The Philalethes

Contents
 
 

 The President's Corner                                                                 The Tale of the October Cover

 Mythological Origins of the Name HIRAM                                   Southern Baptist Convention and Freemasonry

 Masonic Trivia What's in a Name                                                 Even Albert Pike

 Union Grievance: The Start of Freemasonry                                  First Grand Master of Masons in Tennessee

 Trials and Tribulations of Traditionalism                                        The Best-Known Mason in the World

 The Numbers : 37499                                                                  The Haggis

 Holy Writ, Blue Lodge, Old Age and Me                                      Our Masonic Penalties Another View

 It's Tommy Tucker Time                                                               What Is a Grand Master Worth

 Masonic Connection with the Oregon Constitution                         Through Masonic Windows
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

the philalethes

The Journal of Masonic Research and Letters

Charles S. Guthrie, FPS Acting Editor

1660 Normal Drive

Bowling Green, KY 42101 (502) 842-5415

FAX (502) 843-6678

OFFICERS

Wallace E. McLeod, FPS President

Victoria College - FAX 416/585-456

73 Queen's Park Crescent - Res: 416/488-1097

Toronto, Ontario Canada M5S 1K7

Forrest D. Haggard, FPS 1st Vice Preside

6815 W. 78th Terrace

Overland Park, KS 66204 (913) 642-5519

Royal C. Scofield, FPS 2nd Vice President

655 W. Maryland Ave.

Sebring, OH 44672 216/938-6240

Allen E Roberts, FPS Executive Secretary

P.O. Box 70, 110 Quince Ave.

Highland Springs, VA 23075 (804) 737 4498

FAX 804/328-2386

Henry G. Law, FPS. Treasurer

2608 E. Riding Dr. Wilmington, DE 19808

(302) 737-9083

Harold L. Davidson, FPS Librarian

The Philalethes Society 1903 10th St. W.

Billings, MT 59102 (406) 259-1552

LIVING PAST PRESIDENTS

Philalethes Society

William R. Denslow FPS

Robert V. Osborne, FPS

Dwight L Smith, FPS

Robert L Dillard Jr. FPS

Bruce H. Hunt, FPS

Allen E. Roberts, FPS

John Mauk Hilliard, FPS

CONTENTS

The President's Corner

The Tale of the October Cover

Mythical Origins of the Name Hiram - Part I

Queries & Comments Assembly/Feast/Forum What's in a Name?

Even Albert Pike

Where Did All the Scallops Go?

Major Thomas B. Claiborne

Trials and Tribulations of Traditionalism

The Best Known Mason in the World

37498

The Haggis

Holy Writ, Blue Lodge, Old Age and Me

Our Masonic Penalties

"It's Tommy Tucker Time!"

What is a Grand Master Worth?

The Operatives

Review

Masonic Connection with the Oregon Constitution

The Blue Blanket: The Banner of Masonry

Through Masonic Windows

ON THE COVER

The foyer of the Washington Museum operated by the Scottish Rite Bodies in the George Washington Masonic National Memorial. Featured is a reduced replica of the George Washington statue found in the main entrance (see the next issue of The Philalethes).

Courtesy of the GWMNM Association: Photo by Arthur W. Pierson.

----o----

The President's Corner

by Wallace Mcleod, FPS

The Almighty in his infinite wisdom has seen fit to make us all different. And we can thank Him for that. I mean, can you imagine how awful it would be if, all the time, each of us had to deal with people like me, or people like you? What I'm really trying to say is, some of our Presidents have written useful things for your consideration in every issue of the magazine.

Your current President has not been able to follow their example. But perhaps now it's time for him to say a word or two.

In the first place, I am still very conscious of the honor that has fallen to my lot, in being called to serve as President of the "oldest, largest, and most successful Masonic research body in America. " And last April, when the Grand Chapter of Royal Arch Masons of Canada in the Province of Ontario held its Annual Convocation, the Grand First Principal, M.E. Comp. G. Robert Jackson, bestowed on me the office and rank of Grand Junior Sojourner. Likewise, in July, the Grand Master of my Grand Lodge, M.W. Bro. Norman E. Byrne, once again appointed me Grand Historian. I am prepared to believe that these distinctions are in part a recognition of the fact that I am your President. On behalf of the Society, as well as of myself, I thank Comp. Jackson and Bro. Byrne.

Let me say a word about the journal. We are lucky, so lucky, that our Brother Allen E. Roberts was prepared to step into the breach and keep the magazine going, when our beloved Jerry Marsengill was called away so suddenly. Let me take this opportunity to express our profound thanks to him. We are also grateful that a number of talented brethren answered our pleas, and signified their willingness to undertake the duties of editor. It was not easy to choose among them, but I think that we are singularly fortunate to have persuaded Bro. Charles Snow Guthrie to assume these responsibilities.

I am convinced, from a number of years of experience, that editors are a vastly underrated breed. Those who have never tried the job assume that it's really something like a sort of secretary. You mail letters of acknowledgement to contributors, and you send the articles off to the printer, and that's all there is to it. Well, let me tell you that it isn't that simple.

The editor certainly has to do these mechanical things, but there is so much more! He has to have a lot of specialized expert knowledge, so that he can tell what is right and what is wrong, what is competent and what is inept, what is acceptable and what is impossible. He has to be tactful with people, so that he can say, "I'm sorry, but we don't think your paper is suitable," or "Thank you very much for your article, which shows real promise, but needs a bit more work," or "I have changed a few places where it didn't flow smoothly." He has to decide the order in which the articles will appear, and where to put in pictures. He has to give instruction to the printers, about type-faces and so on. Bro. Guthrie knows how to do all these things. So here's a big thank you to our new editor. Make sure that all of you appreciate his efforts, and do send him material for the journal.

And if it turns out that we do something that irritates you, by all means let us know. But if you are very angry, I suggest that you might put your letter aside for a few days, and then rewrite it before sending it. I can certainly understand how we may want to make our displeasure felt, and some of us are pretty good at devising cruel things to say. But try to remember that your executive officers are volunteers, who spend a fair bit of their time working for the Society. I suspect that we all try to do our best, and we certainly don't need gratuitous insults.

Remember, we may not all think alike, but we are brothers.

The Semi-Annual Meeting in Rochester is now history. It went extremely well. The theme (FUEL--Fun, Unity, Education, Leadership, in the Nineties) was relevant. The programme was well organized, despite the fact that two of those who had agreed to give papers could not in fact be present after all. We were singularly fortunate that the Grand Master for the state of New York, M.W.Bro. Sheldon K. Blank--a member of the Society--was able to take time out of his busy schedule, and address us at the evening banquet. We are told that the papers will be printed, for distribution to those who attended. This seems to me to be a very fine idea, for several reasons. It ensures that the contributors would take that little bit of extra effort, and also that their labours will not be in vain. Our sincerest thanks to the Finger Lakes Chapter and its members, for all their efforts on behalf of the society.

We are planning another great get-together in Washington next February, at the Annual Assembly and Feast. It is always an excellent time to meet old friends, make new ones, and learn a little bit more. Elsewhere in this issue you will find some information about the program, and the way to reserve your place.

The Philalethes Lecturer will be my fellow Torontonian, Bro. John M. Boersma, who has won something of a reputation, in the United States as well as in Canada, for his audiovisual presentations. They are always visually stunning, musically magnificent, and educationally stimulating. This lecture, we are confident, will be no exception. So if you're not too far away from Washington, think about attending.

There will, of course, be meetings going on all through the weekend. Some of them require you to be a member before you can attend. Others, basically, are open. Of the latter, I should like to call your attention particularly to the Society of Blue Friars. It is a bizarre organization, of which I shall tell you more on a subsequent occasion. But it holds an open meeting, which is intended to celebrate Masonic scholarship. The presiding officer will announce the name of a new Friar, who will then be called upon to deliver a paper. I think you will all be pleased. If you are in Washington, come along and enjoy yourself.

The other day I was listening once again to Beethoven's Choral Symphony. I don't think that either the composer, or the author Friedrich Schiller, whose "Hymn to Joy" makes up most of the final movement, was a Mason. But some of the words were so appropriate to Freemasonry.

Your magic touch binds together Those whom custom has kept apart. All men become brothers Wherever your gentle wing extends. Not a bad sentiment. Think about it.

----o----

The Tale of the October Cover

No cover for The Philalethes has brought in more phone calls and mail, irate and otherwise, than the cover for October. Let me make this perfectly clear (as a famous President used to say): our Editor is not the culprit - it's me.

Here's the story: Last year Jerry Marsengill, our late lamented Editor, asked me to obtain a series of transparencies for covers. I contacted the George Washington Masonic National Memorial Association. A series of pictures was made available. I didn't keep a record of them. The one for October I didn't see. MAS Media couldn't fax it because it would have come through as a black blob. It was described to me as a "Lodge room." I assumed (which I've been teaching for years is absolutely dangerous) that the Association would have sent only one for the replica room or Alexandria-Washington Lodge. The description ruled out the former.

When my copy of the October issue arrived, I almost passed out! I knew I had goofed - yet again. Obviously the Andrew Jackson Lodge room was depicted.

To those who were hurt, made despondent or irate, and those who chuckled because they rightly guessed that I had blundered once again, I apologize.

My head is bowed low

Allen E. Roberts

----o----

Mythological Origins of the Name HIRAM

by Harvey A. Eysman, MPS

Editors note: this is the first installment of a paper presented at the semi-annual meeting of the Philalethes Society in Rochester, New York, on September 12, 1992. The second installment will appear in the February, 1993 issue./ Copyright 1992 by Harvey A. Eysman

It is a privilege to have been asked to speak with you at this semi-annual meeting of the Philalethes Society. In the search for a fitting subject, it occurred to me that semi-annual and annual events have been marked with importance since the dawn of human existence, and mankind has generated massive bodies of lore around these events.

I have been intrigued for many years both by the variety of myths that can be found throughout the diverse cultures of the world, and by the similarity of the symbolism that issues from them. In a Masonic context, then, it would seem rather appropriate to consider the mythological origins of the name Hiram, a name that is not only important in our ritual and tradition, but one that has a rich foundation in myth, which preceded and may have influenced the development of Masonry.

Mythology, regardless of time or place, has the capacity to generate symbols that reflect basic elements of humanism; and they persist through all ages, cultures, and conditions. The transfer of concepts by symbols is not dependent upon literacy. Ideas conveyed by an image are transferred directly to the mind without the necessity of translation. It enables men of varying backgrounds and education to perceive on an equal basis the precepts that are expounded, particularly in the mythic environment. Freemasonry, which uses emblematic imagery to articulate its tenets, has adopted numerous symbols, many of which have existed from time immemorial.

The Manuscript Constitutions have woven an historical thread from the Fourteenth Century to the early Eighteenth. Our ritual was also crafted in Great Britain through several families of documents over a like period. Freemasonry probably had its origins in Great Britain in the late Middle Ages, even, perhaps, a bit earlier. But it must clearly be stated that this paper does not attribute pre-historic origins to Masonry. The universal, humanistic symbols that we find so appealing in our ritual are generic, and our Craft, which may have evolved from other, non-masonic social organs that far preceded the formation of the Order, has merely adopted some of these symbols in the natural course of human development. Although studies of the Early Manuscript Constitutions have developed an historical chain linking the modern Speculative Craft to a form of Masonry extant in England as early as the Fourteenth Century, rigorous evidence of a more "ancient" Craft is sorely lacking.

Masonic ritual attributes the origin of the Craft to the building of King Solomon's Temple. We, of course, recognize the apochryphal nature of this "history, " just as we discount as fanciful the narrations of the early Masonic writers and of the documents that trace our beginnings to Adam or Noah. (1)

Solomon is also credited with having been a proponent of the montheistic conconcept, a precept that we find to be inconsistent with numerous passages contained in the Bible. We know, for (2) example, that Solomon erected "an high place" for Ashtoreth, which is the Zidonian name for the goddess Astarte. Ward suggests that Chapter 12 of Ecclesiastes, which is supposed to have been written by Solomon "seems to be" connected with the death of Adonis and is symbolically derived from the train of death legends that prevailed in early worship; (3) and ritual sacrifice was incorporated within all these early religions.

Heathen practices such as these continued in Israel at least until the reign of Josiah, who attempted to implement extreme religious reforms among the people. Some 350 years after Solomon, about 624 B.C., Josiah was responsible for the destruction of Ashtoreth's Shrine, which was built by Solomon. (4) Despite the reforms of Josiah, which included the rewriting of extensive portions of various books of the Bible, many pagan rites were still practiced, including ritual sacrifice. References to some of these practices were often retained in the Bible, not withstanding the reforms. The reference, for example, to Jephthah offering up his only daughter as a burnt offering (5) was never deleted from the scriptural text, which evinces, perhaps, a predisposition on the part of the reformer to accept such rites, or at least an indication that they bore no great aversion to them. A conclusion that may also be drawn is that the reformers were not totally committed to the monotheistic concept. The many oblique references in the Bible to missing books, or to those that no longer exist. (6) enable us to conclude that whereas politically offensive or conceptually undesirable material was removed, the material that remained was either acceptable to the reformers or sufficiently common-place as to elicit no objection.

The essential element of our ritual, however, is founded upon the legend of the death of Hiram Abif, a death that was unquestionably in the nature of ritual sacrifice. The Hiramic Legend has all the elements of a primary epic--a literary form that is as ancient as human culture itself. (7)

Consequently, the implication follows that early forms of Freemasonry, prior to its consolidation and "Christianization" in Britain during the beginning of the Eighteenth Century, had its origins in pagan philosophy; or at least, that the primitive pagan practices that were ubiquitous throughout Great Britain, even into the Eighteenth Century, had a strong influence on the formation of the ritualistic and symbolic fabric from which the Craft was spun. It may be that the objections to Freemasonry entertained by the fundamentalist religious establishment arise more from the recognition, even unconsciously, of these traces of pagan practice that remain in form, if not in fact, within the Craft than from any impropriety of the Institution itself. An epic, such as the Hiramic saga, is an ancient literary form that details the story of a Hero and of his Adventure.

Its genesis derives from the primal death legend that is indigenous to all cultures. It is a history of the Hero and of the events that bedevil him, of his ultimate victory, even as it may tragically be consummated by his physical death. The symbols that are innate to all epics are intrinsically embedded in the very fibers of man's psychological structure.(8) As is common in ancient literary forms, symbolic allusions are often connected with the name of principal characters.

Let us consider, then, what the biblical name Hiram means, and what significance it possesses, derived from the ancient world in which it evolved. An understanding of this semantic genealogy may give us greater insight into the basic humanistic precursors that led to the evolution of Masonry in the late Middle Ages and of the more formal Speculative Craft of the early Eighteenth Century. It is essential, however, to re-emphasize that the myths and legends extant, prior to the development of even the earliest forms of Freemasonry, are related to our Craft only to the extent that they were drawn into Masonic usage as a natural consequence of the basic humanistic values that they reflect.

Hiram, who was sent from Tyre to assist King Solomon in the building of the Temple was, according to the Bible, a smith or a worker in brass.(9) The name Hiram Abif is not mentioned in the Bible, of course, but its derivation is interesting. (10)

The word Hiram means, among other things, "he who destroys." The word "Abif" means "his father. " In classical elocution, the form "his father," as in "Hiram, his father," was a construction that indicated the possessive case. We say "Hiram's father," which is the modern contraction of the form, "Hiram, his father." Accordingly the name Hiram Abif, which means " Hiram, his father, " actually means "Hiram's father." Since we define "Hiram" to be "he who destroys" or "the destroyer," we see that Hiram Abif" translates into "the destroyer's father." The destroyer, of course, was the other Hiram--the king of Tyre--who bears the same name as his father in accordance with the well-established, ancient tradition of naming the son after the father.

The designation of the Master Builder as "the destroyer father" is significant from a mythological standpoint. One of the characteristic elements of all Heroic literature is the predictive portion of the recitation in which the text relates, prior to the happening of an event, an augury of that event. By denominating Hiram Abif as "the destroyer's father," we have, in effect, a prophecy of what is to come; and Hiram Abif is, indeed, ultimately slain by Hiram (the King). Although the King, himself, does not personally wield the weapon, the ruffians, who are "brothers and men of Tyre," emblematically represent King Hiram. Ward also projects that Hiram Abif is characterized as the father of King Hiram, (10) and was sent as his emissary to Solomon to fulfill the symbolic, Temple building obligation.

