The Early History And Antiquities Of Freemasonry.*

Many " indicia ) " seem to point to the inevitable conclusion of this veritable connnexion as between the Guilds ancl assembly of Operative Masons , and the Grand Lodge of Speculative Masons : hut at present we are still without any tangible or distinct evidence on the subject . Bro . Fort" leans to an hermetic origin and use of Freemasonry . And much , no doubtmay be said for itthat an hermetic association existed . That the Rosicrueians

, , were a real body , we think must be admitted fairly ; but that they produced or preserved Masonry , is not only " not proven , " but we venture to think not proveable . Bro . Fort leans to the reality of the Locke MS ., which , however , Ave feel sure must be given up as an authentic document , and pointing to the hermetic character of Masonry ; hut in this , also , we beg respectfully to differ from him . Neither do we lay the stress he does apparently on Scandinavian mysteries ,

though we are not insensible to the abstract difficulties of the Guild theory , which have apparently struck Bro . Fort . But having said all this , we can safely assert that we have never read any Masonic hook ( and we have read it through ) , with greater pleasure ; that we always put it clown reluctantly , and always take it up again with profit to ourselves . It is a work worthy of its author , —a young and promising Masonic historian , — and is a good omen of the future progress of Masonic archaeological study amongst us .

Bjorn And Bera.*

BJORN AND BERA . *

npiIIS is not an age of poetry , much less is it an age of poets . The reader of poetry J- is an uncommon person , but the poet himself is indeed the vara avis . The author of Bjorn and Bera is without question a poet of tho highest order , but whether he will be so . acknowledged in his life-time is another matter . The Norse legend which Mr . Ranking has chosen for the subject of his poem is in itself , though it were told in the plainest and most common-place prosepoetic in its idea ; but in the

, hands of a poet like Mr . Ranking it assumes a grand and majestic status , and takes its place amidst the finest , the purest , and even the grandest specimens of English poetry . We do not believe hi the expediency of telling the plot or story of a novel , a drama , or an epic poem , because in so doing one robs the reader of a pleasure in store , hence we shall confine ourselves in the present instance to quoting two passages from Mr . Ranking ' s poem , rather to show that he is a poet than that Bjorn and Bera is a poem . The

greatest test of a poet ' s power lies in his treatment of human nature , ancl nature herself , pure and simple . AA e will quote Mr . Ranking on nature , first . In our opinion the following descriptive passage is equal to anything in English poetry : —

"A garden pleasaance , where the turf To myriad buds of spring gave birth , Here , where its smooth and level space Seemed newly shorn , a starry race Of daises smiled upon the sky ; And , where like meadow it waved high , Beneath the boughs an azure sheet

Of blue bells made the light air sweet That hardly stirred the whispering trees , But went and came ; and mixed with these , Half-floating in the tinkling stream , Forget-me-nots , that seemed to dream ,