THE BUILDER, NOVEMBER 1918
FOR THE MONTHLY LODGE MEETING

CORRESPONDENCE CIRCLE BULLETIN --- No. 22
DEVOTED TO ORGANIZED MASONIC STUDY
Edited by Bro. H. L. Haywood

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 papers by Brother Haywood.

MAIN OUTLINE

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

Division I. 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 Haywood,
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 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 Haywood 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 Haywood'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 Haywood's paper.

PROGRAM FOR STUDY MEETINGS

1. Reading of the first section of Brother Haywood'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 Haywood'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.

QUESTIONS ON "THE APRON."

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 a few 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 the period of time devoted to the study
meeting. 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 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 open.

I
Why has the apron been interpreted so variously? Give a list of the
interpretations you have heard. Why is it dangerous to seek for
symbolisms in the present shape and size of the apron? How long has
it had its present shape and size? If the shape and size has
changed from time to time is it safe to build any symbolism
thereon?

II
Can you give any examples of non-Masonic use of the apron not
mentioned in the text? Why, do you suppose, has the apron been so
widely used ? Why did the Operative Mason wear an apron? What do
you imagine its material and size to have been ? If it was once of
leather, why ? Why was it changed to its present material ? Why is
the apron we usually wear in lodge of material different from that
given to us during initiation ? What led Speculative Masons to
change its material and shape? Give usual dimensions of aprons as
worn in American lodges. Why are they sometimes varied for
different degrees and offices ?

III
What is a badge? What is the badge of a Mason? What is the
difference between a badge and an emblem ? A symbol? Has the
Masonic use of the apron done anything to wear down the old
prejudice against manual labor? Why were men ever so prejudiced?
How long has it been since the prejudice began to break down? What
were the causes ? What are the labors of a Mason ? Are they of any
great value to society ?

IV
In what way is the apron as now used the symbol of sacrifice and
innocence? Why have men so frequently thought of white as a symbol
of innocence? Give examples of the early use of the color as such
symbol. What is the meaning of innocence? How can a grown man be
innocent? What is the Masonic meaning of innocence?

V
What do you think of Brothel Crowe's argument as given in the text?
Why is the lamb the symbol of sacrifice? Can you give examples from
the Bible of such a meaning ? What is sacrifice? Why is sacrifice
necessary? What is a Mason's sacrifice ?

What was the Golden Fleece? The Roman Eagle? Star and Garter ? Why
is the apron more ancient and honorable than these ? How would it
affect human society if all men accepted the Masonic meaning of
toil, innocence and sacrifice?

SUPPLEMENTAL REFERENCES

Mackey's Encyclopedia:
Apron, p. 72.

THE BUILDER:
Vol. I--The Apron (poem) p. 222; Meaning of, and Presentation of
the Apron, p. 236.

Vol. II--The Master's Apron, (poem) p. 4; Symbolism of the Apron,
(poem) p. 360; The Lambskin or White Leather Apron, (poem) p. 215.

Vol. III--On Presenting the Lambskin Apron, (poem) p. 8; The White
Leather Apron, (poem) p. 19; The Apron, 74; The Apron Lecture,
(poem) p. 128; The Apron, True Clothing of a Mason, Dec. C. C. B.
p. 4.

Vol. IV--Symbolism of the Three Degrees--The Apron, p. 239;
Symbolism in the Apron, this issue.

FIRST STEPS
BY BRO. H.L. HAYWOOD, IOWA

PART X - THE APRON

HAVING been privileged to read a great deal of Masonic literature
we may say that on no other one symbol has so much nonsense been
written. It has been made to mean a thousand and one things, from
the fig leaf worn by Adam and Eve to the last mathematical theory
of the Fourth Dimension; and there is little to cause wonder that
the intelligent have been scandalized and common men bewildered. If
an interpretation can be made that steers a safe course between the
folly of the learned and the fanaticism of the ignorant it will
have some value, whatever may be said of its own intrinsic worth.
Warned by the many who have fallen into the pit of unreason we
shall be wise to walk warily and theorize carefully.

Speaking generally, and without the slightest hint of disrespect of
our fellow workers in this field, it may be said that a majority of
the wildest theories have been based on the shape of the Apron, a
thing of comparatively recent origin and due to a mere historical
accident. The body of it, as now worn, is approximately square in
shape and thus has suggested the symbolism of the square, the
right-angle and the cube, and all arising therefrom; its flap is
triangular and this has suggested the symbolism of the triangle,
the Fortyseventh Proposition, and the pyramid; the descent of the
flap over the body of the Apron has also given rise to reasonings
equally ingenious. By this method of interpretation men have read
into it all manner of things, the mythology of the Mysteries, the
metaphysics of India, the dream-walking of the Kabala, and the
Occultism of Magic. Meanwhile it has been forgotten that the Apron
is a Masonic symbol and that we are to find out what it is intended
to mean rather than what it may, under the stress of our lust for
fancifulness, be made to mean. When the Ritual is consulted, as it
always deserves to be, we find that it treats the Apron (1) as an
inheritance from the past, (2) as the Badge of a Mason, (3) as the
emblem of innocence and sacrifice.

