October - November, 1950
Contents
THE SEVEN LIBERAL ARTS AND SCIENCES The Philalethes Society News
MASONRY'S GREATEST LESSON International Masonic Association
Books and Pamphlets Received HISTORICAL NOTES ON THE MASONIC RITUAL
Dormit In Pace FREEMASONRY IN FOREIGN LANDS
JOHN KINSMAN REMICK, M.P.S.
Memories
THE SEVEN LIBERAL ARTS AND SCIENCES
By Frederick Thomas Parker, M.P.S.; Montreal, Quebec; Canada
MUSIC
IT WOULD seem quite reasonable to music, because it is a language; one which man may find expression of his hopes, his deepest sorrow, his great and noblest aspirations. Music, they universal language of the emotions kind. It is as truly a language as any that has been spoken, with its own grammar, its own rhetoric, and logic; infinitely subtle and delicate, capable of endless extension, but nonetheless based on profound physical laws, on the rules of mathematics, or enduring principles of style and construction.
The very word takes us back to Greek mythology, to those nine fair daughters of Zeus and of Mnemosyne, of Memory:
Polymnia, the music of sacred hymns and harmony,
Euterpe, the music of lyric poetry,
Calliope, the music of epic poetry and of rhetoric.
yes, and to Urania, the muse of astronomy, and also to Orpheus, whose melodic lyre moved the emotions not only of the beasts, of the very woods and rocks, but of the infernal deities themselves.
Probably some aspects of music, this poetry expressed in sounds instead of words, are antecedent even to ordered speech, for a sense of rhythm appears almost to be inherent in man; certainly it seems to be instinctive, and we can visualize primitive man clapping his hands or beating a hollow stump in rhythmic accompaniment to his tribal dance.
Dryden goes farther, for with poetic imagination he proclaims the pre-existence even of the harmony of sounds:
"From harmony, from heavenly harmony,
This universal frame began
When nature underneath a heap of jarring atoms lay,
And could noth heave her hand
The tuneful voice was heard on high,
Arise, ye more than dead!'
Then cold, and hot, and moist and dry,
In order to their stations leap,
And music's power obey.
From harmony, from heavenly harmony,
This universal frame began.
From harmony to harmony,
Through all the compass of the notes it ran,
The diapason closing full in Man."
And down through the ages, through the histories and the legends of all peoples, we can see that in different form and with different instruments man has used music in order to express the feeling stirring within him.
And the glory of it is that not only can the musician himself find an outlet for his emotions, and expression, conscious or unconscious, of his own months and thoughts, but he can incite in varying degree a kindred feeling in others, can make them feel as he feels, see as he sees. "Some chord, in unison with what we hear, is touched within us, and the heart replies."
Our heart replies, if to the lilt and sweetness of the melody alone, or to the tuneful harmony or the swinging rhythm. But happy is the man who, with vision of its beauty, knowing that the whole world of music may be his, so fits himself in musical appreciation, that he can be in accord with every thought that is expressed, every emotion that the artist feels, for then will deep call unto deep, and he will have stored within him a wealth of treasure that no outward power can take away.
The art of the musician is a wondrous thing. Not only can he reproduce some of the sounds of nature (although true art is not in this), but, without any such attempt, he can so modulate or accentuate or so combine a variety of sounds as, in "William Tell" for example, to spread before us the undulating country, with the flocks and herds in the distance; and then to make us experience the violence of the storm and, afterwards, to trace the fading raindrops patteling against the green and glistening leaves, to feel the sunshine sifting through, and to hear the renewed warble of the woodland birds.
The music of the dreamy Nocturne, "softer falls then petals from blown roses on the grass," and the soothing lullaby "brings sweet sleep down from the blissful skies."
And there is music that is closely akin to religion, for both spring from the demands of our inner nature; and so music in several forms plays a vital part in our religious observances. Indeed, some of our hymns were originally dance music, and remind us that dances do form part of some religious programs, that David danced before the Ark of the Covenant. But the music that is truly the hand-maiden of religion, that serves a noble, ethical purpose, is that which possesses a splendid dignity and obvious deep sincerity, and this, above all others, has been justly termed as "holy music's golden speech."
The beauty of the symmetrical sonata, with its development of varied themes and its movements, merges into the majesty of symphonic music, and it is possible that in symphonies the musician can find the widest expression of his thoughts and of his complex emotions.
Starting probably with merely the three governing notes of a scale, played on a single instrument he has, by following the strict but comprehensive jaws of form and harmony, and of dissonance added to them, varied them, in an almost endless number of ways, has added more than one hundred different or roasted instrumental and hinder their sounds in unfathomed speech so as to lead our souls almost to the Infinite.
A hundred instruments, yet one. Not speaking as an aggregation of voices, a concourse of sounds, but rather speaking as one voice, capable of a seemingly endless variety of inflection, ranging from a whisper to the deafening crash of thunder, yet always one voice, under the control of one intelligence and with the one purpose of singing their glorious harmonious song to the enraptured listener.
Well might Browning say:
"And I know not if, save in this, such gift be allowed to man,
That out of three sounds he frame, not a fourth sound but a star
Consider it well: each note of our scale in itself is naught.
It is everywhere in the world - loud, soft, and all is said;
Give it to me to use! I mix it with two in my thought,
And there! Ye have heard and seen: consider and bow the head."
Truly, the Greeks, ignorant though they might have been of some of the beauties of harmony, were right in naming Polymnia as a daughter of Zeus and of Memory, but we must not forget that the Muse of poetry and of rhetoric were also daughters of the gods, that these sphere-born harmonious sisters, voice and verse -were children of the same immortal parents, for they are sisters, complementary one to the other: while words help most of us more fully to understand the meaning of the music, music broadens the meaning of the words, adding enormously to their power. Music, throwing a glamor over the scene, is like a beautiful mist, enlarging the outline while obscuring the detail, but the words gain in emotional appeal far more than they lose in definiteness.
And so the story of Marguerite and Faust, as told by Goethe, concern but those two people, but our emotions are so stirred by Gounod's opera that the betrayal of Marguerite represents all outraged virtue and innocence; the tragedy of Faust includes the damnation of all lost souls.
