Chilton County Ashlar by Mike Welborn

CHILTON COUNTY ASHLAR CLANTON LODGE NUMBER 423

PRESERVING THE PAST, SERVING THE PRESENT, PREPARING THE FUTURE

Volume 2 Number 1

January足March 2013

IN THIS ISSUE From the Worshipful Master ....................................................................................................... 2 Masonic Murder! ....................................................................................................................... 3 Meeting a Young Mans Needs ................................................................................................... 5 Events .......................................................................................................................................... 8 A New Tradition for Clanton Lodge #423 .................................................................................. 9 New Brothers ............................................................................................................................ 10 A Masonic Funeral .................................................................................................................... 11 On The Lighter Side ................................................................................................................... 11 Creafting for the Craft ................................................................................................................ 12

The Chilton County Ashlar is a quarterly publication edited and produced entirely by Clanton Masonic Lodge #423 located in Clanton, Alabama.

For information on how to subscribe or how to advertise, please contact the Clanton Lodge 423: Clanton Masonic Lodge 423 P. O. Box 2471

Clanton, Alabama 35045 http://clanton423.org

All articles must be submitted by the 15th of every month in order to be printed the the current newsletter webmaster@clanton423.org

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By Order of the Worshipful Master Jim Ray, Worship Master Brethren, We're having an exciting year at Clanton Lodge 423. Attendance is on an uptick. This is due to a combination of visitors, new brothers, and regular members being present more often. We formed a committee for practice work on our offTuesday evenings this year. Anthony Connell is heading up the committee with lots of help from Jay Waid. We announce what we will be practicing prior to the session and get right to work at 6:00 P.M. We believe all of the regular attendees of the lodge will agree that the quality of our degrees is improving, and this improvement can be directly attributed to structured practice sessions. The sessions are led by Anthony and Jay but everyone who attends is contributing. It's great to see so much interest in the craft. In place of one practice, the group loaded up and went over to Maplesville to watch a degree, and a couple of our brothers were invited to assist. A group of the brothers were discussing the activity of the meetings so far this year, and we're finding that with few exceptions we have degree work at just about every meeting. We're also having visitors at most meetings. In large part they are being recruited to help with the degree work. Our District Lecturer Jeff Cannady has made several visits and we're finding his assistance of great benefit. Zack Ashley spread the word that we were putting on a dual Masters degree while Grand Lodge was in session, and we've never seen so many guests. There was a great deal of swapping stations that night and our newly raised brothers Jason Blakely and Jeremy Smith received part of their instruction from some very talented brothers. We're regularly seeing brothers from Stanly Cost and Maplesville as well. C. D. Niles and Mike Wellborn have been working on researching Old Cahawba the first Grand Lodge of Alabama in 1821. The task is proving to be a challenge but to listen to C. D. and Mike talk about what they are finding it's easy to see they are enjoying the project. We have formed a committee to do funeral work. Sam Hayes chairs the committee and will be assisted by Cliff Ward. We ordered special aprons for the work and Sam will get us going shortly. Mike Wellborn has been busy. He accepted an appointment to the Grand Lodge internet committee. This committee has been somewhat restructured and is making a great contribution to a number of electronic communications projects. Mike also was approved as the Representative to the Birmingham VA Medical Center with the Masonic Service Association of North America. The main focus of this committee is to make visits to veterans both Masons and NonMasons alike that are in hospitals or extended care facilities. Thanks to everyone who is working and helping make this a special year for our lodge. We have been careful not to stretch ourselves so thin as to make the work of the lodge a hardship on anyone. Our morale is terrific and the new members are adding their own dynamic to the member mix. If you have an interest in any of the work of the lodge or have suggestions, you need only call. Fraternally, Jim Ray

CHILTON COUNTY ASHLAR

MASONIC MURDER!

