The Use and Abuse of Freemasonry

[Tamrin]

REASONS WHY THE LADIES HAVE NEVER BEEN
ADMITTED INTO THE SOCIETY OF FREEMASONS

[Chapter from Capt. George Smith's, Use and Abuse of Freemasonry, 1783 - Attached Below]

Oct 22, 2009 21:05:33 GMT 10 Tamrin said:

Let us turn now to that distinguished Provincial Grand Master in and over Kent, Capt. George Smith, Inspector of the Royal Military Academy at Woolwich. He is described as ‘distinguished’ because he was 3rd Grand Principal in Grand Chapter in 1775, 2nd Grand Principal the following year and presided as 1st Grand Grand [sic] Principal from 1777 to 1779. He was appointed Provincial Grand Master in and over Kent in 1777 and honoured with the rank of Junior Grand Warden in 1780. That appointment brought him into contention with James Heseltine, grand Secretary, who objected that no Brother could hold two appointments in Grand Lodge at one and the same time. The matter was resolved at the next Quarterly Communication when Capt. Smith resigned as J.G.W. and retained his appointment as Prov. G.M. of Kent.

He was a leading figure in every sense and a prominent worker for various reforms. One might be tempted to comment that he was before time on many things, one in particular regarding the Union, for in 1776 he wrote to James Heseltine raising certain matters in an attempt to settle some of the differences that separated the two Grand Lodges.

Even though sanction for it had been refused by Grand Lodge he published, in 1783, The Use and Abuse of Freemasonry which included a chapter under the heading ‘Ancient and Modern Reasons why the Ladies have never been admitted into the Society of Free-masons’. The following are two extracts from that section of the book:-
… Hence, as there is no law ancient or modern that forbids the admission of the fair sex amongst the society of Free and Accepted Masons, and custom only has hitherto prevented their initiation: consequently all bad usages and customs ought to be annihilated and ladies of merit and reputation admitted into the society; or at least be permitted to form lodges amongst their own sex, in imitation of those in Germany and France. (p.361)
Later in that chapter he finalised the subject by stating:-
… From what has been advanced, not one doubt remains but the ladies may, and have an undoubted right to be admitted as members of the most ancient, and most honourable Society of Free and Accepted Masons; neither can any brother, or set of brethren be accused of violating his or their [obligation, in aiding or assisting at the] initiation of the ladies or in forming female lodges. (p.365)
George Smith’s outstanding career as Provincial Grand Master, indeed even as a Freemason, ended ignominiously in 1785 when he was expelled from the Craft for issuing what was purported to be a Certificate of Grand Lodge recommending two distressed brethren for relief. One might be led to think that there had been an accumulation of offences, not the least of his was his book and its chapter on women and Freemasonry including the recommendation to follow in the paths of Germany and France; but, the official reason for his expulsion was falsification of an official Certificate.

The chapter is attached below. To access, readers will need to be logged-in, with the thread opened.

Attachments:

[Tamrin]

I'm told the attachment doesn't open and, on trying this time I found it didn't open for me either. If it does for you, fine: For those for whom it doesn't, I have cut and paste the chapter in posts below.

A word of warning: This text is not for the impatient. It meanders a lot without seeming to make any significant points. While I broadly agree with Smith's conclusion I cannot see how he arrived at them. Indeed, without his conclusions, I would have thought he was arguing against the admission of women, since Smith floridly and condescending describes them as if they were an utterly different species. If this makes for tedious reading, please imagine my having the mind deadening task of transcribing it!

[Originally self published as, a chapter (pp. 167 / 175) entitled, “Ancient and Modern Reasons
Why the Ladies have Never been Admitted into the Society of Free-masons”
in George Smith’s, Use and Abuse of Freemasonry: A Work of the Greatest Utility
to the Brethren of the Society to Mankind in General and to the Ladies in Particular.]

A Candid Disquisition of the Principles and Practices
of the most ancient and honourable society of Free and Accepted Masons;
together with strictures on the origin, nature, and design of that institution
by Wellins Calcott, P.M. and other Masonic writers of the eighteenth century.
With copious notes by The Rev. George Oliver, D.D. [pp.236 / 257]

The Golden Remains of the Early Masonic Writers:
Illustrating the principles of the Order
with an introductory essay and explanatory notes
by the Rev. G. Oliver, D.D.
Vol.II, Masonic Principles
London, Richard Spencer, 314, High Holborn
MDCCCXLVII [1847]

[Tamrin]

Lecture X.

REASONS WHY THE LADIES HAVE NEVER BEEN
ADMITTED INTO THE SOCIETY OF FREEMASONS.¹

by Capt. G. Smith, P.G.M.

