light_34

A Window for FreemasonryVol. 38 No. 2 MAY 2007

A Window for FreemasonryVol. 38 No. 2 MAY 2007

THE

14 Paying it Forward • 14 Raising Awareness and Dollars • 14 Mon-ster Donation • 15 It’s a Marvelous Night for a Moon Dance • 16 BlueEnvelope Challenge • 17 The Kern Award and the Man Behind the Name• 17 Sovereign Grand Commander says “Thanks” • 17 Masonic WordMath •25 New Services Offered toMembers •25 Running for the Learn-ing Centers •27 Quick Quotes •30 Hiram •30 On the Lighter Side •32 The Heritage Shop

2 THE NORTHERN LIGHT / MAY 2007

MAY 2007 Volume 38 No. 2

Features

3 Sovereign Grand Commander

18 Notes from the Scottish Rite Journal

19 Brothers on the Net

20 Scottish Rite Charities

21 The Stamp Act

22 Book Nook

24 HealthWise

26 Views from the Past

28 Today’s Family

30 Readers Respond

31 Et cetera, et cetera, etc.

Also:

4 Unlocking the Code

by Aimee E. NewellMasonic and fraternal aprons have moremeaning than meets the eye.

SUPREME COUNCIL, 33°Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite

Northern Masonic Jurisdiction, U.S.A.

SOVEREIGN GRAND COMMANDERJohn Wm. McNaughton, 33°

THE NORTHERN LIGHT (ISSN 1088-4416) is published quarterly in February, May,August, and November by the Supreme Council, 33°, Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite,Northern Masonic Jurisdiction, U.S.A., as the official publication. Printed in U.S.A.Periodicals postage paid at Boston, MA, and at additional mailing offices.POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Northern Light, PO Box 519, Lexington,MA 02420-0519.Copyright © 2007 by Trustees of the Supreme Council of the Ancient AcceptedScottish Rite of Freemasonry for the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction, U.S.A.

EDITORAlan E. Foulds, 32°

PRODUCTION ASSISTANTSSonja B. Faiola

Beth E. McSweeney

MEDIA ADVISORY COMMITTEEStephen E. Carpenter, 33°, chairman

Richard V. Travis, 33°William Fox Jr., 33°

William L. McCarrier, 33°Eric Ginette, 33°

Mailing Address:PO Box 519, Lexington, MA 02420-0519

Editorial Office:33 Marrett Road (Route 2A)

Lexington, Massachusetts 02421781-862-4410

Fax: 781-863-1833e-mail: [email protected]

Internet:www.supremecouncil.org

THEA Window for Freemasonry

Columns

8

4

Printer, Patriot, Freemason

by Jeffrey R. CroteauIsaiah Thomas spreads independenceand Freemasonry.

8

12

Visions of a Society

by Wayne T. Adams, 33°The lodge as a model community.

11

12 The Craftsman Behind the Craft

by Alan E. Foulds, 32°Bro. Craddock applies his craftto Masonic history.

Cover photo: Isaiah Thomas courtesy ofthe American Antiquarian Society

MAY 2007 / THE NORTHERN LIGHT 3

“Time is a precious commodity.But time well spent is invaluable.”

— John Wm. McNaughton, 33º

The ‘UnMasonic’ MeetingHaving attended many Masonic meetings in

my 33 years as a Mason, I have come to the

conclusion that too often presiding officers take

advantage of their time in the spotlight. Because

it is their moment to shine, they feel compelled

to stretch out a meeting endlessly without realiz-

ing that the average member in attendance is ei-

ther nodding a weary head or looking helplessly

at his watch.

I was recently invited to attend a Scottish Rite

awareness meeting sponsored by the Valley of

Detroit. The Valley moved to nearby Dearborn a

year ago and is still adjusting itself to a new lo-

cation.

A large group of potential Scottish Rite mem-

bers and their wives were invited to attend the

dinner meeting that had been planned by Ill.

Brothers Robert Conley, 33°, and David Bedwell,

33°. Valley representatives were strategically

placed at each table to answer questions from

the prospects.

I was prepared for the typical Masonic meet-

ing with an endless array of speeches and plenty

of hard-sell pitches. Following the dinner, there

was a short promotional video followed by a

well-prepared and brief message. There were no

introductions.

Before I realized it, the meeting was over.

How unMasonic! Where was the endless array

of speeches and introductions? Where was the

hard sell?

But then there was another unusual phenom-

enon. Nobody left. Everyone remained at the ta-

bles actively engaged in conversations, and

many of these people had begun the evening as

total strangers. The common bond, of course,

was Freemasonry.

Eventually a woman got up from her seat to

go over to Brother Conley and said to him, “I

want my husband to belong to an organization

like this.”

There is a message here. Time is a precious

commodity. But time well spent is invaluable.

Too often we have attempted to wear down

an audience with too much at one time. Yet in

this instance the audience was electrified, and it

was refreshing.

Perhaps we should look seriously at the way

in which we conduct our Masonic meetings.

Perhaps we should take a lesson from a Valley

that has found a way to conduct an “unMa-

sonic” meeting.

Sovereign Grand Commander

What runs through your mindwhen you put on your Ma-sonic apron? Do you remem-

ber the first time you wore it? Or per-haps you think of the teachings of yourdegree rituals?Have you ever considered the history

of Masonic aprons – how they weremade prior to sewingmachines or howthe symbols and designs evolved?Among all Masonic symbols, to out-

siders the most recognizable is theapron.Images ofMasons from the late 1700s

through the present day are instantlyidentifiable when they show a manwearing his apron,whether it is GeorgeWashington or a current Master.While the idea of a man wearing an

apron seems odd to many, Masonicaprons extend from a long Europeantradition of tradesmen donning aleather apron to protect their clothingand their bodies as they worked.Opening June 30, at theNationalHer-

itage Museum’s Van Gorden-WilliamsLibrary and Archives, the new exhibi-tion, “Unlocking theCode:Masonic andFraternal Aprons,” will feature a selec-tion of aprons from the museum’s pre-eminent collection in order to exploretheir history and design.With over 400 aprons, the National

HeritageMuseumhas gathered the bestcollection in the country.

In addition, the museum is the cur-rent home of the apron collection fromthe Grand Lodge of Masons in Massa-chusetts, with hundreds of aprons of itsown. These combined collections forman unparalleled resource.The aprons span the globe, as well as

the centuries, and havemany lessons toteach about Masonic history and tradi-tion,American history and culture, andpersonal stories.

AHistory of Masonic Traditions

A plain white apron with a simplepurple (or blue) border resembles

countlessMasonic aprons used for cen-turies in American lodges.However, one that is now part of the

Grand Lodge of Massachusetts collec-tion ismade special by the handwrittencard attached along the bottom.The signature is easy to make out,

“Theodore Roosevelt.” And at the topright corner are the words, “TheWhiteHouse/Washington.”The handwritten lines along the bot-

tom tell a story: “Apron worn by thePresident at the laying of the CornerStone of the Pilgrim Memorial Monu-ment at Provincetown, Aug. 20. 1907.”This one simple object preserves in-

formation about U.S. PresidentTheodore Roosevelt,American Freema-sonry, local history and even early 1900sapron production — it has a maker’s


UnlockingTheC-O-D-E

By AIMEE E. NEWELL

Masonic and fraternal apronshave more meaning than meets the eye

AIMEE E. NEWELL, is the Curator of Collections, National HeritageMuseum at Supreme Council headquarters in Lexington, MA.

Masonic apron worn by Theodore Roosevelt at the cornerstone layingof the Provincetown Pilgrim Monument, August 20, 1907,

made by Miss Rose Lipp, Boston, Massachusetts.Loaned by the Grand Lodge of Masons in Massachusetts.

label attached on the back reading,“Miss Rose Lipp Society RegaliasBoston, Mass.”Rose Lipp was a dealer and manu-

facturer of Masonic regalia working inBoston at least until themid-1920s. TheNational HeritageMuseumhas a num-ber of regalia items with her labels.Provincetown’s Pilgrim Monument

had its cornerstone laying on August20, 1907, with a great deal of ceremonyand fanfare, including the participationof the Grand Officers of the GrandLodge of Masons in Massachusetts.Grand Lodge Proceedings include

the text of the main address by R.W.William B. Lawrence, which recountsthe first time theMayflower anchored –not in Plymouth, but in ProvincetownHarbor.The ceremonies also included music

by the “HarvardQuartette.” TheGrandOfficers of the Grand Lodge of Massa-chusettsmade the trip to the tip of CapeCod by train and arrived one hour lateto find President Roosevelt alreadyspeaking to the crowd.This apron, offering insight about

how the Grand Lodge collection wasformed, what types of items were im-portant, and why certain objects werepresented to the lodge, was probablygiven to the Grand Lodge of Massa-chusetts immediately or shortly afterthe ceremony.In this case, the apronwas prized for

several reasons: it wasworn by theU.S.President at an important ceremony fora uniquely American monumentpresided over by the Grand Officers of

the state’s Grand Lodge, and it carriesamaker’s label aswell as a handwrittennote with Roosevelt’s signature.While photographs of the ceremony

exist to assist us in learning about theevents of that day, the apron adds toour knowledge in a way that the pho-tographs cannot. All of the photo-graphs, at that time, were black andwhite.We cannot tell whether the aprons

worn by those pictured had blue trim-ming or purple, or other colors – and, asreaders of this publication know all toowell, the different colors convey verydifferent symbolic meanings.

Asecond apron suggests another tra-dition that aprons help us understand—Masonic symbols. That Scottish Riteapron dates to about 1830 and wasprobablymade inNewEngland, possi-bly in Connecticut.The pink silk apron is embroidered

with gold thread and sequins andshows the symbols of the 16°, or Princeof Jerusalem Degree.Over time, the silk has faded; under-

neath the edge of the flap the originalcolor of the silk is still visible— amuchdarker, richer red tone.The body of the apron includes a de-

piction of the Second Temple, alongwith “D” for King Darius and “Z” forZerubbabel. The symbols come fromthe story of the rebuilding of the temple,made difficult by outside forces whowanted Zerubbabel to fail.Today, the story offers an allegory

about the trials we face when we at-tempt to build a better life by followingan ethical code and helping others.Aprons such as this one will be in-

cluded in the museum’s exhibition inorder to identify some of the commonfraternal symbols, drawing non-Ma-sonic visitors into the rich tradition ofFreemasonry and introducing them toits philosophy and values.

The Influence and Spread ofFreemasonry

Aprons help to illustrate the influ-ence and spread of Freemasonry, notonly throughout America, but alsothroughout the world. �

Masonic Scottish Rite apron for Prince of Jerusalem degree, circa 1830,possibly Connecticut. Collection of National Heritage Museum.


Masonic apron, circa 1815, possibly New England.Collection of National Heritage Museum, Gift of Armen Amerigian.

�Apurple, white and gold apron fromthe mid-1940s (now in the collection oftheGrand Lodge ofMassachusetts) hasan emblem at bottom center showingthe symbol of the District DeputyGrand Master — a compasses and rulewith a crescent moon in the middle.Around the top of the symbol is ap-

plied braid spelling “China.” Indeed,the apron has amaker’s label under theflap reading, “Kong SunGeneral Tailorand Masonic Regalia Specialist Shang-hai.”The first lodge in China was char-

tered in 1865 in Shanghai by the GrandLodge ofMassachusetts. By 1920, therewere five lodges in that country.After initial success and increasing

membership, World War II broughtdark days to the Chinese lodges. All ofthe country’s lodges went into recessafter Pearl Harbor with worse to come.Lodge properties were seized by theJapanese and many Masons were ar-rested, imprisoned or put into intern-ment camps.After the war, many of these same

Masons worked to re-establish the fra-ternity in China and to rebuild the tem-ples. This apron was worn by DistrictDeputyGrandMaster Franklin C. Fette,the last District GrandMaster of China.Fette was installed in that position inBoston in 1946.After reviewing the lodge’s records

housed in Massachusetts, he returned

to China towork on bringing the Broth-ers back together.According to the June 12, 1946, Grand

Lodge of Massachusetts Proceedings,“new regalia for each of the five [Chi-nese] Lodges is now beingmade in thiscountry and will be sent forward assoon as possible with the complimentsof the Grand Lodge.”Judging by the label sewn to this

apron, that same regalia was supple-mented by aprons, and perhaps otheritems, made by Chinese regalia mak-ers.In addition, this apron helps illus-

trate the resiliency of Freemasonry inChina by showing that there wasenough demand and resources to sup-port at least one regalia maker so soonafter the defeat of the Japanese.

Freemasonry’s Relationship toAmerican Industry

From the 1700s through the present,Masonic aprons illustrate the rise andinnovations of American manufactur-ing. They employ prevalent decorativeand manufacturing techniques of theirtime.Many late 1700s and early 1800s

apronswere printed using an engravingplate and then hand-painted to fill indetails.Other early apronswere painted free-

hand, using published books andbroadsides for inspiration. One populardesignwas engraved by EdwardHors-man around 1815 and was particularlypopular among New England Freema-sons.The Grand Lodge of Massachusetts

considered the emblems to be arrangedwith “taste and propriety.”The Van Gorden-Williams Library

and Archives includes many printedcertificates and bookswith designs thatwere also adapted for aprons.


