THE BUILDER APRIL 1918

FOR THE MONTHLY LODGE MEETING

CORRESPONDENCE CIRCLE BULLETIN---No. 17
DEVOTED TO ORGANIZED MASONIC STUDY
Edited by Bro. Robert I. Clegg

THE BULLETIN COURSE OF MASONIC STUDY 
FOR MONTHLY LODGE MEETINGS AND STUDY CLUBS

FOUNDATION OF THE COURSE

THE Course of Study has for its foundation two sources of Masonic
information: THE BUILDER and Mackey's Encyclopedia. In another
paragraph is explained how the references to former issues of THE
BUILDER and to Mackey's Encyclopedia may be worked up as
supplemental papers to exactly fit into each installment of the
Course with the paper by Brother Clegg.

MAIN OUTLINE

The Course is divided into five principal divisions which are in
turn subdivided, as is shown below:

Division 1. Ceremonial Masonry.
A. The Work of a Lodge. 
B. The Lodge and the Candidate. 
C. First Steps. 
D. Second Steps. 
E. Third Steps.

Division II. Symbolical Masonry.
A. Clothing. 
B. Working Tools. 
C. Furniture. 
D. Architecture. 
E. Geometry. 
F. Signs. 
G. Words. 
H. Grips.

Division III. Philosophical Masonry.
A. Foundations. 
B. Virtues. 
C. Ethics. 
D. Religious Aspect. 
E. The Quest. 
F. Mysticism. 
G. The Secret Doctrine.

Division IV. Legislative Masonry.
A. The Grand Lodge.
1. Ancient Constitutions.
2. Codes of Law.
3. Grand Lodge Practices.
4. Relationship to Constituent Lodges.
5. Official Duties and Prerogatives.
B. The Constituent Lodge.
1. Organization.
2. Qualifications of Candidates.
3. Initiation, Passing and Raising
4. Visitation
5. Change of Membership.

Division V. Historical Masonry.
A. The Mysteries--Earliest Masonic Light. 
B. Studies of Rites--Masonry in the Making. 
C. Contributions to Lodge Characteristics. 
D. National Masonry. 
E. Parallel Peculiarities in Lodge Study. 
F. Feminine Masonry. 
G. Masonic Alphabets. 
H. Historical Manuscripts of the Craft. 
I. Biographical Masonry.
J. Philological Masonry--Study of Significant Words.

THE MONTHLY INSTALLMENTS

Each month we are presenting a paper written by Brother Clegg, who
is following the foregoing outline. We are now in "First Steps" of
Ceremonial Masonry. There will be twelve monthly papers under this
particular subdivision. On page two, preceding each installment,
will be given a number of "Helpful Hints" and a list of questions
to be used by the chairman of the Committee during the study period
which will bring out every point touched upon in the paper.

Whenever possible we shall reprint in the Correspondence Circle
Bulletin articles from other sources which have a direct bearing
upon the particular subject covered by Brother Clegg in his monthly
paper. These articles should be used as supplemental papers in
addition to those prepared by the members from the monthly list of
references. Much valuable material that would otherwise possibly
never come to the attention of many of our members will thus be
presented.

The monthly installments of the Course appearing in the
Correspondence Circle Bulletin should be used one month later than
their appearance. If this is done the Committee will have
opportunity to arrange their programs several weeks in advance of
the meetings and the Brethren who are members of the National
Masonic Research Society will be better enabled to enter into the
discussions after they have read over and studied the installment
in THE BUILDER.

REFERENCES FOR SUPPLEMENTAL PAPERS

Immediately preceding each of Brother Clegg's monthly papers in the
Correspondence Circle Bulletin will be found a list of references
to THE BUILDER and Mackey's Encyclopedia. These references are
pertinent to the paper and will either enlarge upon many of the
points touched upon or bring out new points for reading and
discussion. They should be assigned by the Committee to different
Brethren who may compile papers of their own from the material thus
to be found, or in many instances the articles themselves or
extracts therefrom may be read directly from the originals. The
latter method may be followed when the members may not feel able to
compile original papers, or when the original may be deemed
appropriate without any alterations or additions.

HOW TO ORGANIZE FOR AND CONDUCT THE STUDY MEETINGS

The Lodge should select a "Research Committee" preferably of three
"live" members. The study meetings should be held once a month,
either at a special meeting of the Lodge called for the purpose, or
at a regular meeting at which no business (except the Lodge
routine) should be transacted--all possible time to be given to the
study period.

After the Lodge has been opened and all routine business disposed
of, the Master should turn the Lodge over to the Chairman of the
Research Committee. This Committee should be fully prepared in
advance on the subject for the evening. All members to whom
references for supplemental papers have been assigned should be
prepared with their papers and should also have a comprehensive
grasp of Brother Clegg's paper.

PROGRAM FOR STUDY MEETINGS

1. Reading of the first section of Brother Clegg's paper and the
supplemental papers thereto.

(Suggestion: While these papers are being read the members of the
Lodge should make notes of any points they may wish to discuss or
inquire into when the discussion is opened. Tabs or slips of paper
similar to those used in elections should be distributed among the
members for this purpose at the opening of the study period.)