These events, are, of course, fully consistent with the traditional death-legend in which the son kills the father to obtain the kingdom.(11) It is derived from the prehistoric Year-King Myth that is inherent in all religions, modern and ancient, that propound a trinity. (Christianity is not alone in its use of a triune god.) In its simplest form, the Year-King Legend treats of the king, who, in the twelfth month of the year, sires the son. In the thirteenth month, the son reaches maturity and slays the father, and in the first month of the new year, the father's spirit is resurrected in the son, who then becomes the king, and who, again, in the twelfth month sires a son, and so on cyclically. Thus we see the evolution of the concept of a trinity, wherein the father, the son, and the spirit are interconnected in an everlasting cycle of mythic regeneration.

[The second installment, planned for publishing in February, describes the many forms of the name Hiram. It demonstrates that these parallel names arise from classical references to Adonis and that the manner in which they appear alludes to the traditional death rite that predominates in ancient religions. It shows how Solomon is treated in the biblical text as a classical Hero, on a Quest, and how dearth ritual is exemplified in his words and actions. Examples are given from The Odyssey in which death rituals are veiled in ancient literature, and a relationship is drawn between worship of Adonis by King Hiram and of Ashtoreth by Solomon] Notes

1. Eysman, H. A., "Historical References to Noah in Freemasonry, " Transactions of the American Lodge of Research, 18 (1989).

2. 1 Kings 11:5.

3. Who Was Hiram Abiff J. S. M. Ward,(London: Lewis Masonic, 1986), 9.

4. I Kings 2:5;11 Kings 23:13.

5. Judges 12.

6. II Chronicles 9:29.

7. Eysman, H. A., "The Masonic Legend as a Primary Epic, " Transactions of the American Lodge of Research, 18 (1989).

8. C. S. Lewis, "Primary Epic," in A Preface to Paradise Lost (London: Oxford University Press, 1961), 12 et seq. Compares the primary epic to the following or secondary epic.

9. II Chronicles 2:13;1 Kings 7:13.

10. Ward, 10.

11. Eysman, "The Masonic Legend as a Primary epic

----o----

Queries & Comments Southern Baptist Convention and Freemasonry

I have read the book published by Dr. James L. Holley of Texas and am furious, as are many others. Our Grand Lodge asked that we write to two of the people involved with the SBC:

Mr. Gary Leazer, Director, Interfaith Witness Department 1350 Spring St., N.W. Atlanta, GA 30309

Rev. Dr. Ron Phillips, Chairman Home Missions Board

Central Baptist Church 5208 Hixon Pike Hixon, TN 37343

Copies of Southern Baptist Convention and Freemasonry, the book sent to 5,000 church leaders, are available at S2.00 each from Mission and Ministry to Men, Inc. 550 North Tenth Street Beaumont, TX 77706

. . . It seems to me that any church should spend its time furthering Christianity, relieving the distressed, and promoting harmony and goodwill over the globe.

Marvin E. Richardson, P.M. P. O. Box 6902 Jackson, MS 39212

[Editor's Note: Probably if individual Masons wrote Mr. Leazer and Dr. Phillips, it would help do some good.]

---------------------------------------------------

Scripture Readings

.... Brother Honea writes in "The Scripture Readings of the Three Degrees," "The recitation of each degree halts the progress of the degree cold. " In Massachusetts it doesn't. These are read or recited during the circumambulations with the candidate in motion. Brother Honea attempts to establish a relationship between the readings. All the Lodges which I have encountered in America use the ones he cites for the EA and MM Degrees, but there are many, including Massachusetts, which use I Corinthians 13, a discourse on charity (love), instead of the Amos passage in the FC Degree. This being the case, his relationship goes right out the window. If there were truly a connection, then all would use Amos.

It is my purpose to use this particular article as an example of writing which appears to be based on a false assumption

Donald S. Robinson, MPS 154 Ipswich Street N. Billerica, MA 01862

---------------------------------------------

Masonic Trivia What's in a Name  ?

by Thomas J. Berry, MPS

In most jurisdictions, when a petition for a lodge is made, the name of the Lodge must be submitted with the petition.

However, in the Grand Lodge of Ireland, over 100 lodges have only the lodge numbers and no name. The Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania has ten lodges which have only numbers. Alone among regular Grand Lodges, the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania does not exchange Grand Representatives with other Grand Lodges.

----o----

John M. Boersma of Canada Lecturer at the

Assembly/Feast/Forum Friday, February 19, 1993

One of the most talented and accomplished Masonic students of our time will deliver the Philalethes Lecture at the Annual Assembly and Feast next February. Brother John M. Boersma (Dutchman by birth, Canadian by choice) became a Mason in Occident Lodge, No.346, Toronto, in 1972 and served as Master in 1980. In 1988 he was chosen as Grand Senior Warden. Over the past ten years he has developed a number of spectacular and appealing audio-visual productions that are concerned with Freemasonry, and has presented them with great success in both the United States and Canada. Some of you will recall seeing his impressive treatment of Masonic composers at the Semi-Annual Meeting in Toronto a few years ago. His topic at the Assembly and Feast will be

The Date:

Friday, February 19,1993

"Brother Mozart:

His Trademark was Harmony;

He Personifies Universality;

By performing his Alloted Task while it was yet Day,

He Gained Immortality."

The Time:

6:00 p.m. sharp for

the Assembly & Feast

The Investment:

$28 for the Feast for reservations before

Feb.1, 1993; thereafter $32, including

those made in the lobby until noon on the

day of the Feast; no reservations after

12 o'clock noon.

The Place:

The Hotel Washington, Washington. D.C.

Who ?

Master Masons only.

THE FORUM

Members of the Society's newest Chapter, Cornerstone Computer, will be featured during the Forum on February 19, 1993. They will be demonstrating the use of computers and modems. They will show us how to be immediately linked together, how to exchange information and how to stay abreast of what's happening right now. Look for more details in the December issue.

For Reservations:

Send checks for $28 before February 1 to: Executive Secretary, P.O. Box 70, Highland Springs, VA 23075-0070

Make checks payable to:

The Philalethes Society

We strongly suggest that reservations be made for hotel rooms immediately by calling the Hotel at 1-800-424-9540

----o----

Even Albert Pike

by Allen E. Roberts, FPS

No one man ever spoke for Freemasonry, nor can one man ever have spoken for it. Whether this is good or ill matters not. There are 51 entities (or Grand Lodges) plus more than 1200 offshoots (or appendant organizations) whose existence depends on men remaining members of a recognized Craft Lodge. Perhaps one day egos will permit Freemasonry to speak with one voice, but that day is far in the future. Allen E. Roberts

For many years I have been among the detractors of Albert Pike, the fellow credited by Carl H. Claudy in Little Masonic Library with taking the Scottish Rite from a log cabin to a temple. Especially did I deride his mammoth tome, Morals and Dogma. Without question, it has caused Freemasonry no end of problems, especially by its numerous critics.

Many years ago (perhaps 40) I struggled through Morals and Dogma. As most readers do, I didn't absorb the preface-not until recently. I strongly suspect the critics have never read it (even those few who have really read Pike's book). So for them (and all of us) I herein quote pertinent parts of the Preface to Morals and Dogma as written by Pike in the third person (a tack he often took):

In preparing this work, the Grand Commander has been about equally Author and Compiler; since he has extracted quite half its contents from the works of the best writers and most philosophic or eloquent thinkers. Perhaps it would have been better and more acceptable if he had extracted more and written less. [I never dreamed he could have been this humble! AER].

Still, perhaps half of it is his own; and in incorporating here the thoughts and words of others, he has continually changed and added to the language, often intermingling, in the sentences, his own words with theirs. It not being intended for the world at large, he has felt at liberty to make, from all accessible sources, a Compendium of Morals and Dogma of the Rite, to re-mould sentences, change and add to the words and phrases, combine them with his own, and use them as if they were his own, to be dealt with at his pleasure and so availed or as to make the whole most valuable for the purposes intended. He claims, there, little of the merit of authorship, and has not cared to distinguish his own from that which he has taken from other sources, being quite willing that every portion of the book, in turn, may be regarded as borrowed from some old and better writer. [Humility, again! AER]

The teachings of these readings are not sacramental [Emphasis added by AER], so far as they go beyond the realm of Morality into those of other domains of Thought and Truth. The Ancient and Accepted ["Ancient" is an exaggeration, AER] Scottish Rite use the word "Dogma" in its true sense, of doctrine, or teaching; and is not dogmatic in the odious sense of that term. Everyone is entirely free to reject and dissent from whatsoever herein may seem to him to be untrue or unsound [emphasis added by AER]. It is only required of him that he shall weigh what is taught, and give it fair hearing and unprejudiced judgment. Of course, the ancient theosophic and philosophic speculations are not [emphasis added] embodied as part of the doctrines of the Rite; but because of its interest and profit to know what the Ancient Intellect thought upon these subjects, and because nothing so conclusively proves the radical difference between our human and animal nature as the capacity of the human mind to entertain such speculations in regard to itself and the Diety. But as to these opinions themselves, we may say, in the words of learned Canonist, Ludovicus Gomez: "Opiniones secundum varietatem temporum senescent et intermoriantur, aliaeque diversae vel prioribus contrariae renascantur et deinde pubescant. " [Translation: As to opinions that harmonize with the changing times, let them grow old and die off; and let others that are different, or even contrary to the earlier ones, spring up and then grow to maturity. ]

Contrary to what I've been thinking for many years, and what Albert Pike's critics of today still think, the man did possess some humility, at least during the period he compiled the mammoth document called Morals and Dogma. Pike's Preface certainly places the whole into a different light.

But, does this excuse Albert Pike's concept of Freemasonry? I think not. It is apparent that he knew little or nothing about Ancient Craft Freemasonry. He attempted to develop a whole new system. This he accomplished, partly, through another body.

Pike admitted he freely plagiarized the works of many others. In this highly litigious day he would have spent a great deal of time in court! And he was as guilty as his critics of today are of taking phrases out of context and adding or subtracting from them to prove a point.

----o----

Masonic Trivia Union Grievance: The Start of Freemasonry  ?

by Thomas J. Berry, MPS

In 1356 the masons appeared before the Lord Mayor and aldermen of London and asked them to settle a grievance. It seems that there was trouble between the mason-hewers and mason-setters, that is, between the masons who cut and carved the stones and those who laid them, as to who should do what, saying that heretofore they had no rules for the craft. Probably a setter, not finding a stone to fit, simply gave it a few knocks of the hammer to bring it into shape, and the hewers went on strike.

The City of London settled it by saying, in part, that " . . . every man of the trade may work at any work touching the trade, if he be perfectly skilful and knowing in the same. " The City proceeded to give them seven rules for the masons' trade within London.

Some forty years later we have the first mention of the masons' having a set of rules for themselves (the Regius poem), so some time between 1356 and 1390, say 1375, the Craft got started with their first Rules and Constitutions.

----o----

Major Thomas B. Claiborne First Grand Master of Masons in Tennessee

by Bobby J. Demott, MPS

Major Thomas B. Claiborne, the first Grand Master of Masons in Tennessee came from a long line of distinguished statesmen and public servants.

Nathaniel Claiborne Hale, in his book Virginia Venturer, written in 1951, traces the Claiborne family back to Kent, England. Hale's book centers around the life of William, who came to America in October, 1621, by previous arrangement with the Virginia Company to serve in the capacity of surveyor.

William not only conducted the duties of his office but took an interest in the security of the colony. He was appointed Treasurer of the Colony, and on May 14, 1626, at the age of twenty-five, assumed the second highest office in the Colony, Colonial Secretary of Virginia. A good business man, Claiborne soon owned over 5,000 acres of land including plantations later owned by George Washington, George Washington Parke Custis, and Robert E. Lee (Harris).

The Immigrant's life exemplifies the philosophy which has come to be admired in America. He leaned heavily on the freedom of the individual to work and to take chances on a profit resulting from those efforts. His military and civic services to the colony of Virginia are in keeping with the work ethic and patriotic zeal of later generations of Americans.

Several Claibornes were active in the Revolutionary War. Richard, probably the great-great-grandson of the Immigrant, was a Major and the Quartermaster Officer for Generals LaFayette and Von Steuben in the Army of Southern Virginia (Idzerda). Another Richard Claiborne, on April 1, 1777, was a Sergeant in Company 5 of the Second Virginia Regiment. This may be the same man as Lt. Richard Claiborne, who after the war was given half-pay and a land grant in Kentucky by the Legislature of Virginia (Saffell). Buller Claiborne, a great-great-grandson of the Immigrant, was a captain in Company 1 of the Second Virginia Regiment in June, 1777. He served as aide-de-camp to General Lincoln. Many other Claibornes, listed by Heitman, served as officers in the army between 1789 and 1903.

William (1748-1809) and his wife Mary Leigh, who was also his cousin, had at least four sons who made names for themselves. Ferdinand Leigh Claiborne, a Brigadier-General in the army, saw action in the Creek War of 1813 . Thomas Augustine Claiborne (c. 1779-1815) became a physician. William Charles Cole Claiborne(1775-1817) was the first Governor of Louisiana, and Nathaniel Herbert Claiborne (1777-1859) was an author and congressman.

Thomas (c. 1779-1815) received his medical training in Pennsylvania, returned to his home in Virginia, and went to Knoxville, Tennessee in 1798. In a letter to Wm. C. C. Claiborne, written on May 9, 1798, John Sevier indicated that Thomas Augustine Claiborne was then practicing medicine in Knoxville (Williams, 1932). Sevier provided support for Dr. Thomas in Knoxville until such time as he was self-sufficient. At a civic ceremony on July 4, 1800, Dr. Claiborne made toasts. He moved to Nashville in 1801 and became a justice of Davidson County in 1804. He represented Davidson County in the General Assembly at Knoxville in 1803. On April 20, 1801 he married Sarah, daughter of Wm. T. Lewis and established an "Office house" at the corner of Market Street and the Square in Nashville. He died in 1815 while serving as a surgeon in the Naval Hospital at the Bay of Pascagoula, near New Orleans.

The second son of William (1748-1809) was William Charles Cole Claiborne (1775-1815), born in Sussex County, Virginia, and for whom Claiborne County, Tennessee, is named. He worked as a clerk in Congress in New York and Philadelphia a few years, during which time he met John Sevier, then representing Tennessee in Congress. According to Nathaniel Claiborne, William studied law in Philadelphia and in Richmond, Virginia, was admitted to the bar and started a practice in Sullivan County, Tennessee. John Sevier also befriended him when he first came to Tennessee giving him housing until such time as he had established his own income (Williams, 1930).

Often signing his name as Wm C. C. Claiborne, he represented Sullivan County as delegate to the State Constitutional Convention in 1796, the same year Governor Sevier appointed him as judge on the supreme court, although he was only 22 years of age. He was elected as a Republican from Tennessee to the Fifth and Sixth Congresses (1797-1801). He served, although he did not reach the constitutional minimum age of 25 until 1800. In February, 1801, he voted for Jefferson as President over the contender, Aaron Burr. Wm. C. C.'s Uncle Thomas (1747-1812) also served in the Fifth Congress, representing Virginia during the contest between Jefferson and Burr.

William was appointed Governor of the Territory of Mississippi in 1801 and served as Governor of the Territory of Orleans from 1804 to 1812. He was elected as the first Governor of the State of Louisiana in 1812 and served until 1816. Elected to the United States Senate from Louisiana, he died at forty-two years of age on November 23, 1817, before Congress convened. He was a member of Perfect Union Lodge No. 1, New Orleans, Louisiana (Denslow).

Nathaniel Herbert Claiborne, a brother of Wm. C. C., served in Congress from 1829 to 1837. Author of the book Notes on the War in the South, published in 1819, Claiborne died on August 15, 1859 in Franklin County, Virginia. He was a member of Abingdon Lodge No. 48, Washington County, Virginia (Denslow). He attended the Grand Lodge meetings in Virginia in 1821 and 1822 (Dove).

The name Claiborne appears many times in the history of Virginia, Tennessee, Mississippi, and Louisiana, and in the annals of the Congress of the United States. The name Thomas was a popular given name among the Claibornes.

