THE ARCANE SCHOOLS - Fort Myers Beach Masonic Lodge No. 362

Masonry are of modern date. I do not know why so much stress should be laid
upon the antiquity of Masonry by those who embrace and adhere to it. It surely
does not prove that it is of any value, or that it is true. Sin is of very ancient date,
heathenism is of very ancient date, and most of the abominations that are in the
world are of very ancient date; but this is no reason for embracing them, or
regarding them as of any great importance.
But to certain minds there is a charm in the appearance and profession of
antiquity; and young Masons are universally deceived in this respect, and led to
believe that it is one of the most ancient of existing institutions, if not the very
most so. Now I would not object to Masonry because it is of modern origin; for
this would not prove it to be false, if it did not profess to be of ancient origin. I
notice this false pretense not because I think its being of recent date would prove
it unworthy of notice, or of immoral character or tendency. But observe that its
pretensions from first to last are that it is of very ancient date; and it is traced back
to the days of inspiration, and is claimed to have been founded and patronized by
inspired men.
What would Masonry be if all its claims to antiquity were stricken out, and if
those degrees in Masonry, and those ceremonies and usages, were abolished that
rest upon the claim that Solomon, that Hiram Abiff, and John the Evangelist, were
Freemasons? What would remain of Freemasonry if all those claims found in the
very body of the institution were stricken out? Why, their very lodges are
dedicated to the holy order of St. John and Zerubbabel, etc. But what had St. John
to do with Freemasonry? Manifestly nothing. He never heard or thought of it. Nor
did Solomon or Zerubbabel.
And here let me say a word to young men who have been urged to unite with this
fraternity, and who have been made to believe that the institution is so very
ancient that it was established and patronized by those holy men. My dear young
men, you have been deceived. You have been imposed upon as I was imposed
upon. You have been made to believe a lie. They have drawn your money from
you under false pretenses that some very ancient mysteries were to be revealed to
you; and that the institution was one established as far back, at least, as the days
of Solomon, and that St. John was the patron of the institution. Now this, rely
upon it, is but a pretense, a sham, an imposture, and a swindle. I beg you to
believe me; and if you will examine the subject for yourselves, you will find it to
be true.
Your own best historian, Steinbrenner, will teach you that Freemasonry, as you
know it, and as it is now universally known, dates no further back than the
eighteenth century. And Dr. Dalcho, who is good authority with the brotherhood,
as we have seen, repudiates the idea of its antiquity as that which "may make the
vulgar stare, but will rather excite the contempt than the admiration of the wise." I
know that Masons affirm that the institution in its present form is the descendant
of a brotherhood of stone masons, whose history may be traced back for some
seven hundred years. But remember that Freemasonry, as you know it, and as it
now exists, is not at all what it was among those simple artisans. The name is
preserved, and some of its symbols, for the purpose of claiming for it great