Masonic District Deputy Grand Master of China apron worn byR.W. Franklin C. Fette, circa 1946, made by Kong Sun, Shanghai, China.

Loaned by the Grand Lodge of Masons in Massachusetts.

Masonic apron owned by Sovereign Grand CommanderWalter E. Webber(1943-2006), circa 1980-1990, Macoy Publishing and Masonic

Supply Company, Inc., Richmond, Virginia. Collection ofNational Heritage Museum, Gift of LeslieWebber.


The upcoming exhibitionwill includeseveral examples of aprons with theprinted source of their design, illustrat-ing the multitude of such treasures inthe collections of theNational HeritageMuseum.Aprons continued to adapt and

evolve during the late 1800s and intothe 1900s. As the clothing industrymechanized and standardized sizesafter the Civil War, aprons followedsuit.Regalia catalogs from the late 1800s

and early 1900s, including a circa 1915catalog from The C.E. Ward CompanyofNewLondon, Ohio, offer a variety ofMasonic aprons.The C.E.Ward catalog includes plain

white cloth and leather aprons, printedaprons, aprons bound in silk ribbon,silk embroidered aprons (including ahand-embroidered option), and officersand presentation aprons.By that point, aprons were selling as

“one size fits all,” a distinct differencefrom the early 1800swhenmany apronswere custom-made at home for specificMasons.Even today’s aprons continue to in-

corporate manufacturing advancessuch as fabrics that are more stain-re-sistant and less apt to fade.

Women Were and Are Involvedin Freemasonry

Although onlymen can join Freema-sonry, the wives and daughters of Ma-sons have a long tradition of their ownin supporting the membership of theirhusbands, fathers and brothers.The techniques used to decorate early

aprons—watercolor, theorempaintingand embroidery—were those taught atfemale academies inNewEngland andthe Mid-West.The National Heritage Museum col-

lection includes several aprons that aredocumented as being made by awoman for her Masonic relative.For example, one apron is accompa-

nied by a handwritten card explaining,“John McFarlane Present from hisDaughter Mary King 1836.” The sameinformation is also inscribed under theflap.Some historians have suggested that

women viewed Freemasonry in an ad-versarial way since they were prohib-ited from membership.However, aprons like this one, sug-

gest a more balanced view of this his-tory. Recent studies show that womensupported Freemasonry’s goals andphilosophy.Historian William D. Moore studied

19th-century fundraising fairs held tobenefit the construction of Masonichalls and temples, finding that thesefairswere largely put on bywomen.Heexplains, “Women not only affected thefraternity’s functioning, but they werealso actively committed to its existenceand supported its material welfare.”Moore points out thatwomen partic-

ipated in the Masonic world because it“taughtmorality, ethics and charity”—virtues that American women werecharged by society to champion on ahousehold level.Masonic apronsmadeby women offer additional evidence tosupport these ideas.

Personal Stories

Finally, each apron in the NationalHeritage Museum collection wasowned and worn by a specific Mason.Althoughwemay not always know thename of that person, sometimes theapron can suggest information aboutwhere it was made or used, who madeit, andwhat type of degree or office theowner achieved.Another featured apron is a more

modern apron and we do know whoowned it — former Sovereign GrandCommander Walter E. Webber (1943-2006). The National Heritage Museumcollects and interprets artifacts up tothe present day in order to tell the fullstory of Masonic and fraternal organi-zations in America.Sovereign Grand Commander Web-

ber ’s apron reflects his status as aMason while also offering a way to re-member his achievements. Bro. Web-ber ’s widow, Leslie, donated threeaprons to the museum that were wornat meetings and ceremonials.Not only do these aprons show late

20th and early 21st century style, mate-rials, symbols andmanufacturing tech-niques, but they also provide evidenceof the present-day Masonic hierarchyand illustrate how Masonic leadersemerge, by representing the many of-fices and memberships that this Sover-eign Grand Commander held as hegained leadership experience.Bro. Webber became Master of his

blue lodge, Casco Lodge No. 36, inYarmouth, Maine in 1979.A year later, he served as District

Deputy Grand Master for the GrandLodge of Maine. In 1987, he receivedthe 33°, eventually becoming anActiveMember and Deputy for Maine beforeassuming the post of Sovereign GrandCommander in 2003.This apron undoubtedly reminded

Grand Commander Webber — as it re-minds us— of his early leadership roleand the lessons he learned at that time.“Unlocking the Code: Masonic and

Fraternal Aprons” will be on view atthe National Heritage Museum’s VanGorden-Williams Library from June 30to December 9, 2007.In order to protect and preserve the

collection, there will be a rotation ofaprons on display.For more information about the

National Heritage Museum, itsexhibitions and programs, please call781-861-6559 or visit our website atnationalheritagemuseum.org.

Masonic apron,circa 1836,possibly NewEngland, probablymade by MaryKing. Collectionof NationalHeritageMuseum.

Printer,Patriot,Freemason Isaiah Thomas spreads

independence and Freemasonry


By JEFFREY R. CROTEAU

Itwas the night ofApril 16, 1775, justa few days before the first shots ofthe American Revolution would be

fired on the green in Lexington.Under growing threats of retribution

from the British forces occupyingBoston, Isaiah Thomas (1749-1831) —printer, Freemason, and a radical Rev-olutionary patriot — sent his printingpress and type cases on a boat thatcrossed the Charles River toCharlestown andwhichwere then con-veyed over land to Worcester, 40 milesto the west.What remained in his print shop in

Bostonwas either carried off or burnedafter he fled. Thomas hadmade himself,in his own words, “very obnoxious tothe friends of the British administra-tion.”Hedid thismost publicly througharticles in his incendiary newspaper,theMassachusetts Spy.More covertly, he published hand-

bills for the Sons of Liberty andwas in-strumental in spreading news through-out the colonies of British abuse ofcolonists. Thomas’ infamy among Loy-alists was far-spread: he was burned ineffigy as far south as North Carolina.It was with the sound of early morn-

ing gunfire on the green in Lexington onApril 19, 1775, that the American Rev-olution began in force. However, print-ers like Thomaswere essential in layingthe long foreground leading up to theactual battles of the Revolution.The important role that Thomas’

newspaper played in the years leadingup to and during thewar cannot be un-derstated. Newspapers such asThomas’ not only disseminated news,but they also spread political ideas andpropaganda. In his case these politicalideas and propaganda were very

strongly in support of the cause for in-dependence of the American coloniesfrom the British.TheMassachusetts Spy, as with many

newspapers of the time, was not proneto understatement. OnMay 3, 1775, lessthan threeweeks after the battle of Lex-ington, Thomas printed the first issue ofthe Spy from his new office in Worces-JEFFREY R. CROTEAU, is public services librarian for the Van

Gorden-Williams Library at the National Heritage Museum

AMER

ICAN

ANTI

QU

ARIA

NSO

CIE

TY

Portrait miniature of Isaiah Thomas, painted by William M.S. Doyle in 1805,while Thomas was Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts.

ter and contained his version of theevents of April 19.To modern eyes, its opening lines

sound less like reportage andmore likea call to arms: “Americans! Forever bearinmind theBattle of Lexington!—whereBritish troops, unmolested and unpro-voked, wantonly, and in a most inhu-man manner fired upon and killed anumber of our countrymen, thenrobbed them of their provisions, ran-sacked, plundered and burnt theirhouses!”The risk that Thomas faced by print-

ing articles that criticized the Britishwas quite real.For example, Thomas recalled that on

March 10, 1775, a man who (accordingto Thomas) had been framed by Britishofficers for a crime he hadn’t commit-ted, was tarred and feathered and pa-raded past Thomas’ printing office inBoston by British solders, some of thesoldiers yelling “The printer of the Spyshall be the next to receive this punish-ment!”Thomas, at least in retrospect, rel-

ished his role as an instigator. Years laterhe wrote that he “had the honor ofbeing includedwith JohnHancock andSamuel Adams in a list of twelve per-sons who were to be summarily exe-cuted when taken” by the British.The story above may already be fa-

miliar to those interested in theAmeri-can Revolution, the history of printing,or how the two overlap.Yet to those interested in American

Masonic history, Thomas is also an in-teresting figure. Indeed, in Thomas wecan see how Freemasonry, the convic-tions of a revolutionary American pa-triot and amanwho knew the power of

the printed word, all meet in one per-son.Althoughwe often speak ofMasonic

history andAmerican history as thoughthey are two distinct categories, weknow they are not. Freemasonry doesnot — and never did — exist in a vac-uum. Among many other things,Thomas was a printer and a Freema-son, and these two aspects of his lifeoverlapped and no doubt influencedeach other.Thomas is of interest to the Van Gor-

den-Williams Library at the NationalHeritage Museum in Lexington, MA,for a number of reasons.Inmanyways Thomas can be seen as

a reflection of the goals and focus of thelibrary and archives. The institution col-lects andmakes available to researchersmaterials pertaining toMasonic historyand American history and culture, in-cluding works related to the AmericanRevolution.The Van Gorden-Williams Library

collection contains some early and im-portant books and pamphlets printedby Thomas that go far in illustrating hisdeep involvement withMasonry in thelate 18th and early 19th centuries.We don’t know exactly when or with

what lodge Thomaswasmade aMason.Although probably not yet in the fra-ternity in 1775, Thomas was a friend orclose associate of many of the well-

known revolutionaries at the time,many of whom were also members ofthe craft; men such as Paul Revere, JohnHancock, and Joseph Warren.The first lodge thatwe knowThomas

was amember of, Trinity Lodge of Lan-caster,Massachusetts, was chartered onJanuary 30, 1778, by the MassachusettsGrand Lodge.We know that Thomas was involved

with this lodge shortly after it was char-tered, since he published — At theUnanimous Request of the Society—a ser-mon delivered by Zabdiel Adams onJune 24, 1778, entitledBrotherly Love andCompassion, Described and Recommended.Pamphlets that reproduce speeches

or sermons —mostly delivered for theFeast of St. John the Baptist —were themost common type of book printed bythe fraternity during the period leadingup to the American Revolution.By 1779, it is clear that Thomas had

beenmade aMason, sincewe know that“Brother Isaiah Thomas” delivered aspeech to themembers of Trinity Lodgeon June 24, 1779, at the FreemasonsHallin Lancaster.Two years later, in 1781, “At the

request of the Brethren,” Thomas pub-lished a speech called An Oration:Delivered in Freemasons Hall, Lancaster,Commonwealth of Massachusetts, onThursday, the Twenty-fourth of June, 1779(A.L. 5779). �


Title page ofthe Grand

Lodge ofMassachusetts

Book ofConstitutions,

printed byIsaiah

Thomasin

1798.

All of the printed

items mentioned in this

article are in the

collection of the Van

Gorden-Williams

Library, with the

exception of the

Massachusetts Spy,

the sermon by Zabdiel

Adams, and a sermon

by Aaron Bancroft.

�Although some have speculated thatThomas may have become a Mason asearly as 1775, before leaving Boston, itseems likely that he joined sometimeshortly before giving the speech in Lan-caster in 1779. Thomas remained in-volved with Trinity Lodge until 1782,serving as Junior Warden in 1781 and1782.The year 1792 is important in the his-

tory of Massachusetts Freemasonry.Until that year, Freemasonry in Massa-chusetts operated under two separateGrand Lodges — Saint John’s GrandLodge and the Massachusetts GrandLodge.This changed on March 19, 1792,

when the two existing Grand Lodgesmet for the purpose of combining intoone united Grand Lodge, to be calledthe Grand Lodge of the Most Ancientand Honorable Society of Free andAc-ceptedMasons for the Commonwealthof Massachusetts.A month later, a committee was

formed “to consider and compile a bookof Constitutions containing all thingsnecessary for the use of the fraternity, .. . and the same be published under thesanction of the Grand Master.”The Constitutions of theAncient and

Honourable Fraternity of Free and Ac-ceptedMasonswas compiled by Thad-deusM. Harris and printed by Thomasin 1792. Six years later, in 1798, answer-

ing theGrandLodge’s call for a revisionof the Constitutions, a second editionwas published.On February 8, 1793, a group of men

met at the United States Hotel inWorcester for the purpose of forming alodge. At that meeting, Morning StarLodgewas formed,with Isaiah Thomaselected its first Master.Four months later, on June 11, 1793,

the newly united Grand Lodge ofMas-sachusettsmet inWorcester for the pur-pose of consecrating the Morning StarLodge and installing its Master.Among those present from theGrand

Lodge were Thomas’ long-time associ-ate, Paul Revere, whowas a Past GrandOfficer and would serve as the secondGrand Master of the Grand Lodge ofMassachusetts from 1794-97.Aaron Bancroft, pastor of the Second

Church in Worcester, delivered a ser-mon for the occasion, which was laterprinted by Thomas.In 1795, the Rev. Bro. Thaddeus M.

Harris, who was responsible for com-piling the Grand Lodge of Massachu-setts’ Constitutions thatwere publishedby Thomas in 1792, delivered a speechto the Grand Lodge on the feast of St.John the Baptist in 1795.

