Brazos Statesman. (Waco, Tex.), Vol. 1, No. 48, Ed. 1 Monday, January 3, 1857 Page: 1 of 4
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H 1UUL !—5
MS *A>'¡
STy«Bre«i - 4ieM
WACO, TEXAS: Si!
BY J. O. SHOOK & CO.
1 s
>
I83 .v
«ÍS3QL- '
Waco, Texas, December 27th, 1S50.
Gun. J¿ W. Speisht:
Dear Sir anil Brotlm—Tho undersigned have been appointed a committee by Waco
Lodge, No. 93, to request that you furnish tor publication in pamphlet.form, a copy of
your admirable address delivered belore the fraternity to-day. Wo tender to you in-
dividually our congratulations upon the happy effort, and we siii^erely trust that you
will comply with tho unanimous wish of the fraternity.
Fraternally, A,
' WALLACE E. OAKES,
GEO. E. BURNET. '
£, D. ARNOLD,
JOHN Bl/RLAGE,,
N. M. CJOODE
Waco, December 29th, 1838.
BairruttWN—Your note of 27th inst., is before nw. I thank -on for the exprese^
f your friendly congratulation^. and herewith pluce ths addresi, at your dUja
Fntterr.a'ly, ^
J. WV b^i^wr,
To W. E. Oakes, and others, Committee.
Brethren and Friends—To-day, ever venerated in the memory oí Masons, and over
memorable in tho aunals ol Free-Masonry, we renew again, fo our time-honored order
our oaths of fealty, and by this public demonstration, proclaim to the world our con-
tinued attachment to its holy and botiign precepts. To-day we have assembled here,
f.' as did the twelve tribes of old Israel in the palmiest days of hor ancient greatness
and glory, to worship the Great King of Kings, to commemorate the wonderful dis-
displays ot bis goodncEs, to bear His Law and to celebrate His feasts. To-day, the
anniversary of our patron Saint, we are but paying that homage which has been our
custom for 1800 years; and though eighteen and a half centuries from tho period wo
commemorate have, in the.progress of human events, been marked on the dial-plate
of timé, yet the mutations and vicissitudes incident to the lapse oí so many years,
obscure not the vista through which we penetrate'the veil of the past to pay our
accustomed reverence to mental woith and moral purity. Then; brethren, wo are
here to-day for no light and trivial purpose—merely to exhibit our burnished equip-
age, or expose the brilliant paraphernalia that distinguish us from the world. We are
not hero to gratify a desire of ostentation and pump, to satisfy ¿Le speculative fancy
ol the curious, orto dignity by a notice,' tho taunts of the prejudiced and tho vulgar.
This demonstration is not for mero pageantry and show ¡ but the occasion is one of
deep and abid ng interest among the Fraternity. Its kindred associations impart a
solemn inspiration; and here in this Temple of God—in this house of His worship, and
bcfoio His sacred Altar, the mystic symbols with which we are clothed, are a speak-
ing picture of the tic th;'t, binds ua.and.of tho morality that ebc-uld characterize and
sustain us. They are -indeed' the professional emblems of our principles arid the.out?
ward -i dexe*.«if the -high' obligations thry import . They bring to mind the memory of
some of the holiest recollections of Die prist, and leader tho occasion to us doubly en-
deared by presenting vividly to view the bright example given -us in the life and
character of. St. JoBn tho, Evangelist, whose festival' we commemorate. Then let
urdirect, for a moment, with thoughtful reverence, our attention to th: history of
the Patron St. to whose memory the external rites of the day are performed.
This eminent- man was distinguished by V:dot apostle a prophet, an evangelist'
and a divine. Of his early life, like that of all the apostles. tijf&pt St. Paul,- but little
is known.' He "was to iomo e*tei}t, his own historian; and excepting the meagre
history of himself, which ho by i>iV;,t,o inspiration with his own hand chronicled as
o mere counteipart of «otea>jHf iieov*w!ven{s, wc have of him but a limited account.