2. Discussion of the above.

3. The subsequent sections of Brother Clegg's paper and the
supplemental papers should then be taken up, one at a time, and
disposed of in the same manner.

4. Question Box.

MAKE THE "QUESTION BOX" THE FEATURE OF YOUR MEETINGS

Invite questions from any and all Brethren present. Let them
understand that these meetings are for their particular benefit and
get them into the habit of asking all the questions they may think
of. Every one of the papers read will suggest questions as to facts
and meanings which may not perhaps be actually covered at all in
the paper. If at the time these questions are propounded no one can
answer them, SEND THEM IN TO US. All the reference material we have
will be gone through in an endeavor to supply a satisfactory
answer. In fact we are prepared to make special research when
called upon, and will usually be able to give answers within a day
or two. Please remember, too, that the great Library of the Grand
Lodge of Iowa is only a few miles away, and, by order of the
Trustees of the Grand Lodge, the Grand Secretary places it at our
disposal on any query raised by any member of the Society.

FURTHER INFORMATION

The foregoing information should enable local Committees to conduct
their Lodge study meetings with success. However, we shall welcome
all inquiries and communications from interested Brethren
concerning any phase of the plan that is not entirely clear to
them, and the services of our Study Club Department are at the
command of our members, Lodge and Study Club Committees at all
times.

HELPFUL HINTS TO STUDY CLUB LEADERS

From the following questions the Committee should select, some time
prior to the evening of the study meeting, the particular questions
that they may wish to use at their meeting which will bring out the
points in the following paper which they desire to discuss. Even
were but five minutes devoted to the discussion of each of the
questions given it will be seen that it would be impossible to
discuss all of them in ten or twelve hours. The wide variety of
questions here given will afford individual Committees an
opportunity to arrange their program to suit their own fancies and
also furnish additional material for a second study meeting each
month if desired by the members.

In conducting the study periods the Chairman should endeavor to
hold the discussions closely to the text and not permit the members
to speak too long at one time or to stray onto another subject.
Whenever it becomes evident that the discussion is turning from the
original subject the Chairman should request the speaker to make a
note of the particular point or phase of the matter he wishes to
discuss or inquire into, and bring it up when the Question Box
period is opened.

QUESTIONS ON "APPROACHING THE EAST"

Into how many sections is the present study divided ? What are
they? What is your definition of the meaning of the word
"orientation" ? When may the candidate be said to be "oriented" ?
To what were temples of ancient times dedicated ? How were they
oriented ? Why ? How were ancient cities oriented ? Where was the
altar placed in ancient times? Why? What was the situation of the
Holy place in the Temple of Solomon ? From whom did the Operative
Masons derive their practice of placing the Master's chair in the
East? What did the Pagans see in the Sun? Is there a representation
of the Sun in the Masonic East? How did the ancient peoples hope to
find God? Through whom do we expect to find God ?

II

How far north does the Sun reach in its summer journey ? Whence
originated the thought of the North as a place of darkness ? What
did the North symbolize to the ancient peoples ? What does it
symbolize to us ? Why ? Have Masons today any superstitions
regarding the North?

What does the South symbolize? What stage of man's existence is
symbolized by the South ? Whose station is in the South in the
Masonic Lodge? Why? What order of architecture is represented in
the South? In the West? In the East?

What is the significance of the West? What place did the West
occupy in Operative Lodges ? In Greek mythology ? What does the
expression "gone West" signify ?

III

Why is the candidate instructed to face the East ? What does the
East symbolize ? Whence originated knowledge ? Name some of the
symbols of the East visible in the Masonic Lodgeroom. What
celebrated characters in ancient and biblical history came from the
East? What nations are synonymous with the word "East"? To whom did
the East signify the dawn of a new day? Why are our dead buried
with their feet to the East ?

IV

What is the significance of the candidate's approach to the East?
How would you answer the questions propounded in the present study
paper concerning your duty to God, your country, your neighbor and
yourself? Are you in accord with the answers given to these
questions in that part of the paper just read? Can you add to them?
(Discuss the several duties of a Mason as outlined in the Entered
Apprentice Charge.)

SUPPLEMENTAL REFERENCES

Mackey's Encyclopedia:

Cardinal Points, p. 134.
East, p. 226.
Orientation, p. 537.

THE BUILDER:

Vol. I--Symbolism of the First Degree, p. 235.
Vol. II--What An Entered Apprentice Ought to Know, April C. C. B.,
p. 7.



FIRST STEPS
BY BROS. H.L. HAYWOOD AND R.I. CLEGG

We have this month combined the papers of Brother Haywood and
Brother Clegg rather than to print them separately as formerly and
then to use one as a supplemental paper, as we find that at many
study meetings the supplemental paper is sometimes neglected simply
because to use it would necessitate re-opening discussions that had
already been closed. The material of Brother Haywood's which we are
using is taken from the manuscript of his forthcoming book on "The
interpretation of the Three Degrees of Blue Lodge Masonry," soon to
be published.
EDITOR.

