I. , do, in the presence of El Shaddai

and of this worshipful assembly of Fellows of the Craft of Free Masons, Rough Masons, Wallers, Slaters, Paviors,
Plaisterers and Bricklayers here present, promise and de- clare, that I will not at any time hereafter by any Act or circumstance whatsoever, directly or indirectly, publish, dis- cover, reveal or make known any of the secrets, privities, or Councils of the Fellows of the Craft of Free Mason, which at this time, or at any time hereafter shall be made known unto me. That I will not permit or suffer any la- bourer to be employed in the proper work of Free Masonry ; that I will not work with those that are not free, and that I will not teach labourers and unaccepted masons, as I would teach Apprentices, or Fellows of the Craft of Free Mason.
I further promise and declare that I will strictly preserve the honour of all Free Masons of whatever degree; that I will not commit Adultery or Fornication with the Wife, Daughter or Maid of any Free Mason.
The penalty for breaking this great oath shall be the loss of my life.
That I shall be branded with the mark of the Traitor and slain according to ancient custom
Given under my hand and sealed with my lips twice, this day of 191 1.
So help me El Shaddai and the holy contents of this Book.
After the obligation is it said to him, "Rise, Accepted Fellow of the Craft of Free Mason." Then the signs of a Fellow are given. They are the same as the Speculatives except that in the second sign the hand is held flat. The word is "Bonai." This word proves he is a Fellow of the Craft and means Builder. The traditional History is now recited to him by the First Master Mason.
"The Traditionai, History."
"Good Fellow of the Craft of Free Mason, you having been passed as a Fellow of this Ancient and Worshipful Fraternity, it is our purpose to tell you how and in what manner this worthy Craft of Masonry was begun, and after- wards how it was kept by worthy Kings and Princes, and bv many other worshipful men.
"Before Noah's flood there was a man that was called Lamech, and this Lamech had two wives, the one called Adah, and the other Zillah. By his first wife Adah he gat
two sons, the one called Jabal and the other Jubal. And by the other wife Zillah he gat a son Tubal-Cain, and a daugh- ter Naamah, and these four children founded the beginning- of all the crafts in the world. The eldest son Jabal founded; the craft of geometry, he had sheep and lambs in the fields,, and was the first mason who wrought houses and walls of" stone. And his brother Jubal founded the craft of music, song of mouth, harp, organ and trumpet. And the third' son Tubal-Cain found out the Smith's craft of working im gold, silver, copper, iron and steel, and all manner of forg- ing. And the daughter Naamah found the craft of weav- ing. These four children knew well that God would do- vengeance for sin, either by fire or water, wherefore they wrote the sciences that they had founded on two pillars of stone that they might be found after either fire or flood. The one pillar was m.ade of marble for that it cannot bum with fire, and the other pillar was made of stone called Laternes, for that it cannot drown in any water. Our in- tent is to tell you truly in what manner these stones were- found, on which were written these sciences.
"After the destruction of the world by Noah's flood, the- great Hermarives, that was Cubies' son, afterwards called Hermes, the father of wisdom, found one of the seven sci- ences written thereon, and he taught them to other men.. The first of the seven sciences is
"GRAMMAR, and that teacheth a man to spell truly and' write truly. The second is
"RHETORICK and that teacheth a man to speak fair and in subtle terms. The third is
"LOGIC'K and teacheth a man to deserne or know truthi from falsehood. The fourth is
"ARITHMETIC, which teacheth a man to reckon and. to count all manner of numbers. The fifth is
"GEOMETRY, and that teacheth a man to mete and' measure the earth and all other things, on which science is- founded Masonry and Architecture. The sixth is called
"MUSIC, and that, teacheth a man the craft of song and' voice of tongue, organ, harp and trumpet. And the seventh' science is called
"ASTRONOMY, and that teacheth a man to know the- course of the sun, of the moon, and of the stars of heaven.
