The Massachusetts spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1831-1858, 1831-10-19
BLACK Rock. SEPT, ID. 1871

BLACK ROCK, SEPT. ~, 1881.
Gentlemen,-I received your letter of the
10th inst, addressed to Judge Rochester
and myself, requesting our opinions as tc
the expedlency of adopting proposition
which it seems is now n subject of discus
sion among the members of your lodge, for
sure nderng its charter.
have not had the pleasure ofseeing Judge
Rochester since the receipt of your letter,
but understand that he is shortly expect
ed home. For myself, however, ! have no
hesitation in saying, in the present excited
state of the public mind l should deem it
an act, not of magnanimity merely, but of
patriotic duty to the cause of public peace
and tranquility, to give up your charter at
once and for ever.
The present state of my health does not
permit me to go at large into an examina-
ton of the principles and practices of free
masonry but | will cheerfully submit to
you. brief account Of my own masonic
knowledge and experience, as furnishing
the motive to the advice have just given.
joined the masonic fraternity in early
life, by becoming member of the Ontario
Lodge al Canandaigua, which, at that time,
was the only Lodge in the State west of
the Cayuga Lake. By the partiality of my
brethren, | was soon advanced to the office
OF Master, the duties of which discharged
for several years. The only professed OBJ
Jccts and principles of the institution as
then explained and understood, were-1st,
the dispensation of charity to worthy but
unfortunate members and their families, and
more especially to such as were strangers;
Il
and ohediance to, the laws of the land Sd,
a rigid practice of all moral virtues, and
9TH uniform demonstration of respect for
religion and its rofessors-without, how
ever, requiring declaration in favor of any
particular creed. Simple, however, and
even merlterious as were the objects of the
institution, yet, for, the purpose no doubt,
OF giving an air of Importance and mystery
to its proceedings they were surrounded
by profusion of useless pageantry and
show; and yelled in mpenetrable secrecy,
by the administration of high sounding and
terrific oaths, denouncing by extravagant
penalties, the violation of the secrets of the
society.
was induced to continue a member of
the Lodge for several years, not only be-
cause | saw nothing of its principles or
practices (unlesS the obligation to the Sc
cretary may he considered as such) that was
injurious to the interest of society; but be-
cause it afforded one of the very few means
we then enjoyed of social intercourse as it
brought together once a month, many of
our principal inhabitants, scattered over an
area of eight or ten millions of acres.
1t is, however, now more than twenty
years since l have been a member, or with
a single exception within the walls of any
Lodge. withdrew from the society be-
cause ! believed, that all It's useful fune-
tons, if not entirely superseded, were at
least much more efficiently performed, by
other and more recent Institutions, having
the same objects in view and because the
unmeanlng pomp and parade with which
Its operations are carried on, were uncon-
genial with my taste. | never advanced
beyond tho third degree Of Masonry, and l
can truly say, that during the time was n
member, never saw the influence of the
society eXerted in the advancement of any
political measure. For myself, | never in
CURED, seldom knew, and still less cared,
whether candidate for any civil Office was
a mason or not and such believe has been
the general sentiment of other masons.
have never known mas0ns, as such, TO be
engaged in any unworthy, much less crimi-
nal project, until the affair Of Morgan. At
the time of his abduction | was absent from
the State, and on my return it was wholly
impossible, among the various and contra
dlctory rumors and conjectures that were
af1oat, to form any satisfactory opinion in
respect to the particulars of the transaction.
For more than two years after the event
took place, although satisfied, that Morgan
had been sorcibly and Illegally seized and
brought to this frontier, my prevailing opin-
ION was, that he was alive, and either lay
concealed in some part of Canada, or had
been sent 10 sea. But it has since been
abundantly proved, that he was deliberately
and ioully murdered, and that too by ma
sons and what renders the transaction
still more alarming as regards the future
credit and usefulness of the institution
murdered by masons actually believing tina,
they were discharging a duty imposed on
them by masonic obligations
Ii then there are to be found among the
members of any of our Lodges-and that
there are, the lamentable case to which
have alluded, too clearly proves-so veal
or so infatuated as to believe that their ma
sonic Obligations require or authorize then
to commit acts of such atiocity, in disre
gard OF the civil duties and in violation O
the express command, surely it is the dut
OF every Lodge to surrenlerits charter, an
thus prevent the recurrenceof similar enor
mites. 1t would, moreover, be but jus
propitiationto the wounded feelings ofthos
and there are doubtless mnny such-wh
honestly believe that free-masonry authori;
es crime.
am, very respectfully, your ob't serv'
P. B. PORTER.
10 .Messrs, Potter, Toilet, Camp,
Townsend and Parker