1. religion and spirituality
2. christianity
3. catholicism

June 2015
The Small Town Texas Masons EE-magazine
The Small Town Texas Mason's E-Magazine is not affiliated with any state Grand Lodge or
individual Blue Lodge. It was the creation of then, 80 year old John “Corky” Daut’s idea, 6 years
ago, to still be able to do something to help advance Freemasonry.
It was created to enlighten, educate and entertain Masons and non-Masons alike and as title
suggests, it does try to feature a Texas hero who was a Mason or a story of Texas Masonic history
in each issue.
Page#
Story
3. The Forgotten Hero – Brother Ben Milam
7. Reading Masons and Masons Who Do Not Read
8. The Profound Pontifications Of Brother John Deacon
11. St. John’s Cathedral (‘s Hertogenbosch)
12. The Pope and The Pornographer
18. . . . by the Lighthouse Beam - The Old Guard
19. Surviving The Big Ones
21. On commemoration Of Fallen Mexican Centralists At Texas Battle Sites
23. Four Facets Of Friendship
27. The Widows Sons Masonic Riders Association
28. Ireland: The Influence Of Freemasonry In Meath And Westmeath In The eighteenth
Century. Part 2
32. John Quincy Adams, Masonry & the Free, Invisible Car
34 Hiram or Huram Abiff
36. God’s Grace
38. At Last Count, I Think The Burglars Were Winning
40. The Truman Faux
41. Welcome To Louisiana
Copyright Info. No Copyright - Free To Use — A very sincere effort was made to avoid
using any copyrighted material, without permission or giving credit to the author, in the creation
of this web site. If you discover something that is yours, without giving you due credit, please let
me know and it will be corrected or removed.
This month’s cover was found by searching the term “Small Texas Towns” on Google. Name
Unknown.
Page 2
The Forgotten Hero – Brother Ben Milam
Editor’s Note; Ben Milam was always one of my heroes, maybe because my mother was a Milam. But, try as
hard as I could, I never found a connection. Old Ben never married or claimed to have fathered a child.
I borrowed this article from the, newsletter of Morton Lodge #72 in Richmond, Texas. Corky
By C. F. Eckhardt
Who was the first—and possibly the greatest—hero of
the Texas Revolution? He’s a man you may have heard of,
but not very often. Try Ben Milam. Surprised? You really
shouldn’t be, but Ben’s been ignored and short-changed by
both academic historians and writers like me for so long
that he’s been all but forgotten. Ben, though, really started
it all.
Oh, sure—there were fits and starts as early as 1832. It
was in 1835, though that things were set to pop. Martin
Perfecto de Cos, Santa Anna’s brother-in-law, was arguably
the best home-grown field general the Mexican Army had.
Vicente Filisola and Adrian Woll were probably more
competent overall, but they were European imports—
soldiers-of fortune with European training and experience
who took their talents to Mexico in search of a market and
found one. Filisola was Italian, Woll German. Cos was a
native of Mexico who’d been a successful officer in the Revolution and—while he did have the
patronage of Santa Anna—he was good at what he did in spite of it. He held the largest population
and trade center in Texas, San Antonio de Bejár, with a force not of peon levies and convict soldiers,
but hardbitten, well-trained veteran regulars.
Against this the Texicans could muster only untrained volunteers. Man-for-man they were
among the best fighters in North America, but their style of fighting—one-on-one, hit and run,
honed against Lipans, Tonkawas, and Comanches—wasn’t exactly suited to the task ahead. They
had to take a town, not necessarily well fortified but certainly strengthened, held by well-trained,
well-disciplined veteran combat troops. That meant house-to-house fighting from behind walls and
fences against disciplined firepower and possibly even artillery. It was not an inviting prospect.
The Texican leaders, Bowie, Milam, and others, did try to instill some discipline into the men,
drilling them in advancing and retreating in good order, exhorting them to discipline their fire and
concentrate their firepower with volleys rather than picking targets.
It takes more than a few weeks, though, to overcome the habits of a lifetime and build soldiers
that fight effectively as a team. The Texicans had only weeks to do what they could, and the
Mexican troops had been trained in their tactics for years.
The Texicans were, in that wonderful Biblical phrase, ‘sore afraid’—which means, in plain
Texan, those folks were flat skeered. The Indians they were used to fighting were, for the most part,
poor shots. Their fighting was unpredictable. Sometimes they’d fight, sometimes they’d run—and
there was no predicting which they’d do or when or why they’d do it. In addition,
Indians fought ‘every man for himself,’ totally without command discipline.
Page 3
The Mexican troops in Bejár would fight. There was no doubt about that. Under Martin Perfecto
de Cos they’d fight well and be skillfully deployed and maneuvered. Individually they might be no
better shots than the average Indian—the average Mexican musketeer, shooting at a mark, was
lucky to hit in the same county as the target. Disciplined fire was another story. In ranks of 100 or
more, firing volleys on command, they’d put a curtain of large chunks of lead in the air and some
of it would definitely get on somebody. “Catching the blue plum”—an euphemism for getting hit
by a .75 caliber ball from the Napoleonic War surplus English-made Brown Bess muskets most
Mexican infantry carried—meant a lifetime of debility if not a very painful death.
Somebody had to lead the Texicans into Bejár. The odds
were that somebody would die very quickly. Nobody wanted the
job, not even the redoubtable Jim Bowie. One man stepped
forward—and, according to the story of one who was there, he
drew a line in the dirt with a stick he had in his hand and said
“Who’ll follow old Ben Milam into Bejár?”
Benjamin Rush Milam was a native of Kentucky, born about
1789. He was one of the earliest US immigrants into Texas, and
one of the few who wasn’t a ‘Muldoon Catholic.’
Before immigrating to Texas, Ben converted to Catholicism
and was baptized a Roman Catholic in Kentucky, where records
of his conversion and baptism are preserved yet. For the record,
there are a great many Catholics in Kentucky, and at least three
proto-cathedrals grace surprisingly small rural towns there.
How deeply he felt his conversion may be open to question. He may not have been a Muldoon
Catholic in fact, but he seems to have been one at heart. Ben was a high-ranking Freemason when
he converted, but he doesn’t seem to have told the bishop about it. At the time, Freemasonry was
proscribed by the Catholic Church and it’s still frowned on. The Knights of Columbus, the Catholic
men’s brotherhood, was specifically established in the US to give Catholic men an alternative to
the Freemasons.
That didn’t mean Catholics—some of them very important Catholics—weren’t Freemasons.
Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna y Perez de LeBron, who held the title—among others—of ‘Defender
of the Faith,’ was a practicing Freemason. His display of the Masonic ‘brother in distress’ sign to
Sam Houston, another Freemason, after his capture, probably saved him from almost immediate
hanging and certainly contributed to the, in effect, VIP treatment he got from Houston and the other
Texas officials, most of whom were Masons.
Ben Milam helped plan and personally led the assault on Bejár—and almost lived through it.
The battle was mostly over when he stopped next to a tree in the back yard of the de Veramendi
house. Oral history, passed down through the generations from those who were there to their
descendants, says Ben had a reason for stopping by the tree. He hadda pee! While he was engaged
in this most intimate act, a Mexican sniper shot him through the head.
Whether the Mexican rifleman chose that particularly intimate moment to shoot Ben down or
not we don‘t know for sure, but the story’s been around for about 170 years now.
Trouble is, it couldn’t have been a ‘Mexican sniper,’ because the Mexican army had no snipers.
What they had were special rifle battalions of highly-trained, well-treated troops who were armed
with British-made .64 caliber Baker rifles. In fact, the whole Mexican Army was copied—weapons,
organization, and tactics—from the British Army of the Napoleonic Wars. Santa Anna
may have called himself ‘The Napoleon of the West,’ but he certainly appreciated the Page 4
organization and tactics of Arthur Wellesley, the Duke of Wellington, who was primarily
responsible for the downfall of Bonaparte. As in the British Army, the Mexican Army’s rifle
battalions were well-trained in the use of their weapons on individual targets. The worst of the rifle
troops were pretty fair shots, while the best were certainly equal to anything on the Texican side.
Ben was buried where he fell, in the back yard of the de Veramendi house. There his bones lay
for many years. Eventually he was disinterred and his remains removed, with appropriate Masonic
ritual, to a corner of a Protestant cemetery on the site of what is now San Antonio’s Milam Park.
The gravesite was marked with a limestone monument inscribed, simply, MILAM. It was assumed
that no further identification would ever be needed
When the cemetery was dedicated as Milam Park, it was decided that, instead of being relegated
to a corner, Ben should rest in the middle of the park. He was again disinterred—once more with
appropriate Masonic ritual—and re-interred precisely in the center of the park that bore his name.
In 1936 the by-then-badly-weathered limestone marker was replaced with the granite monument
you’ve seen if you’ve ever visited Milam Park.
Over the years Milam Park’s neighborhood changed to one you wouldn’t care to enter after
dark. San Antonio has been trying to revive the area and arrest its decay for a long time, and just a
few years ago San Antonio’s Mexican sister city, Cuernavaca, offered to donate a gazebo-like band
shell to be erected in the middle of Milam Park as part of the rejuvenation.
Immediately objections were voiced—“You can’t put a band shell there—it’ll be right on top of
Ben Milam’s grave!” We seem to treat our Texas heroes, even our nearly forgotten ones, with
greater respect than some Europeans treat theirs. The grave of the founder of the Scottish
Presbyterian Church is rumored—though no one knows for sure—to be under the blacktop of a
Glasgow parking lot.
In fact, old Ben had been so thoroughly ignored or forgotten in San Antonio that, officially, San
Antonio had no idea where his bones lay. The late Dr. I. Waynne Cox, together with Dr. Anne Fox,
both of the UTSA anthropology/archaeology department, began researching Ben’s posthumous
perambulations. Sure enough, they found long forgotten newspaper accounts of the removal and
second reburial of the forgotten hero “in the middle of Milam Park.” Those who objected to the
band shell said “See—we told you so! Ben’s right under the monument.”
Still, nobody knew for sure. Even if there was a grave there, nobody really knew if it was Ben
Milam’s. A dig was organized to discover if there really was a grave under the monument, and if
there was, to determine—if possible—whose grave it was. Nobody really expected much success
in the latter.
There was a grave, exactly where the objectors said it would be. In the ground the archaeologists
found the outline of an old wooden ’toe-pincher’ coffin, by then so deteriorated that the only trace
of it was a discoloration in the soil. Inside the outline were the considerably deteriorated remains
of a Caucasian male between the ages of 45 and 50, who stood about 5’7” in life.
Could this be Ben? All descriptions of Ben put him “six feet tall or a little better.” In fact most
such descriptions were exaggerations. We have ‘eyewitness’ accounts describing Daniel Boone as
‘over six feet’ when he stood only about 5’6”, David Crockett as ‘a giant of a man’ when he stood
only about 5’7”, and Sam Houston as ‘six feet six’ when he actually stood 6’2”. Other evidence
was needed to say yea or nay.
The skull was badly shattered and much of the facial structure was gone, but enough remained
for the cranium to be reconstructed. In the left rear aspect of the skull was a large hole, which a
forensic anatomist identified as an exit wound caused by a bullet of approximately .65
caliber. According to eyewitness accounts, Ben was shot in the front of the head from Page 5
the right, with a Mexican rifle-—which, remember, was .64 caliber—and “the ball went plumb
through his head.” There is little doubt that the remains found in the middle of Milam Park are
those of Texas’ great—but almost-forgotten—hero, Ben Milam.
Now let’s back up a mite, to that fateful evening in 1835
when Ben Milam cried “Who’ll follow old Ben Milam into
Bejár?” Abraham Zuber—whose father was there when it
happened—said his daddy told him Ben drew a line in the dirt
with a stick he had in his hand for those who’d follow him to
cross. A lot of historians have speculated since—based on the
total lack of any known, surviving eyewitness testimony to the
contrary, and on the fact that the one eyewitness to survive and
testify to the goings-on inside the Alamo didn’t mention it until
years after the fact—that Ben’s line in the dirt, drawn with a
stick, has been transmogrified, over the years, to a line in the
dust in the courtyard of the Alamo drawn by Buck Travis with
his sword.
Well, Buck’s line in the dust certainly makes a better story,
and from what we know of Travis’ personality that’s exactly
what he would have done if he’d thought of it. Then there’s the
question—why would Ben have a stick in his hand just before a battle? A rifle or musket, sure. A
knife, a tomahawk, a sword, even a chopping ax—all of those would be reasonable. But a simple
stick? Why? Maybe it wasn’t a ‘simple stick.’ The leg bones of the skeleton unearthed in Milam
Park were well preserved. On examination by competent physicians, they were determined to show
evidence of a debilitating arthritic condition.
From forensic evidence the man buried under Ben Milam’s monument in Milam Park probably
couldn’t have bent his right knee at all, and bending his left knee would have been painful at best.
Ben Milam—for there’s little question now of the identity of the original possessor of that
skeleton—was crippled by arthritis. He could barely get around.
He certainly walked with a cane if not a crutch. Without one or the other he probably couldn’t
have walked at all.
The ‘line-in-the-dust’ controversy is not now settled nor is it ever likely to be. Travis’ line is
such a part of the Alamo story that it will never die. We do have, however, an explanation for the
stick with which Ben drew his line. It was a walking stick—and he always carried it, because he
couldn’t walk without it.
Milam’s bones were at UTSA for several months, under study to determine the many things
bones can tell about the people who once possessed them—diet, disease, habits, and abilities. Once
UTSA completed its study, the Smithsonian requested a short-term loan of the bones for study. Ben
did what no other hero of the Texas Revolution has ever done—he boarded a jetliner and flew to
Washington and back. Of course he—or his bones—did it in a specially-designed suitcase, but it
was still a first.
