The Montgomery advertiser. [volume] (Montgomery, Ala.) 1885-1982, 1909-07-25
d,oe.sis Prsse.tatiea OF the History
..a re.en,sss OF II. Great
sand Famous
Order.

The Advertiser publishes herewith
he excellent address on Masonry de-
liversd by ]. c. Fonvilie. Of Luverne
IT celebration ut pleasant orovs'
Mr.. Fonville said:
masonry is comprehended under two
ouinations--operative ana specuia-
tive.
.sr3v operative Masonry we aiiude TO
: nroper application Of the useful rules
81 architecture, whence q structure
ri, derive figure. strength ana beau
~ ana whence will result Q due pro-
portion and q just Correspondence IN
Al its parts.
Operative Masonry 10 both Q science
md an art.
ia origin y % remote--past the
rnention Of authentic history, beyond
fhe hint Of tradition--that II 10 prop
sr1v In the vast and indeterminabie
vssfon Of surmise As no man knows
oi1loe no man can tell. any man can
i~s,r1hise. and stiil the conclusion VIII
"a 20 riamoured with doubt and I'M
certainty as to be shrouded In the
wioom Of fmpenetrable mystery.
surely the first endeavor. the nrst
attempt, the nrst effort at building
tFas the Inspiration OF necessity ana
n80K0u
Erd ruSYeness of neophitic Ignorance.
I An. may be so the first pile OF rock
~ stone. erected without regard to
EIrcie or square, without regard 70
Ewuometry. or harmony was conceived
Is, the mind and wrought by the hand
ahat introduced murder into the world;
a. by him who was the innocent VIC
aim: or yet, by him who. Interpreting
HE prophecy OF sacrifice. taught his
ron the nrst sacrifice Worship Of the
Most High God
I II either surmise be correct. then
Dperative Masonry was born when the
world was young. and Its development
npd progress are so interlinked with
HE history Of man that his progress
4r0m ignorance to learning. from dark
ness TO light, from barbarity to the
heights OF civilization In tfaceahie' hv
Its works.
/ we know not what progress man
mad made In science and art before his
Instruction. since with ante-deluvtan
wfrkedness went every vestige Of
mans antedeluvian achievement.
Surely the family preserved from de-
Rtructfon, brought from beyond the
k1eluge some knowledge of handiwork
en- stone. In brick. In mortar. for no
sooner than the racial increase was
sufYiclent than preparation against the
repetition of like destruction was at
tempted. and crumbling Babel Is
monument TO revival OF early skill and
mans forgetfuiness OF the promise in
the bow.
But Babel. though providentiaiiy de-
etroyed. even In its ruins attested. by
ats material for thousands Of years.
the proficiency of preparation.
| So Masonry was present with con-
fusion. AS it had no language but
fhat OF trowei. plumb. square and lev
ki. II followed the separating people
empartiaily. in all their migrations and
wnnderings, going with man wherer6r
he went. Improving as the yeafa roll
I'd on
The graves Of our. frst parents are
aost in the debris OF the deluge: the
Rude Inonumenfs that marked their
fast resting place. built in the infancy
pf the divine science. marked with the
hierogiyhics Of that primitive time.
are as completely lost. as the masters
word In tile awful silence OF the grave
but moroIith. sphinx and pyramid
preserve In everlasting shaft and pile
hhe dyna sites of ancient Egypt.
On Our Own Continent.
On our own continent the massive
ruins OF an ancient temple witness
departed dazzling civilization, with
glorious religious worship. whose glory
and grandeur can only be imagined
BY the vastness and greatness Of its
Femp1e's ruins
So Masonry has not only marked the
PROGRESS of civilization. but IN its
ruins. has marked the limit Of its
growth and the climax OF its achieve
fnent. and history would be paralyzed
without its unerring aid.
Religion. mythical and revealed
Pncient, medieval and modern. makes
operative Masonry scribe to record
her progress and greatness. Whether
incense rise from the altar that CRATE
1ui Jacob built: or from the gold GOV.
cred one that Solomon built: whether
rom affairs where worship was paid to
BaaL to Jupiter. Orinudy or Osiria.