In Handel's "Messiah" the redemption of Israel, as told by Isaiah, widens so as to embrace the salvation of all humanity; and in Haydn's "Creation" these heavens that are telling the glory of God broaden to Infinity as our imagination soars:
"As from the power of sacred lays
The spheres began to move,
And sung the Great Creator's praise,
To all the blest above;
So when the last and dreadful hour,
This crumbling pageant shall devour,
The trumpet shall be heard on high,
The dead shall live, the living die,
And music shall untune the sky."
Polymnia, the music of harmony, the child of Memory. Let mortals take heed that they trifle not with the daughter of the gods for, if the laws of strictest propriety be rashly exceeded by but one false step, the sweet concord of harmony abruptly breaks into jangling discord.
(To be continued)
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NEW MEMBERS
Herald E. W. Engelhardt; Berlin, Germany. (Recommended by Harvey N. Brown, M.P.S.)
W.B. DelaBat-van Alphen; Johannesburg, South Africa. (Recommended by William Moister, F.P.S.)
Floran A. Rodgers; Wichita, Kansas. (Recommended by Wm. Major Brown, F.P.S.)
C. Hugo van Zyl; Carnarvon, South Africa. (Recommended by James Dunn, M.P.S.)
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The Philalethes - October-November, 1960; Volume 6, Number 7. - Walter A. Quincke, F.P.S., Editor. The official publication of The Philalethes Society, 274 South Burlington Avenue, Los Angeles 4, California, where all communications should be directed. Publication schedule: Eight (8) issues per year or volume: January; February; March; May (April-May); July (June-July); September (August-September); November (October-November), and December. - No advertising in any form solicited or accepted. When requesting a change of address, give the old as well as the new addresses, including your postal zone number, if you have such. Annual subscription, in the U.S.A., $3.00; elsewhere, $4.00, payable in advance at par in Los Angeles. - The columns of ''Philalethes'' are reserved for the literary contributions of the Fellows and Members of the Society, and the material is selected for its quality and timeliness rather than upon name. All published articles, however, express the ideas and opinions of their contributors only, and in no way need they be the opinion of the Society. Member-Editors of Craft magazines, here and abroad, are privileged to reprint any articles first published in ''Philalethes,'' with the exception of "masterpieces," which are the sole and exclusive property of the Philalethes Society. - The Philalethes "Index," covering Volumes I, II, III, IV, and V, as well as the Society's year book, "The Informant," which tells the story since its inception, will be mailed free of charge to any Freemason requesting the same and giving the name, number and location of the Symbolic Lodge in which he holds membership.
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For Your Attention Please
The 1951 Edition of "Tale Informant" will go to press during December, 1950, for release and distribution in January, 1951. It is imperative that we have your correct address. Anyone contemplating to purchase a home or move on or before January is urged to advise the Editor promptly of his change of address. Please do it now before you forget it.
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There will be selfishness and greed and corruption and narrowness and intolerance in the world tomorrow and tomorrow's tomorrow. But we must have the courage and the wisdom and the vision to raise a definite standard that will appeal to the best that is in men, and then strive mightily toward that goal.
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By Bliss Kelly, M.P.S., Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
MANY MASONS, it seems, who have been raised to the Sublime Degree of Master Mason, have missed its greatest lesson, how they were raised, and to what estate.
The work, from the first interrogations of the candidate prior to initiation as an Entered Apprentice, the passing to the Fellowcraft, and the ritual of the Master Mason Degrees to and including the "raising," portrays the foundation for truth, and climaxes the ultimate toward which the candidate has traveled from West to East in his search for Masonic Light. Here, then, is revealed the sublime secret of the Universe and the door to unlimited light power, knowledge and truth is opened to him in all its brilliance. Why do so many fail to see that door, explore at least a portion of the vast expanse within or use the knowledge awaiting them ?
Is it because the Degrees of the Symbolic or 'Blue' Lodge cover such a vast field of philosophy, religion, political economy and morality in only three Degrees, and by virtue of necessity limit the rituals to short statements and explanations of truths, which have required thousands of volumes to fully expound? Fundamental teachings of religion, philosophy and politics are many times presented in one brief paragraph to facilitate the inculcation of other basic truths within the time allowed for Degree work.
Because of the changed character which the candidate assumes in the second section of the Third Degree, and the unexpected things which take place, he is prone to see only the drama, in which he has a part, and seems to lose sight of the solemnity of the occasion. Thus, he overlooks the reason for the play-acting because his attention is diverted from the spiritual lesson by the physical action.
Too many times the ritual of this section is merely recited instead of acted, consequently its force is lost and no impression is made because "the hour is late, so let's hurry it along." Little effort is made to sustain the dramatic effect with impressive inflections of the voice, necessary pauses or supplication offered in an attitude of solemn prayer.
While the explanatory lecture attempts to point out to the newly-raised brother the real lesson of the Third Degree, it does so in language not easily understood by the ordinary man, and then only at the conclusion of this long lecture when the brother is tired and satiated with admonitions, obligations, and other explanations which he has tried to absorb during the evening. When the lecture ends in a flight of beautiful words and flowery similes on "the benefit of a pass," he is too exhausted to do more than sigh with relief.
To truly understand the great lesson of the third Degree, the setting of its second section is all important. Here, the brother has been taught, by actual demonstration, that he must struggle onward for further light, despite the physical obstacles and against fierce opposition. He must overcome evil in order to find good. He must maintain his integrity to merit the reward, whatever it may be. What light can he gather from being overcome and being "leveled with the dust?" Why was he unable to withstand the forces of evil, although he was without blame? In what way did he fail to find and use his Masonic light which should have given him strength and the power to triumph over temporal as well as spiritual obstacles?
After the conclusion of the drama and the evil forces have suffered their just punishment, attention is once again centered on the brother, whereupon be gins the unfolding of the Great Lesson.
Mere man, having been twice frustrated in his attempt to find a way to raise one who has fallen, stands helpless and defeated. The wisest and most powerful monarch admits his inability to cope with such a situation. Human endeavor has reached its limit and nothing more can be done. All efforts are in vain. "What shall we do ?"
There is but one answer!
When man's strength and wisdom fail, there is an inexhaustable supply in the power of prayer. This is the full and complete answer, and in it one finds the greatest lesson of Masonry.
Here is illustrated the interrelationship of the physical or temporal with the spiritual; the blending of earthly things with those in heaven, and the controlling, guiding, and all-powerful supremacy of to spiritual power. Here, too, is shown the manner in which the Supreme Power may be invoked by a simple use of prayer coupled with faith.
