3875 CAIN and his adherents, having been instructed in the sciences of geometry and architecture, by the first mason Adam, built a city, which he called Enoch, after the name of his oldest son. The posterity of Cain, Jabel, Jubal, and TubalCain, not only improved is masonry and geometry, but made discoveries in several other useful arts. See Genesis iv. 17. 20, 21, 22. 2348 The ark, in which Noah and his three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japhet, all true masons, were preserved, built. 2217 Nimrod, the grandson of Ham, and founder of the Babylonian monarchy, built many cities in Shi naar. 2188 Metzaim or Menes, the second son of Ham, carried to Egypt his skill in the masonic art, in consequence of which, many great cities, as Memphis, Heliopolis, Thebes, &c. besides their famous pyramids, and many other magnificent edifices, were afterwards built. 1920 The masonic and other arts, which flourished amongst the Chaldeans, carried out of Chaldea and Assyria, to the Egyptians, by Abraham. 1874 The Israelites built for the Egyptians, two strong cities, Pithon and Raamasis. 1490 During the forty years peregrination of the Hebrews in the wilderness, it pleased the Divine Architect to inspire with wisdom, certain persons, who erected the glorious tabernacle, in which the Schechinah resided. 1451 Joshua, after having finished his wars with the Canaanites, fixed the tabernacle at Shiloe, in Ephraim, ordering the Israelites to serve God, cultivate the land, and carry on the grand design of architecture, in the true Mosaic style. 1252 The city of tyre built, by a great body of Sidonian masons from Gabala, under their grand master and his wardens. 1117 The Phoenicians built the famous temple of Dagon at Gaza, which was afterwards pulled down by Sampson, when 3000 of the Philistian chiefs were slain. 1056 Hiram, king of Tyre, as grand master took upon himself the direction of the craft, erected many new cities and stately edifices in his dominions, and joined the city of Tyre to the temple of Jupiter Olympus situate on an island. 1047 King David, having taken the city of Jebus, and the strong hold of Zion, employed the craft in repairing the walls and public edifices 1012 Upon the death of David, and Solomon's accession to the throne, king Hiram sent a splendid embassy to the new king, which was well received, and laid a permanent foundation of friendship between the two grand masters. 980 Many lodges were constituted, under grand master Solomon, at Jerusalem, who employed 113, 600 masons, exclusive of 70,000 labourers, in building the temple. 972 Solomon's temple finished, and Hiram Abiff*, the principle superintendent of the workmen, mentioned 2 Chron. ii. 13, assassinated. 970 Ninus, who had assisted in building the temple, carried the masonic art into France and Germany. 941 Dresiphon and Archiphron who had acquired the masonic art from some of those employed in the *The tradition with respect to Hiram, king of Tyre, is, that he had been grand master of all masons, but that upon the temple being finished, and before its consecration, upon a conversation with Solomon on various topics, he found that the Great Architect of the universe had inspired king Solomon with wisdom above all other me. He, there. fore, very readily yielded the pre-eminence to Solomon Jedediah, the beloved of God, erection of Solomon's temple, superintended the building of the celebrated temple of Diana at Ephesus. 747 Nabonasser, called also Baladan, was an excellent architect, and greatly encouraged the craft, particularly in employing them in building the famous city Babylon. 740 The Syrians, by the assistance of Solomon's masons, adorned Damascus with a lofty temple, a royal palace, and an altar of most exquisite workmanship. 707 Dejoces, king of the Medes, during a reign of fifty years, constantly engaged the fraternity, and built the cities of Ecbatana, Susiana, and Persepolis. 570 The walls of Babylon, the temple of Belus, a golden image in the plains of Dora, which was 60 cubits high, and 6 broad, and in value about 14 millions of dollars, together with many other stately edifices, were built under the direction of Nebuchadnezzar grand master. 536 Cyrus, founder of the Persian empire, appointed as grand master, for the rebuilding of the temple at Jerusalem, Zerubabel, under the title of Tirshatha. 520 Zoroastes, grand master of the Magi, in Persia, and his disciples, made great progress in geometry and the liberal arts, and erected many splendid palaces and temples in the empire. 