The Bishop Of Sandhurst And Freemasonry.

I hope I might go further , and taking the Masouio bodies ot England a * a whole , I might point to our different Lodges and to our members , and say that in life , in morals , they aro not unworthy of their great profession ; and , lastly , I should turn to that long line of illustrious rulora who have governed this Craft , whose piotures , till last year , before this hall waa consumed by fire , hung on these

walls ; and , above all , to onr present G . Master himself ; and I would ask any one , any fair and impartial bystander , whether it waa conceivable that an Order founded upon these laws , governed by these traditions , ruled by these rulers , could ever be open to the monstrous charges whioh I have just now read . If , indeed , any further illustration were needed of what I have now said , I wonld remind you of

two comparatively recent facts . Some years ago ( March 1878 ) this Grand Lodge , without one single dissenting voice , having taken into consideration , in the calmeat and most solemn manner , tho course of action whioh had been pursued by a large number of Frenoh lodges , who erased from thoir title deeds and charters the affirmation of the immortality of the soul and the belief in a supreme God . I say this

Grand Lodge having taken that into its calmest consideration , then resolved , without one dissenting voice , without one hand being lifted np against it , to break off , painful as it might be , all communion with the Frenoh Lodges . That was the first evidence in recent times to whioh I appeal ; and I might now turn to one event so recent that it has been illustrated in the minntes whioh we have heard read this

evening—an occasion in which I took part , and in which many here present took part—I mean the laying of the corner stone of a tower of Peterborough Cathedral . When any one who was present at that acene reoals how the bishop and clergy stood arrayed in their places , how the volunteer citizens , the defendera of order and sooial right , stood marshalled in long lines , how men of every claas and ovory profession ,

men to whom religion and sooial order might be doomed to have been the dearest objects of their heartB—when I say we remember that these men were brought together for tho restoration of a tomple for the worship and honour of Almighty God , I think it would be worse than foolish to snppose that we could have gone through snoh a blasphemous mimicry , if really our hearts had been turned in the

opposite direction , and wo had been plottera against sooial order and deniers of a Supreme Being . I am convinced that social order and religion have no stronger friends , no truer pillars to re 3 t upon than the Masonio bodies of England . I deeply regret , brethren , that any person in tho position of the

Pope should have been ao far misled by false representations aa to put hia hand—I am aure most undesignedly—to suoh a misstatement of facts as this enoyolical letter contains . I wish I could think that anything I oan say , or that we could do here , would open his eyes to the facts of the case ; but , whether that be so or not , we have one duty to ourselves and to the ancient and venerable Order

that wo represent , and it ia this . In tho moat temperate language that wo oan command , but at the aamo time the most decisive , to protest against this charge , and to spread far and wide our protest against it , and with this object and with this purpose I beg now to submit to the Grand Lodge a motion , trusting that on this , as on the former occasion to which I allnded , there will be neither dissentient

voice nor gosturo . I bog now to movo : — 5 . First : " That this Grand Lodgo has seen with great regrot tho recent encyclical lettor in which the chargca of atheiam , sedition and vice are made against Masonry in general without discrimination or qualification . " Aud secondly : " That this Grand Lodge , whilst it does not deny

that meetings for political and seditious purposes have in some countries baeu held under the pYtstcnco of their being M'laonio Lodges , can only express its astonishment aud regrot that English Freemasonry should by some straugo misapprehension of facts bo included in this sweeping chargo , which tha law , practices and traditions of the Order , aa well as tho position of its rulers , clearly

provo to be utterly without foundation . Note . —Uoth these motions wore carridd unanimously . 6 . Now , sir , notwithstanding the above , and man }* such like ablo dofeucoa that havo bean mado and promulgated of the principles of Freemasonry , it is well known to tho world at largo that , in the oyes of tho rulers of tho Roman Catholic Church , Freemasonry continues

to be an accursed thing , and if the rai ' . son d ' etre of this accursednesa bo sought it can be found very tersely expressed in a bull iaaued by the late Pope Pins IX ., in 1884 , in these words—damnantur dandestfnm societates . Of coarse it is equally evident to all that this ovei ' .- / helming condemnation is intended to refer only to secret societies outside the pale of Roman Catholioism , for it ia obvious that

when under tho control of that would-be dominant hierarchy , similar societies aro regarded by tho faithful as lawful and right . Wo know , without tho aid of reiterated proclamations from tho altar , sown broadcast iu the columns of the daily preas , that an implacable hatred of a mighty inatitntion ( whose members include the foremost , most honoured , pious and charitable residents of every

civilized land ) consumes the breasts of " Holy Fathers ); " but we know , also , that the high aima , the humano , Chriat-like , and benevolent princi ples whioh form tho solid foundation of tho brotherhood of our Aucient Order arc iu nowise affected by 3 uch cr . lumnious , bitter and jealous attacks aa are periodically fulminated against ua by the Roman Catholio Church .

