Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1880-02-05
The Alleged Masonic Discovery.
Sacramento Record. Union, Jan. 81.


Sacramento Record. Union, Jan. 81.
A great deal Of excitement appears to
have been created among the Freema.
sons OF the Eastern States BY the alleged
discovery, at the base Of the Egyptisn
ooelisk In course Of removal from Alex.
andria. OF certain relics claimed to 10
Masonic smblems. The attempt to es.
tablish from such evidence q connection
between modern Freemasonry and the
Egypt OF Augustus may DO approved by
those who In the past have accepted the
wild and baseless legends which have
been constructed about the origin Of the
Order, but We venture to say that none
who have studied the history OF Frsema.
sonry carefully will put any faith in these
deductions. In the fast place, what Is
called speculative Masonry has no CON.
nsction with operative Masonry, the
latter having been q regular trade.guild,
such q were common In Middle Ages,
and all its peculisritiss and secret signs.
grips and passwords. having been no
more than precautionary devices for
securing mutual recognition and assist.
Q in an age when the members Of the
craft were constantly travelling all over
the continent. Tho operative mssons
were distinguished above other trade
guilds because they were church. builders
and because this was the principal
architectural work done In the fourteenth
century, when they Aourished. OF
course 1t would be necessary, In order to
establish . connection between speouls-
tive Masonry aud Asiatic orders OF the
same kind. to show that operative
Masonry was affiliated with such Orien.
tai organizations; but this cannot bs
done. The operative masons were YER.
liable workinRmsn, having no ssoterio
mysteries. being bound together for
mutual help and fellowship. but with.
out any mystic doctrines whatever, and
In fact being no more mysterious and no
more aspiring than q modern trades
union. The attempt to graft speculative
Masonry upon this root was made by
the antiquary Elias Ashmols In the sew.
enteenth century. He gathered much
mummery aud mysteries from the rites
Of the extinct Tsmplars and the writings
OF the Rosicruoians, and between them
he and some OF his friends conoocted
the ambitious and imposing traditions
which have since been 80 eagerly availsd
OF by mems vanity.
1t Is quite creditabls that certain geo.
mstrical figures and masonic tools may
have been found under the Obelisk, a.
related BY Lieutenant Commander Cor.
ringe. but such . discovery has no bear
ing upon modern or medieval Freema-
sorry. II does not require to be said
that the Egyptians were acquainted with
geometry. or that they employed many
Of tho tools, such Is the level. the square,
the hammer. etc., which have been In
use eve since. II Is also we'll known
that they were accustomed to symbolic
divine power, the principle OF genera
ton, and other things. under tho shape
OF . oubicsl stone. which Ia one Of the
objects said to have been found under
the Obslisk. But there is1nother CON.
sidsration, very likely to create confu.
sion In the Masonic mind. II IL the fact
that modern Masonry has pilfered from
the ancient mysteries and religions very
freely. and that II new 1t recognizes the
likeness OF any OF this plumber in an
Egyptian monument, the circumstances
cannot justify the inference that . real
connection exists between the past and
the present. Among de mason's marks
which the cathedral builders Of the
middle ages put upon their handiwork
may be recognized q large number OF
Hindo0 caste marks. A plate OF several
OF these msson's marks will be found In
Kings "Gnostics and Their Remains"
and the identity Of them with the caste
marks 10 indisputabls. The cathedral
builders, however. had certainly copied
these marks without the least com.
prshsnsion OF their real meaning. for
they are used a. the initiated would
never have thought Of using them. and
this one fact demonstrates the real ignor-
OF these craftsmen concerning mys.
teal and Asistic lore. In fact this al.
legged discovery Is suspioiously like those
which the ingenious Able Hue made In
Thibet, where he found the Buddhist
priests worshiping with o ceremonial SO
remarkably like that OF his own church
that he innocently supposed Christian
missionaries must ct some time have
converted the Lamas. The obslisk
''fnd" will. We have no doubt, prove to
be what we have characterized It Is,
namely, an evidence that the spurious
fabric OF speculative masonry has bor-
rowed from Egyptian religious ritualism.
but without any comprehension Of the
original significance Of that which Il
borrowed.