The promise contained in Masonry's Great Light, - "where two or three are gathered together in My name, I will be in their midst and bless them" - is invoked, together with the assurance that when the Father is asked for anything, "whatsoever you shall ask, ye shall receive." The prayer is the "asking," and is the key which unlocks that inexhaustable power able to accomplish anything when coupled with faith.
Here, also, is demonstrated the method of using that power through faith. When the prayer is completed, all doubt leaves; despair is replaced by absolute belief in accomplishment. and defeat is forgotten in the certain knowledge of Victory. Faith is not only expressed in words and the assertion that the seemingly impossible shall be done, but action accompanies the words, and thus the unseen, but ever-present power of God, is transformed into that which can be seen and understood.
No Mason was ever "raised" by physical power alone. Only by the invocation of God's power was this "impossible" feat accomplished. Although that power is omnipotent, it is not incomprehensible. for man can invoke it at any time and use it for any purpose. It is as invisible as the law of gravity, but just as omnipresent. It is easier to use than any other kind of power because the activating and motivating means thereof are within every human being, to be utilized instantly. Like electricity, it cannot be seen, yet the laws governing its use and control are definite and certain, and with a knowledge of these laws, tangible physical results are produced.
Applied in practical, down-to-earth needs of every day life, this one great lesson of the Master Mason Degree can bring to him who realizes its significance everything for which he may long: happiness, peace, friends, health, wealth, contentment, and the ability to overcome any obstacle, including death, through immortality.
Some will say that this is not the great lesson of the Third Degree; that this degree is intended largely to teach, by precept and illustration, that we are to be raised to a life hereafter. There should be no real disagreement about this, however, if we correctly interpret immortality. What, then, is immortality? Can anyone say with certainty? While Masonry inculcates the principle of the "resurrection" and a "life hereafter," as well as immortality, it does not attempt to define its meaning.
There are those who profess to understand that there may be a physical resurrection of mortal bodies, to be endowed with immortal life hereafter. Others visualize "pearly gates" and an eternal existence in a "city of gold" somewhere in the heavens. Again, there are those who feel that man's spirit, from which his power to live and think is derived, is simply a part of the "Great Universal Mind" which man is permitted to draw upon during his life on earth and which returns to God upon man's death; being a part of God, having no beginning or end, and incapable of being destroyed, an indivisible part of THE GREAT I AM.
Thus, they interpret and understand the scriptural statements that we are "Sons of God," and that the "Kingdom of Heaven is Within You."
Although immortality may be explained in its purely physical aspect as the effect on man's deeds on earth upon other people, or the things which live after him, supposed to be incapable of destruction in the same manner as the effect of a wave of the ocean upon the grain of sand, or a rain drop upon a mountain, yet there is also this spiritual immortality, the open door which is pointed out to every Master Mason as he is "Raised."
And what is within this open door? To the observing there is clearly visible the Grand Architect of The Universe, the source of all life and power, the Great "I AM" or God, the Alpha and Omega!
When this great lesson of the Third Degree is discovered and applied to the daily life, each may know that he has in fact been truly "raised" to the Sublime Degree of Master Mason.
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Cromwell with his sword and Milton with his pen saved liberty when it was being throttled by the Stuarts. That sublime poet who turned aside from writing one of the three great epic masterpieces of the world, which ranks him with Homer and Virgil, to hurl his great Philippics on behalf of freedom, was a Freemason. If you had gone to see the great Puritan in those pathetic days when, sightless, he awaited his Master's call to the lodge room where earth's faded vision becomes clarified and keen, he would have expressed himself as being even more proud of his patriotic thunderbolts that of 'Paradise Lost'. - Walter C. Winslow.
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International Masonic Association
At a convention held in Paris, France, on May 1, the International Masonic Association, headed by Brother John Mossaz, F.P.S., decided to cease its labors; transfer its archives and documents to the Swiss Grand Lodge ALPINA, and invite its adherents to seek a better means of restoring the universality of Masonry.
A second resolution was passed which is to be known in Masonry as the Paris Protocol, by which Grand Masters, who attended the convention have agreed to endeavor, by all means possible, to multiply the individual and collective contacts between themselves. The Grand Master of the Grand Orient of Belgium was requested (and he accepted) to call a meeting in 1951 of all the Grand Masters of the jurisdictions that have adhered in the past to the International Masonic Association, at which convention will be studied those problems affecting the universality of Masonry.
C.E.H.
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The 82-page, 1949 Report of the Executive Commission of the Masonic Service Association of the United States.
"Masonic Information, Please," New Edition, 88-pages; Alphonze Cerza, M.P.S.. 1441 No Lockwood Avenue; Chicago 51, Illinois.
"Masonic Clothing"; Vol. 28, No. 6; Short Talk Bulletin; The Masonic Service Association of the United States, Washington 1, D.C.
"Minutes" of the Fortieth Annual (1950) Convention of the George Washington Masonic National Memorial Association, Alexandria, Virginia.
"Mittelungsblatt"; Grand Lodge "Zu Den Alten Pflichten"; Orient of Berlin; Emser Strasse 12-13; Berlin-Wilmersdorf, Germany.
"Anchored Roots"; beautifully illustrated 32-page Book of Poems, by Charles G. Reigner, F.P.S.; The H. M. Rowe Company, Baltimore. Maryland.
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There are two fundamental issues to be faced, the issues of power and justice. Those who believe in change by consent insist that power, all forms of power, must be brought under democratic control. They demand that justice shall be established by democratic process.
- Bishop G. Bromley Oxnam. D.D., LL.D.
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In Egypt the era of great temple architecture lasted from 1580 to 1050 B.C., during which the upper Nile region witnessed the construction of the temple at Thebes (ca. 1500 B.C.), the Sun temple at Karnak with its two pillars, papyrus and letus (models of Boaz and Jachin), and the rock-hewn temple of Rameses II at Luxor.
