site. What are the five orders in architecture ? The Tuscan, Doric, Ionic, Corinthian, and Compo Q. What are the five human senses ? A. Hearing, seeing, feeling, smelling, and tasting, the first three of which has ever been deemed highly essential among Masons; hearing, to hear the word, seeing to see the sign, and feeling, to feel the grip, whereby one Mason may know another in the dark as well as the light. Q. What does the seven steps allude to? A. The seven sabbatical years, seven years of famine, seven years in building the Temple, seven golden candlesticks, seven wonders of the world, seven planets; but more especially the seven liberal arts and sciences, which are grammar, rhetoric, logic, arithmetic, geometry, music and astronomy. For these and many other reasons the number seven has ever been held in high estimation among Masons. Q. What did you next come to? A. The outer door of the middle chamber of King Solomon's Temple, which I found partly open, but closely tyled by the junior warden. Q. How did you gain admission? A. By pass, and token of a pass. Q. What was the name of the pass? A. Shiboleth. A. In consequence of a quarrel which had long existed between Jeptha, judge of Israel, and the Ephraimites; the latter of whom had long been a stubborn, rebellious people, whom Jeptha had endeavoured to subdue by lenient measures; but to no effect. The Ephraimites being highly incensed against Jeptha for not being called to fight and share in the rich spoils of the Amonitish war, assembled a mighty army and passed over the river Jordan to give Jeptha battle; but he, being apprised of their approach, called together the men of Israel, and gave them battle, and put them to flight; and, to make his victory more complete, he ordered guards to be placed at the different passes on the banks of the river Jordan, and commanded, if the Ephraimites passed that way, that they should pronounce the word Shiboleth; but they, being of a different tribe, pronounced it Seboleth; which trifling defect proved them spies, and cost them their lives; and there fell that day at the different passes on the banks of the river Jordan, forty and two thousand. This word was also used by our ancient brethren to distinguish a friend from a foe, and has since been adopted as a proper pass-word to be given before entering any well regulated and governed Lodge of Fellow-Craft Masons. Q. What did you next come to? A. The inner door of the middle chamber of King Solomon's Temple, which I found partly open, but closely tyled by the senior warden. Q. How did you gain admittance? A. By the grip and word. Q. How did the senior warden dispose of you? A. He ordered me to be conducted to the worshipful master in the East, who informed me that I had been admitted into the middle chamber of King Solomon's Temple for the sake of the letter G. Q. Does it denote any thing? A. It does: Deity, before whom we should all bow with reverence, worship and adore. It also denotes Geometry, the fifth science; it being that on which this degree was principally founded. Thus ends the second degree of Masonry. THE THIRD, OR MASTER MASON'S DEGREE. The traditional account of the death, several burials, and resurrection of Hiram Abiff, the widow's son, [as hereafter narrated] admitted as facts, this degree is certainly very interesting. The Bible informs us, that there was a person of that name employed at the building of king Solomon's Temple; but neither the Bible, the writings of Josephus, nor any other writings, however ancient, of which I have any knowledge, furnish any information respecting his death. It certainly is very singular, that a man so celebrated as Hiram Abiff, was an arbiter between Solomon, king of Israel, and Hiram, king of Tyre, universally acknowledged as the third most distinguished man then living, and in many respects the greatest man in the world, should pass off the stage of action in the presence of king Solomon, three thousand three hundred grand overseers, and one hundred and fifty thousand workmen, with whom he had spent a number of years, and neither king Solomon, his bosom friend, nor any other among his numerous friends even recorded his death or any thing about him. I make these remarks now, hoping that they may induce some person who has time and capacity to investigate the subject, and promulgate the result of their investigations. I shall let the subject rest where it is at present; it is not intended that it should form any part of this little volume. The principal object of this work is to lay before the world a true history of Freemasonry, without saying any thing for or against it. A person who has received the two preceding degrees and wishes to be raised to the sublime degree of a Master Mason, is [the Lodge being opened as in the preceding degrees] conducted from the preparation room to the door, [the manner of preparing him is particularly explained in the lecture] where he gives three distinct Knocks, when the senior warden rises and says, worshipful, while we are peaceably at work on the third degree of masonry, under the influence of humanity, brotherly love, and affection, the door of our Lodge appears to be alarmed.' The master to the Junior Deacon, 'Brother Junior, enquire the cause of that alarm.' The senior deacon then steps to the door and answers the three knocks that had been given by three more ; [These knocks are much louder than those given on any occasion, other than that of the admission of candidates