PART V - APPROACHING THE EAST

I
THIS portion of the ceremony has many things to tell us, which, in
order to simplify the discussion, we may break into four divisions:
(1) Orientation, (2) Symbolism of the Cardinal Points, (3)
Significance of the East, and (4) the meaning of the Candidate's
Approach to the East.

In early Egypt, as Norman Lockyer tells us in his "Dawn of
Astronomy," the most brilliant of all works on Orientation, and as
authoritative as it is readable, it was the custom to dedicate a
temple to some planet or star, to the Moon in one of her phases, or
to the sun at one of his various periods. Originally, perhaps, a
majority of the temples were dedicated to the rising sun; in that
event the building was so situated that on a given day in the year
the light of the sun would pass between the pillars at the entrance
and fall upon the altar at the moment of his first appearance above
the horizon. This placing the temple so as to face the dawn gave
rise to the term "Orientations," which means "finding the east."
However, other temples were directed toward the moon or star, and
this also, by an accommodation of language, was called orientation.
The term was further used, in after days, when a building of a city
was laid out in harmony with the cardinal points; according to this
usage the City of Rome was oriented, for its first form was a
quadrangle with a gate facing in each direction. (A.Q.C. vol. 4, p.
87.) This custom was practiced by the Jews, and indeed may be
considered as universal throughout the ancient world. Moreover it
was carried over into Christian customs, for all the early churches
were oriented to the sun, the Apostolic Constitutions specifying
that a church must be "an oblong form, and directed to the east."

Inasmuch as the orienting of a temple was chiefly for the purpose
of permitting the light to fall on its altar on a given day, the
altar was necessarily placed in the west end of the building. This
arrangement must also have been often used by the Jews, even though
they did reverse so many "heathen" customs, for Dr. Wynn Westcott
tells us that, "It is clear that both the Mosaic Tabernacle and the
Temple of Solomon had the Holy Place at the west." But, he goes on
to say, and this is a point especially deserving of our attention?
"it is equally certain that churches from the earliest Christian
development have always reversed the positions when possible." This
is to say, though Christian houses of worship were placed east and
west as the heathen temples had been, they were built with their
altars in the east end instead of in the west. It is from the
Christian churches of Medieval times, no doubt, that the Operative
Masons derived their practice of placing the Master's station in
the East.

The pagans saw in the sun a symbol of Deity, in its rays an emblem
of the Divine forth-shining; accordingly they had the sun, or a
representation of the sun, in the East. We also worship a Deity
whom we have clothed with Light, but in our East is no longer the
natural sun, or even a representation thereof, but a man, the
Master. To my mind this is a thing of profound significance, though
I can not place the weight of the name of any one of our
authorities behind my interpretation. Ancient peoples, like
ourselves, were in search of God, even as are we. They hoped to
find Him in Nature, among the things that He had made, even as the
Wise Men followed a star in their search for Him; but whereas they
went "through Nature to God," we go "through man to God," and
believe that His completest unveiling will be found in the
perfected human soul, even as the Master of Masters said, "He that
hath seen ME hath seen the Father."

II

Mackey uses as an illustration the fact that the sun in its summer
journey never passes north of 23d 28', and that a wall built
anywhere above that will have its northern side entirely in shadow
even when the sun stands at his meridian. As this fact became known
to early peoples it led them to look upon the North as the place of
darkness. Accordingly, in all ancient mythologies, that portion of
space was regarded with suspicion and even with terror. This
prejudice was carried over into the Middle Ages, and traces of it,
often dim and vague, survive to this day in popular customs. In his
"Antiquities of Freemasonry," Fort writes that the "North by the
Jutes was denominated black or sombre; the Frisians called it 'Fear
corner.' The gallows faced North, and from these hyperborean shores
beyond the North everything base and terrible proceeded." To the
churchmen of medieval times it carried a like sinister meaning, as
we may read in "Animal Symbolism in Ecclesiastical Architecture"
(E. P. Evans, p. 258); "The north is the region of meteorological
devils which, under the dominion and leadership of the 'Prince of
the power of the air' produce storms and convulsions in Nature and
foster unruly passions and deeds of violence in man. The evil
principle, as embodied in unclean beasts and exhibited in obscene
and lascivious actions, was properly portrayed in the sculptures
and painting on the north side of the church, which was assigned to
Satan and his satellites, and known as 'the black side.'" Milton
connects Satan with the North and Shakespeare speaks of demons "who
are substitutes under the lonely monarch of the north." This
cardinal point has a similar meaning in Masonry, and the portion of
the Lodge on the northern side should contain no furniture or
lights.

