Burns And The Tarbolton Freemasons.

posing of a letter to " all tho brethren indebted to the Lodge , either by bill or quarterly accounts , " baing referred to after one of theso audita , and we can bo tolerably certain that Brother Burns had the lion ' s share in this composition , prosaic even as is the subject . It is pleasing to noto that

the Lodge had other channels for their money than that caused by tho drinking customs of the time . From a minute dated 5 th September 1787 , it is evident that benefactions

to indigent members formed one item of expenditure— -as "it was agreed to give John M'Millan , a brothor , three shillings , he being in distress by a misfortune . "

Burns must have been tbe life and soul of the St . James ' s Lodge in more ways than one . The minutes show that there were more meetings when he was an Office Bearer than at any other period . Though Burns is known to have been a member from the end of 1781 , and it is not till 27 fch July 1784 that we have the record of his

apointment to a position of influence in the Lodge . The Deputy Mastership was then conferred upon him—a position that carried with it the active duties of the Grand Master , who was not frequently present at the meetings . All assemblies at which the Master was not present were under the presidency of the Deputy Mastar , and it is in this

capacity that Burns has signed so many of the minutes . There are three short minutes written in full by the poet . The first is dated " Tarbolton , 1 st September 1784 , " that is unsigned , a circumstance not uncommon amongst the records of that time . The minutes bears marks of literary

conceit at any rate , the antithesis being worthy of note . Ifc is almost ludicrous to find the world-famed poet writing

this" This night the Lodge met and ordered four pounds of candles and one quire of eightpence paper for the use of the Lodge , which money was laid out by the Treasurer , and the candles and paper laid in accordingly . "

The othor minutes , written fully in the poet ' s hand , are as follows : —

" Tarbolton , Juno 23 , 1780 . —Thia night the Lodge met , and Robert Andrew , a brother of St . David's , Tarbolton , was admitted by unanimous vote , gratis ; likewiso James Good , having been duely recommended was entered an apprentice . B . Burns , D . M . " "Tarbolton ,

August 18 th ( no year , bnt from the dates immediately beforo and after , sure to be 1786 . )—This night the Lodge met , and James Ten . nant , from Ochiltree , having been recommended was admitted accord , iugly . Robt . Burns , D . M . "

It is a curious coincidence that two of the three minutes written in full by Robert Burns are near to the one written in tho hand of Gilbert Burns , the three being in view at the one opening of the book . Burns , who , whether living at

Lochlee or Mossgiel , must have had several miles to walk ia order to attend the meetings of the Lodge , was most attentive to his duties . The first minute which he signed as Depute Master is dated 29 th June 1785 , and the last to which his name is adhibited is dated 23 rd May 1788 : but

this does not mark his final departure from the Lodge , as Dr . Robert Chambers erroneously states in his " Land of Burns . " On the 21 st October 1788 , and again on the 11 th November of the same year , the minutes record that Bro . Robert Burns was in the chair , though his signature was not attached . Both of these meetings took place at

Maucoline , and they must have been held during a flying visit from Ellisland , as Burns settled there on 12 th June 1788 , a letter of his dated 13 th June , stating that " this is the second day he had been on his farm in

Dumfriesshire . Between the first and last signature , Burns has in all signed his name 29 times , and on one occasion he has his initials placed to a postscript ; but one of the signatures has been cut out by some unscrupulous admirer . The

theft occurs in the second last minute that was signed by the poet , the signature being that of tho main part of the minute—the minute having been divided into three . Barns has signed a "P . S . " to the same minute , and also

an addition to this " P . S . " connected by the words " also at same time , " aud to the last of these hangs a tale . The gontleman in Tarbolton who had charge of the minute

book was at one time showing it to a visitor , but being called away for a moment to attend a sick daughter in another room , the visitor anel the book were leftunwatched .