316 Pythagoras, a native of Greece, travelled into Egypt and other countries, in which he continued about twenty years, and having acquired the knowledge of geometry and other sciences, on his return, instituted a lodge of free-masons. 510 Ahasuerus, called Artaxerxes Longimanus, appointed Ezra the scribe, to succeed Zerubabel, in the direction of the craft, under whom many synagogues were built in Jerusalem, and in the other cities of Judea. 500 The Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian orders, in architecture, brought to great perfection. 455 Nehemiah, who built the strong walls of Jerusalem, divided his workmen into lodges; but reserved to himself the superintendence of the whole. 408 Sanballet, the Horonite, appointed by Darius Nothus, as grand master, to superintend the building of a splended temple on mount Gerizim near Samaria. 353 Mausolus, king of Caria in Lesser Asia, having died, his wife caused a stupendous monument of 140 feet in height, surrounded by 136 columns of most admirable sculpture, to be erected to his memory *. 332 Democrates an eminent, architect, with a view to encourage the fraternity, prevailed on Alexander the Great, to build a famous city in Egypt, to which he gave the name of Alexandria. 304 Masonry greatly flourished in Egypt, under Ptolemy Soter, at which period Euclid, the celebrated geometrician from Tyre, was one of the most distinguished members of the lodge. 300 The Rhodians employed the famous architect, Chares, to erect the great Colossus at Rhodes, the completion of which, kept him and his craftsmen employed for 12 years †. 284 Ptolemy Philadelphus, king of Egypt, finished the famous tower in the island of Pharos, and carried on several other very splendid edifices, under the superintendence of his grand wardens Dexephanes and Sostratus. 246 Ptolemy, the son of the preceding, whose wardens were his two learned librarians Eratosthenes and Appolonius, erected a library at Serapium, which in time contained upwards of 300,000 volumes, to which, Cleopatra, queen of Egypt, afterwards added 200,000 from the library of Pergamus . This work was performed by the four best masons of the age, Scopas, Leochares, Timotheus and Briax. It is from the name of this, king, that we derive the word mausoleum. This Colossus, may be considered as one of the greatest wonders in the world. It was 70 cubits high, and duly proportioned in every limb, striding over the harbour's mouth, and wide enough to receive ships between its legs. It was thrown down by an earthquake, and lay where it fell for 894 years, when the reigning calif sold it to a Jew merchant, who loaded with it 900 camels, and allowing only 800 pounds to every camel's burden, its weight would have amounted to 720,000 pounds. This immense library was burnt by the ignorant and brutal Saracens, when they took the city of Alexandria, to the irreparable loss of the learned. Bb 207 Masonry greatly flourished at Syracuse, under Archimedes the learned geometrician, architect, and engineer, who was unfortunately slain, when that city was taken by Marcellus, a Roman general. 200 The stupendous wall between China and Tartary, extending in length, upwards of 1500 miles, finished. 190 The Tuscans, who had long imitated the Greeks in arts and sciences, instructed the Romans in the knowledge of masonry ; and about this time, Marcellus erected his famous theatre, with a temple devoted to Virtue, and another to Honour. 55 Julius Cæsar, the grand master of the Roman empire, patronized masonry, not only in his own dominions, but likewise in Great Britain, after he had landed in that country. 37 King Herod, an excellent grand master, sent for the most expert masons from Greece, who with his own masons, built a splendid Grecian temple at Jerusalem, rebuilt Samaria, to which he gave the name of Sebaste, built the cities Antipatris, Phasælis, and Cypron, and the admirable tower of Phasæl at Jerusalem. 29 The emperor Augustus encouraged the craft more than any of his predecessors. Under him and his principal warden, the learned Vitruvius, the pantheon, the bridge of Arminium, the great forom, several temples, and a number of stately public edifices were constructed. After JESUS CHRIST, our blessed Saviour, the Great Architect of the Church, was born at Bethlehem, in Judea, in the 4th year before the vulgar Christian æra, and in the year of masonry 4000. Christ. 34 Tiberius, upon attaining the imperial dignity, became an eminent patron of masons, and banished Ponfius Pilate for his injustice to the blessed Jesus. 70 The emperor Nero, though an execrable tyrant, greatly patronized the fraternity. 80 Upon the return of Titus from the overthrow of the Jewish nation, be employed the craft in building a |