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Article PROJECTED EXTENSION OF THE GIRLS' SCHOOL. Page 1 of 2 Article PROJECTED EXTENSION OF THE GIRLS' SCHOOL. Page 1 of 2 →
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Projected Extension Of The Girls' School.
PROJECTED EXTENSION OF THE GIRLS' SCHOOL .
THE Quarterly General Court of the Royal Masonic Institution for Girls has been held , and the vexed question as to tho purchase of Lyncombe House and grounds seems to be as far off settlement as ever . In fact , the more that is done in tho matter tho less likely it appears
that an amicable solution will be arrived at . It is greatly to bo regretted that ono section of the supporters of one of our Charities should find it necessary to threaten legal proceedings in order to stay the action of another , or that one
party should persist in their efforts to carry a proposition so repugnant to the feelings of their fellow workers without first endeavouring to answer the objections raised , or fco ascertain the feeling of the general body of subscribers .
On questions requiring the smallest amount of discussion it seems impossible , even among Freemasons , to prevent the oft-repeated charge of personality being made . It appears that because one or two members have expressed
themselves as strongly in opposition to the vote as others have in favour of it , that a war is to be waged between them , and , as may be imagined nnder such circumstances , the meeting of Saturday last—so far as this subject was
concerned—was of a most stormy nature . Because Bro . A objects to the proposal of Bro . B , it seems to be immediately assumed that a personal affront is intended , whereas , as we have frequently pointed out , the motives of Bro . A
are as likel y to be sincere as are those of Bro . B ; one entertains one opinion , the other the opposite . To assume that this shall be a cause for personal quarrel is absurd in the extreme ; and we must say we were somewhat surprised
that so much of the time of the meeting of Saturday was allowed to be occupied in making and answering charges purely of a personal nature , and not in any way bearing on the subject at issue . If feeling is to be allowed to
interfere in the discussions which must necessarily arise in connection with the Institutions , it will speedily be found that ruin will result , and therefore we again urge all concerned to settle the matter amicably if it is any way possible to do so .
Some of the objectors to the vote , finding that friendly protest was of no avail , and feeling that no respect was shown for their opinion , determined on procuring legal advice as to 'whether the purchase was in accordance with
the objects for which the Institution was established . The following questions wero accordingly submitted to Mr . C . Locock Webb , Q . C ., whose Masonic position as Past Grand Officer of England it was thought would lend additional weight to his decision .
COUNSEL ' S OPINION IS REQUESTED—1 . Whether the Charity Fnnda collected for the general purposes of tho Institution can bo applied to the purchase of Houses and Land not really necessary for the purposes of tho Charity ? ( ride 01 . 2 . )
2 . Can the Trustees be held personally liable to the Charity for any Hinds which they may havo applied already , or may in future expend ont of any other than the Susteutation Fund , in the acquisition of Buildings and Land ?
3 - "What course is advised to prevent tho monies of tho Institution being devoted to other purposes than those sot forth in CI . 2 ? In answer to the above , the following opinions are given : —
1 . I am of opinion that tho purchase , by the Trustees of the General * und , ot Lyncombe House and grounds would bo clearly ultra vires , aud au illegal application of the monies vested iu them for tho general
Projected Extension Of The Girls' School.
purposes of the Institution . It would not be competent for any General Court to make any new law , or any grant authorising such purchase , or the advance ont of the general fund of the proposed consideration money of £ 6 , 500 , or any part thereof ; and any resolution purporting to do so wonld be utterly null and void . I think that the
notice convening the Special General Court for to-morrow ( the 3 rd January ) would be bad , even if tho objects of such mooting wero valid , instead of being , as in my judgment they are , clearly invalid . Tho funds collected for tho general purposes of the Institution conld not properly bo applied to the purchase of any houses or lands
not really necessary for the purposes of tho Institution , and I doubt if any of such funds could , strictly speaking , be applied in the purchase of any building or lands ( seo laws II . and VII . ) Tho General Fund wonld seem to be applicable to the maintenance , clothing , and
education of the children , who , being duly elected , aro or may bocome inmates of the establishment . The " Susteutation " Fund would seem to be applied to the maintenance of the buildings . If it is deemed expedient to enlarge or add to the existing Institution a special fund shonld be subscribed for that purpose .