“When life looks lone and dreary,
What light can dispel the gloom?
When time’s swift wing grows weary,
What charms can refresh his plume?
‘Tis woman, whose sweetness beameth
O’er all that we feel or see;
And if man of heaven e’er dreameth,
‘Tis when he thinks purely of thee.”—Moore.

“Woman, in the primitive design of nature, God’s masterpiece, being the last work of creation, and made with a great deal of deliberation and solemnity.”—Littleton.

ARDUOUS is the task I am now entering upon, and very difficult indeed is it to eradicate opinions which have been so strongly impressed upon the people’s minds and especially those of the fair sex) for ages past; however, the reasons and arguments that I shall lay down, I hope will remove those grounded opinions, and prove highly satisfactory to my fair readers; as I am sure, when they consider seriously upon Masonry, and but for a moment reflect that its institution is for the improvement of the mind and morals of mankind, they will allow them to be just.

Some are of opinion, that the reason why ladies were excluded this society, was to take away all occasion for calumny and reproach, which those shallow geniuses seem to think would have been unavoidable had they been admitted.² And again, that since women had in general been always considered as not very well qualified to keep a secret,³ because the woman of Timnath, whom Sampson took to wife, betrayed the secret of the riddle, which he intrusted her with, to the Philistines.⁴ Likewise, because Dalilah, after repeated stratagems and art, persuaded Sampson to inform her where his great strength lay, which he had no sooner done, but she betrayed him to the Philistines, who bound him, and put out both his eyes.⁵ I think it exceedingly unjust to exclude the fair sex from benefiting by our societies on account of Dalilah’s behaviour, because it is not known, whether she was a woman of Israel, or one of the daughters of the Philistines; whether she was Sampson’s wife, or only a harlot; sacred history has not told us. However this be, her whole behaviour speaks her a mercenary woman, who would do anything for money; and accordingly Josephus calls her a common prostitute of the Philistines.⁶

My fair readers will please recollect, that in the most early ages of antiquity, women’s minds were not so enlightened as in the present age;⁷ that they were only considered in the days of King Solomon as handmaids, and not companions and associates to men employed in so learned, so useful, and so mysterious a society as Masonry, as there are many transactions in the royal art, which are far beyond that knowledge which women in general attain.⁸ At the first institution of Masonry, it was thought proper to exclude the fair sex, and as old customs are but seldom laid aside, their exclusion has been handed down to us.⁹ And as we are such strict observers of its ancient manners and customs, so transmitted to us by our forefathers, these, I hope, will be sufficient reasons, both ancient as well as modern, why that most amiable part of the creation have hitherto been excluded.¹⁰

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¹ Doubtful of my own abilities, the author observes, in addressing the most beautiful part of the creation on so important a subject as Freemasonry, though a favourite topic to some, it probably may not be thought so to all. Thus circumstanced, my fair readers, I communicated the manuscript to a lady of great erudition and profound judgment; to one whose heart is susceptible of the most refined friendship, and endowed with every peculiarity that can add worth and dignity to the female mind, and who may, with the greatest propriety, be called the British Anna Maria a Scheurman. This lady was pleased to make some amendments, much for the better, and for which I think myself highly honoured. The name alone (had I the liberty to mention it) would add a sanction to the whole.
² An ancient reason for refusing to admit females to these celebrations, was the prohibition in Deuteronomy.—“The woman shall not wear that which pertaineth unto a man, neither shall a man put on a woman’s garment.” (Deut. xxii. 5.) In the spurious Freemasonry, to which females were admitted, the women and men exchanged garments, which led to great excesses; for it was esteemed disreputable to quit these celebrations in a state of sobriety. This might probably be one moving cause which induced our ancient brethren to enact a permanent law, that females should not be admitted into our lodges.
³ Some men are equally as unqualified to keep a secret, as the women are here represented to be.
⁴ Judges xiv.
⁵ Judges xvi.
⁶ Josephus, lib. vii. c. 10, &c.
⁷ Defoe says—“A woman well bred, and well taught, furnished with the additional accomplishments of knowledge and behaviour is a creature without comparison. Her society is the emblem of sublimer enjoyments; she is all softness and sweetness, love, wit, and delight.”
⁸ The most ancient inhabitants of the East were little acquainted with the strongest passions of the soul. They never showed the least marks of attention or tenderness for that sex so much courted by the modern Freemasons. They considered their wives rather in the light of slaves than of companions; they did not even suffer them to eat with them always, and had usurped the right of divorcing them, without permitting the indulgence of marrying again. The women then felt themselves born to obey, and submitted patiently to their fate.
⁹ Dr. Crucefix, in one of his bursts of genuine eloquence, at a dinner in Northampton, assigned the following reason for this practice:—“The brethren would believe him sincere in stating, that the only cause why the ladies could not be present, was that their mysteries, being symbolical of labour as performed by man, could not in that case be shared by women; no honest hearted man could for a moment believe that in mind she was inferior—if a man existed who thought so, let him ask from whom he first imbibed the lessons of piety, virtue, and honour. But if ladies could not share our labour of work, there was no reason why they could not enjoy our labour of love. And he hoped that a ball would be held in which the ladies might be made happy in association with Masons; and that arrangements should also be made to apportion some of the profits to the poor.” (Freemasons’ Quarterly Review, 1842, p.214.)
¹⁰ But in other countries they are not excluded. We find several orders of female Freemasonry in France in the eighteenth century; and amongst others, the Order of Hope, which was established about the year 1780. Some of these lodges were also established in Brunswick and Gottingen. They were not exclusively confined to females, but males also were initiated into them, and no woman was eligible except she were the wife or daughter of a Freemason. The president was called Grand Mistress and everything was transacted by the number five.

