What Masonry Is

At the Maeomic Temple ded catión at Kalamazoo, on Wedmesday, Nov. 14,-Ol, Past Grada Master J. W. Mciralh, (.'hief Just'ce of the Supreme Court of tliis stilte, del.veted tlie principal addrese. Among the numerous word pdctures during the address was the following : I carne across the other day tliis benutiful remlniscence of Parepa Rosa : "Sattoted with praise, Parepa Rosi drew her fur rap around her shoulders and tepping froni the private entrance of the Grand, was about to enter her carriage, when, 'Please, mi lafli, in low, pleading accents, arrested her attention. It was only the shrunken, misshapen form of little Elfiai, the Italian strest singer, with his old A-iolin under Uis arm ; but the face upturaed in the gasl glit, tJiough pale and pinched, was as delicately cut as a carneo, wh le the eager, wistful light in the great brilliant eyes, the quiver of entreaty in soft Italian volee, held her for a moment against her escort's endeavor to save her the annoyance of hearing a beggar's plea. 'Well !' &aid the g-reat elnger, half iinpati-ent, yet full of pity. -Would mi ladi please,' in sweet, broken English, and the slender brown hands of the dwarf held up a fragvant white l.ly, with a orystal drop in its gilden heart. 'Do j-ou mean this lovely flower forme?' A passionate gesture was her answer. Taking the llower Parepa Rosa beat her stately head. 'Yoti heai-d me sing ?' 'Mi ladi, I hid vuidor the stair. 'Twas yesterday I h-eard the voice. Oh, mi lad!, mi ladi, I conld die !' Tlie words came brokeiily from quivering Iipe, passionately in earnest. The loud voice of the world she had just left had never shown Parepa Rosa the power of her grand voice as ahe saw it now in these soft, darl eyes aflame, and in the sobb!ng, broken words, 'Mi lad', oh ! mi ladi- I could di.' 'Child,' and her vo;ce trembled, 'meet me here to-niorrow at 5,' and holding the lily caressingly to her cbeek, she stepped imfco her carriage and was driven away. It was Parepa Eosa's last night. In a box near the etage sat little Elfin, like one entranced. Grandly tlie olear voice swelled its triumphant chords and rang amid arches with unearthly power and sweetness. The slight frame of the boy swayed and shook, and a look so wrapt, so intense, came on h:s face, you knew hls very heart was st lied. 'rhen tliie wondraus voice tlw-Jled KOftly, like tJie faint eound of bugles in tlie early mom ; again its sweetness stole over you like lie dfetaait chimes of vesper lells. Encoré after encoré followed. The curtaün rolled up for tlie last time, and as smply as possible the manager told the audience oí liistnight's incident and announced tliMt Parepa Eosa's farewell to them wo'uld be the eknple bailad warbled many a bitter day through the city streets by little Elfim, the Italian musician. Icnag and prolonged vas the applanse, and at tlie first pause, sweepUfx in witii i-oyal gi-ace came our queen of song. At her breast waa the fragrant lily. Queen too, by right of her beautiful, unstained ivomanhood, as well as by the power o-f her sublime voice, she stood a moment, then sang clearly and softly the bailad Avitli its i-eíraia, 'Farewell, sweet land.' Accompanying her came the low, sweet wail of l:ttle Elfin's violin. Tliere was silence in that gi-eat house at the close, then a Rhotit went up that shook the mfghty pillar. To-day little Elfin is groat and famous and they cali him to play before princess. Parepa Eosa ! God called tJiee in thy perfect womanhood, but thy voice lires in our hearts, and at tlie last great day, it sJiall be wrltten in sli.niiig' lettere on thy name : 'In.iMimeli as ye did it unto the least oï these, ye did it unto me.' How littl'e Parepa Rosa did, yet liow mucli was done ! That net of hers was as clearly Masonic as though slie had been adm.tted to all the mysteries ol the Easttern vStar ; it was as purely Olirlstian as tliough she had touched the hem of the Maeter's g-arment. John Hall lias said, "kind words, kind loóles, kinds acts aaid warm hand shakes, these are the secondary means of gi'axie wlien men are im tiMDuWe and are fightng tbeir unseen battle." Wliat a fortune lies in a Avord of sympatliy or enpouragement ; the worla is full of rttl'e "Eilins," Avho need synijiatliy, ejicouragement, reoognition, the