THE USE OF FREEMASONS,

West Coast Times, Issue 4925, 6 June 1885, Page 1 (Supplement)

THE USE OF FREEMASONS,

[new tobk times].

There are reasons for the use in this country at Maeonic ceremonies in laying corner-stones and dedicating monuments. In other countries there are men whose duty it ia to attend to matters of this kind. In England, for example, there is an established church, and when tbe cornerstone of a church is to be laid, or when a new church is to be dedicated, a bishop is expected to do the work. Here all churches and sects are equal in the eye of tbe law, and were the Government to call on a Roman or an Anglican bishop to dedicate a public monument nine-tenths of the people would claim that undue prominence had been given to the officiating bishop and his church. When the corner-stone of an English secular building is to be laid the work devolves, as a matter of course, upon the Prince of Wales. The British Constitution expressly requires him to lay all secular corner-stones, and, in fact, this is one of the chief duties of hi 9 office. Every Prince of Wales studies the art of laying cornerstones from his early coildbood, and if be is reasonably intelligent be acquires great proficiency in the art. Tbe present Prince of Wales can Jay a corner-stone in 22 minutes, which is 11 minutes less than any other man in England would require for doing the same work. With the Prince of Wales, two archbishop?, and a large number of bishops always ready to lay corner stones and dedicote churches and monument?, England has not the slightest difficulty in having all work of the kind done promptiy and well. While we have no bishops that can be recognised as such by members of their own communion, we have no Prince of Wales or other official layer of cornerstones. We must do as we always have done in like circumstances — request the Freemasons to gird on their aprons and give us the beat service in their repertiore,