In 1792 the Grand Lodge of Virginia authorized the formation of a lodge near Hicksford in Greensville County with Thomas Claiborne as the Junior Warden. In 1797, the Grand Lodge of Virginia issued a dispensation for Lodge No. 50, Thomas Claiborne, Senior Warden, to meet at the courthouse in Brunswick County. Also in 1797, the Grand Lodge of Virginia issued a charter to Brunswick Lodge No. 52 in Brunswick County. Philip Claiborne, son of Thomas B. (1749-1812), was designated Junior Warden. In 1809, Philip Claiborne was District Deputy Grand Master.

The fourth son of Thomas B. Claiborne (1749-1812), also named Thomas B., was born in Petersburg, Virginia, on May 17, 1780. He came to Nashville in 1807, engaged in the practice of law, and served under Andrew Jackson in the Creek War of 1813. Claiborne's war service was of short duration, however, as Jackson did not leave the Nashville area with his army until about October 7, 1813. The battles were fought on November 3 and 9, and Claiborne was in Tennessee in time to attend the Masonic meeting in Knoxville on December 27, 1813, at which time the Grand Lodge was formed and he was elected the first Grand Master.

Jackson and the first Grand Master formed a life-long friendship. Claiborne was a pall-bearer at Jackson's Funeral, was a justice of Davidson County in 1818, and a member of the Fifteenth Congress from 1817 to 1819. He was Mayor of Nashville in 1818 and served in the General Assembly of Tennessee in 1811-15 and 1831-32.

James, in his book on Andrew Jackson, tells of the rough and tumble world of politics of the time. Henry Clay, Grand Master of Masons in Kentucky in 1820 and the 1832 Republican Party Presidential Nominee, criticized Jackson and questioned the advice Jackson received from such men as "Tom Claiborne, Sam Houston, Eaton, and Wm. B. Lewis." Houston was a member of Cumberland Lodge No. 8, as was John Eaton, a United States Senator. Major William Berkely Lewis was Andrew Jackson's Army Quartermaster officer in 1812. He was present at the Hermitage when Jackson died on June 8, 1845. Clay, who had presidential aspirations, is said to have been critical of Jackson, as a method of embarrassing the administration then in power (Johnson). Jackson, who was reelected to the Presidency in 1832, was Grand Master of Masons in Tennessee in 1822-23.

Tom Claiborne served as Speaker of the House of Representatives in Tennessee, and on October 28, 1813, was pleased to sign the bill establishing Tennessee' s first library. George Wilson, Speaker of the House protem

to be installed as Deputy Grand Master later in 1813, also signed the bill . Wilkins Tannehill, seven times Tennessee Grand Master, was one of the library directors (Moore).

The following material relates to the formation of the Grand Lodge of Tennessee (Wolfenbarger):

Under dispensation from the Grand Lodge of North Carolina, a Masonic Lodge was formed in Love's Tavern on Front Street near the end of Gay Street Bridge in Knoxville. The first recorded meeting was held March 4, 1800. Andrew Jackson, then a Justice of the Superior Court and a member of Harmony Lodge No. 1 in Nashville, was in attendance. The charter was granted on September 30, 1800, as Tennessee Lodge No. 2, with John Sevier, the Governor of Tennessee, as Master. Major James Grant, first clerk of Campbell County, was Senior Warden; George W. Campbell was Junior Warden and George Roulston, Secretary.

Prior to the formation of the Grand Lodge of Tennessee, the Tennessee lodges were under the jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of North Carolina, which from 1802 to 1813 was known as the Grand Lodge of North Carolina and Tennessee. With the organization of the Grand Lodge of Tennessee, a charter was issued to it from the Grand Lodge of North Carolina, thought to be the only instance wherein one Grand Lodge chartered another.

On December 27, 1813, representatives from eight lodges met in Knoxville and formed the Grand Lodge of Tennessee.

The eight were Tennessee No. 2, Knoxville; Greeneville No. 3, Greeneville; Newport No. 4, Newport; Overton No. 5, Rogersville; King Solomon No. 6, Gallatin; Hiram No. 7, Franklin; Cumberland No. 8, Nashville; and Western Star No. 9, Springfield. The Grand Lodge of Tennessee was organized in the lodgeroom of Tennessee No. 2, located in the old courthouse, which was at the northwest corner of Main Avenue and Gay Street. Two men initiated in Tennessee Lodge No. 2 were Archibald Roane, the second Governor of Tennessee, and Judge David Campbell, founder of Campbell Station. Thomas Claiborne represented Hiram Lodge No. 7 and Cumberland Lodge No. 8 at the formation of the Grand Lodge. He affiliated with Cumberland Lodge No. 8 at Nashville on June 18, 1818 and was a charter member of Cumberland Chapter No. 1, Royal Arch Masons. In June, 1850, Thomas Claiborne and William Polk, among others, served as representatives to a "Southern Convention" in Nashville. Here leaders from the southern states discussed their mutual problems, primarily that of relations with the North. As a county official in 1830, Thomas B. Claiborne attested that the census data had been recorded and put on public display. The 1850 Census lists Thomas Claiborne as 70 years of age, born in Virginia, a lawyer, and as owning real estate valued at $1,000

Supposedly the first Grand Master was present when Brother General Lafayette and his son, Brother George Washington LaFayette, visited the Grand Lodge of Tennessee on May 4, 1825, although the proceedings do not list him on any committees. He died January 7, 1856, and is buried in the Old City Cemetery in Nashville (McClanahan).

Thomas Claiborne (June 20, 1823April 23, 1911) was the son of the first Grand Master. The younger Thomas was an officer in the Mexican War and served on the staffs of Generals Joseph E. and Albert Sydney Johnston in the Confederate Army. He was a lawyer and editor, and a member of Cumberland Lodge No. 8.

Claibornes are numerous in the United States. Under the assumption that each descendant of the Immigrant had three children, that each generation was thirty years, and that three generations were living in 1990, in that year there were over two million living descendants, half of whom carried the Claiborne name. Many point with pride to their common immigrant ancestor, to the Revolutionary soldiers, the Claibornes in Congress, and to the first Grand Master of Masons in Tennessee.

Bibliography

Claiborne, Nathaniel Herbert. Notes on the War in the South. William Ramsey, 1819. Denslow, William R. 10,000 Famous Freemasons. Trenton MO:

Missouri Lodge of Research, 1959. Dove, John. Proceedings, 1778-1822. Grand Lodge of Virginia, 1874. Hale, Nathaniel Claiborne. Virginia Venturer. Richmond, VA:

The Dietz Press 1951. Harris, Malcolm Hart. Old New Kent County Some Account of the Planters, Plantations and Places in King William County, St. John's Parish. West Point, VA: 1977.

Heitman, Francis B. Historical Register and Dictionary of the United States Army, September 29, 1789 to March 2, 1903. Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1903.

Idzerda, Stanley J. LaFayette in the Age of the American Revolution. Cornell University Press, 1981.

James, Marquis. The Life of Andrew Jackson. New York: Bobbs-Merril Co., 1938

Johnson, Gerald W. Andrew Jackson, an Epic in Homespun. New York: Minton Baleh and Co 1927

McClanahan, Arch Erwin. Grand Masters of Tennessee. Nashville: Grand Lodge of Tennessee, 1975.

Moore, Mrs. John Trotwood. The First Century of Library History in Tennessee, 1913-1913. East Tennessee Historical Society No. 16, 1944.

Saffell, W.T.R. Records of thc Revolutionary War. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1969.

Williams, Samuel Cole. Beginnings of West Tennessee in the Land of the Chickasaws, 1541-1841. Johnson City, TN: Watauga Press, 1930.

Wolfenbarger, J. C. Unpublished Manuscript,

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Trials and Tribulations of Traditionalism

by Howard R. Stewart, MPS

Michael Baigent and Richard Leigh, though neither is a Mason, recognize a Masonic quandary when they see one. They compare the story of Masonry to ". . . a ball of twine unsnarled by a playful kitten. . . it consists of numerous skeins, which must be disentangled before its various origins can be discerned" (Baigent and Leigh, 123).

The traditional approach to Masonry's origins has followed a line of gradual transition from operative to speculative, an approach set down by many with only slight variations. Harry L. Haywood was one of the more emphatic of these, feeling that all theories not involving transitionalism have but one thing in common, ". . . that they ask a Freemason to believe that Freemasonry was never itself but always was something else in disguise!" (Haywood, 1980, 910).

Whether Haywood was right or wrong remains to be seen. There are other theoretical currents flowing--some old and some new. The purpose of this paper will be to apply the "ammeter" to several of these currents and test their potential values. But first, some of the reasoning behind the theory of transition will be reviewed.

Currents that strengthen or weaken all theories of origin flow freely in Masonic literature and lead to questions like these: Did our Masonic ancestors really build cathedrals? If operative lodges did indeed undergo transition, were the first non-operatives priests or other church officials, or were they members of the gentry? Were the first non-operatives Templars who fled to Scotland to escape the wrath of the Catholic Inquisitions? Or were they political dissidents or members of seventeenth-century intellectual and religious cells who hid their identities by merging with operative lodges?

The presence of church officials at cathedral construction sites should not have surprised anyone, but a medieval gentleman seeking to align himself with common builders would have been unthinkable. But this may have happened, for the Regius Poem of 1390 A.D. lists lords, dukes, earls, barons, knights, and squires as members.

Regardless of which way the Masonic student turns, he is confronted by architecture. From the Masonic standpoint, architecture is more than simple construction; it is the art of design and construction, and as such is synonymous with geometry, the ultimate science. Do we not refer to God as Supreme Architect and Grand Geometrician? Do not most Grand Lodges insist that the architect be present at the leveling of corner-stones and building dedications, and even if he be a profane, that he play a role in the ceremony? In his Seven Lamps of, Architecture, Ruskin called the laws of architecture moral laws, as applicable to the building of character as to the construction of a cathedral.

Lately, Baigent and Leigh have suggested this: "For was not architecture the supreme application and actualization of geometry--an application and actualization that went further even than painting and rendered geometry three dimensional? Was it not in architecture that geometry in effect became incarnate?" (Baigent and Leigh, 133).

While Baigent and Lee support a Templar origin for modern Masonry, the reasoning in the above smacks of a spiritual link, furnished by the union of architecture and geometry, which could have lured inquisitive non-operatives into the fraternity.

Several members of Quatuor Coronati Lodge would have modern Masonry originating in the seventeenth or early eighteenth century with no previous ties to operative Masonry. John Hamill has said, "Accepted Masonry (there are still doubts as to whether it can be truly called speculative in the seventeenth century) simply seems to have appeared in England as a new organization without any prior connections with the operative craft" (Hamill, 1986, 19). F.W. Seal Coon is quoted as saying that speculative Masonry "may first have been devised as a cover for conspiratorial meetings of Royalist groups" (McLeod, 1991, 46).

Still another member of Quatuor Coronati Lodge, Cyril H. Batham, said this in an unpublished paper entitled "The Birth of Speculative Freemasonry": "I suggest that there were cells at the heart of many religious fraternities restricted to senior members and practicing esoteric ceremonies. That when the acts disendowing those religious fraternities were passed in 1547, some of these cells continued to exist in secret. That in the more liberal conditions toward the end of Elizabeth's Reign, these cells began to emerge, and that because of the political dangers of those times, they took on a disguise of an architectural society, a society of non-operative masons . . . " ("The Birth of Speculative Freemasonry").

Some who question the transitional theory point to two things: one, no records of operative lodges exist from 1500 on, and two, to a gap between 1400 and 1583, during which no Old Charges emerged. This group appears to place little stock in this statement, made by Dr. James Anderson in 1720,

"This year, at some private lodges, several very valuable manuscripts . . . were too hastily burnt by some scrupulous brothers, that those papers might not fall into strange hands" (McLeod, 1991, 4650). As to the absence of Old Charges between 1400 and 1583, McLeod has shown that at least eight versions emerged during that interim (McLeod, 1988, 261).

Turning to the assumption that modern Masonry emerged from intellectual cells, recall that there were several schools of esoteric knowledge in the sixteenth century and later. In France, this was prevalent among members of the Holy League, a Catholic alliance dedicated to the eradication of Protestantism in Europe. The alliance had advocates in Protestant Britain, whose activity was by necessity subterranean. These British advocates were influenced by John Dee, astrologer and alchemist, and by James VI of Scotland, a royal patron and probable member of the guild of operative Masons. When James VI was crowned James I of England, noted Scottish philosophers began to play roles in English affairs. They brought with them their Scottish traditions and James I brought the esoteric heritage of his French forebears (Baigent and Leigh, 139-44).

Meanwhile, in Germany, a close association had developed between the Rosicrucian school and the court of Frederick V who was the head of the Protestant Union and husband of Elizabeth Stuart, daughter of James I. In 1617, Frederick was crowned Emperor of Bohemia, an act that precipitated the Thirty Years War. Germany was overrun by Catholic armies, and Protestantism was threatened with extinction. Philosophers and scientists who embodied the "Rosicrucian Enlightenment" fled to the relative safety of England where they formed themselves in an English version of the Invisible College of the Rosicrucians. Supposedly they later merged with operative lodges in order to conceal their activities. Then, following the restoration of the Stuart monarchy to the English throne in 1660, they emerged to form the Royal Society. It was Christopher Nicolai's claim that members of the Royal Society subsequently became members of the Masons Company of London, assumed the name of Free and Accepted Masons, and adopted the Masonic implements as symbols (Baigent and Leigh, 144-45; Mackey, 1966, 2: 707) .

William H. Stemper, Jr., has proposed that an intellectual and institutional synthesis took place near the beginning of the eighteenth century which created Masonry as we know it today. He attributes this synthesis to small groups of influential men who not only were able to conceive of an organization such as Masonry but were able also to influence their surrounding cultures with the significance of their ideas (Stemper, 1990, 4-9).

Stemper divided the development of Masonry into four strata: biblical, medieval, hermetic or occult, and deistic or Enlightenment (Ibid., 4). Considering this a rational approach and hoping for Stemper's indulgence, I will explore these four strata, using words that may or may not be his.

In the biblical stratum is found the story of Solomon's Temple. The value of adding this to Masonry's story is obvious and needs no further comment.

Question marks line the shelves of the medieval stratum, for apart from the Old Charges and scattered hints of operative lodges, there is little evidence that Masonry began in those times in any form. Stemper emphasizes the importance of Giordano Bruno (1548-1600) to the origin of Masonic ideas because, among other things, he tried to preserve medieval architecture in a period when Protestants were leveling medieval abbeys and statuary at will. In these times, scientific practices were forbidden and considered supernatural--even heretical. Yet, scientific practice by Masons was essential. The Gothic style of architecture constituted a complete combination of all architectural principle. Among the Masons who created it were architects, engineers, mathematicians, artists, sculptors,, and other learned and skilled men.

Some have felt the medieval Masons incapable of such work and have sought elsewhere for explanation among the medieval occultists--the alchemists, astrologers, and others. But the Gothic cathedrals stand today as proof of the accomplishments of that special class of builders, while the structures may emanate a sense of the miraculous, they offer little to suggest occultism. Could it not be that the scientific practitioners who designed and constructed them attracted the attention of medieval intellectuals and later, of those of the Enlightenment?

And, in turn, could it not be that these practitioners were receptive to their admission? (Mackey, 3 :1202-03). As for the hermetic or occult stratum, all forms of superstition flourished in the Middle Ages. Even though time has swept away most of the rubbish, the influence of occultism cannot be ignored. Again referring to Stemper, he suggests that the way in which the occult tradition utilized Solomon's Temple is the key to a better understanding of its function. Not particularly caring for the word " occult, " I would add that to accomplish this, all thoughts of transmutation of base elements and other forms of magic should be erased in order to concentrate entirely on architecture.

John Dee (1527-1608), mentioned earlier, was a prime mover of the occult tradition in Britain. He believed that material building was a mystical enterprise with structures patterned after potent celestial harmonies. Viewing architecture as a memory device, he called it "a means for man to recall harmonies and proportions in the universe which were related to the harmonious ordering of human society and of the individual soul." His philosophy was to blossom later under the influence of Robert Fludd, Thomas Vaughn, and Elias Ashmole (Stemper, 6).

As the eighteenth century dawned, the subject of science remained shrouded by clouds. The Royal Society was lampooned in the newspapers, and its members were publicly ridiculed. Oxford and Cambridge refused to teach scientific subjects, and the Church continued its ban. Then, as time went on, attitudes concerning freedom of expression relaxed somewhat, and the deistic or Enlightenment stratum emerged.