The Morgan Afair http://www.masonicinfo.com/morgan.htm In the summer of 1826, William Morgan of Batavia, New York, announced his intention to publish a book exposing the secrets of Freemasonry. On September 11 of that year he was abducted and never seen again. Morgan was considered a traitor by the Masons and a “Christian martyr” by their opponents. 54 Masons were indicted for his abduction and 10 were found guilty. Morgan’s disappearance led to the formation of America’s first “third party”, the AntiMasonic Party. But was it Morgan's body that washed ashore on Lake Ontario a year later, and were the Masons responsible for his death? Date: September 1826 Location: Batavia, NY Victim: William Morgan Cause of Death: Drowning Accused: Freemasons Synopsis: Nearly two centuries after his death, it is still difficult to find an impartial rendition of William Morgan’s story. In the 19th Century, several books were written and published by Masonic organizations that depicted Morgan as a drunk, a thief and generally a man of low moral character. They denied that he ever was a Mason and that Masons had anything to do with his murder. In fact they denied that William Morgan was murdered at all. This tradition continues today on Masonic web sites. Another tradition that continues on the internet is the belief that Freemasonry has a sinister influence on all facets of world politics going far deeper and wider than their public face would suggest. To these adherents, William Morgan was a hero who died for free speech. Even the portraits of Morgan used by the two groups are different. Antimasonic groups tend to use a portrait depicting Morgan as studious and refined (above), while

the Masons prefer a portrait of Morgan as a disgruntled old man in tattered clothes (right). We know that William Morgan was born in Culpepper, Virginia in 1774 or 1775 and married Lucinda Pendleton of Richmond, Virginia in 1819. They had two children. Morgan claimed he was a Captain in the War of 1812, fighting with Andrew Jackson, but that has never been verified. He later moved Little York, Ontario (now Toronto), where he opened a brewery. It was there, Morgan claimed, that he was inducted into the Freemasons. When his brewery burned down, he left Canada and moved Rochester, New York, then to Batavia, New York. The Masons question whether he was ever a Mason in Canada, and in fact question whether he ever owned a brewery. In New York he attended a Masonic lodge in Leroy and there became a Royal Arch Mason, though the Masons claim there is no record that he ever received the preceding degrees. When a new chapter was proposed in Batavia, Morgan signed the petition, however before it was presented to the Grand Chapter, his name was removed and he was not allowed membership in the Batavia chapter. This, presumably, was the event that prompted Morgan to write a book exposing the secrets of Freemasonry. He teamed up with a printer named David Cade Miller, and two other men, John Davids and Russel Dyer, to publish the book. In the summer of 1826 Morgan published an advertisement for the book, saying a book would soon be available revealing the secrets of the Masons for a dollar a copy. Soon after, there were mysterious fires at Miller’s print shop. They were presumably set by freemasons, though they accused Miller of starting the fires himself as advertisement for the upcoming book. On September 11, 1826, William Morgan was arrested for

stealing a shirt and tie, and taken to a jail in Canandaigua, NY. He was soon released for lack of evidence, but immediately rearrested for failure to pay a $2.69 debt to an innkeeper. On September 12, a group of men came and paid Morgan’s fine. As they took him away Morgan was heard hollering “Murder!” William Morgan was never seen alive again. Trials: 54 Masons were indicted for Morgan’s kidnapping. In 15 separate trials 10 Masons, including Niagara County Sheriff, Eli Bruce, were convicted and given sentences ranging from 30 days to 28 months. Because Morgan’s death could not be confirmed, murder charges were never brought.

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Freemasonry Exposed and Explained, The Mysteries of Freemasonry). The publication, together outrage over the light sentences given the kidnappers fired up a wave of antiMasonic sentiment that spread across the country. Thurlow Weed and others formed the short lived AntiMasonic Party and ran a candidate in the 1832 presidential election won by Andrew Jackson (a Mason). In that election the AntiMasonic party carried the state of Vermont. The AntiMasonic party was eventually absorbed by the Whigs and some of their members were instrumental in the founding of the Republican Party.

