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Article ADDRESS OF BRO. J. H. GRAHAM, LL.D. ← Page 2 of 3 Article ADDRESS OF BRO. J. H. GRAHAM, LL.D. Page 2 of 3 →
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Address Of Bro. J. H. Graham, Ll.D.
in which the Grand Lodges of England , Ireland , and Scotland have previously held concurrent jurisdiction , any Lodge or Lodges which may be desirous of remaining in its or their allegiance to the Grand Lodge which granted its or their warrant of constitution should have fall liberty
to do so . It follows , as a matter of course , that we consider the action of the Grand Lodge of England in making its recognition of the Grand Lodge of Quebec conditional on the latter ' s undertaking to leave the English Lodges of Montreal in the full enjoyment of their previous status , as
such was perfectly justifiable . Indeed , it would have been an error on the part of tho G . L . of England , aud shown a pitiful weakness , had she not adopted such a course ancl insisted that Lodges which owed their existence to her should , if and for so long as they were so minded , remain
under her jurisdiction . Canada , when she severed her Masonic connection with the mother country , respected the wishes of those Lodges which preferred remaining under their respective parent Grand Lodges and accepted the obligation to respect them as the condition of her
acknowledgment as a separate and independent Grand Lodge . Nova Scotia followed the example of Canada , and there is still one English Lodge—the Royal Standard , No . 398 , of Halifax—located within tho territorial limits of that Colony , which retains its allegiance to the G . Lodge of
England , and the continuance of which , G . M . Laurie of Nova Scotia is so far from considering it in any way detracts from the jurisdiction over which he presides , that he and his Grand Officers not long since visited it by invitation , and he has expressed his belief that it was a great
advantage to him and his fellow Nova Scotian brethren to have such a Lodge , albeit a foreign one , in their midst . But what Nova Scotia regards as a benefit to Nova Scotian Ereemasonry , and what Canada did gracefully when she invited the Grand Lodge of England to recognise her
Masonic independence , ought not to prove a stumblingblock to the existence of fraternal relations between Quebec and England , and mutual representation at either Grand Lodge . Quebec , it must be remembered , is an offshoot from the Grand Lodge of Canada , and in honour is bound
to the observance of the conditions which the latter made when it became a separate and distinct jurisdiction from England and Scotland . Many of its Lodges must have been parties to the acceptance of those conditions , and there can be nothing undignified , certainly nothing
unfraternal or contrary to that freedom of action and opinion which is a leading characteristic of our Society in acquiescing in a state of things which has endured for nearly thirty years without discomfort or sacrifice of dignity to any of the Grand Bodies in question . Quebec as a Masonic
jurisdiction is of recent origin . It has an independent existence dating no further back than 1869 . Nearly eight years since—in 1875—England expressed her willingness to recognise that independent existence on exactly the same conditions that Canada had readily acceded to at the
establishment of her independence , and what has endured all these years may well be allowed to remain undisturbed for the present and till such time as the English Lodges in Montreal themselves take the initiative and express a desire to become enrolled under the banners of the Grand
Lodge of Quebec . Of course the age of the Quebec Grand Lodge is of comparatively trivial importance , and we have alluded to it only for the purpose of making the arrogance of its pretensions the more apparent . Nor are we altogether
surprised at its arrogating to itself the right to condemn those who do not accept its views unhesitatingly . It is the way of the world in these times for juniors to set themselves up as possessing at least as much knowledge , and as being as fully competent to settle any and every question that may
arise , as their seniors . Thus England is plainly told she possesses no right to allow Lodges which have derived from her their warrants of constitution to remain in allegiance to her , if they prefer doing so to joining the G . Lodges established in the Colony in which they are located years and
years after their own creation . Such Lodges are plainly given to understand that such freedom of action is denied them , and that if they decline to join the newly-constituted Grand Body , there is but one alternative left them—that of being excommunicated or dissolution . Even Canadn , of
which Quebec once formed a part , is soundly rated by G . M . Graham , who is of opinion that the Grand Lodge of Canada unlawfully bartered its birth-right of exclusive Masonic so *\ ereignty , the acknowledgment of the possession of which she had justly received from all the sovereign
Address Of Bro. J. H. Graham, Ll.D.