in the several degrees] one knock is then given without, and answered by one from within, when the door is partly opened, and the Junior Deacon asks Who comes there? who comes there? who comes there ?' The Sen'r Deacon answers, A worthy brother who has been regularly initiated as an Entered Apprentice Mason, passed to the degree of a Fellow-Craft, and now wishes for further light in masonry, by being raised to tue sublime degree of a Master Mason. Junior Deacon to Senior Deacon, ‘Is it of bis own free will and accord, he makes this request? Ans. It is.' Junior Deacon to Senior Deacon, Is he duly and truly prepared?' Ans. He is.' Junior Deacon to Senior Deacon, I he worthy and well qualified Ans. He is.' Jun'r Deacon to Senior Deacon, Has he made suitable proficiency in the preceding degrees ?' เ Ans. He has.' Junior Deacon to Senior Deacon, By what further rights does he expect to obtain this benefit ?' Ans. By the benefit of a pass-word.' Junior Deacon to Senior Deacon, Has he a pass-word? Ans. He has not, but I have got it for him.' The Junior Deacon to Senior Deacon, Will you give it to me?' The Senior Deacon then whispers in the ear of the Junior Deacon, Tubal Cain.' Junior Deacon says, the pass is right. Since this is the case you will wait till the worshipful master be made acquainted with his request and his answer returned.' The Junior Deacon then repairs to the master and gives three knocks at the door; after answering which, the same questions are asked and answers returned as at the door, when the master says, 'Since he comes endued with all these necessary qualifications, let him enter this worshipful lodge in the name of the Lord, and take heed on what he enters.' The Junior Deacon returns to the door and says, 'Let him enter this worshipful lodge, in the name of the Lord, and take heed on what he enters.' In entering, both points of the compass are pressed against his naked right and left breasts, when the Junior Deacon stops the candidate and says, Brother, when you first entered this Lodge, you was received on the point of the compass pressing your naked left breast, which was then explained to you; when you entered it the second time you was received on the angle of the square, which was also explained to you; on entering it now you are received on the two extreme points of the compass pressing your naked right and left breasts, which are thus explained : As the most vital parts of man are contained between the two breasts, so are the most valuable tenets of masonry contained between the two extreme points of the compass, which are virtue, morality, and brotherly love,' The Senior Deacon then conducts the candidate three times regularly round the Lodge. [I wish the reader to observe, that on this, as well as every other degree, that the junior warden is the first of the three principal officers that the candidate passes, travelling with the sun when he starts round the Lodge, and that as he passes the junior warden, senior warden, and master, the first time going round, they each give one rap; the second time two raps; and the third time three raps each. The number of raps given on those occasions are the same as 6 F 2 : : the number of the degree, except the first degree, on which three are given, I always thought improperly.] During the time the candidate is travelling round the room, the master reads the following passage of Scripture, the conductor and candidate travelling, and the Master reading, so that the travelling and reading terminates at the same time: Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them; while the sun, or the light, or the moon, or the stars be not darkened, nor the clouds return after the rain in the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men shall bow themselves, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those that look out of the windows be darkened, and the doors shall be shut in the streets, when the sound of the grinding is low, and he shall rise up at the voice of the bird, and all the daughters of music shall be brought low. Also, when they shall be afraid of that which is high, and fears shall be in the way, and the almond-tree shall flourish, and the grasshopper shall be a burden, and desire shall fail because man goeth to his long home, and the mourners go about the streets or even the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel at the cistern. Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was; and the spirit return unto God who gave it.' The conductor and candidate halt at the junior warden in the South, where the same questions are asked and answers returned as at the door; he is then conducted to the senior warden in the West, where the same questions are asked and answers returned as before; from thence he is conducted to the W. Master in the East, who asks the same questions and receives the same answers as before, and who likewise asks the candidate, from whence he came, and whither he is travelling. A. From the West, and travelling to the East.' Q. Why do you leave the West, and travel to the East? A In search of more light. The master then says to the Senior Deacon, You will please conduct the candidate back to the West from whence he came, and put him in care of the senior warden, and request him to teach the candidate how to approach the East by advancing upon three upright regular steps to the third step, his feet forming a square, bis body erect at the altar, before the worshipful 6 |