"Tíufe.-í/y inliít'nSífiit^i'ii.sKÍÍ , SUHÍJI :■ rrw ¡fr'oHw.hy
| house ol the tindilional lore of Fremaaonry for much concerning hia character,"which
would otherwise bu left tr the dim oulline of vague surmise and uncertain conjectuie.
To St. John the Baptist a£d St. Jr.;¡:: the Evangelist, wfi dedícale our Lodges, and
as we claim them both to"bc "eminent Christian l'iiífV.v.;of our order wo ought,
while we refer to their character?, endeavor also to imitate their virtues. These two
Raijjf.'i may be said to be tho beginning and Uio end—the Alpha oud the Omega of the
Gospel.-Jóhn the Baptist was tho liErbinger otCbrist.-Preccding birn in bis birth just
siaf ,months, he went before him crying id the wilderness and preparing the way of
the Lord. John the Evangelist was the finisher of what tho Baptist had commenced.
What other Apostles omitted to mention he relates in his gospels. What they chron-
icled he seems to have explained and spiritualized. The former forewarned and fore-
told, the lattor explained and enforced; the first laid a foundation, the last reared a
fabric upon it.
But to the Evangelist is our attention more particularly directed on thi)®9ceasio'n—
Called in his twenty-filth year by h's Divine .Master from the lowly occupation of a
fisherman to the high" and holy duties of his Apostle-ship, fie seems to have boon
present with our Suvior in some of the most trying scenes that wore incident to his
earthly visitation, and to have been his almost constant and endeared companion
from the time of his call to the crucifixion ¡ cane. Me witnessed the transfiguration
on tho Mount and was with our Lord during his agony in the garden. He was pres-
ent at his crucifixion, and was among tho first who visited the sepulchor alter lie had
risen. He was peculiarly " the disciple whom Jesus loved." At tho advanced age ,
of 90 years, having returned from the island of Patmos whither he had bepn banished
by the Emperor Domitian, and where he wrote the book of Revelation, being called
on by some of the rultrs of the craft, he accepted the office of Grand Master of Masons.
At this eventlnl period in the history of the Christian Church, when the rage of a
Pagan world and the wholo power of Judeaism wore arrayed in deadly hostility
against the followers ol Christ—when tumult and disorder prevailed and mnrder for
opinion's sake reigned among a people whom God had chosen for his own—when it
svflre seemingly the part of madness to be allied with virtue and truth, our institution
was not less a fleeted by the general anarchy. Lodges were disbanded and our order
seemed to he decaying for want of a chief head. Tyrants then, swayed }he sceptre
and the votaries of Free Masonry alike with those of the Christian faith were the
. victims of its cruel and unrelenting power, and they dare not openly avow allegiance
to an institution that inculcated the principles ol morality, am! served as a hand- _
maid to the religion of Jesus. "The veil of tho Temple was rent in twain," and
wh^t a fitting coincidence that the doors to ohr peaceful and sacrcd retreats should be
chafed, when a nation of Masonry and people ol God had murdored his Son 1 In this
critical and trying crisis, our Patron saint assumed hi¿ ofllco; and to whom with more
safety could have been cpmmitted the task of reviving and,expanding tho soul of an
institution which had for its object tho law of love? His wisdom an¿ profound era-
dition, wUdcd to pious iscnI and foriltU'.lc rcviveU the ©inking lxi>]lC5 n'Ullí/iilíy
and placed them on a solid foundation. In this capacity ho officiated during the last
days of his life, and as that life had been one of love, it seemed that Providence per-
mitted him to exemplify it in a calm and undisturbed death. While the courage and
foritude of the Baptist in reproving the licentiousness of the profligate Herod cost V,
him his lite, while scores of his co-workers in the faith of Christ were tailing by the ■
hand of persecution, the Evangelist is the only A post! e who is not enrolled among
" the noble army of the martyrs"—he died a natural death.
I have thus alluded 1o our Patron Saint because the occasion seemed to render it
fit that such respect should be paid to a character so prominent in Freemasonry
aid so conspicuous in the annals of Christian history.
I shall now claim 3 our attention, brethren, while 1 enter into a candid aud rational,
but brief, survey of the origin, nature and tendency of the Institution with which his
character stands so closely allied.