[Tamrin]

Many of the fair sex, I am truly sensible, would be the greatest ornaments to Masonry, and am exceedingly sorry that our laws and institutions exclude them.¹¹ However, what I shall now advance will be allowed, especially among those of my fair readers that are united in the sacred institution of marriage with Freemasons, who, I flatter myself, are convinced of its truth. And as Freemasons, by the obligations of their Order, pay a far greater attention to the moral and social duties of life than the generality of mankind, they are inspired with a far greater desire and reverence for the most sacred and happy of all institutions, marriage;¹² they of all others best know how to love, to cherish, to value the dear companion of their fortunes, who, by her kind participation and affectionate regard, softens and alleviates every distress and worldly care, and adds sweetness and comfort to all the pleasures of life. She is the most pleasing companion in the gay and cheerful hour of prosperity, and his chief friend and adviser in the dark and dismal day of adversity. She is the tender and careful preserver of his health, and the ever-anxious and soothing attendant on his sickness. She is the watchful, cautious, and prudent manager of all his domestic concerns.

Nor let the dear maid
Our mysteries dread
Or think them repugnant to love;
To beauty we bend,
Her empire defend,
An empire from above.

Freemasons declare there is nothing which affords so pleasing a prospect of human nature, as the contemplation of wisdom, virtue, and beauty; the latter is the peculiar gift of heaven to that sex we call fair; but wisdom, virtue, and beauty, are attributes too celestial to be frequently found united in one form. We too often find beauty capricious, self-sufficient, negligent of adorning itself with any other ornaments than such as are conveyed by the hands of fashion and folly.¹³ If this most beautiful part of the creation would but for a moment consider how much their charms are heightened and their empire preserved by an accomplished mind and manners, they would neglect no opportunity of obtaining those more lasting charms, which will be engraved on the hearts of their husbands, when the transient flower of beauty will be no more.¹⁴

And thus the libertine, who builds a name
On the base ruins of a woman’s fame,
Shall own the best of human blessings lie,
In the chaste honours of the nuptial tie.
There dwells the homefelt sweet, the dear delight,
There peace reposes, and there joys unite.
And female virtue was by heaven designed
To charm, to polish, and to bless mankind.

Freemasons well know, and weigh the great importance of marriage, both as a sacred and a moral duty; they well know, it is a state that colours all their future days with happiness or misery.

¹¹ An American brother thus speaks in favour of the sex:—“To the much respected ladies, whose presence adds dignity and ornament to this assembly, my attention must now be directed. I regret to say that you are excluded from a participation in the honours and advantages of our ancient Order. Your attractive charms—your captivating eloquence—graceful manners—and your acknowledged superiority of taste, which would increase the dignity, splendour, and usefulness of any society, are yet lost to this institution. With only a vague and partial interest, you witness, as unconcerned spectators, our proceedings. Wherever you behold anything worthy of commendation, we acknowledge ourselves indebted for your approving smiles, and what is wholly excluded from your view, we believe you hope may not be altogether evil. We regret that we cannot challenge a greater portion of your approbation; that when we solemnly assure you that the sole object of our association is the good of mankind, and we call heaven to witness the correctness of what we say, that we cannot command your implicit confidence; but we confess that many things appear in the conduct of the best of us that may be calculated to stagger your faith and justify your hesitation.” (Masonic Oration at Newcastle, Kentucky, December 27, 1833.)
¹² When Isabel of Scotland was objected to as a wife for the son of John the Fifth, Duke of Aragon, because she was illiterate, swore “by the body of St. Nicholas, that a woman is quite wise enough who can distinguish her husband’s shirt from his doublet.” Even the great Milton objected to females being taught any foreign language; for he said—their own tongue was quite enough for women.” The mistress of Sir Hudibras, however, proves with great subtilty of argument, that, by the laws of nature, woman is superior to man.—

Though women first were made for men,
Yet men were made for them again;
For when (outwitted by his wife)
Man first turned tenant but for life,
If woman had not intervened,
How soon had mankind had an end.