The intellectuals, many of whom belonged to the Royal Society, sought to establish a natural religion based upon reason and free inquiry. Their scientific investigations created an awareness of the law, harmony, and order of the universe and gave rise to the concept of a rational God who worked through the laws of nature rather than through miraculous acts. Stemper has referred to this deistic approach as a compromise between medievalism and occultism, which was acceptable to the progenitors of the first Grand Lodge as a means of maintaining for Masonry the power of myth and symbolism ("Deism," Encyclopedia Americana, 1958, 8:602; "Enlightenment, Philosophy of," Encyclopedia Americana, 1958,10:390; Stemper, 8).

Still another theoretical current would have modern Masonry arising from the Templars who fled from France to Scotland before the wrathful sweep of the Catholic Inquisition. Several of its supporters are not Masons, one being John J. Robinson. The extent of his research is obvious in his writing, but a part of his reasoning troubles me. He claims that his analysis of the Old Charges has revealed a secret society of mutual protection. These are his words:

"What the 'lodge' was doing was assisting brothers in hiding from the wrath of church and state, providing them with money, vouching for them with the authorities, even providing them 'lodging' that gave Freemasonry the unique term for its chapters and meeting rooms. There remained no reasonable doubt in my mind that the original concept of the secret society that came to call itself Freemasonry had been born as a society of mutual protection among fugitive Templars and their associates in Britain, men who had gone underground to escape the imprisonment and torture that had been ordered for them by Pope Clement V. . . ." (Robinson, 1989, xviii). How Robinson arrived at that conclusion lies beyond my plane of reasoning. Masonry has always stressed benevolence and charity. It is no accident that Masonic laws conform to these attributes as well as to all of the old charges. In the "Standard Original of the Old Charges," dated 1520, this codification appeared: " 19. And also that every Mason shall receive and cherish strange Fellows when they come over the country, and set them to work, as the manner is; that is to say, if they have mould stones in place [Italics mine], he shall set them a fortnight at the least on work, and give him his pay, and if he have no stones for him, he refresh him with money to the next lodge" (Morris, 1991, 2).

John Hamill has divided the Masonic theorists into two schools--the mystical or romantic, and the authentic or scientific--and states that issues have been clouded in both schools by well-meaning but ill-informed Masonic historians (Hamill, 15). Certainly, theories expressed publicly should be based upon principles verifiable by experiment or observation. While a romantic can dream a dream, what is in that dream should never be set down as fact. Neither should the scientific investigator limit the scope of his investigation to evidence that fits his pre-conceived theory. Even though a transitionalist, I do not treat the "newer" currents lightly, especially those claiming that the originators concealed themselves in operative lodges in order to hide activities too dangerous to be practiced openly. Civil strife and political events from the fifteenth century on could have made such a thing possible. One might ask if Wallace McLeod was backing away somewhat when he said, I still subscribe to the outmoded view [Italics mine] that speculative Freemasonry descends from operative stonemasonry" (McLeod, 1991, 46). Outmoded view? Is one of our problems semantic in origin? Are we searching for the true definitions of stonemason, Freemason, operative Mason, non-operative Mason, and speculative Mason? They are not necessarily the same.

It is difficult to understand the longago, because we were not there. There is no well-marked trail to follow. Cyril Batham has asked us to stand at a modern building site and imagine that its builders grow and grow until they take over our fraternity. In turn, perhaps Batham should return to his favorite Gothic cathedral and ask himself if he truly believes that stonemasons who speculated upon the spiritual nature of things were never there. Actually, neither situation makes for a fair comparison. A Mason can stand before an edifice like the National Cathedral in Washington, D. C., and no light will be shed, for he knows that many architects capable of designing and supervising the construction of such a structure are available. But many men of the Middle Ages had never seen the likes of a Gothic Cathedral, and it just may have been that its magnificence overwhelmed them, excited their curiosity, and goaded them to learn its secrets (Batham, 14).

At the outset of this paper, Harry L. Haywood was accused of being emphatic. Actually, if his reasoning is carefully digested, answers may rise to the top. Haywood felt that the Masonry we have inherited began as a fraternity of operative Masons, but that the particular fraternity from which we descend began with those who discovered and perpetuated the Gothic style of architecture. These were the Freemasons, the aristocrats of all operative Masons. Nonoperatives sought to join the more permanent lodges of Freemasons because therein lay truths about the subject of work not to be found elsewhere. There had always been a speculative element in even the earliest operative lodges, attested to by their use of the Old Charges. Who the speculatives of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries were and what they believed may be irrelevant to the main question, i. e., whether an old fraternity was continued or a new one begun. Haywood suggested that their common mission was not to destroy but to take the old fraternity to which each had sworn total allegiance and put it to a new use. There was a matrix in place; why destroy it? He said nothing about other beliefs or motives harbored by these speculatives, simply concluding that the record of what they did proves that the new use was of great and vital importance, and resulted in an extraordinarily effectual Grand Lodge system and in a completely speculative fraternity(Haywood, 1973, 18-25).

One thing is certain. The search for Masonic origins will continue. The currents that support the transitional theory continue to generate powerful magnetic fields even though sub-currents eat away at their base. Can the transitional theory survive? We must wait for final verification or rejection. And, while we wait, we will continue to build spiritual buildings as we have been instructed to do, all the while listening for the sounds of the stonemasons as they labor in the vaulted recesses above.

Bibliography

Baigent, Michael and Richard Leigh. The Temple and the Lodge. New York: Arcade Publishing, 1989.

Batham, Cyril. " The Birth of Speculative Masonry " Unpublished Manuscript. Cited as Batham. "Deism. " Encyclopedia Americana, 1958.

"Enlightenment, Philosophy of. " Encyclopedia Americana. 1958.

Hamill, John. The Craft. Guildford, Surrey: Biddles, 1986.

Haywood, Harry Leroy. More About Masonry. Richmond: Macoy, 1980.

Haywood, Harry Leroy. The Newly-Made Mason. Richmond: Macoy, 1973.

McLeod, Wallace. The Grand Design. Highland Springs, VA: Anchor Communications, 1991.

McLeod, Wallace. "The Old Charges." The Collected Prestonian Lectures, 1975-l9c~7. London: Lewis Masonic, 1988. Morris, S. Brent. Masonic Philanthropies: A Tradition

Caring. Anderson, SC: Electric City Printing, 1991 .

"Nicolai, Christoph Friedrich." Mackey's Revised Encyclopedia of Freemasonry 1966.

Stemper, William H., Jr. "Premasonic Intellectual Currents:

The Ideas Which Made Freemasonry Possible." The Philalethes. October, 1990, 4-9.

Robinson, John J . Born in Blood. The Lost Secrets of Freemasonry. New York: M. Evans &: Co. 1989.

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The Best-Known Mason in the World

by Norman G. Lincoln, MPS

One of my hobbies is collecting Masonic phonograph records. Several years ago I was looking through an auction catalog of old 78 RPM records and noticed this entry: "Victor 35317 12" Ehlers-Free Masonry/Masonic Charity. " Needless to say this was intriguing as one does not often find our fraternity mentioned in record company catalogs. My bid was successful and in due time I received the record.

In the meantime I had been trying to discover who the mysterious Brother Ehlers was, with no success. His name was not in any of the reference works or Masonic encyclopedias I owned. I knew the record was made about 1912 because of the serial number, but that knowledge was of no help.

In the event that you are unfamiliar with 1912 Victor recordings, the label is about four inches in diameter with gold printing on a black background. At the top is the famous trademark of the dog listening to "His Master's Voice" from the morning-glory horn of a hand-crank phonograph. We are also told that Victor Records were awarded first prize at the Buffalo, St. Louis, and Portland Expositions. The list price is $1.25. Under the title is what I had been seeking: Address by M. W. Edward M. L. Ehlers, Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge F.&A.M. of the State of New York.

Now my record had been identified as to its speaker. A quick survey of the Proceedings of the Grand Lodge of Ohio informed me that he had died on May 28, 1917. Eventually I visited the Masonic Library in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where I read his obituary in the annual Proceeding of the Grand Lodge of New York.

There I found that Edward M. L. Ehlers was born in Denmark on January 3, 1840, and came to the United States when he was four. When the Civil War started, he enlisted in the 12th Regiment, New York Volunteers on April 19, 1861. After his ninety-day enlistment was up, he joined the 52nd New York Regiment and eventually rose to the Rank of Brevet Colonel. He fought at Fairoaks, Gaines Mill, Savage Station, White Oak Bridge, Malvern Hill, Second Bull Run, South Mountain, Antietam, and Fredericksburg, where he was wounded simultaneously in the right arm, breast, and leg. He recovered and then spent several years in Georgia where he was welcomed because of his compassion for the Southerners suffering from Reconstruction. After the War, he was also active in the GAR [Grand Army of the Republic, a veterans' organization], and was Past Grand Commander of George G. Meade Post.

On July 18, 1865, he was raised in Continental Lodge No. 278. After returning to New York, Brother Ehlers served as Master of his lodge in 1870, and from 1874-1876. He was exalted in Tribune Chapter No. 241, Royal Arch Masons, on November 22, 1870, and later served as High Priest. On December 10, 1880, he transferred to Phoenix Chapter No. 2 and in 1911 transferred to Jerusalem Chapter No. 8. He was advanced in Adelphic Council No. 7, Royal and Select Masters on June 17, 1871 and served as Thrice Illustrious Master in 1883. He was knighted in Columbian Commandery No. 1 on June 26, 1871, and served as Eminent Commander from 1879 to 1881. On September 26, 1873, he became a member of the Scottish Rite, and was coroneted a 33ø Mason on September 20, 1881. He also belonged to Mecca Temple, A.A.O.N.M.S.

Brother Ehlers was appointed Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge of New York on December 2, 1881, and served until his death. He reorganized the office of Grand Secretary, making it one of the most efficient in the world. In 1901 he became Honorary Past Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of New York. More than eighty symbolic lodges extended him honorary membership. On two important occasions he served as Grand Marshall: in 1881 when the obelisk known as Cleopatra's Needle was placed in New York, and in 1891 when the New York Masonic Home was opened. On April 24, 1901, he sat in the East when future President Theodore Roosevelt was raised. Ossian Lang said that when he died, Ehler was the best-known Mason in the world.

What relevance has this for us today? First it makes us aware of the fact that great leadership in this country has come from humble immigrants. Only in a free democracy are such efforts possible. Let us ever be vigilant against forces within and without which would wrest away our freedoms. Next it shows that there are Masonic stories to be found everywhere if we have the ability to search them out. And finally it warns us that our own reputations and fame do not last long after us. Only truth endures.

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The Numbers : 37499

By John Boetjer MPS

The numbers were faint blue, slightly blurred, and a little irregular. Written on human skin, what could you expect?

They caught my attention as I leaned over her, slightly to the side of her small desk, as she wrote the details of my intended purchase on the back of her business card.

For the moment the significance of the numbers didn't register. I had never seen them before, not in real life. This was different from seeing them on a made-for-television film or some other Hollywood production. This was real. The woman bearing the number was only an inch away.

Awkwardly, I blurted, pointing to the number on the inner side of her left forearm, "Is that what I think it is?"

She glanced up, looked frankly, matter-of-factly into my eyes for a brief moment, and said, " Yes . "

Then she returned to detailing my order. I persisted. "But you're too young! "

" I was thirteen when they took me in, " she said, still looking down as she carefully wrote code numbers and prices.

"Where?" I said. She gave a name, but it was strange to me, not Treblinka, Auschwitz, Buchenwald, Dachau, Belsen-the names I would have recognized.

"Where was it?"

"In Germany. One of the smaller camps. Not well-known."

She continued the order, completing it and telling me when I could pick up the item.

The matter, obviously, was over for her, but it wasn't for me. My name, Boettjer is German. My parents, with the aid of relatives already living in Chicago, came to the United States from Germany in the early 1920s. They took menial jobs, anything they could find. The Great Depression came as a surprise to them in this land of prosperity and promise.

I still remember my father contrasting the hard times of the 1930s in America to the earlier good times in Germany, the Fatherland, particularly how he took to market in a horsedrawn cart the rich, fresh milk from his father's farm.

Here, in down-town Washington, DC, for the first time in my life I had met a World War II concentration camp victim. History had been brought home to me. I felt the weight of my heritage. I was in touch with the past, the living past, a past we too often prefer not to remember. It is too painful. Yet over 6,000,000 men, women, and children were exterminated. And not just Jews, Poles, Gypsies, communists, or anarchists. Outsiders or dissidents of every type were shot, or gassed, or starved, or sacrificed to medical experiments.

Lest we forget, hundreds of thousands of these were another type of misfit-Freemasons. To this day, many members of our Craft wear a blue forget-me-not flower pin in tribute to the European Masons who used this flower to identify themselves to other Masonic brethren.

Today, just a short walk from the Washington Monument, a new edifice is taking form, the Holocaust Memorial and Museum. Many regret the construction. They see in it needless recollection of mankind's inhumanity to man. True, I am reminded of the horror, the brutality, and the evil mankind can do.

At the same time, I am brought to a realization of the endurance of the human spirit, the courage innate in every man and woman, the desperate pursuit of freedom and tolerance by Masons who were our Masonic forebearers and who should never fade from the consciousness and conscience of the Craft.

Today, as terms like "racial strife" and "ethnic cleansing" are common, we must not forget that man's hold on freedom and moral conduct is, at best tenuous. We are all too willing to callous ourselves to evil, to shrug off the manifold violences of history and of daily life as someone else's concern.

Those faint blue numbers are now etched as deeply into my mind as they are tattooed in the forearm of the concentration camp survivor I met so recently and accidentally in the center of our nation's capital. May their significance never fade. May we all, everywhere and always, live aware of the enormity of man's evil. At the same time, let us as Freemasons and Americans remain dedicated to man's equally enormous impulse toward good.

In the heart of darkness let us find, nurture, and spread the dawn of light.

Note: The number in the title of this article is not the actual identification number of the Holocaust survivor described

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Masonic Trivia The Haggis

by Thomas J. Berry, MPS

While this subject is not strictly Masonic, I, as a Scot, would like to put at rest all the many stories and misinformation about this noble beast. The wild and wooly Haggis is indigenous to Scotland, and was hunted to the brink of extinction before being domesticated in the nineteenth century. It is now found only in Haggis Farms dotted across the Scottish Highlands. It is herded by Scotland's famous Haggis Hounds which are distinguished by having the legs on one side shorter than on the other. This enables them to run around the hills without falling over.

To be brought to the peak of perfection, selected Haggi (the plural of Haggis) are brought into the Haggis Folds where they beg for their daily ration of whisky-soaked oatmeal, the staple diet in preparing Haggii for the market. To the canny Scot, the Haggis represents not only a delectable food source, but also provides many daily requirements. The snout or beak makes a drone for the pipes, the tail-feathers make an ornament for the tam, the feet a kilt pin, while the pelt makes a sporran; or, they are shorn and the wool hand-woven by bonnie Scots lassies into the world famous Haggis Tweed. The noble Haggis has truly earned its name, " The Braw Provider. "

It is well also to remind the readers that the Haggis has also a whole book of the Bible devoted to it, the Book of Haggai, in Scots "the twa Haggisses. "

Editor's note: Whew! And I thought the Scots were supposed to be dour!

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Holy Writ, Blue Lodge, Old Age and Me

by William H. Yarnall Sr., MPS

The scripture readings for the Entered Apprentice, Fellow Craft, and Master Mason Degrees did for twenty-four years of my Masonic Life elude me. Or, it may be that I was listening and did not hear, nor was I knocking on the door. Therefore, the door did not open.

After twenty-five years of Masonic life I was ready to learn the secrets of Freemasonry that I thought I knew. My first project was to learn and truly understand the scripture reading for the First Degree. I found in my own library five translations of the Holy Scriptures. I also found that some translations were more understandable than others. For example, in Bahnson's North Carolina Lodge Manual, the scripture reading is thus: "Behold how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity. "

From the Good News Bible we have the following rendering: "How wonderful it is, how pleasant, for God's people to live together in harmony. " From the Moffatt Translation we have this rendering: "How rare it is, how lovely, this fellowship of those who meet together. " From the Jerusalem Bible: "How good, how delightful it is for all to live together like brothers. "

And finally, from the Peshitta, the authorized Bible of the Church of the East (Greek): "Behold, how good and pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity. "

I know it's good to dwell in unity, to live like brothers, to meet in fellowship. Was the first verse of Psalm 133 saying more to me that I was not hearing? My next stop was Abingdon's Interpreters' One-Volume Commentary. Here I learned that this wisdom psalm was intended to combat a practice which threatened to destroy the traditional! structure of Israelite society. If brothers continued to dwell together after the death of their father, the estate remained undivided and the family's inheritance in the Holy Land was kept intact.