Ihe Christian lives , high character , and honourable aima of tens of thousands of Freemasons , and , indeed , of all who live in accordance with the tenets of our Order , give the Jio direct to such unjustifiable and unworthy statements aa thoso imputed , in your report , toBiahop V rttno » pud , therefore , wo are ugreed thai ; Freemasonry , as an institution , is in no need of special defence by ua ; and that " their cb

onus , -eir means , their doctrines and their actions , " would neither oo sullied , nor suffer , were all Freemasons to treat such baseless statements with a dignified and imperturbable silence ; but viowimcne attack from a local standpoint , wo think it deplorable that in J' comparativel y small , free and mixed community , liko that of Sanduutat , tlmiya should bo said by those in authority which have

The Bishop Of Sandhurst And Freemasonry.

a tendency to atir up strife , aud to engender foeliuga of animosity in one claas towards another . Bishop Crane must know that Roman Catholioism ia not ardently loved by a majority of our community , holding aa it doea tho Protestant faith ; nevertheless the many sections of the latter ( numbers of whom are Freemasons ) , allow the former to travel on ita

own lines in peace , without let or hindrance from them ; nay , they do not withhold , oftentimea , a helping hand when spooial efforts are made by tho stand-aloof ohurch to increase tho funds of thoir ecclesiastical coffers . Tho wonder ia that such help should be solicited and accepted from persons who are persistently represented to be " instruments of Satan , " & o . .

Seeing that Freemasonry ia not a proselytising society , that its principles and practice are alike opposed to the asking of any to join its ranks , and to the refusal to admit to them any honourable , true and good man , whatever bo his creed or country , who voluntarily seeks admission—might not the authorities of St . Kilian ' a pro-Cathedral do well to leave na alone , and to oeaao hurling at us their

annual anathemas , whioh can noither raise their can 3 e in tha estimation of their own people , nor inflict injury upon our Order ; thoagh , here and there , thoy may succeed in personally irritating and annoying by setting , in isolatod individual cases , mothers and daughters against their sous and fathers , and , otherwise , causing strained relations to usurp the placo of tho peace and amity whioh should prevail amongst all olasses . We are , Sir ,

THE MASTERS , PAST MASTERS AND OFFICERS OF THE GOLDEN AND CORINTHIAN , AND ZENITH LODGES OF FREEMASONS . Maaonio Hall , Sandhurst , 26 th February 1891 .

P.G. Lodge Of Gloucestershire.

P . G . LODGE OF GLOUCESTERSHIRE .

THE old-fashioned little town of Dursley , on the 19 th inst ., received a visit from the Freemasons of Gloucestershire , who held their Annnal Prov . Grand Lodgo at the Victoria Hall . It is about fifteen years since there was a similar gathering at Dnrsley , and hence the fixture

was regarded with keen interest by brethren of the district , especially of the local Lodge , St . John ' s , No . 761 . Excellent arrangements were made for the reception of the visitors . There was a numerous attendance , most of the Lodges of the Province being represented . The faot ,

however , that Dnrsley is situated in a somewhat remote part of the Province , and that its train arrangements are not altogether up to date , must , have affected the strength of the assembly ; indeed , the explanation of one Lodge being without a representative was that its members would have

been unable to get homo at night . The Prov . Grand Master the Right Hon . Sir Michael Hicks-Beach , M . P ., was present , and received hearty congratulations on his recovery from his recent indisposition . He was supported by the following Prov . Grand Officers : —Bros . R . V .

Vassar-Smith Deputy Prov . Grand Master , J . Bryan S . W ., W . Forth J . W ., Rev . Hattersley Smith Chaplain , J . A . Matthews Registrar , T . Nelson Foster Treasurer , J . B . Winterbotham Secretary , E . L . Baylis Senior Deacon ,

0 . Sewell Junior Deacon , W . Heath Sup . of Works , A . Bakor Dir . of Cers ., W . G . Boborts Assist . Dir . of Cors ., T . Blinkhorn Sword Bearer , W . Edwards and L . M .

Weston Standard Bearers , J . David Pursuivant , W . Garduor and R . F . Pomeroy Stewards , Phillips Tyler . Prov . Grand Lodge was opened in due form by the Prov . Grand Master , and tho business was smartly disposed of . The Prov . Grand Master and other Officers of rank were

severally saluted , and introductory matters having been disposed of , Bro . T . Nelson Foster submitted the Treasurer ' s report , which was of a very satisfactory character . It showed that at the commencement of the year there was a balance of £ 115 lis lOd , and notwithstanding a vote of

500 guineas to tho Reredos Decoration Fund , tho balance now stood at £ 82 4 s 3 d . The Prov . Grand Treasurer further reported on the receipts of the past twelve months in connection with tho fund for the reredos decoratiou at Gloucester Cathedral , and explained that sufficient mouey

was forthcoming to meet the expenditure , which would amount altogether to £ 307 8 s 9 d ( of which £ 300 was the amount of the contract ) . The financial statements were passed . The Deputy Grand Master submitted the report of the Charity Committee , giving details of tho

work of the past twelve months . In addition to other particulars it stated that grants had been made through various Lodges amounting to £ 60 , and the balance in hand was £ 135 12 s 8 d . The report was adopted , and hearty acknowledgment was made of the efforts of tho Deputy Prov . Grand Master and other brethren associated with