The speech was printed in a pam-phlet by Thomas and sold at his book-store. The pamphlet is entitledACharge,Delivered before the Officers and Membersof the Grand Lodge of Free and AcceptedMasons, in the Commonwealth of Massa-chusetts, on the Festival of St. John the Bap-tist, June 24th, A.L. 5795.Among the items in the Library’s col-

lection is an eight-page pamphlet of theproceedings of the annual meeting ofthe Grand Lodge of Massachusetts,held in December 1804.One of the activities that the pro-

ceedings reports is the unanimous re-election of “TheMostWorshipful IsaiahThomas, Esq.” as Grand Master.At the end of 1802, Thomas had been

elected as fifth Grand Master of theGrand Lodge of Massachusetts, a posi-tion he would hold from 1803-05, andagain in 1809.Although Thomas’s role in the early

Grand Lodge is hardly forgotten, it islikely that today hemight bemorewellremembered among the early GrandMasters of Massachusetts were it notfor the fact that Paul Revere served asGrand Master from 1795-97.As the sampling from the library’s

collection above illustrates, Thomasproduced a number of Masonic booksand pamphlets, many of them impor-tant to the early printed history ofFreemasonry in America.Themajority of his publications, how-

ever, were not Masonic. Other booksthat Thomas published include al-manacs, textbooks,music books, Bibles,and state histories.The library’s collection includes some

of these non-Masonic publications byThomaswhich illustrate other interestsof his thatwere concurrentwith hisMa-sonic activities.In 1793, Thomas co-published

Samuel Williams’ The Natural and CivilHistory of Vermont, which was the firstbook dedicated to the subject of Ver-mont’s past ever published. In 1791,Thomas co-published volume two ofJeremy Belknap’s The History of NewHampshire.Both Thomas and Belknap would go

on to play significant roles in preservingAmerican history, with Belknap as thefounder of theMassachusettsHistoricalSociety in 1791, and Thomas as thefounder of the American AntiquarianSociety in 1812.Among his many accomplishments,

Thomas’ formation of the Society standsas his lasting contribution toAmericanculture.


Title page of an oration, deliveredby Isaiah Thomas in 1779, andprinted in 1781.

We hear the phrase “nationbuilding” often these days inrelation to our hopes for a

peaceful outcome in the Middle East.Nation building is what the British andFrench and to a lesser degree the Por-tuguese and Belgians tried to do whentheir empires collapsed in themiddle ofthe 20th century.The defect in their thinking and the

danger in ours is a belief that the insti-tutions of one society can be easilytransplanted to another. That rarelyhappens.Let us consider another example of

artificial transplanting.Afewyears ago,a corporation decided to build a modelAmerican community near Orlando.It was built with all the features that

the company believed were best inAmerican life. Houses were built, soldand families moved in.Then came a startling discovery: It

was a community in appearance, butnot yet a community in fact.A community, like a nation, needs to

have a common experience, a commonmemory and a shared set of values.On that foundation it develops its

ownway of doing things, a vision of itsown future and, eventually, its own in-stitutions.The shared experience, memory and

values arewhatmakes a community ora nation. The vision and the institutionsare simply reflections of a community’sshared experience.M. Scott Peck in The Road Less Trav-

elled made an interesting observation.

He said, “Common wisdom holds thatit is necessary to resolve conflicts inorder to form a community. In fact, theopposite is true. It is necessary to forma community in order to resolve con-flicts.”We can see that this is true. It is nec-

essary to have a common set of valuesbefore you can establish institutionswhich reflect those values and whichpromote a common vision for the fu-ture.Modern Freemasonry evolved both

in Europe andAmerica during a periodwhen free communities were forming.In Europe and in America authori-

tarian government — top down gov-ernment — was weakening fast in thecities, and shortly after, in the towns.

The old political and social structurewas easy to understand. It wasmilitary,derived from a feudal society. With therise of cities, that structure was ques-tioned.In both Europe and America people

were asking who should govern; howshould those in authority be selected;how should public decisions be made,and what values should be promotedand protected.It is interesting to note that two of the

most prominent scholars of Masonichistory today are non-Masons: Mar-garet Jacob of the University of Califor-nia, Los Angeles, and Stephen Bullockof Worcester Polytechnic Institute.Margaret Jacob develops the thesis

that thinking men in 18th century Eu-rope thought of a Masonic lodge as themodel of what a community should be;


Visions ofA Society

By WAYNE T. ADAMS, 33°

WAYNE T. ADAMS, 33°, is a Past Grand Master in Maineand a member of the Scottish Rite Valley of Portland.

The lodge as a model community

continued on page 25


If you need a Masonic apron fromthe Civil War era, where would yougo to find one? Well, Bro. Patrick

Craddock found the answer to thatquestion — himself.Nearly 20 years ago, Patrick Crad-

dock of Franklin, TN, was raised in alodge in Oxford, MS, while attendingcollege at theUniversity ofMississippi.As a student of history he was al-

ready heavily involved in historical in-terpretation of the Civil War.As such he had taken part in several

re-enactments of Civil War battles.Upon joining the fraternity his two pas-sions became intertwined.“I wanted to incorporate my mem-

bership in the lodge with my interpre-tation of the Civil War time period.”He said he looked for someone to

make a “period correct” apron butfound no onewhodid that sort of thing,and no one that even knewmuch aboutthe subject.By 1991, then working on his mas-

ters degree in historical preservation,he embarked on a mission to researchthe subject thoroughly.Aswith all serious interpreters of the

war he wanted to be accurate and au-thentic in any costume or uniform thathe might create.His introduction to historical aprons

was through an exhibition catalogue ofthe National Heritage Museum in Lex-ington, MA. Entitled “Bespangled,Painted, and Embroidered,” it openedthe door to his interest in decorativeaprons.His next step came a year later in

Great Britain. While pursuing a degreeat the University of Wales he had theopportunity to continue his research inLondon.Matthew Scanlan, assistant curator

of the museum at the United GrandLodge of England, provided him his

first chance for a hands-on examinationof aprons. Craddock commented thathe “felt like a kid in a candy shop.”He has since visited several muse-

ums and Grand Lodge buildings toview and photograph approximately250 historic aprons.He draws inspiration from the im-

ages but he alsoworks hard at tailoringthe aprons that hemakes, matching thepersonality or interests of the recipientwith appropriate symbolism.For example, one lodge Brother is a

police officer. The apron that Craddockdesigned for him contains an oversizedset of square and compasseswith a blueshield worked into the mix.The entire image sits between Ionic

andDoric columns, indicating “thewis-

dom to perform his duties well and thestrength to carry them out.”Another friend is a retiredmaster ser-

geant in theMarineswhowas raised asaMasonwhile on duty in SaudiArabia.His apron depicts a royal arch and

“G” in front of the sun rising over thedesert. It symbolizes the place wherehe was first brought to light.Bro. Craddock’s most challenging

piece, to date, has been an apron show-ing the Franklin Masonic Building inhis home town.The structure was built in 1823 of

Gothic Revival style for use by hislodge. He chose that particular designfor a friendwho has a strong interest inhistorical preservation.Recently he has been constructing an

The craftsmanBehindThe craft

By ALAN E. FOULDS, 32°

Bro. Craddock applies his craftto Masonic history

Bro. Patrick Craddock at work in his Tennessee studio.

PHO

TOS

BYTI

MPR

INC

E


apron for a retired chief petty officer.Workingwith the themes of faith, hope,and charity, he centered on “hope.” Thesymbol of hope, and also a representa-tion of the navy, is the anchor.Patrick Craddock says that 99 per-

cent of the ideas come from his ownimagination. He makes it clear that therecipients have no say in the final de-sign.He keeps a sketch bookwith him and

records potential designs, often long be-fore they appear on one of his aprons.Although he does not consider him-

self an artist and has had no formaltraining, he has always enjoyed draw-ing.Hiswork is done using acrylic paints,

with very small brushes for the fine de-tail. Most of the aprons are made oflambskin or cotton.He says he uses acrylic paint for two

reasons. First “it is an easy medium foran untrained artist.”Also, he says, “I don’t want someone

in the future to pass my work off asbeing from the Civil War era. They arereplicas.”When asked if there is a common

thread running through the aprons thathe makes, he answers “There are two.Everyone I make them for is a closefriend and all are living historians. Theother common factor is that they repre-sent styles of the mid-19th century.”

Bro. Craddock’s passionsmeet in an-otherway.His lodge,HiramLodge,No.7, is an old one.It was originally chartered through

North Carolina, before Tennesseewas astate. Itmeets in one of themost historicbuildings in town.After the fall of Nashville during the

Civil War the community of Franklinbecame a federal military post.The Masonic Building was used as

barracks. In fact, to this day, initials andnames of Union soldiers can be foundcarved in the wall of an upstairs men’sroom.After the Battle of Franklin, in which

there were 189 Union troops killed and

1,750 Confederate deaths, it became amilitary hospital.“There aremanymembers of the fra-

ternity that are involved with re-enact-ments. Although we are not charteredand do not conduct formal lodgemeet-ings while in camp, the Brothers oftenfind a place — in a barn or tent — tomeet on the level, in a way that such ameeting would have taken place in the1860s, and to enjoy each other’s com-pany.”To date, he has made 23 historical

aprons and they are scattered amongfriends in at least eight states, fromMis-sissippi to Ohio.Craddock kept only the first one he

painted. Asked whether the recipientsuse them at various functions or dis-play them he says, “I cannot speak formy Brothers, but my personal apronwas worn every time I sat in lodge inGreat Britain.”“The people I have given them to are

friendswithin the lodge andwithin thereenacting community,” says Bro. Crad-dock.“The first dozen I made were pre-

sented as tokens of respect upon afriend’s raising.Asmore friends joinedthe craft I realized that I couldn’t keepup with my own desire to give themaway. I had to let Brothers know that Iwas still interested inmaking them, butI would have to charge something forthem.”Hedoesn’t advertise themeitherwith

Masons or his reenacting world. It hasall been by word of mouth.Hemakes it clear, though, that this is

not a sideline business. “It is somethingthat I do because I enjoy it — and be-causewhen Iwanted an apron like this,I had to make it because no one elsedoes.” From that necessity has devel-oped this passion.

Apron depicting Franklin Masonicbuilding in Bro. Craddock’s hometown.Inset of globe on the apron.

Some of the Masonic imagery used in Craddock’s work.

The parents in Providence have putout the challenge.Their children are already enrolled

in the learning center program andthose spots are secure. In some casestheir sons and daughters have com-pleted their tutoring.They don’t need to worry. Never-

theless in March, more than a dozenpeople, who just weeks earlier did notknow each other, joined forces andheld a fundraiser for their learningcenter.They did it, not for their own chil-

dren: rather, they did it to help securethe future of the program. They did it

to make sure that others, in the future,would be offered the same opportuni-ties afforded their families.Thirteen parents, eleven with chil-

dren currently enrolled and two withalumni, planned and operated a fun-filled evening at the Rhode IslandShrine Center.On March 25, a silent auction, to-

gether with a night of entertainment,was set up in the facility’s ImperialRoom.Auctioned off was a range of items

including a hand-made bracelet cou-pled with lunch at a local café; a goodold-fashioned do-it-yourself Rhode Is-land clambake, complete with openwire clam baskets, cookbook, lobstercrackers, corn holders, plates, instruc-tions, and a $50 gift certificate for thelobsters and clams; crystal wineglasses; autographed baseballs andbats, and much more. The value ofthe donated items was in the thou-sands.Awine station was established

where bottles, complete with surprisegift certificates, sold for $25 each.A comedy show called “The Mixed

Nuts Cabaret” kept attendees enter-tained.Co-chair, Tracy Pagnozzi said that

she was paying for private tutoringfor her daughter when she discoveredthe children’s learning centers.She added, “The one-on-one tutor-

ing at the center was just what mydaughter needed. It was a godsend.”Even though her child has gradu-

ated from the program she wanted tohelp assure the center’s future.“There are so many kids still waitingto enroll.”Louise Cherubini, center director,

approached Pagnozzi a few monthsago to see if they could come up witha way to raise money.Together with co-chair Deb Poland

they assembled a committee of par-ents, published a newsletter callingfor volunteers and ideas, and theywere off and running.The committee started small, not

knowing who or how many wouldcome, but it grew.From the start they wanted to open

attendance to everyone, both insideand outside of the learning centers.Part of the goal was to create an

awareness of the program. The eventwas so successful, however, that thegroup hopes to make it happen annu-ally. Pagnozzi says, “Next year we’dlike it to be twice as big.”Committee members have also of-

fered their expertise to any otherlearning center parents around the ju-risdiction that would like to run a sim-ilar event and to create their own tra-dition of building the future.Tracy Pagnozzi finished by saying,

“My child got all of this help, free ofcharge. The committee is glad that wecan help make sure that the nextgroup has the same opportunity.”


32° Masonic Learning Centersfor Children, Inc.

Paying it Forward

In March the 32° Masonic Learn-ing Centers for Children, Inc., re-ceived a donation of 108 Dell lap-top computers. Monster.com is aleading staffing and employmentwebsite.Bro. J. Graeme Noseworthy, mar-

keting manager of staffing said “Iam pleased to initiate the donationto the centers.”The computers are Dell Inspiron

1150 notebook computers valued atapproximately $1,000 each. Theunits are all new and comeequipped with a 2.6 GHz mobilePentium processor, 256 MB RAMand 30GB hard drives. Operatingsystem software is also included.Bro. Steve Pekock, director of de-

velopment for the Supreme Coun-cil, points out that this marks thelargest corporate donation of thiskind to the program.The computers will be used in

the more than 50 learning centersthroughout the Northern MasonicJurisdiction.

