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Article PROVINCIAL. ← Page 18 of 36 →
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Provincial.
AVorshipful Master , Bro . Beach , " whom ho considered to bo one of the most accomplished Masons that Oxford had ever sent forth from her Lodges . ( M ucb cheering . ) Fortunately for the Apollo Lodge , and not for the first time , that distinguished brother occupied the chair ; and he had shown that he was not only conversant with the practical working of Masonry , but was endowed with that ability and gentlemanly demeanor which constituted an accomplished Master of a Lodge . ( Much cheering . ) He ( Bro . Bowyer ) could not content himself by not onl
giving y as a Mason , but as a man , the health of Bro . Beach , and proposing it , as he did , with the best and heartiest feeling , he trusted that they would all respond , to it iu a similar spirit . ( The toast was drunk with the utmost enthusiasm . ) The W . M . said he hardly knew how to return thanks for the flattering manner in which they had received the toast , and to the too flattering terms in which the Dep . Prov . G-. M . had been pleased to allude to him . He assured them that he was totallunprepared for itand that while he was from Oxford he learnt
y , away , to his great surprise , of his having been elected for a second time to fill the Master ' s chair of this Lodge ; but having experienced during his former year of office such kindness on every side , he felt that he could not do otherwise than respond to the call ( cheers ) . He would endeavour to carry out the principles of Masonry in this Province , and to be punctual in his attendance ; but he regretted to state that a long-standing engagement would prevent his being present at their next meeting ; and they would not regret his absence when he told them that P . M . Best had kindlundertaken to officiate for himHe trusted that
y . every member of the Apollo Lodge would at all times assist him in keeping order and regularity in the Lodge , without which Masonry would become an unmeaning and barren form ; and so long as he had that assistance , so long would he endeavour to uphold Masonry in all its integrity and purity ( cheers ) . He trusted , also , that the Brethren ofthe Alfred Lodge would extend to him that kind assistance which they gave him during his former year of oflice , and he would strenuously endeavour
to maintain that same fraternal feeling between the two Lodges which had so happily subsisted for so many years ( much cheering ) . The W . M . then proposed " The health of Bro . Col . Vernon , " whose name , he said , had , through inadvertence , been omitted in a former toast . Tlie proud preeminence which Col . Vernon held in the Craft was well known to all , but since his last visit among them he had been appointed , by the Grand Master of England , to preside over the Province of Stafford , and he felt assured that the Brethren here were as happy to see him at this festival as the Brethren of his own Province
were to be under his rule ( cheers ) , He could assure him that he would always find a hearty welcome in Oxford , and , judging from the reception given to the toast , he had no doubt that he spoke the feelings of every one present ( loud cheers ) . Bro . Col . VERNON said he could not doubt for one instant their kindly and cordial feeling towards him , as manifested by the enthusiastic reception which they had given to his name , and while he thanked them most heartily for it , he could not but feel that the terms in which he had been adverted to were far too kind and far too flattering . This was not the first opportunity which he had had of
receiving at the hands of the Brethren of this Province that fraternal reception and hospitable welcome Avhich they were wont to give to all who visited their Lodges , and he trusted that he might not be considered presuming when he expressed a hope that this might not be the last time of his being so received ( loud cheers ) . He could not but allude to the high gratification Avhich he had experienced not merely in witnessing the correct and excellent working in the Lodge , but in seeing that the genuine spirit of Freemasonry was so openly evinced and so truly and practically carried out . It was not the correct working of a ritual that
constituted Freemasonry , but it was upon the carrying into practice its fundamental principles , that the merits of this art were based ( cheers ) . Other Provinces should take example from this , and study to carry ou ' . the principles of Masonry not as a convivial society , but as an institution set apart for the advancement of every moral and social virtue , which alone would make it a blessing to themselves and to mankind in general ( cheers ) . He spoke strongly on that point , because what he had Avitnessed in the Lodge this day presented a striking contrast to what he
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Provincial.
