Where'er thy lodges stand,

May they have great command,
And always grace the land,
Thou art divine !

Great fabrics still arise,
And grace the azure skies;
Great are thy schemes:
Thy noble orders are
Matchless beyond compare;
No art with thee can share,
Thou Art Divine!

Hiram the architect,
Did all the craft direct,

How they should build;
Sol'mon, great Israel's king,
Did mighty blessings bring,
And left us room to sing,
Hail, Royal Art!

Chorus

Three times.

The Mason's Adieu, by brother Burns.

ADIEU, a heart-fond, warm, adieu,
Ye brothers of the mystic tie;
Ye favour'd and enlighten'd few,
Companions of my social joy;
Though I to foreign lands must hie,
Pursuing fortune's slippery ba':
With melting heart and brimfu' eye,
I'll mind you still when far awa'.
Oft have I met your social band,

To spend a cheerful, festive night,
Oft honour'd with supreme command.
Presiding o'er the sons of light:
And by that hieroglyphic bright,
Which none but craftsmen ever saw,
Strong memr'y on my heart shall write,
Those happy scenes when far awa'.

F

May freedom, harmony, and love,
Cement yon in the grand design,
Beneath the Omniscient Eye above,
The glorious Architect divine;
That you may keep the unerring line,
Still guided by the plummet's law,
'Till order bright completely shine,
Shall be my pray'r when far awa'.

And ye, farewell, whose merit claims
Justly the highest badge to wear,
May Heaven bless your noble names,
To Masonry and Friendship dear;
My last request permit me here-
When yearly ye're assembled a',
One round, I ask it with a tear,
To him, your friend that's far awa.

And ye, kind-hearted sisters fair.

I sing farewell to all your charms.
The impression of your pleasing air,
With rapture oft my bosom warms.
Alas! the social winter's night

No more returns while breath I draw,
Till sisters, brothers, all unite,

In that Grand Lodge that's far awa',

CHAPTER X.

MOST EXCELLENT MASTER.

GENERAL REMARKS.

NONE but the meritorious and praiseworthy; none but those, who, through diligence and industry, have pro

gressed far towards perfection; none but those who have been seated in the Oriental Chair, by the unanimous suffrages of their brethren, can be admitted to this degree of masonry.

In its original establishment, when the temple of Jerusalem was finished, and the fraternity celebrated the cape stone with great joy, it is demonstrable that none but those, who had proved themselves to be complete masters of their profession, were admitted to this honour; and, indeed, the duties incumbent on every mason, who is accepted and acknowledged as a most excellent master, are such as render it indispensable that he should have a perfect knowledge of all the preceding degrees.

One of the following passages of scripture is rehearsed at opening, accompanied by solemn ceremonies:

"The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwelt therein. For he hath founded it upon the seas, and established it upon the floods. Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord? and who shall stand in his holy place? He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully. He shall receive the blessing from the Lord, and righteousness from the God of his salvation. This is the generation of them that seek him, that seek thy face, O Jacob. Selah. Lift up your heads, O ye gates, and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors, and the King of Glory shall come in. Who is this King of Glory? The Lord, strong and mighty, the Lord, mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, Oye gates, even lift them up, ye everlasting doors, and the King of Glory shall come in. Who is this King of Glory? The Lord of Hosts, he is the King of Glory. Selah."-Psalm xxiv.

"I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord. Our feet shall stand within thy gates, O Jerusalem. Jerusalem is builded as a city that

compact together; whither the tribes go up, the tribes of the Lord, unto the testimony of Israel, to give thanks

unto the name of the Lord. For there are set thrones of judgment, the thrones of the house of David.

"Pray for the peace of Jerusalem; they shall prosper that love thee. Peace be within thy walls, and prosperity within thy palaces. For my brethren and companions? sakes, I will now say, Peace be within thee. Because of the house of the Lord our God, I will seek thy good." Psalm cxxii.

The following passages of scripture are also introduced, accompanied with solemn cermonies:

Then said Solomon, The Lord hath said that he would dwell in thick darkness. But I have built an house of habitation for thee, and a place for thy dwelling for

ever.

And the king turned his face, and blessed the whole congregation of Israel, (and all the congregation of Israel stood;) And he said, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, who hath with his hands fulfilled that which he spake with his mouth to my father David, saying, Since the day that I brought forth my people out of the land of Egypt, I chose no city among all the tribes of Israel to build an house in, that my name might be there; neither chose I any man to be a ruler over my people Isracl; but I have chosen Jerusalem, that my name might be there; and have chosen David to be over my people Israel.

But

Now, it was in the heart of David, my father, to build an house for the name of the Lord God of Israel. the Lord said to David my father, Forasmuch as it was in thine heart to build an house for my name, thou didst well in that it was in thine heart; notwithstanding thou shalt not build the house; but thy son, which shall come forth out of thy loins, he shall build the house for my name. The Lord, therefore, hath performed his word that he hath spoken; for I am risen up in the room of David my father, and am set on the throne of Israel, as the Lord promised, and have built the house for the name of the Lord God of Israel; and in it have I put the ark, wherein

is the covenant of the Lord, that he made with the children of Israel.

And he stood before the altar of the Lord, in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands: For Solomon had made a brazen scaffold of five cubits long, and five cubits broad, and three cubits high, and had set it in the midst of the court; and upon it he stood, and kneeled down upon his knees before all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven, and said,

O Lord God of Israel, there is no God like thee in the heaven nor in the earth; which keepest covenant, and shewest mercy unto thy servants hat walk before thee with all their hearts: thou which hast kept with thy servant David my father, that which thou hast promised him ; and spakest with thy mouth, and hast fulfilled it with thine hands, as it is this day. Now, therefore, O Lord God of Israel, keep with thy servant David my father, that which thou hast promised him, saying, There shall not fail thee a man in my sight to sit upon the throne of Israel; yet so that thy children take heed to their way to walk in my law, as thou hast walked before me. Now, then, O Lord God of Israel, let thy word be verified, which thou hast spoken unto thy servant David. (But will God in very deed dwell with men on the earth? Behold, heaven, and the heaven of heavens, cannot contain thee; how much less this house which I have built!) Have respect, therefore, to the prayer of thy servant, and to his supplication, O Lord my God, to hearken unto the cry and the prayer which thy servant prayeth before thee that thine eyes may be open unto this house day and night, upon the place whereof thou hast said that thou wouldest put thy name there; to hearken unto the prayer which thy servant prayeth towards this place.

Hearken, therefore, unto the supplications of thy servant, and of thy people Israel, which they shall make towards this place: hear thou from thy dwelling place, even from heaven; and, when thou hearest, forgive.