manner it was first founded and begun and afterwards how it was confirmed by Worthey Kings and Princes and by many other Worshipfull men AND also to those that be here we mind to shew you the Charge that belongs to every Free Mason to keep for in good faith Jf you take good heed it is well worthy to be kept for a Noble Craft and Curious Science. SIRS there be Seaven Liberal Sciences of which this noble Science of Masons is one and the Seaven be these. THE First is Grammar and teacheth a Man to spell and write truly. THE Second is Rhethorick and teacheth a man to speak fair and Subtle. THE Third is Logick and that teacheth a man to discern the true from the false. THE Fourth is Arithmetick and that teacheth a man to reckon and accompts. THE Fifth is Geometry and teacheth a man mete and Measure of Earth and of all things and of the which this Science is called by Mr. Euclides Geometry and by Vitruvius is called Architecture. THE Sixth is called Music and teacheth a man to sing with voice &c as Tongue Organ Harp and Trump. The Seventh is called Astronomy and teacheth a Man to know the Course of the Sun and the Moon and the Stars. THESE be the Seaven Liberall Sciences of the which all be founded by one that is Geometry and thus a Man may prove that all the Seaven Sciences be founded by Geometry for it teacheth a man Mete and Measure, Ponderation and Weight of all things on Earth for there is no workman that worketh any Craft but he worketh by some Mete or Measure and every man that buyeth or Selleth they buy or sell by some weight or measure and all this is Geometry and the Merchants and all other Craftsmen of the Seaven Sciences and the Plowmen and the tillers of the Earth and the Sowers of all manner of Grains seeds vines and Plants and setters of all manner of Fruits. FOR Grammer or Arithmetick nor Astronomy nor none of all the Seaven Sciences Can no man find mete or Measure 172 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES inwt'out Geometry wherefore methinks that the said Science of Geometry is most worthey and all the other be founded by it.
BUT how this worthey Science and Craft was first founded and begun I shall tell you, Before Noahs Flood there was a man which was called Lamech as it is written in the Bible in the Fourth Chapter of Genesis and this Lamech had two wives the one calle Adah the other Zillah by the first wife Adah he begat jabal and his Brother Jubal and of Zillah she bare Tubal Cain and his Sister who was called Naamah and these four Children found the begining of all these Crafts and Sciences in the World for the Eldest son Jabal found the Craft of Geometry and he fed flocks of sheep and Lambs in the field and first wrought houses of stone and he and his Brother Jubal found the Craft of Musick song of Mouth Harp Organ and all other Instruments. THE third Brother Tubal‑Cain found the smith Craft of Gold Silver Iron Copper and Steele and the Daughter found the Craft of weaving and these Children knew well that God would take vengeance for sin either by fire or Water wherefore they wrote these Sciences they had founded in two Pillars of Stone that they might be found afterwards the one Stone was called Marble for that would not be consumed in the First and the other was called Leathern and that would not be drowned in the water.
OUR Intent is to tell you how and in what manner these Stones were found that these Sciences were written on the Herminerius that was Cabb his Son the which Cabb was Shem his son the which was Noahs son this same Herminerius was afterwards called Hermes the ffather of the wise men he found one of the two Pillars of Stone and found the Sciences written therein and he taught it to Others and att the makeing of the Tower of Babilon was Masons there first made much of and when the King of Babylon (called Nembroth) who was a Mason himself and loved well the rest as is Said with the Master of Stories and when the Citty of Niniveh or the Citty of the East Port should have been made Nembroth the King of Babylon Sent thither Sixty Masons of his Region to the King of Nineveh his Cousin and when he sent them forth he gave them Charge after this Manner.
First that they should be true to their King, Lord, or Master they Served and that they should Ordain the most wise and Cunning man to be Master of the King's or Lord's work that was amongst them and neither for love riches or Favour to set another that had little Cunning to be master of that work whereby the Lord Should be ill served and the Science ill dishamed Second that they should call the. Governour of the said work Master all the time they wrought with him and many more Charges that were to long to Cyte and for the keeping all those Charges he made them Swear a great Oath which men Used at that time and ordained for them reasonable pay that they might live with honesty and also he gave them in Charge that they 174 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES should Afsemble together every year once to see how they might work best to serve the King or Lord for their Profit and their own worship.
Thirdly that they should correct within themselves those that had Trespafsed against the Science and thus was the noble Craft ffirst founded there and the Worthey Mr. Euclides gave it the name of Geometry and how it was called throughout all the world Masonrie (alias) Mazonry Long after when the Children of Israel were come into the Land of Behest (which is called the Countrey of Hierusalem) where King David begun the Temple which is now called Temple Dei and is now named with us the Temple of Jerusalem and the same King David loved Masons then right well and gave them good pay and he gave the Charges and manners that he learned in Egypt which were given by the Worthey Mr. Euclides and other more Charges that you shall hear afterwards And after the decease of King David then reigned Solomon. Davids son and he performed or ffinished out the Temple that his ffather had begun and he sent after Masons into divers Countreys and into divers Lands and he gathered them together so that he had 24000 workers of Stone and were all named Mafonf and he chose out of them 3000 that were ordained to be Master. Rulers and Governours of his work and there was a King of another Region called Tyre which men call Hiram or Huram and he loved well King Solomon (for his ffather Davids sake he being a well lover of that Science) and sent to Congratulate him after his Accefsion to the Throne of his ffather being right glad of his great wisdom and Zeal for the Lord and verry willing to afsist him with necefsaries in his proceedings according to his ffathers directions and his own great Wisdom prompted him on in the Speedy performance thereof and the same Huram gave him timber to his work and he had a Son called Huram that was master of Geometry and was chief Master of all his Masons (and was of one of the women of the Daughters of Dan) that belonged to the Temple both for Graving and Carving and all other Masonrie (This is wittnefsed in the Bible In Libro Regum tertio et quarto) AND this same Solomon confirmed both the Charges and the Manners which his ffather had given and thus was the worthey Science of Masonrie confirmed in the Countrey of Hierusalem and many other Kingdoms and Regions. Men walked into divers Countreys some because of learning to learn more Cunning and some to teach them that had but little cunning and so it befel that there was a man called Namus Greocius who had been at the makeing of Solomons Temple and he came into France and there he taught the men of that Land the Science of Masonrie and there was one of the Royal line of France called Charles Marshall a man that loved well the said Craft and took upon him the rules and manners and after that. BY THE GRACE OF GOD was elected to be King of France and when he was in his Estate he helped to make those Masons that were none and gave them Charges and manners as he had learned of other Masons and set them on work and gave them good pay and Confirmed THE OLD CHARGES IN 18TH CENTURY MASONRY 175 them a Charter from year to year to hold their Assemblie where they would and Cherished them right well and thus came this Noble Craft into France. ENGLAND in that season stood void as forreign Charge of Masons untill St‑ Albans time for in his days the King of England and that was a Mason that did wall the town about which is now called St‑ Albans and St‑ Alban was a worthey Knight and Steward to the King of his Houshold and Head Governour of his Realm and also of the walls of the said town and he loved well Masons and Cherished them much and made their pay right good for he gave them 3 shillings and 6 pence pr week and 3 pence pr day for the bearers of Burthens before that time in all the Land a Mason took but one penny the day and his Meat untill St‑ Alban mended it, and he got them a Charter from the King and his Councill for to hold a Generall Councill and gave it to name Afsembly thereat he was himself and did help to make Masons and gave them Charges as you shall hear afterwards. Soon after the death of St‑ Alban there came divers Wars into England out of divers Nations so that the good rule of Masons was disheired and put down untill the time of King Aldiston in his time there was a worthey King in England that brought this Land into good rest and he builded many great works and buildings therefore he loved well Masons for he had a son called Edwin the which loved Masons much more than his Father did and he was much practiced in Geometry that he delighted much to Come and talk with Masons and to learn of them the Craft. AND after for the love he had to Masons and to the Craft he was made Mason at Windsor and he got of the King his ffather a Charter and Commifsion once every year to Afsemble within the Realm where they would within England and to Correct within themselves faults and trefspafses that were done as touching the Craft and he held them an Afsembly att Yourk and there he made Masons and gave them Charges and taught them the manners and Commands the same to be kept ever afterwards and took them their Charter and Commifsion to keep their Afsembly and ordained that it should be removed from King to King succefsively and when the Afsembly were gathered together he made Cry that all old Masons or young that had any writeings or understandings of the Charges and manners that were made before their Lands wheresoever they were made Masons that they should shew them forth. THEY were found some in French some in Greek some in Hebrew some in English and some in other Languages and when they were read and overseen well the Intent of them all was understood to be one and the Same thing and then he caused a Booke to be made thereof how this worthy Craft of Masonrie was first found and he himself Commanded and also then caused it should be read att any time when it should happen any Mason or Masons to be made to give him or them their Charges and from that time untill this day Manners of Masons hath been kept in this Manner and form as well as men might Govern it and furthermore art divers Afsemblys have been put and ordained divers Cratchets by the 176 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES best advice of Magts. Fellows. Tunc unus ex seniorib' tentat librum et illi potent manum suam super librum Every man that is A Mason take good heed to these Charges (we pray) that if any man find himself guilty of any of these Charges that he amend or principally for dread of God you that be Charged to take good heed that ye keep all these Charges well for it is A great perill for A man to forswear himself upon A Book.
The frst Charge is this that ye shall be true men to God and his Holy Church and to use no errour or Heresy by your understanding and by wise mens teaching also.
Second that you shall be true Liege‑men to the Present King of England and Succefsively without Treason or Treachery or falshood and that ye know no treason treachery or falshood but that ye shall give knowledge thereof to the King or to his Councill also ye shall be true one to another (that is to say) every Mason of the Craft that is Mason allowed (yt is to say have entred into the Society by passing a Lodge and being approved by ye Single Charges) ye shall do to him as ye would be done unto your Self.
Third ye shall keep truly all the Counsell that ought to be kept in the way of Masonhood and all the Counsell of the Lodge or of the Chamber also that ye be no thief nor thieves to your knowledge free that you shall be true to the King Lord or Master that ye serve and truly to see and work for his Advantage Fourth ye shall call all Masons your Fellows or your Brethren and no other names Fifth ye shall not take your Fellows wife in villany nor deflowr his daughter or Servant nor put him to any disworship Sixth ye shall pay truly for your meat and drink wheresoever ye shall go to table or board Also ye shall do no villany there whereby the Craft or Science may be Slandered. These be all the Charges Generall to every true Mason both Masters and Fellows.
Now WILL I REHEARSE UNTO YOU OTHER CHARGES SINGLE FOR Masons ALLOWED OR ACCEPTED Firstly that no Mason take on him any Lords work nor other mans unlefs he know himself well able to perform the work so that the Craft have no slander.
Secondly also that no Master take work but that he take reasonable pay for it so that the Lord may be truly served and the Master to live honestly and to pay his Fellows truly and that no Master or Fellow supplant others of their work that is to say if he hath taken a work or else stand Master of any work that he shall not put him out unlefs he be unable of cuning to mak an end of his work and no Master nor Fellow THE OLD CHARGES IN 18TH CENTURY MASONRY 177 shall take an apprentice for lefs then Seaven years and that the Apprentice be free born and of limbs whole as a man ought to be and no bastard and that no Master or Fellow take Any allowance to be made Mason without the Afsent of his Fellows att the least Six or Seaven.
Thirdly that he may be able in all degrees that is ffree born of a good Kindred true and no bondman and that he have his right limbs as a man ought to have Fourthly that a Master take no apprentice without he have occupation sufficient to occupy two or three at the least.
Fifthly that no Master nor Fellow put away any Lords work to task that ought to be Journey work.
Sixthly that every Master give pay to his Fellows and Servants as they may deserve so that he be not defamed with false working and that none Slander another behind his back to make him loose his good name Seventhly that no Fellow in the house or abroad answer another ungodly or reproveably without a cause.
Eighthly that every Master Mason do Reverence his Elder and that a Mason be no common player at Cards Dice or Hazzard nor att other unlawfull plays through the which the Science and Craft may be dishonoured and slandered Ninthly that no Fellow go into the town by night except he have a Fellow with him who may bear record for him that he was in an honest place Tenthly that every Master and Fellow shall come to the Assembly if it be within 50 miles of him if he have any warning and i f he have trefspafsed against the Craft to abide the award of Masters and Fellows.
Eleventhly that every Master Mason and Fellow that hath trefspafsed against the Craft shall stand to the Correction of other Masters and Fellows to make him accord and if they cannot accord to go to the Common Law.
Twelfthly that a Master or Fellow make not a mold‑stone square nor rule to no Lowen nor set any Lowen within their Lodge nor without to Mold‑stone Thirteenthly that every Mason receive and cherish strange Fellows when they come over the Countrey and set them on work as the manner is (if they will work) that is to say if the Mason have any Mold Stone in his place he shall give him a mold‑stone and set him on work and If he have none the Mason shall refresh him with money unto the next Lodge.
Fourteenthly that every Mason shall true serve his Master for his pay Fifteenthly that every Master shall truly make an end of his work task or Iourney whether so it be.
178 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES These be all the Charges And covenants that ought to be read att the makeing of Free mason or Free Masons The Almighty God of Jacob who ever have you and me in his keeping Blefs us now and ever AMEN APPENDIX I. Forms of the Oath. From the Old Charges : I A: B: doe in ye prsence of Almighty God & my ffellowes and Bretheren, here prsent, pmise & declare, yt I will not att any tyme hereafter, b~ any act or circumstance wtsoever directly, or indirectly, publish, discover, or reveale, or make knowne, any of ye Secretts, priviledges or Councells of ye ffraternity or ffellowshipp of ffree masonry, which att any time hereafter shall be made knowne vnto me, Soe helpe me God, & ye holy Contents of this booke. (Grand Lodge 2.) These charges wch wee now rehearse to you, and all other the Charges, Secrets and Mysteries belonging to Free‑Masonry, you shall faithfully and truely keep together with the Councel of this Lodge or Chamber You sb all not for any Gift, Bribe or Reward favour or Affection directly or Indirectly for any Cause whatsoever divulge or disclose to either Father or Mother Sister or Brother Wife Child friend Relation or Stranger or any other prson whatsoever. So help you God yor Holy doom and the Contents of this Book. (Harris 1.) These Charges that you haue Received you shall well and truly keepe, not discloseing the secresy of our Lodge to man woman nor Child: sticke nor stone: thing moueable nor vnmoveable soe god you helpe and his holy Doome Amen. (Buchanan.) From the Harleian 2054 fragment: There is Severall words & signes of a free mason to be reveiled to yu wch as yu will answ: before God at the Great & terrible day of Judgmt yu keep secret & not to reveile the same in the heares of any person or to any but to the Mrs & fellows of the said Society of free masons so helpe me God &c.
From the Catechisms By God himself, As yow shall answer to God, when you shall stand before him naked at the great day, yow Shall not reveal any part of what yow hear or see at this time, Neither by word or write, nor put it into write at any time, Nor draw with the point of a Sword or any Instrument, upon the Snow THE OLD CHARGES IN 18TH CENTURY MASONRY 179 or Sand, Nor shall yow Speak of it, but with an entered Mason, So help, God. (Chetwode Crawley, c. 1700.) I Solemnly protest and swear, in the Presence of Almighty God, and this Society, that I will not, by Word of Mouth or Signs, discover any Secrets which shall be communicated to me this Night, or at any time hereafter: That I will not write, carve, engrave, or cause to be written, carved, or engraven the same, either upon Paper, Copper, Brass, Wood, or Stone, or any Moveable or Immoveable, or any other way discover the same, to any but a Brother or Fellow Craft, under no less Penalty than having my Heart pluck'd thro' the Pap of my Left‑Breast, my Tongue by the Roots from the Roof of my Mouth, my Body to be burnt, and my Ashes to be scatter'd abroad in the Wind, whereby I may be lost to the Remembrance of a Brother. (Grand Whimsy,' 1730.) As I shall answer before God at the great day, and this company, I shall heal and conceal, or not divulge or make known the secrets of the mason‑word, (Here one is taken bound, not to write them on paper, parchment, timber, stone, sand, snow, &c.), under the pain of having my tongue taken out from beneath my chowks,and my heart out from beneath my left oxter, and my body buried within the sea‑mark, where it ebbs and flows twice in the twenty‑four hours. (Mason's Confession, 1755.) You must serve God according to the best of your Knowledge and Institution, and be a true Leige Man to the King, and help and assist any Brother so far as your Ability will allow: By the Contents of the Sacred Writ you will perform this Oath. So help you God. (Grand Mystery Discovered, 1724.) APPENDIX II.
By‑Laws of the Lodge at the Black Bull, Spalding.
(The portions of the following within brackets are contemporary additions to the original MS. which appears at the end of a bound volume containing, among other items, a copy of the 1723 B. of C., which was in the possession of Maurice Johnson, the Founder of the Gentlemen's Society of Spalding.) (Rules of the Lodge of Free Masons at Spalding in Lincolnshire No. 175, Black Bull. Mr. Matthew Everetts June 22d 1739.
(In a List of Regular Lodges according to their Seniority & Constitution by Order of ye Grand officers all engraven by J. Pine & dedicated to Jno. Earle of Kintore Grand Master 1740 p. 15.
(Transcribed from the Original under the hand and Seale of the Right Honourable Robert Lord Raymond Baron of Abbots Langley then Grand Master and Sent to Mr. John Grundy Mathematician and Master of that Lodge.) Charges and Regulations.
Laid down in severall Rules, which are to be observed, and strictly fulfilled, by every Brother that now is, or may be hereafter admitted a Member I Also known as The Mystery of Free‑Masonry.
180 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES of our antient and honourable Society of free and accepted Masons, at our Lodge held at Spalding, in the County of Lincoln. AD. 1740. AL. 5740.
Rule 1 St.
All Masons are strictly enjoyn'd to pay due Honour, Obedience, & Reverence to the great and almighty Architect; who hath by his Infinite Power, and Wisdom, form'd all worlds, in the great Expansion of Space, as well as every other Body, or Being; moveable, or immoveable, therein contain'd. And as a farther Manifestation to us Mortals, of his Incomprehensible wisdom, and Goodness, govern this great Creation by his wonderfull Providence in that Beautifull Harmony, Order and Proportion in which they appear to all Beings, in every Part of the great Fabrick of infinite Space, and Duration, By this Rule it will evidently appear, that every Brother is enjoyn'd to be a peaceable Subject to the civil Powers wherein he resides, or workes, and never to be concern'd in Plots, or Conspiraces against the Peace and Welfare of the Nation; or to behave himself undutifully to inferiour Magistrates; but in a loving, curtious, and affable Conversation behave himself to all Mankind, so as to answer the true End of Society for which he was intended by the great Creator of all Kings.
Rule 2d.
The intent of Masonry is to knitt, and (blank) all Brothers into a more close and strict Tie of Harmony, and Friendship than the rest of Mankind, hence Brothers are hereby injoyned to live in the strictest Ties of Friendship with each other at all Times, free from all Malice, Slandering, or Backbiting each other; but to the utmost of their Power, aid and assist each other, both in their Words and Actions, provided it may not be prejudicial to their own Circumstances so to do: to be sober, honest, and industrious in their own respective callings, or Stations of Life; Always observing this royal Law, and Rule, of doing to others, as Reason and Religion direct we shou'd be done by in the like Circumstances; the Sum of which is acting upon the Square, and living within the compass with all Mankind.
Rule 3d.
All Manner of Disputes, or debates about Religion, or Politicks are wholy to be omitted between Brothers, especially within Lodge, for as the royal Art of Masonry teachet Us to bear no ill Will toward any Brother, on account of his own private Thoughts in Matters of Religion provided they be good en and true, or Men of Honour and Honesty, by whatever Denomination or Perswasion they may be distinguished by This way of Proceeding Masons become the Center of Union, as well as the Means of conciliating true Friendship amongst Persons that might have remain'd at a perpetual Distance.
THE OLD CHARGES IN 18TH CENTURY MASONRY 181 Rule 4th.
The Place where Masons assemble, and work, for the Improvement of each other in Arts, and Sciences, Viz, Arithmetick, Geometry, Architecture, Astronomy, Navigation, and every other Branch, Mathematical, Philosophical, Musical, or Machanical; besides History, Antiquity, Anotamy, Botany, military Architecture and every other usefull Branch of Knowledge by which the Understanding of any Brother may be improved, is call'd a Lodge; in which Place every Brother ought to be an usefull member, and to communicate such knowledge as by him at any Time may be found out; Except, such Nostrums by which he may recieve Damage to himself or Family, if made known to some of the Brethren in the Lodge, of the like Calling or Occupation.
Rule 5th.
The Persons to be admitted Members of a Lodge must be good, and true Men, free born, and of mature and discreet Age, no Bondman, no Woman, no immoral or Scandilous Men, but of good Report, and such, as in some usefull Branch of Knowledge excell others in their Way; For as the Honour of Masonry hath been always the best supported where the antient Constitutions; and Regulations have been. the most strictly observed, it is by us thought Expedient, that in Conformty to such Regulations, no Brother shall drink to Excess, Swear, or talk loosely, or profainly of any Matter, during the Time the Lodge is open, without being duly censured, and find by the rest of the Brotherhood in Proportion to the Offence.
Rule 6th.
The Time of opening, and closeing the Lodge, is fixed to be from seven Clock in the Evening, till Ten and no longer, and no longer, and to be held every first Wednesday in each Month of the Year. Except some extra ordinary Occasion oblidges Us to convene the Brotherhood oftner, in all such Cases a Lodge may be call'd, and Work done, as it shall appear necessary to the Masters and Wardens of the said Lodge.
Rule 7th.
All Preferments among Masons to be grounded upon real Worth, and personall Merit only, for if not, the Brethren may be put to shame, and the royall Craft despised; but in Order to prevent such Irregularitys, no Brother ought to be made, or rais'd, without the Consent of the Majority of the Brethren belonging to to the same Lodge, Hence, in all Baloting to Raise or make a Brother, the Master is to stand for 3, the Warden for 2 Voices.
Rule 8th.
Lastly it is to be observ'd as a constant Rule that every Brother shall be oblidged to spend sixpence every Lodge Night, if he drinks ale only, but his 182 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Shilling if he drinks Wine, Punch, or any other Liquor that is of a higher Price than Ale; but no more during the opening, and closeing the Lodge. And, farther, that every Brother shall be oblidged to leave the House in which the Lodge is kept, on all Lodge Nights by the Hour of Eleven at Night for Fear of giving Scandal or ill Report to the Lodge, as well as the Brotherhood; It is not intended by these Rules to forbid any Part of innocent Mirth amongst Brothers, but on ye contrary, when the Work of the Lodge is over; Any, or every Brother may sing and divert themselvs in all Manner of innocent Recreations, that are no Ways contradictory to the aforesaid Rules, and Regulations. It is farther to be observed that each Brother will be oblidged to attend on Lodge Nights, except extraordinary Buisiness prevents his coming in all such Cases, he will be oblidg'd to pay his sixpence in the same Manner as if there.
THE ART, CRAFT, SCIENCE OR `MISTERY' OF MASONRY (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1934) by BRO. F. FIGHIERA, P.G.D.
I have ventured to take as the title of the Lecture "THE ART, CRAFT, SCIENCE OR `MISTERY' OF MASONRY" because, in our ritual, those terms, except the peculiar word "Mistery", are used to describe the Body Masonic.
I may here explain that word "Mistery". It has nothing to do with the word "Mystery", or "Mysteries", so constantly cropping up in the course of our ceremonies. The word "Mistery" is the old French word Mestier, which is now spelled Metier‑Art or Craft. I hold the opinion that it was that old French word which originally formed part of our Ritual. Aural transmission has, I am sure, been the cause of many changes in the wording of our ceremonies. In my view, when the words "the Secrets or Mysteries" appear in our ritual, particularly in the Obligation, the original context probably was "the Secrets of the Mistery". Because we bind ourselves to hele, conceal and never reveal certain quite defined things, the ceremonies are unjustifiably denominated Mysteries, as though they were a continuation or adoption or adaptation of the Mysteries of antiquity, for the most part entirely pagan in their origin.
From the first we come up against the everlasting and controversial question: Whence has come this Masonry of ours ? I can only answer that query according to my own definite conviction. Any other derivationand many others are put forward‑seems to me to rest on a confusion of ideas which has sought to convert symbolical parables into historical facts.
My conviction is that we originally derived from the antient Gilds. Of the origin of most of those Societies there is little or no documented evidence, but there are legends, tradition and myths‑as in our own case of Masonry‑which have come down to the present day with a veneer of possibility laid upon a fairly solid foundation of improbability.
As far as the London City Gilds are concerned, the Great Fire of 1666 doubtless consumed very many of their records‑in many instances, all of them. The catastrophe‑the beneficent catastrophe, as it might, in certain respects, be called‑was too far flung, too personal to each citizen, to permit of thoughts for records, then probably not appraised as of sufficient value to merit any risk or even a second thought, but which today would be priceless.
183 184 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES
For the most part, these Gilds, like our Masonry, have ceased to be "operative", and have become purely "Speculative", administering old legacies and endowments left by Masters, Wardens or members of the "Mistery" for specific purposes, for promoting education and training, or for bestowing charity. A few, very few, still keep up their "Mistery" and they are those whose functions are as live today as they were centuries ago, such as Fishmongers, Goldsmiths, Carpenters, Turners, Leathersellers, Plumbers, etc., etc.
To permit of some kind of comparison with Masonry, I propose to quote a few extracts from the 11th Edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica under the title of "GILDS".
"Medieval Gilds were voluntary associations formed for the mutual aid and protection of their Members. Among the Gildsmen there was a strong spirit of fraternal co‑operation or Christian brotherhood with a mixture of worldly and religious ideals‑the support of the body and the salvation of the soul.
Early meanings of the root Gild or Geld were expiation, penalty, sacrifice or worship, feast or banquet and contribution or payment: It is difficult to determine which is the earliest meaning, and we are not certain whether the gildsmen were originally those who contributed to a common fund or those who worshipped or feasted together.
Their fraternities or societies may be divided into 3 classes: religious or benevolent, merchant and craft gilds. The last two categories, which do not become prominent anywhere in Europe until the 12th century, had, like all gilds, a religious tinge, but their aims were primarily worldly and their functions were mainly of an economic character.
Various theories have been advanced concerning the origin of gilds. Some writers regard them as a continuation of the Roman Collegia and sodalitates, but there is little evidence to prove the unbroken continuity of existence of the Roman and Germanic fraternities ...
No theory on this subject can be satisfactory which wholly ignores the influence of the Christian Church. Imbued with the idea of the brotherhood of man, the Church naturally fostered the early growth of Gilds, and tried to make them displace the old heathen banquets. The work of the Church was, however, directive rather than creative. Gilds were a natural manifestation of the associative spirit which is inherent in mankind." Dealing with the Religious Gilds, after the Norman Conquest, the writer continues: "Each member took an oath of admission, paid an entrance fee and made a small annual contribution to the common fund. The brethren THE `MISTERY' OF MASONRY 185 were aided in old age, sickness and poverty, often also in cases of loss by robbery, shipwreck and conflagration . . . Alms were often given to non‑gildsmen: Lights were supported at certain altars: feasts and processions were held periodically: the funerals of brethren were attended: and masses for the dead were provided from the common purse or from special contributions made by gildsmen . . ." Coming to the craft gilds, we read: "A craft gild usually comprised all the artisans in a single branch of industry in a particular town. Such a fraternity was commonly called a "mistery" or "company" in the 15th and 16th centuries, though the old term "gild" was not yet obsolete ...
Officers, commonly called `Wardens' in England, were elected by the members ...
The craft fraternities were not suppressed by the statute of 1547 (I Edward VI). They were indeed expressly exempted from its general operation. Such portions of their revenues as were devoted to definite religious observances were, however, appropriated by the Crown. The revenues confiscated were those used for the finding, maintaining or sustentation of any priest, or of any anniversary, or obit, lamp, light, or other such things.
This has been aptly called `the disendowment of the religion of the misteries' ".
Mutatis mutandis most of what has been quoted in regard to Gilds equally applies to Masonry. But there are other points of similarity, such as, for instance, the common imposition of "secrecy". Once the apprentice came out of his Articles‑probably even before that, in many instanceshe had to make a solemn declaration to maintain secrecy. I am going to quote the pertinent part of that of the Worshipful Company of Turners in London, of which I was Master for two consecutive years. Many new members joined the Livery of the Company during that period and it was, I suppose, the constant reiteration of the words of the ancient formula by the Clerk of the Company which, perhaps not unnaturally, impressed me. They were: "the secrets of the said Mistery you shall keep and all such communications, consultations and conclusions as shall be had at any of the assemblies or Meetings amongst the men of the said Mistery or Art at their common Hall, or in any other Place which ought to be concealed, you shall keep secret and not disclose the same to any Person or Persons whereby any hurt or prejudice may grow either to the said Company or to any other Person or Persons whatsoever . . ." etc.
It seems to me that the Liveryman's declaration of secrecy is the foundation on which our Obligation on admission to the Craft was based. We have greater detail but the speculative Masonic Obligation descends 186 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES from the operative Masonic Oath, and identically the same caution is evidenced in each case. I have not ascertained, but it would probably be found that these conditions apply to many if not to all, of the other Gilds. One would certainly expect it in the Worshipful Company of Masons and in some of the other Gilds, of what I may perhaps be permitted to term "creative" as against the "merchant" or religious Gilds.
Furthermore‑and this is very important‑we were, like the Gilds, not only Christian, but Roman Catholic, for there was no other Christian religion in those days but the Roman Catholic‑at any rate in Western or North Western Europe.
In our operative, as in our early speculative existence, we have always had special regard for St. John the Baptist and St. John the Evangelist, the dates of whose Festivals were, it may be said, almost part of the land marks. The first Grand Lodge, for instance, was constituted on the day of St. John‑in‑the‑Summer, 1717. The Festival of the Four Crowned Martyrs was also identified with the Art or Craft of the Mason and was held on 8th November (on which date the world famous Lodge of Research, Quatuor Coronati, No. 2076, named after the Four Crowned Martyrs, holds its annual Installation Meeting). St. John also was an important feature in the Royal Arch, but has now been eliminated therefrom, after the abandonment of the Christian qualification for Masonry. We can be quite sure that neither the Gilds, nor our Masonry (in its operative days) would have been tolerated by the Church of Rome except as Roman Catholic institutions. It is equally obvious that all the Gilds, social, religious or trade, had Patron Saints and held Gild Masses. The first general charge in Masonry directs "that ye shall use neither error nor heresy", an expression which is clearly pre‑Reformation.
Let us now turn for a moment to the mottoes of a few of the Gilds, selected haphazard. The Fishmongers "All worship be to God only"; The Sadlers "Our trust is in God"; The Drapers "Unto God only be honour and glory"; the Tallow Chandlers Ecce Agnus Dei qui tollit peccata mundi ("Behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sins of the World"); the Mercers Honor Deo. Lastly the Company of Masons "God is our Guide". To this Gild we may be said to have an especial attachment. As was the case with many of the City Companies, this Gild lost nearly the whole of its records in the Great Fire of London. Its grant of Arms, the same as now used by the Company, is dated 12th Edward IV (1472), the style of the Company at that date being "Master and Wardens of the Company of Free Masons within the City of London". The Charter of Charles II, in addition to making the aforesaid Free Masons "one body corporate with the customary privileges" gave power "where any stones to be used in the Art or trade of Masonry should be brought or laid, to search and see whether the same be of proper length and measure, and well and sufficiently wrought". All these gilds recognized the grades of apprentice, THE `MISTERY' OF MASONRY 187 fellow and master. Is it not from this foundation that we and our Masonic Degrees derived ? These gilds, societies or "misteries", call them what you will, were distinguished one from another by their Livery. This uniform was their "distinguishing badge". Nowadays uniforms are resented on the plea of their being badges of servitude. Rather are they badges of service. They possessed great moral value, for men in those days would always carry and behave themselves so as not to bring disgrace or contumely upon the Gild, its membership or the craft or "mistery" for which it stood. Those were all Brethren trained "to work diligently, live creditably and act honourably by all men". Is not our Livery today the badge with which we are invested‑the badge of innocence and the bond of friendship‑at our Initiation; the Fellow Craft's, the Master Mason's and the Installed Master's badges, each of which has a definite significance which the Master explains and each symbolizing progress and reward for merit ? I have told you and shown that our Masonry was originally Christian and Roman Catholic. Let us gather some further evidence.
The Old Charges, so inappropriately termed "Constitutions", nearly all contain an invocation to the Trinity: some allude to Holy Mother Church, a Roman Catholic expression; and the oldest of them, as far as we at present know dated as of about 1400, contains the following: "Pray we now to God almyght and to hys moder Mary bryght". Obviously these are Christian and Trinitarian, and they certainly relate to our "Mistery" or Gild of Operative Masons.
Early in the 18th century our Masonry was converted to Monotheism. That is, the Book of Constitutions no longer imposed the qualification of Christianity for membership: the Craft was thrown open to persons of any religion. The First Charge now lays it down clearly and definitively "Let a man's religion or mode of worship be what it may, he is not excluded from the order, provided he believe in the glorious architect of heaven and earth and practice the sacred duties of morality." This was a distinct innovation, but there is, as far as I know, no evidence of any protest being registered against the revolution. And it is remarkable that the Rev. Dr. James Anderson, the Presbyterian, and the Rev. John Theophilus Desaguliers, the Episcopalian, the third Grand Master, were prominent Masons at that time and they must have acquiesced in, if they did not promote, the change.
This definite departure from Christianity, and the adoption as the new and only requisite qualification for Masonry, already quoted "Let a man's religion or mode of worship be what it may ... etc." caused the Pope, by 1738, to take action: he could not accept the position, and so, on the 28th April of that year, Clement XII launched his famous Bull In Eminenti, excommunicating Masonry not merely because it was a secret Society imposing an Oath, but because, under its new Constitution, men of all religious 188 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES creeds‑Jews, Mohammedans, Hindus, Parsees, etc.‑were admissible as candidates. This was heresy. So long as we were Roman Catholic, like the other Gilds, we were no doubt encouraged: while we remained Christian, we were tolerated: but Monotheism could not be for one moment sanctioned. Pope Benedict XIV confirmed this Bull.
But not everywhere was the example followed which was set by our Grand Lodge of dispensing with Christianity as a qualification. Masonry in some Continental countries still remains definitively Christian.
Thus in 1932 our M.W. Pro. Grand Master and a deputation from Grand Lodge, you will recollect, went, at the invitation of the M.W. Grand Master of Sweden, H.M. King Gustav V, to that country and witnessed some of the ceremonies as there performed. It was indeed in Sweden that our late Grand Master, H.R.H. the Prince of Wales (afterwards King Edward VII) was initiated. The qualification in Sweden for Masonry is still, not only Christian, but actually the candidate must be of the Lutheran faith.
We need not, however, go as far afield as Sweden or Scandinavia to find Christianity recognized in contemporary Masonry. We find it in our next door neighbour, Ireland.
Some years ago, quite accidentally, I had occasion to refer to the Book of Constitutions of the Grand Lodge of Ireland. There I found alternative prayers to those ordinarily used inthe Craft ceremonies and they were Christian.
I am told that the alternative prayers which I am about to quote are likely to be eliminated, if this has not already been done, but they exist in the 1926 edition, although, even there, they have undergone a slight variation from the edition of 1914, where I first saw them. The Book of Constitutions states, after giving the prayers to be used in Lodges, that the following alternative prayers may be used instead of the foregoing. There is then one "At the opening of the Grand Lodge or Provincial Grand Lodge" another "At the Initiation of a Candidate", etc. In the 1914 edition the prayers at the opening of Lodges, at the closing of Lodges, at the Initiation, Passing, etc., concluded bythe words "Through Jesus Christ, our Lord, Amen".
In the case of the one for the Raising, that edition terminated "Grant this, Most Merciful Father, for Jesus Christ's sake, our blessed Lord and Saviour". These particular words have been eliminated from the 1926 edition.
I am told that these prayers are comparatively modern and date to somewhere about the middle of the 19th century, but, at any rate, they do appear at the end of the Book of Constitutions and, therefore, have the approbation of the Grand Lodge of Ireland. The following is the prayer at the Raising of a Candidate to the Third Degree: "O Most High God, Thou Great Architect of Heaven and earth, who, by the leading of a star didst manifest Thyself to the Gentile world, and hast built Thy Church upon a sure foundation, Christ Jesus being the chief comer stone, grant that we being led by Thy THE `MISTERY' OF MASONRY 189 Holy Spirit, may unfold the mysteries of Godliness and Christianity: and, being so joined together in unity and love, may be made a holy temple, acceptable in Thy sight. We implore Thee to pour down upon this our Convocation . . ." and the end of the prayer is practically that in use among us. I am indebted to W. Bro. Heron Lepper, Prestonian Lecturer in 1932, for the loan of The Constitution of Freemasonry of Ireland, dated 1817. This contains two Christian prayers. One of these recites, almost verbatim, the presentday wording of the alternative prayer in the 1926 edition of the Book of Constitutions at the initiation of a candidate. I will, however, only quote from the end of this prayer: "Endue him with a competency of Thy divine wisdom that he may, with the secret of Freemasonry, be able to unfold the mysteries of Godliness and Christianity. This we most humbly beg, in the name and for the sake of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour, Amen".
And then we have in the same book another prayer entitled "A prayer used among the primitive Christian Masons": "The might of the Father of Heaven, and the wisdom of his glorious son through the Grace and Goodness of the Holy Ghost, being three persons in one Godhead, be with us at our beginning and give us grace to govern us here in our living, that we may come to his bliss that never shall have end. A‑men." This is, in fact, the opening phrase of most versions of the Old Charges. Another point of similarity between Masonry and Gildry, and which is surely also something more than a mere coincidence, is that, the Gilds were, as we have seen, associations formed for the mutual aid and protection of their members‑in other words, for administering Charity‑and so the first authority set up by Grand Lodge at its inception was "the Committee of Charity". The Board of Benevolence of today is the direct descendant from that original body. The Board of General Purposes came at a later date. As we have seen, Masonry in the early days of the 18th century became Monotheistic. That change to Monotheism, much as it may be regretted or questioned in certain quarters, was, however, in my humble judgement, one of the greatest achievements of the Society and one which I venture to think did more to consolidate and strengthen it, ensuring its steady growth and liberating it from the weakening consequences of, and possible dangers from, dogmatic discussions within the portals of the Lodge. By this wider and broader substituted qualification the Craft warranted its declaration that "Masons unite with the virtuous of every persuasion in the firm and pleasing bond of fraternal love" and " . . . strive, by the purity of their own conduct, to demonstrate the superior excellence of the Faith they may profess".
190 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES And lastly, and most vital of all, it established on a firm and immutable foundation, the brotherhood of man under the Fatherhood of God. Nothing more, I think, need be said in justification of the change and as an instance of the effect it wrought, we need only turn to India. A Masonic lodge is the only place in that vast peninsula where men of every faith will foregather in amity and perfect brotherhood under one roof and there will be found, as in our Lodges at home, that great landmark, the Volume of the Sacred Law unfolded. But there, there may be four or five books, each in the language, and embodying the faith of the respective attending Sects, thus retaining the essential of our Masonic structure, without interfering with the individual forms of religion. If, therefore, we today reverted to our pre‑Grand Lodge days, what an overwhelming chasm would be created in our ranks, without a single benefit to humanity at large, to religion in general or to our Society in particular. If I may so express it, we would become purely parochial by comparison with the universality of our existing institution. One cannot therefore but feel that Anderson and Desaguliers, Preston and Oliver, and others appreciated, as I hope we do, the possibilities of Masonry on its Monotheistic foundation, and we therefore accept Monotheism as a creative, rather than a destructive force in our Society.
Coming now to the matter of lodge working, to which I must make reference, however laconic, one here encounters the same lack of authentic information in regard to its origin as marks the early history of the Craft itself.
In the Gild operative days and probably in the earliest stages of our Masonry, the admission was doubtless a very simple ceremony. The reading of the Charges, the administration of the Oath of Secrecy, and perhaps the communication of a word, token and/or possibly, a sign. GraduallyI venture to think very gradually‑doubtless during the period of transition from the operative to the speculative condition, this formality was shaped into a Degree. One is forced to the conclusion that, at some period, something recorded in writing was put together, committed to memory and recited to those who entered Masonry in its growing speculative form. I think that we are entitled to say that this Ritual, adapted to the changed conditions, was not just a haphazard creation, but rather emerged from the simpler formulae of the `operative lodges' and was modelled to meet the changing and changed conditions. I share the view that there was originally but one Degree. We have, however, no definite information on this point, but it seems a reasonable deduction. If we rehearse the First and Second Degrees, as we have them today, the phraseology and turns of the sentences seem of the same period. Let me put it another way. In general style, the Third Degree differs materially from the First and Second. It is of a later date. One gathers that round about the formation of Grand Lodge there already were two Degrees‑the First and the Second. The Third then followed. There being Degrees, there had to be relative openings of the Lodge.
THE `MISTERY' OF MASONRY 191 But in all this, as I shall laconically show, quite material changes in wording soon imposed themselves.
Grand Lodge and its early subordinate Lodges had just about settled down to their respective functions when sundry spurious rituals and expositions etc. followed each other and were commonly offered for sale. Grand Lodge did not, as far as I know, enter into discussions as to the merits or demerits of these pamphlets, nor even attempt to traverse the claims for truth which their authors made. It prudently took action and changes were quietly made in the signs, tokens etc., and, in due course, promulgated to the subordinate Lodges so as to ensure that no stranger should gain admission to a Lodge as the result of assimilating the contents of these spurious publications. That these changes had become numerous is demonstrated by the fact that, in 1810, the `Moderns' Grand Lodge of 1717, warranted the Lodge of Promulgation for the purpose of reverting to the ancient landmarks of the Order‑thus admitting a departure from them. But rather more than half a century before then, the Grand Lodge of the `Ancients' had come into existence and this most formidable rival, of Irish origin, had also caused still further changes. I do not propose to enter into the quarrels as between those Grand Lodges, but the point which I wish to make is that the Ritual, as we have it today, undoubtedly differs very materially from the ritual of the early days of the first Grand Lodge. In 1813, the Lodge of Reconciliation was warranted in order to reconcile the two or more workings of that period. Almost its earliest step was to decide that no written notes should be made of the ritual or ceremonies and that no record should be kept, beyond unenlightening Minutes. There only remains, therefore, one course open to us in order to endeavour to trace the original ritual and ceremonies and that is to see what was done by those who followed the original Grand Lodge, and the first of these was the Grand Lodge of Ireland. I do not think that there is any more documental proof in that case than in ours, but that Grand Lodge was not as directly afflicted as was ours by these pamphleteers, rival Grand Lodges, or people who sought to make money out of the secrets that they claimed to be revealing. There must have hence been less interference with the ritual and ceremonies than occurred in England.
There is a notable difference between Ireland and ourselves at the time of the dividing up of the Single Degree into two and I am not sure that the Irish version is not more sensible than ours‑certainly it adds to the interest of the Second Degree.
Our First Degree symbolizes birth or the early life of man‑his boyhood. He is ignorant and uninstructed, but during that period the foundations of knowledge and education are being laid in him. Obviously one of the virtues that would be inculcated into every youth is that of charity, but I think that probably most of us would admit that the precepts or examples of charity set before us in our school days probably only left a more or less general impression upon our minds or hearts. This is the consideration 192 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES which induces me to suggest that that charity test is, in Ireland, much more reasonably allocated to the Second Degree, where the candidate is reputed to have attained manhood and where he is enjoined to extend his researches into the hidden mysteries of Nature and Science. Just as the expression "Nature and Science" surely embraces every avocation of man, the addition of Charity makes up that which we designate by the comprehensive term of civilization. Already, in the Charge to the Initiate he is enjoined to study such of the liberal arts and sciences as may lie within the compass of his attainments:* this injunction is emphasized in the Second Degree, but to it is added the further direction to extend his researches into the hidden mysteries of Nature and Science.
The Charity test, hence, fits in better with the Second Degree than with the First, but we may have brought it into the Initiation in order to warrant the words in the Charge "Be especially careful to maintain in their fullest splendour those truly masonic ornaments which have already been amply illustratedBenevolence and Charity".
When we come to the Third Degree, we are, more or less, in line, except that in Scotland the Degree is somewhat more dramatic and in the United States of America decidedly theatrical, as, there, the traditional history is acted and not recited. There are obvious differences between Ireland, Bristol and such Lodges as the Royal Cumberland Lodge No. 41, Bath, etc., and the ordinary working in general use today in England. But, as I have said, our English ritual and ceremonial do not rest upon the original English lodge working of the early speculative days.
Clearly, openings and closings of the Lodge naturally followed the institution of the three Degrees, but these differ materially and in many respects from the Irish system‑the nearest to the original, in my opinion. Let us take an example. We have degenerated in England into a condition in which we run a grave risk of departing from our obligation of secrecy when we are content with the Master enquiring of the Senior Warden what the next care is after being satisfied that the Lodge is properly titled. His reply is "to see that none but Masons are present". That would seem to be a perfectly natural precaution, but what happens ? The Master says "To order, Brethren, as Masons", or some such similar formula, according to the working of the Lodge, and that is all the test which occurs. In Ireland, it is the duty of the Deacons to satisfy themselves individually before any practical attempt is made to open the Lodge that those present really are Masons and to report accordingly. The same holds good in the jurisdiction of North America which must have derived from us in the early days, when our Masonry migrated to that country, as it did to Ireland. In this episode, then, we find a departure of considerable interest to us from what is the present English accepted form, and the latter, I submit, is not the original working.
THE `MISTERY' OF MASONRY 193 Then, again, the layout of the Lodge in Ireland differs from ours. There are three candles, but they form a separate triangle instead of being at the various pedestals as we have them. There is a space left between the Brethren and the wall, round which it is possible to perambulate with the candidate. The candidate is first conducted round that space‑behind the backs of the Brethren‑before he enters the Lodge which is contained in the space in front of the Brethren. The probabilities are that this was the general custom. Remember the words of the Wardens, "Enter, free and of good report". We perambulate today in front of the members, instead of at their backs, and that may probably account for the expression in our ritual that the candidate "is now about to pass in view before you"that is to say, inside the Lodge‑"to show that he is the candidate properly prepared etc." He does not gain his figurative admission through the Wardens with us, as he does in Ireland.
The openings in the three Degrees are infinitely simpler in the Irish working than in ours. When we come to the closings there is no closing in the Second or Third Degrees in Ireland. These closings, therefore, may have derived from the Lodge of Reconciliation. In Ireland they resume to the Second or to the First. And here we get another interesting point and that is the difference in our closing prayer.
In Ireland it recites: "May the blessing of Heaven rest upon us and all regular Masons: may brotherly love prevail, and every moral and social virtue cement and unite us. Amen. So mote it be." This is a benediction. Ours a thanksgiving. Both, however, contain the word "cement" and include "every moral and social virtue". I believe that this prayer was in use in the Lodge of Antiquity, No. 2, although they have today the prayer as we know it.
I have, I hope, said enough to indicate to the Brethren directions in which they can seek for further knowledge and they will then probably appreciate, as they have never done before, how exceedingly undesirable it would be from every standpoint to standardize ritual and ceremonial, as was evidently intended in 1813, and has since been, fortunately fruitlessly, attempted. No one who has seen Irish, Scotch, Bristol or American working, or the fascinating atmosphere of age which surrounds some of our oldest Lodges, such as Antiquity, Royal Cumberland (Bath), Bristol Lodges, etc. could ever desire to see the universal adoption of a uniform ritual. There is so much of history, so great a link with what now seems to be a distant past, that it would be a thousand pities to cut ourselves adrift from those fascinating ancient customs and abandon ourselves finally and irretrievably to a mere "pelmanic" competition, a danger from which we are never quite free. There will still be those, I fear, who, without a vestige of evidence or probability, will persist in predicating that our lineal descent is from the Essenes or Comacine Masters or from the building of King Solomon's temple or 194 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES from even earlier periods! The elimination of the Christian qualification bears some part of the responsibility for this myth.
Bro. Heron Lepper's History of the Grand Lodge of Ireland dates the earliest certain reference to Freemasonry as an esoteric society to 1638 in The Muses Threnodie by Henry Adamson. He also mentions a petition of Freemasons and Bricklayers at Dublin which was answered on the 18th April 1629, but there seems to be no record of the original Petition.
I have brought nothing new to you by way of research for the enlightenment of Masonic students. I can only claim to have put down in my own words that which has been often said before. My sole purpose has been to offer reasons for the belief, that many of us share, that Gildry and Masonry have been built up on an identical foundation and basis. Investigations into such records as exist of our ancient Gilds would, I am confident, merely strengthen my submission, but there is, in that direction, still a field for exploration for him who has the leisure and inclination, subject always to the paucity of documents. To the man who has not the spare time for investigation, the easiest and best method of keeping abreast of the times is to belong to the Correspondence Circles of the Quatuor Coronati Lodge, the Lodge of Research at Leicester or to foundations of this nature. I have not only sought to give some proof of my belief in Gildry as our main origin, but to remove that other unfounded impression, that our derivation is Hebraic in form and in fact. There always seems to me to be a great and incomprehensible reluctance to admit that we were originally Christian (and, in fact, Roman Catholic) in our operative or pre‑speculative days. This is probably due to a misapprehension as to the intention of the admonition to refrain from all topics of political or religious discussion. That injunction applies only to a discussion in our Lodges and the parpose of this is to prevent dissension amongst ourselves about matters of dogma, either political or religious, which must engender disunion. I know that many of our members have, at times, had doubts as to whether they were right in entering or remaining in our ranks because of our undefined Christian status. There is no shadow of reason whatsoever today‑and in Englandwhy we should conceal our Christian or Jewish or Mohammedan faith. It matters not‑so long as we "believe in the glorious Architect of heaven and earth and practise the sacred duties of morality".
FREEMASONRY AND CONTEMPLATIVE ART (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1935) by W. BRO. W. J. BUNNEY, F.R.C.O., P.G.St.B. P.M. 523, 5429 It gives me peculiar pleasure to be here this evening to talk to you for a short time about Freemasonry and Contemplative Art. We meet also this evening to honour the memory of a great‑hearted Mason. Brother William Preston devoted the greater part of his life to expounding and practising the fundamental truths and principles of Freemasonry. "He had, in truth, the real interests of Masonry at heart and to him we are largely indebted for giving a better tone to Masonic life, and raising the standard of Masonic teaching."' My purpose will be to uphold that standard. Previous lecturers have dealt so ably with the antiiquity, history, constitution and symbolism of Freemasonry that when considering the title for this lecture I felt that a departure from the usual method of inquiry into Masonic principles would be of interest to the brethren. I will therefore try to outline some of these principles as reflected in the three arts of Poetry, Drama and Music.
In the headings of the various sub‑sections I shall quote from Brother Preston's Illustrations of Masonry and from the lectures. Bro. Hills, in The Freemason's Craft, says: "Freemasonry resembles a well‑cut stone with many facets, each reflecting a different but equally pleasing light, each ray affording opportunity for study." So it is with the members of this great Order. Each of us sees the truths and principles from his own point of view, and this viewpoint varies according to one's own personality and temperament.
Education from our early days has been a receiving and an imparting of knowledge; and as we proceed through life, each in the pursuit of his vocation, we mingle our thoughts and experiences with those of our brethren or fellow men, to the mutual advantage of all concerned. There are, doubtless, many who, in moments of meditation, have asked themselves the questions: "What does Freemasonry mean to me?" and "What are my own personal reactions to Freemasonry ?" The answer to the former question will determine the answer to the latter. Each one can paint upon 1 Records of the Lodge of Antiquity.
195 196 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES the canvas the picture as he sees it for himself. Havelock Ellis has said: ò "It is possible to sublimate the material desire of grasping things into the aesthetic pleasure of contemplating them." It is with such a thought in my mind that I shall endeavour to represent Freemasonry as viewed through the three Arts, believing that they can make their own contribution to the great commonwealth of souls.
The poet, dramatist and musician have the power of throwing new light upon old paths, and that light diffuses itself in the minds of men in such various ways that old truths become clothed in new garments, and the new way of expressing the old thought becomes intimate by contemplation of the Art through which the expression is given. As Dryden says: "No Arts are without their precepts." The sole object of Art is the expression of the beautiful. The poet turns the slavery of metre and rhyme into a source of unexpected beauties. The dramatist presents a true picture of human nature in all its varying emotions. The musician bids us look within the soul for the highest revelation of beauty.
Disraeli says: "All things that are good and beautiful make us more religious. They tend to the development of the religious principle in us, which is our divine nature." Does Freemasonry, good and beautiful as it is, make us more religious? Let us inquire. What is our Masonic creed? What does the Order teach us as to the rules of faith and conduct ? Three vital things: first, a belief in God; second, the brotherhood of man; and third, a belief in the immortality of the soul.
The first of the ancient charges is very clear on the first point: "A Mason is oblig'd by his tenure to obey the moral Law; and if he rightly understands the Art, he will never be a stupid Atheist, nor an irreligious Libertine, nor act against conscience."' "In antient Times, the Christian Masons were charged to comply with the Christian Usages of each Country where they travelled or worked; being found in all Nations, even of divers Religions."2 Secondly, the brotherhood of man. "By the exercise of brotherly love we are taught to regard the whole human species as one family, the high and low, the rich and poor, created by one Almighty Being and sent into the world for the aid, support and protection of each other. On this principle Masonry unites men of every country, sect and opinion, and by its dictates conciliates true friendship among those who might otherwise have remained at a pepetual distance."3 And, thirdly, a belief in the immortality of the soul. " . . . the third degree is the cement of the whole; it is calculated to bind men 1 Book of Constitutions, 1723. [Note: The last four words do not appear in the Charge. Ed.] 2 Ahiman Rezon, 1756. 3 Lectures i., Section 6.
FREEMASONRY AND CONTEMPLATIVE ART 197 together by mystic points of fellowship, as in a bond of fraternal affection and brotherly love; it points to the darkness of death and to the obscurity of the grave as the forerunner of a more brilliant light, which shall follow at the resurrection of the just, when these mortal bodies, which have been long slumbering in the dust, shall be awakened, re‑united to their kindred spirit and clothed with immortality."' I have quoted from the Third Lecture, but I take it to mean the spiritual not the natural body.
"This creed is sufficient to show that the chief feature of Freemasonry is its sacred and solemn character and that a religious tone prevails throughout the ceremonial."2 If it does not make a Mason more religious it is not the fault of the system, but of the devotee. Surely we have in the Charge delivered to every initiate a philosophy based upon such a firm foundation as to withstand every assault that may be brought against it.
Now let us see how the contemplative arts have been used to express the fundamental principles of Freemasonry, beginning with poetry. As a general exposition of Freemasonry there is the Ode by Bro. W. R. Wright, delivered at the Masonic Union Assembly, December 27th, 1813. This is printed in Hughan's Memorials of the Masonic Union. Also the Ode by Bro. Cunningham in Preston's Illustrations, fourteenth edition. They are both too long to give here, but the latter concludes with these lines: "Hail to the Craft! at whose supreme command The gentle arts in glad obedience stand.
O ! may her social rules instructive spread, Till Truth erect her long neglected head! Till through deceitful night she dart her ray And beam full glorious in the blaze of day! Till men by virtuous maxims learn to move, Till all the peopled world her laws approve, And Adam's race are bound in Brother's love." The three grand principles of the Order are Brotherly Love, Relief and Truth. The relief of the distressed is a duty incumbent upon all men, particularly Masons. One of the most impressive sections of the ceremony of initiation is that peculiar moment when the candidate is asked: "Have you anything to give to poor and distressed Masons ?" At this unexpected moment what conflicting thoughts pass through his mind! How deeply impressive, when the address in the north‑east part of the Lodge is delivered with true sincerity and sympathy! It is a lesson which none of us ever forgets.
Charity and loving sympathy have been expressed with deep feeling in an "Address to the Freemasons" written by Eliza Cook3 and delivered at their 1 ibid. 111, 1.
2 J. T. Thorp, Religion and Freemasonry.
3 Poems by Eliza Cook, Lansdowne Poets, F. Warne & Co.
198 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Festival on June 21st, 1848, in aid of the funds of their Institution for Poor and Aged Masons. The poem is in the form of a parable. I give the concluding lines: "Ye willing workers in a sacred band, Among the noblest in our noble landYe gladly build in Charity's blest name The Christian altars raised to England's fame; Altars that serve to break the storms that rage In fearful gloom round Poverty and Age; Ye help the helpless with a cheerful zeal, Ye feel for Want as man should ever feel; Ye shed the essence of your God around, For God is seen where Charity is found.
Fear not to die, for freely do ye spare Some of the "talents" trusted to your care: Well may ye hope to gain the highest flight Toward the portal of celestial light; For if that portal Mercy's plume can win, Ye bear the pinions that shall let you in." The authoress must have had in mind the Volume of the Sacred Law, in which St. Paul says: "And now abideth Faith, Hope and Charity, these three, but the greatest of these is Charity," symbolized by the three irregular steps in the first degree‑Faith, Hope, and Charity, the third step, the greatest of the three.
"Truth is a divine attribute and the foundation of every Masonic virtue. To be good men and true is a lesson we are taught at our initiation, on this grand theme we contemplate, and by its unerring dictates endeavour to regulate our lives and actions. Hence, hypocrisy and deceit are, or ought to be, unknown to us, sincerity and plaindealing are our distinguishing characteristics, whilst the 'ieart and tongue join in promoting each other's welfare, and rejoicing in the prosperity of the Craft." "A genuine loyalty to Truth that dares to speak it and to live it is one of the grandest features of manhood."' As Shakespeare says in Hamlet: "This above all, to thine own self be true, And it must follow, as the night the day, Thou canst not then be false to any man." And, again, Longfellow: "But if a word could save me, and that word were not the truth; Nay, if it did but swerve a hairsbreadth from the truth, I would not say it."2 It follows, therefore, as Shelley has said, "there is one road to Peace, and that is Truth".
"Throughout the First Degree, Virtue is depicted in its most beautiful colours, the duties of Morality are everywhere strictly enforced, 1 Preston's Illustrations of Masonry. 2 Giles Cory of Salem Farms.
FREEMASONRY AND CONTEMPLATIVE ART 199 and the principles of knowledge are impressed on the mind by sensible and lively images.
The Second Degree. . . not only extends the same plan, but embraces a more diffusive system; the contemplation of the intellectual faculty, the study of human science, and tracing the goodness and majesty of the Creator by minutely analysing His works . . ."I "That Man's sublimer spirit, who can feel that God is everywhere! The God Who framed Mankind to be one mighty family, Himself our Father, and the world our home."2 These words of Coleridge are a very real expression of the essence of Freemasonry‑'The Fatherhood of God, and the Brotherhood of Man'.
When we estimate the Divine Will in Creation, the mystery of life is one of the most beautiful and wonderful that we can contemplate. Man is the crown of God's creation. "God breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and Man became a living soul." The thought is most happily expressed in the following short poem by T. H. Rand: "A builder builded a Temple, He wrought it with grace and skill, Pillars and groins and arches All fashioned to work his will; And men said, as they saw its beauty, `It shall never know decay; Great is thy skill, O builder! Thy fame shall endure for aye.' A mother builded a Temple With loving and infinite care, Planning each arch with patience, And laying each stone with prayer. None praised her unceasing efforts, None knew of her wondrous plan; For the Temple the mother builded Was unseen by the eyes of man.
Gone is the builder's Temple, Crumbled into the dust; Low lies each stately pillar, Food for consuming rust.
But the Temple the mother builded Will last while the ages roll, For that beautiful unseen Temple Was a child's immortal soul." The life beyond the grave and the injunction "be careful to perform your allotted task while it is yet day," has been beautifully expressed by Bro. Rudyard Kipling in a poem from The Seven Seas.
"When Earth's last picture is painted and the tubes are twisted and dried, When the oldest colours have faded, and the youngest critic has died, We shall rest, and faith we shall need it, lie down for an aeon or two, Till the Master of All Good Workmen shall put us to work anew.
1 Introduction to Second Lecture. 2 Lines written in the Hartz Forest.
200 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES And those that were good shall be happy: they shall sit in a golden chair; They shall splash at a ten‑league canvas with brushes of comet's hair; They shall find real saints to draw from‑Magdalene, Peter and Paul; They shall work for an age at a sitting and never be tired at all! And only The Master shall praise us, and only The Master shall blame; And no one shall work for money, and no one shall work for fame, But each for the joy of the working, and each, in his separate star, Shall draw the Thing as he sees It for the God of Things as They are!" Carlyle, in the third book of Past and Present, closes the 15th chapter in these words: " . . . we will march out of this Third Book with a rhythmic word of Goethe's on our lips; a word which perhaps has already sung itself in dark hours and in bright, through many a heart. To me, finding it devout yet wholly credible and veritable, full of piety yet free of cant; to me, joyfully finding much in it, and joyfully missing so much in it, this little snatch of music, by the greatest German Man, sounds like a stanza in the grand Road‑Song and Marching‑Song of our great Teutonic Kindred, wending, wending, valiant and victorious, through the undiscovered Deeps of Time! He calls it Mason‑Lodge‑not Psalm or Hymn" "The Mason's ways are A type of Existence, And his persistence Is as the days are Of men in this world.
The future hides in it Gladness and sorrow; We press still thorow, Naught that abides in it Daunting us,‑onward.
And solemn before us, Veiled, the dark Portal, Goal of all mortal:Stars silent rest o'er us, Graves under us silent.
While earnest thou gazest, Comes boding of terror, Comes phantasm and error, Perplexes the bravest With doubt and misgiving.
But heard are the Voices,Heard are the Sages, The Worlds and the Ages: `Choose well, your choice is Brief and yet endless; Here eyes do regard you, In Eternity's stillness; Here is all fullness, Ye brave, to reward you; Work, and despair not'. " FREEMASONRY AND CONTEMPLATIVE ART 201 And here we have the teaching of the Third Degree as expressed in the close of that wonderful exhortation, full of "the hope of a glorious resurrection into life eternal", the immortality of the soul. And so I close this section in the words of Longfellow: "So when for us life's evening hour Soft fading shall descend, May glory, born of earth and heaven, The earth and heaven blend. Flooded with peace the spirits float, With silent rapture glow, Till where earth ends, and heaven begins, The soul shall scarcely know."l I will now direct your attention for a short time to Drama and Music. It is not my intention to give a complete historical account of the close connection of the Drama with Freemasonry, but rather to mention a few of the more important works, and to give excerpts relevant to my theme. From the early part of the 18th century there has been an intimate relation between Freemasonry and the Drama.
"In the very early years of the organized Grand Lodge of England it was customary for the Grand Master from time to time to bespeak a play, on which occasions he would attend, accompanied by the Grand Officers and a large number of the brethren, all adorned with the regalia of the order. Some distinguised actor or actress would speak a specially written Prologue or Epilogue extolling the excellence of Freemasonry, and the virtues of the Brethren; and all the Masons present would join in singing the `Entered Prentice's Song' and the `National Anthem'. "2 To the latter were frequently added one or two stanzas bearing upon Freemasonry. The custom spread through the Provinces and into the Colonies, and many instances of bespeak performances will be found in local newspapers, and in old Minute Books, even as late as the middle of the 19th century. One of the earliest accounts is bound up with Cole's Constitutions of 1728‑9, a very rare book, containing engraved plates of the "Old Charges". On page 37 we read: "On Friday the 27th Day of December, 1728, the Right Honourable the Lord Kingston, Grand Master of the Ancient Society of Free and Accepted Masons, bespoke a Play, viz.: The Second Part of King Henry IV., to be Acted on the Monday following at the Theatre Royal in Drury Lane, for the Entertainment of the Brethren, and order'd a new Prologue to be spoke on that Occasion; as also a Scene to be alter'd for introducing the `Prentices' Song', as publish'd in the Constitutions, which was done accordingly; and all the Free‑Masons in the Pit and Boxes join'd in the Chorus to the entire Satisfaction of the whole Audience." 1 The Golden Sunset.
2 Bro. J. T. Thorp MS.
202 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES The Prologue was spoken by William Mills, and the Epilogue by Mrs.
Thurmond, a Freemason's wife.
The Prologue is as follows: You've seen me oft in gold and ermine drest, And wearing short‑lived honours on my breast; But now the honourable Badge I wear Gives an indelible high character; And thus by our Grand Master I am sent To tell you what by Masonry is meant.
If all the social virtues of the mind, If an extensive love to all mankind, If hospitable welcome to a guest, And speedy charity to the distrest, If due regard to Liberty and Laws, Zeal for our King and for our Country's cause; If these are principles deserving fame, Let Masons then enjoy the praise they claim.
The Epilogue too long to quote in full, contains much of the playful fancy expected from a Mason's wife.
She greedily believed each he contrived against that famed Society, and, with many more complained that, "'twas very hard, Women should from their Secrets be debarr'd." In the end she admits that Masonry had made him a better husband, and concludes with these lines : "Ye marry'd Ladies, 'tis a happy Life, Believe me, that of a Free Mason's wife. Tho' they conceal the Secrets of their Friends In Love and Truth they make us full Amends." This Prologue is given in Ahiman Rezon, 1756, page 193. In this edition there are four Prologues and four Epilogues.
In 1777 a work was published in Exeter entitled The Principles of Freemasonry Delineated; printed by R. Trewman. In this book 42 pages are taken up with Prologues and Epilogues spoken at plays performed at Exeter by desire of the "Union Lodge". These consist of seven Prologues and six Epilogues all spoken between 1771 and 1777.
On the first representation of Dibdin's pantomime Harlequin Freemason on December 29th, 1780, we have a Prologue spoken by three persons ‑a father, a mother, and a daughter.
After a short conversation between the mother and daughter, the father enters, "cloathed as a Mason"; the daughter runs towards him saying: Papa, are you a Mason, do tell me, Now do, what's Masonry? Father: I will, my dear‑our Order is designed, To expand the human Heart‑and bless Mankind, Wisdom herself contrived the Mystic Frame; Strength to support; to adorn it Beauty came. We're taught with ever grateful Hearts to adore The God of all; the Universal Power; To be good subjects; ne'er in Plots to join FREEMASONRY AND CONTEMPLATIVE ART 203 Or ought against the nations' Peace design; We're taught to calm destructive anger's storm, And bring rude matter into proper form; Always to work by the unerring Square, With zeal to serve our Brethren‑be sincere, And by our Tongues let our whole Hearts appear. Lowly of mind, and meek, we're bid to be, And ever clothed with true Humility.
All, children of one gracious Father are, To whom no ranks of rich or poor appear, "He sees with equal eye, as God of all, A Monarch perish, and a Beggar fall." We're taught our Conduct by the Plumb to try To make it upright to the nicest eye.
The Compass is presented to our eyes, And, Circumscribe your actions, loudly cries; We're strictly ordered never to pass by, Whene'er we see a Fellow‑Creature he, Wounded by sorrow,‑but with hearts to go,Which with the milk of kindness overflow, And make a careful search each wound to find, To pour in oil and wine,‑and gently bind; On our own b(r)easts to place him‑to convey Where all may strive to wipe his tears away.
Mother: Go on, ye Good Samaritans, to bless, And may your generous hearts feet no distress.
Father: Whoe'er believes in an Almighty cause, And strict obedience pays to Moral Laws, Of whatsoever faith or clime he be, He shall receive a Brother's love from me. "For modes of faith the graceless zealots fight, We know he can't be wrong whose life is right." What though we here such diff'rent roads pursue, All upright Masons‑all good men and true, Shall meet together in the Lodge above Where their good names shall certain Pass Words prove.
Mother: No,‑God respects not Persons, but will bless Those of all climes who follow Righteousness.
Father: Whene'er Philosophy‑by rigid Law, And Brow severe, to Virtue strives to draw, Men are disgusted; we take diff'rent ways, And make fair Virtue and her lessons please. We at our work are rationally gay, And music call to tune the moral Lay, Intemp'rance never at our Lodge appears, No noisy Riot e'er assails our ears; But Pleasure always, with her Bosom Friends, With Cheerfulness and Temperance there attends. Our secrets (of importance to mankind) The upright man, who seeks, may always find.
Mother: But women, ever seeking, seek in vain; Be kind enough this mystery to explain.
203 204 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Father: Tho' women from our Order we exclude, Let not that beauteous sex at once conclude We love them not;‑or think they would reveal What we as secrets wish them to conceal, We fondly love,‑and think we might impart, (Sure of their Faith) our Secrets to their Heart. But we're afraid, if once the lovely Fair Were at our happy Lodges to appear, That Love and jealousy would both be there. Then Rivals turn'd, our Social Bonds destroyed, Farewell the pleasures now so much enjoyed! We're taught to build 'gainst Vice the strongest fence, And round us raise the Wall of Innocence; Happy! thrice happy! could we Masons see Such perfect workmen as they're taught to be; Could we behold them everywhere appear Worthy the Honourable Badge they wear. Thus I've explained, my child, our Royal Art.
Daughter: I'm much obliged‑I thank you from my heart; All you have said I have not understood, But Masonry, I'm sure, is very good.
"In addition to frequent official attendance at performances in London and the Provincial theatres, the Fraternity has been the subject of a great number of dramas, which have been represented on the Stage both in Great Britain and abroad. From 1731 to 1903 a regular succession of plays, sketches, pantomimes and operas has been produced, in some cases of a serious and solemn character, in others, holding up Freemasonry to contempt, scorn, and ridicule."1 There was the comic opera called The Generous Freemason in three acts, printed in 1731. It was a jumble of nonsense; the most interesting portion (to Freemasons) of the whole opera, is the air No. 25, a Eong with chorus set by Henry Carey, and which has been reprinted with verbal alterations in a great many collections of Masonic songs, commencing with that of Cole's Constitutions, second edition, of 1731. There is an excellent version of this song accessible to all in the 1930 edition of Six Masonic Songs, published for the Quatuor Coronati Lodge.
Keats has said: "Sweet are the pleasures that to verse belong, And doubly sweet a Brotherhood in Song." I recommend our Masonic singers to procure copies of this book, and sing these fine old Masonic songs at our social gatherings. I am sure you will find them more entertaining than much of the so‑called music to which, by courtesy, we are compelled to listen.
Of the more serious dramatic works, I will mention Solomon's Temple, an oratorio performed in Dublin for the benefit of sick and distressed Masons. There was also Gounod's opera, The Queen of Sheba, better known as Irene.
1 Bro. J. T. Thorp MS.
FREEMASONRY AND CONTEMPLATIVE ART 205 This contains that fine Recit and Air "Lend me your aid". A complete description will be found in the Quatuor Coronati Transactions, Vol. XVI., page 193.
We now come to the greatest of all Masonic dramatic works, Brother Mozart's The Magic Flute. At the time of its composition, in 1791, there was considerable opposition to Freemasonry, both political and ecclesiastical. A short sketch of the conditions of that period and of Mozart's decision to become a Mason may be of interest. Nohl, in his Life of Mozart, says "About the year 1785 many who were striving with an earnest mind and inner craving after higher truths were deeply interested in Freemasonry. The newly awakened spiritual life of nations was no longer satisfied with the explanations offered by schools and creeds; thus enlightenment on the most elevated subjects was sought on every side. Discussions about Providence and Immortality were everywhere prevalent among deep‑thinking men. Their spirits sought purification and exaltation in reciprocal exchange of feelings in a Brotherhood like this. There were few distinguished men of that day who did not belong to this Order, its mysteries being recognized as aiming after an honest search after truth and sincere endeavours to disseminate high cultivation and helpful love. Freemasonry providing the most intellectual and refined society, Mozart became a member soon after his arrival in Vienna. With what earnestness he was devoted to it, and how he gloried in the exertions of the Brotherhood his illustrious services to the Craft show." The libretto of The Magic Flute has been described as an inane and stupid plot, but it inspired Mozart to write the most beautiful and profound music. Wherever we look in this opera, the consummate art of the composer compels our admiration. Professor Alexander, in his book published in 1933, Beauty and Other Forms of Value, points out that "the highest beauty (in art) is achieved when the materials with which the artist works are contemplated for their own sake".
He goes on to discuss the use of music to illustrate extraneous ideas. He continues "Whether the fusion of music and subject is successful, it may be hard to say in particular cases. In many cases the problem is solved by what is practically a disregard of the words of a song, or an opera, of which the best instance is the sheer poetry of The Magic Flute, where the senseless libretto does not count." Now, I say, that if Mozart achieved the highest form of absolute beauty in this opera in the eyes of the artistic world, of how much greater value is this work in the eyes of a Mason ? Let me call your attention to certain significant features.
"Freemasonry is indicated in The Magic Flute as the service of Isis and Osiris. The comparison of Freemasonry with the Egyptian 206 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES mysteries was a favourite subject of reflection among the brethren in Vienna."' The opera was written near the close of Mozart's life. He felt deeply that the ties which bind us to earthly existence were loosening. Life and he had nothing more in common, so he felt impelled to give utterance to his best gifts before for ever passing "that mysterious veil which the eye of human reason cannot penetrate unless assisted by that light which is from above".
With these thoughts in his mind, he gives the first hint of Masonic philosophy in the Overture, where you will hear the knocks of the Third Degree three times.
The finale of the first act is full of Masonic significance. At the back of the scene is a Temple, over the portal of which are the words "Temple of Wisdom". A colonnade of pillars leads from this to two other Temples, on one of which is inscribed "Temple of Reason", and on the other "Temple of Nature", symbolical of the three degrees, and the three Pillars, Wisdom, Strength and Beauty. Freemasonry is illustrated in the chorus of the Priests, and in the three Genii, who conduct Prince Tamino to the gate of the Temple. The instrumentation of this finale is remarkable, and unusual for the period at which it was written. If we look at the full score we find‑the bright voices of the Genii accompanied by the stringed instruments, and supported by soft chords on the trombones, muted trumpets and drums, while a long sustained note on the flutes and clarinets gives an ethereal effect, the whole producing an atmosphere of solemnity and mysticism.
Again, we meet the figure three when the Genii give the three‑fold command to Tamino to be steadfast, silent, and obedient‑words full of meaning to Masons. Again, in answer to a request for information, they reply: "To tell thee this is not our task" (a reference to the Charge, "Never improperly to disclose any of those Masonic secrets"), and then again comes the threefold command: "Be steadfast, silent, and obedient; go, be a man and thou shalt conquer." Tamino, then sings of "this fair sculptur'd gateway,‑these pillars of marble bear witness that labour and art here inhabit." He then tries to enter the other Temple gate; the voice of the man in armour cries "Stand back!" Thus, the Tyler, armed with a drawn sword. Tamino replies, "Repulsed! Repulsed! then I will enter here," trying the third Temple. Again, from the second man in armour comes the stern command "Stand back!" And so this magnificent finale proceeds, full of Masonic references, to the end of Act I.
The second Act gives us much more. This opens with the stately "March of the Priests," which makes such good music in our ceremonial processions if our Organists would use it. Following this march, Sarastro, who represents Truth, the spirit of Freemasonry, addresses the three priests 1 Macfarren. Preface to the opera.
FREEMASONRY AND CONTEMPLATIVE ART 207 with regard to the initiation of Tamino. The first priest inquires: "Is he virtuous ?" Sarastro answers: "Most virtuous." The second priest: "Can he be silent?" "He can." ("The tongue of good report has already been heard in his favour.") The third priest: "Is he beneficent?" "He is." Then follow the thrice repeated chords of the Third Degree.
I have only time to remind you that in this Act there is one of the most beautiful Masonic songs ever written; the title is: "Within this hallowed dwelling." The entrance of Mozart into the Order of Freemasonry betokens the awakening of an artistic earnestness which seemed lacking in many of his compositions previous to that time. The modern orchestral symphony owes its present shape to two Freemasons‑Haydn and Mozart‑but it was Mozart who gave it the true symphonic art form.
Philosophy was not generally accepted as entering into music before Beethoven's time. Mozart may, therefore, be considered a pioneer in that he incorporated Masonic philosophy into his works, as you have seen in The Magic Flute, and, as I will try to show you, in a lesser degree in one of his symphonies.
In 1788, the fourth year of his Masonic career, he composed his three greatest Symphonies‑the E flat major, the G minor, and the "Jupiter" in C major.
These wonderful compositions were written in the short space of six weeks. In them we can recognize a far greater depth of feeling than in any earlier work of the kind. They are the crown of his life's work. In the "Jupiter" Symphony, the greatest of the three, we have that cryptic allusion to Freemasonry which seemed to pervade the mind of the composer from the time when he joined the Order, but which is only revealed to the initiated through those familiar words: "Seek and ye shall find." Take the opening bars of this Symphony. Our attention is arrested immediately by the knocks in the First Degree.
It is, however, in the finale of this masterpiece that our curiosity and interest are further aroused. From the musician's point of view, "this example is unique among tonal compositions. In this majestic movement the fugue and sonata form move as independent musical factors. No less than five different melodic outlines are employed simultaneously."' In the 19th bar we have the significant phrase, which you will recognize as the knocks of the Second Degree.
You may be surprised to learn that this characteristic rhythmic figure occurs no less than 100 times in the final movement, yet it is so perfectly woven into the texture as to be scarcely noticed by the listener. Naumann says: "The whole wears so light and spontaneous an aspect that the layman 1 Naumann, History of Music.
208 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES can form no notion of the colossal art‑development there accomplished. His impression will be that he has listened to a work of surpassing grandeur and of imposing magnificence and he will humbly acknowledge the wonderful genius of its young creator. Mozart has more effectively accomplished for the tonal Art what Goethe strove to achieve in poetry in the Second Part of Faust." It may be suggested that the persistent repetition of the Second Degree alarm was merely a fortuitous circumstance. Mozart's zeal for Freemasonry, and his use of Masonic symbolism in other works, would appear to give a denial to such an opinion. "Chance," says Voltaire, "is a word devoid of sense. Nothing can exist without a cause," and I submit that Mozart's wonderful employment of quintuple counterpoint, or the simultaneous use of five different melodies, all being performed at the same time, towards the end of the movement, was his symbolic method of calling attention to the "Five Points of Fellowship".
There is hardly any department of musical art of the period which does not seem to have been brought to high technical perfection by Mozart. He had a mind which knew no rest until he had discovered the most perfect architectural form for the expression of his superior artistic instinct. The question arises: Was it the philosophy of Freemasonry that inspired him, and through which he worked to attain the highest ideals that are prominent in these last great works ? From a careful study of the few letters of this period, I think it was.
Let us remember that the object of art is not merely to give pleasure, but to express the highest spiritual realities, "an Art", as Wordsworth says, "lodged above the starry pole"; "Pure modulations, flowing from the heart Of Divine Love, where Wisdom, Beauty, Truth, With Order dwell, in endless youth." We honour the memory of those who anticipate their latter end with a truly Masonic equanimity. The contemplation of death had become with Mozart a spiritual discipline. Evidently, he was deeply impressed with the symbolism and teaching of the Third Degree, for, in a letter to his father he wrote : "After serious reflection, death seems to me to be the purpose of our life, therefore I have for some years familiarized myself with this truest and best friend of man, so that the contemplation of the inevitable has no longer any terror for me, but produces a state of beatified peace and consolation. For this I daily thank my Creator, and pray that it may so be meted out to all men." It was, doubtless, with such thoughts as these that Mozart was inspired to compose in memory of two brothers of the Order, Mecklenburg and Esterhazy, the finest piece of purely Masonic music ever written. ["Masonic Funeral Music".] Jahn, in writing of this music, says FREEMASONRY AND CONTEMPLATIVE ART 209 "Mozart has written nothing more beautiful from its technical and finished effort of sound, its earnest feeling and psychological truth, than this short movement. It is the utterance of a resolute manly character which, in the face of death, pays the rightful tribute to sorrow, without being either crushed or stunned by it." Mozart's last great work was his "Requiem Mass", in which he envisaged his own death. Alas! he never lived to complete it.
Now, if I may do so without presumption, I should like to offer a few remarks as to the manner in which art may be used to beautify our ceremonial working or, conversely, how indiscretion in the use of material can mar the dignity of it. I have heard, during an important ceremonial procession, music played which lacks the stateliness that such an occasion demands. How much more suitable would be the march from The Magic Flute, already mentioned, or even the March from Handel's Scipio, or his March from the Occasional Oratorio. All these are far more dignified and far better for processional purposes.
Again, during the perambulations in the Three Degrees, it is disturbing to hear fragments of popular songs or tunes played, which are inappropriate. Music which distracts the minds of the brethren from the ceremony is not a help but a hindrance, and its choice lacks that fine sense of discrimination that we ought to expect. Art should lend support to a ceremony, not the reverse. There is a vast amount of good music available if our Organists will take the trouble to search for it.
In the ceremony of Raising, after being entrusted with the secrets of the Degree, I have heard the candidate accompanied out of the Lodge to the most puerile music. You will remember the Candidate has previously heard these words: "It is thus all M.Ms. are . . . from a figurative . . ." I cannot imagine anything more suitable to play at this part of the ceremony than that from Mozart's "Requiem" to the words in the English translation: "Lord, redeem us from the grave, and ransom us from death for ever." A few bars will suffice.
I have heard Handel's Dead March in "Saul" played at that inappropriate part of the ceremony when the Senior Deacon is directed to instruct the candidate to advance to the East by the proper steps, and the brethren called to order while half of it was played, thus holding up the ceremony for some three minutes. To wrest such an important and well‑known work of art from its proper setting is a perversion. A few bars of Chopin's Prelude in C minor would be more suitable. It possesses the requisite solemnity, and need not hold up the smooth progress of the ceremony, because it can be concluded in four bars, or six, or eight, according to the length of time required.
In our social gatherings I plead for music of a high standard, and entertainment that is in perfect accord with the atmosphere of Freemasonry.
210 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES There is no moral or artistic uplift in listening to a comic song after taking part in an impressive rendering of the Third Degree. We ought to be very careful that we do not nullify the effect of the Initiation ceremony on the mind of the candidate by introducing music or song, or even a flippant toast, which may remove his thoughts far away from the ceremony through which he has passed.
Freemasonry is full of the expression of the beautiful. We work a ritual pure and dignified in its conception and, as such, requiring an approach of the utmost reverence and sincerity from those who attempt its inter pretation and expression. "The letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life." If, instead of the cold mechanical type of rendering, the sole aim of which seems merely to be "word perfect", we could have an exposition warmed by sincerity and sympathy proceeding from the heart and soul of the speaker, how much more convincing, inspiring, and human the rendering of our ceremonies might still become.
We have seen that no effort is spared in acquiring perfection in the Contemplative Arts; may we not, by similar effort, aim at perfection in everyy detail of the art of Freemasonry ? so that each time we witness its familiar ceremonies we perceive yet another facet of that "well‑cut stone';. In the past the great principles of Masonry have been a source of inspiration to the artist, and he has responded to the interpretation of those principles of truth and beauty in the glories of his matchless creations in architecture, sculpture, painting, poetry, and music; with the inevitable result that there is some of the real spirit of Masonry in all good art. There is a Brotherhood in both, and they can be made to react upon each other in such a way that they bring us nearer to the Infinite. To serve our Brethren and fellow‑men in any capacity that may promote their moral and spiritual advancement is to attain to the highest usefulness and dignity of man. Each of us has his own office in this advancement. It depends upon the artist to what purpose he devotes his genius. If he consecrates his art to the highest and noblest good he is fulfilling his duty, but he must further devote himself to it with persevering assiduity, or he will never gain the approval of his own artistic judgement and conscience. He must build not only for time but for eternity; and that is the essence of the teaching of Freemasonry. I never hear the address to the Worshipful Master at his Installationwithout thinkingthatevery Freemason is a missionary now, and always, for good or for evil, whether he intends it or not.
Thus, my Brethren, I have tried, from the point of view of a musician, operative rather than speculative, to outline some of those principles and ideals for which, I believe, Bro. William Preston lived and laboured to the lasting good of our Masonic art. You have only to read his Illustrations of Masonry‑a book to be found, I hope, in every Masonic library, and which has been the inspiration of this lecture‑to realise that he consecrated FREEMASONRY AND CONTEMPLATIVE ART his brilliant genius to the exposition of all that was noble, good and beautiful in this sacred Masonry of ours.
And so I feel that these thoughts upon "Freemasonry and Contemplative Art" may be summed up in the words of Robert Bridges: "Gird on thy sword, O man, thy strength endue, In fair desire thine earthborn joys renew; Live thou thy life beneath the making sun, Till Beauty, Truth, and Love are one.
Thy work with Beauty crown, thy life with love; Thy mind with truth uplift to God above; From whom all is, from whom was all begun, In whom all Beauty, Truth, and Love are one." FREEMASONRY, RITUAL AND CEREMONIAL (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1936) BRO. LEWIS EDWARDS, P.A.G.Reg.
It would be to follow custom and to do that which is altogether fitting were we just for a moment to bear in mind the name and the services of William Preston, to whom is due the opportunity for this our meeting you, Brethren, here for the purpose of gaining some enlightenment, and I here, as though travelling on a wander‑year‑if senescence is still capable of this‑the teacher, from contact with his Brethren learning much more than he can ever hope to teach them. But beyond the invocatory mention of William Preston, it has seemed to me becoming to attempt to deal with a subject with which he was intimately connected and which was ever dear to his heart‑I mean ritual and ceremonial. Sharing the view of John Donne of . . . "sacramental and ritual, and ceremonial things, which are ... the subsides of religion", Preston could recognize this importance while, so to speak, keeping them in their place, as when he says, "In all regular assemblies of men which are convened for wise and useful purposes, the commencement and conclusion of business is accompanied by some form. In every country of the world the practice prevails, and is deemed essential. From the most remote periods of antiquity it is traced, and the refined improvements of modern times have not abolished it.
Ceremonies simply considered are little more than visionary delusions, but their effects are sometimes important. When they impress awe and reverence on the mind, and attract the attention to solemn rites by external forms, they are interesting objects. These purposes are effected when judicious ceremonies are regularly con ducted and properly arranged. On this ground they have received the sanction of the wisest men in all ages, and consequently could not escape the notice of Masons. To begin well, is the most likely means to end well; and it is justly remarked that when order and method are neglected at the beginning, they will be seldom found to take place at the end.
The ceremony of opening and closing the Lodge with solemnity and decorum is therefore universally adopted among Masons; and though the mode in some meetings may vary, and in every Degree must vary, 213 214 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES still an uniformity in the general practice prevails in the lodge; and the variation (if any) is solely occasioned by a want of method, which a little application will easily remove."' These words of Preston are full of sound wisdom, and of good eighteenthcentury sense. He, like most of our Masonic writers, looked upon himself as a citizen of the world, and on Masonry as but a branch of human knowledge and of social conduct, and we may feel sure that he would have welcomed any attempt at placing his beloved Craft against the background of contemporary knowledge from time to time, so that what is immutable might stand out in a fresh glory and that which is ephemeral be revised in the light of fuller knowledge as such becomes accessible. He, from the nature of the case, had displayed his views against an eighteenth‑century background with a tincture of contemporary reason, and according to the principles of history and of sociology current in his day. To criticise his treatment would be unhistorical and unfair, but to revise, to correct, or to corroborate his judgements would be, to my way of thinking, to treat him not as a dead classic, but as a powerful and still‑living force. So much has been written since Preston taught, with regard at least to the historical side of ritual and ceremonial, that an attempt to view the Craft, however cursorily, in the light of modern knowledge seems well overdue.
