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Article FREEMASONRY IN THE PROVINCE OF NORTH WALES AND SALOP. ← Page 2 of 2 Article OLD LODGES. Page 1 of 1 Article OLD LODGES. Page 1 of 1 Article CANVASSING FOR OUR CHARITIES. Page 1 of 2 →
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Freemasonry In The Province Of North Wales And Salop.
issue Ave purpose beginning the story of our excursion through North Wales and Salop , and the starting point will be—Shrewsbury .
Old Lodges.
OLD LODGES .
No . 45 , STRONG MAN . —In investigating the early history of onr oldest Lodges , it is obviously impossible to give in detail , the reasons which have satisfied one's own mind , of the identity of a Lodge of to-day , Avith its place and number on lists ranging backwards for more than a century .
The case , however , of present No . 45 being a very representative one , some additional remarks on its history may not be deemed out of place . In tho first instance , I would observe that its identification with No . 110 of 1729-39
seems to me absolutely certain . The fact Avonld , I think , he cleni-ly established from the evidence of the engraved lists alone , but the Constitutions of 1738 effectually dispel all doubt upon the subject . The following extract Avill make this evident : —
Nog . 63 Ship Coffee Houso Near the Hermitage Bridge 2 nd Feb . 173 § 69 Theatre Tavern Goodman ' s Fields 17 th Feb . 173 J The numbers prefixed to theso Lodges must he disregarded , as London Lodges only ( snch moreover as Avere not in
arrear Avith their contributions ) were shown in this list , but the dates are of the first importance , tho manuscript containing them , prior to its adoption by Grand Lodge , having been submitted to Past Grand Masters Payne and
Dcsaguliers , Avho , it is recorded , " signified their approbation after making some corrections . " By the co-operation ' of these brethren , the statements therefore contained in this ' Book of Constitutions , possess a weight of authority which cannot be over-rated .
The variation of date from 2 nd to 17 th Feb . is immaterial , indeed the lists are full of snch blunders , but the matter is , I think , capable of easy explanation . In 1756 the numbers Avere closed up by order of Grand Lodge , and the engraver ,
in carrying this into effect , must have pushed the date of No . 99 on the previous list ( 1755 ) one place higher than it should have stood , and thereby brought it alongside of No . 98 ( present No . 45 , Strong Man ) .
The original warrant of Constitution would of course be the best evidence of this Lodge ' s age , but a warrant of confirmation , such as there can be little doubt the Lodge is now Avorking under , will only record the date ascribed to the Lodge in the then current calendar at the period of its issue .
No . 67 , STAK IN THE EAST , Calcutta . —The early history of this Lodge is even more confusing than that of No . 45 , since it occupies the place of what was a London Lodge up to 1745 . In my note on this Lodge in the FREEMASON ' CunONicLE of 21 st September , I showed that , it suddenly
appeared on the List in 1750 , with a Constitution duting from 1740 , being styled moreover the third Lodge of Bengal , implying there Avas a second , which latter , however , was
conspicuous by its entire absence from the roll . I have recently succeeded in clearing up this mystery , which is fully explained in the following extracts from the minutes of Grand Lodge : —
April 3 , 1747 , " Eeceived a letter by the ship Wager , dated 4 th February 1745-6 , from Cnpt . Robt . Hamilton , Master , and six other brethren , of the third constitntcd Lodge at Calcutta , in Bengal , directed to the Et . Worshipfnl the Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons in London , accompanied with a copy of their petition for n
Constitntion directed to the lit . Worshipful Leclia . Gee P . G . M . of the Provincial Grand Lodge , in Calcutta , and also with a ropy of the nrnutes of throe of their Lodges , held 16 th April 17-J 0 , the 10 th Nov . 1745 , and tho 15 th January 1745-G , which were read and purported as follows : —
That the second Lodgo there being too numerous , they had separated from it , and the said 16 th April 1740 wero constituted into a new and regular Lodge . That they had addressed the said Provincial Grand Lodje to know whetherthey had properly adviaedthe Grand Lodge of England thereof
bnt had received no satisfactory answer , and that they lately har ' strong rensons for concluding that their Constitntion had never b ^ en transmitted to the Grand Lodsre in London , and requested if it ha < not , tl'at the same might be enrolled in the list of regular Lodges
agreeable to the date of their Constitntion . That their Lodge had been regularly kept up , and that they hnr to the utmost of their abilities ami judgement propagated tho Craft , and had transmitted ten pounds to the nse of the General Charitv .
