Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1861-01-26
Mtsrelluneous .
From a Lexicon Of Fretmasonry.

BY ALBERT C. NAcuEH, N D.

Aa1hNASs ~
Learning md religion that was to be found in tie
world, it exteoded into other nations the influence
Of its sacred rites aud its secret doctrines. The
Importance, therefore, Of the E~gyp,ian mysteries
will entitle them to a more digusive explanation
than has been awarded to the examination Of the
other rites Of spurious Freemasonry. The priest
hood Of Egypt constituted q sacred caste, in whom
the sacerdotal functions were hereditary. They
exercised, also, an im%pOrtan, part in the govern
ment of the state, and the kings of Egypt were
but the FIRST subjects Of its priests. They had
originally organized, and continued to control, the
ceremonies Of initiation. Their doctrines were OF
two kinds, ~exoteric, or public, which were COM
municated to the multitude. and e%soteric, or secret,
which were revealed only to u chosen few and 20
obtain them il was necessary to pass through an
initiation which, as we shall see, was character
lied by the severest trials Of courage and FORTH
tude.
The principle sent Of the mysteries was at Mem
phis,i in the neighborhood of the great pyramid.
They we're of two kinds, the greater and the less
the former being the mysteries of Osiris and Ser
apis the latter those of Isis. The mysteries Of
Osiris we're celebrated at tn au;umnal equinox;
ihUse Of Scraps at the summer solstice, and those
Of Isis at the vernal equinox. The candidate was
required to exhibit proofs of a blameless life. For
some days previous to the commencement Of the
ceremonies OF the initiation, he abstained from all
unchaste acts, confined himself to an exceedingly
light diet, from which animal food was vigorously
excluded, and purified himself by repeated aSlu-
tiFns. Being thus prepared, the candidate, con-
Quoted by a guide, proceeded, in the middle Of
the night, to the mouth Of a low gallery, situated
in one Of the sides Of the pyramid. Having
crawled for some distance on his hands and knees,
be at length came 10 the orifce of q vide and
apparently uniathomatle well, which the guide
directed him to descend. Perhaps he hesitates
and refuses to encounter the seeming danger if
90, be, Of course, reuounces the enterprise, and is
reconducted to the world, never again to become q
candidate for initiation but if he is animated by
courage, be determines to descend whereupon the
conductor points him to an iron ladder, which
makes the descent perfectly safe.
At the sixtieth step the candidate reached the
entrance to a winding gallery through a brazen
door, which opened noislessly and almost sponta-
neously, but which shut behind him with a heavy
clang, that reverberated through the hollow passa-
ges. In front of this door was an lion CRATE,
lhrough the bars Of which the a~spirant beheld an
extensive gallery, whose roof was supported on
each side by a long row Of majestic columns, and
enlightened by a multitude of brilliant lamps.
The voices of the priests and priestesses OF Isis,
chanting funeral hymns, we're mingled with the
sound of m~eloiious instruments, whose melan'
choly tones could not fail to affect the aspiran
with the most solemn feelings. His guide nov
demanded of him If he was still firm in his pur
pose Of passing through the trials and danger
that awaited him, or whether, overcome b. wha
he had already experienced, he was DESTROYS o
returning to the surface and abandoning the enter
prise. If be still persisted, they both entered
narrow gallery, on the walls of which were in
seribed the following significant words-"Them NOR
tai who shall travel over this road, without hesita
ting or looking behind, shall be purified by fire
by water, and by air and if he can surmOunt th,
fear uf death, he shall emerge from The bosom o
the earth he shall revisit the light, and claim
the right of preparing his soul for the reception
of the mysteries of the great goddess Isis" Tn
conductor now abandoned the aspirant to himself
warning him of the dangers that surrounded anc
awaited him, and exorted him to continue Gf h
expected success) mistaken in his frmness.
The solitary candidate now continues to travers,
.he gallery for some distance farther. On eacI
side are placed in inches colossal statues, in th
attitude of %mumpies, awaiting the hour of resur
rectiou. The lamp with which, at the commenced
ment of the ceremonies, he had been furnished
casts but a glimmering light around, scarcely sui
fcient to make darkness visible" Specters seer
to menace him at every step, but on his neare
approach they vanish into airy nothingness. a
length he reaches an iron door, guarded by thre
men armed with swords. and disguised in masl
resembling the heads of jackals. One Of the
addressed him as follows-''We are not here
impede your passage. Continue your journey,
the gods have given you the power and streng
to do so. But, remember, if once you pass Il
threshold of that door, you must not dare to paus
or attempt to retrace your steps if you DO, "
will find us here prepared to oppose your retrea
and to prevent your return" Having pass,
through the door, the candidate has scarcely pr
ceeded fifty steps before he is dazzled by a br
liant light, whose intensity augments as be adva
ces. He now finds himself in a spacious ha
filed with i~nAammable substances, in a state
combustion, whose flames pervade the whole apal
ment, and form a bower of FIRE on the roof abov
Through this il is necessary that he should pa
with the greatest speed to avoid the effect Of Il
flames. To this peril succeeds another. On &
other side of this fiery furnace the floor of Il
hall is garnished with a huge network of red-h
iron bars, the narrow interstices Of which afFo
the aspirant the only chance Of a secure footing.
Having surmOuuted this difficulty by the gre,
est id iress, another and unexpected obstacle @
poses his farther progress. A wide and rap
canal, fed from the waters of the Nile, crosses t
passage he is t~reading. Over this stream lie h
10 swim. Divesting himself, therefore, OF bis g,
ments he fastena them iu q bundle upon the 4
of his head. and holding his lamp, which now
fords him all the light that ne possesses, bi
above the water. he plunges in and boldly swil
across. On arriving at the opposite side be flo
. narrow laDding-place, bounded by two hi
walls of brass into each of which is inserted
immense wheel of the same metal, and terminal