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Article MASONIC BENEVOLENCE IN 1886. Page 1 of 2 Article MASONIC BENEVOLENCE IN 1886. Page 1 of 2 →
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Masonic Benevolence In 1886.
MASONIC BENEVOLENCE IN 1886 .
THE summary we last week gave of the total contributed by Freemasonry to the cause of Charity during the past year , brief though it was , spoke volumes in favour of the Craft , as it shewed a total expenditure of £ 57 . 300 13 s 9 d durinsr the twelve months , on behalf of
those in need of help from their Brother Masons . Of this large total no less a sum than £ 46 , 767 13 s 9 d found its way into the coffers of the three Masonic Charitable Institutions , while the remaining £ 10 , 533 was expended at the monthly meetings of the Board of Benevolence , the number of recipients in the latter case being three hundred and eighty-four .
Compared with the preceding three years the result of the twelve months just concluded does not stand out well ; it being the lowest of the four , as the following figures , which are fche totals of the respective years , shew : 1886 , £ 57 , 30013 s 9 d ; 1885 , £ 64 , 569 2 s 7 d ; 1884 , £ 58 , 07517 s 7 d ;
and 1883 , £ 64 , 669 14 s 3 d . These totals , it will be seen , vary considerably , and it is somewhat curious to mark their alternate up and down tendency , the totals of 1883 and 1885 being within £ 101 of each other , and those of 1884 and 1886 . only varying by less than £ 700 . It maj be remembered that the large excess of 1883 was in great
measure due to the extraordinary efforts then made on behalf of the Boys' School , the receipts of which Institution were so far above the average as to more than account for the difference between the total of thafc year and the one which followed it . Last year , about this time , we were able to report a general increase in the receipts of the Masonic Institutions , and an increased expenditure by the
chronicle a general falling off under all heads , except that of the Board of Benevolence , with the result thafc 1886 gives a total of £ 7 , 268 8 s lOd short of that reached in 1885 ; but at the same time it shews that a sum of £ 57 , 30013 s 9 d was expended during the year in the cause of Masouic Charity . Deducting from the figures given above the amount
annually expended by the Board of Benevolence , we have the following totals as the yearly contributions of the Craft to its three Charitable Institutions : —1886 , £ 46 , 76713 s 9 d :
Board of Benevolence , so much so as to place the total of 1885 within a trifle of that reached in 1883 , when the special circumstance to which we have already referred had so large an effect on the result ; now we have to
1885 , £ 54 , 416 2 s 7 d ; 1884 , £ 48 , 823 17 s 7 d ; and 1883 , £ 55 , 994 14 s 3 d , a total of £ 206 , 002 8 s 2 d for the four years , giving an annual average of upwards of fifty thousand pounds . Of this total the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution received the largest share , its quota being £ 77 , 919 14 s 3 d ; the Royal Masonic Institution for Boys comes next , with £ 68 , 218 9 s 5 d ; and then the Royal Masonic Institution for Girls brings up fche trio , with £ 59 , 864 4 s 6 d .
It is not necessary to devote our space on the present occasion to further comparisons as to what has been done in the past , the figures we have quoted above are sufficient for all purposes , what we have to study more particularly
at the present time is the future , and the outlook is sufficient to cause anxiety , while it calls for the most strenuous efforts from all who take an interest in the causa We
have shewn that during the past four years upwards of two hundred and six thousand pounds have been subscribed by the Masons of England in support of the three Charitable
Masonic Benevolence In 1886.
Institutions associated with the Graft , and nearly the whole of this sum has been expended within the same period . It has not been a question of cutting down current expenditure , so as to lay up a large store for the future , but a continued extension of operations , with a corresponding
increase of liability ; and this liability is , as we have frequently pointed out , virtually of a permanent character , for however much we may add to the benefits annually dispensed by the Institutions , we must never think of curtailing them ; the cry must ever be forward , never back .
