Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The Approaching Festival Of The Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution.
THE APPROACHING FESTIVAL OF THE ROYAL MASONIC BENEVOLENT INSTITUTION .
The day is fast approaching when the Anniversary Festival of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution for 18 95 will be celebrated , and it is about time , therefore , that we took our usual look round , and addressed that earnest appeal for support to our readers and the Craft generally which is absolutely necessary for the maintenance of this splendid Charity at its present high
standard of efficiency . We fear we shall be unable to say much that has not been said before , or with which our friends are not themselves familiar , but that is the inevitable lot of all who advocate the claims of institutions which are supported chiefly or entirely by voluntary subscriptions . Those claims are always before them ; the need for those appeals exists always ;
but the measure of success which attends them varies so considerably , that on this , as on all previous occasions , we must content ourselves with hoping for the best . We know , from past experience , that the constituency we are addressing is always generously disposed towards those of its members who have been stricken by misfortune , or have passed away leaving their widows
and orphan children without means of support . We know full well the pride they take in the Charities which have been established in behalf of these unfortunate ones , and we know further that when , as occasionally happens , there is a diminution of support in any given year , as compared with its predecessors , the cause of such diminution must be looked for , not in any
depreciation of their goodwill , but to the less favourable circumstances of the year in which the appeal is made . In short , we realise fully that no appeal to the Masonic Craft of this country is ever allowed to pass unheeded , when there is a possibility of responding to it , and thus it is that , though the circumstances , of this Benevolent Institution have undergone no material change
since last year , we are as confident as ever we have been that when the proper time arrives the needs of our poor old members and their widows will be , as heretofore , most generously recognised . But as regards this Festival , which is now so near at hand , Bro . TERRY has undoubtedly been in luck's way . On many previous occasions , he has been
hard driven to it to secure the services of a chairman . In this instance , however , he was fortunately in a position to announce at an exceptionally early date t hat Bro . Viscount DUNGARVAN , Prov . G . Master of Somersetshire , had kindly undertaken to preside in that capacity , and for some time past both his lordship and the lodges in his province have been actively engaged in doing
what in them lies to ensure the success of an anniversary in which they are destined to play the chief part . Bro . TERRV too , and his staff have been working , as they alone know how to work , in furtherance of the same object , the result of their combined efforts being that the Board of Stewards , which will support Lord DUNGARVAN in February next , is at this moment stronger by some
30 or 35 members than was the Board of Stewards which supported the P . G , Master of Surrey in February , 1894 , at the corresponding period of last year , The latter , on the 20 th November , 1893 , was 108 strong ; the Board which is in course of being formed is already not far short of 150 , and as the bulk of our lodges both in town and country are , and will remain , in session for
some months to come , there are at least reasonable grounds for hoping that the number of brethren who will ultimately constitute the B > ard of Stewards for 1895 , will be nearly , if not quite as great as it has been in pist ordinary years . And if the Board be , as we hope it will , of an average strength , there are no special reasons that we wot of why the efforts of its members
should not be as productive . The chairman that h to be , as we have already said , has been bestirring himself for some time past in support of his own presidency , his Province of Somersetshire is loyally seconding him in his efforts , and it will be strange indeed if the brethren and lodges in London and the rest of the provinces exhibit less energy and prove less successful in
the labours they have undertaken . It must be borne in mind that the task they are engaged in is not a light one . The sum required annually to maintain the Benevolent Institution at its present strength falls little , 'f at all , short of ^ 19 . 000 . Of this over ^ 16 , 000 is devoted to ar > nuities , while the remainder is expended in salaries and the costs
° l management and in maintaining the Asylum at Croydon . To meet this outlay , there is a permanent income of about , £ 3 600 , the annual grants b y Grand Lodge and Grand Chapter furnishing ^ 1750 of this sum , while the dividends on invested moneys are accountable for the rest . Thus "ie amount which must be obtained annually , in order to make good this
deficiency is not far short of ^ 16 , 000—a goodly sum indeed , and one that mn st seriously tax the energies even of the strongest Board of Stewards to obtain—but still one that , as our experience of the last few years has again and again demonstrated , is very far from being unobtainable . Even in February last , when the strain of the Jubilee year was still appreciable , the
The Approaching Festival Of The Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution.
