Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1870-02-04

the supsrslructuro, and both unite at the com
pletion 10 pour on the oil Of conservation and
claim their reward.
Religion, undertaking more, assumes higher
ground and becomes IN consequence less tolerant
\ While Masonry, assuming less, leans more on in
diyidual will, and places on It's members fewer
restrictions, rely ing much on the good sense.and
lore OF propricty IN the part of ts members.
! Thus, ladies and gentlemen, have given Tnu
\ short aud necessarily imperfect account Of the
tenets inculcated in Masonry.
| But can not raise the vail and show you the
beauties which lay concealed from the public
gnLe. Nor indeed would you ask me ~ when
/ YOU know that exposure would destroy an insti.
| tuition winch has done ~ much good for man.
| Kind. II is possible many Of you can say, yu,i
have never seen or perceptibly felt the ben, Eta
of the Order. hut does that prove that they do
! not cxistI How many Of you have been inime-
diAtply benefited by the beacon light placed
along our soa coasts. fir the benefit uf the weary
aud sturm-tossed mariner Yet not one VI you
would give your voice ~ have II destroyed.
! Masonry has stood like beacon. upon the shores
Of tho ocean OF time. giving direction To impulses
and thoughts. and guiding her members from
! the pursuit ~ knowledge here, 10 the sure haven
Of rest hereafter.
"How ofi have these
| Trimmed the gay taper In his rustic dome,
And III the wintry paradise uf home ~
upon all minkind as great family Of brothcrs,
descended FROM one original parent, guided by
one destiny.
II Is peculiar to M soil or cline but iourishes
wherever man has iNcd his dwelling; whether
under the cross or the crescent, "amd Alpine
rocks Egyptian sands Or polar SHOWS" Where IL
has existed and will continue to exist, until Il
has soohcd the last Of natures dying ngonrs.
II lives not, however, rs the fame Of heather
conqucr0rs, in culngy and song, but IN the qnirt
influences which 1t il cxerling upon the world.
II makes not this influence felt by impcrious
commands. but in soft pathetic strains which win
the affections without OvCrawing the rehSn
"ies, Free Masonry, tO thy tongue shall seraph
words be giv.n,
Aud power un earth tu plead the cause ot heaven
The proud, the cold untrnubrd heart uf stone,
That never niuSod un sorrow but its own,
Jnclorks II generous store ut thy conminl,
Like llOrcb wrecks beneath the prophets hand,
The living lumber Of his kindred earth,
Charmed into SOUL receives second birth,
Feels thy dread frown another heart offend.
True as the crushing spheres 10 natures plan,
And man, the brother, here, lives the friend Of
man.
In the true spiri. Of Free Masonry, man the
brother, IL the friend Of man, aud there is nH diI-
ference IN this respect, whether we meet a broth.
er upon the sands of Arabia beneath his tent, or
in his palace surrounded by luxury, in the full
light Of civilization, they are both brothers, both
bound to ahnrd MS comfort and protection, and
both entitled to it at our hands.
Country, climate nor complexion IN tkcS NJ
difference. Masonry SAYS man is thy brother, and
entitled to thy sympathy and pr ecti n
Eternal Nature
Say. was that lorlly form inspired by thee? ?
To wear eternal chains aud bow the knee!
Was man ordained the slave Of man to toll.
luked to the brutes aud lrttcrrd to the su?
No, Nature stamped us in a heavenly mould; ;
She bade no wretch his thanklcsS labor urge.
Nur,trrmblng take the piitaucr aud the Scnurgr.'
This is 0mphatically true where the divine in
nucuccs Of Masonry are rlt and acknowledged.
And would you raise the ruthless hand and
now destroy this fair fabric raised aud enriched
by the worlds united wi,dum2 No. 1t is i'm
possible YOU would not if you could, and you
could not IL you would. II has passed the litrv
ordeal of persecution, and came out like fine gold
from the hand of the purifier. In this respect
Masonry stands side by side with Christianity,
which has passed the dark shade Of the inquisi-
ton aud now triumphantly waves her b0od-
stained b nncr over carth's fairrst dOmninnS
Both had their origin on the plains of Judea.
Both served ut the building Of the temple. and
were together driven from their native land.
Both were destined t0 feel scorn and persecution,
Ms they passed to foreign climes on their mis-
sions Of mercy. Both have stcmmed the tide of
ignorance al superstition, and bnth have tri-
umphe'. While nations and cmpir, have II IL
en- around them, they alone have stood cal m
aud serene. Where are those mighty powers
against which we had to contend ceaturi's ago
They We're but human and have crumbled TO
atoms. hut the same divine spark, burning M
on the altar, hns been light to these institutions,
to guide them through the dark night Of advcr-
atty whic! they have passed.
Eastern literature has persisted and its proud
monuments lay scattered and broken over vast
enpir now Inhabited by people relapsed INTO
barbarisn.
"Thc lapse OF time, the ruthless hand Of gno-
rance aud deyastatons Of war have laid waste
snd destroyed some Of the proudcst monuents Of
antiquity.
Even the Temple OF Solomon, so spacious in
It's design, no majestic in its proportions, mag
ni6ctnt in its execution aud constructed by the
unit,d excriuns oE so many celebrated artists,
has not escaped the ravagcs nf barbarous force.
But the Order to which it gnveu name still eN-
lists in all the harmony Of its first formation. and
has gathered with itself power and grandeur
nnl energy and might over the ruins Of the Tem-
pie"
"Amil the ruin Of kingdoms and the fall Of
empires Free Masonry still survives.
alt has existed whore all things else ofhuman
ori ,inhavC rcrishcd. The tempeStsof persecution
have Mt injured it. The mutations OF the world
have not shaken it. The wing of time has
Tapped over il in vain. Through centuries of
change il has stood ch ing elcss and serene.
"And ~ the true and loyal brother il is source
OF exulting promise to know, that twill continue
t0 survive as long Ms the attentive ear receives
the sound from the instructive tongue, and the
mysteries of the Order are lodged in the roposito-
ries of faithful hearts"