RaisingAwareness and

DollarsThe network of learning centersestablished by the 32° MasonicLearning Centers for Children,Inc., spans the 15-state NorthernMasonic Jurisdiction at more than50 locations.

Maintaining the sites andcontinuing to offer their servicesfree of charge is expensive.Helping to alleviate the costs areseveral fundraising activities anddonations.

On these pages is a sampling ofthe events and generosity thathelp advance the program.Monster Donation


If you find yourself driving theback roads of Pennsylvania late inJune and come across hundreds of

people running miles and miles in themiddle of the night, you would proba-bly conclude that there must be a fullmoon — and you would be right.What you would be witnessing is

the first-ever Pennsylvania Relay Runfor Children with Dyslexia. The chil-dren’s learning centers in the Valleysof Bloomsburg, Allentown, and Read-ing have joined forces to create whatis hoped to be the start of an annualtradition.The ambitious plan calls for a relay

run, traversing 37 townships, roughlyin a 180-mile circle. Beginning at theBloomsburg Fairgrounds on themorning of June 30, a police escortleads the runners to Route 42.The race then travels through such

places as Eyer Grove, Iola, Red Rock,Pikes Creek, Laurel Run, and Kunkle-town and finishes about 27 hourslater.The route winds up with a three-

mile stretch along Tulpehocken Creek,crosses Kring’s Mill Bridge and fin-ishes at the Berks County campus ofPennsylvania State University.Teams consist of a maximum of 12

runners, who will each run three legsof the 36-leg course. Race director,Bro. Ray E. Feick, 32°, explains. “Eachpasses a baton to a teammate, andafter the twelfth runner it again passesto the first runner. This continues untilthe entire team has completed threecycles.”The last participants are expected to

cross the finish line at the university alittle more than a full day after therace begins.The race is being conducted mostly

on rural roads and vans will be re-quired to pick up and drop off run-ners at their respective hand-offpoints.The runners will be sent off from

the staging area in groups of 20 teams,each group leaving about every 15minutes.Although the legs average five

miles, each has its own “personality.”Some are quite hilly, while other areflat, and maybe even straight down-hill. Much of the course is away from

traffic, but some legs run rightthrough town.Although the race is in its infancy,

organizers are confident that at least400 teams will participate. Bro. Feicksays that information has been sent to500 school districts, 50 track and fieldrunning clubs, and 50 colleges anduniversities.Flyers have also been distributed at

such prestigious events as the Mid-At-lantic Championship, East RegionalMasters Championship, the NationalMasters Indoor Championship inBoston, as well as the BostonMarathon.There are plenty of chances to win

and, being the inaugural year, to es-tablish course records as there are 16categories in which teams can beplaced, ranging from high school maleor female; men’s and women’s sub-masters and masters; co-ed; corpora-tions, and open categories.Ray Feick says that the event will

resemble existing relays, such as the197-mile “Hood to Coast Relay,” runevery August fromMount Hood inOregon to the town of Seaside, or the185-mile “Cabot Trail Road Race” thattakes place on Cape Breton Island inNova Scotia each May.Director Feick points out that “the

mission of the learning center pro-gram is to tutor children withdyslexia, one on one, after school freeof charge.

“It costs approximately $5,000 perchild to provide the services. The 2007relay run is intended to raise muchneeded funds to allow us to continueand, indeed, to expand our program.”He also says it is intended to en-

hance the public’s awareness “of whowe are and what we do in the commu-nities served by our centers.”The committee is actively seeking

sponsors and has recruited many vol-unteers, including “Hiram’s ScottishRiders,” a Pennsylvania Masonic mo-torcycle club.On the subject of expansion, the

relay committee notes that this inau-gural event is purposely limited to theReading-Allentown-Bloomsburg com-munities and those in between.It is hoped that next year it might

include all communities served in the15-state jurisdiction and, at somepoint, on a national level.When asked if the fact that the

moon will be full during the race isjust a coincidence, organizers re-spond, “Much of the event will beconducted after dark.“Team members will be wearing re-

flective vests and will carry flash-lights. June 30 was chosen as the racedate specifically because there is a fullmoon that night.”Details for the inaugural “Pennsyl-

vania Relay Run for Children withDyslexia” can be found atwww.run4dyslexia.org.

Bloomsburg, Allentown,

and Reading have joined

forces to create what is

hoped to be the start

of an annual tradition.

MOON DANCE

It’sa marvelous night for a

Adding incentive to along-standing tradition,Sovereign Grand Com-mander John Wm. Mc-Naughton, 33°, has chal-

lenged the 99 Valleys of the NorthernMasonic Jurisdiction.Creating a friendly spirit of compe-

tition, the Supreme Council will re-ward certain Valleysthat increase dona-tions gatheredthrough the blue en-velope appeal overthose received lastyear.Special grants of

$1,000 each will bemade to Valleys, fortheir use in any waythey see fit, if theycan top the list inone of the four cate-gories establishedfor the contest.The first grant will

go to the Valley withthe largest dollar in-crease. The second isbased on the greatestincrease by percent-age.Another will be awarded to the Val-

ley with the largest number of newdonors, and the final $1,000 is re-served for the highest percentage in-crease in donors.Bro. Steve Pekock, 32°, director of

development for the Supreme Coun-cil, says that the new contest “levelsthe playing field between large andsmall Valleys.” He also makes it clearthat it is possible for a Valley to win inmore than one category.The blue envelope appeal is the

chief fundraising activity for the Scot-tish Rite Benevolent Foundation

which, in turn, supports schizophre-nia research, the Abbott Scholarshipprogram, and the National HeritageMuseum in Lexington, MA.The fund has its roots in 1933. Upon

his election as Sovereign Grand Com-mander, Ill. Melvin Maynard Johnson,33°, informed the Supreme Councilthat the fraternity should seek out a

worthwhile national charitable prob-lem and devote time and money to-ward its solution.After numerous possibilities were

considered, Johnson gave birth to the“Research in Dementia Praecox” pro-gram, later renamed “SchizophreniaResearch.”Initially, grants were made from the

Rite’s “Permanent Fund.” A shorttime later the Benevolent Fund wascreated, although it still had no inde-pendent source of income.In 1954 and 1955 contributions were

solicited for the project from the entireScottish Rite membership in the

Northern Masonic Jurisdiction.Because of the color of the en-

velopes used for the fundraising activ-ity it became known as the blue enve-lope appeal and has been run annu-ally since that time.Today a portion of the money raised

through the blue envelope appealgoes to Abbott Scholarships through

the education fund.As a direct outgrowth

of the Masonic commu-nity’s high regard forthe value of education,young people fromScottish Rite familiesand Masonic-relatedyouth groups have beenaided in the fulfillmentof their dreams of at-tending college.Another percentage

helps support the Na-tional Heritage Mu-seum. Located atSupreme Council head-quarters, the institutiondevotes its energies tothe presentation ofAmerican history.The associated Van

Gorden-Williams Library is the largestsingle repository of Masonic history inthe world.Since 1934 more than $25 million

has been devoted to fellowships atmany of the nation’s most prestigiousuniversities.Last year Scottish Rite Masons do-

nated nearly $800 thousand, a signifi-cant increase over past years.The 2007 appeal begins in early

May with the mailing of the blue en-velopes.To count toward the Sovereign

Grand Commander’s Challenge, giftsmust be received by July 31.

Blue Envelope ChallengeSOVEREIGN GRAND COMMANDER CREATES SPIRIT OF FRIENDLY COMPETITION


As the membership develop-ment fund drive reaches itshalfway point, Sovereign GrandCommander John Wm. Mc-Naughton extends his heartfeltthanks to those who have con-tributed and helped make thegoal of $300,000 attainable. Healso asks those that have not yetjoined in to keep the efforts of thejurisdiction in mind and to helppush the total over the top.The purpose of the membership

development fund is to help builda solid, sustainable membershipand to maintain a vibrant frater-nity for the future. Several cre-ative ways of accomplishing thesegoals are under consideration.The drive started in April with

a mailing to all members of theNorthern Masonic Jurisdiction.As a token of gratitude each con-tributor received a window decalembossed with the words, “JoinFreemasonry —Ask Me.”


Valley competition during the blue en-velope appeal is not new. For many yearsthe Kern Award has been presented atthe Supreme Council’s annual meeting toa Valley that places an emphasis on itsmembers taking an active part in the ap-peal. Two criteria are used in determiningthe award winner. First, the percentageof a Valley's membership that con-tributed to the Benevolent Foundationduring the drive is calculated. A second test is applied tothe top ten Valleys. The average contribution per mem-ber is determined. The Valley with the highest percent-age is declared the winner.

This award was conceived by the PennsylvaniaCouncil of Deliberation and named to honor Dr. RichardA. Kern, 33°, a Past Grand Master of the Grand Lodgeof Pennsylvania and the only Active Member of theSupreme Council to have been given the title ofHonorary Sovereign Grand Commander. Ill. JohnAdams, 33°, Secretary for the Council of Deliberationfor Pennsylvania, is administrator of the award.

He says, ”Bro. Kern was quite an in-dividual. Whenever he was in the roomyou knew he was there. He was both amedical doctor and a rear admiral. He

also had a strong interest in the Supreme Council’sBenevolent Foundation.”

In fact, he chaired the Committee on Benevolencesfor several years. At the 1966 annual meeting RichardA. Kern became the 12th recipient of the GourgasMedal. In his medical career he specialized in internalmedicine. At the hospital of the University of Pennsylva-nia he was chief of the allergy clinic and headed up theoutpatient clinic.

Last year’s Kern Award was won by the Valley ofNashua, NH. This year’s winner will be announced at theannual meeting in Washington, DC.

MASONICWORD MATH

How to solve: Start with the first word. Add to it theletters of the second word. Then add or subtractthe letters of the following words. Total the remain-ing letters and unscramble them to find a wordassociated with Masonry.

(MERRIMENT) + (YELLOW) –

(WORM) + (RAILS) – (TELLER) +

(ROAST) – (RAINS) + (CRUISE)

– (SERIAL) + (NAME) – (ERASE)

Clue for this puzzle appears on page 11.Answer from previous issue: CRAFTSMAN

=

THE KERN AWARD and the Man Behind the Name

Commander Newbury presentingIll. Richard A. Kern, 33°, with theGourgas Medal.

Sovereign GrandCommander

Says “Thanks”


N O T E S F R O M T H E

A Special Christmas PresentThe cover of theNovember-December 2006 ScottishRite Journal featured 3-year old Ryanne Carr ofMin-neola, Texas, a patient at the Texas Scottish RiteHospital for Children in Dallas. Ryanne wears twoprosthetic legs and has a below-the-elbow ampu-tation on her right arm due to a congenital condi-tion. Despite what others would view as handi-caps, Ryanne enjoys swimming, gymnastics, soccer,and riding her bike.

Herwinning smilewon theheart of Bro.AlfredTagupa, 32°, ofHonolulu,an 82-year old, 28-year Scottish Rite Mason. After seeing the front cover of

the Journal, he immediatelyarranged a surprise deliveryof Hawaiian flowers toRyanne as a special Christ-mas present. More than ourcelestial and terrestrialglobes, Bro. Tagupa’s act ofkindness shows the univer-sality of Freemasonry, ex-tending fromnorth to southand between east and west.

2007 Prestonian Lecture at theHouse of the Temple in D.C.On Saturday, June 9, 2007,Wor. Roeinton B. Khambatta,M.D., will deliver the 2007 Prestonian Lecture at 1:00p.m. at theHouse of the Temple inWashington, DC. ThePrestonian Lecture is named after William Preston, thenoted English ritualist who left a bequest in 1818 tofund “somewell-informed Freemason to deliver annu-

ally a lecture on the First, Second, or Third Degree of the Order of Masonry.”Dr.Khambattawasappointedby theBoardofGeneralPurposesof theUnited

Grand Lodge of England (UGLE) as the 2007 Prestonian Lecturer. His topic willbe “The powers that serve the throne— aMasonic kaleidoscope,” a study of theGrand Secretaries of theUGLE. The annual Prestonian Lecture is the only lecturegivenwith theauthorityof theUnitedGrandLodgeofEngland, andpast lecturesrepresent some of themost significant and enduring research into Freemasonry.

Bro. Khambatta is a noted cardiologist, a Fellow of the Royal College ofPhysicians of London and Edinburgh and an Emeritus Fellow of the Ameri-can College of Cardiology and also of the American College of Chest Physi-cians. He is Past District GrandMaster of Pakistan for UGLE and in 2001 wasWorshipfulMaster of Quatuor Coronati LodgeNo. 2076, the premier lodge ofMasonic research. The lecture will be open to the public and tours of theHouse of the Temple will be given before and after. Details will be publishedat: www.scottishrite.org. You can email [email protected], or call202-777-3108 for more information.

The Future ofthe Scottish Rite

The year 2006 has been a good one for theScottish Rite, Southern Jurisdiction. It is thethird inwhichwe have seen a growth in ini-tiates, and it is the largest class of initiatessince 2001. Our totalmembership continuesto decline because of the large number ofoldermemberswho joined during the 1960sand ’70s, but it is heartening to see steady in-creases in new members.

More than this, the average age of thesenew members is now at 45 years, and 25percent are below the age of 35.