Milam Park has been renovated. Ben has been re-interred—hopefully for the final time —with
full Masonic ritual and honors, together with an honor guard from those Texans who owe much of
their history to him. But—how thoroughly has Ben Milam been forgotten? There’s a county named
for him, a street in Seguin bears his name, there are schools called ‘Milam,’ and then of course
there’s Milam Park in San Antonio. In the most comprehensive if not the most monumental
novel ever written about Texas, James Michener’s TEXAS, Ben Milam is the only major Page 6
participant in the Texas Revolution who is never mentioned at all.
It’s about time we started remembering old Ben. If he hadn’t stepped up and hollered “Who’ll
follow old Ben Milam into Bejár?” we Texans might not have a state at all.
Thanks to Lou Payton for submitting this article.
Reading Masons and Masons Who Do Not Read
From the Winter 2008-2009 edition of The Plumbline, the quarterly bulletin of the Scottish Rite
Research Society, carried a reprint of an article by Albert G. Mackey, titled Reading Masons
and Masons Who Do Not Read as was originally published in Voice of Masonry in June 1875.
Interestingly, Mackey addressed some of the very same issues that Masons discuss today – one
hundred and thirty-four years later. In fact, one could probably remove Mackey’s name and the
date of publication from the article and then easily pass it off as something written yesterday.
Mackey’s article contains his opinions about the title seekers in Freemasonry and the multitude
of Freemasons who do not seek self enlightenment via personal research. Mackey divided
Freemasons into three classes as follows.
1) Those that petitioned because they felt membership in the Fraternity would “personally
benefit them” in their business, political, or other profane endeavors.
2) Those that applied for admission into Freemasonry due to a “favorable opinion
conceived of the Institution, and a desire of knowledge.”
3) Somewhere between the first two classes are those that believe all of the Masonic
teachings are imparted by their initiations into the various degrees.
Mackey felt that the first group is without hope. “They are dead trees having no promise of fruit.
Let them pass as utterly worthless, and incapable of improvement.” He referred to the second group
as the “shining lights” of Freemasonry and then concentrated on discussing the third group.
Mackey plainly felt that this third group was the most dangerous to Freemasonry.
“Such Masons are distinguished, not by the amount of knowledge that they possess, but by the
number of jewels that they wear. They will give fifty dollars for a decoration, but not fifty cents for
a book.
These men do great injury to Masonry. They have been called its drones. But they are more than
that. They are the wasps, the deadly enemy of the industrious bees. They set a bad example to the
younger Masons – they discourage the growth of Masonic literature – they drive the intellectual
men, who would be willing to cultivate
Masonic science, into other fields of labor – they depress the energies of our writers – and they
debase the character of Speculative Masonry as a branch of mental and moral philosophy.”
Mackey did not let up on his condemnation of this third class as he concluded his article.
“The Masons who do not read will know nothing of the interior beauties of Speculative
Masonry, but will be content to suppose it to be something like Odd Fellows, or the Order of the
Knights of Pythias – only, perhaps, a little older. Such a Mason must be an indifferent one. He has
laid no foundation for zeal. If this indifference, instead of being checked, becomes more widely
spread, the result is too apparent. Freemasonry must step down from the elevated position which
she has been struggling, through the efforts of her scholars, to maintain, and our Lodges, instead of
becoming resorts for speculative and philosophical thought, will deteriorate into social clubs or
mere benefit societies.”
Page 7
The Profound Pontifications Of Brother John Deacon
Editor’s Note; If you remember Chris Williams’ last words in last month’s story where John pulled a good on
him, he said, “I was already hatching a plan to get him back.” Well in this issue he does a pretty good job.
Once again Brother Chris proved he can write really funny as well as Masonic educational.
OK, let me set the picture. I told John that I wanted to go to the Tip Top for Chicken Fried Steak
again. He was thrilled and emphatically agreed. I had to agree to pay… again. This time I got there
first which should have tipped him off that something was up but he was so excited about having
that Tip Top Chicken Fried Steak that nothing clicked in his mind. When he came in I was sitting
at a table for six and he sat down and started telling me about his trip down and making small talk.
I had planned this pretty carefully and was looking forward to putting the “plan” into action.
There was that little voice in the back of my mind that kept telling me that what I was doing
was not only childish and immature but a little ridiculous as well. The problem was that there was
a louder voice in my head that was telling me that it was time for a little payback. It might not be
the right thing to do but I was going with the louder voice this time. A great man once said “One
good practical joke deserves another.” Don’t ask me who said it but I’m sure it was said by
someone. I had spent some time putting this together and I wanted to return to the “scene of the
crime” so to speak and give John his payback in the same place he got me. So there we were,
talking about nothing in particular. His sister Eileen had come over and chatted for a couple of
minutes and brought us drinks and onion rings. I picked a time that was midafternoon so there
wouldn’t be a lot of customers in the dining room.
There were only five tables occupied which was perfect for my plan. We had just finished our
onion rings and were waiting for our Chicken Fried Steaks. I glanced towards the door in time to
see two guys walk in. They were both dressed casually and both were wearing dark glasses. They
had a professional look to them and to anyone in the room they might even look like they were in
law enforcement, maybe detectives or something. Neither carried a weapon and I hoped that that
small omission would go unnoticed by John. Yep I knew them both… real well, and they were part
of the plan. I also knew the other four who would be coming in shortly. I could barely contain my
excitement and it was all I could do to remain calm. John was telling me something about his last
Lodge meeting and while normally I would be listening intently, I hadn’t heard a word he said. I
glanced towards the kitchen as Eileen came out carrying our lunch. A regular persons’ portion for
me and the “double chicken fried steak” with plenty of gravy for John. John had his eyes locked
on that plate as it made its way across the room.
I had a dog on the ranch one time that when you had his food bowl in your hand he was so
focused on it that you could yell or spray water on him or just about anything and he wouldn’t even
notice. He would stare at that bowl... and drool. Lord that dog could drool! And there was John…
staring at that plate and… Well, you get the picture. Eileen set our plates in front of us and smiled
at me. John grabbed his knife and fork smacked his lips and started to dig in. But before the fork
touched that steak he felt a hand on his shoulder.
Startled, he looked up and there was one of the guys with the sunglasses looking down at him.
Then he felt a hand on the other shoulder and looked over the other shoulder to see the other
stranger looking down at him. I knew the strangers and I knew the fun was about to
begin. The one on his left held out an official looking card and said, “Sir, my name is Page 8
Special Agent Mike and I am with the food and drug enforcement administration.” The confused
look on John’s face told me he had never heard of the Food and Drug Enforcement Administration.
Neither had I… it doesn’t exist. But John was too confused to sort it out right then. Mike
continued,” And this is my partner Special Agent Keith. We have a report of some counterfeit food
being passed off as real food in this establishment. It is our job to check it out.
“Counterfeit food????” said John looking even more confused. What do you mean?”
“These are the facts, sir”, said Mike in his best Jack Webb/ Joe Friday voice. “Certainly you’ve
heard of counterfeit money and fake designer purses and fake Rolex watches and stuff like that?”
John nodded still confused. “Well it has been reported that this restaurant is passing off fake
Chicken Fried Steak as real and we are here to check it out.” As he talked he and Keith were eye –
balling John’s plate and they even glanced at mine a couple of times. Mike continued, “We take
these reports seriously and it is our job to check each report out. Hmmmm look at this Agent Keith,
this one doesn’t look right”, he said pointing to John’s plate. Keith nodded with a serious look on
his face and before John could blink Mike picked up his plate and took it to the end of our table
and sat down. John started to protest but Mike just held up his hand and cut him off. “There is
definitely something wrong here,” Mike said to Keith, and then to John, “We are going to have to
do some tests on this.” Then without any hesitation he picked up a knife and fork and started cutting
the steak and eating it. I thought John was going to pass out. His face turned red and his eyes
bugged out and he started stammering. I could hear something that sounded like bu… bu… bu…
bu… his eyes were frozen on his steak that was being eaten by Mike. Then
Mike told Keith to “test” it and he took a couple of bites. After each bite they would sit back
and savor the taste and it looked to me more like they were enjoying it more than they were
“testing” it… much to John’s displeasure. Then Keith pulled out his cell phone and announced that
they needed back up and made a call. Almost immediately four more “agents” came in and over to
our table. Keith told them that they were testing a possible counterfeit Chicken Fried Steak. They
nodded without saying anything and sat down and started cutting off pieces of John’s steak. John
finally found his voice and pointing at my plate exclaimed loudly, “What about his?”
Mike paused his chewing and said, “No, his is ok. He can eat his.”
“Thanks” I said, and I began to eat mine. I could see out of the corner of my eye that John was
in shock watching six guys devour his steak. I glanced over and it seemed to be going fast… both
layers. I don’t know how long they ate on his Chicken Fried Steak but it seemed like a long time
and finally Mike stood up and picked up John’s plate and brought it back and sat it back in front of
him. I looked down at it and there was a piece left about the size of a half dollar and no gravy.
John was looking at it with a stunned look on his face and he looked up as Mike said, “Sir, there
doesn’t appear to be anything wrong with that Chicken Fried Steak. In fact it’s probably the best I
have ever had,” as he looked at the other guys who all nodded in agreement.
John looked at Mike and then at the guys and then back again, the veins showing on his forehead.
“Great balls of fire,” he boomed. “I could have told you that.”
And then he just sat there looking at what was left of his lunch and I could tell by his expression
that this was easily his worst nightmare. I honestly thought he was going to cry. And then I couldn’t
stand it anymore. I laughed so hard that tears were running down both cheeks and the “agents”
were laughing too. Eileen walked up to John and gave him a hug and she was laughing.
Yup, I even had her in on it too. I am sure she had things from way back to get even with him
for. While we were all laughing John just sat there with a confused/tortured/disbelieving look on
his face… shaking… and then he figured it out. He looked at all of us one by one and me a couple
of times with that “Big John” stare and abruptly held up his hand for silence. I didn’t know
Page what
9
he was going to do. You could have heard a pin drop. I held my breath thinking that maybe we
went too far. A few seconds went by and then he leaned forward, smiled, and his voice started off
soft and got louder as he spoke “All I want to know is which one of you severely misguided souls
is buying me a Chicken Fried Steak.”
Well we all laughed again and I looked up at Eileen and nodded. Out from the kitchen came six
plates of Chicken Fried Steak and one Double Chicken Fried Steak for John with extra gravy of
course. John let out a big sigh of relief and ate like he hadn’t eaten in a week. Since I had eaten
already I introduced “agents” Mike, Keith, Jim, Greg, Kevin and J.C. I told him that they all were
my teammates on a softball team I had played on for almost 15 years.
“Are they Brother Masons”, he asked between mouthfuls?
“Unfortunately, no they are not John”, I said. “But they are my Brothers just the same except
for JC who is my son.”
“Well they must owe you big time to drop everything they were doing to help you play a childish
prank on a poor, innocent, starving man who would never think to do something that mean to
anyone”, he said with a forced frown.
Unfortunately for him, Eileen was standing right behind him when he said it and she slapped
the back of his head.
He recoiled and looked around and saw who it was and said, “Why didn’t you tell me she was
behind me?”
“Because she is the only one who can punish you for acting all innocent when we know you are
not,” I said. “
Wait a minute”, he said looking down his nose at me, “you said you weren’t going to get me
back for that.”
“Sorry John, I couldn’t let that go without some payback. All I can say is the pleasure was all
mine today.” He gave me a sarcastic smile and shook his head. Everyone was finishing up with
their meals and I waved at Eileen and shortly out came pie for everyone. We all finished up and
the “agents” shook hands all around. John thanked each for the trauma to his digestive system. He
watched as they left and turned to me, smiled and said, “Those are some real good guys there,
Brother Chris. The next time I want to play a joke on someone I’m calling them.”
“I am sure they’d be happy to help, John. We’re even now so I expect that there won’t be a
payback,” I said.
He got a mock look of astonishment and said, “I wouldn’t think of it.”
Well that was a red flag if I ever saw one but I was not going to lose any sleep on it. I said, “Is
there anything you want to talk about this month cause I’ve got to be getting back to work soon.”
“Brother Chris”, he said with a pained look on his face, “I am so shook up still that I can’t even
think of what I was going to say. But I have an article I cut out of a magazine about Masonry that
I wanted to give you. Maybe you could put that in your newsletter and apologize to all your
Brothers that you caused me so much pain and suffering that I couldn’t talk.”
I ignored him and began to read the paper he gave me. It was called Degrees and Life By M.W.
Brother Dewey H. Wolstein WE CANNOT introduce innovations in Masonry. However, this does
not mean that we cannot put something of ourselves into Masonry. It is the responsibility and duty
of everyone who has a part in conferring the degrees to not only speak the words but to deliver
their meanings. His own heart must reach the heart of the candidate. Together with the words there
must be a feeling that the lessons are not related to life, but are life.
Moral lessons are taught men by good mothers and good fathers. Men are morally Page 10
qualified before they are qualified to become Masons. The great purpose of Masonry
then is to make possible a system of moral development which will widen the path of improvement.
When the lessons of Masonry fail in the objective of creating a living philosophy, a philosophy that
helps to make life a richer, fuller experience, then the greatest good is lost.
A great poem becomes even greater when one takes the time and effort to study the state of
mind of the author, and to more clearly understand the thought and inspiration behind the printed
words. So it is with the lessons of Masonry. We must take that which is warm, pulsating, and alive,
and drive it into the heart of the candidate.
When I finished I looked up and told John that it was good and I would put it in the newsletter
for sure. We said goodbye to everyone and walked out to our trucks. Mine was the closest and as I
opened the door I could tell that John was a little uncomfortable and I asked him what was wrong.
He stood there a few seconds looking down at the ground and finally said, “Brother Chris, you
know how one Brother is supposed to whisper good council to another Brother when needed?”
“Yes, I do,” I said. “Why are you asking?”
“Well, I feel like I need to tell you something right now and I feel bad doing it.”
I was totally confused so I waited him out. I really had no clue what he was talking about. “Spit
it out John,” I said. “What did I do?”
Finally he looked up and said. “Brother Chris, you and I talk a lot about being an upright Mason
and always doing the right thing and I noticed that you didn’t pay the bill before we left and I feel
bad about having to tell you this but you really need to go back inside and do the right thing or if
you want me to do it I will.” He saw me get a big smile on my face and he said, “It’s not funny.”
