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Article MASONIC DAMPERS. ← Page 2 of 2 Article TWO PRICELESS PICTURES. Page 1 of 2 Article TWO PRICELESS PICTURES. Page 1 of 2 →
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Masonic Dampers.
moody gentleman is displeased with , and each in his turn suspects himself as the cause ; if the Damper looks wise , all are expecting when the dumb oracle will utter , and in the meantime his silence infects the whole circle ; if a shrug of the shoulders or a shake of the head is judiciously thrown in when any talkative
fellow raises a laugh , it is all but certain he will not open his lips again that evening , and thus the desire of the Damper seems to be gratified ; with the same obiect he will ask at the end of a story if that is all ?
or where lies the point of the joke ? or make some senseless inquiry , which at once removes the charcn o ! a well-told tale . All these and many more peculiar characteristics of the Damper are to be met with within the portals of Freemasonry , but , as we have
said , it is fortunate that the sect , so far as it affects our Order , is not very numerous , otherwise it would not be possible for the members of the Craft to secure as much enjoyment from its practices as they now do .
If perchance these remarks should come under the notice of any who are troubled with a desire to cause a dampness around them , or who aspire to
membership of the peculiar sect here relerred to , we would ask them to pause before they again put their tactics into practice , and ask themselves the question if it is not better to abandon their peculiar principles , even though they may be older than Freemasonry itself , and adopt the more Masonic formula of being happy and striving to communicate happiness .
Two Priceless Pictures.
TWO PRICELESS PICTURES .
An Extract from an Oration by Bro . Ghauncey M . Depeiv , at the Thirtieth Anniversary of Kane Lodge , No . 4 ^ 4 , F . and A . M-, New York , 4-th April 1888 . ( Continued from page 171 . )
All of you who have been to Europe havo stood in those grand cathedrals in England and on the continent . We have nothing like them in onr time , and the liberality and genius of our period do not seem equal to the construction
of their types . We have been for years , in New York , with all the wealth there is in this city , and all its ambition and piety , tying to build a cathedral which should rank with those which have come down to us from the Dark
Ages , and we are no nearer to it than we were fifty years ago . Tou wonder who designed and erected these grand edifices , because they symbolize in stone the piety of the times and the aspirations and immortality of the human
soul . There is nothing so impressive in the world as these old cathedrals , whose architects and builders are unknown , and yet you can see that while they were constructed in an age which had no architects whose names survive , their
builders must have been men of both faith and culture , and it is for us to claim that their creeds and skill have been transmitted down the lines and in the chapters of both Speculative and Operative Masonry .
In all ages of the world , the one thing beyond others which has lifted man above the earthly , and freed him from the weight of the grossest materialism , has been hero worship , and it has been the fruitful creator of heroes .
The noble stories which fire the orator , inspire the poet , illumine the pages of history , and make the themes for the painter and sculptor , are warriors and their triumphs . But the knights who , trained to arms , believed that for
their prowess was the laurel crown , the smile of beauty , the princely title , or the great estate , charged , and fought and dared for grand prizes . The soldier rushing into the imminent deadly breach has before him glory , promotion ,
fame , and the gratitude of posterity , and these inspire him . But Captain Kane went to the Arctic Ocean to brave perils the crusader never met ; to endure hardships the soldier never faced ; to sustain , by patience and heroic
endurance , trials such as never came before to those who have been the advance guard in the great struggles of humanity . What was his incentive ? There was the unknown and frigid North ; there the icy barriers which had never been overcome ; there the prospect of suffering
and without glory ; there the almost certainty of death .
Two Priceless Pictures.
What lured him on ; what impelled him forward ? It was simply that a brother Mason of an alien nation and forei gn lancl had gone to the North Pole for the purpose of scientific research , and , imprisoned by the ice , had not returned nor
been heard from ; civilization regarded him lost ; but Captain Kane saw in the Northern sky , and in the aurora boroalis , the Masonic sign of distress ; he heard in the Northern gale the Masonic cry for help , and he said
" I will go to his rescue . " That expedition , with all its achievements and heroic surroundings , was a Masonic crusade set forth in tho sublimest spirit of the Order of Friendship , and of Faith , Hope , and Charity , to rescue a brother from the gravest peril .
This anniversary suggests two pictures of priceless value to humanity . Captain Kane ' s ship was shut in the ice . The Arctic night , the fearful cold , and the hopeless desolation all around had broken the spirits of the crew . Part
of the company despaired of ever seeing friends or home again , and Kane said , " I shall remain here one year more to prosecute the search ; those whose hearts fail them may go southward and see if they can find the open sea and the
opportunity to return . Half said , " We will go . He gave them part of all he had which supports life in that most inhospitable clime . They disappeared in the snow and sleet , marching for home . They lost their way ; weeks
elapsed and the survivors came back , weak , broken in health , and helpless , and the hero received them as brothers , forgave them , divided with them again his stores and nursed them back to life .