"These be the seven liberal sciences, of the which all be-
founded by one, that is geometry, for geometry teacheth a, man measure, ponderation and weight of all things on earth ; for there is no man that worketh in any craft, but he work- eth by some measure; and every man that buyeth or selleth, buy or sell by some measure or weight, and all this is geom- etry. And the merchants, craftsmen, and all other sciences, and especially the plowmen and the tillers of all manner of grain and seeds, vines and plants, and the setters of all man- ner of fruit, cannot find mete and measure without geometry, wherefore the said science of geometry is the most worthy, as all the others are founded upon it.
"At the making'of the Tower of Babylon was Masons first made much of, and that great King of Babylon called Nimrod was himself a Master Mason. He loved well the craft and made the Masons Free men and Free Masons in his kingdom. And when the city of Nineveh and other cities of the East were to be built, Nimrod, the King of Babylon, sent thither sixty Lodges of his Free Masons to Ashur the King of Nineveh, his cousin, and when he sent them forth he gave them a charter and a charge after his manner."
Then the Second Master gives "the Charge" :
Charges of Nimrod," 2°.
"That the Free Masons shall be true to El Shaddai, their King, their Lord, and their Masters.
"That they shall truly serve their masters for their pay, so that their masters have worship, and all that belongeth to them.
"That they shall ordain the most wise and cunning men to be masters of the v/ork, and neither for love, riches nor favour set another that hath little cunning to be master of any work whereby the Lords should be ill served, and the science dishamed.
"That they shall be true one to another, and that they shall live truly together.
"That they shall assemble together once every year, to see how they might best serve the King, and the Masters, for their profit and their own worship.
"That they shall correct within themselves those that had trespassed against the craft so the worthy science be not dishonoured.
"To all these charges he made them swear a great oath that men used at that time, and he ordained for them reason- able pay whereby they might live honestly.
"Ivong after, when the Children of Israel were come in- to the Land of Beerhest, that is now called amongst us the country of Jerusalem, King David began to prepare the ground and the stone for the Temple of Jerusalem. And the same King David loved well the Free Masons and cher- ished them much, and gave them good pay — and the charges right nigh as they be now.
"And after the decease of King David, Solomon, that was King David's son, performed out the Temple that his father had begun and he sent for Free Masons into diverse countries and lands and gathered them together so that he had four score thousand workmen that were workers of stone and were all Free Masons, and he chose of them three thousand three hundred that were ordained to be Masters and Governors of his works.
"And this same Solomon confirmed both the charges and manners that his father had given to the Masons, and thus was that worthy Craft confirmed in the country of Jerusa- lem and in many other kingdoms."
ANCIENT CHARGE.
To THE Fei-LOw q]? the Craft op Free Mason.
1. I am to admonish you to honour El Shaddai in his holy Church ; that you use no Heresy, Schism and Error in your Undertakings, or discredit Men's Teachings.
2. To be true to our Sovereign Lord the King, his Heirs and lawful Successors; committing no Treason, Mis- prision of Treason, or Felony ; and if any Man shall commit Treason that you know of, you shall forthwith give Notice thereof to his Majesty, his Privy Councellors, or some other Person that hath Commission to enquire thereof.
3. You shall be true to your Fellows and Brethren of the Science of Masonry, and do unto them as you would be done unto.
4. You shall keep secret the obscure and intricate Parts of the Sc'ence, not disclosing them to any but such as study and use the same.
5. You shall do your Work truly and faithfully, endeav-
curing the Profit and Advantage of him that is Owner of the said work.
6. You shall call Masons your Fellows and Brethren, without Addition of knaves, or other bad Language.
7. You shall not take your Neighbor's Wife villinous- ly, nor his Daughter, nor his Maid or his Servant, to use un- godly.
8. You shall not carnally lye with any Woman that is belonging to the House where you are at Table.
9. You shall truly pay for your Meat and Drink, where you are at Table.