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Article OCCASIONAL PAPERS.—No. IV. ← Page 2 of 4 Article OCCASIONAL PAPERS.—No. IV. Page 2 of 4 →
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Occasional Papers.—No. Iv.
as Grand Master , was among the warmest patrons of the school . His brothers , and especially the Duke of Sussex , his successor in tho Grancl Mastership , followed his illustrious example . In short , from 1788 till now , all who have filled the office of Grand Master , the Grand Officers ,
the officers and members of private Lodges , and a large number of Ladies and Lewises havo made it a point of honour and duty to support the Royal Masonic Institution for Girls . Only one change has taken place in the locality of the school during the ninety and odd years of its
existence . When in 1851 the lease of the ground on which the original building was erected fell in , it was found impossible to renew it except at a largely-increased rental , nor , having regard to the crowded state of the neighbourhood in which it stood , was such renewal considered
desirable . Some freehold land was therefore purchased on Battersca Rise , and there was raised the present schoolhouse . Nofc , however , in ifcs entirety as you now see ifc . In the thirty years that have since elapsed , there have been alterations and improvements and enlargements ; fresh
ground adjoining has been purchased ; the wings of the first house have been extended ; the Royal Alexandra and North West wings have been erected . There aro also a laundry , an infirmary , and , since the purchase of Lyncombe House , a preparatory school , each and all of them standing
separately and distinctly from the main building ; and , I suppose I must not omit to add , no short time hence there will be a swimming bath . With premises so extensive it is possible to accommodate no less than 229 girls , with the requisite educational and domestic staff . The age
for admission ranges from ei ght to eleven , and the pupils are educated and maintained within these hospitable walls till they attain the age of sixteen , while even then , in meritorious and necessary cases , there is further assistance given to those who are leaving , so thafc they may nofc be without the means of making a fair start in life .
On the benefits conferred by this Institution I need not dwell at length . I gather from au address issued in January of the present year , that up till then 1254 girls have been educated , clothed , and maintained within ifcs walls . Bufc mere numbers is onl y in part—a very
important part , I admit—a test of the good that has been for these daughters of our poorer or deceased brethren . The education they have received has been of a character to fit them for well nigh every branch of employment that is
open to women , and I rejoice to say , on the authority of a statement in the report I have just referred to , those who have been under the necessity of seeking some kind of employment " have so invariably conducted themselves as to deserve and receive the commendations of their
employers . " I have yet this to add as to the education—in the sense of mental culture—afforded . The majority of those Girls who have submitted themselves to the tolerably severe examination imposed by the Cambridge Local Examiners have either passed with honours or secured
certificates of proficiency np to a certain standard . May the picture , which is from the life , be always as brilliant as I have described it ! Indeed , so long as the present excellent system is continued , I do not see how ifc is possible that any less satisfactory picture shonld ever be described .
The Royal Masonic Institution for Boys , which is only ten years the junior of the Sister School , now claims attention at our hands . It was started in July 1798 by the United Mariner ' s Lodge , No . 23 on the roll of Grand Lodge " Ancients , " and in a very short time was so
fortunate as to secure the Duke of Atholl , who was Grand Master of that body , for its patron . At the outset , the scheme was limited to the clothing and education of sons of indigent Freemasons , and the number of boys thus assisted was only six ; but as the efforts of the promoters
and governors were successful in bringing large sums annually , more boys were assisted , and when in 1810 the jubilee or fiftieth anniversary of the accession to the throne of his late Majesty George III . was celebrated , the number was increased to fiftv . As between our Girls' and
-Boys Schools , however , there was this very material difference . I have already shown in the case of the former that within a very short time after the idea was first ; promulgated b y Bro . Ruspini a school-honse was erected on
some leasehold ground near the Obelisk , Sfc . George ' s-inthe Fields , and fifteen girls were received and clothed , maintained , and educated within ifcs walls . Bat with tbe latter tho scheme was limited to clothing the boys and providing them with education at schools in . the neighbour-
Occasional Papers.—No. Iv.