These new Masters of the Royal Secretranged in age from 18 to 96. The most excit-ing aspect of the “Class of 2006” is its en-thusiasm for Freemasonry in general andthe Scottish Rite in particular. Every manwho joined last year did so for one reason: adesire for further light in Masonry in theScottish Rite.

While it is impossible to tell what thesemore than 5,000 new members think aboutthe Scottish Rite or who they are, we canoffer a few glimpses of thesemen, the futureof the Scottish Rite.

Scottish Rite Freemasonry opensthe floodgates of discussions andinterpretations of different sym-bols and teachings that I enjoy somuch. The philosophical aspect of

the Scottish Rite is one that I could truly not findanywhere else and is one that I truly cherish.

—Casey M. Heald, 32°

My passion for Masonry and myown quest for answers about itsmysteries led me recently to applyto and join the Scottish Rite.

—Dathe Benissan-Messan, 32°

I am currently supporting a highschool student in the Philippines.His parents cannot afford to sendhim to high school. He is a smartkid, and he deserved to go to

school. I pledged to pay everything until he fin-ished high school.

—Rogel G. Barretto, 32°

If you were born in the mid tolate 1940s, you no doubt recallMad magazine with at least somedegree of fondness.

Most especially, you will remem-ber Mad’s strange kid, Alfred E.Neuman and his mantra: “What,me worry?”

Well, my old friend Alfred, I amdefinitely worried — and I hopethe rest of you are, as well.

Go phishSo, what has pushed me into this

little funk? Glad you asked.Phishing has shoved me right

over the edge. And judging by mye-mail, phishing is driving a goodmany of you nuts, too.

Simply put, phishing is onlinecriminal activity in which phishersattempt to collect sensitive datathrough fraudulent means. They tryto steal things like credit card num-bers, Social Security numbers andfinancial information. It is the stuffthey need to drain a bank accountor steal an identity.

In the beginning, phishing was relatively crude andrather easy to detect. That has changed.

Phishing has become exceptionally sophisticated — somuch so that phishers are able to snare even the mostexperienced online users. And before you smirk and sayphishers could never fool you, you may already havebeen victimized and don’t even know it. Not yet!

One of the more sophisticated phishing techniquesmakes malicious use of the respectable eBay online auc-tion service. In one example, the phisher sends an e-mailmessage advising the recipient that his or her accountmust be updated. The message appears authentic andcontains links that take the user to web pages that seemlike those found on eBay’s website. However, the wholething is as phony as a $3 bill.

Despite the fact that eBay warns users not to respondto alleged eBay e-mails, the unwary do so and oftenwith serious consequences.

Other slick frauds involve PayPal, Amazon.com, finan-cial institutions and even government agencies.

Phishing defenseAs a first step, use the latest version of Mozilla Firefox

2.0, which is available free at mozilla.com. In my opin-ion, Firefox provides the most effective way of detectingfraudulent sites.

Maybe I have a little bit of Luddite in me, but I cannotplace all of my trust in technology. At some point, com-

mon sense must come into play. Un-fortunately, common sense can be

rather uncommon. As our pal Al-fred E. Neuman once put it: “Mostpeople are so lazy, they don’t evenexercise good judgment!”

Never respond to e-mail throughlinks provided in an e-mail. If youreceive a message from eBay, for in-stance, go to eBay’s website (usingyour browser) to check things out.The same goes for others.

Never send sensitive information(credit card numbers, Social Secu-rity numbers, financial informationand so on) in an e-mail to anyone.Period.

Never give your passwords toanyone for any reason. Never.

Only use trusted websites for fi-nancial transactions and informa-tion exchange. Make certain thepages used for such transactionsare encrypted. Firefox is designedto identify fraudulent sites. You canget website addresses directly froma bank, mail order company andother e-merchants.

Read the privacy and securitypolicies. If you have doubts, conduct your transaction byphone or in person.

Use complex passwords. I recommend alpha-numericpasswords (example: 43aq32fx84). Never use obviouspasswords such as a nickname, birth date or a pet’sname. Change default passwords immediately.

Wireless woesWireless Internet connections are all the rage, espe-

cially with the emergence of wireless hot spots. Hotspots began as small areas, but now entire communitiesare moving to turn themselves into massive wireless hotspots.

As even the FBI has noted, hot spots can give the badguys easy access to sensitive information. According toexperts, the greatest risk lies in using wireless connec-tions at airports, hotels and other busy locations.

You can help protect yourself by making certain yourfirewall and antivirus software is regularly updated.

When connecting or disconnecting from the Internet,do so manually by right-clicking the wireless icon.

Only connect to official access points rather thanusing peer-to-peer connections.

Don’t use a wireless connection for financial transac-tions or credit card purchases.

If possible, use a virtual private network when usingthe Internet wirelessly.

Search tipThe next time you are doing a search, try

crossengine.com. You will find dozens of differentsearch tools grouped under tabs by type, such as web,video, audio, images, news, blogs and reference. Type inyour search terms just once and then click on eachsearch engine in turn to run the search.

Please send your comments, questions and thoughtsto me at <[email protected]>.


Leigh E. Morris, 33°, works in corporatecommunications for a major utilitycompany. He is a member of the Valleys ofMilwaukee and Springfield, IL.

What, me worry?Yes!

Perhaps it is appropriate to discuss the merits ofdirect mail on the eve of the Scottish Rite’s mosthistoric and important annual appeal. The blue

envelope campaign begins May 1. Since its inception,this appeal has raised millions of dollars to supportour charities. It also highlights a distinction that strikesat the core of our values as Scottish Rite Masons.

“Just tell me how much you expect to receive fromus,” he told the Sovereign Grand Commander, “andwe will send you a check assessed from our mem-bers.” The Sovereign Grand Commander’s reply wasimmediate. “No,” he said, “I want our members toknow our charities and to individually choose to sup-port them.”That fateful decision entrusts our Brethren to do as

they see fit, each in accordance to his ability. It also re-quires all who are stewards of the charities to hold ourmembers’ donations in solemn trust and to use thosefunds prudently.This is the democratization of our charities. It keeps

them healthy. It also means we send a lot of mail.Someone said that mail is only “junk” if you don’t

want it. I like to believe that by sending you lettersfrom time to time, we continue the tradition set yearsago of conveying the usefulness of your past givingand earning consideration for your renewed support.But we also would not want to cause, by repetition,our “mail” to become “junk.”With this in mind, we have established a new pro-

gram called “Giving by Degrees.” Giving by Degrees isa convenient way for you to sup-port the charities you care abouton a monthly, quarterly or annualbasis through planned charges or

electronic fund transfers.Electing this option will allow you to continue sup-

porting the good works of the Scottish Rite, whiledramatically decreasing the solicitations you receivefrom us.An initial mailing for this program is underway. The

blue envelope appeal and every appeal thereafter willprovide you the opportunity to enroll. In doing so youare establishing a stable base of support for our chari-ties while eliminating unnecessary mail.

Read This If You Are Over 70!Both Illustrious Brethren Robert Spitzer, 33°, of Wis-

consin and Donald Thomas, 33°, of Delaware haveurged me to discuss a new tax ruling that may interestour members over 70½ years old. When two men asknowledgeable and well respected as these suggestsomething, I listen. So here is your opportunity . . . .If you are over 70½ and have either a traditional or

Roth IRA, you are familiar with the withdrawal re-quirements — whether you need the funds or not.The reasoning for this is simple. Deposits to the IRAswere tax deferred and Uncle Sam wants you to with-draw those funds, which are now subject to tax. Well,Congress enacted legislature that will potentially helpyou and the charities of the Scottish Rite.This year, Congress has allowed individuals to make

distributions of funds from traditional and Roth IRAsdirectly to qualified charities (donor-advised funds andprivate foundation supporting organizations are ex-cluded), such as those of the Scottish Rite. In doingthis, you may avoid income tax otherwise due onthese required withdrawals. Distributions of up to$100,000 are allowed. Couples with separate IRAsmay make individual distributions to the legal limit.This is a great opportunity to support your favorite

charity, using funds which have never been taxed. Butthis rule remains in effect until the end of the yearonly. Keep in mind that IRA assets are not only taxedupon withdrawal, but may also be subject to estatetax. If you are considering a donation to our charities,you may wish to take advantage of this limited timegift from Congress.For more information, visit our website at:

scottishrite charities.org or call Scottish Rite Charitiesat 800-814-1432 x3326.


Promoting Knowledge and Learning

Taking the “Junk” Out of Mail

Steve Pekock, 32°Director of Development

Years back, as I heard thestory, the Deputy of one statedid not want his members toreceive the blue envelope.

Ecuador is the latest coun-try to recognize the Ma-sonic fraternity through theissuance of postage stamps.In 2006, this South Ameri-can country released a pairof stamps to honor the exis-tence of Freemasonrywithin its borders. Thestamps are very colorfuland quite symbolic.

� � �

Francesco Baracca, anoted Italian fighter pilot ofWorld War I, was born May9, 1888. He took pilot train-ing at the Air School inFrance and became a certi-fied aviator.

During World War I heshot down 34 Austrian andGerman planes and wasawarded the Gold Medalof the Order of Savoy andthe War Cross. He was pro-moted to major and earnedthe title “Knight of theAir.” On June 16, 1918,during the Battle of Mon-tello, he was killed whenhe passed too close to theenemy lines.

Italy issued a stamp in1968 to commemorate the50th anniversary of hisdeath. Bro. Baracca was a

member of the lodge “Do-vere e Diritto” (Duty andRight) of the Orient ofLuge di Romagna. He wasalso a member of a RoseCroix Chapter, 18°, of theSupreme Council of Italy.

� � �

Bro. Sam Houston isshown on a stamp issuedby the U.S. to commemo-rate the centenary of hisdeath; it was released onJan. 10, 1964.

In 1813 Bro. Houstonjoined the army andgained the respect of hiscommander, Gen. AndrewJackson. The two becameclose friends. In 1817,Houston joined Jackson’slodge, Cumberland LodgeNo. 8, Nashville, TN.

Born in March 1793 inVirginia, he moved to Ten-nessee with his family,after the death of his father.At the age of 16 he lefthome to live among theCherokee Indians whoadopted him into theirtribe with the name“Colonneh” (The Raven).

He was elected to Con-gress in 1823 and 1825 andbecame govenor of Ten-nessee in 1827. PresidentJackson sent him to Texasto deal with the Indians in1832. He took a leadingrole in themove for In-dependenceof Texas andwas electedCommand-er-in-Chiefof the TexasArmy. Hisunique maneuvers in April1836 enabled his men to

defeat Santa Anna’s largerforce in only 18 minutes.

He was twice electedpresident of the republicand presided over the Ma-sons which formed theGrand Lodge of the Repub-lic of Texas. After annexa-tion, he served as senatorand governor but was re-moved from office whenhe refused to support theConfederacy. He retired tohis farm near Huntsvilleand died in July 1863.

� � �

Leon Verdi Goldsworthy,was born at Broken Hill,Australia, in January 1909,and attended the AdelaideSchool of Mines. He en-listed in the Royal Aus-tralian Naval Volunteer Re-serve, was assigned to theHMS Vernon and quicklyearned an unsurpassedreputationfor skill as amine dis-posal expert.

He be-came theNavy’s mosthighly deco-rated mem-ber of World War II — re-ceiving the George Medalfor “gallantry and un-daunted devotion to duty,”the George Cross, and theDistinguished ServiceCross. He was among thefirst to search the caves inCorregidor. He becamemanager of the RainbowNeon Light Company andpassed away in Perth in1994.

Bro. Goldsworthy was amember of Duke of YorkLodge No. 132, GrandLodge of Western Australiareceiving his degrees in1931-32. He served as Wor-shipful Master in 1950. Hewas also a Grand Officer inthe Grand Lodge of West-ern Australia. He is pic-

tured on a stamp issued onAugust 10, 1995.

� � �

Born in 1794, JosephLebeau studied law atLiege and was admitted tothe bar in 1819. He found-ed journals in 1824 to helpunite the Catholic partywith the Liberals in theiropposition to the ministrywithout dis-affection tothe Dutchgovern-ment.

Follow-ing theseparationof Hol-land andBelgium hebecame minister of foreignaffairs in 1831 and by pro-posing the election ofLeopold of Saxe-Coburg asking of the Belgians, he se-cured a benevolent attitudeon the part of GreatBritain.

The restoration of partof the duchies of Limburgand Luxembourg to Hol-land provoked a heatedopposition to the Treaty ofLondon and he was ac-cused of treachery to Bel-gian interests. He resignedas director of foreign af-fairs but the next year be-came the minister of jus-tice. Differences with theking led to his retirementin 1834. He remained inpublic service until hisdeath in 1865.

Bro. Lebeau was a mem-ber of the lodge “Les Amisde la Parfaite Intelligence”in Huy and served as Ora-tor. He is pictured on astamp issued by Belgiumin November 1965 to markthe centenary of his death.


Robert A. Domingue is secretary forSt. Matthew’s Lodge, Andover, MA, and

editor of The Philatelic Freemason.

Strangers Nowhere in the World:The Rise of Cosmopolitanism in

Early Modern Europe

by Margaret C. Jacob. Published in 2006 by Universityof Pennsylvania Press, Philadelphia, PA. $34.95.