“Actually it is Brother John and I am sorry that I made you so uncomfortable and I thank you
for saying the right thing but as it turns out (and I pulled my $150.00 Tip Top gift coupon from my
pocket to show him) I already paid and I have enough for us to come back again sometime… my
treat.”
Danged if he didn’t let out a whoop and give me a bear hug in the middle of the parking lot. I
wasn’t sure if he was happy I was going to buy him another Chicken Fried Steak or that I had
already paid. Either way he was happy. I pried myself away from him and jumped in my truck and
headed back to work. I looked in the mirror and caught a glimpse of him still standing where I left
him, goofy grin on his face still waving.
Yup, life is good in Brother John Deacon’s world.
St. John’s Cathedral (‘ss-Hertogenbosch)
Hertogenbosch
From the "Thoughts For The Enquiring Mason" By W. Bro. Brendan Kyne
In the 1200’s in the Dutch town of ’s-Hertogenbosch (birthplace of
Hieronymus Bosch) a little Romanesque church dedicated to St. John the
evangelist was built just outside the city walls. In the late 1300’s a larger
Gothic style church was built in its place.
Over the period of the next few hundred years the church became a
substantial cathedral, which was built, rebuilt , reconstructed and restored,
which is plain to see from all its different building styles.
Over the years the cathedral has been decorated both inside and out with
hundreds of statues. High above the ground are almost 100 human and
animal figures perched on the arches of the cathedral, some of which were deliberately
designed originally by the stonemasons so that they could only be viewed from the Page 11
roof itself. It is a strange mix of musicians, masons, drunkards and monsters. Interestingly one of
the mason figures works with the chisel and common gavel, another with the trowel and level,
whilst a third is depicted with a pair of compasses and plans –
perhaps signifying the apprentice and the fellow/master of the
craft.
The figures on the arches of the nave were introduced in
the 16th century when Jan Heyns was the master mason. We
don’t know who actually made these figures. On the south side
of the nave with its great differences in temperature and
humidity most of the original figures have been lost. On the
north side fortunately most have been saved.
In the late 1500’s fire destroyed the original tower which
collapsed into the cathedral causing extensive damage. Over the
years many restorations, beginning in the 1850’s, were undertaken
with the most recent restoration work finished in 2010. During the
last restoration 25 new angel statues were created by mason-sculptor
Ton Mooy, including one with a modern twist, an angel wearing
jeans and holding a mobile phone.
"The phone has just one button, says the artist. – It dials directly
to God". The mobile-using angel had to be first approved by the
cathedral's fathers, who rejected earlier designs with a jet-pack on the angel's back.
Some may see this sculpture as an abomination, whilst others may see it as a legitimate modern
representation of an old theme – a continuation of the art and craft of our operative masonic
forbears.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Reference:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._John%27s_Cathedral_(’s-Hertogenbosch)
Founder: VWBro G.LOVE
Editor/Compiler: WBro Brendan Kyne (Comments and contributions to [email protected])
The P0pe And The Pornographer
Editor’s Yes; it’s another story about Leo Taxil, but It goes into a lot more detail than I’ve seen
before.
From Wayne Anderson’s “Sunday Masonic Paper”
The long quarrel between Freemasonry and Catholicism
By: Brian Riggs, formerly a Franciscan brother, is the son of a Past Master Guncilor, grandson
of a Master Mason, and nephew of a Grand Master.
How the longstanding grievances between these two great movements came to a head with the
antics of a French publisher of smutty books.
When Pope Leo Xlll, in his 1884 encyclical Humanum Genus, admonished the Roman Catholic
faithful to expose Masonic subversions wherever found, fervent response came from the least likely
of quarters.
Leo Taxil—the pen name of one-time Mason, longtime pornographer, and anti-Catholic
polemicist Gabriel Jorgand- Pages—became an outspoken leader in the pontiff’s
Page 12
anti-Masonic crusade.
Voicing contrition for the considerable ink he had spilt
defaming both clergy and Church in his native France, Taxll
sought a remission of the several excommunications weighing
against his soul. After authoring several pious tracts and
performing a lengthy penance, he was ultimately absolved. He
then devoted his considerable literary energy not only to extolling
the Roman faith but to asserting Freemasonry’s impious roots.
The books were very well received, and in 1887 the publisher
who confirmed Catholic suspicions about Masonic diabolism was
granted a private audience with the Holy Father.
Leo Taxil (Gabriel
For centuries before this unlikely team of pontiff and
pornographer, the Roman Catholic Church was alternately
Jorgand-Pages)
Masonry’s benefactor and nemesis.
The operative guilds that raised the greatest of medieval cathedrals were devoted and
financially bound to the Church of Rome. Master masons, schooled in the arts of architecture and
geometry, often received lifelong employment and acquired a social standing that put them nearly
on par with priests and nobility.
During this heyday of operative masonry, the Craft enjoyed a symbiotic relationship with
Catholicism. Medieval masons even included fealty to the Church in their code of ethics: “Those
who would be Masons and practice the Masonic art are required to love God and his Holy Church,
the Master for whom they labor and their Masonic brethren, for this is the true spirit of Masonry.”
This connection to the Church continued as late as the seventeenth century, when a later code
invited Masons to “be true man to god & the holy church & that ye use neither erour nor heresie
according to your own understanding or discreet and wise men’s teachings.”
Medieval masons’ intimate and jealously guarded knowledge of geometry formed the
foundation of an esotericism that was built into the Gothic cathedrals of France and Germany.
Church fathers had long taught that “the mason looks at the archetypes, grasps the divine model,
and makes an impression of it in real material.” For the esoterically grounded mason, the physical
universe was “not real in itself, but was the image of the ultimate reality behind the senses.
[Masons] sought this through those abstractions of geometry and number which were most clearly
seen to express the nature of the infinite.”
To erect cathedrals of such perfect proportions, masons were certainly schooled in the sacred
geometry of the age. Applying a hybrid of Pythagorean mathematics, Christian theology, and
Platonic cosmology popular among the Catholic mystics and intelligentsia of the day, master masons erected cathedrals that were microcosms of the universe as it was conceived by the medieval
mind. Entering through a cathedral’s western portal, Christians journey to-ward the rising sun, the
resurrected Christ whose redemptive sacrifice is re-enacted at the altar. Vaulted arches and thin
walls punctuate the buildings’ otherworldly qualities. And at the center of the church, nave and
transept are pierced vertically by dome and altar, forming the axis mundi that joins heaven to earth,
the divine to the mundane. numerologists have discovered hidden messages that relate to each
building’s patron saint.’ On the other hand, written records provide little indication that the
operative masons’ secrets were of a mystical or even a philosophic nature. Throughout the Middle
Ages, hidden Masonic knowledge related largely to trade secrets kept for no mystical a purpose
Page13
for no more mystical a purpose than job security. They enabled the medieval craftsmen to
monopolize large-scale construction projects in much the same way
that Catholicism monopolized religion. An operative lodge of
masons, for example, was offered lifelong employment to maintain
the church of St. Mary’s and other local edifices in Dundee,
Scotland. Trade secrets are documented in thirteenth-century
France, where Etienne Boileau, provost of merchants, decreed that
“masons, mortar-makers, and plasterers may have as many
assistants and valets as they please to help them in their work,
provided they teach them nothing about their trade.” And in a
manuscript dated to about 1430, the operative mason in Britain was
advised to “keep secret the counsels of his fellows, whether given in
the lodge, in the chamber, or any other place where masons be.” In
1486 German architect Wenzel Roriczer shocked contemporary
Steinmetzen by publishing a volume that detailed how to calculate
Pope Leo Xlll,
a pinnacle’s elevation from two-dimensional diagrams.
German master stonecutters had been expressly forbidden to reveal such knowledge: “No
work-man, no master, no journeyman will tell anyone who is not of the craft and who has never
been a mason how to take an elevation from a plan,” says one decree dated to 1459. 9 Secret means
of identification seem to have a Scottish origin. In 1707 masons of Mother Kilwinning Lodge were
advised not to hire tradesmen professing to be masons who were unable to provide the “password.”
By 1600, the great age of cathedral construction was for masons little more than a pleasant
memory of steady income. On the Continent the guilds died out, while in Britain they seem to have
bolstered their numbers by accepting into their lodges other tradesmen and even local nobility as
honorary members. (This system is echoed by modern universities which bestow honorary degrees
on dignitaries.)
By the 1700s, nontechnical members apparently out-numbered the operatives and the absence
of a trade made trade secrets anachronistic. The philosophic Secret was then born in the form of
social morality clothed in working-class allegory. The practical mathematics of construction were
transmuted into Geometry, a system of knowledge that was often seen as mirroring or even rivaling
the Christian Godhead.
Speculative Freemasons also opened the operative tool-box and in it discovered an abundance
of metaphorical wealth. The plumb symbolized rectitude, the level equality, the square morality,
and the compass proper deportment. Upon spreading into France, Spain, and Italy, this speculative
Freemasonry soon became a sort of counter-Church for freethinkers. In +Britain it attracted
members from the budding philosophy of Deism, and Freemasons who dabbled in secret
Kabbalistic studies sometimes identified the mystical letter “G” with gnosis rather than geometry
or God.
To the Church of Rome, an international organization espousing secrecy and potentially
heterodox spirituality was little less than diabolical. And, diabolism is what Taxil provided.
Revelations completes surla franc-maconnerie was released in 1886. In it Taxil offered a horrific
glimpse into the Palladium, an ultrasecret order of Freemasons steeped in licentiousness and satanic
ritual. Members were initiated into demonic degrees whose ceremonies required blasphemy and
sacrilege against the Christian God as well as “public fornication . . . to show that
Page 14
the sacred act of physical
generation is key to show that
the sacred act of the mystery of
being.” ll Palladian Masons,
Taxil revealed, believed in dual
gods, good and evil, and were
involved in all sorts of mischief
including
Black
Masses,
profanation of the Eucharist,
and seances capable of summo
ning Lucifer, Asmodeus, and no
less fiendish to nineteenth-century Catholics Martin Luther and Voltaire. The Palladium had
organizational centers in Germany, Italy, India, and the United States. One center of this insidious
web was Charleston, South Carolina, from which General Albert Pike, identified by Taxil as the
“Sovereign Pontiff of Universal Freemasonry,” commanded this devilish brotherhood.
Taxil’s exposes continued for more than a decade in books that
were widely distributed throughout the Catholic world. In 1895, he
was joined by Diana Vaughan, a former Palladian Grand Priestess
who claimed lineage from the seventeenth-century Rosicrucian
and alchemist Thomas Vaughan. Diana had recently converted to
Catholicism and was now in hiding in France, fearing mortal
consequences should the Craft ever discover her whereabouts.
Over a period of two years Vaughan, in volumes entitled Memoires
d’une ex-Palladiste that were published by Taxil, documented
female Freemasons’ role in the Palladium. She described
ceremonies in which serpents seductively slithered across the bare
breasts of Mistresses Templar. Moreover she disclosed the sordid
details of the Palladium’s recent history. Upon Pike’s death,
Master Mason Adrian o Lemmi in Rome gained control of the
organization. Vaughan, unhappy with the transfer of power,
established a reform branch of the Palladium, which she had
Diana Vaughan
commanded until a vision of Joan Waughan “ of Arc prompted
her conversion to Catholicism.
Taxil’s and Vaughan’s testimonies confirmed the Church wildest speculations. Catholic
scholars pounced on this miraculous wealth of first hand material. Bishop Fava of Grenoble
published a booklet exposing ”women’s lodges” as harems and brothels for Freemasons. Leon
Meurin, the bishop of Port Louis (now Mauritius), compared notes with Taxil, which Meurin later
published inhis treatise Lafranc-maconnerie, synagogue de Satan. Fava and Meurin’s polemics
expanded on a long-established line of Catholic anti-Masonic writing.
In 1738, about twenty years after the public debut of the first speculative lodge, the blind and
all-but-bedridden Pope Clement XII condemned, not only any particular Masonic secret, but
Freemasonry’s secrecy in general. “For if they were not doing evil,” he reasoned in his bull In
eminenti, “they would not have so great a hatred of the light.” Clement’s bull also vaguely
mentioned “other just and reasonable motives” for placing Freemasonry under edict.
This was apparently an allusion to a series of political scandals involving a Page 15
Florentine lodge which in the early eighteenth century served as a front for anti-
Catholic British operatives, Clement’s document had its most intense response in Portugal, where
at least one British Mason was tried by the Inquisition, tortured, and imprisoned in the galleys
before being rescued through British diplomatic channels. Catholic prelates’ obsession for sniffing
out Masonic plots has been rivalled only by Freemasons’ perennial fear of papal world domination.
Though typically espousing religious neutrality, Masonic lodges have often been steeped in an
anti-Catholic sentiment popular among their various Protestant, Freethinker, Deist, and rationalist
members. In France, Italy and Spain, lodges often became dens of anticlerical and revolutionary
forces, which found Masonic secrecy an opportune veil to pull over prying papal and governmental
eyes.
In the United States, anti-Catholic Masonry has ranged from a general loathing of the papacy
as “the torturer and curse of humanity”’3 to a sort of rationalized discrimination on an individual
level: “We do not receive them [Catholics]; we contend that a man owes his allegiance to where
his faith is given; if a Catholic applies to us, knowing that his Church forbids it, it is evidence that
he is ready to disobey where he has promised obedience. Therefore, we do not want him.”
Masonic anti-Catholicism has often been a popular but not off1cially sanctioned sentiment.
Just the opposite is true of the Catholic Church, in which anti-Masonry was propagated at the
highest levels of the hierarchy but has not been universally espoused by all faithful. For example,
Clement’s seminal bull was not recognized by the French parliament and did little to check the
spread of Freemasonry in France. In 1789, Catholic priests still presided over of France’s more
than 600 lodges. Some lodges were even housed in buildings owned by the Church.