Old Lodges.
Bnt the brother who was to sppab to this affair being out of town , tho consideration there' f was deferred till he should be present . " Dee . 16 . 1747 . " The Letter from the Master and six other brethren of the third Constituted Lodsre at Calcutta , in Bengal , accompanied with a copy of their petition to tho P . G . M . in Calcutta , and of the minutes of
three of their Lodges , which were received and read at the Q . C . held the third day of April ! last , purporting as in the minutes of the said Q . C . is mentioned ( the consideration whereof was deferred , the Brother who was to speak to the same , beincr out of town ) , were again read and spoke to , when it not appearing that any advice had before been sent of their said Constitution .
Ordered—that tho said Lodcrn at Calcutta be ( as is requested ) en . rolled in the Hst of regular Lodges , agreeable to the date of their Constitution . " R . F . GomvD .
Canvassing For Our Charities.
CANVASSING FOR OUR CHARITIES .
WE have been favoured Avith the following circular letter , addressed by Bro . Dick Radelyffe to his follow members of the Etonian Lodge of St . John , No 209 , Eton , and presumably to brethren generally throughout England . Bro Kadclyffe has undertaken the duties of Steward at the Festivals next year of the Royal Masonic Institution for
Boys , and Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution respectively . He is necessarily anxious to obtain as much support as possible , and in his circular he invites brethren to place their names on his list , either as Life Governors or LifeSubscTibers , oratleastas annual Subscribers , nsingasan
argument in fa \ our of his appeal a statement we have heard used at other times , —that if each Mason in England would only give a eruinea per annum to each of our three Charitable Institutions , there would be no call for Stewards , Avhile the benefits thereof would be doubled . Bro .
Radclvffe is , to a certain extent , and Avith certain reservations Avhieh AVO purpose noticing next Aveek , right in his statement , but we caution him , in a friendly manner , against making this statement even in its present form without some qualification , or he may find it turned against him ,
and to his serious detriment . Let him say rather , —if every Ma « on Avonld but give at least a guinea annually to each of the Charities ; he will then leave no door open for escape from giving five , ten , or twenty guineas to those who are able , but not at all times Avillinsr , to do so . There are people who Avill
regard his guinea as the maximum amount of each Mason ' s subscription , but Bro . Radclyffe must make it perfectly clear to every one , and beyond even the possibility of a doubt , that the guinea he is talking about is the minimum that must be given . As to his scheme for the issue of
halfcrown tickets , we commend it to the notice of our readers generally , tis one which , in the hands of energetic brethren , has been , and no doubt will be again , productive of good to the Institutions in Avhose behalf they have been or may be issued . Many a man will think nothing of buying at odd
times half-a-dozen shilling or half-crown tickets , especially when there is the chance attached to each ticket that he may become a Life Subscriber , when he Avould think twice , or even thrice , about giving even half aguineaat one time .
And it is surprising how soon these small sums mount up to something considerable . We Avish every success to our Avorthy Bro . Radclyffe ' s scheme , and have great pleasure in appending his letter , Avhich reads as follows : —¦
129 High Holborn , October 1878 . DEAR SIR AND BROTHER , —I havo much pleasure in informing you that I have undertaken to represent the Etonian Lodge of St . John , No . 209 , at the ensuing Festivals of the Royal Masonic Institution
for Boys , and the Royal Masonio Benevolent Institution for Aged Freemasons and Widows of Freemasons . Much has been said of late of the difficulty experienced by the Charities in raising sufficient funds to meet only part of the neces--lities , as all cases cannot bo relieved and many candidates are turned
away . Surely this is a reproach to a body of men whose " leading characteristic" is "Charity . " It is estimated if every Mason in England wero to give 21 s per annum to each Institution ( not a large sum to a man who can find several guineas for initiation fees , subscriptions , & c ) , that the Charities would require no urgent appeals ,
nor need they turn candidates away , as the amount thus realised would be sufficient to double the establishments . Certainly it would orevent the trouble experienced in procuring Stewards , who would lot then be required , and , therefore , no grumbles would reach ns > t' the "hardships , " "loss of time and money , " so often Sfen in the
vpfkly mediums , of those ready to excuse themselves from their " •sponsibilitics . Having undertaken the duties , I intend to do my it most to procure a good list , and 1 call upon every brother to care"iiliy consider the question of the Charities , and whether it is not i disgrace that so large and influential body of men shonld be begging simply because each and every Mason does not care to provide
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Freemasonry In The Province Of North Wales And Salop.
issue Ave purpose beginning the story of our excursion through North Wales and Salop , and the starting point will be—Shrewsbury .