hood of their parents' residences ; nor was it till as recently as the year 1857 that a school-house largo enough to accommodate five and twenty boys was established at Wood Green . Another distinctive feature was adopted
laterin connection with " Our Boys . " In June 1812 Grand Lodge passed a resolution to the effect that " every Lodge in and adjacent to the cities of London and Westminster " should contribute the sum of " five shillings " on the
registering of every now mado Mason , and every " country , foreign and military Lodge" tho sum of " two shillings and sixpence " for every similar registration , such sums to be paid in aid of the " Institution for clothing and
educating the sons of deceased and indigent Ancient Freemasons . " The year following this , the rival Grand Lodges became one , under the style and title of tho " United Grand Lodge of England , " and the two Schools received the aid of Grand Lodge as well as of the Fraternity at large .
Here I musfc break off from the direct course of my narrative in order to show that though the chief portion of the honour connected with the establishment of this Institution belongs unquestionably to Lodge No . 23 of the
Ancients , the Moderns have the satisfaction of knowing they had a fair share in setting it on foot . The particulars will be found at some length in the historical sketch issued from the Offices of the Institution , Bro .
Binckes , the Secretary , being no doubt the narrator . Having , however , regard to your time , I can only state in brief that Sir F . C . Daniel , a conspicuous and enthusiastic Modern Mason , member and , for seventeen consecutive
years , Worshipful Master of the Royal Naval Lodge , laid the foundation stone of a " Masonic Charity for Clothing and Educating the Sons of Indigent Freemasons , " being assisted in this undertaking by Bros . W . Burwood Past
G . S . W ., Captain Foster , F . Penny , Robert Gill P . G . S . W ., & c . What may have been the early progress of this new Charity does not appear in the narrative referred to , but at a meeting held at the Royal Naval Lodge , Burr-street ,
near the Tower , an account was presented , showing that in the fifteen months , from 25 th March 1808 , to 23 rd June 1809 , the subscriptions received amounted to £ 345 17 s 3 yd , while the disbursements wero £ 151 Is , leaving a balance
in favour of the the Charity of £ 194 16 s 3 | d . The above account having been audited , Bro . F . 0 . Daniel , the "institntor , " was continued treasurer , and the healths of the Earl of Kingston , patron of the Institution , the Earl of
Moira , and the Vice-Presidents , were drunk with applause . It appears also , from a memorandum attached , that " £ 100 in the Five per Cents ., which cost £ 99 10 s 6 d " had " been
purchased in the names of Chevalier B . Ruspini , F . C . Daniel , J . Haswell , and J . Woomsley , Esqrs ., in trust for the Charity . "
From this ifc is clear that the Boys School is the outcome of two Institutions , one originated by the members of "Ancient" Lodge No . 23 , and the other by Bro . F . C . Daniel , of the Royal Naval Lodge " Modern . " But when
the Union was accomplished , Bro . Sir F . 0 . Daniel set himself to bring about a union of the two Boys' Charities , and this he happily succeeded in effecting , with the able and fraternal assistance of Bro . W . Williams , M . P ., Prov .
Grand Master of Dorset , and Sir William Rawlins , Past Grand Senior Warden . This auspicious event took place on the 26 th May 1817 , and was thus announced to the Fraternity : —
SIR AND BROTHER , —I most cordially congratulate you and the Fraternity afc large on the union of the two Masonio Charities , which took place on Monday , the 26 th ult ., at Freemasons' Hall ; and ifc must be gratifying to every brother to hear it was accomplished
without a dissenting voice on either side : by this union of benevolence we shall be enabled to provide for sixty-five deserving objects , whose Parents were onr Brethren , and many of them a short time since were living in respectability .
There are now upwards of Forty promising Boys imploring protection , and I am sorry to say , some without a shoe ; what is still more distressing , that unless we provide for them , they musfc remain in ignorance , linger through a life of wretchedness , without education or decent clothing , and exposed to the mercies of a wide World .