M. P. M
¹³ Our worthy brother is rather too severe in the above remark: females are possessed of as much stability and moral courage as men. This is illustrated by the following fact, which is given on undoubted authority:—“A lady candidate for admission into a lodge of Adoption, during a part of the ceremony was conducted to an eminence, and told to look down to see what existed beneath her. She saw what appeared to be a frightful abyss, guarded by a double row of iron spikes; and was told to cast herself into it. In that moment of excitement she had sufficient courage to obey the order. A secret spring was touched, and the candidate fell, not on the spikes but on a soft bed, where she fainted away, but was soon revived by the sweet strains of choral music, with which this severe trial [was] usually concluded.”
¹⁴ The mind of a female is frequently more refined than that of the rougher sex, as in the following remarkable instance:— “At a mixed party at Garrick’s one evening, some young ladies were amusing themselves with similies, and one of them had some very happy ones, which were chiefly from flowers, and the vegetable creation. This young lady was called upon to give a simile of Goldsmith, who was one of the party, but who in the course of the evening had manifested a great deal of petulance. On the lively girl being pressed, she likened him to the passion flower, of all the painted garden Flora’s pride, wrapped in a frumpish hood at eventide. The prompt allusion was much applauded. ‘And now for Dr. Johnson’s, miss, if you will favour us,’ says Goldsmith. ‘May I take the liberty, sir?’ said she, looking at the great man. ‘Why not, dear?’ said Johnson; ‘certainly, by all means.’ She seemed to stand in awe, as though it were profane to make the great moralist the subject of her innocent playfulness. ‘We liken you, sir, to an ALOE;’ and with a faltering voice she added, ‘as a lofty plant, whose glorious head, raised towards heaven, adorns creation but once in a hundred years.’ Johnson was silent for awhile; then bowing to the ladies, gallantly said, ‘how shall they be forgiven who banish the gentle sex from their lordly presence? Ladies, we must henceforth learn to sacrifice at the altar of the graces, and become men again, by emulating the noble knights of old.’”—(Wine and Walnuts)

[Tamrin]

Whenever a good Mason’s fancy and judgement has agreed in the choice of a partner for life, he will support the authority and dignity of a husband, with that wisdom, moderation, tenderness, and affection, that shall render him honoured and beloved:¹⁵ for the Mason above all others, well knows, that if happiness is not found in the narrow circle of his own house, it will be sought for in vain: in short, the fair sex will ever find in a Mason a warm and passionate admirer, a most sincere friend, an affectionate and tender husband, as well as an indulgent father: they will ever find a Mason the protector of innocence, and at all times and situations attentive to every delicacy and decorum, they so justly claim from all mankind, and will more particularly experience from Masons, who love and adore them.

I must further add, that in the most solemn and serious moments of the assembled Freemasons in open lodge, and at the reception of a brother, the ancients, and even the most part of modern Freemasons, always present the new-initiated brother with two pairs of white gloves, one pair for himself,¹⁶ and the other pair for a lady, with a strict charge to present them to that female for whom he has the greatest regard.¹⁷ And even in our hours of relaxation from labour, when innocent mirth abounds, we never forget Milton’s words, viz.—

Grace was in all her steps, heaven in her eye,
In every Gesture dignity and love.

And in another place—

—————so absolute she seems,
And in herself complete, so well to know
Her own, that what she wills to do or say,
Seems wisest, virtuousest, discreetest, best;
All higher knowledge in her presence falls
Degraded, wisdom in discourse with her
Loses, discountenane’d, and like folly shows;
Authority and reason on her wait,
As intended first, not after made
Occasionally; and to consummate all,
Greatness of mind and nobleness their seat
Build in her loveliest, and create an awe
About her, as a guard angelic placed.

Of the numerous societies which mankind have been led to form for the purposes of mutual advantage, none is of more importance to individuals or the public than that of marriage.¹⁸ The very nature of this society requires it to be perpetrual; as indeed it is so among married Masons more than among any other set of people. During the virtuous times of the Roman commonwealth, this union was regarded as so inviolable (as it is now with Masons) as to give rise to a tradition, that for the first five hundred years not a single example of divorce was known; nor do the annals of our society mention such a circumstance. Observing what Milton enjoins in praise of women:—

O fairest of creation, last and best
Of all God’s works, creature in whom excell’d
Whatever can to sight or thought be form’d,
Holy, divine, good, amiable, or sweet.