By token of the same symbolic reasoning the South stands for all
that is opposed to the North; in that direction the sun reaches his
meridian, pouring light, warmth and beauty. Accordingly, church
builders of old time were wont to depict on the South wall of their
churches the triumphs of Christianity, and the millennial reign of
Christ. In the Lodge the Corinthian column, type of beauty, is
stationed in the South as is also the Junior Warden. It is the
place of High Twelve, and the scene of the labors of the Craft.
As the West is the place of the sun's setting and of the closing of
the day it stands for rest, for darkness, and for death. In
Operative Lodges it was the place set apart for finished work. In
Greek mythology it was the place of Hades, that is, darkness and
death; as we may read in Sophocles.

"Life on life downstricken goes 
Swifter than the wild bird's flight, 
Swifter than the Fire-God's might, 
To the westering shores of Night."

Tennyson makes Arthur to go into the West and Ulysses to travel
beyond the paths of the setting sun; and at this day, it is said,
soldiers in the trenches of Europe speak of a dead comrade as
having "gone West." To the West all men come at last, men and
Masons, to the beautiful, tender West, and lay them down in the
sleep that knows no waking.

III

We face the source from whence comes light. Knowledge has ever been
associated with the East. Thence came the Arabian contribution of
algebra to our mathematical information. Euclid and Pythagoras were
therefrom, and the many who in mere conversation unconsciously use
such phrases as "the shortest distance between two points is a
straight line," or practically refer to "the music of the spheres,"
are alluding to these industrious and thoughtful pioneer scientists
and philosophers whose names are forever famous among Freemasons.
From the East came the mysterious Magi, the three Wise Men, unto
the manger at Bethlehem. Around them has lovingly clustered, the
legends founding and formulating a great faith, the very
graciousness of glory that is Christendom. Led by a star, symbol
serene of hope, they came. At the quaint and curious cradle they
gave their gifts, worshipped and went their way.

Egypt, the mystical and ancient, is in the East. Monuments
mysterious and of great antiquity are scattered over the land with
astounding freedom in numbers and dimensions. Figures and
hieroglyphics appear profusely on very many surfaces and these
inscriptions, more or less definitely deciphered, tell strange
stories of the world's oldest-known centers of civilization.

Further to the eastward sweeps India, China, Siam and Japan. These
be homes of philosophies profound and appealing. Down from a remote
period of the earth's history there has been nourished in these
countries the blaze of a religious reasoning not yet reduced to
embers, only, of once active fiery faiths.

To the East then do we turn our eyes as did the Druids of Britain
or the followers of Mithras. They saw in the East the dawn of new
days, a source of light and warmth, a never-failing and
never-faltering friend the hope for harvests, the sure promise of
sheaves of grain and garlands of flowers.

If there is one symbol that recurs again and again in Our Blue
Lodge Ritual, like a musical refrain, it is the East; of this I
almost despair to speak, save in crudest outline, so rich and so
many-sided is the truth enshrined in it. As the center of gravity
is to the earth, and all things thereon, so is the East to a
Masonic Lodge; the Master sits there, the representative of a
complete humanity; the Blazing Star shines there, the mystic "G" at
the center of the rays; it is the bourne, the goal, the ultimate
destination, towards which the whole Craft moves.

IV

If this interpretation of the East is valid, as I am profoundly
convinced that it is, the candidate's "approach to the East" is a
symbolic act of far-reaching meaning, for it means nothing less
than that he has tuned his will toward the perfecting of his own
human nature in order to enter into communion with the Divine; if
he is compelled to advance by a certain regulated manner it is in
token of the fact that the soul itself is a realm of law and that
he who would reach the soul's highest development must walk in
harmony with the spirit's laws; and if, in the succeeding degrees,
his manner of approach approximates more and more toward a perfect
step it is in recognition of the necessity of gradual and orderly
progress in the highest growth Always and everywhere, in whatever
condition or task a man finds himself, if he would "go up into the
seer's house," he must mount by those virtues of Purity, Beauty,
and Truth which are the hidden laws of the seer's own heart.

Is this the mood wherein we all walk to the East, upright and
regular of step ? None other should be our manner if we but grasp
the intent of the instruction.

At this time, too, we may also bear in mind the foundation of
Masonic ethics. Do we give heed to our duty to God? What is our-
debt to Country? What may our neighbors expect of a Freemason ?
What owe we to ourselves?

Nought is there in Masonry that interferes with the very fullest
performance of every single syllable of just requirement an
individual can fulfill in answer to the foregoing questions.

Our duty to God is a sincere accord with all his wishes, to live in
his world with every willingness to do his will, to serve him
loyally, to be his in all things and for all ends. Nothing less may
be the measure of a Mason's faithfulness.

My country affords me home and property protection, a fair foothold
among men, a buckler and a bulwark against hostile armies, a place
where prosperity is surely possible and happiness most probable if
I but do my part. Could I do less? As a Mason I should aim at more.
Patriotism assuredly among Masons is a primary principle.

Am I a distant neighbor? Am I friendly? Is there any better way of
making friends than by being one? Does duty to neighbor mean to a
Mason aught else than a courteous concern that they shall never
receive from him anything but help in misfortune, commendation in
success, and always good cheer ?