1. The Apron is an inheritance from the past.

For one purpose or another, and in some form, the Apron has been
used for three or four thousand years. In at least one of the
Ancient Mysteries, that of Mithras, the candidate was invested with
a white Apron. So also was the initiate of the Essenes, who
received it during the first year of his membership in that order,
and it is significant that many of the statues of Greek and
Egyptian gods were so ornated, as may still be seen. Chinese secret
societies, in many cases, also used it, and the Persians, at
one-time, employed it as their national banner. Jewish prophets
often wore Aprons, as did the early Christian candidates for
baptism, and as ecclesiastical dignitaries of the present day still
do. The same custom is found even among savages, for, as Brother J.
G. Gibson has remarked, "wherever the religious sentiment remains--
even among the savage nations of the earth--there has been noticed
the desire of the natives to wear a girdle or Apron of some kind."

From all this, however, we must not infer that our Masonic Apron
has come to us from such sources, though, for all we know, the
early builder may have been influenced by those ancient and
universal customs. The fact seems to be that the Operative Masons
used the Apron only for the practical purpose of protecting the
clothing, as there was need in labor so rough. It was nothing more
than one item of the workman's necessary equipment as is shown by
Brother W. H. Rylands, who found an Indenture of 1685 in which a
Master contracted to supply his Apprentice with "sufficient
wholesome and competent meate, drink, lodging and Aprons."

II
Because the Apron was so conspicuous a portion of the Operative
Mason's costume, and so persistent a portion of his equipment, it
was inevitable that Speculatives should have continued its use for
symbolical purposes. The earliest known representatives of these,
we are informed by Brother J. F. Crowe, who was one of the first of
our scholars to make a thorough and scientific investigation of the
subject (A.Q.C. vol. V, p. 29), "is an engraved portrait of Anthony
Sayer. . . Only the upper portion is visible in the picture, but
the flap is raised, and the Apron looks like a very long leathern
skin. The next drawing is in the frontispiece to the Book of
Constitutions, published in 1723, where a brother is represented as
bringing a number of Aprons and gloves into the Lodge, the former
appearing of considerable size and with long strings." In Hogarth's
cartoon, "Night," drawn in 1737, the two Masonic figures, Crowe
points out in another connection (See his "Things a Freemason
Should Know") "have Aprons reaching to their ankles." But other
plates of the same period show Aprons reaching only to the knee,
thus marking the beginning of that process of shortening, and of
general decrease in size and change in shape, which finally gave us
the Apron of the present day; for since the garment no longer
serves as a means of protection it has been found wise to fashion
it in a manner more convenient to wear, nor is this inconsistent
with its original Masonic significance. It is this fact, as I have
already suggested, that has made the present form of the Apron a
result of circumstances, and proves how groundless are
interpretations founded on its shape.

According to Blue Lodge usages in the United States the Apron must
be of unspotted lambskin, 14 to 16 inches in width, 12 to 14 inches
in depth, with a flap descending from the top some 3 or 4 inches.
The Grand Lodge of England now specifies such an Apron as this for
the First Degree, but requires the Apron of the Second Degree to
have two sky-blue rosettes at the bottom, and that of the Third
Degree to have in addition to that a sky-blue lining and edging not
more than two inches deep, "and an additional rosette on the fall
or flap, and silver tassels." Grand officers are permitted to use
other ornaments, gold embroidery, and, in some cases, crimson
edgings. All the evidence goes to show that these ornate Aprons are
of recent origin. The Apron should always be worn outside the coat.

2. The Badge of a Mason.

"The thick-tanned hide, girt around him with throngs, wherein the
Builder builds, and at evening sticks his trowel," was so
conspicuous a portion of the costume of the Operative Mason that it
became associated with him in the public mind, and thus gradually
evolved into his badge; for a badge is some mark voluntarily
assumed as the result of established custom whereby one's work, or
station, or school of opinion, may be signified.

