The Massachusetts spy, and Worcester County advertiser. [volume] ([Worcester, Mass.]) 1825-1831, 1831-06-29

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III. ea,o Jussdlctlon may have received any such
sa''oh' the same is unmasonic, null and void.
a nna we pronounce every Mason under our juris-
.:"' uounu 10 discard and reject all such obi
s"s, 'ne performance of which would, in any
manner, violate contrayene the laws of the land
anu we hereby also declare it perfectly within the
nue intent and meaning of Masonry that every
MASON shall be at perfect liberty to make free and
iull usclosure 81 all principles acts and doings in
opposition to the civil authority D., 4. laws of the
land, or OF public private Justice. We as corr
olaiiy oetest the crime of lawless murder. az any
other body ofmen. Such was the act of denr;vinr
Whham Morgan Of life, if perpetrated either by
Eias"hs or othefs. Who were his murderers or by
whom the act was sanctioned is absolutely I'M
] known to us. But this we can saw with certainty .
we hold no fellowship with any man. or body Of
men. to our knowledge and belief who would eth
er perPetrate 1t themselves or sanction it in 9TH
ers. ~ AZ 0''-
That the mers fact Of having secret, in opr hodv
should warrant the conclusion that those racrats
must come IN collision with our duties as citizens
and, OF necessity, produce nfractions of the Con-
sfltutlon and the laws" is a doctrine that appears
10 US, neither legally nor morally correct We
hao supposed that good men may have secrets nee
essary to their own safety, without becoming iniu
rious to others We believe are correct in stat
ing That religious corporations and banking insti-
| tutlons have secrets and secret meetings When
those secrets produce evil effects to the public.
they are felt; and the evidence cannot lie The
effects produced the only proper test of trial.
and so long the public is not injured no one has
just cause to complain, violation Of charters is
pretended.
We are aware that it is said, Masonic secrets do
operate 70 the INJURY of the public. In speaking
Tor ourselves, and the Lodges in this State we de-
mand-lf the public be injured by our secrets. let
the tact be pointed out, and the proof forthcoming
ana we pledge ourselves to make all due satisfac.
ton II any acts of ours, as Masons or resulting
from Masonic principles, operate to the dsadyan
unifv Lac q
the fact be given, and we pledge ourselves to
resign our Charters, without waiting legal man
date, and renounce the institution. But it cannot
be expected ofus, that merely because we happen
ts De ohlects OF party Jealousy, we should be willing
to abide by every idle runor--to admit all coniec-
ture for fact-to submit ourselves to an er-pGrte
tfial by our professed enemies-acknowledge our
selves guiltyof crimes of which, we know we are
innocent-and relinQuish our corporate privileges
and individual rights at the call of our sefcreated
JUDGES. We are citizens of Rhode Island-We
are citizens of the United States-and we claim
the right enjoyed by all others To be held nno-
cent IN law, until proved guilty. But we will be
the last to complain of the issue of fair and Impair
tiabtral, by" the Constitution and the lawsn
II our opponents others will prove as gttilt,t of
offences so ldcishly charged to our account in The
memorial and elsewhere, we will cheerfulIv submit
TO the decision of justice but we acknowledge no
principle of law or equity that makes us response
Die Tor the dolngs, or accountable for the supposed
OF our successors. Our happy form of civil gov
eminent, administered BY good men, is an inesti-
mabe blessing. But, like all other modes. it con
talns every essential element of tyranny which re-
qulEe only the aid of intriguing demsgogaes and
Ssstfitg tyraItts to convert them to the Intolera
BILE curse Of despotism. So have most relioions
institutions been, at times, transformed into the in
struments OF cruelty and oppression So, in pro-
cess OF time, MAY all be again. For who can cal
cuiate the mutations Of human affairs And we
Ffzlyn g. -
may not so far change the institution of Masonry,
as to prostitute it to purpose equally vile. But
we can say such it is not now and we shall con-
tent ourselves with saying, in this place. that such
change is not probable. But we claim, like all
others, to be tried by our own acts without c;tinr
the conduct OF Others or looking into the ebscurity
OF the future for evidence. 1t is enough that we
are ready TO answer for own doings; Others
we doubt not, ready to do the same and let
posteri!y judge of Masonry they may find it, and
act accordingly. Nevertheless, satisfy us BY any
tangible evidence, drawn from the past or the pres
ent, that Masonry will be injurious to posterity.
and we will abandon and renounce il for we yield
the palm to no order of men, to good wishes for
the welfare Of future generations.
Another implication against u.s. is that we are
bound by our Obligations to prefer Mason over
all the rest of mankind in ALL CAsEsn To con-
vert the preference of one man over another into
an offence against the " Constitution and the laws"
is, TO us, something in the principles of civil
jurisprudence or criminal law and perhaps the
Memoralists may claim the point discovery of
their own for it is doubtful if such doctrine were
ever known before. True this charge is helped
out, by stating that Masonry is of foreign origin"
| that we correspond with foreign bodies" another
grievous offence against the Constitution and the
laws, and that our preference is extended to
] Mason " in ALL CASES" Hence the inference
that we under foreign influence, and I" in
ALL CASES." either in peace or war, give the
preference to foreigner. Mason, over an
American citizen, not Mason. TO prove these
charges true, would il not be desirable for the Me-
morialists to point out some instances wherein our
own citizens had suffered injury from our prefer
eDce to foreign Mason And wherein from the
influence of Masonry, we had been led to succor
our country's enemies in time of war The case
would then be fairly made out-As it is, We leave
But this same charge May be fixed on most ofthe
religious bodies OF our country, with as much pro-
prety as on Us. Most Of them are of foreign orig
IN and no doubt they prefer the members of their
own communions. respectively, to all others Like
us, they hold correspondence with similar bodies
IN foreign countries, quite as extensive, and far
more frequent. But all this is not considered
valid reason why they should be denounced as trail
tors, and debarredthe exercise religious freedom
nor their individual and corporate rights. Like
them, we claim the right TO exercise our partiai-
ties for our brethren, foreign or domestic, as suits
our pleasure and we concede to 40 one, the right
to lmpugn us for so doing; until it be found, that
| in our partalities or correspondence, are or
have been guilty of reasonable other practices
against the Constitution and the laws"
That we "prefer Mason in ALL CASES." is
not true. That we prefer him in any
less he be worthy, as a man, is not true. That we
give him any preference whatever, except in acts,
IN which, " the Constitution and the laws" have no
concern is not true II is not true that receive,
impart, sanction any obligation, that we under
stand to require the performance of an act towards
Mason, that we know or suppose will result in
injury or injustice, to another, not Mason nor in
any way to impede or arrest the course OF justice.
public or private. legal moral in any case what
ever. And to place this matter beyond dispute,
we frankly and voluntarily renounce and denounce
all such obligations as would conflict with our du'
ties as citizens under the laws of the land, and our
moral duties, as me auJers ofsociety at large We
pronounce all such obligations unmasonicj and
forbid their administration and observance, by all
Masons and Lodges under our jurisdiction. And
further to shew that in all this we have acted in
perfect accordance with the spirit and principles Of