The Institution of Freemasonry comes to us trom an early period, hearing on its
Visage the marks of age and presenting the appearance of great antiquity. We cliiiW
for it a very remote origin and in this we are not only sustained by historical lacts,
b jt the position is fortified by an internal dvidcnco which the institution itself adonis
to the mind of every intelligent craftsman. The eulightened Mason reads in our
beautiful traditions, sublime rituals and august ceremonies, an evidence of its ancient
origin, and in them he sees sufficient to satisfy him that our landmarks have been
transmitted to lis unimpaired through the lapse of many ages. Our symbols, emblems
and types are witnesses, whose integrity there is no just ground to suspect. The uni-
form language they have ever spoken in all ages—the uniform construction that has
ever been given them by ail intelligent writers is certainly no mean evidence of their
antiquity, and surely indicates that they have ever been used for the same great
purpose of bringing the mind to a serious contemplation of otir social and eternal des-
tiny. In the earlier ages of the world the Fraternity were noited iu both an opera-
tive and speculative sense for mutual protection and support, aud were known to each
other by means ol their sign? ar.J symbols.
Through the lapsa oí tin
riginal meanings, hayo boel
onstraiioiis of our ron
emblems as signifyiry
language ? Symbqlieffl^lu
iug of King Solqmrfu'a Temp
ceremonies .pMuWd with* a clear and i
thay now^u#mte, enforce and <
But I ¿hall not attempt to trace I
wQuMJead us into the misty lubyrin . - —
world owes'much of its giandeur and poviV (¡
nee. Tha indellible *-* —«—■ -i*.
of error
nnm
i skill. wherever science
Tho sU'acttiras of tho primeval
p:eroing the very ben vena, and glowing, wi
budding dower bevies.^ .(jjo sup, t-ttó that o
e seen in
iyeA r. t íyutfju '-Uwiifid ai
necessities of human nature. In the < ■>•>, >"
to the iude and uncultivated manner.' ot tuiav
.halterfrom the inclemency o
save those afforded him in thínfónM u
•tied to perfectiortf-
Jdiydoi.Ait was known
i iv<i IMA/ irñaaihe that he had no
Wtor.tiwr, rind i.o n\'|jri¡!g'l.\>¡nrigor <
work*, it wo
cessity urged him to iuvention- The
u.ro
ft) dé.
t seasons,
- was then that ne-
«¡2¿¡
asome
' extended
her compass and^ stretched her line, lyid the efforts hen produced]¡ "being imjiroved op
by time and experience, have produced works whioj.'are the admiration ol overy age.
The art has been conducive to comfort, to security a« 1 to l'ame, und'from these consiif
orations has been extensively cultivated in evofy . ,j and in every land, and thus to
the admiring gaze, edifices, gorgeous structures, cu> ly and magnificent, bavo been
reared Hp for specific purpasos a so many enduring :>viiSene«s ol Masonic "Art.' Need
I point you, in il lustration, to the impiouu tower of ' ibel dn the plains of Shlnar—
" Man's earliest work and truest monmhoiit?" ' ■ '
Look to.the.Egyptian pyramids, those over'emlBiiiig mouumeuts of Masai\le Art,
kon fragments and mouldering .remains even i)dw ewak>m the aitonishnient add exqii'e
the admiration of .the historian aud thii'tiiivrflei'. Think of Grficlan Art with her
marble glories,
j." Whose ben'iiiiosa brifch'^iadow .«art
Ailtl 'slled a halo rbiind the rniglii., pasti"
Tithagoras and Thales were propaga! oes of the A Tho Extern Mági úríderátood,
tho mystery. Jerusalem and Tyro Were the wtr-.>' the craft. The decaying.colo-
nades;and pillars of HeJiOpolis—the mountain iristas of Bculptured marble that lio
mouldering -in the halt .savage land of Iv/ypt—pyramids, rising in impressive
dignity and awful gi;apdeuv,,defying the rust of tin i, as if presenting the impress of
immortality^ stand ijs undying monumqiits ot priouival Másoníy; arid proseriira vol-
ume rich in eulogy of the Art. The sacred or tlife N^otílílilie, the customs
in honor of Coren or the Elusiniaii mytterió . and other solemn observances
o! the .undent Druids, bear strikin : • ¡. •. I - • ^ aeremo/jc-, a.:d be-.