Shall a Mason be selfishly solicitious of his own person and
property? Certainly not to the extent where it endangers the rights
of others. A Mason is moderate of claims personal to himself. He is
cautious of acts whereby his body and mind may suffer. Intemperance
of appetite is as shunned by him as is the intemperate word. Never
does he over-indulge the body, or by malicious word or deed wound
another. Out of his mouth goes not the hasty ill-considered
judgment, neither into it enters the enemy to steal away his brains
or cripple his bodily powers.

Think of these things, my brethren, when making a promise, assuming
any obligation to God or man. For these be indeed the thoughts that
thrill the thinking Mason at all critical times. Yes, they do truly
come close to his mind and heart when he sees the initiate first
face Eastwardly.

He that faces the East aright and proceeds to approach thereto is
wise and opportune in purpose and in timeliness. His feet will walk
the path deliberately if he is but started properly and instructed
intelligently. Well, how is he instructed to proceed?

Brethren, you know as well as I. You are aware of the manner of
movement and the extent thereof. Think well of its meaning. Grasp
the importance of motion by a regular plan.

Search the symbolism of all these acts. Not one of them is
unimportant. Each has a deep significance to the discerning eye.
For of such is Masonry. It means nothing to those that are blinded
by prejudice, dumb of expression and deaf to understanding. To the
attentive glance much is revealed and to him that is fortified and
equipped by a cultivated consciousness the Craft opens a great
store of Knowledge when approaching the East.

I ask not for forgiveness, Lord, nor help,
Nor strength nor mercy at Thy hand.
Give me just faith, Oh Lord, sincere and true,
Faith in my fellowman.
I see, Oh, Lord, the wonder of Thy work
But ask not understanding of Thy plan.
Grant me a faith to guide me in the world,
Faith in my fellowman.

---George Gatlin.

"CHRISTIAN MYSTICISM AND OTHER ESSAYS" A REVIEW

BY BRO. JOHN SEAMAN GARNS, UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA

"Christian Mysticism" is the title of a slender little volume of
essays by Brother H. L. Haywood, Editor of the Library Department
of THE BUILDER--a volume which even the most casual reader will
find richly rewarding.

The author's foreword states the impulse out of which the book has
grown: "the hope that it may lead some kindred spirit to seek a
closer walk with that little band of God-intoxicated spirits who
hold in their hands today, as ever before, the destinies of
religion."

The initial essay, which lends its title to the volume, is an
illuminating introduction to mysticism in general. In it the author
has rendered great service to the lay reader by clearly
discriminating mysticism from occultism, on the one hand, and from
religions or authority on the other. He then proceeds to sketch
with rare appreciation the spirit of each of the various groups of
mystics--Nature, Love, Philosophical and Devotional Mystics, as
well as that larger group of those who, like St. Augustine, Luther,
Fox, Loyola and many another "have never yielded themselves
entirely to the life, albeit they have tasted of its hidden manna
and drunk from its brimming wells."

There follows a spirited defense of mysticism from the oft-repeated
charge of other-worldliness and sloth on the one hand, and
intellectual vagueness and fuzzy mindedness on the other. Far from
being a beautiful mirage conjured up by visionaries along life's
hard horizon lines, it is, the author feels sure, "human nature's
daily food."

At the close of the essay the author takes the interested reader by
the hand and points him helpfully forward into the literature of
the subject, advising as to the best order in which to read the
books mentioned and what one may hope to gain from each. Taken all
in all, as a brief, practical and inspiring introduction to
mysticism, this little essay has probably never bee surpassed in
the literature of the subject.

The two remaining essays in the volume are the ripe fruit of the
author's own mystical experience. A the titles would indicate, "The
Secret Place of the Most High" and "The Invisible World" are short
excursion into the world of spiritual experience, under the
guidance of one sure of foot and keen of vision. The author's
thought in all the essays is crystal clear; his style smooth and
flowing. To readers mystically inclined, as well as that larger
audience of uninitiated ones who would in brief compass get a first
hand interpretation of mysticism, the book will prove invaluable. 

"Christian Mysticism" is published by The Murray Press, Boston, at
fifty cents. Copies may be had from the publishers or through the
National Masonic Research Society.

Reverence for age is a fair test of the vigor of youth Kingsley.

Regard him as a revealer of treasure for you who reveals your
faults.--Buddha.

THE DEGREES PROBLEM
BY BRO. H. L. HAYWOOD, IOWA

THE "Degrees Problem" (it will long remain that--a problem) may be
best stated in a group of questions: What is a Degree? Why have we
three degrees? How many degrees did the old Operative Masons use?
What were they? How did they originate ? Whence came our Blue Lodge
Degrees ? In answering these questions in what way circumstances
permit I shall try to observe the scientific rule of keeping
separate our theories of what may have happened from the facts
which show what did happen; and when a theory is required to bridge
over a gap in the facts I shall try to be frank enough to call it
a "theory." This may in itself prove a gain, for times without
number Masonic writers, more zealous than accurate, have offered as
facts what really were theories having very little evidence behind
them. (Let this not be understood as throwing stones against any of
our writers, for in many cases--Oliver may be mentioned here--
their wildest theories have led ultimately to fruitful discoveries
of facts; besides, what weaknesses Masonic writers have had they
have shared in common with writers in other fields.)