Verdict: Guilty of kidnapping Aftermath: In October 1827, a body washed up on the shore of Lake Ontario. Three inquests were held for the corpse. The first said the body was unidentified. In the second, the corpse was shown to William Morgan’s wife who identified her husband primarily by his teeth. Morgan had two rows of teeth and several of them were broken. His doctor also identified the body as Morgan. Thurlow Weed, a New York politician opposed to the Masons was on the inquest committee. The Freemasons accused Weed of mutilating the corpse to resemble Morgan. At the third inquest, the body was shown to the wife of Timothy Monroe, another unrelated missing man. Mrs. Monroe positively identified the corpse as her husband and that is the ruling that stood. The Freemasons (then and now) admitted that a misguided group of their members did kidnap William Morgan but did not kill him. They claimed he was given $500 and set free in Canada. Morgan was supposedly seen alive in such exotic places as Smyrnia in the Ottoman Empire, and the Cayman Islands. New York Governor DeWitt Clinton (a Mason) offered a $1000 reward for information proving that Morgan was alive. It was never collected.

In 1881 a monument to William Morgan was erected in Batavia, New York, with this inscription: “Sacred to the memory of Wm. Morgan, a native of Virginia, a Capt. in the War of 1812, a respectable citizen of Batavia, and a martyr to the freedom of writing, printing and speaking the truth. He was abducted from near this spot in the year 1826, by Freemasons and murdered for revealing the secrets of their order. The court records of Genesee County, and the files of the Batavia Advocate, kept in the Recorders office contain the history of the events that caused the erection of this monument.” Freemasons refer to this as the “Lie in Granite”

Shortly after his disappearance Morgan’s book, Illustrations of Masonry, was published (It was republished later under other titles, e.g.: Morgan’s

MEETING A YOUNG MANS NEEDS By E. Gene Ross, Deputy Grand Master of Illinois http://www.masonicworld.com/education

Before we can determine the educational need for the "youth" of Masonry, we must first decide which specific "youth" group we are trying to reach: those who come into our Fraternity at a young age; or those who, regardless of age, are considered youths in Masonry. Surprisingly enough, the educational needs for the most part are basically identical; however, the prelude to their fraternal relationship may differ considerably. Therefore, we need to define or determine our goals in providing Masonic education to those groups. Let's take the first group and attempt to present a brief analysis of the needs of those who come into our Fraternity at the minimum age (in Illinois, this would be 21; in other Jurisdictions, the age varies). With this group, again we have two factions: those with previous exposure to fraternal procedures, ritual, etc.: and those totally unknowledgeable in fraternal organization. Statistics have shown that over the years we have not received a large percentage of input from the young men of DeMolay. Not too surprising when we consider our attitude toward them in the past, best described by a remark made by a Past Grand Master: "We certainly have no future there." When the young man of DeMolay comes into the Fraternity, his background or exposure to ritual and procedures has already been established. Unfortunately, so has his opinion as to the emphasis placed on his ability to memorize rote ritual and to execute precise floor movements. Thus, he has been indoctrinated with the importance of ritualistic ability and floor proficiency and with the fact that if he meets these requirements he will generally be accepted into the "inner circle" and become an active participant in the lodge. Unfortunately, should his desires not run in this vein, he may well find himself just another member left alone to shift for himself, and eventually to drift away. On joining the Masonic Fraternity, again he finds himself overwhelmed with ritual and precision floor work, beautiful and impressive as it may be; and yet, here again, unless he is inclined to this extensive study, he will soon find himself "just another member" left alone and eventually his interest will begin to wane and he, too, will drift away. Herein lies a need and emphasis for a good educational program. The other side of the coin is the youth with no previous exposure, coming in "off the street" so to speak. Here, too, he is exposed to the beautiful impressive degrees, which at the time leave him totally awed and confused, however