Old Lodges.
OLD LODGES .
No . 45 , STRONG MAN . —In investigating the early history of onr oldest Lodges , it is obviously impossible to give in detail , the reasons which have satisfied one's own mind , of the identity of a Lodge of to-day , Avith its place and number on lists ranging backwards for more than a century .
The case , however , of present No . 45 being a very representative one , some additional remarks on its history may not be deemed out of place . In tho first instance , I would observe that its identification with No . 110 of 1729-39
seems to me absolutely certain . The fact Avonld , I think , he cleni-ly established from the evidence of the engraved lists alone , but the Constitutions of 1738 effectually dispel all doubt upon the subject . The following extract Avill make this evident : —
Nog . 63 Ship Coffee Houso Near the Hermitage Bridge 2 nd Feb . 173 § 69 Theatre Tavern Goodman ' s Fields 17 th Feb . 173 J The numbers prefixed to theso Lodges must he disregarded , as London Lodges only ( snch moreover as Avere not in
arrear Avith their contributions ) were shown in this list , but the dates are of the first importance , tho manuscript containing them , prior to its adoption by Grand Lodge , having been submitted to Past Grand Masters Payne and
Dcsaguliers , Avho , it is recorded , " signified their approbation after making some corrections . " By the co-operation ' of these brethren , the statements therefore contained in this ' Book of Constitutions , possess a weight of authority which cannot be over-rated .
The variation of date from 2 nd to 17 th Feb . is immaterial , indeed the lists are full of snch blunders , but the matter is , I think , capable of easy explanation . In 1756 the numbers Avere closed up by order of Grand Lodge , and the engraver ,
in carrying this into effect , must have pushed the date of No . 99 on the previous list ( 1755 ) one place higher than it should have stood , and thereby brought it alongside of No . 98 ( present No . 45 , Strong Man ) .
The original warrant of Constitution would of course be the best evidence of this Lodge ' s age , but a warrant of confirmation , such as there can be little doubt the Lodge is now Avorking under , will only record the date ascribed to the Lodge in the then current calendar at the period of its issue .
No . 67 , STAK IN THE EAST , Calcutta . —The early history of this Lodge is even more confusing than that of No . 45 , since it occupies the place of what was a London Lodge up to 1745 . In my note on this Lodge in the FREEMASON ' CunONicLE of 21 st September , I showed that , it suddenly
appeared on the List in 1750 , with a Constitution duting from 1740 , being styled moreover the third Lodge of Bengal , implying there Avas a second , which latter , however , was
conspicuous by its entire absence from the roll . I have recently succeeded in clearing up this mystery , which is fully explained in the following extracts from the minutes of Grand Lodge : —
April 3 , 1747 , " Eeceived a letter by the ship Wager , dated 4 th February 1745-6 , from Cnpt . Robt . Hamilton , Master , and six other brethren , of the third constitntcd Lodge at Calcutta , in Bengal , directed to the Et . Worshipfnl the Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons in London , accompanied with a copy of their petition for n
Constitntion directed to the lit . Worshipful Leclia . Gee P . G . M . of the Provincial Grand Lodge , in Calcutta , and also with a ropy of the nrnutes of throe of their Lodges , held 16 th April 17-J 0 , the 10 th Nov . 1745 , and tho 15 th January 1745-G , which were read and purported as follows : —
That the second Lodgo there being too numerous , they had separated from it , and the said 16 th April 1740 wero constituted into a new and regular Lodge . That they had addressed the said Provincial Grand Lodje to know whetherthey had properly adviaedthe Grand Lodge of England thereof
bnt had received no satisfactory answer , and that they lately har ' strong rensons for concluding that their Constitntion had never b ^ en transmitted to the Grand Lodsre in London , and requested if it ha < not , tl'at the same might be enrolled in the list of regular Lodges
agreeable to the date of their Constitntion . That their Lodge had been regularly kept up , and that they hnr to the utmost of their abilities ami judgement propagated tho Craft , and had transmitted ten pounds to the nse of the General Charitv .
Old Lodges.