giving of whleh worll not impover'sh but would enrioh the j g'iver. One of the lovliest scènes 'n nature one which s?ts at def anee the arti Ist's pene 1, is that of a babe tr.k'ng its f!rst losson in (ie aj-t of walking ; mot her, father, sisters, brothers ama friends urrouml h'm ; whose very presence iusp'res conüdence. He Is . ►liseious n.nil proud of hs achievements ; they are anxious for hs progresé and tlous íor his saíety ; tlieir hands in nlini;,-u-y perhaps, are stretched out to protect hkn ; every ! movemejit -is watt-lied and guarded. MethtakS tliat Ui be.Ht wlsli tliat couU be expresesd for that cliild would he, that alomg life's journey there might be as anx'ous eycs upon liini, as wilü.ig liaaids outetretched for liis protect on. We never oulg-row the necessity for the interest oí others in our welfare. How niainy bumps could be saied, liow many shoals avoided, how many daingers averted, how raaiiy human lei.ngs Kaved from wreek and d saster, if 1-oving anxious cyes were stretched out all aloug1 tlie rough and rugged patliway of life to keep us from falling. We have myriads of churches and numbei'less creeds In the world, and have ajiy amount of sympathy wliich shedteiirs over the trials and sufferings of an imaginaj-y heroïne in a novel, or prays for the relief of the heathen im India or Japan, but pays no lieed to the poor widowed washer-woman across the Street, or the poor laborer out of work with h,s family of slx children 'around the conier. -T'he great meed of the times is practical sympathy between all classes of society ; more humaji'ty ; more men like W.lborfo'rce, Howard .■nul ('ooper ; more women like Mss Nlgivfclngale or Parepa Rosa ; more tfMidpmoss ; more love ; more practical Cliristianity. The genera! admiseion to the Frieze Memorial Concert, "without reserved seat is Spl. Tlie boards wiM be cloeed Friday afternoon, Dec. 13, at 5 o'c'.ock. Gov. Rich and wlfe, together Tviith the governor's entire military staff, will be present. There wjL1 ,also be a large number of Detroit ,people iiere, and many from otlier citré. Gov. Rich had to decline two otlier invitat'ons to be present on this occasion, but the great organ brought him. The arrangement are being ' rapidly perfected, nndjthe occasion will certainly be the great vent of the year. A copy of the Wichita, Kas., Daily Eagle reaches us with a reniinder that Chairlie is still wide awake in that western city. In a long account of a niagnificent banquet given 'by the Scottish Rite Masons of that place, occurs this sentence : ■'Charles M. Jones, one of the brightest lághts in Scottish Rite Hasonry, in tliis section oi the country, and one of the most zeaLous supporters of the Masomcc ord&r tn this city, was the toast ïna.stoi-, and as such he aistinguJehed himself in the happy manner ,with whlch he preseuted the vai lloixe toasts and Lntroduced the speakers." Tluough the uoitiring efforts of the Lidies oí Ypeilantl, headed by Mrs. Judge Babbitt, the smn oí $1,000 has been raised by them to secure a like sum offered by Mrs. Starkweatlier of that place, wltb. whlch to erect a s.oldiers' monument. 'Tlie lad es now have a certifeate of deposit calling for $2,000, and are still at work for moa-e, so that thu monument, when it shall be erected, w.ll be Bomewhat commonsurate with the sa er fices made by the brave and noble men who wout at their country's cali, a,nd cemented this un'on together Avitli their blood. It would be very much to the credit of the patriotism of Aim Arbor jieople, coiüd they do a sin, l.ir Iliiu.-. If the fathers, husbands, brothers and lovers of 1861 could glwe their lives for their country, surely the people of to-day ought willingly to Kive of their abundance I to erect a monument m the very licart of the city, telling to all the generatkuns that come of that heroic saciifice. Thcre are many Aan Arbor boys sleeping in unknown graves oo southern battle fields. Shall the valor of their deeds, the memory of their heroism perteh trom among us, or only be handed down from lip to lip through all these years to come ? Or will so.me brave, country-loring heart be. moved to take the lead in this matter, and not wrary in the work niilil a noble monumpiit be raised lloro to tlie memory of Ann Arbo:-'s dead horos ?