Of what is the Mason's badge a mark ? Surely its history permits
but one answer to this--it is the mark of honorable and
conscientious labor, the labor that is devoted to creating, to
constructing rather than to destroying or demolishing. As such, the
Mason's Apron is itself a symbol of a profound change in the
attitude of society toward work, for the labor of hand and brain,
once despised by the great of the earth, is rapidly becoming the
one badge of an honorable life. If men were once proud to wear a
sword, while leaving the tasks of life to slaves and menials, if
they once sought titles and coats of arms as emblems of
distinction, they are now, figuratively speaking, eager to wear the
Apron, for the Knight of the present day would rather save life
than take it, and prefers, a thousand times over, the glory of
achievement to the glory of title or name. Truly, the rank has
become the guinea's stamp, and a man's a man for a' that,
especially if he be a man that can do; and the real modern king, as
Carlyle was always contending, is "the man who can."

If this is the message of the Apron, none has a better right to
wear it than a Mason, if he be a real member of the Craft, for he
is a knight of labor if ever there was one. Not all labor deals
with things. There is a labor of the mind, and of the spirit, more
arduous, often, and more difficult, than any labor of the hands. He
who dedicates himself to the cleaning of the Augean stables of the
world, to the clearing away of the rubbish that litters the paths
of life, to the fashioning of building stones in the confused
quarries of mankind, is entitled, more than any man, to wear the
badge of toil!

IV

3. An Emblem of Innocence and Sacrifice.

When the Candidate is invested with the garment he is told that it
is an emblem of innocence. It is doubtful if Operative Lodges ever
used it for such a symbolic purpose, though they may have done so
in the Seventeenth Century, after Speculatives began to be received
in greater numbers. The evidence indicates that it was after the
Grand Lodge era, and in consequence of the rule that the Apron
should be of white lambskin, that Masons began to see in its color
an emblem of innocence and in its texture a suggestion of
sacrifice.

In so doing they fell into line with ancient practices for of old,
white "has been esteemed an emblem of innocence and purity." Among
the Romans an accused person would sometimes put on a garment of
white to attest his innocence, white being, as Cicero phrased it,
"most acceptable to the gods." The candidate in the Mysteries and
among the Essenes were similarly invested, and it has the same
meaning of purity and innocence in the Bible which promises that
though our sins be as scarlet they shall be white as snow. In the
early Christian church the young catechumen (or convert) robed
himself in white in token of his abandonment of the world and his
determination to lead a blameless life. But there is no need to
multiply instances for each of us feels by instinct that white is
the natural symbol of innocence.

Now it happens that "innocence" comes from a word meaning "to do no
hurt" and this may well be taken as its Masonic definition, for it
is evident that no grown man can be innocent in the sense that a
child is, which really means an ignorance of evil. The innocence of
a Mason is his gentleness, his chivalrous determination to do no
moral evil to any person, man, or woman, or babe; his patient
forbearance of the crudeness and ignorance of men, his charitable
forgiveness of his brethren when they wilfully or unconsciously do
him evil; his dedication to a spiritual knighthood in behalf of the
values and virtues of humanity by which alone man rises above the
brute, and the world is carried forward on the upward way.

V
It is in token of its texture--lambskin--that we find in the Apron
the further significance of sacrifice, and this also, it seems, is
a symbolism developed since 1700. It has been generally believed
until recently that the Operatives used only leather Aprons, and
this was doubtless the case in early days, but Crowe has shown that
many of the oldest Lodge records evidence a use of linen as well.
"In the old Lodge of Melrose," he writes, "dating back to the
Seventeenth Century, the Aprons have always been of linen, and the
same rule obtained in 'Mary's Chapel' No. 1, Edinburgh, the oldest
Lodge in the world; whilst Brother James Smith, in his history of
the old Dumfries Lodge, writes, 'on inspecting the box of Lodge 53,
there was only one Apron of kid or leather, the rest being of
linen!' As these Lodges are of greater antiquity than any in
England, I think a fair case is made out for linen, versus leather,
originally."

It can not be said, however, that Brother Crowe has entirely made
out his case, for other authorities contend that the builders who
necessarily handled rough stone and heavy timbers must have needed
a more substantial fabric than linen or cotton. But in any event,
the Fraternity has been using leather Aprons for these two
centuries, though cotton cloth is generally substituted for
ordinary lodge purposes, and it is in no sense far-fetched to see
in the lambskin a hint of that sacrifice of which the lamb has so
long been an emblem.

But what do we mean by sacrifice? To answer this fully would lead
us far afield into ethics and theology, but for our present
purpose, we may say that the Mason's sacrifice is the cheerful
surrender of all that is in him which is un-Masonic. If he has been
too proud to meet others on the level he must yield up his
meanness; if he has been guilty of corrupting habits they must be
abandoned, else his wearing of the Apron be a fraud and a sham.

