The Twin City star., 1914-02-06
HIGH IDEALS OF :,
MASONIC ORDER
Brief Outline Of tho Frater.
nlty's Basic Principles.
PRINCE HALL As PIONEER.

PRINCE HALL As PIONEER.
Spirit Of Brotherhood Which -Pervades
tho Ranks Of Time Honored Society
Extolled-How the First Lodge Of the
Order Among CoIored Men In Ameri-
oa Was Established. .-.,...- T. 49,.
By RALPH w. TYLER.
The Masonic fraternity is q most
beneficent order. Its fundamental
principles, know no color or race, no
country or cline. With more than
5000 years Of well doing behind 1t, it
is Just as earnest and vigorous to up
hold the traditions of the order as
when building the temple-t0 spread
the gospel of the brotherhood of man
throughout the length and breadth Of
the land. ,... t.-a s. 49,,
The legitimacy Of Negro Masonry is
today honored in the breach, If not in
the observance, everywhere. In the
face of historical facts and records the
legitimacy of the Negro Mason cannot
be questioned. At one time our legiti-
macy was questioned because Prince
Hall, the founder Of the first Masonic
lodge among colored men in this coun-
try, had been made a Mason in an
army lodge back in the Revolutionary
days. ..-
Laws and records, however, estab-
lished the right for the existence Of
army lodges. After this objection had
been completely swept aside still our
legitimacy was questioned, primarily
on the ground that two grand bodies
could not exist In the same jurisdic-
ton. At one time. many years ago,
white Masons made the tentative
proposition that If Negro Masons
would prefix the descriptive word "Ne-
gro'' to our grand lodges they would
recognize us as Masonic brothers.
The Negro Masons came back with
the reply that Masonry knows no COL
or, cline or country.
When evidence was produced to
prove that Prince Hall, the first Negro
Mason in the United States, had been
recognized by the grand lodge of Eng
land, from which came the charter for
the white Masons.
The great lesson which Masonry
teaches its votaries is that "a man is q
man for a. that" And the fundamen-
tai principles of Masonry teach that
we are all citizens of one country,
which is the whole world itself; MEM
bers of one family, which is the entire
human race. and children OF one Ia
ther, who is the Omnipotent God above
and around us. ->
Whether be comes from the jungles
of Africa, the cotton plantations OF
Mississippi, the plains Of Hindustan.
the burning sands Of Arabia, the snow
capped SUBMITS Of Greenland or from
! whatever nation or cline, If he is a
h Mason and can prove himself such,
he should be welcomed as man and
q brother. -.
The wisdom of Masonry is exempli-
fed in esta bfishing her basis on the
immutable foundation Of truth. The
shackles fall from the hands Of pref
udice and bigotry at the entrance OF
her shrine. In her sacred retreat ev-
cry discordant voice is hushed, and the
bitterness Of sectarian strife is abash-
ed into silence in the awful. presence
of pure and absolute truth.
If Masonry were to require any 9TH
er creed than God is our Father and
that men are his children and there
fore bound to love him and one anoth-
er, her grand object would at once be
defeated. Next to allegiance to God
and springing from it, its controlling
principle is love for man as man.
Masonry meets man In all the varie'
ties of his condition with sympathy
and comprehends him in all Of bis
complex nature. Before the altar all
distinctions vanish. and all men,
prince or peasant. stand alike in the
presence and must meet upon the level.
Prince Hall was never discouraged.
When bitterly treated as a clandes-
tine, he approached the fountain head
the grand lodge of England. After
he had established the first lodge
among Negroes he wrote from Boston,
under date of March 81. 17S4, as fol-
lows: II would inform you that this
lodge hath been founded almost eight
years. We have had no opportunity
to apply for warrant before. though
we have been importuned to send to
France for one, yet we thought best to
send to the fountain head from
whence we received the light for q
warrant"
Six months later, on Sept 20, 17S4.
10 years ago. the grand lodge of Eng
land, whose grand east is in London,
granted his prayer BY issuing to the
fifteen colored men who had been In
itiated into the mysteries Of Masonry