THE FAMOUS TESTIMONIAL TO ALBERT G. MACKEY

BY THE EDITOR

THE BUILDER DECEMBER 1922

DURING the troublesome times of the Civil War Albert G. Mackey was
confined to his home city of Charleston, S. C., where for four years he gave
his time, his energies and his substance to the succour of his brethren, little
heeding whether they belonged to North or to South, though he himself
was a Union man.  Immediately after Charleston, the "cradle of the
rebellion," had passed once again into Federal control, Dr. Mackey's
brethren of New York City "moved by a common impulse of admiration for
the man, of ardent sympathy for the unyielding patriot, of fraternal love for
the zealous Mason, determined to invite him to visit them once more, and
to receive at their hands a substantial evidence of their sympathy." (I am
quoting from a very rare account of the Dr. Mackey Testimonial printed in
1865 by Macoy and Sickels.  This copy was signed by Mackey himself and
inscribed to the then Grand Master of New York, Clinton F. Paige.)

A call was issued to the Masons of New York City.  They met on the
evening of March 15, 1865 and at that time adopted, among others, this
resolution, that,

"Whereas, it has further come to our knowledge that by the vicissitudes of
war, our R.'. W.'. Brother has lost his property, and in his declining years
been reduced to the sharp necessity of beginning again the battle of life;
therefore,

"Resolved, That as an earnest of our good will we solicit his acceptance of
the voluntary contributions of the brethren........."

A public "Welcome and Testimonial" was held in the Academy of Music on
Saturday evening, May 20, 1865, M.'. W.'. Clinton F. Paige presiding. A
number of "distinguished artists," along with "Grafulla's Seventh Regiment
Full Band," made the occasion memorable.

The center of interest on the occasion was the gracious kindly gentleman
from the South in whose honour so large a throng was assembled.  After
the music had ceased, and the Grand Master had pronounced a beautiful
welcoming address, Dr. Mackey delivered the speech, a part of which
succeeds this brief narrative.

This speech, however impressive as it was then - and still is - did not so
deeply stir the auditors as the incident that followed, the account of which
I transcribe from the record.

"Just as Mme. Salvotti had breathed the last intonation of her song, and
before the sounds of her voice had died away, R.'. W.'. Robert Macoy
stepped forward and presented Brother Mackey with a beautiful gold
snuffbox, of which the following history was given:

"It was stated that this box had before been presented to Brother Mackey
by the Masonic fraternity, as a token of gratitude for the many years of
faithful servitude he had rendered them.  Shortly after the commencement
of the war, however, Brother Mackey was compelled to part with it in order
to procure bread for his family.  The box then passed into the hands of a
person who took it to Easton, Pa., and gave it to a jeweller to have the
inscription erased.  This fact becoming known to Brother J. M. Porter, Jr.,
Past Master of Easton Lodge No. 152, he, with other members of the lodge,
having by correspondence with New York become acquainted with its
history, purchased it, and sent it to New York to Brother Macoy, with the
request that it should in their name be returned to Brother Mackey, with a
handsome little present enclosed.  The box has since been kept safely
without the knowledge of Brother Mackey, until it was presented to him last
evening.  In making the presentation, Brother Macoy briefly explained the
above facts, and closed by saying that the box, though beautiful on the
outside, had, also, a peculiar inside lining; he would not say exactly what
it was, but it looked green (backs).

"It is needless to say that Brother Mackey was taken by surprise at the
reappearance of his precious gift, the snuffbox.  He expressed himself
much gratified at becoming again the possessor of it, and retired amid the
applause of the audience."

It transpired that Dr. Mackey had literally bankrupted himself in order to
give assistance to his brethren, even to the extent of his personal
belongings.  A venerable brother who was present at the Academy of Music
tells me that those who were in attendance left with the feeling that in this
Testimonial it was already evident that Masons would take the lead in
healing over the breach between the two sections, and that in his own
attitude and spirit Dr. Mackey revealed that which so ennobled Abraham
Lincoln, - "Malice toward none, charity for all."

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