And Matthew Birkhead, in his well known Masonic song, has this verse, viz.—

We’re true and sincere,
And just to the fair,
They’ll trust us on any occasion:
No mortal can more
The ladies adore
Than a Free and Accepted Mason.

An anonymous author of reputation observes, that though men are more reserved and secret in their friend’s concerns than their own, women, on the contrary, keep their own and friend’s secrets better than men. Modesty in a woman supposes all other virtues, immodesty all other vices. Women generally take greater care of their reputation than men do of theirs. Why then do we account the, the weaker sex?¹⁹ Hence virtue makes a beautiful woman appear more beautiful, so beauty makes a virtuous woman really more virtuous.

The ladies claim right to come into our light,
Since the apron we know is their bearing;
They can subject their will, they keep their tongues still,
And let talking be changed into hearing.
This difficult task is the least we can ask,
To secure us on sundry occasions;
If with this they’ll comply, our utmost we’ll try
To raise lodges for lady Freemasons.

¹⁵ And nothing is so worthy of being loved and honoured as a good wife. Parrot, in his Cures for the Itch, gives a beautiful description of one, which I cannot refrain from quoting.—“A good wife is a world of happiness that brings with it a kingdom in conceit, and makes it a perfect adjunct in societie; shee’s such a comfort as exceeds content, and proves so precious as cannot be paralleled, yea more inestimable then may be valued. Shee’s any good man’s better second selfe, the very mirror of true constant modestie, the careful huswif of frugalitie, and dearest object of man’s heart’s felicitie. Shee commands with mildness, rules with discretion, liues in repute, and ordereth all things that are good or necessarie. Shee’s her husbands solace, her house’s ornament, her children’s succor, and her servant’s comfort. Shee’s (in briefe) the eye of warinesse, the tongue of silence, the hand of labor, and the heart of loue. Her voice is musicke, her countenance meeknesse, her minde virtuous, and her soule gratious. Shee’s a blessing given from God to man, a sweet companion in his affliction, and ioynt co-partner upon all occasions. Shee’s (to conclude) earth chiefest paragon, and will bee, when shee dyes, heauen’s dearest creature.” [sic]
¹⁶ This custom, with our brethren of the last century, formed a part of the duty of a newly-initiated candidate, in “clothing the lodge.”
¹⁷ Causabon is of opinion that gloves were worn by the Chaldeans, because the word is mentioned in the Talmud Lexicon, and explained “the clothing of the hand.” It was a custom amongst the Jews, which they probably derived from Egypt, of ratifying a contract by taking off a glove, which was considered a solemn pledge that both parties were satisfied. Xenophon informs us that the Persians wore gloves and speaks lightly of the custom, as a mark of effiminacy [sic]. We find the same practice in Homer, who puts gloves on the hands of Laertes when working in his garden, to secure them from the thorns. Olives were gathered amongst the Romans, as Varro (1. ii. c. 35, de re Rust.) affirms, because they would be injured if taken of the stalk by a hand covered with a glove. It is a custom in Germany, that if any person enters the stables of a noble with gloves on his hands, is obliged to forfeit them, or redeem them by a fee to the servants. The same custom is observed at the death of a stag, and the chief huntsman pockets the fee.
¹⁸ It is said, in the Philosophical Dictionary, “the more married men you have, the fewer crimes will there be. If you examine the frightful columns of the criminal calender [sic], you will find there a hundred youths executed to one father of a family. Marriage renders men more virtuous and more wise. The father of a family is not willing to blush for his children; he is afraid to make shame their inheritance.”
¹⁹ An anecdote, displaying the inherent goodness of the sex, is told in the Lady’s Magazine for 1799. When George IV. was Grand Master of Masons, on one occasion, in the rooms at Bath, he left Miss A. to enter into conversation with Mrs. B., who was a very plain woman. When he returned to the former, he was rallied for paying so much attention to such a person. “It is true, madam,” said he, “that Mrs. B. is far from being beautiful; but she is sensible in her conversation, and engaging in her manners, and never speaks ill of another—not even of her own sex.”