then Board of Stewards was successful in compiling a total of some ^ 13 , 000 . We have said the sum devoted to annuities is over ^" 16 , 000 annually , the Male Fund being responsible for 195 annuities , value ^ 40 each , and amounting to ^ 7800 , while the Widows' Fund distributes some £ 7660
amongst 2 \ a annuitants , at the rate of £ 32 a piece , the balance of over ^ 580 bc ng apportioned amongst about 29 widows , who receive half their late husbands' annuities ; that is to say , ^" 20 each . But serious as is the responsibility to which the authorities of the Institution already stand committed , and great as must be the efforts which have necessarily to be made in
order to meet these responsibilities , there is annually a formidable and long list of candidalcs , that is to say , of those poor brethren and widows whose claims to be admitted to the benefits of the Institution have been established , but for whom it is impossible to make any provision . In May last , for instance , there were elected 27 men from an approved list of 6 = ; , and Ki
widows from one of 54 . There remained , therefore , 38 men and 38 widows unprovided for . To this number will be added the brethren and widows whose petitions have been accepted during the present year , so that , in all probability it will be found that at the election in May of next year , the lists of candidates will be just as formidable as ever , and that , too ,
notwithstanding the measures which the Committee of Management adopted a few years since with a view to keeping the lists as far as possible within reasonable compass . Let us add to this that at the present moment there are only five vacancies on the Male Fund and one on the Widows' Fund , and the urgent need for the utmost exertion will be apparent to everyone .
If then by hook or by crook , by—if that be possible—a greater amount of energy on the part of the Stewards , and a more earnest pleading in behalf of our decayed brethren and their widows , a total of donations and subscriptions in excess of the average is obtained in February , then it is possible—as to the probability we say nothing—the executive may consider
itself justified in creating one or two additional annuities ; but if only an average sum or less than the average is raised , then we fear there will still be as long a list as ever of brethren and widows , whose urgent claims for a little help in their declining years must remain unsatisfied . We , therefore ,
most earnestly appeal to all our readers , and to the lodges and brethren generally throughout the country , to support Lord DUNGARVAN in tho efforts he is making in aid of our Masonic Benevolent Institution . The cause he is advocating is a grand one , and we trust the success of his advocacy will bit worthy of the cause .
United Grand Lodge Of England.
UNITED GRAND LODGE OF ENGLAND .
The following is the business to be transacted in Grand Lodge on Wednesday , the 5 th instant : 1 . The minutes of the Quarterly Communication of the 5 th September , 18 94 , for confirmation . 2 . Nomination of a Grand Master for the ensuing year . 3 . Nomination of a Grand Treasurer for the ensuing year .
4 . Appointment and investment of a President of the Board of Benevolence .
5 . Election of a Senior and a Junior Vice-President of the Board of Benevolence . 6 . Election of r 2 Past Masters to serve on the Board of Benevolenc ? for the year ensuing . 7 . Report of the Board of Benevolence for the last quarter , in which there are recommendations for the following grants , viz .:
A brother of the Harrow Lodge , No . 1310 , Harrow £ 50 o o A brother of the Lodge of Harmony , No . 5 S 0 , Ormskirk 50 o o A brother of the Lodge of Union , No . 414 , Reading 75 o o A brother of the Islington Lodge , No . 1471 , London Co o o A brother of the Wolsey Lodge , No . 1656 , Hampton Court 50 o o
A brother of the Urban Lodge , No . 1 iy 5 , London 100 o o A brother of the Royal Kent Lodge of Antiquity , No . 20 , Chatham .. 50 o o A brother of Lodge La Tolerance , No . 53 S , London 100 o o A widow of a brother of the Anchor Lodge , No . 1704 , London ... 50 o 0 A widow of a brother of the Lodge Three Grand Principles , No .
20 S , Dewsbury 50 o o A brother of the Salopian Lodge of Charity , No . 117 , Shrewsbury ... 50 0 o A widow of a brother of the Temple Lodge , No . 101 , London ... 50 0 o A widow of a brother of the Southwark Lodge , No . S 79 , London ... 50 o 0
And a resolution of a vote of thanks to the President , Bro . Robert Grey , for the courteous manner in which he has , during the past year , presided over the meetings of the Board . 8 . REPORT OV THE BOARD OP GI ; NER , U . PURPOSES . To the United Grand Lodge of Ancient Free and Accepted M tsons of England .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The Approaching Festival Of The Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution.