In Britain, Catholic Grand Masters included dukes, viscounts, and Robert Edward, ninth Lord
of Petre, who was considered leader of Britain’s Catholic minority in the late 1700s. In America,
Bishop John Carroll of Baltimore, whose brother was a Freemason, chose not to promulgate papal
edicts against the Craft.” I do not pretend that these decrees are received generally by the Church,
or have full authority in this diocese,” he wrote in a letter dated 1794.’
The sceptical Bishop Carroll had like-minded counterparts in nineteenth-century France. By
1896 Taxil’s anti-Masonic crusade was about to screech to an abrupt and dramatic halt.
Despite Vaughan’s popularity in Catholic circles, suspicious scholars and prelates had begun
to demand that she either make a public appearance or present herself to a high-ranking cleric who
could verify her background.
Her integrity was called into question on numerous fronts, for example by the Catholic bishop
of Charleston, who in the summer of 1896 visited Rome to defend the integrity of his diocese.
Vaughan had recently described South Carolina's satanic subculture in considerable detail, and the
bishop took it upon himself to tell the pope in person that local Freemasons, though Protestants,
were peaceable, honest, and given to works of charity.
This testimony did not seem to shake Pope Leo’s belief in Vaughan. The pontiff himself sent
her a letter in which he offered her protection and a private audience. However she might present
herself, it was clear that Vaughan’s celebrity rendered her seclusion in an anonymous French
convent unallowable. Taxil reluctantly organized a conference in Paris at which Vaughan promised
to publicly address the world for the first time.
When the day came, in the spring of 1897,Taxil mounted the stage alone. He proceeded to
announce to the assembled press, clergy, and disgruntled Freemasons that for the past twelve years
he had duped them all. Diana Vaughan was no more than an employee of an American typewriter
company who once worked for Taxil as a stenographer. As mischievous as her employer, she had
agreed to lend her name and face to Taxil’s hoax.
Page 16
The Palladium, for its part, was utter nonsense, as Freemasons and less naive Catholics had
been saying for years. References to “real-life” Palladian Freemasons like Adriano Lemmi and
Albert Pike were no more than elaborate libels a despicable but effective technique that Taxil had
employed in his anticlerical years to cast Pope Leo XIII as a homicidal maniac and Pope Pius IX
as a sex fiend. Pike, though steeped in anti-Catholicism and racial bigotry, had nothing to do with
global conspiracies or satanic rituals.
With a sneer, Taxil cynically thanked the Catholic press and prelates gathered at the
conference. He had wanted only to expose their ignorance, and they had played along famously.
The twelve-year charade also repaid a debt long owed to the Freemasons. In 1881 the Temple of
Friends of French Honor, embarrassed by Entered Apprentice Taxil’s reputation for plagiarism and
lewd fiction, had drummed him out of the Grand Orient.
For a while there was an honest effort to locate Vaughan, whom an unconvinced public
believed had been abandoned to the bloodthirsty Palladium. Some Italian Freemasons refused to
believe that the Vaughan incident was truly a hoax and for years actively sought Palladium
membership. But for the most part, Masonic reactions varied from general disgust to an anticlerical
chuckle at the considerable amount of egg on the face of their Roman nemesis.
Following Taxil’s outrageous hoax, the Church did not condemn Freemasonry quite so loudly.
Nonetheless Catholicism remains threatened by a perception that Freemasonry is a sort of counterChurch that strives for its overthrow. Because lodges and meetings display ostensibly religious
elements—including temples, altars, prayers, a moral code, vestments, a hierarchy, and unique
imtiatory and burial rites—Catholicism perceives Freemasonry as “a rival to the religion of the
Gospel.”
Freemasonry’s modern perception of itself as a philosophic society that “works for material
and moral improvement, and for the intellectual and social perfection of humanity” 7 is no less
challenging. The Church seems averse to the idea that Catholics might seek moral and spiritual
improvement without her guidance. Catholicism, after all has had centuries of experience imparting
ethical and spiritual knowledge through symbolic media, and resents the implication that symbols
and teachings separate from its own are necessary to ethical development. Moreover the Church is
indignant that such an undertaking would be at-tempted without reference to Christ’s redemption,
from which, it teaches, the quest for spiritual and ethical perfection must derive.
Catholicism remains at odds with Freemasonry, at least at an official level. In 1983, the Code
of Canon Law for-bade Catholics from membership in secret societies in general, but did not
address Freemasonry specifically. The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith soon clarified
this in the following terms: “The church’s negative position on Masonic associations remains
unaltered since their principles have always been regarded as irreconcilable with the church’s
doctrine,” and added, “Catholics enrolled in Masonic associations are involved in serious sin and
may not approach holy communion.” 18 In the spring of 1996 Fabian Bruskewitz, bishop of
Lincoln, Nebraska, included Freemasonry in a list of organizations whose members are subject to
excommunication in his diocese. Excommunication, the Church’s version of the death penalty
whose punishment does not terminate with mortal life, continues to weigh against the souls of
Catholic Freemasons.
After 1897, and for the remaining ten years of his life, Taxil printed a smorgasbord of antiMasonic, anticlerical, and pornographic tides. He republished some of his juicier vilifications, such
as “The Secret Love Affairs of Pope Pius IX,” and even tried to relive the glory days of his great
hoax by writing a title supposedly authored by a parish priest who was tracking
Page 17
Diana Vaughan’s whereabouts.
But Taxil found the libel and fraud market considerably less lucrative this time around. His
name was anathema in the Catholic popular press, and Freemasons resented having been the
protagonists of his twelve-year-long Satanic fantasy. And perhaps this has been Taxil’s lasting gift
to both Catholicism and Freemasonry: despite their 250-year odyssey of mistrust and discord,
disgust with the hoaxer Gabriel Jorgand-Pages—a.k.a. Leo Taxil—has been at least one sentiment
both can share.
++++++++++++++++++++++++
Two women were standing before the Pearly Gates. They were new arrivals and comparing
stories about how each of them had died.
1st woman: I froze to death.
2nd woman: How horrible!
1st woman: It wasn't so bad. After I quit shaking from the cold, I began to get warm and
sleepy, and finally died a peaceful death. What about you?
2nd woman: I died of a massive heart attack. I suspected that my husband was cheating, so I
came home early to catch him in the act. But instead, I found him all by himself in the den watching
reruns on TV.
1st woman: So what happened?
2nd woman: I was so sure there was another woman there somewhere that I started running
all over the house looking. I ran up into the attic and searched, and down into the basement. Then
I went through every closet and checked under all the beds. I kept this up until I had looked
everywhere. And finally I became so exhausted that I just keeled over with a heart attack and died!
1st woman: Too bad you didn't look in the freezer. We'd both still be alive
. . . by the Lighthouse Beam - The Old Guard
From Hiram’s Lighthouse Newsletter for the Toronto East District
The Old Guard are the foundation of the Lodge and guardians of its knowledge and tradition;
the “old boys‟ club” want to get the ritual over as quickly as possible so they can have a drink or a
social chat.
The Old Guard instruct and guide young Brethren in
Freemasonry;
the “old boys‟ club” sit in the Past Masters‟ corner and criticize.
The Old Guard try to understand more about Freemasonry;
the “old boys‟ club” prefer to confine “Freemasonry” to what
they understand.
The Old Guard guide the Stewards in laying out the Lodge Room;
the “old boys‟ club” wait until they enter the room before complaining that this or that is two
inches too far to the right.
The Old Guard look to a future that will never be theirs, while passing on the lessons of the past;
the “old boys‟ club” can’t get beyond “back in my day, we . . .”
The Old Guard says “give someone else a chance”;
the “old boys‟ club” says: “they’ll get their chance.”
The Old Guard says “I’ll do that”;
Page 18
the “old boys‟ club” says “I refuse to do that!”
The Old Guard slips the Broken Column a few coins to help a Brother in Need;
the “old boys‟ club” complain about rising dues.
The Old Guard want what’s best for the Lodge;
the “old boy‟s club” want what‟s best for themselves.
The Old Guard have been Freemasons for 25 years;
the “old boys‟ club” have been Freemasons for one year, 25 times over, and still haven‟t
learned anything.
Please don’t confuse the two . . .
And don’t worry about the fallout because inevitably, the boots that are thrown the hardest are
the ones that fit best . . .
But then we’re an Idealist Order populated by infinitely, wonderfully diverse, and eminently
fallible human beings.
Proof that Freemasonry is from time
immemorial
Surviving The Big Ones
Editor’s Note; I took some Composition and Rhetoric classes after the North Harris County Junior Collage
opened in the 1970’s and learned I enjoyed writing stories. I started with 500 word stories about growing up in the
big ones 1930s and 40s., the great depression and WWII. The local weekly newspaper editor saw some and ask me
to write them as a 1,000 word weekly column. So I combined pairs of the 500 word stories together. And started
writing longer ones. Before long they were appearing in 5 different newspapers and I quit after the 180th story.
,
By John “Corky” Daut
The big ones were the Great Depression and World War II, that period between the stock
market crash of 1929 and 1945 when WW II ended.
I reckon that just about everyone who reads this column knows all about the Houston Astros,
the players and maybe even the statistics. But, how many of you ever heard of the Colt 45’s? Yes
the Colt 45’s, they were Houston’s professional baseball team before it was renamed the Astros,
after the Colt Firearms Company got a little testy about the name.
But now for the big one, how many remember the old Houston Buffs (Buffalos that is). It was
a farm team for the Saint Louis Cardinals. The Buff Stadium was located at the 4,000 block of
Harby Street at Milby Street. Don’t try to find Harby Street now because it lies
Page 19
peacefully under the Gulf Freeway (45 south). And, the Fingers Furniture store on the
Gulf Freeway at Milby squats over the bones of the old “Buff Stadium”. There is a “Buff” mini
museum in the Fingers store
Speaking of the Gulf Freeway, there
probably aren’t a whole lot of us left who
remember that the right of way for the freeway
was originally the tracks for the interurban that
ran between Houston and Galveston. OK, for
some of the younger ones, the interurban was
like a big street car on tracks that carried
passengers back and forth between cities and
towns. People would ride it instead of buses
and trains.
For us the Buff Stadium was more than just a ball park. One of my favorite memories is when
our neighbor, Mr. Henry, took me with him to watch the "Hell Driver's" performance at the old
Buff Stadium. We watched the daredevil drivers take their cars through all kinds of stunts. They
drove around the field on two wheels and raced between and around each other all over the field,
almost but never quite hitting each other. They jumped over each other’s cars using a ramp to
become airborne and another ramp to land on after soaring over a line of cars/.
We didn't even have to worry about searching the stadium for good seats. We watched
through holes in the big wooden wall in the outfield. Actually the wall was the scoreboard for the
Buffs baseball games. After we climbed the fence, we stood on the catwalk and looked through the
holes, where the numbers were put in to show the scores.
The Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus always set up their tents on the Buff
Stadium parking lot. They would unload the train over on Navigation Blvd. and have a parade to
the stadium. What I remember the most was the huge Mack trucks with what looked like giant
bicycle chains driving the back wheels.
Every Fourth of July and New Year’s Eve there would be a gigantic fireworks show in the
stadium just after dark. We couldn’t go because dad worked at night, but Mother and I would stand
in the old claw foot bath tub looking out the bathroom window to see the beautiful sky rockets,
roman candles and bombs of color bursting in the air above the Henry’s garage.
Speaking of the Henrys, they were our nearest neighbors, living in the other half of the duplex
we shared, We were across the street from Settegast Park in Houston’s old near east end, about two
miles from Main Street. They had 3 daughters when they moved in and later had another one.
Now, boys and girls and their relationships were different during the “Big Ones”. No, that’s
not true, we were the same as boys and girls now days. We were just raised differently from the
boys and girls today.
When I was a teen, I enjoyed sprawling on our front concrete steps in the summertime. The
front of the house faced north and the concrete felt cool even in the summer time. Besides, sitting
there I had a full view of what everybody was doing across the street at the park.
The sound of a slamming screen door to my right announced that Myrtie Jane and Martha
Ellen were coming out onto their front porch to find a cool place to play or just sit and catch what
little breeze was stirring. Their porch was only ten or 15 feet from ours on the other side of the
duplex. We spoke and talked across the porches for a while, but I didn't walk over and join them
like I probably would have after dark (with the porch light on of course). My male friends would
be at home then.
Page 20
At that time I was full of youthful optimism and fully expected to marry one of those two
girls some day in the far dim future. But, at that time we had reputations to protect. It wasn't a good
idea to let your buddies see you messing around with the same girl to often, even if she was your
next door neighbor. It was OK if all of us played with girls in a mixed softball or volleyball game
in the park, but you didn't want to be seen hanging around a girl's house to often.
That was to protect both you and the girl. The kidding from your friends could become pretty
merciless if they thought you were getting serious about a girl. Besides, if you kept hanging around
the same girl a lot, stories would soon start that you were in love or worse for the girl, that she must
be a "bad girl".
However, if you were seen hanging around with one who the guys were already sure was a
"bad girl", it was a different story. In that case you would be looked at with awe, almost like some
kind of hero. Then you would constantly be bombarded with questions about any lurid details of
the relationship.
On commemoration Of Faallen Mexican Centralists At
Texas Battle Sites
Reprinted with permission of the author Wallace L. McKeehan (aka Don Guillermo) from his website “Sons
Of DeWitt Colony” at file:///C:/4 20My 20Web 20Sites/2 20Texas 20Masonic 20History/mckshorts3.htm
Someone once said "There is no such thing as history, only biography," Stephen F. Austin’s
nephew Guy Bryan said "ancestors are mere dust and ashes, save when they speak to posterity
through the record of their deeds and achievements." Every person, whether considered good or
evil, saint or sinner, deserves a cast of their "footprint in the sands of time" so that we all might
learn from their experience however modest. It is customary for that to be at the site of their death
or burial, if for nothing more than for those that come after, to ponder over "for whom the bell
tolls," or if you will, "for whom the plaque stands." For this reason alone it is appropriate to
appropriately note fallen Centralist soldiers at Texas battle sites.