Carrying with it so rich a freightage of symbolism the Apron may
justly be considered "more ancient than the Golden Fleece or Roman
Eagle, more honorable than the Star and Garter," for these badges
were too often nothing more than devices of flattery and the
insignia of an empty name. The Golden Fleece was an Order of
Knighthood founded by Philip, Duke of Burgundy on the occasion of
his marriage to the Infanta Isabella of Portugal in 1429 or 1430.
It used a Golden Ram for its badge and the motto inscribed on its
jewel was "wealth, not servile labor!" The Romans of old bore an
eagle on their banners to symbolize magnanimity, fortitude,
swiftness and courage. The Order of the Star originated in France
in 1350, being founded by John II in imitation of the Order of the
Garter; of the last named Order it is difficult to speak, as its
origin is clothed in so much obscurity that historians differ, but
it was as essentially aristocratic as any of the others. In every
case, the emblem was a token of aristocratic idleness and
aloofness, the opposite of that symbolized by the Apron; and the
superiority of the latter over the former is too obvious for
comment.

SYMBOLISM IN THE APRON
BY BRO. J. GEORGE GIBSON, ENGLAND

THE clothing of the Freemason is not introduced for the purpose of
impressing "profanes", since it is almost entirely absent when the
public is present. It is in the lodge functions alone that its use
is compulsory, and the wearing of each article of Masonic clothing
is but a memorial and a present signification of the Faith of a
Mason. It is not only interesting, but it is essential to the
effective life that the full significance of the apron should be
realized by every Entered Apprentice, and remembered by those who
from degree to degree go forward and upward to excellency and
attainment.

For the institution of Modern Freemasonry in England we look to the
seventeenth century; but for its origin and causation we may go
back beyond Rosicrucianism and Essenism to the practice of the
ancients of every age of worshippers. And, however far we travel we
still find traces of the white lambskin apron as the clothing of
Masonic novices. There must always have been some special
significance connected with its use, and with the colour also, as
well as in its use. Indeed, it is upon these three lines of
material, of colour, and of user, that we must seek for light as to
the full sense of its presentment to assembled brethren.

Attached to the idea of user are suggestions both of labour and of
religion. From the earliest age of Noachidae there have been signs
that labour and productive energy were, and would ever remain,
honoured by the highest distinction--because of their operative
values. The Jewish, Persian and Egyptian dignitaries wore aprons to
indicate their high rank. The royal standard of Persia, that land
of fire worshippers, was originally an apron. And in the Ancient
Mysteries of the Persian Mithras novices were clothed with white
aprons, as also were others. And today certain dignitaries of chul
ches are found wearing the apron, though of a sombre colour. In
fact, Masonry appears through all ages to have been incorporated
with the particular religions of each nation, and was to that body
what religion is to theology.

Realizing that the builder is the true King of Man, the clothing of
the operative builder was adopted by the speculative Freemason in
the earliest age as the symbol of the priestly and teaching class.
Nothing could so signify ability as could the dress of a workman,
of a powerful operative of a builder of temples. And the consensus
of today's millions approve the ancient dictum of the Sacred Law.
Work is that which tells; and the clothing of a toiler is
honourable above all other.

The colour of a Mason's apron should be white. This is the colour
of light, the color that reflects most light, the clean colour
which shows stains most plainly. It was the colour worn by the
Israelitish Levite, and by the later Essenes, by the Roman
sacrificing priests, and by the Druid votaries of the highest
degrees. The candidate for the Ancient Mysteries was clad in
spotless white, and among Christian churches the officiating
clergyman chiefly wears white while engaged in the sacred office.

White is the emblem of purity: and the Apocalyptic Seer, seeking to
describe a Divine Justice as absolutely pure, tells us of the
"great white throne of God", and of the purified as wearing robes
of pure white. Is this not manifestly the reason why the Masonic
novice is clothed with a pure white apron ? Some Christian
ministers clothe the candidates for baptism in white. Freemasonry
receives her children to the white garb of purity. The Entered
Apprentice has turned his back upon the "profane" world; and, when
he passes the Tyler he is Masonically clad in purity and open to
the impressions of Masonic life.

But, pure as the white light is, it is a composed colour. It
contains all the colours and is the perfected blend of coloured
lights. The Druid perhaps saw this when he made the last degree the
white degree; and perhaps also the Roman priest knew this when in
the supreme duty of his office he wore white in which to sacrifice.
Certainly the Freemason acts wisely when he retains the white apron
for the Entered Apprentice, since whatever that novice may become
is already and only assured in the purity of his soul and desire as
he takes the first Masonic steps.