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HISTORICAL NOTES ON THE MASONIC RITUAL
By Robert J. Meekren, F.P.S., Stanstead, Quebec, Canada
(The author reserves the right to republish this article in whole or in part)
CHAPTER V
IN THE preceding chapters we have seen that the forms and usages followed in Great Britain, and generally throughout the British Empire, conform to a well marked type; and it hardly needs to be pointed out that the rituals used in American jurisdictions form another family the members of which are equally closely related to each other. We have now to consider a third type, the European. This indeed might not inappropriately be called the French type, for to a very large extent the Masonry of European countries has been derived directly and indirectly from France. This broad statement is sufficiently accurate for the present purpose, though if being dealt with more detail it would have to be modified to some extent. Even where, as in Germany, there were many revisions and reformations during the latter part of the eighteenth century and the early years of the nineteenth, on the basis of the English work of the period (not by any means necessarily the same as later forms) yet the groundwork, so to speak, still exhibits its relationship to French rituals.
It is true that in the early days of the London Grand Lodge there were here and there throughout Europe lodges formed by virtue of "deputations" from England, yet these were isolated points, and most, in fact nearly all, these earliest "regular" lodges, that were of more than ephemeral existence, became sooner rather than later merged in the organization of the Craft in the country in which they were situated. But let me again warn my readers that the word "regular" did not then mean all that it does today. It merely meant that they were under the authority of the Grand Lodge, and it must be remembered also that there was only one Grand Lodge then in the whole world, and as I should guess the very large majority of lodges existing at the time were quite independent of it. As already intimated, according to the ancient traditional laws, the Grand Lodge of London could claim the right to control all lodges in London and Westminster and the immediate vicinity, but had no possible claim to authority anywhere else. Though of course there was nothing to prevent independent lodges elsewhere from voluntarily submitting to its authority if they saw fit to do so. It follows that the opposite to "regular," as applied to a lodge, was in those days not irregular but "independent"; self-constituted by inherent right, which was the ancient right by which a lodge was formed, the right of a certain number of individual Masons to form a lodge. So many arguments have been set forth, and are still repeated, even by those who really know better, which are based on sheer confusion of thought due to ignoring the change in that has gradually come about in the last two hundred and thirty years or so, that this warning cannot be too strongly emphasized.
Dr. Anderson in the second edition of his famous work, The New Book of Constitution, of 1738, gave a list of "deputations" granted "beyond seas" to authorize the formation of lodges. This is quite informative. But it again must be understood that these deputations were not Warrants nor Charters. The earliest mode of forming a new lodge under the authority of the Grand Lodge was that the Grand Master came in person, and having first opened an emergency (as we would call it) session of the Grand Lodge, proceeded to install the brother chosen as Master of the new lodge then being erected, who thereupon appointed his wardens and invested them. The new lodge was then declared to be duly constituted and that was all. The Grand Secretary, or someone in his place, made a minute of the proceedings, while a like minute would appear in the minute book of the new lodge. If the Grand Master was not able to be present himself the Deputy Grand Master acted for him, and if neither were unable to act then some brother was appointed as a special temporary Deputy of the Grand Master and empowered by a "Deputation" under the signature of the latter or his regular Deputy, and this brother would proceed in exactly the same way. This latter was the usual procedure when the new lodge was situated out of London, and also of course if it was in another country.
This mode of constituting a lodge was natural enough, and was quite well adpted for a governing body restricted in its jurisdiction to the city of London and its environs; and as has been already remarked, this is all the jurisdiction that was claimed at first, and was indeed all that it had a right to claim under the old traditional law of the Craft. The tacit assumption made by so many of our historians in the past that a handful of Masons in London could by their fiat abrogate the old law and enact a new one, and that thence forward every lodge and every Mason who did not submit to it became "irregular" and a rebel against the new organization is ridiculous on the face of it, once the actual conditions of the time are known; and it is certain that the members of the Grand Lodge were not so foolish in the beginning as to make any such claim. That eventually the new organization was accepted all over England, and imitated in Ireland and Scotland and other countries, is another matter entirely. It was accepted because it was realized that it was a more efficient organization for the fraternity, once it had become divorced from the connection with the operative craft. There is all the difference in the world between willing adhesion, and submission to an external self-erected authority.
The list of foreign deputations given by Dr. Anderson begins with one for a lodge at Gibraltar, in 1727. It was not until 1732 that there is one for France. In this year there were two granted, one for Valenciennes and the other for Paris. Two years later the Duke of Richmond opened a lodge in his Chateau at d'Aubigny - for he was not only an English duke but also a French peer, in right of his Grandmother, Louise de Keroualle, better known as the Duchess of Portsmouth. Viscount Weymouth who was Grand Master that year, gave his predecessor in office a deputation to open this lodge, so Anderson informs us. Those who attended, or were members of this lodge, were mostly members of the French aristocracy and English nobility.
Of the early deputations granted for lodges beyond the seas the larger number were never heard of again in London. Whether they were acted upon or not is largely a matter of conjecture. There is no indication that anyone cared very much. Everything was very casual at first, and besides it was not of very much practical importance at that stage of development. For so long as the great majority of Masons still held that the work done by a "just and perfect" lodge, composed of seven or even five Masons, was lawful and to be recognized, it could make no difference whether a lodge in France or Spain or any other country was under the authority of the Grand Lodge or self-erected by inherent right. For here again we must be on our guard against judging the facts in accordance with the elaborate and comprehensive jurisprudence and statute laws of the present day, and our somewhat fanatical ideas about regularity. Naturally, when a "deputation" was issued it was known, or the Grand Master was credibly informed that there were enough Masons in the place designated to form a lodge, but no one then would have dreamed of inquiring where they were made, and still less would it have been demanded that they should have been made in a regular lodge, as regularity was then understood. That independent lodges existed was well known; that they had a right to exist was still admitted, with the exception that in London and its environs a self-constituted lodge would have been regarded as hostile and its members as rebels to the authority of the Grand Lodge, inherited under the old traditional law, to regulate all matters Masonic within its very limited jurisdiction. Even so, a Mason made in good faith in such a lodge would probably have been recognized as such without great difficulty. Those made outside that jurisdiction were recognized as a matter of course, then and for many years afterwards, as "true and perfect" Masons if they could prove themselves such in the traditional manner.
