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Article THE FREEMASONS' QUARTERLY REVIEW. ← Page 6 of 8 →
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The Freemasons' Quarterly Review.
surprise—the motion hacl been two years before the notice of the Grand Lodge . The mover , with unflinching courage , had endured every trouble and anxiety ; and , to his credit be it said , ivhen lie might have brought it on , at a late hour , certainly , in the evening , on a previous occasion , he conceded to the suggestion , that its high importance required a more considerate attention than time then promised ; ancl
having claimed the precedence of other notices , he at the time postponed the hearing , that he then had been for above a year endeavouring to obtain . Another year passed away , yet the provinces protest that they were taken by surprise ! It was our intention to have commented at some length on the address of the noble Brother who moved the amendment , but we must be brief . The
settlement ofthe dues at the Union was perfectly correct , ancl an equal onehalf was reserved for the Provincial Grand Lodge , to apply to its own benevolent fund . But , although such arrangement was beneficial only to the Provincial Grand Lodge , it did not bar their constitutional claim to the Fund of Benevolence itself ; but in all other cases a perfect equality was understood . Where would have been the " spirit of Freemasonry "
had it been otherwise ? The District Grand Lodges pay no direct dues ; and wh y ? Because it was so settled at the Union . But in a measure of the kind proposed , it is but just to include all who repose
under the branches of the Masonic tree . The noble Brother hinted that this motion had disgusted the provincial Brethren—we assure him of the contrary . It was not with the motion they were disgusted , but with the inattention paid to their communications by the Masonic Government . We beg to set the noble Brother right on this point , at least ; and also on another , wherein he
assumed that the Brethren would be more likely to waver in their allegiance than to pass the motion . So far from this being the case , we unhesitatingly avow , that give the provinces their due , in timely care and attention , and we shall never hear another word of discord . The provinces have a ri ght to claim the utmost Masonic courtesy from its government . For this purpose that government levies clues , and is itself
paid—aye , paid , in the real sense of the term . Those who are in high office receive their payment in honour ancl distinction ; those in subordinate situations receive , in addition , very liberal remuneration . The danger lies not in the fear that good motions may create distrust , and tend to disturb the allegiance ; but in the neglect of the Masonic government .
" Male imperando summicm imperium amittetur . "—Let us be wise in time . After all good will come out of evil ; ancl as so important a subject must not be lost sight of , we trust when it is next brought before public attention , it will at least secure au honest hearing .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The Freemasons' Quarterly Review.
surprise—the motion hacl been two years before the notice of the Grand Lodge . The mover , with unflinching courage , had endured every trouble and anxiety ; and , to his credit be it said , ivhen lie might have brought it on , at a late hour , certainly , in the evening , on a previous occasion , he conceded to the suggestion , that its high importance required a more considerate attention than time then promised ; ancl
having claimed the precedence of other notices , he at the time postponed the hearing , that he then had been for above a year endeavouring to obtain . Another year passed away , yet the provinces protest that they were taken by surprise ! It was our intention to have commented at some length on the address of the noble Brother who moved the amendment , but we must be brief . The
settlement ofthe dues at the Union was perfectly correct , ancl an equal onehalf was reserved for the Provincial Grand Lodge , to apply to its own benevolent fund . But , although such arrangement was beneficial only to the Provincial Grand Lodge , it did not bar their constitutional claim to the Fund of Benevolence itself ; but in all other cases a perfect equality was understood . Where would have been the " spirit of Freemasonry "
had it been otherwise ? The District Grand Lodges pay no direct dues ; and wh y ? Because it was so settled at the Union . But in a measure of the kind proposed , it is but just to include all who repose
under the branches of the Masonic tree . The noble Brother hinted that this motion had disgusted the provincial Brethren—we assure him of the contrary . It was not with the motion they were disgusted , but with the inattention paid to their communications by the Masonic Government . We beg to set the noble Brother right on this point , at least ; and also on another , wherein he
assumed that the Brethren would be more likely to waver in their allegiance than to pass the motion . So far from this being the case , we unhesitatingly avow , that give the provinces their due , in timely care and attention , and we shall never hear another word of discord . The provinces have a ri ght to claim the utmost Masonic courtesy from its government . For this purpose that government levies clues , and is itself
paid—aye , paid , in the real sense of the term . Those who are in high office receive their payment in honour ancl distinction ; those in subordinate situations receive , in addition , very liberal remuneration . The danger lies not in the fear that good motions may create distrust , and tend to disturb the allegiance ; but in the neglect of the Masonic government .
" Male imperando summicm imperium amittetur . "—Let us be wise in time . After all good will come out of evil ; ancl as so important a subject must not be lost sight of , we trust when it is next brought before public attention , it will at least secure au honest hearing .