We must therefore be prepared to raise , in round figures , a sum of fifty thousand pounds to meet the requirements of the year , and tho question arises , where is this vast sum to come from ? Past experience has proved that the Craft is capable of providing it , and we hope that 1887 will shew no falling off as compared with its predecessors ; indeed wo should like to see the result of 1883 and 1885 equalled ,
rather than have a repetition of last year ' s total , but wo fear there aro many causes which will be likely to prevent the realisation of our wish , and it therefore behoves all who can help to do their utmost in tho good work . The
present unsatisfactory state of trade , the unsettled condition of the political atmosphere , and the strained feelings of which we hear so much among foreign nations , must all tend to check the flow of money , more especially when it
is needed for purposes of Charity . Add to this the fact that during the year special claims will be made for all kinds of objects in celebration of the Queen ' s Jubilee , and we must confess that to us the future looks anything but promising . Of course we are ready to admit that tho
Masonic Charities will reap some of the benefits which may be expected to flow from the celebration of Her Majesty ' s fifty years reign , but on the whole we are inclined to the belief they will suffer a falling off in their receipts in consequence of the many special claims which will be put forward .
Within a few weeks the Anniversary Festival of the Benevolent Institution will be celebrated , and this will be followed in due course by those on behalf of the Girls ' and Boys' Schools . As it is in connection with these celebrations we look for the greater part of the aid which is so sorely needed , we can but urge on our readers tho
necessity , we may almost say , of at once starting operations in support of one or other of them , so that the year we have just entered upon may prove equal , if not better than those which have gone before .
Thus far we have said little in regard to the sums voted by the Board of Benevolence ; they are nevertheless worthy of honourable reference . Although they appear somewhat insignificant when compared with the totals contributed to the Charitable Institutions , we must remember
that the source from which the fund is derived is a limited one , and although it may not be the habit of the Board to keep its expenditure within the bounds of its income , ifc stands to reason that its operations are in great measure
governed by the amount it has at disposal . Further than this , we can but recognise the fact that the three Charities relieve the Board of many of the calls which , without the Institutions , would be made upon ifc , so that altogether we must regard the total of £ 38 , 613 , which the Board has
expended daring the past four years , as a grand amount . When we consider that this sum has been distributed among some 1 , 500 members of the Craft or their widows , who have come to need the assistance of their brethren , and that in many cases sums have been granted sufficient
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Masonic Benevolence In 1886.
MASONIC BENEVOLENCE IN 1886 .
THE summary we last week gave of the total contributed by Freemasonry to the cause of Charity during the past year , brief though it was , spoke volumes in favour of the Craft , as it shewed a total expenditure of £ 57 . 300 13 s 9 d durinsr the twelve months , on behalf of
those in need of help from their Brother Masons . Of this large total no less a sum than £ 46 , 767 13 s 9 d found its way into the coffers of the three Masonic Charitable Institutions , while the remaining £ 10 , 533 was expended at the monthly meetings of the Board of Benevolence , the number of recipients in the latter case being three hundred and eighty-four .
Compared with the preceding three years the result of the twelve months just concluded does not stand out well ; it being the lowest of the four , as the following figures , which are fche totals of the respective years , shew : 1886 , £ 57 , 30013 s 9 d ; 1885 , £ 64 , 569 2 s 7 d ; 1884 , £ 58 , 07517 s 7 d ;
and 1883 , £ 64 , 669 14 s 3 d . These totals , it will be seen , vary considerably , and it is somewhat curious to mark their alternate up and down tendency , the totals of 1883 and 1885 being within £ 101 of each other , and those of 1884 and 1886 . only varying by less than £ 700 . It maj be remembered that the large excess of 1883 was in great
measure due to the extraordinary efforts then made on behalf of the Boys' School , the receipts of which Institution were so far above the average as to more than account for the difference between the total of thafc year and the one which followed it . Last year , about this time , we were able to report a general increase in the receipts of the Masonic Institutions , and an increased expenditure by the
chronicle a general falling off under all heads , except that of the Board of Benevolence , with the result thafc 1886 gives a total of £ 7 , 268 8 s lOd short of that reached in 1885 ; but at the same time it shews that a sum of £ 57 , 30013 s 9 d was expended during the year in the cause of Masouic Charity . Deducting from the figures given above the amount
annually expended by the Board of Benevolence , we have the following totals as the yearly contributions of the Craft to its three Charitable Institutions : —1886 , £ 46 , 76713 s 9 d :
Board of Benevolence , so much so as to place the total of 1885 within a trifle of that reached in 1883 , when the special circumstance to which we have already referred had so large an effect on the result ; now we have to
1885 , £ 54 , 416 2 s 7 d ; 1884 , £ 48 , 823 17 s 7 d ; and 1883 , £ 55 , 994 14 s 3 d , a total of £ 206 , 002 8 s 2 d for the four years , giving an annual average of upwards of fifty thousand pounds . Of this total the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution received the largest share , its quota being £ 77 , 919 14 s 3 d ; the Royal Masonic Institution for Boys comes next , with £ 68 , 218 9 s 5 d ; and then the Royal Masonic Institution for Girls brings up fche trio , with £ 59 , 864 4 s 6 d .
