Page 17 - Amo Amass A-muse is some of the fruit of a lifetimes love of Freemasonry - the Lodge of Nine Muses No. 235

Amo Amass A-Muse - Lodge of the Nine Muses 17

further action would have fatal consequences. The Captain, who had been warned of
his eccentricities, advanced with his hat off and, with extreme politeness, explained to
him that the hazards of war had forced him respectfully to solicit his hospitality for a few
days. The Marquis appreciated this approach and opened the barricade. According to the
British reports, they found behind “A man above average height but bent with age. He was
active and much alive. He had regular features with a face bronzed with the sun. He was
in complete Turkish dress having a turban of white muslin, a little soiled, but covered with
precious stones. He wore a crimson sash which held a poniard, the hilt being encrusted
with stones and the scabard of silver filigree. In his right hand he held a spear and in his
left, a small hunting horn.” After a few minutes talk, an armistice was concluded and at the
end of a few days, the host and his visitors were the best of friends. In fact, the Marquis
showed them his dearest treasures,including the miniature of a woman. The old man kissed
it and said with more emotion than logic — “Her Majesty the Empress Marie Theresa.”
His town house had been occupied by the Allied Commission who had done much
damage, amounting to 11,500 Francs in all. Paul attempted to obtain this from the Duke
of Wellington but without success. Disgusted, he immediately sold his home to a Simon
Pick, whose daughter was engaged to the artist, Louis Gallait.
After the treaty of Vienna, Dutch William became the new monarch of the Netherlands.
The position of Arconati as a nobleman was recognised but he was made to understand
that the harnessing of six horses to a carriage was a privilege reserved for sovereigns only.
“That does not matter a bit” - said the Marquis and in future he went about in a coach
drawn by five chestnut horses and a mule!
Towards the end of his life, the extravagances of the old boy took a more philosophic
turn. He slept in a coffin lined with coarse woollen cloth with red brocade hangings. He
died in 1821, as he had lived, in a manner quite unexpected and without fuss. He had an
attack and threw himself on his table, dead.
He was buried at Gaasbeek and its seems that Masonry had made a lasting impression
upon his mind because, according to his wishes, his remains were placed under a triangle
of blue stone. Upon it was engraved an epitaph in three languages, which he had himself
composed, which ran — “The Son of Man is born to Enlighten his Soul for a short
period.” — Truly a remarkable saying!

P.J.D. September 1976