Our hero lay in the little cabin , sick . He had become so enfeebled that he weighed less than a hundred pounds . His companions expected every day that death would claim their frail commander . But he was an extraordinary
example of the triumph of mind over matter . His dauntless spirit conquered his physical weakness . An expedition had been sent out to find the open Polar Sea . Suddenly and unexpectedly two of them appeared before the
astonished captain . " Why are you here ?—Where are the rest ? " were questions quickly put . The wanderers' story was soon told . A storm , unprecedented even for that region , had overtaken the party . The thermometer fell to
fifty degrees below zero , and all of them had succumbed but these two messengers . " Where did you leave the others ? " said Captain Kane . "Fifty miles north , and buried in the snow . " " Then , " said he , " a rescuing expedition must
start at once , and I will lead it . " There could be no laggards in the presence of such a leader . When men ' s lives were to be saved , his heroic soul , overcoming the limitations of disease , seemed to inspire his frail body with
supernatural strength . With an enthusiasm which was contagious , and with resistless purpose , he marched at the head of the stalwart crew over mountains of ice and through sleet and snow , until they came in sight of a little American
flag floating over a drift . As they dug * down they found a Masonic banner , and beneath that lay their companions benumbed with the cold and welcoming death . They were taken out , revived and inspirited with hopeful words and
good cheer , placed upon the sleds , carried safely to the ship , and with tenderest care brought again to strength and usefulness . The dangers faced and the difficulties overcome in this immortal rescue under the emblem of our
Order , form one of the noblest recorded illustrations of unselfish heroism and the devotion of Masonic brothers to tho principles and practices of their faith . In the trophy room at Windsor Castle are the captured banners and standards which mark the world-wide
conquests of England and the glories of her sovereigns and generals . But the most famous of them are not more worthy of preservation than the National and Masonic flags of the Kane expedition which adorn the walls of our
Lodge . Of that expedition we have with us two survivors . One is our friend Captain Wilson , the companion of the gallant Kane , and the other is the fair Augusta . The fair Augusta was the figure-head of Kane's ship , and with a
devotion to the noble hero worthy of all praise , and exhibiting what the sex can do , she kept her position in ceaseless battles with the surging ice until she lost her nose , and no woman could be expected to head an expedition
after her nose was gone . But the despairing look she gave to the departing men whose vessel she had led through all storms until it was frozen and abandoned was such that
they broke her away from her surroundings and brought her back to civilisation , and Kane Lodge keeps her as its presiding angel . She knows all our secrets and never has given one away . She is not pretty but she is good .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Masonic Dampers.
moody gentleman is displeased with , and each in his turn suspects himself as the cause ; if the Damper looks wise , all are expecting when the dumb oracle will utter , and in the meantime his silence infects the whole circle ; if a shrug of the shoulders or a shake of the head is judiciously thrown in when any talkative
fellow raises a laugh , it is all but certain he will not open his lips again that evening , and thus the desire of the Damper seems to be gratified ; with the same obiect he will ask at the end of a story if that is all ?
or where lies the point of the joke ? or make some senseless inquiry , which at once removes the charcn o ! a well-told tale . All these and many more peculiar characteristics of the Damper are to be met with within the portals of Freemasonry , but , as we have
said , it is fortunate that the sect , so far as it affects our Order , is not very numerous , otherwise it would not be possible for the members of the Craft to secure as much enjoyment from its practices as they now do .
If perchance these remarks should come under the notice of any who are troubled with a desire to cause a dampness around them , or who aspire to
membership of the peculiar sect here relerred to , we would ask them to pause before they again put their tactics into practice , and ask themselves the question if it is not better to abandon their peculiar principles , even though they may be older than Freemasonry itself , and adopt the more Masonic formula of being happy and striving to communicate happiness .
Two Priceless Pictures.
TWO PRICELESS PICTURES .
An Extract from an Oration by Bro . Ghauncey M . Depeiv , at the Thirtieth Anniversary of Kane Lodge , No . 4 ^ 4 , F . and A . M-, New York , 4-th April 1888 . ( Continued from page 171 . )
All of you who have been to Europe havo stood in those grand cathedrals in England and on the continent . We have nothing like them in onr time , and the liberality and genius of our period do not seem equal to the construction
of their types . We have been for years , in New York , with all the wealth there is in this city , and all its ambition and piety , tying to build a cathedral which should rank with those which have come down to us from the Dark
Ages , and we are no nearer to it than we were fifty years ago . Tou wonder who designed and erected these grand edifices , because they symbolize in stone the piety of the times and the aspirations and immortality of the human
soul . There is nothing so impressive in the world as these old cathedrals , whose architects and builders are unknown , and yet you can see that while they were constructed in an age which had no architects whose names survive , their
builders must have been men of both faith and culture , and it is for us to claim that their creeds and skill have been transmitted down the lines and in the chapters of both Speculative and Operative Masonry .