Then the Masonic apron must be of simple lambskin. Not of cloth of
gold, nor of rich silk, nor of a splendid texture of any kind. the
lamb is the emblem of innocence, and of innocence sacrificed. All
progress involves sacrifice and blood. If man would rise he must
bleed somehow, or someone must. Primeval man's very raiment was the
skin of slaughtered animals. Advance in civilization involves a
victim; and the making of a Mason means a recognition of the cost
of light and labour. In the highest degrees there are changes in
form or in ornament. Perhaps the lambskin may be almost hidden
under the red and blue of the Royal Arch, or by the jewels of rank
and office: but the lambskin is there all the time, and a Masonic
apron can be made properly of no other material. He who wears this
is made conscious that as Cain built Enoch out of his loss and
pain, so all Masons are compelled to prepare for the time when hard
things are to be done, sore things to be endured, and fortitude to
be cultivated. Masonry is not a mummery but a life; and the
clothing of a Mason is that fit for his labour and suggestive of
his duty.

And, lastly, the use of the lambskin apron symbolizes the great
object of Freemasonry, the building of a Human Temple to the Great
Architect of Heaven and earth. True, the blue strip of the craft
colour tells the virtue of Masonic brotherhood and trust, as well
as the love which is over all and in all. But the ordinary white
lambskin apron is much more eloquent could we realize all that it
means.

I see a massive pile of Masonry before me in the ages long gone
past. There are turban and bare heads, men of ranks and of all
nations, fiery drabs and dark browed Gibeonites, active Tyrians and
heavy limbed fellaheen from the banks of the river of Egypt. Some
are but unskilled labourers; but many thousands wear the Mason's
lambskin apron, and carry the tools of their calling. They are come
from all lands to build a House for Jehovah, Solomon's God: and
from the call to labour to the call off to refreshment they are
hard at work. One is reducing the mighty blocks to shape, another
is carefully squaring and smoothing the surface and making the even
bed, another is carving thefacade stones in chaste designs and
obeying each command conveyed in the plans of the designers.

The scene changes. A weeping crowd of returned exiles cast off
their garments and clear the level of the ancient ruins. These men
also wear the apron of white ambskin. They have sacrificed and
suffered, and suffer now. The same process and order and
persistence. Again in scattered bands men gather upon the site of
some Monastely, some fortress, some Cathedral, some Palace of
Justice. There is the same white lambskin apron. There is the same
obedience to the Master and there is the same loyalty to the Volume
of the Sacred Law. The lambskin apron is the symbol of labour, of
sacrifice, of construction, of obedience to design, of service to
one's brothers, and of educative process ever going on.

We do not today stand alongside the rude mason's bench and with
gavel and chisel dress huge blocks of hardest stone. But we stand
before a delicately adjusted masterpiece which we must finish, or
fail in our lives. The world is our workshop; the tools of a mason
are in our hands, and the apron is both speculative and operative
in suggestion. We are called to cultivate character, to deepen
human sympathy, to draw closer the chords of brotherly love, and to
prepare ourselves by discipline for each post as the great Grand
Master shall appoint us. We have before us imperfect Human Society
which must be saved by progress, and established by the inspiration
of a Humanity which includes, but is greater than patriotism. The
reminder of the Mason's apron ought to inspire us to a nobler
consecration and a more human interest and service. We must wear
it, in lodge, until we are called of labour, and the hour of our
Eternal Rest is come, and the voice of the Great Warden calls us
home.

THE HIDDEN TRUTHS OF MASONRY

The work is so full of cunningly hidden suggestions of immortal
truths that one is almost inclined at times to claim for it
inspiration. It is becoming generally acknowledged among believers
in a Deity that all life is a manifestation--or perhaps it had
better be called an outpouring--of the presence and spirit of God.
That all life owes its origin to Him, and at extinction, returns--
as the waters return from the sea--to its original source. Moses,
or the original author of the account of the creation, did not deal
in metaphor when he said "the Lord God formed man of the dust of
the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and
man became a living soul." What is more expressive of life than
"breath"; or of death than its absence ?

Thus Masonry declares: "Then shall the dust return to the earth as
it was, and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it." It draws
a striking illustration from the acacia which reminds us of that
immortal principle which survives the grave and bears the nearest
affinity to that Supreme Intelligence which permeates all animate
nature and which can never die.

If our ears are only attuned to these melodies they sound at every
stroke of the gavel and every opening and closing of the lodge.
"Familiarity doth breed contempt." We should rather cultivate an
ear to hear like those employed in vast machine shops, who can
recognize the fall of a pin, because the ear recognizes the pitch
of the diminishing seventh.
--Rob Morris Bulletin.