This was mentioned at the 2000 commemoration of the battle of San Jacinto at the monument
and battleground by author Ray Miller and probably at subsequent ones. The most appropriate
place to do this, would be at the San Jacinto battleground at the site of the largest number of fallen
Centralist soldiers on that field in April 1836. A marker at this location properly done should be
sufficient to commemorate all Centralista soldiers who fell at all engagements around the state. San
Jacinto is most appropriate since here occurred the largest loss of life and here was the turning
point in the future fate of Texas and for that matter, the Republic of Mexico of 1836 which ended
up eventually giving up over half of its territory to the United States of the North either by treaty
of purchase. The marker should be appropriate in design and size so as clearly not to detract from
the main monument to the Texian freedom fighters and their US allies. Commemoration of all
fallen Centralistas at this most important site in the struggle for a return to Mexican Republican
Federalism and the struggle for liberty and independence in the originally Spanish State of Texas
and Mexican State of Coahuila and Texas abrogates the need for commemoration markers of
similar magnitude at the Alamo and Goliad and other sites of Centralist engagement around the
state. This does not preclude notation with something like a standard Texas State historical marker
or such at other sites. For example, near the Alamo, perhaps on the river or other sites
Page 21
where the bodies of a significant number of fallen Centralista soldiers are thought to
have been disposed, or at the Campo Santo, the standard historical marker might be appropriate.
Such markers should be well placed, modest and discreetly designed so as not to detract from the
commemoration of the fallen Alamo defenders, or Texian patriots at other sites.
The issue of marking the site of fallen Mexican Centralista soldiers at Texas battle sites is often
emotion-packed largely because of the difficulty in dissecting issues of Federalist Republican
principles of liberty and independence versus Centralist vice-regalism, ecclesiastical corruption,
dictatorship, racism, blind nationalism and despotism from group association based on race and
cultural origin. This is especially so in this era of political correctness and apology particularly by
historians and others struggling to find an identity, build a career and sell a book in an environment
where it is risky to move beyond mechanical description of military tactics, ordnance and
archeological digs. The issue is particularly emotion-packed for those who maintain identity and
pride in racial, cultural and/or political past and are struggling to reconcile that past with and find
historical perspective in context of the current environment in which they find themselves.
While marking the site of fallen Centralista soldiers based on humanitarian principles, the fact
that they were fighting for Centralist vice-regalism, dictatorship and despotism and against
Federalist Republican principles of liberty, independence, and regional self-determination should
be clearly pointed out and never forgotten. It is the fight for this cause instead of Federalist
Republicanism that caused the loss of over half of the territory of the Republic of Mexico and
repressed development of a second democratic Republic in the Americas. A democratic Republic
at least consisting of the Northern Mexican States and territories of 1836 north of Tampico to the
42 parallel, if not the entire United States of Mexico to the Guatemalan border or beyond.
Those who fell in defense of Centralism and despotism should be clearly distinguished from
Mexican patriots, native born and immigrant, who resided mostly in the Northern Mexican States
and territories north of Tampico except for fiercely independent Yucatan and home of Republic of
Texas first Vice-President Lorezo De Zavala, and their allies, who gave their lives in defense of
Federalist Republican principles. These patriots regardless of culture and country of origin should
be honored with monuments throughout the current and former Northern Mexican States of 1836
by the entire current Mexican government and their Texian allies should be recognized in the
process. These patriots should be honored with much greater priority than Mexican Centralista
"soldados" and Mexican-American War dead from both sides.
Current Mexican governments and Mexicans in general must come to grips with their history,
understand it, put it in perspective and then then unify around it (see Learning from Mexican
History). Mexico lost Texas because of the rejection and failure to embrace the independence
movements and principles of local self-determination and economic opportunity that began in
Spanish Texas as early as 1811 that were largely modeled after the independence developments
and Constitution of the 19th century US of the North. This and the failure to capitalize on alliances
and free trade with the US, on which the Mexican Republic was originally founded, and the plunge
into the politically and economically crippling continuous Centralist revolutions that continued into
the 20th century are the forces that stunted the development of a second great democratic Republic
in the Americas and resulted in loss of over half its territory.
All great countries to become or remain great with disastrous historic periods as Germany,
Japan, the former members of the Soviet Union and China have or will have to go through this
process that includes Texas and the USA, in particular when it broke into Civil War.
Lastly, except for purely historical site markers, it is generally customary for the
commemoration of fallen soldiers, whether on current domestic or foreign soil, to be
Page 22
initiated by the closest surviving national group or government, be they winner or
loser at the time, which represents that for which the fallen served and died. This usually occurs
with the cooperation and participation of the national group or government with current jurisdiction
over the sites of the fallen. This cooperative venture can be a means of celebrating the glorious
and coming to grips with the inglorious forces that converged to cause the events and deaths of the
fallen that are to be commemorated. 4/2000 for Shorts & Opinions from Don Guillermo, SDCT
Four Facets Of Frindship
By an unknown author From the “Sunday Masonic Paper”
Let us think about friendships and the mark they leave upon us. Let us look at the four jeweled
facets of friendship that can best be remembered by the four proverbs:
(1) "As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he."
(2) "Birds of a feather flock together."
(3) "A faithful friend is the medicine of life."
(4) "Never forget a friend when prosperity comes your way."
Friends are not wished upon us. We do not deliberately choose friends. We win them. And not
every man or woman has that disposition; not every man or woman is possessed of that inner grace
wherewith to win friends. Just as some ears are deaf to music and some eyes blind to painting hearing but not comprehending, and seeing but not discerning - so there are hearts that are closed
to friendship.
People who are usually absorbed in other relationships, who are too completely dominated by
other interests, or too self-centered, too egotistical, too self-sufficient; or the contrary people who
are too timid, too locked up, escapists who run away from what they fear, from commitments and
entanglements - all such people often miss the completing and exalting experience of friendship.
Friendship, like all other human forms of culture, takes time and thought. It must be carefully
cultivated, and it requires time for seasoning and ripening. It is the old friends who are the. true
friends, just as it's the old wine that is the good wine. Jewish writings tell us: "Forsake not an old
friend, for the new is not comparable to him. A new friend is as new wine. When it is old thou shaft
drink it leisurely." Those who are too busy wth the other concerns have not the time, therefore, for
the proper husbandry of friendship.
All great religions and all great literatures stand in the presence of the phenomenon of
friendship as if in the presence of the mystic, something magnificently great. In the Old Testament
we read the story of Jonathan's friendship for David which was so profound that Jonathan gave
David the sceptre of a kingdom-a kingdom that could have been his.
The Book of Ecclesiasticus, which is recognized as sacred scripture by our Roman Catholic
brothers but not by Protestants, has a lot to say on friendship. Ecclesiasticus was composed by an
eminent physician, Ben Sirach, in the second century before Christ. He was a wise man who
travelled far, learned much, gathered wisdom and published his findings in this book of the
Apocrypha.
Francis Bacon, an Englishman living at the time of Queen Elizabeth I, wrote concerning
friendship: "A principal fruit of friendship is the ease and discharge of the fullness and swellings
of the heart, which passions of all kinds so cause and induce .... No receipt openeth
Page 23
the heart but a true friend, to whom you may impart griefs, joys, hopes, suspicions, counsels, and
whatsoever Beth upon the heart to oppress it, in a kind of civil shrift or confession."
Let us consider the first facet of the great jewel of friendship. "As a man thinketh in his heart,
so is he." Make friends with ideas. Then let those ideas become the driving force in your life. Then
select your friends from those who share your same vision of greatness. Institutions such as the
church, or Freemasonry, dedicated to sharing these great ideals, often provide the common ground
that creates lasting friendships.
In a Declaration of Principles adopted by the Grand Lodge of the State of Illinois in 1939, the
guiding ideals of Freemasonry were outlined as follows:
"Freemasonry is a charitable, benevolent, educational, and religious society .... Its only secrets
are in its methods of recognition and of symbolic instruction .... Freemasonry seeks to improve the
community. Thus it impresses upon its members the principles of personal righteousness and
personal responsibility . . . . Inspires them with a feeling of charity, or good will toward all mankind
which will move them to translate principle and conviction into action. To that end it teaches and
stands for the worship of God; truth and justice; fraternity and philanthropy; and enlightenment
and orderly liberty, civil, religious, and intellectual . . . . The Freemason will act in civil life
according to his individual judgment and the dictates of his conscience."
Mr. Nightengale has become a very successful man in the field of human motivation because
he discovered the importance of making friends with
ideas. From the wisdom of the ages he distilled the thoughts of men from various cultures and
civilizations. He condensed his findings into a system. Then he makes cassette tapes and instructs
those who are looking for a way to be successful to listen to these tapes over and over again. Make
that idea an intimate friend; then it will go to work for you.
In a very real sense, this is what the Masonic lodge is all about. The key truths of Masonry are
reduced to ceremony and symbols which are re-enacted every stated meeting, so that men will not
only marvel at the beauty of truth; these truths will become their intimate friends. Masonry is a
progressive moral science, divided into different degrees; and as its principles and mystic
ceremonies are regularly developed and illustrated, it is intended and hoped that they will make a
deep and lasting impression upon +the mind.
+Make friends with great ideas. Then let those ideas become the organizing force and the
dynamo of your life.
The second facet of the jewel of friendship is stated in the proverb: "Birds of a feather flock
together." Select your friends from those who share with you the same vision of greatness.
The writer of the Book of Hebrews reminds his Christian audience of the great "Cloud of
Witnesses" that once occupied the stage of human drama and acted out their faith. In that great
essay on faith in Chapter 11 of Hebrews we are told: "By faith Abel offered a sacrifice greater than
Cain's . . . By faith Enoch was carried away to another life without passing through death . . . By
faith Noah divinely warned about the unseen future, took great heed and built an ark to save his
household . . . . by faith Abraham obeyed the callto go out to a land destined for himself and his
heirs, and left home without knowing where he was to go .... By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau
and spoke of things to come . . . . By faith when Moses was born, his parents hid him for three
months, because they saw what a fine child he was . . . By faith when he grew up, Moses refused
to be called the son of Pharoah's daughter, preferring to suffer hardship with the people of God.
Need I say more? Time is too short for me to tell the stories of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Page 24
and Jepthah, of David and Samuel and the Prophets . . . with all these witnesses to
faith around us like a cloud, we must throw off every encumbrance, and run with resolution the
race for which we are entered, our eye; fixed upon Jesus."
We are familiar with the glorious history of our Judeo-Christian heritage, but do we understand
the part Freemasonry plays in that history? Rear Admiral Homer N. Wallin, speaking in Seattle,
Washington, in 1955 said "America is indeed a monument to the principles and the ideals of the
Founding Fathers - a monument to the truth we seek, to principle, to
self-sacrifice, to the loyalty and devotion of its people. And it is correct to say that our kind of
America is a monument to the ideals and principles of Freemasonry, not only because of the accord
in principles and ideals, but also because a large number of our Founding Fathers were Freemasons.
Masons have inherited the right to say, `Behold the flag of our country, an emblem conceived by
Freemasons and representing Masonic ideals'. "
Among the Signers of the Declaration of Independence, Masons were well represented. I know
at least two - Benjamin Franklin and John Hancock – were Freemasons. You may recall John
Hancock made his signature very large on this historic document so that George II could read it
without putting on his glasses. fourteen American Presidents were Masons. This list would include
George Washington, who was Master of his lodge in Alexandria at the time of his inauguration as
President in 1789. He was sworn into office on a Masonic Bible. It also includes James Monroe,
Andrew Jackson, William McKinley, the two Roosevelts, and Harry Truman.
The early influence of Freemasonry is illustrated in the Louisiana Purchase of 1803. Most of
those directly involved in the purchase were Masons: Robert Livingston and James Monroe. The
area was explored by Masons: Meriwether Lewis, William Clark, Zebulon M. Pike, and Andrew
Henry. It was governed by Masons. Lewis was the first Governor, Clark the Indian. Superintendent,
Frederick Bates, Secretary; Judges Otho Shrader, Silas Bent, Pierre Chouteau, and Bernard Pratte.
The impressive list of Masons in the military would include General Douglas MacArthur,
General Charles Augustus Lindbergh, Captain Edward V. Rickenbacker, Admiral Richard Byrd,
General Henry "Hap" Arnold, and General James Harold Doolittle, just to name a few in this
century.
From this list one might get the impression that a man had to be a Freemason to get ahead in
politics and government service. This was not true, for the list of non-Masons is greater; but it is
interesting to note that this charge was levelled by dissident clergy against the Genesee Conference
of the Methodist Church more than a century ago. They claimed that all the good churches were
filled by Methodist ministers who were Masons and those who refused to join the lodge received
what crumbs were left. This group of +dissident Methodists also became upset over pew rents that
were being charged members and said that church pews ought to be free. They found the main body
of the church disinterested in their reforms and broke away to form the Free Methodist Church,
which survives to this day as a small group which does not permit its members to join any lodge.
Masonry began in the dim light of the almost forgotten past. Some say it had its beginnings at the
time of the Greek Philosopher Pythagoras, some five hundred years before Christ. Certainly it
borrows heavily from his geometric truths. In the modern era the first Grand Lodge was organized
in London in 1717. From fragments of history we know that Freemasonry was in existence in the
fourteenth century. While one might assume from what I have said thatMasonry is primarily an
American organization, this would not be true. It is world-wide in scope, as the Master Mason
Rudyard Kipling has illustrated in his famous poem, The Mother Lodge. The church and the lodge
provide a common ground for men who have caught the vision of greatness to meet and become
friends. What a rich legacy is ours in this brotherhood!
Page 25
The third facet of the Jewel of Friendship is the proverb: "A faithful friend is the medicine
of life." There is healing in friends. It is agreeable to have another human being share with us those
things which burden us, filling our hearts beyond their own capacity to bear them. In this way, a
faithful friend is the medicine of life - and in another way, too. Not only by sharing our burdens
with others, but by taking into our lives the griefs and the hopes and the problems of our friends,
we cleanse our own souls of self-coddling; we save ourselves from becoming too wrapped up in
ourselves. We make ourselves well by giving and receiving.