It is not necessary to devote our space on the present occasion to further comparisons as to what has been done in the past , the figures we have quoted above are sufficient for all purposes , what we have to study more particularly
at the present time is the future , and the outlook is sufficient to cause anxiety , while it calls for the most strenuous efforts from all who take an interest in the causa We
have shewn that during the past four years upwards of two hundred and six thousand pounds have been subscribed by the Masons of England in support of the three Charitable
Masonic Benevolence In 1886.
Institutions associated with the Graft , and nearly the whole of this sum has been expended within the same period . It has not been a question of cutting down current expenditure , so as to lay up a large store for the future , but a continued extension of operations , with a corresponding
increase of liability ; and this liability is , as we have frequently pointed out , virtually of a permanent character , for however much we may add to the benefits annually dispensed by the Institutions , we must never think of curtailing them ; the cry must ever be forward , never back .
We must therefore be prepared to raise , in round figures , a sum of fifty thousand pounds to meet the requirements of the year , and tho question arises , where is this vast sum to come from ? Past experience has proved that the Craft is capable of providing it , and we hope that 1887 will shew no falling off as compared with its predecessors ; indeed wo should like to see the result of 1883 and 1885 equalled ,
rather than have a repetition of last year ' s total , but wo fear there aro many causes which will be likely to prevent the realisation of our wish , and it therefore behoves all who can help to do their utmost in tho good work . The
present unsatisfactory state of trade , the unsettled condition of the political atmosphere , and the strained feelings of which we hear so much among foreign nations , must all tend to check the flow of money , more especially when it
is needed for purposes of Charity . Add to this the fact that during the year special claims will be made for all kinds of objects in celebration of the Queen ' s Jubilee , and we must confess that to us the future looks anything but promising . Of course we are ready to admit that tho
Masonic Charities will reap some of the benefits which may be expected to flow from the celebration of Her Majesty ' s fifty years reign , but on the whole we are inclined to the belief they will suffer a falling off in their receipts in consequence of the many special claims which will be put forward .
Within a few weeks the Anniversary Festival of the Benevolent Institution will be celebrated , and this will be followed in due course by those on behalf of the Girls ' and Boys' Schools . As it is in connection with these celebrations we look for the greater part of the aid which is so sorely needed , we can but urge on our readers tho
necessity , we may almost say , of at once starting operations in support of one or other of them , so that the year we have just entered upon may prove equal , if not better than those which have gone before .
Thus far we have said little in regard to the sums voted by the Board of Benevolence ; they are nevertheless worthy of honourable reference . Although they appear somewhat insignificant when compared with the totals contributed to the Charitable Institutions , we must remember
that the source from which the fund is derived is a limited one , and although it may not be the habit of the Board to keep its expenditure within the bounds of its income , ifc stands to reason that its operations are in great measure
governed by the amount it has at disposal . Further than this , we can but recognise the fact that the three Charities relieve the Board of many of the calls which , without the Institutions , would be made upon ifc , so that altogether we must regard the total of £ 38 , 613 , which the Board has
expended daring the past four years , as a grand amount . When we consider that this sum has been distributed among some 1 , 500 members of the Craft or their widows , who have come to need the assistance of their brethren , and that in many cases sums have been granted sufficient