Member: MeetMeInTheStacks

Thank you for accepting my friends invitation. I hope my profile gave you some new insights into Volney, Jefferson and Franco-American history. I will be glad to answer any questions you might have regarding Volney, his views, or book purchases. All Zee Best, TCW

posted by ThomasCWilliams at 11:28 pm (EST) on Apr 11, 2009

Most interesting! I have not done much research into this subject, and now that you have piqued my interest, I will do so. I wasn't able to pick up the book at the library today as I didn't go downtown, but I saw the librarian at another event this morning, and he is holding it for me. If it's as good as you say it is, I'll have to buy a copy - out of next month's book budget!

posted by johnlilburnfreemason at 9:19 pm (EST) on Apr 1, 2009

And the copy ordered by the HWC Library has also arrived. I am picking it up on Tuesday. We'll compare notes.

posted by johnlilburnfreemason at 7:41 pm (EST) on Mar 25, 2009

I noted that you have a copy of Thycydides in your library. Although I have had several copies over the years (including one in the Great Books of the Western World set), I got a copy of Robert B. Strassler's The Landmark Thucydides this past year. It is an excellent edition, and I can recommend it. The side notes and maps are particularly helpful. I also bought a copy of the same author on Herodotus - which is good, but not as good as his Thucydides.

posted by johnlilburnfreemason at 4:06 pm (EST) on Mar 22, 2009

I just requested a copy of Billington's book online through our local library. It is apparently available, and should be here next week. After I read it I'll get back to you on it with my thoughts.

posted by johnlilburnfreemason at 10:07 pm (EST) on Mar 21, 2009

H.P. Lovecraft: I noted that your reading interest includes the Cthulu Mythos. I purchased a hardbound copy of Lovecraft's complete and unabridged works at Barnes and Noble earlier this year (a limited printing, apparently, because it is no longer available from them). My paperback copies have mostly deteriorated, and I was happy to add this hardbound book to my collection. ISBN 978-1-4351-0793-9.

posted by johnlilburnfreemason at 9:48 pm (EST) on Mar 21, 2009

I have not read James Billington's book, but will try to obtain a copy. A copy of the Melanson book has been ordered by the Henry Wilson Coil Masonic Library in San Francisco for me, and should be here in a week or so. I often borrow a book before buying it so that I'm sure I want to add it to my library.

I have long been interested in conspiracy theories, and particularly as they may affect people's views of Freemasonry. We have an original edition of Proofs of a Conspiracy by John Robison (Edinburgh, 1797 in the Henry Wilson Coil Masonic Library, and I have read that.

According to Gould's History of Freemasonry (Poole Revision, 3rd Edition, 1951, page 261), von Knigge was initiated at Cassel in 1772, and receive the "high Templar Degrees" in 1779 (no citation). According to this same source, Weishaupt was not a Freemason at the time of the organization of the Illuminati on May 1, 1776, but in the early part of 1777 he was made a Mason in the Lodge of Caution at Munich - a lodge of the Rite of Strict Observance. I could find no other references in sources readily available to me on any masonic connection for the other names listed in your posting.

posted by johnlilburnfreemason at 9:45 pm (EST) on Mar 21, 2009

I noted that you added Melanson's book on the Illuminati. I do not have a copy, and have not read it. Do you have any observations on it?

I just got a copy of Weishaupt's 1804 book, Diogenes' Lamp. It is not available in the general book trade because it is a publication of the Masonic Book Club. The original was (of course) written in German, but the English translation isn't too bad. The book is laced with quotations from classical and more contemporary writers - with quotations in Latin, Italian, French and German, as well as in English.

I found a particular passage to be appropriate for our current economic situation: "The morality of those people who want to becomerich because they see unending possibilities in the possession of wealth thus cannot be of the highest and noblest type. 'Lucri odor bonus ex qualibet re' This maxim seems to be the stimulating principle behind every single one of their actions. Whoever discovers so much good in money can let no opportunity pass by to acquire as much money as quickly as possible. They will uninhibitedly ignore every consideration. And thanks to the lethargy inherent in all human beings, the majority will always prefer the more ignoble but quicker paths to riches, where no other counterbalancing forces are in effect." (page 119-120)

posted by johnlilburnfreemason at 12:15 am (EST) on Mar 20, 2009

I just checked out the website you referenced, and it is very interesting. I had not heard of it. I have come to the subject from a political science perspective rather than a "history" perspective, and have not done as much reading in history as I have in the former area. I have a book in my library which I particularly value: Hannah Arendt, On Revolution. It was first published in 1962, but is still an excellent study on the subject. She was particularly interested in why the American Revolution turned out so different from the French Revolution. Her earlier studies in totalitarianism spurred this interest (her 1951 book On Totalitarianism is a classic in political science).

I can appreciate your problem with books in storage. Most of my library is boxed up awaiting the sale of our condo (which in this market may be a rather long time). I recently retired, and my wife and I hope to move to a home with enough room for my library. Until I retired the library was in my office, but now it is in storage in anticipation of a new location.

posted by johnlilburnfreemason at 7:29 pm (EST) on Mar 19, 2009

I first read Schama's book when it came out in 1989 (that is the date in my first edition - not 1991) - just before the 200th anniversary of the French Revolution. As I have not read it in twenty years, I'll have to take another look. The French Revolution is of particular interest to me as I have a fascination with the history of ideas. I noticed that you also have a copy of George Duveau's book, 1848: The Making of a Revolution (translated by Anne Carter). I see you also have a copy of Alistair Horne's The Fall of Paris, which I particularly enjoyed.

You have quite a nice library!

posted by johnlilburnfreemason at 4:16 pm (EST) on Mar 19, 2009