The division of our ritual into three degrees is one of the
evidences that Masonry is truly a "progressive" science for it is
by this means that it adapts itself to the gradual unfoldment of
the candidate's comprehension. Gould defines a "degree" as
"representing a rank secretly conferred." Speth's definition is
more elaborate: "A Masonic degree is a rank and dignity with which
one is, by legal authority, invested; by a ceremony of initiation
or reception, longer or shorter, scenic, spectacular or
instructive, or with scenic pomp." (A.Q.C. vol. 1, pp. 77.) Hughan
speaks to the same end in writing on degrees: "they are conferred,"
he writes in the A.Q.C. Transactions, (vol. 3, p. 25) "only on the
favored few, to the exclusion of all others, with peculiar secrets
attached to each; separate obligations as respects their esoteric
(secret) character, and distinct ceremonies."

Blue Lodge Masonry may be pictured as an elevated platform ascended
by three steps; indeed, the three degrees are sometimes spoken of
as the "three steps," for they represent stages of a progress. But
a degree is more than a step; more also than a rank, or grade,
though it contains the meaning of each of these terms within
itself, because, as now used, every Blue Lodge degree is embodied
in a distinctive ceremony without which the degree can not be a
degree. This embodiment of the degree in its appropriate ceremony
is a fact of high importance, for around it evolves the whole
controversy over the origin of our three degrees.

This "grading" of members according to their several stages of
development, like almost every other usage in Masonry, is no
arbitrary arrangement but springs up out of the requirements of
human nature as grass grows out of the sod. This is proved by the
fact that in all forms of secret societies among primitive races
the membership was divided into grades, consisting, usually, of
boys, young unmarried men, married men, and elders. On this,
Professor Hutton Webster, whose "Primitive Secret Societies" gave
us our information concerning the "Men's House," makes this
significant comment: "The tribe becomes in fact, a secret
association, divided into grades or classes out of which as a later
development arise the 'degrees' of the secret societies." And just
as we have words, grips, and secrets to distinguish the degrees one
from another so the primitive men were often physically marked--as
by circumcision--and were usually given a new name and a secret
language. Such a custom as this would not have survived through
these almost countless centuries did it not fulfil some requirement
of our nature.

That the members of the old Operative Masons Lodges were similarly
graded is a fact which our authorities have not disputed, whatever
may have been their other differences. All of them would, I
believe, agree with R. H. Baxter when he says: "One thing is
clearly determined, that from earliest times the grades of
Apprentice, Fellow, and Master were recognized, and it is purely a
question for debate as to whether separate ceremonies, with
distinguishing secrets, marked the admission to the different
steps."

Our authorities have also been agreed that much of the symbolic
material which now composes our three Blue Lodge ceremonies was in
existence long before the Grand Lodge era, during which time our
degree ritualism was given its present form. Two or three citations
will prove this. In his "Collected Essays" (p. 125) Gould writes:
"Beyond all reasonable doubt the essentials of the three craft
degrees must have existed before the formation of the First Grand
Lodge--that of England--in 1717." Speaking of the Ancient
Constitutions (or "Old Charges") which were in use at least as
early as the Fifteenth Century, Baxter says that "only a slight
stretching of the imagination is necessary to read the whole of the
essentials of the Three Degrees (including the Royal Arch) into
these documents." To the same end writes Woodford: "Where did the
Freemasonry of 1717 come from? To accept for one moment the
suggestion that so complex and curious system, embracing so many
archaic remains, and such skilfully adjusted ceremonies, so much
connected matter, accompanied by so many striking symbols, could
have been the creation of a pious fraud, or ingenious conviviality,
presses heavily on our powers of belief, and even passes over the
normal credulity of our species. The traces of antiquity are too
many to be overlooked or ignored." Thus, these three representative
modern writers agree that the materials of which our three degree
ceremonies are composed existed, for the most part, before the era
of Speculative Masonry; and the moment we pass behind that date
there is no time limit to be set to the antiquity of these
materials. "If we once get back beyond or behind the year 1717,
i.e. into the domain of Ancient Masonry, and again look back, the
vista is perfectly illimitable, without a speck or shadow to break
the continuity of view which is presented to us."

But now arises the questions, when was this symbolic material cast
into its present form? Was this done by the fraternity before the
Grand Lodge period, or afterwards ? This constitutes the famous
"Degrees Problem" over which our scholars have conducted so
prolonged a debate.

