Lodge," says *

The Lodge No. 30, Stirling, is likely to be the same that was represented on the second of the St. Clair charters of A.D. 1628 circa, as 'The Ludge of Stirlinge,' and, if so, dates long before the year 1708, ascribed to it in the Calendars." And this is further borne out by the fact that an old document which the members had always considered to be their charter, and kept framed in the Lodge, but which they could not decipher, proved, on examination by Bro. Hughan, to be a copy of the "Old Charges," transcribed about 1650 from a much older scroll, and so affords a still further proof of a much greater antiquity than usually assigned to this. Lodge.

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These "Old Charges are the rules of our ancient brethren, generally written on long rolls of vellum, and were first given due prominence by Bro. W. J. Hughan in a most able work published in 1872, and so many more copies have since been discovered in England and Scotland that our zealous brother is preparing a new edition of the work, carefully brought up to date, which we strongly advise all our reading brethren to procure and peruse diligently. The earliest of these rolls has been named the Regius MS.," and dates from about the fourteenth century, but as they are all more or less similar, it will be more interesting to our Scottish brethren if we transcribe one of those preserved in Scotland to show their general character, so we decide on that known as "Melrose No. 2," not because it is the oldest existing in that country, for there are the "Kilwinning MS.," circa 1665;. the "Atcheson-Haven MS." of 1666; and the "Aberdeen MS." of 1670, whereas "Melrose No. 2" is of 1674; but because it represents the oldest text known in Scotland, being copied from a MS. of at least 1580, as is shown by a

* Transactions of the Lodge Quatuor Coronati, 1893, page 108.

copy of a certificate of 1581 granted to an apprentice, and transcribed at the end of the MS. It is as follows:*

"CHARGE.

"WITH ye might of ye father of Heaven with ye wisdome of Ye glorious sone, and through ye Goodness of ye holy Ghost that be thrie persons in one Godhead, be with us at our beginning and give us grace as to Instruct us heir in our beginning that we may come to his bless that never shall have an end Amen. All Brethren and felloues our purpose is to teach you and what maid ye science of Masonrie to begin and after found out by worthie King PRIAMUS and by many other Worshipfull meu, also to these that be heir present we will Declare ye charge for every treu mason to Keip in faith which is worthie to be keipit in masonrie for a worthie sienc. For ther is VII. Liberall siences, of ye which ye names of them be these, Ye first is GRAMMAR and that teacheth a man to speake truely and write truely. Ye second is RHETORICK and that teacheth a man to speake fair in some terms. Ye third is LOGICK and that teacheth a man to Deserne truth from falsehood. Ye fourth is ARITHMETICK

and that teacheth a man to reckon all kind of numbers. Ye fifth is GEOMETRIE that teacheth a man to mette the height breadth lenth and thickness of all things. The sixth is MUSICK that teacheth any man the sience of sound of voice toungue, organ, harp, and trumpett. The seventh, ASTRONOMIE that teaches a man to know, ye course of ye sun ye moon and starrs. These be ye sevin liberall sciences the which seven be all found by ye science that is Geomectrie, and a man may prove that all ye sciences in ye world was found out be Geometrie for Geometrie teaches a man to mett misur pounds ratiat and weight of all things in ye earth for there is no man that worketh any science, but he worketh by some weight or measur and no mau that buyeth or selleth but by some weight and measur, and all this is GEOMETRIE, these merchants and all other Chrystian men and all other ye 7 sciences, and especialie plowmen and tillers of ye ground for all manner of grains seeds and vines and for all setters, sowers and planters of other fruits, for by Grammar, neither Astronomie nor none of the Seven Liberall sciences can no man find, met, or misure wt out GEOMETRIE therefore ye science was first begun * Vide " History of Freemasonry in Roxburghshire," &c., by Bro. W. Fred Vernon (London, 1893), page 51.

before Noah's flood.

Ther was a man call LAMECH as it is written in the fourth Chapter of Genesies verse 19 Lamech took unto him two wyffes, ye name of ye one was ADAH and ye name of the other was Zillah verse 20 and Adah bare Jaball: he was the father of such as dwell in tents and of such as have cattell, verse 21 and his brother's name was Tuball, he was the father of such as handle ye harpe and organe, verse 22 and Zillah shee also bare TUBALL CAIN and Instructur of every artificer in Brase and Iron and ye sister of Tuball Cain was Naamah, and thes four children found found ye beginning of all science in ye world, and ye elder sone Jaball found out Geometrie and he parted, flooks of sheip and lands in ye fields and first wrought houses of stone and it is noted in ye chapter forsaid that his brother TUBALL found ye scienc of musick, toung, song, organe and harpe, The third brother TUBALL CAIN found the scienc of Gold and Silver, Copper, Irone and Steill and ye Daughter NAAMAH found the scienc of weiving, and these children knew weill that God wold take vengeance for sine either by fyre or watter, therefore they wrot Ye Sciencs they had, in two pillers of stone that they might be found after Noah's flood, ye one stone was MARBLE for it would not burne with fyre, ye other is called Latterus for it wold sinke in no watter. Our Intent is to tell you how, and in what manner these stones was found, that these sciences was written in. Great HERMINES that was *[Cubes son] ye which *[Cube] was Shems sone, he was Noahs sone. This same HERMINES afterwards called HERMES ye father of wisse men, he found ye two pillars of stone and ye sciences written on them, and he taught to other men at ye building of ye Towre of Babylon, them was Massons much mad of and ye King of babylon height Menbroke was a masson himself and loved weill ye science as it is with all ye Masters of that art, and when ye Cittie of* [Nineve] and other Citties in ye East should be mad, Membroke King of Babylon sent 21 masons together at ye *[request] of ye King of NINEVER his Cusin, and when he sent them forthe, he gave them charge on this manner, that they should be treu, on to another, and that they should live ireully together and that they sould serve ther Lord treuly for ther pay, so that ther Master may have worshipe and all that love him. Another charge he gave unto them and this was ye first tyme that ever Massons had charge of this science. Moreover when ABRAHAM and Sarah his wyff went into Egypt, and ther he taught ye VII siences ty the Egiptianes, he had a worthie scholar