At the outset, it is perhaps necessary to point.out a distinction. I have used the terms "ritual" and "ceremonial" together, and throughout I shall do so either in this way or alternatively, since for my present purpose the principles regulating them and the history behind them are the same. Even the Oxford English Dictionary defines "ritual" as a "prescribed order of performing religious or other devotional service", and then goes on to speak of "ritual observances: ceremonial acts". Bishop Frere, however, points out the distinction in his Principles of Religious Ceremonial, when, after using the word Ritualist in what he calls "its popular and inaccurate sense" of "one favouring ceremonial" he goes on to say that "Strictly speaking, a rite is a form of service, while ceremony is the method of its performance", and proposes to maintain "the true distinction between ritual and ceremonial" throughout the rest of the work.2 The Rev. Vernon Staley, in his Ceremonial of the English Church, quotes Archbishop Benson in the Lincoln judgment as saying that "the word `rite' is held to include, if not to consist of, the text of the prayers and Scriptures read; the books called `rituals' containing these, while the books called `ceremonials' prescribe the mode of using the rites or conducting the service".
And Staley adds "Strictly speaking then, the term `ritual' signifies the words of a rite, and the term `ceremonial' the actions in which it consists or 1 Illustrations of Masonry, 17th Edition (1861), p. 24. 2 1906 Edition, p. 3, note.
FREEMASONRY, RITUAL AND CEREMONIAL 215 by which it is accompanied. Thus, it is possible to be a learned 'ritualist' and yet to know little or nothing about `ceremonial'; in the language of the Lodge of Instruction one can know the whole book without knowing the floor‑work, and be thus incapable of conducting a ceremony." Further, Staley explains ceremonial as being concerned with the circumstances, as distinguished from the substance, of religion, and again quotes Archbishop Benson as saying that "a ceremony in worship is an action or act in which material objects may or may not be used, but is not itself any material object", and concluded by defining it as "a formal symbolic gesture or action of religious meaning, performed or done in the course of the services of the Church".
One word more on terminology. In accordance with custom, I use the term "speculative" in contrast to "practical", although there are serious objections to this use. The Oxford English Dictionary states that "speculative" refers to "speculation or theory in contrast to practical or practical knowledge", and it should properly be applied to the science of the man of theory, the architect, as opposed to the practical workman, the mason. John Hall's Historical Expostulation (1565) well shows the difference "learning in chirurgery consisteth not in speculation only, nor in practice only, but in speculation well practised by experience".1 There are really three aspects under which to view an art: the practical or operative, the theoretical or speculative, and what is variously called the symbolical or mystical. The term "speculative" is then best applied to the second of these. The question of whether "symbolical" or "mystical" is the better word for the third aspect I propose to discuss later in another context.
Seen in the light of our own experience and theories, the views of the earlier writers on ritual seem to be vitiated by the lack of an historical sense, by a failure to recognize the influence of a cultural and social environment different from their own, by the ascription to the primitive mind of the same impulses‑or rather the same complex of impulses‑as those which regulated their own beliefs and actions. The idea of change and of development was not adequately grasped: accidental similarities were taken to mean essential likenesses. The discovery, for example, of tools used by the ancient Egyptians similar to those used by our operative ancestors and then by our speculative Brethren was boldly taken to show that Freemasonry existed in Egypt, as though we should say that because the Egyptians believed in the immortality of the soul, therefore they were Christians. Similar beliefs, similar practices, similar symbols even, can be found throughout historical time and geographical space, but in itself this means little. Even within the smaller compass of the history of the "Old Charges" we know the difficulties of 1 Ed. T. J. Pettigrew (Percy Society 41), 1844, p. 44.
216 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES tracing their descent from an unknown though conjecturally synthesized original. Still more is it the case with the origin and development of the human race. We find likenesses in the various types of creatures, some more human than animal, some more animal than human, but an exact classification still defies the efforts of anthropologists. Again, though we keep many of our old forms in religion, in politics, in society, their relative importance has changed, and, what is more, their present significance is recognizable in their old only to the trained observer.
Before I deal with the subject of primitive ritual there are one or two points which it is necessary to have previously appreciated before the matter can be understood. Any ritual we use now, whether of the Church or of Masonry, comes to us, we are accustomed to think, as being imposed by authority. If in time of drought we pray for rain we do so in accordance with the forms prescribed by the authority which governs our faith and binds our conscience. Our primitive ancestors knew little of faith or conscience in our sense, however. They worked according to principles of analogy or of association. As water is associated with rain, so they thought that by the use of the one they could produce the other, as where, to take a presentday instance, according to Sir James Frazer at Poona, "When rain is needed, the boys dress up one of their number in nothing but leaves and call him King of Rain. Then they go round to every house in the village, where the householder or his wife sprinkles the Rain King with water and gives the party food of various kinds. When they have thus visited all the houses, they strip the Rain King of his leafy robes and feast upon what they have gathered".' Here we have in our sense no religious element, no prayer, no morality, no idea of divinity. It is only later that we get personification and myth making. In this later stage, each of the natural forces becomes ascribed to a divine or super‑human person and to their operation is attached a legend or myth. We can see a primitive ritual, accompanied sometimes by what seem to us grossly immoral features, being given the background of a myth, as in the great nature cults, and then a development into what we should recognize as a religion, dictating principles of the purest morality. Frazer speaks of "Isis in the olden times, a rustic corn‑mother adored with uncouth rites by Egyptian swains", and adds, "But the homely features of the clownish goddess could hardly be traced in the refined, the saintly form which spiritualised by ages of religious devotion she presented to her worshippers of after days as the true wife, the tender mother, the beneficent queen of nature, encircled with the nimbus of moral purity, of immemorial and mysterious sanctity".
I Golden Bough (Abridged Edition), p. 70.
FREEMASONRY, RITUAL AND CEREMONIAL 217 Consider, for example, what Robertson Smith says "And here we shall go very far wrong if we take it for granted that what is the most important and prominent side of religion to us was equally important in the ancient society with which we are to deal. In connection with every religion, whether ancient or modern, we find on the one hand certain beliefs, and on the other certain institutions, ritual practices and rules of conduct. Our modem habit is to look at religion from the side of belief rather than of practice; for, down to comparatively recent times, almost the only forms of religion seriously studied in Europe have been those of the various Christian churches, and all parts of Christendom are agreed that ritual is important only in connection with its interpretation. Thus the study of religion has meant mainly the study of Christian beliefs, and instruction in religion has habitually begun with the creed, religious duties being presented to the learner as flowing from the dogmatic truths he is taught to accept. All this seems to us so much a matter of course that, when we approach some strange or antique religion, we naturally assume that here also our first business is to search for a creed, and find in it the key to ritual and practice. But the antique religions had for the most part no creed; they consisted entirely of institutions and practices. No doubt men will not habitually follow certain practices without attaching a meaning to them, but as a rule we find that while the practice was rigorously fixed, the meaning attached to it was extremely vague, and the same rite was explained by different people in different ways, without any question of orthodoxy or heterodoxy arising in consequence. In ancient Greece, for example, certain things were done at a temple, and people were agreed that it would be impious not to do them. But if you had asked why they were done, you would probably have had several mutually contradictory explanations from different persons, and no one would have thought it a matter of the least religious importance which of these you chose to adopt. Indeed, the explanations offered would not have been of a kind to stir any strong feeling; for in most cases they would have been merely different stories as to the circumstances under which the rite first came to be established, by the command, or by the direct example of the god. The rite, in short, was connected not with a dogma, but with a myth.
In all the antique religions mythology takes the place of dogma; that is, the sacred lore of priests and people, so far as it does not consist of mere rules for the performance of religious acts, assumes the form of stories about the gods, and these stories afford the only explanation that is offered of the precepts of religion and the prescribed rules of ritual. But, strictly speaking, this mythology was no essential part of ancient religion, for it had no sacred sanction and no binding 218 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES force on the worshippers ... Belief in a certain series of myths was neither obligatory as a part of true religion, nor was it supposed that, by believing, a man acquired religious merit and conciliated the favour of the gods. What was obligatory or meritorious was the exact performance of certain sacred acts prescribed by religious tradition. This being so, it follows that mythology ought not to take the prominent place that is too often assigned to it in the scientific study of ancient faiths. So far as myths consist of explanations of ritual, their value is altogether secondary, and it may be affirmed with confidence that in almost every case the myth was derived from the ritual, and not the ritual from the myth; for the ritual was fixed and the myth was variable, the ritual was obligatory and faith in the myth was at the discretion of the worshipper."1 This passage (long as it is) shows how different was the order of religious development from what we might have imagined, for there was in fact a development in ideas, a relegation to second place of the old forms. Greek religion might begin in a ritual imitating or rather re‑duplicating the forces and seasons of nature, might result in myths sometimes of a beauty never equalled, sometimes of a crudity to arouse the condemnation of the Socratic Dialogues, and finally lead to the exalted ideas of civil and religious polity of the Platonic Socrates‑yet, be it noted, even he on the point of death could still observe the old ritual and make his offering to Nsculapius. Turning from classical to our better‑known sacred lore, we can trace through the Bible the changes in the relative importance of ritual and of prayer, of bumt‑offerings and of conduct. The meticulous regulations of ritual in the earlier books of the Bible give place to the teachings of the prophets, the Mosaic ritual develops into the sublimities of Isaiah, and finally, as some would hold, the Lord's Prayer gives Christian expression to the latest and greatest of the truths of Judaism.
The conclusion I wish to draw is that not only of the development of a ritual, but that of the change of the ideas to which it gives rise. From one point of view the completed idea of one age becomes the primitive idea of the next. From another, the natural ideas are sublimated into the spiritual. If we take the history of pictorial art and trace it to an origin in ritual, in getting things done by the unseen powers by what we should now call the representation of them, we again recognize a development from ritualistic practice. We have certain things represented with a view to controlling or influencing the things or forces they represent. The pictorial art so originated, then follows a line of development of its own, until by an advanced form of pictorial representation there are suggested ideas, with which it becomes associated, of a much more sublime religious character.
If these instances show the caution with which we must regard any attempt to connect our present ideas of ritual with those of its more primitive 1 Lectures on the Religion of the Semites (1914 Edition), pp. 16‑18.
FREEMASONRY, RITUAL AND CEREMONIAL 219 forms, yet on the other hand it is not to be supposed that there do not exist many cases of surviving ritualistic forms. The changing seasons of the year were of the utmost moment to the primitive races, to whom the yield of the harvest was literally a matter of life and death. The earlier books of the Bible bear witness to the part the fruits of the earth played in the economy of the Israelites, and show how intimately connected they were with the provisions of the Mosaic code. The Greek nature myths of Demeter and Persephone, the Egyptian myths of Osiris, the Syrian tale of "Tammuz yearly wounded", all show the prevalence of the cult. It was the wisdom of the early Christian Church to connect the phrases of the Gospel story with the seasons of the earth, and to fix the Nativity itself‑for this fixing occurs comparatively late in the development of Christianity‑at that mid‑winter season when it could gather to itself, and hallow with the association of the Birth, the age‑long customs of pagan times, and it was a sure historical instinct of the Puritans to condemn so much of the religious ceremonial as being mere pagan survival. What are now the Christmas associations of the mistletoe, for example, can be traced back very early. It is curious to reflect, moreover, that though the pagan survivals of the Maypole and Jackin‑the‑Green are now dying, if they are not already dead, yet the concomitants of Spring are in process of being associated with what in the sight of the centuries is so recent a growth as that of the Labour movement in its May Day processions and demonstrations.
I have dealt with the general background and with these general principles at this length for three reasons: to follow the example of the older writers in dealing with ancient lore, but, it is hoped, in such a way as to make my treat ment agree with the results of recent investigations; to show that ritual is no new thing, devised for a certain purpose and without roots in the past; and to give an opportunity here briefly to consider, and a stimulus to others to investigate at length, the details of our Masonic ritual, to point out the dangers of the quest, while showing how absorbing a pursuit in reality it is. We shall not see, as did the old writers, Freemasonry existing in remote antiquity, or even as a system having its roots there, but we shall see how its ritual has incorporated, though we know not in many cases when, how or why, many details which, to say the least, can be paralleled in early times, and, to say something more, are probably in however indirect a fashion derived from those times, little as those who assisted in the development may have guessed their origin.
As to our own Masonic ritual, what is it, whence did it arise, and when? These, the obvious questions to ask, are by no means easy definitely to answer. We have generally agreed to derive the Speculative Craft from the Operative Masonic and other Guilds of the Middle Ages, and the opinion has been steadily gaining ground that even with regard to ritual there is a continuity and a development linking the medieval operative ritual, whatever it was, with that of the eighteenth century and so on to modem times. Dr. G. G. Coulton 220 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES after describing.the position of the medieval operative after the completion of his work at a certain place and at the end of a certain time, bound to seek his future livelihood at another job and in another place, adds: "How, then, was our wanderer to prove to the master mason, when he found him at last, that he was a full‑fledged competent workman? ... There might be other ways, but for two we have a certain amount of documentary evidence; the pass‑word and the sign. That evidence, it is true, is less early and less explicit than we might wish; yet it seems most probable that the conditions which we find in 1563 [the year when the Emperor Ferdinand I. confirmed the Masonic regulations for the whole Empire] had developed far earlier. Since they would follow logically from what we know to be the earlier conditions. Here, as on some other points, our only documents are German".
He then goes on to speak of the German Statutes of 1462 describing an initiation ceremony followed by a feast.
"Every apprentice when he has served his time and is to be declared free, shall promise to the craft by his troth and honour, in lieu of oath, and on pain of losing the craft of a mason, that he will disclose or say to no man the greeting or the [hand‑grip] of a mason, except to one to whom also he should rightly say it, and also, that he will put nothing thereof into writing." He then deals with the greeting, for which he claims far fuller evidence, if the authority he quotes is to be trusted, and gives a ritualistic dialogue between the stranger and the Mason, which, when they have recognized each other, is followed by a hand‑grip, greeting and welcome, after which the stranger is brought into the room of assembly, where there follows another ritualistic colloquy. Finally, Coulton again quotes in corroboration the German Statutes of 1462, "And every travelling fellow, when he has received the donation, shall go from one to the other and shall thank him therefor. And this is the greeting wherewith every fellow shall greet, when he first goeth into the Lodge thus shall he say: `God greet ye, God guide ye, God reward ye, ye honourable overmaster warden and trusty fellows'; and the master or warden shall thank him, that he may know who is the superior in the Lodge. Then shall the fellow address himself to the same, and say: `The master' (naming him) `bids me greet you worthily'; and he shall go to the fellows from one to the other and greet each in a friendly manner, even as he greeted the superior. And then shall they all, master and wardens, and fellows, pledge him as is the custom, and as is already written of the greeting and pledge; but not to him whom they hold for no true man, he shall be fined one pound of wax."' 1 G. G. Coulton, Art and the Reformation, 1st Edition, pp. 167‑171.
FREEMASONRY, RITUAL AND CEREMONIAL 221 Bridging the gap between the medieval masons (although some of these sources indeed overlap the medieval period) and the speculatives of the eighteenth century, we have the many and varied versions of the "Old Charges" of the Freemasons. These show rather clearly that there were certain forms of ritual accompanying admission into the Society.
Hawkins considered that the ceremony was as follows:(a) A Prayer.
(b) The reading of the Legendary History.
(c) The placing of the candidate's hand on the Volume of the Sacred Law, and the reading of the Articles.
(d) A short Obligation.
(e) The reading of the Special Charges.
(f) A longer Obligation regarding the Secrets. (g) The communication of the Secrets.' Bro. Poole thinks that the details were:(a) A Prayer.
(b) The reading of the Legendary History.
(c) The placing of the candidate's hand on the Volume of the Sacred Law during the reading of the Charges, and then the sealing of the Obligation.
(d) Some form of mystification‑as we should say "ragging"followed by the communication of the Secrets.2 That there were two stages in the process of admission seems clear from certain documents, for example, the Edinburgh Register House MS., which have come down to us; but here we must satisfy ourselves with the bare mention of the fact.
Now I think it as well here to point out that the medieval form of Freemasonry was practical in its object and was not primarily concerned‑‑or at least no more so than other similar associations of the time‑with religious, ethical and philanthropic matters. That the "Old Charges" begin with a prayer or invocation, that prayers may have accompanied the assemblies, that many of the societies placed themselves under the protection of certain saints who either in their lifetime, or in the circumstances of their martyrdom, were associated with a particular craft or trade or with the implements of a craft or trade,3 that they had a special chapel allocated to their use‑these circumstances do not, to my mind, give to the Guilds a primary religious purpose, any religious character they might take therefrom being but the usual accompaniment of medieval associations.
t E. L. Hawkins, The Evolution of the Masonic Ritual, A.Q.C., Vol. XXVI, pp. 16‑17.
2 H. Poole, Masonic Ritual & Secrets before 1717, A.Q.C., Vol. XXXVII, pp. 12‑15.
3 The association of the Quatuor Coronati with the Masons and of Saint Blasius with the Wool‑Combers may here be instanced.
222 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES With the infiltration into the Lodges of non‑operatives' with the increasing influence due to these members and their social importance, and with the decreasing need for an operative Society, the raison d'etre of the institution changed, and with that its whole character. Men would seek admission into the Society not for reasons of livelihood, but purely for the sake of fellowship, and probably from some idea, as in the later cases of Ashmole and Stukely, that there was some secret knowledge to be gained from admission.
Shortly following the organization of speculative Freemasonry in 1717, we see in vigorous working order a system obviously descended from that of the operatives, but differing from it in the relative importance of its component parts, from our point of view, chiefly in the increased prominence given to ritualistic and ceremonial elements. I say "obviously descended from that of the operatives" by reason of the continuity which can be traced running through the medieval sources, the "Old Charges", manuscripts like that of the Edinburgh Register House, and the eighteenth‑century "Exposures". And on general grounds, also, we must prefer the idea of continuity and development to that of the organizers of 1717 and their immediate successors deliberately setting out to formulate a ritual and to institute a new system. More and more with the growth of knowledge do we see that there is no such thing as an historical cataclysm, that nature does nothing by leaps, and that all is ordered and continuous, although natural processes may on occasion be either hastened or slowed down.
What then‑were the reasons for the accentuation of the ritualistic side of the Craft about 1717 ? We do not actually know them, but can make some strong conjectures as to their nature. By reason of the peculiar circumstances of their Craft as compared with that of others, the medieval masons were forced to have recourse to certain outward and visible signs and ceremonies to preserve their corporate identity, even while the economic and industrial bond still existed, but when that bond ceased their speculative successors had more and more to rely on signs and ceremonies as their demarcation from the rest of the community, lest otherwise their identity should be lost. To take a homely analogy, it is customary to sneer at what some judge to be the exaggerated importance attached to social ritual among Englishmen abroad, settled among an alien race, but after all, absurd as they may sometimes seem in themselves, these social customs are the means for preserving the corporate identity of the community, and similar causes were at work in the organization of speculative Freemasonry. In addition to these general reasons, the following special ones may also be suggested: the keen interest taken in biblical antiquities in the century which had just closed, an awakened zest for exploring into mystic and symbolic regions, the growth of a renewed 1 At the beginning these were to their fellows as notabilities elected to an Inn of Court or to a learned society as honorary members are to the professional members of these bodies.
FREEMASONRY, RITUAL AND CEREMONIAL 223 spirit of association‑or clubbability, and possibly the instinct for ritual baulked by the lethargy of the Established Church, seeking a new outlet. With regard to the form which our ritual took in the eighteenth century, Bro. Lepper has treated these in detail in his Prestonian Lecture,' they can be followed in many contemporary "Exposures", and we need devote no space to them here. But mention must be made of the prominent part taken by William Preston, who by precept and example did so much in the latter part of the eighteenth century in organizing the ritual, and who made the work of the Lodges of Promulgation and Reconciliation so much easier than it would otherwise have been.
As to whether there should be one fixed standard of ritual, opinions may differ, but for myself I see much advantage in the present practice, where the authorities permit the use of any established ritual, provided that the Antient Landmarks be not infringed, and are prepared to allow the continuance of so many hallowed local customs.
We may note in passing some elements of eighteenth‑century ritual, some of which have disappeared, some been transformed and some given a less extensive existence. The Junior Warden no longer sits with the Senior in the West. The function of the Senior Entered Apprentice as the conductor of the candidate and that of the junior Entered Apprentice to guard the Lodge within its entrance have been transferred to regular officers. The trowel as an emblem of office in craft Freemasonry has in many places fallen into disuse, and the bee‑hive, the Masonic emblem of industry, has, save in a few cases, gone out of use. The use of an altar for the Volume of the Sacred Law is‑may I say unfortunately? ‑‑common only in certain workings, the Bible now having to rest on what is used for many purposes as the Master's desk.
I should like, tentatively, and necessarily rather briefly, to examine certain points in our Lodge work from the point of view of their characteristics as ceremonial. Frere divides ceremonies according as they are.utili tarian, interpretative, symbolical, or mystical ,2 and for a moment it would not be without interest to seek for these in our own ceremonial. Of the utilitarian, the keeping of order and the demanding of attention by means of the knocks of the gavel may be taken as an example. The posture of the officers and members during certain portions of the ceremony are interpretative as the outward and visible signs of their attitudes of mind. We have kneeling for adoration; standing for prayer and thanksgiving or while discharging official rites, as in the Master's rising to make an announcement. The symbolical and mystical elements are naturally of supreme importance and need some definition and consideration. He considers that the essence of symbolical ceremonial lies in "the importation of some fresh ceremony not otherwise demanded 1 Not reproduced in this volume. See Note at foot of p. 153. 2 W. H. Frere, Principles of Religious Ceremonial.
224 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES on other grounds which serves at the same time as a symbol to introduce a fresh idea not hitherto present".
He contrasts it with interpretative, which is only the use of ceremony to interpret an already inherent idea, "and the mystical explanation which ... is only the attaching of new meanings to ceremonies which already exist on other grounds".
If these definitions are accepted much of what we are accustomed to describe as symbolism is really mysticism. If we take it that the formation of the Lodge and the details of the working were introduced on account of their moral teachings, the square to teach morality and the divesting of metallic substances as a reminder to practice charity, then these things are symbolical. But if we adopt the more likely explanation that the formation and customs of an Operative Lodge passed over into a Speculative Lodge and were then made to teach moral lessons, then the explanations given in our speculative working are of a mystical rather than a symbolical nature. In view of the wide use of the term "symbolical" in our Craft I am far from suggesting its disuse, but I do think it of some importance to bear in mind the distinction which has been illustrated.
As to some of the details of our ceremonies, consider first the opening and closing of the Lodge. This is for the most part of a utilitarian nature and involves those precautions which we can understand any body of men taking who are met together to transact their business free from intrusion, e.g. the inquiring of the officers whether each knows his duty and in regard to this point it may be allowable to express a preference for those workings where each officer is himself asked what his duty is, rather than those in which the Wardens are made to answer for them.
The candidate's perambulation of the Lodge might well be the subject of a separate lecture. It can be compared to the appearance before the citizens of the postulant for consular honours, to the presentation of a king to his people, to the exhibition of a malefactor to the subjects of the State whose laws he has offended‑‑all cases, so to speak, of the introduction of the one to the many, whether for honour or for infamy. Together with this there is also the practical object of making certain that the candidate gives the correct answers to ensure his figurative admission into each part of the Lodge. With regard to the manner of his progress, this may well have been due to the need for carefully avoiding the social furniture of a crowded room. His direction, Sun‑wise, is such as we should naturally expect from the importance of the Sun and of the East in Masonic ritual, and it supplies us with a link with the primitive forms spoken of at the beginning of this lecture. Far be it from me to suggest a direct connection, but there is no small probability that a method of progression consciously following that of the Sun in its origin found its way into the Lodges of the Masons without their being aware of that origin. The candidate for certain portions of the ceremony is placed in the North‑East and South‑East parts of the Lodges FREEMASONRY, RITUAL AND CEREMONIAL 225 respectively. I am acquainted with some part of the learning regarding the placing of Operative Masons' Lodges at certain points of the compass. But if we bear in mind the need for the candidate to be halted somewhere near the Master's pedestal, the convenience of the two comers respectively on the latter's right and left, does it not seem more likely that this figurative explanation was adapted to what had become a practical convenience ? Further, if it is considered that what we now know as the First and Second Degrees were once a single ceremony, and that in the Third there is no corresponding halting of the candidate, the suggestion given may well be the true explanation.
It is a curious fact that the obligations are taken kneeling. The extensive use of that posture even for prayer is a late development. It was used in biblical times by the Jews, as it still is, only on very solemn occasions, and even in the New Testament it is not common. Existing more in the Middle Ages, its use greatly increased after the Reformation, the Reformers employing it extensively for prayer, while those of the old religion used it for adoration. On the other hand, the obligation is an oath, not either prayer or adoration, and the adoption of a kneeling posture in the circumstances seems rather curious, contrasting with the upright posture assumed in a Court of Law, which seems more consonant with the public nature of the act.
Moreover, it is to be noted that in the Service of Confirmation as given in the Book of Common Prayer and as practised, the candidate in renewing and ratifying the undertaking of his godparents given at Baptism, stands when taking what is in fact an obligation.
With regard to the penalties mentioned in the various obligations, it has to be remembered that from the evidence contained in the early "Exposures" it seems clear that these were divided at a later date. It may be noted that there is nothing in the characteristics of any of the obligations to connect them with the peculiar lessons of each Degree. Whether we may see in them any definite or direct connection with any ancient rites or punishments‑many punishments, by‑the‑bye, have a ritualistic side, e.g. an auto da fe‑we cannot be sure. But in respect of each of the obligations we may well consider in the order given: the circumstances, and particularly the place, of an execution for piracy; the heart as a symbol of life; and the eternally damning character of the punishment of dismembering and burning the body among peoples believing in a physical resurrection. Whether the punishments had any connection with these ideas it is impossible to say; they may have merely been adopted as particularly striking forms by those whose influence moulded our ritual.
The working tools of the three Degrees now in use have not always been so used, and the present details known in England are not universally accepted. As they stand, however, it is possible to see in them, unlike the obligations, something having a characteristic connection with each Degree. The TwentyFour Inch Gauge, the Common Gavel and the Chisel one would associate with the rougher work of the Entered Apprentice; the Square, the Level and 226 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES the Plumb Rule, with the more skilled work of the Craftsman; and the Skirret, the Pencil and the Compasses, with the directive labours of the Master of the Craft.
Bro. Covey Crump, in his book on The Hiramic Tradition, states that Bro. Hextall mentioned no less than fourteen hypotheses of its origin, and proceeds to examine them‑with no very conclusive result. While on the one hand this is not the place to deal with all or any of them, in treating of our ritual it is necessary to say at least a word on a matter so striking and of so unique a character. For one thing, the Hiramic portion of our ceremonies is the only one throughout the work of the three Degrees‑I except certain incidents in the Inner Working of the Installation‑where there is a definite dramatization of an historical or of a traditional incident. Whether the death of the builder is connected with the old ritual of a sacrificial burial or whether it is derived from a biblical or post‑biblical tradition of an actual occurrence, we do not know, but as enacted in our Lodges it is peculiarly suggestive of, if it is not connected with, the primitive rituals so widely diffused which derive from the natural processes of death and resurrection. In the ritual as we now have it the teaching is not altogether clear, or rather while the lesson of fidelity is clearly taught, there is, in addition, from the raising of the body for the purpose of identification and with a view to a second and more decent interment, an attempt to draw the secondary lesson of immortality and to suggest what the eye of faith shall see when "this transitory life shall have passed away".
Before I pass from the historical portion of my subject I wish, at the risk of repetition, to make it clear that I have not in any case made a definite claim for any direct connection with ancient ritual. I have placed our present form against that background with a view to showing how deep‑rooted and extensive are ritualistic practices, and also to suggest that however difficult it may be to trace them, there is a possibility of a connection however indirect; or I might merely suggest that the mind of man in the field of human belief and knowledge works but in a few ways and that given similar circumstances and objects the results that he will achieve may be the same, although arrived at independently.
With regard to the present usefulness of ritual and ceremonial, I cannot do better than quote the words of Richard Hooker: "The end which is aimed at in setting down the outward form of all religious actions is the edification of the Church. Now men are edified, when either their understanding is taught somewhat whereof in such actions it behoveth all men to consider, or when their hearts are moved with any affection suitable thereunto; when their minds are in any sort stirred up unto that reverence, devotion, attention and due regard which in those cases seemeth requisite. Because therefore unto this purpose not only speech, but sundry sensible means besides have always been thought necessary, and especially those means which being FREEMASONRY, RITUAL AND CEREMONIAL 227 object to the eye, the liveliest and the most apprehensive sense of all other, have in that respect seemed the fittest to make a deep and a strong impression; from hence have risen not only a number of prayers, readings, questionings, exhortings, but even of visible signs also; which, being used in performance of holy actions, are undoubtedly most effectual to open such matter, as men when they know and remember carefully, must needs be a great deal better informed to what effect such duties serve. We must not think but that there is some ground of reason even in nature whereby it cometh to pass that no nation under heaven either doth or ever did suffer public actions which are of weight, whether they be civil and temporal or else spiritual and sacred, to pass without some visible solemnity; the very strangeness whereof and difference from that which is common, doth cause popular eyes to observe and to mark the same. Words, both because they are common and do not so strongly move the fancy of man, are for the most part but slightly heard; and therefore with singular wisdom it hath been provided that the deeds of men which are made in the presence of witnesses should pass not only with words, but also with certain sensible actions, the memory whereof is far more easy and durable than the memory of speech can be.
The things which so long experience of all ages hath confirmed and made profitable, let not us presume to condemn as follies and toys, because we sometimes know not the cause and reason of them. A wit disposed to scorn whatsoever it doth not conceive might ask wherefore Abraham should say to his servant, `Put thy hand under my thigh and swear', was it not sufficient for his servant to show the religion of an oath by naming the Lord God of heaven and earth, unless that strange ceremony were added? In contracts, bargains and conveyances a man's word is a token sufficient to express his will. Yet, this was an ancient manner in Israel concerning redeeming and exchanging to establish all things; a man did pluck off his shoe and hand it to his neighbour; and this was a sure witness in Israel."' Hooker concludes by quoting from Dionysius : "The sensible things which religion hath hallowed, are resemblances framed according to things spiritually understood, whereunto they serve as a hand to lead, and a way to direct."' Hooker's words are a plea for the performance of ceremonial action rather than for the rehearsal of ritualistic speeches, but in view of their close connection, the interdependence of speech and action in the Masonic working, these words can be justly claimed in aid of our argument.
It has seemed to me, and that not only from my Masonic experience, that in respect to their reactions to religious ideas there are two types of mind, corresponding to an extent, whatever the particular sect it is to which they 1 Laws of Ecclesiastical Policy, Book IV., c. 1 and 3.
228 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES belong, to the difference between High Church and Low Church. On the one hand, there are those who feel most in touch with things unseen when in direct and solitary communion with them, and to whom rites and ceremonies seem but as obstacles to that communion. On the other hand there are some who feel the need for participating with their fellows in the act of worship or in contemplation, who see in what at first sight appear but as outward forms and ceremonies a means of strengthening the appeal of things spiritual, and who see them as "things which religion hath hallowed" and which lead and direct them. To the first class, Freemasonry, being "veiled in allegory and illustrated by symbols", can obviously make little appeal. The other class perceives in our ritual and ceremonial, not a religion‑in spite of the suggestion so frequently and so wrongly made‑but a means for enforcing and illustrating religious and ethical principles and precepts. The decency‑in the old sense of becomingness‑and the beauty of the ceremonies attune the mind to the reception of Masonic teachings; the awareness of the celebration of an act of communion between himself and his fellows and an Unseen Power causes a man to feel a corporate spiritual strength comparable to the corporate material strength of an ordered host. Further, there is a discipline, a working together in carrying out a common rule of life in which impulses which might otherwise lose themselves and become vain may be taken up and directed to the spiritual advantages of one and of all.
The Antient Landmarks of the Order, which a wise judgement has declined to define, stand firm and unchallenged, not derived from written documents, but based on their perception throughout the whole teachings of the Craft. Consistent with these, and indeed beautifying them in themselves and in their surroundings, there is room for the idea of development in the lessons to be drawn from our ritual as the mind of man becomes more and more capable of perceiving them. The outward forms remain universal, save for the differences which time and association have hallowed with a spiritual content of their own, and form for us a "temple not made with hands"; within it we practise our ceremonies and receive their teachings, and while we continue to do so with an increasing spiritual sensitiveness it will remain, we hope, "eternal as the heavens".
Such, my brethren, is the best explanation of the background, the history, and the present and future purpose of our forms and ceremonies that I can give you, and though of many of the details dealt with herein he was necessarily ignorant, I can hope that William Preston would have approved the design of the work though he may well have perceived, as I do so keenly, the imperfections of its execution.
THE INWARDNESS OF MASONIC SYMBOLISM IN THE THREE DEGREES (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1937) BRO. THE REv. JOSEPH JOHNSON, P.A.G.Chaplain The subject of this Lecture was not finally chosen without considerable meditation and care. It was felt, eventually, however, that "The Inwardness of Masonic Symbolism in the Three Degrees" was a subject that would meet a widespread desire in the Craft, as numerous Brethren in every area are experiencing a great yearning for enlightenment on this subject. We recognize, of course, that it is scarcely possible to give an exposition of the inner meaning of Freemasonry that will command every Brother's endorsement. Indeed, it is one of the glories of Freemasonry that it never dogma tizes on the interpretation of Masonic symbols. Each Brother is at liberty to interpret the symbols from a different angle and to express his views in his own terms. One Brother looks more deeply than another into the moral and spiritual significance of a symbol, hence the spirit of toleration and charity is highly necessary when forming judgements of those who differ from us.
The whole trend of Masonic symbolism leaves no shadow of doubt with me that Freemasonry rests on God, lives in God, and that it can be made a powerful influence in leading Brethren both in thought and attitude towards God. Every symbol and every phase of Masonic ritual from the first step the Initiate takes toward the east, right through to the point when he becomes a Master Mason, has reference to the Divine Being, without whom Freemasonry would have no real meaning. In the reference of that second enquiry addressed to every candidate, viz.: "In all cases of difficulty and danger, in whom do you put your trust?" we are called upon to acknowledge God‑God the first truth and final reality‑though it is not without significance, that in the introductory stages of a man's admission into Masonry, God is described as the Great Architect of the Universe, which description fittingly synchronizes with the symbolism of the first Degree. By implication and atmosphere, Masonry brings its adherents into the very presence of God, and my own personal judgement is that but for its spiritual basis, Freemasonry could never have survived and become the force it is today among the English‑speaking peoples of the world.
229 230 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES An army that devotes its energies to enlisting recruits and pays no attention to the morale and training of the army generally, would be of little value in a crisis; in the same sense, it is of small service for Masonry to be engaged solely in the admission of men into its fold, and omitting to put vitality into the culture of Masons generally in the principles and teaching of Masonry. Failure in this respect means that the rank and file of the Craft will never grasp the real meaning of Masonry, and the exemplification of Brotherly Love will fail to be realized with the firm grasp of the hand, with the sympathetic look into a Brother's eyes, and with the thought that we are shoulder to shoulder with him, ready to bear a portion of his burden and to sympathize with him in his sorrow.
Every Brother needs education in the mission and purpose of Freemasonry, which is to bind men together in one circle of love and service, and to ensure that, as a great moral force, it breaks down the barriers separ ating men from each other, thereby diffusing the spirit of benevolence and peace. It cannot be too strongly stressed that Freemasonry is founded on the eternal principles of truth, dedicated to fraternity, equality, and charity as broad as the race. The antiquity of Masonry need not necessarily concern us. The glory and charm of Freemasonry are not in its antiquity but in its high ideals and its noble principles‑the principles of high character and upright conduct it enforces throughout its teaching. Those privileged to come within the scope of Masonry's mystic circle, are encouraged by its teaching to build on a trustworthy foundation and develop a staunch and stalwart manhood.
The lessons Freemasonry teaches are certainly veiled in allegory and illustrated by symbols, and to acquire a practical knowledge of them, requires discernment and constant application. By these means the scales are removed from our eyes and we come to see and appreciate the real inwardness of Masonry. Whatever differences of personality, social status, moral endowment and mental capacity may feature men who come within the portals of Masonry, the soul of a man ought to be strengthened by every obligation to which he commits himself, and it should afford him stimulus in seeking to attain the highest type of manhood.
There is nothing shallow in those words that first strike the ear of each candidate for Initiation as he kneels "poor and penniless" while the blessing of Heaven is invoked on the proceedings, and prayer is offered that the Almighty Father and Supreme Governor of the Universe may vouchsafe His aid and grant that "this Candidate for Freemasonry may so dedicate and devote his life to Thy service as to become a true and faithful Brother among us," and for him to be endued "with a competency of Thy Divine wisdom, that, assisted by the secrets of our Masonic art, he may the better be enabled to unfold INWARDNESS OF MASONIC SYMBOLISM 231 the beauties of true godliness, to the honour and glory of Thy Holy Name." There is remarkable significance in that beautiful prayer, and be assured Brethren that if our Masonry does not assist in the direction indicated by that prayer, then there is either something radically wrong with Masonry, or in our understanding and application of it.
Following these introductory observations, I desire now to introduce you to an examination and elucidation, one by one, of the symbolism of the three Degrees.
THE FIRST DEGREE Masonic students have accustomed themselves to regard the Lodge as a symbol of the world and its ritual as the drama of man's life. The Lodge is one of the oldest shrines of humanity and the idea and art of Initiation date back to the earliest ages. The Men's House was the rallying centre of tribal society, the place where the novice was tried, taught and trained in the secret lore of the race. The rites of those early days were designed to test men before entrusting to them treasures, which had cost so much and must not be lost, and the crowning rite of initiation was a drama of the immortal life‑life that defies death and continues through endless ages of the future. Later, by some mystic insight, the art of initiation was linked with the art of building, and behind this blending of the two arts was a recognition of the principle of law and order. Thus it was that every Lodge came to be regarded as a symbol of the world, its floor the earth, its roof the heavens, and its ritual the drama of man's life, showing the passage of the soul to Eternity.
The Preparation of the Candidate for Initiation has much significance as a symbol of birth, out of the dim sense of life, into a world of moral values and spiritual vision.... I The cable‑tow is a striking reminder of the cord that joins a child to its mother at its birth, which in the Initiation of a Candidate into Masonry is not removed until he has been solemnly obligated to his new life, and a new unseen tie is woven in his heart. Another feature of the Candidate's preparation is . . . symbolic of the fact that he will be received by the Lodge in the deepest sense a poor candidate in a state of darkness, content to be as a child entering into life, a symbol of his surrender to the new order and rule of life into which he is about to be admitted. These things symbolize that our worldly possessions are not our real wealth but our limitations, and that we can only gain by subordinating them to the higher things of life. This seems paradoxical but it is nevertheless true. As we emerge from darkness to light, we must show willingness to surrender the things that may clog and cling to us.
The Reception of the Candidate begins with the enquiry "Are you a free man and of the full age of twenty‑one years ?" The meaning of that enquiry 1 The . . . indicate obligatory omissions from the original text. Inserted or substituted words are shown in [ ]. (Ed.).
232 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES is, whether he is a free man in a moral rather than in a civil sensevoluntarily offering himself for the obligations and service of Freemasonry, free from all attachments that might hinder the achievement of his purpose, free for the goodly fellowship of all other Initiates, and entirely detached from all unworthy associations and intercourse. This follows the announcement by the Master of the Lodge that the tongue of good report has already been heard in the candidate's favour. To be of "good report" is intended to signify not so much that he is a man of good reputation but, having been interviewed, the authorities of the Lodge are satisfied that he "rings true", giving back a genuine ring like a good coin that is tapped to determine its genuineness; in other words, that he possesses those qualities that will enable him to be responsive to Masonry's high ideals.
The Candidate's Confession. One of the first demands made on the Candidate for initiation is that of his faith in God. He is not required to define the precise terms in which he thinks of God but he must reveal his atmosphere of thought and attitude of heart towards Him. The implication of this is, that as Masonry is a system of moral mysticism, faith in the Supreme Being and in Eternal Life is a necessity to aid the candidate in securing a clear and reliable conception of his duty Godward and manward, the development of his spiritual faculties, and the refinement and exaltation of his life in fellowship and service.
The Obligation. By obligation the Pledge of the Initiate to secrecy is secured, not that Masonry is afraid or ashamed to reveal its secrets, but because we are a family and our relationships are sacred. Masonic secrets should never be revealed to anyone outside the fraternity. By this act of obligation, the Initiate is consecrated, in the presence of the open Lodge, to the spirit and ideals of Freemasonry, and taken as it is at the Altar, the Initiate enters into a definite pledge of love and loyal support to Freemasonry.
The Altar, whether immediately in front of the Master or in the centre of the Lodge, is an indication that Freemasonry is a worship, not a form of religion. From earliest days the Altar has always been regarded as a place of peculiar sanctity, a place of refuge and a pledge of justice. The Altar is also a place of prayer where men, of all faiths, unite in worship. Kneeling at the Altar, the Candidate takes his obligation, in the process of which he begins to realize the spiritual significance of Masonry. It is here he learns that the Altar is an Altar of freedom‑not freedom from faith but freedom of faith‑a centre of fraternal unity and fellowship. The Altar does not demand uniformity of opinion but it does foster fraternity of spirit, leaving every Brother free to determine his own philosophy of truth, the expression of his own views of religion, and his personal preference for ecclesiastical life and attachment. It is before leaving the Altar, at which he has been obligated, that the Candidate symbolically has his eyes opened, not physically but spiritually and for the first time, in his newly‑found experience, INWARDNESS OF MASONIC SYMBOLISM 233 his attention is called to the Sacred Writings which henceforth are to govern his faith.
The Volume of the Sacred Law. The place and influence of The Volume of the Sacred Law in Masonic ritual are strikingly significant. This great book is the centre of Masonic light and life, and the source of its teaching. The Volume of the Sacred Law is opened when the Lodge opens and closed when the Lodge closes. No business is legal and no initiation valid without its presence and guidance. On it the Initiate takes his vows of loyalty, chastity and charity, obligates himself to the practice of Brotherly Love, and seals it with a simple act of affection. However much Brethren may differ in dogma, they are all urged to consult it for guidance and follow it faithfully. This grand old Book, so rich in symbolism, is itself a Symbola symbol of truth, of faith and of Divine favour, and men have never looked in vain to its words of counsel and cheer. If we lose our way in the labyrinth of life's experience we shall always find that the light is a lamp to our feet; should we be overtaken by misfortune, and heart and hope fail, we can always turn to this Book which speaks in accents of infinite tenderness and sympathy; and when the time comes for us to enter the "valley of the shadow", and we are called with faltering step to walk along a dim path, amid weakness and infirmity, into the future, we shall discover that the one light that will not fail us, is the Volume of the Sacred Law. This Volume gives us the vision of a fraternity, a brotherhood not yet attained, a vision of fellowship not yet realized. It is a vision of humanity‑one in nature and need, one in faith, duty and destiny, with God supreme as the Father of us all. Perhaps not in our day, but as surely as the sun rises and sets, this vision will widen in growth, and true Masonry will greatly facilitate its realization. The vision glows in the Volume and it lives in our hearts. What an advantage it is that every recruit to Masonry should be informed that the Volume of the Sacred Law is to be consulted for acquiring a knowledge of his duty to God, his neighbour and himself! In depth, in wonder, in richness of moral truth, and, in spiritual enrichment, there is no book to compare with it. Its spirit is the very breath of God and its instruction and guidance are of imperishable value in stimulating the attainment of moral manhood in "doing justly, loving mercy and walking humbly with God". The Volume of the Sacred Law is the spiritual Tracing Board on which God has delineated the plan of life, and when men in sincerity turn thereto, they find something about its teaching which tends to make them gentle and strong, faithful and free, obedient and tolerant, adding to knowledge, virtue, patience, selfcontrol, brotherly love and compassion.
The Meaning of the Apron. After a Candidate for initiation has taken the vital obligation and has had communicated to him the signs and secrets of that Degree, he is entitled to be invested with the distinguishing badge of a Mason. The lambskin or white leather apron is a symbol to the Initiate (now an Entered Apprentice) of striking beauty and significance; it indicates 234 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES his admittance to a new life, after it was proved that he came with due humility, stripped of worldly rank and possessions, tested and obligated in darkness and ignorance, appealed to for assistance to the cause of charity but to which he expressed his inability to make a proper response, all of which is duly explained and the moral of it drawn and enforced. The plain white lambskin, or leather apron which the Entered Apprentice receives, indicates the one common basis on which we all begin our Masonic career, and it is emblematical of innocence and purity. Whatever differences of rank and social position may characterize Initiates in society generally, all are admitted equal, prince and peasant alike, on the one common basis. It is always an understanding that the badge of a Mason is to be worn worthily as becomes men who realize its significance. It is a token that the wearer of the badge has consecrated himself to high ideals, and it is expected that he will never prove recreant to his pledge. When, therefore, the Apron is represented as of ancient and honourable origin, worn by prince and peasant and the best men of all generations, with dignity and pleasure, it is confidently assumed that the newly invested recipient of it will wear his distinguishing badge with honour to the Craft and with credit to himself. It is the first symbol of a Mason's equipment shown and explained to the newly initiated, and it is the crowning symbol of his acceptance into Masonry.
The Working Tools of an Entered Apprentice . . . possess a remarkable significance. The Candidate on his entrance into the Lodge is placed with his face toward the East, which means that though he is unconscious of it at that moment, he is set before an ideal, and after a perambulation round the Lodge, he receives instruction how to advance to the East, a symbolical endeavour to realize that ideal in his life. The first of the tools ". . . represents the 24 hours of the day, part to be spent in prayer to Almighty God, part in labour and refreshment, and part in serving a friend or Brother in time of need without detriment to ourselves or connections".
Time is to be given daily to prayer, to work, and to humanitarian service and rest. What a beautiful symbol is this working tool of the wise use of time! Time is our most valuable asset and Masonry urges us to use it wisely. Think of the inwardness of this! The wise use of time is the key by which the closed doors of nature and science can be opened. It is the clue by which the history of human civilization may be traced, and of this we may be assured that, if we rightly understood and appreciated this symbol, especially in the early years of life, we should make more effective use of time and thus comprehend better the purpose of Him Who measureth the waters of the sea in the hollow of His hand. All members of the Craft should learn from this symbol that we may rear a building of costliest and most beautiful material, but if in its construction the unerring law of the measuring rod is violated and the foundation is not wisely and securely laid, however much onlookers may at first admire it, one day it will show INWARDNESS OF MASONIC SYMBOLISM 235 itself to be untrustworthy and will crumble and fall, perhaps grinding others as well as ourselves in its collapse. Masonry teaches the value of the measur ing rule.... The laws of man may be changed, they may be repealed or ignored, but the laws of God never change. A reliable foundation to human life is always an indispensable necessity.
[The second of the E.A.'s tools] represents the force of conscience, etc. In early days, it was the duty of the Entered Apprentice by means of ... to fit the stone to its proper place in the building, i.e. to knock off and remove all rough edges and superfluous obtrusions, which made it difficult to fit the stone into the position for which it was designed. There is a divine purpose behind every life, and there is a niche in God's great temple for each member of the race to fill.
Masonry can be wonderfully helpful to men in finding their right niche, and the right application of the [Apprentice's working tools] symbolizes this. We have a wealth of symbolism in Masonry drawn from the art of building, also from the immortal tools and their remarkable traditions, and much of this symbolism points to the work of preparing the material fit for its place in the building. The purpose of [this second] tool of a Mason, has never been to give polish nor beauty to the stone, but to give it adaptability to the place it has to fill in the building. It also symbolizes the vigilance required in the education and moral training of Brethren.
The . . . points out to us the advantages of Education by which means alone we are rendered fit members of regularly organized society. When [this tool] is applied to the stone it is with the view of producing a higher finish or a more ornamental shape, or, for the engraving of a special design on or to the stone. It symbolizes how needful it is for us to cut away some of the vices and superfluities of life which sometimes unfit men for service in daily life. It also symbolizes the advanced studies and training essential to enable men to fill their place in life acceptably; also the importance of everything possible being done to ensure the habit of virtue, to enlighten the mind and render the soul pure, thus fitting and perfecting men increasingly for the higher stations in life.
THE SECOND DEGREE Viewed by itself, the second, or what is more generally described as the Fellow‑Craft Degree, is probably the least understood; and yet, when we remember that it is part of a human allegory, of which the Entered Appren tice's Degree is only the beginning and the Master Mason's Degree the completion, it is not so difficult to comprehend, especially when we keep in mind that the Fellow‑Craft Degree is as distinctly intellectual in its purpose and spirit as the Entered Apprentice's Degree is moral, and that the first part of the Fellow‑Craft Degree is chiefly a reiteration of the moral teaching of the Entered Apprentice's Degree. In the Entered Apprentice's Degree we are symbolically born out of darkness into the light of moral truth and duty, out of a merely physical into a spiritual world. Symbolically, 236 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES we enter into a new environment, as the child does at birth, with a new body of motive and law, taking vows to live by the highest standard of values; whereas, in the Fellow‑Craft Degree it is presumed that we are entering on an advanced stage of life, where we are face to face with serious labours and struggles, and the dominant note of the Degree is self‑improvement. In this Degree, its symbolism teaches us that virtue is always to be our primary consideration, and that no knowledge nor success purchased at the sacrifice of morals, honour or integrity, is of abiding value. The pathway of strict rectitude, and justice is emphasized as the only safe pathway. The Fellow‑Craft Degree also teaches that, as the operative mason, in building an upright structure, was compelled to adhere to the laws of architectural and building construction and to work rigidly by the [tools of that Degree] ... so, in the building of personal character, we must live and work in harmony with the moral principles which the working tools of the Second Degree symbolize.
Masonry having come down to us at least from the middle ages, a period in which trade guilds flourished, a time in which many of our great European medieval cathedrals were erected, when operative masonry was at the zenith of its power and at the heyday of its art, it is not difficult to discover side‑lights it throws on some phases of the Fellow‑Craft Degree. For example, those guilds had three great divisions, viz.: Apprentices, Journeymen and Masters. Apprentices were those who received instructions in their art, journeymen were those who had completed their apprenticeship and moved from post to post to gain experience, and Masters were those who had become fully qualified to instruct their apprentices and give oversight and further counsel to Fellow Crafts.
The Working Tools of the Fellow Craft . . . reflect in their symbolism the great practicality of their teaching. These working tools have a striking significance, and it is well worth while that we should look carefully into their inwardness and understand thoroughly their symbolic teaching.
The [first] is to try and adjust rectangular corners of buildings and assist in bringing rude matter into due form. Symbolically, it teaches morality and tends to promote uprightness. It is actually a rule of virtue and should lead us to conform to the perfect architecture of speculative Masonry. However much Brethren may fall short of the high standard of Masonic teaching, and we regretfully and humbly admit we have known a few failures, it is not without significance that Freemasonry stresses the need for uprightness, and that its adherents should always act "on the square". It may be regarded a commonplace utterance to say that we may be upright without being moral, but it is no mere platitude to say that we cannot be moral without being upright. The [tool] teaches morality and this symbol should lead us to apply this test to ourselves, to [govern] our actions by the rule of virtue, and to see that our attitude toward men generally possesses the quality of that perfect figure which symbolizes integrity and INWARDNESS OF MASONIC SYMBOLISM 237 renders us acceptable to that Divine Being, from Whom all goodness springs and to Whom we are all accountable. [Such] conduct does more than anything to keep alive faith in the truths that make us men and to make tangible the power of love, the worth of beauty, and the reality of our high Masonic ideals.
[The second of the F.C.'s tools is of the utmost importance and] it is scarcely possible to exaggerate the significance of this symbol.
[It] teaches equality, the only [status] recognized in Freemasonrythe [basis] upon which all Brethren meet‑rich and poor, high and low, men of all creeds, interests and occupations‑forgetting all differences of rank and station, and united in warmest endeavour for the highest good of each and all.
[It] symbolizes the real unity of Brethren otherwise scarcely known, and this promotes toleration and breadth of vision to a remarkable degree. Here you find leaders of thought in opposite parties and rival factions of other spheres, forgetful of their intrigues, catching the spirit of mutual sympathy, consideration and benevolence. Here nobility of birth and blood is superseded by the higher nobility of disposition and life. Here the crown of loyalty and authority belongs to those most distinguished for virtue and honour. Here the distinguished representatives of various ecclesiastical systems meet side by side with men of most diverse and extreme theological sentiments without any test between them, save that of the Masonic fraternity; and here they find fraternal and congenial fellowship which in other spheres is rarely enjoyed. This gives significant distinction and advantage to Freemasonry. The [symbol] does not signify identity nor even similarity of gift and endowment; it is something better, for it symbolizes the equal right of each Brother to the full use and development of such power as he has, whatever it may be, unhindered by prejudice, injustice, or oppression.
[We all know the practical uses of this tool] and in this connection it should be stated that unless our Moral, Spiritual and Masonic Edifice is proved by this expressive emblem and responds to it, life will be a failure and to this the scrutiny of The Great Architect of the Universe will give endorsement.
[The third of the Fellow‑Craft's tools is also a tool used for testing, not for working the stone. For us it] is the criterion of rectitude and truth. [It] teaches, symbolically, a truth, of vast importance, and its application must have far reaching results in uprightness of character and rectitude of conduct. In everyday life these qualities should feature Masons in every commercial act, intercourse and relationship. If our Masonic edifice is not perpendicular we cannot be upright, and to demonstrate our uprightness we must apply the perpendicular test. Failure there, weakens the standing and prestige of Masonry in the world.
238 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES The second and third tools of a F.C. are invariably united in our Masonic ritual and teaching . . . and their [practical] use is remarkably suggestive of their symbolic significance.
The Two great Pillars. These stood at the porch‑way or entrance to King Solomon's Temple and have a symbolic significance. They teach us that God will never fail to establish the moral and spiritual edifice of the just and upright man. Those two Pillars, conceived and executed by the Widow's son, Hiram Abiff, provide an interesting study when looked at in detail. Hiram set up those Pillars; on the top of them he provided a beautiful design of lily‑work and pomegranates, with a network or canopy thrown over them, which brought them into a harmonious unity. The Pillars themselves stood for strength, stability and firmness, but our Master did not leave them in that condition of naked barrenness. He enriched and beautified them with an adornment of lily‑work, a symbol of peace; and with pomegranates, denoting plenty. In order also that there might be a perfect balance and proportion of design and that all defects might be hidden, he threw over them the network or canopy which proclaims their unity. These Pillars therefore bring us face to face with two fundamental aspects of Masonic life and teaching, viz., the need for strength and beauty. The truly harmonious life is the life free from discord, rendered sweet with freedom from care by the gifts that fall from the bounty of the Great Architect. One Pillar was no use without the other and the two Pillars combined were incomplete without the ornamentation; both were essential. Without the Pillars there would have been no strength, and with out their enrichment there would have been no beauty. Strength of man hood and beauty of spirit need combination. Masonry thus needs strength with gracefulness, stability with courtesy, and firmness with gentleness. THE THIRD DEGREE In the Master Mason's Degree we are symbolically brought into the presence of the Deity. It is the Holy of Holies, the sublimest Degree in Freemasonry. The allusions of this Degree are not only to the inner chamber of King Solomon's Temple but to the inner chamber of each Brother's life, calling upon him to make it a fit dwelling place for Deity. King Solomon's Temple was extremely sacred to the ancient Jew; his veneration for the Temple was and always has been remarkable. This explains in some measure the aptness of the Temple as a figure of speech, in symbolizing the human body as a dwelling place of Deity.
Some of the symbols of the Master Mason's Degree are common to all three Degrees in Craft Masonry, so the briefest reference only is necessary to those of the Master Mason's Degree. A few of the symbols common to all the Degrees however, seem to develop an increasingly serious and deeper meaning as we pass from one Degree to another. In the Entered Apprentice's Degree as well as in that of the Fellow Craft, the Lodge symbolizes the world where men labour in useful avocations and in the acquisition of INWARDNESS OF MASONIC SYMBOLISM 239 knowledge, wisdom and virtue; but in the Master Mason's Degree, it represents the Sanctum Sanctorum of King Solomon's Temple, a symbol of Heaven. Nothing common nor unclean was allowed to enter therein, and it was there that the visible presence of Deity was said to dwell between the Cherubim. In the Master Mason's Degree we have our attention symbolically and solemnly directed to death and the future life; also the deeper symbolism of this Degree leads us in thought to the sacred chamber of that spiritual temple of self, and we are entreated to make it a fit dwelling place for Deity. It is worthy of note that whilst Light in the EnteredApprentice and Fellow‑Craft Degrees symbolizes the acquisition of human knowledge and virtue, in the Master Mason's Degree it symbolizes the revelation of Divine truth in the life that is to come; also, that whilst in the Entered‑Apprentice Degree both points of the Compasses are hidden beneath the Square and in the Fellow‑Craft Degree one point of the Compasses was disclosed, in the Master Mason's Degree both points are exhibited, signifying that the fully‑equipped Master Mason has now reached a stage in his career where the spiritual should display full mastery over the earthy and the material.
The Third Degree unites men by the five mystic points of fellowship, binding them in a bond of fraternal fellowship and brotherly love, and in a vivid manner, portrays the darkness of death and the obscurity of the grave, as the forerunner of the larger and fuller life beyond. In no uncertain way this Degree teaches us immortality, not by means of argument but by the presentation of a ceremonial picture. In that great drama of the ceremony of Raising, we are shown the tragedy of life in its most dismal hour and the forces of evil cunningly tempting the soul to treachery. We are shown also in that ceremony, a noble and true man smitten in the moment of his loftiest service to man. It is a picture so true to the bitter and old reality of this dark world that it makes the soul shudder. . . . Then out of the shadow, there rises like a beautiful star, that in man, which is most akin to God‑his love of truth, his loyalty to the ideal, and his willingness to go down into the night of death, if only virtue may live and shine like a flame of fire in the evening sky. Whilst Freemasonry does not exact a declaration of belief in the immortality of the soul as a prerequisite to admission into its fellowship, yet it undoubtedly teaches this doctrine most impressively.
The Working Tools of a Master Mason ... are of striking significance and ought to be better understood. The [first] symbolizes the supreme need for Brethren to harmonize their lives with the teaching and guiding principles of The Volume of the Sacred Law, never deviating in the least from its rule and guidance. The Bible should be honoured as the great Light of Freemasonry, and every Mason who fails to read it, love it, lay its truth to heart, and learn what it means to square life with its teaching, misses much that is vital to character, usefulness and happiness.
240 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES The [second] symbolizes the all‑seeing watchfulness of the Great Architect of the Universe, who is ever scrutinizing our thoughts and words, our spirit and actions; and one day we shall each have to face His record of our life and conduct and give an account of our doings.
The [third and last] teaches us our duty to ourselves, to exercise restraint in connection with our inclinations and the gratification of our desires. [It] symbolizes the importance of self‑knowledge, the urgent need for Breth ren to know their limitations as well as their capacities, the necessity to control anger, hatred and fear, and to exercise the spirit of forgiveness, forbearance and tolerance. The symbols of the Master Mason's Degree direct our thoughts to some of the greatest obligations of Brotherhood. How wonderfully this is demonstrated in the F.P.O.F. (1) When a Brother's necessities call for help, I must be ready to greet him; (2) I must be swift of foot to serve and help him; (3) When I pray, I must remember my Brother's welfare; (4) I must never betray a Brother's confidence and trust; and (5) I must not wrongfully revile my Brother nor suffer others to do so, but in his absence, I must shield and protect him. Moralizing on the Working Tools of a Master Mason, we are constantly reminded by our Masonic ritual of His unerring and impartial justice, Who, having defined for our instruction the limits of good and evil, will reward or punish, as we have obeyed or disregarded His Divine commands. This reference brings us face to face with the most profound of all Masonic symbols, viz., the point within the circle from which every part of the circumference is equidistant. What a tremendous importance attaches to this symbol! The point within the circle may represent some individual Brother with whom we have no affinity, with whom we have little or no sympathy and whom we naturally dislike, but our obligation to be of service to him, if needed, cannot be ignored. Between the points of the extended compasses lies the angle of the square, as if to remind us that there must be no equivocation; if the occasion comes within the scope of our reasonable ability, we must endeavour to be of service to the Brother represented by the point within the circle, and extend to him friendship and brotherly love.
[When this implement is placed in its customary position] upon the Square, [it] symbolizes the spiritual, intellectual, reasoning man, that living part of us which is not body; whereas, the Square symbolizes the material, the earthly part with its lusts and desires. Hence, Masonry teaches us to subordinate the lower to the higher, and here we are forcibly reminded that the battlefield on which man has his greatest warfare, is himself in his daily life. The moral and spiritual are in constant conflict with the material and sensuous; happily, however, each individual is entrusted with the faculty by which he can, if he will, measure the importance of virtue, analyse its value in contrast with the temptation to act otherwise, and then make his choice.
INWARDNESS OF MASONIC SYMBOLISM 241 It will thus be seen that the inwardness of Masonry is a fascinating study, and those, who give it the thought it deserves, find themselves astonished beyond words. Masonry is worthy of being put to the fullest service and test of everyday life. The weakness of Masonry is not in the number and personality of its members, but in those who do not trouble to understand Masonry, much less to use it in the service of humanity. If in character, attitude and gesture, Masonry gripped the heart of its adherents, the standing and influence of Masonry would command universal esteem. Masonry is really the science of good living, and those who are admitted into its fellowship, and range themselves under its banner, should never forget that they have entered into a great heritage, and to them is entrusted the grave responsibility of discharging their obligations with the utmost fidelity.
In conclusion, therefore, I would remind you that you and I are only here for an allotted period of time. If Freemasonry is what we believe it to be, we ought to be better men for our association with it. In a short while, and the wisest of us knows not how soon, we shall come to the fatal threshold where the philosopher ceases to be wise and the song of the poet is silent, where Dives bids farewell to his millions and Lazarus to his beggary, where the poor man is rich as the richest and the rich man is as poor as the poorest, where the strongest man has no supremacy and the weakest needs no defence, where the proud man surrenders his dignities and the worldling his pleasures, and where the creditor loses his usury and the debtor is acquitted of his obligation. We shall come then face to face with the record of our thoughts, words and actions by the most High, Who will reward or punish, as we have obeyed or disregarded His Divine commands. Let us therefore renew our dedication to the high ideals of our Order and practise everywhere‑in the home, in social as well as in public life, in business and every other sphere, the duties we have been taught in Masonry, and thereby prove to the world the happy and beneficial effects of our ancient and honourable Institution.
THE MASON WORD (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1938) by BRo. DOUGLAS KNOOP, M.A. P.M. Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No. 2076, London Synopsis The Mason Word more than a mere word. The Edinburgh Register House MS., endorsed "Some Questiones Anent the mason word 1696", shows that there were two distinct ceremonies. Entered Apprentices and their secrets. Relative age of the two ceremonies. The Five Points of Fellowship in relation to the Noah story of the Graham MS. (1726) and the Hiram story of Prichard's Masonry Dissected (1730).
The possible origin of these stories. The Sloane MS. 3329 (c. 1700), a tract headed: "A Narrative of the Freemasons word and signes". The possibility that the various MSS. indirectly reveal THE Mason Word. The age of the Mason Word as an institution. The Trinity College, Dublin MS. (1711) as a link between operative and speculative masonry. Influence exercised by the Mason Word on the development of masonic ceremonies.
The subject which I have chosen for my Prestonian Lecture is the Mason Word, and the customs and usages associated with its communication, about which all too little is at present known. What little is known, how ever, suggests that this operative forerunner of our speculative rites probably throws more light on the origins of our present ceremonies than do those early Craft regulations and medieval histories of masonry, commonly known as the MS. Constitutions of Masonry, or, more familiarly, as the Old Charges. The MS. Constitutions present a wider field for investigation, as approximately one hundred different versions of them, ranging in date from the late fourteenth to the early nineteenth century, are known, and they have naturally been studied in considerable detail.' My field tonight is much narrower, as the principal materials on which I rely for my study of the Mason Word consist only of five late seventeenth or early eighteenth century manuscripts. Two of these, the Edinburgh Register House MS. (1696) and the Chetwode Crawley MS. (c. 1700),2 are practically identical, apart from verbal variations and points of spelling and punctuation, with the all‑important exception that the former is endorsed with a date. Thus the information is mainly derived from four documents, the Edinburgh Register House MS. 1 See, e.g., Hughan, Old Charges of British Freemasons, 1st ed., 1870; rev. 2nd ed., 1895; Gould, Commentary on the Regius Poem, Q.C.A., i. (1889); Speth, Commentary on the Cooke MS., Q.C.A., ii. (1890); Poole, The Old Charges, 1924, and The Old Charges in the Eighteenth Century, Prestonian Lecture for 1933; Poole and Worts The "Yorkshire" Old Charges of Masons, 1935; Knoop, Jones and Hamer, The Two Earliest Masonic MSS. (the Regius and Cooke MSS.), 1938.
2 Discovered at the beginning of the century [Hughan, A.Q.C., xvii. (1904), 91, 92], this MS. is now in the possession of the Grand Lodge of Ireland. A transcript appears in the Masonic Reprints of the Lodge of Research, No. 2429, Leicester.
Its contents have subsequently proved to be practically the same as those of the Edinburgh Register House MS., except that the two parts are transposed.
243 244 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES (1696), the Graham MS. (1726), the Trinity College, Dublin MS. (1711), and the Sloane MS. 3329 (c. 1700). The last has been known for many years,' but its importance has recently been greatly enhanced by the discovery of the first two. Jointly these MSS. constitute a most valuable source of information about early masonic ceremonies, and I am glad to avail myself of the opportunity afforded by my appointment as Prestonian Lecturer to draw the attention of the Brethren to some of the significance of these four documents.
At the outset I desire to acknowledge my indebtedness to various masonic students, and especially to Bro. the Rev. Herbert Poole, who has made such a close study of the Old Charges and of contemporary Masonic MSS.2 It was his recent paper on the Graham MS. which first caused me to turn my attention to the various MSS. forming the basis of my lecture this evening.
THE MASON WORD MORE THAN A MERE WORD The justification for stressing the importance of the Mason Word as a factor in the development of masonic ceremonies lies in the fact that it consisted of something substantially more than a mere word. Thus the Rev. Robert Kirk, Minister of Aberfoyle, writing in 1691,3 says the Mason Word "is like a Rabbinical Tradition, in way of comment on Jachin and Boaz, the two Pillars erected in Solomon's Temple (I. Kings, 7, 21), with ane Addition of some secret Signe delyvered from Hand to Hand, by which they know and become familiar one with another". A letter of 1697 states that "The Laird[s] of Roslin ... are obliged to receive the mason's word which is a secret signall masons have thro'out the world to know one another by. They alledge 'tis as old as since Babel, when they could not understand one another and they conversed by signs. Others would have it no older than Solomon. However it is, he that hath it will bring his brother mason to him without calling to him or your perceiving of the signe" 4 1 It is quoted in the English edition of Findel's History of Freemasonry, published in 1865.
2 See more especially "Masonic Ritual and Secrets before 1717", A.Q.C., xxxvii. (1924); and "The Graham Manuscript", A.Q.C., 1, (1937). I enjoy one definite advantage over earlier writers approaching the same problem; thanks to the recent discovery of the Edinburgh Register House MS., endorsed 1696, I have escaped their difficulties regarding the probable dates of the Sloane and Chetwode Crawley MSS. The handwriting of these two MSS. pointed to circa 1700; so did the fact that the Chetwode Crawley MS. contained, almost verbatim, the words of the so‑called "Haughfoot Minute" of 1702 (Poole, A.Q.C., xxxvii., 7). The MSS., however, refer to two ceremonies, whereas many masonic students maintained that there was only one prior to 1723. This conflict of external and internal evidence led to much doubt about the probable dates. Now that we know for certain that there were two distinct ceremonies at least as early as 1696, there need be no hesitation in accepting 1700 as the approximate date of these two MSS.
3 The Secret Commonwealth of Elves, Fauns and Fairies, 3rd ed., 1933, 108.
4 Hist. MSS. Com., Portland MSS., ii., 56. For particulars about the Lairds of Roslin, a branch of the St. Clair family, and their claim to be protectors and patrons of the Craft in Scotland, see Murray Lyon, History of the Lodge of Edinburgh (Mary's Chapel), No. 1, Tercentenary Edition, 64‑72.
THE MASON WORD 245 THE EDINBURGH REGISTER HOUSE MS.
The Edinburgh Register House MS.,' a document discovered about 1930 among the records in the Historical Department of the Register House, Edinburgh, is considerably more informative. It is endorsed "Some Questiones Anent the mason word 1696" and consists of two parts, the first headed Some Questiones That Masons use to put to those who have ye word before they will acknowledge them", and the second "The forme of giveing the mason word".
The test questions relate partly to the conditions of admittance and partly to matters with which nobody could be acquainted without previous instruction. As the MS. provides answers to all the questions, and states that they have to be answered exactly, it is obvious that the necessary instruction regarding all the questions must have been given to a candidate either at his admission or subsequently.
As the questions and answers are not very long, I propose to read them in fu11,2 in order to give the Brethren a first‑hand acquaintance with the kind of Examination to be found in all the manuscripts with which we have to do this evening: Q. 1: Are you a mason? Ans. : Yes.
Q. 2: How shall I know it? Ans.: You'shall know it in time and place convenient. Remark the fors[ai]d answer is only to be made when there is company present who are not masons. But if there be no such company by, you should answer by signes, tokens and other points of my entrie.
Q. 3 : What is the first point ? Ans. : Tell me the first point ile tell you the second. The first is to hei1]3 and conceall; second, under no less pain, which is then cutting of your throat. For you most make that sign when you say that.
Q. 4: Where wes you entered? Ans. : At the honourable lodge.
Q. 5: What makes a true and perfect lodge ? Ans. : Seven masters, five entered apprentices, A dayes journey from a burroughs town, without bark of dog or crow of cock.ó 1 Edinburgh Register House, Miscellaneous Papers, No. 52. A photographic reproduction appears in A.Q.C., xliii. (1930). 153‑5, and a transcript in the Trans. of the Manchester Assoc. for Masonic Research, xxii. (1932), 143, in each case with an introduction by Bro. J. Mason Allan.
2 To facilitate reading, the various abbreviations used in the MS. for "question" and "answer" have been made uniform, the punctuation has been modernized, and such sentences as appear to be instructions have been printed in italics.
3 Heill, hele, heal: to hide, conceal, to keep secret (O.E.D.).
4 cf. Laws and Statutes of the Lodge of Aberdeen, 1670, rule iii., "that no lodge be holden within a dwelling house wher ther is people living in it but in the open fieldes except it be ill weather, and then let ther be a house chosen that no person shall heir nor sie ws"; and rule v., "that all entering prentises be entered in our antient outfield Lodge in the mearnes in the parish of negg at the scounces at the poynt of the ness" (Miller, Notes on the Early History and Records of the Lodge, Aberdeen, 59, 63).
246 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Q. 6 : Does no less make a true and perfect lodge? Ans. : Yes, five masons and three entered apprentices, &c.
Q. 7: Does no less? Ans. : The more the merrier, the fewer the better chear.
Q. 8 : What is the name of your lodge? Ans. : Kilwinning.
Q. 9 : How stands your lodge ? Ans.: East and west as the temple of Jerusalem.
Q. 10: Where wes the first lodge? Ans. : In the porch of Solomons Temple.
Q. 11: Are there any lights in your lodge? Ans.: Yes, three‑the north east, s w, and eastern passage. The one denotes the maste[r] mason, the other the warden. The third the setter croft.
Q. 12: Are there any jewells in your lodge? Ans.: Yes, threePerpendl Esler [ashlar], a square pavement, and a broad ovall.2 Q. 13: Where shall I find the key of your lodge? Yes [?Ans.:] Three foot and an half from the lodge door under a perpend esler and a green divot. But under the lap of my liver where all my secrets of my heart lie.
Q. 14: Which is the key of your lodge? Ans. : a weel hung tongue.
Q. 15: Where lies the key? Ans. : In the bone box.
After the masons have examined you by all or some of these Questions and that you have answered them exactly and mad the signes, they will acknowledge you, but not as a master mason or fellow croft, but only as as [ ? an] apprentice, soe they will say I see you have been in the kitchine, but I know not if you have been in the hall. Ans.: I have been in the hall as weel as in the kitchine.
Q. 1: Are you a fellow craft? Ans. : Yes.
Q. 2 : How many points of the fellowship are ther ? Ans. : fyve, viz., foot to foot, Knee to Kn[ee], Heart to Heart, Hand to Hand, and ear to ear. Then make the sign of fellowship and shake hand and you will be acknowledged a true mason. The words are in the 1 of the Kings Ch 7, v 21, and in 2 Chr: ch 3 verse last. The conclusion of the examination shows, first, that the fellowcraft or master mason (which were equivalent terms in Scotland at this period) had secrets distinct from those of an entered apprentice; and secondly, that only the fellowcraft was acquainted with what are called "the five points of the fellowship". Further reference will be made to these two matters shortly.
I Perpend, parpen 1. a stone which passes through a wall from side to side, having two smooth vertical faces (O.E.D.).
2 Broad ovall: ? broached ornel. Broached: worked with a chisel (O.E.D.). Ornel, urnall, urnell: a kind of soft white building stone (O.E.D.). The terms "Parpeincoins", "pament", and "urnell" figure in the Rochester Castle Building Account, 1368 (Arch. Cant., ii., 114).
THE MASON WORD 247 "The form of giving the mason word" is a series of instructions to those admitting "the person to take the word", and indicates in a general way what was to be said to him and what he was to say. After he had taken an oath of secrecy, in which he swore not to reveal by word or writing any part of what he should see or hear, nor to draw it with the point of a sword, or any other instrument, upon the snow or sand, he was to go out with the youngest mason from whom he was to learn "the signe and the postures and words of his entrie". He then rejoined the company and said the words of his entry, which I shall now read:' Here come I, the youngest and last entered apprentice, As I am sworn by God and St. Jhon, by the square and compass and common judge,2 to attend my masters service at the honourable lodge, from munday in the morning till saturday at night and to keep the keyes therof, under no less pain then haveing my tongue cut out under my chin, and of being buried within the flood mark, where no man shall know; then he makes the sign, again with drawing his hand under his chin alongst his throat, which denotes that it be cut out in caise he break his word.3 This shows that, whatever other objects the formal admission might have, it served to emphasize the duties which the entered apprentice owed to his master.
In at least one Scottish operative lodge in 1670, namely, the Lodge of Aberdeen, the entered apprentice, in addition to receiving the Mason Word at his entry, had read to him the "Mason Charter", which was the version of the Old Charges now described as the Aberdeen MS., and also the Laws and Statutes of the Lodge.4 As the reading of these two documents would require the best part of an hour, the proceedings at the admission of an entered 1 To facilitate reading, the punctuation has been modernized, and such sentences as appear to be instructions have been printed in italics.
2 In mining, a judge is a staff used to measure the depth of holes (O.E.D.). Amongst masons, it probably referred to the virga geometricalis, or measuring rod, with which the foundation or ground plan of a building was marked out. (See Note by Knoop and Jones on "Latlaying the Groundwork", Misc. Lat., September, 1937). Pictures of medieval masons sometimes show them with a square, a compass and a measuring rod, as in Libergier's tomb slab in Rheims Cathedral (Coulton, Art and the Reformation, 140).
3 These words of entry may be compared with those still used at an old practice of the Scoon and Perth Lodge No. 3, called the Baptism, which is performed at the time of refreshment. The Master, taking a little whisky and water in his hand, pours it on the head of the newly made apprentice, who repeats after the Master these words: "Here comes I the youngest and last made mason willing to do my Master's bidding from Monday morning to Saturday night...... There is a reference in the Lodge minutes of 22nd January, 1741, to washing the newly admitted apprentice's head, and the likelihood is that the practice goes back to operative days (Crawford Smith, History of the Ancient Masonic Lodge of Scoon and Perth, 101).
4 See quotation from the Mark Book of the Lodge, in Miller, 21. The Charter and the Statutes of 1670 are printed in the Appendices to that book.
248 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES apprentice, if the Aberdeen practice was at all general,' must have been considerably longer than a perusal of the Edinburgh Register House MS. would suggest.
TWO DISTINCT CEREMONIES IN 1696 Reverting to our MS., it may be noted that at the conclusion of what may be described as the ceremony, the word was circulated amongst those present and was finally given to the candidate by the Master. These signs and words were those of an entered apprentice, and, as the MS. points out, there were others belonging to a master mason or fellowcraft, which were imparted as follows:‑First, all apprentices were ordered out of the company and none suffered to stay but masters. Then "he who is to be admitted a member of fellowship" knelt and took an oath of secrecy, after which he went out with the youngest master to learn "the posture and signes of fellowship". On returning, he made the master's sign and said the former words of entry, but leaving out the "common judge"; the masons then whispered the word among themselves, and finally the master gave him the word and the grip. There is nothing in the MS. as to the nature of the master's sign, word or grip, though some indications are given regarding the apprentice's secrets.
The fact that in 1696 there were two distinct ceremonies, if they may be so described, one applying to entered apprentices and one to fellowcrafts or masters, raises two questions: first, who were the entered apprentices, and secondly, whether or not both ceremonies were equally old? ENTERED APPRENTICES AND THEIR SECRETS The object of obtaining the Mason Word was presumably to acquire a method of recognition, and thereby secure certain advantages in the matter of employment, and possibly of rehef.2 Ordinary apprentices were not free to seek work independently of the masters to whom they were bound,3 and would therefore have no need of secret methods of recognition. Nor would they require relief, since their masters maintained them. The apprentice who was given the Mason Word could not, therefore, have been an ordinary apprentice. The explanation probably lies in the fact that in Scotland in the seventeenth century, and possibly earlier, apprentices and entered apprentices apparently 1 In addition to the Lodge of Aberdeen, the Lodges of Aitchison's Haven, Kilwinning, Melrose, Stirling and Dumfries all appear to have possessed versions of the Old Charges dating from the second half of the seventeenth century (Poole, Old Charges. 15‑17).
2 Murray Lyon, 28, and Miller, 30. It may be noted that masons were not the only craftsmen to possess a "word". The squaremen, i.e. wrights, and possibly members of other building crafts, received the "squaremen word" (Murray Lyon, 23). O.E.D. defines squareman as "A carpenter, stone cutter or other workman who regularly uses a square for adjusting or testing his work", and notes its earliest occurrence as 1790. Actually, one of the signatories of the so‑called St. Clair charter of 1628 describes himself as "deakin of squaemen". (Murray Lyon, 68).
3 In London in the seventeenth century apprentices sometimes worked apart from their masters, but probably only on jobs to which they had been sent by them (Knoop and Jones, The London Mason in the Seventeenth Century, 64, 65).
THE MASON WORD 249 formed two distinct classes or grades,' the entered apprentices hardly being apprentices at all in the ordinary sense of the word, but rather journeymen ex‑apprentices. In Scotland, the Schaw Statutes of 15982 provided that an apprentice must be bound for at least seven years, and that, except by special permission, a further period of seven years must elapse before he could be made a fellowcraft. During this second term of seven years,3 or less, as the case might be, the ex‑apprentice was apparently an entered apprentice, and normally worked as a journeyman for a master, though the Schaw Statutes did permit an entered apprentice to undertake a limited amount of work on his own account. That this general ordinance applied locally is shown by the Mutual Agreement of 1658, which regulated the affairs of the Lodge of Perth.4 This provided that no entered apprentice should leave his master or masters to take any work or task work above 40s. Scots. Further, it was expressly provided that he was not to take an apprentice. At Kilwinning in 1659, two fellowcrafts and one entered apprentice out of each quarter, together with the Deacon and Warden, were appointed to meet each year at Ayr to deal with transgressors.5 At Melrose, the entered apprentices were parties to the Mutual Agreement of 1675, which regulated the affairs of the Lodge.6 At Aberdeen in 1670 the Laws and Statutes of the Lodge show that entered apprentices received the benefit of the Mason Word at their entry,' and that they became eligible for the fellowship three years later; further, the Mark Book of the Lodge shows that each entered apprentice had his mark's and the same was the case at Dumfries in 1687.9 The Schaw Statutes of 1598 provided that no master or fellowcraft should be received, except in the presence of six masters and two entered apprentices, 1 A Minute of the Aitchison's Haven Lodge, dated 27th December, 1655 (A.Q.C., xxiv., 41), records that apprentices were not to be made entered apprentices under the sum of twelve pounds Scots.
2 Printed in Murray Lyon, 9, and Knoop and Jones, The Medieval Mason, 258. 3 Cases of masons serving double apprenticeships occurred in England in the seventeenth century. Thus Richard Varney of Islip, stonemason, examined in the Chancellor's Court at Oxford, 26th April, 1681, stated that "he served his father (though he was his eldest son) more than a double apprenticeship"; John Saunders of Denton, stonemason, stated, on the same occasion, that he had served his father a double apprenticeship. (Abstract (very kindly lent to G. P. Jones and myself by the Rev. H. E. Salter) of papers labelled "1681 M" in the Oxford University Archives.] These double apprenticeships, however, were hardly analogous to the Scottish practice of apprenticeship and entered apprenticeship.
4 Crawford Smith, chap. v.
5 Minute of the Lodge, dated 20th December, 1659, quoted in R. Wylie, History of the Mother Lodge, Kilwinning, 2nd ed., 60.
6 Printed in W. F. Vernon, History of Freemasonry in Roxburghshire and Selkirkshire, 13.
7 There is nothing in the Edinburgh Register House MS. to indicate when the entered apprentice received the benefit of the Mason Word. It merely refers to "the person to take the word".
8 See page from Mark Book reproduced in Miller, facing p. 28.
9 Regulation of the Lodge of Dumfries, approved 2nd June, 1687, printed in J. Smith, History of the Old Lodge of Dumfries, 9. The use of marks on work to enable the craftsman to be identified was not peculiar to masons. In London the Helmet‑makers, Blacksmiths, Bladesmiths and Brasiers used them (Riley, Memorials of London, 238, 361, 569, 626).
250 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES and the early Minutes of the Lodge of Edinburgh prove that this requirement was observed.' This evidence shows clearly that entered apprentices in Scotland had a real, if subordinate share in the government of the craft, and in its privileges. Their position can be compared with that occupied by the Yeomanry in the London Masons' Company. It is inconceivable that either in London or in Scotland the ordinary apprentice had any say in the management of the craft, or that he enjoyed any privileges; his was purely a position of servitude until the period for which he was bound had expired. Thereupon, in London he might be made a freeman and become part of the Yeomanry of the Masons' Company;2 in Scotland he became an entered apprentice and received the benefit of the Mason Word. In due course, a yeoman in London might be accepted into the Livery, and an entered apprentice in Scotland might be received as a master or fellowcraft 3 There was however, an important difference: the former promotion was the exception rather than the rule;4 the latter promotion, so far as one can tell, was the rule rather than the exception 5 A rather better analogy is provided by the London carpenters who, under an Ordinance of 1607,6 were forbidden to have an apprentice until they had been "free" three years and had served at least one year with a freeman of the Company.
So far as I am aware, the term entered apprentice occurs in operative masonry only in Scotland. It is commonly held that the entered apprentice was so called "because entered in the Lodge books,'17 but this cannot be regarded as a complete explanation. The Schaw Statutes of 1598 distinguished between (i.) "receiving" an apprentice and (ii.) "entering" an apprentice; "receiving" apparently took place at the outset of his career, and "entering" at some later, but unspecified, date, presumably at the expiration 1 Murray Lyon, 79.
2 Actually rather fewer than 50 per cent. of the apprentices bound in London took up their freedom (The London Mason in the Seventeenth Century, 63).
3 In London there was no prescribed minimum period, and very occasionally an apprentice was made a freeman, and accepted into the Livery, on the same day, e.g. Edward Strong, jun., in 1698 (The London Mason in the Seventeenth Century, 45 n). In Scotland, although the Schaw Statutes contemplated an entered apprenticeship of seven years, except by special permission, the period at Aberdeen in 1670 was three years. At Glasgow, in the early seventeenth century, the usual period appears to have been two years, to judge by the following: It would appear from the Minutes [of the Incorporation of Masons], 9th February, 1613, and 5th February, 1617, that nine years was the customary endurance of an Apprenticeship, viz., seven years to learn the trade and two for meat and fee (Cruikshank, Sketch of the Incorporation of Masons and the Lodge of Glasgow St. John, 63).
4 The Quarterage Book of the Masons' Company shows that in 1663 there were 45 members of the Livery, including assistants, as compared with 143 members of the Yeomanry; in 1677 the corresponding figures were 71 and 162 (ibid., 8, 9).
5 That there were exceptions is shown by the fact that, in Edinburgh in the seventeenth century, it was not unusual for entered apprentices on the expiry of their entered apprenticeship to seek employment as journeymen, without having been admitted as fellowcraft (Murray Lyon, 28).
6 Jupp and Pocock, Historical Account of the Worshipful Company of Carpenters, 423.
7 Kenning's Cyclopedia of Freemasonry, 201.
THE MASON WORD 251 of seven years' servitude. The Statutes further provided that the name of the apprentice and the date of his "receiving" should be booked, and that, in due course, the date of his "entering" should be booked. Thus "entering" could hardly have meant simply that his name was entered in a book, as that had also been done when he was "received". It related, more probably, to his admission or entry into the ranks of the time‑expired or fully qualified apprentices. The term "entered apprentice" occurs in the forms "enterprentice"1 and "interprintice".2 Enter and inter are both Scottish forms of entire, so that the term may have denoted entire apprentice, i.e. complete or fully qualified apprentice.
Three pieces of evidence may be cited in support of this opinion. First, a Minute of the Aitchison's Haven Lodge, dated 2nd January, 1600, records that Andrew Patten was "enterit prenteis to John Crafurd his maister";3 as a Minute of 7th June, 1599, records that Andrew Patten had served six years of his apprenticeship at that date,4 it follows that he had served about seven years when he was entered. Secondly, a Minute of the Lodge of Edinburgh, dated 3rd February, 1601, records that Andrew Hamilton, apprentice to John Watt, was "enterit ... as past prenteis to the said Johnne War his m[aiste]r".5 This clearly shows that Andrew Hamilton had served his time before being "entered". Thirdly, Article XIV. of the Regius MS. requires ". . . if that the master a prentice have, Entirely then that he him teach." If originally an apprentice was entered as an entire apprentice, confusion between entered and entire might easily have led to entire apprentice being changed to entered apprentice.
The secrets communicated to entered apprentices were probably not the essential ones, but means of recognition, safeguarded with less caution than the principal secrets and regarded partly as a joke. The possession of such secrets doubtless carried with it fewer privileges. The first two conclusions are suggested by a study of the Edinburgh Register House MS. (i.) This shows that a good deal of horseplay was associated with the imparting of the entered apprentice secrets. Thus the oath was to be administered only "after a great many ceremonies to frighten" the candidate; when outside with the youngest mason, the candidate was to be frightened "with 1,000 ridicolous postures and grimmaces" before being given the sign, postures and words of entry; after rejoining the company he was to "make a ridiculous bow" and "put off his hat after a very foolish manner". This horseplay may be compared with the practices common at the admission of freshmen 1 Trinity College, Dublin MS. 2 Sloane MS., 3329.