I therefore , as Instifcutor , take the liberty most respectfully to call upon you , in tho names of its noble patrons , the Dukes of Snssex , Kent , Athol , and the Earl of Kingston , to subscribe your mite , and also to use your influence with your Lodire and its Members ( who must all feel an interest in so good a cause ) , by which means I shall
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Occasional Papers.—No. Iv.
as Grand Master , was among the warmest patrons of the school . His brothers , and especially the Duke of Sussex , his successor in tho Grancl Mastership , followed his illustrious example . In short , from 1788 till now , all who have filled the office of Grand Master , the Grand Officers ,
the officers and members of private Lodges , and a large number of Ladies and Lewises havo made it a point of honour and duty to support the Royal Masonic Institution for Girls . Only one change has taken place in the locality of the school during the ninety and odd years of its
existence . When in 1851 the lease of the ground on which the original building was erected fell in , it was found impossible to renew it except at a largely-increased rental , nor , having regard to the crowded state of the neighbourhood in which it stood , was such renewal considered
desirable . Some freehold land was therefore purchased on Battersca Rise , and there was raised the present schoolhouse . Nofc , however , in ifcs entirety as you now see ifc . In the thirty years that have since elapsed , there have been alterations and improvements and enlargements ; fresh
ground adjoining has been purchased ; the wings of the first house have been extended ; the Royal Alexandra and North West wings have been erected . There aro also a laundry , an infirmary , and , since the purchase of Lyncombe House , a preparatory school , each and all of them standing
separately and distinctly from the main building ; and , I suppose I must not omit to add , no short time hence there will be a swimming bath . With premises so extensive it is possible to accommodate no less than 229 girls , with the requisite educational and domestic staff . The age
for admission ranges from ei ght to eleven , and the pupils are educated and maintained within these hospitable walls till they attain the age of sixteen , while even then , in meritorious and necessary cases , there is further assistance given to those who are leaving , so thafc they may nofc be without the means of making a fair start in life .
On the benefits conferred by this Institution I need not dwell at length . I gather from au address issued in January of the present year , that up till then 1254 girls have been educated , clothed , and maintained within ifcs walls . Bufc mere numbers is onl y in part—a very
important part , I admit—a test of the good that has been for these daughters of our poorer or deceased brethren . The education they have received has been of a character to fit them for well nigh every branch of employment that is
open to women , and I rejoice to say , on the authority of a statement in the report I have just referred to , those who have been under the necessity of seeking some kind of employment " have so invariably conducted themselves as to deserve and receive the commendations of their
employers . " I have yet this to add as to the education—in the sense of mental culture—afforded . The majority of those Girls who have submitted themselves to the tolerably severe examination imposed by the Cambridge Local Examiners have either passed with honours or secured
certificates of proficiency np to a certain standard . May the picture , which is from the life , be always as brilliant as I have described it ! Indeed , so long as the present excellent system is continued , I do not see how ifc is possible that any less satisfactory picture shonld ever be described .
The Royal Masonic Institution for Boys , which is only ten years the junior of the Sister School , now claims attention at our hands . It was started in July 1798 by the United Mariner ' s Lodge , No . 23 on the roll of Grand Lodge " Ancients , " and in a very short time was so
fortunate as to secure the Duke of Atholl , who was Grand Master of that body , for its patron . At the outset , the scheme was limited to the clothing and education of sons of indigent Freemasons , and the number of boys thus assisted was only six ; but as the efforts of the promoters
and governors were successful in bringing large sums annually , more boys were assisted , and when in 1810 the jubilee or fiftieth anniversary of the accession to the throne of his late Majesty George III . was celebrated , the number was increased to fiftv . As between our Girls' and
-Boys Schools , however , there was this very material difference . I have already shown in the case of the former that within a very short time after the idea was first ; promulgated b y Bro . Ruspini a school-honse was erected on
some leasehold ground near the Obelisk , Sfc . George ' s-inthe Fields , and fifteen girls were received and clothed , maintained , and educated within ifcs walls . Bat with tbe latter tho scheme was limited to clothing the boys and providing them with education at schools in . the neighbour-
Occasional Papers.—No. Iv.
