The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1909-10-08
THE BEAUTIES OF MASONRY
Major /. T. Izlar Delivers Beautiful
Grafton at the Laying of the
Corner Stone of the Temple
Theater, September 80
Fellow Craftsmen, Ladies and Gen

BY request l am before you today
in the place of the grand lodge ora
tor to address you on the subject of
ancient Free Masonry. The subject
is not new, and although its wide
fields are fruitful and furnish an in
iteresting, profitable and varied har-
vest for the sickle of the orator, his
torian and poet, these busy workers
have so often reaped the broad fields
over until I fear that few ears remain
for the timid Ruths who follow after.
Il is quite an easy matter to speak
,Of Free MasOnry-that intellectual
system of beautiful allegOry and
wonderful object lessOns-when the
audience is composed of those only
who have gone that way before you;
but when the task is undertaken he
fore an assembly COMPOSED largely
of prOfanes, of those who have never
heard interpreted those "hieroglyphic
lights" which none but craftsmen
ever saw, the work assumes q char
.acter both difficult and embarrassing.
'Tis then that the speaker walks UIt
into beautiful gardens Illuminated
with Masonic light, revealing 10 his
enraptured vision lovely flowers, oJor-
Gus with delicious perfume, luscious
fruits on every hand bending jhC
boughs until they kiss his lips, pic
lures rising in grandeur and sublim-
ity ravishing the soul; and yet he
dare not pluck a tiny rose from its
that an apple may fall, or point out
the beauties of the magnificent pic
lures that burn into the depths of
his heart and mind. He must walk in
the midst of these enrapturing
scenes as though he saw them not
With all these emotions of the high
CT and better life sweeping like tor
rent through his soul, he must guard
edly keep down the roar of the
mighty tide, CAUTION! is whisper
ed into his ear at every step Mind
battling with the emotions of the
soul, for fear he pronounce some
Shibboleth not in place for the ears
Of the profane. This struggle cannot
fail to detract from the interest of
what the speaker may say on coca
sions like this. | shall not evade the
effort, however, and beg your patience
while l briefly discuss the subject as
signed me IN the following order:
First The origin; and, second,
the object of Masonry.
The prevailing idea, as well among
the Masons as with the public gener-
ally, is that the order of Ancient Free
MasoRs dates its origin from the time
.of the building Of King Solomon's
temple at Jerusalem. That it was
there while the multitude of artisans
were laboring under the direction and
supervision Of that master-builder,
Hiram Abiff, that the star of Mason
ny first shed its light upon the world.
That in looking down now from the
zenith OF her glory, Masonry need
claim no greater antiquity than to go
back to the splendid reign of King
solomon. What more need her vo-
tarieS ask than to have for her found
ers, Hiram Abiff, Hiram King of
Tyre, and Solomon. A grand trinity
of skill, devotion and wisdom. under
the united efforts of whom arose the
grandest architectural pile that ever
found place in the history of the
world. Designed by the great archi-
tect himself, and erected under inspir-
ed wisdom, it stood completed, sym
metrical in all of its parts, perfect in
its proportions and resplendant in its
magnificent adornments! While it no
longer beauties the earth, it stands
today in its history unmatched in ar
chitectural grandeur and perfection.
Yes, l cOncede that Masons might
We'll NOuNSuL lueLuSC4FCS w NIdlHllS
no greater antiquity than this well de-
fined period in the worlds history.
and asking no more distinguished
founders than the Hirams and Solo
mon the Wise. Well, in one sense
We do. Masonry, as an organized or
der. we claim, was founded at that
time and by those illustrious men. As
an organized body the evidence is am
pie; that it existed then, and We are
content to rest its origin there, al
though there is much evidence that.
even as an organization, it dated
much further back. Commander Cor
ringe, himself a bright craftsman,
found remarkably strong evidence of
he existence of the order as a body
when he was preparing Cleopatra's
Needle for its passage from the
shores of the Nile TO the shores of