The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1859-04-28

stone Of An adlu09A
Since our Order 6rsk' began 81 aaeszck tne eetensson
Of the American public, there h9ye - peens Na@qn9
those who, ON all accasions, tHere readyfeg nssnatz us
;urine the character Of the Orde. Happily their et
forts have not had the intended effect. the shafts
az calumny aud detraction have not pierced any ssfai
part Of Odd Fellowship.
II is not intended at this time to attempt Q ansver
or reflte nIl the cayilings and objections which have
bees, urged against our Association. Their name IS
legion. but q vast majority are OF sucn = cnarscter'
that Ne win not disparnee your intelligence BY think
ing 8 ~refutation at all necessary we cannon believe
that any one here present is superstitious enough 70
place reliance upon the reports OF the awIul anu ! :
rifying ceremonies, the compulsory rides upon n,yste-
rious goats, and other equally absurd Things tnat
have been attributed to US. We trust that a deniai
of all such accusations, a reputation OF all such pro-
ceedings in our Lodges. is entirely unnecessary with
this audience.
We are aware, however, that in the minds of many
intelligent people there is a prejudice against associa-
tons which hide any of their proceedings from the
! public eve. Some believe that secresys necessarily
/ hides moral deformity, and that we throw its veil
over our Order because its inward workings Will not
bear the light of exposure. We will ask those VINO
believe this doctrine to apply it to their own families,
and what family is represented here that has not its
own secrets, pure and innocent enough, no doubt.
but none the less secrets for all that. Who IS ooid
enough to say that such c~oncealment IS wrong, that
whatever t~ranspires within the home circle should
become public property Yet for secrecy, no more
harmful to any one than such as we have described,
has our Order been denounced. 1t is gratifying,
to know that such opinions are much less prevalent
now than in former years, that these relics OF super
stition and bigotry are fast disappearing before the
increasing light of knowledge and civilization. :.
Although we are persuaded that mere secresy, OF
itself, is not so weighty an objection as necessarily to
condemn, under all circumstances, those who may
use it yet we also assume that, strictly speaking,
Odd Fellowship is not a secret institution. Its objects
are publicly proclaimed, the rules aud regulations
LIZ c. -. -, - nnon n h -
usal of all, our times and places of meeting are not
concealed, and all the important statistics of the
Order are published annually in the newspapers Of
the day.
If we had illegal, immoral, or dishonorable pur-
poses in view, would we court such publicity
1t is frequently charged against us that, in our in.
tercourse with each other, we use secret signs and7
grips, known only to the initiated. To this grave
charge, ladies aud gentlemen. we plead guilty ; but
we demur to the inference that such conduct is evil
dence of evil intent on our part. We have our pecu-
liar signs and methods of recognition our charita-
BILE purposes could not be fully accomplished without
them but they may nerer be used to screen the
guilty from punishment or to subyert the laws of God
or our country.
We use such things to prevent imposition on our
benevolent purposes, in order that we may be sure
that the stranger who seeks our pecuniary aid is a
a Brother, and no impostor in order that the sick
and wounded. unable by speech. to claim an interest
in our benefits may, by signs, convey the knowledge
that they are members of our great Brotherhood, and
entitled to its relief and sympathy.
We tell you, ladies and gentlemen, that there is
nothing in our secret WORK, inconsistent with the
principles of revealed religion. Every charge, cove
nant and lecture in the ritual of the Order is founded
upon the Bible, and in all our ceremonies there is
nothing that should ~displease the most fastidious
mind, nothing that would bring a blush to the cheek
of understanding but what is orderly and solemn.
There is another accusation which it may be proper |
to notice in this connection, lest our silence might
give it q color of truth.
1t is this, that Odd Fellows set up their order as n |
substitute for, or as an excuse for neglecting religious
teachings and exercises. The charge is certainly o
severe one, but is entirely inapplicable to our Order.
If it were true, we should not at this day be receiy-
ing the fraternal countenance and support of thou
sands OF clerymen and religious people throughout
the empire of Odd Fellowship; if this were our object
the Order would not have been the recipient of such
great bounty, nor would you behold our entire Broth |
erhood uniting this day in thanksgiving and praise to
God.
We do believe, however, that in the present
state of human society, while the different divisions
OF the Christian religion are still further divided by
hundreds of distinct sects and denominations, each
with its own peculiar creed, that an institution like
ours, in which men of every sect may unite for the
practice of Benevolence and Charity. should ha LON
couraged by every honest minded individual, by every
friend of humanity.
The tendency of Odd Fellowship is not to make men
careless on religious subjects, nor to inspire the idea
that a strict observance of our laws does away with
our obligations to a higher power. 1t tends rather
to bring together for a common purpose good and true
hearts, which otherwise would remain estranged by
the distinctions and Considerations of society and reli-
giOn. This we claim as one of the excellencies of our
Order. that the pood and worthy of all reii0ious do
nominations mo oatber aronnJ ;tS ol,ars - Sor.onu
may Sa.nor aiounu us aitars III harlIohy
and love, casting aside the dissensions that in the
outer world are so MANY among those who differ in
religious belief.
win regard 10 n iuerent ranks OF civilized society, We
wouia say hat We hold no fellowship with them. Our members
STAND upon a common level. recognizing In the Lodge Room no
rank put which a virtuous lie everywhere Commands The
pa mcsSs ~ - our pu loage : open 70 every worthy apphcans, IRE,
speouFeo hs sociaip oSiuen-regardiess whetner c IS possessed
ol wealth or earns his bread by the sweat of his brow. Honesty.
sousnas eapaohty . Ell support, m rectitnde Of lie ana
oonoue, ae LII qoahhcauohs w o 10 In VINO seek ad-
-
odd raIIowsh an a ro,IS se ge''r ana "a pee urgea against
o"u ienowship, would require more Tune than courtesy war
anu u IN skiing OF you IN ms ccasion-
ui h.va ,hns 81 ena' nav pee maue IN IT'S oeiehce, II is noped,
nrssso ,e en csrn w er 0r,a ~ n.; your minas some Of those