The development of commerce and the urbanization of society induced many young men to sell their share of the inheritance and go off on their own. The psalmist urges that the old custom is good and pleasant, decreed by the Lord, and followed by His blessing: the continued life and vigor of society (not personal immortality).

At this point, I asked myself, "Just what have I learned from Psalm 133:1?" My answer was easy. If I have failed to live in faith with God, in hope in the resurrection of the dead, and in charity to all mankind; if I have failed my family, my employer, my friends, and my fraternity, I have failed my Creator and myself.

I continued with verses 2 and 3: "It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's beard: That went down to the skirts of his garments.

As the dew of Hermon, and as the dew that descended upon the mountains of Zion: for there the Lord commanded the blessing, even life forevermore. "

Again from the Good News Bible: It is like the precious anointing oil running down from Aaron's head and beard, down to the collar of his robes. It is like the dew of Hermon, falling on the hills of Zion. That is where the Lord has promised his blessing--life that never ends.

Continuing with the Moffatt translation of verses 2 and 3

"Sweet as the sacred oil poured on the beard, that flows down Aaron's beard, down to the very collar of his robe. Vital as the dew of Hermon, that falls on the hills of Zion. For in their fellowship has the eternal fixed the blessing of an eternal life. "

And from the Jerusalem Bible: Fine as oil on the head, running down Aaron's beard to the collar of his robes; copious as a Hermon dew falling on the heights of Zion, where Yahweh confers his blessing, everlasting life. "

We now see a real difference in translations, but there is more to come; so our last work is the Peshitta. Verses 2 and 3 are rendered thus: "It is like the precious ointment upon the head and upon the beard, even Aaron's head, that went down to the collar of his robe; like the dew of Hermon that falls upon the Mount of Zion: For there the Lord commanded the blessing, even life forevermore. "

At the reference to "the collar of the robe, " I went right back to the Interpreters' One Volume Commentary. Two metaphors illustrate the beauty of the ancient way: the holy oil of anointing running down the hair and beard of the High Priest, the successor of Aaron, and the dew gathering copiously on the slopes of Mt. Zion. Mt. Hermon, in the far north, was a region of heavy dew. The expression "dew of Hermon" had become proverbial. Some commentators delete verse 3 as an interpolation not fitting the poetic meter, and thus make the metaphor merely a reminder of the beneficial effect of olive oil on the hair.

Some, regarding the flow of dew from Hermon to Zion an impossibility, amend one letter in verse 3 to give "which flows down upon the arid highlands." It was not a big thing; I found no problem with it. But "the collar of his robe" got in my way. Was it important whether "skirts" or "collar" was used? In George M. Lamsa's Old Testament Light, page 539,

I found that the Aramaic word "bar sora" means "the collar" In some biblical lands, the collars of some robes come down to the man's breast. The Aramaic word for skirt is " shipola. " No man could grow a beard to reach the skirt of his garment. Most beards are trimmed short. But the priests grew long beards which came down to the collars of their robes, as a token of dignity. Today beards of elderly priests reach to the collars of their robes.

Precious oil, oil on the head, oil running down a beard, running down to the skirt or collar of Aaron's garments; the dew of, or on, Mt. Hermon, coming down on the Mount of Zion, the Lord commanding the blessing, life forever. I checked one other book. This was The Holy Scriptures According to the Masoretic Text, the Jewish Scriptures (Pentateuch and Prophets).

Here I found in verse 1, "Behold how good and pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity. It is like the precious oil upon the head, coming down upon the beard: even Aaron's beard, that cometh down upon the collar of his garments. Like the dew of Hermon, that cometh down upon the mountains of Zion: For there the Lord commanded the blessing, even life forever. "

The two words "brethren" and "unity" go hand in hand, and if brothers are in Unity, the Most High is well-pleased. But I wondered about the meaning of "oil" in verse 2. In the Dictionary of Biblical Theology, second edition, edited under the direction of Father Xavier Leon (DuFour, 1973), 20-22, I found the following: "Anointing"--for the Hebrews, oil penetrates deeply into the body (Psalm 109:18) and it gives the body strength, health, joy, and beauty. On the religious level, it is understandable that anointings of oil were considered signs of rejoicing or of respect. They were also used as rites of healing or consecration. With this definition of anointing in mind, we can understand the purpose of, or for anointing with oil. Let us look at some examples:

Anointing is a sign of joy or of honor, especially when done with perfumed oil (see Proverbs 27:9 and Ecclesiastes 9:8). It was used particularly in festivals (Amos 6:6). To have to deprive oneself of all anointing was a misfortune (Deuteronomy 28:40, Micah 6:15). This privation, joined to fasting, was a sign of mourning (Daniel 10:3, II Samuel 12:20). Jesus prescribed, however, that one who fasts should anoint his head as for a banquet (Matthew 6:17) in order that his penance be not displayed before men. The image of anointing served to express the joy of the people of Israel assembled at Jerusalem for the great festival (Psalm 133:2), or the consolation brought to the afflicted of Zion after the exile (Isaiah 61:3). It also played a part in the description of the Messianic banquet: "On the mountain they will drink joy, they will drink wine, they will be anointed with perfumed oil upon this mountain" (Isaiah 25:6, Septuagint).

It is especially in this context of Messianic joy that there recurs the formula, "Oil of Gladness" (Isaiah 61:3, Psalm 45:8. Hebrews 1:9). So, dwelling together in unity is as the "oil of gladness." Psalm 133 shows that obedience of God's law, or system of living together, is a joy, happiness, and gladness.

The Psalmist likens all of this to a reward for all those who did not sell their inheritance. They showed the personal glory of obedience through the anointing of Aaron (the personal glory). The Psalmist also likens the heavy dew of Mt. Hermon to the dew that falls on Mt. Zion.

What is the reward for--or--of the dew falling on Mt. Hermon? The Holy Land is not blessed with a great deal of rain, but it is blessed with a year-round heavy dew. The two metaphors, oil and dew, became proverbial: a great blessing from the Lord, our inheritance for obedience to God's law, for following God's way of life.

Up to this point I saw that I had learned nothing, save a lot of custom and tradition. The question was still there: What does all of this mean to me personally, as a Freemason? What does or should it mean to a candidate who hears this psalm while going through the degree? Most likely this is the first time he has had this scripture read aloud in his presence and condition. Will he ever take the time to understand or will he be too busy traveling other roads? How many brethren in our fraternity understand? I was shocked at the thoughts going through my mind. It was as though an inner voice called to my heart, "Write your feelings, write your heart; but remember YOU ARE NOT PERFECT. "

With this in mind, I thought of all the times I have heard gossip in and out of the lodge, from a brother concerning another brother. I thought of the many unnecessary remarks made about the matters of my lodge and other lodges. I thought of the bad language I have heard over the years in the lounge and even in the temple room of my lodge and others. I thought of the coldness of heart that I have seen from time to time among the brethren. My heart has cried out in pain watching the brethren of the fraternity in unnecessary, heated dispute.

For me the first verse of Psalm 133 says it all: "Behold how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity." I believe that we must teach each candidate what these scriptural readings mean and why they are necessary to the Degree and to Freemasonry. We must promote filial love, filial obedience, faith to honor our vows, but above all is love, love of our God, our nation and community, of our fellow man, and most important, love of our fraternity, to love each other as we do ourselves.

As Freemasons, if we are going to improve our Masonic life, we must study, educate ourselves about the ritual. The Blue Lodge is the Fraternity, it is LOVE, it is BROTHERHOOD.

So mote it be.

Bibliography

Coil, Henry Wilson Coil 's Masonic Encyclopedia.

Gehman, Henry Snyder, ed. Westminster Dictionary of the Bible.

Lamsa, George M. Old Testament Light.

Lamsa, George M . tr. The Holy Bible .... Laymon, Charles M. Thc Interpteter's One-Volume Commentary on the Bible. Nashville, Abingdon. Leon-Dufour, Xavier, ed. Dictionary of Biblical Theology.

Mackey, Albert G. "Readings of the Scriptures. " Encyclopedia of Freemasonry and Kindred Sciences.

Moffatt, James, Tr. The Holy Bible Oxford: St. Andrews .

"Psalm 133." The Holy Scriptures According to the Masoretic ext. Philadelphia: The Jewish Publication Society of America.

"Psalm 133." The Holy Bible, King James Translation.

"Psalm 133." The Good News Bible

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Our Masonic Penalties Another View

by Lloyd Worley, MPS

In regard to the article "Our Masonic Penalties" by Brother John Salmon, MPS on pp. 46-47 of the April, 1992, issue of The Philalethes, I cannot pass up this opportunity to respond.

First, let me say that I am opposed to the relocation of any of the so-called "penalties" from any part of our ritual. My opposition comes not from an appeal to antiquity, but primarily because I believe such moves to be based upon the schemes of the enemies of Freemasonry not upon the opinions of its friends. our enemies believe that Masonic metaphors mean exactly what they say and nothing else. In other words, our enemies believe that Masonry is composed of "signs" like "stop" and "yield" traffic signs or the "exit" sign over a door. To them, signs mean exactly what they say and are not liable to interpretation. But the fact is that Freemasonry is made up of metaphors and symbols which allow multiple interpretation. Indeed, some Masonic metaphor is so powerful and so personal that written or spoken language fails-hence we say that some of Masonry is "ineffable." When a man comes into Masonry, his life changes (or should change) from the dead letter of "sign" to the living letter of metaphor. The metaphoric content of Freemasonry is signaled to the proto-Mason exactly where it should be--at the OB, the most solemn, emotional, and impressive part of the initiation, where the whole man is involved, not at some other "explanation" part where only the intellect is concerned.

Furthermore, the obligation does not impose the so-called "penalties" that some of our "modern" and politically correct brethren think. What is said is "under no less a P than ...." That is, the P of the OB is minimal! "Under no less .... " means that there is something even more imposing, even greater than can be exacted from the perjured and unworthy Mason. If a Mason is so dull-witted that he cannot imagine what the greater P might be, let him go to the oldest past master of his lodge and ask. That past master will know.

Now, are these physical Ps? Only if we are dealing with "sign." The "tongue" is and has always been a symbol and metaphor, as have the "heart" and the "bowels. " The candidate obligates himself under a metaphor, not a sign. He has already been told that the OB contains nothing contrary to moral, civil, and religious duties. That should settle the mutilation question that so bothers our politically correct brethren. That should also settle the question for our enemies as well except that nothing but the total destruction of Masonry will satisfy them.

Brother Salmon's article concludes with a sorrowful litany of Grand Lodges that have caved in to the enemies of Freemasonry, Grand Lodges that have begun the deadly process of "demythologizing" and stripping the metaphoric life from Masonry. "Hey!" Brother Salmon's article suggests, "Everybody else is doing it, so we should do it too!" Really? Are Freemasons lemmings? If a Grand Lodge wishes to explain the P of the OB, let it be done along with the working tools, or at the final lecture. However, the Grand Lodge should not insert the word "symbolic" somewhere before the P and think that it has done its job, because to most men, the word "symbolic" means "merely" and "without actual meaning. " Further, the explanations should not suggest that symbols and metaphors are merely bloodless abstractions. Rather, let the explanation suggest--or say directly-that symbols are life-transforming powers to be pondered over a lifetime. We know that most men retain only a vague memory of their OB, but they remember the P vividly. Good--it is the P that starts the Mason pondering, reflecting, and speculating about the OB and then about Masonry itself.

Thus I appeal to all Grand Lodges to ignore our enemies and to keep our OBs exactly as they are. I do not appeal to antiquity for this. After all, if we go back far enough, we will not find a MM Degree! Shall we, then, also eliminate HAB? No! Rather, let us respect the wisdom of our Masonic forefathers who knew the transformative power of Masonry and who placed at the very heart of Freemasonry's OB a method of compelling the new Mason to ask, "What can all this mean?"

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It's Tommy Tucker Time

by H. A. Ohrt, MPS

Several Masonic publications have recently carried articles about musicians who have been members of our craft. It is not often that a member originates from Buffalo Commons, the Great Outback of North Dakota. Does anyone remember Tommy Tucker?

One corner of a small museum in Bottineau, North Dakota, is devoted to a native son bearing the unlikely name of Gerald L. Duppler, born May 18, 1903, at Souris, North Dakota. Young Gerald attended high school in Minot, North Dakota, and played trombone. One of Gerald's friends, Charles Truax, 33d, living in Fargo, recalls " . . . Oh, yes, we were good friends in school and attended the same classes. He was a nice guy. We both liked music. He played the trombone and I played the trumpet. His whole interest was in music .... "

Charlie and Gerald continued their friendship in the University of North Dakota where they were dormitory mates and both played in the University band. Gerald was a very good student, graduating summa cum laude.

On October 8, 1925, Gerald L. Duppler petitioned Star in the West Lodge No. 33 at Minot. Early-day musicians began as itinerant players. Brother Duppler (we know him, of course, as Tommy Tucker), was on the move. Necessity required conferral of the Entered Apprentice Degree by North Star Lodge No. 23 in St. Cloud, Minnesota, on May 24, 1926; the Fellow Craft by Henry L. Palmer Lodge in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on March 28, 1928; and the Master Mason Degree by Miami Valley Lodge No. 660 of Dayton, Ohio, on March 12, 1929

What a remarkable feat by the standards of today! The local secretary was certainly on the ball, but the candidate's desire to become a Mason must have been equally strong. I suspect that most modern candidates would have been lost through the cracks.

Tommy began his career as a bandleader during the early 1930s, and continued into the 1950s. Featuring hotel-style music, his band played in theaters and ballrooms throughout the United States. He played on the Fibber McGee and Molly show in early 1936 and on the George Jessel show in 1938. One of his vocalists, Amy Arnell, sang on the band's 1941 hit, "I Don't Want to Set the World on Fire. " He composed the theme "I Love You" (not the 1923 hit, however). Later he played sustaining radio shows billed "Tommy Tucker Time." Retiring for a while, he returned in late 1949 and led a new band well into the 1960s.

He composed the theme "I Love You" (not the 1923 hit, however). Other compositions included "The Man Who Comes Around" (1940); "No, No, No"; "Love in June"; Cool, Calm, and Collected"; "Stars Over the Campus"; "Welcome Home"; and "Boogie Woogie Train." He made a dozen or more records.

During most of the 1960s and 1970s he was assistant professor of music at Monmouth College in New Jersey. He retired from teaching in the early 1970s and became a disc jockey, featuring nostalgic music on a weekly New Jersey radio show.

I attempted to correspond with Mrs. Tucker (in Osprey, Florida) to learn of Tommy Tucker's further Masonic history, but was unsuccessful. He did, however, maintain his Masonic membership in Star in the West Lodge until his death. In 1988 he officially changed his name to Tommy Tucker. He died on July 11, 1989 .

References

1. Claghorn, C. E . Biographical Dictionary of American Music. 1977

2. The ASCAP Biographical Dictionary of Composers, Authors, and Publishers. New York: ASCAP, 1966

3. Kinkel, R. D. The Complete Encyclopedia of Popular Music and Jazz, 1930-50. Vol. 3, "Biographies." New Rochelle, NY: Arlington House, 1974.

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Masonic Trivia What Is a Grand Master Worth  ?

by Thomas J. Berry, MPS
 

If it is ever questioned what a Grand Master is worth, then old lodge records may be a help. One old lodge settled this problem in 1752 to its satisfaction. This lodge met at a tavern from which it took its name. It was known as the Lodge at the Two Blach Posts, Maiden Lane, London.

The minute book records that on March 2, 1752 , the following motion was passed, "Agreed to give a Guinea to Charity, provided we have a new Grand Master, but in case we have not, to give nothing. From this it would seem that Grand Masters were worth a Guinea a head. To ensure that an embarrassing situation did not face one Grand Master on his elevation to the Grand Mastership, he was presented with a Guinea (1 pound, 1 shilling) to have on hand in case he was ever asked "What are you worth?" I will have more to say about this old lodge in future "Masonic Trivia."