Margaret Jacob has become one of the foremost au-thorities and scholars on the subject of early Freema-sonry, its influence in developing society and the fac-tors that contributed to its rise in significance. She hasauthored several scholarly texts on the subject that Ihave reviewed in the past.

This book, although not relating specifically toFreemasonry, provides an overview of its contribu-tion to the development of cosmopolitan attitudes inthe European community.

She defines in the introduction that “being cosmo-politan in Europe during the early modern age meant— as now — the ability to experience people of differ-ent nations, creeds and colors with pleasure, curiosityand interest, and notwithstanding, disdain, or simplya disinterest.” Her research has drawn her to numer-ous organizational records and various writings toprepare for this book.

It is her contention that the nationalism that char-acterized Europe at the rise of cosmopolitanism andextending to shortly after World War II tended tocause the early cosmopolites to assume a low profileand that they deserve now to be acknowledged.Strangers Nowhere in the World is her contribution tothis acknowledgment.

The trend toward cosmopolitanism stimulated dis-trust in most European societies and, as the author

finds and the Inquisition’s records relate “a particularzeal to prosecute and physically punish behaviorthat, in retrospect, can best be described as cosmopol-itan.” In their policing they were constantly “on thelookout for people mixing with those whom theywere supposed to avoid.”

A cosmopolitan character became a vital factor inthe transition to a more open and freethinking society.That led to the development of scientific societies thatwere stimulated by the interrelationships of some ofthe great thinking minds from foreign lands. Jacob ex-amines the cosmopolitanism contribution to these so-cieties along with the rise of open markets for the ex-changing of goods and foreign currencies. She exam-ines these centers in cities such as London, Paris, Am-sterdam, Antwerp, Lyon, Marseille and others relat-ing the positive intrigues and the dangers associatedwith them.

The very nature of Masonic philosophy would re-quire an “inculcation of cosmopolitan mores,” but asshe points out, the idealism was not always the sameas the realism that pervaded some lodges. Nonethe-less, Freemasonry found itself, in general, as anenemy of the anti-cosmopolites. Freemasonry repre-sented “a voluntary association claiming that mencan meet as equals and that rising by degree was aprivilege based solely upon merit and wisdom.”

She regards Freemasonry as a traditional index forthe spread of cosmopolitanism via the number andnature of Masonic lodges and defines Masonic signif-icance by stating “the search for toleration and self-education took myriad social forms, none of themmore exotic and distinctive to the age than the newMasonic lodges.” Interestingly, her evaluation of thesecrecy applied to Masonic lodges made cosmopoli-tanism easier, while at the same time generated a dis-

trust with the assumptionthat it meant a “cover up fora hidden agenda.” This car-ried well into the 20th cen-tury culminating with Naziand fascist repression andthe Roman church seeingit as an alternative formof religion.

The cosmopolitanstructure of the Masoniclodges led to the devel-opment of political or-ganizations utilizingthe aspect of secrecyas a means to an end.

This application was notmore evident than in Ireland where it

has carried into recent times.It had, however, far more significant application of

positive contributions to more liberal and modernthought. Jacob expresses that, “we may considerFreemasons of the 18th-century as in some senseapostles of modernity.” It was in this environmentthat the move for the abolition of slavery took root.

The author has once again written a book provid-ing very positive connotations for the Masonic frater-


Reviewed by Thomas W. Jackson, 33°

nity while at the same time not disguising its inade-quacies in failing to live up to the idealism of its philo-sophical principle. It is a book that I recommend beread by Freemasons wishing to understand more fullythe craft’s contributions to a civil society. It is not abook, however, that you read for enjoyment. As I saidin one of my previous reviews, “you do not read Mar-garet Jacob, you study Margaret Jacob” but she isworth studying.

Turning the Hiram Key

by Robert Lomas. Published in 2005 by Fair Winds Press,33 Commercial St., Gloucester, MA 01930. $26.95.

This author has become a total enigma to me. Justwhen I think I understand his agenda, the leopardchanges his spots again. This is the fifth book that Ihave reviewed. The first two contain so much specula-tion, innuendo and fanciful conjecture as to stretchcredibility.

The third book is likewise based upon much conjec-ture but it did offer more of the scientific backgroundof Lomas who holds a doctorate in solid-state physics.

His fourth book more fully reveals his scientifictraining and gives him much more credibility than didthe previous three books. Indeed, I felt that it wasgood with great possibility for accuracy.

Now, he authors Turning the Hiram Key, a book to-tally unlike the first four. Lomas indicates in the ac-knowledgments section that he was stimulated towrite this book to reveal his views on the spiritual sideof Freemasonry and that it caused him to explore thedeep feelings that Freemasonry evokes in him.

Part One covers about half of the book and revealsmuch of the ritual of the three degrees. Although hejustifies that what he has written covers none of the se-crets of Freemasonry, I find no justification in puttingit into print unless an author’s intended result is ananti-Masonic exposé or intended simply to sell books.For all of the credit that he has given to the craft, hecertainly is not anti-Masonic but I found very little rea-son in the rest of the book to go so extensively into theritual. I also have great difficulty in accepting the flip-pant attitude he takes in writing this first part.

He does make some observations that are worth not-ing. He states that following the third degree it re-quired 18 years of study and research for five booksbefore he began to understand the meaning of Freema-sonry. This observation should be significant to our in-stant expert Brothers who believe that they alreadyhave all the answers. He also notes the necessity of“not letting ego get in the way of developing talentsand skills within society; you must try to create some-thing which is greater than ego,” an astute and signifi-cant observation that should be a reminder to many ofus. In addition, he contends that there is one explana-tion for the attraction of Freemasonry. He says “it isthe personal impact its ceremonial rites have on thosewho take part in them.”

He leans heavily upon, and quotes frequently, the

writings of Wilmshurst to sustain his evaluations.Throughout the book he refers to a near lightningstrike experience that created a feeling similar to whathe experienced from the stimulation of receiving thedegrees. This he attributes to physiological changes asa result of an electrical stimulus in the brain that givesmeaning to the candidate.

In support , he states, “The ritual is our heritage. It islosing track of its purpose and suffering a destructivefailure to its core beliefs. We mess with this at the perilof our order’s long-term survival. There has alreadybeen too much arbitrary changing of the ritual by ap-peasers who have butchered metaphors and removedsymbolic actions that they do not understand, to fit inwith the prejudices of bigots who are not Freemasons.However, we have a symbolic system which evolvedover hundreds of years to lift the spirit, so we shouldnever water down the ritual and make arbitrary

changes to it.” I cannot disagree with thisanalysis. Indeed, I have

found myself expressingsimilar views.It is Lomas’ contention

that we are failing to edu-cate our new members inthe spiritual tradition of thecraft and unless we do, newmembers may join but theywill not stay, and Masonrywill die. (This evaluation maywell explain some of our prob-lems today.)Although this book will not

stir up animosities as he gener-ated in the past, he will certainly

find very little support of his observation that Freema-sonry was created by William St. Clair, and I must dis-agree with his observation that “if you are religious,you call this supreme being God. A scientist like methinks it can take the form of a vision of the light andorder at the center.” My academic training is also inthe field of science and I know very few scientists whodeny the existence of God.

Lomas is a very difficult author for me to compre-hend and a very difficult man for me to understand.There is so much in his writings with which I vehe-mently disagree and yet there is so much of what hesays and conclusions that he reaches with which I justas vehemently do agree. I appreciate his intellectual-ism, his tenacity and his dedication but I have beenunable to discover what motivates him.

It was his intent that it be “a journey of inquiry intothe spiritual aspects of Freemasonry” and I think hehas succeeded. Even as much as we may disagree withsome of what he writes, the book is worth reading forthe nuggets of wisdom found scattered throughout.


THOMAS W. JACKSON, 33°, was formerly Grand Secretaryfor the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania. He is Executive Secretary

for the World Conference of Masonic Grand Lodgesand the book reviewer for The Northern Light.

Cut mold off of cheeseAccording to the U.S. Department ofAgriculture, cutting mold off of hardcheese, such as cheddar, is fine. Cut aninch-wide margin around the mold.Don't contaminate the knife. Then, usea clean knife to slice the remainingcheese. For cheeses made with mold,such as blue cheese and Brie, check formold that is not the same type as thatused in the cheese. Cut off the newmold. Use a clean knife to cut the restof the cheese.

Oxygen for your eyesContact lenses limit the flow of oxy-gen to your corneas, at least a little.Andrew Caster, author of The Eye

Laser Miracle, The Complete Guide toBetter Vision, advises: Wear yourglasses instead of contacts for a fullday every other week. Wearingglasses lets your eyes soak up moreoxygen and other nutrients.

Salt that lowers heartriskAnew report published in the Ameri-can Journal of Clinical Nutrition showsthat replacing regular salt with apotassium-fortified salt could help tolower the risk of death from heartdisease.The salt alternative that is half

sodium chloride (salt) and half potas-sium chloride enabled men to lowersalt intake while increasing potassiumlevels.A 30-month study in Taiwan veter-

ans' retirement homes showed thattest subjects were 40 percent lesslikely to die from cardiovascular dis-ease.Morton salt company and others

make the half-salt, half-potassiumtable salt. If you have kidney prob-

lems or take ACE inhibitors, be carefulnot to overdose on potassium, cautiondoctors at Tufts University.

New may not alwaysbe the bestAmerican drug companies are theworld leaders in developing life-sav-ing medications.Not every drug is a winner, how-

ever, according to the Kaiser Perma-nente Drug Information Services.When a Merck study showed thatsome Vioxx patients were more likelyto have a heart attack or stroke, Vioxxwas pulled from the market.This is not the only case of an FDA-

approved drug being taken off themarket. Complications in some drugsmay not become apparent until it hasbeen on the market for some time.When it comes to prescription

drugs, the Public Citizen Health Re-search Group recommends that, un-less there is no effective alternative,consumers should avoid taking med-ications that have not been on themarket for several years.

Authorities at the group say that ifan equally effective drug with alonger track record is available, whytake a chance of going with the newercompetitor? Often, of course, patientscan't wait several years to use a life-saving medication.A new study by the CDC in the

AMA Journal shows that some700,000 Americans a year are seen inemergency rooms because of bad reac-tions to drugs.There could be many reasons for

bad reactions, however, including thepatient's not following instructions.

Eat all the fish youwantHealth authorities agree that there arebig health benefits to eating fish. Onthe other hand, they said we shouldlimit our consumption of fish becauseof toxic chemicals.Now the dilemma is over.Two federally funded studies, one

from the Institute of Health, the otherfrom Harvard and Brigham andWomen's Hospital in Boston, have an-alyzed hundreds of studies. Theyhave determined that eating moreseafood may help reduce the risk ofheart disease.Harvard researchers found that

people who eat one to two servings offish per week, especially fatty fish likewild salmon, may reduce their risk ofdeath from heart attacks by 36 per-cent, and the rate of death in generalby 17 percent.In addition, the reports show that

pregnant or nursing women who eatfish pass similar beneficial effects onto their infants.Women who are pregnant or nurs-

ing should avoid eating shark, sword-fish, tilefish, and king mackerel, andlimit their intake of albacore, or whitetuna.


“You know, I was buying this résuméuntil I got to the part about you

serving on your town’s Ouija Board.”


what values it should reflect; how itshould govern itself, and how itsmem-bers should treat each other.Stephen Bullock carries this thesis

one step further. Masons of the Revo-lutionary period in our country sawtheir Masonic lodges as promoting thecivic virtues and providing some of thepublic ceremonies on which a new na-tion could be built.They built a nationwhere previously

there was no nation, and its great char-ters, the Declaration of Independenceand theConstitution, borrowed heavilyon concepts and language developedand used in the Masonic lodges towhich so many of the founding fathersbelonged.It is time for us 21st century Masons

to reflect on the importance of Ma-sonry’s original role as a teacher andmodel pointing out the important fea-tures of our common national experi-ence, identifying the rich heritage of ourpublic philosophy and promoting bythought, word and deed the values wetreasure most in our community life.Our country has experienced awhole

generation inwhich individual freedomhas been deemed more important thanclose family relationships; individualrightsmore important than communityrights; where what we can get is

deemed more important than what wecan give, and where what we can getaway with is deemed more importantthan what we should stand for.Perhaps now is a good time to return

to the idea that a lodge should be amodel community; a place where noman is regarded for his worldly wealthor honors; a placewhere all strive to seewho best can work and best agree; aplace where we learn to contribute lib-erally to the relief of another, and a placewhere we learn that all the world has aclaim on our good offices.Isn’t this the kind of lodge we all

want? Isn’t this the kind of communitywe all want?Masonry evolved sometime in the

mid-19th century from a primarysource of personal and civic values intothe mold of simply another fraternalsociety.Most of those societies have become

irrelevant today, butMasonry hasmain-tained its present strength largely be-cause it is, at its root and source, some-thing more than just a fraternity.It is a value system on which com-

munities have been formed and nationsbuilt. Let us remember that root andsource in every action our lodges take.Let us build each lodge to be a modelcommunity.

VISIONS OF A SOCIETY continued from page 11 New ServicesOffered to MembersMembers of the Scottish Rite’sNorthern Masonic Jurisdictionhave a new option for insuranceneeds.