AVorshipful Master , Bro . Beach , " whom ho considered to bo one of the most accomplished Masons that Oxford had ever sent forth from her Lodges . ( M ucb cheering . ) Fortunately for the Apollo Lodge , and not for the first time , that distinguished brother occupied the chair ; and he had shown that he was not only conversant with the practical working of Masonry , but was endowed with that ability and gentlemanly demeanor which constituted an accomplished Master of a Lodge . ( Much cheering . ) He ( Bro . Bowyer ) could not content himself by not onl
giving y as a Mason , but as a man , the health of Bro . Beach , and proposing it , as he did , with the best and heartiest feeling , he trusted that they would all respond , to it iu a similar spirit . ( The toast was drunk with the utmost enthusiasm . ) The W . M . said he hardly knew how to return thanks for the flattering manner in which they had received the toast , and to the too flattering terms in which the Dep . Prov . G-. M . had been pleased to allude to him . He assured them that he was totallunprepared for itand that while he was from Oxford he learnt
y , away , to his great surprise , of his having been elected for a second time to fill the Master ' s chair of this Lodge ; but having experienced during his former year of office such kindness on every side , he felt that he could not do otherwise than respond to the call ( cheers ) . He would endeavour to carry out the principles of Masonry in this Province , and to be punctual in his attendance ; but he regretted to state that a long-standing engagement would prevent his being present at their next meeting ; and they would not regret his absence when he told them that P . M . Best had kindlundertaken to officiate for himHe trusted that
y . every member of the Apollo Lodge would at all times assist him in keeping order and regularity in the Lodge , without which Masonry would become an unmeaning and barren form ; and so long as he had that assistance , so long would he endeavour to uphold Masonry in all its integrity and purity ( cheers ) . He trusted , also , that the Brethren ofthe Alfred Lodge would extend to him that kind assistance which they gave him during his former year of oflice , and he would strenuously endeavour
to maintain that same fraternal feeling between the two Lodges which had so happily subsisted for so many years ( much cheering ) . The W . M . then proposed " The health of Bro . Col . Vernon , " whose name , he said , had , through inadvertence , been omitted in a former toast . Tlie proud preeminence which Col . Vernon held in the Craft was well known to all , but since his last visit among them he had been appointed , by the Grand Master of England , to preside over the Province of Stafford , and he felt assured that the Brethren here were as happy to see him at this festival as the Brethren of his own Province
were to be under his rule ( cheers ) , He could assure him that he would always find a hearty welcome in Oxford , and , judging from the reception given to the toast , he had no doubt that he spoke the feelings of every one present ( loud cheers ) . Bro . Col . VERNON said he could not doubt for one instant their kindly and cordial feeling towards him , as manifested by the enthusiastic reception which they had given to his name , and while he thanked them most heartily for it , he could not but feel that the terms in which he had been adverted to were far too kind and far too flattering . This was not the first opportunity which he had had of
receiving at the hands of the Brethren of this Province that fraternal reception and hospitable welcome Avhich they were wont to give to all who visited their Lodges , and he trusted that he might not be considered presuming when he expressed a hope that this might not be the last time of his being so received ( loud cheers ) . He could not but allude to the high gratification Avhich he had experienced not merely in witnessing the correct and excellent working in the Lodge , but in seeing that the genuine spirit of Freemasonry was so openly evinced and so truly and practically carried out . It was not the correct working of a ritual that
constituted Freemasonry , but it was upon the carrying into practice its fundamental principles , that the merits of this art were based ( cheers ) . Other Provinces should take example from this , and study to carry ou ' . the principles of Masonry not as a convivial society , but as an institution set apart for the advancement of every moral and social virtue , which alone would make it a blessing to themselves and to mankind in general ( cheers ) . He spoke strongly on that point , because what he had Avitnessed in the Lodge this day presented a striking contrast to what he