In dealing with this debate it will help us much to get first in
mind the fact that all the debaters agree that a Third degree was
"concocted" after the formation of the Grand Lodge, the proofs of
which are many and conclusive. The Anderson Constitution of 1723
recognizes but two degrees and uses "Fellow Craft" and "Master
Mason" as meaning the same thing; but in the 1738 edition of the
same Constitutions three degrees are recognized, thus proving that
the Third came into existence during the intervening period. The
earliest mention of the Third is found in a speech by a Dr. Drake,
dated 1726, delivered at York. The earliest known date of the use
of the three degrees by a regularly constituted Lodge is 1732. So
much of an innovation was this Third Degree that at first men were
made "Masters" only in Grand Lodge; so slowly did the new system
take hold that we find, so late as 1751, that when George Bell was
deputized to constitute a Lodge at Cornwall he was only a Fellow
Craft and was not made a Master until some time afterwards.
Subordinate Lodges were permitted to make Masters in 1725 but the
part seems to have been so seldom understood that special "Masters'
Lodges" were organized to confer the degree. As more and more
members among the various subordinate Lodges came to learn the
part, the "Masters' Lodges" died out and all Lodges "put on" the
Three Degrees. But even so, this system was not definitely and
finally fixed until after the "Union" in 1814; two years after this
date R.H. Baxter says, "a special Grand Lodge was convened at which
the Lodge of Reconciliation opened a Lodge in the first, second,
and third degrees, successively, and exhibited the ceremonies of
initiating, passing, and raising a Mason. These ceremonies were
adopted by Grand Lodge as rehearsed, with two alterations in the
Third, and are therefore the true and only genuine ceremonial of
the Craft for use at the present day."

Having arrived at this point we can see that the real "Degrees
Problem" hinges on the question, Whence came the Entered Apprentice
and Fellow Craft degrees ? Were they in use by the Operative Masons
of ancient times ? Our scholars have fallen into two "schools" in
their answer to these questions, one holding that the old Masons
used only one degree ceremonial the other contending that they used
two.

1. The "One Degree" theory. The first of our historians to advance
this hypothesis was Findel in 1862; but as it is W. J. Hughan whose
name is most usually associated with the "One Degree" school we
shall let him present that side of the case. "In the light of duly
authenticated facts, distinct and separate Masonic degrees are
never met with, alluded to, or even probable, prior to 1716-7. . .
It is still a difficulty with me to understand how brethren versed
in Craft lore can see proof that more than one esoteric (secret)
ceremony was known to and practiced by our Masonic forefathers
anterior (previous) to the Grand Lodge era." (See A.Q.C. vol. 10,
p. 127.) "The antiquity or continuity of Freemasonry is one thing,
and that of degrees quite another." He admits that the members of
the old Lodges were divided into grades but he denies that a
separate ceremony was used in passing the candidate from the
Entered Apprentice grade to the Fellow Craft grade, and he can find
no evidences of any such ceremonial in the Ancient Constitutions.
"The Apprentices became Fellow Crafts or journeymen, on their
'essays' or work being passed by competent judges . .; but never
because of taking certain degrees (ceremonies) until the last
(Eighteenth) century." With this position Steinbrenner, Murray-Lyon
and other writers have agreed.

2. The "Two Degrees" theory. The best statement of this "school" is
George William Speth's essay published in the A.Q.C. vol. 3, p. 28,
and I would refer you to that for a complete statement. In that
argument he contends that "from the 14th to the 18th centuries, two
ceremonies existed--that of making Masons, or binding to the Craft-
-and that of passing masters and admitting to the Fellowship." He
declares that in those ceremonies "there were secrets, other than
those of the manipulation of stone." If asked why we have no
plainer evidences of these two ceremonies in the latter Seventeenth
and early Eighteenth centuries he would reply "that the Masons of
1717 inherited symbolism of the meaning of which they were
ignorant; that to produce this ignorance a long course of decay and
deterioration must have obtained, thus carrying our symbolism back
for an infinite period." Speth believes that the passing from the
Entered Apprentice grade to the Fellow Craft grade was too
important a step not to have received embodiment in a ceremonial;
that the Fellow Craft must have received secrets unrevealed to the
Apprentice; and that the giving of these secrets must have
constituted a separate ceremony, or degree. With this position
Gould, it seems, and Woodford agree, as do a large number of modern
Masonic scholars. Hughan, even, towards the last, with a rare
candor, acknowledged that the most recently discovered evidence
points in the direction of "two Degrees."

Thus stands the case! When doctors fall out how shall we common
folks agree? Speaking for myself I am undecided as yet, though it
seems to me that the "Two Degree" theory is the more probable of
the two; I believe that two simple ceremonies must have been in use
down to the Seventeenth century; that during that period a great
deal of symbolic material was brought in, or re-discovered, by the
Speculatives who were then accepted; and that this added material
increased the length of the ceremonies so much that they were split
up into three parts for the sake of convenience, the old Fellow
Craft or Second Degree being used as the Third, and the old
Apprentice part being split in two to give us our present First and
Second degrees. However, this is only theory, as is also the "One
Degree" hypothesis, and they must be considered as such. You also,
brother, may fashion your own theory; if it is reasonable we shall
not quarrel, however much we may differ.