Grand Lodges of the United States , —in accepting , as she did , through M . W . Bro . the Earl of Zetland G . Master of England , concurrent-jurisdiction-recognition from that Grand Body , than which , as it appears to me , no act could have been more short-sighted and unconstitutional , or
consequently more detrimental to the interests of Freemasonry in Canada and elsewhere , as is shown by the condition of local and interjurisdictional affairs here , and in other parts of the Empire at the present time , and which , if not speedily remedied , will in all probability be still
worse in time to come . Was it to be supposed that such an unconstitutional compromise , fraught with such deplorable consequences , would stand through one generation of Craftsmen who know their Masonic rights and dare maintain them ? Impossible . " This looks large in
print and probably sounded well at the time of its delivery , but examine it as carefully as you will , and it resolves itself into nothing else than words , many of them formidable enough in appearance , yet perfectly harmless . People who read the passage we have quoted , about an
unlawfully-bartei'ed birth-right , short-sighted and unconstitutional compromises , and deplorable consequences , will be led to imagine that Freemasonry in Canada and throughout the world must be in a very sorry plight , the fact being that in Canada and elsewhere its condition is most
prosperous . The acceptance of Lord Zetland ' s " concurrentjurisdiction-recognition" does not appear to have affected the constitutional system of the Craft in that Colony which now has close on 400 Lodges and is on the most amicable terms with the Grand Lodges of the mother .
country . It cannot be said that the Craft is by any means out of sorts in India or South Africa , while it is in New South Wales alone among the Australasian Colonies that any febrile symptoms are perceptible , and tbey exist only in an insignificant minority of the Lodges , there being
perhaps one-sixth of the whole body malcontent , for reasons of which the members are for the most part ignorant , and which are certainly unappreciated by the outside world , while the remaining five-sixths are as staunchly attached to the Grand Lodges which created them as the most
loyal of the Lodges in London , Dublin , and Edinburgh . As far as we can see , the " deplorable consequences " that are likely to arise if England persists , as in honour she is bound to do , in upholding her daughter Lodges in Montreal , exist only in the embittered imagination of Bro Graham .
There would seem to be some unwritten law among American Masons which renders it imperative that those who hold the position of Grand Master should deliver long periodical addresses to the Grand Lodge over which they severally preside , and it may well be that , in the absence
for some time past of any one-eyed , one-armed , or onelegged candidates for initiation , whose cases invariably necessitate the most elaborate consideration , or failing some of the innumerable petty formalities which have found their way into the American Masonic system , Brother
Graham has , for lack of something else to engage his attention , first of all created this grievance , and then continued from year to year dilating upon its unspeakable enormities and the fearful consequences that must ensue if it is not remedied forthwith . Heaven only knows where
all the amazing constitutional arrangements come from which are so dear to the hearts of our American brethren . To read some of these extraordinary addresses , one might almost be led to think that Masonry had always been subject to some elaborate'system of laws such as the Laws of
the Twelve Tables , the Code Napoleon , or the Statute Law of England , whereas no form of government invented of men could possibly be simpler and at the same time more effective , while its code of laws is as large-hearted as it is simple . It will be time enough for Brother Graham to
call in question the conduct towards Quebec of the Grand Lodge of England when he can produce irrefragable evidence that it has broken any written or unwritten law
of Masonry , always , of course , excepting those curiousl yfanciful regulations which the American Masonic mind has invented for its own enlightenment , and to the very great amusement of extra-American Craftsmen .
