The first printed evidence of the introduction of Freemasonry in America is found in the "Pennsylvania Gazette" of December 8th, 1730, published by Benjamin Franklin. It is as follows: "As there are several lodges of Freemasons erected in this province, and people have been lately much amused with conjectures concerning them, we think the following account of Freemasonry from London will not be unacceptable to our readers." This is followed by a letter on the mystery. But, if the testimony of intelligent travellers can be accepted, it seems quite evident that lodges of Freemasons were in existence among the American Indians centuries prior to this time, all of which point to a Welsh origin. They certainly had private societies, which met at certain times, and the proceedings of which were kept inviolably secret under an oath.
Governor De Witt Clinton believed that the signs of Freemasonry were found among the Indians. He was an eminent member of the craft himself, and was as familiar with its history, government, rules, and signs as any person of his time. In an interview that he had with an Indian preacher, the latter unmistakably made revelations which convinced the former that he was familiar with the order. This Indian said that he had obtained this knowledge from a Menomonie chief.
There was one order among the Iroquois consisting of five Oneidas, two Cayugas, two St. Regis, and six Senecas. The period of their meeting could never be ascertained. These private societies were not confined to the Iroquois, but seem to have extended among all the tribes. Their rules of government and the admission of members were the same as among the whites. No one could be received as a member of the fraternity except by ballot, and the concurrence of the whole body was necessary to a choice. They had different degrees in the order. Their ceremonies of initiation were remarkable, and the mode of passing from one degree to another would awaken astonishment among civilized Masons.
Whence did they originate? There was a long period in Europe when the knowledge of Freemasonry was mostly confined to the Druids, and in Wales this order was the most generally found. It was their home. There they had their colleges and schools of learning. They were, indeed, priests, legislators, and historians. Through their order the principles of the mystic craft were preserved throughout Europe. It was associated with the later system of Bardism; and when under James the First there was such a revival of the order, and it began to spread with such rapidity, embracing all classes, from the king on his throne down to his humblest subject, it was known that its deepest roots were struck in the soil of Wales. Madoc, the son of a king, and surrounded by a heroic band of eminent men, could not be ignorant of the principles of Freemasonry, and when they landed in America they brought those principles with them, to be afterwards imparted to such of those with whom they mingled as to offer material means of safety. There are not wanting instances where the lives of many whites have been spared by the Indians because they understood certain secret signs communicated to them.
CHAPTER XV. THE WELSH LANGUAGE AMONG AMERICAN INDIANS.
An eminent modern linguist has said "that the genealogy and antiquities of nations can be learned only from the sure testimony of their languages." Admitting the correctness of such a statement, though it does not possess axiomatic accuracy, it may furthermore be added, that the discovery of portions of a language among other distant nations, separated by a vast ocean, and differing in race, language, habits, and conditions of life, surely indicates that some who spoke that language must have brought it there. It may be urged that distant resemblances have led enthusiastic philologists in support of their cause to imagine a similarity in the form and sound of certain words, when, in fact, those words are entirely different in meaning. Instances of this kind have occurred in the study of the European languages. But when it is found that an identity exists in (1) the form, (2) the sound, and (3) the signification, and that, too, in multiplied instances, there is reason to believe that this identity does not rest on accident or coincidence. The student of language searches for some more satisfactory solution of the question, by ascertaining, if possible, how those portions were introduced.
Now, this is just the case with the Celtic language found among the Indian dialects. From New England to South America, Celtic words have been found whose structure, pronunciation, and signification were the same as those in use by the Gaels, Erse or Irish, and Welsh. Names of tribes, persons, places, rivers, and of many living and inanimate objects on the American continent, have been applied, and are now used, which can find their right place only by assigning to them a Celtic origin. This very soon came to be observed by all Europeans who arrived in the country, and some set themselves diligently to work to find out the cause. Some said that was not to be wondered at,—the finding of Celtic words among Americans,—for undoubtedly the Celts have been very widely spread over the globe. This, however, was too general an affirmation to satisfy others. The celebrated Bishop Nicholson believed that the Welsh language formed a considerable part of the languages of the American nations. Sir Thomas Herbert, who published his travels in London in 1683, has given a list of words taken from the Indian dialects, which have an undoubted Welsh origin: groeso, "welcome," gwenddwr, "white or limpid water," bara, "bread," tad, "father," mam, "mother," buch or buwch, "cow," llwnog, "fox," coch y dwr, "a red water-bird," clugjar (American, clugar), "partridge." Some doubt the derivation of "penguin" from pengwyn, because it is thought that "white head"—its literal meaning—would be a misnomer when applied to the American penguin. By no means. As it stands on its short legs it presents a white front from its head and exposed breast, and might very well have received this appellation. There is some similarity in the name of a once powerful chief who lived in New England to that of Madoc, viz., Madokawando,—Madoc and gwrando, "to listen" or "to be obedient to," "to submit to or follow." The guttural g in the Welsh language is often dropped, especially before a vowel. Take the Welsh verb gallu, "to be able," or the noun gall, "energy, might," and by the omission of the letter g the words will stand allu, all. U is sounded like e in English, hence allu would be pronounced alle. Alligeni (Alleghany) is a compound word, composed of allu, "mighty," and geni, "born," or "mighty born." This is the name of the people who once dwelt along the immense range called by that name, and were displaced by the powerful nations, particularly the Iroquois, who came from the northwest. Potomac has a more evident Greek origin, for its word for "river" is potamos. Pontigo seems to come from pont, "a bridge," and go, "a smith,"—"a smith's bridge." Nanticoke is found in nant-y-cwch, "a curved brook or river,"—a very appropriate designation for that tribe, whether applied prior to their leaving the river in Maryland or after ascending the Susquehanna.
Appomattox—now well known to the world—signifies appwy, "appoint" or "name," and Mattox, "Madoc" or "Mattoc," the latter having the soft Silurian sound; hence, "Madoc's name."