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Article PROVINCIAL. ← Page 6 of 44 →
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Provincial.
laying the first stone of St . Botolp h ' s church , in this town . Most sincerely , sir , do I wish this duty had devolved upon some other member of the 'Angel Lodge' I could name , whose time is not so fully occupied as my own , and whose attainments in Masonic knowledge make him far more capable than myself of giving you that information , which is at all times appreciated by the Brethren of our ' mystic Order ; ' but , should you think the following imperfect notice of the proceedingscalculated
, in the least degree to contribute to the gratification of the Craft , I shall feel pleased at having thus obtruded myself upon the attention of your readers ; ancl shall , probably , on some future occasion , venture to Jay before you a further statement of the bright and cheering prospects which are now dawning upon us , and the success which lias attended our Masonic labours in this place , not only by the great accession of new membersbut by the zealouscordialand intimate union of the
, , , Brethren to uphold and promote the best interests of our ancient mysteries . I shall , however , content myself for the present , by forwarding you the following summary of the ceremonial-: — The committee , to whom had been entrusted the arrangements of this ceremonial , entered upon their work with so much judgment , and succeeded in forming plans so well calculated to excite an interest in the public mindthat several days before the time fixed upon for the
occa-, sion , it became evident that there would not only be a numerous assemblage of the Brethren from the nei ghbouring Lodges , but that Colchester would , if the weather proved favourable . for the procession , be visited by a large concourse of spectators from the most distant parts of this and the adjoining county . Happily for us , the morning dawned propitiously ,
the sun shone forth with more than usual splendour , the heavens presented a canopy of azure blue—light blue our order ! At an early hour parties on foot , and in vehicles of every description , were seen wending their way to the centre of attraction , while the Brethren met at the Loclge room ; and , having received instructions from the AA ^ orshipful Master , as to tlie manner of conducting the ceremony , the Lodge was opened in clue form , when the members of the various Lodges
proceeded to the castle , in order to join the committee of management , and to proceed from thence in Masonic costume to St . Peter ' s church . The arrangements having been completed , the procession moved from the castle up the High-street , in the order prescribed b y Masonic authority . At this time the scene was of the most lively ancl gratifying description ; the streets through which the procession had to pass were crammed to suffocationwhile every windowand balconyand parapetand roof
, , , , , which commanded a view of the scene , was thronged with eager spectators . Free from the violent manifestations which characterize an election display , the ceremony was one of sober and peaceful joy . There were no vociferous greetings on the one hand , nor harsh expressions of dissatisfaction on tbe other ; it was a day devoted to those principles which are so pre-eminently inculcated by our Order , and which must be deai- in the recollection of every good and virtuous Mason . The
procession having arrived at the church , the Masonic Brethren and the populace were conducted to the several places assigned them without the least confusion . The prayers were read by the Rev . S . CARR , tbe vicar , in his usual impressive ancl devotional manner , after which the Rev . JAMES S . M . ANDERSON preached a most eloquent ancl appropriate discourse from Haggai , chap . i . verses 2 , 3 , 4 .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Provincial.
laying the first stone of St . Botolp h ' s church , in this town . Most sincerely , sir , do I wish this duty had devolved upon some other member of the 'Angel Lodge' I could name , whose time is not so fully occupied as my own , and whose attainments in Masonic knowledge make him far more capable than myself of giving you that information , which is at all times appreciated by the Brethren of our ' mystic Order ; ' but , should you think the following imperfect notice of the proceedingscalculated
, in the least degree to contribute to the gratification of the Craft , I shall feel pleased at having thus obtruded myself upon the attention of your readers ; ancl shall , probably , on some future occasion , venture to Jay before you a further statement of the bright and cheering prospects which are now dawning upon us , and the success which lias attended our Masonic labours in this place , not only by the great accession of new membersbut by the zealouscordialand intimate union of the
, , , Brethren to uphold and promote the best interests of our ancient mysteries . I shall , however , content myself for the present , by forwarding you the following summary of the ceremonial-: — The committee , to whom had been entrusted the arrangements of this ceremonial , entered upon their work with so much judgment , and succeeded in forming plans so well calculated to excite an interest in the public mindthat several days before the time fixed upon for the
occa-, sion , it became evident that there would not only be a numerous assemblage of the Brethren from the nei ghbouring Lodges , but that Colchester would , if the weather proved favourable . for the procession , be visited by a large concourse of spectators from the most distant parts of this and the adjoining county . Happily for us , the morning dawned propitiously ,
the sun shone forth with more than usual splendour , the heavens presented a canopy of azure blue—light blue our order ! At an early hour parties on foot , and in vehicles of every description , were seen wending their way to the centre of attraction , while the Brethren met at the Loclge room ; and , having received instructions from the AA ^ orshipful Master , as to tlie manner of conducting the ceremony , the Lodge was opened in clue form , when the members of the various Lodges
proceeded to the castle , in order to join the committee of management , and to proceed from thence in Masonic costume to St . Peter ' s church . The arrangements having been completed , the procession moved from the castle up the High-street , in the order prescribed b y Masonic authority . At this time the scene was of the most lively ancl gratifying description ; the streets through which the procession had to pass were crammed to suffocationwhile every windowand balconyand parapetand roof
, , , , , which commanded a view of the scene , was thronged with eager spectators . Free from the violent manifestations which characterize an election display , the ceremony was one of sober and peaceful joy . There were no vociferous greetings on the one hand , nor harsh expressions of dissatisfaction on tbe other ; it was a day devoted to those principles which are so pre-eminently inculcated by our Order , and which must be deai- in the recollection of every good and virtuous Mason . The
procession having arrived at the church , the Masonic Brethren and the populace were conducted to the several places assigned them without the least confusion . The prayers were read by the Rev . S . CARR , tbe vicar , in his usual impressive ancl devotional manner , after which the Rev . JAMES S . M . ANDERSON preached a most eloquent ancl appropriate discourse from Haggai , chap . i . verses 2 , 3 , 4 .