3 A.Q.C., xxiv., 36. 4 ibid., 35.
5 Murray Lyon, 79.
252 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES to universities in medieval and later times,' or with the tests imposed upon newcomers to the Hanseatic factory at Bergen.2 That something of this horseplay was liable to be introduced into the early speculative Lodges is clearly implied by one of the by‑laws of the Lodge constituted at the Maid's Head, Norwich, in May, 1724, which reads: "6. That no ridiculous trick be played with any person when he is admitted".3 These by‑laws are stated to have been "recommended by our Worthy Br' D'' Desaguliers" [Grand Master in 1719 and Deputy Grand Master in 1722‑23 and 1725], and may be regarded as reflecting the desire of the recently formed Grand Lodge to suppress such horseplay. On the other hand, no corresponding fooling is mentioned in the Edinburgh Register House MS. in connection with being "admitted a member of fellowship". (ii.) It is very noticeable, as previously mentioned, that whereas the MS. gives various indications as to the nature of the entered apprentice's secrets, it preserves a complete silence regarding those of the fellowcraft or master.
RELATIVE AGE OF THE TWO CEREMONIES Regarding the second question, the considerations I have just mentioned suggest the conclusion that the giving of the Mason Word originally concerned fellowcrafts only, and that the participation in it of entered apprentices was a later development. When such development took place is uncertain; very possibly it occurred when the category of entered apprentices, intermediate between apprentices and fellowcrafts, was first established, probably at some date prior to 1598. It doubtless represented an attempt to limit the number of potential masters, which rather suggests that it originated in the sixteenth century, a period when many gilds tended to develop restrictive policies. The Minutes of Aitchison's Haven Lodge4 show that as early as 1598, when a new entered apprentice was admitted, he chose two entered apprentices as his intenders and instructors, and when a new fellowcraft was admitted he chose two fellowcrafts as his intenders and instructors. If these intenders corresponded to the "youngest mason" and the "youngest master" of the Edinburgh Register House MS., who taught the candidates the signs and postures, then it may well be that there were two sets of secrets in 1598, and that it was these which the intenders imparted to the newly admitted entered apprentices and fellowcrafts respectively. On the other hand, it must be noted that, whereas the Schaw Statutes of 1598 required the name and mark of every fellowcraft or master to be booked (there being no corresponding stipulation concerning the entered apprentice, who presumably had no mark), at Aberdeen in 1670 the names and marks of entered apprentices, as well as those of fellowcrafts, were recorded in the Mark Book. This suggests that the entered apprentice i R. S. Rait, Life in the Medieval University, chap. vi. 2 Helen Zinunern, The Hansa Towns, 144‑47.
3 G. W. Daynes, A.Q.C., xxxvii., 38.
4 R. E. Wallace‑James, "The Minute Book of the Aitchison's Haven Lodge, 1598‑1764," A.Q.C., xxiv.
THE MASON WORD 253 of 1670 enjoyed more privileges than his predecessor of 1598, but does not preclude the latter from having enjoyed some privileges.
If the giving of the Mason Word originally concerned fellowcrafts only, as I am inclined to think, the question at once arises whether the secrets and ceremony appertaining to apprentices were new, or whether they were those previously given to fellowcrafts. The words of entry, being common to apprentices and fellowcrafts, apart from the omission of a reference to the "common judge", were almost certainly old, and the same is probably true of the test questions and answers. I think it not unlikely that any signs and words were also old, and that it was the fellowcrafts who had been provided with new and more elaborate methods of recognition. To explain why I incline to this view, it is necessary to examine more closely what is known about the Mason Word in relation to fe1_lowcrafrs.
THE FIVE POINTS OF FELLOWSHIP As previously mentioned, the Edinburgh Register House MS. tells little about the giving of the Mason Word to fellowcrafts, but the last question and answer clearly show that the person to be "admitted a member of fellowship" was made acquainted with what are called the five points of the fellowship, viz., foot to foot, head to head, heart to heart, hand to hand and ear to ear.
Further light, however, is thrown on the subject by the recently discovered Graham MS.,' which bears the date 1726.
THE GRAHAM MS. AND THE NOAH STORY The Graham MS. appears to be the same type of document as the Edinburgh Register House MS., namely, a mason's aide memoire, although it bears quite a different heading, viz., "The whole Institutions of free Masonry opened and proved by the best of tradition and still some reference to scripture".
It consists of two parts, the first an examination, along somewhat similar lines to the Edinburgh MS., the second an exposition, in the form of a "lecture", of legendary matter, chiefly concerning Noah, Bezaleel and King Solomon, which bears little resemblance to the events recorded in the historical section of the MS. Constitutions of Masonry.
Before referring more fully to the legendary matter, I should state that the Graham MS. concludes with a cryptic reference to masons' secrets, and an enumeration of what are called "five points off free Masons fellowshipe which is foot to foot, knee to knee, breast to breast, cheeck to cheeck and hand to Back".
The reference to freemasons' secrets reads thus : I This is named after the writer, Thomas Graham, and belonged to the Rev. H. I. Robinson, Londesborough Rectory, York, who first drew attention to it when he was initiated in 1936. He has since presented it to the Eboracum Lodge, York.
A photographic reproduction, with introduction by Bro. Poole, appears in A.Q.C., vol. 1. (1937).
254 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES So all [i.e. King Solomon's Temple] Being ffinised then was the secrets of ffree Masonry ordered a right as is now and will be to the E End of the world for such as do rightly understand it‑in 3 parts, in refferance to the blesed trinity who made all things yet in 13 brenches, in refferance to Christ and his 12 apostles which is as ffollows; aword ffor adeveine,l Six ffor the clargey, and 6 ffor the ffellow craft.
The "three parts" conceivably refer to the three Degrees, which, as I shall attempt to show later, probably existed by 1726. I have no suggestions to offer regarding the "13 branches", which, near the end of the MS., are set out thus: Your first is your second is your third is your twelfth is your thirteenth is More important for our present purpose is the enumeration of the "five points of free Masons fellowshipe", as the occurrence of the same five points in the legendary matter relating to Noah doubtless provides one possible explanation of their origin. The rather gruesome story is briefly as follows Noah's three sons, desirous of finding something about him to lead them to the valuable secret which their father had possessed‑for all things needful for the new world were in the Ark with Noah‑went to Noah's grave, agreeing beforehand that if they did not find the very thing itself, the first thing they found was to be to them as a secret. They found nothing in the grave except the dead body; when the finger was gripped it came away, and so with the wrist and the elbow. They then reared up the dead body, supporting it by setting foot to foot, knee to knee, breast to breast, cheek to cheek and hand to back. Thereupon "one said here is yet marrow in this bone and the second said but a dry bone and the third said it stinketh.2 So they agreed to give it a name as it is known to freemasonry to this day".
The bone, being the first thing found, must presumably have some significance. Whether the phrase "marrow in this bone" is significant is not so certain. It may be noted that the word marrow, in addition to its ordin ary meaning, had certainly another, and possibly a symbolic meaning, for Scottish masons. It was used in Northern Middle English, and in Scotland down to the nineteenth century, to denote "partner", "fellow", "mate", and it is not uncommon in that sense in sixteenth and seventeenth century I A devine: ? a Divinity.
2 It stinketh: possibly descendant of medieval and sixteenth century satires on relics. cf. The Four P P, ptd. ? 1545, of John Heywood (1497‑1580), in which the Pardoner offers the Apothecary the "blessed jaw‑bone" of All Hallows, and bids him kiss it devoutedly. The Apothecary does so and recoils with disgust. me‑thinketh That All Hallows' breath stinketh.
THE MASON WORD 255 Scottish building accounts.' "Here is yet marrow in this bone" may thus have been a reminder that fellowship was of the essence of masonry. It is also possible that "marrow in this bone" may have been intended to serve as a mnemonic.
PRICHARD'S MASONRY DISSECTED AND THE HIRAM STORY Another possible explanation of the five points of fellowship is provided by a story relating to Hiram, of which the oldest‑known form is that in Prichard's Masonry Dissected, first published in 1730.2 According to this version of the story, three masons murdered Hiram, King Solomon's master of the works at the building of the Temple, in an attempt to extort from him the secrets of a master mason. On his being missed, fifteen fellowcrafts were ordered to search for him, and they agreed that if they did not find the word in or about him, the first word should be the master's word. Ultimately his body was found under a covering of green moss,3 and King Solomon ordered that it should be taken up and decently buried. When they took him by the forefinger the skin came off, whereupon they took a firmer grip of his hand and raised him by the five points of fellowship, viz., hand to hand, foot to foot, cheek to cheek, knee to knee and hand to back.
THE POSSIBLE ORIGIN OF THE NOAH AND HIRAM STORIES The marked similarities between the Noah story and the Hiram story, in its oldest known form, are very striking; both have the same main motif‑the attempt to obtain a secret from a dead body, and both have the same subsidiary motif‑the intention. to provide a substituted secret, failing the discovery of a genuine one. Where either story originally came from, or how it became associated with masonry, is unknown. It is, however, possible that the Noah story had some connection with the narrative, in Genesis, ix., 21‑27, of the shaming of Noah, to which it is in some respects parallel. In Genesis, Noah was asleep; in the Graham MS. story he was dead; but the exposure of his person in the former story, and the exhumation of his body in the latter, both offended against the respect due to a progenitor. In Genesis, Ham was the chief offender, on which account his progeny was cursed, and he is perhaps also to be regarded as the ringleader in the original of the Graham MS. story.
The stories of Noah and Hiram call to mind the fact that in Biblical instances of the miraculous restoration of life, the prophet or apostle lay full length upon the body and breathed into its face. Three cases are cited in the Bible, namely, those of Elijah, who raised the widow's son from death 1 e.g. "Item to Thom Crauford and his m[ar]rowis for 343 feet ashlar ú5 17s. 10d." Edinburgh Register House, Master of Works Accounts, vol. iv., fo. 7, Holyrood House, 1535‑36.
2 Masonic Reprints XII, Lodge of Research, Leicester, 1929.
3 The statement that the body was found "under a covering of green moss" may be compared with the statement in the Edinburgh. Register House MS. that the key of the Lodge is hidden "under a perpend esler and a green divot".
256 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES (1 Kings, xvii., 17‑23), of Elisha, who raised the son of the Shunammite woman (2 Kings, iv., 34‑35), and of St. Paul, who raised a young man named Eutychus (Acts, xx., 9‑12). In the second case the process is described in detail 34. And he [Elisha] went up, and lay upon the child, and put his mouth upon his mouth, and his eyes upon his eyes, and his hands upon his hands: and he stretched himself upon the child; and the flesh of the child waxed warm.
35. Then he returned, and walked in the house to and fro; and went up, and stretched himself upon him; and the child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes.
Here complete coincidence between living and dead was established twice, first by placing mouth to mouth, eyes to eyes and hands to hands, and secondly, by stretching at full length upon the body. It is thus not impossible that the original stories of Noah and Hiram may have been those of attempts to restore these men to life, because their secrets had died with them.
The Biblical examples show that the idea of complete coincidence of living and dead was to restore the dead to life. This would develop into necromantic practices, and in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries the idea would survive only as necromancy.' It would seem not inconceivable that one story was modelled on the other, and that the original story rested on an old tradition connecting Ham, son of Noah, with magic and the black arts. The disinterment of Noah was clearly an act of necromancy, and it is therefore pertinent to note that Ham, son of Noah, is connected in medieval tradition, if not with necromancy in its narrower sense, at any rate with the black arts.2 The tradition associating Ham with necromancy survived as late as the sixteenth century, when it was found in an English work, Reginald Scot, Discoverie of Witchcraft (1586).3 It may further be noted that the five points of fellowship, suggesting as they do that two bodies were made to coincide, presumably with the object of the knowledge possessed by one passing to the other, also savour of popular superstition, and they support the possibility that the origin of the story must be sought in witchcraft or folklore. The fact that the Mason Word was linked by at least two seventeenth century Scottish writers, 1 Necromancy: the pretended art of revealing future events, etc., by means of communication with the dead (O.E.D.).
2 cf. Vincent de Beauvais, Speculum Historiale, book ii, chap. ci.
3 In this book (ed. Montague Summers, p. 222) it is said of the devil Gaap, or Tap, that "certaine necromancers . . . offered sacrifices and burnt‑offerings unto him and to call him up they exercised an art saieng that Salomon the wise made it, which is false; for it was rather Cham, the sonne of Noah who after the floud began first to invocate wicked spirits".
THE MASON WORD 257 Henry Adamson and Robert Kirk, with the subject of second sight,' conceivably points to the same conclusion.
THE SLOANE MS. 3329 Yet one other manuscript relating to the Mason Word, namely, Sloane MS. 3329,2 calls for attention. This tract is headed "A Narrative of the Freemasons word and signes", and differs in character from the Edinburgh Register House MS. and the Graham MS., as it does not appear to be a mason's aide mimoire, but a collection of notes on the Mason Word, apparently gathered by the writer from various sources. It contains (i.) an account of a dozen signs by which an operative mason could make himself known to a fellow mason; (ii.) a description of a fellowcraft's grip and of a master's grip, the latter in two forms; (iii.) two series of questions and answers, resembling those of the Edinburgh Register House and Graham MS.; (iv.) a brief reference to the master's word‑mahabyn‑and the method of communicating it; (v.) an oath. Mahabyn is very possibly a variant of matchpin, which is given as the master's word in the Trinity College, Dublin MS.
The fact that the signs and words are associated in the Sloane MS. with operative freemasons, strongly suggests an immediate English source for the document, the word "freemason" being unknown in Scotland as a trade designation; the reference to "interprintices" [entered apprentices] and fellowcrafts, on the other hand, points to an ultimate Scottish origin, as these terms were used only in Scotland in operative masonry; the word "attenders" [intenders], which occurs in the oath, also suggests Scottish origin, as the practice of appointing intenders to be responsible for teaching entered apprentices3 did not extend to England, so far as I am aware. The use of the expression "this is bose or hollow" also suggests a Scottish origin.4 Dr. Schofield, of the British Museum Manuscripts Department, who recently examined the manuscript, gives the date as circa 1700. As we know from the 1 Thus (i.) Henry Adamson (The Muses' Threnodie, Edinburgh, 1638) says: "We have the mason word and second sight". (ii.) When Rev. R. Kirk dined in October, 1689, with Dr. Stillingfleet, Bishop‑elect of Worcester, the conversation turned on second sight. In the midst of the record of that conversation occurs the sentence: "The Dr. called the Mason word a Rabbinical mystery, where I discovered somewhat of it" (R. Kirk, London in 1689‑90, printed in Trans. Lond. and Mid. Arch. Soc. N.S. VII. (1933), 139). (iii.) R. Kirk in The Secret Commonwealth (1933 ed., 107‑8) enumerates five curiosities in Scotland "not much observed to be elsewhere": (a) The Brounies, (b) The Mason Word, (c) Second Sight, (d) Charmes, (e) A being Proof of Lead, Iron and Silver. Whether this association is a mere coincidence, or whether it implies some kind of connection and, if so, what, there is no evidence to show.
2 This British Museum MS. consists of a double sheet, written on three and a half sides, bound up in a large volume, on the fly‑leaf of which Sir Hans Sloane has written: "Loose papers of mine concerning curiosities".
3 Intender, intendar: occurs in this sense in the Laws and Statutes of the Lodge of Aberdeen, 1670, and in the Schaw Statutes, 1598, as well as in the Minutes of the Aitchison's Haven Lodge. Craigie, Dict. Older Scottish Tongue, defines Attender, Attendar, "One who attends on another, or to some duty".
4 See Wright, English Dialect Dictionary, under boss; also Craigie, op. cit., which gives bos, boys, bose, bois, adj., hollow, concave, perhaps from bos, boce, etc., etc., a leather bottle for liquids.
258 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Edinburgh Register House MS. that a master's word and sign existed at least as early as 1696, there is nothing in the document which makes this date improbable,' though the distinction drawn between the terms "fellowcraft" and "master" is not found in Scotland at such an early date. The five points of fellowship, as such, are not mentioned in the Sloane MS., but the method of communicating the master's word, as described there, embodies four of the points.
THE MASON WORD Both the Noah and the Hiram stories show that those engaged in the search did not find "the very thing itself", or "the word", for which they were looking, and that they had consequently to content themselves with substitutes. This suggests the possibility that there was a genuine secret somewhere in the background, which might conceivably be THE Mason Word, to which no kind of direct reference appears to be made in any of the MSS. It is doubtless very tempting, on the strength of such hints as can be gathered from the limited material available, and by reading between the lines, to conjecture what THE Mason Word was, and who shared a knowledge of it, always assuming that there was such a word. As the MS. Constitutions of Masonry and the manuscripts which we have more particularly in mind this evening, all refer, directly or indirectly, to Jewish history, there would appear to be a presumption that THE Mason Word was connected in some way with the Scriptures, and it is conceivable, in view of the complete silence on the subject of the MSS., that it was the Name of God, which according to Jewish tradition was never to be pronounced. If this was so, THE Mason Word was very possibly communicated amongst masons solely by means of a sign. In support of this very tentative surmise, it may be pointed out that the idea of a dread Demogorgon who was not to be named, occurs in sixteenth and seventeenth century literature both in Scotland and England, as can be illustrated from the writings of Sir David Lindsay (14901555),2 Spenser (1552‑99),3 Milton (1608‑74).4 and Dryden (1631‑1700).5 1 The late Brother J. Walter Hobbs stated some years ago that the earliest instance he had been able to trace of certain words which occur in the oath, namely "without any manner of equivocation or mentall reservation", was in the Sovereign's Accession Oath as revised by Parliament for use on the accession of James II. in 1685 (A.Q.C., xxxvii., 36), which suggests, if it does no more, that the Sloane MS. is not earlier than 1685. On the other hand, Brother Poole (ibid., 8) refers to the suggestion made by Findel [History of Freemasonry (1869), 118 n.], which he regards as not altogether impossible, that the Sloane MS. was among the papers Plot had before him when compiling his History of Staffordshire (1686). The grounds for making the suggestion are: (i.) that no earlier document is known especially mentioning that a Brother must come down, even "from the top of a steeple", and answer a sign, and (ii.) that in at least one place the Plot account agrees practically verbatim with the Sloane M.S.
2 Sir David Lindsay, Works, ed. D. Hamer, L, 266 [Monarche, i., 2253], and III., 331, where the matter is fully discussed.
3 Spenser, Faerie Queene, L, xxxvii., 7‑9, refers to Gorgon as the deity whose name may not be used.
4 Milton, Paradise Lost, 11. 959.
5 Dryden's rendering of The Flower and the Leaf, in Poems, Oxford ed., p. 333.
THE MASON WORD 259 Fascinating though such speculations may be, I mention the possibility of THE Mason Word only to show that it has not been overlooked. My object this evening is the much more prosaic task of attempting to give an account of the Mason Word as an operative institution, and to use such matter‑of‑fact evidence as is available, to construct a picture of the institution and the conditions governing its operation.
In this connection it must be borne in mind that the Mason Word was something of great practical importance to Scottish operative masons; so much so, that early in the eighteenth century one Lodge actually went to law to secure the right to give the Mason Word.' It was part of the machinery for preventing unqualified masons from working in the burghs, and corresponded to the steps taken by the London Masons' Company to preserve their monopoly of trade in the City.2 There was, however, this important difference: the London regulations aimed at restraining, if not entirely preventing, "foreign" masons, i.e. masons who were not freemen of the city, from carrying on their trade in London, whereas the object of the Mason Word was to check so‑called "cowans"3 from doing the work of qualified masons. I know of no evidence to show that the Mason Word was in use amongst English operative masons, and think it quite possible that it was through the non‑operative members of Scottish Lodges that English "accepted" or "adopted" masons first became acquainted with the subject.
AGE OF THE MASON WORD Although it is almost certain that the area to which the Mason Word applied was Scotland, its age as an institution is more problematical: there is mention of it in seventeenth century minute books of certain Scottish opera tive lodges;ó the earliest‑known printed reference to it occurs in Henry Adamson's The Muses' Threnodie, a metrical account of Perth and its neighbourhood, published in Edinburgh in 1638:5 "We have the Mason Word and second sight". This clearly implies that the Mason Word was a wellestablished institution in Scotland by 1638. If, as appears likely, it was a privilege associated with the termination of an apprenticeship, or the admission to a fellowship, it might be as old as the system of apprenticeship. In London that system dates from the early thirteenth century, and outside London from the late thirteenth century, but no reference to a mason's apprentice in England and Wales has been traced before the end of the 1 The Lodge of the Yourneymen Masons, Edinburgh (Murray Lyon, ch. xvi., and Seggie and Turnbull, Annals of the Lodge of journeymen Masons, No. 8, ch. i.).
2 The London Mason in the Seventeenth Century, 10.
3 Cowan: One who builds dry stone walls‑applied derogatorily to one who does the work of a mason, but has not been regularly apprenticed or bred to the trade.... In 1705 Mother Kilwinning Lodge defined the Cowan as a Mason "without the word" (O.E.D ;.
4 Murray Lyon, 22.
5 Henry Adamson, a Master of Arts and well‑known citizen of Perth, was very possibly a non‑operative member of the Lodge of Scoon and Perth, No. 3 (Crawford Smith, 41, 42).
260 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES fourteenth century.' How early the apprenticeship of masons developed in Scotland, I am unable to say, but as the Seal of Cause of 1475, which regulated the trades of the Masons and Wrights in Edinburgh,2 provided for a seven years' apprenticeship, it is possible that the Mason Word as an institution in Scotland goes back to the fifteenth century. In England the earliest‑known printed reference occurs in 1672 in Andrew Marvell's Rehearsal Transprosed, part i. : "As those that have the Mason's word secretly discern one another".3 I am disposed to think that the scope of the Mason Word gradually grew; I have already suggested that the imparting of secret methods of recognition to entered apprentices was probably a new development at some date prior to 1598; I am also inclined to think that an elaboration of the secrets imparted to fellowcrafts took place during the seventeenth century. In Scotland in 1696, to judge by the Edinburgh Register House MS., before a candidate could be admitted to the fellowship, all apprentices had to retire, doubtless because the candidate, after being instructed outside by the youngest master, had to re‑enter the company, make the master's sign, and advance and put himself into the "posture" to receive the word, which was given him by the Master, together with the grip. In 1598, the Schaw Statutes, which were to be observed by all master masons in Scotland, provided that two entered apprentices, in addition to six masters or fellows, should be present at the admission of a fellow, which implies that the admission at the end of the sixteenth century must have been different from what it was at the end of the seventeenth, as the master's sign could not be made, nor the posture assumed, in the presence of two entered apprentices, though a word might have been communicated in a whisper. The presumption, therefore, is that there was no "pasture" in 1598, and if, as seems likely, the "posture" implied the "five points of fellowship", then it follows that the "five points", together with the story explaining them, were probably not associated with the Mason Word in 1598.
The practices connected with the communication of the Mason Word probably changed quite as much during the seventeenth century as did masonic ceremonies during the eighteenth, a matter to which I shall refer shortly. As a possible explanation of seventeenth century development, I would tentatively suggest that the five points of fellowship may have been introduced from witchcraft or folklore, without any explanation being given in the first instance, Scottish working men at that period being not unacquainted with such practices. In the second half of the century, to judge by the dates of most of the surviving Scottish versions of the MS. Constitutions of Masonry,4 the Scottish lodges adopted the Old Charges and caused 1 The Medieval Mason, 160, 161. 2 Murray Lyon, 248.
3 Grosart's edition of Marvell's Works, vol. iii., p. 55, quoted in Misc. Lat., N.S., xvii., 134.
4 See p. 248 ante footnote 1.
THE MASON WORD 261 them to be read to the entered apprentices at their admission.' It is not inconceivable that in order to provide the fellowcrafts with some kind of corresponding history, and perhaps to supply an explanation of the "five points" for the benefit of the increasing number of non‑operative masons,2 a story was elaborated. This was possibly done, in part at least, by the utilization of existing traditions. The Noah story, with its distinctly necromantic flavour, would doubtless be formulated first; the Hiram story, further removed from witchcraft, but, in its oldest‑known form, very similar in its motifs to the Noah story, would follow later. In each case, a very minor character in the legendary history of the MS. Constitutions of Masonry was made the principal figure of the story.
That the secrets and "five points of fellowship", communicated to fellowcrafts or masters, were a relatively late development, is also suggested by the fact that the so‑called Master's Part (the prototype of the present Third Degree ceremony) was worked but little, if at all, in England at the time of the formation of Grand Lodge in 1717, or for some years afterwards.3 It is, therefore, possible that just as a knowledge of the MS. Constitutions of Masonry was probably introduced from England into Scotland during the earlier part of the seventeenth century,4 after the union of the two Crowns, or possibly during the reign of Elizabeth so a knowledge of the Mason Word may have been introduced from Scotland into England ab6ut the same period, before the elaboration of the ceremony associated with the giving of the Mason Word had taken place. Thus many masons in England in the later seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries might be acquainted only with the older secrets and practices which in Scotland by that date had come to be associated with the giving of the Mason Word to entered apprentices, and might be ignorant of the newer and more carefully guarded and elaborate secrets restricted to fellowcrafts or masters.
On the other hand, if we are right in assuming that Sloane MS. 3329 was in the first instance derived from English sources, the master's word was known to some masons in England as early as circa 1700. It may be noted, also, that although the Sloane MS., like the Edinburgh Register House MS., recognizes a twofold series of secrets, the Sloane MS. associates them with (i.) fellowcrafts and (ii.) masters, whereas the Edinburgh MS. associates them with (i.) entered apprentices and (ii.) fellowcrafts or masters. As already indicated, there are grounds for thinking that originally the Mason Word was communicated only to fellowcrafts, and it may be that whilst in Scotland the old secrets came ultimately to be communicated to entered apprentices and new secrets to fellowcrafts or masters, in England the old secrets were retained for communication to fellows and new ones were given to masters.
I Miller, 21.
2 e.g. at Aberdeen in 1670 the non‑operatives largely outnumbered the operatives (ibid., 23).
3 Hughan, Origin of the English Rite (1925), 38 folg.
4 Vibert, "The Early Freemasonry of England and Scotland", A.Q.C., xliii., 208.
262 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES TWOFOLD ORIGIN OF MASONIC CEREMONIES Nothing shows more clearly the twofold origin of masonic ceremonies than the oath set out in Sloane MS. 3329, by which the candidate swore to keep secret "the mason word and everything therein contained" and truly to observe "the Charges in the Constitution". This confirms the Aberdeen practice, to which reference has already been made, that on the occasion when the Mason Word was communicated to an apprentice, a version of the MS. Constitutions of Masonry was read to him. At the end of another version of the MS. Constitutions of Masonry, known as the Harris No. 1 MS., which dates from the second half of the seventeenth century, there is a note referring to the secrets which must never be committed to writing, and the manner of communicating them.' There is no evidence to show whether in the seventeenth century this MS. was used by operative masons or by "accepted" or "adopted" masons; but I am inclined to think it was the latter. That "accepted" or "adopted" masons in the later part of the seventeenth century did have secret signs and words is borne out by the contemporary statement of John Aubrey, the antiquary, who wrote in the second half of the century that members of the Fraternity of adopted masons were known to one another by certain signs and watchwords, and that the manner of their adoption was very formal and with an oath of secrecy.2 It is confirmed also by a rough memorandum3 referring to the several signs and words of a freemason, written by Randle Holme III. on a scrap of paper, now bound up with B. M. Harleian MS. 2054, close to the version of the MS. Constitutions of Masonry copied by him, with which it is thought to be connected,4 both documents probably being associated with a Lodge of Freemasons held at Chester about the middle of the seventeenth century. That such signs and words were derived from the Mason Word of the operatives is strongly suggested by the fact that when Dr. Desaguliers, the prominent speculative mason, desired to visit the purely operative Lodge of Edinburgh in 1721, he was found "duly qualified in all points of masonry" and received as a brothers THE TRINITY COLLEGE, DUBLIN MS.
On the subject of the connection between operative and speculative masonry, I wish finally to draw attention to the Trinity College, Dublin MS.6 I The Harris No. 1 MS. is printed in The Freemasons' Chronicle, 30th December, 1922. The note is printed in Poole's Old Charges, p. 23, as follows:‑Then let the prson wch is to be made a Mason chuse out of the Lodge any one Mason who is to instruct him in those Secrets wch must never be committed to Writeing which Mason he must alway Call his Tutor then let the Tutor take him into another Room and shew him all the whole Mistery that at his return he may Exercise with the rest of his fellow Masons.
2 John Aubrey (1624‑97), Natural History of Wiltshire, first printed in 1847.
3 Transcript and photographic reproduction in Coulthurst and Lawson, A.Q.C., Av., 69, and facing 74.
4 This opinion, expressed by W. H. Rylands in the Masonic Magazine, January, 1882, is shared by Coulthurst and Lawson, A.Q.C., xlv.
Murray Lyon, 160, 161.
6 T.C.D. MS., 1, 4, 18. It is printed in the Transactions of the Lodge of Research, No. CC, Dublin, for 1924, also in Knoop, Jones and Hamer, The Early Masonic Catechisms, 2nd ed., pp. 69, 70. (Ist ed., pp. 63/4.) THE MASON WORD This bears the date 1711 in an endorsement,' and resembles the Edinburgh Register House, Graham, and Sloane MSS. in that it consists of a series of test questions and answers, together with a memorandum about signs and words. Like the Edinburgh Register House MS., it appears to be a mason's aide memoire; on the other hand, it is less operative in character, and may very possibly represent a link between the operative masonry of the seventeenth century and the speculative masonry of the eighteenth century. In support of this suggestion, three points may be noted: (i.) The endorsement on the MS. is "Free Masonry Feb: 1711", though the term "Free Masonry" was rarely applied to the operative art, even in England.
(ii.) Whereas operative masonry, so far as the Mason Word was concerned, apparently recognized only two classes of masons, viz., either entered apprentices and fellowcrafts, or fellowcrafts and masters, this MS. distin guishes three classes, viz., entered apprentices, fellow craftsmen, and masters, each with its own secrets. It is the earliest‑known MS. to make such a distinction. The probability is that during the early part of the eighteenth century, before Grand Lodges were formed and firmly established, a trigradal system developed gradually and independently in different parts of the country, by a division of the original entered apprentice ceremony, to form what ultimately became the First and Second Degree ceremonies. Brother Lionel Vibert, in his Prestonian Lecture for 19252 discussed this development, which he suggested took place in London about 1725. The reference in the Graham MS. of 1726 to being "entered, passed and raised and conformed by 3 severall Lodges" implies that three distinct ceremonies existed by 1726 in that district (probably the North of England) to which the Graham MS. belonged. It may quite well be that three distinct ceremonies existed there at an earlier date. Just as the surviving MSS. show considerable differences in the test questions and answers, and in the signs and words, so they indicate differences in the number of ceremonies. The Edinburgh Register House and Sloane MSS. refer to two ceremonies, the Trinity College, Dublin and Graham MSS. to three. Such differences are not astonishing, as no uniformity should be looked for before Grand Lodges were firmly established and capable of exercising a unifying influence.
(iii.) The history of the document suggests the possibility that the MS. had a non‑operative origin. The manuscript is contained in one of the volumes of collected papers of Sir Thomas Molyneux (1661‑1733), a famous Dublin doctor and scientist and, in the opinion of Dr. J. Gilbart Smyly, Librarian 1 I have seen only a photostat of the MS., but Dr. J. Gilbart Smyly, Librarian of Trinity College, Dublin, informs me that the endorsement is in the same hand and ink as the document itself, and that in his opinion there can be no doubt of the accuracy of the date.
2 The Development of the Trigradal System. See also his paper, "The Second Degree: A Theory", A.Q.C., xxxix.
264 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES of Trinity College, Dublin,' was quite possibly written by Molyneux. As the earliest reference to a Lodge of Freemasons in Ireland relates to Trinity College, Dublin, in 1688,2 it is conceivable that there was a Lodge in Dublin in 1711, although no reference to freemasonry in Ireland in the first two decades of the eighteenth century can be traced .3 If such a Lodge existed, Molyneux may well have belonged to it.
INFLUENCE OF THE MASON WORD ON MASONIC CEREMONIES Whether or not the Trinity College, Dublin MS. represents a first link in one line of evolution of operative into speculative masonry, I am satisfied that the nucleus of the present First and Third Degree ceremonies can clearly be traced back to the somewhat crude usages and phrases associated before the end of the seventeenth century with the giving of the Mason Word. It apparently grew under speculative influence during the eighteenth century, until it developed into complete ceremonies. This was probably brought about partly by elaborating the content of the ceremonies, partly by embellishing the wording of the ritual, partly by laying more stress on some matters, such as the fidelity of Hiram in refusing to betray the secrets of a master mason, and less stress on others, such as the attempt to obtain a secret from a dead body, and partly by dropping or modifying operative rules and regulations, and developing instead moral teachings, veiled in allegory and illustrated by symbols.
The process of expansion and evolution apparently went on right through the eighteenth century. I have no intention, however, of attempting to trace that development, a subject to which Bro. Vibert devoted considerable atten tion in his Prestonian Lecture. I shall content myself with observing that a great elaboration must have taken place by the last quarter of the eighteenth century, when William Preston, in successive editions of his Illustrations of Masonry, wrote his commentary on the then existing masonic ritual.
It was probably not until after the union of the two Grand Lodges in 1813 that our ceremonies attained to something approximating to their present form. By that time the influence exercised by the Mason Word had receded so much into the background as to be in danger of being entirely overlooked. My endeavour this evening has been to give it the recognition which, in my opinion, it deserves.
1 Expressed in a letter written to me, 23rd November, 1937, in reply to certain questions.
2 Lepper and Crossle, History of the Grand Lodge . . . of Ireland, 36. The late Bro. Chetwode Crawley discovered this reference to Irish masonry in a Trinity College, Dublin manuscript (T.C.D. MS. I, 5, 1), a Tripos [i.e. satirical speech] at the commencements of the University of Dublin, 11th July, 1688. He announced his discovery in his Introduction to Sadler's Masonic Reprints and Revelations. Dr. J. Gilbart Smyly informs me that it has been published in full by Dr. John Barrett in an Essay on the earlier part of the Life of Swift, and in Jonathan Swift, Works, edited by Sir W. Scott, vol. vi., pp. 226‑60.
3 Lepper and Crossle, 41.
VEILED IN ALLEGORY AND ILLUSTRATED BY SYMBOLS (A STUDY OF THE TRACING BOARD OF THE FIRST DEGREE) (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1939) BRo. G. E. W. BRIDGE, F.S.A., P.G.D.
Two outstanding men of the 18th century, William Preston and William Hutchinson, may be regarded as pioneers in the study of the philosophy underlying the forms and ceremonies of the Masonic system. They were followed in the first half of the 19th century by Jonathan Ashe and George Oliver.
Much has been done in this field since those days; but one vital element of the Rite still suffers from widespread neglect, and that is the Tracing Board of the First Degree. The various printed Rituals of the Craft contain an illustration of a Board, but the design and the symbols employed show a complete absence of uniformity. This is not a matter for surprise, for, failing a direct lead, each artist naturally has given his own interpretation of the Rite according to his personal reactions to it. Very few of these Rituals contain any account of the Board, and unless a Brother happens to be familiar with the First "Lecture" he may pass through the whole of his Masonic life without giving it a thought other than to see that it is turned round at the appropriate times. Even the "Lecture" gives only one aspect, for it merely "moralizes" it‑a word indicating the intention to exemplify practical lessons from life.
HISTORY An early use of the term Tracing Board is found in the Fabric Rolls of York Minster of A.D. 1399, where an entry reads : ". . . ij tracying bordes . . ." This is only of passing interest, for they would merely have been the Boards on which the master builders sketched out their plans and details, such as are to be found today in any Pattern Shop or Shipyard Loft‑severely practical and utilitarian‑for it is not easy to be mystically minded when crawling about on hands and knees with a scriber.
The first symbolic reference known to Dring, when he made his study of the subject in 1916, appears in the Carmick MS. of 1727, where a plan is shown with the caption "This figure represents the Lodge". The Old King's Arms Lodge No. 28 had a Floor‑Cloth in 1735, for a resolution was 265 266 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES passed in that year that it should be defaced. And a Minute of a Lodge (No. 111 in the 1729 enumeration) meeting at the Theatre Tavern, London, dated 14th March, 17367, indicates that the Lodge possessed a painted Board. Although at this early date it is evident that Boards of a permanent nature existed, the usual practice was for the Master or Tyler to draw on the Floor, in chalk or crayon, the design appropriate to the Degree to be worked; and this was erased when the Lodge was closed. Details of these designs are not known, but they probably consisted of the form of the Lodge, to which the symbols of the various Degrees were added in a haphazard way wherever there was a blank space, for up to the beginning of the 19th century all the painted Boards, now extant, are of this character. This principle of symbolic Tracing Boards as aids to the communication of the Secrets of the Mysteries is not peculiar to Masonry, for similar illustrations are found in the records of all the great rites of ancient and modem times.
The history of the development of Masonic Tracing Boards under the Ancient, Modern and United Grand Lodges has been fully discussed by E. H. Dring and others; and, as reference may readily be made to the volumes of Ars Quatuor Coronatorum (especially to vol. xxix, pp. 243 et seq.), it is unnecessary to the present purpose to enter into the fine distinctions between Trestle‑Tables, Lodge‑Boards, Forming‑Boards, Floor‑Cloths, Making‑Cloths, Wall‑Charts, Pierced and Engraved Jewels, etc., common in the 18th century, all of which amount in the end to Tracing Boards.
The Grand Lodges of England do not appear ever to have authorized the use of Boards, and therefore there has never been an official pattern, although the Duke of Sussex is reputed to have sanctioned the Harris type; nevertheless they have always been tacitly accepted for the Degrees, and they play a material part in the Consecration of a Lodge.
In 1759, the Grand Lodge of Scotland definitely discountenanced Tracing Boards, reminded Lodge St. Andrew that they were not permitted, and forbade the Lodge to continue to use them.
In theory, Tracing Boards have not been used in Ireland, except for a short period between 1839 and 1850 when they were introduced by Archdeacon Mant, who was considerably influenced by English practices. In actual fact, however, Ireland has always been prolific of Floor‑Cloths, Wall‑Charts, etc., etc., and although it is true to say that the "Lecture" was of an informal and extempore character, not rigid as in England, they were used as a basis of instruction in precisely the same way.
By about 1800, the English Boards began to take their present form; and that of the First Degree developed from a collection of casually associated symbols into an orderly representation of a complete Rite, with the symbols arranged in a definite sequence. There were several makers of Tracing Boards about this time, of whom mention may be made of John Browne and jacobs; but the originator of the present style was josiah Bowring, whose Boards Dring considered to be the most correct ever made.
VEILED IN ALLEGORY 267 Bowring was followed bylohn Harris, who, so far as is known, designed his first Boards in 1820. In 1846, the Emulation Lodge of Improvement adopted a Harris design; and, in 1849, an improved version was accepted, which is still used.
The difference between the Bowring and Harris Boards is of considerable significance in respect of the Pillars and the Ladder. Bowring places the Pillars on a triangular plan; and the Ladder sloping towards the N.E., with Faith on the 1st rung, Hope on the 9th, the Key on the 12th, and Charity on the 15th. Harris set the Pillars in the E., W., and S. (allowing for a slight deviation so as not to mask the East); and the Ladder slopes towards the East, with the Cross over the first 3 rungs, the Key across the 4th to the 6th, the Anchor 7th to 9th, and the Cup 13th to 15th, the 10th to 12th rungs being empty. In Bowring's Board, the Ladder rests on the 3 Great Lights, which are on the floor; Harris rests his Ladder on the Great Lights placed on an Altar formed by the Circle between the Parallels.
The triangular plan of the Pillars used by Bowring suggests that he was influenced by the French type of the Craft, in which the Wardens sit both in the West. During the latter half of the 18th century, many Degrees of French origin had been established in England, and added to the Craft Degrees by the `Antients'. In addition to this infiltration, the disturbances and upheaval caused by the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars brought many French Masons to England, first as refugees, then as prisonersof‑war, and there were many French Lodges formed. Whether or not Bowring was inspired to adopt this plan by these circumstances, Harris was the first to place the Pillars in the more usual English positions.
Another material difference is that the Harris Pillars support a roof extending towards the North until it disappears into clouds. Bowring omits this feature.
RITES Initiatory Rites are constructed with a threefold purpose in view: a To remind the Aspirant of his physical, mental and spiritual development in the past.' b To act as a guide to his progress in the present.
c To prepare him for the future in the after‑death state by an honest attempt to estimate the factors and foretell the conditions in which he is likely to find himself, drawing for this purpose on the ancient traditional wisdom which has come down through the ages from the beginning of historical time.
The methods of imparting this knowledge are similar in all Rites, and all the faculties of man are employed; the written and spoken word in Rituals; drama, as in Mystery Plays and Degree working; pictorial Art, either in a I The word "remind" is used deliberately. Plato's dictum that the individual man never learns anything new, but rediscovers it, remembers it, is a sweeping generalization, but contains a germ of truth. All attempts to impart knowledge are doomed to failure if there is no responsive echo.
VEILED IN ALLEGORY 269 composite picture of the Rite as a whole, or as a kind of illustrated commentary on the key portions.
The Craft Tracing Boards belong to this last class. That of the First Degree is of the composite picture type; those of the Second Degree and Third Degree belong to the salient feature series, dealing with the subject within definite limits.
This principle of enlisting every possible aid in the communication of the Mysteries is not peculiar to the Rites of the so‑called higher civilizations; it is clearly discernible in the practices of the most primitive and undeveloped tribes and races. A full discussion of these parallels exceeds the limits of the present study, but attention may usefully be given to the Rites of Egypt and Tibet which represent the two main currents of Ritual procedure, both working on the same thesis, but approaching it from opposite directions. The Egyptian Rite, as in Masonry, begins on a low level and works upwards; the Tibetan Rite starts on the highest conceivable level and works downwards.
The Egyptian Rite is embodied in the group of the Rituals of the Dead. Many of these Rituals have been found, and are preserved in the various Museums of the world. They are written on rolls of papyrus, in hieratic and hieroglyphic characters, and are fully illustrated; instructions to the celebrants are given in ample rubrics; and the papyri, which are sometimes 100 to 150 feet long, are simply a combination of a MS. Ritual and a series of Tracing Boards.
The intention of the Rite is explicitly stated to be: a To prepare the individual, by study during his lifetime, for the conditions in which he may expect to find himself after death; and to warn him of the tests he will then have to pass in order to progress to his ultimate conscious union with Deity‑in this case, Osiris.
b By the magical effect of the enactment of the Ritual immediately after physical death, to remind the soul of the knowledge it has previously acquired and so ensure that no avoidable errors on its part shall prevent or delay entry into the Osiris‑state. Or should the deceased have neglected this study during his life, the Ritual is worked in the hope of reaching him through the veil of death and telling him what he must do.
The high ceremonial of the Tibetan Ritual has only become available to western thought in the last few years. In this also the purpose is the same, and the means adopted for its attainment are similar. But, instead of being led gently along the upward path, the deceased is shown in succession every plane of his composite personality, beginning with the highest. He first sees himself in his highest and most brilliant aspect; if he recognize this vision as indeed "himself", then is he freed for ever from the Wheel of Karma, and is never reborn upon the earth unless he voluntarily return into the flesh, as a Buddha, to aid and teach struggling mankind. As in the 270 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES case of the Egyptian and other similar Rites, the underlying purpose is that he may escape the necessity of rebirth without avoidable delay; but, if he fail in this supreme test, he is shown his next highest aspect, and the process is continued down through all the degrees of Perfection until at last he reaches a level on which he feels "at home"; on that level he is reborn as soon as the proper parents are ready to provide him with the envelope of flesh.
Owing to the lapse of time, the precise mode of working the Egyptian Ritual can only be inferred from the rubics in the papyri, and by analogy with other Rites; but the Tibetan procedure is well‑known, for every Monastery Library has copies of the Ritual; it is dramatized from time to time for all to see in the so‑called "Devil Dances"; and it is recited for the benefit of a deceased person immediately after death. This Rite also is illustrated by pictures of the chief incidents, and these pictures are in close parallel with the Masonic Tracing Boards.
The human mind can attain heights far beyond its capacity of expression; in the inmost being one can feel their beauty and purity, but it is wellnigh impossible to formulate them to oneself, let alone describe them to another. But, of thought that is communicable, these two Rites are of a very high order. They both emphasize, as does Masonry, the doctrine of a conscious survival after death‑a survival that is not temporary or limited to a series of reincarnations‑but an Immortality, eternal beyond space and time. They also intimate that man can advance to the heights when he is willing to make the necessary effort.' An interesting feature which is common to the majority of Initiatory Rites is that their symbolism is constructed round some ordinary process of human endeavour. In the case of Masonry the analogy is that of an architect, who conceives a building in his mind and draws out a general design embodying the essential elements of the whole structure. This may be likened to the Tracing Board of the First Degree. He then amplifies the details of the various component parts; this corresponds to the Tracing Boards of the other Degrees. Lastly, he draws the whole plan, perfect in all its parts; this has no parallel in the symbolic Rites, for real "Perfection" is beyond human conception. The workmen who labour to bring the plan to completion are truly represented by all living creatures.
One of the canons of Initiatory practice is derived from this procedure, namely, that the First Degree shall contain, in embryo, the essentials of the whole system to its uttermost limit. This provides a useful criterion by which the merits or demerits of any given system may be assessed. If the First Degree does not give, however dimly, the impression that it is the threshold 1 E. A. Wallis Budge, The Book of the Dead, London, 1913, 2 vols.; Osiris and the Egyptian Resurrection, London, 1911, 2 vols.
W. Y. Evans‑Wentz, The Tibetan Book of the Dead, O.U.P., 1927; Tibetan Yoga and Secret Doctrine, O.U.P., 1935.
Sir Charles Bell, The Religion of Tibet, Clarendon Press, 1931.
VEILED IN ALLEGORY 271 of something greater, the general outline of which can be anticipated, then there is something wrong, and the cause of its seeming failure may be sought in one of the three alternatives : a The candidate has not been "properly prepared". b The Rite has been mutilated in transmission.
c The Rite is worthless.
The first is the most probable explanation, for, unless he has been very carefully prepared by an experienced Initiate who can assess his needs, a candidate enters into Masonry in complete ignorance of the step he is taking.
Mutilation in transmission is possible, but unlikely so far as essentials are concerned provided it has come down by oral communication. Trouble does not arise seriously until the advent of the printed book blunted the power of memory. Kipling made a shrewd observation when he put into the mouth of Mons. Voiron the words "Beware, Monsieur, of the memory of the illiterate man".' That the Rite is worthless is the least probable of them all. To adapt the tolerant dictum of the elder Pliny in respect of books, "There is no Rite so bad that there is not some good in it". In such case the matter should be pigeon‑holed, not rejected.
UNIFORMITY OF RITUAL STRUCTURE Any attempt to account for the extraordinary uniformity found in the structure of Rites in all ages raises one of the most controversial aspects of the whole subject. It is a vast question involving a close study of the data of practically every "‑ology" in existence. As a rough generalization, students may be said to group themselves into two main Schools : a Those who explain all similarities by the theory of transmission by migration.
b Those who hold that Rites and Customs have had independent origins in various parts of the world, and that the similarities are coincidental.
The solution probably resolves itself into "a bit of both".
From the dawn of history the records show movements by land and sea far more extensive and frequent than is generally appreciated. The Egyptians and Phoenicians, and other dwellers on the Mediterranean coasts, were great sailors, and they linked up with the trade routes across Asia from the Far East and the ocean routes along the coasts from China and India to the heads of the Red Sea and Persian Gulf. Travel was slow and the journeys often took years; during the winters, ships and caravans went I Kipling, Debits and Credits, The Bull That Thought.
272 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES into winter quarters in ports and towns, and in these idle months there was ample opportunity for an exchange and blending of ideas.l This does not provide the complete answer, for Rites showing the normal structure have been found in areas so distant and isolated in space and time, and with local characteristics so strongly developed, as to suggest origins independent of Europe or Asia. The cults and "Tracing Boards" of the Aztec, Maya, and Inca systems of Mexico, Central America, and Peru are examples of this strongly marked local development. That this should be so is not a matter for surprise, for all human brains are cast in more or less similar moulds, differing only in minor detail, and man tends to react to his needs, hopes, and external conditions in very much the same way all over the world and without any outside prompting.
There is yet another factor to be taken into account, and that is telepathy. Little is known about this mode of thought‑transference, but it seems to exist and to be a kind of mental "wireless transmission"; and, if its existence be admitted, it is not inconceivable that the thoughts of someone in one part of the world may radiate, and be picked up by someone else, whose mind happens to be "in tune", without either being actively conscious of it; the one is "thinking", the other "has an idea".
The one fact that emerges from all the confusion is that, from the beginning of historical time, all Rites of Initiation show a remarkable uniformity of structure, the only deviations from complete identity being of a minor character and fully accounted for by local conditions and environment.
SYMBOLS Reference has been made to the difficulty of finding terms adequate to express the highest level of perfection that the mind can conceive, and to the problems that arise from accidents of transmission. To these must be added the task of communicating the Secret Tradition to men in every stage of mental and spiritual development in such a way that no one of them shall receive a garbled impression. A kind of universal language, which is capable of being understood in the widest manner and yet not depart from any of the essential principles, is the only solution to this difficulty; and this the Mystery systems have tried to provide by means of a liberal use of pictorial and conventional symbols. Man lives in a world of symbols; as a child he learns an alphabet, and how to join the letters to form words. Yet, apart from a few onomatopoeic exceptions, none of the words look or 1 The Phoenicians reached Britain and Iceland, and in isolated expeditions are reputed to have sailed round Africa, and even to America.
G. F. Hudson (Europe and China), who made a study of the subject, cites 12th century trade routes in regular use between Peking and Europe: via routes to the South and North of the Gobi Desert to l4oscow and beyond; via Kashgar, Samarkand, and Tabriz to the Black and Mediterranean Seas; via Astrakhan to the Black Sea; and a sea route via the Malacca Straits to India and the Persian Gulf, and thence by land to the Mediterranean.
VEILED IN ALLEGORY 273 sound like the object they refer to: the whole process is very complex and highly artificial.
The next stage is when, from a desire for privacy or fear for personal safety, groups agree to understand words and phrases in a particular way known only to themselves, and thence arise the many secret languages, codes, and conventional symbols. Owing to the fact that they were secret and the key not usually committed to writing, it is seldom possible to determine the precise interpretations applied to the "language" and symbols of the great cults of antiquity which have enshrined the Secret Tradition from time to time, and this ignorance allows a measure of freedom in dealing with the symbolism of modern systems;' but in all the uncertainty one fact stands out for all to see‑Masonry has these symbols, and it is not unprofitable to consider what they can mean today. Argument about the past is fruitless, for it can do no more than show how to avoid some of the more obvious snags and pitfalls. It is the present that has to be lived, and the future that has to be faced; and the task is so to use the present that the future may be a smooth continued progression, and not be spent in a struggle to recover lost ground. To this end is offered one of the lessons of Hope that may be learned from one of the Tracing Boards of the First Degree.
VEILED IN ALLEGORY AND ILLUSTRATED BY SYMBOLS Neither the Bowring nor the Harris Tracing Board is in complete accord with the Secret Tradition. The latter is the better for the present purpose, for it shows formal symbols on the Ladder instead of the rather vague allegorical women on the Bowring Boards. The Harris Ladder, however, ascends from the Three Great Lights to the Blazing Star in the East. It is necessary therefore to bear in mind that the Ladder is slewed round through 90░ so that it rises from the Centre to the Pole Star in the open but veiled North.2 The most cursory examination of the symbols used on the Board shows that it conforms to the Initiatory canon that the First Degree shall give the aspirant at least a hint of something beyond, and some guidance as to what 1 Representative examples of Secret languages are the jargon of the Alchemists, thieves' slang, and the hieratic script of the Egyptian priests, etc.; of conventional symbols, the Signs of the Planets and Zodiac, the Tarot Cards, the Gematria, Notar iqon, Temura, etc., systems of the Qabalah and other numerical devices (which amount almost to a language), symbols such as the Cross and Circle. No one really knows in what sense they were used at different times. The outstanding example of known variations of meaning is perhaps the Circle and Centre, which can represent anything from the Universe, the Sun, Gold, to a full stop.
The literature on this subject is considerable, but reference may be made in the first place to Goblet d'Alviella, The Migration of Symbols, Hargrave Jennings, The Rosicrucians Their Rites and Mysteries, and H. G. M. Murray‑Aynsley, Symbolism of the East and West.
2 The Pole Star was formerly regarded as the one fixed point in the Universe relative to the Poles, and was used as such in the Ancient Mysteries. Modern observation has shown it to have an orbit of a few degrees round the Polar axis.
274 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES that something is, and how to attain it.' The symbols of the three Craft Degrees are shown on the horizontal plane of the Floor; and the Ladder with its many rungs, rising from the Great Lights on the Centre, foreshadows many other Degrees which, when the aspirant has reached the Third Degree, he will find are post mortem. The Board therefore does not deal with an isolated or momentary incident, like an instantaneous snapshot, but is the picture of progress over a long period of time stretching in symbolism far beyond the bounds of this earthly life.
Before tracing the aspirant's path, it is necessary to consider briefly the groundwork of the Board and the symbols employed.
Much breath and ink have been expended on the Mosaic Pavement, etc., and the dictionaries of many languages have been ransacked to find derivations and meanings for the various spellings of these and other words found in old records. In consequence, simple, if somewhat prosaic, explanations have been overlooked.
The Pavement bears a strong resemblance to the squared Boards of the old builders, raised in the Masonic symbolism to the Board on which the G.A.O.T.U. has drawn the Plan of His Creation so far as it affects this earth.
At one stage of its history, the Board was a Cloth on the floor, or for greater convenience on a table. In the latter case it was kept taut by weighted Tassels at the corners; and the Indented Border is probably no more than a formalized representation of the folds into which such a Cloth would fall.
The Three Pillars are a prominent feature. The Square, Level and Plumb Rule, and the treatment of the Capitals associate them with the Principal Officers of the Lodge; and through them with the three Degrees, for the Junior Warden is traditionally in charge of the Apprentices who are represented by the Rough Ashlar, and the Fellowcrafts' Perfect Ashlar refers to the Senior Warden's charge of the Brethren of that Degree; whilst the Tracing Board and Square in the Centre represent the Master Masons on the point on which they are raised and from which they cannot materially err, for the Ladder of their ascent begins there.
On the top of the Pillars there is a suggestion of a Ceiling or Roof, which extends towards the mysterious North where it disappears into a heavy veil of clouds. Thus the Temple may be said to be closed on the Eastern, Southern and Western sides, but open to the North at least so far as the eye can penetrate.
This Veil and the North are of the highest significance, for in the Secret Tradition the North is the place of the GREAT LIGHT; and it is from this 1 The Ritual also observes this principle, for the Master states explicitly that there are several Degrees in Masonry, and informs the Candidate that he represents a Foundation Stone, adding the significant words‑"May you raise a superstructure perfect in its parts and honourable to the builder". The future, therefore, is the sole responsibility of the Candidate, with such help only as the Lodge is able to give him in the way of "good and wholesome advice and instruction" which can prepare him for admission into higher Degrees.
VEILED IN ALLEGORY 275 symbolic direction that the Great Teachers descend upon the Earth with their message of Mercy to Their people. 1 This "Great Light" is more brilliant and pure than the eye of flesh can bear; it is the "Glory" referred to in Exodus xxxiii, 18 and 20, when Moses on Mount Sinai said: "I beseech Thee, show me Thy Glory." And God replied: "Thou canst not see My Face, for there shall no man see Me‑and live." Therefore is the North veiled.
Isaiah (xli 25 et seq.) refers to the North as the place of entry: "I have raised up one from the North, and he shall come; from the rising of the Sun shall he call upon My Name ... and I will give to Jerusalem one that bringeth good tidings." The North Tradition is mentioned also by Ezekiel (xliv 4) "Then brought he me the way of the North Gate before the house and I looked, and, behold, the Glory of the Lord filled the House of the Lord: and I fell upon my face." This appreciation of the transcendent character of the North says much for Harris's insight.
Throughout the history of the Grand Lodges there have been two important Officers in a Lodge‑the Treasurer and the Secretary; yet no mention is made of them in the recital of duties in Opening, nor do they appear to have any Ritual function. They both sit in the North. It is usually assumed that they are administrative rather than ritual Officers; but their situation directly between the newly raised Master Mason and the veiled North suggests the explanation that they are the guardians of the North Gate and, as such, are in but not of the Lodge, and that their true significance is that the one is the Recorder of the thoughts, words and deeds of all who aspire to ascend the Ladder, and the other is the Keeper of the Treasure of their Virtues who pleads for "Mercy". That this is not phantasy is borne out by other Rites of Initiation. On these grounds it is desirable that these two Officers should be Past Masters, and preferably Royal Arch Masons as well, since they correspond to the Scribes in that Degree.
In the "Ecossais" working, indigenous to France, the Candidate enters from the West between the two Wardens. In England this has become diverted to the N.W., probably because the Senior Warden is in the way and the door of the room is often in a corner. But, so far as this country is concerned, when it is remembered whom the Candidate represents in the 1 An interesting note in The Morning Post of 3 Sept., 1926, mentions an Airman's report that at a height of 40,000 feet the sky seemed almost black‑yet it must have been a place full of Light. Even if this were due solely to the temporary physical condition of the pilot, it is illustrative of the incapacity of the human frame to sustain Light of great brilliance, which appears black in the same way that the lesser light of the Sun blackens if looked at directly by the naked eye.
276 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Third Degree and certain passwords in the Royal Arch are fully realized, it is clear that the Candidate comes from the North, and his ritual entry into the Lodge is when the Junior Warden admits him in the South. This confusion of entrances emphasizes the point that the majority of Rites (including Masonry) labour under a disadvantage that seriously handicaps them. They are concerned solely with the Ideal; and the ordinary man feels that this is unattainable by him in this life. No guidance, no encouragement, is given to one who advances a little, slips back a little, recovers his lost ground perhaps, but on the whole seems to himself to make little progress commensurate with the effort involved; only is he offered a hopeless Ideal. In a full Rite there would be two distinct levels of working: a That of the "Master" who comes to show the Way of Perfection leading to the Heights. It is He who comes from the North; and He is invariably slain.
b That of the ordinary "Candidate" who is advancing step by step on the upward path, striving towards the Ideal he has been shown. In the course of his progress he will "die", but he will not be "slain". The West, the symbolic place of ordinary death, is an appropriate point of entry for him.
Until the climax of the Third Degree the Candidate knows the Principal Officers as three individuals; in the final scene they appear for the first time as a Triad acting in unity. Then they leave him quite alone, facing the Dark North with its two silent Guardians‑watching. For a properly prepared Candidate, even at this early stage, the Secretary and Treasurer can do much, if they realize what they represent, and concentrate their minds on what is taking place.1 The words "properly prepared" require amplification in English Masonry. It is not possible to give a definition of Proper Preparation that is of universal application. Every Candidate requires special and individual treatment if he is to come into Masonry in such a way that the transition from the aspiring to the initiated state is as smooth and natural as can humanly be achieved. The reaction of a properly prepared Candidate when the pass‑word is communicated to him should be: "Why, of course, it could not be anything else". It is not easy, but something approaching this can sometimes be achieved, and without telling him anything that is improper to be disclosed. This is an aspect that receives far too little attention, for progress in ordinary life is a day to day advance in which one task follows another as a rule without any sense of upheavalso should it be with the entry into Masonry.
When the Candidate has been raised, he has reached the stage of the life‑after‑death, and seemingly new and unknown conditions are experienced. This change is emphasized by the Tracing Board. So far, the Candidate's 1 The work of the Degree ends here. The rest is merely instruction and explanation.
VEILED IN ALLEGORY 277 progress has been depicted upon the floor on the horizontal plane; now, the third dimension is introduced, and he begins an ascent in the vertical plane with the Three Great Lights as his starting point.
In this vertical plane, the Ladder is as simple and obvious a symbol as is a Bridge on the horizontal; and, as the Bridge affords a safe passage over the mystical element WATER, so the Ladder presents a means of rising through the element AIR.
The two side posts of the Ladder have each their especial significance as parallels; but it is unsafe to base any thesis of a general nature on the relative positions of these posts and the symbols unless it is agreed which shall be considered the "right" and which the "left" sides.
The Rungs are obvious symbols of "Steps" and may be regarded as representing Degrees. According to the individual bias of the designer, the number of Rungs on different Boards varies from a simple three to an indeterminate number fading away in the clouds. The number selected for the present study is fifteen; but this is a quite arbitrary choice, and the underlying principle is the same for all. It is noteworthy that the rungs extend beyond the side‑posts‑a tacit acknowledgement that there are other ways to the Heights than Masonry, and reminiscent of the great Sufi tenet, "All roads lead to God".
The Symbols on the Ladder have received many explanations, the majority of which are tenable within the Tradition. If, however, these Symbols be reduced to their primitive components, an interesting series is obtained which admits of an interpretation that is consistent with the Legend of the Master‑Path.
The Cross within the Circle is one of the normal symbols of Heaven, Earth, and Hell.
a The upper semi‑circle represents the arc of heaven.
b The lower semi‑circle, the "bowl" of the underworld.
c The Cross, the earth with its four quarters.
On this premise, the Anchor may be likened to the Cross of the earth resting on the bowl of the underworld; and the Cup is composed of the same two elements, but with the bowl raised above the Cross.
The Key presents rather more difficulty. It is mentioned in the First Section of the First Lecture in terms that suggest that this portion is far older than the generality of the Lecture‑text; it is direct and curt question and answer, without any of the discursiveness which characterizes the rest of the Lecture. The material parts may be paraphrased as follows Masons have many invaluable Secrets.
They keep them in their Hearts.
Masons get at them by the help of a Key.
That Key hangs, it does not lie; because it should always hang in a Brother's defence, and never lie to his prejudice.
278 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES It hangs by the Thread of Life in the passage of Utterance, between the Guttural and the Pectoral; because, being an index of the mind, it should utter nothing but what the Heart truly dictates.
It is a curious Key, made of no metal; it is the Tongue of Good Report. This is strangely parallel with the judgment, which is the first postmortem stage in the ceremonial of the Dead in Ancient Egypt. When the deceased enters the judgment Hall of Osiris, he recites the "Negative Confession" and then his Heart, the traditional seat of the emotions and therefore of actions, is placed in one pan of a Balance; in the other pan is placed the Feather of Truth. If the pointer (or Tongue) hang vertically, the test is passed; if it lie to one side, it is to his prejudice. Two Figures stand beside the Balance‑the Guardian Angel of the deceased who gives utterance to the Treasure of the excellences of his Heart‑and Thoth, the Recorder, with the Book of Life. If the test be passed, the deceased is declared "a man, true and right".
If he fail, he is delivered over to the "Eater of the Dead", which is equivalent to complete disintegration.
Resemblances are notoriously dangerous; but the parallel is curiously complete. It is worth asking the question whether perhaps the Key may be an echo of the old Feather of Truth, and the emblem of the great Afterdeath password Truth.' The Ladder may now be considered in conjunction with its associated Symbols as a whole.
On the floor in the centre of the Lodge is a Symbol composed of the same elements as the Symbols on the Ladder, with this difference, that the Cross is resolved into the two parallels depicting the duality of earthly con ditions. The Circle here is complete; thus at the floor‑level the ultimate goal is foreshadowed for every Apprentice to see. It is the old Hermetic dictum, "As Above, so below".
On this Symbol rest the Three Great Lights of Masonry enshrining the Great Pass Word TRUTH. And it may be noted that, although the Compasses lie beneath the Square, the points are visible.
From this significant group on the Centre the Ladder stretches upwards to the Star in the veiled North.
The fifteen Rungs fall into five groups of three each, and represent a series of Degrees in the After‑death state.
Across the lowest three Rungs lie the Parallels, now become the Cross of the Earth and its suffering. It is a Symbol of THE MASTER.2 The next three are covered by the Key, a suggested explanation of which being that it represents the Judgment Scene that is a feature of all the Great Rites.
1 There is even a superficial resemblance between the outlines of the Key and the Feather as drawn on the old papyri.
2 THE MASTER is H. Ab., "The Sun, the Moon, and the Master of the Lodge".
VEILED IN ALLEGORY 279 The next three have the Anchor, or the Cross superposed on the Bowl of the Underworld. This may be translated as the MASTER, by virtue of his suffering and life on Earth, drawing the Underworld upwards with Him on His Return whence He came.
The succeeding three Rungs are empty. Why this should be so is not clear, for the symbol of the Bowl resting on the arms of the Cross is one that occurs readily to the mind. Memory of some such symbol has perhaps been lost in the passage of time; if so, Harris showed commendable courage in leaving the Rungs empty, and not closing them up or redistributing the symbols evenly.
The thirteenth Rung holds the Cup, and it is above the level of the Roof of the Temple. Herein is enshrined the Mystery of The Master's Lodge. At this stage the ascending MASTER has raised the Bowl above Himself‑and the Hand, stretching out from the Radiance, receives the Cup‑and restores it to the Arc of Heaven, to form the Circle of Perfection in that Grand Lodge, whose Members are as the Stars, whose Wardens are the Sun and Moonand whose MASTER is the Blazing Star. And the Symbol thus formed, the Circle over the Cross, is the Symbol of Divine Love.
In the closing words of Mallory's Book of Sir Galahad there is a very beautiful Christian legend of this Cup, which reads: ... "anon he called Sir Galahad and said unto him, Come forth the servant of Jesu Christ, and thou shalt see that which thou hast much desired to see. And then Sir Galahad began to tremble right sore when the deadly flesh began to behold the spiritual things.... And therewith the good man took our Lord's body between his hands and proffered it unto Sir Galahad. And he received it right gladly and meekly.... Now said the good man ... thou hast resembled me in two things. One is that thou hast seen the Sancgreal. And the other is in that thou hast been a clean maiden as I am. And when he had said these words, Sir Galahad went to Sir Percivale and kissed him, and commended him to God. . . . And then suddenly his soul departed unto Jesu Christ, and a great multitude of angels bear his soul up to heaven that his two fellows might behold it. Also his two fellows saw come from heaven a hand, but they saw not the body, and then it came right to the vessel and took it and the spear, and so bear it up to heaven. Since then was there never no man so hardy for to say that he had seen the Sancgreal." That is one interpretation of one of the Tracing Boards of the First Degree.
NOTES The Cross Symbol on the Ladder.
The Doctrine of The Master, ever present to aid and guide Mankind as exemplified by the Cross on the Ladder, is further illustrated in the "Iliad 280 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES of India", as Edwin Arnold described the Mahabharata, parts of which he translated into English verse.l The story may be summarized briefly as follows: "The King (Yudhi‑shthira), with his Queen (Draupadi), the Princes (Arjuna, Bhima, Sahadeva, Nakula), and the Dog, set out on the Great Journey. One by one they fall by the wayside‑first Draupadi, then Sahadeva, then Nakula, Arjuna, Bhima, in turn‑each for some `unworthiness'. Yudhi‑shthira and the Dog struggle on until they reach a heaven into which they are told they may enter; he asks if Draupadi and the Princes are there, and is told that they have failed and are in hell; he replies that he wants no heaven without them and will join them. He and the Dog turn away and journey to the gates of hell; they enter and are greeted by the Queen and the Princes who are in great misery. Yudhi‑shthira is offered his own release, but refuses to leave them; whereupon the scene suddenly changes and the Dog disappears; Draupadi and the other dwellers in hell call to Yudhi‑shthira to enter heaven where they really are, hell being but an illusion to test him; but he says, "Where is my Dog which followed me faithfully and for so long?", and a voice answers, "Dog! Dogs are unclean, they cannot enter heaven". To this the King replies, "Then I will seek him wherever he may be; I will not enter without him". And the Voice of Krishna calls to him, saying, "Enter‑I was thy Dog".
Like the Ladder in Masonry, the Great journey is a post‑mortem Mystery.
Parallels in Antiquity.
The Pacific Islanders and the Aborigines of every Continent all appear to have used the symbolic `Tracing Board' technique, in dictinction from realistic Art, as a means of expression. Examples are to be found in the Museums of the world and in the reports of Ethnologists, Anthropologists, etc. Of the developments from these primitive beginnings the most readily available records are those of the various cults of the ancient civilizations of Egypt, India, Tibet, China, Inca, Maya, and the Countries bordering on the Mediterranean in Classical times.
For those who wish to pursue the subject, a short representative list for reference is: Alchemists: H. Stanley Redgrove, Alchemy, Ancient and Modern, Rider, London, 1922 (2nd Ed. revised).
Australia: Spencer and Gillen, The Arunta, London, 1927, 2 vols.
1 Amongst many translations, cf. Edwin Arnold, Indian Poetry, London, Complete Popular Edition, 1915, pp. 159 et seq.; and R. C. Dutt, The Ramayana and the Mahabharata, London, Everyman Series, v.d., s.v. "The Epic of the Bharatas", pp. 197 et seq.
VEILED IN ALLEGORY 281 China: Ward and Stirling, The Hung Society, London, 1925, 1st. vol. And the Willow Pattern ware, vol. II.
Egypt: E. A. Wallis Budge, The Book of the Dead, London, 1913, 2 vols. Gnostics: C. W. King, The Gnostics and Their Remains, London, 1887 (2nd Ed.). Greece: R. P. Knight, The Symbolic Language of Ancient Art and Mythology, New York, 1892 (New Edition).
Inca and Maya: Lewis Spence, The Myths of Mexico and Peru, London, 1913. Rosicrucian: Hargrave Jennings, The Rosicrucians, London (3rd Edition is the best). Tibet: W. Y. Evans‑Wentz, The Tibetan Book of the Dead, O.U.P., 1927. General: Goblet d'Alviella, La Migration des Symbles, Paris, 1891 (and in English translations).
H. G. M. Murray‑Aynsley, Symbolism of the East and West, London, 1900.
F. T. Elsworthy, Horns of Honour, London, 1900.
Although not strictly in the character of picture‑symbolism, the Ritual Hand‑poses of the Hindu Priests belong to the same category. cf. Tyra de Kleen, Mudras, London, 1924. A closer approximation is found in the composite pictures of Hindu Deities displaying their various attributes. Symbols.
An interesting example of the difficulty of determining the precise meaning of a symbol in different circumstances is that of an Eye. As an Egyptian Hieroglyph it was merely "eye"; in Masonry it is the All‑Seeing Eye, a symbol of Omniscience. In China, however, it was at first a pictograph representing the whole head; next, from the practice of counting heads, it came to mean captive; thence, slave; then its status was gradually raised to that of retainer, and its final meaning was Minister of State.1 In the realm of words, the variation can amount to a direct opposite. Only the context can decide whether cleave means cling to, adhere, or part, pull away from.
1 H. G. Creel, The Birth of China, London, 1936, p. 129.
THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES were suspended during the WAR YEARS 1940‑1946 and recommenced in 1947 THE GRAND LODGE SOUTH OF THE RIVER TRENT (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1947) by BRO. G. Y. JOHNSON, P.A.G.D.C. P.M., Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No. 2076 Librarian of the York Lodge, No. 236 In the year 1818 William Preston died at the age of 76 and was buried in St. Paul's Cathedral. By his Will he left various legacies to Masonic Charities and in addition a sum of ú300, the income to be applied annually to the payment of some Mason to deliver a Lecture in set form on the three Degrees of Masonry.
These Lectures were discontinued in 1862, but were revived on a new basis by Grand Lodge in 1925, and again discontinued during the recent war period.
Tonight we are, as far as possible, complying with the terms of this bequest, so it seems only fitting that some few particulars should be given of this remarkable man.
WILLIAM PRESTON William Preston was born in Edinburgh in 1742, being the son of a Writer to His Majesty's Signet. He received a good education, attending the Edinburgh Royal High School and the University, where he studied Latin and Greek. Preston was then apprenticed to Thomas Ruddiman, a great scholar and well‑known Edinburgh printer. In 1760, furnished with letters of recommendation, he went to London and obtained employment as a compositor with William Strahan, the King's Printer. His capabilities and early training soon enabled him to become a corrector of the Press, and later he was promoted to the position of manager of the business. In 1804 Preston was taken into partnership and spent the remaining years of his life with the firm.
Soon after his arrival in London he joined the Craft and was initiated in an `Antients' Lodge. The members of this Lodge changed their allegiance to the `Modems', and on receiving a new Constitution in 1764 took the name of the Caledonian Lodge, now No. 134. Preston soon took a deep interest in Masonry, becoming the Master of several Lodges.
283 284 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES He made the Masonic Lectures his special study and, thanks to his upbringing and retentive memory, soon became a master of the subject. In 1772 he published his famous work, The Illustrations of Masonry, which ran into many editions and may be claimed to have been a best‑seller. Recognizing these qualifications, Bro. Heseltine, the Grand Secretary, chose William Preston as Assistant or Deputy Grand Secretary. In the course of his secretarial duties, Preston wrote the "Appendix to the Book of Constitutions", published in 1776, which brought the History of Masonry up to date.
He also prepared the copy for the next edition of the Book of Constitutions. When this was nearly completed, in 1777, Heseltine appointed Bro. Noorthouck to assist Preston, who, however, declined the offer of assistance and resigned. This undoubtedly annoyed both Heseltine, the Grand Secretary, and his friend Noorthouck.
In 1774 William Preston joined the Lodge of Antiquity, No. 1 on the Roll of Grand Lodge, and within three months was elected to the Chair. John Noorthouck and John Bottomley had persuaded him to join the Lodge to help retrieve its fortunes, which were then at a low ebb.
At this time Noorthouck and Preston were on friendly terms. They were both employed by the same firm, but it is surmised that they had a business quarrel some time in 1777.
Under Preston's Mastership the prosperity of the Lodge of Antiquity was rapidly restored. The membership increased and Preston introduced a Lodge of Instruction to interest and educate the younger Masons.
This and other new ideas, as well as Preston's success, did not please some of the older members, and it was not long before dissension arose.
THE LODGE OF ANTIQUITY QUARREL The Members of the Lodge of Antiquity attended a service at St. Dunstan's Church in Fleet Street on the Festival of St. John, 27 December 1777. The Brethren clothed themselves in the vestry, but at the conclusion of the service, instead of disrobing in the Church, they walked in their regalia 9 about 12 yards across the road to the Lodge room at the Mitre Tavern.
At the next meeting of the Lodge on 7 January 1778, a letter was received from Bro. Noorthouck, the Treasurer, objecting to the "recent unwarrantable Proceedings", which he described as "a rash and gross violation of the 3 Constitutions".
This letter was couched in most unpleasant language and was a tirade i against William Preston, "whose eager fondness for the Trappings and parade of Masonry is but too apt to get the better of his Knowledge".
Bro. Preston replied by saying that the abuse was unexpected and, he hoped, undeserved. He justified the action of the Lodge by claiming an inherent Right vested in the Lodge by virtue of its immemorial Constitution THE GRAND LODGE "SOUTH OF THE TRENT" 285 to discharge the Duties of Masonry, and that it was not in the power of Grand Lodge to deprive it of that Authority.
The procession from the Church seems to have been used as a means of making a most unwarranted personal attack on Preston.
Noorthouck and his party allowed no time for a peaceful solution of the differences, but presented a Memorial to Grand Lodge early in January accusing the Lodge of Antiquity of committing "a flagrant outrage against the Laws and constitutions of Masonry".
The W.M., Bro. John Wilson, and the majority of the members of the Lodge of Antiquity, sided with Preston and it was decided to send an Answer to the Memorial.
The result of Noorthouck's action was that Grand Lodge was forced to adjudicate on the matter. The Grand Lodge Committee of Charity met on 30 January and Bro. Heseltine, the Grand Secretary, appears to have been biased against Preston. Bro. Preston "asserted an inherent Right to be vested in that Lodge (of Antiquity), by virtue of its immemorial Constitution". This was a dangerous doctrine, and he was desired by the Committee publicly to retract it; he refused to do so and was expelled from Grand Lodge and its Committees.
However, five days later, the Grand Lodge met in Quarterly Communication, when Preston presented a Memorial "confessing his error" and that he had "no sinister intention in view".
The Grand Secretary did not wish this apology to be accepted, but after a lengthy discussion Bro. Preston was made to sign an apology withdrawing the doctrine of "inherent right". This did not please the majority of the members of the Lodge of Antiquity, who thought that their W.M. had not sufficiently supported Preston.
Ill feeling was running high in the Lodge of Antiquity, and at the meeting on 18 March 1778, Bro. Noorthouck presented a protest signed by six members in which he named William Preston, Benjamin Bradley (the Secretary), and James Donaldson "fomenters of disturbances in the Lodge"; he invited others to join the protest, but no Brother present acquiesced. In the meantime Grand Lodge had ordered that the Lodge of Antiquity Minute Book should be produced so that the dispute could be discussed. This decision, however, had not been officially communicated to the Lodge of Antiquity, whose members decided that the Minute Book should not be produced and 14 members signed an indemnification for the Secretary's non‑attendance at Grand Lodge.
At the next meeting of the Lodge of Antiquity held on 5 April 1778, Bro. Preston informed the Lodge that he had been summoned to appear before the Grand Lodge Committee of Charity, which at that time performed functions similar to those now allocated to the Board of General Purposes. He had "been represented as a violent and active Supporter of these refractory 286 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES proceedings". Benjamin Bradley, James Donaldson and John Sealy were also summoned to appear.
The Committee of Charity met on 6 April and "the Grand Secretary began the business by representing the violent & refractory proceedings of the Lodge No. 1".
The Grand Secretary, however, admitted that the Lodge had received no formal summons to produce the Minute Book, but argued that "it was unnecessary to transmit Copies of any Resolutions of the Grand Lodge; for that every Master of a Lodge being supposed present, was bound to notice every thing done there, without any further Summons or intimation". Bro. Preston then stated that he and his Brethren had received notice to appear only three days previously and that he had not been informed of the names of those bringing charges against him.
The matter was then allowed to drop, but the W.M. of the Lodge of Antiquity was ordered to produce the Lodge Minute Book.
The Grand Lodge met two days later on 8 April and the W.M. of the Lodge of Antiquity produced the Minute Book without the Authority of his Lodge.
The Grand Secretary then read the Minutes of the Lodge, "but in so partial a manner" that he suppressed some of the items. This was pointed out, and after discussion it was decided "that all matters relative to No. 1 be totally buried in Oblivion, on condition that the minute respecting not appearing with the Books be erased". This seems to have been an excellent solution of the quarrel, but Noorthouck's party was not satisfied, and Bro. James Brearley moved that all the members of the Lodge of Antiquity who had signed the Indemnity be expelled from the Society. This resolution, however, found no seconder.
The Grand Secretary then moved that the Hall Committee be re‑elected with the exception of Bro. William Preston. One or two members "immediately express'd their disapprobation of such an unfriendly motion", and the Grand Master, the Duke of Manchester, considered that it "was a strain'd point to gratify personal pique" and "express'd a disinclination to put the motion, requesting repeatedly that it might be withdrawn". However, the motion was duly carried.
The members of the Lodge of Antiquity were by no means satisfied and decided to retaliate; and so at the next meeting it was moved and seconded that John Noorthouck, John Bottomley and James Brearley should be expelled from the Lodge, "their conduct in many particulars being highly obnoxious". It was ordered that the ballot for these expulsions should take place at the next meeting.
The Grand Feast of Grand Lodge was held on 29 April, and at this meeting the Minute Book of the Lodge of Antiquity was again produced and the Grand Secretary "took the liberty" of reading the whole of the Minutes, which revealed some of the private transactions of the Lodge.
THE GRAND LODGE "SOUTH OF THE TRENT" 287 The Grand Secretary then moved "that the proceedings of Lodge No. 1 were highly censurable".
The W.M. of the Lodge of Antiquity explained that his Lodge had only exerted the power which every Lodge possessed of expelling its own members and that no person had made any complaint, "&'till that was done, no person could be supposed injur'd".
It was decided to postpone the consideration of the matter, and as no date was named it was, of course, postponed sine die.
At the next meeting of the Lodge of Antiquity on 20 May "it was publickly declared . . . that John Noorthouck, John Bottomley and James Brearley are legally expelled," and at the following meeting held on 17 June John Wilson was re‑elected the W.M. and William Rigge was elected the Treasurer, the latter in place of Noorthouck. William Preston and his party must have known that they were skating on thin ice and that it was probable that they would be expelled by the Grand Lodge; on this account they had considered transferring their allegiance to the York Grand Lodge.
CORRESPONDENCE WITH THE YORK GRAND LODGE Jacob Bussey, the Grand Secretary of the York Grand Lodge, visited the Lodge of Antiquity at their next meeting held on 15 July 1778.
There is no note in either the minutes of the Lodge of Antiquity or those of the York Grand Lodge that any previous communication had taken place between these two Lodges, but obviously this visit was premeditated; it is more than probable that some member of the Lodge of Antiquity had written previously to the York Grand Lodge and that it had been arranged that the Grand Secretary at York should make the journey to London.
It is not known what took place at this meeting, but Jacob Bussey discussed the matter on his return to York, and six weeks later, on 29 August 1778, he despatched a lengthy letter to Benjamin Bradley, the Junior Warden of the Lodge of Antiquity.
The substance of this letter was to prove that the York Grand Lodge had been in existence previous to the establishment of the Grand Lodge at London in 1717. A list of the Grand Masters at York is given, and then the statement is made that "the Superior Antiquity of the Grand Lodge of York to all other Lodges in the Kingdom will not admit a Doubt; all the books which treat on the Subject agree that it was founded as early as the year 926"; this is a somewhat sweeping claim.
The writer then states that the York Grand Lodge has been regularly continued and was in being "previous to the Era of the Aggrondized Lodge of London". This epithet must have given great satisfaction to Brethren at York. Bussey then goes on to state that the York Grand Lodge will be pleased to grant a Warrant of Constitution provided a Petition is presented. The letter closes: "My best Respects attend Brother Preston whom I expect 288 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES you will make acquainted with the Purport of this and hope it will be agreeable to him." Nearly three weeks later, on 16 September 1778, the members of the Lodge of Antiquity discussed Bussey's Letter, and a reply was sent pointing out that a Constitution to act as a Private Lodge was not required as the Lodge of Antiquity consider themselves "sufficiently Empowered by the Immemorial Constitution" to act as a private Lodge, but that the members were willing to accept "a Constitutional Authority to Act as a Grand Lodge in London for that Part of England South of the Trent".
This description "South of the Trent" was most likely taken from the College of Arms, England being divided into two parts with the River Trent as the boundary.
A week later, on 22 September 1778, Benjamin Bradley wrote a personal letter to the Grand Secretary at York, stating that there was "no longer a doubt of the Authenticity" of the York Grand Lodge and that a mutual correspondence between the members of the Lodge of Antiquity and the Grand Lodge at York "might be highly commendable".
Bradley then suggested that a Warrant of Constitution should be granted to a few members of the Lodge of Antiquity to act as a Grand Lodge "for that Part of England South of the Trent, with a Power to Constitute Lodges in that Division" and for this "some token of Allegiance to be annually given on the part of the Brethren thus Authorized to Act". The names to be specified in the Warrant are then given; these are: John Wilson as R.W. Grand Master. William Preston as W. Dep. Grand Master. Benjamin Bradley as W. Senior Grand Warden. Gilbert Buchanan as W. Junior Grand Warden. John Sealy as Grand Secretary.
On the receipt of these two letters, the York Grand Lodge appointed a Committee to deal with the matter. The deliberations of Committees take time and it was four weeks (19 October 1778) before a reply was sent to London.
The York Grand Lodge unanimously consented to grant "a deputed Authority to Act as a Grand Lodge in London" provided that an Annual Acknowledgement was made and "that every Constitution granted under this sanction be registered in the Books of the Grand Lodge of York for which some Consideration will also be Expected" "and to convince you that we have no Sinister Mercenary Views, we leave it to your selves to fix the Sums to be paid". The drafting of the Constitution was also left to the London brethren.
The previous letter from the Lodge of Antiquity bore five signatures; the York Grand Lodge were not to be outdone, and this reply was signed by the Grand Master and his six officers.
THE GRAND LODGE "SOUTH OF THE TRENT" 289 The Lodge of Antiquity held a meeting on 25 November, when Bro. John Sealy produced a Draft Constitution to empower the Lodge of Antiquity to act as a Grand Lodge in England South of the Trent; this was considered Article by Article, amended and was then passed unanimously.
Nearly six weeks later, on 2 January 1779, this Draft was forwarded to York.
The names of the first officers had been slightly altered from those originally given, and William Preston's name is conspicuous by its absence, Samuel Bass becoming the Deputy Grand Master.
The Draft Constitution was considered by the York Committee, who decided "to draw up another Form with some Alterations and Additions from the former; but attending as nearly as might be to that Form". There were, however, very few alterations, but a footnote caused further correspondence; this was a proviso that the York Grand Lodge could grant Constitutions to any Brethren who should apply to them for the same, the inference being that such Brethren might reside South of the River Trent.
The Lodge of Antiquity discussed this amended Draft at their meeting on 27 January 1779, and decided not to accept the Constitution unless the sole power of constituting Lodges on the South of the River Trent was vested in them.
The York Grand Lodge Committee agreed, "upon mature Deliberation," to omit the proviso and suggested that the Constitution should be engrossed at York "and put under Seal".
The Secretary of the Lodge of Antiquity lost no time in replying and stated that the Lodge of Antiquity "behold with ye utmost Pleasure and Satisfaction" that the offending clause is considered "immaterial and un necessary", and that the Constitution should be engrossed at York "without loss of Time".
The Constitution was signed and sealed at the York Grand Lodge meeting held on 29 March 1779, and as Bro. Bussey expected to be in London on 6 April it was decided to entrust him with "the safe Delivery thereof". Bro. Bussey attended the meeting of the Lodge of Antiquity on 30 April 1779, when he most likely delivered the Warrant of Constitution, but there is no mention of this in the minutes.
So at last the London Brethren were in possession of the Constitution to form a Grand Lodge South of the River Trent. The negotiations had taken over nine months.
WITHDRAWAL FROM THE GRAND LODGE IN LONDON Whilst the correspondence with the York Grand Lodge had been taking place, events moved rapidly, and the Lodge of Antiquity severed its connection with the Grand Lodge in London.
To trace what happened we must go back to 7 October 1778. On that date a meeting of the Lodge of Antiquity was held and a letter was read from 290 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES the Grand Secretary containing a Memorial from Noorthouck and his party complaining of their unfair expulsion and demanding a written answer. A reply was sent which took the form of a slashing protest against many of the Grand Lodge actions, amongst the number being the decision concerning the procession, Bro. Preston's expulsion from Grand Lodge, the order to produce the Minute Book, and the erasure of Bro. Preston's name from the Hall Committee.