Source: Sadler's Masonic Facts and Fictions, Aquarian Press, England. Editor's note: A Guinea in 1752 had much more buying power than the $2.00 that pound, 1 shilling is worth today.

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The Operatives

by C. T. Stigger, Jr., MPS

Members of the Masonic fraternity are well aware of the terms "operative masonry" and "speculative masonry" and their relationship to the craft. According to the Kentucky Monitor, (1) Operative masonry "alludes to a proper application of the useful rules of architecture, whence a structure will derive figure, strength, and beauty, and whence will result a due proportion and a just correspondence in all its parts. "

Also, the "Operative Mason directs his labors to the erection of material edifices composed of stone, brick, and mortar, which like all things temporal, must sooner or later succumb to the inevitable ravages of time." Speculative Masonry teaches "to subdue the passions, act upon the square, keep a tongue of good report, maintain secrecy, and practice charity. Also, the Speculative Mason therefore is a moral builder for eternity, fitting immortal nature for that spiritual building which shall exist when earth's proudest monumental piles shall have crumbled in dust, and the glory and greatness of earth shall have been forgotten. "

From the above definitions there is a decided difference between Operative Masonry and Speculative Masonry. Masons are taught to practice Speculative Masonry, but what of the Operatives?

"The Operatives," short for the "Worshipful Society of Free Masons, Rough Masons, Wallers, Slaters, Paviours, Plaisterers and Bricklayers," is a Masonic organization located in Great Britain and Ireland, which in September, 1989, expanded into Australia and New Zealand. It is little known in the United States, although it has existed almost eighty years. It offers a continuing avenue of Masonic history and light.

Very little information is available regarding the history of this organization. Mackey 's Revised Encyclopedia of Freemasonry (1946) (2) defines "Operatives" as those active in the modern study and practice of old gild customs. Specific individuals are mentioned, such as Dr. Thomas Carr, Dr. C. M. Merz, Sir John A. Cochburn, Sir Francis Pollock, and Clement E. Stretton who were active in the Operatives at its reconstitution and afterward. Waite, in A New Encyclopedia of Freemasonry (3) refers to a Padgett Ritual of 1686, "rewritten for the Operative Society." A paper presented by Companion A. S. Williams titled "Operative Masonry" (4) refers to writings of Dr. Carr and Dr. Merz located in the Grand Lodge (England) Library.

Irrespective of the historical background, this paper will consider this Masonic organization that is little-known in the United States. No effort is intended to attempt to authenticate or disprove the past of this organization.

On May 21, 1913, the Channel Row Assemblage was reconstituted at Bedford House in London. Brother Thomas Carr was the Enthroning Master under a special letter of authority signed by "the Masters" and signed by the Secretary of the York Division (W. Bro. Clement E. Stretton). (5)

The degrees of the Society are seven in number, namely: (6)

Id Indentured Apprentice IId Fellow of the Craft IIId Super-Fellow, Fitter & Marker IVd Super-Fellow, Setter Erector Vd Intendant, Overseer, Superintendent & Warden VId Passed Master VIId Passed Grand Master Mason

The respective bodies of the Society are termed "Assemblages," and consist of one lodge of each degree, from First to Fourth, ruled by a Deputy Master Mason, who is the local representative of the (three) Grand Master Masons. Lodges of the Fifth and Sixth Degrees operate under the auspices of the Grand Assemblage and are controlled by a duly authorized Deputy Master Mason appointed by the Grand Master Masons; the Seventh Degree Lodge is under their direct control.

Membership in the Society is limited to candidates who are Master Masons, Mark Master Masons, and Companions of the Royal Arch in good standing. To advance to the Sixth Degree, the candidate must be an installed Master in both Craft and Mark (Royal Arch) Bodies.

The Degree of Indentured Apprentice is conferred at the first meeting after acceptance. The candidate is obligated on the Rough Ashlar and bound by the Oath of Nimrod. After a testing of his skills, he is made free of his bonds and is eligible to be passed to Degree II. This can be at the next Assemblage Meeting, symbolically seven years.

In the Degree of Fellow of the Craft, his bonds of indenture being cancelled, he is set to work in the second stone yard. Here he is taught to render his ashlar true and polished. Upon inspection, the traditional history and the working tools are explained to him, rendering him eligible to be passed to Degree III. An interval of one Assemblage Meeting must pass before being advanced, symbolically twelve months.

The Degree of Super-Fellow, Fitter and Marker has a near affinity to the Mark Man (Master). The candidate learns to produce "fair work and square" stones, suitable for the building of the edifice. An interval of two Assemblage Meetings must pass before being advanced, symbolically twelve months.

In the Degree of Super-Fellow, Setter Erector, the candidate is entitled to work on site. The ceremony relates to practical emphasis as applied to the Degree of Mark Master. He is erected as a Living Stone and signs the roll. After due time he may be considered for admission to Degree V. Here three Assemblage Meetings must pass, symbolically twelve months.

Advancement to the Degree of Intendant, Overseer, Superintendent, and Warden, or acceptance into a Lodge of Menatzchim, is based on an examination as to the candidate's technical knowledge before he is obligated as an Overseer within the Society. Symbolically the time interval is twelve months. Further advancement is dependent upon the candidate's having served in the chair of KS as well as that of "A" before being advanced to Degree VI. An interval of forty-eight weeks must pass after being made a Warden before being advanced, symbolically four periods of twelve months.

Only admission to a Lodge of Harodim enables a brother to assume a senior role within the Assemblage as a Passed Master. A thorough understanding of his profession is essential before he can be received and become a representation of the perfect cornerstone.

There are only three Grand Master Masons. A vacancy must occur in their ranks before another can be advanced to this position. While there are only three Grand Master Masons, they can (and do) approve a small number of VId members for promotion to the VIId degree each year. Usually, those promoted are chosen, very sparingly, from those VId holders who have previously served as D.M.M. of an assemblage of I-IV Degrees. The Third G.M.M. is ritually slain at the Annual Meeting of the Grand Assemblage in London, held on the fourth Tuesday of September each year. The new Grand Master is enthroned, following the " Enactment of the Drama. "

It is noted that the first Assemblage was reconstituted in 1913. Today, each Operative Lodge of the Society is Constituted not Consecrated. The reason is that when a new Assembly is set up, there is no building to consecrate. In order to establish an Assemblage, it will be necessary to have a minimum of fourteen qualified candidates (7) and preferably 2025, to go to London and become members of the Society. With this number a petition would be made to the Three Grand Master Masons. This is unique to the Operatives in that every Assemblage must be personally constituted by the Three Grand Master Masons. This is the reason why the Society has not progressed throughout the world until recent years.

The Assemblages in Australia were constituted in Mark Masons Hall in London on April 1-7, 1989 (8) Brother Kent Henderson was the motivating force behind the constitution of six Assemblages in the Australian Region. In the period of eighteen months to two years preceding the constitution, qualified brothers who traveled to London, either on business or pleasure, joined Assemblages in England. Over twenty Australian Brothers became members of the Operatives. With this number, a petition was made to the Three Grand Master Masons for the constitution of the six Assemblages. These six Assemblages then returned to Australia and began accepting petitioners to the Operatives. Additional members permitted the constitution of other Assemblages. This occurred on September 27-October 16,1991 (9) when the Grand Master Masons traveled to Australia and New Zealand and constituted five additional Assemblages. Thus today there are eleven Assemblages of Operatives outside of Great Britain.

To establish Assemblages of the Operatives in the United States, it would be necessary for at least fourteen or more qualified candidates to travel to England, join the Operatives, and then petition for the establishment of an Assemblage in the United States. It must also be remembered that there would never be a Grand Assemblage (Grand Lodge) in the United States with Masonic Independence from the Grand Assemblage in England. This is constitutionally impossible. There can be only one grand Assemblage and Three Grand Master Masons of the Society. This is one qualification that would have to be accepted by all who might be interested in becoming a member of the "Worshipful Society of Free Masons, Rough Masons, Wallers, Slaters, Paviours, Plaisterers and Bricklayers. "

Notes 1. Henry Pirtle, Kentucky Monitor (Masonic Home, KY: Grand Lodge of Kentucky), 1979.

2. Mackey's Revised Encyclopedia of Freemasonry, H.L. Haywood, ed. (Chicago: Masonic History Company, 1946).

3. Arthur Edward Waite, A New Encyclopedia of Freemasonry (New York: Weathervane Books, 1970).

4. A.S. Williams, "Operative Masonry," Golden Arch Chapter of Research, No. 089, October 9, 1989.

5. Keith Jackson, Beyond thc Craft, 2nd edition (London: Lewis Masonic, 1982.

6. Constitution, Rules, and Regulations, The Worshipful Society of Free Masons, Rough Masons, Wallas, Slatas, Paviours, Plaisteras, and Bricklayers

7. Kent Henderson to Ernest E. Fricks, December 14, 1991.

8. Program, Constitution of Assemblages (Australian), Mark Masons Hall, London, 1^st April-7^th April 1989

9. Program, Constitution of Assemblages in Australia and New Zealand, 29th Septamber-16th October, 1991.

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Masonic Connection with the Oregon Constitution

by Melvyn C. Friendly, MPS

Provisional Government: Creation of Oregon's Provisional Government followed the several meetings of settlers at or near Champoeg in the Willamette Valley beginning with the "Wolf Meeting" of February 17, 1841 when 102 settlers organized a group to guard their farms and ranches against marauding wolves and other predators as well as Indian raiders. On May 2, 1843 they met in the home of Joseph Gervais in Champoeg and organized into a civil community, electing officers and appointing a legislative committee to draft a code of laws. On July 5, 1843, the first organic laws were adopted for the Provisional Government, and five committees were appointed: Ways and Means, Judiciary, Military Districting and Land Claims. Four districts were formed: Champooick, Twality, Clackamas and Yamhill. Clatsop was later added. Executive powers were vested in a Committee of Alanson Beers, Joseph Gale, and David Hill. The French-Canadian settlers outnumbered the Americans until 900 new emigrants arrived to increase the American settlers and make the British subjects in the minority. The powers of government were divided into legislative, executive and judicial. Dr. Ira L. Babcock (Eugene City Lodge #11) acted as Supreme Judge and Magistrate from 1841 to 1844 when an Executive Committee composed of Dr. W.J. Bailey, Osborne Russell and P.G. Stewart took over. Later George Abernethy was elected Governor and served from June 3, 1845 until formation of the Oregon Territory in 1849. Great Britain and the United States jointly occupied the Oregon Country; in 1838 U.S. Senator James Buchanan, a Mason, made an influential speech stating it was time for the United States to assert its claim to the territory. On June 24, 1845 a memorial was drafted by the legislative committee and sent to the U.S. Congress informing them of the establishment of the Provisional Government, asking for military protection, financial aid and early establishment of Territorial Government under Federal Law. The seat of government was moved to Oregon City in private homes. James Buchanan, now Secretary of State, on June 15, 1846, negotiated a Treaty with Britain that settled the western end of the boundary between the United States and Canada at the 49th parallel. A materially larger influx of settlers stimulated national interest in the Oregon Territory. The Whitman Massacre of November, 1847, prompted the sending of Joseph Meek to Washington D.C. to obtain federal aid for protection of the settlers against Indian attacks . They sent J. Quinn Thornton to the national capital as delegate of the Provisional Government. On August 14, 1848, Congress passed "An Act to Establish the Territorial Government of Oregon, " describing the territory as "All that part of the territory west of the Rocky Mountains north of the 42nd degree of north latitude, known as the Territory of Oregon, shall be organized into and constitute a temporary government, by the name of the Territory of Oregon." Oregon became a ward of the United States and subject to its laws. The Provisional Government was no longer in existence but many of its official laws were retained as valid and operative by the Territorial Government.

Champoeg Memorial State Park: An area of 117 acres, including the home of Joseph Gervais, the site of the celebrated meeting of May 2, 1843, was set aside by legislative action with a gift of land by Messrs. Zorn and Hofer, land holders, in 1901, and by additional state-purchased property. A log memorial building was constructed in 1918 and in 1939 the Oregon D.A.R. built and dedicated a log cabin to pioneer mothers. In 1939 the Federal Government declared the park as site of National Historical Significance. A granite shaft bearing the engraved names of the 52 settlers who voted for the establishment of a Provisional Government was erected in 1901 as the Champoeg Monument.

Territorial Government: The creation of Oregon as a Territory in 1848 led to the appointment by President James Knox Polk (a Mason)of Gen. Joseph Lane (a Mason) as Oregon's first Territorial Governor on March 2, 1849. Also appointed was a Territorial Secretary, Attorney, Marshal and three justices of the Supreme Court who also presided over District Courts. Legislative acts and proceedings were subject to federal review and disbursements were by federal authority. The Territory was granted a non-voting delegate in the U.S. House of Representatives. Congress appropriated $5,000 for a seat of government and S5,000 for purchase of a library. On September 27, 1850 the Federal Donation Act was passed, superseding previous land grants, and giving to Caucasian emigrants 160-320 acres of free land, depending on their time of arrival, excluding blacks, Chinese, Hawaiians, but not part-Indians. The settlers feared that the settling of non-Caucasian would result in their uniting with the Indians to drive out the Caucasian settlers. Hawaiians returned to the Islands as racism won over assimilation and fear of miscegenation fostered exclusion of freeblacks from suffrage rights, government employment or land holding. A survey of lands began and Sections 16 and 36 of each township were reserved as school lands later forming the basis for landgrant colleges. On March 3, 1849, Governor Joseph Lane arrived and issued a Proclamation declaring the Territorial Government in full force and effect. Election was held, officers sworn in, courts established and the Territorial Legislature was convened. Between that time and Statehood in 1859, the Territory seated four other governors: Joseph Lane, George Law Curry and John Wesley Davis were Masons as was John Whiteaker, the first Governor of the new State. In all 22 of the Oregon Governors were Masons. Two, Stephen Chadwick and Earl Snell were Grand Masters of the Grand Lodge of Oregon. As U.S. Senator, Joseph Lane, the first Governor of the Territory, introduced a Bill authorizing the Territory to frame a Constitution and present it to Congress. President James Buchanan was sitting in the White House when the Bill came along for him to sign making Oregon a State.

Constitutional Convention: Bills for statehood were defeated by the people of Oregon in 1854, 1855 and 1856, mainly because of the Slavery Question. The Dred Scott Decision by the Supreme Court on May 15, 1854 and the Kansas-Nebraska Act two weeks later opened the West to slavery, repealing the Missouri Compromise line. Oregonians passed a bill submitted by the Territorial Legislature on June 1, 1857 and residents elected delegates to a Constitutional Convention held at Salem on August 17, 1857. There were 60 delegates with Matthew Paul Deady, Chairman and Chester N. Terry, Secretary. The delegates drafted a State Constitution with a Preamble stating the need for government as set forth in the philosophy of John Locke, the 17th Century English political philosopher whose writings were the basis of the ideology of the Declaration of Independence. The Chairman of the Legislative Committee was Robert Moore, who had been a member of the Missouri Legislature and who had helped draft the Missouri Bill of Rights. The Iowa Territorial Constitution, as well as that of Indian and Maine, contained a Bill of Rights based on the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 which admitted Ohio, Indiana and Illinios as "free territories." There were 16 Articles which created debates on slavery and liquor questions and state boundaries. The Democratic controlled Federal Government sought to extend slavery to the Territories. Although three-fourths of the Oregon delegates were Democrats, these Westerners believed each settler should be judged on individual worth and rejected slavery, prohibiting slaves in Oregon (Art. XVIII, Sec. 2) but denied "free Negroes, Chinese and mulattoes" the right to vote, hold public office or own property (Art. II, Sec. 6). Women retained the property rights she had at marriage or acquired after marriage by gift or inheritance (Art. XV Sec. 5). Oregon residents ratified the State Constitution February 14, 1859 and Oregon was admitted to the Union as the 33rd State. The Thirteenth Amendment, abolishing slavery and involuntary servitude, was proposed by Congress in 1865 and Oregon ratified it December 11, 1865, but it was not until 1926 that the Oregon Constitution was amended to give non-Caucasians full citizenship privileges. The Twenty-first Amendment giving female citizens the right to vote was proposed by Congress in 1919 and ratified by Oregon-January 13, 1920 and Oregon amended its Constitution that year to give female citizens franchise rights.