Yet in France and other countries in Europe there is apparent, as far back as our definite information extends, a desire among Masons to have some sort of documentary authorization for their lodges. This desire was so strong that later on it led to the fabrication of charters and warrants, mostly obviously fictitious when critically examined. This sort of forgery was exceptional, and usually had another motive, that of establishing a traditional claim for an early foundation. In the main the charters were genuine, in the sense at least that they had been granted by some body claiming, overtly or by inference, the power to issue them. Though the recipients seem to have had a singular indifference to the nature or origin of this authority. So long as the document was of imposing appearance, engrossed on parchment with several pendant seals and an array of signatures over impressive titles no one seems to have thought of inquiring further.
This craving for some tangible evidence of authorization, of legitimacy, seems very probably to have been a principal factor in the peculiar phenomenon of "Mother" lodges which characterized the eighteenth century, both in France and other European countries To put it briefly, a "Mother" lodge was one that took upon itself the functions of a Grand Lodge in small way; especially in authorizing Masons in another locality to constitute themselves into a lodge. There was in this no question of territorial jurisdiction, which is a theory of Masonic organization that has never taken root in Europe. The mother lodge was a stage in the evolution of the government of the Craft by representative bodies from the immemorially older idea of self-constituted, independent lodges.
The mother lodge may have been, and often enough was itself self-constituted. Its daughters did not inquire into the source of its authority so long as they received a document that could be seen and handled. Nor indeed did the mother lodges, at the first at least, appear to have sought or desired such a position of authority. It was more or less thrust upon them. One or two of its members moving elsewhere found in their place of domicile some other brethren unattached. Desiring to have a lodge of their own they applied to their mother lodge for authority to do so. Strange as this may seem to us it was really the same movement in principle that led to the London Grand Lodge, in the course of years, being accepted as the ultimate Masonic authority tin England: The difference was that in France, and the rest of Europe, the process was diffused and did not at first tend to the emergence of one central authority. For one thing, the Continental Masons lacked the political experience of the English, the give and take, and readiness to compromise that is necessary to the working of free institutions. In England the central authority was a felt need to preserve the very existence of the Fraternity. In Europe these conditions did not exist, for Freemasonry received its neophytes in the main from the aristocracy, the learned professions and the well-to-do bourgeois. Men from these classes were not at all likely to become Masonic parasites, tramps, beggars and hangers-on. The difficulties and dangers that Freemasonry had to meet in European countries were of different order entirely. They were external instead of internal. It was an exotic institution, there was no long standing tradition behind it. In the British Isles it had been known for many years, remarks allusions and animadversions upon it had appeared in books and periodicals in the previous century. It was sufficiently well known that authors could refer to it in passing and expect their readers to understand without any explanation. In Europe the public generally was hostile Governments suspicious and police inquisitive. While on the part of the Masons themselves, one can imagine that they were not very sure of their knowledge of the usages of the Craft, and so felt the need of guidance and instruction. In consequence any English or Scottish Mason who might be within reach would be regarded as an authority to whom they might submit their doubts and their questions. I think that this was the chief source of the rather strange claims made somewhat later by those who possessed the so-called Ecossois or Scottish degree (or degrees) to act as arbiters and controllers in any lodge at which they were present, whether they were members of it or not. Claims which more frequently were acceded to than not.
These factors in the situation have not been sufficiently taken into consideration by English and American historians of the Craft. It is generally taken as being certain, without argument, that the only possible source of Freemasonry in France was the Grand Lodge in London. And from this, taking it for granted that the date of this importation would be 1730, when, according to Anderson, the two first "deputations" were granted by the Grand Master of that year for the constitution of lodges in France. Yet rather inconsistently some weight is given to the persistent French tradition of a lodge in Paris in 1725, or 1726. But if this has any weight at all it nullifies the previous assumption.
But why should it be regarded as so certain that only from London could Freemasonry have been introduced into France? It is well known to everyone who knows anything at all about the subject that it was active and flourishing in Scotland at this period, and had been for more than a century before, that is as far back as any existing record goes. And it is equally, and more widely known that during the troublous times in the British Isles from the reign of Charles I, to 1745, when at the battle of Culloden the last hopes of the Stewart partisans were finally extinguished, that France was the asylum sought by Scottish and Irish exiles and refugees.
From the minute books of old Scotch lodges it is known that, though they were operative in character, there were many non-operative or honorary members, and these in many cases men of the highest social rank; and it also is a matter of record that a good proportion of these honorary were Jacobites, supporters of the claim of the house of Stewart to the throne of Great Britain. It is therefore quite possible that some of the refugees were Masons. But there is more than possibility, or general probability, for there are definite instances where it can be shown from lodge Records that such an individual had been entered, end from other historical records that he was an active Jacobite and had to flee his country to save his life; and in some of these instances that he continued to be active in his cause in the country where he had found safety. Then, considering the broken and fragmentary nature of the records that remain it seems that we have the right to infer the very high probability at least that these proved cases were in no way exceptional. Indeed that among the large numbers of such exiles in France n considerable percentage were Masons.
Where there are Masons there are apt to be Masonic lodges. This is true today, but in those days - for I am referring especially to the period before there was any Grand Lodge - those who formed a lodge needed no other authority to do so than that which inhered in themselves as Masons. Of the paraphernalia now regarded as necessary practically all was then not so much as dreamed of. A few working tools perhaps, a mallet and a pair of compasses probably, a copy of the Bible, or more likely the Book of the Gospels, would have been quite sufficient. Obviously with so little to arrange for, any desire to hold a lodge could be very easily satisfied, almost on the spur of the moment. And further, under such circumstances no question would arise as to the permanence of the lodge. If it only met once and then ceased to exist who would care? The newly initiated brothers and fellows would in any case be instructed privately by their Masonic friends in what they had to know, just as they were in Scotland until many years later. And no matter how impermanent the lodge wherein they had received signet they would be accepted everywhere as "true and perfect" Masons on proving themselves such in the traditional manner.
Now there was an obvious reason why Jacobite exiles might wish to become Masons, and why those who were Masons might wish to increase their number. It is to be remembered that there was a constant intercourse between the exiles in France and the Jacobite supporters in Britain. And the envoys and agents had to keep "under cover," for they tool; their lives into their hands when they crossed the narrow seas. Anything, therefore, that might be of help in a tight pinch would hardly be neglected. Freemasonry might well enable such an agent to obtain assistance and shelter when otherwise he would have been turned over to the authorities.