The Grand Lodge Committee of Charity met on 30 October and decided that Noorthduck and party must be reinstated in the Lodge of Antiquity. The members of the Lodge of Antiquity refused to carry out this instruction, and at the next meeting of the Lodge on 4 November it was decided "that the Officers of the Lodge of Antiquity do not any more attend the Meetings of the Grand Lodge and do withdraw themselves from the said Society". It was further decided to publish a Manifesto and to send a copy to all the Lodges in existence. This Manifesto is famous, and naturally gives the case for the Lodge of Antiquity.
From this time there existed two Lodges, both claiming the title of the Lodge of Antiquity. These are generally known as Preston's Lodge and Noorthouck's Lodge. Both Lodges met on the next Lodge night, 18 November, at the Mitre, but in different rooms.
During the proceedings, Noorthouck's Lodge sent a letter to Preston's Lodge demanding not only the room where it was meeting but also the furniture, jewels and other properties. On receipt of this note, the landlord of the Mitre was summoned by Preston's Lodge and the "glaring impropriety" of entertaining in his house any other persons assuming the title of the Lodge of Antiquity was pointed out.
The landlord was unmoved, so it was decided that Preston's Lodge go to the Queen's Arms Tavern in St. Paul's Church Yard, and that for proper security the furniture of the Lodge immediately be transferred thither.
NOORTHOUCK'S LODGE The removal of the furniture was carried out and is described in the minutes of Noorthouck's Lodge in the following manner: "This junto of apostates, waiting for the deadest hour of the night, as the season best suited to acts of perfidy and rapine; with the assistance of some desperadoes from a press gang, most outrageously carried off all the furniture, the joint property of the whole Lodge, in three or four coaches!" There was more truth in this florid language than one might suppose, as two members of Preston's Lodge were Officers in the Press Gang. The members of Noorthouck's Lodge decided to take proceedings to recover their furniture and jewels. At first they tried to fasten the responsibility on Gilbert Buchanan to save making every person concerned a defendant, but in this they failed. A letter was then written to John Wilson, THE GRAND LODGE "SOUTH OF THE TRENT" 291 the Master of Preston's Lodge, threatening to publish an advertisement containing the names of all the parties concerned in the outrage, with a caution to pawnbrokers, but again this had no effect. Legal advice was sought and Noorthouck's Lodge was informed that as the society was not incorporated there was no legal remedy for the recovery of the furniture.
THE GRAND LODGE SOUTH OF THE RIVER TRENT Soon after the Constitution for the Grand Lodge South of the River Trent had been delivered in London, sundry committees of the proposed Grand Officers were held, and arrangements for the Installation were made. Five more Brethren of the Lodge of Antiquity were admitted to membership; these were Samuel Clanfield, James Sims, William Norris, James Macombe and Theophilus Beauchant. It was decided that Gilbert Buchanan and James Wells should no longer be considered members of the new Grand Lodge; they were both petitioners named in the Constitution, but had since resigned from the Lodge of Antiquity.
William Siddall, Esq., the Grand Master of the York Grand Lodge, visited the Lodge of Antiquity on 9 June 1779. There is no mention of this visit in the York Grand Lodge minutes, but probably the arrangements for the first meeting of Grand Lodge South of the River Trent were discussed. The first meeting of the new Grand Lodge was advertised in the Morning Post of 21 June 1779. This announcement stated that the Installation would take place on St. John's day at the Queen's Arms Tavern, in St. Paul's Church‑yard. A Grand Feast was to follow the ceremony, the cost of the tickets being 10/6 each.
A full account of the proceedings held on 24 June 1779 was sent to York. There were 34 Brethren present, including 19 Visitors. The principal officers were M.W. John Wilson, Esq.. G.M.
R. W. Samuel Bass, Esq.. D.G.M.
W. Benjamin Bradley, Esq. . S.G.W.
W. Daniel Nantes, Esq. J.G.W.
John Savage . G.S.B.
together with six Grand Stewards, amongst the number being William Preston. It seems strange that he did not hold one of the principal offices. The M.W. John Wilson, Esq., was regularly Installed according to ancient Usage and Custom. In addition to the above officers, Dr. James Sims was appointed Grand Master of Ceremonies and Barney Rutledge Grand Tyler. The members then elected James Donaldson, Esq., the Grand Treasurer and John Sealy the Grand Secretary.
The Grand Master informed the Brethren that two Lodges had applied for Warrants of Constitution to act under his Banner and that the ceremonies would take place "at such time as would be most convenient for himself and his Officers".
292 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES The account closes with an assurance that every means will "be put in Practice to render the Venerable Fraternity of York Masons as respectable and their Influence as Universal as possible in the Southern Parts of this Kingdom.
So We flatter Ourselves that no Endeavours are awanting on Your Parts as the Fountain Head of Masonry to extend Your Influence in the North, and by that Means put a final Period to that Power and those Innovations which has too long been usurped and patronized by the Nominal Grand Lodge in Great Queen Street, London." Six weeks later, on 9 August, the Grand Lodge assembled at the Queen's Head Tavern in Holborn to constitute a new Lodge. This was called the Lodge of Perseverance and Triumph and ranked as No. 2, as a Petition for another Lodge had previously been received. William Preston was the R.W. Master; the Officers being Hugh Lloyd, S.W.; William Darnborough, J.W.; Richard Bishop, Treasurer; Thomas Birkenhead, Secretary; William Marsh and John Kalm, Stewards. Nothing is known of this Lodge and there are no records in existence.
The Quarterly Communication took place on 3 November 1779. The members were informed that William Darnborough, of the Lodge of Perseverance and Triumph, had declined being a member of that Lodge, or any Lodge under our Constitution. It was resolved that his office of Grand Steward be deemed vacant.
The Grand Master then was pleased to appoint William Preston his Grand Orator, a very fitting choice, as the only office previously held by William Preston in the Grand Lodge was that of Grand Steward.
About a fortnight later, on 15 November, the Grand Lodge met at the Mitre Tavern, Fleet Street, and constituted another Lodge by the name of Perfect Observance No. 1. Peter Lambert de Lintot was the R.W. Master. He seems to have been the moving spirit, and is best known by his Masonic engravings. The following officers were appointed: Daniel Godfrey Hintze, S.W.; Adam Girard, J.W.; John C. Falck, Treasurer; and Peter Mercier, Secretary.
It had been decided to prepare a new Silver Seal for the Grand Lodge South of the River Trent, but there is no correspondence mentioning this, and the first note on the matter is in the York Grand Lodge Minutes of 13 December 1779, when the new Seal was inspected and approved and it was then "ordered to be transmitted" to Bro. Sealy, the Grand Secretary, in London. Three and a half months later its safe arrival in London was reported to York.
A Quarterly Communication was held on 19 January 1780, when the Office of Grand Sword Bearer was abolished "because deemed an Innovation in Masonry".
THE GRAND LODGE "SOUTH OF THE TRENT" 293 The Installation of a new Grand Master took place on St. John's Day, 24 June 1780. The Grand Officers were present, including the six Grand Stewards; the only exception being James Donaldson, the Grand Treasurer, who was present "by Proxy". There were also six other members of the Grand Lodge and the Masters and Wardens of the Lodges of Antiquity, Perfect Observance, and Perseverance and Triumph, making 26 in all, besides "other visiting and assisting Brethren".
The Grand Lodge was opened in Ample Form, and the Grand Master, John Wilson, addressed the Meeting and proposed: "Benjamin Bradley as his Successor in the high Office of Grand Master; which was unanimously approved of, and he was thereupon duly Installed according to antient Custom." William Preston was then appointed Deputy Grand Master. The other Grand Officers were Daniel Nantes, Senior Grand Warden; James Sims, Junior Grand Warden; and Fred Charles Kuhff, Grand Master of Cere monies. James Donaldson, Grand Treasurer, and John Sealy, Grand Secretary, were both re‑elected by ballot. Six Grand Stewards were nominated and the proceedings then terminated.
There are no known records of the proceedings of the Grand Lodge South of the River Trent for a number of years. The explanation of this may be that John Browne, the Grand Secretary of the York Grand Lodge, died in October 1780 and his successor in office was not nearly so efficient. It seems highly probable that further accounts of the proceedings of the Grand Lodge were forwarded to York, but there is no trace of any correspondence for about eight years.
The next three references to the Grand Lodge South of the River Trent are all to be found in the Records of the Lodge of Antiquity: the first in the Minutes dated 19 November 1788, which state that the W. Master has attended a Grand Lodge Committee meeting; secondly in the By‑laws of 1788, where allowance is made for expenses in such attendances; and thirdly in the Treasurer's Book, where there is an item of 5/‑ for the W. Master's expenses at Grand Lodge of 9 January 1789.
A Quarterly Communication was held at the London Coffee House on 29 December 1788, when the decayed state of the two Subordinate Lodges was discussed. These were Perfect Observance No. 1 and Perseverance and Triumph No. 2. No new Lodges had been constituted for ten years. It was reported that the two Lodges had "felt the effects of that Oppression which clogged the proceedings of the Grand Lodge". This no doubt refers to the opposition of the Grand Lodge of England at Great Queen Street. It was decided that the causes of the decay should be "enquired into by a Deputation". History repeats itself today, as Parliament, when in difficulties, appoints a Royal Commission. The account of the proceedings states that the officers already chosen, were invested, but, unfortunately, no names are mentioned.
294 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Early in 1789 it was hoped that Edward Wolley, the Deputy Grand Master of the York Grand Lodge, would visit London. It was naturally felt that at a personal interview it would be much easier to explain the con templated return of the Lodge of Antiquity (Preston's Lodge) to the Grand Lodge in London, which would, of course, mean the extinction of the Grand Lodge South of the River Trent. This visit did not take place, and so an account of the proceedings was forwarded to York, the last paragraph of which states that: "upon the whole, the Prospect before us seems to be less gloomy than we have had for some time past." This was reviewing the situation from the point of view of the Lodge of Antiquity and not that of the Grand Lodge South of the River Trent, which soon ceased to exist.
PRESTON'S LODGE We must now retrace our steps and return to the story of the Lodge of Antiquity.
When Preston's Lodge embarked on an independent career in November 1778, it retained on its list all the old members except the five who had been officially expelled by the Lodge; but the only members definitely com mitted were Preston and ten others, who in their turn had been expelled by Grand Lodge in February 1779.
Some of the members made submission to Grand Lodge and others ceased to attend.
The Lodge was soon in want of funds, and the doubtful policy of raising the fees was adopted. The membership of the Lodge decreased and the attendance dwindled.
After June 1780 William Preston ceased to attend, and in October 1781 resigned from the Lodge, giving no reason.
The Lodge for which he had worked and fought so long appeared to be in imminent danger of extinction, and with it the Grand Lodge of all England South of the River Trent. His indomitable spirit seemed to be broken at last.
More members resigned, and during the next four years the attendance only once reached seven and was generally five or even less.
In October 1786, William Preston was persuaded to rejoin the Lodge, and this had an immediate effect, as seven candidates were proposed at the next meeting and a union with the Grand Lodge in Great Queen Street was discussed.
William Preston was elected the Master of the Lodge in December 1787, and the membership increased considerably.
THE RETURN TO GRAND LODGE In April 1789 Preston informed the Lodge that he had presented a Memorial to the Grand Lodge in Great Queen Street in vindication of his THE GRAND LODGE "SOUTH OF THE TRENT" 295 private character. This petition was considered by the Grand Lodge, but was rejected. However, a second petition must have been presented, for eight of the members (including William Preston) who had been expelled by Grand Lodge in 1779 were restored to all the Privileges of the Society in May 1789.
This decision of Grand Lodge was reported to Preston's Lodge on 20 May 1789, when two visitors from York were present. These were Joseph Atkinson, of the York Grand Lodge, and Thomas Thackray, of the Apollo Lodge, York, who was the Deputy Provincial Grand Master for the County of York. The former "expressed the hearty good wishes of the M.W. the Grand Lodge of all England ... which gave the utmost satisfaction to all the Brethren".
Joseph Atkinson must have found himself in a somewhat difficult situation, as the announcement that William Preston and his friends had been reinstated and the suggested reconciliation with the Grand Lodge in Great Queen Street could only mean the collapse of the Grand Lodge South of the River Trent.
The Grand Lodge in Great Queen Street naturally desired that the two sections of the Lodge of Antiquity should be reunited, and committees from both Preston's Lodge and Noorthouck's Lodge were formed to discuss the matter.
The difficulties of procedure were overcome by both Lodges electing the same Master, who had not previously been a member of either, William Birch being chosen to fill the position.
On 12 November 1790 the members of the two Lodges met at the Thatched House, St. James's. The Officers of each Lodge were marshalled in one procession and entered the Lodge Room, where Bro. Birch was placed in the Chair by the Past Masters. He then congratulated the Brethren on the happy event, equally honourable to them and beneficial to the Interests of Masonry.
CONCLUSION And now I must bring the story to a close. The Grand Lodge South of the River Trent was constituted on 24 June 1779, and the last meeting of which we have any trace was held on Friday, 20 March 1789.
This Grand Lodge was in existence about ten years and had a somewhat inglorious history. Born of a quarrel, it lacked the solid foundation that ensures durability and success.
296 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES The following Books and Papers have been used in the preparation of this Lecture.
Records of the Lodge Original, No. 1, now the Lodge of Antiquity, No. 2, of the Free and Accepted Masons of England, Vol. 1, Edited by W. Harry Rylands, F.S.A., 1911. Vol. II, Edited by Capt. C. W. Firebrace, 1926.
The Rite of Seven Degrees in London, by W. Wonnacott, A.Q.C., Vol. XXXIX, 1928.
Brother William Preston, an illustration of the man, his methods, and his work. The Prestonian Lecture, 1927, by Gordon P. G. Hills, A.Q.C., Vol. XLI, 1929.
The Subordinate Lodges Constituted by the York Grand Lodge (Part II), by G. Y. Johnson, A.Q.C., Vol. LIII, 1942.
THE DELUGE (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1948) by Bro. FRED L. PICK P.M. Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No. 2076 and Manchester Lodge for Masonic Research, No. 5502 We are all so familiar with the three Degrees of Craft Masonry as practised today that we are apt to take them very much for granted. The ritual, substantially as we know it, is the result of the labours of the Lodge of Reconciliation after the Union of 1813. Previous to that time we are compelled to sift a mass of evidence from which we are certain that the Hiramic Legend was fully established by 1730 and that there was a form of speculative Freemasonry in existence a century before that; further that the Old Charges of the operative Masons carry us back to the close of the XIV century, though Bro. Knoop is of the opinion that little in the way of organization can be traced among the English medieval masons before the third quarter of the XIV century.
Bro. J. E. Shum Tuckett suggested that before 1717 Freemasonry possessed a store of legend, tradition and symbolism of wide extent and that, from 1717, the Grand Lodge, selecting a portion only of this store, gradually evolved a Rite consisting of E.A., F.C., M.M. and R.A., that the restriction of the terms "pure", "Ancient" and (in a certain sense) "Craft", to the degrees included in this Rite is arbitrary and solely due to the accident of selection by the Grand Lodge.' There is evidence that at one time the Craft was more interested in the events recorded in Chapters V to XI of the Book of Genesis, with the addition of the story of the antediluvian Pillars than in the XX century when these events have little bearing on Craft ritual but there is reason to believe that at one time what I may describe as the Deluge series of stories bulked more prominently in the minds of our Masonic ancestors.
They may be divided roughly into three main heads, the antediluvian Pillars, the building of Noah's Ark and the Flood and the building of the Tower of Babel, but for the purposes of this paper they have been treated as a single narrative.
The story of the Deluge was not young when two versions were combined in Genesis for it was known to the Babylonians and the Sumerians before them and is found in one form or another in many parts of the world as we gather from the fascinating pages of Sir J. G. Frazer's Folk Lore in the Old I The Origin of Additional Degrees, J. E. S. Tuckett, A.Q.C. XXXII.
297 298 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Testament. Sir Leonard Woolley has also described his excavation of the alluvial deposit left behind by the Sumerian flood at Ur of the Chaldees.
The legend of the antediluvian Pillars, as told in the Old Charges, has a well‑defined pedigree which is illustrated in the following four versions From Folk Lore in the Old Testament.
"The great flood took place in the reign of Xisuthrus, the tenth king of Babylon. Now the god Cronus appeared to him in a dream and warned him that all men would be destroyed by a flood on the fifteenth day of the month Dacsius, which was the eighth month of the Mace donian calendar. Therefore the god enjoined him to write a history of the world from the beginning and bury it for safety in Sippar, the city of the Sun. Moreover he was to build a ship, &c., &c." From Josephus : Antiquities of theJews.
"Speaking of the children of Seth, . . . `They also were the inventors of that peculiar sort of wisdom which is concerned with the heavenly bodies and their order. And that their inventions might not be lost before they were sufficiently known, upon Adam's prediction that the world was to be destroyed at one time by the force of fire, and at another time by the violence and quantity of water, they made two pillars, the one of brick, the other of stone; they inscribed their discoveries on them both, that in case the pillar of brick should be destroyed by the flood, the pillar of stone might remain, and exhibit those discoveries to mankind; and also inform them that there was another pillar of brick erected by them. Now this remains in the land of Siriad to this day."' Polychronicon, (1527 edn.) Quoting from Josephus "That tyme men wyste as Adam had sayde that they sholde be dystroyed by fyre or elles by water. Therefore bookes that they hadde made by grete trauaylle and studye he closed them in two grete pylers made of marble and of brente tyle. In a pylar of Marble for water and in a pylar of tyle for fyre. For it sholde be sailed by that mailer to helpe of mankynde. Men sayth that the pyler of stone escaped the floode and yet it is in Syrya." From the Cooke MS. onwards every complete copy of the Old Charges contains the story of these pillars and the following is taken from the William Watson MS. of 1687: " . . . & these her brethren had knowledge before yt God would take vengeance for Sin either by fire or by water, & they had great care how they might doe to Saue ye Sciences yt they had there found & to take their councell together, & by all their wilts they Said yt there were two manner of Stones of Such vertue yt ye one would never 1 Whiston's translation, 1845 edn. In the 1675 edition Siriad is spelt Syna and transcribed by Dr. Anderson as Syria.
THE DELUGE 299 burne & yt Stone is named Marble, & another Stone yt would not Sink in waters & yt Stone is called Laterus, and Soe they devised to write all ye Sciences yt they had found in these two Stones Soe yt if God Should take vengeance by fire yt than ye Marble Stone Should not burne, & if God Sent vengeance by water then ye other Should not drowne & Soe they provided their elder brother Jaball yt he would make two pillars of ye two Stones yt is to say Marble & Laterus & yt he would write in ye two pillars all ye Sciences and crafts yt they all had found and Soe he did, therefore we may Say yt he was ye cunningest in Sciences, for he first began and p'formed ye last end before Noahs flood ... & many years after as Chronicle telleth these two pillars were found and as polocronicon Saith yt a great Clarke yt men called Pithagoras found ye one & Hermes ye Philosopher found ye other . . ." There is a lack of unanimity as to the builders of the Pillars, Josephus awarding the credit to Seth, son of Adam; the Old Charges to Lamech, Noah's father, and Dr. Anderson, in the 1723 Book of Constitutions to Enoch, Noah's great‑grandfather (though some ascribe them to Seth). In 1738 Anderson altered his version to read "Some call them Seth's Pillars but the Old Masons always call'd them Enoch's Pillars, and firmly believ'd this Tradition, nay Josephus (Lib. I, Cap. 2) affirms the Stone Pillar remain'd in Syria to his Time." It is difficult to see how this tradition was transferred from the antediluvian Pillars to those in the P. of K.S.T., which are ingeniously described in the Lecture on the Second Tracing Board, "They were formed hollow, the better to serve as archives to Masonry, for therein were deposited the constitutional rolls."' An interesting traditional history linking up the two pairs of Pillars is to be found in a Masonic lecture used about 1820 in an Athol Lodge in Northumberland.
"Please inform us how the names of those two Pillars originated. After Noah had built the pillar or altar of sacrifice upon his coming out of the ark, and received the blessing of God on the spot, he called it J. which signified to E.2 in commemoration of the rainbow which God established in the Heavens, and three time declared it to be established. This Pillar was in after years greatly increased in size and ornaments by the descendents of Noah, and considered a most sacred Treasure, and in every country where they so sojourned, they built one in imitation thereof, which was never prophaned till Simeon the son of Jacob with his brother Judah, killed Hamor the Hivite, 1 The compiler of The English Ritual has attempted to temper tradition with logic by rendering this passage, "They were hollow, and it has, therefore, been suggested that they may conconceivably have served as receptacles for the archives." 2 Establish.
300 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES together with his Son Sechim, for ravishing their sister Dinah; and after that treacherous and bloody deed he concealed his sword, stained with the blood of his victim, behind the pillar J. Simeon then withdrew for several days, fearing the displeasure of his aged Father, which caused great uneasiness in the family, especially to his wife, being then far advanced in pregnancy, and who went in search of her husband, and passing by the Pillar J. perceived the bloody sword, and knowing it to be her husband's she fainted on the spot, and there also experienced the painful bearing of a Son whom she called after the name of the Pillar at the foot of which she bore him.
When this Son grew up he proved to be a very pious and godly man; and after his death, the twelve tribes, in honour of his memory, erected another and called that J. also, but to mark the distinction this second Pillar was called J. of the line of Jacob.
Some years after this the noble and Godly B. erected two famous Pillars on his own estate in the land of Bethlehem, the one he called J. after the name of the famous Pillar and the other one he called by his own N.; now B. was the Great Grandfather of K.S.'s Father and to commemorate those two noble personages and remarkable circumstances he called the two Pillars of his Temple by their names."i This is entirely lacking from our ritual today and though ingenious it is scarcely more credible than the story of the shadowy Asst. H.P. of whom we know so little.
The story of the Flood has lost nothing in the telling throughout the ages. Dr. G. G. Coulton, describing the coming of the Franciscans said: "Scripture, of course, was pressed allegorically into the service of this creed. All men had always known that Noah's Ark was the type of God's Church. To this Church the black‑robed Benedictines had done service in their time; these were prefigured by the raven. The soft‑grey dove, with her olive branch and her message of divine comfort, was naturally the Franciscan‑the "grey friar", as men called him from his peasant frock of homely wool".2 The same author, in his Five Centuries of Religion, quotes other examples of the symbolical use of the Ark story‑Jerome remarks that the unclean animals went into the Ark two by two‑a "bad" number, while the clean went by seven, a "good" one; in a sermon by Herolt, as eight only were saved at the Deluge while the rest of mankind perished; so is the proportion to be saved in respect of those to be damned, &c., &c.
1 Bro. H. C. Booth in Misc. Lat. XXVII, 73. This version tallies neither with Genesis xxxiv, nor Josephus, Antiquities, Book I, ch. xxi. "W.W.C.C.", writing in Misc. Lat. XXXI, 141, points out that the passage is entirely devoid of Biblical author ity, the only basis for the legend being not the original Hebrew text but an English translation thereof.
2 Studies in Medieval Thought, 158.
THE DELUGE 301 Thomas Dekker, writing in a bad plague‑year (1609) produced an exquisite little prayer‑book, Foure Birds of Noahs Arke, his symbolism being, briefly, The Dove‑comfort‑simple prayers for the young and meaner sort. The Eagle‑courage‑supplications on behalf of Kings and Rulers. The Pelican‑health‑prayers against deadly and capital sins.
The Phoenix‑life‑mainly thanksgivings.
The Flood is commemorated in all four of the complete cycles of Miracle Plays preserved in this country, as well as among the comparatively few separate Interludes. In the Cornish Play, originally performed in the ancient language of that county, while Noah and his sons are building the Ark they are jeered at by Tubal Cain! There is a similar incident in the XX century negro play Green Pastures where the part is played by "Cain VI".
The Shipwrights produced the Play at Newcastle; at York they were responsible for "God foretelling Noah to make an ark of light wood", the Fishmongers, Pessyners and Mariners having, "Noah in his ark with his wife and three children and divers animals". At Chester the Water Drawers and Drawers of Dee performed the Deluge play. At Newcastle, Wakefield and Chester there is reference to the labour of building the ark, sometimes illustrated by allusions to the working tools with appropriate motions.
There was an interesting variation at Hull where, on Plough Day, a play of Noah was given on a stage in the form of a ship which was also carried round the town in a maritime version of an agricultural rite.' The development of the character of Noah's wife is a curious side‑line, the lady being merely late for embarkation in Cornwall, recalcitrant at Wakefield where she is only induced to enter the ark after a sound beating by her husband and, at Chester, it is Noah's lot to receive a box on the ear after the quelling of her last‑minute rebellion.
It will have been noted that where the trades producing the Deluge plays are known, all have had something to do with the water or shipping. Solomon's Temple did not, so far as we know, inspire any play and it will be remembered that in Polychronicon the Flood was dealt with in much greater detail. The possibility of any connection between the Miracle Plays and Freemasonry was investigated by Bro. E. Conder, Jr.2 and a re‑examination of the subject which I undertook some years later, like his, failed to establish any evidence of direct connection between the Miracle Plays and Masonic Ritual.3 The story is still very much alive as we realise when we see the child marshalling his animals two by two and remember that in the XX century it has inspired wholly or in part several plays and a ballet to say nothing of a cartoon‑film of which Mr. G. B. Harrison says, 1 E. K. Chambers: English Literature at the Close of the Middle Ages. 2 A.Q.C. XIV.
3 M.A.M.R. XXXIL 302 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES "Mr. Disney's film Father Noah is exactly in the tradition of the miracle plays, but I suspect that this is no accident and that Mr. Disney is a considerable student of early drama".' It must be remembered that the Craft was acquainted through the Old Charges with the stories of the Flood and the building of the Temple and the following is taken from the History of Freemasonry as set forth by Dr. James Anderson in his first Book of Constitutions (1723).
"No doubt Adam taught his sons Geometry, and the use of it, in the several Arts and Crafts convenient, at least, for those early Times; for CAIN, we find, built a City, which he call'd CONSECRATED, or DEDICATED, after the Name of his eldest Son ENOCH; and becoming the Prince of the one Half of Mankind, his Posterity would imitate his royal Example in improving both the noble Science and the useful Art ... until at length NOAH, the ninth from Seth, was commanded and directed of God, to build the great Ark, which tho' of Wood, was certainly fabricated by Geometry, and according to the Rules of Masonry. NOAH, and his three Sons, JAPHET, SHEm, and HAM, all Masons true, brought with them over the Flood the Traditions and Arts of the Antediluvians, and amply communicated them to their growing Offspring; for about 101 years after the Flood, we find a vast Number of 'em, if not the whole Race of Noah, in the Vale of Shinar, employ'd in building a City and large Tower, in order to make to themselves a Name, and to prevent their Dispersion," &c.
The story of the building of King Solomon's Temple is set forth in much greater detail in the same work and we have also the reference to Hiram Abif which indicates that the name of this curious workman was known and appreciated by the Craft in those days. A somewhat similar version is found in A Pocket Companion for Freemasons (1735).
Dr. Anderson says in his First Charge (1723), "A Mason is oblig'd by his Tenure, to obey the Moral Law," adding in the second Edition (1738) "as a true Noachida," and later in the same Charge, "For they all agree in the 3 great Articles of Noah, enough to preserve the cement of the Lodge." The word Noachidae is also introduced into the traditional history in the 1738 Constitutions.
"After the Flood, NOAH and his 3 Sons, having preserved the Knowledge of the Arts and Sciences, communicated It to their growing Off spring, who were all of one Language and Speech. And it came to pass,2 as they journey'd from the East (the Plains of Mount Ararat, where the Ark rested) towards the West, they found a Plain in the Land of SHINAR, and dwelt there together as NOACHIDAE3 or Sons of NOAH; and when Peleg was born there to Heber, after the 1 Elizabethan Plays and Players. (1940). 2 Genesis xi, 12.
3 The first name of Masons according to some old Traditions.
THE DELUGE 303 Flood, 101 years, Father Noah partition'd the Earth, ordering them to disperse and take Possession; but from a Fear of the ill Consequences of Separation, they resolved to keep together." The historical statement was repeated in all English editions of the Constitutions until the Union but the reference to Noachida disappeared from the Charge after 1738, though it was continued in successive editions of the Irish Constitutions.
It must be clearly borne in mind that the earliest records of speculative Freemasonry indicate that its ritual was based on the building of King Solomon's Temple and the Hiramic Legend was firmly established by 1730. The Temple is fully dealt with in the Long History of the Old Charges and the late Bro. Rodk. H. Baxter claimed that this contained at least a hint of the Hiramic Legend. There are, however, many significant survivals which lead one to believe that our ancient Brethren were not entirely disinterested in those earlier achievements, the Ark and the Tower of Babel and I will briefly refer to a few of these, taking the opportunity first of acknowledging the great assistance of Early Masonic Catechisms and Early Masonic Pamphlets by Knoop, Jones and Hamer and the late Bro. J. T. Thorp's invaluable Leicester Reprints all of which cannot be too strongly recommended to the student of early XVIII century Freemasonry. Other sources of information will be gratefully acknowledged in the course of the text. THE ANCIENT STIRLING BRASS.
The Ancient Stirling Lodge possesses two brasses about 3 in. x 9 in. claimed to be of XVIII century origin. One is engraved with craft emblems on both sides, the other on one side only, on the reverse being "Redd Cros or Ark" (Dove emerging from Ark), "Sepulchre", "Knights of Malta", "Night Templer". At the foot are six concentric arches with a rough keystone which may conceivably represent a rainbow.' The Dumfries No. 4 MS. (c. 1710) (reprinted in A.Q.C. VI and Early Masonic Catechisms.) This curious document combines a corrupt version of the Old Charges with a catechism. The usual history of the antediluvian pillars is found there and questions relating to the Temple are Christian in character. There is a passing reference to the use at the Temple of the same mortar as that used at the building of Nimrod's Tower, and the concluding questions are: Q. where layes ye master. A. in a stone trough under ye west window looking to ye east waiting for ye son rising to sert his men to work.
Q. where (was) the noble art or science A. it was found in two pillars of stone the other would not bum.
Among the Catechisms so conveniently brought together for study by Bro. Knoop and his colleagues we have many references to the holding 1 W. J. Hughanin A.Q.C. VI,108.
?? found when it was lost.
the one would not sink and 303 304 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES of the first Lodge in the Porch of King Solomon's Temple, coupled with certain allusions to the earlier pillars or events leading up to the Tower of Babel. Questions introducing the Rainbow are found in A Mason's Examination (1723), The Grand Mystery of Free‑Masons Discover'd (1724) and The Mystery of Free‑Masonry (1730) as Q. Whence comes the pattern of an Arch ? A. From the Rainbow.
The following short extracts illustrate various manners in which parts of the story are referred to Sloane MS., 3329 (c. 1700). After the usual references to the Temple and the Pillars thereof an alternative catechism is given, opening: In some places they discourse as followeth (vizt).
Q. where was the word first given. A. at the Tower of Babylon.
Q. where did they first call their Lodge. A. at the holy Chapell of St. John, &c.
The Grand Mystery of Free‑Masons Discover'd (1724).
Q. In what part of the Temple was the Lodge kept? A. In Solomon's Porch at the West‑end of the Temple, where the two Pillars were set up.
and later Q. How many particular Points pertain to a Free‑Mason? A. Three; Fraternity, Fidelity & Tacity.
Q. What do they represent? A. Brotherly Love, Relief, and Truth, among all Right Masons; for which all Masons were ordain'd at the Building of the Tower of Babel, and at the Temple of,7erusalem.
A similar passage is to be found in The Institution of Free‑Masons (c. 1725).
The Whole Institution of Free‑Masons Opened (1725).
"What is your foundation Words‑Come let us, and you shall haveWhat mean you by these Words‑We differ from the Babylonians who did presume to Build to Heaven, but we pray the blessed Trinity to let us build True, High, and Square, and they shall have the praise to whom it is due." Prichard's Masonry Dissected (1730).
"The original Institution of Masonry consisteth on the Foundation of the Liberal Arts and Sciences; but more especially on the Fifth, viz. Geometry. For at the Building of the Tower of Babel, the Art and Mystery of Masonry was first introduc'd, and from thence handed down by Euclid, a worthy and excellent Mathematician of the Egyptians and he communicated it to Hiram, the Master‑Mason concern'd in the Building of Solomon's Temple, &c." THE DELUGE 305 The Perjur'd Free Mason Detected (1730).
"Ham, or Cham, the second Son of NOAH, having a Genius to Architecture, is said to have practised it in the Antediluvian World, before the Deluge, for he was 90 Years of Age when the Flood came upon the Earth.
Fame tells us, that after the Flood he communicated the Knowledge of it to the Great Council or Meeting upon the Plains of Shinaar, where it was proposed to build a Tower up to Heaven: Nothing but a complete Master of the Science of Masonry could have conceiv'd so immense an Undertaking: His Proposal being accepted, it seems he undertook the Work, and became the Master‑Builder: But the History imports, that his Workmen growing weary of mounting that stupendous Stair‑case, and at last being divided in Speech, mutinied and left him, and so the Work was broken off; but the mighty Ruins of that Fabrick shews to this Day the Skill of the Master Mason; the immense Arches, the vast Pilasters, the strong Basis, which are still to be seen, are a lasting Testimony as well to the Greatness of the Work as to the Genius of the Workman.
His Grandson by his Son Canaan was called Sidon, whose tribes travelling from Babel West came to the Sea‑shore of Phoenicia and there (being instructed in the Art of Masonry by his great Ancestor) be built the City of Sidon, which remains to this Day the most ancient City in the World.
Another of his Grandsons was call'd Mizraim and he travell'd into Egypt, where he (being long before accepted a Mason by his great Ancestor) erected a powerful Nation on the Banks of the Nilus. And some hundred Years after that, he built those inimitable Fabricks call'd the Pyramids." Later‑from the Catechism.
Mast: ... pray, who was the first Master Mason in the World? Jun: He that built the Tower of Babel.
Mast: Well, but who was he ? Jun: We were not told his Name.
Mast: I knew that well enough; they would not trust you with that Secret at first.
Jun: Pray, what was his Name? Mast: No, hold there; do you think I have so little Regard to my Oath ? Jun: I thought when I was accepted a Free Mason I had a Right to be told every Thing.
Mast: No, you are mistaken there: after one and forty Years Tryal of your Fidelity, perhaps you may, but not before.
Jun: I believe I know every Thing as well as you do.
(Later junior says he will expose the Craft‑all he knows of it).
306 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Mast: And that is just nothing at all, I tell you; why you did not so much as to know what Trade old Hiram was; or who was the Master Builder of Babel: You expose us! you can expose no body but your self.
Multa Paucis (1763‑4).
The first portion includes sections dealing with Cain's Masonry.
Seth's Superior Skill.
Enoch's Emblematical Pillars. Noah's Architecture.
Nimrod, Grand Master of Assyria. The Secrets of the Free‑Masons Revealed (1769).
". . . the first Masons after the Flood (which they believe was universal) were SHEM, HAM and JAPHET." Ham was in little repute but his descendants, with those of Shem and Japhet attained such a knowledge of architecture as `to build many Cities, and superb Edifices, in particular that of Babel'." One could quote many references to the Pillars, the Flood and Babel from pre‑Union collections of poems and songs but I will content myself with three examples The Free Masons: An Hudibrastic Poem (17223). If Hist'ry be no ancient Fable, Free Masons came from Tower of Babel: When first that Fabrick was begun, The Greatest underneath the Sun, All Nations thither did repair, To build this great Castle in th'Air; Some thousand Hands were well employ'd, To finish what was ne'er enjoy'd; &c.
A Collection of the Songs of Masons, London, 1734: (bound with The Freemasons Pocket Companion, 1735).
The Master's Song; or, the History of Masonry, by Dr. Anderson. To be sung with a Chorus when the MASTER shall give leave, either one Part only, or all together, as he pleases.
Part 1. I. ADAM the first of human Kind Created with Geometry Imprinted on his Royal Mind, Instructed soon his Progeny Cain and Seth, who then improv'd The lib'ral science in the Art of Architecture which they lov'd, And to their offspring did impart.
THE DELUGE 307 II.
Cain a City fair and strong First built, and call'd it Consecrate, From Enoch's Name, his eldest Son, Which all his Race did imitate: But godly Enoch, of Seth's Loins, Two columns rais'd with mighty Skill: And all his Family enjoins, True Colonading to fulfil.
III.
Our Father Noah next appear'd, A Mason too, divinely taught; And by divine Command uprear'd The Ark that held a goodly Fraught: 'Twas built by true Geometry A Piece of Architecture fine: Helped by his Sons, in number Three, Concurring in the grand Design.
IV.
So from the gen'ral Deluge none Were sav'd but Masons and their wives: And all Mankind from them alone Descending, Architecture thrives; For they, when multiply'd amain, Fit to disperse and fill the Earth, In Shinar's large and lovely Plain To MASONRY gave second Birth.
V.
For most of Mankynd were employ'd To build the City and the Tow'r; The General Lodge was overjoy'd, In such Effects of Masons Pow'r; 'Till vain Ambition did provoke Their Maker to confound their Plot; Yet tho' with Tongues confus'd they spoke, The learned Art they ne'er forget.
CHORUS Who can unfold the Royal Art? Or sing its Secrets in a Song, They're safely kept in Mason's Heart, And to the antient Lodge belong.
We may set against this two stanzas from another early song sung at a bespeak in Dublin in 1733:‑ t 308 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES VI.
The Reason that Babel succeeded so ill, Was because they knew nothing of Mason's Skill; For still their Tower standing would be Had they known Rules of Masonry. VII.
The Temple that wise King Solomon rais'd For Beauty, for Order, for Elegance prais'd To what did it owe all its Elegancy, If not the Rules of Masonry.
It may be objected that up to the present we have considered a number of short extracts mostly detached from their contexts but weight is given to the theory that a Deluge Rite existed at one time by the following extracts from other sources, some of which may have been published as satires: Letters of Verus Commodus, 1725.
"On Michaelmas Day, being the 29th of this Instant September, a New Lodge will be open'd at the St. Alban's Tavern, in St. Alban's Street, for regulating the Modern Abuses, which have crept into the Ancient Fraternity of Free‑Masons; where 'tis desired, that all the old real Masons will be present to accompany their Founders, viz. Jabel, Jubel, Tubal Cain, and their Sister Nahama, also Ninevah, Marcus, Gracchus, Euclid, Hierom, Charles Martin, Athelstone, and their good friend St. Alban, who loved Masonry well." Free‑Masons Accusation and Defence, 1726.
Letter V referring to the author of the Book of Constitutions asks: "To what purpose does he set out in that pompous Manner, and Deduce Masonry from Noah and his three Sons, Shem, Ham, 7aphet ? or as he inverts the Words and japhet, Shem, and Ham, all Masons true? To what purpose does he make Masons of Noah and his Sons, who never handled a Trowel in their Lives, and were, at best, but Shipwrights ?" DRAKE'S SPEECH at York, 1726.
Without running up to Seth's Pillars or the Tower of Babel we could look to the Walls of Babylon, built 1,000 years before King Solomon's Temple, which gave reason to conjecture that "three parts in four of the whole earth might then be divided into E ‑ P F ‑ C & M ‑ M." "ANTEDILUVIAN MASONRY" (1726).
In his Inaugural Address to the Quatuor Coronati Lodge' Bro. H. Sadler described an advertisement of 1726 headed "Antediluvian Masonry," evidently a skit, in which reference was made to the death of the Widow's Son, bya Blow of a Beetle and innovations lately made by the Doctor and some other of the Moderns. This skit, and others, would be pointless unless it I A.Q.C. XXIII.
THE DELUGE 309 could be recognised and appreciated by brethren with at least a hearsay acquaintance with both systems.
The Freemason Examin'd (1754).
Alexander Slade's curious pamphlet, which ran to half a dozen editions, was described by Bro. Thorp' and included in his Leicester reprints. It is based entirely on the building of the Tower of Babel and differs so widely from other publications that its raison d'etre is not apparent. The author claims that it was copied from a MS. left by his father, who had been initiated about 1708, "when Sir Christopher Wren was Grand Master". The Officers are the six sons of Cush, the eldest son of Ham and grandson of Noah.
According to the V.S.L. these sons were Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah, Sabtecha and Nimrod,2 but Slade follows the names given by Josephus,3 Sabas, Evilas, Sabathes, Ragmus, Sabactas and Nimrod, the last being renamed Belus. The form of the Lodge was circular, following the groundplan of the Tower of Babe14 and the officers were arranged as follows: Belus (Nimrod) the Master and Sabas, the Superintendent, stood diametrically opposite; Evilas and Sabathes, the two Wardens and Sabactas and Ramus, the two Deacons, stood opposite likewise. The tools worn by the Officers were Belus, the Master The Compass pendent in a white ribbon about his neck.
Sabas, the Superintendent The Square.
Evilas and Sabathes The Level and Plumb Rule.
Sabactas and Ramus A twenty‑four inch gauge in each of their hands.
There were three Degrees: 1. The Minor's Degree, which tells us among other things that Freemasonry began "about one hundred and fifty‑four years after Noah's Flood, at the Building of Babel's Tower".
2. The Major's Degree, in which the candidate undertook to behave "as a true Noachidx, and instruct the younger Brethren, using all Endeavours to encrease Brotherly Love".
3. The Officer's Part or Ceremony of Installment.
Bro. Thorpe, in the introduction to his reprint, gives four possible reasons for this publication: 1. In 1708, when Slade's father was said to have been initiated, there may have been Lodges working Nimrod Masonry.
2. A possible attempt to bring ridicule on the recently Antients' Grand Lodge.
1 A.Q.C. XX.
2 Genesis X, 7‑8.
3 Antiquities, Book I, ch. vi.
4 According to Anderson the ground‑plan was square.
formed 310 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES 3. An ingenious parody to mislead those who may have seen Prichard's Masonry Dissected.
4. Pure invention prompted by greed.
Bro. Songhurst, in the discussion on Bro. Thorpe's paper said: "I fancy it may hereafter be found that the history of the building of the Tower of Babel played a prominent part in early Masonic ceremonies. There are several references here and there which appear to give some colour to this idea. . . . The degree of Noachite, or Prussian Knight, is based upon legends connected with the Tower of Babel, although the ritual of 1768 bears very little resemblance to that printed by Slade."1 The same distinguished student uttered a similar comment in his paper on John Cole. Referring to a portrait of the Earl of Moira, engraved by C. Turner, after James Ramsay, in 1811, he asks whether the compasses and crescent indicate some position in the R.A.
". . . At first sight the suggestion does not seem reasonable, but it will be remembered that the seal of the `Grand Royal Arch Chapter, York', of 1780, had a crescent in combination with a rainbow and a triangle. It is evident, therefore, that the emblem had some significance in connection with the degree at York, and I would like to make a further suggestion, viz., that the crescent was not intended to represent a half‑moon, but an Ark, of same shape as that depicted on the counterseal of the Grand Lodge at York (circa 1776 1779). In the latter there is no doubt whatever that it is a representation of the Ark of the Covenant. The addition of staves and Cherubim make this quite clear, and I cannot help thinking that in the Grand Chapter seal the device is meant to represent Noah's Ark, an emblem much more appropriate than a half‑moon when taken in conjunction with the rainbow."2 It may also be mentioned that the Gormogons claimed "much Greater Antiquity and Reputation than the FREE MASONS; for whereas the latter can deduce their Original but from the Building of Babel, the former derive theirs some thousand years before Adam."3 Two other Ark legends may be mentioned: The Briscoe Pamphlet (1724) says: ". . . Adam caused a Beautiful Monumental Stone to be form'd for the depositing of his Body, on which was carved all the Geometrical Figures, and Hieroglyphicks, afterwards used by the Antient Egyptians, together with the particular Signification of the letter Tau, which was the Mark put upon Cain, least any one should destroy him, and was the Mark afterwards used by Moses to protect the Israelites from the destroying Angel.
1 A.Q.C. XX, 108. 2 A.Q.C. XX, 13.
3 Weekly _7ournal or Saturday Post of 17 October, 1724.
THE DELUGE 311 Now it happen'd when Adam was fore‑warn'd of his approaching Death, that he delivered this Stone Coffin of his, if I may be so allow'd to call it, to his Son Seth, with this Charge, that upon his Decease, his Body shou'd be there deposited 'till at such Time there shou'd be found a Priest of the most high God to interre it, which was verified in that of Melchisedec; for Adam's Body was safely convey'd to Noah, who placed it in the Centre of the Ark, and daily offer'd Prayers upon this Monumental Tomb as an Altar raised to God upon the Faith of his Father Adam; Now this is what the Remarker of the Constitutions wanted to know when he mentions the Two Pillars of Stone, whereon were engraven the liberal Sciences, one supposed to be raised by Seth and the other by Enoch, whereas it appears plain it was the Monumental Stone wherein Adam lay, that these Figures he mentions were engraven, and which Stone, together with the Body in it, were convey'd by Seth to Lamech, and so to Noah." This tradition is met with in more places than one. Another links up a stone carried in the Ark with the Centre Stone of King Solomon's Temple. I am indebted to Bro. E. M. Baxter for the following extracts from a MS. book compiled upwards of a century ago by Bro. W. Roberts, of Rochdale.
The Famous Centre S. of K.S.T.
"Upon this Stone the noble Patriarch reposed when he daily returned from his pious Labour of building the Ark, and when finish'd took and placed this Stone in the centre of the Ark.
Genesis, ch. 8, v. 4. Upon this Stone, did Noah make his first offering to the Lord for his safe deliverance; and desir'd it there to be fixed till the first of his descendents should be call'd from above to travel again either by Land or Water; and this falling some few years after to the lot of Abraham, he took it with him when he left his native Country. Later‑This Stone was in the form of a true Double Cube ... A Cube, has always six Sides or faces, so had this Stone‑and on each side was delineated with various instruments, made, or designed for that purpose, the Six most remarkable circumstances, relative to this famous Ancient Stone.
First, Belongs to Royal Arch Masonry ...
Second, Was made by Noah, when he made his exit from the Ark, and thereon was describ'd with a Porphyry Tool, that remarkable event of the Deluge &c." Elsewhere in the same notebook is a Royal Arch catechism: Q. Here's 2 Ark depicted on our tracing Board. What are they call'd.
A. Noah's Ark, and the Ark of the Covenant.
Q. What was the length of Noah's Ark.
312 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES A. Three hundred cubits.
Q. What was the breadth. A. Fifty.
Q. What was the height. A. Thirty.
Q. How was it lighted.
A. By one window.
Q. Which storey was that in.
A. The Upper Storey.
Q. What was the first bird Noah sent out of the Ark to see if the water was abated off the face of the earth.
A. A raven.
Q. Did it return.
A. It did not which is the Image of all false Brethren.
Q. What was the second Bird. A. A dove.
Q. Did it return.
A. It did with an Olive Branch in its mouth which is a symbol of peace.
Q. What kind of Wood was the Ark.
A. Cedar or Gophir Wood.
Q. Where did the Ark rest after the flood.
A. On the Mountain of Araratt.
Q. What was the Ark of the Covenant (proceeds on this subject).
I have left to the last one of the most important discoveries of recent years. The Graham MS. came to light only in 1936 and was published in facsimile with notes by Bro. the Rev. H. Poole in A.Q.C., Vol. 50, and was also reproduced in Early Masonic Catechisms by Knoop, Jones & Hamer. The date of this curious manuscript may be read as 1672 or 1726, the latter being more probable and its provenance is probably the northern part of England. Opening with a salutation, the Graham MS. proceeds with an examination on the lines met with in other documents of the same type and follows this with a traditional history mainly concerning Noah, Bezaleel and King Solomon, concluding with a tantalizing clue to the secrets of Freemasonry. The "Noah" part reads as follows: "I pass you entered yet I demand if you were raised‑yes I wasinto what were you raised‑I was raised into knowled of our primitive both by tradition and scripture‑what is your foundation words at the Laying of a building where you exspect that some inffernall squandering spirit hath haunted and posable may shake your handy work‑O come Let us and you shall have‑to whom do you speakto the blesed trinity in prayer‑how do you administer these words ‑kneeling bairhead fface towards the east‑what mean you by the exspreshion thereof‑we mean that we foresake self righteiousness THE DELUGE 313 and differs ffrom these baballonians who presumed to build to heaven but we pray the blesed trinity to Let us build trueLy and square and they shall have the praise to whom it is due‑when was these words made or what need was for them‑I answere into the primitive before the ghospell spraid the world being incumbered with infernall squandering spirits except that men did build by ffaith and prayer their works were oft asulted But how came that the works of the Baballonians stood before all this or yet the brightness of the gospell‑I yet by your own question answere you because the presumption of the Baballonians afforesaid had vexed the God head in so much the Langvage was Confounded ffor their sake so that no mankind ffor ever was to do the Like again without a divine Lisiance which could not be had wtout faith and prayer‑traditionthat‑we have it by tradition and still some refferance to scripture cause shem ham and Japheth ffor to go to their father noahs grave for to try if they could find anything about him ffor to Lead them to to the vertuable secret which this famieous preacher had for I hop all will allow that all things needfull for the new world was in the ark with noah.1 Now these 3 men had allready agreed that if they did not ffind the very thing it self that the first thing that they found was to be to them as a secret they not Douting but did most firmly be Lieve that God was able and would allso prove willing through their faith and obediance for to cause what they did find for to prove as vertuable to them as if they had received the secret at ffirst from God himself at its head spring so came to the Grave finding nothing save the dead body all most consumed away takeing a greip at a ffinger it came away so from Joynt to Joynt so to the wrest so to the Elbow so they R Reared up the dead body and suported it setting ffoot to ffoot knee to knee Breast to breast Cheeck to cheeck and hand to back and cryed out help O ffather as if they had said o father of heaven help us now for our Earthly ffather cannot so Laid down the dead body again and not knowing what to do‑so one said here is yet marow in this bone and the second said but a dry bone and the third said it stinketh so they agreed for to give it a name as is known to free masonryto this day so went to their undertakings and afterwards works stood: yet it is to be beleived and allso understood that the vertue did not proceed from what they ffound or how it was called but ffrom ffaith and prayer so thus it Contenued the will pass for the deed . . ." The manuscript later tells of the building of King Solomon's Temple with the method of payment of the workmen. It is a pity that this document 1 It will be observed that the Graham MS. disregards the antediluvian pillars.
314 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES was still unknown when Bro. Canon W. W. Covey Crump published his fascinating book The Hiramic Tradition.' Before concluding I would like to refer to a number of extra‑Craft degrees which are founded on or introduce parts of the story.
ARK MARINERS: The early history of this degree is obscure. It was worked at Portsmouth under Dunckerley about 1780, at Bath in 1790, and there was an attempt to set up a governing body in London about 1790, possibly under the auspices of the Knights Templar. It is now carried on in this country under the protection of Grand Mark Lodge and has gained in popularity of recent years. In Scotland it is conferred under the authority of Grand Chapter.
ARK AND DovE: An illustrative degree formerly worked in the United States. It appears to have been merged in the Ark Mariners in this country. NOACHITE, OR PRUSSIAN KNIGHT: The twenty‑first degree of the A. & A. Rite. It is based on the building of the Tower of Babel and it has been claimed that it was translated from the German into French as early as 1757. It describes the travels of Peleg from Babel to the North of Europe after the fall of the Tower and the discovery, in Prussia, of a column of white marble on which was written the whole history of the Noachites. According to Mackey it was also found in the Rite of Mizraim.
PRINCE OF LIBANUS : The twenty‑second degree of the A. & A. Rite, also known as Knight of the Axe. This mentions that the Sidonians cut down the trees for Noah's Ark out of the Cedars of Lebanus.
PRINCE OF THE TABERNACLE: The twenty‑fourth degree of the A. & A. Rite, traces the Royal Art from the Creation, through Noah, Moses and Soloman to Hugo de Payens, etc.
THE ROYAL ORDER OF SCOTLAND: I am informed that the antediluvian Pillars and the building of the Ark figure in the ritual with an incidental reference to the Tower of Babel.
THE ROYAL ARCH: Three Arks are or were commemorated in the Royal Arch in the United States The Ark of Safety, constructed by Noah and his sons.
The Ark of Alliance, constructed by Moses, Aholiab and Bezaleel. The Ark of Initiation, a copy of the Ark of the Covenant, placed in the Temple by Joshua, Zerubbabel and Haggai.
ENGLISH CRAFT MASONRY: It is a curious fact that about the time the last traces of any Noah rite disappeared from the ritual after the Union of 1813 the Deacon's Jewel was altered from the Mercury to the Dove and Olive branch. There is a single reference to Noah as a just and upright man and teacher of righteousness, in the First Tracing Board; and the present‑day account of the Pillars has already been commented on.
1 Masonic Record, London, 1935.
THE DELUGE 315 Taking into consideration the many passages quoted from pre‑Union sources (and some from pre‑Grand Lodge sources) we may summarize our findings thus 1. That throughout the history of speculative Freemasonry as we know it, the ritual of Craft Freemasonry has been founded upon events in connection with the building of King Solomon's Temple.
2. That there was at one time in the body of Masonry a series of legends and a ritual or rituals founded on the long series of events from the erection of the antediluvian pillars to the building of the Tower of Babel.
3. That these traditions lingered in the memory of Freemasons during the 18th century and may very well have inspired wholly in the case of the Ark Mariners and the Noachites or Prussian Knights and partly in other cases the establishment of certain of the extra Craft degrees.
There would therefore appear to be some justification for the theory of Bro. J. E. Shum Tuckett, already referred to, that a portion only of the store of Legend, Tradition and Symbolism possessed by Freemasonry passed into the Rite evolved after the constitution of the first Grand Lodge in 1717.
THE OLDEST LODGE (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1949) by BRO. COLONEL C. C. ADAMS, M.c., F.S.A., P.G.D.
P.M. Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No. 2076 This lecture commemorates the name of William Preston, who was one of the outstanding Masonic characters of the latter half of the eighteenth century. Born in Edinburgh in 1742, he came to London at the age of eighteen, and joined a well‑known firm of printers. About three years later, he was initiated in a London Lodge which had been formed for the benefit of Scotsmen who had come south, a Lodge which is still on our register as the Caledonian Lodge, No. 134.
As a young Past Master, he joined, in 1774, the Lodge of Antiquity, which has, ever since the formation of our Grand Lodge, held first place as the oldest Lodge under the English Constitution. Its history was considerably influenced by Preston, whose Masonic career was bound up with that Lodge for many years to come.
The early history of the Lodge of Antiquity is obscure, but we have several scraps of evidence linking it with the seventeenth century.
In the middle ages, lodges of masons were associated with the operative trade. We know little about them, or the ceremonies which they practised, but these were probably very simple, and for the most part com prised the reading of a form of traditional history. These legendary accounts of the foundation of the Craft were in manuscript, and it is probable that every lodge had a copy. Such documents are known as the Old Charges, and the Lodge of Antiquity fortunately owns a version dated 1686. This was Lodge property in 1722, and it is likely that it was made for the use of the Lodge, when or soon after the latter came into existence. This suggests that the Lodge was founded about 1680, but it is, of course, possible that it may have been much earlier.
Other links with the seventeenth century are associated with the name of Sir Christopher Wren, the famous architect of the present St. Paul's Cathedral. Tradition in the Lodge has led us to believe that Wren was for many years a member, and was Master in 1680, when he presented three mahogany candlesticks which are still Lodge property. The Lodge's most cherished possession is the Wren maul which was used at the laying of the foundation stone of St. Paul's Cathedral. It was given by Sir Christopher Wren, and is referred to together with the candlesticks in the 317 318 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES early records of the Lodge. This maul has frequently been used by the Grand Master, and on such occasions, the Lodge has the right to send its representative to hand it to the Grand Master personally.
At the end of the seventeenth century, Lodges were losing their operative connection, persons who were not masons by trade were being admitted, and the fraternity had largely ceased to be a body of tradesmen, and was becoming a society meeting in taverns for the enjoyment of social intercourse. In 1717, at least four of these Lodges met together in London, and constituted a Grand Lodge, and it is on this occasion that we first hear of the Lodge which now goes by the name of the Lodge of Antiquity. It met at that time at the Goose and Gridiron Tavern in St. Paul's Churchyard, was the first of the four to be mentioned in contemporary accounts, and has always been considered to be the oldest Lodge on the English register. It was the duty of the Master of this Lodge to carry the Book of Constitutions on a cushion before the Grand Master in procession. In the 1788 edition of the Illustrations there is the following rather startling footnote: "In allusion to the Constitutions of the Order being originally vested in that Officer, who is always considered as the general Governor and Director of the Fraternity, in case of the resignation or death of the Grand Master." This note was apparently written by William Preston, who was working in the Grand Secretary's office at that time. It would seem from this that he wished to emphasize the importance of the Master of the Lodge of Antiquity but that is understandable as he himself was then holding that Office.
The first meeting of the new Grand Lodge, in 1717, was held at the Apple Tree Tavern in Covent Garden, but for the next four 'years, the Annual Assembly took place at the Goose and Gridiron Tavern, the meeting place of the senior Lodge. This Tavern was only demolished in recent years, and we know what sort of a place it was. The largest room which would be available for the meetings of the Lodge, or Grand Lodge, was on the first floor, and measured about twenty‑two feet by fifteen feet, so we see how small was the accommodation with which our brethren had to be content in those early days.
Of the four Lodges which met to form Grand Lodge in 1717, one no longer exists. Another obtained a warrant from the new Grand Lodge and so lost its claim to have a Constitution from `time immemorial'. That Lodge is now the Lodge of Fortitude and Old Cumberland, No. 12. The other two are the Lodge of Antiquity, No. 2, and its sister, the Royal Somerset House and Inverness Lodge, No. 4. At the bicentenary of Grand Lodge in 1917, these three Lodges were given permission to wear a stripe of Garter blue in the centre of the collars of their Officers. Since then, the two Lodges dating from time immemorial have held a joint meeting annually.
OUR OLDEST LODGE 319 There is no doubt that soon after the formation of Grand Lodge, the ceremonies in general use were altered and expanded, and it appears that these revisions were frowned on by members of Antiquity, although in the course of time, they came into line. The advent of the new Book of Constitutions in 1723 was no doubt regarded in certain Masonic circles as an innovation. Further changes came a few years later. In 1730, some publications professed to disclose the secrets of Masonry, and as a safeguard, Grand Lodge shortly afterwards decreed that Lodges should reverse the secrets of the first two degrees. All these changes were not popular in this and certain other old Lodges, whose members kept to the ancient forms and preferred to hand down Masonry as it had come to them. In this Lodge the members sometimes felt that they were not bound by the decisions of a Grand Lodge which they themselves had helped to institute, and in the matter of the reversal of the secrets, they kept to their old form of ceremony right through the century. Another matter in which this Lodge appears to have deviated from the general custom in Lodges under the obedience of the "Modern" Grand Lodge, was the installation ceremony. This was almost unknown in "Modern" Lodges, but in the annals of the Lodge of Antiquity we find time after time that the Master was "installed in ancient form" and the ceremony appears to have been much as it is with us today.
For these various reasons, the Lodge was probably not at that time popular with the authorities, and this may account for the fact that although there were a few, it did not have many of the nobility and upper classes among its members. In the early seventeen hundreds, the members came from all ranks of the community, but it was clearly not a fashionable Lodge. In 1721, the Master was an operative mason, perhaps the last of those who remained from the days before the era of Grand Lodge. Dr. J. T. Desaguliers, who had been Grand Master in 1719, became Master of the Lodge in 1723.
Before the union of the two rival Grand Lodges early in the last century, the Lodge of Promulgation was formed in order to restore the `ancient landmarks', and thus ensure that the ceremonies used by the two sets of private Lodges were identical. It is at this time that the "Modern" Lodges were required to revert to the original practice with regard to the secrets of the first two degrees, but of course, no alteration was needed in the case of those old Lodges which had maintained their form of ceremony through the eighteenth century. At the Union, the ceremonies of the "Antient" Grand Lodge were very largely adopted, and these were probably very similar to those in use in the Lodge of Antiquity. Charles Bonnor, who became Acting Master of the Lodge of Antiquity in 1810, when the Duke of Sussex was in the Chair, was Secretary of the Lodge of Promulgation, and in the Minutes of that Lodge for the 1st December, 1809, he recorded that the Lodge of Antiquity: 320 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES "had adhered to the ancient and had never entertained the modern practices, in the several ceremonies of opening and closing the Lodge, and in the mode prescribed for communicating the peculiar secrets of the several degrees".
In the early part of the eighteenth century, the first two degrees were always given to a candidate on the same night, and this was the custom until 1777. After taking the two degrees, there was a ballot to enable the craftsmen to become members of the Lodge. The Master's degree is first mentioned in 1737, and from that time forward, candidates for that degree were first called upon to pass a Board of Trial, an expression still used today in Lodges on the other side of the Atlantic, when visitors are required to prove themselves Freemasons. For a time, about 1760, Masters' Lodges were held on a separate day. For many years, the Lodge met every fortnight, and elected a new Master every six months.
Formerly, Lodges were not distinguished by name but were identified by the names of the taverns where they met. Early in the eighteenth century our senior Lodge came to be known as the Old Lodge of St. Paul and in 1759, when many of the members came from the western hemisphere, it adopted the title of the West India and American Lodge and it was then given precedence as No. 1. In the following year, the Lodge adopted a new set of By‑Laws, and these limited the membership of the Lodge to Brethren with certain qualifications. Here is the relevant Law: "The Members of this Lodge, who were not made Masons in it, are not Noblemen, nor have the Honour to wear a Blue Apron, and are neither Natives of, or have never been to either of the West India, Summer, Bahama, or American Islands, or any part of the Continent of America, or have never crossed the Equinoctial Line, shall never, on any Account or Pretence whatever, exceed the number of Fifteen, that is, exclusive of those Brethren who are the oldest Members of the Lodge, and have signed these Bye‑Laws before Brother ThomasMarriott Perkins, of Barbadoes, but none of the above‑mentioned oldest Members shall ever be replaced when they are no longer Members thereof." There are a number of interesting features in this set of By‑Laws. Notices were apparently not sent out for the regular Meetings. The Secretary was elected by ballot. He was fined sixpence for each member to whom he neglected to send a summons of a Private Lodge, that is to say, an emergency meeting, and a shilling for each neglect to make a minute of anything that had been proposed, seconded and thirded in the Lodge. The Master must, unless he were a nobleman, have served for twelve months as Master or Warden of a Lodge and he could not be Warden, Treasurer or Secretary unless he had proposed two Candidates who had been made Masons in the Lodge. Three black balls excluded a Candidate, and the initiation fee was ú2 8s. 6d. in addition to a fee of 216d. for the Tyler. After being made a OUR OLDEST LODGE 321 Mason one paid a further five shillings to become a, member of the Lodge. The fee for raising to the degree of Master Mason was five shillings, and 1/6d. for the Tyler. The joining fee was ten shillings and sixpence, and the subscription seven shillings each quarter while in England. The fee for visitors was 2/6d. but Grand Officers paid nothing and Past Grand Officers, one shilling each. There were fees of honour for the Officers, and fines for not attending the Lodge. The Master received a payment for attending Grand Lodge. How Brethren were to behave in Lodge is carefully set out in these By‑Laws.
"If any Brother Curses, Swears, or says any Thing Irreligious, Obscene, or Ludicrous, holds Private Committees, Disputes about Religion or Politicks, Offers to lay Wagers, or Sell, Give away, or Shew any Manner of Tickets or Shop‑Bills, interrupts another Brother who is speaking to the Master, or Hisses at what he is or has been saying, Is not on his legs, when he has any Thing to say to the Master, Sits down Unclothed, Sups in the Lodge‑Room, or Is Disguised in Liquor during the Lodge‑Hours, such offending Brother shall be immediately fined by a private Ballot for each Offence, as the Majority of the Members then present shall think proper." It was in 1768 that the Lodge became known as the Lodge of Antiquity No. 1, and this inaugurated an important period in its history, for it is shortly after then that it was joined by William Preston.
The Lodge had recently moved from the Queen's Arms in St. Paul's Churchyard to the Mitre in Fleet Street. It was in rather a bad way, as few members were joining, and a number of the older ones had resigned. There were seldom as many as eight at a meeting, and often the number was as low as three or four. The same Master was in Office for three‑anda‑half years from 1771 to 1774. In the latter year, John Noorthouck, the Senior Warden, proposed as a joining member, William Preston, who had been a printer in the same firm as himself, and had come as a visitor to the Lodge two years earlier. Preston was then a young Past Master, who had already acquired a considerable reputation, and had a large circle of Masonic friends, so that it was no doubt thought that he would be able to introduce some new blood, and perhaps bring the old Lodge back to a prosperous condition. Preston had devised a system of Lectures on the three degrees similar to those which are occasionally worked in Lodges today on a basis of questions and answers. These were given in different Lodges, and an account of a Grand Gala or Festival for the purpose of working the First Degree Lectures is described in a handbook published by Preston in 1772, entitled Illustrations of Masonry. This book had a considerable sale in England and abroad, and twelve editions were issued in the life‑time of the author. As a result no doubt of his reputation as an energetic Past Master, he was appointed for a time to act as assistant to the Grand Secretary.
322 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES At the next meeting following his election as a joining member, Preston came to the Lodge, and was at once elected Master, an office which he held continuously for the next three years. His advent had the desired effect, for he brought in several new members and the Lodge achieved some degree of prosperity. In fact in 1775, there were twenty or thirty attending each meeting. It seems clear that these new members became great admirers of Preston, and many of them regularly attended a Lodge of Instruction which he directed, in which the Craft Degrees and their Lectures were rehearsed. These events tended to break the Lodge up into two camps. On the one side were some of the older members led by John Noorthouck, the Treasurer, who were content with the Lodge and its old ways, who were proud of its history and traditions, but were becoming jealous of the opposite camp led by the Master surrounded by a clique of newly‑joined members. This is what Noorthouck said about Preston in a memorial to Grand Lodge written a little later: "Brother Preston after being not only admitted but honour'd with the Master's Chair crouded in such a Succession of young Masons, as totally transferred all the power of the Lodge to him and his new acquaintance, and enabled him to keep possession of the Master's Chair for three years and a half. During this time Bror. Preston kept up private Weekly meetings of these young Bretheren, under the name of a Lodge of Instruction, in which meetings, he occasionally as your memorialists have been inform'd propagated notions of peculiar original powers residing in their Lodge, exempt from the authority of the Grand Lodge".
By 1777 Preston had been in the Chair ever since he had joined the Lodge over three years earlier, and although a new Master was elected this year, the situation was no doubt tense, and ripe for an upheaval.
The Chaplain, Revd. A. H. Eccles, Rector of Bow, offered to preach a sermon on 27th December, 1777, being St. John's Day in winter, and this was arranged to be at St. Dunstan's Church in the Strand, a few yards only from the Mitre Tavern where the Lodge was meeting at that time. The members assembled at the Church and clothed in the vestry. After the service, without taking off their Masonic clothing, they walked across the road to the Mitre Tavern which was nearly opposite. A Lodge meeting was then held at which fifteen members and five visitors were present, and the Churchwardens, Parish Clerk and Organist of St. Dunstan's joined them for dinner. We do not know how many were at the Church, but John Wilson, the Master, and William Preston, who was now a Past Master, must have been there, but evidently John Noorthouck, the Treasurer, was absent as he did not go to the Lodge. This Church service provided the opportunity for which Noorthouck and the older members of the Lodge had been waiting, for those who had attended had transgressed the law by their appearance in regalia, though they had only walked a few yards, OUR OLDEST LODGE 323 and there was nothing that could be called a procession. The following week, Noorthouck wrote a letter to the Lodge protesting at the public parade in Masonic clothing, and in this letter he made it clear that the man whom he held responsible for the irregularity was William Preston "whose eager fondness for the Trappings and parade of Masonry is but too apt to get the better of his Knowledge".
When this came before the Lodge, Preston adopted an attitude which he maintained throughout, that the Lodge, being of immemorial constitution, and having itself taken part in the formation of Grand Lodge, was not subject to its edicts. Here are Preston's own words from the 1788 edition of Illustrations of Masonry: "The mode of applying by petition to the Grand Master, and in consequence of which a warrant to meet as a regular Lodge is granted, commenced only in the year 1718; previous to which time Lodges were occasionally convened and empowered by inherent privileges vested in the fraternity at large, to meet and act under the direction of some able architect; and their proceedings being approved by the majority of the brethren convened in that district where the Lodge was held, were deemed constitutional. By such an authority the Lodge of Antiquity in London now holds, and the authority of that Lodge has been repeatedly confirmed and acknowledged." The next thing that happened was that Noorthouck and his friends sent a formal complaint to Grand Lodge, especially reflecting on the conduct of Preston. This was investigated by the Committee of Charity, the forerunners of the Board of General Purposes of Grand Lodge, and as a result, Preston was asked to sign a document in which he stated "I am sorry to have uttered a Doctrine contrary to the general opinion of the Grand Lodge, and I declare I will never in future promulgate or propagate a doctrine of inherent right, privilege, or pre‑eminence in Lodge No. 1 more than any other Lodge, except priority as Senior Lodge".
Unfortunately, this did not bring an end to the unhappy state of affairs. The Committee of Charity ordered the production of the Lodge books so that all offensive matter could be expunged, but some of the members, including Preston ordered the Secretary not to hand them over. The Lodge then proceeded to expel some of its members who were considered to be at the bottom of all the bad feeling, including John Noorthouck, the Treasurer. The latter, naturally enough, complained to Grand Lodge, who ordered their reinstatement, but Preston and his friends would not agree to this, and they were now faced with opposition, not only from some of their own members, but from Grand Lodge itself.
We now come to the regular meeting held on the 18th November, 1778, a red‑letter day in the annals of the Lodge. This was nearly a year after the Church service and the so‑called public procession. The Lodge 324 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES of course had no warrant, and therefore what happened on that day could not have occurred had it been the case of a Lodge formed during the Grand Lodge era. Summonses to attend the Lodge meetings were only sent out on the rare occasions when what we should now call an emergency meeting was to be held. A group of members therefore, coming together on the regular day of meeting, and at the regular meeting place, would feel fully empowered to open a Lodge. The first to arrive at the Mitre on that day were Preston and his friends, who took possession of the Lodge room on the first floor with the Lodge furniture. They opened a Lodge, and decided that the time had come to break away from the Grand Lodge, so they passed the following resolution: "That the Officers of the Lodge of Antiquity do not any more attend the meetings of the Grand Lodge now held at Free Masons Hall, & that the Members of the Lodge of Antiquity do withdraw themselves, the Lodge and Constitution from the Society called the Grand Lodge." This resolution was subsequently published as a manifesto and sent to all the Lodges and, as was to be expected, Grand Lodge expelled Preston and his friends from the Craft. Having cut their traces, it was agreed that they must leave the Mitre and go elsewhere taking with them the Lodge furniture, of which we know that there was a considerable amount, as we have an inventory. They ordered three coaches to come to the Mitre at 3 o'clock that same night and the furniture was all taken away and deposited at the Queen's Arms in St. Paul's Church Yard, their former meeting place before they went to the Mitre. Some of the Press Gang who were members of the Lodge helped, and although a few of Noorthouck's party who were there tried to stop them, they got everything away, Mr. Cox the landlord showing "unbecoming timidity". Here is an account of what the other side called "the outrage", as it was written by one of them shortly afterwards "This junto of apostates, waiting for the deadest hour of the night, as the season best suited to acts of perfidy and rapine; with the assistance of some desperadoes from a press gang most outrageously carried off all the furniture, the joint property of the whole Lodge, in three or four coaches!" While Preston's Lodge was meeting upstairs in the Mitre, Noorthouck and four friends arrived, but could not get possession of the Lodge room. They prevailed upon the landlord to let them have a room in the basement where they opened a Lodge with no furniture and no books. They proceeded to reinstate those who had been expelled by the Lodge, and then sent a letter to the members upstairs, demanding the room, furniture, jewels, and other property, and when they had no reply, they ordered Mr. Cox, the landlord, to see that these things were not taken away, but as we know, Mr. Cox did not manage to stop them. Preston's Lodge upstairs also sent OUR OLDEST LODGE 325 for Mr. Cox and told him that it was most improper for him to have in his house other persons calling themselves the Lodge of Antiquity.
Preston's party, having cut adrift from Grand Lodge must have realized that they could not continue successfully without some acknowledged higher authority, so they got into touch with the Grand Lodge of All England at York which claimed to have records dating from 1705. They were accorded recognition by that Grand Lodge, and asked for authority which was given, for some of the members to act as a Grand Lodge South of the River Trent and to constitute subordinate Lodges. John Wilson, the Master of the Lodge, became Grand Master, and at least two subordinate Lodges were given Warrants, neither of which had a successful career.
The position at the end of 1778 then, was that there were two Lodges of Antiquity, Preston's Lodge, acknowledging the authority of the Grand Lodge of All England at York, meeting at the Queen's Arms, and Noorthouck's Lodge under the Grand Lodge of England, meeting at the Mitre.
Noorthouck's party at their next meeting admonished Mr. Cox, the landlord, who pleaded that he was "frustrated and altogether at a loss how to behave on so extraordinary occasion".
On that evening "The Lodge was closed and the evening concluded as chearfully as usual before the late licentious crew came among us".
They wrote to try and recover the furniture but with no success, and as their legal adviser thought that they had no remedy, it remained with Preston's Lodge. No doubt they acquired a few articles, but they seem to have been in difficulties for some time. About two years later they managed to purchase some furniture from the Lodge of Utility which had ceased to meet. In 1782, the Lodge moved to Freemasons' Tavern, and it has continued to meet there and at Freemasons' Hall ever since, apart from exceptional occasions and for short periods during changes of ownership and rebuilding. In 1784, Noorthouck left the Lodge, and the way began to clear for a reunion.
Preston's Lodge had a somewhat uphill fight. Lacking recognition from Grand Lodge, its membership declined and after trying unsuccessfully the device of raising the initiation fee, they abolished it altogether for a time. In 1780, Preston himself seems to have had enough; he ceased to attend and resigned in the following year. About this time, there was a real danger that this branch of the Lodge of Antiquity would become extinct. Fortunately, it kept its entity, and in 1786 while still at a low ebb, Preston rejoined and became Deputy Master. Again he got to work with his former energy, and at the next meeting there were seven proposals for new members. By the following year, the membership had increased by twenty‑five‑‑‑_Lectures on the degrees were often given in the Lodge, and it regained a great deal of its former prosperity. These Lectures had been 326 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES a regular feature ever since 1756, but they were the especial care of Preston all the time that he was a member. In 1787 he inaugurated a society for working lectures called the Order of Harodim. A few years later, this was affiliated to the Lodge of Antiquity, and it came to an end mainly for financial reasons at the beginning of the nineteenth century.
By 1789, the troubles were forgotten, and in December of that year, Preston paid a visit to Noorthouck's Lodge. The Grand Lodge South of the Trent was now on its last legs, and it was not long too before the Grand Lodge of All England at York came to an end. Preston considered that the time had come to return to the fold, and in 1789, the members of his Lodge approached Grand Lodge and were restored to their Masonic privileges. A document was also approved by the Lodge giving adherence to the Grand Lodge of England. They appointed a Committee to meet a Committee of the "gentlemen calling themselves the Lodge of Antiquity" and the terms of reunion were then agreed. Both Lodges elected as their Master, William Birch, who was a member of neither. He was installed in each and then called the two Lodges together to meet at the Thatched House, St. James', on the 12th November, 1790, when 47 members were in attendance. They entered in procession in pairs, Birch was placed in the Chair by the two immediate Past Masters and opened his Lodge. After confirming his minutes, he put the question "Shall the two Lodges be united?" and this was carried unanimously. They then pledged themselves to support the Constitutions and their own By‑Laws. One more meeting to confirm the proceedings was held at the Thatched House, and the Lodge then went back to the Freemasons' Tavern. So ended an unhappy period in the Lodge's history.
It will be interesting at this point to consider what this and other Lodges were like two hundred years ago. The members had the use of one room in the tavern, where they carried out their ceremonies and subsequently had a meal. At first they wore plain leather aprons, but later in the century some ornamentation was added. These plain aprons were given to the initiates and were bought at a cost of I/‑ to 1/6d. each. Wine and punch were drunk in the Lodge, and any consumed while the Lodge was open was paid for from Lodge Funds. Here is an extract from the minutes of the 28th October, 1767: The Irregularities and other ill consequences of Ebriety which strike at the Root of our well grounded Order having been often beheld by the Brethren of this Lodge of Masons, particularly at our last Meeting with proper detestation. To prevent such ill effects for the future It is this Night unanimously determined that no Brother be permitted to drink more in the Lodge or during Lodge Hours than one Pint of Wine or one Shillings worth of Punch or Brandy, or Rum and Water. Such Wine to be of the Common sort at 2 Shillings per Bottle unless any Bror. choosing Wine of a higher Price or OUR OLDEST LODGE 327 having his Pint made into Negus shall make up the Difference from his own Purse over and above the usual Contributions to the Lodge, but on no Account be permitted to drink more, so long as the Lodge shall be open, or afterwards at the Lodges Expence‑nor shall more than two join in their Liquor and not those unless they sit together upon the Penalty of 2/6 for every Breach of any Part of this Order, Malt Liquor with Suppers only excepted." Smoking throughout the proceedings was at one time permitted, but after 1755 when it was forbidden in Grand Lodge, private Lodges followed suit. Article 15 of the 1760 By‑Laws reads as follows "No Brother shall offer to smoak at any Time during Lodge‑Hours, when this Lodge is honoured with a Visit of a Brother who wears a Blue Apron, without Leave first obtained from the Master; unless such Visitor smoaks a Pipe himself; otherwise the offending Brother shall immediately pay One Shilling and be obliged to leave off Smoaking." In 1786, "Count" Cagliostro, the notorious Masonic charlatan, paid a visit to Noorthouck's Lodge, when he was ridiculed by a member of the Lodge who impersonated a travelling quack doctor. The event in itself was of little importance, but is worth mentioning as it is depicted in a wellknown engraving. This event presumably took place after the Lodge was closed, as the members are sitting and standing round a table, the Master's Chair being visible at the back of the room. There is plenty of liquid refreshment in evidence, but no one is smoking.
Early in the nineteenth century, steps were taken to effect a union between the two rival Grand Lodges in London, and the United Grand Lodge of England came into being in 1813, with H.R.H. The Duke of Sussex at its Grand Master. The union necessitated a decision regarding the precedence of the two sets of private Lodges and this was made by casting lots. The more recently formed Grand Lodge, which had no subordinate Lodges in existence before 1751, were successful, with the result that the Grand Master's Lodge dating from 1759, became No. 1, and the Lodge of Antiquity took second place as No. 2. This decision was of course lyally accepted, but it must have caused much disappointment at the time. The early part of the last century was an important period in the Lodge history, for during this time the Grand Master, H.R.H. The Duke of Sussex was an enthusiastic member, and he did much to give the Lodge an outstanding position in the Craft.
He joined in 1808, became Master in the following year, and retained that office until his death in 1843. William Preston was still an enthusiastic member, and when the two Lodges of Antiquity reunited after the split, he was appointed Deputy Master, and continued in that Office up to 1815, except on a few occasions when he was ill. The Duke never became permanent Master of the Lodge, but was elected year after year and an Acting 328 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Master was also appointed to hold office in addition to Preston as Deputy Master.
The Lodge started to give Past Master's jewels in 1810, and that which was then presented to Preston is now in possession of the Lodge. It is known as the Preston Jewel and is worn on the Collar of the Immediate Past Master. A jewel of the same design is presented to every master at the end of his year of office, and is worn round the neck suspended from a black ribbon, or a dark blue ribbon in the case of a Grand Officer.
In 1812, the Duke of Sussex instituted the Royal Medal, which he presented in person to those members of the Lodge who showed themselves to be proficient. When he could not attend the regular meeting, he opened a Lodge at Kensington Palace for the purpose, the Medal always being presented in the third degree. It depicts the arms of the Duke, and as it was considered inappropriate that he should wear a jewel with his own arms, his personal medal was made showing his cypher on the obverse. This jewel now belongs to the Lodge: it is known as the Sussex Jewel, and is worn by the Master on his collar. After the death of the Duke in 1843, a warrant was obtained authorizing the Lodge to continue to give Royal Medals to the members, but the design was altered by this warrant by the addition of a label giving the date of his death. Some of the old medals are still in existence and these, of course, can be distinguished by the absence of the label with the date 1843.
Up to 1777, the only Officers of the Lodge were the Right Worshipful Master, two Worshipful Wardens, theTreasurer, Secretary and Tyler who was inside the door of the Lodge, and there was a Guarder outside. Two Stewards were then appointed, the senior of whom looked after visitors, while the junior checked the tavern bills. They sat in Lodge at the left hand of the Wardens, and in this Lodge continued in that position until well on in the nineteenth century. Deacons were first appointed in Preston's Lodge, and then sat at the right of the Wardens. At that time, Deacons were generally found in the "Ancient" Lodges, but were unusual under the older Grand Lodge until the time of the Union. At the end of the eighteenth century the Lodge had a Master, Deputy Master, Past Master, Secretary, Treasurer, Chaplain, Two Deacons, Two Stewards and Two Tylers.
The Master's title to "Right Worshipful" and the Warden's title to "Worshipful" were, as in other English Lodges, dropped at the Union, but those designations are, of course, still found under the Scottish Con stitution. At that time the old office of Deputy Master was abolished and the Acting Master, who took the chair when the Grand Master was absent, was henceforward known as the Deputy Master. The Inner Tyler was renamed the Inner Guard.
The Duke of Sussex approved the appointment of an Orator as an Officer of the Lodge in 1811, and this has been an annual appointment ever since. His duties are to OUR OLDEST LODGE 329 "deliver such eulogisms, congratulatory or funeral orations and lectures as by the Master may be deemed necessary".
About the same time, a Chancellor was first appointed. He must be a Past Master and is usually the senior member. He is keeper of the Great Seal and valuable documents. The Seal is not now in use, but it is still depicted on Lodge summonses and incorporates three coats‑of‑arms. First, there are the emblems of the four Evangelists. These appeared on one of the coats of the Grand Lodge of All England at York, and this coat was also used by the "Antient" Grand Lodge. It now forms the arms of United Grand Lodge. The second coat was also used by the Grand Lodge at York, and depicts the three crowns of Edwin, King of Northumbria, who was reputed to have held an assembly of Masons in that city. These arms are on the reverse of the Royal Medal. Finally there is the device of three castles with a pair of compasses on a chevron. These are the arms of the old Mason's Company of London, and were used by the "Modern" Grand Lodge.
Another Officer appointed in this Lodge is the Master of Ceremonies. This was authorized shortly before the Union, and when Grand Lodge adopted the title of Director of Ceremonies, the Lodge of Antiquity adhered to its former practice. This Officer took over the Senior Steward's duties of looking after visitors, and on several occasions since then, the Offices of Master of Ceremonies and Steward have been held by the same individual.
An interesting sidelight on the customs of a hundred years ago is given in the minutes of the May meeting of 1813 when at one meeting, the initiation took place of fourteen musicians who were members of the private band of H.R.H. The Duke of Kent. They were made serving Brothers or Honorary Members of the second class, and were "to assist the Musical Department" of the Lodge. This was of considerable importance at this time, as the Lodge then had a choir which sung during the ceremonies and after dinner.
/Tn 1834, the Duke of Sussex had been Master of the Lodge for twentyf(veyears, and he then gave permission for the Lodge to have gold jewels, a distinction permitted to one other Lodge only, namely, the British Lodge No. 8. At the same time, he presented to the Lodge for the use of the Master, the gold square which he had worn as Deputy Grand Master, an office which he had held in 1812‑1813. This right to use gold jewels carries with it authority for the Grand Stewards nominated by the Lodge to wear gold tassels on their aprons, and Past Grand Stewards and Officers of the Lodge to have gold cord on their collars. In early days, Grand Stewards were appointed in a very haphazard way, and it was a long time before a Grand Steward was nominated by the Lodge every year. There is a record that the Lodge of Antiquity made such an appointment as early as 1721.
330 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Since the death of the Duke of Sussex a hundred years ago,' the Lodge has pursued the even tenor of its way, and although tremendous upheavals have shaken the world outside, there have been no startling episodes in its history, such as rocked its foundations at the time when William Preston was Master. Today, as in former times, the Master of the Lodge holds no Warrant from the Grand Lodge of England, but when his year of office is ended he can hand on to his successor the character and traditions of the Lodge of Antiquity, as they were in the time of William Preston, and for a hundred years or more before then.
1 i.e., in 1843.
LODGES OF INSTRUCTION their origin and development (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1950) by BRO. IVOR GRANTHAM, O.B.E., P.Dep.G.Swd.B. P.M. Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No. 2076 PRE‑UNION LODGES OF INSTRUCTION "An Hour shall be set apart to talk Masonry"‑such were the terms of a resolution passed by the Antient Society of Freemasons in the City of York in the year 1725, when it was determined: "That every first Wednesday in the month a Lodge shall be held at the house of a Brother according as their turn shall fall out." At every meeting of this Lodge an hour was to be set apart "to talk Masonry", from which regulation of more than two hundred years ago it is evident that the Freemasons of York fully appreciated the value of masonic instruction as distinct from the mechanical repetition of the ceremonies‑an example which might well be followed by the Freemasons of today with advantage to the Craft.
Those monthly meetings at York corresponded to what would now be called the regular meetings of a Lodge. Those meetings were not held merely for instruction. Nearly half a century was to elapse before the formation of separate Lodges of Instruction.
In the meantime Freemasonry was being spread abroad‑largely through the medium of military Lodges, which lost no opportunity of indulging in masonic work within the lines of their respective regiments wherever those regiments were stationed. In Freemasonry and the Sea, a paper from the pen of W. Bro. J. Heron Lepper, P.G.D., extracts are quoted from the diary of Captain John Knox, compiled in the year 1759 when this officer was serving at Annapolis in Nova Scotia. In this diary Captain Knox recorded: "The detachment here is daily at exercise, nevertheless our time passes very heavily; and when the calendar does not furnish us with a loyal excuse for assembling in the evening, we have recourse to a Free‑Mason Lodge, where we work so hard that it is inconceivable to think what a quantity of business of great importance is transacted in a very short space of time." 331 332 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES The frequent meetings mentioned by Captain Knox were presumably meetings of the Lodge. No separate Lodge of Instruction is likely to have been formed at this early date; but reading between the lines it may be inferred that the work was designed to provide the members with masonic instruction on those occasions when no candidate presented himself for admission or advancement.
In certain notes bequeathed to the Grand Lodge Library Brother Henry Sadler, with his vast knowledge of the records of the Craft, stated that the earliest mention of a Lodge of Instruction with which he was ac quainted was that to be found in the minutes of the Lodge of Emulation No. 21 for 21st April, 1773; but the more recent researches of another masonic student have revealed the record of an even earlier Lodge of Instruction formed in 1768. On lst September of that year it was agreed by the members of St. John's Lodge No. 167 (then meeting at the King's Head, Hampstead) that Brother Marshall from the Cock in New Street ". . . should Attend on the Lodge & Members thereof on Thursday Nights as a School for Instruction of the Younger Members." This Brother Marshall was present as a visitor, and had earlier that evening been elected Tyler of the Lodge for the ensuing year after having deputized for the absent Master. Brother Marshall must indeed have been a versatile and accommodating guest to have accepted in the course of a single evening the roles of acting Master for that Meeting, Tyler for the ensuing year, and Preceptor of a weekly School for Instruction.