It is difficult to write seriously about a controversy in which one side does all the talking , while the other maintains a dignified silence , and which more nearly fulfils our ideal of the proverbial " storm in a teacup " than any other difference we have read or heard of . But we have
no wish to wound the susceptibilities of our Quebec brethren , and least of all of one who has influenced them so long as Bro . Graham . Yet he must pardon us for
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Address Of Bro. J. H. Graham, Ll.D.
in which the Grand Lodges of England , Ireland , and Scotland have previously held concurrent jurisdiction , any Lodge or Lodges which may be desirous of remaining in its or their allegiance to the Grand Lodge which granted its or their warrant of constitution should have fall liberty
to do so . It follows , as a matter of course , that we consider the action of the Grand Lodge of England in making its recognition of the Grand Lodge of Quebec conditional on the latter ' s undertaking to leave the English Lodges of Montreal in the full enjoyment of their previous status , as
such was perfectly justifiable . Indeed , it would have been an error on the part of tho G . L . of England , aud shown a pitiful weakness , had she not adopted such a course ancl insisted that Lodges which owed their existence to her should , if and for so long as they were so minded , remain
under her jurisdiction . Canada , when she severed her Masonic connection with the mother country , respected the wishes of those Lodges which preferred remaining under their respective parent Grand Lodges and accepted the obligation to respect them as the condition of her
acknowledgment as a separate and independent Grand Lodge . Nova Scotia followed the example of Canada , and there is still one English Lodge—the Royal Standard , No . 398 , of Halifax—located within tho territorial limits of that Colony , which retains its allegiance to the G . Lodge of
England , and the continuance of which , G . M . Laurie of Nova Scotia is so far from considering it in any way detracts from the jurisdiction over which he presides , that he and his Grand Officers not long since visited it by invitation , and he has expressed his belief that it was a great
advantage to him and his fellow Nova Scotian brethren to have such a Lodge , albeit a foreign one , in their midst . But what Nova Scotia regards as a benefit to Nova Scotian Ereemasonry , and what Canada did gracefully when she invited the Grand Lodge of England to recognise her
Masonic independence , ought not to prove a stumblingblock to the existence of fraternal relations between Quebec and England , and mutual representation at either Grand Lodge . Quebec , it must be remembered , is an offshoot from the Grand Lodge of Canada , and in honour is bound
to the observance of the conditions which the latter made when it became a separate and distinct jurisdiction from England and Scotland . Many of its Lodges must have been parties to the acceptance of those conditions , and there can be nothing undignified , certainly nothing
unfraternal or contrary to that freedom of action and opinion which is a leading characteristic of our Society in acquiescing in a state of things which has endured for nearly thirty years without discomfort or sacrifice of dignity to any of the Grand Bodies in question . Quebec as a Masonic
jurisdiction is of recent origin . It has an independent existence dating no further back than 1869 . Nearly eight years since—in 1875—England expressed her willingness to recognise that independent existence on exactly the same conditions that Canada had readily acceded to at the
establishment of her independence , and what has endured all these years may well be allowed to remain undisturbed for the present and till such time as the English Lodges in Montreal themselves take the initiative and express a desire to become enrolled under the banners of the Grand
Lodge of Quebec . Of course the age of the Quebec Grand Lodge is of comparatively trivial importance , and we have alluded to it only for the purpose of making the arrogance of its pretensions the more apparent . Nor are we altogether
surprised at its arrogating to itself the right to condemn those who do not accept its views unhesitatingly . It is the way of the world in these times for juniors to set themselves up as possessing at least as much knowledge , and as being as fully competent to settle any and every question that may
arise , as their seniors . Thus England is plainly told she possesses no right to allow Lodges which have derived from her their warrants of constitution to remain in allegiance to her , if they prefer doing so to joining the G . Lodges established in the Colony in which they are located years and
years after their own creation . Such Lodges are plainly given to understand that such freedom of action is denied them , and that if they decline to join the newly-constituted Grand Body , there is but one alternative left them—that of being excommunicated or dissolution . Even Canadn , of
which Quebec once formed a part , is soundly rated by G . M . Graham , who is of opinion that the Grand Lodge of Canada unlawfully bartered its birth-right of exclusive Masonic so *\ ereignty , the acknowledgment of the possession of which she had justly received from all the sovereign
Address Of Bro. J. H. Graham, Ll.D.