3peak for us an antiquity ol origin.
But of the nature of tho institution in the days of its remóte antiquity, we can
hi.vobut a fuint nnd imperfect view; a;,'.J,it Is'iJt pr-londed fj presbnt it to you in
its presont. systematic organization previous tc, the building of King Solomon's '
Temple. Symbolical Masonry in. itp present for-' then originated at Jerusalem'—
To that venerated «pot, tjip threshing (loor of O íun the Jebusítc, we trace its birth,
and to that noted period of Jewish history do v^-into its origin.' From the sacred
traditions of our Order, which haya been wisely withheld from the eager gaze of un-
lawful curiosity, we know that this superb ediflsu, Which was tho wonder and admi-
ration of the world, and whose unrivalled maft iiflcence defied oven the descriptive
powers of a Livy, a Zeriaphon and u Joseph. ,Ath« concentrateii work of Mason- %
are indebted Tor tho most valuable results.
Thus, in the fullness' of vigor, unscathed by perKocuting power, unaffected by tho
fiery deluge of war's howling tempest and unthaknn by tho mighty political convul-
sions of earth, tlrti institution stands vonerable with age, but in all its native dignity, '
breathing in its time-honored customs and ceremonies, tin same spirit of wisdom,
s'rength and beauty, with which it was contrived, ixecidod- and adorned by the
Ilirams and Solomon on Mount Moriah's s« :-ed bibw.
But ancient as our Order ii, ife antiquity is not its only, or its greatest claim to
our-roverence and affection it' was in. ntn.ed tbr tha wise and.beuificeat purpose oK
promoting the welfare and happiness of the iiu' .an racc. ii "! in'om Humble opin-
ion hut. been favored with the countenance and. peculiar approbation of Deity himsali".
Originally combining tiio principles of Art and -atienen, and speculatively deducing
great and important. truths from i.'ts operative functions, it raaVed up in connection
with the Templé^ which was an indwelling of t!«- Sheltihah, a moral edifiiie—a eys-"
tem of pure niorulity fijunded <>n tho great arid eternal truths of natural and revealed
religion. This was the work of a favored nation—a people springing frorr¿ a sinfele
family chosen .by God from a Pagan world and reiijed into a great nation by various.
acts of his care and prévidenco. To theni HeWas a God and n Governor. He de-
livered to them tlie law—Hn unacted statutes—He, established ordinances,'.and then
firmly seated them ir. that lapd which lie had .promised* to Abraham's seed."-
They were a race chosen by the Most High as instrumeiitH through wbith,to effect
his wise and benificoiit purposes, arid concerning whom- it \ya> propbeoied by-theW
gceat progenitor: "The sceptr,. shall not depart from Judah nor a lawgiver'(rom bo-
tween his feet, until Shiloh come/', ' ii ...r
The building of this house to God was to thp Jews but a continuation of Hi?
and it is the most important incident that constitutes h link in that great chain of-cir-
cumstance? extentiing from tu 'promise to Abraham to the bir'b of tijtf Messiah,
which bo partifulariy cb'ttramvía- ói« 'hiMorj of that people, by-the remarkable
manifestations! of the favor ni/d j rk'nc'tiqn. of the great Í A«. The inspired Solpmoii
our'first most excellent Giand Mailer cdhvinced' this ruperb model ot ariJiitecture,
which has immortalized his name, and in its cpa |rueliou his hallowed genius, culver-
ting the operative n'nistilts o." Ai : and Science into'Seasons of morality (bid spiritual
■ iiTiprovoment, reared ,the edifice of moral MnsoJ^iv tl|ion the typical indieatioji, of
material objects and the speculative inductions of coiicunenl events. From,these
clrcunistances a rational conclusion is deduced that this could not haye been the w.orjt
of moró human genius /;.
