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Article THE RECENT GRAND LODGE. ← Page 2 of 6 →
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The Recent Grand Lodge.
show cause against the infliction of so fearful a penalty . Is this English Freemasonry ? Let us beware —the English law holds a man to be innocent until lie is proved to be guilty ; nay more , if he cannot pay for an advocate , the court appoints one to act for him ; but at the last Grand Lodge even " Lynch law" was out-Lynched . If the Grand Master chose to appoint the general his representative at
the Grand Lodge of New York , no one could oppose it ; if he chose to remove him , so be it ; but it is another question as to depriving the general of the rank and privileges of a Senior Grand Warden of England . First , there should be a full and perfect explanation of the circumstances that gave rise to the appointment , a clear showing of the diligence used by the Grand Master as to his own mode of investigation into the claims
of General Cooke to the rank and dignity , which could not have been difficult ; for such is the intimate relation between the old and new worlds , that in a week or so we can learn the whereabouts of any man of importance , and within a month we can have it direct from either hemisphere . Either the Grand Master was satisfied with his enquiries , or he made none , or he has been imposed on ; in either case the Grand Lodge
ought to have approached the matter with grave consideration , not with unbecoming haste . It is not long since we have been placed in this singular anomaly—the Grand Lodge sent an address to the Prince of Prussia , and scarcely had they done so , than representatives were withdrawn , in consequence of the violation of masonic law on the part of Prussia .
The question may be asked , whether the honours were not conferred on the General Cooke who so charitably supported the Girls' School , visited the Earl of Zetland in Yorkshire , was feted by a London lodge , and is a member of the Prince of Wales ' s Lodge ? What can he have done to deserve expulsion from Masonry by the Grand Lodge ? As representative in New York he did not represent the Grand Lodge of
England , but merely the Grand Master ; and had any one ventured to question his appointment as P . S . G . Warden ( oppose it they could not ) , they would have been met by the accusation of being factious , and opposing the Grand Master . The simple fact seems to be , that there has been { Scottice ) a want of diligence , and the Grand Lodge are called on to put their indorsement on a very so so bill of attainder . It would
seem that men , because they are generals , or have titles , get honoursmerit being rather in the shade . The Grand Master should be reminded that " all preferment among Masons is grounded upon real worth and personal merit only , that so the lords may be well served , the brethren not put to shame , nor the royal Craft despised . " Verily , in the case before us , " the lord has given and the lord has taken away . " There is a homely phrase , " kissing goes by favour ; " why
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The Recent Grand Lodge.
show cause against the infliction of so fearful a penalty . Is this English Freemasonry ? Let us beware —the English law holds a man to be innocent until lie is proved to be guilty ; nay more , if he cannot pay for an advocate , the court appoints one to act for him ; but at the last Grand Lodge even " Lynch law" was out-Lynched . If the Grand Master chose to appoint the general his representative at
the Grand Lodge of New York , no one could oppose it ; if he chose to remove him , so be it ; but it is another question as to depriving the general of the rank and privileges of a Senior Grand Warden of England . First , there should be a full and perfect explanation of the circumstances that gave rise to the appointment , a clear showing of the diligence used by the Grand Master as to his own mode of investigation into the claims
of General Cooke to the rank and dignity , which could not have been difficult ; for such is the intimate relation between the old and new worlds , that in a week or so we can learn the whereabouts of any man of importance , and within a month we can have it direct from either hemisphere . Either the Grand Master was satisfied with his enquiries , or he made none , or he has been imposed on ; in either case the Grand Lodge
ought to have approached the matter with grave consideration , not with unbecoming haste . It is not long since we have been placed in this singular anomaly—the Grand Lodge sent an address to the Prince of Prussia , and scarcely had they done so , than representatives were withdrawn , in consequence of the violation of masonic law on the part of Prussia .
The question may be asked , whether the honours were not conferred on the General Cooke who so charitably supported the Girls' School , visited the Earl of Zetland in Yorkshire , was feted by a London lodge , and is a member of the Prince of Wales ' s Lodge ? What can he have done to deserve expulsion from Masonry by the Grand Lodge ? As representative in New York he did not represent the Grand Lodge of
England , but merely the Grand Master ; and had any one ventured to question his appointment as P . S . G . Warden ( oppose it they could not ) , they would have been met by the accusation of being factious , and opposing the Grand Master . The simple fact seems to be , that there has been { Scottice ) a want of diligence , and the Grand Lodge are called on to put their indorsement on a very so so bill of attainder . It would
seem that men , because they are generals , or have titles , get honoursmerit being rather in the shade . The Grand Master should be reminded that " all preferment among Masons is grounded upon real worth and personal merit only , that so the lords may be well served , the brethren not put to shame , nor the royal Craft despised . " Verily , in the case before us , " the lord has given and the lord has taken away . " There is a homely phrase , " kissing goes by favour ; " why