[Tamrin]

On many occasions of late the ladies have been admitted to sundry parts of our ceremonies,²⁰ viz.—At laying the foundation stone of Freemasons’ Hall, dedication of the same; at Royal Arch processions, private and public Masonic orations, &c., at one of which the ladies were thus addressed by the orator.²¹

“You have heard, ladies our grand principles explained, with the instructions given to the brethren; and I doubt not but that at other times you have heard many disrespectful things said of this society. Envy, malice, and uncharitableness, will never be at a loss to decry, find fault, and raise objections to what they do not know. How great then are the obligations you lay on this lodge! with what respect, superior esteem and regard are we to look on every lady present that has done us the honour of her company this evening! To have the sanction of the fair is our highest ambition, as our greatest care will be to preserve it. The virtues of humanity are peculiar to your sex; and we flatter ourselves the most splendid ball could not afford you greater pleasure than to see the human heart made happy, and the poor and distressed obtain present relief.”²²

Hence, as there is no law, ancient or modern, that forbids the admission of the fair sex amongst the society of Free and Accepted Masons,²³ and custom only has hitherto prevented their initiation: consequently all bad usages and customs ought to be annihilated,²⁴ and ladies of merit and reputation admitted into the society; or at least be permitted to form lodges amongst their own sex, in imitation of those in Germany and France.²⁵ This is a plan that the unfortunate Dr. Dodd had much at heart, and had so far succeeded in, as to be ripe of execution, had his untimely death not prevented it.

I know there will be many prejudices entertained against the character of Masonic ladies;²⁶ and, perhaps, if ladies’ lodges were as numerous as those of the other sex, some inconveniences might arise from it; but I must own it does not appear to me that a woman will be rendered less acceptable in the eyes of the world, or worse qualified to perform any part of her duty in it, by employing a small allotment of her time in the cultivation of her mind by studying Freemasonry.²⁷ Time enough will remain, after a few hours in a week spent in the study of the royal art, for the improvement of the person, for domestic concerns, and the acquisition of the usual accomplishments. With respect to these accomplishments, I will not presume to direct the method of pursuing them—I will not so far intrude on a province which by no means belong to us. The ladies themselves, and their instructors, want no directions in matters of external ornament, the end of which is to please on initiation. However arrogant the men have been in their claims of superiority, they have always allowed the ladies the possession of the most refined and delicate taste in the improvement and perception of all kinds of beauty.²⁸

²⁰ On a recent occasion of this sort, the G.M. of Bengal thus expressed himself:—“To the ladies who have graced this occasion by becoming spectators of our solemnity, I beg to observe, that however ungallant the exclusion of the fair from Masonic mysteries may appear, it really arose from no unworthy distrust in their discretion or fidelity, but from the most careful and affectionate solicitude. There were times of old when the knowledge of these secrets exposed their possessors to the most imminent peril, and even to death itself, from the suspicion or misapprehension of tyrants; and it was preserve woman in all her dear relations of mother, sister, wife and daughter, that this apparently ungracious exclusion took place. Would it could be put an end to; but alas! It is not in my power to alter what has become fixed by old prescription.”
²¹ Thomas Dunckerley, Esq., Provincial Grand Master for Essex, Wiltshire, and Dorsetshire.
²² Female influence has often been beneficially exercised, and its claims admitted. The following anecdote is a case in point. As Dr. Young was walking in his garden at Welwyn, in company with two ladies, the servant came to acquaint him that a gentleman wished to speak with him. “Tell him” says the Doctor, “that I am too happily engaged to change my situation.” The ladies insisted he should go, as his visitor was a man of rank, his patron, and his friend; but as persuasion had no effect, one took him by the right arm, and the other by the left, and led him to the garden gate. Finding resistance in vain, he bowed, laid his hand upon his heart, and said—

“Thus Adam look’d when from the garden driven,
And thus disputed orders sent from heaven.
Like him I go, but yet to go am loth,
Like him I go, for angels drove us both.
Hard was his fate, but mine still more unkind;
His Eve went with him, but mine stays behind.”