When we reflect, tpo, that this Temple was typical of Clyift—a symbolical repre-
sentation of Hig militant Kingdom, and that in its «ruction the prcseht institution :
of Freo Masonry originated, in which toob and implements of architecture were se-
lected as the most appropriate eifityems .to impress on the mind wise anil Serious
truths concerning the attributes of Deity anil tnaa's duty as nn accountable creature,
iiow afcali ym co.nciude that «..fltttic mino, nnaiOWl Dy"'Ul\ toe controlj'colicéiyéd the
plan ? Again,, we knovy^ ti'.xt th<? Jaw.. Were prone to Jbc wdtWhip ofldblq; r«
though they were in ^be.cq.tuant fpati^i. ol tho richest blovings from tiro hand bf
God, they constantly repudiated his authiMity, forgot biamercies and seemed irresist-
ably to relapso into the jdolatrous customs of the Pagan nations, with which they
were surrounded. "Who can reflect upon the peculiar fitiien of our institution to suith
n->jtate of mind and not be forcibly struck witb the wisdom of its apljtsat^iri to the
idobjtrous inclination of the Jews? If it be a i.i't thai; typical rupreicntationsawak-
en the Bjcmory and create forcible operations of mind—if sensible objicto, in tlisir
a pp! i cautín to the human 'mind, produce, as seme -contend, no stfongbrimpríssións
than meie TtpifBSentativo ferros and ccreuionies, what medium bolter thin the types
and symbols of'%emasonry could convey to U ; mind of jho Jew the cardinal prin-
ciples of virtue and jilas trate the great doctrine oi man'a redemption ? Imaiiao the
congregated mass of^ibikn en employed in building tiiia inagbifi.ettt
thousand Entered Apprentice , #30 thou-a.ul Fellow-Crafts and three tbc
hundred Overseers of wurk. controlled by three Grand Mi ' '' ' ""
in which Deity himself was to. dwell and be pYelwnt witli
to be substituted as more sui' «We and worthy the worship of
God, than tlie mere movable ' '
rend from the quarry the el
figure could l^e see of hi- rude c
ingtools be would adjustjand ,
a beautiful emblem could be •
may be attained by all, who.
men, walk uprightly by the i
tue and morality? Thus by combining í
Morality from Art, this chi.t n people weú
ity and more readily disciplined in the pi
It is remarkable, too, that a mere human
jiortant iii sacred history, and whicfy paint il
■
Hi
IpMI
fffipp
ol.'
WfinKii
HPw.
M
I dav-wtfifW
our person tho lamb-akin, n
ronco and purity of that Holy
suggests a death ami tho shedlrtg of blood,
shed blMd.pi...tliofc " Lamb, whioh,jw.a? slain
The same remarkable analogy exists in overy
sing upon tho memory the truths of Revelation,
bly to tho contemplation 6f thesolnmn realities of . ...
Wo might call your.uttention, too, tdihe durability
tlon; for in it we see the hand of a protecting po— -
us. Death is tho common portion ofjull men,
nations. The; brand boscim of this w irld, from Ada
strewn with tho. mouldering remains i f'demolish
and physical world is bno eontlriUed sc'i no ot chan;
glory of Mount Moriah has fallón. Tto Temple of the 'Moi
ruin. Tyro and Babylon havo passed awny and tha once consocratei
early renown is now the haunt of cr "PS ''#« a ' '
once the land of God,, whc.ru David's forp was at run
gladness—wlioro Tsniali's hallowed lil's with inspired power
strain? of oratory, and whore, too, wa.«uu;:ht the lav
never before rúan spoke.—Greece, theWsmy Of tlloarts
taught and Homor.tuiiod his harp—"tl '
Mure sling—where Brutus'liyod and
desolating scoiirge of war—tlioir glor
tut ien of Freorimsónry, notwithstíiml
out yielding to tlie uiilversal tondoncy
it been merely of man, would long tÁ^o
nndbeoii lorgetteii. What iryititutioii of more
the elements of its own dissolution ?