There may well be even earlier examples of a Lodge or School of Instruction, but such instances are not likely to be numerous on account of the frequency of Lodge meetings in the early days of the Grand Lodge era. Inspection of early Lodge Lists shows that in those days it was quite customary for Lodges to hold meetings in alternate weeks throughout the year; and one case can be quoted of a Lodge (the Lodge numbered 163 in 1738) which met on the first, second and third Thursdays in every month, and in addition held a Masters' Lodge on every Sunday‑a total of eighty‑eight meetings in a year. The need for rehearsal can hardly have arisen with the meetings so frequent and the ceremonies shorter than those of today.
It will have been noticed that in the 1768 example already quoted the expression used was "School for Instruction". The expression "Lodge of Instruction" is first met with in the 1773 example quoted by Brother Sadler "21st April 1773.
The R.W.M. [of the Lodge of Emulation] made a Motion, which was seconded, `That in order to promote a knowledge of Masonry among the members, a Lodge of Instruction be established, to meet once a fortnight, and that Two Shillings and Sixpence be allowed LODGES OF INSTRUCTION 333 from the fund of the Lodge towards defraying the expense of each meeting.' It passed in the affirmative." [This Emulation Lodge of Instruction must not be confused with the Emulation Lodge of Improvement which was formed 50 years later by the Lodge of Hope No. 7.] An early example of masonic instruction being imparted to a regular Lodge for a fee is to be found in the records of Anchor and Hope Lodge No. 37 at Bolton. In October, 1768, a Brother Cunningham was engaged for the purpose of "Instructing the Lodge", and a payment of ú1 13s. Od. was made to him in respect of his services.
All the published histories of eighteenth century Lodges to be found upon the shelves of the Grand Lodge Library have been carefully examined for allusions to Lodges of Instruction formed before the end of that century. In addition to the two examples already given ten other instances have been found. These twelve examples were associated with the under‑mentioned Lodges: 1768 St. John's Lodge No. 167 (Modem) London 1773 Lodge of Emulation No. 21 (Modern) London 1774 Lodge of Antiquity No. 2 (T.I.) London 1786 Grenadiers' Lodge No. 66 (Modern) London 1786 Vacation Lodge No. 59 (Modern) London (now extinct) 1788 Old Dundee Lodge No. 18 (Modern) London 1795 Lodge of Fidelity No. 289 (Modern) Leeds 1796 Lodge of Jehosaphat No. 291 (Modern) Bristol (now extinct) 1797 South Saxon Lodge No. 311 (Modern) Lewes 1797 St. John's Lodge No. 70 (Ancient) Exeter 1799 Percy Lodge No. 198 (Ancient) London 1799 Royal Gloucester Lodge No. 130 (Ancient) Southampton Extracts from the records of these eighteenth century Lodges of Instruction are quoted in the first appendix to this lecture. Allusions to later pre‑Union Lodges of Instruction are too numerous for inclusion in the appendix; but reference to some of those later Lodges of Instruction will be made in the course of this lecture when appropriate.
In certain of these early records there can already be detected evidence of the distinction later to be drawn between "Private" and "General" Lodges of Instruction. For instance, in the case of Old Dundee Lodge in London the brethren formed: a Private Lodge of Instruction to be held ... for the Benefit of the Members of this Lodge only; but in the case of St. John's Lodge at Exeter it is clear that the Lodge of Instruction was formed for the benefit of at least two Lodges‑St. John's 334 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Lodge (an Ancient non‑military Lodge then numbered 74), and an Ancient military Lodge (then numbered 282) which was temporarily located at Exeter. In the published History of the Lodge of Fidelity No. 289 it is claimed that the Fidelity Lodge of Instruction, which was established at Leeds in 1795, has "continued without cessation to the present time". If capable of substantiation this striking claim would put Stability and Emulation in the shade. By courtesy of the Secretary of the Lodge of Fidelity the early records relating to the Lodge of Instruction have been made available for examination. References to the Lodge of Instruction appear in the minutes of the Lodge of Fidelity during the years 1795, 1796 and 1799; and the minute books of the Lodge of Instruction cover the periods 20th September 1801 ‑ 13th November 1803 15th February 1807 ‑ 7th June 1807 16th April 1819 ‑ 7th January 1820 5th May 1825 ‑ 10th May 1827 3rd April 1834 ‑ 10th October 1844 15th November 1855 ‑ 17th April 1856 In 1819 and again in 1825 the word "revived" was used in relation to the meetings of the Lodge of Instruction. Careful examination of these records shows quite clearly that the claim to continuity cannot be established.
On 19th February, 1808, three years after the Battle of Trafalgar, an echo of Nelson's famous signal is to be found in the minutes of St. Paul's Lodge No. 43 at Birmingham. At a regular meeting of this Lodge held on that date it was "Proposed that every brother should do his duty, which duty consists in informing himself of the duties of Masonry, in furtherance of which Bros. Parker and Wilday have offered their houses for Lodges of Instruction." It is not clear whether these "houses" were public houses or private residences. Investigation would probably reveal that the houses in question were taverns; but several examples could be quoted of Lodges of Instruction being held in private houses during the nineteenth century, and the present lecturer can remember attending meetings of the Authors' Lodge of Instruction on several occasions shortly after the first World War at the private chambers of a member of that Lodge in the Temple in London.
As the time of the Union approached the bitter feelings of the previous century gave way to a more reasonable attitude between the Ancient and the Modern masons; but until agreement had been reached between the two Grand Lodges acts of fraternization amongst the rank and file called for official discouragement from time to time, as for instance on 7th March, 1810, when the Secretary of the Lodge of Fortitude No. 6 (now Fortitude and Old Cumberland No. 12) was instructed: ". . . to inform the Master of the Lodge of Instruction, held under the sanction of the Lodge, that the introduction of Athol Masons LODGES OF INSTRUCTION 335 was totally unconstitutional, and strongly recommended to him by letter not to admit Athol Masons until the result of the anticipated Union takes place." THE LECTURES OF WILLIAM PRESTON Before dealing with the period of the Union mention must be made of William Preston's activities in the field of masonic instruction‑activities which exercised a pronounced influence upon subsequent Lodges of Instruction.
From the records of the Lodge of Antiquity quoted in the appendix to this lecture it will be seen that William Preston formed a Lodge of Instruction in London within a very short time of his admission to that Lodge in 1774. Preston appears to have taken the then existing masonic ceremonies and catechisms and to have developed them into an elaborate system of "Lectures". These so‑called "Lectures" consisted of a series of questions and answers designed to afford an indirect rehearsal of the ceremonies accompanied by running commentary and explanation. To promote these "Lectures" Preston established a number of masonic bodies (1) the Lodge of Instruction formed within the Lodge of Antiquity in about the year 1774, (2) the Harodim Lodge constituted in 1790, which became merged in the Lodge of Antiquity two years later, and (3) the Chapter of Harodim which functioned in London between 1787 and 1801.
For detailed information concerning these three bodies the masonic student may be referred to the published history of the Lodge of Antiquity and to the Prestonian Lecture for the year 1927; but the elaborate nature of Preston's arrangement of the "Lectures" will be apparent from this record of a meeting of the Lodge of Antiquity held on 5th March, 1777, when William Preston presided as "Chief Ruler", supported by John Wilson as "Senior Ruler", W. Manning as "Junior Ruler", and twelve "Assistants" Lodge of Antiquity, Mitre Tavern, Chapter Night (Present‑18 members and 9 visitors) Lodge opened in the Third Degree in an adjacent Room, Procession entered the Lodge Room, and the usual ceremonies being observed, the Three Rulers were seated. A piece of music was then performed, and the 12 Assistants entered in procession and after repairing to their stations the Chapter was opened in solemn form. Brother Barker then rehearsed the Second Section. A piece of music was then performed by the instruments. Brother Preston then rehearsed the third Section. An Ode on Masonry was then sung by three voices. Brother Hill rehearsed the 4th Section, after which a piece of solemn music was performed. Bror. Brearley rehearsed the 5th Section, and the funeral procession was formed during which a solemn dirge 336 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES was played and this ceremony concluded with a Grand Chorus. Bror. Berkley rehearsed the 6th Section, after which an anthem was sung. Bror. Preston then rehearsed the 7th Section, after which a song in honour of Masonry, accompanied by the instruments was sung. The Chapter was then closed with the usual solemnity, and the Rulers and twelve Assistants made the procession round the Lodge, and then withdrew to an adjacent Room, where the Master's Lodge was closed in due form.
At the' time of the Union in 1813, and for several years thereafter, the Lodge of Antiquity Lodge of Instruction under the leadership of William Preston was still practising Preston's elaborate system of "Lectures". Lists of Lecturers and Clauseholders for several years before and after the Union have been preserved by the Lodge of Antiquity, and the list for the year 1813 may be quoted as an example: LECTURERS FOR 1813 W. Preston, P. and D.M. C. Bonnor, P.M. W. Meyrick, P.M. and Chr.
D. Beaumont, P.M. Stephen Jones, P.M. J. Savage, P.M.
J. Bayford, P.M.
J. C. Burckhardt, S.W. Col. O'Kelly, J.W. Jos. White, M.C.
J. Moss, P.S.W. R. Spencer, P.J.W.
CLAUSEHOLDERS FOR 1813 Sec. 1. C.1 Thompson Sec. 4. C.1 W. Williams 2 Sherwood 2 Captain Brwen 3 J. Spottiswoode 3 J. Docksey 4 H. Comer 4 Holl 5 Smallwood 5 Irving 6 Asperne Sec. 2. C.1 Wood Sec. 5. C.1 James White 2 Y. Brown 2 Thomas Johnstone 3 Braine 3 T. G. J. Earle 4 Sir W. Rawlins 4 D. Cooke 5 R. C. H. Graves 5 6 G. Brown Masters' Clauses 6 Sec. 3. C.1 George Eves Sec. 6. C.1 Eamshaw 2 A. Spottiswoode 2 Gledstanes 3 Samuel Jones 3 T. Bonnor 4 Rev. D. Lewis 4 G. Canning 5 5 J. R. Hall Masters' Clauses 6 Cromie LODGES OF INSTRUCTION 337 THE NINE WORTHIES In the year 1792, at a time when William Preston was promulgating his elaborate system of masonic Lectures amongst the "Modem" Masons of the metropolis, the Grand Lodge of the "Ancients" appointed nine worthy and experienced members of its own organization to visit Ancient Lodges in London to secure uniformity in the work of those Lodges. These nine brethren were styled "The Nine Excellent Masters", or "The Nine Worthies"; and special jewels were designed for their personal adomment. Seven of these jewels now repose in the Grand Lodge Museum accompanied by several spurious imitations.
These appointments appear to have been discontinued shortly after the turn of the century; but the authority of at least one of the Nine Worthies was recognized in the west country as late as 1811, in which year on St. John's Day in Harvest at a meeting of the Royal Cambrian Lodge No. 135 at Newport in Monmouthshire "It was recommended by Bro. Benj. Plummer, that our Bro. Ronalds, P. Nine Worthy of the Grand Lodge, do attend this lodge to give Instruction and for which this lodge engages to defray his expenses from London and back, and to pay him two guineas per week, as long as he remains with this lodge. The sense of the lodge was taken on this question and it appeared to be unanimous." Other contemporary allusions to the Nine Worthies may well exist amongst private lodge records, but no other instance was noted during the preparation of this lecture.
THE LODGES OF PROMULGATION AND RECONCILIATION Towards the end of the eighteenth century suggestions were put forward for a Union of the two Grand Lodges‑the so‑called "Moderns" of 1717 and the so‑called "Ancients" of 1751. This is not the occasion to set out in detail the various steps which were taken to heal the breach; but in view of the influence which the Union must have exercised upon the Lodges of Instruction of that period it will not be out of place to mention two special organizations whose function it was to deal with points connected with the ritual. These two organizations were the Lodge of Promulgation which functioned between 1809 and 1811, and the Lodge of Reconciliation which functioned between 1813 and 1816.
The "Modern" Grand Lodge, having resolved on 12th April, 1809, that it was no longer necessary to continue those measures which had been resorted to in or about the year 1739 respecting irregular masons, enjoined its constituent Lodges to revert to the ancient landmarks of the Society, and established a body called the Lodge of Promulgation for the purpose of ascertaining the nature of those landmarks and promulgating them amongst the members of its own jurisdiction.
338 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES This reversion to its former practices on the part of the older Grand Lodge opened the way to union with its rival, and this happy event was celebrated on St. John's Day in Winter, 27th December, 1813. Earlier in that month, on 7th December, distinguished brethren nominated by each Grand Lodge in equal numbers had been formed into a body called the Lodge of Reconciliation, charged with the duty of establishing and promulgating a uniform ritual for the united Craft.
Those brethren of the present generation to whom the printed word appears to mean so much are recommended to ponder over the words of the Duke of Sussex in his address to Grand Lodge on the subject of the Lectures at the Quarterly Communication held on 1st December, 1819, when the Grand Master: "stated that it was his Opinion that so long as the Master of any Lodge observed exactly the Land‑Marks of the Craft, he was at liberty to give the Lectures in the Language best suited to the Character of the Lodge over which he presided." THE PROPOSED MASONIC PROFESSORSHIP In view of the subsequent foundation of the Prestonian Lectureship it is worthy of note that one of the proposals considered but rejected by the Lodge of Promulgation was: ". . . the institution of the Office or Degree of a Masonic Professor of the Art and Mystery of Speculative Freemasonry, to be conferred by Diploma on some skilled Craftsman of distinguished acquirements and general fitness ... under the title or designation of `Masonic Professor of the Most Ancient and Honourable Society of Free and Accepted Masons under the Constitution of England'." The originator of this proposal suggested, inter alia: ". . . That the Professor ... should be required to prepare for preservation, in an Ark to be kept sacred for that purpose, a Pandect of the Science of Speculative Freemasonry, comprising a clear and comprehensive digest of everything relating to the Art, save and except those particulars which are forbidden to be committed to writing ... that in cases of future occasion to ascertain points concerning which doubts, uncertainty, or difference of opinion may exist, a reference to this duly Sanctioned authority may conclusively decide the question and effectually govern the practice ever after. This pandect should be written in Masonic Cypher . . ." It was also suggested that the Professor, with the assistance of an adequate number of skilled Craftsmen, should be given authority to instruct either publicly or privately; and by way of reassurance it was urged that: "If an ideal unpleasantness should arise from the circumstances of receiving assistance from those who are not Members of the Lodge, it may at any time be done away by the simple and ordinary practice LODGES OF INSTRUCTION 339 of voting the parties Honorary Members, and then they will be to all intents and purposes embodied and actual Members of their own Community." POST‑UNION LODGES OF INSTRUCTION In the year 1817, within little more than twelve months of the dissolution of the Lodge of Reconciliation, the Lodge of Stability No. 217 sanctioned the formation of the Stability Lodge of Instruction. Of the seventeen founders of this Lodge of Instruction three had been members of the Lodge of Reconciliation; and seven other members of the Lodge of Reconciliation subsequently joined the Stability Lodge of Instruction.
The Emulation Lodge of Improvement, at first called the Emulation Lodge of Instruction, was formed by the Lodge of Hope No. 7 in 1823. Of the twenty‑three founders of this Lodge of Instruction none had been a member of the Lodge of Reconciliation; but one who had been a member of the Lodge of Promulgation subsequently attended four meetings of the Lodge of Reconciliation for his own guidance.
Much ink has been spilt over the rival claims of Stability and Emulation to have transmitted to the present day the actual words of the ceremonies agreed upon more than a century ago. Obviously it is not possible for both claimants to be right. Impartial examination of the available evidence has led many students to the conviction that neither body can substantiate its claim to have preserved actual words of the ceremonies confirmed by Grand Lodge in the year 1816, but that the essential elements of those ceremonies are still reflected in the work of both those Lodges of Instruction.
It would be inappropriate in this place to attempt to argue the merits of these two friendly rivals‑Stability and Emulation; but it certainly is appropriate to record that the traditions of the Stability Lodge of Instruction have been handed down from one individual leader to another, while in the case of the Emulation Lodge of Improvement the traditions of that school have been entrusted to the safekeeping of a committee.
In the case of the Emulation Lodge of Improvement numerous other Lodges of Instruction have been formed by Emulation enthusiasts in London, in the Provinces and even in Districts overseas, to promote the ritual of their choice. These satellite Lodges of Instruction are of necessity officially sanctioned by regular Lodges, but in practice these Lodges of Instruction appear to work under the general supervision of the Emulation Committee.
Shortly after the Union a circular letter was issued by the joint Grand Secretaries urging all Lodges to depute one or more of their members to attend meetings of the Lodge of Reconciliation in London for the purpose of familiarizing themselves with "the acknowledged forms", in order that those forms might be disseminated throughout the Craft. In obedience to this injunction many brethren travelled to London from far afield at considerable expense to themselves or to their Lodges.
340 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES No less than six members of the Lodge of Probity No. 61 made the journey from Halifax to London, where they attended several meetings of the Lodge of Reconciliation early in March, 1815. On the return of these brethren to Halifax the Lodge of Probity resolved: ". . . that a Letter Circular should be sent to the Neighbouring Lodges, informing them that the Lodge of Probity, is willing & ready as a Lodge of Reconciliation, to communicate to them, all the new Regulations of the Grand Lodge, together with the present mode working as Masons, with the New Obligations on Condition, that the Members of such Lodges shall be obligated, on the Penalties of their Obligations, that they will not divuldge or communicate the same to any Lodge, or to any Member of a Lodge, except to those Lodges or to those Members, who have complyed with the Requisition of the Grand Lodge, and received Instruction from the Lodge of Reconciliation, or with some Lodge who has done so." The result of this circular letter is reflected in a subsequent minute of the Lodge of Probity, which records acceptance of this offer on the part of the following Lodges Amity No. 280 Steeton (extinct) Duke of York No. 502 Bingley (extinct) Royal Yorkshire No. 265 Keighley Philanthropic No. 540 Skipton (extinct) Three Graces No. 541 Haworth (extinct) The Lodge of Harmony No. 275 of Halifax refused the offer; and no reply was received from Lodges located at Almondbury, Bradford, Heptonstall and Huddersfield.
The first meeting of local brethren under this arrangement, described in contemporary records as "a Lodge of Promulgation", was held at Keighley on 2nd April, 1815: "Lodge of Promulgation, under the Union of the two Societies of Free & Accepted Masons, held at the Lodge Room & under the Warrant of the Royal Yorkshire Lodge, No. 503, Rodney Inn, Keighley, Yorkshire. April 2nd,1815. A.L. 5819." Although this meeting was held under the banner of the Royal Yorkshire Lodge all the offices were filled by members of the Lodge of Probity. During the course of the proceedings the members of the five participating Lodges were re‑obligated in the first degree "according the Articles of Union". The subsequent activities of this local "Lodge of Promulgation" have been recorded in detail by W. Bro. T. W. Hanson in his History of the Lodge of Probity.
In the south‑west of England the members of True Love and Unity Lodge No. 248 at Brixham on 1st February, 1815: ". . . proceeded to practise on the United System with the assistance of LODGES OF INSTRUCTION 341 Bros. Symes and Sandy from Torquay, and Bros. Murch and Harris from Tomes".
A month later assistance was rendered by Bros. Harder, Coswell, Leatham and Arnoll from Torquay; and in the following September this Lodge had the benefit of assistance from Bro. Satterly of London, and from Bros. Coswell and Lear of Torquay.
At Gosport on Sunday, 15th January, 1815, in the Lodge of Harmony No. 309 a "Lecture Lodge" was held, and: "the Lodge was opened and closed in the different degrees in order to practise the New Forms agreeable to the present plan laid down by the Lodge of Reconciliation".
In the following month it was resolved by this Lodge: ". . . that lectures continue as usual on Sunday evenings, and that meetings be held on Sunday afternoon at 3 o'clock, in order to practise new Initiation, Passing and Raising".
In 1815 the Special Commissioners appointed by Grand Lodge to investigate certain complaints in the Province of Bristol visited a number of local Lodges, in which they are stated to have held Lodges of Instruction. Presumably these Commissioners took advantage of their visits to impart instruction in matters of ritual.
In the following year (1816) a Provincial Lodge of Instruction was formed in Bristol by Brother F. C. Husenbeth, the Deputy Provincial Grand Master, on his return from London "with the newly altered mode of lecturing". This Lodge of Instruction, called the United Brotherly Lodge of Instruction, appears not to have been attached to any regular Lodge, but to have met under the authority of the Provincial Grand Master: ". . . in the Upper Room at Freemasons' Hall upon the Quay; Or at such other place as may be appointed hereafter, by the request of the said Lodge, and the consent of the R.W. P.G.M. and his Deputy," to quote from a printed copy of the Bye Laws dated 1816. Upon the formation of this Provincial Lodge of Instruction it was agreed: ". . . that the members of this Lodge be unlimited as to number; but to consist only of brethren who are subscribing members of some Lodge in the district of Bristol; and that they congregate the second, fourth and fifth Monday in every month; and that the 5th Monday be always a Master's Night".
The entrance fee was three shillings and the subscription sixpence a meeting fbr all members whether present or absent. A visitor was required to pay: ". . . any sum not exceeding half a guinea, which the Brethren might decide upon, or he might be admitted once without making a contribution".
But‑ ". . . any strange brother wishing to visit who is not vouched for, 342 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES shall not be admitted before he has taken the cautionary obligation; and before he is allowed to take such obligation, he shall produce his Certificate and prove himself".
This so‑called "cautionary obligation" was presumably to the effect that the intending visitor was a regular Mason in good standing.
An earlier attempt to form a Provincial Lodge of Instruction for the Province of Bristol had been made in 1803‑ten years before the Union. Two preliminary meetings were held at St. Augustine's Tavern in Frogmore Street at Bristol, but no records have survived of any further meetings.
In the Province of Lincolnshire in the year 1825 four Lodges of Instruction were held at Lincoln in the month of September under the supervision of Brother Peter Gilkes, the renowned exponent of Emulation working.
Fourteen years later, on 17th October, 1839, at a meeting of the Provincial Grand Lodge of Cheshire, held at the Talbot Inn, Northwich, it was resolved: ". . . that steps should be taken to procure the instructions of a Brother skilled in the present system of working in the Craft adopted by the G. Lodge of England, to make a Circuit of this Province to instruct all the Lodges in one uniform system of working".
The Provincial Grand Master undertook to obtain the services of a suitable instructor and to contribute towards the expenses of his "Circuit". Unless this proposal came to nought it is probable that the contemporary records of a number of Cheshire Lodges would be found to contain references to this itinerant instructor.
The introduction of Deacons evidently puzzled some of the Modem Lodges. At Poole in Dorset the Lodge of Amity No. 137 called a "Special Lodge of Instruction" on 14th January, 1814, for the purpose of "appointing Deacons".
The city of Derby provides an interesting example of a Lodge of Instruction being formed by unattached brethren while awaiting the outcome of their application for a warrant authorizing them to meet as a regular Lodge. The Tyrian Lodge No. 253 having refused to sponsor the formation of another Lodge at Derby in the autumn of 1817, a letter in the following terms was addressed to Grand Lodge early in the new year by one of the unattached brethren: Derby 29th Jany 1818 Sir & Brother Your polite Answer to an united request was duly received, dated the 10th Novr last, and it was handed to the W M of the Tyrian Lodge, requesting we might be favored with the New Book of Con stitution agreeable to your direction, they have thought proper to detain the Letter until last week, when the Master informed us we could not see it, we might join their Lodge, but this we cannot LODGES OF INSTRUCTION 343 do from our Circumstances in Life not being able to meet the great expences of that Lodge.
We continue to meet once a fortnight and form a School of Instruction, and are desirous of having a Warrant and becoming a regular Constituted Lodge. if obtained we make no doubt but we shall flourish, if you will have the goodness to inform us how we may procure the New Book of Constitution so that we may make our Application, we shall esteem it a particular favor, we shall wait with the greatest patience, and unweried diligence until it can be constitutionally Obtained, and am with fraternal regard Sir your very Obet Sert & faithfull Brother Mr. Edwd Harper Robt Litchfield &c &c Morledge Derby As the long awaited warrant was never issued it would be interesting to know how long those unattached brethren continued to meet as an unauthorized Lodge of Instruction. In the absence of evidence to establish that those brethren actually made masons it is perhaps advisable to resist the temptation to claim this as an example of another hitherto unrecorded Lodge.
Some thirty years later in the neighbouring Province of Leicestershire an unsuccessful attempt was made to reduce a regular Lodge to the status of a Lodge of Instruction. The Lodge in question was the Knights of Malta Lodge No. 50 at Hinckley, which still continues to flourish. Early in 1846, when attempts were being made to form a second Lodge in the city of Leicester, two of the petitioners visited the Lodge at Hinckley (then numbered 58) to enquire whether the members of that Lodge would be willing to have their warrant transferred to Leicester. The minutes of the Lodge at Hinckley contain this record of the visit: "It being in anticipation of Establishing another Lodge in the Town of Leicester, Ours was visited by two Brothers from St. John's for the purpose in Soliciting the favour in having our Warrant transferd. over to them and Lodge 58 in future to remain only as a Lodge of Instruction. The proposition being put to the vote was carried unanimously in the Negative, not one Voice being in favour of the Application." One of the London Lodges of Instruction which bridged the period of the Union was the Lodge of Instruction named after, but apparently not sanctioned by, the Castle Lodge No. 25‑a "Modern" Lodge, formed in 1730, which was erased in 1854. A minute book of this Lodge of Instruction covering the years 1812‑1820 is preserved in the Grand Lodge Library. The list of members with which this book commences contains 344 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES the names of 220 brethren representative of about 50 different Lodges. From the first entry in the minutes it is obvious that previous meetings had been held. During the first part of the period covered by these minutes the weekly meetings were held on Sundays; but later, with occasional intervals of inactivity, the meetings were held on Thursdays as well as on Sundays, and difficulties eventually arose over the confirmation of the double set of minutes each week. The Master was elected for a month at a time, and on election appointed his Wardens for that period. Casual references to "the penny" and to "the Fee" lead one to infer that the joining fee, at first ten pence, was later increased to a shilling while the attendance fee remained at a penny.
From the figures tabulated below it will be seen that Lectures predominated over the rehearsal of ceremonies until the autumn of 1815, when a perceptible change took place in the nature of the work and the rehearsal of ceremonies thereafter predominated over the Lectures.
Number of meetings Nature of work Sunday Thursday Total Lectures Degrees Dec. 20 1 2 3 1 2 3 1812 to 129 56 185 161 25 2 10 5 1 July 15 1815 Oct. 22 1815 to 136 52 188 55 4 0 113 18 1 July 23 1820 Brother Gilkes, of Emulation fame, attended the Castle Lodge of Instruction on 17th January, 1813, and Brother Claret a week later. The Union which took place in December of that year is not even mentioned in the minutes; nor is there any reference in these minutes to the Lodge of Reconciliation, or to any change in the ritual.
That the Castle Lodge of Instruction was well equipped is to be inferred from the minutes of 5th June, 1814, which record the purchase of a set of candlesticks, and from the minutes of 26th May, 1816, which record the expenditure of "Three Guineas & a half for a Windlass Capstern Brass Work &c &c to wind up the perfect Haslar".
It is also noteworthy that this Lodge of Instruction subscribed a guinea a year to the Cumberland School, the precursor of the Royal Masonic Institution for Girls.
The practice of contributing regularly to the three Masonic Institutions became quite common amongst Lodges of Instruction in the course of the LODGES OF INSTRUCTION 345 next hundred years; and during the past quarter of a century the Royal Masonic Hospital has derived much benefit from this benevolent practice. With the advance of the nineteenth century Lodges of Instruction became more numerous and their proceedings gradually acquired a more or less standard pattern. For this reason the later records are apt to lose much interest; but from time to time the written record is found to contain a lighter touch, as, for instance, when it is recorded by the Secretary of the South Saxon Lodge at Lewes on 18th June, 1828: "As there was only Six Members present the Lodge was not opened & the Brethren amused themselves by a Lodge of Instruction." Six years later (in 1834) the members of the Tyrian Lodge at Derby were summoned: "... to have a good drill".
This reference to drill on the part of the members of a non‑military Lodge serves to introduce another incident with a military flavour quoted by Brother Lepper in his paper Freemasonry and the Sea. According to the Freemasons' Quarterly Review of March, 1836 "Our Brother Major R. G. Macdonald of the 49th Regiment N.I. has left England to join his regiment ... in Bengal. The Major is the bearer of a Warrant to establish a Lodge in that place . . ." Full of enthusiasm Brother Macdonald identified a number of Freemasons amongst his fellow commissioned officers on board ship, and for their benefit held a periodic Lodge of Instruction with the active assistance of the Captain of the vessel while the duties of Tyler were carried out by a serjeant.
A hundred years after this periodic Lodge of Instruction held on board an East Indiaman there flourished in the China Seas a China Fleet Lodge of Instruction, which with the approval of Grand Lodge was formed for the benefit of naval brethren serving on the China Station. Membership of this Lodge of Instruction was confined to Master Masons serving in the armed forces of the Crown; and by agreement between the three District Grand Masters of Northern China, Hong Kong and South China, and the Eastern Archipelago, it was arranged that whenever the Fleet was anchored off territory within their respective jurisdictions meetings of the China Fleet Lodge of Instruction should, if possible, be held on shore under the supervision of one of the local regular Lodges under the English Constitution; but that if the brethren serving in any individual ship of the China Fleet desired to hold a Lodge of Instruction on board at places where no such Lodge was located on shore "Branch meetings" of the China Fleet Lodge of Instruction could be held on board ship. The earliest branches to be formed under this arrangement were those established on board H.M.S. Cornwall, Suffolk, Hermes, Berwick, Petersfield, Cumberland, Kent and Medway. In 1932 a separate branch was formed for the local Destroyer Flotilla. This naval Lodge of Instruction owed its inception to the H.M.S. Hawkins Lodge of Rehearsal, which functioned at Shanghai between 1927 and 1929.
346 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Under these elastic arrangements the China Fleet Lodge of Instruction continued to flourish until the outbreak of the second world war.
Since the introduction of sea cruises for the leisured traveller many masonic gatherings have been held at sea. At such gatherings under adequate safeguards those present usually exchange masonic reminiscences or listen to an address; the rehearsal of masonic ceremonial in such surroundings is generally regarded as inappropriate.
REGULATIONS GOVERNING LODGES OF INSTRUCTION The earliest regulations governing Lodges of Instruction are those contained in the 1815 edition of the Book of Constitutions. Those regulations, amplified in 1841 and again in 1884, were re‑drafted in the 1940 revision of the Book of Constitutions. To facilitate comparison the texts of the relevant regulations in these four editions (1815, 1841, 1884 and 1940) are set out in parallel columns in the second appendix to this lecture. Minor alterations to those regulations were made in 1853 and in 1858; but as these alterations were in spelling and punctuation only it is considered unnecessary to burden the comparative table with the texts of the two intermediate editions.
It would be inappropriate in this lecture to embark upon a detailed disquisition on points of masonic jurisprudence; but it is worth noting that ever since the Union it has always been obligatory for a Lodge of Ins truction to be held under the sanction of a regular Lodge, unless a special licence has been granted by the Grand Master for the Lodge of Instruction to be held without such sanction. A formal request for such a licence was put forward by the Emulation Lodge of Improvement in the year 1830, but the application was refused.
In the first edition of the Book of Constitutions to be published after the Union a distinction appears to have been drawn between "private" and "general" Lodges of Instruction. Regulation 21, which governed "Private Lodges", contained a clause providing for the establishment by any such Lodge of "a lodge of instruction"; and a later but unnumbered regulation in the same edition contained two clauses legislating for the establishment of "general lodges of instruction"‑the word "general" indicating, presumably, that Lodges of Instruction so described were not confined to the members of the parent Lodge. In the corresponding regulations printed in subsequent editions of the Book of Constitutions the earlier clause dealing with "lodges of instruction" (without any qualifying epithet) was omitted for the first time in the edition of 1841, while the later clauses dealing with "general lodges of instruction" were reproduced in essentials in all editions‑the word "general" continuing to appear in every edition until that of 1884.
LODGES OF INSTRUCTION 347 The Book of Constitutions now current contains four regulations (Rules 132‑135) governing Lodges of Instruction of the type formerly described as "general", but is silent on the question of private assemblies confined to the members of a single Lodge and held for the rehearsal of ceremonies to be performed at the regular meetings of those Lodges; such assemblies are regarded as informal meetings for rehearsal or drill.
From time to time the Board of General Purposes has been called upon to deal with alleged infringements of the Book of Constitutions on the part of Lodges of Instruction. In 1874 an announcement which appeared in a public newspaper, to the effect that the ceremonies of Consecration and Installation would be rehearsed at a meeting of a certain "Club of Instruction", led to the brethren concerned being summoned to appear before the Board. Having ascertained that the so‑called "Club of Instruction" was in reality a "General" Lodge of Instruction meeting without the sanction of a regular Lodge or the special licence of the Grand Master, the Board of General Purposes censured the Presiding Officer; the Preceptor, the Secretary, and the landlord of the tavern at which the meetings had been held. This censure was confirmed by Grand Lodge.
As innumerable instances can be quoted of the rehearsal of abstract ceremonies by Lodges of Instruction ever since the Union of 1813 it is somewhat surprising to find it stated in Oliver's Institutes of Masonic juris prudence, up to and including the edition of 1874, that the performance of abstract ceremonies by Lodges of Instruction is unlawful. Oliver's statement was couched in the following terms "No abstract ceremonies can be legally performed, and all attempts at initiating a candidate would subject such a Lodge to extinction, and its members to the utmost penalty of the law." It is difficult to account for that part of this declaration which pronounced as illegal the performance of abstract ceremonies, if by that expression was meant the rehearsal of the ritual of the three degrees with a member of the Order representing the candidate; but there was ample justification for the warning against the initiation of genuine candidates at the meetings of Lodges of Instruction, for numerous examples can be given of the performance of such ceremonies. In many cases Lodges of Instruction were treated as being in the nature of Emergency Meetings of the parent Lodge, and Lodge business of every description was transacted at the Lodge or at the Lodge of Instruction indiscriminately. Even as late as 1868 the Craft degrees were being conferred in their Lodge of Instruction by the members of the Lodge of Faith No. 344 at Radchff in Lancashire, as is evident from this minute of the parent Lodge: 24th October 1868.
Bro. John Davenport was passed to the degree of a fellow craft, and Mr. Mark Astley took the entered apprentice degree in a lodge of instruction.
348 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Another outstanding example of this state of affairs is provided by the records of Mount Moriah Lodge No. 34. According to the published history of this Lodge "School Nights" were held by the Lodge of Instruction between 1802 and 1816; the minutes relating to the School Nights, as well as those relating to Emergency Meetings of the Lodge, were from time to time confirmed at regular meetings of the Lodge or at meetings of the School, and the ceremonies of initiation, passing and raising were conducted in Lodge or in School, or some in one and some in the other; the fees payable by candidates for initiation or for joining membership were identical whether the candidate was proposed at Lodge or at School; and finally, the ceremony of "Passing the Chair" took place in School as well as in Lodge, and ceremonies described as "Excellent" and "High Excellent" were carried out at the Lodge of Instruction on School Nights.
In the 1820 edition of the By‑Laws of the Lodge of Antiquity No. 2 provision was expressly made for certain Lodge business to be transacted at the weekly meetings of the Lodge of Instruction "if sanctioned by the Master" BY‑LAW XX LODGE OF INSTRUCTION A Lodge of Instruction shall be held every Friday Evening from October to June, both inclusive, at which Propositions for Admissions or Initiations (if sanctioned by the Master) shall be receivable, as if they were brought forward at a General Meeting in open Lodge (the usual Deposit being made); provided such Propositions be made in time to be inserted in the Summonses for the next General Meeting. At the Lodge of Instruction also, Candidates for the Second Degree may be examined, and the result reported to the next General Meeting of the Lodge. The Expenses of the Lodge of Instruction shall be defrayed out of the Funds of the Lodge.
STATISTICS In the absence of any official register of Lodges of Instruction maintained by either of the pre‑Union Grand Lodges it is impossible to ascertain how many Lodges of Instruction were at work in England during the period leading up to the Union of 1813; but from other sources of information it is possible to obtain an approximate idea of the number of Lodges of Instruction functioning in London under the Grand Lodge of the Moderns during the closing years of the eighteenth century. The following figures have been gleaned from three "Modern" publications‑The Freemasons' Magazine of March, 1795; Stephen Jones' Masonic Miscellanies of 1797; and Browne's Master Key of 1798.
LODGES OF INSTRUCTION 349 The Stephen Jones' Browne's Meeting on: Freemasons' Masonic Master Magazine Miscellanies Key 1795 1797 1798 Sundays .. .. 9 15 18 Mondays .. .. 3 3 2 Tuesdays .. .. 3 2 2 Wednesdays .. .. 2 3 3 Thursdays .. .. 0 3 4 Fridays .. .. 2 2 1 Saturdays .. .. 0 0 0 19 28 30 No comparable figures are available in respect of the Ancients.
From these particulars it will be observed that about half the Modem Lodges of Instruction then meeting weekly in London were meeting on Sundays. The popularity of Sunday meetings continued well into post Union days, in the Provinces as well as in London, and is still reflected in the Sunday meetings of certain Masonic Clubs of Instruction.
From the year 1815 it has been obligatory for all Lodges of Instruction meeting in the London area to notify the Grand Secretary of the times and places of their meetings. Accordingly, although the official registers are by no means continuous from that date to the present time, it is in fact possible to quote official statistics for the metropolitan Lodges of Instruction; but it would be unsafe to assume that all those Lodges of Instruction complied with the requirements of Grand Lodge until quite late in the nineteenth century.
The first official register contains particulars of forty‑two London Lodges of Instruction, the last entry being dated 1832. The Stability Lodge of Instruction, although known to have been working at the time, is not mentioned in this register; but the eighteenth entry mentions the Emulation Lodge of Improvement as the "Emulation Lodge of Instruction" with the addition of the words "for Masters only", by which was meant Master Masons (as is clear from contemporary announcements in The Public Ledger). The days of meeting of these Lodges of Instruction may be analysed as follows: Meeting on Sundays . . 19 Mondays .. 2 Tuesdays .. 2 Wednesdays .. 8 Thursdays .. 4 Fridays .. 5 Saturdays .. _1 41 350 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES The lower total of forty‑one is accounted for by reason of the fact that one Lodge of Instruction met twice a week‑on Sundays and Wednesdayswhile in the case of two other Lodges of Instruction the day of meeting is not stated.
From 1832 until 1841 there is a gap of nine years not covered by any official register of Lodges of Instruction; but from 1841 to the present day the number of duly registered London Lodges of Instruction will be found recorded annually in The Freemasons' Calendar or in The Masonic Year Book, as the case may be, with the exception of the year 1940 when neither the Year Book nor a supplement was published on account of the war. The relevant figures may conveniently be summarized in a table giving the totals at intervals of ten years from 1841 to the present day: LONDON LODGES OF INSTRUCTION Number of Number of London Lodges Percentage Year London Lodges of Instruction 1841 108 3 (see Note*) 1851 126 25 20% 1861 147 43 29% 1871 186 60 32% 1881 304 114 37% 1891 374 170 45% 1901 497 218 43% 1911 681 306 45% 1921 823 316 38% 1931 1102 462 42% 1941 1280 609 (*The small total for the year 1841, namely 3, can hardly be accurate, because seven years earlier‑in December 1834‑The Freemasons' Quarterly Review gave particulars of 12 Lodges of Instruction in London, with the names of "such Brethren as may be said to take the lead in their government", and then added this note:‑"Besides the above, many Lodges hold private Lodges of Instruction for their individual members, as the Antiquity, Old Union, and others").
The corresponding figures shortly before the publication of the Masonic Year Book for 1950 were as follows 1949 1485 650 44% Particulars of country Lodges of Instruction are not normally given in the Masonic Year Book; but in the Year Book for 1920 details of 331 such Lodges of Instruction were given in addition to the 294 Lodges of Instruction then registered in the London area.
From time to time a Lodge has been known to sponsor more than one Lodge of Instruction‑presumably for the benefit of a scattered membership. The most noteworthy example of this multiplication of Lodges of LODGES OF INSTRUCTION 351 Instruction on the part of a single Lodge appears to be that of Arklow Regis Lodge No. 4481, which according to the Year Book of 1941 met at the Piccadilly Hotel in London and sponsored no less than three separate Lodges of Instruction, one at Clapton, another at Putney, and a third as far afield as Luton‑all meeting on Mondays. For a short period the South Saxon Lodge No. 311, which has always been located at Lewes, maintained its only Lodge of Instruction at Newhaven. No doubt other examples of this peripatetic arrangement could be quoted from the provinces.
At Meltham in the West Riding of Yorkshire the Lodge of Peace No. 149 between the two World Wars maintained concurrently two Lodges of Instruction‑one for the benefit of junior members, which it was customary to refer to as "the junior Instruction Lodge".
A Lodge of Instruction for Installed Masters only was formed in Madras in 1897 under the sanction of the Lodge of Perfect Unanimity No. 150; this special Lodge of Instruction, instead of taking its name from the parent Lodge, became known as "The Perfect Ashlar Lodge of Instruction".
This review of Lodges of Instruction, their origin and development, would not be complete without reference to those gatherings in captivity when serving members of the Craft defied the vigilance of their guards and met together for the rehearsal of masonic ceremonial. Many accounts have been received of masonic activities in prisoner‑of‑war camps on the continent of Europe and in the Far East during the second of the two World Wars, and several interesting relics of such gatherings may now be seen in the Grand Lodge Museum. These gatherings were usually held under the guise of a religious service or of a lecture, and one of the members present was always prepared to plunge at a moment's notice into the middle of an erudite sermon, or perhaps a lecture on some harmless subject such as the cultivation of mushrooms. The mental repetition of masonic ritual in private, or its oral repetition in association with other brethren while prisonersof‑war, may well have helped to preserve the mental balance of many brethren during the years of their captivity.
At the end of the war a number of masonic Clubs or Associations were formed with official approval within the lines of the British forces of occupation in Europe, to enable Freemasons serving with those forces to meet in enemy occupied territory for the rehearsal of the ceremonies under the supervision of responsible members of the Craft.
In conclusion it is desired to pay tribute to those enthusiastic and painstaking brethren who, week after week, month after month, and year after year, either as individual preceptors or else as members of a committee, officiate at the meetings of Lodges of Instruction, imbued with the one desire to assist their less experienced brethren to master the intricacies of masonic ceremonial and to gain a wider knowledge and a deeper understanding of the ritual of the Craft.
352 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES APPENDIX I Extracts from records relating to eighteenth century Lodges of Instruction.
1768 (Modern) ST. JOHN'S LODGE No. 167, London. Minutes of 1st September 1768.
NB, Br. John Marshall was this Night Elected by the Majority of I Tylor for the year Insuing & Past Nemynicon . . . This Night allso was Agreed and passed Nem‑con. that he should Attend on the Lodge & Members thereof on Thursday Nights as a School for Instruction of the Younger Members. Minutes of ........ 1787.
Proposed this Night to attend ye Lodge of Instruction at Br. Brain's on a Thursday Night for ye Future Except on the Regular Lodge Night.
Minutes of 5th November 1795.
Br. Watson proposed that a Lodge of Instruction be held at Br. Rice's on Sunday evenings during the Winter season, which proposition being duly seconded it past Unanimously‑Agreed, that the Time of Meeting be at 6 o'clock, and that the Tyler give Notice to the Members for next Sunday Evening.
Minutes of ... November 1801.
The Secretary is requested to give notice to all the Brn. that a Lodge of Instruction will be held at Br. Fitch's, the Flask Tavern, on Sunday Evening next at 7 o'clock & every succeeding Sunday during the winter.
Minutes of ... December 1801.
It was agreed this Evening to meet at Bro. Fitch's on Wednesday Eveng. next & hold a Lodge of Instruction.
Minutes of 9th March 1809.
. . . that a School of Instruction be held on the last Monday in every month at 7 o'clock.
1773 (Modern) THE LODGE OF EMULATION No. 21, London. Minutes of 21st April 1773.
The R.W.M. made a Motion, which was seconded, "That in order to promote a knowledge of Masonry among the members, a Lodge of Instruction be established, to meet once a fortnight, and that Two Shillings and Sixpence be allowed from the fund of the Lodge toward defraying the expence of each meeting." It passed in the affirmative.
Report of Committee on 21st October 1776.
Fifth "That a Lodge of Instruction shall be held on the first Monday in each Month at The Fleece in Well Court, Queen St. Cheapside, and that the sum of 5/‑ shall be from time to time allowed out of the fund of this Lodge towards the expences thereof." LODGES OF INSTRUCTION 353 Minutes of 16th March 1778.
The R.W.M. reported from last Lodge of Instructions, that 51‑ was found to be too small an allowance on that occasion; it was therefore proposed that 1016 be allowed for that purpose in future, and that the private Lodge be held for the future at The London Tavern, on the first Monday in every Month; all of which was unanimously agreed to.
Minutes of 17th September 1781.
A Motion being made and Seconded that a Lodge of Instruction, for the members only, be held on the first Monday in every month, and that 1016 be allowed from the Lodge Fund towards the expence of each Lodge of Instruction.
(Note‑Three months later this sum was doubled). Minutes of 18th November 1811.
P.M. White stated to the Lodge that the R.W.M. Wardens, himself and the Secretary, together with Brothers Batchelor and Percy of this Lodge, and Brother Moore of the Corner Stone Lodge No. 26, had resolved to form a Lodge of Instruction, to be called the Emulation Lodge of Instruction, and that they had formed Rules and Orders for the Government thereof, which being read, it was moved and seconded that the same be entered on the minutes of this Lodge for the information of the Members thereof, and the question being put, was carried unanimously. (Note‑The Emulation Lodges of Instruction mentioned in the preceding minutes must not be confused with the Emulation Lodge of Improvement, which was formed in 1823 by the Lodge of Hope No. 7.) 1774 (Time Immemorial) THE LODGE OF ANTIQUITY No. 2, London. The Memorial of John Bottomly, John Noorthouck and James Brearly (published in 1778).
The Memorial ... Sheweth That your Memorialists ... who are among the oldest Members of the Lodge of Antiquity introduc'd Br. William Preston into that Lodge about four years ago ... ...
That Bror. Preston after being not only admitted but honour'd with the Masters Chair, crouded in such a Succession of young Masons, as totally transferred all the power of the Lodge to him & his new acquaintance, and enabled him to keep possession of the Master's Chair for three years and a half.
That during this time Bror. Preston kept up private Weekly meetings of these young Bretheren, under the name of a Lodge of Instruction, in which meetings, he occasionally as your Memorialists have been inform'd propogated notions of peculiar original 354 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES powers residing in their Lodge, exempt from the authority of the Grand Lodge . . . . . . . . .
1786 (Modem) GRENADIERS' LODGE No. 66, London. Minutes of 12th July 1786.
This night Br. Moore member of the Lodge of Instruction held at this house made this Lodge a present of a set of Hirams and the Brethren of that Lodge who were present received thanks for the same.
1786 (Modern) VACATION LODGE No. 59, London. (extinct) Minutes of 26th July 1786.
Messrs. Clark & Claridge were this night Initiated into the first & second degrees of Masonry, having been proposed, unanimously approved, and deposit paid at the Lodge of Instruction held on Friday evening.
1788 (Modem) OLD DUNDEE LODGE No. 18, London. Minutes of 13th March 1788.
Lodge Night. Br. Betson proposed That a Private Lodge of Instruction be held in the Making Room of this Lodge every Monday Evening for the Benefit of the Members of this Lodge only, the expense of which is to be defrayed by the Members who may meet, 2nd and carried unanimously.
1795 (Modern) LODGE OF FIDELITY No. 289, Leeds. Minutes of 30th September 1795.
It was proposed by Br. Wright & seconded by the W.M. that either the W.M. S. or J.W. do attend one night in ea week for 1 Hour say from 7 to 8 o'Clock in the evening for the instruction of Junr. Brs. & that the said Officers for Non Attendance shall Forfuite One Shilling, which was agreed to. It was also propos'd that on Monday Night next the W.M. should begin, then S.W. after that J.W. and so on alternately. The fines to be spent among the Members that attend.
Minutes of 2nd May 1796.
It was propos'd by the W.M. that the night of Instructions should be held here every alternate Monday at 7 o'Clock. Minutes of 11th January 1799.
Bror. Bulmer Propos'd that the forfits of the Nights of Instruction should be given to a Benevolent Society that is either to the Infirmary or any other were the Body thinks Proper.
Minutes of 4th October 180.1.
Lodge of Instructions, Open'd in the 1st Step in Masonry in presence of ... ... When P.O. & L. were given, The Master, Wardens & Deacons, was change in they respective Offices . . .
LODGES OF INSTRUCTION 355 (Note‑"P.O. & L." presumably stand for Preparation, Obligation and Lecture.) Minutes of 25th October 1801. P.O. & L. were given twice. Minutes of 5th May 1825.
This day the Lodge of Instruction was revived in the presence of ... ... ...
It was proposed by Br. Sherwood & met with the unanimous concurrence of the brethren present, that in future the Brethren should each in rotation occupy the chair, & that the S.W. of the preceding meeting should preside as W.M. that the J.W. of the preceding meeting should act as S.W. & that the W.M. for the evening should nominate a Brother as J.W. The Lodge separated highly pleased with this arrangement & the unanimous wish of all present seemed to be‑"Esto perpetuo".
Minutes of 6th September 1838.
The undermentioned Brethren met, & after waiting a considerable time for the W.M. (unfortunately engaged on family business) retired at o'clock.
... ... (7 names) .......
It is worthy of remark that neither the W.M. nor any of his officers were present ! ! ! ! ! The Brethren decamped in pretty good order at o'clock. The writer of the above is in error, One of the W.M.'s very essential Officers was present viz. Bro. John Chambers, Secretary.
John Young, W.M. 10th Sept. 1838 1796 (Modem) LODGE OF JEHOSAPHAT No. 291, Bristol. (extinct) Minutes of ... ... ... 1796.
That many of the young Brethren, being desirous of gaining Masonic knowledge, the R.W.M. be requested to hold a Lodge of Instruction for the purpose of enabling them to gain such knowledge with the greater facility ... ... ... The R.W.M. informed the Brethren he would hold a Lodge of Instruction on the second and fourth Monday in each month at the George, Narrow Wine Street.
1797 (Modem) SOUTH SAXON LODGE No. 311, Lewes. Minutes of 2nd May 1797.
. . . that a Lodge of Instruction be instituted for the purpose of the Brethren being instructed in the masonic duties and that the meetings should take place on Every Friday Evening at Eight oClock to commence from Friday Evening next, which . . . was agreed to.
356 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Minutes of 1st November 1797.
The R.W.M. proposed that the Brethren meet twice a week (Tuesday and Thursday) for the purpose of Instructing the Brethren in Masonry‑which was approved of.
Minutes of 18th April 1798.
. . . Lodges of Instruction be held at the Hall twice in each week namely on Monday and Thursday at which Days or as often as each Member can, he is requested to attend to perfect himself prior to the Anniversary.
1797 (Ancient) ST. JOHN'S LODGE No. 70, Exeter. Minutes of 12th September 1797.
It was proposed by the W.M. of Lodge No. 282 and seconded by the W.M. of this Lodge that the brethren should meet every Wednesday evening for Instruction from 7 to 10. In case of non‑attendance to pay the sum of 6d. unless they can show cause to excuse.
Minutes of 14th November 1797.
Lodge of Instruction was opened in due form at 8 o'clock, when Bro. Joseph Hedgland was entered. Called off to refresh at j past 9 and on again at 10. Closed at I past in perfect harmony.
1799 (Ancient) PERCY LODGE No. 198, London. Minutes of 5th March 1799.
(as paraphrased in the published History of this Lodge) On March 5th 1799 the W.M. and Brethren sanctioned the formation of a Lodge of Instruction, to be held in the same house, to commence on the third Monday in this month, and to be held on every succeeding Monday under the direction of Bro. Ranger.
1799 (Ancient) ROYAL GLOUCESTER LODGE No. 130, Southampton. Minutes of 26th April 1799.
Lodge of Instruction met for the purpose of affording Bro. Thompson an opportunity of hearing a lecture when Bro. Ibbotson proposed Captn. Wm. Bellin, Mariner, to be made a Mason in this Lodge and deposited One Guinea for that purpose.
1790 or later (Modem ANCHOR AND HOPE LODGE No. 37, Bolton. Undated Bye‑laws subsequently added to the Lodge Bye‑laws of 1790: It is agreed by the undersigned Brethren, that they will meet at the house of Brother Henry Horrocks, Masons Arms, in Windy Bank, on the Sunday following the regular Lodge night, and every second Sunday after, at 6 o'clock in the Evening, to compleat LODGES OF INSTRUCTION 357 themselves in the sacred mysteries of Masonry, and to receive regular lectures thereon.
Any person neglecting to attend exactly at above‑mentioned time, shall forfeit three pence.
It is further agreed that there shall be no liquor after Opening until the end of the lecture, and that each Brother shall spend fourpence.
APPENDIX II continues overleaf.
358 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES APPENDIX II Extracts from the Book of Constitutions governing Lodges of Instruction.
B. of C. 1815 Of Private Lodges. Regulation 21 If any lodge shall give its sanction for a lodge of instruction being holden under its warrant, such lodge shall be responsible that the proceedings in the lodge of instruction are correct and regular, and that the mode of working there adopted, has received the sanction of the grand lodge.
Lodges of Instruction.
No general lodge of instruction shall be holden unless under the sanction of a regular warranted lodge, or by the special licence and authority of the grand master. The lodge giving their sanction, or the brethren to whom such licence is granted, shall be answerable for the proceedings of such lodge of instruction, and responsible that the mode of working there adopted has received the sanction of the grand lodge.
Notice of the times and places of meeting of the lodges of instruction, within the London district, shall be given to the grand secretary.
B. of C. 1841 Lodges of Instruction.
1. No general lodge of instruction shall be holden unless under the sanction of a regular warranted lodge, or by the special license and authority of the grand master. The lodge giving its sanction, and the brethren to whom such license is granted, shall be answerable for the proceedings of such lodge of instruction, and responsible that the mode of working there adopted has received the sanction of the grand lodge.
Notice of the times and places of meeting of the lodges of instruction, within the London district, shall be given to the grand secretary.
B. of C. 1841 2. Lodges of Instruction shall keep a minute of all brethren present at each meeting and of brethren appointed to hold office, and such minutes shall be produced when called for by the grand master, board of general purposes, or lodge granting the sanction, and the minutes shall be submitted to the worshipful master of the lodge giving its sanction.
LODGES OF INSTRUCTION 359 B. of C. 1884 B. of C. 1940 Rules 158 ‑ 161 158. No Lodge of Instruction shall be holden unless under the sanction of a regular warranted Lodge, or by the special license and authority of the Grand Master. The Lodge giving its sanction, and the Brethren to whom such license is granted, shall be answerable for the proceedings, and responsible that the mode of working adopted has received the sanction of the Grand Lodge.
159. Notice of the times and places of meeting of Lodges of Instruction within the London district shall be submitted for approval to the Grand Secretary, and in Provinces and Districts to the Provincial and District Grand Secretaries respectively.
Rules 132 ‑ 135 132. No Lodge of Instruction shall be holden unless under the sanction of a regular warranted Lodge, or by the licence and authority of the Grand Master. The Lodge giving its sanction, or the Brethren to whom such licence is granted, shall be responsible for seeing that the proceedings are in accordance with the Antient Charges, Landmarks and Regulations of the Order as established by the Grand Lodge.
133. The times and places of meeting of Lodges of Instruction in London shall be submitted for approval to the Grand Secretary, and in Provinces and Districts to the Provincial and District Grand Secretaries respectively.
B. of C. 1884 160. Lodges of Instruction shall keep minutes recording the names of all Brethren present at each meeting and of Brethren appointed to hold office, and such minutes shall be produced when called for by the Grand Master, the Provincial or District Grand Master, the Board of General Purposes, or the Lodge granting the sanction.
B. of C. 1940 134. Lodges of Instruction shall keep minutes recording the names of all Brethren present at each meeting, and of Brethren appointedto hold office, and such minutes shall be produced when called for by the Grand Master, the Provincial or District Grand Master, the Board of General Purposes, or the Lodge granting the sanction.
360 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES 3. If a lodge which has given its sanction for a lodge of instruction being held under its warrant shall see fit, it may at any regular meeting withdraw that sanction by a resolution of the lodge, to be communicated to the lodge of instruction. Provided notice of the intention to withdraw the sanction be inserted in the summons for that meeting.
LODGES OF INSTRUCTION 361 161. If a Lodge which has given its sanction for a Lodge of Instruction being held under its warrant shall see fit, it may at any regular meeting withdraw that sanction by a resolution of the Lodge, to be communicated to the Lodge of Instruction; provided notice of the intention to withdraw the sanction be inserted in the summons for that meeting.
Any officer who is in possession of any property of a Lodge of Instruction shall, upon ceasing to hold his office, hand over such property to his successor, or to such person or persons as the Lodge giving its sanction, or the Grand Master, or other competent authority, shall direct.
135. If a Lodge which has given its sanction for a Lodge of Instruction being held shall see fit, it may at any regular meeting withdraw that sanction by a resolution of the Lodge, provided that notice of intention to withdraw the sanction be inserted in the summons for that meeting, and at the same time be communicated to the Secretary of the Lodge of Instruction. A decision to withdraw the sanction of the Lodge shall be notified to the Lodge of Instruction, which shall thereupon cease to exist. The decision shall also be notified to the Grand Secretary or the Provincial or District Grand Secretary, as the case may be.
The Grand Master may at any time withdraw a licence given by him for a Lodge of Instruction, which shall thereupon cease to exist.
Whenever a Lodge of Instruction ceases to exist, the books, papers, and other documents become the property of, and must be handed over to, the Lodge under whose sanction it worked, or to the Grand Secretary on behalf of the Grand Master. The other property of the Lodge of Instruction shall be disposed of in such manner as its members shall properly determine.
VARIATIONS IN MASONIC CEREMONIAL (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1951) by BRO. H. W. CHETWIN, P.A.G.D.C.
was never printed, and, for obvious reasons, it is omitted from this collection (Ed.) "FREE" IN "FREEMASON" AND THE IDEA OF FREEDOM THROUGH SIX CENTURIES (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1952) by BRO. BERNARD E. JONES, P.A.G.D.C. P.M. Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No. 2076 We English freemasons derive much satisfaction by noting points of contact between the history of our country and the history of our Craft and by observing how some events in the one have had their reflection in the other. We find, for example, that the syllable "free" in "freemason", as well as the idea of freedom implicit in the constitutions of masonry, has gone through a number of meanings, each of them following from a condition or event in our social history.
With the insistence in our ritual on the physical freedom of the candidate it is easy to assume that, of course, we know what the word "freemason" means, but at the outset it is well to recognize that the word is full of history and has meant different things at different times.
I.‑THE RISE OF THE TERM "FREEMASON" The word "freemason"‑either one word or two‑must have been in use for well over six centuries. We first meet it near the end of the fourteenth century when two operative freemasons, Thomas Wrek and John Lesnes were candidates for the Common Council of the City of London, but it might have been in use for a hundred years or so before then. We meet our first recorded speculative mason 250 years later, in 1646, when Elias Ashmole was "made" at Warrington, and here again we may be certain that there had been many speculative masons before him.
Freemasonry is blessed with the possession of the unique writings known as the Old Charges. The earliest of them all is the Regius Poem, a manuscript dating back to the end of the fourteenth century (much about the same time as we first learn of the freemason) and written almost certainly by a priest, himself a master mason or, at any rate, in close touch with the building fraternity. The poem enlightens us chiefly on trade usages and contains much advice to the operative mason on his duty to his master, brethren and to Holy Church; it lays great stress on the mason leading a moral life and respecting the chastity of his master's and fellow's wife and daughter, and ends with the words familiar to all of us Amen! Amen! So mote it be! So say we all for charity.
363 364 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Its fourth article directs the operative master mason that "he no bondman 'prentice make" and we shall soon see that this instruction, written as the 14th century was drawing to its close, is a clear reflection of a social condition of the time. The phrase survives in the Ancient Charges that preface the Constitutions of the United Grand Lodge of England and is echoed in the question asked of every candidate "Are you a free man?" The stonemason's craft in England took its serious rise in the eleventh and twelfth centuries. The Anglo‑Saxons, it is true, were building abbeys and churches before the Norman conquest but it was the advent of William that gave the great impetus to building in stone. The Normans knew much more about practical masonry than did the Anglo‑Saxons and they prepared the way for the coming of English Gothic architecture with its thinner walls, its pointed arches, its more graceful pillars, and its vaulted roofs.
Somewhere about this time there developed the freemason, the more highly skilled mason, the cutter and shaper of stone, as distinct from the rough mason who hewed it in the quarry and from the layer who built it into the wall. He had a better understanding of his materials and a much greater knowledge of the geometry of his craft and he used the finer toolsspecial axes, chisels and the like‑to produce accurately shaped and fitted work, well proportioned, and often beautifully moulded and carved.
In what way had that skilled mason become '!free"? And of what or from what was he free ? Having regard to the date of the Regius Poem, just before 1400, and the condition of feudal serfdom under which England lay at that time, we might hazard a guess that he was simply a mason free from physical bondage. I fear the guess would be wrong‑but let us look at this matter of serfdom for a few moments.
II.‑SERFDOM, THE BACKGROUND TO EARLY MEDIEVAL MASONRY There had, of course, been some serfdom in Anglo‑Saxon times, but its extent and oppressiveness were vastly increased by the Norman conquerors who turned what was largely a free community into one of bond‑men.
The great majority of the working people in the country were bond‑folk. London, certainly, was given a charter by the Conqueror and was a city of free men fairly free men‑but it is doubtful whether, for some time, there was another free town in the whole of England. Most dwellers in the countryside, men, women and children, were bond‑folk, mere chattels of the great manorial lords many of whom were abbots. Feudal serfs could not legally own anything and they gave their service as required to the lord of the manor. Their owner on his death might bequeath them to the Church, for example, or to anybody legally able to own them. The bondman's children, in common with the off spring of his domestic animals, were called sequela, mere chattels. The bondman lived under a cruel system of fines and penalties, among the most hated and burdensome of which were: first, the merchet, a fine in money payable on the marriage of a daughter, sometimes `FREE' IN FREEMASON 365 of a sister, occasionally of a son; secondly, the heriot, a fine levied by the lord on a dead man's goods and wherever possible taking the form of the family's best beast; thirdly, the mortmain, a second fine on a man's death, this time by the church, which took the second‑best beast; and, fourthly, the deodand, a heartless exaction, being the fine levied by the lord when any animal or thing belonging to a serf had been instrumental in causing a man's death, as, for example, when a serf fell from a cart into a river and was drowned, the lord abbot took as deodand a cart, two horses "and other chattels to the value of four pounds"‑relatively a considerable sum. For the serf's family, the deodand was loss on loss; for the manor, it was simply compensation for the loss of a labourer.
What is there in this feudal servitude that lights up for us in any way the conditions of the mason craft of that day? We have no right to assume that the early masons were more fortunate than other craftsmen in their relation to serfdom. At one time most of them were bond servantscertainly all or most of the country masons were. It was the existence of London as a chartered city and the rise in the course of the 13th century of many other chartered cities whose inhabitants enjoyed some measure, not a complete measure, of freedom, that in due course made it possible for trades and crafts to organize themselves. It is easy to picture a condition in which a chartered town had around it manors worked almost entirely by serfs. For most of those serfs the only hope of throwing off their bondage was (1) purchase of some measure of freedom, seldom easy, and often very disappointing; or (2) escape to a chartered town, there to live for a year and a day in scot and lot.
It is known that the manors frequently lost their serfs to the chartered towns and these fugitives, in general, if not reclaimed by the lord within four days, were forthwith regarded not as freemen, but as being for the moment in possession of liberty‑and possession you remember is nine‑tenths of the law. If, therefore, the fugitive could in some way earn his living and do his duty as a burgess, by paying the customs of the city (generally termed his "scot and lot") then he would, at the end of a year and a day, find himself a citizen with rights nearly, but not quite, as complete as those of his new fellow townsmen.
The freed bondman was barred from one great right or privilege. He could not, in general, become a member of any guild or company or be entered as an apprentice to any skilled craft. Nor could those of his children born in serfdom acquire the privileges denied to their father. But to any of his children born after he had become a freeman, most things were possible. Such free‑born children, other things being equal, might be apprenticed under strict guild or company control and perhaps one day find themselves Wardens or Masters of their guilds or companies and even Mayors of their cities.
366 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES III.‑SERFS EARN FREEDOM BUT CANNOT ENTER GUILDS AND COMPANIES So far as is known, the masons never had a true guild; but at a much later date than the founding of the various trade guilds, they had a powerful company in London governed on guild lines and, in addition, they‑and, we believe, they alone‑had a nation‑wide fraternity, to the existence of which the Old Charges bear witness. When the Regius Poem insists that the master "he no bondman 'prentice make" it is merely repeating the regulation common to all the guilds.
"The Great Pestilence", "The Black Death", a very terrible visitation in the 14th century, had a great part in the liberation of the serf and in the enfranchisement of the common people. This dreadful scourge reduced the population of the country, in the course of a few years, from four millions to roughly two‑and‑a‑half millions, the consequent shortage of labour being so desperate that more than ever the serfs tended to break away from bondage and the free‑men to demand an improvement on their poor wages and conditions. I compress many years of turbulent history into a few sentences when I say that a long series of oppressive statutes (including some that made illegal all alliances and covines‑conspiracies‑of masons and annulled any oaths betwixt them made) all aiming to restrict wages and curb the growing freedom of the people, led up to the Wat Tyler insurrection whose purpose was to free the serf and improve the lot of the freeman craftsman. A system of granting leases to the peasants began to prevail and this, in the course of years, ultimately broke the bonds of servitude, already much weakened. Serfdom largely disappeared in England without having been abolished by Act of Parliament; its going simply fitted in with the changing social conditions, the lords of the manors accepting the fact that it was better to pay wages to willing freemen than to depend upon the unwilling services of a greater number of bondmen.
The country masons, who must inevitably in the early days have been mostly serfs, grew quietly in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries into the freedom that most town craftsmen had for some time enjoyed. In such changing conditions it is not difficult to understand how the trade fraternities, proud of their freedom and jealous of their prestige and treasuries, remained rigid in their refusal to allow any man born in bondage to share their privileges and discipline. Hence the refusal of the mason organizations to accept any apprentice born in bondage ("he no bondman 'prentice make") and hence, also, two or three centuries later, the corresponding ban in the Constitutions of the English Grand Lodge.
IV.‑SOME WAYS IN WHICH THE MASON DID not BECOME FREE Now, it remains most unlikely, almost impossible, that the "mason" ever became a "freemason" simply because he had been freed from bondage, for almost all the crafts must have gone through the same experience and there seems to be no reason why the mason's name alone should retain any `FREE' IN FREEMASON 367 clue to the change. To take just one of a great number of instances: The York Bowers (bowmakers) insisted that the apprentice be "English bom, born a freeman". But that did not make them "free bowers". There is a general consensus of informed opinion that "freemason" never meant "freed‑mason"‑at any rate, that it never meant a mason freed from feudal bondage.
It might be helpful to glance at just a few other ways in which it is thought the mason did not become a free‑mason. There is no lack of suggestions which, if there were time, we could explore.
(1). It has often been stated that masons were originally called "freemasons" because bands of them would travel from district to district as need arose and would require to be free of the guilds controlling the towns or districts where their new work lay. One difficulty in accepting this is that contrary to a general impression, it is not known that any local mason guilds existed in this country. There were a few religious mason guilds but we only know of one strong company and that not technically a guild, the London Mason Company, with a very limited jurisdiction. That Company did not arise until the thirteenth or fourteenth century.
(2). It has at times been advanced that "freemasons" were originally masons who had been freed by the Church, then an extremely powerful interest, from the control of the building trade and whose labours had been restricted to the building of monasteries and churches as distinct from the great castles, etc., in the cities; but evidence points to the same men working on country cathedral and city castle alike.
(3). In the old Masonic Lectures and in certain of the Old Charges the word "geometry" is commonly used as meaning masonry. So it has been suggested that as geometry is one of the seven liberal sciences‑that is, a "free" science‑masonry must therefore become "freemasonry". We may smile at this ingenious conceit‑and pass on.
(4). During the feudal period, the King and other great interests impressed masons anywhere they could find them and sent them to work on important projects. Thus, the Crown sent impressed masons to work on the building of Windsor Castle, the Palace of Westminster and the Tower of London, imprisonment being the penalty for refusal to go. So it has been suggested that certain masons were "free" because they were especially freed or exempted from the power of impressment, but I am afraid that there is little to support the suggestion and I fail to see how the exempted masons could have transmitted any special designation to their sons and successors.
(5). All Brethren may not agree with me when I say that masons did not become "free" as the result of any Bull or Patent issued by any Pope. John Aubrey, a well‑known antiquary of the seventeenth century, says in his Natural History of Wiltshire that Sir William Dugdale had told him that, about Henry the Third's time, the Pope gave a Bull or Diploma to a Company of Italian architects to travel up and down over all Europe to build Churches, 368 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES and that from those architects is derived the Fraternity of Adopted‑MasonsFree‑masons‑who are known to one another by signs and marks and watchwords and have an oath of secrecy. Now, that is the sole authority for a legend that in past years was accepted everywhere and even today is some times offered as authentic history. There must be many scores of thousands of speculative masons who take for granted that the churches of Europe including England were built by travelling bands of masons, acting by virtue of a Papal Bull, who entered country after country irrespective of that country's laws and economic and trade conditions and built abbeys and churches therein. The most popular version of the story is that of the Comacines, taking their name from Como in Lombardy, Northern Italy, masons so highly skilled that they were known as "Masters from Como". They formed themselves, so the story goes, into a mason fraternity "seeking a monopoly, as it were, over the whole face of Christendom". Authors of many kinds, including a writer in some early editions of the Encyclopcedia Britannica, have put forward this account in good faith, and in the same good faith many Brethren today relate to young masons the story of the Comacines from whom they believe they derive not only their title but their signs and grip‑and this in spite of the good work done by the masonic historian Gould and many other modem students in showing how impossible it is for the story to have any basis in fact. Searches made in the Vatican Library to find any such Bull have completely failed. Historians are quite silent as to the entry of any such foreign bodies of skilled masons and we must write down as a complete myth a story that is wholly unsupported by evidence and is no older than the seventeenth century although purporting to tell of events that happened four centuries before.
V.‑FREESTONE MASONS AND MASONS FREE OF A COMPANY I fear it is with a real sense of disappointment that some Brethren will exchange the glamour of the Comacine story for the hard matter‑of‑fastness of what appears to be the most likely‑but, I admit, not everywhere accepted ‑explanation of the origin of the prefix "free".
Some early statutes and other sources mention the "free‑stone mason". Free‑stone includes many varieties of kindly‑natured stone that can be readily cut and shaped. Following the Conquest it was customary to bring over Norman free‑stone for the building of abbeys, churches, etc., it being easier to bring the Norman stone by water than to take Englishquarried stone to the site over almost non‑existent roads. The use of freestone gave great opportunity to craftsmen whose geometrical and practical knowledge allowed of their setting out and working stones accurately to size and shape as required by the Master Mason and who possessed a flair for the production of stone ornament. A class of highly skilled masons developed and these during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries became known as free‑stone masons. As late as the early sixteen hundreds, the `FREE' IN FREEMASON 369 masons who worked the stone for Wadham College, Oxford, were so called. Many fine students have concluded that the "free‑stone mason" became the first "free‑mason" by the simple process, in the course of time, of shortening the rather clumsy appellation, thus acquiring a name that would naturally be handed down to sons and successors in those centuries in which, among craftsmen, the son so often followed in his father's calling.
I may say that by way of objection, the question has been asked "How did at times certain members of a very few other crafts and trades‑carpenters, sewers, vintners, fishers, etc.‑become "free" ? They had nothing to do with freestone!" Now, although it is at any rate likely that the first freemason was a freestone mason, that cannot rule out the certainty that masons of a later day and certain members of a very few other crafts earned the prefix "free" for reasons quite unconnected with the raw material of their trade. Thus, the free vintners, taking one example, were wine merchants ‑members of the Vintners' Company‑who with their successors were given the right to sell wine exempt from certain payments to which other wine sellers were liable; they were "free" merely because they were free from certain payments or from certain obligations as regard licences.
The particular freedom embodied in the name "freemason" much later in medieval days came, I feel sure, in a wholly different manner from that of the first freemasons. The later freemasons had acquired the freedom of a company, a sort of guild. Essentially a guild was a city organization having a radius of action not extending far beyond the city boundaries and it controlled (and drew its sustenance from) the business in its own trade within its jurisdiction while, in turn, the trade masters subject to its discipline controlled their fellows and apprentices. But in early medieval days great buildings were not erected by mason businesses, by contracting builders; they were erected by one or other of the three great employers of labourthe King, his Nobles and the Church‑for the good reason that they alone had the means of commanding either the materials or the labour. The Chief Master Mason, in say the early Gothic period, was not a principal; he was the servant of and agent for a great lord; he worked not for profit but for wages and emoluments‑board as a gentleman for himself and as a yeoman for his servant, liveries, the provision of wine, etc. His work would take him to many different places. No one guild could have controlled him or his activities; neither, on the other hand, had he any means of paying towards the maintenance of any guild. Further, he and his masons had to migrate from place to place as one job was finished and another was begun. A mason guild was therefore almost or wholly out of the question and although it is common for masonic authors to speak of the old mason guilds, strictly speaking there never was a trade guild of masons‑or so we believe‑but there did arise by the fourteenth century or perhaps earlier a London Company of Freemasons and Masons which naturally patterned its constitution 370 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES on the existing guilds. So far as we know, London was the only English city with a mason guild‑like company of this kind.
Fortunately, however, and this is a fact of great importance, there had grown up in England, instead of small mason guilds of merely local authority, a nation‑wide fraternity of mason craftsmen and in witness thereof you may turn to the old Manuscript Charges.
As, in the course of time, the contract system or "task work", as it was called, slowly took the place of the old system in which the three great interests had provided labour and material, the London Company of Freemasons and Masons, drawing its strength from the masters of London businesses, came into existence as a sort of guild and ultimately attained a position of dignity and authority. In the fifteenth century it was given livery, a badge in the form of clothing having distinctive design and colours. The symbolic mason's badge‑his apron‑almost certainly owes much to the London Company's livery. (A very early ritual actually refers to the freemason's clothing as his livery.) The Company had a Master and two Wardens and late in the fifteenth century was known as the "Fellowship of Free Masons enfranchised within this Honourable City of London". The body of the membership consisted of fellows‑apprentices who had been presented at the end of their apprenticeship and made "free" of the Company. As the Company's jurisdiction did not exceed seven miles from the cities of London and Westminster, it would appear that comparatively few of the operative masons of the country could have been freemen of the Company and these skilled masons‑freemasons‑constituted a class apart, quite a small class, too! History is silent as to any other company into whose "freedom" skilled masons could have been ushered, although for all we know to the contrary there might have been one or more.
Knowing, as we do, that the term "freestone mason" was still in use as late as the days of James I‑the early 1600's‑we can make the easy assumption that the two kinds of "freedom" merged and helped to bolster each other up. Only in some such way can we attempt to explain away a difficulty confronting all masonic historians, namely: How comes it that the mason was, in effect, the only craftsman free of a guild or company permanently to retain the prefix "free" ? I have suggested an explanation but I admit that a wholly convincing answer is not possible because some links in the chain of evidence have disappeared. Whatever the original reason, hundreds of years earlier, for calling the operative mason a free‑mason, the term meant, before the emergence of speculative masonry in the 1600's, nothing more than a mason free of a company, or a member of a company.
`FREE' IN FREEMASON 371 VI.‑THE CRAFT'S DEBT TO THE LONDON COMPANY OF FREEMASONS The London Company of Masons is seldom given enough credit for the part it played in the evolution of speculative masonry. In its day it had been a powerful company but in the seventeenth century it fell into a decline from which it never recovered. Its Hall was in Masons Alley, a narrow lane taking its name from the hall and even now to be found a few yards east of London's Guildhall. The old Masons' Hall has long since disappeared although the Company itself still has a legal existence. At one time this Hall housed an early form of speculative lodge‑the Acception ‑the one attended by Elias Ashmole in 1682, about thirty‑six years after his initiation‑he, the first speculative brother known to us without question by name; the lodge, apparently the first speculative lodge, held in an identifiable building. As far back as 1620‑21, the Company's accounts show that certain fees were received in connection with some of its members and officers being "made" masons, "accepted", or "coming on The Acception", and we can scarcely fail to conclude from these entries that we have here a true instance of a speculative lodge within the heart of what was originally a mason trade body.
Full of significance is a decision which the Company took in 1655‑56 to drop the word "ffremason" from its title‑to alter its then title from "The Company of ffremasons of the City of London" to merely "The Company of Masons". The Company was declining and, it might be urged, was well aware that part of its name had become perhaps archaic, obsolete. But was the obsoleteness of a word a convincing reason for dropping it? The Broderers, Cordwainers, Fletchers, Girdlers, Lorimers, Scriveners, Upholdersthey still have, to this day, their Livery Companies and although few people could explain what all those old‑world titles mean, woe betide anybody proposing to modernize them! A compelling consideration of quite another kind may have lain, I think, behind the Company's decision to drop the word "freemason". Barely ten years had elapsed since the year in which we first learn quite definitely of the making of a speculative mason‑ten years during which the Company's Hall was apparently housing an early form of masonic lodge. Do we here recognise that when the Company officially dropped the word "freemason" it did in fact surrender it to an esoteric, speculative, ever‑growing body that had, who knows for how long, lain more or less concealed within it and was now entering upon a more manifest existence ? Not our name only do we Freemasons largely owe to the London Company. We owe it our system of government, the names of our chief officers, the courtesy title or address of "Worshipful", our system of financing by means of admission fees and quarterages, fairly certainly the idea of our craft clothing. Grand Lodge owes it the castles, chevrons and compasses in its heraldic arms‑they are nearly five‑hundred years old. In the motto in the Company's arms "on the Lord is all our Trust" you find the substance of the Question and Answer known to every Initiate. When we say that Bb 372 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES we are "free and accepted" the last of those words we should never have known but for the "acception", the prototype of our present‑day lodge, long at work within the Company. It is likely, even probable, that the word "Craft" so affectionately regarded by us all, descended to us via the London Company. Yes, a most vital link between England's operative and speculative masonry is that Company. That no fewer than seventyseven serving masons associated with it have been identified as members of speculative lodges up to the early 1700's is a remarkable piece of supporting evidence.
VII,‑SLAVERY‑AND A SHIFTING OF EMPHASIS I am assuming, then, that before and after the founding of the first Grand Lodge in 1717, the syllable "free" meant free of a company, of a craft. But what did it come to mean as the eighteenth century pursued its course and lodges came into existence by the hundreds and Freemasons by the many thousands? Well, the guild idea still persisted‑a man made a Freemason was made "free" of his lodge, of its privileges, of its secrets‑but we begin to see a shifting of emphasis. The Old Charges had been written by men conscious of the degradation brought by serfdom. Now, at a most impressionable time in the development of speculative masonry, English people were becoming very conscious of slavery, a more hideous form of serfdom and one that had existed from the days of the Egyptians, Greeks and Romans. The Romans had introduced slavery into England and remnants of the system continued through Saxon times. Through many centuries in England, as all over the known world, slavery was commonly practised or at least condoned. It disappeared from England earlier than from most countries but I make the point very strongly indeed that for the first three‑quarters of the eighteenth century, that is, during the most impressionable period in the moulding of our Craft ritual, slaves were common objects in London and other cities of this country. Negroes wearing iron or silver collars, the symbols of their slavery, were frequently to be seen in the streets and as servants in the homes of well‑to‑do people.
It was in this self‑same eighteenth century that the minds of humane and enlightened people, especially in this country, began seriously to contemplate the question of slavery and the slave trade; not the minds of all humane men, for we know that kings and high ecclesiastics, religious people everywhere, Freemasons, all sorts and conditions of men and women found justification for the enslavement of their brothers and sisters and some of them made fortunes from slave traffic. The merchants of Liverpool and, to a lesser extent, of Bristol, fitted out ships which, laden with rubbishy textiles, muskets, spirits and the like, sailed to the Guinea coast of Africa where they exchanged one cargo for another, a human one, which, under conditions of horror which mere words have never been able to picture, was `FREE' IN FREEMASON 373 then taken across theAtlantic and sold in theWest Indies, the ships afterwards loading up with the produce of the country and returning to England. This triangular voyage lasted a year or more and gave rise to a notorious term‑the Middle Passage‑that is, the journey across the Atlantic, in which often both slaves and seamen were crippled by infectious diseases and occasionally died like flies. In 1769 one slave ship buried two‑hundred‑andforty‑seven slaves while in the Middle Passage and arrived at Barbadoes with a little over two hundred.
The law concerning slavery in England was confused and uncertain. In the seventeenth century, there was a court ruling that there was "no such thing as a slave in England", but in the next century high legal officers of the Crown gave their learned opinion that a slave entering the country remained the property of his master. All through the eighteenth century there was in this country, on the one hand, a keen commercial interest in the highly profitable slave trade and, on the other, a never‑ceasing argument as to whether the recognition of slavery and its trade was possible to the citizens of a Christian country.
The blow that freed the slave in England was struck in 1771‑72. A negro slave, James Sommersett, was brought by his English master into this country. He tried to leave his master's service but was forcibly carried on board ship with the intention of selling him as a slave in Jamaica. A writ of habeas corpus was directed to the master of the vessel requiring him to return the body of Sommersett before his lordship, William Murray Mansfield. The hard‑fought case was adjourned again and again but ultimately Lord Mansfield directed judgment in which these words occur: "the state of slavery ... is so odious that nothing can be suffered to support it but positive law ... I cannot say this case is allowed or approved by the law of England; and therefore the black must be discharged". From that moment any slave arriving in England could say "I breathe free breath". But the trade in slaves continued in spite of a determined opposition with which some great and familiar names are associated and not until 1833 did the Emancipation Act finally bring England's recognition of the traffic to an end.
VIII.‑EMANCIPATED SLAVES BARRED FROM FREEMASONRY; "FREE‑BORN" BECOMES "FREE" Now, all this has some bearing on Craft principles and ritual. You will remember that it was not sufficient for the apprentice in medieval days to be free; he had to be free‑born. So too, the candidate for speculative masonry had to be free‑bom until just over a hundred years ago, by which time no slave had existed in England for about three‑quarters of a century! Following the Sommersett decision there must have been many, many free men here in England who had been born of slave parents, but only people of extremely generous cast and of exceptional breadth of mind could 374 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES treat them as their equals. Few ex‑slaves had ever had a chance of rendering themselves in manner, education and attitude of mind fitting candidates for Freemasonry; in general, but subject to marked exceptions, they still needed emancipation from habits of deceitfulness and meanness of spirit which their subservient condition had forced upon them. So, just as in the medieval days, so for seventy‑five years after the Sommersett decision the ex‑slave was barred from the fraternity. The Old Charges, as well as our Constitutions, first published in 1723, were adamant, but the ritual itself, so far as I can learn, was silent on the subject and I expect that the question "Are you free‑born ?" came into the ritual quite late in the eighteenth century and was first seen in print about the year 1826. However, the candidate's Declaration: "I (full name) being free‑born and of the full age of twenty‑one years", slammed the door against him. The tongue of good report could do nothing to help him through the lodge portals‑and by the middle of the nineteenth century there must have been many an ex‑slave well fitted to be made a Mason.
Compassion, understanding, commonsense‑all three rather slow in asserting themselves‑ultimately came to his assistance and just over a century ago, actually in 1847, on the advice of M.W. the Grand Master the Earl of Zetland, Grand Lodge passed a resolution having as its chief effect the alteration of the candidate's Declaration which now reads, as you all well know, "I (full name) being a free man and of the full age of twenty‑one years". Whether it occurred to Grand Lodge at the time that any candidate by the mere and obvious fact of his being in the ante‑room of a lodge on English soil could not be otherwise than free I cannot say, and I do not know whether the point was ever raised.
In some quarters, particularly outside England, the change from "freeborn" to "free‑man" was hotly resented as the alteration of a landmark. But in charity we must bear in mind how very ancient and deep‑rooted is the prejudice against the ex‑slave. You remember when the Chief Captain (Acts 22), serene in his Roman citizenship, proudly claimed that "with a great sum obtained I this freedom", St. Paul's reply, "But I was free born" left nothing further to be said.
IX.‑PRISONERS CANNOT BE REGULARLY INITIATED, PASSED OR RAISED In one important respect the term "free man" is much to be preferred to "free‑born", for it includes an especial significance.
Two hundred years ago Freemasons were becoming persistent that a candidate's personal liberty should not be under restraint, in other words that he should not be a prisoner. While it is known that war prisoners' lodges under a foreign jurisdiction have made Masons even in this country, it is strictly held as a principle in English Masonry that no regular lodge can be held in prison and that no prisoner can be made a Mason. Lodges held in English prisoner‑of‑war camps abroad were not regular lodges but rather meetings of Brethren for comfort and recreation in dark, distressful `FREE' IN FREEMASON 375 days. The Grand Lodge of England does not countenance the making of Masons who are not in full possession of their liberty, which is not to say, however, that on no occasion has the inmate of an English prison been made a Mason! John Wilkes, a vigorous, outstanding character of the second half of the eighteenth century, a politician generally "agin" the government but highly popular with the masses of the people, found himself as a political offender in the King's Bench Prison in 1769. (Only a few years later he was to find himself Lord Mayor of London.) Near the prison was the St. John of Jerusalem Tavern, Clerkenwell, where there met Lodge No. 44, a lodge that may be said to have developed into the present Jerusalem Lodge, No. 197, a Red Apron Lodge. This Lodge held a meeting in the King's Bench Prison‑Bro. French, the Grand Secretary, being presentand by virtue of a dispensation (under the hand and seal of the Deputy Grand Master) initiated, passed and raised John Wilkes and another person. Grand Lodge, obviously in a difficult position, is not known to have made any open comment.
Fourteen years later, in 1783, there were further irregular initiations in the self‑same prison. The Royal Military Lodge, No. 371, an itinerant lodge of Woolwich and shortly afterwards erased from the list, met more than once in the King's Bench Prison and there initiated a number of prisonersgrossly irregular conduct which led Grand Lodge to resolve that it is inconsistent with the principles of Masonry that any regular lodge can be held for the purpose of making, passing or raising Masons in any prison or place of confinement, a perfectly clear declaration which is as sound and effective today as it was then, 169 years ago.
