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Article THE LATE BROTHER THOMAS DUNCKERLY. ← Page 2 of 2
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The Late Brother Thomas Dunckerly.
Palace . The correspondence on this occasion is highly interesting . Brother Dunckerley ' s statement of his own case is touching and unaffected . * In 1770 , he became a student-at-Iaw , and was called to the bar ; but , being fond of active life , and an invasion being threatened , he accepted a commission in the South Hants Militia , which he retained but a few
years . He married in early life , a lady somewhat older than himself , with whom he lived most happily ; and he commemorated the truth of this , when , after having laid the foundation-stone ofa new church at Southampton , 1792 , he jocularly observed , " That , if the structure were completed by the time he had completed fifty years in wedlock , he should think himself justified in following the practice of some nations he had travelled inviz . that of keeping a jubilee yearand in that case handsel
, , , the new church by being re-married in it . " Brother Dunckerly assumed the arms of his royal father , across which the bar of bastardy was drawn , and on his books appears the name of " FITZ-GEORGE , " with the motto " Fato noil merito . " He was generous and hospitable to a fault ; he gave Masonic parties very frequently at Hampton Court , and was a constant attendant on all public meetings and festivals of the Craft ; and the poor and needy
Brother never applied to him in vain . The numerous claims on his time in so many provinces , were so costly for his means , that it will not be wondered at , that he was himself always comparatively poor . His style of speaking was fluent and chaste ; his subject matter always good and effective , often elegant . Preston styled him "The great luminary of Masonry . " Among his addresses , those delivered by him at Marlborough , on the 11 th September , 1769 , at which , many ladies were present . and "The Light and Truth of Masonry explained , " at Plymouth ,
in April 1757 , are among the best specimens of his oratorical powers . In the year 1794 , Brother Dunckerly , then Grand Master of Knights Templar in England , addressed a letter to the Chapter of that confraternity , suggesting their enrolment as " Prince Edward ' s volunteers , " and placing themselves under the command of the ofiicers of such military corps , as were in their neighbourhood . The letter caused much attention , but , we believe , was not acted on . His chronological sketch of the Order of Knihts Templar is
deg serving of attention , - )* and his letters to the Earl of Chesterfield , describing the places he visited , convey much information , as well as amusement ; nor was his muse defective , he wrote several Masonic songs , that were much appreciated . Brother Dunckerly died at Portsmouth , in the year 1795 , aged 71 . Alas , for human nature ! Brother Dunckerl y ' s Masonic example was lost on his son , whose follies embittered the last years of his existence .
Extravagance straightened the means—disorderly conduct afflicted the mind , of the fond , unhappy parent . Every means were tried , ineffectually , to reclaim the wretched son . At his father ' s death , there being no provision left , he became a wanderer and an outcast . Being a Mason , he was ever besieging Lodges and individuals . At last he became a bricklayer ' s-labourer , and was seen carrying a hod on his shoulder ascending a ladder ! This poor fellow ' s misfortunes and misconduct at length terminated , and the ( grand-son of a king died in a cellar in St . Giles ' s . FIDUS .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The Late Brother Thomas Dunckerly.
Palace . The correspondence on this occasion is highly interesting . Brother Dunckerley ' s statement of his own case is touching and unaffected . * In 1770 , he became a student-at-Iaw , and was called to the bar ; but , being fond of active life , and an invasion being threatened , he accepted a commission in the South Hants Militia , which he retained but a few
years . He married in early life , a lady somewhat older than himself , with whom he lived most happily ; and he commemorated the truth of this , when , after having laid the foundation-stone ofa new church at Southampton , 1792 , he jocularly observed , " That , if the structure were completed by the time he had completed fifty years in wedlock , he should think himself justified in following the practice of some nations he had travelled inviz . that of keeping a jubilee yearand in that case handsel
, , , the new church by being re-married in it . " Brother Dunckerly assumed the arms of his royal father , across which the bar of bastardy was drawn , and on his books appears the name of " FITZ-GEORGE , " with the motto " Fato noil merito . " He was generous and hospitable to a fault ; he gave Masonic parties very frequently at Hampton Court , and was a constant attendant on all public meetings and festivals of the Craft ; and the poor and needy
Brother never applied to him in vain . The numerous claims on his time in so many provinces , were so costly for his means , that it will not be wondered at , that he was himself always comparatively poor . His style of speaking was fluent and chaste ; his subject matter always good and effective , often elegant . Preston styled him "The great luminary of Masonry . " Among his addresses , those delivered by him at Marlborough , on the 11 th September , 1769 , at which , many ladies were present . and "The Light and Truth of Masonry explained , " at Plymouth ,
in April 1757 , are among the best specimens of his oratorical powers . In the year 1794 , Brother Dunckerly , then Grand Master of Knights Templar in England , addressed a letter to the Chapter of that confraternity , suggesting their enrolment as " Prince Edward ' s volunteers , " and placing themselves under the command of the ofiicers of such military corps , as were in their neighbourhood . The letter caused much attention , but , we believe , was not acted on . His chronological sketch of the Order of Knihts Templar is
deg serving of attention , - )* and his letters to the Earl of Chesterfield , describing the places he visited , convey much information , as well as amusement ; nor was his muse defective , he wrote several Masonic songs , that were much appreciated . Brother Dunckerly died at Portsmouth , in the year 1795 , aged 71 . Alas , for human nature ! Brother Dunckerl y ' s Masonic example was lost on his son , whose follies embittered the last years of his existence .
Extravagance straightened the means—disorderly conduct afflicted the mind , of the fond , unhappy parent . Every means were tried , ineffectually , to reclaim the wretched son . At his father ' s death , there being no provision left , he became a wanderer and an outcast . Being a Mason , he was ever besieging Lodges and individuals . At last he became a bricklayer ' s-labourer , and was seen carrying a hod on his shoulder ascending a ladder ! This poor fellow ' s misfortunes and misconduct at length terminated , and the ( grand-son of a king died in a cellar in St . Giles ' s . FIDUS .