2 . If the Trustees have already applied , or shoul d in future apply monies oat of the General Fund in or towards the purchase of Lyncombe House and grounds , I think they would be personally liable to recoup all such monies . 3 . I am opinion that an action in the Chancery Division may bo
maintained afc the suit of any member of the General Committee ( see Law XXXV . ) who shonld sue on behalf of himself and all other members of such Committee , except the defendants , against the Trustees for an injunction to restrain the contemplated misappropriation of the general fund . Bnt , under the circumstances of this case , I
should strongly advise that every effort should be made to avoid litigation . To that end I wonld suggest that those on whose behalf I am advising , being Governors , should attend the meeting to-morrow and state their objections ; they will not , of course , vote upon any resolution .
And if resolution purporting to authorise such purchase should be carried , I think they shonld afc once write to each of the Trustees such a letter as I have already suggested in conference before commencing an action . LOCOCK WEJIB .
Lincoln ' s Inn , 2 nd January 1880 . Now , in the face of the above , and oven assuming that Bro . Webb is wrong , and that the brethren who sought his advice are wrong , what can be the motive for endeavouring to pass this vote in so hurried a manner and in
direct opposition to the desire of a large and representative minority ? It is not possible to ensure a large attendance of brethren at freemasons' Hall at twelve o ' clock on a Saturday , —why that time should have been fixed for tho regular Courts is , and always has been , a mystery to
usand this seems to be taken advantage of to secure a majority for the proposers of the vote . One side says that unless the question is at once settled the chance of purchase will be lost , a statement which is flatly contradicted by the other ; and as neither side produce any evidence in
support of their statements , it is impossible to say which is right . Tho main objection appears to bo that the price to bo paid is greatly in excess of the value of the land , and although the proposers express so much concern lest their plan shall be frustrated , it appears to be impossible for
them to procure an unbiassed opinion of the value of the property . It is admitted that the Institution can afford something above what an ordinary purchaser would be willing to pay , because the acquisition would be beneficial in many ways ; but if the price asked—as is stated by all
who have taken the trouble to mention figures—is £ 4 , 000 above the market value of tho pi-operty , the course taken to oppose the expenditure is not only justifiable , but the efforts of the brethren Avho have organised it greatly to be
commended . If the property were proved to be worth say £ b ' , 000 , no one wonld object to the extra £ 500 outlay if it were necessary in order to secure the plot fcr tho Institution , bnt at present the only estimate given of the value is that of the obioctors , who say that if put up to
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Projected Extension Of The Girls' School.
PROJECTED EXTENSION OF THE GIRLS' SCHOOL .
THE Quarterly General Court of the Royal Masonic Institution for Girls has been held , and the vexed question as to tho purchase of Lyncombe House and grounds seems to be as far off settlement as ever . In fact , the more that is done in tho matter tho less likely it appears
that an amicable solution will be arrived at . It is greatly to bo regretted that ono section of the supporters of one of our Charities should find it necessary to threaten legal proceedings in order to stay the action of another , or that one
party should persist in their efforts to carry a proposition so repugnant to the feelings of their fellow workers without first endeavouring to answer the objections raised , or fco ascertain the feeling of the general body of subscribers .
On questions requiring the smallest amount of discussion it seems impossible , even among Freemasons , to prevent the oft-repeated charge of personality being made . It appears that because one or two members have expressed
themselves as strongly in opposition to the vote as others have in favour of it , that a war is to be waged between them , and , as may be imagined nnder such circumstances , the meeting of Saturday last—so far as this subject was
concerned—was of a most stormy nature . Because Bro . A objects to the proposal of Bro . B , it seems to be immediately assumed that a personal affront is intended , whereas , as we have frequently pointed out , the motives of Bro . A
are as likel y to be sincere as are those of Bro . B ; one entertains one opinion , the other the opposite . To assume that this shall be a cause for personal quarrel is absurd in the extreme ; and we must say we were somewhat surprised
that so much of the time of the meeting of Saturday was allowed to be occupied in making and answering charges purely of a personal nature , and not in any way bearing on the subject at issue . If feeling is to be allowed to
interfere in the discussions which must necessarily arise in connection with the Institutions , it will speedily be found that ruin will result , and therefore we again urge all concerned to settle the matter amicably if it is any way possible to do so .
Some of the objectors to the vote , finding that friendly protest was of no avail , and feeling that no respect was shown for their opinion , determined on procuring legal advice as to 'whether the purchase was in accordance with
the objects for which the Institution was established . The following questions wero accordingly submitted to Mr . C . Locock Webb , Q . C ., whose Masonic position as Past Grand Officer of England it was thought would lend additional weight to his decision .