The neutrality of the Craft in matter political and religious, two things very much mixed up together in those days, did not begin (as many seem to suppose) with the Book of Constitutions. This is proved for Scotland by the membership of the old lodges; Jacobites and those loyal to the actual sovereign, Roman Catholics and Presbyterians, are to be found therein. And in England, where the records of Masonic activity are so scanty, we find Elias Ashmole being initiated with Colonel Mainwaring, a Royalist and a Parliamentarian together, at the very period when the two parties were in active and bitter strife. In London, both Jacobites and Hanoverians were members of the Craft. The Duke of Wharton, Grand Master in 1723, was a Jacobite, and Samber's description of the Annual Assembly and feast of 1721, or 1722 at latest, indicates that Wharton was not the only Jacobite Mason in London. It was this neutrality this acceptance of men of good character, just, upright and honorable, that would have made the Fraternity useful to those who, though from one party view were conspirators against the actual government, were unfalteringly loyal to the claimant whom they held to be the rightful King of England.
It may be thought that all this is purely external history, and that it has nothing to do with the secret usages of the Craft in France. This is quite true. It has no direct connection with them, nevertheless it is not without indirect significance, more especially as there is no direct evidence for the period. The first definite reference is in 1738, and that does not tell us very much. But the supposition that Freemasonry in France was derived entirely from London has prevented the just weight of the various indications that remain to us, which though doubtful in themselves do suggest Masonic activity many years before 1717. And after all, on the evidence afforded by Anderson in the Book of Constitutions, we must judge that Masons existed in France already, for "deputations" then, any more that charters now, are not granted except to a number of Masons actually living in the place where the lodge is to be constituted. It is highly improbable that any Frenchmen would have gone to England to get themselves initiated in London lodges, and if there were Masons then in France, how and where were they made?
But if this earlier Masonic activity was of Scottish origin then there were two strains of heredity, so to speak, two traditions, in early French Freemasonry, and this quality would satisfactorily explain a good many puzzles in the history of the Craft in France, mostly centering around the constant rivalry and quarreling between the simple Saints John Masonry and that called Ecossais, that is Scottish.
In concluding this chapter I must say that these views are largely my own. In the standard histories and works of reference the opinions I have controverted are set forth as if certain and historically demonstrable. The highly talented scholar and historian of French Freemasonry, the late Albert Lantoine, had however reached very much the same conclusions in his account of the Scottish Rite of France. In his opinion, as long as the hopes of the Jacobites were still high, the Scottish exiles kept their Freemasonry very much to themselves. But after the failure of the abortive insurrection in Scotland, in 1715, these hopes died away, although thirty years later a last attempt was made which ended in disaster at Colloden. And the failure of 1715 led a great many of the Scotch and Irish in France to regard themselves no longer as exiles but as immigrants to France, and to setttle down there as in a new home. And this accounts for the "externalization" of their Freemasonry, and its becoming known to the general public in France. All this would agree with the traditional date of its introduction into France which was accepted by all the earlier French and German Historians of the Craft. It was not an introduction of Freemasonry into France. but its introduction to the French Public.
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We face a serious dilemma as we look out upon this chaotic world. Freemasonry has a traditional rule of absolute aloofness from public affairs. This has been more rigid in the GrLodges of England, Scotland and Ireland than in the United States. With our heritage of free expression we have taken certain liberties. Freemasons in Colonial days discussed issues confronting them, and it is reported that George Washington once said that had it not been for the network of Colonial lodges of Freemasons, there would have been no Constitution of the United States. He did not mean that all the delegates of the Constitutional Convention were Masons - they were not. He did mean that a compact group of Masons in the scattered Colonies provided a forum for the friendly and democratic discussion of issues raised in the Convention, and helped to mobilize influence for the ratification of the great charter of our liberties. - Mcllyar Hamilton Lichliter
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You have often heard the question asked by the Master: "Are you a Master Mason?" And when it is answered in the affirmative, you are then asked: "What makes you a Mason?" And the answer is "My Obligation." Does it not follow, then, that a man is only a Mason when he meets, observes and lives up to his obligation as a Mason? - J.F. Peters.
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Patience is the greatest of all shock absorbers.
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Sleep on, O Friend, until the waking day
And ever, we who love thy presence here,
Will keep for thee, through changes manifold,
A tender memory, growing with the years.
HARRY PRESTON FRANCIS, M.P.S.
Brother Harry Preston Francis, born at Allegheny, Pennsylvania, on January 27, 1893, died suddenly on July 25, 1950. Burial service was conducted at the Edward T. Daugherty Funeral Home, 366 Lincoln Avenue, Bellevue, Pennsylvania, with interment at Allegheny County Memorial Park, Pittsburgh. He is survived by his wife, Viola A. Lessig Francis, one son, Harry Preston Francis, Jr., and one daughter, Doris Grace Francis.
He saw the light of Freemasonry in Stuckrath Lodge No. 430, F. & A. M., N. S. Pittsburgh, having served as its WorshipfuI Master from December 27, 1931 to December 27, 1932. He was a member and Past High Priest of Mizpeh Chapter No. 288, R.A.M., and was active in Allegheny Council No. 38, R. & S.M.; Allegheny Commandery No. 35, K.T.; Keystone Priory No. 26, Knights of the York Cross of Honour; Council of Anointed Kings, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and Islam Grotto No. 35, M.O.V.P.E.R.
He served overseas with Company A, 358th Infantry, 90th Division, World War I, at the St. Mihiel and the Meuse-Argonne Offensive, and in the Army of Occupation in Germany, and was a member of Fort McKeever Post No. 623, Veterans of Foreign Wars. He was elected to membership in the Philalethes Society on September 23, 1949, upon the recommendation of Brother Edwin E. Gruener, M.P.S.
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LEE ARNOLD RICHMOND, M.P.S.
Brother Lee Ad. Richmond was born at Minden, Nebraska, July 3, 1897, and passed on after a short illness on July 24, 1949. Services were conducted at Hallowell & James Chapel, LaGrange, Illinois, July 27; the Reverend Churly Bloomquist of the La Grange Methodist Church officiating, with interment at the Oak Ridge Abbey. He is survived by his wife, Mrs. Lee Ad. Richmond, one daughter, Mrs. C. H. Tschirgi, and two granddaughters.