There is another profound comment on friendship found in the Bible: "Just as iron sharpeneth
iron, so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend." Friendship challenges us. A true friend is
one who will warn us when we are being less than our best. For true friendship demands the best
that is within us. We are not on parade before our friends. True friends can have sharp differences
of opinion without losing their esteem or affection for each other.
The fourth facet of the Jewel of Friendship is the proverb: "Never forget a friend when
prosperity comes your way." This is to say that friendship makes demands. Friendship is not a
matter of personal convenience. A friend is not there just to receive our intimate confessions, to
counsel us, to soothe us, to agree with us, to justify us, and always approve of our ways.
Friendship calls us to duty. Our Lord lived His life in obedience to the higher duty of God and
for His friendship to man laid down His life. "There is no greater love than this, that a man should
lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends."
We are living in perilous times, times when the quality of life has been polluted by desires of
quantity. Mr. Alvin Toffler in his best selling book, Future Shock, has vividly described what is
happening. He says that living in the last half of the twentieth century is like living in the center of
a tornado. Things that we thought were secure, resting on good foundations, are suddenly flying
overhead like aircraft. The church, the lodge, the public school system, our government - all these
things which we thought were resting on good foundations have come unglued. Novelty, confusion
surrounds us. Rowboats aren't in the water; they're flying through the air. Our rapidly changing
environment is taking a heavy toll on personalities. Never did we need companionship more. Never
has the call to duty to fight for and preserve our friendships been a more important call. Collectively
we can maintain our sanity in this tornado ravaged world. Individually we will lose our sanity, if
we don't have lasting friendship.
In our sacred literature we are cautioned to prove and to test men before we admit them into
the sacred sanctuary of friendship. "If thou wouldst get a friend, prove him first and be not hasty to
credit him!" There are those who are friends for their own occasion, who will not abide the day of
trouble. These are our fair-weather friends, our prosperity friends, our companions at the table.
They are the scavengers of friendship. They are camp followers.
Real friendship is only possible when there exists between two people a concurrence of driving
ideals, a genuine capacity for loyalty, for trust, for generosity, and the real baring of one soul to
another. This is the fertile soil of friendship.
Tell me not of a man's history, only let me know the ideals to which he subscribes, the
institutions he supports, the companions he make, and I can tell you what kind of a man he is.
My greatest joy on earth shall be, To find at the turning of every road, The strong hand of a
comrade to help me onward with my load. But since I have no gold to give And only love can make
amends, My daily prayer shall be, "God make me worthy of my friends."
Wayne Anderson, FCF, MPS - Alle Menschen werden Brueder - 2B1 ASK1
Page 26
The Widows Sons Masonic Riders Association
This is the third in Brother Doyle Seals’ Masonic Did You Know” Traveling Masonic Degree
Teams Series. The following two notes were taken from the group’s website 1/11/2015.
Note: An edict was issued by the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts on December 11, 2013 which
prohibits members of the Massachusetts Grand Lodge from being a member of the Widows Sons.
More information will be posted as it becomes available.
Note; The Widows Sons in the State of Texas have been subject to a similar edict since 2007
and our brethren have failed to resolve their issues with the Grand Lodge of Texas. Be advised that
due to the edict, the State of Texas is not considered to be a part of this association and should not
be recognized as such.
The Widows Sons Masonic Riders Association is an International Association which is open
to all Masons who enjoy the sport of motorcycling and have a desire to ride with and associate with
their fraternal brothers. Our goal is to:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Introduce the sport of motorcycling to our Masonic Brothers
Raise Masonic Awareness in the world of sport motorcycling
Contribute to the relief of our Widows & Orphans
Support the Blue Lodge through regular attendance, and assisting with or attending lodge
events
While we wear identifying patches or
regalia, the Widows Sons are not a gang, MC,
1% Club. We are required to represent the
fraternity in a positive light at all times.
The Widows Sons serve as a Masonic
Booster Club by helping to raise Masonic
Awareness while we attend public
motorcycling events, and by supporting our
Blue Lodges in whatever capacity we are
able.
Widows Sons chapters have helped to increase Masonic membership through our presence and
visibility during public motorcycle events and rallies. In every location where we have a chapter,
the Widows Sons have proven themselves to be a positive asset to the fraternity.
Many of the Widows Sons chapters are proud to have current and past Grand Masters as
members. We regularly attract new members to the fraternity, and several chapters have th eir own
Degree Teams or volunteer in doing Masonic work whenever possible. Across the world, each
Widows Sons chapter sponsors or participates in local charity runs or events.
In all cases, we strive to present a positive image of Freemasonry and our Association to the
public. The Widows Sons was conceived of and founded by Brother Carl Davenport PM, in the
year 1999. Today we have active chapters throughout many States in the USA, Canada, and abroad.
May We Meet Upon The _|_ Act By The ! And Part Upon The |_
W. Bro. Dwight D. Seals - Camden Lodge #159 - Camden, Ohio
Page 27
Ireland: The Influence Of Freemasonry In Meath And
Westmeath In The eighteenth Century. Part 2
Editor’s note; although I dislike continued stories, this one is way too long otherwise. SO . . . this is part two of
a series. This story was taken from Brother Graeme Marsden’s January 2009 Weekly Newsletter, for Rural Lodge
#9 of Quincy. Mass. His newsletters gave me the inspiration to start this magazine.
By Larry Conlon.
Editor: This is a microcosm of Irish Masonic history, and
makes fascinating reading for those who are interested in the roots
of Freemasonry.
THIS WEEK The influence of Freemasonry in national
politics.
Establishment of the Grand Lodge of Ireland
The next significant phase in the development of the Masonic
society in Ireland began with the establishment of the Grand Lodge
of Ireland, some time between 1723 and 1724. This gave a
powerful impetus to the Masonic Order, and secured its survival
to the present time. Following its formation, the Grand Lodge was quick to try and assert its
authority by issuing a Masonic constitution to which all lodges had to adhere. In order to receive
recognition within the Irish Masonic constitution, individual lodges (new and existing) were
required to have a warrant issued by the Grand Lodge. Initially not all lodges accepted the authority
of the Grand Lodge and for many years there were a number of clandestine or "hedge" lodges. It
was for this reason that the Grand Lodge sought to impress its authority by making continual
appeals in the newspapers, throughout the eighteenth century, entreating these clandestine lodges
to affiliate. This problem was not fully overcome until the 1840s.
During the years 1723-1725 the influence of the Masonic Order was evident in the political
unrest between the Irish government and the viceroy over the granting of a minting patent to an
English iron merchant named William Wood to manufacture what was considered poor quality
coinage for distribution in Ireland. This proposal enraged the Dublin craft guilds and also Dean
Swift who denounced both Wood and the English, exclaiming "a halfpenny for a beggar and burn
everything British but their coal."
It is noteworthy that the last protest against Wood's halfpence in the national newspapers, in
October 1724, was signed by a number of Freemasons including the Earl of Rosse, the Grand
Master of the Masonic Order. This controversy, combined with pressure from the trade guilds, led
to the withdrawal of the viceroy, the Duke of Grafton, and his replacement by Lord Carteret, in an
effort to placate the growing dissension. However, Swift's intervention in publishing The Drapier's
Letters was the decisive move and resulted in the patent being revoked in September 1725.
Political unrest continued throughout this period and at the heart of much of the main political
activity of this period we find prominent members of the Order. The suppression of Irish industry,
especially the woolen, glass and cattle trade, by the British government, greatly strained
Irish/English relations in the mid eighteenth century. Even relations between the Established
Church and the House of Commons were far from harmonious during the earlier part
Page 28
of the eighteenth century.
Grand Lodge building in
Dublin
Appointments of all Irish Protestant bishops were vested in the
Crown and it was the English ministry and not the Irish parliament
that advised the Crown in the matter of church appointments. Many
of the bishopric appointments were Englishmen and this was
bitterly resented by Irish Protestants. From 1702 until the Act of
Union, all Protestant primates of Armagh were Englishmen, some
of whom acted as lord justices and were the mainstay of English
interest in Ireland in the absence of the Lord Lieutenant. However,
the emergence of Henry Flood in 1759 as a member of parliament
and later as a leader of the patriots, resulted in increasing pressure
for changes in civil rights in Ireland. Nevertheless, parliamentary
corruption remained rampant and at the general election of 1761 the
contest for the borough of Mullingar resulted in a bitter dispute
between the proprietors of the borough and their rival candidate,
John Nugent.
The proprietor of the borough of Mullingar was the Earl of
Granard. Not surprisingly his two sons, Lord Forbes and Admiral
Forbes, were returned as members of parliament for the borough. However, the ir defeated rival,
John Nugent, petitioned the House of Commons against Admiral Forbes's return as MP on the
grounds that Nugent would have had a majority over Forbes if a number of votes cast for Nugent
had not been improperly disallowed by the returning officer. Admiral Forbes issued a counter
petition denying the truth of Nugent's assertion. The House of Commons found in favour of
John Nugent, of Clonlost, was descended from a powerful Masonic family. He was a
cousin of both Thomas, the 6th Earl of Westmeath, Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Ireland
1763-64, and Robert Nugent, of Carlanstown, Junior Grand Warden, 1732. His daughter married
Robert Rochfort, whose brother, George, succeeded to the title as the 2nd Earl of Belvedere in
1772, and was appointed Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Ireland 1774-75.
Forbes's case.
Until 1771, disputed parliamentary contests were decided by a vote of the whole House of
Commons. Given the manner, in which Irish politics operated during this period, the reality of
petitioning the House was that the decision rested more on the connections of the petitioner than
on the strength of the claim. The Forbes
incident, however, proved to be a catalyst in the
instigation of parliamentary reform, the result of
which was that all future petitions were to be
heard by a parliamentary select committee. This
measure was an effort to stop corruption and
prevent influence being exerted in favour of
powerful candidates. The Freemasons played no
small part in bringing this reform about.
The structure of the Irish House of Commons
until the Act of Union was based upon the
election of 300 members from 32 constituencies,
each returning two members, and a
Page 29
further 117 Boroughs also returning two members, as well as the University constituency of Trinity
College,
Dublin, which returned a further two members. John Nugent, of Clonlost, was descended from
a powerful Masonic family. He was a cousin of both Thomas, the 6th Earl of Westmeath, Grand
Master of the Grand Lodge of Ireland 1763-64, and Robert Nugent, of Carlanstown, Junior Grand
Warden, 1732. His daughter married Robert Rochfort, whose brother, George, succeeded to the
title as the 2nd Earl of Belvedere in 1772, and was appointed Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of
Ireland 1774-75.
Parliamentary democracy in the eighteenth century was practically non-existent, with the
exception of 12 boroughs, commonly called "the pot walloping boroughs", whereby a person was
entitled to vote provided
A potwalloper is an archaic term referring to a borough
only he could upon oath
constituency returning members to the house of Commons before
swear that he had boiled a
1832 and the reform Act created a uniform suffrage. Several
pot (i.e. had supper) the
potwalloper constituencies were also represented in the Irish
previous night within the
House of Commons, prior to its abolition in 1801). A potwalloper
borough. This ensured that
borough was one in which a householder had the right to vote if
only residents of these "pot
he had, in his house, a hearth large enough to boil, or wallop, a
entitled to vote. The
cauldron, or pot.
remaining boroughs and
constituencies were in the control of families of the gentry or nobility. These families often treated
their parliamentary seats like bankable commodities. Many of the Anglo-Irish Ascendancy families
had interests in several parliamentary seats and often sold or traded some of these for favours,
patronage or pecuniary gain.
Within ten years of the Nugent election dispute, the
influence of freemasonry was at its zenith in the Irish House of
Commons with the election of Masonic candidates who set up
in opposition to the sitting members from the Anglo-Irish
Ascendancy. Evidence of this turnabout is illustrated in an
interesting account of the 1776 election which appeared in The
Belfast Newsletter.
Sir Arthur Brooke, the sitting member for County
Fermanagh, had supported a bill which was presented to the
Irish House of Commons, "to enable Papists upon terms and
subject to the provisos mentioned therein, to take leases." This
support greatly angered many of his constituents and at the
general election of 1776 he was opposed by William Irvine of
Irvinestown. The election resulted in Irvine's defeat by three
votes. Irvine then pe titioned, alleging fraud and corruption, and
in a counter petition presented by Brooke, it was claimed that
many of his supporters were unable to vote because of a mob of
between two and three hundred Freemasons, armed with cudgels and whips, who roamed the streets
of Enniskillen. Brooke also claimed that the mob tried to burn the house where he was lodging by
rolling burning tar barrels into it.
The general election of 1776 took place during the opening stages of the American War of
Independence, when the American colonists revolted against British rule. As a result
of the
Page 30
revolution all available troops were posted to America and the country was left practically
defenceless. A noteworthy visitor to Ireland during this period
was Benjamin Franklin. In 1771, Franklin, a prominent
American Freemason, visited Dublin. Franklin was well
known for his opposite political view to that of the Anglo-Irish
Ascendancy on the question of British colonialism. However,
while en route to Belfast he stayed at Hillsborough Castle, as
the guest of Wills Hill, the Earl of Hillsborough. And although
his visit to Ireland had been treated suspiciously by the
government, as a result of his anti-colonial speeches in
America, he was warmly received by the Earl of
Hillsborough.
A more serious threat to the government emerged during
the 1770s with the sighting of French ships off the Irish coast,
and more particularly, when a small fleet of French ships arrived in Carrickfergus in 1779, resulting
in great fear and commotion for the citizens of Belfast.
This widespread concern over a possible French invasion gave rise to a rash of Volunteer
companies being established throughout the country. Fortunately, this eighteenth century home
guard was never really put to the test. However, as a military movement it had an important effect
on the course of Irish politics. The
Volunteers soon realised that they were a political force not to be ignored, and delegates at their
Convention in Dungannon in 1782 passed resolutions which the Irish parliament was forced to
accept. Many of these Volunteer companies constituted entire Masonic lodges. It is on record that
the Hon. George Augustus Rochford, the second Earl of Belvedere, formed the first Volunteer
corps in the country, in Mullingar, in
1777. The Earl of Belvedere was also
the first Worshipful Master of Lodge
No 433.