* Blank in original, but filled in from another MS.

EUCLYDE and he learned right weill and was a Master of the sevin Liberal sciencs and in his dayes it beffell that the Lords and states of the Realm had so many sones, that they had some by yr wyffes and some by other Ladyes of the Land, for that Land is a hoot and plentifull land of generation, and the had no competent living for their children, wherefore they had much caire, and then the King made a far Counsell and parliament to know how they might provid yr children honestly like Gentlemen, and they could find no maner of way and they did make a proclamation throughout all ye land, if yr wer any man yt could informe them, that they should come to them and he should be rewarded for his Travell, after that this proclamation was maid then cam this worthie clerk Euclyde and said to ye King and to all his great Lords if that they may live honestly as gentlemen under condition, that you wil grant me commission that I may have power to rule them after ye maner of ye scienc, and ye King and all his Lords granted and sealed his Comision, and then ye worthie Doctor took to him his Lords sones and taught them ye scienc, GEOMETRIE in practise for to work in stones all manner of worthie works that belongeth to buildings as tempels, castels and toures, and he gave them a charg in his manner. The first was that they should be true to ye King and to ye Lord that they serve, and that they should love on another, & yt they should call one another brother or felow & not his servant nor slave nor by any uncomely name & that they should Duly Descerve y' pay of their Lord and Master, and that they should ordain the wisest of them to be over yre Lord's work, whereby yre Lord might be weill served and they commended, and also yt they should call the goverignour of yr work Master so long as the served him, and many other more yt wer too long to recite, and to all thes charges they maid them sweare a great oath, yt men used to swear in those dayes, and ordained them a reasonable pay that they might live honestly & also yt they should assemble together onc in ye yeir, yt they might serve y Lord for his profit and yr owne worship, and to keip count wt in themselues, for him yt hath trespassed againest ye scienc, and thus was ye science groundit y' and that worthie Master EUCLYD, gave it the name of GEOMETRIE, and now it is called throughout all the land Massonrie, long after ye children of Israll cam out of ye Land of Egept yt is called among us ye contrey of Tarkyn and the same King DAVID loved Massons weill chirished them and gave them good pay and he gave them charge as he had learned in egypt by artificers and other charges more yt you shall hear afterwards. and after ye

desyce of King David, Solomon his son performed ye Temple yt his father had begun, and he sent for Massons into Divers Contreyes and gathered them together, so that he had fourscor thousand workers of ston & were all named massons, and he chuse out of them 4000 that wer ordained to be Masters of his work. and furthermor ther was a King of another Land called HIRAM, he loved King Solomon, and gave him timber for his work, and he had a son yt was a Master of Geometrie, and he was cheuse Mr of all ye Massons, and he was Mr of all carving and he was Master of all manner of Massonrie, that belonged to the Tempell and this is witnessed in the Byble I Kings 5th Chapter and this same Solomon confirmed both Charges and manners that his father had given to massons, and thus that worthie SCIENCE of Masonrie is confirmed in ye country of Hiram, and in many other Contreyes, and these craftsmen walked about in Divers Contreyes some by use of learning mor knowledge, and some to teach them that had but litell, and it befell that y' was a curious masson called NAMIOS that had been at ye building of SOLOMON'S TEMPLE, and come into Franc & there he taught ye scienc of Massonrie to french men, and there was of regallyne of france that height CHARLES MARTELL he was a man yt loved weill such a scienc and he Drew to this Namois Greitius abovesaid, and learned ye scienc and Laid upon him ye Charge and ye maners and afterward by ye grace of God was elected to be KING of FRANC, and when he was in this state he tooke meassons and maid massons that wer none and set them in worke and gave them both the charg, manners, and good pay, as he had learned of other masons and confirmed them a Chartor from year to yeare and should assemble wher they would, he cherished much and so came this science of MASSONRIE into FRANC and Ingland, in all this time there was no charge of Massonrie knowin in Ingland till sainot Allbons tyme, and in his tyme ye King of Ingland was a pagon and he did wall ye tower that is called Sanot Albans. And Sanot Albons was a worthie Knight and Stewart of ye Kings House and had goveranc of all ye realm & also of ye building of ye tower walls and loved weill the massons and Cherished much & made yr pay right good for he gave them iis vi in the weike and to others that were none he gave iij' in ye weike and befor that tyme throughout all ye land, a mason had but a penny a day and his meat untill Sanot Albons amended it, and got them a CHARTOR from the kings general counsall to assemble together and was yr himself, and maid masons and gave them ye charge as you shall heirafter heare. Right affter the Decease of