The Universal Language of Freemasonry - ArchiMeD - Johannes ...

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Chapter 6 - Peculiarities of Masonic Language
A man when he needs must drink
Sends letters without pen and ink
Unto some brother who's at hand
And does the message understand;
The paper's of the shape that's square,
Thrice folded with the utmost care. 1137
The female Masons of Albert Pike's American system of Masonry of
Adoption (founded in 1866) likewise had a peculiar way to call other lodge
members for help, namely by sending a mysterious abbreviation on a piece of
paper, accompanied by a ring:
The Summons is used when one needs assistance, succor, or protection.
It is to send a ring, with a slip of paper attached, on which are the letters
[...] S::D::M:: It is better to write the Hebrew letters [...],
־ ס ־ ר ־ מ ־. 1138
When you receive this summons, it reminds you of your obligation; and
you must go to the party sending the ring, and render such assistance as
may be needed and in your power. Your ring [...], so sent, to a Brother
or Sister, will summon him or her to do the same. 1139
This abbreviation, as resolved in our ritualistic chapter on Pike's Masonry of
Adoption, denotes "fine flour," "honey," and "water" in the Hebrew language,
the initials of the Hebrew letters being Samech, Daleth, and Mem. These
ingredients were used in the initiation ceremony for the second degree of Pike's
Masonry of Adoption, the degree of Companion, in form of a paste consisting of
powdered biscuit, sugar, and water, which was smeared on the lips of the
candidate with a trowel as a seal to her obligation, and which hereafter was
tasted by the Venerable Master and the Admirable Mistress, as a token of their
renewed pledge of companionship and protection extended towards the
candidate.
According to the Mark Rituals, No. 1, Ceremony of Advancement, dated
1920, the Mark Masons, when in distress, sent their keystone with their personal
mark on it to a brother, who thus was summoned to come to aid; this was called
to "pledge" the mark. However, the keystone could only be pledged once, and
then a compensation for the received support had to follow. If the brother who
was asked for help was not able to support the brother in distress, he had to send
back the mark, adding to it the amount of "half a shekel of silver," i.e. the value
of a quarter of a dollar. This procedure is also mentioned in the obligation of a
Mark Master, for we read in Richardson's exposé:
1137 Cf. Nocalore, vol. XV, p. 92.
1138 Cf. The Masonry of Adoption, "The 'Arcana'," p. 9.
1139 Masonry of Adoption, II., p. 35.