²³ The American brother already alluded to, pleads analogy in vindication of the custom. He says—“Should any fair hearer ask the question, why was not Masonry originally so constituted as to permit us a participation in its honours and advantages? I can only answer that the wisest and greatest king who ever reigned in Israel, is its acknowledged founder; on the occasion of the erection of the holy temple, he employed 3600 overseers, 8000 journeymen, and 70,000 apprentices, for the space of seven years, and we are not told that a single female was found among them. If so wise a king, and a professed admirer of the sex, thought females unsuited to his purpose in that great enterprise, is it strange that a society, established under these circumstances, should be calculated exclusively for man? But the enquiry is perfectly idle, for it is simply asking why Masonry is Masonry, and not something else.”
²⁴ I beg leave to insert in the words of the learned matron in Erasmus—“Quid mihi citas vulgum, pessimum rei gerendæ auctorem? Quid mihi consuetudinem, omnium malarum rerum magistram? Optimis assuescendum: ita fiet solitm, quod erat insolitum; et suave fiet, quod erat insuave; fiet decorum, quod videbatur indecorum. Why do you tell me of the generality of people, the very worst of conduct? Why do you talk to me of the custom, the teacher of all that is bad? Let us accustom ourselves to that which we know is best. So that will become usual which was unusual; and that will become agreeable which was disagreeable; and that fashionable which appeared unfashionable.
²⁵ Female affection has been beautifully described by Mrs. Bellamy. She says, in her Memoirs—“O! Sweet is the union which exists between two persons of the same sex, and of delicate and susceptible minds, unembittered by the turbulent desires and anxious cares of love. All is joy and delight, and pleasing expectation. The way is strewed with flowers, and not a thistle rears it head to wound the lightly tripping foot.”
²⁶ Such prejudices are entirely groundless. Ladies, however, have attained a knowledge of the secret, and respected it. There is a well authenticated account of a very curious lady who, being desirous of obtaining a knowledge of the Freemasons’ secret, concealed herself behind the wainscotting or tapestry of the room where the brethren assembled; and having a small convenient peep-hole, she was enabled to gratify herself to her heart’s content. In the end, however, she exposed herself by some unlucky noise; and the brethren, having explored the place whence it proceeded, handed the lady forward and, to prevent exposure, they made a Mason of her on the spot. And it is quite true that she kept the secret inviolably to the last moment of her life. This was the Hon. Mrs. Aldworth, and a full account of the circumstances may be found in the Freemasons’ Quarterly Review for 1839, p.322.
²⁷ Ladies’ lodges, called lodges of Adoption, have long been common on the Continent, and were very prevalent when the above essay was written. But it is a Freemasonry adapted to that particular purpose. An instance, however, is on record where a lady was received into legitimate Masonry by the unanimous consent of the brethren. The lady of a French general being of masculine habits, solicited Buonaparte for a commission as a captain of cavalry, which he at once granted; and assuming the military habit, she distinguished herself by many acts of bravery; and was at length desirous of being made a Mason. When she was proposed, it was doubted whether she could be legally received; but it being suggested, that as the first consul had set them an example by making no difference between the sexes, it would not be wrong in them, as Masons to follow it. She was unanimously accepted; and the female soldier was initiated into the mysteries of Masonry.
²⁸ I cannot resist the impulse of inserting here the short but beautiful address of Bro. Hercules Ellis, Esq., the W.M. of the lodge Fifty at Dublin, when the members gave a magnificent fête to the Lord-Lieutenant, and the nobility and gentry, male and female, of Dublin and the neighbourhood. In proposing the health of the ladies he said——have now the honour to propose a toast, which, though nearly the last upon our list, is the first in our hearts; and which has been placed at the end of our toasts to-night, that our banquet, like the summer’s sun, may set in beauty. In introducing to your notice the health of our fair and noble guest, the Countess of Mulgrave, it is best to say little in praise of the subject of my toast, because it is impossible to say enough. Her Excellency has this night been the fair leader of a lovely band of ladies culled from the garden of Irish beauty. To attempt a description of the leader or of the band, were alike fruitless. To paint in words the bright eyes—the lips steeped in loveliness, and the golden hair, in whose flowing locks love has this night spread a thousand nets, is altogether impossible, unless I were that favoured fairy who spoke pearls; and to express our feelings towards the possessors of those beauties, is equally impossible, unless my lips were touched with fire. To her Excellency and that lovely band we owe every sentiment of pleasure and delight which we have this night experienced. They have spread happiness on every side around them—they have poured upon our festival the rosy light of beauty, and have made our banquet-hall, like the sea whence Venus sprang, to teem with all the graces.”

[Tamrin]

Female minds are certainly as capable of improvement as those of the other sex.²⁹ The instances that might be brought to prove this are too well known to admit of citation. The study of Masonry will open a new scene for female improvement; their mind, if they have been successful in this course, will have imbibed an elegance which will naturally diffuse itself over their conversation, address, and behaviour; and they will ultimately become our instructors in an art we have taken so much pains to hide from their knowledge.³⁰ It is well known that internal beauty contributes much to perfect external grace. I believe it will also be favourable to promote virtue, and will operate greatly in restraining from any improper conduct.³¹ Much of the profligacy of female manners has proceeded from a levity occasioned by a want of employment and a suitable education. This the study of Masonry will effectually remove, for she that has no taste for well-written books, will often be at a loss how to spend her time; and the consequences of such a state are too frequent not to be known, and too fatal not to be avoided.