COUNSEL ' S OPINION IS REQUESTED—1 . Whether the Charity Fnnda collected for the general purposes of tho Institution can bo applied to the purchase of Houses and Land not really necessary for the purposes of tho Charity ? ( ride 01 . 2 . )
2 . Can the Trustees be held personally liable to the Charity for any Hinds which they may havo applied already , or may in future expend ont of any other than the Susteutation Fund , in the acquisition of Buildings and Land ?
3 - "What course is advised to prevent tho monies of tho Institution being devoted to other purposes than those sot forth in CI . 2 ? In answer to the above , the following opinions are given : —
1 . I am of opinion that tho purchase , by the Trustees of the General * und , ot Lyncombe House and grounds would bo clearly ultra vires , aud au illegal application of the monies vested iu them for tho general
Projected Extension Of The Girls' School.
purposes of the Institution . It would not be competent for any General Court to make any new law , or any grant authorising such purchase , or the advance ont of the general fund of the proposed consideration money of £ 6 , 500 , or any part thereof ; and any resolution purporting to do so wonld be utterly null and void . I think that the
notice convening the Special General Court for to-morrow ( the 3 rd January ) would be bad , even if tho objects of such mooting wero valid , instead of being , as in my judgment they are , clearly invalid . Tho funds collected for tho general purposes of the Institution conld not properly bo applied to the purchase of any houses or lands
not really necessary for the purposes of tho Institution , and I doubt if any of such funds could , strictly speaking , be applied in the purchase of any building or lands ( seo laws II . and VII . ) Tho General Fund wonld seem to be applicable to the maintenance , clothing , and
education of the children , who , being duly elected , aro or may bocome inmates of the establishment . The " Susteutation " Fund would seem to be applied to the maintenance of the buildings . If it is deemed expedient to enlarge or add to the existing Institution a special fund shonld be subscribed for that purpose .
2 . If the Trustees have already applied , or shoul d in future apply monies oat of the General Fund in or towards the purchase of Lyncombe House and grounds , I think they would be personally liable to recoup all such monies . 3 . I am opinion that an action in the Chancery Division may bo
maintained afc the suit of any member of the General Committee ( see Law XXXV . ) who shonld sue on behalf of himself and all other members of such Committee , except the defendants , against the Trustees for an injunction to restrain the contemplated misappropriation of the general fund . Bnt , under the circumstances of this case , I
should strongly advise that every effort should be made to avoid litigation . To that end I wonld suggest that those on whose behalf I am advising , being Governors , should attend the meeting to-morrow and state their objections ; they will not , of course , vote upon any resolution .
And if resolution purporting to authorise such purchase should be carried , I think they shonld afc once write to each of the Trustees such a letter as I have already suggested in conference before commencing an action . LOCOCK WEJIB .
Lincoln ' s Inn , 2 nd January 1880 . Now , in the face of the above , and oven assuming that Bro . Webb is wrong , and that the brethren who sought his advice are wrong , what can be the motive for endeavouring to pass this vote in so hurried a manner and in
direct opposition to the desire of a large and representative minority ? It is not possible to ensure a large attendance of brethren at freemasons' Hall at twelve o ' clock on a Saturday , —why that time should have been fixed for tho regular Courts is , and always has been , a mystery to
usand this seems to be taken advantage of to secure a majority for the proposers of the vote . One side says that unless the question is at once settled the chance of purchase will be lost , a statement which is flatly contradicted by the other ; and as neither side produce any evidence in
support of their statements , it is impossible to say which is right . Tho main objection appears to bo that the price to bo paid is greatly in excess of the value of the land , and although the proposers express so much concern lest their plan shall be frustrated , it appears to be impossible for
them to procure an unbiassed opinion of the value of the property . It is admitted that the Institution can afford something above what an ordinary purchaser would be willing to pay , because the acquisition would be beneficial in many ways ; but if the price asked—as is stated by all
who have taken the trouble to mention figures—is £ 4 , 000 above the market value of tho pi-operty , the course taken to oppose the expenditure is not only justifiable , but the efforts of the brethren Avho have organised it greatly to be
commended . If the property were proved to be worth say £ b ' , 000 , no one wonld object to the extra £ 500 outlay if it were necessary in order to secure the plot fcr tho Institution , bnt at present the only estimate given of the value is that of the obioctors , who say that if put up to