Bnt the brother who was to sppab to this affair being out of town , tho consideration there' f was deferred till he should be present . " Dee . 16 . 1747 . " The Letter from the Master and six other brethren of the third Constituted Lodsre at Calcutta , in Bengal , accompanied with a copy of their petition to tho P . G . M . in Calcutta , and of the minutes of
three of their Lodges , which were received and read at the Q . C . held the third day of April ! last , purporting as in the minutes of the said Q . C . is mentioned ( the consideration whereof was deferred , the Brother who was to speak to the same , beincr out of town ) , were again read and spoke to , when it not appearing that any advice had before been sent of their said Constitution .
Ordered—that tho said Lodcrn at Calcutta be ( as is requested ) en . rolled in the Hst of regular Lodges , agreeable to the date of their Constitution . " R . F . GomvD .
Canvassing For Our Charities.
CANVASSING FOR OUR CHARITIES .
WE have been favoured Avith the following circular letter , addressed by Bro . Dick Radelyffe to his follow members of the Etonian Lodge of St . John , No 209 , Eton , and presumably to brethren generally throughout England . Bro Kadclyffe has undertaken the duties of Steward at the Festivals next year of the Royal Masonic Institution for
Boys , and Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution respectively . He is necessarily anxious to obtain as much support as possible , and in his circular he invites brethren to place their names on his list , either as Life Governors or LifeSubscTibers , oratleastas annual Subscribers , nsingasan
argument in fa \ our of his appeal a statement we have heard used at other times , —that if each Mason in England would only give a eruinea per annum to each of our three Charitable Institutions , there would be no call for Stewards , Avhile the benefits thereof would be doubled . Bro .
Radclvffe is , to a certain extent , and Avith certain reservations Avhieh AVO purpose noticing next Aveek , right in his statement , but we caution him , in a friendly manner , against making this statement even in its present form without some qualification , or he may find it turned against him ,
and to his serious detriment . Let him say rather , —if every Ma « on Avonld but give at least a guinea annually to each of the Charities ; he will then leave no door open for escape from giving five , ten , or twenty guineas to those who are able , but not at all times Avillinsr , to do so . There are people who Avill
regard his guinea as the maximum amount of each Mason ' s subscription , but Bro . Radclyffe must make it perfectly clear to every one , and beyond even the possibility of a doubt , that the guinea he is talking about is the minimum that must be given . As to his scheme for the issue of
halfcrown tickets , we commend it to the notice of our readers generally , tis one which , in the hands of energetic brethren , has been , and no doubt will be again , productive of good to the Institutions in Avhose behalf they have been or may be issued . Many a man will think nothing of buying at odd
times half-a-dozen shilling or half-crown tickets , especially when there is the chance attached to each ticket that he may become a Life Subscriber , when he Avould think twice , or even thrice , about giving even half aguineaat one time .
And it is surprising how soon these small sums mount up to something considerable . We Avish every success to our Avorthy Bro . Radclyffe ' s scheme , and have great pleasure in appending his letter , Avhich reads as follows : —¦
129 High Holborn , October 1878 . DEAR SIR AND BROTHER , —I havo much pleasure in informing you that I have undertaken to represent the Etonian Lodge of St . John , No . 209 , at the ensuing Festivals of the Royal Masonic Institution
for Boys , and the Royal Masonio Benevolent Institution for Aged Freemasons and Widows of Freemasons . Much has been said of late of the difficulty experienced by the Charities in raising sufficient funds to meet only part of the neces--lities , as all cases cannot bo relieved and many candidates are turned
away . Surely this is a reproach to a body of men whose " leading characteristic" is "Charity . " It is estimated if every Mason in England wero to give 21 s per annum to each Institution ( not a large sum to a man who can find several guineas for initiation fees , subscriptions , & c ) , that the Charities would require no urgent appeals ,
nor need they turn candidates away , as the amount thus realised would be sufficient to double the establishments . Certainly it would orevent the trouble experienced in procuring Stewards , who would lot then be required , and , therefore , no grumbles would reach ns > t' the "hardships , " "loss of time and money , " so often Sfen in the
vpfkly mediums , of those ready to excuse themselves from their " •sponsibilitics . Having undertaken the duties , I intend to do my it most to procure a good list , and 1 call upon every brother to care"iiliy consider the question of the Charities , and whether it is not i disgrace that so large and influential body of men shonld be begging simply because each and every Mason does not care to provide