The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1906-08-04
MASONRY---POLlTiCAL EDUCATOR
A ADDRESS DELIVERED N. THOMAS, OF THIS
CITY, BEF ORE THE CHAUTAUQUA ASSEMBLY MEETING AT
CRYSTAL SPRINGS MISS, LAST WEDNESDAY,
MASRoNRY's WORK PRESERVING THE TRUTH
Ladies and Gentlemen ::

of the great order on whose account
/ am presumed to deliver this address
therefore, / wish the audience to
know that what | shall presently say
about the history Of Free Masonry, is
the result OF my own thought and
research and hence, if my historical
data IS not correct, | want 1t distinct
ly understood that the ancient and
honorable order, for membership in
which I am devoutly grateful, is not
committed to my false history and
further, / must insist that my audi
ence will believe that it IS not my
purpose, or design, to attempt a vain
glorious advertisement Of Free Mas
onry indeed, | have no authority to
do this Masonry will submit to no
advertisement. In every truth, its
path lies alone the quiet ways
The origin OF Free Masonry is ira
ditionaL All Masons believe that it
originated with the Building of King
Solomon's temple The first three
most excellent Masters were biblical
characters, and had to do with the
construction OF that magnificent edi-
fee There IS no record or tradition
of the order durin~ the Dark Ages,
therefore, what I shall say about the
history of Free Masonry viii refer
no further back than the fourteenth
century and in discussing Masonry
as a political educator, | shall treat
the words political Educator as
synonymous with that Of the devel-
opment of the best type Of govern
ment The political dogma, deeply
rooted in the hearts of men as the
world emerged from. the mist and
shadows that followed the Dark
Ages, was, might makes right "
that the strong had a right to the
life, the liberty aud the service OF the
weak simply because they were
strong. The inevitable result OF such
a dogma was the unlimited monarchy
and feudal system, corallary thereto,
was the maxim of monarchy, The
King can do no wrong I believe
that Il will require no argument to
convince YOU that all good govern
mcnt must be builded on truth The
premise that makes right is false,
hence the conclusion, the unlimited
monarchy, with its attendant condi-
tions of war. slavery, murder and
every form of diabolical tyranny and
corruption. was bad The world must
ind a truth on which to build a gov
ernment cOnSonant with the highest
ideal of the best type of civilization );
that truth has been from the begin
ming it had been sleeping during the
Dark Ages 1t had not died truth
cannot die ; it is immortal. for God
IS truth It is a single truth all
truth Is simple ; the wise and learned
may not always find it, but the child
may see 1t. That truth was and is,
THE Fatherhood of God, and the
brotherhood of man This truth lay
dormant and ineffective in the keep
ing of Masonry. but it had not been
lost and in this connection, by the
way of parenthesis, | wish to say,
that it may be easier to lose a truth
than it IS to find it after it shall have
been lost. In the fourteenth century
when the world began to get away
from the ignorance, venality and car
mage that followed the Dark Ages,
Masonry began, in its own way, to I'M
press on the minds and hearts of men
this truth 1t was not a truth that
the king or the sfeudal lord desired
the people to know, therefore, it must
be taught in secret, and this may ac-
count for the historical fact that our
ancient brethren held their lodges on
high hills and low wales, so that they
might observe the approach of cow
ans and eavesdroppers this also
d
onry is a secret order and just here
/ desire to suggest that the secrets
of Free Masonry are not the essence
of the order. These secrets are the
caskets that contain the jewels the
caskets must be concealed, or the
jewels will be lost The world needs
the jewels for this reason they have
been preserved from the time when
the memory of man runneth not to
the contrary, and they shall forever
be preserved These secrets were
communicated only to men of lawful
age and of good reputation, and not
TO them, until after the severest test
and strictest examination, they were
found worthy to receive it, This was
required because the truth must be
planted in the proper soil, if it is to
be vitalized Therefore, at its resur-
rection, IN SO far as the history of
the people whom | deem it advisable
only TO consider, goes, it was planted
in the brave hearts of the Anglo-Sax-
on. This truth took root in the Mag
ma Charter, and then, after long cul-
tivation IT blossomed and bloomed in
to quasIrepresentative form of gov
ernment. There is another truth,
the legitimate offspring of the Faith
erhood of God and the brotherhood
of man that truth IS. that all men
are created equal If God is our
Father. our brethren must be our
equals This is to us an aphorism
still, the old world could not learn
it the doctrine was too startling
the effect to the existing form of gov
eminent was too disastrous, and.
along with this truth, there was a
tenet of the order which required all
Masons to be peaceable subjects to
the civil powers wherever they resid-
ed, or worked. The strict interpreta-
ton given by our ancient brethren to
this law, made them peaceable citi-
zcns of the government under which
they lived, be that government ever
SO tyrannical and cruel. If obedienr
to this tenet. there was no room in
the Old World for the enjoyment of
the truths which flow from the grand
truth THE Fatherhod of God and
= the brotherhood of man." as water
flows from the brook Our European
brethren dare not even assert that all
men are created equal. But after all
truth Is truth, and if the conditions