The Massachusetts spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1831-1858, 1832-11-28
From the Ne'o York Commercial .7dr srtiser.
LETTERS FROM JOHN QUINCY AID.
ANS


1--WE insert below the first Of series of four
letters, addressed to one Of the Editors of hi.
paper several weeks ago, by the late President
OF the United States, upon the exciting spbiec,,
of Masonry and Anti Masonry. Their pubiica.
ton has been thus delayed by the directions of
the distinguished author himself. Apprehend.
ing, probably, that their earlier publ ,ation
might be imputed 10 desire TO influences the
pending Presidential election, he reque sed that,
they might be privately retained until the close
I OF the contest. Although the votes of the Elec.
toral Colleges have not been cast, yet the State
| elections are now over and the ultimate result
! can in no way be affected by the perusal of
these letters. They are written with the ont
ed ingenuity, power and spirit of the Ex-Pres-
ident, and will doubtless be read with great in
terest by the public.1
QUIScY, 25th August, 1892.
IPfn. L. Stone, Esq, .Ne,o York
DEAR SIR-ln my last letter observed, with
the freedom and candor which thought due TO
you as the best return | could make for the
honor and obligation you had conferred upon
me, by addressing to me your letters upon Ma
sonry and A. 7nry, that there were many
did.
Some further explanation is due from me up
on the subject. The principal objects Of your
book were two First, TO vindicate the charac-
ter of an eminent and llustrious citizen of New
York, the late Governor of the State, De Witt
Clinton from The opprobrium cast upon him, of
having been personally anu 1oepiy ccc.n,"srucd
In the murder of Morgan; and, secondly, 10
prove by fair and impartial statement of the
abuses 10 which the Masonic Institutions have
been perverted, that they ought to be volunta-
rily surrendered and abolished.
These objects were Just and laudab1e They
are in your volume faithfully pursued nor is
there IN the execution of your plan, any thing
in the Letters unsuitable or redundant You
observe in the first Letter that it is no part of
your design to write vindication of Free Ma
souTy as such,- but to describe Free Masonry
as you received, understood, and practised il
YOURSELF and il has been received, UNDER
stood and practsed by hundreds Of virtuous
and intelligent men, with whom you have,
associated In the Lodge Room To this the
first ten Letters devoted, and they are
IN my estimation not less valuable than
those which succeed them. But as Bishop
Watson wiote an apology for the Bible, l trust
you will not consider me as intending any dis
paragement to that part OF your work, if con-
slider II In the light OF an apology for Free Ma
sonry, as received; under stood and practised by
yourself and many others. In that light it is
exceedingly well adapted to its purpose. 1t is
the only rational plea for the institution that [
have seen, since this controversy began for
all the other defences Of the handmade which
have come TO my knowledge have smacked too
much Of the obligation to come TO the aid Of a
distressed brother, and exlrcate him from his
difficulties right or acrOng TO pass for any :hing
other than aggravations Of the Morgan murder
crimes.
You have taken all the degrees TO, and in
GLIDING that of, the Knight TempIar The
Oaths, Obligations and Penalties as admins
tered TO, and understood by you, contained MOTH
ing Incompatible with your duties to your conn
4 l..
in them, apparently incongruous with the prior
and paramount duties of the citizen and Chris
tian, was explained and given in charge IN such
manner as to be made entirely subordinate to
them. The obligations understood by YOU
are all auxaries to Christian benevolence and
patriotism, and so they arc undoubtedly under
stood by great multitudes of Masons, in all parts
of the U. States. That they otherwise I'M
derstood also by multitudes of the acorthy
brethren of the craft, (worhy according to the
masonic meaning of the wordD is apparent in
every page of your book.
Inyour third Letter, p. % you allude to an opin-
ion which once expressed to you in the following
terms =" You sir. have assured me that the obli-
CATION supposed 10 be administered in comforting
the first degree, is quite enough in your view, to
establish the wicked character of the Institution"
Whether did make use of terms quite strong
in the freedom of unrestraned conversation, or
whether your reference to il is by inference of your
own, from words not quite comprehensive, 10
not material. The sentiment which do recolect
to have expressed, and which is rooted in my con-
viction was, that the entered apprentices oath.
obligation and annexed penalty, was in itself IT.
ciouS-aud such as ought never to be administered
by man TO man." That no explanation of it could
take away its essential immoral character-and
that the Institution of Free Masonry requiring alb
solutely the administration of it to every candidate
for admission necessarily shared in its immortality.
In saying this, dsclam all intention of censure
upon any individual who has ever taken this OATH.
consider it according to its own import-strIpped
ola warrant Of authority from the great names of
illustrious men who may have taken 1t.
My objections to it are these
be- First That it is extra judicial oath, and as
such contrary to the laws of the land.
Secondly That it is violation OF the precept
of Jesus Christ-Sicedr not at all.
Thirdly: That this oath pledges the candidate,
in the name of God, that he will always hail for
ever conceal, and never reveal any of the secret
arts parts points of the mysteries of free
ry, to any person under the canopy of heaven, ex-
cept it shall be true and lawful mason, within
the body of a just and regular lodge of such and
not unto him them until after due trial, strict
examination, by the lawful information of n
brother | shall have found him or them as justly
and lawfully entitled to the same l am myself"
The arts, parts, points, and mysteries of masonry,
are afterwards in the oath denomineted the secrets
| Of the craft These are all general and indehnits
terms. The candidate, when he takes the oath, is
kept in total ignorance of what these secrets Of the
of The oath that he takes. He is sworn to keep Sc
cret, he knotcs not ,rhat. The general assurance
that it is not to effect his religion or politics, is the
mere word of another man. The assurance that IT
is not to interfere with any Of his duties, is but
mockery, when the administration Of the oath it,
self is a violation of law
He to reveal the secrets Of the craft to nc
person under the canopy of heaven except to a
brother mason or lodge. The single exception
expressed is exclusion of all others. There il
ntinnf for mn nf OP FIR he
confession enjoined upon the Catholic brethren BY
their religion. use this illustration to show, tina
the intrinsic import of the oath is incompatible,
with law, civil and religious.
Now what these secrets of the Graft are to tn
keeping of which, the candidate thus ignorant o
their import, is sworn is never defined. They ar
differently understood, by different Masons. TIL
oaths, obligations and penalties themselves hav
until very recently been understood believe, uni
versally to form part Of these secrets. Those
the first three degrees we're first revealed by tn
publication of Morgan's book those of the subss
quen degrees to that the thrice llustrious ords
Of the Cross, were divulged by the Convention
the seeding Masons at lie Roy, on the 4th of Jul
1928. Those in Morgan's book understand to /
. admitted on all hands to be correct. But with r.
gard to She obligations of the Red Cross Knight
: and the Templars as disclosed by that Conventio
+ you say that although you have received those d
grees and assisted in comforting them, you know
no such obligations in any degrees. Your impre
sion Is that they must have been devised we silva
of Albany, and imposed upon candidates witho
d the sanction of any governing body. You do n
question the correctness of the publication Of the