Votes Of Theanks.

VOTES OF THEANKS .

WE were very pleased to hear a word of protest from one high in Masonry , in regard to the ever increasing craze for passing votes of thanks on every conceivable opportunity ,

and hope the mild rebuke uttered by Bro . J . H . Matthews President of the Board of Benevolence may lead to a slight improvement in this direction . As reported in our last issue a meeting of the Board of Benevolence was held last week ,

at which a vote of thanks was passed to the President , for the " able , kind , and courteous manner in which he had conducted the business of the Board during the last twelve months "—the same sort of thing that has been done year by

year in the past , and consequently the vote was a mere formality and , as such , might well be omitted if once the practice could be broken down . Bro . Matthews tried to show the absurd nature of the formality , by saying that as he could

do nothing without the Brethren ' s assistance they were by their vote only patting their own backs . Of course they were , and the same is the case in regard to a very large number of the votes of thanks and much of the fulsome

laudation we have to listen to day by day in Freemasonry . We are surprised that some of the Brethren who are most frequently having their backs rubbed , ' and are " rubbing

back " in return , have not long ere this seen the absurdity of the situation ; or at least have recognised there is no honour in a vote of thanks if it is a mere matter of form . Instead of

doing so , thsy seem to be ever ready to devise new occasions for the utterance of these empty compliments , and the large majority of Brethren have to submit to being detained while the " back scrubbing * " process goes on .

We hear a great deal about the advantage of attending Lodges of Instruction , and no doubt there is much benefit to be derived from a regular course of lessons or practice thereat , but if the present laudation is to be continued we fear there

will be a heavy account on the opposite side to settle , and many of . us will regard such Lodges as hardly unmixed blessings . The vote of thanks epidemic has broken out in our Lodges of Instruction in most virulent form , and in the

interests of the coming generation of Masons , as well as for ourselves , we hope some antidote may speedily be discovered to counteract its baneful influences . It seldom happens nowa-days that some opportunity for a little " back scrubbing "

cannot be introduced into an Instruction meeting—or at least that is the case in a large number of the Lodges , and the Brethren who ought to know better than their fellows are the worst culprits . The ordinary Preceptor of a Lodge of

Instruction seems to think he has not done his duty if he has not patted someone on the back , and if it were not so absurd it would really be laughable to note the excuses that are made for this feature at many of our meetings . Indeed , we have

seen . Preceptors—sedate in all other that pertained to their position in the Lodge—really rise and treat as a joke the proposition or a vote of thanks , to be recorded on the minutes ,

to some Brother among them who had merely done his duty , in a good , bad , or indifferent manner , according as circumstances happened ,

Votes Of Theanks.

If exceptional effort on the part of a Brother is , as a special favour , referred to at a Lodge meeting , and a vote of thanks passed by the Brethren , then there is something for the Brother particularly concerned to be proud of , but where

is the honour of receiving the " usual" vote of thanks which in so many cases has become the regular adjunct to a Masonic gathering ? If the matter is analysed it will be found , more often than not , that the criticism of Bro . Matthews applies ,

and in passing a vote of thanks for the exercise of official duties , the Brethren are but " patting their own backs . " We hope those who feel that flattery is an essential to modern Freemasonry will carefully consider the subject ; if they do

we think they will agree with us that to be of any real value commendation must be awarded only where it is really deserved , not distributed indiscriminately as it often is now , and as a mere matter of form .

East Lancashire.

EAST LANCASHIRE .

THE half-yearly meeting of the Provincial Grand Lodge of East Lancashire was held on the 22 nd inst , at the Town Hall , Manchester . Lord Stanley , M . P ., who was installed as Provincial Grand Master in November 1899 , on the death of the late Colonel Le Gendre N . Starkie , presided for the first

time since his appointment , his absence in South Africa and his subsequent duties at the War Office having prevented his attendance hitherto . There was a crowded attendance of members of the Order , who gave Lord Stanley a cordial welcome . Of the large number of Lodges in the Province but three were unrepresented .

Upon the motion of Bro . Captain Barlow , seconded by Bro . W . Forrest P . P . G . W ., Bros . J . Maiden , Shakespeare Lodge , No . 1009 , Manchester ; Race , Integrity Lodge , No . 163 , Manchester ; and J . Urmston , St . George Lodge , No . 1723 , Bolton , were appointed Auditors .

The report of the Charity Committee stated that at the election of candidates for the benefits of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution for Aged Freemasons and Widows in May last , an aged Brother and a Widow from East Lancashire were elected . At the elections to the Royal Masonic Schools in October there were no candidates from the

Province , but the Committee were enabled to use their votes by lending them . Bro . C . D . Cheetham , in moving the adoption of the report , said they would all feel extreme pleasure in having with them Lord Stanley , their Provincial Grand Master . He

hoped , if the important duties he had to discharge m London permitted him , he would be enabled to come sometimes amongst them . As Chairman of the Charity Committee he thanked the members of the Lodges in the Province for the complete manner in which all votes held by Lodges and by

individual members had been forwarded to the Committee . In consequence they were enabled to utilise the full strength of the voting power of the Province for tne beneht of those connected with it . Bro . j . B . Goulburn Deputy Chairman of the Committee seconded the motion .

The Provincial Grand Master , in putting the resolution to the meeting , said he thanked Bro . Cheetham for the reference he had made . He was afraid he could not be with them as often as he ought to be , -or as he wished to be . . He

trusted they would take it that the spirit was willing but the flesh was weak . The report of the Charity Committee spoke well for two things' —first , the unanimity that existed amongst them in the desire that the votes they possessed in relation to the Charities should be utilised in the best interests of the