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Article A FLAW IN ENGLISH MASONRY . Page 1 of 1 Article A FLAW IN ENGLISH MASONRY . Page 1 of 1
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
A Flaw In English Masonry .
A FLAW IN ENGLISH MASONRY .
FBEEMASONS . have always been enjoined to visit other Lodges , so that mutual advantage may result , and different ideas may be expressed with a view to ultimate improvement , where such is possible ; but it is not often we hear much at a Lodge gathering
in response to the toast of the visitors to supply food for reflection , or open the way for improvement . The generality of speeches under this head are of tho goody-goody character , mere expressions of stupid flattery , or thanks for having been hospitably entertained : thanks we consider very much out of place ,
when we bear in mind that the first care of an entertainer should be to secure the comfort and enjoyment of his guests , and who , in very many cases , does not care to be commended in public for having done his duty . But then , it may be urged , there is so little to talk about in connection with Freemasonry that tlie
ordinary visitor truthfully expresses his thoughts when he says the subject has been so thrashed out as to leave him nothing further to say . This is undoubtedly the case nine times out of ten , and when the tenth visitor happens to be called upon he either
succeeds in creating a most favourable impression , or is voted a bore , for having touched upon some subject outside the ordinary routine . Still , it must be admitted Ave do at times have the opportunity of listening to a visitor who expresses a sentiment which
forces itself upon our thoughts , and gives us a topic for future consideration , and such occurred at a recent meeting when an American visitor told his listeners that there were many variations between American and English Freemasonry , with advantages and drawbacks in each , which the two great bodies of the Craft would do well to consider .
He regarded the principle of admission to full benefits immediately on initiation as a flaw in English Freemasonry , and explained that in America all business was transacted in the third degree , thus shutting out Initiates and Fellow Crafts from the actual
management of the Lodges . This certainly sounds rational , and although we should be the last to advocate any change to upset the principle of equality , which should govern every action in Freemasonry , we have long entertained the opinion that it seems
somewhat out of place to call on the newly admitted brother , five minutes after his initiation , perhaps , to vote on some technical matter , or as to the admission or rejection of a candidate . He cannot nossiblv be in
a position to form an opinion for himself , and must rely on the advice of his introducer or some other friend in the Lodge . This should not produce any serious results , but it opens the wav to an irremikritv
which , if not frequently practised , is none the less ready to hand , and has no doubt been made nse of on more than the one occasion which came under notice , borne years back a brother was initiated in a Lodge ,
A Flaw In English Masonry .
and one of the first items of business after his admission was to take a ballot for the election of a joining member . The ballot was adverse , and although , of course , there was no certainty as to who deposited the black balls , it was subsequently proved to the general satisfaction of tlie members that the initiate and his sponsors had formed
themselves into a clique for the purpose of excluding the joining candidate . Had the American system of taking the ballot in the third degree been in vogue , this irregularity could not have occurred , and it
certainly was a grave irregularity , for it is certain the newly admitted member was in no position to judge of the merits or demerits of the rule in regard to the admission of a joining member . He was
simply the tool of his proposer , and the flaw in the working of English Freemasonry , which he was induced to act upon nearly upset the Lodge wherein it occurred , and for somo time afterwards the distress
it caused prevented all harmony , and banished comfort from among the members . Here we have tho opinion of an enlightened Mason , backed by our own experience to prove that the system wc refer to is an actual flaw , and ono which
might reasonably bo considered in its several features , with a view to somo sort of report on thc point being submitted to the Craft . We do not like changes merely for the sake of change , bnt there are little
knobs and excrescences in modern Freemasonry which might profitably be removed , and no doubt would be removed were it not considered worse than high treason to advocate change .
It is something for Freemasons to be very proud of , to be able to say that tho Craft exists to-day virtually as it existed upwards of a hundred or a hundred and fifty years back , and yet the boast stamps itself as somewhat bigoted when we consider
that little or no improvement has been attempted on the system formulated by our ancestors , who , living in such different times , can hardly be regarded as capable of forming rules for the governance of modern
ideas . They were , however , fairly successful in establishing thc system of Freemasonry under which we at present work , but it is wholly unwise to regard them as incapable of error , or to imagine
the system they have handed down to us is incapable of improvement . There are many points which might be profitably considered , and among them is the flaw pointed out by our American visitor .
The installation of Viscount Dungarvan as Provincial Grand Master of Freemasons for Somersetshire will beperformed ^ at Bath , on Thursday , 14 th May , when a Provincial Grand Lodge of Somerset will be held for thc purpose . After hia installation his lordship will appoint and invest his Officers for the year .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
A Flaw In English Masonry .