X.‑"FREE", A RENEWED SIGNIFICANCE? Does the question "Are you a free man?" retain any significance in a day in which every one of us is born free ? Is the question put to the candidate for Initiation just a curious survival, merely an archaism helping to accentuate an old‑world atmosphere to which most people are susceptible ? We might, in attempting to answer that question, take refuge in symbolism and observe that although the candidate declares he is free he actually wears a cable‑tow, in a sense a slave's collar, the symbol of bondage to what an old writer called "the dominion of pride, prejudice, passion and other follies of human nature". But putting aside symbolism, dare I suggest that the little word "free", in the curious days in which we find ourselves, is unfortunately renewing some of its former emphasis ? Freemasonry has grown to its great strength in the very atmosphere of freedom‑the only atmosphere in which it can possibly survive‑but we cannot be blind to the fact that some countries have said goodbye to freedom, as we Freemasons understand the word, and have swung back into the condition of slave states, in which, for a man to avow himself a Freemason is merely to ask for oblivion. Looking abroad upon the world, nobody dare prophesy 376 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES how the future of Masonry will be affected by the political developments of these and coming days, but we can be quite certain that its very existence is bound up with the principle of freedom, the freedom or liberty of the individual "to act or not to act according as he shall choose or will". Part of the price which we as Freemasons shall always need to pay for that freedom is the rendering of humble obedience to the principles and tenets of our Craft; for the rest, let vs never forget that "God grants freedom only to those who love it and are always ready to guard and defend it".
"WHAT IS FREEMASONRY?" (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1953) W. BRO. G. S. SHEPHERD‑JONES, O.B.E. P.A.G.D.C.
Every E.A., before being passed to the degree of a F.C., is asked "What is Freemasonry?" and his reply is based upon the statement made 150 years ago by Dr. Hemming who said that Speculative Masonry was a system veiled in allegory and illustrated by symbols.
As regards those symbols, Brethren should be careful not to find them where they do not exist, for the Egyptians by introducing numerous mysteries where there were none disfigured the simple purity of their early religion.
There are many different conceptions about Freemasonry and its real object. Some brethren think that it is explained in the beautiful words of the ritual, others regard it simply as a world‑wide Brotherhood, perhaps the greatest Brotherhood the world has ever known, while many others, including the outside world, believe that its main purpose lies in its extensive charities. But however laudable those conceptions may be none of them is Freemasonry even though they are all associated with its main purpose, for the great objective of Freemasonry is to provide and impart spiritual knowledge.
This is the reason why it is veiled in allegory and illustrated by symbols, for the late Dr. Joyce, the distinguished professor of Assyriology and one of those appointed by Parliament for the revision of the Old Testament, has said in one of his numerous works that "we can understand the spiritual and the abstract only by the help of the material, and we cannot convey that understanding to others, or even to ourselves, without recourse to parables, symbols and allegory", and Dr. Joyce was only repeating what had been said 1800 years before by Clemens Alexandrinus in his Stromata when he wrote "All sacred truth is enfolded in enigmatical legends, fables and allegories".
Then Plato, the giant of all philosophers, had described Man as part angel and part beast, and said "If Man does not aspire to the angel he will descend to the level of the beast", and the fundamental purpose of Freemasonry is to create an aspiration to the angel and to guide a Brother safely through the intricate windings of this mortal life.
377 378 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES No finer tribute to Masonry has ever been paid than that contained in the message of 5th November 1951 from our beloved P.G.M. King George VI, to the Earl of Scarbrough on the eve of our present Grand Master's Installation, when His Majesty said: "The world today does require spiritual and moral regeneration. I have no doubt, after many years as a member of our Order, that Freemasonry can play a most important part in that vital need".
Consideration given to those words of our late Royal Brother should create in each of us a desire to fathom the depths of the spiritual teaching of Masonry, but this will not be achieved without some difficulty, and if investigation is confined to the words of the ritual, only a partial explanation of the teaching will be obtained. The ritual itself is in many respects allegorical but.it is supplemented by symbols and underlying each symbol there is embodied some profound spiritual truth. In addition there are actions made during the ceremonies and those actions have also a spiritual significance. This method of teaching corresponds closely to that of the ancient Egyptians, who held that for religious instruction words should always be accompanied by actions, so that sound and sight might mutually assist each other in making a lasting impression on the minds of the listeners.
But the late Sir Wallis Budge, the world‑renowned Egyptologist, who has left a striking comment on the actions of the Egyptians, said that "eventually meanings of the actions were forgotten in many cases but repetition of the actions never ceased".
Budge's comment can be taken as a warning to Freemasons, for there appears to be an increasing tendency to make Masonic actions automatically, without giving a thought to what they indicate; and if this continues there will be a danger of oblivion of the meaning of Masonic actions.
This danger would be avoided if Brethren would consider in retrospect everything they had seen and heard since they first became Masons, and the more they concentrated on the meaning of symbols and actions the greater would become their appreciation of Freemasonry and the greater their amazement as they realized the profundity of its teaching and its application to the dual nature of man.
Such retrospection might well commence with the entry into the anteroom of a Lodge of the candidate for Initiation.
The first object to attract his attention would probably be the Tyler's sword which he would regard as an offensive weapon. But the sword in Masonry is not a weapon of offence but solely for defence. In former times Brethren wore swords and when a candidate during the ceremony for Initiation was restored to light he found himself facing the naked swords of the Brethren, but the Master immediately told him that the circle of swords was not meant to intimidate him, but to assure him that in case of need every Brother's sword would leap from the scabbard in his defence.
WHAT IS FREEMASONRY? 379 A Brother would also probably hear that the sword symbolically teaches us to set a watch to the entrance of our thoughts, place a guard at the door of our lips and post a sentinel at the avenue of our actions. If he truly assimilates that symbolism then, whenever he sees the Tyler's sword before entering the Lodge room, it should be to him a silent monitor, warning him to leave behind all profane and worldly thoughts on entering the sacred temple. Perhaps also his thoughts will turn to the flaming sword of Eden, to prevent the entrance of sinful man or anything evil.
When the candidate presents himself for Initiation he may not know that this is only the first of three degrees in the Craft, and that the ceremony in each degree is intended to mark a progressive stage in a spiritual journey. Those three stages denote "Purification", "Illumination", and "Unification". The Initiation ceremony indicates Purification‑liberation from the delusion of the senses, and from spiritual darkness, typified by the h ... k. The very first part of his preparation for the ceremony is typical of Purification, for he is divested of earthly riches‑to seek for heavenly treasure, ‑but this is given a material meaning in the ceremony.
The signification of the next part was well expressed in the old Lectures "My 1 ... b ... was bared as a token of Sincerity, my 1 ... k ... was bared as a token of Humility.
I was s ... s ... as a token of Reverence and Fidelity and I was led through darkness down the N., towards the Light in the E., and the Light shineth in darkness and the darkness comprehended it not".
In those days the Bible, now called the V.S.L., was always opened at the beginning of the Gospel according to St. John, which commences with an ancient quotation adopted by St. John as a prologue, and that prologue ends with the words "And the Light shineth in darkness and the darkness comprehended it not".
Later, after restoration to material light, the candidate was requested to examine the open Bible, and to assure himself that it was the book of his faith on which he had taken his Ob .... and the first words he would read would be "In the beginning was the WORD".
Although the V.S.L. is now opened at the 7th Chapter of I Kings, instead of at St. John's Gospel, yet every Brother should realize that the Mason Word, which he expected to receive after being made a Mason, is to be found at the end of the first sentence of the prologue‑"In the beginning was the `WORD' ". This is the true word of a Speculative Mason. It has come down from the distant ages and has always retained its original meaning ‑The Law of God.
Finding the Word is to find the Key to the Masonic teaching, and the possession of this precious treasure should stimulate Brethren to further 380 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES exertion, and to arrive at a better understanding of Freemasonry, and the depths of its teaching.
But a Brother who has found this Key is not expected to be always of a serious demeanour. Freemasonry recognizes that man cannot live continuously on the spiritual plane, and so it has provided sociability and innocent enjoyment at the after proceedings; reverence and enjoyment must go together so that all may go well and thus complete the grand design of being happy and communicating happiness.
An Initiate may perceive this combination of reverence and happiness on his first evening at the table, but unless he is given an explanation of the Craft Fire, he will not realize its meaning, nor the connection between the last part of the Fire and the Initiation ceremony in the Lodge.
For, when the Tyler had completed the preparation of the candidate he then gave three distinct k .... s on the door of the Lodge. Those k .... s have a spiritual significance which is explained in the Old Lectures: "Ask, and it shall be given you.
Seek, and ye shall find.
Knock, and it shall be opened unto you".
After he has entered the Lodge room the candidate himself makes all those three k .... s, first on the shoulder of the J.W. and again on the shoulder of the S.W., 3 times 3 in all, and he will subsequently hear a repetition of this triple triad of k .... s in the 1.2.3; 1.2.3; 1.2.3 at the end of the Craft Fire.
Some 200 years ago the three k .... s given by the Tyler were regarded as referring also to the Trinity, and at that time the triune essence of the Deity was visibly symbolised by three Gt. L ... s in the centre of the floor of the Lodge, and arranged in the form of an equilateral triangle. Such a triangle has been preserved in only a few of the English Lodges; for about 150 years ago the V.S.L., the Sq. and the C ... s were substituted and described in the ritual as the three great though emblematical L ..... s in Masonry.
That is only one of the many changes that have been made. Formerly the 2nd d. was truly a d. of Illumination, a discernment of the realities, climbing out of earthly shadows into spiritual light; and in that Illumination the triangle of L .... s played an important part. It is not so today; for now when an E.A. is made an F.C. he advances by 5 st ... as though ascending a winding staircase, whereas formerly he actually climbed 5 semi‑circular st ... s, so that from the summit he could observe clearly the triangle of L .... s on the floor of the Lodge. We still have a reminder of that old procedure, for in the closing of a F.C.'s Lodge the wording of the former ritual has been retained: "In this position what have you discovered? The sacred symbol.
Where is it situated ? In the centre of the Lodge.
WHAT IS FREEMASONRY ? 381 To whom does it allude? To God".
The equilateral triangle was then, and has continued to be, the most sacred of all Masonic symbols, for, being the symbol of perfection of all things spiritual, it can refer only to God. Spiritual perfection is not given to man, perfect holiness belongeth only to the Lord.
Although Speculative Masonry differs greatly from the Operative both carry the designation "Free" and many reasons have been advanced as to why this word "Free" was used by the Operatives. Whatever the reason for the adoption of this word by the Operatives may have been it has now acquired a new and wider significance amongst Free and Accepted Masons, for every Brother is now free to retain his own particular religion.
This was not always the case, and until two centuries ago a candidate for Freemasonry was required to be of Christian religion and to declare a specific belief in the Trinity; but, following the union of the two Grand Lodges in 1813, Masonry definitely ceased to be a Christian Order. A candidate is not now asked any questions about his own particular religion and the only question of a religious nature put to him is asked at the commencement of his Initiation:‑"In whom do you put your trust?" the reply to which is the all‑embracing answer "In God"; and as a Mason he is "free" to interpret Masonic symbols, allegory and actions according to his own conception of their spiritual meaning.
He will soon realize that the Sq ... is the most prominent symbol of the Craft, and later he may hear it described as the acknowledged symbol of strength and criterion of perfection; but the perfection is material, for spiritual perfection is represented by the equilateral triangle. Only one triangle is seen in a Craft Lodge, and it is on the Chaplain's jewel‑for the duties of the Chaplain are wholly spiritual. But although no triangle appears on the jewels of other officers‑except that of the M.W.G.M. a representation of which is at the end of the Book of Constitutions‑yet many triangles are made during the ceremonies.
Thus, when a candidate kneels to receive the benefit of Masonic prayer, a triangle is made over his head, the wands of the Deacons being interlaced to form the sides, whilst the shoulders of the candidate form the base. He is under Divine protection.
A similar triangle is made during the obs. for each ob. is taken in the "presence" of God, whether designated as the G.A., the G.G., or the M.H. But after taking the ob. of a M.M., and after he has been raised from a figur ative death, the candidate himself makes the triangle without the aid of the Deacons' wands. This occurs in the Sn. of J. and Exaltation, "All glory to the M.H."; and while making a triangle with his arms the candidate should also make a smaller triangle within it using his h .... s and first f ..... s for that purpose, and, at that time, he is wearing his M.M.'s apron on which is another triangle.
382 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES The apron of a Speculative Mason is, in itself, an indication of the dual nature of the speculative teaching, for it has a square base and a triangular flap. The apron of an Operative Mason was very different, for it was a long garment with a square flap. When an Operative prentice was made a fellow or master of the Craft, the square flap was turned down, for it was no longer needed to protect his chest. This is probably the reason why some Brethren have the idea that the flap of a Speculative Mason's apron should not be turned down until he becomes a F.C. But the changes in the speculative apron have a spiritual meaning, not a material reason, and the flap is turned down when he is first invested with the badge of a Mason, to indicate the descent of the spiritual into the material. Then, when he is made an F.C., to mark the progress he has made, two rosettes are added to the apron, but he will not at that time realize that they are intended to form the base of a triangle which will be completed by the addition of a third rosette when he is raised to the d. of a M.M.
The Third d. is well called the "sublime" d. of a M.M., for this is the third stage of his spiritual journey in the Craft. It is the most spiritual of the Craft degrees for it is Unification, returning to God. It is in this degree that reference is made to the centre, a point from which a Mason cannot err, for the centre refers to God, and `recovering on the centre' is an allusion to that divine spark, emanating from the Deity, which resides in every Mason.
A Mason should have an additional incentive to make a daily advancement in Masonic knowledge on the realization that Masonic symbols, with the exception of the equilateral triangle, have generally at least two meanings, one being material and the other spiritual. Sometimes the symbols have several meanings, for instance the cable tow of the Initiate. In English Freemasonry only the material meaning of the c.t. is given‑to render any attempt at retreat fatal‑but in another jurisdiction it is given a spiritual meaningthe bondage of sin‑and after light has been restored the Master removes the c.t. from the .... of the candidate, casts it on the floor of the Lodge and says "You are now freed from bondage".
If we turn to the V.S.L. we find another meaning of the c.t., humility and submission‑for the defeated Assyrian King sent his servants in this manner to the victorious Israelitish King to express humble submission.
In India it denotes re‑birth, and even today the Hindu child, wearing the c.t. as umbilical cord, is passed between the legs of the sacred cow as a symbol of mystic re‑birth.
Then in ancient Egypt, in the days of their monotheistic religion, a chain or rope round the neck of the candidate for the priesthood, indicated connection with and guidance from God, and it is interesting to note that the ancient Druids when going to worship, carried a chain in the hand to denote connection with Heaven.
WHAT IS FREEMASONRY ? 383 Our retrospection on Masonic symbols and actions can be never‑ending, but the more the consideration given to them the greater will be the conviction that Freemasonry, first and foremost, is a spiritual order, and that its main objective is to develop the spiritual side of man.
There is something in man which is greater than man, and to which Freemasonry calls. Freemasonry is frequently spoken of as the Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of Man, and this, no doubt, has arisen from two well‑known Commandments : "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul and with all thy might".
That is the first and greater of the two; and the second is its natural corollary: "Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself".
Hence the Brotherhood of Masonry, and in those two Commandments lies the answer to the question "What is Freemasonry?" THE FREEMASON'S EDUCATION (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1954) by BRO. BRUCE W. OLIVER, P.A.G.D.C.
P.M., Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No. 2076 "Without much instruction, and more excercise no man can be skilful in any art; in like manner without an assiduous application to the various subjects treated in the different lectures of Masonry no person can be sufficiently acquainted with the true value of the institution." Thus wrote William Preston one hundred and eighty years ago, yet his words are as true today as they were when George III sat on the throne. William Preston, the founder of the Prestonian Lectures, must have been a man of exceptional strength of character, with an intense enthusiasm for Freemasonry, filled with a passionate desire to promote its interests, and to instruct all who were concerned with the advancement of the Craft. His Illustrations of Masonry must surely be one of the most famous books to be found in our Masonic libraries; it is full of sage advice, and is still worthy of study by all Masonic students, for although modem knowledge has rendered the history of his day out of date, his command of the vital elements of the Craft has never been excelled.
In the series of Prestonian Lectures, many subjects have been dealt with, but none of greater interest than that on "Lodges of Instruction", penned with great skill and insight by W. Bro. Ivor Grantham, the present Grand Lodge Librarian. He dealt with their organization and history in so thorough a manner that nothing remains to be added by future students on that side of the subject, but his inspiring essay has tempted me to deal from another angle with their practical work and the general subject of "A Freemason's Education".
In what appear to us to be the spacious, unhurried days of the eighteenth century, when Lodges were not the wholesale makers of Masons they are today, much instruction was given in the Lodge itself, where the admissions were often only one or possibly two Initiates in the course of a year. It took the form of questions and answers, which were passed round the Lodge table, and embodied not only the ritual itself but Masonic morals and truths. Circulated in a convivial atmosphere, there was freedom for enquiry by the 385 386 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES young Mason, and for the experienced, to explain the more obscure points. Preston's own words to the Fellow Craft were: "As a Craftsman, in our private assemblies, you may offer your sentiments and opinions on such subjects as are regularly introduced in the Lecture, under the superintendence of an experienced Master, who will guard the land‑marks against encroachment. By this privilege you may improve your intellectual powers . . ." and to Freemasons in general he said: "As useful knowledge is the great object of our desire, let us diligently apply to the practice of the Art and steadily adhere to the principles it inculcates. Let not the difficulties we have to encounter check our progress, or damp our zeal . . . Knowledge is attained by degrees, and cannot everywhere be. found. . . ." Preston may not have been the originator of Lodges of Instruction but there can be no doubt that his example showed how valuable they were and led to their great popularity.
Today they provide what is usually the first means of Masonic education available to the newly fledged Master Mason, although instruction is, or should be, commenced before the candidate is admitted; Preston notes that: "It is a duty incumbent on the Master of the Lodge, before the ceremony of initiation takes place, to inform the Candidate of the purpose and design of the institution; to explain the nature of his solemn engagements; and in a manner peculiar to Masons to require his cheerful acquiescence to the tenets of the Order." True the Worshipful Master does, in token form, discharge this injunction in open Lodge, but how many candidates have received such instruction from their sponsors, let alone from the Master of the Lodge.
In America it is the practice, so we are told by Bro. Louis Block, a past Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Iowa, for every candidate to be told in the preparation room that: "Masonry consists of a course of ancient hieroglyphical and moral instruction, taught according to ancient usages by types, emblems and allegorical figures".
Another useful suggestion has been made that when, through the raising of the Lodge to a higher degree, the Entered Apprentice or Fellow Craft has to retire, an experienced Past Master should accompany him, and occupy the time until he can re‑enter the Lodge, by giving instruction clearing up difficult points in the degree he has entered, and in preparing the ground for the next step he has to take.
No one will gainsay the immense value to Freemasonry in general, and to the young Mason in particular, of the Lodge of Instruction. On its good regulation and conduct, and on the use he makes of it depends the Masonic life and future of the neophyte.
THE FREEMASON'S EDUCATION 387 How wisely has Grand Lodge legislated for their control, and, as Bro. Ivor Grantham pointed out in his lecture, this is provided for in the Book of Constitutions under Rules 132 to 135, inclusive. I need therefore only briefly summarize the salient points.
(1) A Lodge of Instruction requires to be sanctioned by a regular Warranted Lodge, which must accept full responsibility for its conduct, and must obtain approval from the Grand Secretary (or from the Provincial or District Grand Secretary) to its times and places of meeting.
(2) The Lodge of Instruction must keep proper Minutes and record therein the names of those taking part.
(3) The Sanctioning Lodge, or the Grand Master, can withdraw the sanction given, in which case the Lodge of Instruction ceases to exist. The proper conduct of a Lodge of Instruction is thus safeguarded, but surprisingly no regulation is laid down for that most vital figure, the Preceptor. Only too often the choice is made by chance rather than judgement; yet the success of the work depends entirely on those who are appointed to direct its activities, and this choice can make or mar the whole scheme. Members of a Lodge of Instruction, at least in their early days, are not likely to have sufficient knowledge and Masonic judgement to make such a selection; the appointment should be made by the authorizing Lodge, to which the Preceptor would owe obedience.
To describe the perfect Preceptor would be to describe the perfect Mason, a perfection unobtainable in this mortal existence. A sound knowledge of the Ritual in all its branches is not the only essential. He should also be intimate with our authentic history, our regulations and our laws, both written and traditional, and he will need an infinite patience and a calm disposition.
THE "HOME" RITUAL One of the earliest questions asked will be: "What is the correct ritual ?" The answer must be: "that practised in the authorizing Lodge, from which presumably the members spring". In this respect the Lodge, should its practices vary from one of the standard versions, must first put its house in order, by examining and checking both phrase and action. Uniformity of working has neither been achieved, nor is it desired under the English Constitution. Practices vary from Province to Province or group of Provinces, offering a rich treasury for Masonic research, and Lodges benefit by conforming to the usage of their locality. The temptation to copy differences observed in some Lodge at a distance must be resisted, for they only besmirch the purity of the home ritual, and render it valueless to the student.
Truth is the vital constituent necessary in all our work. How well has this been expressed by Francis Bacon: "The enquiry of Truth which is the wooing of it, the knowledge of cc 388 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Truth which is the presence of it, the belief of Truth which is the enjoying of it, is the sovereign good of human nature." Once settled, the work in a Lodge of Instruction must be carried out with scrupulous exactness. Slight divergencies, which may be passed in a regular Lodge working, have no place in a Lodge of Instruction. Precision, both of word and floor work, is an absolute requirement; nothing short of this can be accepted.
The ordering of the proceedings will be in the hands of the Preceptor, and he has no easy task in planning for the needs of members in their various stages of advancement and in maintaining the interest of those whose knowledge will span from novice to that so aptly described as "knowing".
It may well be advisable to devote separate evenings for the more advanced group, or at least to grade the work to be dealt with at a meeting. It is a helpful proceeding to plan the work for the whole session, the plan to be displayed on the Lodge premises. It allows for a progressive gradation in the ceremonies to be rehearsed, and also avoids monotony in the proceedings. If it is to live up to its title of Lodge of Instruction something more than a mere rehearsal of ceremonies must be attempted. Fortunately our Craft offers an infinite variety of interests, all of Masonically educational value.
Of those which come immediately to mind, are the Lectures now so rarely heard. Outstanding in William Preston's works was his arranging and editing the Lectures in the form of question and answer. He considered them of first importance in the scheme of a Freemason's education; they still are of first importance, but how often do we hear them given in Lodge ?practically never. In some jurisdictions, as for example in New Zealand, the lecture for the degree taken is given to the candidate before he proceeds to the next. Here is a grand opportunity for the Lodge of Instruction. If the three Lectures are included in the session, the candidates can be invited to attend the meeting at which they are rehearsed and the members, no doubt, will be surprised at the extent to which their Masonic education has been advanced. Let us remember Preston's opinion that: " . . . without an assiduous application to the various subjects treated in the different Lectures of Masonry, no person can be sufficiently acquainted with the true value of the Institution".
Their regular inclusion in the curriculum might well lead to their reappearance in the ceremonies of the regular Lodge. In the far West of England there is a Lodge where one or two sections are worked at a time, usually on the evening of a "Passing", by two or three of the senior Brethren. We find in the first Lecture several comments which are pertinent to our present subject, in the questions asked and the answers given: Q. What inducement have you to leave the West and go to the East? A. To seek a master, and from him to gain instruction.
THE FREEMASON'S EDUCATION 389 Q. Who are you that seek instruction? A. A Free and Accepted Mason.
Q. Why are you made a Mason? A. To obtain a knowledge of the Secrets and Mysteries preserved amongst Masons.
Q. What is a Lodge of Masons? A. An assemblage of the Brethren met together to expatiate on the mysteries of the Craft.
Here we have a clear indication of the primary concern of our Institution, and if this instruction and the opportunity to discourse on our mysteries is not given in open Lodge, then the Lodge of Instruction should supply that want.
THE ANTIENT CHARGES There are many matters other than ritual to which an evening, or part of an evening might be devoted, covering necessary items in a Freemason's education, and repairing the omissions of our modem Lodges, where time cannot be found for them. Our Constitutions can be examined and read, together with the Ancient Charges, as was done by Preston who records:"We commenced our plan by enforcing the value of the Ancient Charges and regulations of the Order; ... We make it a general rule of reading one or more of these Charges at every regular meeting, and elucidating such passages as seemed obscure".
How frequently the Junior Warden, or more probably the Director of Ceremonies, is troubled by a visitor to the Lodge who is "rusty" and has difficulty in giving the necessary proofs. Every member should learn the etiquette called for in visiting another Lodge, and be well schooled in proving himself a Mason in the several degrees. It is a useful lesson to rehearse the proving of a "visitor" and receiving him according to his rank, identifying the badge indicating his status and greeting him accordingly.
Another occasion may be sought in which to read the answers to queries given in the Masonic Year Book, and to examine the advice and guidance given in that valuable volume. Similarly the Quarterly Communication can profitably be examined. Most of us display some interest in the Parliamentary Reports, but all too few know much of our own ruling body, and of the business transacted at the meetings of Grand Lodge.
The proceedings during "Refreshment" may also be given some consideration: all too frequently we see a newly installed Master almost completely ignorant of the traditional manner of their conduct, and some guidance and practice in the preparation and delivery of a speech will be welcomed by the junior Brethren.
Our ritual is still couched in the words and phrases of the elegant eighteenth century, and has much beauty of form peculiar to that period of literature. But the young Mason often has difficulty in appreciating the 390 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES full meaning intended. To modern ears many of the words sound archaic, having a different meaning today from that intended when the passages were framed. During each session therefore, an evening may be usefully employed in studying such words and passages, and in explaining their true Masonic intent.
At least one evening should be devoted to Masonic history. Thanks, almost entirely to the careful research carried out by members of the Quatuor Coronati Lodge for well over the past sixty years, the wildly improbable history of Preston's day has been replaced with an account of our origins, not only authentic but of great interest, and a knowledge of this will be of great value to the student. Indeed it is essential if he is to have a full appreciation of our Institution.
LEARNING THE RITUAL It is to be hoped that the foregoing remarks will show that work in the Lodge of Instruction can and should cover a very wide range of subjects in a Mason's education, but the young Lodge member's urge to acquire a thorough knowledge of the ritual is of vital importance, and, although it should not be the sole purpose, it is one of the accepted functions of a Lodge of Instruction to afford the very best tuition to all its members, and in this, thoroughness and exactness in the execution of all its details must be the foundation upon which proficiency is to be built.
The great value of the Lodge of Instruction, in promoting efficiency, confidence, and that familiarity so essential to the smooth working of the ritual, cannot be gainsaid, and will be agreed with by all who work in them. How surprising then to find that many Lodges have no such institution available for their members, and one city known to me where this is the case, has over forty Lodges within its boundaries.
In a small Provincial town with which I am acquainted their one Lodge has no regular Lodge of Instruction, but the junior members are invited to attend the rehearsal of the next ceremony, and after the regular officers have rehearsed their work, the Director of Ceremonies places some of the junior Brethren in the Chairs and instructs them in portions of the work they have seen carried out by their seniors.
The memorizing of the Ritual is often approached with some trepidation by the newly made Mason. Not infrequently, unless he is a member of a dramatic club, he has had little experience of "learning by heart".
An efficient Preceptor can dispel these fears, for although memories vary in quality with each one of us, it is a sense easily developed with practice, especially if work is done in a careful and methodical manner. Our good Preceptor will give warning of the danger of careless study, and explain that although we learn with our conscious memory, it is our subconscious memory on which we must ultimately rely; for the former may fail us, the latter forgets nothing it has duly recorded.
THE FREEMASON'S EDUCATION 391 If that subconscious memory of ours never forgets, how careful one must be to prevent any errors from reaching its records. Even the preliminary reading therefore must be careful and accurate, for if the first impressions are correctly made much of the work is already done.
The speed with which a passage can be memorized varies considerably with the individual, but it is generally the slow worker who is the most reliable. A visual memory is of great assistance to many; some see the page clearly, to others it appears but faintly. Aural memory is the most reliable, but I fear the days of aural teaching are over. The remarkable memory possessed by a few "old hands" who in their youth were taught the ritual aurally by their old Past Masters, testifies to the great value of this method.
Those whose memory is guided by a visual recollection of the printed page must be careful to work only from one edition, and should they find that copying in manuscript is a useful aid, they must use particular care in keeping the same line setting and the pagination of the original.
If a systematic method of memorizing the work is adopted from the start it will be found that the power of memory is increased and maintained, even into old age, and new work can be tackled in the seventies with almost as much facility as in the twenties. Too much should not be attempted at one time, and work should not be undertaken when fatigued. It is better to learn by sentence rather than by phrase; if accuracy is cultivated it will be found that facility follows. When the ritual becomes familiar, it is a good plan to commence at, and rehearse, the more difficult passages. When a mistake is made, go over the passage carefully and slowly once only, making the last impression like the first, correct. When in practice a passage is forgotten, refer to the printed copy immediately, and try to find the cause of the defect, but in performance if improvisation is not possible, go on to the next heading.
REHEARSALS The danger awaiting the Lodge of Instruction is slackness and lack of discipline. Not being the regular Lodge, the strict decorum essential in our formal proceedings need not be precisely reproduced, indeed a certain ease of atmosphere is desirable, and the Preceptor must attract and hold the interest of his students. The simile of "the iron hand in the velvet glove" must be kept in mind. A companionable and fraternal feeling is to be promoted amongst all the members, but the Preceptor must have absolute control of the proceedings, and when the rehearsal of a Masonic ceremony is the work in hand, the Lodge oú Instruction should reproduce all the circumstances of the regular Lodge; conversation, comment, and prompting by members must be immediately checked. The Preceptor alone should be responsible for correcting the work, and giving the missing word when required.
392 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES At a first rehearsal every error should be rectified and the section in which it has occurred at once repeated. As proficiency is gained the Preceptor has to exercise considerable judgement; constant interruption, or prompting can be exceedingly annoying, and indeed humiliating to a sensitive mind, and encouragement and commendation will be of great value in the case of a nervous student. The Preceptor has to judge whether the error is a momentary slip, or due to faulty memorizing. If the latter, there is nothing for it but to make the correction, and re‑start the work with a repetition of the section.
The form these early rehearsals should take will depend on many circumstances, but books should not be discarded too early. The usual procedure in rehearsing a stage play will be found a good one. At first the whole play is read through by the company, then the work is taken in sections, and not until some proficiency is attained with the words are the movements and stagecraft begun.
In Masonic work it will be found advantageous to treat the "drill" separately. In this section of the work also, precision is a sine qua non. All movements must be made distinctly and smartly, and‑when made by several Brethren‑in complete unanimity. A visit to a good Naval or Military Lodge will quickly carry conviction on this point.
The working of a complete degree is best postponed until proficiency has been attained. Only a section should at first be taken, thus allowing time on each evening for repetition, dealing with questions from the members which should be regularly encouraged, and explanations and comments from the Preceptor.
In most Lodges there are some Past Masters who have particular proficiency in certain sections of the ritual, and it is often helpful to invite one of them to come to the rehearsal to demonstrate and comment on that particular portion. This affords some relief for the Preceptor and a welcome variation in the proceedings.
One of the most difficult degrees in which to maintain interest, is the Second, and it is apt to be somewhat depreciated by the inexperienced. Here our instructor has a great opportunity to give of his Masonic spiritual experience, and to give pointers to his students, to enable them to glean some of the truths, deeply hidden in this superlatively important degree. Preston's own words well express this: " . . . it might be alleged that our amusements were trifling and superficial. But this is not the case; they are only the keys to our treasure, and having their use, are preserved; while from the recollection of the lessons which they inculcate, the well‑informed Mason derives instruction: he draws them to a near inspection, views them through a proper medium, adverts to the circumstances which gave them rise, and dwells upon the tenets they convey." THE FREEMASON'S EDUCATION 393 When we as students, have mastered the details of the second degree work, we shall do well to ponder over Preston's words and "dwell upon the tenets they convey".
For the rehearsal of the ceremonies a Brother is required to act as candidate, and this position is truly difficult to fill; not for want of those willing to act in that capacity; on the contrary there is usually a superfluity of volunteers. A good candidate at rehearsal is one who can be completely passive; co‑operative in doing all that he is directed to do by the active officers, but unhelpful, and giving no lead or guidance to them. A newly made Master Mason may be useful, but an older and experienced Brother is generally of the most assistance, since he who knows the work well will be less anxious to display his knowledge; and be able to effect the apparent lack of experience which will give the best practice for the acting officers, particularly the Deacons, and prepare them for the time when they act in the regular Lodge.
For a similar reason, the paraphernalia usually employed in the ceremony, should be brought into use. The hoodwink should be applied at the proper time, an apron be available for the Senior Warden, and the proper working tools laid out. Since we are not all "operative masons", in fact, singularly few in these days, it is desirable that opportunity should be given to obtain familiarity with their forms, for it is embarrassing to see the Plumb Rule presented as the Level.
FRESH INSPIRATION Probably one of the most difficult subjects in the work of the Preceptor, is the art of elocution. There are many passages in our ritual possessing great beauty but how very often that beauty is marred or even defaced in its delivery. Great tact will be called for; for our speech is a subject on which we may be unusually sensitive and too severe an approach may lead to the loss of a good member of the Lodge. To have been a member of a dramatic society is a great advantage for both the instructor and the pupil. A good theatrical producer will stand no nonsense on this point, yet offence is seldom taken. It is a great experience to be coached for a part in one of the Savoy Operas, and to learn to speak Gilbert's lines in accordance with the author's directions. Every word is studied as to stress and expression, until the whole beauty and intent can be carried over to the audience. Just as much study and care should surely be exercised in "getting over" our ritual to the candidate and to the Brethren in the Lodge. To the candidate most of all since the first impression, good or bad, given to his mind on his first ceremony, is permanent and will never be wholly eradicated. But there is a duty also to those Brethren present who have heard the ritual many, many times before, but who, when it is well delivered, draw fresh inspiration and pleasure at each repetition.
394 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Few amongst us are given this gift, and few can acquire it unaided. To prepare the young Mason for that time when he undertakes his duties in open Lodge is one of the most valuable services offered by the Lodge of Instruction to the ambitious Mason. Having taught him the rudiments of his art, given him familiarity and proficiency in both words and actions, so that he has no longer to call on his conscious memory to pull him through, but needs only to rely on his subconscious memory to supply the right word and the right action at the right moment, and when it has further taught him to express the full beauty of the spoken word, the Lodge of Instruction "passes him out" proficient, and with the confidence of being "able" as well as "willing" to undertake the work.
MASONIC READING Having progressed thus far in the Lodge of Instruction, and having received some tuition in our history and the structure of our Institution, the Masonic student may be said to have completed his elementary education, and is ready to begin work in the senior school. He will, it is to be hoped, have been induced to undertake some reading on his own account. The Lodge library is now essential for his progress, but he will be of the fortunate few if his Lodge possesses a library adequate to his needs. In many Lodges there is no more tragic sight to be seen, than the few aged and dusty volumes, resting on out of the way shelves, or in some inaccessible cupboard.
Let us hope that his Lodge has a library, possibly small but well selected, and under the care of a keen Masonic student who can guide the young Mason in his reading. Should he be handed the three volumes of Gould's monumental work The History of Freemasonry, he is likely to develop a Masonic indigestion that will last him a lifetime. That is a work essential to his later progress, and one which he will then wish to own himself, but in the early days he needs a wise Lodge librarian, who will provide him with some of the many small and easily read books now available.
If such help be not forthcoming, our student should seek out some Past Master in his own district, even if in another Lodge, or neighbouring town, one who is recognized as possessing a sound Masonic knowledge, and able to give the necessary guidance.
Unfortunately a "Masonic lending library" has not yet come into being in England, despite the success of the Lending Libraries throughout the country, meeting the needs of the reader of light literature. It is a crying need in Freemasonry, where many books are necessarily expensive.
If local help is not forthcoming, then our student should pay a visit to the magnificent collection available in the Library of Grand Lodge, in Great Queen Street. Here the books can be read only on the premises. The choice is immense and bewildering to the novice, but he can seek the assistance of the staff, who will not only show him any book he may wish to see, but also give sage advice as to the course of reading he should follow, and guide THE FREEMASON'S EDUCATION 395 his choice for his personal library. The expenditure need not be heavy, since a number of valuable works have been published in recent years at most reasonable prices.
Another indispensable source of Masonic information available to the tyro in Masonic reading is to be found in our Masonic periodicals. There is at least one weekly newspaper, and a number of monthly magazines which provide information, not only on current events in the Craft, but also on a variety of Masonic subjects. Articles by well‑known authorities frequently appear; and there is usually a query column, answering questions sent in by subscribers. These periodicals are often well illustrated, and the subscription most economical. In a short time these papers combine to provide a useful nucleus for a library, and the student will find himself turning over back numbers again and again, as they provide a most interesting and useful source of reference.
All these publications can be inspected in the Grand Lodge Library and offer a wide field of choice for the intending subscriber.
The curriculu=n thus far traced is such as we may hope will be followed by all Initiates. Although the number of Masons who wish to continue their advancement is steadily increasing year by year, there will be some who for various reasons will not do so. Better than any words of mine on this point, are those of William Preston, from whom I quote: " . . . it is not to be inferred, that those who labour under the disadvantage of a confined education, or whose sphere of life requires assiduous attention or useful employment are to be discouraged in their endeavour to gain a knowledge of Masonry. To qualify an individual to enjoy the benefits of the society at large, or to partake of its privileges, it is not absolutely necessary that he should be acquainted with all the intricate parts of the science. These are only intended for persons who may have leisure and opportunity to indulge the pursuit.
Some may be more able than others, some more eminent, some more useful, but all, in their different spheres, may prove advantageous to the community; and our necessities, as well as our consciences bind us to love one another.
Each class is happy in its particular association; and when all classes meet in general convention, one plan regulates the whole: neither arrogance or presumption appear on the one hand, nor diffidence or inability on the other; every brother vies to excel in promoting that endearing happiness, which constitutes the essence of civil society." Some years ago, Bro. Col. Rickard, at that time the Secretary of Quatuor Coronati Lodge, stated to me in a letter when I was concerned in the formation of a Masonic Study Circle: "That a Study Circle might be likened to a Grammar School, whilst a Masters' Lodge of the status of Quatuor Coronati might be likened to a University." 396 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Fortunately to the great advantage of the Craft many Freemasons possessing the ability and leisure do so graduate.
RESEARCH The next step in a Freemason's education is to join one or more of the Lodges of Research. Of these the oldest and best known, famous throughout the whole of the Masonic world is Quatuor Coronati Lodge No. 2076. Full membership of this renowned Lodge is restricted to selected Masters in Masonic Research, but its circle numbers some thousands of members from all parts of the globe, and is open to all Master Masons of recognized Constitutions for a quite modest subscription giving its members all the privileges of Lodge membership, entry to all its meetings, and receipt of Ars Quatuor Coronatorum, the immensely valuable Lodge publication, which not only prints in full the papers read to the Lodge, but also the comments and criticisms on those papers, sometimes rivalling them in importance in the subject matter they contain. Ever since 1886, the Quatuor Coronati Lodge has regularly published its Transactions to which the Masonic giants in research, and in the lore of our Craft, have made their contributions to our knowledge.
The fortunate possessor of a "run" of these volumes holds a readymade library of reference that will meet most of his needs, and even if he is unable to attend the Lodge meetings he thus gains a full account of its proceedings. But if possible, on no account should attendance at meetings be missed, affording as they do a unique opportunity of meeting and conversing with workers in every field of .'Masonic knowledge.
The example set by Quatuor Coronati has been copied throughout the Masonic world, and under the English Constitution a number of Lodges of Research are to be found, frequently specialising in selected branches of Masonic study, ranging from the strictly factual to the highly speculative and mystical.
Although not every English Province is so fortunate, many do possess a Masters' Lodge, whose full membership may be restricted to its own territory, but usually opening the doors of its circle to Master Masons without its bounds.
Less formal, but offering great assistance to the cause of Masonic education are the Study Circles and Clubs, meeting without ceremony for discussion and the reading of papers covering a wide range of subjects in which the Freemason is interested.
Particulars of these organisations are available from the Grand Lodge Librarian, or the Secretary of the Grand Lodge for the Province in which the enquirer resides.
He who wishes to qualify himself, as all Freemasons should be qualified, in a sound knowledge of our Craft, to raise himself above the dull level of the automaton in the Lodge, and to obtain the full value of the secrets offered THE FREEMASON'S EDUCATION 397 him at his initiation, should accept these gifts so freely given for his advancement, and join one at least of these organizations.
In conclusion let us turn once more to our old friend William Preston. Of those who are responsible for the work in the Lodge he says: . . . . those who accept offices and exercise authority in the Lodge, ought to be men of prudence and address, enjoying the advantages of a well cultivated mind and retentive memory. All men are not blessed with the same powers and talents; all men therefore are not equally qualified to govern. He who wishes to teach must submit to learn; and no one can be qualified to support the higher offices of the Lodge, who has not previously discharged the duties of those which are subordinate. Every man may rise by gradation, but merit and industry are the first steps to preferment." And before we part, can we not hear William Preston give this final admonition: "Uniting in one design, let it be our tribute to the happiness of others. over our conduct, and under her sway let us perform becoming dignity." aim to be happy ourselves and conLet the Genius of Masonry preside our part with becoming dignity.
397 THE FELLOWSHIP OF KNOWLEDGE (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1955) by BRO. J. R. RYLANDS, M.sc., M.LMECH.E., M.I.E.E., P.A.G.D.C. P.M., Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No. 2076 The original Prestonian Lectures arose from the desire of the famous mason after whom they are named, to perpetuate a system which he himself had largely founded.
The modern form of the Lectures differs extensively from the original; in one sense Preston's aim was long ago achieved, and the Prestonian Lecturer of today has a wider latitude of choice of subject and treatment.
It has therefore become usual to include in the modern annual Lecture a few words about William Preston'' Few masons, it must be admitted, know anything about him. Yet he was a very remarkable man, and though we may be unaware of it, we all owe him a great deal.
He had ability, and, in his employment with the King's Printer, his acknowledged skill brought him into contact with a number of the great authors of the day. There is evidence that he was on terms of something more than mere acquaintance with such distinguished writers as Dr. Johnson, Hume and Gibbon.
He possessed a keen, enquiring mind, and indeed there are many similarities between Preston and that other, better‑known great printer, Benjamin Franklin, who became a distinguished diplomat and one of America's leading freemasons.2 Like Franklin, Preston acquired much of his knowledge and learning from the many books which passed through his hands in his business. Like Franklin he developed an insatiable thirst for knowledge of all kinds. He felt keenly that knowledge was indeed power, and, like Franklin, he systematically set about the task of acquiring knowledge, and of devising methods whereby others could do the same.
PRESTON'S GREAT IDEA Again, Eke Franklin, Preston believed that masons were people who could add to the happiness of their fellows, and he was impatient with the lack of system and method of the masonry to which he was introduced.
r To avoid undue repetition, several paragraphs of biographical matter are omitted here, but the author refers the reader to the Prestonian Lecture for 1927, by Bro. Gordon P. Hills, which is reproduced as the first Lecture in this volume. (Ed.) 2 Benjamin Franklin. Bro. H. T. C. de Lafontaine, A.Q.C., vol. xli, p. 3 et seq.
399 400 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES For Preston was a methodical young man. How much of his passion for systematizing was inborn, and how much was acquired during his early years in Edinburgh, we cannot say. What we do know is that, soon after entering the Craft, when he can have been only in his early twenties, he conceived the magnificent idea of setting the masonic Lecture system, and with it the ritual, on a sound and proper footing.
It is not easy for us, in 1955, to realize exactly the magnitude of the task which Preston set himself. Years before his time there had been masons of renown to whom tasks of revision and digesting had been entrusted. We all know something of Anderson, who, by order of Grand Lodge, gave to the world the first official account of freemasonry, and collaborated with Desaguliers in producing the ritual working. Then there was Dunckerley, who was commissioned to produce an improved ritual. But Preston had no commission; he did the job first and had his work approved afterwards.
Who today could take our masonic system of ceremonies and lectures, improve and reshape it all nearer to the heart's desire, persuade the Officers of Grand Lodge to adopt it, issue the results in a book with tie approval of Grand Lodge and the signature of the Grand Master, and live to see his system widely adopted? Yet that, in effect, is what William Preston had achieved by the time he was little more than thirty and had been a mason less than ten years. A stupendous achievement.
Yet his career was not one of continuous triumph. So strong a character was bound, sooner or later, to fall foul of constituted authority. And fall foul he did, over a little matter of the legality of a procession in public, in which the members of his lodge wore masonic regalia without first having received permission. The difference flared up, and resulted in the formation by Preston of a Grand Lodge of his own. Such was the measure of the man; he was no small‑scale worker. The troubles were smoothed over and cleared up in due course, and in the end Preston lost no face over the matter. But how things have changed! What happened in the 1780's can never happen again. The Craft and its organization have evolved and developed far beyond any such possibility. There have been many changes, and it is to some of these changes, as they appear to the ordinary mason of today, that I propose to devote this Lecture.
The interest of the subject lies in the fact that we know we have today an Institution which prospers and advances from strength to strength, which continually rises superior to the chances and changes of the outside world, which appears massive and unshaken despite the repeated attacks of its enemies, and yet seems to possess an amazing adaptability. Attention has already been drawn to some of the similarities between him and the great American mason, Benjamin Franklin, who, though Preston's senior by nearly forty years, was yet a contemporary and active in many of the THE FELLOWSHIP OF KNOWLEDGE 401 same fields. Both men spent their early years as apprentice printers; both were to a great extent self‑educated by the process of reading the books which passed through their hands and those to which their vocation gave them easy access; both men had great originality and independence of outlook.
"LEATHER APRON CLUB" Both men had favourable opinions preconceived of freemasonry. Franklin at first was denied admission to the Craft, apparently on the grounds of his humble origin. But he showed the kind of vigour and originality which were later to distinguish Preston; he founded a "Leather Apron Club" on what he conceived to be the model of freemasonry, and dedicated its members to mutual help and improvement.' When, later, he did become a mason, his progress was rapid, and like Preston he became deeply interested in the state of freemasonry. His work seems to have secured the approbation of his brethren, and in very few years he became the Grand Master of Pennsylvania.
They lived in that era which rather optimistically knew itself as the Age of Reason. There was a general belief, in which Preston ardently shared, that the way to the happy life lay through the gaining of knowledge. Not for him was the modem view that happiness consists of a series of temporary satisfactions. He firmly believed that evil was somehow associated with ignorance, and that the antidote was knowledge. The greatest service he could render to his fellow‑men would be to devise or perfect some system whereby men of goodwill could meet for self‑improvement and the acquisition of knowledge.
The cast of thought of the time was propitious. The middle of the 18th century was a period relatively free from mental turmoil. By and large, at all events in England and America, men accepted without much question the social and ethical conventions of the day. The great religious upheavals were past and the new revivals were yet to come. Minor troubles in the American Colonies had as yet produced no major result. Decades were to pass before the Bastille fell. Everyday life, in those strata in society upon which freemasonry impinged, was sufficiently placid and uneventful to give people time to think and speculate.
PERIOD OF TRANQUILLITY The importance of this aspect can hardly be overstressed. Not all periods of the world's history have conferred that tranquillity which permits of quiet speculation upon the greater as well as upon the everyday issues. It is true that great works have been bom in troubled times and masterpieces of art, of science and of philosophy have been stimulated by stress. But the serene background of a Masonic system devoted to the improvement of 1 These Men were Masons, Hubert S. Banner, pub. Chapman & Hall, 1934, pp. 25‑46.
Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, World's Classics.
402 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES mankind can have arisen only in a period when thought could be calm, speculation could be placid and conclusions could be reached without emotional disturbance.
There have not been many such periods in history, neither have they been of long duration. It was the fortune of both Franklin and Preston to be young in that short golden age and what is more important, to be in tune with their time.
AGE OF FORMALISM Another important element in the background of the period in which Preston lived and thought was that of formalism and over‑refinement. Attention has been drawn to this in the writings of a great American lawyer, Roscoe Pound, known throughout the world as a leading authority on jurisprudence, but hitherto almost unknown in this country as a Masonic writer of distinction. Pound says:‑' "For the modern world, the eighteenth century was par excellence the period of formalism. It was the period of formal over‑refinement in every department of human activity. It was the age of formal verse and heroic diction, of a classical school in art which lost sight of the spirit in reproducing the forms of antiquity, of elaborate and involved court etiquette, of formal diplomacy, of the Red Tape and Circumlocution Office in every portion of administration, of formal military tactics in which efficiency in the field yielded to the exigencies of parade and soldiers went into the field dressed for the ballroom. Our insistence upon letterperfect, phonographic reproduction of the ritual comes from this period, and Preston fastened that idea upon our lectures, perhaps for all time." We are so accustomed in the performance of our Masonic ceremonies to the notion and ideal of word‑perfect delivery by rote, that we seldom stay to wonder when this practice took its rise. Few Masons know that this idea was among Preston's many legacies to the Craft.
Our knowledge of Masonic workings before the days of Preston is, as most people are aware, rather scanty. What we have is derived largely by inference from the various Masonic exposures which have from time to time edified the outer world. We probably know more about the general characteristics of the lodges, and about their procedure, than we do about their rituals and ceremonies in detail. For example, we are tolerably certain that the Lodges had not altogether passed out of the predominantly convivial stage of development. Even as late as 1782, when Preston's work was just beginning, perhaps, to show results, a young German clergyman, Karl Philip Moritz, wrote an account of his travels in England,2 and has this paragraph about his experiences in London: "I have seen the large Freemasons' Hall here, at the tavern of the same name. The hall is of astonishing height and breadth, and to me looked 1 Masonic Addresses and Writings of Roscoe Pound, New York, 1953, p. 15. 2 Travels in England in 1782, K. P. Moritz; Cassell & Co., 1886.
THE FELLOWSHIP OF KNOWLEDGE 403 almost like a church. The orchestra is very much raised and from there you have a fine view of the whole hall, which makes a majestic appearance. The building is said to have cost an immense sum ... Freemasonry seems to be held in but little estimation in England, perhaps because most of the Lodges are degenerated into drinking clubs, though I hope there are still some who assemble for nobler and more essential purposes." There were such Lodges. Preston's own Lodge of Antiquity, No. 2, our oldest Lodge, was one of them. Another, no doubt, was the Lodge of Friendship No. 3 (now No. 6) in which Preston's friend, the great historian Edward Gibbon, had been initiated in 1767, four years after Preston's entry into the Craft. In explanation of the views of the young German pastor, it may be well to remember that he was a member of a Lodge at Weimar in Germany of which both Goethe and Schiller were members. The youthful idealist may well have exaggerated in his reproaches.
CONVIVIAL ATMOSPHERE Nevertheless, the minute books and cash accounts of many of our old lodges show that at this period the convivial side of freemasonry was far from neglected. It was still customary for the eating and drinking to take place in the same room as the ceremony. There were no separate and distinct "after‑proceedings"‑a clumsy expression. The Lodge was not closed until all activity had ceased and the bill had been paid. In the minutes of the old "Apollo" Lodge at York, under date 28th September 1774, there is recorded: " . . . Order'd that the Stewards examine the Bill every Lodge, and if they find such Bill right, that they sign it, and that the Treasurer for the Future shall not pay any Bill unless such has been examined by the Stewards and signed by them. Order'd that the Stewards call for and settle each Bill before the closing of the Lodge and sign the same; in case of their Neglect to be fined Is. for each offence." This fining for minor infractions of the rules was common enough in the Clubs of the day, and masonic Lodges continued the practice. There is plenty of similar evidence of the emphasis on conviviality in the assemblies to be found in the old records. In my own Lodge of Unanimity, now No. 154, in Wakefield, we find, in the years around 1770, that it was quite usual to fine brethren for smoking whilst the Lodge was at work, for sitting down without donning their aprons, for "tossing up who should pay for their suppers" and even for not paying attention to the Master. The fines were small, a few pence only, though bad language cost a little more. In other words, there was very much of a club or coffee‑house atmosphere about many of the lodges towards the end of the eighteenth century.
OLD CUSTOMS But whilst that is true of many lodges‑whilst some perhaps emphasized the convivial aspects of Fraternity at the expense of what Moritz called the 404 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES nobler ends, there is also ample evidence that many lodges found no incompatibility between the two facets of Masonic life. Thus, a lodge meeting would commence by the brethren assembling in the tavern room hired for the purpose. They would stand around in groups talking and smoking and discussing one thing and another. It would be all very casual and little different from a social club, except for the fact that before long the brethren would don their lambskin aprons, the officers their ribbons and jewels, and the Master, as like as not, his hat. There would be a table in the room, and on this would be arranged what was known as the table furniture.
In various places, either on the table or somewhere in the room, there would be symbols or symbolic articles. Richard Linnecar, a celebrated Yorkshire mason, writing in 1789,1 said: "The hieroglyphics and symbols on the table and chairs of the lodge are the three great lights of masonry. The lesser lights (are) the twenty‑four inch gage, the common mallet, the pillars, etc., which the brethren are early taught to explain, also the rough ashler, which is a stone as taken out of the quarry, which by care and skill of the workman is brought to due form. This is emblematical of the mind of man in his primitive state, which is rude and unimproved like that stone, till by the grace of God, a virtuous education and pious example, his mind is enlightened." I would draw attention to the phrase= `which the brethren are early taught to explain". I think we are justified in inferring from this that the brethren at a quite early stage in their career as Masons would be required to learn by heart the descriptions and Masonic explanations of the various objects in question, just as we nowadays learn, quite early in our progress, the Masonic descriptions of the working tools. Our ceremonial workings were, in fact, passing through a formative period even late in the eighteenth century.
PRESTON'S ENTHUSIASM It would be in some such Masonic atmosphere as I have tried to sketch that Preston first saw the great lights of Masonry. We have no direct record, so far as I know, of the impact made on his sensitive intelligence of those first ceremonies, but we do know that he at once began to devour whatever Masonic literature he could find. His appetite was insatiable. He interrogated and corresponded with Masons all over the country and abroad. I should like to think that he compared notes with Benjamin Franklin, but have been unable to discover definite evidence of contact between these two famous Masons. Franklin would be just the kind of man Preston would seek out, but whether he met him or not, we are certain that the importance and possibilities of Masonry as a force for good in the affairs of mankind soon became immensely clear to Preston.
The reaction of the slightly bewildered initiate of today is to accept on trust the immense and complicated system which is displayed to him; to 1 The Miscellaneous Works of Richard Linnecar, Leeds, 1789.
THE FELLOWSHIP OF KNOWLEDGE 405 accept as immutable the form in which it is presented; to comply unquestioningly with its requirements, and, let us hope, embrace with enthusiasm its precepts.
But in Preston's day it must have been rather different. For one thing, Masonry had not long ceased to be a way of building, and had not yet become clearly defined as a way of life. The old custom of teaching by way of catechism still survived, and it must be remembered that this method of instruction by question and answer is very old‑older than books or printing.
These catechisms were known as lectures, and the Masonic lectures in use in Preston's time were founded on and derived from the Old Charges of the Operative masons. They contained a body of knowledge about building and architecture and the arts, together with a code of precepts and rules relating to conduct and living. Then, as now, the main repository of these latter precepts was the V.S.L.
Here was something ready to Preston's hand. Like most thinking men of his time, he looked upon knowledge as the universal solvent. Knowledge was not only power, it was the way to happiness. In Preston's view, Masonry existed to diffuse knowledge among mankind. It could make men wiser and better, and in consequence could make them happier.
THE OLD CATECHISMS The object of the Masonic system, in Preston's mind, was to encourage Masons to study and acquire knowledge, and also to provide the system of knowledge to be acquired. This is quite plain from the wording of the earliest Prestonian lecture, which is in the usual catechetical form: "What is Masonry?" "The study of science and the practice of virtue." "What is its object?" "To rectify our conduct by its sublime morality; to render us happy in ourselves, and useful to society." "What is the groundplan of "Instruction." Masonry?" "Why do you consider it to be "Because men are never too wise to such ?" learn." "What will a wise man do to "He will seek knowledge." obtain it?" "What will a wise mason do?" "He will do more, for he will never rest till he finds it." "Where does he expect to find "In the east." it ?" 406 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES "Why does he expect it there?" "Because Man was there created in the image of his Maker; there also the Holy Gospel originated; knowledge and learning were there promulgated and arts and sciences flourished." And so Preston built up, clause by clause, section by section, lecture by lecture, a complete system of knowledge and ritual procedure. The man who assimilated the whole system would be an educated man, perhaps a man of learning, certainly a man familiar with all that it "was necessary to know to move with ease in the world. Knowledge was undoubtedly power, and knowledge of the right kind, with the right background, could be secured by men of goodwill through the Prestonian system.
WORD PERFECTION The method was that of constant rehearsal and repetition. Learning by rote. Word perfection. Naturally, it was not all done at once. Like Franklin, Preston founded a sort of club at which he met his friends, tried out his lectures on them, listened to and perhaps accepted their criticisms, and in the end persuaded them all to learn by heart the wording on which they had agreed.
One advantage of being in London was that he could easily make contact with the leading officers of Grand Lodge, and when the first part of his system had been completed, he organized a Grand Gala in honour of Free masonry. This was held on the 21st May 1772 at the Crown and Anchor Tavern, and the Grand Officers and leading members of the Craft were invited. Preston delivered an impressive oration, and the reception of his work was most encouraging. He completed the system and eventually published his book, Illustrations of Masonry and this became the leading Masonic work of the day.
Looking back with our mid‑twentieth century eyes, on this aspect of Preston's achievement, we may be tempted to smile. How confident they were, these men of the eighteenth century! How final it all seemed to them! The world had passed through most of its troubles, and a long era of peace and tranquillity lay ahead. As Roscoe Pound says:' "Society had ceased to be in a state of furious ebullition, nor was there a conflict of manifestly irreconcilable ideas as in the time just gone by. On the surface there was harmony . . . a harmony of compromise rather than of reconciliation ... Political ideas were fixed.... Men ... believed it possible to work out a model code for the legislator ... and an infallible guide to private conduct for the individual. . . . A certain supposed classical style was assumed to be the final and only permissible mode of expression. In other words, acquiescence was the dominant tendency and finality was the dominant idea." I Roscoe Pound, op. cit., p. 13.
THE FELLOWSHIP OF KNOWLEDGE 407 ALL IS FLU% We may smile at Preston, but it is with a wry smile. We know now that there is no finality; that all is flux; that the acquisition of knowledge alone is no sure guarantee of happiness. We suspect, indeed, that happiness may in fact be but a succession of temporary satisfactions, and we begin to learn again what was known two thousand years ago, that without wisdom, knowledge alone may lead us far astray.
But although this part of the Prestonian philosophy cannot fit neatly into our modem way of life, let us in fairness say that it is far from being the whole of Preston. Some have said that the search for knowledge as an instrument to happiness coloured Preston's outlook so greatly as to make his system wholly unacceptable to us today. Let Preston reply for himself. I quote from his book.' The second section of the first part is headed: "THE ADVANTAGES RESULTING FROM FRIENDSHIP" Preston writes: "No subject can more properly engage the attention, than the benevolent dispositions which indulgent Nature has bestowed upon the rational species.
These are replete with the happiest effects, and afford to the mind the most agreeable reflections. The breast which is inspired with tender feelings is naturally prompted to a reciprocal intercourse of kind and generous actions. As human nature rises in the scale of beings, the social affections likewise arise. Where friendship is unknown, jealousy and suspicion prevail; but where that virtue is the cement, true happiness subsists. In every breast there is a propensity to friendly acts, which, being exerted to effect, sweetens every temporal enjoyment; and although it does not remove the disquietudes, it tends at least to allay the calamities, of life.
Friendship is traced through the circle of private connexions to the grand system of universal benevolence, which no limits can circumscribe, as its influence extends to every branch of the human race. Actuated by this sentiment, each individual connects his happiness with the happiness of his neighbour, and a fixed and permanent union is established among men.
But, though friendship, considered as the source of universal bene volence, be unlimited, it exerts its influence more or less powerfully, as the objects of its favours are nearer or more remote. Hence the love of friends and of country takes the lead in our affections, and gives rise to that true patriotism, which fires the soul with the most generous flame, creates the best and most disinterested virtue, and inspires that public spirit, and that heroic ardour which enable us to support a good cause, and risk our lives in its defence ...
Though friendship appears divine, when employed in preserving the liberties of our country, it shines with equal splendour in more tranquil 1 Illustrations of Masonry, William Preston, 16th Edn., 1846, pp. 3‑5.
408 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES scenes. Before it rises into the noble flame of patriotism, aiming destruction at the heads of tyrants, thundering for liberty, and courting danger in defence of rights; we behold it calm and moderate, burning with an even glow, improving the soft hours of peace, and heightening the relish for virtue. In these happy moments, contracts are formed, societies are instituted, and the vacant hours of life are employed in the cultivation of social and polished manners.
On this general plan, the universality of the system of masonry is established. Were friendship confined to the spot of our nativity, its operation would be partial, and imply a kind of enmity to other nations. Where the interests of one country interfere with those of another, Nature dictates an adherence to the welfare of our own immediate connexions; but such interference apart, the true Mason is a citizen of the world, and his philanthropy extends to all the human race. Uninfluenced by local prejudices, he knows no preference in virtue, but according to its degree, from whatever country or clime it may spring." These are noble words, and they are not without their application in these latter days. Preston may well have believed that he could found a system which produced men well instructed in the liberal arts and sciences, men free from ignorance and the prejudices of ignorance. But his obvious intention was thereby to stimulate and secure universal friendship, calm, moderate and virtuous. This outlook too, we inherit from Preston. In a sense it was, perhaps, always inherent in speculative masonry, but Preston gave it a form and expression which it still retains today. Most men go into Freemasonry seeking friendship, and they find it, and much more.
MODERN CUSTOMS And what is left of it all? First, perhaps,, that insistence on word and letter‑perfect ceremonial work which distinguishes the modem Masonic lodge both here and in America. We all remember the famous phrase in Kipling's In the Interests of the Brethren: "When I realized for the first time what word‑and‑gesture perfect Ritual can be brought to mean." There is no need to dilate on this point; probably only by word‑and‑gesture perfect renderings of our rituals can we make our ceremonies give us those deeper satisfactions we need and demand in these days.
Of course, not all modem Lodges observe a tradition of word‑perfect rendering. How often does one hear the opinion: "The exact wording doesn't matter if you get the spirit over." The arguments for and against perfection in rendering were no doubt hotly debated in Preston's time. He himself would have none of the paraphrasings and private renderings; as he had written, so others must speak. Yet he was not intolerant; the words of his lectures were held to be unalterable, but their interpretation was a THE FELLOWSHIP OF KNOWLEDGE 409 matter for the individual mason. This emphasis on liberty of interpretation is another of our debts to Preston. I quote him again:‑' "From this view of our system, its utility must be obvious. The universal principles of the art unite, in one indissoluble bond of affection, men of the most opposite tenets, of the most distant countries, and of the most contradictory opinions, so that in every nation a Mason may find a friend, and in every climate a home." It is interesting, and not altogether without purpose, to consider the difference between Masonry in Preston's day and in our own times. What are the features which have shown themselves to be permanent and fundamental? We may note here a distinction; that which is permanent is not necessarily fundamental, but if that which is fundamental fails to persist, then ultimately the fraternity will pass away. Again, what has the Mason of today in common with the Mason of the time of Preston? PERMANENT FEATURES If, as in some Wellsian fantasy, a Masonic sleeper of the eighteenth century were to wake in this year of grace, could he seek and be granted admission to an English Lodge of today? Could he prove himself to be a Mason ? It is an interesting speculation. He would, in the first place, profess a belief in the Great Architect. From that position English‑speaking Freemasonry has never deviated. It is both fundamental and permanent. He would confirm that he had been obligated on the VSL. Here again English Freemasonry has never changed, though as we all know, certain other Sacred Volumes are permissible. He would be in possession of certain signs and words and tokens, and they would be recognizably similar, if not identical with, the marks of distinction familiar to us.
There might, it is true, be a little difficulty if he came from a Moderns Lodge in the late eighteenth century, because the Grand Lodge in the 1730's had made certain interchanges between one degree and another, and the confusion was not cleared until just before the Union in 1813. If our awakened sleeper came from an Antients Lodge which had not deviated from the traditions, he would encounter none of these particular difficulties. Much would depend on the historical knowledge of those examining him.
On the whole, I think we should admit him, tbough not without a great deal of questioning and suspicion. We should be a little dubious about the probable absence of a Grand Lodge certificate. These documents were in use in the latter half of the eighteenth century, but not every brother troubled to secure one, and it was widely felt that the Lodge certificate was sufficient.
If, by chance, our friend was unusually well‑informed, and took the trouble to make sure that he was not seeking admission to an irregular, 1 Illustrations of Masonry, William Preston, 16th Edn., 1846, p. 7.
410 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES clandestine Lodge, and began to ask us a series of questions, we might feel a shade of embarrassment. Unless we bappened to be familiar with the old catechisms, and indeed the original Prestonian Lectures, we should not know the answers, and our friend in his turn might be pardonably suspicious.
FAMILIARITY AND STRANGENESS But assuming that he eventually took his seat in the Lodge, his first sensations would be a curious mixture of familiarity and strangeness. There would be many things he recognized; the furniture, the jewels, the equip ment in general. He might think that some of the officers were in unusual positions, and he would realize that regalia had altered a great deal. But the general atmosphere would be vaguely familiar.
He would miss the table in the centre of the room, and he would look in vain for the refreshments. He would no doubt feel, paradoxically enough, that the whole proceedings had become formalised and ritualistic, though if the Lodge was a good one, and he himself a good Prestonian, he would applaud the word‑perfect ceremonial and the efficiency of the Master and the Officers.
He would find much that was familiar in the ceremonies and lectures, though he would notice that the latter had been much modified. Preston did not quite achieve his ideal of permanence for his system; at the Union his Lectures were revised by Hemming and others. But his great work had been done, and his mark is upon English‑speaking Freemasonry for ever. In the social proceedings which followed the ceremonial work our visitor from the eighteenth century would certainly feel at home. It is a strange thought that, in regard to pattern if not perhaps in scope or content, the convivial aspects have not undergone basic change in many decades. Latter‑day stringencies and habits which, on the whole, are generally more abstemious, give our so‑called banquets an air of asceticism in comparison with some eighteenth century repasts. The accounts of war are never balanced, and the accumulated debts of two centuries of international conflict have, amongst other things, curtailed the lavishness of our feasting. This may be no bad thing, though we could perhaps wish that the results had been achieved in some less drastic way.
ANCIENT CUSTOMS On the other hand, there are in the Provinces many old lodges, and some newer ones which follow the old ways, where ancient customs are observed at the social board. In my Lodges in Wakefield, where Free masonry dates from 1765, it is still the custom for the Master and Wardens to carve at table the joints once again happily available. The brethren of the lodge wait at table, and when the meal is over the cloths are drawn from the long chestnut board of unknown age, and the ancient traditions are honoured.
THE FELLOWSHIP OF KNOWLEDGE Who shall say that this aspect of our Freemasonry is not fundamental ? It appears to have many of the characteristics of permanence.
The convivial side is, after all, the expression of something deeper, something which does not change. Our visitor from two hundred years ago would find, to his intense pleasure, that the deep friendship which is the great gift of the Craft has gone from strength to greater strength. Was not this Preston's real aim‑to build a brotherhood of men through friendship based on common knowledge and the common conquest of ignorance? Young as he was, he knew that vice, misery, fear and want were all products of ignorance. His sublime concept was a fellowship of knowledge built on friendship under the eternal landmarks. We have not yet succeeded in realizing the dream; we may never do so, because the world is more complex than Preston realized. But we may be much nearer to success than our brethren of the eighteenth century.
UNION AND HARMONY Preston wrought well. We will end our tribute to his greatness with one last quotation from his works.' You shall judge whether or not his notions are in tune with modem times: "Union and harmony constitute the essence of Freemasonry; while we enlist under that banner, the society must flourish, and private animosities give place to peace and good fellowship. Uniting in one design, let it be our aim to be happy ourselves, and contribute to the happiness of others. Let us mark our superiority and distinction among men, by the sincerity of our profession as Masons; let us cultivate the moral virtues, and improve in all that is good and amiable; lei the Genius of Masonry preside over our conduct, and under her sway, let us perform our part with becoming dignity; let us preserve an elevation of understanding, a politeness of manner, and an evenness of temper; let our recreations be innocent, and pursued with moderation; and never let irregular indulgences lead to the subversion of our system, by impairing our faculties, or exposing our character to derision.
In conformity to our precepts, as patterns worthy of imitation let the respectability of our character be supported by the regularity of our conduct and the uniformity of our deportment: then as citizens of the world, and friends to every clime, we shall be living examples of virtue and benevolence, equally zealous to merit, as to obtain, universal approbation." 1 Illustrations of Masonry, William Preston, 16th Edn., 1846, p. 22.
THE MAKING OF A MASON (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1956) by BRO. GEORGE DRAFFEN OF NEWINGTON, M.B.E. Senior Grand Warden, Grand Lodge of Scotland* P.M., Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No. 2076 In the early and formative years of the Craft in England three names stand out prominently. It is doubtful if any other men had more influence on the development of Freemasonry than James Anderson, William Preston and Laurence Dermott. The first two were Scotsmen, the third was an Irishman. Two of them reached high rank in the Craft. All three wrote books; The Book of Constitutions by Anderson, Illustrations of Masonry by Preston and Ahiman Rezon by Dermott are Masonic classics. Anderson and Dermottt concerned themselves principally with questions of administration and matters of law and order. William Preston was much more concerned with the details of our ceremonies and, in fact, "what the Craft was all about".
The continued appointment of some Brother to give the Prestonian Lecture which it is my privilege to deliver today, is surely evidence that Grand Lodge considers, as did William Preston, that there is much more in the making of a mason that the ritual conferring of our three degrees. William Preston was much interested in the question of ritual and worked hard to bring the standard of ceremonial in our Lodges to that high place which it has so long occupied. He did more, he compiled those Lectures which, alas, are so infrequently, (if ever) heard in our Lodges today, but which were at one time a sine qua non in the working of our ceremonies.
These Lectures form the greater part of the Second Edition of Preston's Illustrations of Masonry. For his material he ranged far and wide. Stephen Jones, his biographer, wrote "wherever instruction could be acquired, thither Preston directed his course, and with the advantage of a retentive memory and an extensive masonic connection, added to a diligent research, he so far succeeded in his purpose as to become a competent master on the subject. To increase the knowledge he had acquired he solicited the company and conversation of the most experienced Masons from foreign countries and in the course of a literary correspondence with the fraternity at home and abroad, made such progress in the Mysteries of the Art as to become very useful in the connections he had formed." * At the time the Lecture was delivered the author was Grand Librarian.
413 414 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES It is interesting to note that William Preston's writings became very popular in the United States of America, where his Illustrations of Masonry formed the basis of the work of Thomas Smith Webb, sometimes referred to as the "Father of American Masonry" and the compiler of the wellknown Webb Ritual, which is possibly the most widely used ritual in the United States today.
What purpose had William Preston in mind when he wrote his Lectures ? Surely the full education of Entered Apprentices, Fellow Crafts and Master Masons. In the leisurely era in which William Preston lived, our Lodges had ample opportunity for adequately instructing their members. The Lodges met frequently‑sometimes as often as every fortnight‑and Lodges of Instruction were unknown. What a contrast the present day affords! In London few indeed are the Lodges which meet more often than five times a year. In the Provinces ten meetings a year is more usual, but even that does not permit of really adequate instruction. That our ceremonial work is of such a high standard is largely due to the indefatigable members of our Lodges of Instruction. But let us for a moment consider this whole question of Ritual.
When one uses the word "Ritual" it is essential to have a clear idea of what the term involves. Even among the better works on the subject of ritual and liturgy it is difficult to find clear and concise ideas on the subject. It may, perhaps, be defined as "orientating one's person towards an objective by a prescribed set of movements and form of words". Ritual, both in primitive and elaborate forms has existed for thousands of years. If we refer to the Old Testament we find that, more than three thousand years ago, there was laid down a ritual form of worship for the Jewish people. Every detail of that worship was prescribed‑the sacrifices, the priesthood, the vestments, the very buildings.
Man is a curious mixture of matter and spirit, limited yet reaching out for that which is unlimited. The ascent of Man towards the Truth, towards the Great Architect of the Universe, towards God himself, is at once material and spiritual, corporal and psychic, interior and exterior. Man approaches his God in various ways, by signs, by prostrations, by fasting, by wearing special clothing, etc., etc. He makes use of the one faculty denied to the lower creatures‑speech. Then, when speech can no longer express his thoughts fully, body gestures take its place.
The protagonists of ritual emphasize the communal aspects‑and they are right in so doing, for the fact is that acts of ritual, considered as a whole, have a communal aspect, and demand in consequence that all who participate have a common contact. A common rite is only good when all assisting perform it together. If only a small part of those present give active assistance, there is a deficiency in the rite. Something is lacking if all present do not do their proper part.
THE MAKING OF A MASON 415 For any society, the community is indispensible. The Church, the Synagogue and the Mosque all demand the community of the faithful. The University demands the community of the teachers and students. The Lodge demands the community of all the members.
A rite is the combination of movements, sounds and words, which form a frame in which the communal action can be accomplished. Because ritual is not just the juxtaposition of individual acts, by its very nature it demands a previously arranged structure. To commit oneself to a common action, when one has no idea of what is to be done, is an impossibility. It is, therefore, essential that there be proper preparation, instruction and training. A good ceremony demands that the rubrics be previously thoroughly studied and understood by all those who are to take part, whether they be Priests in a Church or Officers in a Lodge. Ritual includes not only this technical element, an element upon which much of the success or failure of the rite depends, but includes all those other elements which touch directly on any aspect of the rite.
In all ritual acts we find a tendency in man to repeat his acts in order to recapture the sentiments he has previously experienced. He returns to that same act in order to experience once more the same impression and to prolong it. Ritual acts must be repeated if they are to achieve their full effect. From a psychological point of view, ritual tends to produce in a united community the return of certain emotions, and this through the media of appropriate sounds, words and movements. Man needs to be gradually transferred from the materialistic atmosphere of his daily life to a higher milieu. Once there, he must be made to feel at home in his new position. He must abandon his reserve in order to follow the course of the action. He must throw himself into the mood and the movements to discover what the rite has to offer. A rite simply cannot be understood without one's taking part in it.
It is no part of the function of ritual to act as a medium of instruction. The function of ritual is to enshrine the teachings or dogma of the society to which it applies, in such a way as to be recognizable only to the initiated. It provides the neophyte with the background or framework upon which he must build the superstructure.
If you have any doubts upon this point, let me give you a practical illustration. Tomorrow morning, within this city, at eight o'clock, a ritual ceremony will take place. The central part of this ceremony has remained unchanged for nearly 2,000 years, although it has been elaborated and embroidered much during that period. The ceremony has various titles. The Lord's Supper; Holy Communion; The Eucharist; The Mass. For the first three or four hundred years of its existence nobody was allowed to be present at the ceremony until he was fully qualified to be there. The neophytes or catechumens were required to depart from the service when 416 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES the Mass began. Nowadays there is no restriction on anybody being present, but no persons can take part in that service until they have been initiated into Christianity through the ceremony of baptism and have passed through the ceremony of confirmation. The rituals of all these ceremonies are available to anyone, in the Book of Common Prayer or the Ordinal of the Roman Church, but no one would attempt to regard either of these books of ritual as a media of instruction in the tenets of the Christian faith.
In ritual there seems to come a time when the manner in which it is performed is more important than the words. The whole force of the ritual does not consist in the mere understanding of the ceremonial acts and the accompanying words. If this were true, then one might be expected to understand, for example, every word of one of the Psalms during their choral recitation in Church or Synagogue, a task which is psychologically impossible. Instead, one receives from the words of the Psalms the ideas which permeate them.
There is a certain measure and rhythm which needs to be safeguarded in every rite. An inconsiderate word of direction or explanation can of‑░m suddenly break the mood of the entire community caught up in the action of the ritual.
A man who accustoms himself to ritual will end up loving it. He familiarizes himself with the movements, the sounds and the words. Under their influence he becomes elevated. But if, by chance, he comes upon something that is new, and for which he is unprepared, then he finds himself ill at ease. That is why it is undesirable that any radical changes should be made in Lodge ritual.
Nothing ‑so quickly loses its freshness and vitality as an act repeated, and that is especially true of ritual. Modem man has lost the mobility and freedom of expression that primitive man possessed. This lack of freedom and spontaneity in modern man explains why he is not at home in religious rites, and why these rites‑and indeed all rites‑are seemingly so strange and complicated.
In establishing the proper conditions for ritual working there are serious dangers to be avoided. These dangers account for some defects in ritual. Because ritual is a complex structure of reaction, it has a tendency to establish itself as an absolute master of all feeling. To those who fail to understand the purpose of rubrics, they seem to be tyrannical. Since ritual is a path, it must be regarded as a means and not an end in itself. When rites are regarded as ends in themselves then the whole ritual becomes nothing but a mechanical process.
Ritual always acts in a conservative fashion. It is, par excellence, the guardian of tradition and the principal means by which the historical aspect is safeguarded and perpetuated. This traditional element of ritual brings with it very real dangers of over‑emphasis and exaggeration. When one THE MAKING OF A MASON 417 fails to distinguish between what is essential and what is accidental, or when one fails to understand rites in their historical and traditional contexts, then one does not understand their correct place and purpose, and overemphasizes rites to the detriment of the essential action. Ritual then dominates the action instead of serving it. When ceremonial gets lost in all sorts of detailed subtleties, then you have ritualism at its worst. The thesis of ritualism is that the technical perfection of the ceremonial action is of the highest importance and that the traditional formulas enjoy, even to the last detail, an absolute authority. Ritualism lacks a sense of proportion and is based on a false idea of the object of ritual.
On the other hand the formalist lacks even this regard for ritual. He reduces the whole idea of ceremonial to a mere mechanical performance of the necessary acts. The prescribed movements, the recitation of the traditional words, are carried out by the formalist with little effect and freshness. He is not in contact with the things that he handles. Formalism is the greatest danger of any ritual acts; the Lodge Officer is not exempt.
Confronted with these two evils of going to excess, how is one to deal with the matter ? One might conceive an aversion to the whole idea of ritual and consider it of little importance‑even superfluous. Such an idea would be wrong because it is based on a wrong theory of spirituality and wrong understanding of the place of ceremonial in man's life. It is a mistake to think of ritual as merely an outward action or ornamental ceremonial. It is an error to think of ritual as a list of prescribed words and actions by which our ancient Craft admits its aspirants.
A greater mistake is to despise traditional ceremonial and to improvise new rituals. Many have tried this, inspired by a zeal that was more ardent than prudent. In this country we have been singularly free from the efforts of the "ritual improver" but his activities in other countries should serve as a warning of the horrible results‑particularly when completely new "degrees" are manufactured. In this modern age, with its great freedom of action in social relationships and its tendency to break free from custom and tradition, there is little danger of falling into excessive ritualism. Were it not for our Lodges of Instruction, the tendency might be towards a too light regard for ritual.
We have dealt with the greatness and the deficiences of ritual and the question arises‑are we wise to depend as much as we do upon the Ritual as a means of instruction to our Candidates ? The position in Scotland and Ireland is neither better nor worse than the position in England. When we go to the Scandinavian Countries and to Holland and Switzerland, however, we find that very much greater emphasis is placed upon the instructing of candidates than is common in Britain. And I do not suggest that their ceremonial work is less well carried out than ours. On the contrary, the standard is at least as high as it is here.
418 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES In the countries I have mentioned the period between the conferring of degrees is, at the minimum, one year. During that period the candidates are required to attend classes of Instruction which deal not only with the interpretation of the ritual but also with the philosophy of the Craft. Whether such a procedure would work in Britain is open to doubt, but that it can work is evidenced by the fact that many of the American Grand Lodges have adopted what they are pleased to call "Education Policies"‑and with some success.
William Preston's Lectures‑as opposed to his ceremonial ritualwere written for another age. If we are to instruct our candidates in the tenets of the Craft some other Preston must arise and prepare for us a series of short educational talks which can be delivered either in Lodge or in a Lodge of Instruction. To illustrate what I have in mind let me give you a short homily on the Hiramic Legend.
THE LEGEND OF HIRAM ABIFF "During the ceremony of the Third Degree, which is so well nam‑d the Sublime Degree, you can hardly fail to have been deeply impressed by the Tragedy of Hiram Abif. To understand it, and to appreciate to the full its profound richness of meaning, is something that will remain with you as long as you live.
It is first of all important to understand that the Drama of Hiram Abiff is a ritualistic drama. We all know what a drama is. It is a conflict between a man and other men or between a man and other forces, resulting in a crisis in which his fate or fortune lies at stake. The crisis, or problem, is followed by a solution or resolution. If it turns out in favour of the man the drama is a comedy, in the true and original meaning of that word as a happy ending. If it turns against him, and as a result he becomes a victim or a sufferer, it means that the drama is a tragedy. By drama in either sense I do not refer to plays as they are acted on the stage, which are not dramas at all, but representations of dramas. I refer to drama as it occurs in our own lives, to every one of us, and in our daily experience. The only reason for our interest in reading or seeing stage plays is because they mirror the drama in which in real life we ourselves are the actors.
But the ceremony of Hiram Abiff is not only a drama, it is a ritualistic drama, and the major emphasis should be placed on the word `ritualistic'. What is a ritual ? It is a set of fixed ceremonies which address themselves to the human spirit solely through the imagination. A play in the theatre may be built round some historical figure or some historical event, as in the case of Shakespeare's plays about the English Kings and about Macbeth or Hamlet. And if the figures and events are not actually historical, they are supposed to be, so that the facts of time, THE MAKING OF A MASON 419 place and individual identity are of some importance to it. A ritualistic drama, on the other hand, does not pay any heed to historical individuals, times or places. It moves wholly in the realms of the spirit, where time, space and particular individuals are ignored. The clash of forces, the crises and fates of the human spirit alone enter into it, and they hold true of all men, everywhere, regardless of who they are, or where and when they are.
Since the Drama of Hiram Abiff is ritualistic, it is a mistake to accept it as history. There was a Hiram Abiff in history, but our Third Degree is not interested in him. Its sole concern is with a Hiram Abiff who is a symbol of the human soul, that is, its own Hiram Abiff. If, therefore, you have been troubled with the thought that some of the events of this Drama could not possibly have ever happened you can cease to be troubled. It is not meant that they ever happened in ancient history, but that they are symbols of what is happening in the life of every man.
For the same reason it is an inexcusable blunder to treat it as a mere mock tragedy. Savage peoples employ initiation ceremonies as an ordeal to test the nerve and courage of their young men, but Free masonry is not savage. Boys in school often employ ragging, which is horse‑play caricature of the savage ceremonial ordeals, but Freemasonry is not juvenile. The exemplification of our ritualistic drama is sincere, solemn, and earnest. He who takes it trivially betrays a shallowness of soul which makes him unfit ever to become a Mason.
Hiram Abiff is the acted symbol of the human soul, yours, mine, any man's. The work he was engaged to supervise is the symbol of the work you and I have in the supervision, organization and direction of our lives from birth to death. The enemies he met are none other than the symbols of those lusts and passions which in our own breasts, or in the breasts of others, make war on our characters and our lives. His fate is the same fate that befalls every man who becomes a victim to those enemies, to be interrupted in one's work, to be made outcast from the lordship (or mastership) over one's own self, and, at the end, to become buried under all manner of rubbish‑which means defeat, disgrace, misery, and scorn. The manner in which he was raised from that dead level to that living perpendicular again is the same manner by which any man, if it happens at all, rises from self‑defeat to selfmastery. And the Sovereign Great Architect, by the power of whose word Hiram Abiff was raised, is that same God in whose arms we ourselves forever he, and whose mighty help we also need to raise us out of the graves of defeat, or evil, and death itself.
Did you wonder, while taking part in that drama, why you were personally made to participate in it ? Why you were not permitted to 420 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES sit as a spectator? You were made to participate in order to impress upon you that it was your drama, not another's, there being exemplified. No man can be a mere spectator of that drama, because it takes place in his own soul. Likewise because it was intended that your participation should itself be an experience to prepare you for becoming a Master Mason, by teaching you the secret of a Master Mason, which is, that the soul must rise above its own internal enemies if ever a man is to be a Mason in reality as well as in name. The reality of being a Master Mason is nothing other than to be the Master of one's self.
Did you wonder why it was that the three enemies of Hiram Abiff came from his own circle and not from outside ? It is because the enemies to be most feared by the soul are always from within, and are nothing other than its own ignorance, lust, passions and sins. As the V.S.L. reminds us, it is not that which has power to kill the body that we need most to shun, but that which has power to destroy the spirit.
Did you wonder why it was that, after Hiram Abiff was slain, there was so much confusion in the Temple. It was because the Temple is the symbol of a man's character, and therefore breaks and falls when the soul, its architect, is rendered helpless. Because the Craftsmen are symbols of our powers and faculties and they fall into anarchy when not directed and commanded by the will at the centre of our being.
And did you wonder why the Lodge appeared to neglect to explain this ritualistic drama to you at the end of the Degree ? It was because it is impossible for one man to explain the Tragedy of Hiram Abiff to another. Each must learn it for himself; and the most we can obtain from others is just such hints and scattered suggestions as these I have given you. Print the story of Hiram Abiff indelibly upon your mind; ponder upon it; when you yourself are at grips with your enemies recall it and act accordingly to the light you find in it. By so doing you will find that your inner self will give in the form of first‑hand experience that which the drama gave you in the form of ritual. You will be wiser and stronger for having the guidance and the light the drama can give you." I do not for one moment disparage the work done by our Lodges of Instruction. Indeed, without them, our ceremonies might well deteriorate into a meaningless mumbo‑jumbo. If one had asked the late Professor Joad what was meant by a Lodge of Instruction I am pretty certain that he would have replied "It depends what you mean by instruction". As a general rule the word "instruction" has been construed by Lodges of Instruction to mean "instruction in the working of the ceremonies" rather than "instruction in the meaning of the ceremonies". It is in this latter connection that I feel sure we are not only neglecting our duty, but failing to grasp the opportunity offered in a Lodge of Instruction for the proper making of a Mason.
THE TRANSITION FROM OPERATIVE TO SPECULATIVE MASONRY (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1957) by BRO. HARRY CARR, L.G.R.
P.M. Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No. 2076 " . . . We are not operative, but free and accepted or speculative masons . . ." The implication of these words often passes unnoticed by those who hear them. In fact, they summarize practically the whole history of the craft, and they are a direct link between the present and the past. The story of the craft in Britain may be carried back safely to the middle of the 14th century, but the Freemasonry of today bears no resemblance to the craft organization of the 1300's. During those 600 years, under the play of industrial, social and economic influences, the craft has suffered enormous changes, and it is the sum total of those changes which makes up the story of the transition from operative to speculative masonry.
To tell the story in full detail is a well‑nigh impossible task. The masons in medieval England found their main employment at castles, abbeys, monasteries and churches, away from the large towns, usually under circum stances which were not conducive to any kind of municipal or gild controls. The Fabric Rolls and building accounts which survive, yield much information on wages and working conditions, etc., but virtually no evidence of a stable organization. Much of the early history of the craft is based upon brief scraps of evidence, valuable in themselves, but apparently unconnected with each other, like random pieces of a jig‑saw puzzle, and vital early records, which would have made the story clear, have now disappeared. As an example, the earliest surviving records of the London Masons' Company are dated 1620; yet there is definite proof that the Company was in existence in 1472, and a strong probability that the date may be carried back 100 years earlier still.