After the visitor departed the gontleman was asked b y his daughter to look to the book , as she was afraid somethin g would be found wrong . Whilst her father was with her she heard either a knife or a pair of scissors at work , and she was ris : ht in the surmise that one of the minutes had

been tampered with . On discovering this , the visitor was communicated with , and ordered to return thc stolen pro-

Burns And The Tarbolton Freemasons.

perfcy or suffer the consequences , an ! the cutting was returned . The stolen pait is now neatly pasted in at its original place , and being- on the opposite page from the blank left by the cut out signature , eloquent testimony is

borne to tho rapacity of collectors and the value placed upon relics of our national bard . Str . xr . ge as tho omission may appear , there is no mention of the poet ' s di mission of

office , nor of his leaving the district , even th ) i gh Burns himself looked so favourably on the position he held amongst to Tarbolton Masons as to address a poem to them as his farewell . This was in 1786 , wheu ho seriously con .

templated emigrating to the West Indies . It ia curious also to note the manner in which Burns signs hia name ; in this there is great variety . In regard to the spelling , he continues the " Burness " up till 1 st March 1786—the first under the more familiar " Burns " being of date 25 th May of the same year . Whilst Burns signs " Burness " so long , it is noteworthy that the references to him in the text of

the minutes are always spelt "Burns unless on one occasion when the name had first been spelt " Burns , " but afterwards altered to " Burness , " probably by the poet himself , or at least by his instructions , as his name appears at the foot of this minute as " Burness . " In regard to the Christian name , it appears once before Burness as " Robert , " and thirteen times it precedes the same spelling as " Robt . " Before the later spelling of Burns we have it once only in full as " Robert , " a single time as " R , " and eleven times

as " Robt . "—this latter having , it is thus seen , the greatest favour -with the poet . Amongst a long list of signatures of members many of them having their Mason ' s marks attached , we find Burns signing himself in full " Robert Burns , " and adding his Masonic mark of nine points on the same line . This signature has less resemblance to the familiar and undoubtedly genuine form than any of the

others , but there is no date to it , and it is just possible that the conditions under which he signed were what the Lodge might term unfortunate . Burns ' s younger brother , Gilbert , was entered , passed , and raised as a brother on the 1 st March 1786 ( the last date on which the poet signed Burness ) , and must , for a time at least , have taken an active part in the affairs of the

Lodge . We find Gilbert signing the minutes on fivo separate occasions between 11 th December 1786 and 21 st December 1787 , one of these , as already said , being written by him in full . The last reference to either of the brothers occurs on 18 th November and 20 th November 1788 , on which dates the text of the minutes states that Brother Gilbert Burns occupied the chair . These last-named

meetings were held in Mauchline , and form the closing testimony to tho warm interest maintained for six or seven years by Robert , and the shorter period by Gilbert , in the affairs of St . James ' s , Tarbolton , Lodge . Burns signs the minute relating to the visit of Professor Dugald Stewart to the Lodge , who at that time was tenant of Catrine House , and was a friend of the poet . The

record is as follows : — " 'A deputation of the Lodge web at Mauchline on 25 sh Jnly 1787 , and entered Brother Alexander Allison of Barmuir an apprentice . Likewise admitted Brothers Professor Stewart of Cathrine , and Claud

Alexander , Esq ., of Ballochmyle ; Claud Nielson , Esq ., Paisley ; John Farquhar Gray , Esq ., of Gilmilnaoroft ; and Dr . George Grierson , Glasgow , honorary members of this Lodge , ' the minute being signed Robt . Burns , D . M ., in very faint ink . "

John Wilson , who was parish teacher of Tarbolton , and the Dr . Hornbook of Burns ' s well-known poem , was Secretary to the Lodge from 8 th August 1782 till somo time in 1787 , and in that capacity wrote many of tho

minutes . Two of them are signed by him , one as " Master pro tempore " and the other as " M . P . T . " Thia last minnto shows his adhesion to the Lodge after his successor in tho Secretaryship had been appointed , and it is not shown that

he was at the date the holder of any office other than that of ordinary membership . Immediately succeeding Wilson ' s first signature as "Master pro tempore" he finds an

imitator in James M'Donald , the succeeding chairman , who feigns his name and adds " P . T . " merely , a thing that occurs also once afterwards in the writing of another temporary president . Two of the Grand Masters sign the minutes occasionally ,

viz . : — Mr . James Montgomerie of Coilsfield , aud Mr . James Dalrymple of Orangefield—but these are the only names adhibited of the half-dozen Grand Masters who held office during the years embraced in the minutes . Tho others were Mr . John Hamilton of Sundrum—a name still honoured in the county iu the person of thc present pro-