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impressed he may be. Again, the opportunity to take part, if he is inclined to the study of ritual and/or floor movements, is extended and teachers or coaches will be assigned to educate him in these functions. Butif not so inclined, then againjust another member left alone, soon to drift away. Again, a need and emphasis for a good educational program. What then can Masonic education do to provide educational progress and material to meet their needs? First of all, we must present an educational program structured to meet the needs of those members who are not ritualistically inclined, who do not care or intend to learn to take part in degree conferral, who could care less, so to speak, of past history, but who nevertheless are Masons and desire to do Masons' work. Thus the pattern or first lesson format for us to build our Masonic education program. What is Masons' work? Have we ever attempted to put this teaching into proper perspectivejust what we stand for and what we do? Our ritual, and floor work, and our ancient history, are all important; however, we have placed them in the number one position of importance, forgetting our major goal is to love our fellowman and to help one another. We must get our goalsour purposesin the right perspective. Encouraging the youth Mason, be he young or old of age, to study our current educational material such as Colonial Freemasonry, Signers of the Declaration of Independence, Founding Fathers, etc., is as outdated and ridiculous as asking them to revert back to travel by horse and buggy. This material is excellent for those of us who are interested in Masonic history and desire to study the genealogy of Masonry, but, my Brethren, we are few in number when compared to the educational need of the majority. We must realize that the youth of today DO NOT view the world as our forefathers viewed it, and are much more concerned with what is happening today than what happened 100 to 200 years ago. We do not minimize the importance of our Masonic history and heritage, but we are saying that it is not looked on by all in the same light nor does it fill the need for Masonic knowledge required by the young man of today. For too many years we have ignored the needs of this group and now it will take time to acquaint them with our sincere desire to accept them and welcome them into the Fraternity, and to provide for their educational needs. In visits to sister Grand jurisdictions, a universal challenge exists in most of themloss of membership and a decline in lodge attendance and interest. To digress for just a moment, last November we exercised the right of every American to go the polls and vote for a candidate of our choice to lead our great country. The newspapers for several days afterwards contained statements from defeated candidates to the effect that they didn't have a strong enough organization to campaign properly, they needed more money, and the excuses went on and on. Not once did the man admit that he was not doing what the people, his people, wanted, or that his program did not meet the need of his constituents. Aren't we doing the same thing in our Masonic Fraternity? We blame loss of membership on lack of interest, joining other organizations, TV, movies, and everything but our own inability to meet the needs of

CHILTON COUNTY ASHLAR

MEETING A YOUNG MANS NEED (Cont) By E. Gene Ross, Deputy Grand Master of Illinois http://www.masonicworld.com.education

the members. Let's take a good hard look at ourselves. If we think for one minute that we can function today with methods, and especially educational programs, geared to standards of 100 years ago, we are wrong. If our minds are closed to modernization, to structuring our programs to meet the needs of today, then all the talk and good intentions in the world will be to no avail. Now if you are still reading this, it means you are interested in doing something about it. We would propose this: Gear up our educational programs to provide leadership data to lodge officers. (In Illinois we have a great publication, Advancing Toward the East.) Provide material on fiscal management for lodge officers, management of lodge business. Provide educational material for the Mason who isn't a ritualist but wants to do something. Provide programs on how to help your community; what projects could and should be undertaken by a lodge; education programs to encourage charitable involvement to help the less fortunate; educate the youth Mason in what to tell his friends so he doesn't violate any antique laws of his Grand Lodge but can create a desire in his friends to become a part of this great Fraternity. We lose young members, and old members, because they joined our Fraternity to become a part of doing good to and for mankind. But after joining, if all they are subjected to is the conferring of the same degrees over and over, then they will look elsewhere, be it Lions, Elks, Moose, or some other civic group who are doing something for their fellowman. To tell a man our purpose is to take a good man and make him better is true, but meaningless unless we educate him as to how we do it, and what should be done to accomplish it, and his part in the overall program. In summary, our program of education needs revision, filled with imagination, enthusiasm and positive action to provide education about the things of today, and the projections of the future. The ancient history of our educational programs must be turned over to the historical personnel for maintenance of the established facts and statistical figures, but the educational programs for our youth must be how to live today and to work and plan for tomorrow. I once hired a man for a custodial position. I took him around and explained all the procedures, the rules, the regulations and briefed him on the history and background of our organization, and showed him the entire area of our operations. At the conclusion of the orientation, I asked if he had any questions and he replied, "What do you pay?" I had missed his most important concern. So, too, are we missing the most important concern of our youth what's in if for me? The good feeling of doingthe reward of selfsatisfaction of being of service to our fellowman. We have the brains, the knowledge, to provide them with guidance, or in plain language, with the knowhow to do it. So let's use our imagination, our enthusiasm, a positive attitude, and get our job done. So, my Brethren, it's as we choosecontinue in the timehonored tradition because we have always done it that way, or will we explore new fields and meet the challenges of youth?