THE APPROACHING FESTIVAL OF THE ROYAL MASONIC BENEVOLENT INSTITUTION .
The day is fast approaching when the Anniversary Festival of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution for 18 95 will be celebrated , and it is about time , therefore , that we took our usual look round , and addressed that earnest appeal for support to our readers and the Craft generally which is absolutely necessary for the maintenance of this splendid Charity at its present high
standard of efficiency . We fear we shall be unable to say much that has not been said before , or with which our friends are not themselves familiar , but that is the inevitable lot of all who advocate the claims of institutions which are supported chiefly or entirely by voluntary subscriptions . Those claims are always before them ; the need for those appeals exists always ;
but the measure of success which attends them varies so considerably , that on this , as on all previous occasions , we must content ourselves with hoping for the best . We know , from past experience , that the constituency we are addressing is always generously disposed towards those of its members who have been stricken by misfortune , or have passed away leaving their widows
and orphan children without means of support . We know full well the pride they take in the Charities which have been established in behalf of these unfortunate ones , and we know further that when , as occasionally happens , there is a diminution of support in any given year , as compared with its predecessors , the cause of such diminution must be looked for , not in any
depreciation of their goodwill , but to the less favourable circumstances of the year in which the appeal is made . In short , we realise fully that no appeal to the Masonic Craft of this country is ever allowed to pass unheeded , when there is a possibility of responding to it , and thus it is that , though the circumstances , of this Benevolent Institution have undergone no material change
since last year , we are as confident as ever we have been that when the proper time arrives the needs of our poor old members and their widows will be , as heretofore , most generously recognised . But as regards this Festival , which is now so near at hand , Bro . TERRY has undoubtedly been in luck's way . On many previous occasions , he has been
hard driven to it to secure the services of a chairman . In this instance , however , he was fortunately in a position to announce at an exceptionally early date t hat Bro . Viscount DUNGARVAN , Prov . G . Master of Somersetshire , had kindly undertaken to preside in that capacity , and for some time past both his lordship and the lodges in his province have been actively engaged in doing
what in them lies to ensure the success of an anniversary in which they are destined to play the chief part . Bro . TERRV too , and his staff have been working , as they alone know how to work , in furtherance of the same object , the result of their combined efforts being that the Board of Stewards , which will support Lord DUNGARVAN in February next , is at this moment stronger by some
30 or 35 members than was the Board of Stewards which supported the P . G , Master of Surrey in February , 1894 , at the corresponding period of last year , The latter , on the 20 th November , 1893 , was 108 strong ; the Board which is in course of being formed is already not far short of 150 , and as the bulk of our lodges both in town and country are , and will remain , in session for
some months to come , there are at least reasonable grounds for hoping that the number of brethren who will ultimately constitute the B > ard of Stewards for 1895 , will be nearly , if not quite as great as it has been in pist ordinary years . And if the Board be , as we hope it will , of an average strength , there are no special reasons that we wot of why the efforts of its members
should not be as productive . The chairman that h to be , as we have already said , has been bestirring himself for some time past in support of his own presidency , his Province of Somersetshire is loyally seconding him in his efforts , and it will be strange indeed if the brethren and lodges in London and the rest of the provinces exhibit less energy and prove less successful in
the labours they have undertaken . It must be borne in mind that the task they are engaged in is not a light one . The sum required annually to maintain the Benevolent Institution at its present strength falls little , 'f at all , short of ^ 19 . 000 . Of this over ^ 16 , 000 is devoted to ar > nuities , while the remainder is expended in salaries and the costs
° l management and in maintaining the Asylum at Croydon . To meet this outlay , there is a permanent income of about , £ 3 600 , the annual grants b y Grand Lodge and Grand Chapter furnishing ^ 1750 of this sum , while the dividends on invested moneys are accountable for the rest . Thus "ie amount which must be obtained annually , in order to make good this
deficiency is not far short of ^ 16 , 000—a goodly sum indeed , and one that mn st seriously tax the energies even of the strongest Board of Stewards to obtain—but still one that , as our experience of the last few years has again and again demonstrated , is very far from being unobtainable . Even in February last , when the strain of the Jubilee year was still appreciable , the
The Approaching Festival Of The Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution.