A FLAW IN ENGLISH MASONRY .
FBEEMASONS . have always been enjoined to visit other Lodges , so that mutual advantage may result , and different ideas may be expressed with a view to ultimate improvement , where such is possible ; but it is not often we hear much at a Lodge gathering
in response to the toast of the visitors to supply food for reflection , or open the way for improvement . The generality of speeches under this head are of tho goody-goody character , mere expressions of stupid flattery , or thanks for having been hospitably entertained : thanks we consider very much out of place ,
when we bear in mind that the first care of an entertainer should be to secure the comfort and enjoyment of his guests , and who , in very many cases , does not care to be commended in public for having done his duty . But then , it may be urged , there is so little to talk about in connection with Freemasonry that tlie
ordinary visitor truthfully expresses his thoughts when he says the subject has been so thrashed out as to leave him nothing further to say . This is undoubtedly the case nine times out of ten , and when the tenth visitor happens to be called upon he either
succeeds in creating a most favourable impression , or is voted a bore , for having touched upon some subject outside the ordinary routine . Still , it must be admitted Ave do at times have the opportunity of listening to a visitor who expresses a sentiment which
forces itself upon our thoughts , and gives us a topic for future consideration , and such occurred at a recent meeting when an American visitor told his listeners that there were many variations between American and English Freemasonry , with advantages and drawbacks in each , which the two great bodies of the Craft would do well to consider .
He regarded the principle of admission to full benefits immediately on initiation as a flaw in English Freemasonry , and explained that in America all business was transacted in the third degree , thus shutting out Initiates and Fellow Crafts from the actual
management of the Lodges . This certainly sounds rational , and although we should be the last to advocate any change to upset the principle of equality , which should govern every action in Freemasonry , we have long entertained the opinion that it seems
somewhat out of place to call on the newly admitted brother , five minutes after his initiation , perhaps , to vote on some technical matter , or as to the admission or rejection of a candidate . He cannot nossiblv be in
a position to form an opinion for himself , and must rely on the advice of his introducer or some other friend in the Lodge . This should not produce any serious results , but it opens the wav to an irremikritv
which , if not frequently practised , is none the less ready to hand , and has no doubt been made nse of on more than the one occasion which came under notice , borne years back a brother was initiated in a Lodge ,
A Flaw In English Masonry .
and one of the first items of business after his admission was to take a ballot for the election of a joining member . The ballot was adverse , and although , of course , there was no certainty as to who deposited the black balls , it was subsequently proved to the general satisfaction of tlie members that the initiate and his sponsors had formed
themselves into a clique for the purpose of excluding the joining candidate . Had the American system of taking the ballot in the third degree been in vogue , this irregularity could not have occurred , and it
certainly was a grave irregularity , for it is certain the newly admitted member was in no position to judge of the merits or demerits of the rule in regard to the admission of a joining member . He was
simply the tool of his proposer , and the flaw in the working of English Freemasonry , which he was induced to act upon nearly upset the Lodge wherein it occurred , and for somo time afterwards the distress
it caused prevented all harmony , and banished comfort from among the members . Here we have tho opinion of an enlightened Mason , backed by our own experience to prove that the system wc refer to is an actual flaw , and ono which
might reasonably bo considered in its several features , with a view to somo sort of report on thc point being submitted to the Craft . We do not like changes merely for the sake of change , bnt there are little
knobs and excrescences in modern Freemasonry which might profitably be removed , and no doubt would be removed were it not considered worse than high treason to advocate change .
It is something for Freemasons to be very proud of , to be able to say that tho Craft exists to-day virtually as it existed upwards of a hundred or a hundred and fifty years back , and yet the boast stamps itself as somewhat bigoted when we consider
that little or no improvement has been attempted on the system formulated by our ancestors , who , living in such different times , can hardly be regarded as capable of forming rules for the governance of modern
ideas . They were , however , fairly successful in establishing thc system of Freemasonry under which we at present work , but it is wholly unwise to regard them as incapable of error , or to imagine
the system they have handed down to us is incapable of improvement . There are many points which might be profitably considered , and among them is the flaw pointed out by our American visitor .
The installation of Viscount Dungarvan as Provincial Grand Master of Freemasons for Somersetshire will beperformed ^ at Bath , on Thursday , 14 th May , when a Provincial Grand Lodge of Somerset will be held for thc purpose . After hia installation his lordship will appoint and invest his Officers for the year .