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JANUARY EVENTS 1 8 10 15 16 22 24

EVENTS

New Years Day Clanton 423 Regular Communication Maplesville 706 Regular Communication Stanley Cost 411 Regular Communication Clanton 423 Regular Communication Chilton/Shelby Degree Team Practice Maplesville 706 Regular Communication Stanley Cost 411 Regular Communication

FEBUARY EVENTS 5 12 14 18 19 20 26 28

5 12 14 19 20 26 28 31

MARCH EVENTS Clanton 423 Lodge Birthday/Open Lodge Maplesville 706 Regular Communication Stanley Cost 411 Regular Communication Clanton 423 Regular Communication Chilton/Shelby Degree Team Practice Maplesville 706 Regular Communication Stanley Cost 411 Regular Communication Easter

Clanton 423 Regular Communication Maplesville 706 Regular Communication Stanley Cost 411 Regular Communication Presidents Day Clanton 423 Regular Communication Chilton/Shelby Degree Team Practice Maplesville 706 Regular Communication Stanley Cost 411 Regular Communication

CHILTON COUNTY ASHLAR

A New Tradition at Clanton Lodge #423 By Bro Mike Welborn

On 6 September 2012, Clanton Lodge #423 embarked on a new chapter in this 135 year old Lodge's life CUB SCOUTING! With 6 boys and 10 adults, Cub Scout Pack 423 was officially chartered. Pack 423 will meet on the first Monday of the Month at the Lodge at 7 pm. For more information speak with Bro Mike Welborn. Why Scouting? You may ask? The Boy Scouts of America has a flier that talks about the Boy Scouts and the Masonic Relationship. In it it says: "In serving youth, Masonry and the Boy Scouts of America (BSA): • • • •

Share a similar mission and objectives. Build better youth and future leaders for the community and the nation. Can make more effective use of their shared resources. Provide a positive alternative for young people.

Our future lies with our children, and the challenges and problems they face can often seem insurmountable. Today, more than ever before, young people need the guidance and mentoring of quality adult role models. Masonic lodges and Scouting have worked together in serving youth for more than 85 years. By chartering a Scouting unit, lodge members can provide a positive developmental program for the youth of their community. Becoming a chartering organization can result only in a winwin situation for a Masonic lodge. Specifically, the Boy Scouts of America endeavors to develop citizens who are: • • • • • • • •

Physically, mentally, and emotionally fit Have a high degree of selfreliance as evidenced in such qualities as initiative, courage, and resourcefulness Have personal values based on the Scout Oath and Law Have the desire and skills to help others Understand the principles of the American social, economic, and governmental systems Are knowledgeable about and take pride in their American heritage and understand our nation’s role in the world Have a keen respect for the basic rights of all people Are prepared to participate in and give leadership to American society

The Boy Scouts of America isn’t just talking about having more Scout units associated with Masonic lodges. Scouting was designed to be a resource program for community organizations to use in serving youth. By working together, we can accomplish so much more!" Cub Scouting has distinct, ageappropriate program levels. The Cub Scout program is for boys who are in the first through fifth grades (or 7, 8, 9, and 10 years old). It is: • • •

Homecentered and family building. Filled with fun, action, and adventure to help build fitness, character, and good citizenship traits in boys through family emphasis. A boy’s first experience in growing up as a member of a group.

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New Brothers

An editorila by Bro Mike Welborn

Clanton Lodge 足YOUR Lodge has been extremely busy this year! We have welcomed 5 new brothers and reinstated 1. If you have not taken the opportunity to welcome the following members, please do so as soon as possible!