Signors of the Oregon Constitution: A body of 60 delegates assembled in the Courthouse at Salem, August 17,1857, for the purpose of writing a State Constitution. Jesse Applegate, who later affiliated with South Umpqua Lodge #72, known as the "Sage of Yoncalla," objected to the proposed restrictions on the rights of "free Negroes," and bolted the Convention. He headed the Republican anti-slavery group to fight the KKK and other proslavery groups headed by Governor Joseph Lane, a Southern sympathizer who acted to make Oregon a slave territory and secede from the United States. Lane's headquarters was in Roseburg which was full of " slavocrats. " The final vote found 35 delegates for adoption, 10 against and 15 absent and not voting. Only 53 delegates signed the Constitution and 25 of these were Masons. The Constitution was adopted by the people of Oregon on November 9, 1857. Oregon was admitted as a "free state" and supported Lincoln.

First administration of territorial government: Joseph Lane, Governor; George L. Curry, Secretary; Joel Palmer, Superintendent of Indian Affairs; Benjamin F. Harding, U.S. Attorney; James W. Nesmith, U.S. Marshall; John Adair and Addison C. Gibbs, Collectors of Customs; A.L. Lovejoy, Postal Agent.

Special status of the delegates to the constitutional convention: They were regarded as "elder statesmen" and consulted with respect; their reputation and careers were enhanced and the training of those who became judges, especially Supreme Court Justices, enabled them to better interpret the Constitution.

Masonic signors of Oregeon' s statehood constitution of 1857:

1. Dr. Ira Leonard Babcock: Member of Eugene City Lodge #11, Eugene City, Lane County, he was born in New York in 1808 and died in Eugene March 21, 1888. A physician, Methodist missionary, Judge and organizer of civil government at Champoeg in 1843 where he helped form the Provisional Government. He headed the Committee to plan an institution of higher education which formed the Oregon Institute which became Willamette University in 1853.

2. William Wilshire Bristow. Charter Member and Past Master of Eugene Lodge #11, he was born July 18, 1826 in Kentucky and died in Eugene, December 8, 1874. His parents, Elijah and Susanna Bristow, were the first settlers in Lane County and founded Pleasant Hill in June 1846, building the first log cabin in Lane County, donating land for roads, cemetery, church and school. His daughter Katie and Johnson Baskett were the first wedding in Lane County. The cemetery is the oldest in Lane County. Bristow was one of the founders of the University of Oregon, was Justice of the Peace, Postmaster, State Senator, and merchant.

3. Benjamin Franklin Burch: Member of Jennings Lodge #9, Dallas, and Past Master Lyon Lodge #29, Independence, both in Polk County, he was born May 2, 1825 in Missouri and died in Dallas, Oregon March 24, 1893. Tutored children of Jesse and Charles Applegate, who in 1843 opened the Scott-Applegate Trail, the Southern Route to the Oregon Territory. A school teacher, captain in the Indian Wars, State Senator, Superintendent of the State Penitentiary, Receiver of Oregon City Land Office, he served on the Legislative Committee of the Provisional Government which lead to the organized development of the Oregon Territory.

4. Stephen Fowler Chadwick: Received his Masonic Degrees in Laurel Lodge #13 U.D., Roseburg, in 1856, Charter Master in 1857, serving until 1860 and again 1863-67 inc. Grand Master 1865-66. First to make official Lodge visitations, visiting 12 of the 26 Oregon Lodges. Grand Secretary 1889-95. While Grand Master created Grand Lodge Relief and Charity Fund, Masonic Fair to raise funds for Masonic Charities and Lodge of Instruction for newly elected Masters. Active in the Royal Arch and Scottish Rite, receiving the 33 degree from Ill. Albert Pike. Born Dec. 25, 1825 in Middleton, Conn. and died in Salem Jan. 15, 1895 and buried with Masonic Honors in Masonic Cemetery in Salem. On June 14, 1876, a Charter was issued to Chadwick Lodge #68, Coquille, Coos County, Oregon; incorporated Sept. 13, 1880, meeting in Coquille on Second Tuesdays. As a lawyer he practiced in Scottsburg, Umpqua County; Postmaster; Judge of Douglas County in Roseburg; Deputy U.S. District Attorney for Southern Oregon; Secretary of State 1 8681 876; Governor February 1, 1 877 to September 11, 1878; and Captain of Military Forces subduing the last Indian Uprising in Eastern Oregon.

5. Andrew Jackson Campbeu: Charter member Lafayette Lodge #3, Lafayette, Yamhill County, Oregon, he was born in 1829 in Jamestown, Virginia and died Oct. 16, 1870 in Eugene. Learned cabinet making in Trade School in Oskaloosa, Iowa, and pioneered cabinet and chair manufacturing in Eugene, also having shops in Oregon City and Linn City, where furniture was made that was shipped to New England and Europe.

6. Thomas Jefferson Dryer. Past Master Willamette Lodge #2, Portland, he was born Jan. 10, 1808 in northern New York State and died in Portland March 30, 1879 and buried in Masonic Section of Lone Fir Cemetery, Portland. In 1975 had his biography included in Robert C. Notson's book "Making the Day Begin" (the Story of the Oregonian). He edited the San Francisco "Courier" (1849), pioneered "The Oregonian" (Dec. 4, 1850) as a weekly "Whig Publication" and continued as editor until 1860, stressing need to develop Oregon forest products and agricultural industries. Persuaded Oregon to cast its three electoral votes for Abraham Lincoln in 1860; formed the Union Party; hired Henry L. Pittock, age 18, in 1853, as bookkeeper and sold the newspaper to him in 1861. First to climb Mt. Hood.

7. William H. Farrar: Member of Willamette Lodge #2, Portland. Born in New Hampshire in 1826 and died in Washington D.C. November 21, 1873. Studied and practiced law in Massachusetts and moved to Portland where he joined Mark A. Chinn, William W. Page and David Logan in law practice. Served as District Attorney of Oregon Territory in 1853 and Oct. 1855-June 1856; as Adjutant to the Commanding Colonel of the 1st Regiment, Oregon Mounted Volunteers; delegates to Union State Conventions in Eugene (1862), Albany (1864) and National in Philadelphia ( 1866); Portland Mayor 1862-3; Executive Dept. of State; moved to Washington D.C. where practiced law and formed "National Union Party Club" of U.S. Senators; denounced Dred Scott Decision and the "Kansas Policy" of pro-slavery Buchanan Administration .

8. Robert Crouch Kinney: Charter member and Past Master of Western Star Lodge #18, Kirbyville, Josephine County, Oregon. Born in Belleville, Ill. July 4, 1813 and died in Salem, March 2, 1875, helped found Muscatine, Iowa (1833), moved to San Francisco in 1849 where read law with Judge S.C. Hastings, Territorial Judge, who founded the first law school in the West which was named after him. Brought family overland to file Donation Claim in Lafayette as farmer/orchardist, promoted fruit growing/horticulture; organized flouring mills in Umatilla (1863), McMinnville (1860), Portland (1862) and Salem (1868). Largest grain and flour exporter in State and had sheep ranch at Heppner. Supported public schools/development of state resources/improved communication and transportation (Oregon Central Railroad) and opposed slavery and large state indebtedness.

9. John Kelsay: Member of Corvallis Lodge #14, Corvallis, Benton County. Born in Wayne County, Kentucky, Oct. 23, 1819 and died in Corvallis, Jan. 19, 1899. Educated by Mother, a school teacher, in Morgan County, Missouri; in 1842 studied law and in July, 1845 admitted to Missouri State Bar; 1844 served in Missouri legislature and in 1853 brought family overland to open a law office in Corvallis. Commanded volunteers in Rogue River Indian Wars (1855-56) and at 1857 Convention served as Chairman of Military Affairs Committee. Supreme Court Judge 1858-69 where exhibited legal expertise on social conditions, labor interests and U.S. Citizenship. Won title of "Colonel" from Indian Wars.

10. James Kerr Kelly. Member of Multnomah Lodge #1, Oregon City. Born in Center, Pennsylvania, Feb. 16, 1819 and died in Washington D.C. Sept. 15, 1903. Educated in Dickenson Academy, PA 1839 and Princeton College 1842; Pennsylvania Bar 1843. Emigrated to California 1849 and Portland, Oregon 1851 where he joined the law firm of A. L. Lovejoy. One of three commissioners to draw up Oregon Legal Codes; served on Judiciary Committee Const. Convention of 1857 where helped frame and submit Constitution, establishing the "Judicial Department" headed by the Supreme Court. Twice President of Oregon Territorial Senate (1853-57); State Senator 1860-64; U.S. Senator 1871-77; Oregon Chief Justice 1878-80. Served as Lt. Col. Oregon Mounted Volunteers in Yakima Indian War (1855). Moved to Washington D.C. to practice law until death in 1903.

11. Asa Lawrence Lovejoy: Past Master Multnomah Lodge #1, Oregon City. Born at Groton, Mass. March 14, 1806 and died in Portland, Oregon, Sept. 10 1882; buried in Masonic Section of Lone Fir Cemetery, Portland. Educated at Amherst and Cambridge Colleges, read law and in 1840 admitted to Maine Bar; practiced law in Sparta, Missouri; went with Dr. Marcus Whitman to Oregon in October 1842; In July 1843 set up law office in Oregon City; in 1845 took a Donation Land Claim at Portland and with Francis W. Pettygrove laid out 16 blocks as Townsite; in 1844 served on Legislative Committee of Provisional Government to remodel Organic Laws drawn up in 1843; Attorney-General of Provisional Government; in 1845 Mayor of Oregon City; 1847-8 Adjutant-General in Cayuse War and with Jesse Applegate and Gov. Abernethy purchased supplies from Hudson's Bay Co. for Militia for Cayuse War; in 1848 Supreme Court Justice; in 1849 Territorial House Speaker; in 1851 member of Council (Senate); in 1845-46 member of House of Representatives; in 1853 Postal Agent. In 1862 organized People's Transportation Company for portage over Willamette Falls in Oregon City; in 1863 formed Oregon City Woolen Mfg. Co.; Director of Oregon Telegraph Company; Chairman of Committee to bring Oregon Central Railway Co. as first transcontinental railway to Portland and Willamette Valley. Lost "flip of coin" to Pettygrove (from Portland Maine) in naming Portland. Portland street bears his name.

12. David Logan: Member Willamette Lodge #2, Portland. Born at Springfield, Ill. in 1824 and died March 26, 1874 at farm near McMinnville, Yamhill County. Close friend of Abraham Lincoln. Served on Judiciary Committee at Const. Convention of 1857; only Whig at Convention; 1864-68 Portland Mayor and on March 1, 1864 exchanged with Jacob McLelland, Mayor of Portland, Maine, first transcontinental telegraph messages; successful trial attorney; defended Beale and Baker for murder in Marion County Courthouse, Salem (1865); prosecuting attorneys were Mallory and Williams (both later U.S. Senators); Trial Judge Hon. R.P. Boise--ALL MASONS; 1859 defeated in U.S. Congressional Election; became Republican Party leader; 1871 retired to farm in Yamhill County.

13. William Metzgar: Member Temple Lodge #7, Astoria Clatsop County.

14.John R. McBride. Past Master Lafayette Lodge #3, Lafayette, Yamhill County. Born near St. Louis, Missouri, Aug. 22, 1832 and died in Spokane, WA, July 20, 1904; brother of Thomas A. McBride, Oregon State Legislator/Sec. of State and U.S. Senator; John was Superintendent of Schools of Yamhill County (1853); practiced law in Salt Lake City and Spokane, WA. He gave a written report on the Constitutional Convention of 1857 and an evaluation of the delegates who played significant roles in the deliberations at the various sessions.

15. Isaac R. Moores: Member of Salem Lodge #4, Lane County. Born near Danville, Ill. Feb. 14, 1834 and died July 25, 1884 in Salem, Ore. In 1852 joined his father's expedition to Oregon and worked with William Logan as a surveyor in Yamhill County 1853-4 and in J.W. McDonald mercantile store in 1854, buying out the business in 1856 with his brother John Moores. Served in Oregon State Legislature 1862-5; Speaker of House in 1864. Served as Col. Second Regiment Oregon Mounted Volunteers in Civil War. President of Oregon Central Railroad; served on Land Commission for Oregon and Calif. Railroad 1870 until death; prominent in the development of the railroad between Portland and San Francisco.

16. William Henderson Packwood: Member of Baker Lodge #147, Baker, Oregon. Born near Mount Vernon, Ill. Oct. 23, 1832 and died in Baker City, Ore. Sept. 21, 1917; last surviving member of Const. Convention of 1857; Great Grandfather of Sen. Robert W. Packwood of Oregon. While living in Springfield, Ill. became acquainted with Abraham Lincoln. Served in Fort Vancouver, Oregon Territory, with Co . B, U.S. Mounted Rifles (1848); "gold fever" in 1849, returned in 1851 to serve with First U.S. Dragoons, Port Orford, Indian War (1851-53); Captain Coquilla Guards in Indian War of 1855. Helped lay out town of Auburn (1862) where taught first public school in Eastern Oregon and was first school superintendent of Baker County (1862); Police Judge; County Clerk; Asst. Postmaster and Mining Engineer; retired 1910. As member of military escort of Gen. Wilson (1849) witnessed in Sacramento Gen. Vallejo of Mexico (then Gov. of Calif. under Spanish rule) turn government over to the newly free California Republic.

17. Paine Page Prim: Member Warren Lodge #10,Jacksonville. Born in Wilson County, Tenn. May 2,1822 and died in Oakland, CA. Aug. 8, 1899; buried in family plot in Jacksonville, Or. Was in first class of Cumberland Univ. Law School which produced 42 State Supreme Court Justices, two U.S. Supreme Court Justices, nine Senators, 66 congressmen, 11 Governors and Cordell Hull, Secy. of State under FDR. Practiced law in Tennessee until 1851 when he emigrated to Albany, Oregon, where became farmer, miner, lawyer, District Attorney of Jackson County; moved to Jacksonville, an important supply center for Southern Oregon and Northern California for miners, farmers and cattlemen. Served in Territorial Legislature and at the Const. Convention on Judiciary, Schedules, Seat of Government and Public Bldgs. Committees. Opposed excluding "free Negroes" from citizenship rights; repealed in 1926. Served on Circuit Court for 1st Judicial District, replacing Judge Matthew P. Deady, who became the first U.S. District Judge for Oregon; served one term as "Circuit Rider" following court sessions in county seats in Jackson County (Jacksonville), Douglas County (Roseburg) Josephine County (Kirbyville and Waldo), contending with Rogue River (1855-56), Modoc (1873) and Bannock (1877-8) Indian Wars. Second term was in Salem and Portland. Was reelected in 1866. Supreme Court Justice (1859-80) three sessions as Chief Justice. Noted for decisions that were simple, lucid, convincing and full of common sense, being cited by higher courts in other states. Authored "Prim's Judicial Anecdotes" which vividly portrayed justice in early mining camps and Oregon territorial courts; law partnership with son Charles in Oakland 1880 to his death. Held up as an example of judicial integrity by his life as an independent and incorruptible justice .