The Membership Services Com-mittee announced that recent ne-gotiations with MetLife Auto andHome Group have resulted in anoffering of a wide range of insur-ance options.

Through the Supreme Council’srelationship with the firm, mem-bers will be eligible for specialgroup benefits that cannot be ob-tained through traditional retailchannels.

Included are auto discounts andScottish Rite tenure discountsvariable by state and length ofmembership.

Also available are rewards forsafe drivers (variable by state),automatic payment deductions,24-hour claim service, and multi-ple product discounts.

For more information contactyour Valley Secretary or call 800-438-6388 to speak with an insur-ance consultant. When calling,make sure you have your ScottishRite membership number handy.

Thomas B. Beattie Sr. 5:17.54John Bialecki 4:42.56Steve Buxton 3:52.54Todd Fiorentino 5:11.19Arnie Grot 4:32.47Shiobhain Harding 4:09.15Eric Hawn 3:13:11David Ingham 4:16:44Stephen Johnson 4:56.59Thomas McClintock 4:25.43Kurt Walborn 3:42.36Loren Winn 4:25.27

It was no day for records. Instead, thisyear’s Boston Marathon was a test of per-severence and will. As a wild springnor’easter swept along the course route,creating the worst weather conditions inthe race’s 111-year history, our children’slearning centers were once again ablyrepresented. With runners from NewEngland, Pennsylvania, Indiana,Delaware, New Jersey, Michigan and theU. S. Navy, 12 participants from thecenters crossed the finish line.

Running for theLearning Centers

A Question of FingersIn Delaware the Grand Master re-

jected a candidate for lack of fingers.Brother Vanderlieth, of Nevada, saidof it, “Might as well reject a man be-cause he lacks a button or two.”

Brother Harrison, of Delaware,replied, “Oh, no, Brother V., fingersare necessities in Masonry. We admit,however, the truth of this remark:‘Some men, minus a finger or so, aremore preferable than others.’“

Some “fingers are necessities in Ma-sonry,” but the absence of a finger ofhis left hand need not bar a candidate;that would not hinder him from re-ceiving any of the Masonic tokens,nor injure his sense of feeling.

The absence of the thumb of hisright hand would be different. On itfingers are a Masonic necessity, aswithout them the tokens cannot be re-ceived or given, and the ancientcharge cannot be complied with.

It is true that some maimed personsmay be preferable, intellectually andmorally, to others who are not; but,Masonically, that does not make themcapable of learning the art and earn-ing Master Masons’ wages.

Thus they cannot lawfully be ac-cepted. The hand that represents theStrong grip of the Lion of the tribe ofJudah cannot be imperfect, for it sym-bolizes perfect strength and power.

— John W. Brown, Square andCompass, Denver, April 1904


Masons and CornerstonesMany people who are not Ma-

sons are curious about the factthat Masonic lodges are fre-quently invited to perform theirtraditional rites at the laying of acornerstone. A complete answerwould require a fairly extensivereview of the development of op-erative Masons’ guilds into the“speculative” lodges of the pres-ent fraternity, but the truth can besummed up in certain observa-tions:

Speculative Freemasons sym-bolically lay the cornerstones ofpublic buildings to remind thenation’s citizens of the purposesfor which those edifices areerected. Because of its inheritedforms and traditions, Freema-sonry is the organization mostsuitably equipped to performsuch ceremonies. Freemasonryhas never assumed an exclusiveright to “level the corner;” butwhenever invited to perform suchlabor it has done it with matchlesssymbolism and beauty.

Masonic lodges have been re-quested to perform these rites be-cause the order is founded uponthe soundest moral principles; thelessons it teaches are of thepurest, most ennobling character.Its insistence upon a belief inGod, the Creator of all men, iscompletely harmonious with theideals of a nation which adoptedas its motto the simple but pro-found declaration, “In God WeTrust.” Its refusal to proselytizeand its acceptance of “good menand true,” who seek a universalunderstanding in a moral broth-erhood, regardless of political, re-ligious, or social adherence, makeit the only truly representative or-ganization for such public cere-monies.

Freemasonry has enrolled in itsmembership partisans of everypolitical prejudice, believers inevery form of religious obser-vance, and workers in every pro-fession or vocation. All are seek-ing to construct an “edifice” ofmoral grandeur and tolerant un-

derstanding. These rites, a spiri-tualized interpretation of themost important step in the erec-tion of a building, led the specula-tive Master Mason to apply theplumb, the square, and the levelto the foundation stone, to pro-nounce it “well-formed, true, andtrusty.” He dedicates the con-struction to public morality,peace, and prosperity. It is fittingthat Freemasonry, the only organ-ization to which this symbolismproperly belongs, should performthis service.

In the light of these facts anduniversally approved ideals, it issurprising to find that the Ma-sonic laying of cornerstones forpublic buildings has in recenttimes been criticized as “offen-sive” to certain groups. From thedescription of the ceremoniesgiven above, it is impossible topoint to anything offensive to themorals or good manners. GeorgeWashington saw nothing im-proper or offensive to others inthe act of laying the nation’s cor-nerstone with dignified Masonicceremonies. Neither did Presi-dents Fillmore, Hoover, and othernon-Masonic presidents who par-ticipated in the fraternity’s cere-monies at the laying of corner-stones for public buildings.

— Masonic Service Assn.,Connecticut Square and Compasses,

February 1969.

When you do the common things inlife in an uncommon way, you willcommand the attention of the world.

— George Washington Carver

Victory is sweetest when you’veknown defeat.

— Malcolm Forbes

Close scrutiny will show that mostcrisis situations are opportunities toeither advance or stay where you are.

— Maxwell Maltz

Nothing will work unless you do.— Maya Angelou

If your actions inspire others to dreammore, learn more, do more, and be-come more, you are a leader.

— John Quincy Adams

Nobody can be successful unless heloves his work.

— David Sarnoff

Never mistake knowledge for wis-dom. One helps you make a living,the other helps you make a life.

— Sandra Carey

Forgiveness is the economy of theheart. It saves the expense of anger,the cost of hatred, and the waste ofspirits.

— Hannah More

Envy someone and it pulls you down.Admire them and it builds you up.Which makes more sense?

— Elvis Presley

All mankind is divided into threeclasses: those that are immovable,those that are movable, and those thatmove.

— Benjamin Franklin

An ounce of action is worth a ton oftheory.

— Ralph Waldo Emerson

A jury consists of twelve persons cho-sen to decide who has the betterlawyer.

— Robert Frost

Quick QuotesQuick Quotes


Every man is a strange compound,with a combination of two distinctnatures, mysteriously connected andconstantly at war with each otherand are termed, animal and the othermoral.

The animal nature is absolutelyselfish. It needs no school, it knowsno higher law or rule of action, thanthat of self-gratification. But man isby no means an animal, he is a moralbeing, endowed with a conscience, aspiritual illumination and a stillsmall voice within, whose call toduty may be ever heard above thewildest passions and selfish tenden-cies.

This is the battle of life which iswaged in the breast of every individ-

ual. No more important battle is everfought.

Therefore, the demand on Freema-sonry is the building of a good char-acter in the individual, founded onbenevolence and Brotherhood.

Built on these principles our crafthas withstood the ravages of timeand the revolutions of the ages.

She is founded upon a philosophi-cal basis, she is a society which car-ries lessons of true manhood. She isan imperishable institution, takes abrother by the hand who has fallenin his battle of life and kindly raiseshim to his feet.

— Thomas Loignon, PGM, Editor,The Wisconsin Freemason,

October 1956

Nature: ANIMAL or MORAL?

It is no part of Masonry to vauntits virtues before the world. Silenceand perseverance in performing itsnoble work are its characteristics,and inculcated in all its lessons.

The successful businessman pro-ceeds in the same way. “ He did themost and said the least about him-self,” is the highest praise Sallustpays his hero. Great forces, likegreat rivers, move silently and irre-sistibly on — unchanging, voice-less, yet omnipotent — the laws ofnature govern the universe.

By imitating these characteristicsof omnipotence, as far as is possi-ble by human reason, Masonry hasflourished in the past in spite of allfanatical opposition, and today hasa stronger hold on the affections ofits votaries than ever before. Assuch opposition has arisen in thepast so it will in the future. Every-thing has its opposite. Justice andhumanity have theirs in bigotryand arrogance.

They are like the positive andnegative poles of the battery —you cannot excite the one withoutstimulating the other. Thus, thepurest efforts of Masonry have metopposition and even attempted

suppression, and that in our owncountry, and within the recollectionof many of the present time. Fromall this the institution has emergedsteadfast and strengthened, with-out malice or hatred to any one,not forgetting to spread the broadmantle of charity over all, seeingthat man in his best estate is liableto falter and err. Continual obser-vance of the landmarks and usagesof the order, a rigid adherence to itsprinciples as set forth in the lessonswill insure its future prosperity.

As justice is immutable, so thesecan never change. That no men, orbody of men, can make innova-tions is one of its soundest maxims.I feel a profound veneration for allthe institutes of the ancient craft. Iwould not change a word or letterof the work unless it could beclearly shown to be a return to an-cient usage.

That work has been found suffi-cient to explain the ethics of ourorder in a masterly manner in allthe past; it cannot fail to do like-wise in the future.

— A. J. Thompson,The Liberal Freemason, May 1885

THE QUALITY OF FREEMASONRY

Stick to ‘tried andtrue’ when buying orselling your homeIn 2005, a record seven million exist-ing homes were sold according to theNational Association of Realtors. Thenumbers are a little lower for 2006,but 2007 is still a wild card.Whether you are buying or selling

(or both), remember that the marketfavors those who follow traditionalrules. The most important of these arebeing sure the home is in top condi-tion and pricing it right. These are thebasics for achieving a sale over a rea-sonable period of time.Real estate agents quoted in the In-

dianapolis Star say basic upgradesmake a difference in selling a house.Be sure to paint the walls, refinish thefloors, and bring the landscaping upto par when any of these need atten-tion.Little things can make a big differ-

ence. You might not want to spend alot of money remodeling your bath-room, for example. But a new exhaustfan or new faucets don't cost a greatdeal and can add to the ambience ofthe room. If you replace both, you canhave them installed in the same serv-ice call.

Construction zonesafetyThe National Highway Traffic SafetyAdministration reports that more than1,000 people are killed each year inconstruction and maintenance zones.To make the zones safer:• Maintain the posted speed limit.

Remember that many states have dou-bled the fines for speeding in con-struction zones.• Concentrate on the road, not on

the construction. The zones are full ofactivity, so you must be alert.• Maintain three seconds of dis-

tance between your vehicle and theone in front of you. Rear-end colli-sions are the most common type ofcrash in a construction zone.• Don't be in a hurry, be patient,

calm, and focused.

Guard against carbonmonoxide poisoningThe Center for Disease Control andPrevention urges homeowners andtenants to check their carbon monox-ide alarms, replace batteries, or installa new alarm. ACO alarm warns ofpoisoning risk before symptoms ap-pear, which allows potential victimsto get help.The odorless gas is produced by in-

complete burning of fuel in gas fur-naces, space heaters, and chimneyflues. More than 450 people die eachyear from carbon monoxide poison-ing.Symptoms include nausea, fatigue,

headaches, difficult breathing, and

confusion. Many people with carbonmonoxide exposure think they havethe flu. Victims who are sleepingdeeply may never waken.Underwriters Laboratories says:• Have a qualified technician in-

spect fuel-burning appliances andchimneys to see if they are workingproperly.• Test your carbon monoxide alarm

at least once a year.• Never ignore a carbon monoxide

alarm. Reset it and dial 911.• If the alarm sounds, move to

fresh air until the home is aired outand the alarm doesn't reactivate.

Teen drivers at riskAnew study shows that the twohours between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. onschool days are as dangerous for teendrivers as Friday and Saturday nights.The American Automobile Associa-

tion says many teen drivers are on theroad at that time and it overlaps withrush hour. They say parents need toset rules for after-school driving.

Sick child adviceWhen your child is sick and you won-der what to do, check the Children’sHospital of Boston’s website. It has anew “My Child Has . . .” feature.You can list the child’s symptoms

(coughing, sneezing, stomach ache,etc.) and get information on commonillnesses, tips on preventive care, andexplanations of treatments and tests.Visit www.childrenshospital.org

and see “My Child Has . . . .”

Laundry rooms move upIn a 2004 National Association ofHome Builders survey, the laundryroom was top-rated among amenitiesdesirable in new homes.In addition to moving laundries

closer to living areas, laundry roomsare used as storage areas. These areasoff the kitchen become ideal storagespots for extra pots or canned goods.Homeowners are also demanding

more counter space. In addition tofolding laundry, these countertops areideal spots for crafts. Others have in-stalled flat panel TVs and computerdesks into their laundry rooms.


“I decided to give up my demandfor a TV in my bedroom.

How about an ATM instead?”


