Lodge Rulers

LODGE RULERS

IT is undeniably a matter of tlio greatest importance that thoso who aro elected to high office in Freemasonry should possess the requisite qualifications . We are becoming almost daily a more numerous body than wo have ever been at . any previous period of our history . Wo are attracting

to ourselves a larger share of public attention . It follows then that we sbould be at greater pains than ever to create a favourable impression in non-Masonic circles , or rather to confirm the very favourable impression already formed of us . Every individual Craftsman has it in his

power to add to , or detract from , the esteem in which wo are beld , and , a fortiori , has every Lodge . It is our duty , then , to see that the latter are well organised and efficient in their work ; and to this end it is imperative that those to whom is entrusted the government of Lodges should be capable

men . It is a sad spectacle to enter a Lodge of worthy Masons , and find its Worshipful Master and Wardens incompetent to fulfil the simplest duties ; the former obliged to vacate bis seat when one of our ceremonies has to be rehearsed , or at a loss to answer when one of the brethren

asks him for information on some not very difficult question , while the latter are not only incompetent to assist their chief , but are likewise unacquainted witb their own business . Of course , we cannot go so far as to affirm that brethren possessing all the requisite qualifications for office

will always be found in all our Lodges . We do say this , however , that where such men are wanting , it is the duty of brethren to select for their rulers those who possess more rather than less of the needful competence . It is only when

tlie tale of able men is quite exhausted that a Lodge should elect incompetent members to rule and govern it ; and we trust tbe day is yet far distant when it can be said of any one of our Lodges that it contains no members qualified to rule over it .

Many labour under the belief that tbe Mastership of a Lodge has attached to it no serious responsibilities , that in fact it is little else than the Chairmanship of an ordinary social gathering . But even in the Chairman of such a meeting , there are certain qualifications which he is

expected to possess , or the social gathering may very likely prove to be a confabulation of bears . He who presides over any body of men , for no matter how brief a season , must have tact and good temper . He must likewise exhibit some slight knowledge of human nature , aud a certain power of

discrimination , or he will never be able to reconcile the different views and feelings of those who sit around him . But the Master of a Lodge is somethin g more tban the Chairman of an ordinary meeting . In addition to the

qualities we bave enumerated , and otbors whicb must as readily occur to our readers as to ourselves , be must know well how to perform certain ceremonies , how to advise brethren when any unwonted difficulty arises , and how to instruct his subordinates in the fulfilment of their

several duties . Lawrence Dermott , who in his day was Grand Secretary , ancl afterwards Deputy Grand Master of the " Ancients , " and who merits , therefore , the honour of being described as one speaking with authority , says of the choice of officers to rule and govern the Lodge , that it is a

matter of great concern ; for , he adds , " tbe officers of a Lodge are not only bound to advance and promote the welfare of their own particular Lodge , but also whatever may tend to the good of the Fraternity in general . " He then proceeds to point out that , "therefore , no man ought to bo nominated or put in such election ,

Lodge Rulers

but such as , by his known skill and merit , is deemed worthy of performance , viz . He must bo well acquainted with all tho private and public rites and orders of tho craft ; he ought to bo strictly honest , humane of nature , patient in injuries , modest in conversation , grave in counsel

and advice , and ( above all ) constant in amity aud faithful in secrecy . " Later on he says : — " I havo known men whose intentions were very honest and without any evil design , commit great errors , aud sometimes been the

destruction of good Lodges ; and this occasioned by their brethren hurrying them indiscreetly into offices wherein their slender knowledge of Masonry rendered them incapable of executing the business committed to their charge , to the great detriment of the Craft ancl their own dishonour . " And

Oliver , in charging the brethren to beware oJ incompetency in tho Master , says very justly , "It requires knowledge and experience to preserve respect ; tact and firmness to maintain authority ; affability and kindness to secure affection ; with many other traits of character to enable him

( the Master ) to discharge the duties of his office creditably , if not triumphantly . " "Unfortunately , it is within the experience of most of us that there are many Worshi pful Masters who , so far from possessing " knowledge ancl experience to preserve respect , " have hardly acquired the A B C of their duties . In one or two cases we have heard of

Masters who not only never threw even a solitary glimmer of light on Masonio duty , during their tenure of office , but hardly so much as opened their lips to litter half-adozen consecutive words , except when they wore prompted by a friendly Past Master . These we admit were extreme

cases , but they should never have been allowed to happen . No amount of respect for the man and brother should ever have intervened between the members and the fulfilment of their duty . A brother who is incompetent to discharge the functions of the Master should not be chosen . He may be

the very personification of kindness ; he may , indeed , be the embodiment of all the Masonic virtues , but if he lack the requisite knowledge , he is worth nothing as Master .

How can members respect a W . M . who ia scarcely able to open and close his Lodge without assistance ? How can they respect him , if the moment he is called upon to work one of the ceremonies , he vacates his seat in favour of some

competent brother ? Is it not likely that our younger brethren will regard as moonshine the obligations that aro imposed , and the advice that is tendered them , when they find the ruler of their Lodge is little , if at all , less ignorant than themselves of Masonic doctrine . What is the good of

telling a young member that at a particular stage in his career ho will be expected to acquire some further knowledge of the science of Freemasonry , when the supreme authority in his Lodge , who has passed through all the

stages , is absolutely and entirely ignorant of anything but the colour of his Masonic clothing , ancl the metal of which his jewel is composed , as well as the necessary signs ancl tokens which are now ancl again demanded of him . In all other

pursuits it is considered necessary that a man should possess some knowledge of the duties he is about to bo entrusted with . He may not already be furnished with much knowledge , in which case he is expected to acquire it . Bat it seems that in the pursuit of Masonry , chance , or the

accidents of chance , are not ^ infrequently allowed to determine an appointment to a superior office . And what is tho result where theso things happen ? For a time , perhaps ,

tbe respect which brethren icel towards Freemasonry restrains them from all outward manifestations of impatience . But the limits of forbearance are ab length reached , and tho Lodgo falls into a state of anarchy . The attendance of mem-