further remains had been deposited there. His curiosity had been greatly excited by the discoveries of his workmen, while engaged in collecting soil to fill up the hollows on mount Moriah, and the subsequent reve lation which had been vouchsafed to him respecting it. For this purpose he commissioned three of his chief, and most trustworthy officers," to explore that part of the mountain where the vestiges of ruins had formerly been found; with private instructions to communicate the success of their labours to none but himself. After unwearied toil, accident brought them to the identical spot, as we are informed by the voice of Masonic tradition, where Enoch had built his nine perpendicular arches; and to their great joy, at a considerable depth

15

1 These were Joabert, Giblim, and Stolkin.

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15 This has given rise to a degree, which contains the following legend: -"Whenever the Lodge of Perfection was holden, nine knights of the Ninth Arch tiled the nine arches which led to the sacred vault; the most ancient stood in the arch next to the antechamber of the vault, and so on in regular progression, the youngest taking his station in the first arch, which was near the apartment of Solomon. None were suffered to pass without giving the pass-words of the different arches. There were living at that time several ancient masters, who, excited by jealousy at the honours conferred upon the twenty-five Brethren, deputed some of their number to wait upon Solomon and request that they might participate in those honours. The king answered, that the twenty-five masters were justly entitled to the honours conferred on them, because they were zealous and faithful; and gave them hopes that one day they would be rewarded according to their merits. This answer was not satisfactory; for one of the deputies warmly observed: What occasion have we for a higher degree? We know that the word has been changed, but we can still travel as masters, and receive a master mason's wages.' Solomon mildly replied, that those whom he had advanced to the degree of Perfection, had wrought in the difficult

16

beneath the surface, they discovered the iron ring which that patriarch had appended to the horizontal

and dangerous work of the ancient ruins, had penetrated the bowels of the earth, and brought from thence treasure to enrich and adorn the temple of God. Go in peace, wait with patience, and aspire to perfection by good works. The deputies returned and reported their reception to the masters. These masters, displeased at the refusal, unanimously determined to go to the ancient ruins, and search in the bowels of the earth, that they might have a good pretext for making a reapplication to Solomon for the required honours. The very next morning they removed the cubical stone, and descended into the cavern with a ladder of ropes, by the light of torches; but no sooner had they all arrived at the bottom than the whole nine arches fell in upon them. Solomon hearing of this accident, sent Joabert, Giblim, and Stolkin, to make enquiries into the circumstance. At break of day they went to the place, but saw no remains of the arches, nor could they learn that any one of those who had descended had escaped to tell the tale. They carefully examined the spot, but found nothing except a few pieces of marble inscribed with hieroglyphics; by which Solomon discovered that these pieces of marble formed a part of one of the pillars of Enoch.”

16 The great traveller Clarke discovered in the heart of this mountain a pagan crypt, which he conceives might have been constructed by Solomon, in his dotage, to the honour of Ashtaroth, Astarte, or Venus. "We found upon the top," says he, "the remains of several works, whose history is lost. Among these were several subterraneous chambers, of a different nature from any of the cryptæ we had before seen. One of them had the shape of a cone of immense size, the vertex alone appearing level with the soil, and exhibiting, by its section at the top, a small circular aperture, the only entrance we could find to it; the sides, extending below to a great depth, were lined with a hard red stucco, like the substance covering the walls of the subterraneous galleries which we found in the sandy isle of Aboukir, upon the coast of Egypt. This extraordinary piece of antiquity, which, from its form, may be called a subterraneous pyramid, is upon the very pinnacle of the mountain. It might easily escape observation, although it be of such considerable size; and perhaps this is the reason why it has not been noticed by preceding

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door of stone that covered and concealed the uppermost arch or vault of his subterranean temple." This stone being removed, they descended into the vault, and found a similar opening into a second, and so on till they arrived at the ninth cavern, where at a depth of nearly one hundred feet from the surface they saw 18 The treasures were removed and placed in a secure depository within the king's private chapel, beneath the sanctum sanctorum of the temple, travellers. This crypt has not the smallest resemblance to any place of Christian use or worship. Its situation upon the pinnacle of a mountain rather denotes the work of pagans, whose sacrilegious rites upon high places are so often alluded to in Jewish history." And its peculiar form of a cone, was a symbol of the Paphian Venus, which was the same divinity as the Phoenician Ashtaroth.