In that year he was also the first
reviewing general of a Volunteer
force, consisting of 1,000 infantry and
600 cavalry. That the Volunteer
movement was a significant force in
Irish politics of the eighteenth century
is also evidenced by the fact that even
someone of the power and influence of
the Rt. Hon. John Foster acquiesced in
the candidacy and election of
Flooring at Lord Charlemont’s house ‘Casino’
Volunteer John William Foster for the
built by architect Sir William Chambers.
borough of Dunleer in 1783. However,
such a concession, if indeed, his cousin's election was one, was as far as the Rt. Hon. John Foster
was prepared to go. In 1784, when the Volunteer faction from his own constituents delivered to
him an address instructing him to support a plan of parliamentary reform drawn up at the Volunteer
Convention in February 1782, he steadfastly refused. This episode provides a good
example of the confidence and determination of the Volunteer movement in Page 31
challenging the man who only a year later was to attain the highest office in Ireland by becoming
the Speaker of the Irish House of Commons.
The entire Volunteer force at the end of 1781 numbered a hundred thousand men. A number of
the leaders of the Volunteering force were prominent parliamentarians, including Lord Charlemont,
Henry Grattan, and Henry Flood, and it is noteworthy that the historic Volunteer convention held
in Dungannon, on 15 February 1782, was chaired by William Irvine, the unsuccessful candidate at
the Fermanagh election of 1776, who was at this time the Provincial Grand Master of Ulster. Both
Flood and Grattan were also Freemasons, both being members of the Dublin Volunteer lodge. Lord
Charlemont was also a prominent member of the Order and was, in addition, one of the original
Knights of St. Patrick. In accepting this honour in 1783, his political proclivities were made clear:
"It seemed to be, and in my opinion really was a proper and honourable distinction to the
kingdom, and might be considered as a badge and symbol of her newly rescued independence
... I must confess to discover if possible how the measure would be taken by the people ... My
principal objection ... had been lest the people should consider my acceptance of any royal
favour as a dereliction of their interests, and should on that account withdraw from me that
unbounded confidence by which alone I could be useful. But every such danger was ... clearly
obviated, since both the people and the Volunteers might therein at the first glance perceive
that the honour was offered and accepted merely as a reward for services performed, not to the
crown, but to them ... I did not wish to take upon myself the possible danger of depriving the
kingdom of so honourable and so proper a distinction."
Lord Charlemont was anxious for good reason, as suspicion and conspiracy were the order of the
day. The speed with which matters were changing is evidenced by the fact that nine years later the
Order of St. Patrick was viewed with suspicion, as the following comments by Dr. Drennan make
clear, in writing to his sister Martha McTier in Belfast, "The Collars of the Knights of St. Patrick
will in time strangle the freedom of the nation."
John Quincy Adams, Masonry & the Free, Invisible Car
From the Rural Lodge Newsletter
Rural Lodge Editor: The writer discusses the moment of truth when the new Mason signs the
bylaws – that watershed time when he decides he will attend lodge meetings in future, or not at all.
John Quincy Adams opines that we are selling new Masons a pig in a poke (Sack).
On 29 August 1832, John Quincy Adams, the 6th President of the United States, and a
vociferous critic of Freemasonry, wrote a letter to the author William L Stone denouncing what he
viewed as the underlying meaninglessness of Masonry.
The secrets, to the keeping of which the Entered apprentice is sworn, are indefinite. In
genuine Masonry, when revealed to him, he finds them frivolous…. So must it be with every
reflecting, intelligent man; nor is it conceivable that any such Entered Apprentice, on leaving
the lodge after his admission, should fail to have observed, with pain and mortification, the
contrast between the awful solemnity of the oath which he has taken, and the extreme
insignificance of the secrets revealed to him. It is to meet this unavoidable impression, that the
institution is graduated. The lure of curiosity is still held out, and its attractive power is
sinewed, by the very disappointment which the apprentice has experienced. He takes the
degrees of Fellow Craft and Master Mason, and still finds disappointment – still finds himself
bound by tremendous oaths to keep trifling and frivolous secrets. The practice
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of the institution is deceptive and fraudulent. It holds out to him a promise of which it never
performs.
Letters on the Masonic Institution, Boston: T.R. Marvin, 1847, pp. 70-1.
Adams went on to state that what Masonry does perform is to introduce the new member to an
intimate cabal and give him access to the Elite of society dedicated to the furtherance of its own
aims and the exclusive favor and prosperity of its own members. By his lights – Masonry was the
perfect engine of conspiracy. Adams was not, nor does he remain, alone on these points. The
multitude of books, pamphlets, websites and breathless television commentary that continue to
describe the fraternity as an unwholesome and omnipresent influence upon American and world
affairs, bear this out.
These allegations – In Re the Great Masonic Conspiracy -- have been refuted elsewhere and
far more eloquently by Masonic scholars of great merit. But despite the intervening span of a nearly
two centuries, Adams’ acidic assertions about the light and trifling character of the fraternity still
rankles. Without doubt the fraternity has many detractors from dictators and despots who fear
Masonry as something uncontrollable, to religious leaders who perceive it to be somehow unholy
or perhaps too competitive, as well as the obsessive who wind and re-wind the Zapruder film
seeking something, anything, that will assure them of the primacy of order in the midst of chaos.
But these assailants at least have the common decency to esteem Masonry as a force to be
reckoned with, which with some perverse pride, the Masons accept, knowing full well that a lodge
which finds itself in the midst of tumultuous internal conflict over whether to replace rusted
handrails in the stairwells, or to repave the lodge parking lot is not quite ready to assume universal
stewardship over mankind. And so the Masons of the world agonize over whether white table cloths
or checkered should be used at the awards banquets and, presumably bide their time….
But Adams’ remarks still sting, perhaps because there is a certain truth to them.
Not often acknowledged, but certainly considered by many Masons following their full and
final entry into the Craft are questions about the meaning of it all. Some Masons immediately
plunge into the immense body of scholarly (and sometimes decidedly unscholarly) work on the
subject, with the insistence of the astronomer who knows the star must be there, he just can’t see it
yet. Conversely, other new members, perhaps most of them, don’t think much about it at all, and
apparently view our ornate and complicated ceremony as some vestigial legacy of the past where
oaths and piracy were more commonplace than in today’s world where notions of honor, fidelity,
and trust are often little more than crumbling mottoes on the edifices of once proud public buildings
– forlorn, nearly forgotten, and certainly not conducive to being lit by the neon lights of now.
But there is another group of men who have passed through the west door: these men are
under the impression that when they reach the third degree they will be given the spiritual
equivalent of a new car, and when they find that this is not the case, they lose interest rapidly.
Perhaps they see the lessons and lectures we give as essentially frivolous, or perhaps they don’t
understand them. Some certainly are not inclined towards further study, whether it be of geometry,
or anything else, and these are the men about whom Adam’s speaks. Yet discounting Adams’
comments as pure political vitriol by a committed Anti-mason misses the point, because taken at
face value, Adams has pointed to the elephant in the room. At face value, what is the new master
mason given? Certainly nothing tangible, unless you count some wearing apparel, and perhaps a
nice tie tack. And so, Adams is quite right in asking: what answers can the master Masons take
away from the ceremony? Fortunately, as Bilbo Baggins said in The Hobbit, the answer is “lots
and none at all.” They are not tangible, they are esoteric, and very probably they Page 33
simply elude Adams’ linear thought process. Sadly, they also elude many of our brethren, as well.
I don’t think I’m giving anything away here by publicly stating that there isn’t a wheel of
fortune in the East, and we don’t spin it whenever we raise a new Mason. And although we don’t
hand out the esoteric equivalent to a BMW E46 with ZHP Performance Package, it might be argued
that on reaching the third degree, one is given the keys to the car. The task then becomes finding
out where it is parked. Sometimes that takes a lifetime and some, perhaps many, of us are inclined
to spend that lifetime looking for it. Some other fellows couldn’t care any less and will wait for the
bus.
Me? Well, I’m not so keen on buses. How about you?
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Its late fall and the Indians on a remote reservation in South Dakota asked their new chief if
the coming winter was going to be cold or mild.Since he was a chief in a modern society, he had
never been taught the old secrets. When he looked at the sky, he couldn't tell what the winter was
going to be like. Nevertheless, to be on the safe side, he told his tribe that the winter was indeed
going to be cold and that the members of the village should collect firewood to be prepared.
But, being a practical leader, after several days, he got an idea. He called the National Weather
Service on his cell and asked, 'Is the coming winter going to be cold?'
'It looks like this winter is going to be quite cold,' the meteorologist at the weather service
responded.
So the chief went back to his people and told them to collect even more firewood in order to
be prepared.
A week later, he called the National Weather Service again. 'Does it still look like it is going
to be a very cold winter?'
'Yes,' the man at National Weather Service again replied, 'it's going to be a very cold winter.'
The chief again went back to his people and ordered them to collect every scrap of firewood
they could find.
Two weeks later, the chief called the National Weather Service again. 'Are you absolutely sure
that the winter is going to be very cold?'
'Absolutely,' the man replied. 'It's looking more and more like it is going to be one of the coldest
winters we've ever seen.'
'How can you be so sure?' the chief asked.
The weatherman replied, 'The Indians are collecting a ton of firewood.’
Hiram or Huram Abiff
By W. Bro. Paul Weathers of Oasis Lodge #52, F&AM in Tucson, Arizona
This is based on partial extractions from Chapter VI of Bro. Dudley Wright’s book titled
MASONIC LEGENDS AND TRADITIONS, which was published in 1921 by William Rider &
Sons, LTD in London.
It appears that there are more legends than there are facts about Hiram, a widow’s son from
Tyre, generally known as Hiram Abiff. In the Dictionary of the Bible by Calmet, says that the
word “Hiram” signifies “high intelligence” and he said that Hiram was referred to as “Father” by
both, the King of Tyre and King Solomon, because he was the Principal Master over the workmen
and the director of their duties. And if this is factual, Hiram Abiff and Hiram his Father would
have been one and the same. However, Hiram couldn’t have been the father of
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David, King of Tyre. And it’s established that there was actually a father of Hiram
the architect who was of the same name, Hiram Abiff, and his son was given the same name. And
by my research it appears that the father was the architect of Solomon’s until his tragic death, and
it was then that the son finished the work in and on the Temple.
It’s an interesting fact that Khuram or Huram identified with the Egyptian names Herra,
Hermes or Hercules, and that the word Abi or Abiff was a surname, but it was also given by close
friends and associates to the respected Hebrew men of high honor, dignity and integrity. More
about Hiram Abiff can be found in 1 Kings, verses 13 through 45 and II Chronicles, chapter 2,
verses 11 through 14. In those passages Hiram is said to be the son of a widow of the tribe of
Naphtali, and another claim says that he was the son of a woman, one of the daughters of Dan. But
this is an improbable depiction, because a woman during those times weren’t allowed to belong to
two tribes.
The Brother and Reverend Morris Rosenbaum said, “We must conclude that two different
men bearing the same name, Hiram, are spoken of – one whose mother was of the tribe of Dan,
another whose mother was of Naphtali. This conclusion is strengthened by the fact that, according
to the two versions; the two named Hiram and mentioned here were engaged in different work. In
Chronicles, one Hiram is stated to have been a worker in gold, and in silver, in brass, in iron, in
stone, in timber, in purple, in blue, and in crimson and in fine linen. He was also able to grave any
manner of graving, and to work with every device. In Kings, Hiram is called ‘a worker in brass’
and he was filled with wisdom and understanding and cunning abilities to work at all works of
brass. The other is an all around workman, also skilled in stone and timber – consequently, a
builder, an engraver, and a master of many devices, an architect. This would also lead us to believe
that there were two men bearing the same name.” But wasn’t it recorded that there was a father
and a son by the same name? It appears that Hiram was a fairly common name during those times.
The story that is so familiar to us Freemasons is that Master Hiram Abiff was slain before the
temple was completed but, if only one Hiram is referred to in the Old Testament, this story is
lacking in corroboration in that narrative or by Josephus. I kings, chapter 2. Verse 40 says, “So
Hiram made an end of doing all the work that he could do for King Solomon, and for the house of
the Lord.” And in II Chronicles we read: “And Huram finished the work that he was to make for
King Solomon, for the house of God.”
However, Masonic tradition asserts that Master Hiram was murdered within the precincts of
the Temple prior to the completion of the Temple. It was the duty of Hiram Abiff to supervise the
work. Reports were examined by him with precise exactness.
It was his custom to offer up prayers when the sun arose in the east, before the commencement
of work, at high twelve, and at the close of the day when the days work was completed, and when
the sun sat in the west and the workmen had left the Temple to give thank to the Eternal God for
the safe protection for that day. For the first six years it was his custom to go into the secret recesses
of the lodge for prayer, but in the seventh year his prayers were given in the precincts of the Holy
of Holies. On the day appointed to celebrate the cap-stone, Master Hiram retired as usual at the
meridian hour, and from a casual walk about the Temple grounds he never returned alive.
By one traditional story, the remains of Master Hiram weren’t located until after the Temple
was completed. Yet in another version of the legend as commonly accepted by us Freemasons, his
body was found and interned to its long home before the Temple was completed. On uncovering
the shallow grave his Jewel was found on the body. This Jewel is said to have been the Square and
Compasses with the letter “G” between the Compasses and above the Square. Another version of
the legend that is known, says that his Jewel was the 47th proposition of the First Page 35
Book of Euclid.
King Solomon gave strict orders to Grand Inspector Adoniram, that the funeral obsequies
should be as pompous and magnificent as for the King himself. He also ordered that all the should
attend the solemn ceremonies wearing white aprons and white gloves.
