Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-10-07

About fifteen years ago his legal engagements
brought him to Washington, and here or at
recent biographer speaking Of Albert Pike,
says:
at Yves at Little Rock that this grand old man
of masonry first saw Masonic light-where he
was initiated, passed and raised. 1t was there
at any rate that he first presided as master in
the east. Not very long after making WASH
ington his home he retired from the Bar, and
has since devoted his entire time and energy to
the order he loves so well. The splendid rit-
uals of the Scottish rite today are for the most
part from his pen. When he accepted the
Grand commandership the degrees were quite
too commonplace for his broad mind and sub
limated fancy, so he went to work to re-
cast and embellish them, and how we'll
he has succeeded the intellectual, cultured
members of the Scottish Rite eau testify. Had
he given the public the full benefit of his liter
airy labors he would today rank in the world Of
letters with Max Muller and Thomas Carlyle.
Pike has the pathological and critical turn Of
the one. with comprehensive knowledge of
the Oriental religion, and the bold. rugged,
picturesque style OF expression which distip-
guished the other He also reminds one in
many respects of John Ruskin. He reveis in
an atmosphere Of poetic spirituality and has
little use for the conventional or commonplace
in art or manners.
AN INDEFATIaABLE WORKER.
he is certainly as fastidious as Ruskin ever was.
On the shelves Of the supreme councils rare
and magnificent library are seve nteen or eight
cen elegantly bound quarto volumes containing
bis transiations of the Rigveda, the Zenda-
vesta and other works OF Arysn literature; they
are not printed but are in manuscript, every
word delng quill written by the translator-this
venerable Masonic sage-and in all these thou
sands of pages there is not scratched word or
an erasure. This work has al been done since
Gen. Pike came to Washington and it will
stand as one of the great monuments to the
scholarship and industry Of a man who has done
more toward putting Masonry op q high intel
lectual plane than any other Mason living, and,
with very few exceptions than any Mason of
the past. II the young Mason Is disappointed
in the p!atitudes and historic inconsistencies
of the degrees of the blue lodge he finds abund-
ant food for thought aud q wide scope for
scholarly investigation when he advances
through the higher grades; Any Master
multitude"-is eligible to the Ancient
and Accepted Scottish degrees. This state
ment is made because many people are
under the impression that one must be Knight
Templar before no can enter the timetable"
and chiva!ric course. In q. few months the
the scale through the Lodge Of Perfection, the
Chapter OF Knights Rose Croix, the Council Of
Knixhts Kadosh and the Consistory of Princes
or Masters OF the Royal Secret-s2d
degree; but the thirty-third and last degree rs
never 70 be got BY asking. Only those who
Masonry or In public life can receive The
thirty-third And then they are elected to
this honor without their previous knowledge.
The grand commander can make scottish
nits Maicns .'at Gieht" Up 70 and including the
oad dssxss; thas =, hs Dan invest thsn WITH