18. Simeon Gannett Reed: Member of Willamette Lodge #2, Portland. Born in East Abbington, Mass. April 23, 1830 and died in Pasadena, CA. Nov. 7, 1895. In 1852 worked in Portland for William S. Ladd & Co. in mining, cattle and horse breeding. In 1850 married Amanda Wood who was his confident throughout life in all his ventures. Partner of William Sargent Ladd in Oregon Steam Navigation Co. in the Willamette and Columbia Rivers (1858). They associated with Charles E. Tilton in Portland's first bank (Ladd and Tilton Bank) (1859). Ladd & Reed Farm for breeding cattle and horses; Oregon Iron & Steel Co; Ore. Telegraph Co; Auburn Canal Co. Developed 7,000 acres farm and timber land in Willamette Valley Board of Oregon Railroad and Navigation Company--first railroad making Portland terminus of a transcontinental rail line, and of Portland and Willamette Valley Railroad which serviced Valley and constructed Portland Railroad Depot; Portland Water Bureau, acquired Bull Run Lake and River; Portland Public Library and Art Museum. In 1891 moved to Pasadena, CA to be associated with Van B. DeLashmutt in breeding blood horses. His widow, Amanda Reed, associated Dr. Thomas Lamb Eliot, First Unitarian Church, cousin of Pres. Charles W. Eliot of Harvard and son of William Greenleaf Eliot, founder of Washington Univ. in St. Louis. Upon her death in 1904, the estate of 2 million dollars went to endow Reed College and for the purchase of 46 acres to which was added 40 acres by William M. Ladd. College opened Sept. 17, 1911 with departments of literature, arts, science, music and allied courses "free from sectarian influences" and devoted to "excellence in scholastic achievement" as a legacy of "Masonry in Action. "

19. J.H. Reed: Member of Warren Lodge No. 10, Jacksonville, OR. and lived 1859-1876. When Lodge chartered June 13,1855, town called "Table Rock City" and it was the first Lodge south of Salem. Reed emigrated in 1853 on the Applegate Expedition and applied for. Donation Land Claim (640 Acres). John Commingers Ainsworth was Grand Master and Oregon Grand Lodge included Southern Idaho, Western Wyoming and Washington south of the Snake River. On March 2, 1853, Oregon and Washington became separate territories and Northern Idaho and part of Montana was part of Washington Territory. Warren Lodge was named after Gen. Joseph Warren, hero of Bunker Hill, Provincial Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts (1733) and a Boston physician.

20. William A. Starkweather: Member of Multnomah Lodge #1, Oregon City. Born in Connecticut, Feb. 16, 1822 and died in Oregon City April 22, 1905. In 1850 emigrated to California and then to Oregon City where taught school, farmed and served in the Territorial Legislature 1854-57; State Legislature 1860-78, State Senator 1880-83; Registrar of U.S. Land Office in Oregon City (1861-65).

21. Delazon Smith: Charter Master of Corinthian Lodge #17, Albany, Oregon, March 1857. In 1904 this Lodge consolidated with St. Johns Lodge #62 to become St. Johns Lodge #17. Born in New Berlin, New York, Oct. 5,1816 and died in Portland, Oregon, Nov. 18, 1860. Graduated Oberlin College (Ohio) (1837), studied law and admitted to New York Bar. Established "New York Watchman" newspaper in Rochester, NY (1838-40), "True Jeffersonian," and "Western Herald" (1840). In 1841 founded "Western Empire" in Dayton, Ohio. He supported Pres. Tyler who appointed him Ambassador to a South American country ( 1844). Moved to Iowa Territory (1846) and entered Ministry. He emigrated to Oregon Territory (1852) and took up a Donation Land Claim in Linn County where he established the "Albany Democrat" newspaper in 1859; elected member of Territorial Legislature (1853-56). With Joseph Lane on July 5, 1858 elected U.S. Senator from Oregon but died soon after being sworn in as Senator.

22. Robert Valentine Short. Member of Lafayette Lodge #3, Yamhill County. Born in Fairview, Penn. March 3 1, 1 823 and died in Portland, Ore. Sept. 7,1908. Worked as journeyman tailor in Ohio where attended Wesleyan University (1841-43); taught school (1843-44) and tailored in Illinois (1845); worked as farm hand (1846) and joined Joel Palmer Wagon Train in 1847 to Oregon City. Palmer was Superintendent of Indian Affairs for Oregon Territory and negotiated treaties of cessation in the Yakima Indian War. Short started tailor business (1847-49), went to Calif. gold mines (1849-50) and hired in 1850 by Lovejoy and Pettygrove to survey Portland townsite for lots. He built where Dekum Building now stands at Third Avenue between Washington and Alder Streets. He helped build the first steam sawmill in Oregon. He took out a Donation Land Claim in Yamhill County (1851) and became Yamhill County Surveyor (1855); Territorial Legislature (1857-8), County Assessor (1862-64), Oregon State Legislature (1888-90), Captain in the Indian Wars. Retired to Portland residence .

23. Frederick Waymire: Past Master Jennings Lodge #9, Dallas, Polk County. Born in Montgomery County, Ohio, in 1802, and died in Dallas, Oregon, April 28, 1873. He was a millwright and farmer in Ohio before emigrating with family to Polk County (1845). Supported railroad construction to and in Oregon (1853-54). Served as Territorial Legislator (1855-56) where known as "Old Fred." He supported higher education and helped form La Creole Academy, a special school and learning center in Dallas (1856) and in the construction of buildings at Univ. of Oregon, working with Simeon Gannett Reed in promoting support for the State University. Served in the State Legislature in 1868. A schoolhouse in Bridgeport, Polk County, bears his name. He opposed construction of telegraph lines over farms as it caused livestock to escape and block road access. The Oregon Telegraph Company constructed a new telegraph line from Portland to Eureka, California, avoiding construction of lines over farm land.

24. John Spence White: Member of Willamette Lodge #2, Portland. He was born in 1828 in Tennessee and died in Portland July 18, 1866. He came to Oregon in 1845 and took out a Donation Land Claim in Washington County where he farmed as a pioneer in the Tualatin Plains. He sponsored Oregon City College (Jan. 11, 1856) and was active in Willamette Baptist Association which administered the college. On June 16, 1888 the college moved to McMinnville and later became Linfield College. In 1866 he was elected to the Territorial Legislature and in 1872 was appointed Superintendent of Farming Operations on the Umatilla Indian Reservation and displayed a considerable influence with the Indian Tribes in that area. He worked the gold mines in Auburn in southern Oregon and went into the draying business in Portland which he continued to his death in 1866.

25. George Henry Williams: Member of Harmony Lodge #12, Portland. Born in a log cabin near New Lebanon, upper state New York, March 26, 1823 and died in Portland on April 4, 1910. At age 21 was admitted to New York and Iowa Bar Associations and in 1845 commenced law practice in Fort Madison, Iowa, where he became the first District Judge (1847). On the recommendations of Sen. Stephen A. Douglas (a member of Springfield Lodge #26 F&AM) and Senators Dodge and Jones of Iowa, President Franklin Pierce appointed Williams Chief Justice of the Oregon Territorial Court (June 1853) where he served with Cyrus Olney and Matthew P. Deady. While serving on the federal court he freed the slaves of a pioneer, Nathaniel Ford, who settled near Salem and sued for the freedom of a slave, Robin Holmes and his family. Residence of slaves and free-blacks in Oregon figured significantly in the crusade for Oregon statehood as a slave-free state. Williams helped establish the first woolen mill at Oregon City and served as Trustee of Willamette University. At the Constitutional Convention (1857) he served as Chairman of the Judiciary Committee of Constitutional Law. He led the fight to have the delegates vote Oregon as an anti-slavery state and helped form the Union Party to support Lincoln . He was elected to the U.S. Senate (1865-71) and served as one of Lincoln's pallbearers. He supported the Reconstruction Act of 1867, the 14th Amendment and Tenure of Office Act. He served President Grant as Attorney General (1871-74) and on the Joint High Commission to settle the border dispute with Great Britain giving U.S. control of the San Juan Islands. In 1873 Pres. Grant nominated him Chief Justice but political foes opposed confirmation and Williams withdrew his name for consideration. In 1881 he returned to Portland and in 1902 was elected Portland Mayor and supported the Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition which "put the city on the world map. " He named the town of Albina after the wife and daughter of William Winter Page, a Portland attorney who purchased the Donation Claim to the Albina area which was later incorporated into the city of Portland. He organized the Dept. of Public Works, reorganized the Police and Jail Systems, fought the KKK, capturing convicting and imprisoning the ringleaders and caused Klan activities to cease in Portland. He supported Women Suffrage and the Oregon Historical Society.

CONCLUSION: In 1976 our Nation celebrated the Bicentennial of the Declaration of Independence, and in subsequent years those of the Constitution and Bill of Rights. In 1807, former President John Adams said that a complete history of the American Revolution and formation of our Government must include the history of the formation of the Government of each State. As the Oregon Pioneers extended liberty, democracy and organized the Government of the Oregon Territory, they showed how this Territory was integrated into the American Nation. As Thomas Jefferson stated: "America became an empire for liberty in putting the American 'system' into operation in every new territory. " Our national motto " E Pluribus Unum" (out of many, one) expressed the American view of each state having equal status although retaining its historic and cultural identity. As we review the events leading to the formation of our State Government and the State Constitution of 1857, and the part Masons played in not only the pioneer period but in the period following the signing of the Constitution, we should have a sense of pride in being members of the fraternity that produced such great State leaders.

Bibliography

1. Proceedings of the Grand Lodge of Oregon AF&AM: 1851-1861/1863-1867/1868-1871/1872/1873.

Names and Lodges of Masons who signed the Oregon Constitution. 2. "The Centennial History of Oregon (18111912)" (1912) Joseph Gaston, Vols. 2/3/4-Biographical Sketches (Oregon Historical Society).

3. "Who's Who On the Pacific Coast" and "Who's Who In The West" (1951) (The A.N. Marquis Company).

4 "Dictionary of Oregon History" (1989) Howard McKinley Corning.

5. "Dictionary of American Biographies" (1957), Chas. Scribner's Sons, N.Y.

6. "Lawyers of Oregon" (1842), L.F. Grover.

7. "History of the Bench and Bar of Oregon" (1910), Historical Pub. Co., Portland, OR.

8. "Oregon Biographies, " W.A. Pettit.

9. "Oregon Historical Manuscripts" (1935), Alfred Powers .

10. "Oregon In Early Days" (Aug. 12, 1901), Personal Reminiscences of Gov. T.T. Geer.

11. "The Pioneer Days" (Nov. 30, 1890), James O'Meara, Editor of "The Oregonian."

12. "In Earlier Days" (Fred Lockley--noted Oregon Historian).

13. "The Oregon Constitution, " Proceedings and Debates of the Constitutional Convention of 1857 (Charles Henry Carey--Official Reporter -1 926).

14. "Oregon--A History" (1977), Prof. Gordon B. Dodds, History Dept. Portland State Univ.

15. "History of Clatsop County, Oregon" (Oregon Historical Society), Emma Gene Miller (1958).

16. "History of Southern Oregon " ( 1884), A.G. Walling--noted Oregon Historian.

17. "The History of Jackson County, Oregon" (1931) William Pierce Tucker (Historian).

18. "Illustrated History of Lane County, Oregon" (1884), A.G. Walling (Historian).

19. "History of Benton County, Oregon"(1885), David D. Fagan (Historian).

20. "History of the Willamette Valley" (1885), H.O. Lang (Noted Historian) & R.C . Clark (Historian).

21. "History of the Columbia River Valley From The Dalles to the Sea" (1928).

22. "Illustrated History of Umatilla County" (1902) Col. William Parsons (Historian).

23. "Men of Champoeg" (1932), Caroline C. Dobbs (Historian).

24. Genealogy of Family of Robert Crouch Kinney--Julian Hawthorne.

25. "The Early Life and Judicial Career of Paine Page Prim" (1822-1880) (1979), Dean E. Snyder--Historian.

26. Biography of William H. Farrar--Western Historical Publishing Co. (1903).

27. Genealogy: "A Short Historical Sketch of a Part of the Bristow Family, " (1927) Fannie Leggett.

28. Essays of George H. Williams. "Oregon History Could Be Help to Rehnquist" (Oregonian of Aug. 4, 1896 by Fred Lesson) and "Almost Chief Justice" by Sidney Teiser (1947) in the Oregon Historical Quarterly of Sept./Dec. 1946.

29. "Skookum "--History of the Pioneer Applegate Family--Shannon Applegate (1988).

30. "History of the Grand Lodge of A.F.&A.M. of Oregon." From 1846-1951 inc. Vols. I and II, John C. Wilkinson, Wor. Grand Historian.

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Through Masonic Windows

by Allen E. Roberts, FPS

Words of wisdom from the Masonic forum on CompuServe: "The Southern Baptist Convention should also draw logical conclusions from the fact that a large percentage of their membership (and consequently ministers) are Masons, and trust those thousands of people to not associate themselves with groups that contradict their faith. Perhaps they should treat their members like adults who can make adult decisions and draw adult conclusions from their daily exposure to groups like the masons without being told what to think of such groups. I recall from my upbringing that consuming alcohol is a strictly forbidden activity according to The Southern Baptist Convention, but I haven't seen any evidence that they are investigating the Elks, the Moose Lodges, any one of 250 odd college social fraternities, or the VFWs, who regularly serve and encourage the consumption of alcohol. There's always a group somewhere, who sets themselves up as the model by which everyone else is measured and judged. The world would be a lot more pleasant if we all just stopped taking ourselves so seriously sometimes. " The writer didn't mention the vast number of Baptist deacons consuming alcohol and who have other unChristian-like vices.

* * *

"Historical research found Freemasonry grew because of feasts in early lodges," wrote the Grand Master in The Wiscons in Masonic Journal He added: "It is a proven fact that the lodges who are active not only with degree work but with activities in the community and with social events are successful lodges. The Table Lodge can be a vital part of these festivities. "He urged his lodges to schedule such an event. It should be apparent to all but the incessant ritualist that there's much more to Freemasonry than degree work. The first Grand Lodge was formed, not for ritual but for feasts and social rapport.

* * *

Disturbing. An appendant body received a half million dollars from a will. It wanted to mention the man's lodge in his memorial. When contacted, the secretary said: "He ain't a member of this lodge. He was suspended for non-payment of dues a couple of years ago ! " An isolated case? Unfortunately NO. Far, far too many are suspended because no one in the lodge investigates or cares.

* * *

The North Carolina Mason featured John J. Robinson, a non-Mason, on its front page in September. (We all know he' s the author of Born In Blood: The Lost Secrets of Freemasonry. Many of us have met him through The Philalethes Society's meetings.) The excellent article noted "he has appeared on dozens of radio and television talk shows. He has become a leading authority on Freemasonry and one of its chief defenders. He has often been our sole defender on fundamentalist call-in shows. " Question if he was a Freemason would he be allowed by the leadership to defend us? We may find out when he does become a Master Mason in fact as well as in his heart.

* * *

Constantly heard still: When asked what a father (or grandfather) has told his son about Freemasonry: "Nothing. My obligation (or something else) prohibits me from discussing Masonry. " Absolutely nothing can be further from the truth. If we don't love Freemasonry enough to discuss it with our sons and families, why are we members? It's true, unfortunately, most know little or nothing about the Craft. But there are plenty of excellent Masonic books available to teach us something. Merely reading The Philalethes is a good Masonic education.

* * *

The Masonic Chanticleer of Illinois quoted a statement from The Knight Templar written by Dr. E.K. Edwards, Jr., titled "A Roman Catholic's Defense of Freemasonry. " Within this excellent account we find: "I admit that as a Roman Catholic, active in my church's music ministry, I was quite apprehensive as I went through the Blue Lodge. With the passing of each degree, I thought to myself, 'Where is the barrage of anti-Catholic sentiment that other non-Masons have prepared me for? Finally, after I was Raised to the sublime degree, I wondered what in Freemasonry any religious institution could find fault?" What, indeed!

* * *

Your Masonic Hospital Visitor of The Masonic Service Association carried a letter from Roy L. Clark, of country music fame, thanking the many volunteers for continuing to work with our Veterans. The MSA informs us that Clark was made a Mason at Sight in Oklahoma on December 9, 1987. Since then he has joined the Scottish Rite, York Rite bodies, and the Shrine. And he has worked diligently with many of their charitable enterprises.

* * *

Mark R. Sandstrom, MPS, on CompuServe answered a question about Pat Robertson's rehashed book: "Rev. Robertson has an outsider's opinion, and speaks only from hearsay. It is too bad that he didn't bother to interview our contemporary leaders. As you can probably tell, I disagree with Pat Robertson. I am an ordained minister with 8+ years of education for the Ministry. I have served in the ministry now for 15 years. I am a Master Mason and a 32nd degree Scottish Rite Mason. I have never found anything incompatible with my faith in Jesus Christ. Freemasonry is NOT a religion; Freemasonry is a system of ethical thought... If someone is open to truth and goodness, it is there to find." Well said.

* * *

Grand Master Oscar T. Lyon, Jr., writing in the Arizona Mason, noted: "Many of us have Masonic emblems and bumper stickers on our cars....These are all well and good to display. However, when we do we have an obligation and a responsibility to present ourselves as lawabiding, courteous citizens. Obey speed limits and other traffic laws and regulations when we drive a car advertising Freemasonry. Remember, you are someone's impression of a Mason." A wise reminder, indeed.