Our Brother was initiated an Entered Apprentice on December 5, 1919, and passed to a Fellowcraft, June 2, 1920, in Minden Lodge No. 127, A.F. & A.M., Minden, Nebraska. He was raised to the Sublime Degree of Master Mason in Harvard Lodge No. 44, A.F. & A.M., Harvard, Nebraska, on November 21, 1922. During 1939 he affiliated with La Grange Lodge No. 770, A.F. & A.M., La Grange, Illinois, serving as its Chaplain in 1942. He became a member of The Philalethes Society on May 13, 1946, upon the recommendation of the late Brother Leo Fischer, F.P.S.
At the time of his death he was Advertising Manager of the Perkins Products Company, Chicago, Illinois, and for many years previous served as Editor of "Temple Times," the Masonic publication of La Grange Lodge No. 770, A.F. & A.M.
(signed) ALLISTER J. McKOWEN
Secretary
"The Philalethes Society",
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By Charles E. Holmes, F.P.S.; Montreal, Quebec, Canada
ISRAEL - Our esteemed colleague, Brother Abraham Fellman, of Tel-Aviv, sent us a copy of the annual report of Sharon Lodge No. 1387 (Scottish Register), which shows that Masonry is quite active in this new and yet so old country of Israel. The finances of this particular Lodge shows a healthy prosperity. As to its activities they include lectures, fraternal banquets, and all the best features that characterize our own Lodges on this side of the Atlantic. Of the many new honorary members that have been added to the Lodge’s roll, all of them are men of eminence in the Craft. The Lodge is bi-lingual. During the year eight meetings were held in Hebrew and two in English. Besides Sharon Lodge there are two other Lodges in the Tel-Aviv area; one is the Mitzpa, and the other the Aviv. Eighteen candidates were initiated during the year in Sharon Lodge; four members were affiliated and five others were made honorary members. The list of addresses would honor the program of much more pretentious Lodges in metropolitan jurisdictions of Europe or America.
We not only offer sincere congratulations to our Israel colleagues but are convinced that Freemasonry can be of exceptional usefulness in a country of such mixed population, for there are Jews of many and varied origins, even the Yiddish language is not the international idiom we think it to be and not all speak Hebrew. American Freemasonry has its eyes on the doings in Israel!
PHILIPPINE ISLANDS - From Dr. Mauro Baradi, M.P.S., we received a complete file of the Cabletow, Philippine Masonry's official organ, of which he is editor; and we wish our space permitted us to quote many of the interesting items it contains.
In a personal letter accompanying this gift, Dr. Baradi tells us a Supreme Council of the Thirty-Third Degree was inaugurated in Manila on June 19, and that the Grand Master of Masons of the Philippines headed a party of Grand Lodge Officers which left Manila in April for a visit to Okinawa and some Japanese cities to install officers of newly chartered Lodges under Philippine auspices. Concluding his interesting message, Dr. Baradi informs us that "Freemasonry in the Philippines, as in yester-year, is on trial. The Catholic leaders are busily engaged in counteracting the efforts exerted by our Brethren. However, we are not discouraged, because time and again Freemasonry has demonstrated its vitality when challenged, and we know justice righteousness and freedom will win in the end."
RUSSIA - Freemasonry has been banned from Russia since Stalin came into power, just as it has been barred from all other countries dominated by dictators, but we understand that there is a "Russian Masonry in exile," with headquarters in Paris, France, headed by and composed of White Russians. We hope to procure more information on this topic in the near future.
SCOTLAND - The Grand Scribe of Scottish Royal Arch Masonry, Companion George A. Howell, of Edinburgh, 'passed on' to the Eternal Grand Chapter on February 16, and his death leaves a great void in Scottish Masonic ranks.
On March 22, the Grand Royal Chapter of Scotland conferred the rank of Honorary Deputy First Gd. Principal upon Brother Harry S. Truman, President of the United States of America.
GERMANY - Our contemporary, the Masonic review "Die Drei Lichter," recently published an article from the pen of Brother Dr. Gottlieb Imhof, M.P.S., of Basel, Switzerland, on The Philalethes Society, its character, scope and purposes. This should do much to acquaint our internationally-minded brethren with the fact that the Philalethes Society acts as a strong link between Freemasons of all rites.
SWITZERLAND - The Lodge ALPINA held its annual meeting on June 10 and 11, at Vevey, with a large number of delegates from other jurisdictions attending.
It is with deep regret that we record the death of Brother Jean Roulet, of Neuchatel, who, for many years was the editor of the bi-lingual (French and German) Masonic review "Alpina," the official organ of the Grand Lodge of Switzerland, published at Berne.
SWEDEN - Provincial Grand Master, Dr. G.A.G. Walgren, has been knighted by King Charles XIII. Our correspondent, Brother Friman, of Gothenborg, is making quite a reputation for himself as a Masonic speaker. He recently addressed St. Alaus Lodge at Oslo, Norway, and later made a lengthy report of the Oslo meeting to his own Lodge, "Solomon a trois serrures," of Gothenborg, when he received an ovation that necessitated a second speech. Congratulations Brother Friman!
Brother Friman makes it a point to distribute copies of Masonic periodicals among the members of the Craft in his country. It must be kept in mind that restrictions on the export of currency make it impossible for Swedish Masons to subscribe to Masonic publications outside their borders; so Brother Friman uses his old copies of Masonic magazines to keep Swedish Freemasonry informed as to what Masonry is doing outside of Sweden. Deep interest and much good will for the United States of America resulted from the news that President Harry S. Truman is an active member of the Craft.
CHINA - The lodges under the Grand Lodge of China are functioning normally and new officers have been elected for the ensuing Masonic year. The Lodges in Shanghai, Tientsin and Peking, under the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts, have gone into voluntary recess due to the depletion of membership by departure from China. Some of the Lodges under the United Grand Lodge of England and the Grand Lodges of Scotland and Ireland are still working but with more and more foreign brethren departing daily. It is anticipated that these Lodges will have to curtail their meetings or even go into voluntary recess. The need for Masonic fellowship among the brethren remaining in China its therefore all the more essential and the Grand Lodge of China hopes to supply that need.
A movement is under way to establish fraternal relations between the Grand Lodge of China and sister Jurisdictions all over the world and it is our hope that this endeavor will be sympathetically considered. Such recognition of the Grand Lodge of China can be a source of inspiration for as well as an encouragement to its Grand Officers who are pledged to keep the light of Freemasonry burning amidst abnormal and trying conditions.