For all these reasons, the development of craft organization and the story of the "Transition" cannot be told as a straightforward continuous narrative, but rather as a series of glimpses of the craft in its different stages of growth and change. Happily, the story falls into two parts. In Scotland, where a number of early lodge records have miraculously survived, we are able to trace the changes more clearly and, despite important differences in 421 422 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES the development of the craft in the two countries, the Scottish records help to throw valuable light on English practice.
THE BEGINNINGS OF MASON CRAFT ORGANIZATION IN ENGLAND In 1356, following some unspecified disputes between the mason hewers and the "setters or layers" in London, twelve skilled masters, representing both branches of the craft, came before the Mayor and Aldermen and, with the sanction of the muncipal authorities, drew up a simple code of trade regulations.
The preamble to this early code states that: ". . . their trade has not been regulated in due manner by the government of folks of their trade, in such form as other trades are . . .", and although the text contains no elaborate machinery for government of the craft, such as we find in later codes, the appointment of sworn masters with special duties as overseers shows that this was the first attempt at some kind of craft (i.e. trade) organization. The full extent of this development is not clear at this stage, but twenty years later, in 1376, the Guildhall records show that the masons were now one of the 47 "sufficient misteries" of the City of London, when they were called upon to elect four men of the trade to serve on the Common Council, sworn to give counsel for the common weal, and "preserving for each mistery its reasonable customs".
No comparable mason regulations or records have been traced in Britain before the late 15th century, and we are therefore justified in dating the beginning of mason trade organization in England at some time between 1356 and 1376.
In 1389, there is a record of a bequest of 12d. to the `Fraternity of Masons, London,' and in a will dated 1418, a London mason made provision for a legacy of 6/8d...... to the fraternity of my art . . ." and bequeathed ". . . the livery cloak of my old and free mistery . . ." to a colleague. These two items are of interest as evidence of continuity, and there can be little doubt that the "Hole Crafte and felawship of Masons," which was given a Grant of Arms in 1472, was directly descended from the craft gild whose beginnings we have traced back to c. 1356.
In 1481 a new code of ordinances was published. The Fellowship had been a livery company since 1418 at least, and the new code included regulations for the livery, annual assemblies, election of wardens with powers of search for false work, restrictions against outsiders or `foreigners', payment of quarterages, and the maintenance of a `Common Box'; in fact, all the machinery of management for an established craft gild.
Apprentices were `presented' and booked in the Company's records at the beginning of their terms of service; in some trades, apprentices were `sworn', and that may have been customary among masons too. Access to the freedom was a matter of right for those who had completed their terms, THE TRANSITION 423 and time‑served men were presented before the `Wardens' of the Company and by them `enabled', i.e. examined and certified as craftsmen sufficiently skilled to set up as masters. New freemen took an oath of loyalty to the trade, the town and the Crown, but there is no evidence at this time of any kind of secrets, or degrees, or lodge, in connection with the London Masons' Company; it was purely a trade organization.
At Norwich there is evidence of some kind of craft organization amongst masons during the 15th century, but elsewhere in the provinces there are no craft gild ordinances until the 16th century and even these are so rare as to suggest that the conditions of their employment prevented the masons from setting up the normal type of gild organization which exercised its powers under municipal sanction.
THE LODGE In its primary masonic sense, the word `lodge' appears in documents of the 13th century and later, to describe the workshop or hut, common to all sizable building works, in which the masons worked, stored their tools, ate their meals and rested.
In those places where building works were continuously in progress the lodge acquired a more permanent character. At York Minster, in 1370, an elaborate code of ordinances was drawn up by the Chapter regulating times of work and refreshment in the `lodge', etc., and new men were sworn to obey the regulations, and not to depart from the work without leave. Probably it was this continuity of employment in one place which gave rise to an extended meaning of `the lodge' so that it began to imply a group of masons permanently attached to a particular undertaking. Thus, at Canterbury, in 1429, we find reference in the Prior's accounts to the `masons of the lodge', (lathami de la Loygge) with lists of their names, but no regulations for this particular body have survived.
Generally, it would appear that these and similar groups of `attached' masons, which zre known to have existed in the middle ages, were wholly under the control of the authorities whom they served. There is no evidence that they exercised any trade controls; they were governed, not governing bodies. The question whether such groups of `attached' masons might have tended to form themselves into lodges (in our modem sense) is discussed more fully below.
The word `lodge' appears in a third, and much more advanced sense, in Scotland in the 16th century, where it used to describe the working masons of a particular town or district, organized to regulate the affairs of their trade, and having jurisdiction usually within town or city limits, but occasionally over a wider area. In their earliest form these lodges, best described as operative lodges, were intended primarily for purposes of trade control, and for the protection of the masters and craftsmen who came under their jurisdiction; and, in these functions, the aims of the operative lodge were broadly 424 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES similar to those of the trade companies, such as the London Masons' Company, described above.
There was one peculiarity, however, which distinguished these lodges from the craft gilds or companies; the members of these lodges shared a secret mode of recognition, which was communicated to them in the course of some sort of brief admission ceremony, under an oath of secrecy. In Scotland this system of recognition was generally known as `the Mason Word', and there is good reason to believe that it consisted of something more than a mere verbal means of identification.
The `Mason Word' as an operative institution probably came into use in the mid‑16th century; and there are a number of references to it in documents from 1637 onwards, sufficient to show that its existence was already fairly widely known in Scotland (where several operative lodges can be traced to the 16th century). In England there is no evidence of any similar organization amongst operative masons until the early 18th century.
Throughout the remainder of this essay, unless there is some special qualifying note in the text, the word `lodge' is to be defined as an association of masons (operative or otherwise) who are bound together for their common good, and who share a secret mode of recognition to which they are sworn on admission.
.THE MS. CONSTITUTIONS Our next evidence of development in mason craft organization in England, is derived from the MS. Constitutions, a collection of some 130 texts, beginning c. 1390 and running right through to the 18th century. Many of them are closely related to each other, and it is possible to group them into some eight distinct `families', with a number of unclassified versions. Their general pattern, however, is the same all through, and broadly speaking they each consist of two parts: (a) A `fabricated history' of the mason craft, in which various biblical and historical characters are all supposed to have had a great love for masons and for the `science' of masonry. Many of these characters gave the masons `charges', and the history purports to show how the `science' was handed down until it was finally estab lished in England. It is probable that this `history' was compiled in order to provide a kind of traditional background for long‑standing craft customs that were embodied in the texts.
(b) A code of regulations for masters, fellows (i.e. qualified craftsmen), and apprentices. The texts usually contain vague arrangements for large‑scale `assemblies' of masons, implying a widespread territorial organization; but there is no evidence at all to show whether any such assemblies took place.
Some of the texts contain substantial additions and variations which need not concern us for the present. The two earliest versions are the Regius MS. c. 1390 and the Cooke MS. c. 1410, and the latter contains textual evidence THE TRANSITION 425 which suggests that its regulations may have been copied from an `original' text of the 1350's.
The regulations are addressed separately to masters and fellows. Many of them are normal craft regulations such as we find in contemporary codes belonging to other trades. Where they relate to apprentices, they are usually identical with the kind of conditions that were customarily embodied in apprentices' indentures. Despite these similarities, however, it is important to stress that the regulations in the MS. Constitutions are not gild ordinances, because they lack certain provisions which were an essential feature of all such codes, i.e.: (a) Arrangements for election of administrative officers and overseers with powers of `search'.
(b) Arrangements for annual assembly (and other meetings at specified dates).
(c) Sanction of the municipal authorities, which gave craft ordinances the force of law.
One other feature distinguishes the MS. Constitutions or `Ancient Charges' from the normal codes of medieval craft ordinances, i.e. the inclusion of a number of items in the regulations which were not trade matters at all, but designed to preserve and elevate the moral character of the craftsmen. It is this extraordinary combination of `history', trade and moral regulations which makes these early MSS. unique among contemporary craft documents.
THE MS. CONSTITUTIONS IN USE We have already noted that the texts lack certain distinguishing features which would characterize normal codes of gild ordinances. In addition to this negative evidence, there are passages in the texts which indicate that the documents were not, originally, designed for use by established bodies of masons permanently located in towns or cities. The infrequent references to `the lodge' are almost certainly intended to mean `workshop'; the instruction to the steward that all craftsmen were to be served willingly, and to be charged equally for their food; the instruction to the warden to mediate fairly between masters and fellows; all these points suggest that the documents were primarily intended for those semi‑permanent groups of masons who were brought together for a time in the course of their work, and who were, for that very reason, out of reach of established trade organizations in the towns.
At the building of Eton College, c. 1440‑1460, and many other great undertakings in the 13th ‑ 16th centuries where records survive, it is evident that large numbers of masons were in continuous employment for years on end, and the MS. Constitutions may well have been designed for use by such groups. It is equally possible that the documents were used by masons attached to ecclesiastical undertakings such as those at York and Canterbury (mentioned above) where, despite proximity to the towns, the masons came wholly under the control of the Church authorities.
426 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES It is impossible now to say whether any of these semi‑permanent groups of masons did in fact form themselves into lodges. The existence of such lodges in England at any time before the 17th century is a matter of pure speculation, for there is no evidence by which we could prove that they existed. Yet we may envisage the possibility that, in places where there was no kind of trade gild or fellowship, lodges would arise to serve the masons as places of meeting and recreation, where they could discuss trade matters, air their grievances, and settle their disputes. It would be under precisely such conditions that we might expect to see the rise of the English operative lodges. The texts of the Old Charges invariably make provision for an oath of obedience to be taken by new men `that were never charged before'. This implies some kind of `admission ceremony' for newcomers. It must have been a very brief affair consisting of a recital of the opening prayer with which all versions of the MS. Constitutions begin, followed by the oath, and a reading of the appropriate `charges' or regulations, i.e. a procedure roughly similar to that for admission into a craft company or fellowship.
In some of the later texts, however (and in other contemporary documents) we find evidence of some kind of secret bond, `words and signes' to which the newcomers were sworn, implying that the MS. Constitutions were indeed used in operative `lodges'.
THE EARLIEST OPERATIVE LODGES IN ENGLAND In England, the Lodge of Alnwick (Northumberland) is the earliest operative lodge whose records survive. They begin with a curious code of operative and `moral' regulations drawn up in 1701, followed by the minutes up to 1757. There is nothing in the text to indicate whether the lodge was newly erected in 1701, or if it had been in existence before that time. So far as can be ascertained, all the men who were admitted during the period of its earliest records were operative masons.
Although they styled themselves "The Company and Fellowship of Free Masons," they met as a lodge, made operative regulations, "admitted masons,", and made them "free". Apprentices were `given their charge' at the time of their entry, and as we know that the lodge possessed a copy of the MS. Constitutions, we may assume that some part of their ceremonial was based upon a reading of the Charges. The minutes, however, yield no evidence on the subject of ceremonies.
The records of early operative lodges in England are so scarce that it would have been difficult to say whether the Alnwick Lodge is to be considered typical. Fortunately, the minutes survive of another operative lodge, at Swalwelll in Durham, and their general contents are sufficiently similar to those of Alnwick to confirm that these lodges are indeed representative of their time.
1 The earliest minute is dated 1725, but there is little doubt that the Lodge had been in existence before this date.
THE TRANSITION 427 In so far as we can compare them with the Scottish operative lodges of a hundred years earlier, they appear to have performed similar functions, and although these two English lodges are comparatively late, we may, with due caution, take them as examples of the type of operative lodge that might have existed in England in the 16th century, if not before.
At the time of their earliest surviving records, both Alnwick and Swalwell apparently had one rare characteristic in common, i.e. they were purely operative lodges; so far as can be ascertained, there is no evidence to show that either of them had any non‑operative members at this stage.
I have been at some pains to establish the probable nature of the earliest English operative lodges, because a starting point‑even a hypothetical oneis essential, if we are to assess the extent of the changes which were involved in the transition from operative to speculative masonry.
LODGES IN COURSE OF TRANSITION `PRIMARILY OPERATIVE LODGES' The earliest evidence as to lodges in the transition stage appears in Scotland, where lodges which were purely operative in character began to admit non‑operatives (that is to say men who had no connection with the trade at all) as members. They were usually drawn from the local gentry, and occasionally distinguished visitors to the district were also admitted. Generally their status in the lodges was that of honoured guests, and there is no reason to believe that their coming had any immediate effect on the functions or the character of the lodges. (There is good evidence, however, that the admission‑ceremonies were somewhat modified for their benefit.) At first, admissions of non‑operatives were very rare. At a meeting of the Lodge of Edinburgh (Mary's Chapel) in 1600, John Boswell of Auchinleck signed the minutes with twelve operative masons'; but there are no records of non‑operative admissions into the lodge until 1634; and the minute‑book gives us all the information we need to enable us to compare the steady admission of working masons with the infrequent records of non‑operative entrants.
Despite its non‑operative members, the lodge continued to exercise its functions as an operative lodge right up to the 1700's, making trade regulations for apprentices, journeymen and masters, collecting quarterages and punishing offenders.
At Aitchison's Haven, where lodge minutes begin in 1598, there are records of non‑operative admissions in 1672, 1677 and 1693; at Kilwinning (minutes from 1642) there are several records of admissions of nobility and gentry from 1672 onwards. At Aberdeen, where the earliest surviving lodge records are dated 1670, a list of members shows that there were 10 operative 1 There is some doubt as to whether this was a normal Lodge meeting; it was in fact a trial of the Warden of the Lodge, for a Masonic offence.
428 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES master‑masons or fellowcrafts on the roll, against 39 non‑operatives drawn from the nobility and gentry, professional men, merchants, and tradesmen. Like Mary's Chapel all these lodges were still conducting themselves as operative lodges, though there can be little doubt that the Lodge of Aberdeen was already substantially affected by its overwhelming non‑operative membership. Indeed in 1670 it made special regulations for its non‑operative members; the lodge was beginning to change its character.
Such lodges as these, during the transition stage, may well be described as 'primarily‑operative lodges'.
NON‑OPERATIVE LODGES AND ACCEPTED MASONS In England another stage in the transition appears in the 17th century when we find the first evidence relating to lodges which had nothing to do with the mason‑trade at all‑purely non‑operative lodges.
Perhaps the most interesting of these was the lodge which arose in connection with the London Masons' Company. The Company's early records are lost, but an old account‑book survives with entries from 1620. At that time it was a trade‑controlling body, governed by a Master and Warden with a Court of Assistants. Apprentices to the trade, having completed their terms, took up their freedom, paid various fees amounting to 23/10d. in all and came `on the Yeomanry'; in due course they paid a further ú9 and were advanced to `the Livery'; and, apart from its Officers, the whole of the Company's membership was made up of these two grades.
The first hint of a lodge in connection with this purely trade organization appears in the Company's accounts for 1621: "At the making Masons, viz. John Hince, John Browne; Rowland Everett, Evan Lloyde, James French, John Clarke, Thomas Rose. Rd. of them as apereth by the Quartge booke‑ . . . ix L vjs. viijd.." i.e. an entry for ú9.6.8. received from these men, showing an average of 26/8d. from each.
At first glance it might appear that they were paying some part of their Company‑fees, but the accounts (for 1620) show that three of them were already on the Livery, and another had been on the Yeomanry for seven years at least. All these men had been masons by trade for years, and it is clear that this business of `making Masons' was something quite separate from normal trade routine.
Membership of this separate body was open to the Yeomanry and the Livery, but it was purely optional, and there were working masons of both grades in the Company who were never `made masons' in this special sense. On the other hand, the records reveal that a number of men were `made masons' who were not members of the Company at all, and who in fact were not connected with the mason trade in any way! THE TRANSITION 429 It was perhaps for these entrants from outside the trade that the word `accepted' came to be used. It appears first in some special sense in 1631 when the accounts show that 6/6d. was paid ". . . in goeing abroad and att a meeteing att the hall about ye Masons yt were to bee accepted." In 1650 an entry shows two men paying the balance of their `fines' ". . . for coming on the Liuerie and admission uppon Acceptance of Masonry".
The Acception then cost 20/‑; and later, two strangers who had no connection with the Company paid 40/‑ each for "coming on the accepcon". It should be stressed that when they joined the Acception these two had been `made masons' but they still had nothing to do with the Masons' Company, and for that reason they paid twice the normal fee.' As to what was understood by this business of becoming an Accepted Mason, we have the evidence of Dr. Plot in his Natural History of Staffordshire which was written in 1686. After stating that one of the customs of the county was that of admitting men into the Society of Free‑Masons, a custom spread more‑or‑less all over the Nation, he adds that "persons of the most eminent quality ... did not disdain to be of this Fellowship". Plot's description of the admission ceremony and of the purpose of the Society is very brief. ". . . they proceed to the admission of them, which chiefly consists in the communication of certain secret signs, whereby they are known to one another all over the Nation, by which means they have maintenance whither ever they travel: for if any man appear though altogether unknown that can shew any of these signes to a Fellow of the Society, whom they otherwise call an accepted mason, he is obliged presently to come to him ... if he want work he is bound to find him some; or if he cannot doe that, to give him mony, or otherwise support him till work can be had; which is one of their Articles . . ." Plot has more to say about the Free‑Masons, but the extracts above, with other scraps of contemporary information help to show what the `Accepcon' was doing. It was a Society for `making Masons', an adjunct of the London Masons' Company. It made `accepted Masons' out of men who were already masons by trade and members of the Company; it also made `accepted masons' out of men who had no connection with either the trade or the Company.
Financially, the `Accepcon' was in the Company's pocket, and its whole income from admission‑fees went into the Company's coffers; but from first to last it had no connection with trade affairs. The accounts suggest that its meetings were infrequent, but we cannot be sure of this. The Company's 1 Under precise definition the title "Accepted Masons" is used for men admitted into the "acception" or into wholly non‑operative lodges; the title non‑operative masons is reserved for those gentry, etc., unconnected with the mason trade, who were admitted into operative lodges.
430 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES accounts are void of all reference to entertainment expenses for the `Accepcon' which implies that such charges were defrayed by a whip‑round or `club'. In that case it is possible that meetings were held at frequent or regular intervals, and only admissions were rare.
How long the `Accepcon' had been in existence before 1620 is a matter of pure speculation. As late as 1677 a minute in the Court Books of the Company ordered the disposal of ú6...... which was left of the last accepted masons money . . ." and Ashmole visited the Lodge in 1682, showing that the `Accepcon' had a continuous and lengthy (if erratic) existence, and may well have served as a pattern for similar organizations elsewhere.' A point of major importance, which seems to have escaped notice, is that the Company and the `Accepcon' jointly were exercising practically the same functions as those `primarily operative lodges' (described ante) of which we have several contemporary examples in Scotland. It seems highly probable that the London organization in two parts and the Scottish Lodge in its `merged' form represent two alternative lines of development.
Early evidence relating to other non‑operative lodges is very scarce. One of the best known cases was the meeting held on the 16th October, 1646, at Warrington, at which Elias Ashmole and another gentleman were made Free‑Masons. The lodge on this occasion consisted of only seven men who were apparently all non‑operatives. Apart from the brief reference to this meeting in Ashmole's diary, all contemporary records of this lodge have disappeared. The fact that Ashmole described one of the gentlemen as `warden', suggests that this was an established lodge, having a continuous existence; but we must envisage the possibility that it was an `occasional' lodge, i.e., an assembly of 5 or 6 masons, met by inherent right, for the purpose of admitting new masons, and then disbanding without further trace.2 Among the collected papers of the third Randle Holme there is a page of notes giving evidence of the existence of a non‑operative lodge at Chester c. 1672‑1675. It had some 26 members at least (including Holme himself) mainly belonging to the building trades, but there were other tradesmen, and merchants and gentlemen as well. Little is known of the Lodge at that time, but the fact that all the members appear to have been Chester men, with Holme's known interest in the Fellowship of the Masons, suggests that this was a `continuous' non‑operative lodge whose records are now lost.
There are records of a non‑operative lodge at York, with details of admissions from 1712. The gentry were strongly represented in its membership, and Francis Drake in a speech to the Lodge in 1726, addressed himself I Meekren, Grand Lodge, A.Q.C. 69, is inclined to treat the `Accepcon' as a series of `ad hoc' or occasional lodges, but this view does not seem to give due weight to the records.
2 In Scotland, 'out‑entries' of this sort were not uncommon, and quite legal so long as they were duly reported to the lodge and the requisite fees were paid. In England the New Articles, c. 1660, seem to have permitted such `makings', subject to the presence of an officer of the lodge of that locality, with at least one operative mason.
THE TRANSITION 431 to the `working masons', men of other trades and the gentry, indicating a mixed membership similar to that at Chester.
Unfortunately, we know nothing about the beginnings of all these Lodges, and we cannot be sure whether they were operative or non‑operative in origin, or how far they had changed, before they make their first appearance in our old records. In Scotland, in 1702, a new Lodge was founded at Haughfoot (near Galashiels) and it occupies a unique place in the history of the transition for it was the first wholly non‑operative Lodge, non‑operative at its foundation, and throughout its existence.
THE STAGES IN THE TRANSITION In the preceding pages I have sketched very briefly the evolution of mason trade and lodge organization up to the stage at which the lodges were beginning to lose their strictly operative purpose. Conditions were not uniform everywhere, and the lines of development varied considerably in different places but, so far as we can follow the stages generally, their sequence seems to have been as follows: (1) The formation of trade organizations.
(2) The evolution of operative lodges in places where there were no official trade organizations. These might have been contemporaneous with (1). (3) The evolution of lodges as adjuncts to trade organizations, e.g., the `Accepcon', but primarily for men of the trade.
(4) The admission of non‑operatives into lodges like the `Accepcon'.
(5) The transition from wholly operative to non‑operative status, by an actual change in the character and composition of the lodge. There were two contributory causes: (a) diminishing powers of trade control; (b) the admission of non‑operatives.
(6) The rise of wholly non‑operative lodges, having secret `words and signes', but being mainly associations for social and convivial purposes. (7) In the eighteenth century, the rise of the `speculative' influence in the lodges, and the gradual evolution of `speculative' freemasonry.
In Scotland, perhaps because of the close connection between the crafts organizations and the municipal authorities, the minute‑books of several old lodges survive, and it is possible to trace the various stages in the transition, as recorded by the participants. Perhaps the best example for our purpose is the Lodge of Edinburgh (Mary's Chapel), whose minutes run, virtually unbroken, from 1599 to the present day.
THE REASONS FOR THE TRANSITION THE TRANSITION IN EDINBURGH When Boswell of Auchinleck signed the minute‑book of the Lodge of Edinburgh in 1600, he may have been a casual visitor, since there is no record of his admission as a member, and he never signed again.
432 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Apart from this solitary signature, the minutes show that Mary's Chapel was exercising its functions as a purely operative lodge at this time, and until 1634, when several non‑operatives were admitted. The attendance records of these and later non‑operatives indicate that their interest in the lodge was of brief duration; they were present at a few meetings and then disappeared. This implies that they probably played no part in any structural changes in the character of the lodge, although we know that the admissionceremonies were modified for their benefit.
At no time during the 17th century was the non‑operative membership high enough to `swamp' the lodge, and there is absolutely no evidence to suggest that they were trying to make any changes. On the contrary, there is good evidence to show that the changes were largely due to economic causes.
The first evidence of decline appears c. 1650 when the town records reveal that a large proportion of the apprentices who were being entered in the lodge had never been `Booked' in the Register of Apprentices. This is even more noticeable in the period 1671‑1690 when there was an enorm~,us increase in the number of apprentices `entered' in the lodge without any corresponding rise in `Bookings'. Municipal regulations required all apprentices to be `Booked' as an essential preliminary to their ultimate freedom, and the frequent breaches of this rule indicate that craftsmen were able to find ample employment outside the jurisdiction of the town.
During the same period 1671‑1690 the Lodge records show a marked reluctance on the part of its 'entered‑apprentices' to take on their full responsibilities as craftsmen, by passing as Fellow‑Crafts. In 1674, following a series of disastrous fires, the Edinburgh Council ordered that all ruined buildings should be rebuilt in stone. As a result, there was plenty of work available, and apprentices who had finished their terms of service were able to make a living as journeymen, without having to bear the financial burdens of becoming 'Fellow‑craft or Master'. In effect, the Lodge was losing men who should have been its `full members', and who were its main source of income.
In 1681, the Lodge ordained that any master who employed E.As. who remained `unpassed' for more than two years after they had completed their terms of service, was to pay a fine of 20/‑ per day, a very stiff penalty. This, and similar edicts in the succeeding years, helped to check the decline. But the whole idea of compulsory passing was out of keeping with the basis of craft organization, which had centred on the principle of trained apprentices earning their promotion to the rank of F.C. by proving their qualifications in an essay, or test of practical skill. If entered apprentices were compelled to pass F.C. within two years of their discharge, there could be no question of a real qualifying test. From about this time, the 1680's, we may date the gradual change in the character of the Lodge, from a 'closed‑shop' association THE TRANSITION 433 of skilled craftsmen to a trade association of `members', i.e., a society in which actual numbers And Lodge income were to become more important than technical skill.
There were many other difficulties with which the Lodge had to contend. From 1673 onwards, the minutes show that the Edinburgh masons were greatly troubled by the intrusion of itinerant labour from outside the city. Severe penalties were ordained against masters who employed these `inhibited men' but with little avail.
In 1677 a new Lodge was founded in the Canongate, which was a separate burgh adjoining the eastern part of the city of Edinburgh. The Canongate had had its own Incorporation of Wrights, Coopers, and Masons, since 1585, and the new Lodge' was outside the jurisdiction of the Lodge of Edinburgh. In 1688 yet another Lodge was founded, this time by masons seceding from Mary's Chapel.2 Despite protests and the threat of penalties, only one of the seceders ever returned to Mary's Chapel, and the new Lodge continued to flourish. The enormity of this blow can only be judged when we remember that up to this time every operative lodge was the lodge of its own district, and had full control over all the masons in its own area. No operative lodge could function properly if it had a rival in its own territory, and the very existence of these rivals was proof that Mary's Chapel was losing the strong local trade control which it had formerly exercised.
In 1682, the Lodge of Edinburgh ordained that a fee of 12/‑ per annum was to be paid by all journeymen‑masons who did not belong to the Lodge, the income to be used for benevolent purposes and, from 1688 onwards, the minutes reveal an ever‑increasing interest in financial matters, with much time devoted to the lending of idle money, collection of debts and inspection of accounts. The Lodge was acquiring some of the characteristics of a benefit society.
In 1708 the Lodge ran into difficulties again, this time with its own journeymen who complained that they had not got a proper oversight of the Lodge accounts and funds. It was a prolonged dispute which ended in the Law Courts in 1715, when the journeymen won the right to maintain a Lodge that they had set up in Edinburgh and to confer the Mason‑Word3. This was yet another blow to the power and status of the mother Lodge; but the final stage in the transition was still to come.
In December, 1726, one of the members, James Mack, reported that a number of `creditable tradesmen' in the city were anxious to join the Lodge, and were each of them willing to give a `guinea in gold for the use of the poor'. The proposed candidates were all men from other trades, and although the golden guineas were very tempting, the diehard operatives in the Lodge rejected the proposal.
1 Now Canongate Kilwinning, No. 2, S.C.
2 Now Canongate and Leith, Leith and Canongate, No. 5, S.C. 3 Now The Lodge of Journeymen, No. 8, S.C.
A month later, Mack returned to the attack at a meeting of seven masters (mainly friends of his) which he had apparently called without permission of the Master of the Lodge. The question of the proposed admissions was reopened, and there was a thundering row. The Master and Warden `walked out', and the remaining five proceeded to elect new officers, choosing Mack as `preses' or Master. The Lodge then admitted the Deacon of the Wrights as a joining F.C.; three 'entered‑apprentices' from other lodges, all non‑operative, were admitted and passed F.C.; and seven burgesses, none of them masons, were received `entered apprentices and fellow crafts'.' In February 1727 another eight non‑operatives were admitted, and the operative character of the Lodge was completely lost. The extent of the change may be judged from the fact that in 1736, when the Lodge compiled its first code of Bye‑laws, not one single regulation was made which concerned the mason trade. At the Lodge of Edinburgh, Mary's Chapel, the transition was virtually complete! THE TRANSITION IN ENGLAND In the few Scottish lodges where adequate records survive,2 the changes followed much the same pattern as at Mary's Chapel, and generally it is clear that the main reasons for the changes were purely economic. The rapid growth of the towns, and the ability of craftsmen to find employment readily outside the jurisdiction of Lodge and Incorporation, led to a decline in the trade‑controlling powers of the lodges, so that the lodges began to pay more attention to social and charitable works than to their old functions of trade control. The unrestricted admission of non‑operatives was an additional factor in helping to develop the social and convivial aspects of the lodges which, when their trade functions had faded altogether, were ready for those `speculative' influences which began, very gradually, to come in.
In England, however, the reasons for the changes are not so easily explained, chiefly because of the absence of early lodge records.
We premise that here, as in Scotland, the purest or most perfect type of operative lodge combined two functions, i.e., trade control, and the communication of `secrets'. Thus we may treat the Lodges at Alnwick and Mary's Chapel as virtually identical organizations; and the London Masons' Company in conjunction with the `Accepcon' as a similar type of organization at a different stage of development.
There is no evidence that the Acception had been a part of the London Masons' Company in the earlier stages of the Company's history. On the contrary, the manner in which Acception items appear in the Company's 1 These men of other trades who received both degrees in one evening, were treated much better than the masons themselves, who had to wait approx. 7 years between the grades of 'Entered‑Apprentice' and `Fellow Craft'.
2 e.g., Mother Kilwinning, No. 0 and Aberdeen, No. 13.
THE TRANSITION 435 account‑book suggests that it was a sort of side‑line probably intended at first for members of the Company alone.' Next we observe that the Acception was beginning to admit nonoperatives, though their fees still went into the Company's box. Unlike the arrangements in the Scottish lodges, the situation here was such that when economic pressures began to play a part, it was the Trade Company that was affected, while the Acception probably remained untouched.
As regards English masons, the strongest economic forces came into play after the Great Fire of London, in 1666, when it became necessary to encourage alien and `foreign' builders from outside London to come into the city. All sorts of privileges were offered to newcomers. The old restrictions against `intruders' and the customary requirements in regard to apprenticeship and `freedom' were all discarded. All incoming labourers in the building trades were to have the same rights as full freemen of the Crafts for seven years (and more if necessary), until the city was rebuilt. By this act of 1667 Parliament practically deprived the London Masons' Company of its chief trade‑controlling powers.
From about this time we may date the multiplication of lodges in London, for there can be little doubt that the immigrants brought their own particular customs and practices. It may be from this period that we can date the curious mixture of Scottish and English practices which appear to have been embodied in early versions of the masonic ritual.
It may be noted that whatever lodges there were in London at that time (including the Acception) were practically void of any real connection with trade affairs. Just as the rapid growth of Edinburgh had brought about a diminution in the trade‑controlling powers of Mary's Chapel, so in London the urgent need for builders had deprived the Masons' Company of its influence; and the lodges, ephemeral at first, and having no anchorage in the way of trade functions, tended to become mere social and convivial clubs of masons, of mixed membership,2 still practising the procedure of `making masons', but with little or no interest in the trade. Unfortunately, no records survive of these early lodges save those relating to the four (at least) which were in existence in London when the first Grand Lodge was founded in 1717.
THE SOCIAL OR CONVIVIAL PHASE Feasting and drinking was no novelty in masonic life, and the term `convivial masonry' (for lack of a better description) does not imply a decadent period in craft history. In the days of the earliest social and religious gilds and later in the trade gilds and livery companies, ale‑drinkings, dinners and feasts were an important adjunct to the regular business of each meeting.
1 If we take the alternative possibility that the `Accepcon' had always been a part of the Company, there is no doubt that it had been detached from its `parent' before 1620, though it still remained under parental control.
2 i.e., Operative and non‑operative.
436 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES At Edinburgh in the late 15th century there are many records of new burgesses paying for their freedom with `spices and wine', i.e., a banquet, and in England the records of the trade companies in all the larger cities show that the provision of a breakfast, dinner or banquet was one of the recognized expenses of the freedom. In Scotland generally there are numerous regulations as to the banquets to be provided by masons when they became fellowsof‑craft, and occasionally by apprentices at their `entry', and it is probable that similar practices were customary amongst English masons.
The Scottish lodge minutes show that with the gradual diminution of their authority and power in trade matters, the lodges began to acquire the characteristics of social and benevolent clubs, collecting funds for their `poor', lending money at interest, and meeting annually (if not more frequently) for their feasts. Despite the lack of records, there can be no doubt that English operative masonry followed a somewhat similar pattern in the course of the transition.
It is impossible to date this phase of convivial masonry with any degree of accuracy. We must first of all discard our present‑day notion of all lodges under the control of a Grand Lodge, all working under the same regulations, and all practising the same rites. Up to the late 17th century each lodge was virtually a law unto itself; generally it made its own regulations, and it was subject only to the changing conditions of the trade in its own locality.
For these reasons the symptoms of decline and change did not make their appearance simultaneously. In England the evolution of `convivial masonry' probably began in the early 17th century and the Acception in the 1620's may be a good example of this type of Lodge without any operative "raison d'etre".1 In Scotland, where the lodges generally were still exercising operative controls in the late 17th century the convivial phase seems to have begun about that time, but the whole business was a very gradual one. The lodges, slowly bereft of their original purpose and functions, and having no specific aims, continued as social clubs throughout a period of decline, until the Speculative renaissance gave them a new sense of direction.
THE ADVENT OF SPECULATIVE MASONRY In the course of this essay, some care has been taken to avoid the use of the adjective `speculative' in relation either to lodges or their members. In our present‑day sense of the word as applied to the craft, it means `a peculiar system of morality, veiled in allegory, and illustrated by symbols'. If this definition be strictly applied, it is highly improbable that the word 'speculative' could be used in relation to any of the 17th century lodges, either in England or Scotland.
The advent of `Speculative' masonry is a problem directly connected with the subject of early masonic ritual. The origins or sources of the ritual 1 At Alnwick the date might be a hundred years later.
THE TRANSITION 437 are unknown. We assume that at some early date, perhaps before the 14th century, the masons as a craft possessed a body of customs, craft‑lore and `secrets', from which the earliest elementary masonic ceremonies ultimately evolved. We cannot say whether these ceremonial practices had developed before the beginnings of mason craft organization, but there is little doubt that they were known in Scotland before 1600, and in England before 1620.
Our earliest evidence as to the actual contents of the craft ritual is drawn from a series of masonic aide‑memoires compiled c. 1696‑1700, all having a distinctly Scottish flavour. Despite their dubious origin it is probable that these texts do represent the ceremonies as practised at that time, and perhaps even a century earlier. They depict a rite of two degrees, `entered apprentice', and `fellow craft or master', each containing an obligation, entrusting with `secrets' and a series of questions and answers. The texts contain nothing that might be described as speculative masonry, and on these documents alone there would be no grounds to infer that they are the same ceremonies as were practised in England generally, or in the London Acception. Indeed, there is good reason to believe that the latter conferred only one degree which gave the entrant the status of `Fellow'.
Nevertheless, it seems likely that both English and Scottish ritual drew their inspiration from the same sources. There is a whole series of later texts c. 1700‑1730, including several of non‑Scottish origin, and it is possible to trace in them a nucleus of ritual that seems to have been common to both countries. This nucleus of `catechism and esoteric matter' was probably the basis of the masonic ceremonies throughout the stages of operative, non‑operative and accepted masonry.
Since we cannot set a precise date to the period of so‑called `convivial' masonry, which preceded the speculative reformation, the next question arises, `When and how did the reformation begin?' In Scotland, the trade functions of the lodges helped to prevent any rapid changes, and it is possible that there were no real speculative developments until the 1730's. In all Scottish lodges where early minutes survive, this reluctance to change is a marked characteristic. The same is true of Alnwick, where the Lodge functioned as an operative lodge until 1748, when it was virtually re‑constituted as a speculative body.
In England, it seems likely that the changes began in the Acception, which was (so far as is known) the only Lodge completely void of any trade functions, and it was perhaps the first lodge in England to admit non‑operative masons. If it did in fact practise a ceremony related to the `nucleus', we know that the questions and answers, very simple in themselves, were such as would lend themselves readily to speculative expansion.
In this connection, we have to consider the kind of men who were beginning to take an interest in the society. As early as 1646, when Ashmole was made a Freemason in a Lodge composed mainly of gentlemen‑masons, 438 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES the craft in England was already attracting men of quality and learning;l indeed all the 17th century commentators on the craft confirm this, either directly or by implication.
The reasons for this widespread interest are not known, but if the gentry were seeking anything more than mere companionship and conviviality they must have been sadly disappointed. The `words and signes', which had formed an additional bond for men already united in service to an ancient craft, must have been almost meaningless when they were divorced from their operative roots and purposes.
We can only speculate as to whether these 17th century accepted (or non‑operative) masons were in any way responsible for the changes which subsequently arose in the ritual practices, and in the aims of the craft. At the end of the century, however, and in the first two decades of the 18th century, there was another revival of interest in the craft, which resulted in the formation of the first Grand Lodge. Its original and expressed objects were very modest, i.e., to constitute an organization under a Grand Master, to revive (?) or hold Quarterly Communications and an annual feast. The new body apparently neither claimed nor hoped for any wider jurisdiction than the few lodges in London and Westminster. But within a few years the Grand Lodge had gained adherents far and wide and the men who were in the forefront of that movement had the requisite machinery to hand for propagating the ideas and ideals which were at the very root of the speculative transformation.
The earliest evidence from which we can infer some kind of modification of the ceremonies appears in Scotland in the 1600's,2 and it was a change which could never have come naturally in a purely operative lodge. We have no textural evidence of subsequent changes until the eighteenth century. In these later texts, side by side with the evidence of rearrangement, we also find a certain amount of speculative expansion, innovation and embellishment which gives some sort of hint of what was taking place.
Undoubtedly, the formation of the Grand Lodge in 1717 was a decisive step towards the speculative revival, but it was a slow process. The convivial phase did not disappear instantly; indeed smoking and drinking inside the lodge were quite customary throughout the eighteenth century.
But a new meaning and purpose were given to the ceremonies as the Craft gradually emerged from its aimless phase. From about 1730, largely as a result of the publication of `Exposures', there is evidence of a certain amount of standardization of the ritual, but it was not until the 1760's and 1770's that the Craft at last began to acquire that unique combination of symbolism with the teaching of religious and moral principles, which have helped to make it a real "centre of union between good men and true".
1 In Scotland the process had begun even earlier.
2 Non‑operatives were apparently admitted by some sort of `combined' ceremony, in which they passed the grades of E.A. and F.C. in a single session, whereas masons usually waited 7 years between the two stages.
THE YEARS OF DEVELOPMENT (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1958) by BRO. NORMAN ROGERS, M.com., P.G.D.
P.M., Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No. 2076 It is now generally agreed among Masonic students that, while the beginnings of the Society are lost in the mists of time, and its transition from an Operative origin is the result of rational thought among our forbears, yet its true foundation on a Speculative basis was through the institution of the Grand Lodge of England in 1717‑the "Mother Grand Lodge of the World". For many years after that date, the Operative element, which previously had absorbed some Speculative or Accepted members, still per sisted; then, gradually, the Craft became welded into a firm Speculative organization, despite many attacks and would‑be Exposures.
Born as a puny infant in 1717, with four lodges (or six'), the original Grand Lodge came to maturity during the next forty years or so, devoting its energies to strengthening its organization and control; it resisted many attacks from without (which really culminated in the publishing of Prichard's Masonry Dissected in 1730), and gradually eliminated most of the independent lodges which had not come under its sway, some ceasing to work and others joining the new Grand Lodge. Yet it had its trials and tribulations during these years, as for instance from 1741 to 1751, when its lodges gradually dwindled (in 1748, to 147), many others being inactive. For five of these years, the same Grand Officers‑and even the same Grand Stewards remained in charge, the result being a period of inactivity which must have had an enervating effect‑with consequent dissatisfaction‑leading to the formation of a rival, the "Grand Lodge of the Antients".
This "Antients" Grand Lodge began on 17th July, 1751, with five lodges and a membership of about 79,2 most of whom were traders and mechanics, the majority being undoubtedly Irish. Five years afterwards, when Laurence Dermott, their Grand Secretary, published his Book of Constitutions, termed Ahiman Rezon, the number of "Antients" lodges had risen to 45, with a membership of over 1,000. At the beginning of 1760, there were 80 lodges on this list, and, in the following six years or so, no less than 62 others were added.
Still, the position of the original Grand Lodge (generally termed the "Modems") had, by 1760, been firmly established, for it had then no fewer 1 Vide Multa Paucis.
2 Morgan's Register.
439 440 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES than 252 lodges on its list, with an organization which needed little improvement until the early nineteenth century, save in matters of dress, ritual, etc. Here we should realize that neither the dress nor the ritual of those days was as fully developed as that of today, the common dress being white gloves and a white apron of skin or linen, and the ritual being largely based on a reading of one of the Old Charges, with a catechism to impart certain esoteric information to the Brethren; the furnishings of the lodge were also much simpler.
THE REIGN OF GEORGE III The years from 1760 to 1820 have been selected for this paper, not only because they were those of a great expansion in Freemasonry, but also because the reign of this monarch for 60 years was one in the history of England which was unequalled in its effect on successive generations, coinciding with an industrial and territorial expansion which is not likely to be excelled. It was a period which has been termed "The Industrial Revolution", though its foundations were laid before 1760, and its effects continued long after 1820.
Politically, it was a great era for this country, for it was in 1760, that British influence in India was secured, the following years seeing the end of the "Seven Years War", which added Canada, much of the West Indies, and parts of Africa to the Empire, while other parts of the world were added in succeeding ages. The end of the reign was marked by the removal of a threat of French domination, Napoleon Bonaparte and Waterloo (1815), being followed by an era of peace and subsequent prosperity for the people of Britain.
Indeed, 1760 marks the turning point in our national history, as well as in that of the world, for it heralded the age both of revolution and progress, succeeding years seeing American independence, with the rise of federal and democratic principles, various inventions affecting industrial progress, and improvements in the condition of the British people. Incidentally, it was only in 1776 that the American colonies declared their independence (which was acknowledged by England in 1782), and in 1768 that Captain Cook's first voyage to Australia took place. No wonder, therefore, that in these 60 years of the reign of George III, industrial and commercial progress was given a tremendous impetus, the result being that Britain changed from a mainly agricultural country into a great manufacturing nation.
Alongside this economic advance, too, progress in Speculative Freemasonry is especially marked, for, up to 1760, the Society had been on a somewhat modest basis, the number of its lodges and members being comparatively few, and its importance in the life of the people relatively inconsiderable. What we do know about its previous history is that there are some early indications of the Craft in the 1600's‑and even earlier in an operative form‑but the years from 1700 to 1760, were really "formative", THE YEARS OF DEVELOPMENT 441 or transitional from operative to speculative, the next 60 years being those of development, followed by the years of expansion and consolidation. It will serve our purpose better, and enable us to appreciate the development of the Craft, if we consider what took place in each ten‑year period of the 60 years' reign of George III.
THE FIRST DECADE (1760‑1770) These years were marked by a great expansion in the Society, and in its social customs, for the lodges adopted, with greater frequency, distinctive names, instead of being known by those of the taverns at which they met; administration, too, was overhauled and improved. When Lord Blayney was Grand Master (1764‑1766), three Royal Dukes became Freemasons: the Duke of York, in Berlin, on 27th July, 1765, the Duke of Gloucester in the New Lodge at the Horn, Westminster, on 6th February, 1766, and the Duke of Cumberland in the Royal Lodge, Thatched House Tavern, St. James's, on 9th February, 1767; subsequently, all three received the rank of Past Grand Master and were presented with the appropriate clothing.
Under Lord Blayney's authority, one of the most important steps was also taken in the progress of the "Modems" Grand Lodge of 1717, for some of the most influential members of Grand Lodge set up a Grand and Royal Chapter of the Royal Arch of Jerusalem‑the first Supreme Grand Chapter‑in 1766. True, it was never officially recognized right up to the Union in 1813, despite the fact that many high‑ranking Grand Officers were Officers of that Supreme Order, the private Chapters being considered separate and not attached to any registered lodge. On the other hand, this and other degrees were taken for granted by the rival "Antients" Grand Lodge as being allowed under the ordinary lodge warrants.
In this decade, also, we find the first known records of the Knights Templar (Boston, Mass., in 1769), and of the Mark Degree (Portsmouth, in 1769), indicating that though they may have been worked before, these degrees were now becoming recognized by the private lodges and their members.
Two other major events having a decided influence on succeeding years are also to be noticed, viz., the issue of a 4th Book of Constitutions in 1767, edited by the Rev. John Entick (who had also edited the 3rd edition of 1756), and the initiation of the famous William Preston in 1763. He entered an "Antients" lodge, No. 111, which accepted a "Modems" warrant the following year, as No. 325 (now Caledonian, No. 134).
In 1769, the "Moderns" Grand Lodge felt itself strong enough to promote a Bill in Parliament, proposing that the Society should have a Charter of Incorporation, but there was so much opposition that the idea was finally dropped in 1772. The cumulative effect of all these epochmaking events was not fully realized until long after the turn of the century, 442 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES indeed, probably not until the present day, for who can comment impartially on current events but our successors.
THE SECOND DECADE (1770‑1780) Though the first project, namely, that of incorporating the Society, was dropped, a second one, i.e., to build a Hall, met with more success. Voluntary subscriptions not being sufficient, regulations designed to augment the fund were passed by Grand Lodge. One was to charge 5/‑ for an Initiate, and 2/6 for a joining Member, as a Registration Fee. This new Regulation aroused much opposition, especially in the Provinces, many lodges refusing to register their members or to pay the fees; but, around 1780, such opposition was overcome, with the result that Grand Lodge was enabled to compile a Register of Members. These fees had been originally imposed in 1768, to provide a fund for general purposes.
In April, 1773, a Committee to superintend the building scheme was appointed, Wm. Preston's note in his Illustrations stating: "Every measure was adopted to enforce the laws for raising a new fund to carry the designs of the Society into execution, and no pains were spared by the committee to complete the purpose of their appointment."' In November, 1774, the Committee purchased premises in Great Queen Street, the foundation stone being laid with Masonic honours on 1st May, 1775, and the Hall being dedicated to Masonry, Virtue, Universal Charity and Benevolence on 23rd May, 1776. Thus was completed Grand Lodge's first Freemasons' Hall. It is interesting to know that it was completed during the Grand Mastership of Lord Petre, whose Masonic enthusiasm was praised by William Preston. This Lord Petre was considered as the head of the Roman Catholic community in England, but he was not the first of that religion to be Grand Master, for the 8th Duke of Norfolk was installed in January, 1730; the latter it was who presented the sword of Gustavus Adolphus, King of Sweden, still used as the Grand Master's Sword of State.
Our William Preston was in some trouble with the "Modems" Grand Lodge in 1778, for attempting to justify a public procession in Masonic regalia by the Lodge of Antiquity, No. 1, on the grounds that it had "inherent privileges", for which he was expelled; but the motion was rescinded at the next Grand Lodge meeting, on his retracting such doctrine. The matter was then taken to the Lodge of Antiquity, which expelled three of its prominent members; their complaint to Grand Lodge resulted in 11 of the members, of whom Preston was one, being expelled. Preston and his colleagues continued to carry on the lodge, retaining the books, jewels and furniture; their further steps are detailed thus in the Illustrations: "The Lodge of Antiquity supported its own immemorial privileges, appointed committees to examine records; applied to the old Lodge in York city, and the Lodges in Scotland and Ireland, for advice; ... 1 p. 243, 1821 Edition.
THE YEARS OF DEVELOPMENT 443 published a manifesto in its own vindication; notified its separation from the Grand Lodge; and avowed an alliance with the Grand Lodge of England held in the city of York, and every Lodge and Mason who wished to act in conformity to the original constitutions." 1 From 29th March, 1779, it worked as the "Grand Lodge of England south of the River Trent" and constituted two lodges in its first year; but, after ten years of isolation, Preston and the other expelled Brethren made an apology to the satisfaction of Grand Lodge, and withdrew the claim of "inherent privileges"; the result was that, in May, 1789, the "Grand Lodge south of the River Trent" ceased to exist, the expelled members being restored to their privileges, and the two parties in the Lodge of Antiquity becoming reunited. Thus was manifested an example of Brotherly Love and Unity.
Between 1770 and 1780, there were many enactments by the "Moderns" Grand Lodge for the better administration of the Craft, such as the raising of fees, and renumbering of lodges. The policy of the "Modems" was to erase dormant lodges and close the list, so that the older of their lodges had no fewer than eight numbers by the time of the Union; that of the "Antients", on the other hand, was to reissue the dormant warrants.
It was in this period, too, that feeling between the "Antients" and the "Modems" gradually deteriorated, both Grand Lodges discouraging fraternal communication, and insisting that members of the rival body should be "re‑made"; indeed, this feeling was aggravated and continued for many years afterwards.
THE THIRD DECADE (1780‑1790) This ten years is notable only for an endeavour to promote a good understanding with the Grand Lodges of Scotland and Ireland, and the decision to rebuild the Freemasons' Tavern. But, internally, the lodges were making progress, for Preston, whose Lectures appear to have been rehearsed in the Lodge of Antiquity in 1777, constituted "The Grand Chapter of the Order of Harodim" in 1787. It was designed to teach his own system, which was undoubtedly one of many; in the Illustrations it is stated: "The mysteries of this order are peculiar to the institution itself, while the lectures of the Chapter include every branch of the masonic system, and represent the art of Masonry in a finished and complete form." This so‑called Grand Chapter was really a glorified Lodge of Instruction, which, during the last years of the eighteenth century, was patronized by many prominent members of the Craft. The material in the Lectures, and the interest shown in their educative value, all tend to emphasize the great development of the Ritual in this and the succeeding decades.
1 p. 254, 1821 Edition.
444 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES THE FOURTH DECADE (1790‑1800) During this period, three sons of King George III became Freemasons, three others having been made in 1787; in all, between 1737 and 1798, no less than 11 Princes of the Blood‑Royal were initiated into the Craft, which, indeed, then became "The Royal Art".
The "Antients" were not behind the "Moderns" in endeavouring to bring uniformity into their ceremonies, for, in 1792, they elected "Nine Worthies", whose duties were to visit some of their lodges, and make a report thereon to the Deputy Grand Master.
At this period, too, there was another Grand Lodge, that of York, which had been set up in 1725, and revived in 1761, after being dormant for some years. It appears to have held meetings down to 1792, and possibly later, for it is not certain when it finally ceased to work.
From the early years of both Grand Lodges, sick and burial benefits were a feature of the private lodges, and some lodges kept up this practice until the latter part of the last century. It even met with the approbation of the "Moderns" Grand Lodge when the "Masonic Benefit Society for the Relief of Brethren and their Families" was established in 1793; the age of entrance was practically limited to 45, the subscription One Guinea per annum, and the benefits 14/‑ per week when sick, lame or blind, 4/‑ for those in reduced circumstances or imprisoned for debt, 6/‑ old age allowance, and 4/‑ per week for widows, with 2/‑ for each child under twelve. This precursor to our Welfare State came to an end in the 1830's.
But the most important event in the closing years of the eighteenth century‑one which still affects Freemasons' Lodges‑was really the result of the French Revolution, and the consequent communication of its ideologies to British citizens. A number of Acts were passed, all designed to prevent seditious practices, the culmination being the Statute 39 George III, c. 79, commonly known as "The Unlawful Societies Act" of 1799. This Act made illegal all Societies whose members were bound by a secret oath, but Freemasons' Lodges were specially exempted, provided a list of lodge members, with other details, was returned to the Clerk of the Peace annually, a provision which still remains in force. For many years, legal opinion was that this Act prohibited the issue of new warrants, with the result that the two Grand Lodges reissued old ones which had been surrendered or forfeited. The "Modems" generally placed the new lodge at the end of the list, but the "Antients" reissued the older charter, with the consequence that some lodges have acquired an unwarranted precedence on the List; that, however, is only one, as shown later,' of two explanations for the apparent inconsistency in precedence of numbering before 1813. Friendship, No. 44, for instance, acquired, in 1803, the Athol warrant of Antient 39, giving it precedence as from 1755.
1 p. 447.
THE YEARS OF DEVELOPMENT 445 THE FIFTH DECADE (1800‑1810) By the beginning of this period, the two Grand Lodges had begun to draw nearer to one another, the effect of the war with France, and the danger of revolutionary tendencies naturally giving rise to more fraternal feelings. Visits from Antients to Moderns and vice versa (which had been discountenanced by both Grand Lodges), were more frequent, fraternal amity now taking the place of intense rivalry.
A most important and vital step was taken by the "Modems" when a resolution was passed by them on 12th April, 1809: "That this Grand Lodge do agree in Opinion with the Committee of Charity that it is not necessary any longer to continue in force those Measures which were resorted to in or about the year 1739 respecting irregular Masons, and do therefore enjoin the several Lodges to revert to the Ancient Land Marks of the Society." It is now very doubtful as to what the "Measures" mentioned really were, even the customary assumption that the "Words" had been changed in 1739, being open to question. It may even be that the resolution simply meant that the non‑recognition of irregular lodges, such as those the "Ancients" were considered to be, should now be abandoned, the "Moderns" members being allowed to fraternize.
Many important happenings quickly followed the new attitude. In October, 1809, the "Modems" warranted a "Lodge of Promulgation" to consider the principal points of variation in the two systems, to settle the arrangement of the lodge and the future forms and ceremonies. The minutes show that certain "Antients" forms were adopted, such as honours and toasts, the introduction of Deacons and the reintroduction of the Installation ceremony. These were not general among the "Moderns" lodges, though some with "Ancients" tendencies had practised them for many years. It was, however, admitted that the Installation ceremony had been "neglected" and it was adopted and promulgated by a Board of Installed Masters formed for the purpose. With it, the powers of the Lodge of Promulgation came to an end on 28th February, 1811.
Other obstacles to a Union were quickly overcome. In February, 1810, the "Modems" Grand Lodge removed one of the greatest, by reinstating Brother Thomas Harper, Deputy Grand Master of the "Antients", and a prominent member of the "Modems" Grand Lodge, who had been expelled in 1803. The following month, the "Ancients" Grand Lodge agreed "That a Masonic Union on principles equal and honourable to both Grand Lodges ... would be expedient and advantageous to both". This was followed in April, 1810, by the "Moderns" Grand Lodge resolving: "That this Grand Lodge meets with unfeigned cordiality, the desire expressed by the Grand Lodge under His Grace the Duke of Atholl for a Re‑Union".
Joint Committees then went to work "to put an end to diversity and establish 446 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES the one true system", and they directed their efforts to framing Articles for effecting the Union.
THE SIXTH DECADE (1810‑1820) Even the choice of a Grand Master for the United Grand Lodge was amicably settled, H.R.H. the Prince of Wales (afterwards George IV), Grand Master of the "Moderns" from 1790 to 1813, retiring in favour of his brother, the Duke of Sussex; in the "Antients", the Duke of Atholl, Grand Master from 1775 to 1781, and again from 1791 to 1813, retired in favour of the Duke of Kent (father of Queen Victoria, born 1819). These two sons of King George III speedily effected an agreement, by means of Articles of Union, 21 in number, which were approved and adopted by both Grand Lodges.
Masonic unity was finally achieved on St. John the Evangelist's Day, 27th December, 1813, when the two Grand Masters with their respective Officers marched into the Temple side by side. The Act of Union was read, proclaimed and confirmed by the assembly, and the document signed and sealed with the Great Seals of the respective Grand Lodges. The Duke of Kent then proposed his brother, the Duke of Sussex, as Grand Master of the United Grand Lodge; he was approved, installed, and appointed his Officers, after which many important resolutions were passed, the United Grand Lodge being closed with solemn prayer.
"The auspicious day was concluded with the most festive harmony and brotherly love." The 21 Articles which were then approved still govern our fraternity, and three of them in particular had a great and lasting effect on its development. No. II, for instance, stated: "It is declared and pronounced, that pure Ancient Masonry consists of three degrees, and no more; viz. those of the Entered Apprentice, the Fellow Craft, and the Master Mason, including the Supreme Order of the Holy Royal Arch. But this article is not intended to prevent any Lodge or Chapter from holding a meeting in any of the degrees of the Orders of Chivalry, according to the constitutions of the said Orders." The results of this Article were far‑reaching, for it was not until 1817 that the two Royal Arch Grand Chapters amalgamated, and even then it took another 17 years to settle its affairs and ceremonies, which were promulgated in November, 1834.
Article III was probably the most important in its effect; it said "There shall be the most perfect unity of obligation, of discipline, of working the Lodges, of making, passing and raising, instructing and clothing Brothers; so that but one pure unsullied system, according to the genuine landmarks, laws and traditions of the Craft, shall be maintained, upheld and practiced, throughout the Masonic World, from the day and date of the said union until time shall be no more." THE YEARS OF DEVELOPMENT 447 Clothing was speedily dealt with through the Book of Constitutions issued in 1815, which specified for the first time, the size, colour, etc., instead of the various patterns which had formerly been in use. The question of the ceremonies was resolved by setting up a Lodge of Reconciliation, which met for nearly 22 ' years. Its object was "the unifying of the Masonic ritual", and this was finally accomplished, though not without dissension and even organized opposition from some lodges. One bone of contention was the Ob.s, but eventually, under the direction of the Duke of Sussex, this and other matters were finally agreed, the three ceremonies being approved at a Special Meeting of Grand Lodge on 20th May, 1816. Not one word was permitted to be written, the ceremonies being promulgated to private lodges in London and the Provinces by members of the Lodge of Reconciliation delegated for that purpose. During the intervening years, there is no doubt that the ritual, then promulgated, has suffered through oral transmission, and no one has now the right to be dogmatic in stating that this or that "Working" is the correct interpretation of the one settled by the United Grand Lodge in 1816. Certainly, all "Workings" are founded on satisfactory principles, agreeing, as they do, on inherent fundamental beliefs. Another matter which was settled satisfactorily, was the numbering of the lodges, Article VIII providing for a ballot; this favoured the "Antients", who, as a consequence, took No. 1, the "Modems" taking No. 2, and the others falling in alternately. It is now unsafe to say that, of two of the first 340 lodges on the present list, the one with the lower number must be the older. No. 1, for instance, dates from 1759 (Antients) whereas No. 2 is a "Time Immemorial" lodge, which took part in the formation of the original Grand Lodge of 1717; similarly, No. 24 is dated 1805, whereas No. 26 began in 1725.
One important effect of the Union was an International Compact, which exists to this day. In 1814, the meetings of the Lodge of Reconciliation were held up so that United Grand Lodge could meet representatives of Scotland and Ireland, this agreement being entered into: "That the three Grand Lodges were perfectly in unison in all the great essential points of the Mystery and Craft." RESULTS OF THE YEARS OF DEVELOPMENT The student of the history of Freemasonry will readily admit that much of its organization and growth was due to the "Three D's", viz., Dr. John Theophilus Desaguliers, who was 3rd Grand Master in 1719, and who had a considerable influence on its early evolution; Laurence Dermott, the life and soul of the "Antients" until his death in 1791‑he was Grand Secretary for a time, and produced a model set of By‑laws for the "Antients" private lodges, along with their Book of Constitutions, which he termed Ahiman Rezon, or A Help to a Brother; and the third "D", Thomas Dunckerley (1724‑1795) a great figure of the "Modems", who helped to extend the Craft 448 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES to the colonies by ships at sea, to many English provinces as Provincial Grand Master of eight of them, and who was also active in promoting the Royal Arch, and the Mark and Knights Templar degrees. But all these were more interested in extending their organizations than a fourth, who preferred to concentrate on improving the old "workings", some of his phrases being with us today. In his Prospectus for the 2nd Edition of Illustrations of Masonry (1775), he states: "If Brother Preston succeeds in his expectations of giving his Brethren a just idea of Masonry, or promoting a uniformity in the Lodges under the English Constitution, he will be perfectly happy in the attempt he has made." Who was this Brother who helped, in the closing years of the eighteenth century in this great unification and resurgence of the Brotherhood, and who undoubtedly, by his writings, had a material influence on the promotion of Brotherly Love ? William Preston (1742‑1818), was originally an "Antient", but joined the "Modems" and worked valiantly for that Grand Lodge and the Union. The lst of his 17 editions of Illustrations of Masonry showed that his ideals and objects were to propagate a series of Lectures on the three degrees, for he considered that there was a want of method. The 1st and 2nd editions were issued with the approval of Grand Lodge, and were successful in bringing together scattered matter, inculcating many useful lessons applicable even today.
In the eighteenth century, many books were written in the form of Question and Answer (or Catechism), such as The Colloquies of Erasmus, 1725, and this fashion was customary in the Ritual of those days, changing to the present instructional form only after the Lodge of Reconciliation. Books, then, were not generally available, and the old method of imparting instruction by a simple Ob., the reading of one of the Old Charges, and a Catechism to follow, appears to have been general. There are very few eighteenth century rituals now extant, two which reveal the customs then subsistent being Browne's Masonic Master Key, and the so‑called "Lancashire" ritual of 1797, in Grand Lodge Library. The latter is purely a catechism on the Three Degrees, the Holy Royal Arch, and the Knights Templar. Browne's ritual was first published in 1798, when it consisted of 26 pages, but the 2nd edition of 1802 had 80 pages assigned to the three Lectures, six pages only for the three ceremonies, and 14 to the Charges, etc., a total of 100. These were the "Modems" ceremonies, which it was the custom for the Master to amplify at his own discretion.
Our William Preston followed this custom, but he endeavoured to refine the old workings, correcting and amplifying them into a complete system. His object was stated to be the uniting of all classes of his Brethren in one Universal System, and, though there are slight differences in various "workings" today, we must admit that William Preston's object was ultimately THE YEARS OF DEVELOPMENT 449 achieved, for are not all Masons, where'er they may be, linked together in one indissoluble Bond of Brotherly Love, Relief and Truth? It is true that many of the usages exemplified in Illustrations of Masonry have disappeared through the "working" approved by the Lodge of Reconciliation, but many of his dissertations are familiar to us today; for instance, seven of the ten clauses in our present Book of Constitutions, on "Management of the Craft in Working", appear in his Lectures, thus indicating that, when the whole of the ceremonies were recast by the Lodge of Reconciliation, some parts of Preston's Lectures were absorbed. This is especially true ofthe Chargeafter Initiation, whichis an extendedversionofthat used by Preston.
Along with this revival in ritual went a great upsurge in symbolic teaching. It is true that the work of the Operatives was full of symbolism but R. F. Gould stated (Concise History, p. 92) that this "underwent a gradual process of decay, which was arrested, but only at the point we now have it, by passing under the control of the Grand Lodge of England".
Yet little symbolism appears until the latter half of the eighteenth century, when the Exposures of the 1760's give some slight indications.
In 1766 and 1767, each of the three Royal Dukes who became Freemasons was presented with "an apron, lined with blue silk, the clothing of a Grand Officer"; but, in 1779, we find the eldest son of an Indian Nabob being presented by Grand Lodge with "a blue apron elegantly decorated". Later examples of decorated aprons show distinct progress, a typical specimen being the "Moira" apron of 1813, with its allegorical theme. All these elaborations were superseded by the present aprons‑ten which came rosettes and levels‑which were specified by United Grand Lodge in its Quarterly Communication of 2nd May, 1814.
The Tracing Boards of Bros. Jacobs, Bowring and Harris in 1780 to 1820, with their mystical emblems, the indications of others in the 1760 Exposures, the Consecration of buildings, and the late eighteenth century Catechisms, all indicate the growth of this fascinating subject, which was further extended through the settling of the ritual initspresent form in 1813‑16. Alongside the very great development of the organization and ritual in this period is to be seen the greater strength of the Fraternity, both in members and lodges. According to Lane's Masonic Records, the last numbers of the private lodges were: Moderns Antients Year 252 80 1760 1770 525 167 1780 435 212 1790 484 263 1800 586 321 1810 621 351 1813 640 359 450 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES When considering these figures, we should bear in mind two important factors: first, that the "Antients" pursued the policy of reissuing cancelled Warrants, for Lane says' that from 1751 to 1813 they issued no fewer than 510 Warrants, assigning the old numbers to a new lodge; second, that the "Moderns" placed on their Lists, between 1755 and 1813, no less that 698 lodges, additional to the 254 already listed prior to the first date; their policy was to cancel warrants, and close up the numbers, which they did on no less than seven occasions prior to 1800.
When numbers were allocated to the two sets of lodges in 1814, only 648 of the 999 were carried forward, of which there were 140 London, 404 Provincial and 104 abroad; the last number of the pre‑Union lodges is now 339. Between 1770 and 1820, the number of Provincial lodges far outstripped those in London, the transfer of central control‑which had been inaugurated in 1725 by the "Modems" appointment of a Provincial Grand Master, with others at later stages‑greatly stimulating the growth in the provinces.
William Preston in his will left ú300 to found the Prestonian Lectureship, which showed him to be, as he professed, the "true and steadfast friend of the Craft", one whose whole interest was its betterment. His whole adult life was dedicated to its tenets, and, though 140 years have elapsed since his death, his influence and teachings are with us still. He said, in his Illustrations: "Of late years, it must be acknowledged, our assemblies have been in general better regulated; of which the good effects are sufficiently displayed, in the judicious selection of our members, and the more proper observance of our general regulations." If he said this in the latter years of the eighteenth century, to what should we attribute this great development of the Fraternity but the zeal of successive Royal and Noble Grand Masters and their Deputies, the improvement in administration, the greater realization by the members of their moral duties, the institution of organized benefits, and the recognition of the valuable precepts which are inculcated. Surely, Brother Preston, who died in 1818, and was buried in St. Paul's Cathedral, contributed in no small measure to these improvements, for he wrote: " . . . fully determined to pursue the design of effecting a general reformation, we persevered in an attempt to correct the irregularities which had crept into our assemblies . . . "3 Let us, therefore, give him every credit for being a sincere reformer, the result of whose efforts we have with us today; and let us bear in mind what ought to be his epitaph, that heartfelt desire he expressed 180 years ago: 1 Masonic Records, p. xx. 2 1821 Edition, p. 12.
3 1821 Edition, p. x.
THE YEARS OF DEVELOPMENT 451 "Uniting in one design, let it be our aim to be happy ourselves, and contribute to the happiness of others. Let us mark our superiority and distinction among men, by the sincerity of our profession as Masons; let us cultivate the moral virtues, and improve in all that is good and amiable; let the Genius of Masonry preside over our conduct, and under her sway let us perform our part with becoming dignity . . . "1 i Ibid., p. 20,21.
THE MEDIEVAL ORGANIZATION OF FREEMASONS' LODGES (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1959) by BRO. THE REv. CANON J. S. PURVIS O.B.E., M.A., D.D., F.S.A., F.R.HIST.S., P.M., P.P.G.Chap. (Yorkshire, N. and E.) One of the most remarkable features of the last forty years, albeit the matter may appear somewhat specialized and by comparison less noteworthy than, for example, the astounding discoveries in the field of nuclear physics, is the enormous and rapid extension of the study of ancient records, and the unprecedented numbers of such Yecords which have been opened to public view and research. No such opening of the treasure houses for the study of the past has ever been known before in this country in such a way and for such a purpose. This great advance has many causes; first there is the fact of an interest in records of the past which is far more general, more deep and more competent than ever before; then, there is the opening up of the archives of great families, often for reasons which many will consider regrettable, and of important ecclesiastical collections; and thirdly, there is the rise of a body of experts in the reading, study and interpretation of these records greater in numbers than ever before.
During the last three hundred years there have been from time to time a group, a handful, or one or two outstanding instances, of scholars whose industry and learning have been devoted to the study of ancient records, and from the monumental labours of these men we still profit, as we admire their tireless industry and their accomplishments; but in our own day the number of those who devote themselves to this study and even of those who become expert in some particular branch of this knowledge is far greater than any preceding era has ever known. It is not too much to say that the result of their labours has been, and continues increasingly to be, that a flood of light is thrown on almost every aspect of the history of the past, that our knowledge and our understanding of our predecessors and their ways is being wonderfully expanded, and even that light is being thrown into dark comers which have not been explored before, so much so that many accepted ideas of history must be modified or revised.
From this great expansion of knowledge and understanding the history of Freemasonry is not excluded, although it cannot be said that the flow of new material for study has been so copious as in some other branches of historical discovery. Here, too, we have had our great pioneers, and it 453 454 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES would be impossible as well as ungrateful to omit here a reference to that erudite Brother whose labours and whose influence are commemorated in these Lectures which bear his name. The new discoveries in this field, as generally in others also, are often the result of the careful gathering and piecing together of scraps of knowledge from fragmentary records, and the intelligent and cautious drawing of inferences from these small surviving indications. For it must be admitted that all too often the documents which have survived for us are incomplete, or fragmentary, or isolated, and in any case the work of the expert who can read and interpret accurately, and point out associations for these documents or relics of documents, often in old and unfamiliar language and in difficult handwritings, is needed before we can be enriched by the information which they contain.
In one respect the study of these original documents has a very salutary effect. It reduces the proportion of that kind of supposition by which in the past too often it was endeavoured to fill the gaps which were found in our knowledge of some ancient matter. This is a fault to which the history of Freemasonry has sometimes been particularly susceptible, and it would not be difficult to point to Masonic publications of imposing size, the result undoubtedly of great zeal and labour, which are little more in fact than the setting out at great length of inferences from insufficient evidence, displays sometimes brilliant, sometimes ingenious, of improvisation and the exploiting of what may be at the best no more than coincidence, and of the relating of matters which increasing research has shown to have no real relations at all. A theory unsupported by sufficient solid evidence is a very vulnerable thing, entirely at the mercy of some newly‑discovered fact. Much has been written, for instance, about Masons' Marks, much labour and research have been expended on tracing them, and in particular, elaborate theories have been evolved to trace individual masons by the appearance of their marks from one Church to another where they are supposed to have worked successively. It is not difficult to see how such a theory would be affected if there were possibility of proof for the assertion, which has in fact been made, that the masons' marks were affixed at the quarry from which the worked stone was distributed to various Churches in widely separated districts. Again, the fact that what were apparently masons' marks have been observed in buildings in Egypt or at Carthage or in Crete, interesting indeed in itself, has been made the subject of conclusions which owe more perhaps to imagination than to scientific method.
The study which is to be offered here will endeavour to be strictly factual; there will be no attempt to draw analogies with moral truths, or to pursue those allusions, significations and expositions to which Speculative Masonry so readily and often so properly lends itself.
The study of the early history of Freemasonry, and the search for evidences of the Craft in the monuments and records of the past, cannot be other than a fascinating and useful occupation for any Mason. But it may MEDIEVAL ORGANIZATION OF LODGES 455 well be that the subjects of that study are sometimes approached without due appreciation of the difficulties with which they are beset. The main obvious difficulty is that the further the searcher goes back into the past, the more scattered and scanty, the more fragmentary, becomes the evidence to be found in documents, and therefore the more fraught with problems and uncertainties in the interpretation of them. Particularly is this so if one attempts to explore the days when Masonry was Operative rather than Speculative, and to find traces of a connection or a derivation between the two. The besetting danger here is in too free an interpretation of the evidence found. At any period, indeed, analogies, especially when apparently close, may be treacherous, and may lead the impulsive to quite unwarranted inferences. The temptation to draw comparisons, misled by some apparent but not established resemblance, is an ever‑present danger.
It may be that long personal experience as archivist and historian makes me view with caution and reserve the exuberance of unsupported fancy or the theories more attractive or imaginative than sound which are sometimes encountered in Masonic publications, and at this point to lay so much stress upon this matter.
But again, more widely, the perils are even greater if the same methods of generalizing or of basing arguments on seeming analogies and on insufficient proof by facts are used when discussing Masonic ritual or what may be called the philosophy of Freemasonry. For it is the chain of tested and connected facts, or better still the existence of actual documentary evidence, which alone can give convincing argument for a comparison between the ritual, or the practices, or the thought, of one age and another. The greater the interval of time between those two periods, the more difficult will be the forming of such a chain of facts, and the more necessary and important the finding and the testing of every one of the links in that chain. The present state of our knowledge in Masonic history is yet far from reaching that condition when we can speak or write confidently of connections between Speculative Masonry and the doctrines or usages of times and places far distant from our own. Yet it would be foolish indeed to deny that certain traces exist, certain pieces of knowledge have been excavated, as it were, important in themselves and perhaps even more important as signposts for further explorations. We as Speculative Masons are fortunate that we enjoy the labours of many learned brethren who have devoted themselves to discovery in the history and the observances of our Order, its constitutions and its ceremonies, by which labours many falsities of unlearned supposition have been corrected or purged away and the more solid foundation revealed, to our profit. There is a particular sense of gratitude in recording the work of William Preston, in recognition of whose endeavours these Prestonian Lectures are a memorial; in the annals of Freemasonry, and especially in connection with what may truly be termed Masonic scholarship, he must ever be held in high honour and remembered with fraternal gratitude.
456 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES For any of us also, according to our capacity and interest, and without attempting to delve too far into the remote past, there may be useful work awaiting our attention in many directions in the documents of ages before our own. In these byways of research there is much delight to be found, and they are seldom without reward to the patient seeker after knowledge. It is my good fortune to be in charge of one of the two or three greatest collections of ecclesiastical records in England, and it is now almost twenty years since my duties as Archivist to the Archbishop of York first gave me an opportunity to look in that vast collection of archives in the hope that there might be references to operative masonry in the middle ages, although from knowledge of the records themselves I was not highly optimistic. Up to the present the results have been small, but certainly interesting and significant beyond their actual magnitude. For instance, it was interesting to find in the Register of Archbishop Thoresby about the year 1355 the word "hele" used in its original and its Masonic sense of to "hide". There are references in papers of the time of King Henry VIII to the "Masons' Lodge" at York Minster. A certain mason was threatened with expulsion from this lodge unless he mended his behaviour, so that even this small matter is a signpost to further enquiry by suggesting that the medieval lodge was more than a workshop only.
In another connection, two references, perhaps slight in themselves, may have an importance quite out of proportion to their actual size. One of these dates from the year 1612, and gives a certain phrase in this form: ". . . without any equivocation or mental evasion or secret reservation whatsoever . . ." What are we to infer from this use in the early seventeenth century of such a form of words in a context not obviously Masonic, or in what direction are we to seek for the links which surely must exist? The other reference is earlier and dates from the year 1555; it is found in the account of the refusal of a clergyman to give Christian burial to a certain dead man. The clergyman is alleged to have said that the dead man "was a beest, and died more like a beest than a Christian man, and bade them bury him at the low water mark, for that was the place meet for a beest.. . ." which has sufficient resemblance to recall the penalty in a certain Obligation, and again provokes a question of the origin and history of such a phrase in a Masonic connection. Correspondences such as these, and at dates so comparatively early, may be slight in themselves, but none the less seem to open out quite remarkable possibilities in the direction of showing that our Masonic ritual includes, or is derived from, material much older than is generally supposed, and that is an area well worthy of exploration.
But there is another related source from which may be drawn information more copious and of peculiar interest, for it appears to throw light on the very beginnings of that organization of Masonic Lodges which Speculative MEDIEVAL ORGANIZATION OF LODGES 457 Masonry has inherited from its operative brethren. I have had occasion at various times to inspect the ancient Fabric Rolls of York Minster, which contain the detailed accounts of payments to workmen and of general expenditure about the fabric of the Minster end about the property of the Dean and Chapter. Almost at my first inspection I found an old acquaintance, that mason who had beer. threatened in the year 1422 with expulsion from the lodge; as this second reference was in 1446, he had presumably mended his ways.
But these Rolls were not the only medieval records which I examined in connection with the Minster. I searched also the Chapter Act Books, which are in fact the Minute Books of the meetings of the Cathedral Chapter. Further, I studied the documents which give the earliest references to masons in York; they are the Freemen's Rolls of the city, and date from as early as the year 1294. Between 1294 and 1323 eleven masons are named as Freemen of the city. The total range of the records which I searched was from 1294 to 1535.
The first documents which will fall under our enquiry are the Books of Chapter Acts of the Dean and Chapter of York. These Books, which set out incidentally the relations of the Chapter with its workmen, make it clear that from the middle of the fourteenth century, if not earlier, there is evidence of a well‑established system or order amongst the masons at the Minster, most of whom were employed by the Chapter year after year and perhaps permanently. So, in the year 1351, in a grant of a pension to "William de Hoton the mason, son of William de Hutton the mason" there is a reference to an official called the Subcementarius who, it says, "shall be the second master of the masons". William had a house allotted to him, and I suspect that later he became the chief mason or master of the lodge as it existed then; the house seems to have passed in succession to other masters later. For instance, in 1368 it passed to Robert de Patryngton the mason, who had become a Freeman of the city in 1352.
In the period between 1350 and 1360, although it does not seem possible to be more exact about the date, the Dean and Chapter made an "Ordinance" or agreement with the "masons and other workmen" regarding hours and conditions of work. Here again there is an indication of two officials in charge of the whole body of masons, "the principal and the secondary masons, who are called the Masters of them," as the Ordinance puts it. These two master masons, magistri cementarii, were to notify the Keeper of the Fabric of any defaults or absences of masons, for which salary was to be deducted, and to "cause the customs to be observed by the other masons on pain of removal". In 1370 Robert Patryngton headed a party of twelve other masons who took oath to observe this Ordinance.
The lodge itself figures prominently in these records, and clearly was something more than a workshop or a storehouse for the working tools, although it was also both these. The masons were ordered to sit at luncheon 458 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES there "within the lodge of the fabric", and to have a siesta there after the midday dinner in the warmer months of summer. In 1370 it was ordered that "the masons shall from Michaelmas to the first day of Lent be each day att morne art there worke in the loge that is ordained to the masons to work in within the Close beside the Church as early as they may see skilfully by day lyghte for to worke".
From the first Sunday in Lent until Michaelmas they shall "be in their lodge at their work at the sun rising and stand there truly and busily working upon the work of the Church all day untill twenty minutes before sunset".
This was a long working day, even although it was broken four times by intervals for meals and relaxation.
If we turn to seek in these Act Books of the Chapter for any references to some kind of progressive admission to the craft and to various degrees of workmen we find that the evidence is clear and copious enough. In the same document of the year 1370 we find that "it is ordained that no mason shall be received at work to the work of the Church but he be first proved a week or more upon his well working, and after that he is found sufficient of his work be received by the common assent of the Master and Wardens of the work and of the Master Masons, and swear upon the book that he shall truly and busily at his power without any manner of guilery fayntys or deceit hold and keep wholly all points of this ordinance in all things that him touches or may touch".
In this entry it is possible surely to see already in the mid‑fourteenth century a well‑developed system of Master, Wardens and Master Masons, but even more significantly something which may surely be regarded as approaching an initiation ceremony.
In the year 1409 there were two lodges connected with the Minster, the old one which was outside the building probably on the south east side, and the other definitely within the Minster itself, for it is described as being "between the Consistory place and the door of the Chapter House", which sets it on the east side of the north transept. It is tempting to see in this a new organization rather than merely a new location, for it is definitely laid down that in this new lodge there are to be twelve masons at least, and in the "Old Lodge", as it is called, twenty masons at least. It was for the old lodge that keys were bought in 1371. If we turn to the Fabric Rolls of the Minster, from which indeed comes the greater part of our evidence, we find : list of the contents of the old lodge in 1400; these included 69 stone‑axes, 96 chisels of iron, 24 mallets bound with iron‑to knock off all superfluous knobs, no doubt‑one compass of iron and two tracing boards. In another work place there were two gavels.
MEDIEVAL ORGANIZATION OF LODGES 459 A long list of Master Masons, or Masters of the lodge, could be compiled from the year 1350 onwards, by a study of these Fabric Rolls. In 1408 we find an important reference revealing a definite and recognizable organi zation, for the Roll for that year refers explicitly to a Master Mason or Master of the Masons, to Wardens, and to greater or senior masons. This confirms although it passes beyond the copious evidence for differences of rank which is found in the rates of pay given. Apprentices are mentioned specifically as such fairly regularly after about the year 1440; they received the lowest rate of pay.
As a general observation it may be well to point out, although no doubt it is realized by many, that these lists of payments to the Minster masons were not drawn up with any idea of what we might mean by a masonic purpose or intention. They do nevertheless include certain definite references to masonic organization which may be recognized by the observant, and they are the more valuable and significant precisely because there was no masonic intention, in our sense of the word, in the recording of them. There were, as we have seen already, clear references to masonic ranks which we can recognize and associate, references to Masters, Wardens and apprentices. In 1422 John Long was entered as Master and William Waddeswyk as Warden. In 1433 the great William Hyndeley was Master, and he, or less likely another of the same name, was Master again in 1478. Now here we have a man of eminence and of real importance on almost a national scale; much is known about this outstanding craftsman. He was brought especially to York from Norwich, where he had been entered as "Freeman" in the Norwich Freemen's Roll, and he became a Freeman of York, a notable achievement in those days of intense civic jealousy. He was responsible for much of the superb work in the Minster about the Screen and the Great Crossing, where you may find his rebus with a hind couched in a ley or meadow, and also in the Choir of the Minster. One of the most full and clear references is in the year 1472. In that year the list of masons is headed by Robert Spilsby, but this is simply because the list of payments covers a whole year; the second entry gives William Hyndley as "Warden of the Masons' Lodge, Robert Spilsby having been removed from the midst . . . (that is, having died) ... and the office of the Master of the masons being vacant".
Then comes a list of fourteen other masons not distinguished by rank, and finally two apprentices. The Freemens' Rolls of York city contain numerous references to masons who were Freemen in the fifteenth century, and we find there that about the year 1473 there were "searchers of masons" for York, who evidently examined masons to see that a sufficiently high standard of work and craftsmanship was maintained. These records also help sometimes to trace the entire career of more than one mason, as for instance Christopher Homer, who became an apprentice in 1479 at two shillings and sixpence a week, which was paid to his Master, a Freeman 460 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES in 1489, a mason at the Minster in 1495 and Master Mason of the Minster from 1507 to 1519. This almost certainly means Master of the lodge; it was to the masons' lodge at the Minster that he left all his working tools in his will made in 1523.
Let us glance outside York for a moment. It is possible by means of small and isolated references from different parts of England to compile a respectable fund of information about the different classes of masons, and sometimes to trace the career of an individual mason, and this is a field which for the most part awaits exploration. For instance, there is considerable variety in the names given to masons, denoting different groups or functions. At Eton College there is an obvious distinction though within recognizable limits between "freemasons" and "roughmasons" or "hardhewers", between lathomi called Fremasons and positores petrarum, that is, "setters of stones". As early as the year 1316, masons described as cubitores and positores, that is, "layers" and "setters", appear as working at the royal Castles of Beaumaris and Caernarvon; in 1362 there were "setters" at Windsor. In 1404 the English name "setters" was definitely used at York. At Eton in 1444 there were lathomi, that is, freemasons, with "hardhewers" and positores petrarum, "setters", and again at Eton in 1453, the names are cementarii, which is the usual general term for masons, with positores and cubitores, "setters" and "layers". Another list at Eton in 1446 is more definite; it speaks of lathomi vocati Fremasons, lathomi vocati hardhewers, positores vocati roughlayers, and brekemen. It speaks also of cissores (that is, cutters), taylatores, of whom there will be more to be said shortly, and cubitores who are also called couchers and positores. So much for definition by function.
It may be pertinent at this point to remark that diligent search in the derivation of Speculative Masonry may find analogies and connections between the constitution of the ancient operative lodges and the practice of some speculative lodges, although it may be advisable to restrict our observations to noting resemblances rather than to asserting positive derivations. For example, there are lodges in which Master Masons only may walk across the floor of the lodge; entered apprentices and fellow crafts must move outside the chequered pavement‑which is perhaps the true origin of the practice of "squaring". In an operative lodge these are the two classes of masons who do the actual cutting of the stone. The setters and others who disposed of the stones or worked further upon them were the Master Masons. I understand that according to an old York working only the setters and builders or layers of the stones were allowed to be on the actual site of the building. Here again is a promising field for research by learned Brethren.
Returning for a time to the terminology of the craft, we find the term "Freemason" in common use at least as early as the year 1341, and already at that date it has the special meaning of a worker in freestone, the worked MEDIEVAL ORGANIZATION OF LODGES 461 ashlar, of a class superior to the masons who were "setters" or "layers", who placed the worked stones in position, or the "fillers" who supplied the rubble filling of walls faced with ashlar. The great Statute of Labourers in 1360 distinguished clearly between "Master masons of free stone, or Masons called Freemasons", and "masons called layers". In fact, "layers", cubitores, are named much earlier than this, in 1250, 1280 and 1282, working on buildings for the King, and "wallers or fillers of walls" impletores muri, as early as 1302. A certain John de Radewell who worked at the Tower of London in 1311 is described as "entallor and layer". Some Exchequer accounts relating to Westminster in the year 1532 show that by that date the graduation of ranks amongst masons had become worked out in detail; they were, in the highest rank, masons working upon stone; then, next below them, masons working upon setting of stones; below them again successively roughlayers and wallers, then hardhewers, who worked chiefly at the quarries, and lowest of all, masons entayllers. We shall find later how significant is this graduation.
The evidence seems to show amply that of all the medieval crafts, even of those concerned with building, masons alone had lodge fraternities, and that masons generally travelled about much more than other crafts, for instance, carpenters. Yet in spite of this floating employment of masons, there is no lack of evidence in the records of almost any period between 1270 and 1530 or later in which masons are described as having lodges where they may work, and also "mansiones" where they can eat and sleep. No doubt in the less important places one building might serve both purposes. There can be no doubt that the organization of masons both in this country and on the continent "crystallized round the Lodge", as Salzmann puts it, and therefore we may expect, and do actually find, that progress in masonic organization was most rapid and characteristic in places which maintained permanent lodges, particularly cathedrals and the greater abbeys, rather than in places where work was intermittent or soon completed. The original position of a Master Mason seems to have been as an employer of other masons. This in itself would indicate a complete distinction from Speculative usage, although even here the Master of the Lodge in theory at least assigns to the Masons under him their respective allocations of work, but it is likely that where a staff of medieval masons was employed for a long time or more or less permanently at one place, this distinction as an employer rapidly developed into a quite different organization of masons distinguished by rank and not by any relation of employer‑employed.
Gould in his History of Freemasonry has shown ground for supposing that in Germany in the fifteenth century, and probably in England also, it was to the permanent lodge in a city or town that a mason on his travels made his way on arrival, and there was admitted to work when he had made himself known to the Master by a special form of salutation, and apparently by a special grip of the hand. This is particularly significant in considering 462 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES the relations of Speculative Masonry to operative, although we must be very cautious in describing anything which we find in Speculative use and common to both as derived or descended from operative masonry, when the truth may be that it is in fact no more than adopted from operative masonry. For striking as some of these resemblances may be, they are not always really sufficient to show a close derivation of Speculative Masonry from operative, or even that the medieval mason had a developed ritual, and there is much which points the other way. We can, however, say at least that there was much in medieval practice which foreshadowed that of later Speculative Masonry, and that the passage of time shows a synthesis and trend towards what is to us recognizably Masonic in the modern sense. Any such development was probably more natural and more rapid where there was a permanent organization of a masonic centre, as at York, and without claiming Athelstan as our founder or indulging in similar extravagances, we may reasonably hope that tradition has not entirely deserted us and that increasing knowledge of the history of medieval lodges will show an increasing resemblance to modem usage and organization and even modern ritual, and even reveal signs of direct connection between them. When all reservations are made, the Mark Mason will no doubt find particular interest in what is said in these early sources about the use of distinguishing personal marks, and the granting of them by the Master Mason to travelling masons and to apprentices.
