The Old Charges Of The British Freemasons

THE OLD CHARGES OF THE BRITISH FREEMASONS

WILLIAM JAMES HUGHAN . ' ^ - *''"'" " ' ' '' No . II . —BROWNE AND CRANE ' MS . ( PORTION MISSING ) . COPY from an ancient parchment roll , written in old Norman English about the date of 1600 and said to be a true copy of the original found

, amongst the papers of Sir Christopher Wren , who built St . Paul ' s Cathedral , London . This parchment roll belonged to the late Rev . Mr . Crane , a very learned olivine and most zealous Mason , and who was for many years Grand Sec . for the Province , when Sir Robert S . Gotten ( father of the present Lord Comberrnere , and now R . W . P . G . Master ) was the Provincial Grand Master for Cheshire . Bro . S . BROWNE ,

Secretary aud Treasurer of The Cestrian , 615 , Chester , A . L . 1852 , December 4 th . ( Endorsement . ) *********

ordained for their reasonable maintenance that they might live by it honest be as well and also that they should come assemble theyre and that they should have counsell in their castle how they might work the best to serve their Lord for hi ' s ^ p'St and themselves if they had And thus was the Craft of Geometry grounded there , that worthy Master gave it the name of Geometry aud it is called Masonic and it happened long after the children of Israel came into the land of which is now called

is the . country of Jerusalem King David began the temple of Jerusalem that is with them Temple the same King David loved well Masons and authorized them and gave the said payment and he gave the same charge which they were charged with all in Egypt afterwards , and after the decease of King David Solomon that was Son unto David performed the Temple that his father had begun . And he sent after Masons of divers

Lands and gathered them together for that he had some four thousand workers of Stone and they were named Masons And he had three thousand of them which were ordained to be Masters and overlookers of this Work And there was a King of another region that men called Hyram and he loved well King Solomon and he gave him timber for his work and he had a Son who was

named and he was Master of Geometry and he was chief Master of all his Masons and Master of all the graving and Carving work and of all other Masonry that belonged to the Temple and this Witnesseth the Holy Bible in Libro Rega Quarto Capita And this same Solomon confirmed all the charge and manners that David his Father had given to Masons , thus was the Worthy craft of Masonry confirmed in the Country of Jerusalem and in many other glorious Kingdoms . Riht Renowned workmen walked abroad

g into divers countries some because of learning more skill and some to teach their Craft to others And so it befell that a curious Mason that had been at the Building of Solomon ' s Temple which was called Raymus afterwards came into Branins and so the craft of Masonry to the Brenithmen . For there was one of the Royal Line of France that was called Charles Martill and he loved well this craft and he drew to him the Braymins aforesaid and learned of him

the Craft and took upon him the charge and manners of Mason and afterwards by the grace of God . he was elected to be the King of France when he was in his stall he took to him many Masons and made Masons there that were none before . And he gave them charge and manners and good payment he had learned of other masons and confirmed them and charter them from year