Various other depictions of this age old story are still to be found in some of the old and now
rare scripts. But the intended lesson for us Masons is intended to instil in our hearts and minds to
believe in a life after death.
Bro. and Rev. Morris Rosenbaum surmised that the two men named Hiram were actually father
and son. And that with sadness still affecting King Solomon and needing the Temple to be
completed, he sent a messenger to fetch Hiram, the son to finish his father’s work. This seems to
verify that the Temple was not completed when Hiram the father was murdered.
Brother and Reverend George Oliver explained for us the following; pertaining to the
dedication monument near the Holy of Holies; A virgin weeping over a broken column, with a
book open before her; in her right hand a sprig of acacia, in her left hand an urn; father time standing
behind her with his hands unfolding the ringlets of her hair. The weeping virgin denotes the
unfinished state of the Temple, the broken column; that one of the principal supporters of Masonry
(Hiram Abiff) had fallen; the open book implies that his memory is recorded in every Freemason’s
heart; the sprig of acacia refers to the recovery of his remains; the urn shows that his ashes have
been carefully collected and honorably interned; and Father Time standing behind her implies that
time, patience and perseverance will accomplish all things.
Now for a closing, this is an interesting story about Hiram Abiff. In this accounting it is said
to have idolatrous worship of Tyre called for the rite of human sacrifices. A Masonic tradition
says. “To such an extent were these sacrifices often carried that when the Canaanites and
Phoenicians were desirous to avert any great calamity, such persons had no children, but purchased
them from the poor for that purpose. Sometimes they were cast into a furnace of fire; at other times
into a hollow statue of Moloch which was considered to be one of the primary demon gods of the
Ammonites, which was roaring with burning fire. Hiram biff was able to get much of this law
repealed, making it a penalty to purchase children for the purpose of sacrifice.
It’s no wonder that the name Hiram Abiff is so revered by the Freemasons.
God's Grace
Editor’S Note; OK, I know it’s not exactly Masonic, but in a way it is. I am not really an
every Sunday in church Mason, but I do know right from wrong and I know where my blessings
come from and I am very thankful for ‘em. So, I just had to pass this on. Should have been in last
month’s issue for Easter…
Thanks to Brother Lowry May.
I wonder how many people will delete this without reading it because of the title. It is a shame
but this message is very true. Hope you are all as blessed as I was by this story.
There once was a man named George Thomas, pastor in a small New England town.
One Easter Sunday morning he came to the Church carrying a rusty, bent, old bird cage, and
set it by the pulpit. Eyebrows were raised and, as if in response, Pastor Thomas began to speak. "I
was walking through town yesterday when I saw a young boy coming toward me swinging this
bird cage. On the bottom of the cage were three little wild birds, shivering with cold and fright. I
stopped the lad and asked, What do you have there, son?
Page 36
"Just some old birds," came the reply.
"What are you going to do with them?" I asked.
"Take 'em home and have fun with 'em," he answered.
“I’m gonna tease 'em and pull out their feathers to make 'em fight. I'm gonna have a real good
time."
"But you'll get tired of those birds sooner or later. What will you do then?"
"Oh, I got some cats," said the little boy. "They like birds. I'll take 'em to them."
The pastor was silent for a moment. "How much do you want for those birds, son?"
"Huh?? !!! Why, you don't want them birds, mister. They're just plain old field birds. They
don't sing. They ain't even pretty!"
"How much?" the pastor asked again.
The boy sized up the pastor as if he were crazy and said, "$10?"
The pastor reached in his pocket and took out a ten dollar bill. He placed it in the boy's hand.
In a flash, the boy was gone. The pastor picked up the cage and gently carried it to the end of the
alley where there was a tree and a grassy spot. Setting the cage down, he opened the door, and by
softly tapping the bars persuaded the birds out, setting them free. Well, that explained the empty
bird cage on the pulpit, and then the pastor began to tell this story:
One day Satan and Jesus were having a conversation. Satan had just come from the Garden
of Eden, and he was gloating and boasting. "Yes, sir, I just caught a world full of people down
there. Set me a trap, used bait I knew they couldn't resist. Got 'em all!"
"What are you going to do with them?" Jesus asked.
Satan replied, "Oh, I'm gonna have fun! I'm gonna teach them how to marry and divorce each
other, how to hate and abuse each other, how to drink and smoke and curse. I'm gonna teach them
how to invent guns and bombs and kill each other. I'm really gonna have fun!"
"And what will you do when you are done with them?" Jesus asked.
"Oh, I'll kill 'em," Satan glared proudly.
"How much do you want for them?" Jesus asked.
"Oh, you don't want those people. They ain't no good. Why, you'll take them and they'll just
hate you. They'll spit on you, curse you and kill you. You don't want those people!!"
"How much? He asked again.
Satan looked at Jesus and sneered, "All your blood, tears and your life."
Jesus said, "DONE!" Then He paid the price.
The pastor picked up the cage and walked from the pulpit.
(Bro. Lowry’s note) I pray, for everyone who sends this on, whether to their entire address
book or just a few, that God will bless them in a special way. And for those that just deleted it...and
I KNOW there will be a few.
I thank God every day for my blessed life. I'm not rich, don't live in a mansion and don't have
the nicest of material things, but, I have a roof over my head, clothes on my back, food on my
table, a family that loves me and lifelong friends to get me through. I'd say I have a lot to be thankful
for. (Amen. So Mote It Be. Corky)
Have you counted your blessings today? HAPPY EASTER.
At Last Count, I Think The Burglars Were Winning
Editor’s Note; If you are, you’re are probably too old to run and too old to fight so, this information
may help you avoid a lot of problems. However even you a younger person this info
Page 37
could save you some physical, mental or financial pain.
I can't tell you how often I see this guy on my very street, he always pushes a lawn mower
or walks with a rake, neither of which I've ever seen him use even once.
I don't want any of you to miss an opportunity to do good and help someone. Just keep this in
mind, and be smart when you offer to let someone work.
At last count, I think the burglars were winning... love you all,
1. Of course I look familiar. I was here just last week cleaning your carpets, painting your shutters,
or delivering your new refrigerator.
2. Thanks for letting me use the bathroom when I was working in your yard last week. While I
was in there, I unlatched the back window to make my return a little easier.
3. Love those flowers. That tells me you have taste... and taste means there are nice things inside.
Those yard toys your kids leave out always make me wonder what type of gaming system they
have.
4. Yes, I really do look for newspapers piled up on the driveway. And I might leave a pizza flyer
in your front door to see how long it takes you to remove it.
5.If it snows while you're out of town, get a neighbor to create car and foot tracks into the house..
Virgin drifts in the driveway are a dead giveaway.
6. If decorative glass is part of your front entrance, don't let your alarm company install the control
pad where I can see if it's set. That makes it too easy.
7. A good security company alarms the window over the sink. And the windows on the second
floor, which often access the master bedroom - and your jewelry. It's not a bad idea to put motion
detectors up there too.
8. It's raining, you're fumbling with your umbrella, and you forget to lock your door understandable. But understand this: I don't take a day off because of bad weather.
9. I always knock first. If you answer, I'll ask for directions somewhere or offer to clean your
gutters. (Don't take me up on it.)
10. Do you really think I won't look in your sock drawer? I always check dresser drawers, the
bedside table, and the medicine cabinet.
11. Here's a helpful hint: I almost never go into kids' rooms.
12. You're right: I won't have enough time to break into that safe where you keep your valuables.
But if it's not bolted down, I'll take it with me.
13 .A loud TV or radio can be a better deterrent than the best alarm system. If you're reluctant to
leave your TV on while you're out of town, you can buy a $35 device that works on a timer and
simulates the flickering glow of a real television. (Find it at http://www.faketv/.com/)
EIGHT MORE THINGS A BURGLAR WON'T TELL YOU:
1. Sometimes, I carry a clipboard. Sometimes, I dress like a lawn guy and carry a rake. I do my
best to never, ever look like a crook.
2. The two things I hate most: loud dogs and nosy neighbors.
3. I'll break a window to get in, even if it makes a little noise. If your neighbor hears one loud
sound, he'll stop what he's doing and wait to hear it again. If he doesn't hear it again, he'll just go
back to what he was doing. It's human nature.
4. I'm not complaining, but why would you pay all that money for a fancy alarm system and leave
your house without setting it?
TVs or gaming systems I'd like. I'll drive or walk through your neighborhood at night, before you
close the blinds, just to pick my targets.
Page 38
5. I love looking in your windows. I'm looking for signs that you're home, and for flat screen
6. Avoid announcing your vacation on your Facebook page. It's easier than you think to look up
your address. Parents: caution your kids about this. You see this every day.
7. To you, leaving that window open just a crack during the day is a way to let in a little fresh air.
To me, it's an invitation.
8. If you don't answer when I knock, I try the door. Occasionally, I hit the jackpot and walk right
in.
Sources: Convicted burglars in North Carolina , Oregon , California , and Kentucky ; security
consultant Chris McGoey, who runs http://www.crimedoctor.com/and Richard T. Wright, a
criminology professor at the University of Missouri-St Louis, who interviewed 105 burglars for his
book Burglars on the Job.
PROTECTION FOR YOU AND YOUR HOME:
If you don't have a gun, here's a more humane way to wreck someone's evil plans for you.
WASP SPRAY
A friend who is a receptionist in a church in a high risk area was concerned about someone coming
into the office on Monday to rob them when they were counting the collection. She asked the local
police department about using pepper spray and they recommended to her that she get a can of
wasp spray instead.
The wasp spray, they told her, can shoot up to twenty feet away and is a lot more accurate, while
with the pepper spray, they have to get too close to you and could overpower you. The wasp spray
temporarily blinds an attacker until they get to the hospital for an antidote. She keeps a can on her
desk in the office and it doesn't attract attention from people like a can of pepper spray would. She
also keeps one nearby at home for home protection... Thought this was interesting and might be of
use.
FROM ANOTHER SOURCE:
On the heels of a break-in and beating that left an elderly woman in Toledo dead, self-defence
experts have a tip that could save your life.
Val Glinka teaches self-defence to students at Sylvania South view High School . For decades, he's
suggested putting a can of wasp and hornet spray near your door or bed.
Glinka says, "This is better than anything I can teach them."
Glinka considers it inexpensive, easy to find, and more effective than mace or pepper spray. The
cans typically shoot 20 to 30 feet; so if someone tries to break into your home, Glinka says, "spray
the culprit in the eyes". It's a tip he's given to students for decades. It's also one he wants everyone
to hear. If you're looking for protection, Glinka says look to the spray.
"That's going to give you a chance to call the police; maybe get out." Maybe even save a life.
CAR KEYS:
Put your car keys beside your bed at night.
Tell your spouse, your children, your neighbours, your parents, your Dr.'s office, the check-out girl
at the market, everyone you run across. Put your car keys beside your bed at night.
If you hear a noise outside your home or someone trying to get in your house, just press the panic
button for your car. The alarm will be set off, and the horn will continue to sound until either you
turn it off or the car battery dies. This tip came from a neighbourhood watch coordinator. Next time
you come home for the night and you start to put your keys away, think of this: It's a security alarm
system that you probably already have and requires no installation. Test it. It will go off from most
everywhere inside your house and will keep honking until your battery runs down or
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until you reset it with the button on the key fob chain. It works if you park in your
driveway or garage. If your car alarm goes off when someone is trying to break into your house,
odds are the burglar/rapist won't stick around. After a few seconds all the neighbours will be
looking out their windows to see who is out there and sure enough the criminal won't want that.
And remember to carry your keys while walking to your car in a parking lot. The alarm can work
the same way there. This is something that should really be shared with everyone. Maybe it could
save a life or a sexual abuse crime.
The Truman Faux
Editor’s Note; Snopes.com, the website that debunks most of the urban legends, claims this
story is untrue because “Political Correctness” was not a problem at that time. Well, if it is a fake,
it is so much like Harry S, Truman I would bet he would have said it if the occasion came up.
The telegrams below are from the Truman Library and Museum in Independence Missouri,
between Harry Truman and Douglas MacArthur on the day before the actual signing of the
Surrender Agreement. The contents of these four telegrams below are exactly as received, not a
word has been added or deleted.
(1) Tokyo, Japan
0800-September 1, 1945
To: President Harry S Truman
From: General D A MacArthur
Tomorrow we meet with those yellow bellied bastards and sign the Surrender Documents, any
last minute instructions!
(2) Washington, D C
1300-September 1, 1945
To: D A MacArthur
From: H S Truman
Congratulations, job well done, but you must tone down your obvious dislike of the Japanese
when discussing the terms of the surrender with the press, because some of your remarks are
fundamentally not politically correct!
(3) Tokyo, Japan
630-September 1, 1945
To: H S Truman
From: D A MacArthur and C H Nimitz
Wilco Sir, but both Chester and I are somewhat confused, exactly what does the term politically
correct mean?
(4) Washington, D C
2120-September 1, 1945
To: D A MacArthur/C H Nimitz
From: H S Truman
Political Correctness is a doctrine, recently fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and
promoted by a sick mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible
to pick up a piece of shit by the clean end!
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Thanks to W. Bro. Gary Mosemeyer for this one.
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In Texas there is a town called New Braunfels, where there is a large German-speaking
population. One day, a local rancher driving down a country road noticed a man using his hand to
drink water from the rancher's stock pond. The rancher rolled down the window and shouted: "Sehr
angenehm! Trink das Wasser nicht. Die kuehe haben darein geschissen." Which means: "Glad to
meet you! Don't drink the water, the cows have shit in it."
The man shouted back: "I'm from New York and just down here helping with Hillary’s
presidential campaign. I’m sorry, but I don’t speak Texan. I can't understand you. Please speak in
English."
The rancher replied: "Use both hands."
A new teacher was trying to make use of her psychology courses. She started her class by saying,
'Everyone who thinks they're stupid, stand up!'
After a few seconds, Little Larry stood up.
The teacher said, 'Do you think you're stupid, Larry?'
'No, ma'am, I just hate to see you standing there all by yourself!'