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Brother John K. Remick has served the Craft long and faithful, both in this country, as well as during the turbulent years or revolution in our neighboring Republic, Mexico, with its memories of great friendships, happy social contacts, business relations, and a long period of residence amongst a kindly, courteous and very hospital people.
Born in Ogden, when Utah was still a territory, On October 26, 1877, he attended its Grade and High Schools, and, later, enrolled in a business college at St. Louis, Missouri, where he lived from 1898 to 1903.
As an adolescent just reaching his majority, distant pastures beckoned with irresistible persuasion. The purchase and development of a manufacturing enterprise, at San Luis Potosi, Mexico, in an environment of strange customs and language was not accomplished within a bed of tranquility and economic ease. That very experience, however, has no compensation in gold, and has paid generous dividends in the conviction gained that in all mankind the spark of divinity glows; that all men inherently wish to live as brethren, although a minority of malcontents, political or otherwise, have not seen the light, but devote earthly tenure to foster turmoil and hate.
The years 1903 to 1906 were years of learning that has born fruitage of a happy relation with his Mexican brethren throughout the years. To really know a people, we must live amongst them during war and peace, in prosperity and vicissitude, share their lot in the silence of the mountains or in the activities of villages and cities, to acquire a real bond of friendship.
In 1906 he heard that a Lodge of Masons was being established in San Luis Potosi, under the York Grand Lodge of Mexico, working in the English language. The requisites having been complied with, he was in due time Entered, Passed, and Raised in George Washington Lodge No. 6, F. & A. M., jurisdiction of the York GrLodge of Mexico. It has been his privilege to have served this Lodge as its Secretary and Master, the latter office having been held three consecutive years.
Most of the Lodges, of which there were twelve under the York GrLodge jurisdiction, went dark shortly after the opening months of the revolution which began in 1910. The exigencies of the times and exodus of foreigners created the advisability of George Washington Lodge No. 6 to follow suit, although a dispensation was granted by the M.W. Grand Master to hold Stated Meetings in a private home to keep the Charter alive.
There comes a period in the affairs of any Nation, when evil and negative conditions cause a leader to arise in protest. The revolution in Mexico. 1910-1918, was a protest against ignorance; poverty, and superstition, due to many years of the encroachment of the Church within a State. For 250 years the ancient land of Tenochitlan - the Mexico of today - was dominated by the elements created through the conquest by Spain under Fernando Cortes and fostered by the Roman Catholic Church. As a destructive force in a lovely land, the years of mixture of Church and State exemplified its futility. Francisco E. Madero, a noble Mexican and a Freemason, courageously raised the banner of revolt. Let it be understood, however, that the revolt was not of Masonic origin or promotion; the spirit of progress was rampant throughout the Nation and would not be denied.
Brother Remick, who personally knew Francisco Madero and many of the leaders whom Madero gathered around him, witnessed the whole series of revolutions from 1910 to 1917. He was on the Texas border following the Vera Cruz occupation and subsequent Pershing expedition, which was in answer to a threat from the Germans during World War I, but fortunately this never led to serious reprisals. As a civilian he was in charge of the New York Division Exchange at McAllen, El Paso, and San Antonio.
To recount the episodes that transpired and Brother Remick's intimate contact with the people, both of high and low estate, all vitally interested and associated in the events of the day, would require much space and perhaps be more of a personal interest than to the readers of ''Philalethes.'' However, out of the welter of the struggle for human rights, there is today evidence of the rising tide of triumph for public education, respect for the individual, regardless of caste, and the determination to have Mexico assume her place in the forefront of Latin-American progress and enlightenment.
In 1918 Brother Remick moved to San Diego, California, where he has made his home ever since. He married Grace Mary Fuller, a former principal of the Emerson School of Fresno, California.
Our Brother's Masonic activities continued unabated. He had a hand in reporting favorably upon the recognition of the Mexican Grand Lodge of the Northern District of Lower (Baja) California. On April 8, 1924, he affiliated with S. W. Hackett Lodke No. 574, F. & A. M., of San Diego, and served it as Marshal, in 1926, and Secretary from 1940 to June 30, 1944. He is a 32nd Degree Mason in the San Diego bodies of the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite, which honored him with the investiture of K.C.C.H. in October, 1947. Presently he serves them as the Secretary-Registrar.
James K. Remick has been a District Deputy Grand Master of the 8th Masonic District, York GrLodge of Mexico, and the Representative of GrLodge of Michigan near the York GrLodge of Mexico. He is a member of the San Diego County and the Imperial Valley Scottish Rite Clubs, as well as an Honorary member of various East Pacific Masonic Clubs.
Our Brother is the author of "Altar Lights," a 50-page booklet, size 4 1/2 by 6 inches, containing twenty short articles on the subject of Masonry. He is a prolific writer and many of his articles have been published in "Philalethes," and other Craft papers. He was elected to membership in The Philalethes Society in 1946, upon the recommendation of the late Brother Silas H. Shepherd, F.P.S., and we are pleased to present his portrait on the cover page of this issue of our review. - L.E.W.
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HOW our loneliest days are made lighter and brighter by the enchanting echoes of our past days, and still how cruelly sweet are the sad souvenirs of some remembrance.
How we fondly hug the dear, delicious delusions or the majestic dreams of joys - joys that disappeared like the morning dew.
How natural it is for all of us tenderly to place in the hope-chest of our imagination, the bright and most beautiful memories of our past years.
The inexhaustible source of our present happiness is in our possibility to recall past pleasure.
Few, very few will be happy with what they have right at hand. Nearly all of us rely on recollections for finding what we think was real happiness.
Perhaps it is because memory abandons the deeply felt pangs of our yesterdays - because memory hangs on the walls of recollection the scenes so dear to our hearts, the charming paintings of love, the cherished portraits of friends and the medallions of merit.
Memories are mostly the pleasant part of the past.
We cannot be happy today while hugging to our hearts the broken pieces of glass that once held happiness.
We cannot be happy today while sitting on the cactus of regrets.
To be truly happy today we must stop so much thinking about the pleasant past and take time to enjoy thoroughly the bigger and better things that are offered for our advantage today.
Today's "Bluebird of Happiness" is worth more to you than a flock of nightingales that will never return.