To resume, then. There is a probability that in established or permanent lodges such as existed in connection with many cathedrals the development of masonic organization was most marked, and the written records of cathedrals may prove to be the most rewarding fields for research into the origins of Freemasonry and its definition of various ranks in an organic craft. We must accustom ourselves to finding the term Master Mason used where the analogy is much more that of Worshipful Master; we must recognize a period when the Master Mason was responsible for gathering and employing a team of masons for particular work. There might be sub‑contracts for parts of the work on an important building, but it seems that both here and in the permanent staffs the actual supervision of the work was in the hands of Wardens ... an early use of the term is at Porchester in 1438. At Westminster in 1532, where 95 masons were employed, there was a Master and two Wardens, and there is evidence to show that in certain cases each rank of the masons, setters and roughlayers had its own Warden. In the early fifteenth century, as is shown by a poetical treatise printed by Halliwell in his Early History of Freemasonry, apprentices were engaged for seven years; they were maintained by their masters, to whom they handed any money which they might earn; they were required at admission to be free born and legitimate, and they were then bound not to tell tales or repeat gossip of their master and fellows, and not to reveal what was done in their lodge. It is not fanciful to see here evidence of a MEDIEVAL ORGANIZATION OF LODGES 463 rudimentary ritual in the lodge, with a form of obligation for apprentices on entering. There was even something resembling Grand Lodge, or even Provincial Grand Lodges, for the poem just mentioned refers to a "Generale Congregacyon" of Masons every year, when every "mayster that ys a mason" must be present, and from another source we find in 1425 a general meeting referring to yearly congregations of Masons in their general Chapters assembled. In all this there is a rich and probably rewarding field for work.
In returning now to the records of York Minster, we are dealing with a building which certainly had a virtually permanent lodge, or lodges, and therefore we may expect to see signs of craft development. There are many references to Master Masons, some of them unquestionably acting as Worshipful Masters. There are frequent allusions to the setters, who were, as we have seen, the craftsmen whose work was the placing of stones in position rather than the shaping of the stones. It appears that it was a usual practice to increase their wages from time to time for certain particular operations, by way of what may be called "danger money", as perhaps at York on the two hundred foot high great central tower. It is to these men, the setters, that we owe the masonic apron and gloves, as the following extracts from the Fabric Rolls will show: Date 1402, 1404, and also about 1460, as well as in later years: ". . . and in remuneration given to the Masons called Setters at the Walls with aprons and gloves. . . ." Date 1444: ". . . and in gloves with aprons of leather given to the masons and for gloves also given to the masons 7s. Sd." Date about 1470: ". . . and for two aprons of leather for the Setters by the space of twelve months 12d. and for two pairs of gloves for the same time 4d." From this it appears that the life of a leather apron was expected to be about a year, and that a pair of gloves was expected to last about the same time. In 1470, two pairs of gloves cost fourpence in all, and even allowing for the great change in the buying value of money between that time and the present, the modem equivalent of something less than ten shillings for a pair of working gloves which would last for a year in hard use does not seem really extravagant.
And again, date uncertain but before 1490: ". . . and for two skins bought and given to the masons for making aprons according to custom 12d. And in ten pairs of gloves given to the same at the time of the setting of the stones 8d." Incidentally it may be mentioned that there appears to have been some kind of banquet or celebration whenever a notable piece of work was begun, and perhaps when it was completed also, for there is in a Roll of about the same date as the last entry: ". . . and in expenses for the masons on the first day of placing the stones on the Bell Tower, in bread beer and meat all told 181 d." 464 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES It seems also that the Chapter of the Minster provided drinks for the lodge on special occasions, perhaps at Christmas, for there is an entry in 1442 " . . . in payment given to the masons for their drinks according to custom this year 10s. 8d." ‑no small sum, equal perhaps to about ú25 in modem money.
It is a Fabric Roll undated but demonstrably of about the year 1480 which gives the fullest and most varied entries "Wages of the Masons.
In money paid to Thomas Pak Master of the Masons for his fee this year ú10" (say, ú400 to ú500 modem. It was usual to give also a kind of special bonus to the Master each year).
"And in wages to Robert Newbigginge for 29 weeks taking for a week 3s. ú4. 7. 0.
And in wages to John Lanom for 51 weeks taking for a week 3s. ú7. 13. 0." (and 16 other masons at various sums, according to the length of their employment).
Then come items for leather for aprons and for pairs of gloves, and then: "And for expenses of the Auditor and of the Master of the Masons riding from York to the quarry of Hudleston for stones to be prepared and inspected there twice this year 3s. 8d." This duty of directing and inspecting work at the actual quarry was one which was a regular appendage to the Master's office, and a demonstration of the high responsibility which belonged to the Master of the Lodge. The form of such an entry suggests plainly that the Master was of sufficient dignity to be associated on more or less equal terms with the Auditor, who was an official of the Dean and Chapter in charge of all the accounts of the Minster, and that the Master was expected to supervise everything connected with the masonry, from the first choice of the stone in its rough condition in the quarry to its final placing in position in the finished and perfect mass of the structure. To resume the reading of the Roll: "And in reward given to Roger Grissop for the keeping of divers instruments of the masons belonging to the fabric this year, as tubs, buckets and other necessaries. 3s. 4d.
And in money paid to Robert Johnson the smith for sharpening and making divers instruments of the masons divers times within the time of this account. 31s. 9d.
Entries for the sharpening of the working tools are not uncommon, as in 1543: "Item paid for sharpyng the maison toles 2s. 8d." The Master of the lodge was usually paid at the rate of 3s. 4d. a week, a high wage for the time; Master Masons usually at 3s. a week or slightly more. There is no certain figure for setters; it was perhaps between 2s. 6d. and 3s. Apprentices were paid at rates varying between 2s. and 2s. 6d. a MEDIEVAL ORGANIZATION OF LODGES 465 week, although this usually was actually paid to the master. To get modem values, multiply these figures by something over 40.
There are indications that the Warden of the lodge was sometimes, and probably generally and usually, promoted to Master on a vacancy. In the reference to William Hyndeley we have seen that he was Warden in 1472; he was Master in 1478, and apparently continued as Master until 1498 at least. There is no sufficient evidence as yet to show whether mastership was then normally terminated by death, and the indications are that in early times one Warden was more usual than two.
There remains for notice what may be found to be the most interesting and novel point of all. It may well be that other brethren besides myself have been caught by uncertainty and speculation about the meaning and derivation of the word "Tyler". The dictionaries give little or no help or guidance at all. For instance, the Oxford Dictionary gives the earliest recorded use of the word as in A.D. 1742, and the derivation of it as "unknown". May I venture to suggest that this pronouncement is too despondent ? It is possible that the York Fabric Rolls, and therefore perhaps other Rolls of a similar nature, may point the way to a revelation of the history, origin and derivation of the Tyler's office. This suggestion which follows is not put forward as anything positive or conclusive at present, although it is new, and to me at least has weight. I submit that it has a certain strength of evidence which may give it no small degree of probability, and that this evidence carefully considered although unusual is impressive. If this suggestion prove to be correct, then it may be permissible to claim that a discovery in the evolution of Masonry has been advanced which may not be of major importance but surely is not without importance in its degree.
The theory is based on a study of the use which is made in these early records of the word "intayler" or "entayler". The use of this term is not by any means confined to York. Taylatores, a Latin form which unquestionably embodies the same word which makes the operative part of the English "intayler", is found at Eton in 1445‑6, and "intayler" is found at King's College, Cambridge, in 1444. Westminster in 1532 has "masons entayllers", as masons but of the lowest rank. In the York records, the first entry to be noted is slightly earlier than that; it occurs in 1433, and in this example there appears the name of one "Robert Intaler", that is, according to vernacular usage at the time, Robert the Intaler; he was a person of some importance, it would seem, as he had a servant or assistant of his own. Further examination has shown that this functionary appears regularly in the lists, although with varied spelling‑which need surprise no one acquainted with medieval practice before a standardized spelling imposed some restriction on the play of fancy in spelling ... intaler, intuler, entailer, and so forthand always with a servant. In 1515, for instance, Robert Waterton was entailer with an assistant; his weekly wage was usually the same as that of 466 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES a mason not an apprentice, namely 3s. (say, something over ú6 in modem value). But there is one entry which sets out exactly what sort of work was done by the entailer, and this is of particular significance, because it implies so clearly that in spite of his close association with the masons his work was regarded as in some way distinct from theirs. In the Roll for 1478 appears the following: "In wages to James Dam the Carver working for 13 weeks for each week 3s. And to the same man for the Intailing of 8 score and 15 crokettes for each Id." This James Dam became a Freeman of the city in 1456, and his son John became a Freeman as a Goldsmith.
So the intailer was a craftsman who did specialised carving work, such as the ornaments on pinnacles or spires, using for that workno doubt special tools different from the working tools of a mason, and regarded as separate and different in some ways from the masons who worked the ashlars, stones for the columns, and so forth. Is it too much to suggest that the sword, or more properly the poniard, of the Tyler in our lodges represents that special tool which distinguished the intailer from his brother masons, and that his name of Tyler is derived, not from any French word meaning a man who puts tiles on a roof, a derivation which has been suggested but has no part in a mason's work, but from an older title, of a mason who is in certain respects somewhat different from his brother masons in the nature of his work ? The idea of a reference to a connection with roof‑tiling may be attacked from another direction, from the negative side, and the result will probably be found conclusive against any belief that the Masonic Tyler has any connection, or ever had any such connection, with roof‑tiles or tilers. We may enquire whether these medieval craftsmen knew anything of special workers in roof tiles, what they called them, and whether they classed them as any kind of masons. The evidence on this enquiry admits no doubt. The worker who dealt with tiles was called a "tegulator", from the Latin word tegula, a roof tile, which is the origin of the French word "tuile". He was never by any chance or in any instance called an intailer. The tegulator is mentioned in the Fabric Rolls, but never by any chance in any connection with the masons or any kind of stone masons whatsoever or their work, but always in a class completely separate and distinct, nor is the word intailer ever found amongst these lists of tile workers. A typical entry for the latter is such as this, of the year 1422, from the part of the Roll giving the accounts of the "Keeper of the Rents", several sections of the Roll later than the latest section dealing with the masons; it gives miscellaneous small payments for the repair of house property, not connected at all with the construction of a large stone building such as the Minster.
MEDIEVAL ORGANIZATION OF LODGES 467 "And in the wages of John Kirkham tiler and plasterer for 61 days and a half taking 6d. per day And in the wages of John Pullan tiler and plasterer for 28 days taking 42 d. per day And in the wages of John Clerk his servant for 652 days taking 4d. per day." On the other hand and by the way of contrast, let us examine again the Rolls for typical entries relating to the masons: A.D. 1515. "And in wages to Christopher Homer Master of the Masons working on the fabric for 52 weeks at per week 3s. 4d." Then, to the following masons at the full rate of 3s. 4d. or 3s. per week: "Philip Gillow, Chris. Rayner, John Kirk, Edward Keley, Richard Leche, William Trotter, Thomas Torte.
And in wages to Robert Waterton entailar working on the fabric for 8 weeks per week 3s. 4d.
And in wages to the servant of the aforesaid Robert Waterton working on the fabric for 8 weeks per week 2s. 6d.
And in wages to Richard Wardroper apprentice of Christopher Mason working on the fabric for 24 weeks per week 20d." A.D. 1528.
"Wages of the Masons.
And in the wages of John Forman Master of the Masons working on the fabric for 52 weeks per week ... (the amounts are lost).
And in wages of Peter Sobre working on the fabric for 48 weeks and 4 days taking per week . . . (Similarly to Thomas Huetson, Edward Kell, Philip Gillott and Arthur Sothern) And in the wages of James Burnand the Intayller working on the fabric for 6 weeks taking per week 3s. 4d.
And in the wages of Richard Wardroper ...
And in the wages of John Pennington apprentice working on the fabric for 52 weeks at 2s. 6d. per week And in the wages of Roger Forman apprentice working on the fabric for 52 weeks at 2s. 6d. per week And in remuneration given to Edward Kell, Philip Gillott and James Burnand Setters . . .
And in pennyworths given to John Forman Master of the Masons this year by way of reward . . ." The following year, 1529.
Payments as in the previous list to John Forman, Master of the Masons, to James Symcok, Peter Sobre, Thomas Huetson, Edward Kelly, Thomas Benson, Philip Gillott and Robert Harbert, all of them for 52 weeks; to James Intaler for 8 weeks at 3s. 4d.; to Miles Pulleyn and John Pennington, Apprentices, for the whole year at 2s. 6d. a week; "and in remuneration given to James Sympcoke, Thomas 468 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES Benson, Philip Gillott Setters for 6 weeks" (this may have been "danger money"); the reward to John Forman the Master is repeated, and the lists end with payments of 3s. a week each to John Wardroper, John Ricardby and John Whailer, who are not otherwise described but from the scale of their wages were evidently at least Setters. Finally, in 1536, a similar list but with an unusually large number of Masons "Wages of the Masons.
And in wages of John Forman Master of the Masons working on the fabric for 52 weeks at 3s. 4d. a week ú8. 13. 4." Other Masons for periods varying between 49 weeks and 37 weeks, all at 3s. a week; the names are James Symcok, John King, Robert Sqwier, Peter Sobre, Edward Kelley, Thomas Huetson, George Chambre, Thomas Torte, John Welles, Thomas Fox, Thomas Rooff, and Robert Roo.
"And in the wages of William Ketchyn Intelar working on the fabric for 18 weeks at 3s. 4d. a week.
And in the wages of Peter the Apprentice ...
And in the wages of Miles Pullayn the Apprentice ...
And in pennyworths given this year to John Forman Master of the Masons by way of reward ú3. 6. 8." To sum up this evidence, then: the Fabric Rolls of York Minster in the middle ages show an organization by lodges, and in the lodge the ranks distinctly recognized of Master, Wardens, full masons, setters, apprentices, and intaler. In these Rolls there is one Master of the lodge and one only; one Warden, or sometimes none mentioned; several other full‑rank masons, up to a total of not less than fifteen; several setters, several apprentices, and one intaler, and one only, and he is seldom omitted.
We know exactly what was the function of the intaler as an operative mason; we find no other mention at all of anyone who can be regarded as a guardian of the lodge. Although the intaler was a skilled workman, these Rolls frequently mention him after the apprentices. All these points together seem significant and illuminating. The position of the Tyler may be somewhat equivocal, but the suggestion of his connection with, and possible derivation from, the medieval intaler may do something to elucidate his position and to show his ancestry. Certainly the office of Tyler cannot be held to have any derivation from a man who laid tiles on a roof, which was never a function of masons. Indeed, in the Minster and in fact in almost all large and important medieval buildings such a layer of tiles would rarely be known or needed at all, since the roofs in such places were usually of lead. But a man whose business was specialised carving on stones worked by masons was indeed associated with Masonry, although perhaps with a recognized difference, and such a man might come quite naturally to be distinguished in the Lodge from those who used the regular working tools MEDIEVAL ORGANIZATION OF LODGES 469 of a Master Mason, a setter, or an apprentice. He remained, I suggest, as it were outside the door of the lodge, but he was none the less a part of the lodge, and not at all of some other distinct craft.
This survey of the information given by the Fabric Rolls of York Minster in the middle ages is not, of course, and makes no pretence to be, in any way exhaustive concerning the organization of the masons' lodges in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries or earlier. But it may well be that what has been said has opened a new field of ideas to some, and the material gathered here is within its own limits sufficiently complete to present a definite theory, nor, in one important particular, has anything been found in these records to invalidate the suggestion made here as to the derivation of the Tyler. To do more than this was hardly possible within the limits of time and space allowed by this Lecture. But the information here offered may perhaps urge some more learned Brother to pursue the research and to make known the results of his enquiries into the days of antiquity, to the general edification of the Craft by the light which is thrown thereby on the more distant and obscure places of Masonic history and on the evolution and development of our Order.
THE GROWTH OF FREEMASONRY IN ENGLAND & WALES SINCE 1717 (THE PRESTONIAN LECTURE FOR 1960) by BRO. SYDNEY POPE, P.G.St.Br. P.M., Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No. 2076 The subject of my lecture is an old one, but illustrating it by means of graphs I have found much of it made clearer to me, and I am hoping that it will do the same for those who have not had the access to Masonic works that I have enjoyed.
As we all know in these days, graphs or graphical methods in a restricted sense mean methods which are applied in science and economics, and this lecture is an attempt to demonstrate that they can be used to show, so as to be evident at a glance, the general manner in which the progress of Freemasonry was influenced by political, social or economic changes. Thus if we mark off along a horizontal line a series of points at equal intervals to represent successive years and then measure along the vertical line through each point a length representing the number of lodges nominally in existence, we obtain, on drawing a continuous graph through the ends of the measured lengths, a graphical representation of the yearly fluctuations in the number of existing lodges.
While it must not be forgotten that graphical representation is generally not so accurate as the figures upon which it is based, that so many historical, political and economic changes can thus be pin‑pointed suggests that this method does assist us to visualize Masonic history from 1717 to the end of the nineteenth century. While doing so, it should be remembered that the dates given for the loss of lodges is less accurate than those of their formation, as the notification of lapsed lodges in the provinces is sometimes accompanied by some such expression as "has not met for years".
A casual glance through Lane's Masonic Records, which gives the date of the formation, or the erasure of lodges where such has taken place, would give the reader unacquainted with Masonic history the impression that, from the formation of the Grand Lodge of England in 1717, the growth of Freemasonry in England and Wales has been continuous, although the rate had at times varied. There have, however, been periods during which 471 472 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES little progress was made in England and Wales, but as during those periods numbers of lodges under the Grand Lodge of England were being formed in the colonies and abroad, the number of lodges gradually increased and a reduction of lodges in any one district would not be noticed; in other words, what was being lost on the roundabouts was being made up on the swings! It is sometimes possible to find the causes of these changes by comparing the graph of one province with that of others in distant provinces. The depression which occurs in graphs of coastal provinces in the south of England at the end of the Napoleonic war is not to be found in graphs of provinces in the north‑west.
The Grand Lodge of England was formed in 1717 by four old London Lodges, and we are given the names of the four taverns in which they used to meet. Three of these Lodges are still in existence‑No. 2, No. 4 and No. 12; Lodge No. 12, now the Lodge of Fortitude and Old Cumberland, agreed to apply for a Warrant; the others refused. In the numbered List of 1729 the date of constitution assigned to the Lodge now numbered 2, the Lodge of Antiquity, was 1691; the date of constitution now given for No. 2 and No. 4 is "Time Immemorial".
In 1716 a movement had been started to bring Freemasonry together in the metropolis, and at first its jurisdiction was limited to the Cities of London and Westminster, or the district embraced by what was called the "Bills of Mortality" in the 1723 Book of Constitutions.
In 1716 or 1717 the Brethren meeting in these old London taverns seem to have instituted the practice of holding an annual feast called the "Assembly", and in 1717 they elected a Mr. Anthony Sayer, Gentleman, whom they styled the Grand Master, to preside over them. Of our first Grand Master's previous career nothing is known and he was not a mason by trade. Little is known of the membership of the Society at this date; these proceedings attracted no public attention and no reliable account of them survives, all of which suggests that the Society did not at this time include anyone of any social standing.
These were unsettled days, and although the Jacobites were by no means silenced by the failure of the 1715 rebellion‑it will later be noted that in London there was a loss of some twenty‑one lodges during that of 1745‑the Hanoverian succession was then felt to be assured and there was a general revival of social and scientific activities in consequence.
In the eighteenth century, London occupied a more prominent position than it does even today, as our large towns and cities in the provinces had not at that time started to grow; our oldest lodges, mostly situated in London, were therefore more susceptible to social and political changes, and graph A of our London lodges illustrates this. (See p. 474.) From the diary and commonplace book of Dr. Stukeley we learn that he was made a Mason in 1721, and he says GROWTH OF FREEMASONRY SINCE 1717 473 "I was the first person made a Freemason in London for many years. We had great difficulty to find members enough to perform the ceremony. Immediately upon that it took a run and ran itself out of breath thro' the follies of the members".
In 1723 fifteen new Lodges were formed, and when the first Book of Constitutions appeared it was found to involve great changes from the Old Charges. The purely Christian character of Masonry was abolished in the new Book of Constitutions and it was placed on a Deistic basis; and although it is now recognized that Freemasonry otherwise would never have become the universal institution it now is, yet great dissatisfaction was caused and many Masons looked on the innovation in much the same way as on the removal of all religious formulary from the ceremonies of the Grand Orient of France in 1877. Dr. Stukeley entered the Church and he was ordained in 1729, from which date he appears to have ceased all Masonic activities.
There were, moreover, other causes for trouble. In 1723 a so‑called exposure, "A Mason's Examination", was printed in three issues of The Flying Post and Postman, and in 1730 the first in book form, Masonry Dissected, by Samuel Prichard, appeared. At the present time, with twoand‑three‑quarter centuries of the periodical publishing of such so‑called exposures behind us, it is difficult to imagine the stir caused by these early efforts. The premier Grand Lodge was going through a very difficult period, and even the initiation of the Prince of Wales in 1737 failed to stem the depression which commenced in 1740. There were many contributing causes‑Freemasons were persecuted in various continental countries from 1735‑45; moreover, in 1738 a formidable Bull against Freemasons was issued by the Pope which, like the "Mason's Examination", being the first of a series, was doubtless more effective than those which followed.
In England the Craft was falling into disfavour, for mock processions by the Scald Miserables took place in London in 1741, 1742, 1744 and 1745. The well‑known engraving by Antoine Benoist suggests that these burlesques, upon which much labour and expense must have been expended, had something more in view than the amusement of the organizers and spectators. The loss of twenty‑one London lodges in 1745, the year of the Jacobite rebellion, with the rapid recovery shown by graph A, marks the unstable condition of the country as a major cause of the 1740‑50 depression. Brother J. Heron Lepper computed that in 1755, of the 271 lodges nominally in existence, only 199 were carried forward at the closing up of the lodge numbers in 1756, so apparently more than a quarter of the Private lodges adhering to the premier Grand Lodge had died.
In 1747, Lord Byron was Grand Master, but he did not attend Grand Lodge again until 1752, and during these five years the officers of Grand Lodge were not changed. A second Grand Lodge, known as that of the "Antients", was formed in 1751, which will be considered later.
L.
GROWTH OF FREEMASONRY SINCE 1717 475 In 1760, London had the advantage over the rest of the country; conditions began to improve both economically and socially, whereas elsewhere they steadily grew worse. Graph A shows that the number of lodges increased until 1772, in which year William Preston held his gala meeting. There were then more lodges in London than there ever had been before and more than there were to be for the next hundred years. In 1777 there was the dispute among the members of the Lodge of Antiquity over a procession in Masonic Regalia without the permission of Grand Lodge, and in 1779 William Preston and ten others were expelled the Craft. As we now know, the matter was afterwards adjusted, but further trouble was ahead. "In 1780 the London mob surrounded the Houses of Parliament, took drunken control of the Capital for four days and burnt a tenth of it down." The French Revolution followed in 1790, which, apart from its political and economic aspects, was not without its repercussions upon Freemasonry. Two circumstances affecting the development of Freemasonry in London during the last decade of the eighteenth century were the French Revolution and the Statute of 1799.
After 1790 no new lodge under the "Moderns" was warranted to meet in London; Lane lists the Perfect Lodge, Woolwich, No. 552,1 as a London lodge warranted in 1796, but this Lodge was warranted by Dr. Perfect, Provincial Grand Master for Kent, after whom it was named.
The Statute of 1799 regulating Secret Societies, which, following on the heels of the French Revolution, was construed to mean that no new lodges were permitted, but that if warranted before the Act they were lawful. Hence arose the practice, when a new lodge was desired, of purchasing an old Warrant and so obtaining lawful authority. The Grand Lodge of the "Moderns" periodically closed up the numbers of their lodges, but that of the "Antients" reissued the Warrants of their lapsed lodges and sixteen "Antient" lodges were so warranted in London between 1799 and 1813. Concerning the Statute of 1799, in his Military Lodges Gould says: "Two works were published in 1799 which, though now seldom read, produced an immense sensation at the time. They were written by the Abb6 Barruel and Professor Robison in the same year and without mutual consultation. It was the object of both to prove that a secret association had been formed and carried on for rooting out all the existing governments of Europe, and that this association had employed as its chief instruments the Lodges of Freemasons.
These works were not without influence in inspiring a portion of the legislation in 1799, when an Act of Parliament was passed `for the more effectual suppression of societies established for seditious and treasonable purposes, and for preventing treasonable and seditious practices'. i Erased in 1822.
476 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES By this Statute‑39 George III, c. 79 itwas enacted that all societies, the members whereof are required to take any oath not authorized by law, should be deemed unlawful combinations. Ultimately, however, societies held under the denomination of Lodges of Freemasons were, under certain conditions, exempted from the operation of this Act. This was mainly due to the tact and address of the Earl of Moira, by whose efforts English Freemasonry was saved from extinction, or at the very least from temporary obliteration." Mr. John Saltmarsh, Vice‑Provost of King's College, Cambridge, lecturing at Canterbury last year on "The Story of the Centuries", described the "retardation which accompanied the unleashing of the French Revolution and the subsequent era of retardation and reform in midnineteenth century . . ." A glance at our graphs will show that such retardation was experienced by Freemasonry in London under the Grand Lodge of the "Moderns" from 1790‑1813 and from that year until the middle of the nineteenth century under the United Grand Lodge of England.
In 1793, France declared war upon England, and the number of London lodges under the Grand Lodge of the "Moderns" (graph A) continued to fall until its union with that of the "Antients" in 1813.
THE GRAND LODGE OF THE "ANTIENTS" We have noted that the premier Grand Lodge of England was formed in 1717; a second Grand Lodge was formed in 1751 under the denomination of "The Grand Lodge of England according to the Old Institutions", whose members named themselves the "Antients". They dubbed those of the premier Grand Lodge, formed decades before, the "Modems", declaring that they had deviated from the Landmarks of the Order. These names have since been used to designate the two Grand Lodges. When the five Lodges of the "Antients" assumed the style of a "Grand Lodge of the Old Institutions", its total membership did not exceed eighty; many of them were Irish, mostly mechanics and shopkeepers, whereas at that time the average member of the Lodges under the premier Grand Lodge was of a higher social grade. The first Secretary of the "Antients", John Morgan, produced the "Rules and Orders", and in the second year of its existence resumed his sea duty. The first Minutes of the new Grand Lodge record the appointment of Laurence Dermott, one of the most outstanding Freemasons of the eighteenth century, as Secretary; he was born in Ireland in 1720, initiated in Lodge No. 26, Dublin, of which he became Master, and in 1746 the Secretary; in the same year he was exalted in the Royal Arch. In 1748 he came to England as a journeyman painter; he afterwards became a wine merchant, and he prospered. In 1756 he published what amounted to the first Book of Constitutions of the "Antients" under the title of Ahintan Rezon or a Help to a Brother, in which he wrote: GROWTH OF FREEMASONRY SINCE 1717 477 "The Persons to whom I now speak, are Men of some Education, and an honest Character; but in low Circumstances: I say, let them first consider their Income and Family, and know that Free‑Masonry requires Ability, Attendance, and a good Appearance to maintain and support its ancient and honourable Grandeur".
For the first few years the Grand Lodge of the "Antients" had a difficult time owing to jealousy and dissension, the effect of which is to be noted in graph C of their London lodges; however, from 1782 it starts to rise as that of the London lodges of the "Modems" continues to fall, until the Union in 1813, when the two Grand Lodges joined to form the United Grand Lodge of England. Much has been written about the rivalry between the two Grand Lodges, but it must not be overlooked that had it not been for the "Antients" not one of our ceremonies would be as it is today.' We now turn to graph B, that of the Provincial lodges under the Premier Grand Lodge (the "Moderns"), which until 1767 follows a course roughly parallel to graph A of its London lodges. The first depression occurs in 1754, when no less than 19 lodges were erased; these were distributed over the whole of the country and were some of the "more than a quarter of the Private Lodges adhering to the Premier Grand Lodge" that were found to have died when the Lodge numbers were closed up in 1756, as mentioned by Brother Lepper. After this the graph climbs steeply until from 1767‑1778, during which period trouble developed with the American colonies. Complaint was made that they had no representative in the English Parliament and that taxation and representation should go hand in hand. Resentment showed itself in a pledge to use no English manufactures until the restrictions were relaxed, and the American War of Independence followed. But the nation was changing from agriculture to industry, "the population during the 18th century more than doubled, and the advance of her wealth was even greater "than that of her population. The loss of America only increased the commerce with that country, and industry had begun that great career which, for a period, was to make Britain the workshop of the world".
The recovery after the several depressions from 1767‑1778 illustrates the expansion taking place in industrial centres, and during the course of these troubles, instead of a major depression, there is a flattening of the graph; this process is again repeated from the late 1790's‑1810.
That the effect of war upon the progress of Freemasonry was by no means confined to its London lodges we are reminded by the following extract from the Minute Books of the Minerva Lodge, Hull, No. 451: "5th Jan., 1810, the Secretary proposed that `all members of the Lodge be exempt from payment of quarterage during their imprisonment I Graphs B, C, and D, are also shown on p. 474.
478 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES for debt.' This was an outcome of the Napoleonic War, during which the Emperor of France had prohibited all trade between the Continent and Britain, a measure which bore very hardly upon merchants in a seaport like Hull, whose principal trade was with the Continent of Europe".
This disturbance caused some further flattening of graph B until 1813, when the union of the two Grand Lodges took place, after which graph B of the Provincial lodges of the "Modems", with the addition of the lodges of the "Antients", graph D, becomes that of the Provincial lodges of the United Grand Lodge of England. This rises until 1820, when the slump which followed the war caused it to fall. The greatest depression of all, however, that caused by our own Industrial Revolution, was still ahead, and from 1827‑1832 some eighty‑two lodges were lost. From this date the nineteenth century revival of Freemasonry really commences, for of the thirty‑five lodges warranted from 1833‑1837 two‑thirds survive. The dip in the graph which follows is not really a depression, for twenty of the twenty‑two lodges erased in 1838 are recorded as having been so done on September 5th of that year; this would be the date they were removed from the Roll of Lodges, for the various dates of their last recorded meetings suggest that they had been inactive for years.
Military lodges, being ambulatory, are not included in this lecture; however, towards the end of the eighteenth century and the beginning of the nineteenth static lodges, mostly "Antients", were being formed in towns through which military men were trouping and sometimes sojourning. Graphs for some Provinces in the south of England show the manner in which these military Masons boosted the development of Freemasonry during the Napoleonic War; their Minute Books show that a ,urge proportion of their members were military men, and some of the lodges removed from the Roll in 1837 no doubt found things difficult when these members moved on; the date of the last recorded meetings of several of these lodges some twenty years before erasure suggests this.
After this we come to what appears to be the last depression in the graph, which, curiously enough, appears to have been caused by prosperity! It occurred from 1850‑1851, the year of the Great Exhibition in Hyde Park, London. Minute Books of literary and scientific societies record such depressions during this period; our people were so busy showing the world what they could make that Freemasonry, like other cultural activities, had, for a time, to wait. From 1851 the upward trend of the graph continues.
We now return to graph A, which from 1813, the date of the Union of the two Grand Lodges, becomes that of the London lodges of the United Grand Lodge of England. (It has been suggested that my diagram would have been clearer if graphs A and C had been printed black and graphs B and D in red up to 1813 and after that date in black and red; unfortunately, this suggestion was not practicable.) GROWTH OF FREEMASONRY SINCE 1717 479 The depression that has been noted in graph A of the "Moderns" from 1772 is not halted by the union of the two Grand Lodges, and it continues until from 1828‑1830, when it increases sharply. The 1837‑1838 depression noted in graph B of the Provincial lodges does not occur in the graph of the London lodges. This adds to the suggestion that what appears to be a depression was due to lack of communication between lodges in the Provinces and the Grand Lodge in London.
We have already noted that after 1790 no new lodge under the "Moderns" was warranted to meet in London; also that between 1799 and 1813 sixteen "Antient" lodges, using the Warrants of lapsed lodges, had been warranted there. The two Grand Lodges were both meeting in London, and, generally speaking, the farther from London that lodges were situated the less the rivalry between the "Modems" and the "Antients". That no new lodge was warranted by the United Grand Lodge of England to meet in London from 1814 to 1839 would appear to have been due to the time taken for things to settle down.
Minute Books of London lodges confirm the state into which Freemasonry there had fallen about the middle of the nineteenth century. In 1855 the Lodge of Antiquity, No. 2, owing to want of junior members, appointed no I.G. or Junior Steward, and it was not until 1865 that all the offices were filled. In Westminster and Keystone Lodge, No. 10, the number of members had been reduced to three, and no regular meetings of the lodge seem to have been held between 1850 and 1855. However, in 1856 signs of a change appear, for on February 5th of that year Lord Homesdale, afterwards Earl Amherst, the Earl of Carnarvon and Lord Valletort (Earl of Mount Edgecumbe) were initiated in Lodge No. 10. The Earl of Camarvon became the Deputy Grand Master of the United Grand Lodge of England, 1870‑74; the Earl of Mount Edgecumbe, 1891‑96; and Earl Amherst, 1896‑99.
On January 6th, 1874, H.R.H. the Prince of Wales, K.G. (afterwards King Edward VII), was installed Master of the Prince of Wales Lodge, No. 259, by the Earl of Limerick, who had been invited to preside on the occasion. On the back of his Past Master's jewel is engraved "H.R.H. Prince of Wales, installed M.W.G.M., 28th April, 1875". During that year 16 lodges were warranted in London; the following year there were 25, and in 1877 the number was 26‑the upward sweep continues.
From 1890‑1900 no lodges were erased and the number of new lodges warranted was so large as to render our graphs unwieldy. When it now happens that our country is at war the number of new lodges falls, but it is extremely rare for a lodge in England and Wales to return its Warrant; during such periods our graphs flatten. The last occurrence was in 1939, and I will conclude by recalling what happened on that occasion.
"On the outbreak of war, Grand Lodge notified the lodges of a suspension of all Masonic meetings pending further instructions.
480 THE PRESTONIAN LECTURES
About three weeks later a further communication permitted the 1 resumption of meetings, subject to special directions. That letter of September, 1939, from Grand Lodge included the following noteworthy paragraph referring to the inspiration derived from Freemasonry in a time of stress and trouble: `No one can lose sight of the fact that Freemasonry enters into the lives of so many that the interruption of meetings would not only cause personal hardship, but a loss of inspiration to a con siderable part of our nation. Indeed, it is particularly in times of National Emergency and Stress that we most appreciate the opportunities which Freemasonry affords for the fraternal gatherings from which we derive moral support and comfort."'
INDEX
Compiled by Bro. G. NORMAN KNIGHT, M.A., Barrister‑at‑Law, L.G.R., Chairman of the Society of Indexers Lodges are under the English Constitution unless otherwise designated. "(I.C.)" refers to the Irish Constitution; "(S.C.)" to the Scottish Constitution; "(A.)" refers to Antients.
Page numbers in bold type denote main references. Page numbers in italics denote illustrations or their captions; (bis) after a page number indicates two separate references on that page; (ter) similarly indicates three references. Three dots (...) are placed between Lodge numbers and page numbers in order to distinguish the latter.
The alphabetical arrangement is according to the word‑by‑word system.
A.Q.C., see Ars Quatuor Coronatorum
Abbreviations used, viii
Aberdeen, Lodge of, No. 13 (S.C.), 247, 252, 257n.; non-operatives in (1670), 427-8
Aberdeen MS. (1670), 109, 247
Acceptance degree, 31, 37, 39; E.A. and F.C. degrees formed out of, 31, 38, 41, 61; Pillars' association with, 56
"Accepted Masons", 421, 429-30; definition of, 429 n.
Acception, the London, 39, 47, 54, 55, 371, 431; prototype of today's lodge, 372; work of, 429-30, 436, 437 (bis)
Adams, Col. C.C., "The Oldest Lodge" (1949), 317-30
Adamson, Henry, The Muses Threnodie (1638), 194, 257 n., 259
Admiralty Court punishments, Tudor, 42
Ahiman Rezon (Dermott), 15, 33, 202, 413, 4393477
Aitchison's Haven Lodge (1600), 251, 252, 257 n.; non-operatives in (1672), 427 Alban, St., 86, 156, 175
All-seeing Eye, 150
Allegory and symbols, 377-83
Alnwick Lodge (North'd), 47, 112, 426, 427, 436 n., 437
Altar, the, 223; symbolism of, 232
Amity, Lodge of, No. 137, Poole, 342
Amon (Aymon) identified, 100-1
Ampthill, 2nd Baron, Pro. G.M.: on 2nd Degree, 124; Trustee of Prestonian Fund (1923), ix
Anchor & Hope Lodge, No. 37, Bolton, 333,356-7
Ancient and Accepted Rite, 314
Ancient Lodge, No. 30 (S.C.), Stirling, 303
4;
Anderson, Dr. James, 35, 37, 400, 413;
"Ancient Charges" of, 159-60, 162;
Apprentices in his day, 55; Constitutions of, see Book of Constitutions (1723, 1738); Masonic "religion" and, 187; Master's Part and, 57-8
"Antediluvian Masonry" (1726), 308
Antediluvian Pillars, the, 297, 298-300 Amherst of Arakan, 3rd Earl, D.G.M. (1896-9), 479
Antients, the: Lodges of, 439, 449, 474, 479; ritual of, 32, 33, 34
Antients' Grand Lodge, 4, 327, 441, 476-7; formation of (1751), 439, 473 Antiquity, Lodge of, No. 2... 317-30, 403; By-Laws of, 320-1, 348; Closing prayer in, 193; Duke of Sussex as W.M. of, 21, 22, 319; first option for delivery of Prestonian Lectures, x; G.L. South of Trent and, 291-5,326-7; Harodim Lodge unites with (1792), 28, 335; Lectures in, 15-6, 325-6, 335-6; Lodge of Instruction, attached to, 16, 29, 322, 333, 335-6, 350, 353; meagre membership (1855), 479; originals of Preston's Illustrations in, 21; Preston and, frontispiece, 1, 9-14, 21, 165, 284-95, 318, 321-6, 442-3; Royal Medal for, 328; three degrees on one night, 59; Wren's Mastership of (1680), 317
Antiquity MS (1686), 110, 165-6, 169, 317
Apollo Lodge, York (1774), 403
Apple Tree Tavern, Covent Garden, 318
Apprentices: bondsmen not to be made, 364, 366 (bis); "bookings" of, 432; Entered Apprentices and, 248-9
Aprons: decorated, 449; 18th century, 34-5, 326; medieval masons', 463, 464; symbolism of, 233-4, 382
Arithmetic, 125, 126, 128, 131, 171 Ark and Dove degree, 314
Arklow Regis Lodge, No. 4481...351
Ars Quatuor Coronatorum, 396; "Gounod's Queen of Sheba" in, 205; Masonic legends, its articles on, 105-6; Ritual, articles on, 221 n.; Tracing Boards, articles on, 266
Art, contemplative, Freemasonry and, 195-211
Ashe, Dr. Jonathan, Masonic Manual, 138-9, 265
Ashlars, the, 54, 151, 404; Tracing Boards', 274
Ashmole, Elias, 43, 47, 222, 363, 371; "making" of, 430, 437
Assembly of Masons, 156, 161, 175 Astronomy, 125, 126, 128, 136-9, 171 Atholl, 4th Duke of, G.M. ("A"), 445, 446 Atkinson, Joseph, 295
Aubrey, John (1624-97), Natural History of Wiltshire (1847), 262, 367
Author's Lodge (3456) of Instruction, 334 Aymon, "the son of Hiram", see Amon
Babel, the Tower of, 297, 304-13 Bacon, Sir Francis, quoted, 387-8 Bain MS., (1670-80), 109, 160 Barruel, I'Abbe A., Memoires pour Servir d 1'Histoire du_`acobinisme (1799), 475 Baxter, Roderick H., "The Antiquity of Our Masonic Legends..." (1929), 95-119 Beaufort, Henry, 5th Duke of, G.M. (1767-71), 9
Beaumaris Castle, "layers and setters" at (1316), 460
Bible openings, 379
Bibliotheca Romana (Preston), 4 "Bills of Mortality", 472
Birch, William (W.M., L. of Antiquity), 29, 295, 326
Blacklock, Dr., verse by, 6
Blayney, Cadwaller, 9th Baron, G.M. (1764-6), 4, 441
Blazing Star, the, 150, 151, 273
Block, Louis, P.G.M. (Iowa), on instruction, 386
Board of Benevolence, 189
Board of General Purposes, xii, 285, 323; Library, Art & Publications Committee of, ix; Lodges of Instruction's infringements and, 347
Boehme, Jacob, 92
Bonnor, Charles (Acting Master, L. of Antiquity, 1810), 319, 336
Book of Constitutions: Grand Master's jewel illustrated in, 381; Lodge of Instruction regulations, 347, 359, 361, 387; Lodge readings of part of, 162-3; "Management of the Craft in Working" in, 449; "Master Mason" in, 38; Regulations in, see Regulations; 1723, 50, 162, 196, 299, 302, 319, 472, 473; 1738, 47, 48, 142, 299, 302; 1756, 50, 441, 1767, 59, 330, 441; 1776, 9, 284,
Book of Constitutions-(cont.):
330; 1784, 330; 1815, 346 (bis), 358, 360, 447; 1841, 346 (bis), 358, 360; 1884, 346 (bis), 359, 361; 1940, 346, 359,361
Boswell of Auchinleck, John (1600), 427, 431
Bottomley, John, 9, 11-2, 16, 286; Memorial of (1778), 353; persuades Preston to join L. of Antiquity, 284
Bowring, Josiah, Tracing Boards by, 266, 267, 268, 273, 449
Bradley, Benjamin, 285, 286, 287, 288, 291,293
Bridge, G.E.W., "Veiled in Allegory and Illustrated by Symbols" (1939), 265-81 Briscoe version of Old Charges (1724), 115, 160,310-1
Bristol, Lodge of Jehosaphat (1796), 333, 355
Bristol Prov. Lodge of Instruction, 341-2 Bristol working, 192, 193
British Lodge, No. 8, 329
Browne, John, Tracing Boards by, 266 Browne's MasterKey (1798), 348, 448 Buchanan MS, (c. 1670), 109, 178
Budge, Sir Wallis, on meaningless ritual, 378
Builders' rites and ceremonies, 96-7, 106-7 Bunney, W.J., "Freemasonry and Contemplative Art" (1935), 195-211
Bussey, Jacob, G.S. of York G.L., 287-8, 289
Byron, William, 5th Baron, G.M. (174752),473
Cable-tow, the, 375, 382
Caernarvon Castle, "layers and setters" at, (1316), 460
Cagliostro, "Count", 327
Calcott, Wellins, 72-3; A Candid Disquisition ...(1769), 63, 65-73; Charge by, 72 Caledonian Lodge, No. 134...4, 283, 317, 441
Candidate for initiation, 231-2, 233; entry of, 275-6; "properly prepared", 276 Canongate & Leith, Leith & Canongate Lodge, No. 5 (S.C.) 433 n.
Canongate Kilwinning Lodge, No. 2 (S.C.), 433
Canterbury, "masons of the lodge" in, (1429), 423, 425.
Carlyle, Thomas, on Goethe, 200 Carmick MS. (1727), 113, 265
Carr, Harry, "The Transition from Operative to Speculative Masonry" (1957), 421-38
Castle Lodge of Instruction (1812-20), 343-4
Catechisms, the old, 405-6 "Centre, with a", 148 Ceremonial, 223-6 Certificates, Grand Lodge, 409 Chaplain's jewel, 381
Chapman, Thomas (Sec. of Order of Harodim), 26
Charges General and Special, the, 54 Charity, Masonic, 189, 191-2; Capt. Smith on, 82
Charity test, the, 58, 192, 197 Charles Martel, 156, 174 Charter of Incorporation proposed by "Moderns" (1769-72), 441
Chester, early Lodge at (c. 1670), 47, 262, 430
Chetwin, H. W., "Variations in Masonic Ceremonial" (1951), xi, 361
Chetwode Crawley MS (c. 1700), 103-4, 243; Oath in, 178-9
China Fleet Lodge of Instruction, 345-6 Christianity and Freemasonry, 76, 77, 85, 105, 186-9, 381
Chronicles, 2nd Book of, 99 Clapham MS., (c. 1700), 111, 156
Claret, George, 344; The Whole of Craft Free-Masonry, 31, 33
Clemens Alexandrinus, Stromata, 377 Clement XII, his In Eminenti Bull (1738), 187
"Clubs of Instruction", 347, 349, 351
Cole version of Old Charges (1728), 115, 160 (bis), 170
Cole's Constitutions: (1728/9), 201; 2nd edn. (1731), 204
"Comacine Masters", 368 Compagnonnage, the, 40, 43 "Convivial masonry", 435-6, 437 Cook, Eliza, "Address to the Freemasons", 197-8
Cooke MS. (c. 1410), 424-5; antediluvian Pillars in, 298; Hiramic legend and, 99, 108; production by Grand Master Payne (1721), 161
Correspondence Circles, 194
Coulton, Dr. G.G.: Art and the Reformation, 219-20; Studies in Medieval Thought, 300
Covey-Crump, Canon W. W., The Hiramic Tradition, 226, 314; "Medieval Master Masons and their Secrets" (1931), 141-53 Cubitores ("layers"), 460, 461
Cumberland, H.R.H. Henry, Duke of, G.M. (1782-90), 441
Customs, 18th century Masonic, 403-4, 410-1
Daniel, Sir F.C., 21 Deacon's jewel design, 314 Deacons, introduction of, 342, 445 Degrees: Slade's, 309; symbolism of the three, 229-41
Degrees, the number of, 31-45, 95-6,190-1, 248; A.Q.C. papers on, 106
Deism, Masonic, 473
Dekker, Thomas, Foure Birds of Noahs Arke (1609), 301
De Lafontaine, H.C., "The Seven Liberal Arts and Sciences", 121-39
Deluge series of stories, the, 297-315
Dermott, Laurence, 413, 439, 447, 476-7; Ahiman Rezon (1764) quoted, 15 Desaguliers, Dr. J. T., G.M. (1719), 50, 252, 400, 447; Antiquity, Lodge of, and 319; Edinburgh visit of (1721), 262; Masonic "religion" and, 187
Dibdin, Charles, his pantomime, Harlequin Freemason, 202-4
Dixon, W., Freemasonry in Lincolnshire, 162 Dodd version of Old Charges (1739), 115, 160 (bis), 162
Draffen of Newington, George, "The Making of a Mason" (1956), 413-20 Drake, Dr. Francis, his Oration (1726), 308,430-1
Drama, the, Freemasonry and, 201-7 Dring, E. H., on tracing boards, 265, 266 (bis)
Drinking in Lodge (17th century), 3267,403
Drinkwater No. 1 MS., (c. 1710), 114, 157-8
Druids, the, 75, 79
Drummond, Samuel, Preston painted by, 21 Dublin, song from (1733), 307-8
Dublin Freemasons and Bricklayers (1629), 194
Dublin Tripos (1688), 43-4, 264 n. Dugdale, Sir William, on "travelling architects", 367
Dumfries Kilwinning Lodge, No. 53 (S.C.), 249
Dumfries No. 4 MS. (c. 1710), 113, 303 Dunckerley, Thomas, 400, 447-8
Eccles, Rev. A. H., 322
Edinburgh, Lodge of, No. 1 (S.C.), 250, 251, 431-4; By-laws of (1736), 434; nonoperative admissions (1634), 427, 433-4; trade control lost, 434, 435; transition of, 433-4
Edinburgh Register House MS. (1696), 157, 257; Mason Word in, 243, 245-7, 251, 252 (bis), 260; ritual in, 221, 222; twofold series of secrets in, 261, 263 Education, the Freemason's, 385-97 "Education Policies" (U.S.A.), 418 Edwards, Lewis, "Freemasonry, Ritual
and Ceremonial" (1936), 213-28 Edwin, Prince, 87, 156, 161, 175 Eygptian initiatory Rite, 269, 270 Elocution, 393-4, 418
Emulation, Lodge of, No. 21, L. of Instruction of, 332, 332-3, 352-3 Emulation Lodge of Improvement, 333, 339,349
"Entayllers" (or "intaylers"), 461, 467; tylers derived from ? 465-6
Entered Apprentice (see also First degree), 31, 58; Scottish, 432; secrets of, 248-52 "Entered Apprentice's Song", 15, 201 (bis) "Entered Fellow", 35, 58
Entick, Rev. John, 50, 330, 441 "Equivocation or mental evasion..." (1612), 456
Eton College, building of (1440-60), 425, 460,465
Euclid, 40, 155 n., 156, 171; 47th Proposition of, 148, 149
European Magazine (1811), 21, 29 Exeter, Union Lodge (1771-7), 202 Exposures, 402, 438, 439, 449 (bis); pre Prichard, 35, 37, 41, 58, 60; pre-Union, 32-3
Fabric Rolls, the (See also York Minster), 265,421
Faith, Lodge of, No. 344, Radcliff (Lancs.), 347
"Fellow and Master" (see also Master's Part), 35, 54, 57; degree to be conferred in G.L. alone, 36, 37, 44, 53, 56, 60 Fellow Craft (see also Second degree), 31, 37; Anderson's introduction of term, 56; Mason Word and, 252-3, 261; Scottish, 432
Fidelity, Lodge of, No. 289, Leeds, 333, 334,354-5
Fighiera, F., "The Art, Craft, Science or `Mistery' of Masonry" (1934), 183-94 Firebrace, Capt. C. W. "The First Degree" (1924), xi on Preston, 1, 29, 195
First Degree, 33, 35, 58; embryo of whole system, 270; symbolism of, 191-2, 231-5; Tracing Boards of, 267-79, 268
First Degree Lecture, Preston's 5, 14-5, 17-9, 388-9, 405-6; details of, 22-4 Five points of Fellowship, 253-5, 260-1; symbolism of, 240
Flood, the, 300-5, 307 Floor-Cloths, 265-6 Flying Post, The (1723), exposure in, 35, 37,473
Fortitude, Lodge of, No. 281, Lancaster, 169
Fortitude and Old Cumberland, Lodge, No. 12...318, 334-5
Fortitude MS., 169-70, 173; text of, 171-8 Forty-seventh Proposition, 148, 149 Foulkes, Martin, 161
Foundation stone laying, 18 Four Old Lodges, the, 48, 51 Foxcroft MS. (1699), 112, 169, 170 Franklin, Benjamin, and Wm. Preston, 399, 400-1, 402, 404
"Fraternity of Masons", London (1389), 422
Frazer, Sir James: Folk Lore in the Old Testament, 297-8; Golden Bough, The, 216
"Free" in Freemason, meanings of, 363-76, 381
"Free-born" becomes "free man", 373-4 Free Masons, The: An Hudibrastic Poem (1722/3), 306
"Free-stone masons", 368-70
Freemason, the name, 70-1, 194, 363-4, 460 (bis); "Free" in, meanings of, 363-76 Freemason Examined, The (1723), 103
Freemasonry: early influences upon, 41-2; early references to, 194; what it is, 377-83 Freemasons' Calendar, The, 350 Freemasons' Hall, 325; building of (1775), 8,71,79-80
Freemasons' Magazine (1795),348; Preston's portrait in, 21; quoted, 4, 29 Freemason's Quarterly Review, (1834), 350 Freemasons' Tavern, 325, 326, 443 French Lodges in England, 267 Friendship, Lodge of, No. 6...403 Friendship Lodge of, No. 44...444
Gala Performance of First Degree Lecture (1772), see Grand Gala
Gematria, 149-50
Generous Freemason, The (comic opera, 1731), 204
Gentleman's Magazine (1818), on Preston's funeral, 22
"Geometric Masters", 145
Geometry, 85, 125, 126, 128, 132; Fortitude MS.'s reference to, 171-2; "G" for, 77; moral, 90; term "Freemason" and, 367 George III, Freemasonry's development during reign of (1760-1820), 440-51 George VI, King, P.G.M., his message (1951), 378
Germany, 15th century masons in, 461 Gibbon, Edward, 399, 403
Gild, the Masons', 39-40, 43, 53-5, 367 Gild ordinances, Old Charges distinguished from. 425
Gilds, the, Freemasonry and, 183-7, 189, 219, 366, 369
Gilkes, Peter (Preceptor), 342, 344
Girls' School, see Royal Masonic Institution for Girls
Gloucester, H.R.H. William, Duke of, initiated (1766), 441
Gloves, medieval masons', 463, 464 God, Masonic symbolism and, 229 Goethe, Johann Wolfgang von, 403; "Mason-Lodge", 200
Goose & Gridiron tavern, St. Paul's Churchyard, 50, 318 (bis)
Gormogons, the, 310
Gould, R. F.: Concise History, 449; History of Freemasonry, 394, 461; Military Lodges, 475; on Kabalism, 149; on "travelling architects", 368
Gounod, Frangois, his opera, The Queen of Sheba (1862), 204-5
Graham MS. (1726), 244, 253-5, 257, 263; Noah legend in, 312-3; three degrees in, 263
Grammar, 125, 127, 128-9, 139, 171 "Grand Gala in honour of Free Masonry" (1772), 5, 6, 9, 14-5, 22, 83, 321, 406; Ancient Charges read at, 14, 164 Grand Lodge No. 1 MS (1583), 108, 159, 167; lliramic legend and, 99, 108 Grand Lodge No. 2 MS. (1650-1700), 108, 157, 178
Grand Lodge of All England, see York G.L.
Grand Lodge of England (see also United Grand); Committee of Charity of, 285, 323; early years of, 59; first meetings of, 318, foundation of (1717), 51, 144, 438 (bis), 472; Moderns', see Modems' Grand Lodge: "Mother Grand Lodge of the World", 439
Grand Lodge of England South of the River Trent, 13, 283-95, 325, 326, 443; Lodges constituted by, 291, 292, 325 Grand Master's Lodge, No. 1...327
Grand Masters, plays bespoken by, 201-2 Grand Mystery of Freemasons Discovered (1724), 37, 304
Grand Stewards, 329 Grand Sword of State, 442 Grand Whimsy (1730), Oath in, 179 Grantham, Ivor, "Lodges of Instruction" (1950), 331-61, 385
Grenadiers Lodge, No. 66, L. of Instruction of, 333, 354
Guild(s), see Gild(s)
Gustav V, King, G.M. of Sweden, 188 Gustavus Adolphus, King of Sweden, sword of, 442
Hall, John, Historical Expostulation (1565), 215
Halliwell, J. O., Early History of Freemasonry in England (1840), 462
Hanson, T. W., History of the Lodge of Probity, No. 61, 340
"Hardhewers", 460, 461
Harleian MSS. (Nos. 1942 & 2054), 108-9, 167,262
Harlequin Freemason (pantomime, 1780), 202-4
Harmony, Lodge of, No. 275, Huddersfield, 340
Harmony, Lodge of, No. 309, Fareham, 341 Harodim, Order of, 14, 16, 25-30, 335; inauguration of, 25-6, 326, 443 Harodim Lodge (1790-3), 27, 28-9, 335 Harper, Thomas, D.G.M. ("A"), 445 Harris, John, Tracing Boards by, 266, 267, 268, 273, 275, 449
Harris No. 1 MS. (1650-1700), 111, 178, 262
Harris No. 2 MS., (1750-81), 114, 167 Haughfoot, Lodge of, (1702), 39, 431 Haughfoot Lodge fragment (1702), 103 Hawkins, E. L., "The Evolution of the Masonic Ritual", 221
Hazvkins, H.M.S., Lodge of Rehearsal in, 345
Heiron, A., Ancient Freemasonry and The Old Dundee Lodge, 59, 163
"Hele", use of word (1355), 456 Hemming, Rev. Dr. Samuel, 64, 65, 73, 410; Speculative Masonry defined by, 377
Heseltine, James (G.S. of Moderns), 9, 10, 29, 83; Preston and, 284, 285
Hextall, W. B., on L. of Promulgation, 31
Hills, Gordon P. G.: "Brother William Preston..." (1927), xii, 1-30, 61, 296, 399 n.; The Freemason's Craft, quoted, 195
Hiram (1764), 32, 34 Hiram Abif, 43, 44 Hiramic Legend, the, 39, 56, 264; homily on, 418-20; Old Charges and, 303; origin of, 97-105, 226, 255-6
Hobbes, Thomas, The Leviathan, 66, 93 "Hole Crafte and felawship of Masons" (1472), 422
Holme, Randle, III, 262, 430
Hooker, Richard, Laws of Ecclesiastical Policy, 226-7
Hope, Lodge of, No. 7 (1823), now Royal York Lodge of Perseverance, 333, 339 Homer, Christopher (Master of York masons, 1500-19), 459-60
Hughan, W. J., Origin of the English Rite, 38
Hughan MS. (1700-50), 156
Hutchinson, William, 73, 265; portrait of, 73; The Spirit of Masonry ... (1775), 63, 72,73-8
Hyndeley, William (Master of masons, York, 1433-78), 459
Illustrations of Masonry (Wm. Preston), 17, 264, 321, 385, 406; Bro. Cunningham's Ode in, 197; first edition of (1772), 5, 6, 14, 22, 284, 448; posthumous editions of, 8, 21; Preface to 2nd edition quoted, 64; quoted, 198, 213-4, 407, 411, 442-3 (bis), 448, 450 (bis), 451; second edition of (1775), 5, 8, 20, 413, 448; 1788 edition of, 318, 323; York Grand Lodge plea in, 167-8
Incorporation, Charter of, proposed (176972), 441
Initiation: Charge after, Preston and, 449; horseplay at, 251-2; symbolism of, 231-5, 378-80
Initiatory rites, 267-71
Installation ceremony, 59, 378-80, 445 Installed Master, the, 54-6
Instruction (see also Lodges of ... ), 385-6, 418-20
Intaylers, see Entayllers
"Intenders" (Scottish instructors), 252, 257 International Compact (1814), 447
Ireland (see also Dublin): Grand Lodge of, 443, 447; Tracing Boards in, 266
Irish Book of Constitutions, 303; Christian prayers allowed by, 188-9
Irish ritual, 191, 193; charity test in, 58, 192
"Italian travelling architects", 367-8
Jachin & Boaz (1762), 32, 34, 35 Jacobs's Tracing Boards, 266, 449 Jacques, Maitre, 40, 42
Jehosaphat, Lodge of, No. 291 (1796 now extinct), Bristol, 333, 355
Jerusalem Lodge, No. 197...375
Jewels: Deacons', 314; Lodge of Antiquity's 328,329
John, the two Saints, 186
Johnson, Gilbert Y., "The Grand Lodge South of the River Trent" (1947), 283-96 Johnson, Rev. Joseph, "The Inwardness of Masonic Symbolism in the Three Degrees" (1937), 229-41
Johnson, Dr. Samuel, quoted, 4
Jones, Bernard E., " `Free' in `Freemason' ' (1952),363-76
Jones, Stephen, 29; his edition of Illustrations of Masonry, 8; Masonic Miscellanies (1797), 348; on Preston, 1, 4, 21, 413 Josephus, Antiquities of the yews, 298, 299 Journeymen, Lodge of, No. 8 (S.C.), 433 Joyce, Dr., on symbols and allegory, 377
K.S.T., see Temple, the Kabalism, 149-50
Kelso, Lodge of, No. 58 (S.C.), 39 Kensington Palace, Lodge at, 328 Kent, Edward, Duke of, G.M. ("A"), 446 Key, the, on Tracing Boards, 267, 268, 277-8
Kilwinning, Lodge of, see Mother Kilwinning
King's Bench Prison, initiations in (176983),83,375
Kings, 1st Book of, 99, 256, 379
Kingston, James King, Lord, G.M. (1728), 201
Kipling, Rudyard: Debits and Credits, 271, 408; The Seven Seas, 199-200
Kirk, Rev. Robert, on the Mason Word (1691), 244
Klein, Sydney, on the genuine secrets, 145 Knights of Malta Lodge, No. 50, Hinckley, 343
Knights Templar, the, 441, 448
Knoop, Douglas, "The Mason Word" (1938),243-64
Knox, Captain John, diary of, 331-2
Ladd, J., 84, 86; The Science of Freemasonry Explained (c. 1770), 63, 83-7
Ladder, the, on Tracing Boards, 267, 268, 273, 277; symbolism of, 277, 278, 279-80 "Lanchashire ritual" (1797), 448 Landmarks, the ancient, 228, 319
Lane, John, Masonic Records, 449, 471 Langdale MS. (c. 1670-80), Hiramic legend and, 100, 111
Lansdowne MS. (c. 1600), 108, 167;, Hiramic legend and, 100
Lathomi, 460
Layers of stone, 460, 461
"Leather Apron Club", Franklin's, 401 Lecture on 2nd Tracing Board, 127 Lectures, the, 16, 127; catechisms known as, 405-6; Preston and, 4-6, 15-21, 321, 325-6, 335-6, 388-9, 400, 404-6, 413-4, 443
Leeds, Golden Lion Lodge (1761), 163
Legends, Masonic, 99-119; authorities on, 105-6
Leland Locke MS (?1753), 71 Leonardo da Vinci, 122-3
Lepper, J. Heron: "The Evolution of Masonic Ritual in England in the 18th Century" (1932), xi, 153, 223; "Freemasonry and the Sea", 331, 345; on closing up of lodge numbers (1756), 473, 477
Lepper & Crossle's History of the Grand Lodge of Ireland, 194
Lesnes, John ' (14th century operative "Freemason"), 363
"Liberal arts and sciences", the, 121-39 Lincoln, old Lodge at, (1733) 162 Linnecar, Richard, Miscellaneous Works (1789), 404
Livery, the Masonic, 187, 370, 422
Lodge, the meanings of term, 51-2, 423-4, 457-8
Lodge room: L. of Antiquity's, 2 centuries ago, 326-7; layout of, 193; original form of, 33; Preston's, 22-3, 404
Lodges: ambulatory, see Military lodges; London, see London Lodges; nonoperative, 428-31; operative, see Operative lodges; Provincial, see Provincial; renumbering of, 443, 450, 473, 477 Lodges of Instruction, 31, 32, 331-61, 417, 420; conduct of, 386-94; post-Union, 339-51; pre-Union, 331-7; Preston's, 11, 14, 16, 29, 322, 335-6, 353, 443; regulations concerning, 346-8, 358-61; statistics of, 348-51
Logic, 125, 130, 171
London Chronicle edited by Wm. Preston, 21
London Company of Masons, 47, 48, 367, 369-70; "Accepton" of, see Acception; Arms granted to (1472), 422; the Craft's debt to, 371-3; earliest records of, 421, 422-3, 428; trade control taken away (1667), 435; Yeomanry and Livery of, 428 (bis)
London Lodges: graphs showing growth of (1720-1900), 474; numbers of, since 1717, 472, 473, 475, 478-9
London Lodges of Instruction (1841-1949), 350
Macdonald, Lord (G. Patron of Harodim), 29
Macdonald, Major R. G., 345 Mack, James (S.C., 1726), 433-4 Magic Flute, The (Mozart), 205-9 Manchester, 4th Duke of, G.M. of Moderns (1777-81),286
"Manner of Constituting a New Lodge", 51, 57
Manning, W., "Junior Ruler", L. of Antiquity, 335
Mant, Archdeacon (I.C.), 266 Mark Masonry, 441, 448, 462 Marshall, Bro. (Preceptor), 332
Marvell, Andrew, Rehearsal Transprosed (1672), 260
Mary's Chapel, see Edinburgh, Lodge of Mason, the name, 75
"Mason Charter" (1670), 147
Mason Word, the, 243-64, 424; age of, 259-61
Mason's Examination, A (1723), 103 n., 304, 473 (bis)
Masonic Anecdotes of Little Solomon (c. 1788), 13
Masonic Benefit Society (1793-c.1830), 444 Masonic Year Book, The, 350 (bis), 389 Masons "free" of a company, 368-70, 372 Masons' Company, see London Company Masons' Hall, Masons Alley, London, E.C.2.... 371
Masons' Marks, 454, 462
Master and Fellow, see Fellow and Master MasterKey to All Freemasonry (1760), 33 Master Masons, medieval, 457; secrets of, 143-52
"Master's Part" degree, the, 31, 35, 37, 37-8, 101-2; conferment of, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59; Second Degree's start and, 58; Third Degree's predecessor, 38, 39, 42-4
"Master's Song", The (Dr. Anderson, 1734), 306-7
"Masters' Lodges", 38, 332 "Maughbin", 39
Maul, Sir Christopher Wren's, 317-8 Medieval Freemasonry, 143-52, 453-69 Meeson, W., 91; An Introduction to Free Masonry (1775), 63, 87-94
Melrose St. John, Lodge of, No. 12 (S.C.), 109,249
Meyrick, William ("Chief Harod"), 29 Middle Chamber, 150-1
Military Lodges, 478 Mills, William (actor), 202 Minerva Lodge, No. 250, Hull, 477 Miracle Plays, 301
"Mistery", meaning of, 183
Mitre Tavern, Fleet St., Preston and, 5, 14, 25, 26, 322, 324 (bis)
"Moderns, the", 441-50; graphs of growth of Lodges (1751-1813), 474; lodges of (1760-1813), 449-50, 477, 479; ritual of, 32,34
Moderns' Grand Lodge, 6, 439-40, 441-3, 445; Committee of Charity of, 285, 323; Hall Committee of, 9; Preston transfers allegiance to, 4, 283; Preston's expulsion and reinstatement, 12-4, 285-7, 294-5; Prov. G.M. appointed by (1725), 450; repeal of 1739 measures (1809), 337, 445 Moira, 2nd Earl of (D.G.M. 1790-1812), 476
Molyneux, Sir Thomas (1661-1733), papers of 263-4
"Monotheism" of Freemasonry, 188,189-90 Montagu, 2nd Duke of, G.M. (1721), 49, 55 Morgan, John, G. Secretary ("A"), 476
Moritz, Karl P., Travels in England in 1782, 402-3, 403-4
Mosaic pavement on Tracing Boards, 268, 274
Mother Kilwinning, Lodge, No. 0 (S.C.), 427
Mount Edgecumbe, 4th Earl of, D.G.M. (1891-6), 479
Mount Moriah Lodge, No. 34, L. of Instruction of, 348
Mourning Bush Lodge, (1742-80), 162-3 Mozart, Wolfgang, 205-9
MS. Constitutions, see Old Charges Multa Paucis (1763), 306
Music, 121 125,128,132-6,171; Masonic, 205-10
"Musical Society, the", see Philo-Musicae Mysteries, the ancient, 79, 96, 106 Mystery of Free-Masonry (1730), see Grand Whimsy
"Nature and Science", 192 Necromancy, 256, 261
New Articles, the (c. 1660), 48, 430 n. "Nine Worthies, The" ("A"), 337, 444 Noachite, or Prussian Knight, degree of, 310,314
Noah legend, the, 253, 261, 302-3, 313; origin of, 255-6
Noah's Ark, 300-5, 307, 311-2 Non-operative lodges, 428-31 Non-operative Masons, 427-8, 432; definition of, 429 n.
Noorthouck, John (G.S.), 9, 11-2, 16, 29; his Book of Constitutions (1784), 330; his Lodge of Antiquity (1778-90), 290-1; Preston's relations with, 284-7, 321-6 Norfolk, 8th Duke of, G.M. (1730), 442 North-East and South-East corners, 224-5 Norwich: craft organization (15th century), 423; Maid's Head Lodge (1724), 252
Oaths, 81; Catechisms', 178-9; Old Charges', 157, 178
Obligations, the, 225; penalties in, see Penalties; versions of, 32
Old Charges, the, 53, 155-82, 243, 317; Antediluvian Pillars in, 298-9; classification of, 117-8; contents of, 156-8, 171-9; evidence of craft organization in, 424-6; freedom in, 363-4, 374; genealogy of, 119; Hiramic Legend and, 97-101; Liberal Arts and Sciences in, 124; list of (1929), 107-116; religious aspect of, 187; ritual in the, 221, 222; Scottish adoption of, 260-1; Temple, the, in, 99-100, 303; two parts of, 424; use of, 425-6
Old Dundee Lodge, No. 18...163; Lodge of Instruction attached to, 333 (bis), 354 Old King's Arms Lodge, No. 28...162; floor-cloth of, 265-6
"Old Lodge of St. Paul" (now No. 2), 320 Old Union Lodge, No. 46, L. of Instruction of, 350
Oliver, Bruce W., "The Freemason's Education" (1954), 385-97
Oliver, Dr. George, 265; Hutchinson's Spirit of Masonry re-edited by (1843), 74; Institutes of Masonic Yurisprudence, 347; Preston's Illustrations edited by, 8; Remains of the Early Masonic Writers ed. by (1847), 91
Operative lodges: earliest English, 428-7; organization of medieval, 457-69; rise of, 426
Operative Masons: classes of medieval, 460-1; ritual used by, 219-21; transition to speculative, 421-38
Organization, beginnings of Masonry's, 422-3, 456-69
Origen, Contra Celsum, 70
Papal Bull against Freemasons (1738), 187, 473
Papal Bull for architects (?), 367-8 Past Master's jewels, 328
Payne, George, G.M. (1718 & 1720), 50, 56; Articles (or Regulations) of (1721), 36, 50, 55; Cooke MS. produced by (1721), 161; "Musical Society" and, 60 Peace, Lodge of, No. 149, Meltham (W. Yorks.), 351
Penalties, the, 225, 456; Exposures (early) and, 60-1
Perambulation, the candidate's, 224
Percy Lodge, No. 198, L. of Instruction attached to, 333, 356
Perfect Ashlar, the, 151, 274
Perfect Ashlar Lodge of Instruction, Madras, 351
Perfect Lodge, No. 552, Woolwich (erased 1822), 475
Perfect Observance, Lodge of (No. 1, G.L. South of the Trent), 292, 293
Perfect Unanimity, Lodge of, No. 150, Madras, 351
Perjur'd Free Mason Detected (1730), 305-6 Perseverance and Triumph, Lodge of (No. 2, G.L. South of the Trent), 292, 293
Perth, Lodge of, see Scoon and Perth Petre, Robert, 9th Lord, G.M. (1772-6), 6, 7, 8, 71, 79, 442
Pettigrew, T. J., 30
Phillips Nos. 1 and 2 MSS. (1650-1700), 109,160-1
Philo-Musicae et Architecturae Societas (1725-7), 35-6, 60
Pick, Fred L., "The Deluge" (1948), 297315
Pillars, the Antediluvian, 297, 298-300 Pillars, the three, 151; on Tracing Board, 267, 268, 274
Pillars, the two, 54, 55; symbolism of, 238 Plato, quoted, 377
Plot, Dr. Robert, Natural History of Staffordshire, 47, 429
Pocket Manual or Freemasons' Guide, The (Preston), 30
Polychronicon (1527), 298, 301
Poole, Rev. Herbert: "The Graham Manuscript", 244; "Masonic Ritual & Secrets before 1717", 221; "The Old Charges in 18th Century Masonry, with the text of the Fortitude MS." (1933), 155-82, 243 n.
Pope, Sydney, "The Growth of Freemasonry in England and Wales since 1717" (1960), 471-80
Pound, Roscoe, Masonic Addresses and Writings (1953), 402-3, 406 Preceptors, qualifications of, 387, 390, 391-23393
Preston, William, 1-30, 265, 385, 399; Antiquity, Lodge of, and, 1, 9-14, 21, 165, 284-95, 318, 321-8, 335-6 442-3; Assistant G. Secretaryship of (1769-77), 9, 321; bequests by, ix, 21, 141; burial in St. Paul's, 22, 450; career of, 283-4; expulsion and reinstatement, 12-4, 285-7, 294-5, 442-3; G.L. South of Trent started by, 291-4, "great idea" of, 399401, 404-6, 411; Illustrations of Masonry, see Illustrations; initiation of (1763), 4; Lectures by, see Lectures-also First..., Second..., Third Lecture; Lodge of Instruction of, 335-6; Masonic teachers contemporary with, 63-94; Old Charges and, 163-5; portraits of, frontispiece, 62; on the Third Degree, 39; quoted, 45, 199, 385, 386, (ter) 392, 395, 397
Preston, William, sent., 2 "Preston jewel". the, 328 Prestonian Lectureship, 141-2; bequest for, ix, 21, 141; fee for attendance, x, xi; foundation of, ix, 1, 21; lapse of (18631924), x; Lodges to whom Lecture delivered, x; "new form" of (1923), ix-xi
Prichard, Samuel, Masonry Dissected (1730), 33, 157, 439, 473; exposures prior to, 35, 37, 41, 58, 60; Hiramic legend in, 255; ritual changes as result of, 61; Third Degree in, 32, 43, 142; Tower of Babel in, 304; Working tools in, 60
Prince of Libanus degree (A. & A. Rite), 314 Prince of the Tabernacle degree (A. & A. Rite), 314
Prince of Wales Lodge, No. 259...479 Prisoners cannot be made Masons, 374-5 Prisoners of War, Lodges of Instruction among, 351, 374
Private Lectures on Masonry (Preston), 5 Probity, Lodge of, No. 61...340 "Professor of the Art and Mystery of Speculative Freemasonry", 338 Promulgation, Lodge of (1809-11), 16, 191, 223, 319; purpose and achievements of, 337-8, 445
Proper names, Masonic, 102-3 Prosperity, Lodge of (1774), 11 Provincial lodges, 477; graphs showing growth of (1720-1900), 474; lapsing of, 471
Purvis, Rev. Canon J. S., "Medieval Organization of Freemasons' Lodges" (1959), 453-69
Pythagoras, 92-3; Theorem of, 148-9, 149
"Quadrivium", the, 125
Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No. 2076, xii (bis), xiii, 390, 396
Raising (see also Third Degree), 38; music for, 209
Rand, T. H., "A builder builded a Temple" (poem), 199
Reading, Masonic, 394-5
Reconciliation, Lodge of (1815-6), 16, 31-2, 35, 297, 337-8; attendances at, 339-40; Installation ceremony and, 65; object of, 447; Preston made its work easier, 223, 449; Second Degree and, 61 Regius Poem, the (c. 1390), 99, 107-8, 424; Apprentices in, 251, 363-4, 425, 462 Regularity, Lodge of, No. 91...72 Regulations in B. of C. (1723), 36, 50-1, 53; 1, 52; XIII, 35, 53, 56; (1815-1940) concerning Lodges of Instruction, 346-8, 358-61
Rehearsals of ceremonies, 390, 391-3 Reid, William, G.S. (1728), 161 Religion and Freemasonry, 196-7, 381 "Requiem Mass" (Mozart), 209 Research, Masonic, 396-7
Rhetoric, 125-6, 129-30, 139, 171 Richmond, 1st Duke of (1672-1723), 47 Richmond, 2nd Duke of, G.M. (1724), 161 Rickard, Col. F.M., quoted, 395 Right-angles, 146, 147, 168
Ritual: ceremonial and, 213-28; 18th century, 223, 402; Lodge of Instruction's, 387; memorizing the, 390-1, 404, 406; Old Charges and, 98, 221, 405; unification of (1815), 447, 449; what it involves, 414-8; word-perfect rendering of, 406, 408
Roberts, W., The Famous Centre S. of K.S.T. (c. 1840), 311-2
Roberts version of Old Charges (1722), 160 (bis), 162
Robison, Prof. John, Proofs of a Conspiracy ...(1797), 475
Rogers, Norman, "The Years of Development" (1958), 439-51
Ronalds, Bro. ("P. Nine Worthy"), 337 Rosenbaum, Rev. Morris, on Hiram Abif, 43,102
Rosicrucians, the, 149 Roslin, the Lairds of, 244 Roslyn Pillar, the, 42 "Roughmasons", 460, 461 Royal Arch, 448; amalgamation of Grand Chapters (1817), 446; Arks in (U.S.A.), 314; Dermott exalted in (1746), 476
Royal Ark Mariners, 314
Royal Cambrian Lodge, No. 135 (1811), Newport (Mon.), 337
Royal Cumberland Lodge, No. 41, Bath, 192,193
Royal Freemasons, 441, 444, 449
Royal Gloucester Lodge, No. 130, Southampton, 333, 356
Royal Masonic Hospital, 345
Royal Masonic Institution for Girls, 22, 344; Preston's bequest to, 21
Royal Masonic Institutions, Lodges of Instruction as benefactors of, 344-5 Royal Order of Scotland, 314
Royal Somerset House and Inverness Lodge, No. 4,...318
Royal York Lodge of Perseverance, No. 7, see Hope, Lodge of
Royal Yorkshire Lodge, No. 265, Keighley, 340 (bis)
Ruddiman, Thomas, 2, 3
Rylands, J. R., "The Fellowship of Knowledge" (1955), 399-411
Rylands, W. H., on Roberts Version (1722), 162
Rylands, W. H., and C. W. Firebrace, Records of the Lodge of Antiquity, No. 2,1
Sadler, Henry: The Lodge of Emulation (1906), 162; on Lodges of Instruction, 332
St. Andrew, Lodge, No. 25 (S.C.), 266 St. yohn's Gospel, verses 1-5...379
St. John's Lodge, No. 70, Exeter (now at Plymouth), 333 (bis), 356
St. John's Lodge, No. 167, L. of Instruction attached to, 332, 333, 352
St. Paul's, Convocation of Freemasons at (1691), 47
St. Paul's Lodge, No. 43, Birmingham, 334 Sayer, Anthony (first G.M., 1717), 472 Scald Miserables, the, 473
Scarborough MS. (1705), 112, 157 (bis) Scarborugh, Earl of, M.W.G.M., King's message to (1951), 378
Schaw Statutes (1598), 249 (bis), 257 n., 260 Schiller, Johann von, 403
Scoon and Perth Lodge, No. 3 (S.C.), 249 Scotland: "convivial masonry" in, 436; Entered Apprentices in, 248-51; Grand Lodge of, 443, 447; non-operatives' admission, 427-8, 431-2, 433-4, 438 & n. operative lodges in, 427 (bis)-8; Tracing Boards discountenanced in, 266
Seal of Cause (1475), 260
"Searchers of masons" (York, 1473), 459 Second Degree, 33-4, 35, 392-3; evolution of, 47-61, 190; knocks of, in Mozart's opera, 207-8; Lecture on the Tracing Board, 299; rehearsal of, 392-3, symbolism of, 192, 235-8, 380-2; Tracing Board of, 269
Second Lecture, Preston's, 19-20 Secrecy of Freemasonry, 68, 69, 80-1 Secret Societies, statute regulating (1799),
see Unlawful Societies Secretary, the Lodge, 275
Secrets: Entered Apprentice's, 248-52; Master Mason's, 142-3
Secrets of the Free-Masons Revealed, The (1769), 306
Serfdom, medieval, 364-6 "Setters of stones", 460, 461
"Seven liberal arts and sciences, the", 121-39, 171
Shepherd-Jones, G.S., "What is Freemasonry?" (1953), 377-83
Shibboleth (1765), 32
Slade, Alexander, The Freemason Examin'd (1754),309-10
Slavery, Freemasonry and, 372-4 Sloane No. 3323 MS. (1659), 108, 167 Sloane No. 3329 MS. (c. 1700), 257-8, 261-2,304
Sloane No. 3848 MS. (1646), 108, 157 (bis), 158, 167
Smith, Capt. George, 64, 82-3; The Use and Abuse of Freemasonry (1783), 63, 78-82
Smith, Robertson, Lectures on the Religion of the Semites (1914), 217-8
Smoking in Lodge (till 1755), 327, 403 Solomon, King, 79, 80; Calcott on, 66-7; Temple of, see Temple, the
Solomon in all his Glory (1766), 33 Solomon's Temple (oratorio), 1765 Songhurst, William, on the Tower of Babel, 310
Soubise, Pere, 40
South Saxon Lodge, No. 311, Lewes, 333, 345, 351, 355-6
Spalding, Black Bull Lodge, 162; ByLaws of (1739), 162, 179-82
Speculative Masonry, 40, 297, 381; advent 0 436-8, 439; Hemming's definition of, 37 436; medieval operative masonry and, 462; "Professor of the Art & Mystery of", 338; transition to, see Transition
Spencer MSS., 113, 118, 162, 170
Speth, G.W. Builders' Rites and Ceremonies, 97
Spottiswoode, John, 29 Square, the, 88, 381 Stability (No. 217) Lodge of Instruction, 339,349
State of Facts (Preston), 13 Stirling Brass, the (1743), 303 Stokes, John, "Masonic Teachers of the Eighteenth Century" (1928), 63-94 Strachan, William (King's Printer), 4, 9 Studd, Sir Kynaston, Trustee of Prestonian Fund (1923), ix
Study Circles, 395, 396
Stukeley, Dr. William, 44, 50, 52, 161, 472-3
Subcementarius ("second master of the masons", 1351), 457
Sussex, Frederick, Duke of, G.M. (181243), 21, 22, 119, 446, 447; on the Lectures (1819), 338; W.M. of Lodge of Antiquity (1809-43), 327, 328, 329
Sussex jewel, the, 328
Swalwell Lodge, (now L. of Industry, No. 48), Durham, 47, 52, 426-7
Sweden, Christian Freemasonry in, 188 Syllabus books of Preston's lectures, 30 Symbolism, 272-3, 377-83; Anchor's, 277, 279; aprons', 233-4, 382; cable tow's, 375, 382; Cross within the Circle, 277, 279; Hiramic Legend's, 419; initiatory rites', 270; Key's, 277-8, 279; knocks', 380; ladder's, 277, 278, 279-80; pillars', the, 70; the three Degrees', 229-41
Taylatores (entaylers), 460, 463 Tegulatores (roof-tilers), 466 Temple, the, Biblical and Masonic accounts of building of, 98-101, 303
Tetractys, 150, 152
Third Degree, 37, 58, 276; changes in, 34, 35; development of, 37-9, 44; first exposure showing (1730), 32; origin of legend of, 97-105, 107; symbolism of, 238-40, 382; Tracing Board of, 269; working of, 192
Third Lecture, Preston's, 20-1; details of, 25
Thompson, Lawrence, 32
Three Distinct Knocks (1760), 32 Thurmond, Mrs. (actress wife of Freemason), 202
Tibetan initiatory Rite, 269-70 "Time Immemorial" lodges, 472 Toasts, Preston's, 23-4
Torgau Statutes (1462), 220 (bis)
Tracing Boards, 449; combined 1st and 2nd Degree, 59; First Degree, 265-81, 268; First Lecture on, 145, 148, 266; history of, 265-7; Second Degree, 269; Third Degree, 269
Transition from Operative to Speculative, 421-38; reasons for the, 431-5; stages in the, 431
Treasurer, the Lodge, 275
Trewman, R., The Principles of Freemasonry (1777), 202
Triangles in Masonry, 145-8, 147, 381 Trigradal system, development of the, 3145
Trinity College, Dublin, MS (1711), 104, 257,262-4
Trinity College, Dublin, Tripos (1688), 43-4, 264 n.
`Trivium', the, 125
True Love and Unity Lodge, No. 248, Brixham, 340-1
Tubal Kain (1777), 32, 37
Tuckett, J. E. Shum: "Old Charges and Chief Master Mason", 100; "The Origin of Additional Degrees", 297, 315
Tyler, meaning and derivation of, 465-6,
469 i Tyler's sword, the, 378-9, 466
Tyrian Lodge, No. 253, Derby, 342, 345
Unanimity, Lodge of, No. 154, Wakefield, 403
Union of Moderns and Antients (1813), 445-7; Articles of, 446; effect of, on growth of lodges, 478-9
United Brotherly Lodge of Instruction, Bristol, 341-2
United Grand Lodge: Boards of, see Board of...: "Especial Meeting" of (1816), 31; graphs of growth of lodges (1813-1900), 474; heraldic arms of, 371; Library of, 343, 394; Lodges' meetings suspended by (1939), 479-80; Museum of, 337; Prestonian Lectures under authority of, xi (bis)
United States: "Board of Trial" in, 320; "Education Policies" in, 418; Royal Arch in, 314
Unlawful Societies Act (1799), 444, 475-6
V.S.L., see Volume...
Vacation Lodge, No. 59 (1786, now extinct), 333,354
Vehmgerichte, the, 41, 42
Verus Commodus, Letters of, 308 Vesica piscis, 146-7
Vibert, Lionel: "The Development of the Trigradal System" (1925), xiii, 31-45, 263, 264; "The Evolution of the Second Degree", 47-61
Volume of the Sacred Law, the, 382, 405; passage at which opened, 379; symbolism of, 233, 239
Wages, medieval masons', 464, 465-6, 467-8
Wales, Albert Edward, Prince of, G.M. (1875-1901), 188, 479
Wales, Frederick, Prince of, initiated (1737), 473
Wales, George, Prince of, G.M. (17901813),446
Wardens, medieval, 459 (bis), 462 Warrington, non-operative Lodge at (1646), 363, 430
Watson MS. (1687), 110; antediluvian Pillars in, 298-9
Webb, Thomas Smith, and Webb Ritual, 414
Weimar, 18th century Lodge at, 403
West India and American Lodge (now No. 2),320
Westminster, "masons entayllers" at (1532), 465
Westminster & Keystone Lodge, No. 10... 479
White Hart Lodge (Strand), No. 111 ("A", 1763),4
Whole Institution of Free-Masons Opened (1725), 304
Wilkes, John, initiated in gaol (1769), 375 Wilson, John (W.M., L. of Antiquity, 1778), 285, 287, 288, 290, 291, 293, 322; Grand Mastership of, 325; "Senior Ruler", L. of Antiquity, 335
Wilson, MS. (missing), 116, 188-7 Windsor, "setters" at (1362), 460 Wisdom, Strength and Beauty, 151 Wood MS (1610), 160
Woodford MS (1728), 113, 161
Working Tools, 225-6; "movable jewels," 60; symbolism of, 234-5, 236-8, 239-40 World War II, effect on lodges, 479-80 Wrek, Thomas (14th century operative "Freemason"), 363
Wren, Sir Christopher, 317-8
Wright, W. R., Ode at Masonic Union Assembly (1813), 197
York: early Lodge at, 47, 331; Edwin's Assembly at, 156, 161, 175
York, H.R.H. Edward Augustus, Duke of, initiated (1765), 441
York Grand Lodge, 13, 166, 326, 444; counterseal of, 310; G.L. South of the Trent set up by, 287-94, 325
York Minster: Chapter Act Books, 457-8; Fabric Rolls, 265, 457, 458-60, 463-8, "lodge" at (1370), 423, 425, 456, 457-8, 460; lodges (2) at (1409), 458; "Ordinance" or agreement with the masons (1350-60), 457
Zetland, 2nd Earl of, G.M. (1843-69), 374
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