tho devouring influence of ages ? Whut.i
tablished, whose oxistonefif has not be
stance ! Look to the chronicles of tl
few fleeting centuries have wrought
ivf urttiidgitiin* have Menlovek-d t
of empire that have ritt-n, flonibdied
—hor temple uf yiri.iiev.ljftiii6 * '
elaííiouts, round whose summits
a while unscathed, majostie nod
eWraal city Home, \
r died "—those, all t
geno^-thoy^ live o ' '
has exisled for tli
change and decay,
—hor templen id' 4^ir h
wh
-M. - Hlwh"¡WIIPÜPmMPL'
all human institutiohr,—while we havo seen the be
I as if with the besom of i
Jevour;
war and btoodsh'ed exist, dynasties rúh uml empires,c
>Ma of our raco hav e been cut dowp .bv thó oll-dov. ' '
of this mass of confuaion and deiuiatatlénl'-Wo
the Christian Religion and Fájjwiasónry, w
r heads
f ..
iff it' rough and natural é
imparl . I tn i>'y ahi« ?
r-a tt for it**#-''
of ái
.■üngj leve'
tub pf
Hi
gof®
etreiigtheiiod and boaufifiod, liitiii'g their heads above
the emblema of eternity pictprcd on their,brows, they stand undisn
fl#rce cdHflict of aand bm defiance to tho corrosions of time. How
must it bee to the lover of religion add virtue to stand if the present, nei it \
an emineiicc,.and looking back Ufreugh the gleu of bygone years, boh
"uiiscStnod by'the ligWmng tiial hum'-n rhm iiory ivi'n:; ol llmef'''
Religion, that memorial of mercy to man,
■' Like soniu tall ojiff that lifts its awful form,
Swolls frufn tho vale and midway leaves tliu storm,"
stands forth amidst tho ron .in# tempest of six thousand years, wíi
droám of oblivion 1ms shroudod the visions ol the past. A s>'itoran
ly.opposfcd to the ohorisbed superstitions of the anoient*,
unspotted morality vioo stands blushiiiaty robukeii wa
to bring down on its followers ilia fuiions ruge of retenlWs potseout
But she hits witlistood all oppusitiou. Tbo pois'Onytl shnfts of ou
have fallen harmless at her iuet; the Uiui of oppression is u
aommotiontt of intarnal ti:eaehory have but puriff *
streams, which,flow from this f ,u.tiaiii of love. Th
ity over the attfioks of its enemies is
divine autheiiiiojty ; and we fully <
powerful \vhy its ael;ievmepts i
" ' ' " *
' 1 *' ¡J . :i ,
My' ...
I
mr ; ■ "'X ¿Mds•; fitl
I:, WM '
Im
■PL,,,
equal propriety, then, may we n
to our ihstitutum ? It, too, lifts i
Though enveloped in the flames of
the envenotrtod shafts of enmity, i^n
and PriesUoraft, mad ambitiuu and pc
mot-covered roük, umidBt the stdrms of a
on Its brow—
" Though round its broast tliL
Eternal sunshine settles on
Suphis tho oharACter of the time^hon
represent, We presont it (o you on the i
ulative form '; for it Will be recollected tl
operative and speculative Mdions. "By
proper application «it the useful rule of
will derive figure, strength and beauty, and whi
tioii and just conespoifdeiioe in all i'ts parti,
learn to subdue the passions, act upon th
port, maintain teci'toy und practiee 1
ialiijioii as to lay us under obliga
Deity, wliio.h at onre constiluies our
both its forms combined was pracii,
ages of the world. It was - '
aivl by his posterity in the
Mrises in building their all
- work' 11 ut by Kill " '
: . .to|¡ state flf perfect:
were eonstruoted
■ «troiftgly with the
gpf
century it n
rank i
was estiibliiiiieu in
iel&m
to a k
Ú$atéf4'¿v
fW
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Granbury, H. B. Brazos Statesman. (Waco, Tex.), Vol. 1, No. 48, Ed. 1 Monday, January 3, 1857, newspaper, January 3, 1857; Waco, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth177222/m1/1/: accessed April 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting The Dolph Briscoe Center for American History.