17 On this spot Jesus Christ made atonement for the sins of men; to commemorate which event, a Christian church was subsequently erected here, of which we have the following account :-" It is about one hundred paces long, and sixty broad; and is so contrived as to contain under its roof twelve or thirteen sanctuaries, or places reputed to have some particular actions done in them relating to the death and resurrection of Christ. 1, The place where he was derided by the soldiers; 2, where the soldiers divided his garments; 3, where he was shut up whilst they were preparing for the crucifixion; 4, where he was nailed to the cross; 5, where the cross was erected; 6, where the soldiers stood who pierced his side; 7, where his body was anointed for burial; 8, the sepulchre; 9, where the angels appeared to the women; 10, where Christ appeared to Mary Magdalen, &c. The places where these, and many other things relating to our blessed Lord, were transacted, are all supposed to be contained within the narrow precincts of this church, and are all distinguished by so many altars."

18 In a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, by Sir R. Torkington, in 1517, the following entry appears :-" Under the Mounte of Clavery (Calvary) ys a nother chapell of o' blyssyd Lady and Seynt Jhon Ev'ngeliste, that was callyd Galgatha, and ther ryght under the morteys of the crosse was founde the hede of o' fore father Adam."

which was connected with the palace by a subterranean avenue of arches, supported by pillars;" but the entrance was known to none but the king himself.20

By the erection of this superb temple, King Solomon and his Masons acquired immortal honour." Its riches

19 The old traditions of Masonry relate, that Solomon being afraid the Jews would not retain their faith steadfast in Jehovah, but would apostatise from his worship, and thus cause the destruction of the city and temple, and the captivity of the tribes, he constructed an arched vault, or subterranean passage, leading from beneath the most private apartment of his palace, to a crypt under the holy of holies, that the ark of alliance, and other sacred utensils, might be there preserved from destruction. This vault or passage was divided into nine separate compartments: the first communicating with the palace by a winding or spiral staircase, and the last opening into the sacred crypt. They were constructed by men carefully selected from amongst the Ghiblimites, well skilled in the arts and sciences, particularly in carving and sculpture. They were placed under the direction of Adoniram, and worked only after the common masons had retired from their labours, viz., from nine to twelve at night, that the existence of the passage might remain a secret from all the world, except the three Grand Masters and the four-and-twenty Phoenician workmen.

20 “An American missionary at Jerusalem has been exploring the vaults under the mosque of Omar. He was let down by a rope at midnight, through a well eighty feet deep, and then waded up to the neck in water to the dry ground. He is of opinion that they are not Roman, but are the original crypts of Solomon's temple." (St. James's Chronicle, April 9, 1842.)

21" Then it was that the predominant tribe of Judah lay as a lion, and as a young lion, which no nation ventured to rouse. The Hebrews were the ruling people, and their empire the principal monarchy in western Asia. From the borders of l'hoenicia to the Assyrian confines, from the sands of Egypt to the green hills of Lebanon, and even to the shores of the Persian gulf, the various tribes were subject to the sway of Solomon. The Canaanites, indeed, were not as yet either extirpated or altogether expelled, but they were serviceable and obedient to the king. The Philistines, more civilized and expert

and glory were the theme of universal admiration; and when the fraternity travelled into other countries,22 the knowledge of their having been employed in this magnificent work," was a passport to ready employment

in war than the other natives of the land, were now tributary to him; and the same remark will apply to the Edomites, Moabites, Ammonites, the Nomadic hordes of the desert, and even the Syrians of Damascus. The peace which he cultivated gave prosperity to all classes; and the trade he introduced brought wealth into the country, as well as the arts and sciences, the usual concomitants of a prosperous commerce. Many foreigners, and even sovereign princes were attracted to Jerusalem, to converse with the royal sage, and to see the magnificent buildings which his taste and riches had reared. The regular progress of business; the judicious arrangements adopted to secure the country from invasion and domestic troubles; the army, with its numerous legions, consisting of infantry, horsemen, and chariots; the palaces, the household, and above all, the good order in the administration of affairs, excited in the visitors a degree of admiration not less than they entertained for the wisdom and learning of this distinguished ruler." (Russel. Con. vol. iii. p. 48.)

22 They built Palmyra, the remains of which are described in Addison's Damascus and Palmyra

23 From a passage in the old York lectures, it should appear that the king conferred some privileges on certain of these workmen, who were considered worthy of the distinction. This is the passage:"The middle chambers of each row over the porch were totally dark, except the upper story, and appropriated as repositories for the sacred furniture of the travelling tabernacle of Moses, which was there laid up, hidden from profane eyes, as the ark was in the holy of holies. When the temple was finished, and a short time prior to its dedieation, King Solomon permitted such of the 80,000 Fellowcrafts as had become proselytes to the Jewish faith, to ascend to the upper or fourth row of chambers in the porch, where the most sacred furniture of the tabernacle had been deposited; in the centre of which was the famous middle chamber, which being symbolical of the divine presence, contained the celebrated LETTER which was a symbol of the sacred name."