er the bound of life,
Where we lay our burdens down;
Nearer leaving the cross;
Nearer gaining the crown.

But lying darkly between,
Winding down through the night,
Is the deep and unknown stream,
That leads at last to the light.

Father, perfect my trust!
Strengthen the might of my faith;
Let me feel as I would when I stand
On the rock of the shore of death.

Feel as I would when my feet
Are slipping over the brink;
For it may be, I am nearer home--
Nearer now than I think.

The Orator will then pronounce the Eulogium.

Then follows the following, or some other appropriate Ode:

Ode.--Tune: Old Hundred. L. M.

Once more, O Lord, let grateful praise
From ev'ry heart to Thee ascend;
Thou art the guardian of our days,
Our first, our best and changeless friend.

Hear now our parting hymn of praise,
And bind our hearts in love divine;
Oh, may we walk in wisdom's ways,
And ever feel that we are Thine.

Closing.

Worshipful Master: Brother Senior Warden, our recollection of our
departed friends has been refreshed, and we may now ask ourselves, were
they just and perfect Masons, worthy men, unwearied toilers in the
vineyard, and possessed of so many virtues as to overcome their faults
and shortcomings? Answer these questions, as Masons should answer.

Senior Warden: Man judgeth not of man. He Whose infinite and tender
mercy passeth all comprehension, Whose goodness endureth forever, has
called our brethren hence. Let Him judge.

In ancient Egypt no one could gain admittance to the sacred asylum of
the tomb until he had passed under the most solemn judgment before a
grave tribunal.

Princes and peasants came there to be judged, escorted only by their
virtues and their vices. A public accuser recounted the history of their
lives, and threw the penetrating light of truth on all their actions. If
it were adjudged that the dead man had led an evil life, his memory was
condemned in the presence of the nation, and his body was denied the
honors of sepulture. But Masonry has no such tribunal to sit in judgment
upon her dead; with her, the good that her sons have done lives after
them; and the evil is interred with their bones. She does require,
however, that whatever is said concerning them shall be the truth; and
should it ever happen that of a Mason, who dies, nothing good can be
truthfully