In whatever manner these degrees came into existence, and whatever
their age, one thing is certain at least, there is a truth in them,
and a symbolism, which have proved worthy to teach the world. For
Masonry has long aspired to be, and in a strict sense, now is, a
universal science.

EARLY KNIGHTS TEMPLAR IN NORTH CAROLINA

BRO. MARSHALL DE: LANCEY HAYWOOD, GRAND HISTORIAN

In the old files of newspapers in the North Caroline State Library,
at Raleigh, are many scattered items relative to Masonry, in its
various branches, but the one given below, concerning the Knights
Templar, seems somewhat out of the ordinary. It is from the Raleigh
Register of December 31, 1813:

KNIGHT TEMPLAR ENCAMPMENT 

Notice is hereby given to Brethren, &c.--

That the Encampment at Mock's Old Fields, Rowan County, (N.C.)
acting under charter designated "Freeland Lodge, No. 33," on the
registry and under the jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of North
Carolina and Tennessee, will have their regular meetings, (or
Encampments hereafter) on Christmas, Good Friday, and Ascension
days.

Visitors will cheerfully be admitted, and due attention paid them.
By order of the M. W. H. P. &c.

JOHN HAM, Scribe. October, A. D. 1813.

There are several remarkable points about this notice. The Templars
therein mentioned profess to work by authority of the Grand Lodge
of North Carolina and Tennessee, a body embracing the two States
jointly until Tennessee formed a separate Grand Lodge in 1813, but
which never claimed jurisdiction over any subordinate bodies except
Blue Lodges. Furthermore, Freeland Lodge No. 33, in Rowan County
(as shown by the old Grand Lodge Proceedings) was a Blue Lodge. The
presiding officer in the above quoted notice, M. W. H. P. (Most
Worshipful High Priest?) sounds more like the Chapter than the
Commandery of the present day, as does also "Scribe" instead of
Recorder, though the Scribe in a Chapter is not the recording
officer. On the other hand, the observance of Christmas, Good
Friday, and Ascension Day are anniversaries observed by the Knights
Templar, and not by the Royal Arch Masons.

The above mentioned newspaper, less than a year later, on March 24,
1814, contained an obituary which has a bearing on the same matter.
It is as follows:

DIED.--At Salisbury, on the 12th inst., after a long and
complicated illness, Mr. Francis Coupee, sen., editor of the "North
Carolina Magazine," and member of the Knight Templar Fraternity. He
was interred on Sunday by a Masonic procession, and the solemn
performance of all the funeral rites of that high order, in the
presence of a great and respectable concourse of people.--Mr. C.
was a man of humane and benevolent affections--of a just, manly,
and patriotic spirit. He was a kind and affectionate husband, a
tender and indulgent father, a faithful and obliging friend, and a
good citizen. He was left a loving wife, eight children, a numerous
connection of relatives, and a large circle of friends and
acquaintances to deplore his loss. He is gone ! His spirit has fled
to that world of spirits whence no traveller returns! And how
applicable to him are the words of the Poet!

"How l-ov'd, how valu'd once, avail thee not, 
To whom related, or by whom begot: 
A heap of dust alone remains of thee; 
'Tis all thou art, and all the proud shall be."

It would be interesting to know where the Templars in Rowan County
in 1813, were taught the work they used. As for their authority to
work, we may gain some light from Redding's Illustrated History of
Free Masonry, published in 1907, which (on p. 670) says: "Blue
Lodges sometimes conferred the Templar degrees." The oldest
Commandery now working in North Carolina dates back only to 1825,
and the several Commanderies of the State did not organize the
Grand Commandery of North Carolina until 1881. In Webb's
Freemason's Monitor, edition of 1802, pp. 292 - 293, there is a
brief chapter on Knights Templar in America, mentioning the
formation in 1797 of the "Grand Encampment" of Pennsylvania, with
later "Encampments" at Philadelphia (two), Harrisburg, and
Carlisle. It also gives "Encampments not under the jurisdiction of
Pennsylvania," these being:

The Old Encampment in the City of New York.
Jerusalem Encampment, New York.
Montgomery Encampment, Stillwater.
Temple Encampment, Albany.
St. John's Encampment, Providence (R. I.)

In the collection of Masonic Songs in the back of this monitor will
also be found, among other poetic effusions, the "Knight Templar's
Song."

LIFE, THE BUILDER

When Life, the Builder, demands more room,
He calls his servant, Death,
And bids him take to the earth once more, 
The body, of form and breath;
But he keeps for himself, of course,
The timeless worth of the whole;
All love, all light, all truth,
All thought, and hope, and force;

And builds them again a form more rare, 
To house the advancing soul;
With a joy more deep and a faith more fair, 
Than ever it owned before;
For Life, the Builder, is lord of Youth,
And master of Death and Pain;
And weights the balance with absolute truth,
On the side of permanent gain.
--Emeline Earrington.
