The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1878-02-04
MASONIC TEMPLE.

o. Il. FIOTHINGHAM.
Mr. o. B. Frothngnam's discourse In Masonic
Temple was on the subject of the "Periecribity OF
Man" He said that in the course OF years of dark
ness and anxiety 1t is always a kindness to entertain
tho most cheerful thoughts concerning men and
things, and, therefore, he had chosen the present
subject founding It upon two texts taken-one
from the Ola and the other from the New
Testament One was from Ecclesastes, that
Bcoptica book, written by knew
whom, but ascribed to Iicentious king, basking In
the lap Of luxury, whose days out in the
eny OF sumptuousness; whose life always In adj
Of him, and who In WEAKNESS OF spirit because
sloyed with the pleasures OF existence exclaimed,
"There Is nothing now under the sun" The other
portion of the text is 10 DO found in the apostles
book, book which pictures fond aith, glowing hope
and confident anticpaLions Tor tho future. IL was
written, II Is said by a seer-no tell who he
was; but looking hopefully into the centuries yet
shroudsd in tho future said "Behold, l mako all
things new"
One OF these passages assumes spirit of
despondency, and the other view Is mind con-
ndent In its own powers OF progress. The first IL
one Of despair, and the second is ono OF hope The
ars text lays down the principle mat is the
lure OF circumstances and tho second that circum-
stances the creatures Of man. The says tha.,
auce can be pointed out; tho other, that mans
In lie depends not upon antecedents.
but upon ones chances in the world In resisting
colo. suffering hunger and meeting the conui-
lions oil organized life man keeps pace with the
Of nature; II tue same old world, the
same old man, and, although change In
respects seems to have taken place. thIs is on
the surface only The great different times
presents different aspects but yet 1t is the same I'M
inense mass oil waters, always in It's place obey.
ing the inimitabe laws OF gravity. Man about
him his conditions and circumstances, putting tuem
q "A nv all L he circ
stances that keep men back and they bound to 70
forward; make man newly, develop his faculties and
TOu make him more perfect, aud perfect restores
PARADISE. But man cannot be one day living in tho
mire and Tho next floating II the aphcon
We cannot exist amid irrcconcilable contradc-
lions The point vi reconciliation between the
lexis is that IL rs circumstances the ono side
nor tho man alone on the other That produce the hap
pest resutS In the tropics man has chance TO
put forth any effort he goes to seed and gives up.
In the extreme North his blows aro struck valn
against an adamantinc wall Of ice; and oniy In the
temperate zone does tho lar and easy wreste 20 on
between man anu matter We hear TOO much OF Tho
uncnangefulness OF life The same old
now TINT were repeated 1000 or 1000 years ago.
Philosophy, spirtualism, materialsm, iransccnden-
tasm, doIsm-ali Old. The Same crimes are 70.
peated and the came laws broken IN precisely Tho
same way now as long ago
BAD OUTLOOK
Is there mistake, no misapprehcnsion to
mans position2 Is IL conceivable that man should
be unchanged In changeaole world? AS we push
open the gates Of morning arc We not, IN the
OF time. grander men ihan before2 Is 1t poss bic
that the inventor OF 80 many arts, sciences and de-
0Irebl0 appliances 10 the objects oil lilo
should have moro tenacious or tougher
brain than he who thought OF theso
thingsi Is IL conceivable that Tho intellect
which must answer these questions as IL must
raise them, the intellect Of nun, should not become
creator and greater as timo progrcssesY Here the
speaker took illustrations oil his argument from the
moral nature oil man-lrom science, religion and -
10 show how much and how steadily the human
has advanced IN the direction OF greater perfection
than II had known In past ages Ho asked II IL Is
the same human nature now that formerly bound
itself TO kill unbeIievers In Christian deity whose
synonym was cruelty. At ancientA Athens the phoso-
phor ran great risks who ventured assert that the
sun IL NOS q chariot OF fire, driven the vault
OF heaven by the god OF day. There O
time when tho Pope OF Rome denied the
existence OF the antipodcs because, he said, people
could not 30 to heaven with Their feet downwards
Now the youngest schoOboys know differently from
what these wise tuughr. Formerly war might
brcak out without notice to an adversary but
nation could afford engage In It without diplomatic
p6ort to the peace and protocol alter pro-
loco should preccde declaration OF war; 1ako
he question or intcmperance. This vice was
vross aud brutal and 1t was sometimes the boast OF
that they could carry 30 many bottles under
hsir RirdIs. Now nobody boasts Of such feat; thou.
N nds never taste liquor and many think ITS use viii
80 away. Every individual IN himself shows shs