From what has been advanced, not one doubt remains but the ladies may, and have an undoubted right to be admitted as members of the most ancient, and most honourable society of Free and Accepted Masons; neither can any brother or set of brethren be accused of violating his or their obligation, in aiding or assisting at the initiation of the ladies or in forming female lodges.³² Hence many advantages will arise to the society in general, and among the rest, that of assisting the widows and orphans of deceased Freemasons, to which the Grand Lodge of England gives no relief.
Therefore let all Freemasons unanimously sing aloud:—

Open ye gates, receive the fair who shares
With equal sense our happiness and cares:³³
Then, charming females, there behold
What massy stores of burnish’d gold,
Yet richer is our art;
Not all the orient gems that shine,
Nor treasures of rich Ophir’s mine,
Excel the Mason’s heart;
True to the fair, he honours more
Than glitt’ring gems, or brightest ore,
The plighted pledge of love;
To every tie of honour bound,
In love and friendship constant found,
And favoured from above.

²⁹ And females are as brave and patriotic as our own sex, under the pressure of peculiar circumstances. For instance, during the late was, the females of Prussia so identified themselves with the sufferings of their amiable queen, whose premature death they attributed to the harsh treatment which she and her family had received from Napoleon, that they offered on the altar of their country their wedding rings, vowing to wear iron ones, which they did, until their country had been revenged on their merciless oppressor. The unmarried women each presented a trinket of gold; and it is a curious historical fact, that from this source of female patriotism alone, the government were enabled to clothe, arm, and send into the field that truly efficient force which, under the veteran Blucher, so nobly fought, and so bravely conquered.
³⁰ He of whom antiquity boasts itself as of the wisest mortals, was instructed in many elegant and profound subjects of learning by a lady. Ασπασί μεν τοι ή σοήή Σωκράτους διδάσκαλος τωυ ρητορικών λογων, i.e. Aspassia, the learned lady, was the preceptress of Socrates in rhetoric.—ATHENÆUS. And ΙΙλάτων τον Σωκρατην παρ άυτής φησι μαδείν τά πολιτικά, i.e. Plato says that Socrates learned politics of her.—HARPOCRATION.
³¹ This observation has been made with greater beauty and force by my eloquent friend Bro. Vyvyan Robinson, Past D.P.G.M. for Cornwall. At a grand meeting of Masons in his province, he observed, in the course of a long and effective speech, that “the sentiments of gallantry which were fostered by the institution of chivalry, elevated woman to her legitimate situation in the scale of social life; and from having been, amongst the barbarians, considered of no consequence in society, she became the primum mobile. Each redoubted knight, bent on chivalrous adventure, first declared himself the devoted servant of some fair lady, who was generally the object of his affections. Her honour was supposed to be intimately mixed up with his, and her smile was the reward of his valour. Courage, thus animated, lost sight of everything but enterprise; for her he attacked—for her he defended—for her he shed his blood. The effect was reciprocal. Women, proud of their influence, became deserving of the heroism they inspired. They were to be approached by none but the high-minded and the brave; and men could only win the heart of the virtuous fair but after proving their fidelity and affection by years of enterprise and peril.”
³² There are several instances on record where ladies have been admitted to the secrets of Freemasonry, as we have already said. A correspondent to the Freemasons’ Quarterly Review, under the sobriquet of FIDUS, says that, in 1835, he was at a ball given by a London lodge, where a lady desired to be informed upon some Masonic matter. In compliance with her wishes, he entered upon an explanation of some of the jewels which he wore. To his great astonishment, he found that she was well acquainted with these things; and adds, “from one subject we went to another, she advancing; and I retreating, until at last she fairly avowed herself a Freemason; and in gentle whispers and gestures, gave me the signs, tokens, and words; and explained the entire mysteries of all the three degrees.” The manner by which the lady became acquainted with these secrets is interesting, but too long for insertion here. It may however, be referred to in the F.Q.R. for 1839, p.326.
³³ In a work called “England in the New World,” we find the following anecdote of the attention which is paid to ladies in America. “To them the best seats, the best of everything, are always allotted. A friend of mine told me of a little affair at New York theatre the other night, illustrative of my assertion. A stiff-necked Englishman had engaged a front place, and of course the best corner; when the curtain rose, he was duly seated, opera-glass in hand, to enjoy the performance. A lady and a gentleman came into the box shortly afterwards, and the cavalier in escort, seeing that the place where our friend sat was the best, called his attention, saying—the lady, sir; and motioned that the corner should be vacated. The possessor, partly because he disliked the imperative mood, and partly because it bored him to be disturbed, refused. Some words ensued, which attracted the attention of the sovereign people in the pit, who magisterially enquired what was the matter. The American came to the front of the box, and said—Here is an Englishman who will not give up his place to a lady. Immediately their majesties swarmed up by dozens over the barriers, seized the offender, and carried him out. He kicked and fought in vain; he excited neither the pity nor the anger of his stern executors. They placed him carefully on his feet at the steps, one man handing him his hat, another his opera-glass, and a third the price he had paid for his ticket for admission; then quietly shut the door upon him, and returned to their places.”