Initiated: Jason Wayne Baxley Samuel Bots Shannon Welsch

Frank Lee Mims Jeremy Michael Smith

Reinstated: Mark Anthony Jones

CHILTON COUNTY ASHLAR

Masonic Funeral Author Unknown

A new Worshipful Master in a small Georgia town spent the first four days making personal visits to each of the members, inviting them to come to his first Lodge meeting. The following Thursday the Lodge was all but empty. Accordingly, the Worshipful Master placed a notice in the local newspapers, stating that, because the Lodge was dead, it was everyone's duty to give it a decent Masonic burial. The funeral would be held the following Monday afternoon, the notice said. Morbidly curious, a large crowd turned out for the "funeral." In front of the Altar, they saw a closed coffin, smothered in flowers. After the Chaplain delivered the eulogy, he opened the coffin and invited his Brethren to come forward and pay their final respects to their dead Lodge. Filled with curiosity as to what would represent the corpse of a "dead Lodge," all the Brethren eagerly lined up to look in the coffin. Each "mourner" peeped into the coffin then quickly turned away with a guilty, sheepish look. In the coffin, tilted at the correct angle, was a large mirror. Remember the obligation we all took my brethren and attend and support your Lodge!!!

On the Lighter Side An elderly gentleman of 85 feared his wife was getting hard of hearing. So one day he called her doctor to make an appointment to have her hearing checked. The Doctor made an appointment for a hearing test in two weeks, and meanwhile there's a simple informal test the husband could do to give the doctor some idea of the state of her problem. 'Here's what you do," said the doctor, "start out about 40 feet away from her, and in a normal conversational speaking tone see if she hears you. If not, go to 30 feet, then 20 feet, and so on until you get a response." That evening, the wife is in the kitchen cooking dinner, and he's in the living room. He says to himself, "I'm about 40 feet away, let's see what happens." Then in a normal tone he asks, 'Honey, what's for supper?" No response. So the husband moved to the other end of the room, about 30 feet from his wife and repeats, "Honey, what's for supper?" Still no response. Next he moves into the dining room where he is about 20 feet from his wife and asks, "Honey, what's for supper?" Again he gets no response so he walks up to the kitchen door, only 10 feet away. "Honey, what's for super?" Again there is no response, so he walks right up behind her. "Honey, what's for supper?" "Dad blame it Earl, for the fourth time, CHICKEN!"

CRAFTING FOR THE CRAFT

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There's good science behind Grandma's elixirs for sniffles, sneezes, and other woes. This new section of the Chilton County Ashlar will take you back to yester year when Grandma actually used these rememdies. I will caution you that the editors of this publication have not actually used all of these. Where possible, we will note when we have tried these and also let you know if we have found them to work.

LAUNDRY DETERGENT Editor Note: I have tried this recipie and it works beautifully and the cost savings is enourmous! Give it a try and see for yourself! When we first set out to make our own homemade laundry detergent we thought it would be difficult and time consuming, boy were we wrong! It was actually incredibly fast, easy, and inexpensive. Now, years after making our first batch, thousands of others have tried it and loved the results. Homemade powder soap required only 3 simple ingredients & took around 5 minutes to create, in respect of opportunity cost I abandoned my original idea of brewing a liquid detergent and set my sights on creating the powder variety. What follows is my own personal pictorial tutorial to making homemade powder laundry detergent. Enjoy! Cost Breakdown: Prior to making our own, we were using Arm & Hammer liquid detergent. Here is the breakdown in cost analysis: Note: You only need to use 1 tablespoon of this homemade detergent per load, although you can use 1 – 2 tablespoons for heavily soiled loads) Arm & Hammer® liquid 100 ounce detergent – $6.79 – 32 loads = $0.21 per load Tide® with Bleach powder 267 ounce detergent – $20.32 – 95 loads = $0.21 per load Homemade powder 32 ounce detergent – $2.98 – 64 loads = $0.05 per load As you can see, whether I compare against traditional store bought liquid or powder, I am saving $0.16 per load! Each batch yields approximately 32 ounces (between 3264 loads based on how many Tbsp used per load). 1 bar of shaved bar soap (Ivory, ZOTE, FelsNaptha) 1 cup of borax 1 cup of washing soda Thoroughly stir together for 5 minutes and enjoy the results!