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Article TO THE EDITOR. Page 1 of 2 →
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
To The Editor.
TO THE EDITOR .
Sin , —You may remember that five of my ancestors , male and female , were companions of your antediluvian Brother—the Royal Ark Mariner ; and it may be , you also have heard of another of them who , as she accidentally gingriated , saved the " Eternal City . " I am thus particular lest you should mistake me for a descendant of that Roman poet , whom Ovid abused and Virgil satirised . No , sir ; I am of a verity , " Anser-Lewis , " and willing to bear the heat and burthen of the day . How I
became a Mason is immaterial . I remember me on a certain occasion , when my father , who certainly had more solemnity than wisdom in his manner , ( pardon my irreverence ) , remarking to me , as we were playfully ducking our heads under water , " Ansercule , look at those wise men on the pons asinorum . " Now , although my venerable parent gingriated this sotto voce , nevertheless it was carried on the wings of the wind , and was overheard by several of the genus asinum who
commenced their musical ruditus—v / hereat dad and I gingriated , nothing loth , and the wise men on the pons asinorum swelled their joyful chorus . You will say , " what of all this ?"—esc nihilo nihil fit . I can but exclaim , " Oh , happy day ! Alas , how changed the theme !" Of my various pursuits you may probably hear anon ; my present petition is for your assistance and advice . In page 58 of the Constitutions , article J , second paragraph , you will
find these words : " If a prince of the blood-royal should honour any private Lodge by accepting the office of Master , he may appoint a Deputy-Master , who shall be regularly installed , and entitled , when in office , to all the
privileges of an actual Master ; and when out of office , to all the privileges of a Past Master . " Now , Mr . Editor , here comes the hitch in the pons asinorum . The late Grand Master , a prince of the blood , did honour three priv te Lodges—which became , respectively , thefirst , second , and third royals—by accepting the office of Master , and of course appointed a Deputy Master to each ; the question arose in one of which I am a
member , as to the style and title of the Deputy-Master . The Royal Master being deceased , did or did not the Deputy thereby become "functus officio ? ' ' I may here presume—that certain " wise men of Gotham" ( five only in number , all of them lawyers !) superintended the publication of the Book of Constitutions in 1841 ; their office was ministerial , not legislativewithout power to alter or to add ; yetto the serious
incon-, , venience of the Masonic public , these five wise men have , as it seemed best to their worldly wisdom , altered , added , and as regards this particular paragraph , have also committed the sin of omission . Ex . grat : appended to the same sentence , in the old Constitutions , was the following note" The installation confers upon the Deputy Master all the privileges of an actual Master . —Grand LodgeDec . 71825 . "
, , If the object of such note was to render the law of the paragraph fully clear , why did the " five wise men , " in their revision , omit such note ? 'Well , sir , at a recent meeting of the Lodge , convened by the worshipful Jlf aster , —for by reason of the demise of the Royal Master , he
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
To The Editor.
TO THE EDITOR .
Sin , —You may remember that five of my ancestors , male and female , were companions of your antediluvian Brother—the Royal Ark Mariner ; and it may be , you also have heard of another of them who , as she accidentally gingriated , saved the " Eternal City . " I am thus particular lest you should mistake me for a descendant of that Roman poet , whom Ovid abused and Virgil satirised . No , sir ; I am of a verity , " Anser-Lewis , " and willing to bear the heat and burthen of the day . How I
became a Mason is immaterial . I remember me on a certain occasion , when my father , who certainly had more solemnity than wisdom in his manner , ( pardon my irreverence ) , remarking to me , as we were playfully ducking our heads under water , " Ansercule , look at those wise men on the pons asinorum . " Now , although my venerable parent gingriated this sotto voce , nevertheless it was carried on the wings of the wind , and was overheard by several of the genus asinum who
commenced their musical ruditus—v / hereat dad and I gingriated , nothing loth , and the wise men on the pons asinorum swelled their joyful chorus . You will say , " what of all this ?"—esc nihilo nihil fit . I can but exclaim , " Oh , happy day ! Alas , how changed the theme !" Of my various pursuits you may probably hear anon ; my present petition is for your assistance and advice . In page 58 of the Constitutions , article J , second paragraph , you will
find these words : " If a prince of the blood-royal should honour any private Lodge by accepting the office of Master , he may appoint a Deputy-Master , who shall be regularly installed , and entitled , when in office , to all the
privileges of an actual Master ; and when out of office , to all the privileges of a Past Master . " Now , Mr . Editor , here comes the hitch in the pons asinorum . The late Grand Master , a prince of the blood , did honour three priv te Lodges—which became , respectively , thefirst , second , and third royals—by accepting the office of Master , and of course appointed a Deputy Master to each ; the question arose in one of which I am a
member , as to the style and title of the Deputy-Master . The Royal Master being deceased , did or did not the Deputy thereby become "functus officio ? ' ' I may here presume—that certain " wise men of Gotham" ( five only in number , all of them lawyers !) superintended the publication of the Book of Constitutions in 1841 ; their office was ministerial , not legislativewithout power to alter or to add ; yetto the serious
incon-, , venience of the Masonic public , these five wise men have , as it seemed best to their worldly wisdom , altered , added , and as regards this particular paragraph , have also committed the sin of omission . Ex . grat : appended to the same sentence , in the old Constitutions , was the following note" The installation confers upon the Deputy Master all the privileges of an actual Master . —Grand LodgeDec . 71825 . "
, , If the object of such note was to render the law of the paragraph fully clear , why did the " five wise men , " in their revision , omit such note ? 'Well , sir , at a recent meeting of the Lodge , convened by the worshipful Jlf aster , —for by reason of the demise of the Royal Master , he