hood of their parents' residences ; nor was it till as recently as the year 1857 that a school-house largo enough to accommodate five and twenty boys was established at Wood Green . Another distinctive feature was adopted
laterin connection with " Our Boys . " In June 1812 Grand Lodge passed a resolution to the effect that " every Lodge in and adjacent to the cities of London and Westminster " should contribute the sum of " five shillings " on the
registering of every now mado Mason , and every " country , foreign and military Lodge" tho sum of " two shillings and sixpence " for every similar registration , such sums to be paid in aid of the " Institution for clothing and
educating the sons of deceased and indigent Ancient Freemasons . " The year following this , the rival Grand Lodges became one , under the style and title of tho " United Grand Lodge of England , " and the two Schools received the aid of Grand Lodge as well as of the Fraternity at large .
Here I musfc break off from the direct course of my narrative in order to show that though the chief portion of the honour connected with the establishment of this Institution belongs unquestionably to Lodge No . 23 of the
Ancients , the Moderns have the satisfaction of knowing they had a fair share in setting it on foot . The particulars will be found at some length in the historical sketch issued from the Offices of the Institution , Bro .
Binckes , the Secretary , being no doubt the narrator . Having , however , regard to your time , I can only state in brief that Sir F . C . Daniel , a conspicuous and enthusiastic Modern Mason , member and , for seventeen consecutive
years , Worshipful Master of the Royal Naval Lodge , laid the foundation stone of a " Masonic Charity for Clothing and Educating the Sons of Indigent Freemasons , " being assisted in this undertaking by Bros . W . Burwood Past
G . S . W ., Captain Foster , F . Penny , Robert Gill P . G . S . W ., & c . What may have been the early progress of this new Charity does not appear in the narrative referred to , but at a meeting held at the Royal Naval Lodge , Burr-street ,
near the Tower , an account was presented , showing that in the fifteen months , from 25 th March 1808 , to 23 rd June 1809 , the subscriptions received amounted to £ 345 17 s 3 yd , while the disbursements wero £ 151 Is , leaving a balance
in favour of the the Charity of £ 194 16 s 3 | d . The above account having been audited , Bro . F . 0 . Daniel , the "institntor , " was continued treasurer , and the healths of the Earl of Kingston , patron of the Institution , the Earl of
Moira , and the Vice-Presidents , were drunk with applause . It appears also , from a memorandum attached , that " £ 100 in the Five per Cents ., which cost £ 99 10 s 6 d " had " been
purchased in the names of Chevalier B . Ruspini , F . C . Daniel , J . Haswell , and J . Woomsley , Esqrs ., in trust for the Charity . "
From this ifc is clear that the Boys School is the outcome of two Institutions , one originated by the members of "Ancient" Lodge No . 23 , and the other by Bro . F . C . Daniel , of the Royal Naval Lodge " Modern . " But when
the Union was accomplished , Bro . Sir F . 0 . Daniel set himself to bring about a union of the two Boys' Charities , and this he happily succeeded in effecting , with the able and fraternal assistance of Bro . W . Williams , M . P ., Prov .
Grand Master of Dorset , and Sir William Rawlins , Past Grand Senior Warden . This auspicious event took place on the 26 th May 1817 , and was thus announced to the Fraternity : —
SIR AND BROTHER , —I most cordially congratulate you and the Fraternity afc large on the union of the two Masonio Charities , which took place on Monday , the 26 th ult ., at Freemasons' Hall ; and ifc must be gratifying to every brother to hear it was accomplished
without a dissenting voice on either side : by this union of benevolence we shall be enabled to provide for sixty-five deserving objects , whose Parents were onr Brethren , and many of them a short time since were living in respectability .
There are now upwards of Forty promising Boys imploring protection , and I am sorry to say , some without a shoe ; what is still more distressing , that unless we provide for them , they musfc remain in ignorance , linger through a life of wretchedness , without education or decent clothing , and exposed to the mercies of a wide World .
I therefore , as Instifcutor , take the liberty most respectfully to call upon you , in tho names of its noble patrons , the Dukes of Snssex , Kent , Athol , and the Earl of Kingston , to subscribe your mite , and also to use your influence with your Lodire and its Members ( who must all feel an interest in so good a cause ) , by which means I shall