Eureka daily sentinel. [volume] (Eureka, Nev.) 1871-1887, 1882-11-08
Il HUSBAND.
Playing 233 Degrees of Masonry On
n wife.
Milwaukee Sun.

A middle-aged lady, with a black alpaca
dress, worn shiny at the elbows, and q
cheap shawl, and a cheap bonnet, and her
hands puckered mp and blue, as though
she had just got her washing out, went
into the Office OF q prominent Mason a few
mornings since and took a chair. She
wiped her nose and the perspiration from
her face on a blue-checked apron, and
when the Mason looked at her, with an
interested, brotherly look, as though she
was in trouble, she said:
care you the boss Mason ?"
He blushed, told her he was a Mason,
but not the highest in the land. She
hesitated a moment, fingered the corner
of her apron, and curled it up like a boy
speaking a piece in school, and asked:
"Have you taken the whole two hun
dred and thirty-three degrees of Masonry
The man laughed and told here there
were only thirty-three degrees and he
had only taken thirty-two. The other
degree could only be taken by a very few
who were recommended by the grand
lodge, and they had to go to New York to
get the thirty-third degrees.
The lady studied a moment, unpinned
the safety-pin that held her shawl to-
gether, and put it in her mouth, took a
ioHS bIedtI, duu sdlu
"Where does my husband get the other
two hundred degrees, then ?"
The prominent Mason said he guessed
her husband never got two hundred de-
grees, unless he had a degree factory. He
said he didn't understand the lady.
"Does my husband have to set up with .
corpse three nights a week ?" she asked,
her eyes flashing fire. "And do they keep
a lot Of sick Masons on tap for my hus-
band to sit up with the other three nights?'
The prominent Mason said he was thank
full that few Masons died, and only occa-
sionally was one sick enough to call for
Masonic assistance.
"But-why do you ask these questions,
madam ?" said the prominent Mason.
The woman picked the fringe of her
shawl, hung her head down, and said
"Well, my husband began to join the
Masons about two years ago, and he has
been taking degrees or sitting up with
people every night since. He has come
homo twice with the wrong pair of draw
ers on, and when | asked him how it was,
he said it was a secret he could not re-
veal under the penalty of being shot with
a INT All he would say was he took
a degree. l have kept a little track of it,
and I figure that he has taken 233 de-
grees, including the grand Sky Fugle de-
gree, which he took the night he came
home with his lip cut, and his ear hang
ing by a piece of skin"
"Oh, madam" said the prominent
Mason, "there is no Sky Fugle degree il
Masonry. Your husband has deceived
you"
That's what I think" said she, as a
bsleful light appeared in her eye. "He
said he was taking the Sky Fugle degree,
and fell through the skylight. 1 had him
sewed up and he was ready for more de-
grees. After he had taken about q hun
dred and fifty degrees, l told him l should
think he would let up on it, and put some
potatoes in the cellar for winter, but he
said when a man once got started on the
degrees he had to take them all or he
didn't amount to anything. Sometimes a
brother Mason comes home along with
him in the morning and they talk about a
full fush,' and about their pat hands,
and raising 'em out One night when he
was asleep l heard him whisper, 4 raise
you ten dollars and when l asked him
what he meant, he said they had been
raising a purse for a poor widow. Another
time he raised up in bed, after he had been
asleep, and shouted, L stand pat and
when l asked him what he meant he said
he was ruined if l told it. He said he
had spoken the password, and if the
brethren heard Of it they would put him
out of the way, even as Morgan was put
of the way. Mister, is stand pat
your password?
The Mason told her it was not. That
the words she had spoken were an express
sion used by men when playing draw poker,
and he added that he di1n' balieye her
husband was a Mason at all, but that he
had been lying to her all these years.
She sighed and said: 'That's what I
thought when he came home with a lot of
ivory chips in his pocket. He said they
used them at the Lodge to vote on candi-
dates, and that a white chip elects and a
blue chip rejects a candidate. If you
will look the matter up and see if he has
Joined the Masons I will be obliged to
you. He says he has taken all the 233 de-
grees, and now the boys want him to join
the Knights of Pythias. I want to get out
an injunction to prevent him from joining
anything else until we get some under
clothes for Winter. I'll tell you what I
will do. The next time he says anything
about Sky Fugle degrees, I will take a
dashboard and make him think there is
one degree in Masonry that he has
skipped, and now good-by. You have
comforted me greatly, and I will lay
awake tonight till my husband comes
from the Lodge with his pat hand, and I
will make him think he has forgot his
ante"
The lady went out to the grocery to buy
some bar soap, and the prominent Mason
resumed his business with a feeling that
we are not all truly good, and there is