In all ages of the world , the one thing beyond others which has lifted man above the earthly , and freed him from the weight of the grossest materialism , has been hero worship , and it has been the fruitful creator of heroes .
The noble stories which fire the orator , inspire the poet , illumine the pages of history , and make the themes for the painter and sculptor , are warriors and their triumphs . But the knights who , trained to arms , believed that for
their prowess was the laurel crown , the smile of beauty , the princely title , or the great estate , charged , and fought and dared for grand prizes . The soldier rushing into the imminent deadly breach has before him glory , promotion ,
fame , and the gratitude of posterity , and these inspire him . But Captain Kane went to the Arctic Ocean to brave perils the crusader never met ; to endure hardships the soldier never faced ; to sustain , by patience and heroic
endurance , trials such as never came before to those who have been the advance guard in the great struggles of humanity . What was his incentive ? There was the unknown and frigid North ; there the icy barriers which had never been overcome ; there the prospect of suffering
and without glory ; there the almost certainty of death .
Two Priceless Pictures.
What lured him on ; what impelled him forward ? It was simply that a brother Mason of an alien nation and forei gn lancl had gone to the North Pole for the purpose of scientific research , and , imprisoned by the ice , had not returned nor
been heard from ; civilization regarded him lost ; but Captain Kane saw in the Northern sky , and in the aurora boroalis , the Masonic sign of distress ; he heard in the Northern gale the Masonic cry for help , and he said
" I will go to his rescue . " That expedition , with all its achievements and heroic surroundings , was a Masonic crusade set forth in tho sublimest spirit of the Order of Friendship , and of Faith , Hope , and Charity , to rescue a brother from the gravest peril .
This anniversary suggests two pictures of priceless value to humanity . Captain Kane ' s ship was shut in the ice . The Arctic night , the fearful cold , and the hopeless desolation all around had broken the spirits of the crew . Part
of the company despaired of ever seeing friends or home again , and Kane said , " I shall remain here one year more to prosecute the search ; those whose hearts fail them may go southward and see if they can find the open sea and the
opportunity to return . Half said , " We will go . He gave them part of all he had which supports life in that most inhospitable clime . They disappeared in the snow and sleet , marching for home . They lost their way ; weeks
elapsed and the survivors came back , weak , broken in health , and helpless , and the hero received them as brothers , forgave them , divided with them again his stores and nursed them back to life .
Our hero lay in the little cabin , sick . He had become so enfeebled that he weighed less than a hundred pounds . His companions expected every day that death would claim their frail commander . But he was an extraordinary
example of the triumph of mind over matter . His dauntless spirit conquered his physical weakness . An expedition had been sent out to find the open Polar Sea . Suddenly and unexpectedly two of them appeared before the
astonished captain . " Why are you here ?—Where are the rest ? " were questions quickly put . The wanderers' story was soon told . A storm , unprecedented even for that region , had overtaken the party . The thermometer fell to
fifty degrees below zero , and all of them had succumbed but these two messengers . " Where did you leave the others ? " said Captain Kane . "Fifty miles north , and buried in the snow . " " Then , " said he , " a rescuing expedition must
start at once , and I will lead it . " There could be no laggards in the presence of such a leader . When men ' s lives were to be saved , his heroic soul , overcoming the limitations of disease , seemed to inspire his frail body with
supernatural strength . With an enthusiasm which was contagious , and with resistless purpose , he marched at the head of the stalwart crew over mountains of ice and through sleet and snow , until they came in sight of a little American
flag floating over a drift . As they dug * down they found a Masonic banner , and beneath that lay their companions benumbed with the cold and welcoming death . They were taken out , revived and inspirited with hopeful words and
good cheer , placed upon the sleds , carried safely to the ship , and with tenderest care brought again to strength and usefulness . The dangers faced and the difficulties overcome in this immortal rescue under the emblem of our
Order , form one of the noblest recorded illustrations of unselfish heroism and the devotion of Masonic brothers to tho principles and practices of their faith . In the trophy room at Windsor Castle are the captured banners and standards which mark the world-wide
conquests of England and the glories of her sovereigns and generals . But the most famous of them are not more worthy of preservation than the National and Masonic flags of the Kane expedition which adorn the walls of our
Lodge . Of that expedition we have with us two survivors . One is our friend Captain Wilson , the companion of the gallant Kane , and the other is the fair Augusta . The fair Augusta was the figure-head of Kane's ship , and with a
devotion to the noble hero worthy of all praise , and exhibiting what the sex can do , she kept her position in ceaseless battles with the surging ice until she lost her nose , and no woman could be expected to head an expedition
after her nose was gone . But the despairing look she gave to the departing men whose vessel she had led through all storms until it was frozen and abandoned was such that
they broke her away from her surroundings and brought her back to civilisation , and Kane Lodge keeps her as its presiding angel . She knows all our secrets and never has given one away . She is not pretty but she is good .