then Board of Stewards was successful in compiling a total of some ^ 13 , 000 . We have said the sum devoted to annuities is over ^" 16 , 000 annually , the Male Fund being responsible for 195 annuities , value ^ 40 each , and amounting to ^ 7800 , while the Widows' Fund distributes some £ 7660
amongst 2 \ a annuitants , at the rate of £ 32 a piece , the balance of over ^ 580 bc ng apportioned amongst about 29 widows , who receive half their late husbands' annuities ; that is to say , ^" 20 each . But serious as is the responsibility to which the authorities of the Institution already stand committed , and great as must be the efforts which have necessarily to be made in
order to meet these responsibilities , there is annually a formidable and long list of candidalcs , that is to say , of those poor brethren and widows whose claims to be admitted to the benefits of the Institution have been established , but for whom it is impossible to make any provision . In May last , for instance , there were elected 27 men from an approved list of 6 = ; , and Ki
widows from one of 54 . There remained , therefore , 38 men and 38 widows unprovided for . To this number will be added the brethren and widows whose petitions have been accepted during the present year , so that , in all probability it will be found that at the election in May of next year , the lists of candidates will be just as formidable as ever , and that , too ,
notwithstanding the measures which the Committee of Management adopted a few years since with a view to keeping the lists as far as possible within reasonable compass . Let us add to this that at the present moment there are only five vacancies on the Male Fund and one on the Widows' Fund , and the urgent need for the utmost exertion will be apparent to everyone .
If then by hook or by crook , by—if that be possible—a greater amount of energy on the part of the Stewards , and a more earnest pleading in behalf of our decayed brethren and their widows , a total of donations and subscriptions in excess of the average is obtained in February , then it is possible—as to the probability we say nothing—the executive may consider
itself justified in creating one or two additional annuities ; but if only an average sum or less than the average is raised , then we fear there will still be as long a list as ever of brethren and widows , whose urgent claims for a little help in their declining years must remain unsatisfied . We , therefore ,
most earnestly appeal to all our readers , and to the lodges and brethren generally throughout the country , to support Lord DUNGARVAN in tho efforts he is making in aid of our Masonic Benevolent Institution . The cause he is advocating is a grand one , and we trust the success of his advocacy will bit worthy of the cause .
United Grand Lodge Of England.
UNITED GRAND LODGE OF ENGLAND .
The following is the business to be transacted in Grand Lodge on Wednesday , the 5 th instant : 1 . The minutes of the Quarterly Communication of the 5 th September , 18 94 , for confirmation . 2 . Nomination of a Grand Master for the ensuing year . 3 . Nomination of a Grand Treasurer for the ensuing year .
4 . Appointment and investment of a President of the Board of Benevolence .
5 . Election of a Senior and a Junior Vice-President of the Board of Benevolence . 6 . Election of r 2 Past Masters to serve on the Board of Benevolenc ? for the year ensuing . 7 . Report of the Board of Benevolence for the last quarter , in which there are recommendations for the following grants , viz .:
A brother of the Harrow Lodge , No . 1310 , Harrow £ 50 o o A brother of the Lodge of Harmony , No . 5 S 0 , Ormskirk 50 o o A brother of the Lodge of Union , No . 414 , Reading 75 o o A brother of the Islington Lodge , No . 1471 , London Co o o A brother of the Wolsey Lodge , No . 1656 , Hampton Court 50 o o
A brother of the Urban Lodge , No . 1 iy 5 , London 100 o o A brother of the Royal Kent Lodge of Antiquity , No . 20 , Chatham .. 50 o o A brother of Lodge La Tolerance , No . 53 S , London 100 o o A widow of a brother of the Anchor Lodge , No . 1704 , London ... 50 o 0 A widow of a brother of the Lodge Three Grand Principles , No .
20 S , Dewsbury 50 o o A brother of the Salopian Lodge of Charity , No . 117 , Shrewsbury ... 50 0 o A widow of a brother of the Temple Lodge , No . 101 , London ... 50 0 o A widow of a brother of the Southwark Lodge , No . S 79 , London ... 50 o 0
And a resolution of a vote of thanks to the President , Bro . Robert Grey , for the courteous manner in which he has , during the past year , presided over the meetings of the Board . 8 . REPORT OV THE BOARD OP GI ; NER , U . PURPOSES . To the United Grand Lodge of Ancient Free and Accepted M tsons of England .