The town of Pittsburg, NH, has aknack of finding itself betweenextremes. In land mass it is one

of the largest of our nation’s incorpo-rated communities, but with a popu-lation of 862, it is one of the smallest.Located at the northernmost tip of

the state, Pittsburg straddles the 45thparallel, exactly halfway between theNorth Pole and the Equator.Because of a vague clause in the

18th century Treaty of Paris, it wasalso placed squarely between thefledgling United States and GreatBritain’s colony in Canada.An odd set of circumstances led to

the creation of a small temporary na-tion, of sorts, within what is today theNorthern Masonic Jurisdiction. Likeour fraternity, it was also headed upby a supreme council.Forgotten today to all but historians

and trivia fans is the “Indian StreamRepublic,” complete with its own gov-ernment, set of laws and militia.The establishment of the Indian

Stream Republic was caused by theambiguous boundary, written as partof the treaty which ended the Ameri-can Revolution. The dividing line wasto run “to the northernmost head ofConnecticut River; thence down alongthe middle of that river to the 45th de-gree of north latitude . . ..”The problem is that there are three

tributaries in the area, any of whichcould be considered the headwaters ofthe river. A political gray area of about200 acres, situated between the north-west and southeast branches of thewaterway, was inadvertently created.At first, tax collectors and sheriffs

were sent in from both governments,causing obvious problems with theresidents, numbering about 300 at thetime. Using their Yankee ingenuitythey came up with a unique fix to thedouble-taxation problem. They de-clared their independence.According to the History of Coos

County New Hampshire, by GeorgiaDrewMerrill, “On the 6th day ofApril, 1829, a public meeting of thecitizens was held at the Center School-house, the Independence Hall of Pitts-burg,” and proclaimed that they werenot part of the United States or GreatBritain. Official records, though, show

that it was on July 9, 1832, at a townmeeting, that formalities were settled.They adopted a constitution, outlin-

ing a government that closely resem-bles that of a New England town. Likethe American model, it called for threedistinct branches.The executive wing was a supreme

council with five elected members.Towns in the region — both then andtoday — have a board of selectmen ofthree or five members that performsthe same function on a local level.As with traditional New England

town meetings, the legislative branchwas made up of all voting citizens.Justices of the peace were elected andhad authority to hold jury trials.A bill of rights spelled out the

Streamers’ freedom of religion, rightsto life, liberty, and happiness, the rightof a trial and a presumption of inno-cence, and a ban on unreasonableseizures or searches.

On a vote of 56-3, the constitutionwas adopted. The moderator of themeeting adjourned the session and,without leaving the podium, immedi-ately reconvened it as the first GeneralAssembly of the country. In keepingwith the new situation, his positionwas renamed “speaker.”The body proceeded to create a

militia, consisting of all able-bodiedmales from 18 to 50.The locals were relatively good at

managing their affairs but sufferedproblems of self-government, as well.As an independent nation it became ahaven for outlaws from both northand south of the border and the littlecountry did not have the infrastruc-

ture necessary to cope with criminals.According to author Austin George,the jail was really a “large potash ket-tle which was placed upside downover the prisoner on a flat rock.”Daniel Doan, author of Indian

Stream Republic (UPNE 1997), says thelocal citizenry “clung to the misunder-standing that the United States andCanada had agreed to refrain fromgoverning the territory until theboundary dispute was settled. Untilthen they wanted to be left alone.”That was not to be the case. Indian

Stream had partisans for both sides ofthe stand-off and many that wanted toremain independent.For three tumultuous years there

were property disputes and tax ques-tions that resulted in both NewHampshire and Great Britain attempt-ing to assert control.Through a series of arrests and

counter-arrests by officials on thenorth and south, the people of the tinyrepublic found themselves still caughtbetween two giants.In 1835, word of a potential “inva-

sion” by the New Hampshire militiaprompted a call to Canada for help. Atangled bureaucracy prevented anysuch aid arriving. A nearby Canadianmagistrate was contacted. He thenpassed the request to John Moore, anassemblyman for Lower Canada.There the request went to the gover-

nor. Meanwhile Sheriff White of NewHampshire announced he was pre-pared to uphold the U. S. claim to theregion, by force if necessary.Giving in to a superior army, Indian

Stream effectively ceased to be inde-pendent. The controversy dragged onfor several more years, however.Again according to Doan, the turn-

ing point in the situation came withchanges in administrations in both theU. S. and Britain. Both nations felt thatthe situation at Indian Stream was notworth another war.As part of a comprehensive defini-

tion of the national boundary acrossthe continent, Indian Stream was for-mally ceded to New Hampshire.The British partisans moved to

Canada. Those favoring continued in-dependence gave in to the inevitable.Immediately the people living therepetitioned the state legislature to beincorporated as the town of Pittsburg,and the town that had become a na-tion was once again a town.

The Town that Became a Nation

From an Alum

In reference to your story on the Me-chanics and Junior Mechanics (Feb.2007, “United American Mechanics”),I would like to point out that the Tiffinhome opened in 1896 and closed in1944. The entire site is not a park, butis owned by the city.The alumni association, of which I

am a member, constructed a smallpublic park and war memorial at theentrance to the former home. It hasbeen placed on both the state and na-tional registers of historic places andthe Memorial Ohio Church on thegrounds has been refurbished. Muchof the story is written in a bookcalled, Don’t Call Us Orphans: An oralhistory of the Junior Order of the UnitedAmerican Mechanics’ National Orphans’Home by Tricia S. Valentine.

Lula McGrathCharlotte, NC

C-I-C Gerald Ford

In reference to your article on Presi-dent Ford — Horrors! (Feb. 2007, “Re-membering President Ford”)President Ford, like his predecessor,

President Nixon and successor, Presi-dent Carter, all served with the USNavy, Ford as a full Lieutenant,Nixon as a Lt. Commander, andCarter as a full commander. LBJ alsoserved as a Lt. Commander.I served as interim U. S. Surgeon

General under Presidents Nixon, Fordand Carter. It is noteworthy that JerryFord and I were both raised in 1949.Ford was a remarkable man, humble,exact, empathetic, and worthy.

M. Keith Nadel, MD - ret, 32°Ocala, FL

Mystery Solved

I was pleased with your article "Unit-ed American Mechanics" (Feb. 2007).It permitted me to identify a medal

I found among innumerable items Iinherited from my father who passedaway 22 years ago. I have no ideawhether he was a member of the or-ganization or if the medal was some-thing he just collected.It first caught my eye from the

Masonic symbol on one side, whichmade sense since my dad was aMason of long standing. But I neverunderstood the other side until seeingyour article.

R.W. Alan H. Gepfert, P.D.D.G.M.Grand Lodge of NH


HIRAM™ By WALLY MILLER

On the Lighter Sideof Golf:• Golf balls are like eggs. They’rewhite, they’re sold by thedozen, and every week youhave to buy more.

• Apro shop gets its name fromthe fact that you have to havethe income of a pro golfer tobuy anything there.

• It’s amazing how a golfer whorarely helps out around thehouse will replace his divots, re-pair his ball marks, and rake hissand traps.

• Did you ever notice that it’seasier to get up at 6 a.m. to playgolf than at 9 a.m. to mow thelawn?

• It takes longer to learn golfthan it does brain surgery. Butyou can’t ride on a cart, have abeer, and eat hot dogs whiledoing brain surgery.

• Anice drive on the 18th holehas stopped many a golfer fromgiving up the game.

• Golf is the perfect thing to doon Sunday because it makesyou pray a lot.

• A good partner is always onewho’s slightly worse than you.

• That rake by the sand trap isthere for those who feel guiltyabout skipping out on lawnwork.

• If your opponent has trouble re-membering whether he shot asix or a seven, he might haveshot an eight.

RediscoveringDoctor RobinsonWhen I was three years old, back in1955, my family moved to the smalltown of Lynnfield, MA. For my par-ents it represented a culture shock, asthey both grown up in an urban set-ting just outside Boston. Lynnfield, atthe time, was a farming community.In fact, dairy cows were easily visiblefrom the handful of stores that consti-tuted the center of town. The commu-nity was suffering growing pains,caused by a rapid influx of those re-turning from the Second World Warand the Korean Conflict. We were notable to have a telephone installed forseveral months. Instead, my motherwould walk us downtown to use a payphone when necessary.One of the first orders of business

was finding a new family doctor. Thetown was small and the obviouschoice was Dr. George Robinson. Hisoffice was in his home near theschool, less than a mile away. Betteryet, he also made house calls.For the next two decades he served

my family well, getting me throughthe measles and mumps, my brotherthrough the chicken pox, and he de-livered my sister.Annual physicals for school and for

the high school soccer team necessi-tated trips down to his house.To me he defined “country doctor”

— very professional, but never flashy,with a small graying mustache thatmade him look distinguished andfriendly at the same time, and he al-ways knew our names and remem-bered our past ailments.After college I lost track of him. He

retired and moved out of state. I gotmarried and moved to another town.For the next quarter century I had

no knowledge of the whereabouts ofthis icon from my childhood — thatis, until I began working at SupremeCouncil headquarters a few years ago.Through a series of coincidences I

discovered a side to the doctor I neverknew about. He was a Freemason anda member of the Scottish Rite, takinghis degrees in 1948. He received the33° in 1996. One day here in the of-

fice, Steve Pekock, director of develop-ment, mentioned that he was headingto Florida to visit a “Doc Robinson.”At first I took no particular notice.

After all, it is a fairly common name.During the conversation, however, itwas mentioned that he had once es-tablished a practice in Lynnfield, anda part of my past came back to life.Steve informed me that George was ahale and hearty man in his 100s livingwith his wife Dorothy in Florida. Stevehad visited him often and had cometo know them both well. Steve, inturn, was able to tell them about me.Although I had hoped, through this

new found connection, I would meethim again at some time, it was not tobe. I received word in April that hehad passed away at the age of 104.Things change. My hometown has

grown up and is not the little village itonce was. Health care is delivered indifferent ways today. I am sure thatduring the last quarter century Dr.Robinson’s life had changed in manyways, as has mine, but during the lastcouple of years it was comforting toknow that a distant but importantoutpost of my past was still out there.

Another NationalTreasureMuch like the 2004 hit movie, “Na-tional Treasure,” its soon-to-be-re-leased sequel, “Book of Secrets” ap-parently has a Masonic twist. A por-tion of the new film was made at theGeorge Washington MasonicMemorial in Alexandria, VA.Actor Nicolas Cage repriseshis role as Ben Gates. Thistime an ancestor has been im-plicated in the assassinationof Abraham Lincoln andhe needs to clear thefamily name. Al-though the

memorial’s main hall and auditoriumwill be seen on the big screen, thebuilding is actually being used to por-tray the Smithsonian Institution.

Newest Member —Oldest MemberRon Voigt, a 33° member from Wis-consin and Secretary for the Valley ofLa Crosse sends us this story about anaddition to their membership.“At a regular meeting one of our mem-bers, Howard Doss, brought a friend— a delightful man with a walker youhardly noticed and a glint of wisdomin his eye. His name is Tony ‘Pops’ DeCarlo.”When time came for the meeting,

Mr. De Carlo was nowhere in sight. Atthe end of business, however, andmembers went downstairs for coffeethe man with the walker was there.That raised the curiosity of Voigt as towhy he had not attended the businessportion of the evening. Later he foundout.As Howard Doss was driving Mr. De

Carlo home, Tony stated that he wasnot a member of Scottish Rite and hewished he had joined years ago.Howard said, “You still can” and gavehim a petition that he promptly com-pleted and returned. Ron Voigt re-ports, “A few days later I found an ap-plication for membership to our Val-ley. All the usual information was en-tered but one fact stood out — Age103. He was a candidate at our re-union and was the highlight of theday, sharing his experiences with hisBrethren and making the point thatthe degrees are so meaningful tohim. He plans on completing hisConsistory degrees next.”

Bro. Voigt said the incidentreminds him of a statement

Henry Ford once made.“Think you can orthink you can’t. Ei-ther way you’reright.”


ALAN E. FOULDS, 32°, editor

American Freemasons by Mark A. Tabbert

Square & Compasses cufflinks/tie

tack/studs, and Double Eagle

cufflinks/ tie tack/ studs.

MasterCard Visa AmEx Discover

Card No.

Exp. Date

Signature

Phone No.

Ship To:

Name

Address

City State Zip

One-Stop Shopping for EVERYTHING MasonicOrder Online: nationalheritagemuseum.org

Order by Phone: 781-457-4108

Order by Fax: 781-861-9846

Mail Orders to: The Heritage Shop, NHM,33 Marrett Road, Lexington, MA 02421

THE HERITAGE SHOPat the NATIONAL HERITAGE MUSEUM

Item Description Price Color or Size Qty TotalAmerican Freemasons $29.95

Masonic Polo Shirt $37.95

Scottish Rite Polo Shirt $37.95

Tie $34.95

Cufflinks $14.95

Shirt Studs $19.95

Tie Tack $6.95

Baseball Cap $19.95

Shipping:Up to $15 . . . . . . . . .$4.95$15-$25 . . . . . . . . . .$6.95$25-$50 . . . . . . . . . .$8.95$50-$100 . . . . . . . .$13.95$100+ . . . . . . . . . .$16.95

Merchandise Total

Shipping

Tax (MA res. add 5%)

Order Total

Additional merchandise available online

The Northern LightP.O. Box 519Lexington, MA 02420

Square & Compasses Polo shirt

black and Double Eagle Polo

Shirt black. (L,XL,XXL)

Square & Compasses baseball cap

(blue or navy) and Double Eagle

baseball cap (black).

Square & Compasses ties and

Double Eagle ties.

Date post:	09-Mar-2016
Category:	Documents
Upload:	scottish-rite-toledo-valley
View:	219 times
Download:	2 times

light_34

Documents