Grand Lodges of the United States , —in accepting , as she did , through M . W . Bro . the Earl of Zetland G . Master of England , concurrent-jurisdiction-recognition from that Grand Body , than which , as it appears to me , no act could have been more short-sighted and unconstitutional , or
consequently more detrimental to the interests of Freemasonry in Canada and elsewhere , as is shown by the condition of local and interjurisdictional affairs here , and in other parts of the Empire at the present time , and which , if not speedily remedied , will in all probability be still
worse in time to come . Was it to be supposed that such an unconstitutional compromise , fraught with such deplorable consequences , would stand through one generation of Craftsmen who know their Masonic rights and dare maintain them ? Impossible . " This looks large in
print and probably sounded well at the time of its delivery , but examine it as carefully as you will , and it resolves itself into nothing else than words , many of them formidable enough in appearance , yet perfectly harmless . People who read the passage we have quoted , about an
unlawfully-bartei'ed birth-right , short-sighted and unconstitutional compromises , and deplorable consequences , will be led to imagine that Freemasonry in Canada and throughout the world must be in a very sorry plight , the fact being that in Canada and elsewhere its condition is most
prosperous . The acceptance of Lord Zetland ' s " concurrentjurisdiction-recognition" does not appear to have affected the constitutional system of the Craft in that Colony which now has close on 400 Lodges and is on the most amicable terms with the Grand Lodges of the mother .
country . It cannot be said that the Craft is by any means out of sorts in India or South Africa , while it is in New South Wales alone among the Australasian Colonies that any febrile symptoms are perceptible , and tbey exist only in an insignificant minority of the Lodges , there being
perhaps one-sixth of the whole body malcontent , for reasons of which the members are for the most part ignorant , and which are certainly unappreciated by the outside world , while the remaining five-sixths are as staunchly attached to the Grand Lodges which created them as the most
loyal of the Lodges in London , Dublin , and Edinburgh . As far as we can see , the " deplorable consequences " that are likely to arise if England persists , as in honour she is bound to do , in upholding her daughter Lodges in Montreal , exist only in the embittered imagination of Bro Graham .
There would seem to be some unwritten law among American Masons which renders it imperative that those who hold the position of Grand Master should deliver long periodical addresses to the Grand Lodge over which they severally preside , and it may well be that , in the absence
for some time past of any one-eyed , one-armed , or onelegged candidates for initiation , whose cases invariably necessitate the most elaborate consideration , or failing some of the innumerable petty formalities which have found their way into the American Masonic system , Brother
Graham has , for lack of something else to engage his attention , first of all created this grievance , and then continued from year to year dilating upon its unspeakable enormities and the fearful consequences that must ensue if it is not remedied forthwith . Heaven only knows where
all the amazing constitutional arrangements come from which are so dear to the hearts of our American brethren . To read some of these extraordinary addresses , one might almost be led to think that Masonry had always been subject to some elaborate'system of laws such as the Laws of
the Twelve Tables , the Code Napoleon , or the Statute Law of England , whereas no form of government invented of men could possibly be simpler and at the same time more effective , while its code of laws is as large-hearted as it is simple . It will be time enough for Brother Graham to
call in question the conduct towards Quebec of the Grand Lodge of England when he can produce irrefragable evidence that it has broken any written or unwritten law
of Masonry , always , of course , excepting those curiousl yfanciful regulations which the American Masonic mind has invented for its own enlightenment , and to the very great amusement of extra-American Craftsmen .
It is difficult to write seriously about a controversy in which one side does all the talking , while the other maintains a dignified silence , and which more nearly fulfils our ideal of the proverbial " storm in a teacup " than any other difference we have read or heard of . But we have
no wish to wound the susceptibilities of our Quebec brethren , and least of all of one who has influenced them so long as Bro . Graham . Yet he must pardon us for