Original Correspondence.

Original Correspondence .

[ The Editor is not responsible for the opinions expressed by Correspondents . ] AN " 812 th . ANNIVERSARY . " ( To the Editor of The Freemason . )

DEAR SIR AND BROTHER . —I perceive a report in page 9 of your columns of the so-called " 812 th Anniversary" of the Lodge of Glasgow , St . John , No . 3 bis , but the idea of said Lodge having any real claim to so great antiquity is simply absurd ; in fact , the idea is really what Bro . Captain Spcirs ,

M . P ., the late Prov . G . M . of the Glasgow Province , and late J . G . Warden of England , called it , viz . : — " an imposition . " And " an imposition" which has been so well shown up that there is not the shadow of an excuse left for the office-bearers persevering in attempting to impose upon the public , and

disgrace not only themselves and their lodge , but also the whole Craft at large . This " 812 th Anniversary " is based upon a pretended " original charter , " said to have been granted to the St . John ' s Lodge , and the Glasgow Incorporation of Masons , by Malcolm III ., King of Scots , which " charter" was

"discovered" in 1806 . However as the subject was handled by Bro . W . P . Buchan , in the Glasgow Daily Mail newspaper , of date 27 th January , 186 9 , it will suffice to quote the following from his remarks there given , viz . : — " Having discovered that there was no real ground

in the document itself for making so absurd a statement as that it was granted by Malcolm the Third , I wrote to Professor Cosmo Innes , describing the document , to sec if it were genuine at all , and if it might not be from Malcolm the Fourth . He wrote me back ( 1 st March , 1 S 6 S ) : — 'There is no

such charter as you describe by Malcoim the Fourth to the Incorporation of Masons and Lodge , but I shall be very anxious to seethe writ which you can imagine to be that charter . ' Upon seeing it , Professor Innes said— ' It is not a charter , but a document written within the last 1 jo years , or , give

mc plenty of time , and I shall say 200 at the utmost . It is made up of pieces taken out of different charters and stuck together ; further , the individuals mentioned in it were not all alive at the same time . ' I also asked Professor lnnes how he knew before he saw it that it was not a real charter ? when he

very kindly wrote nie— ' It is too early for a charter of privileges or property to operative Masons or any other trade . Our first corporate charters were to burghs , and not till long after came those to the guilds and corporations within and under burghs ; but there are no charters to burghs till William the

Lion ; so you see it did not require much sagacity to stamp the charter of Malcolm —full of the phraseology and the minute distinctions of a much later day—as a forgery . ' As I have already stated , Mr . Hill and Professor Arnott coincided with the opinion of Professor Innes .

"This Malcolm document was brought forward a little before laying the foundation stone of Nelson's Monument in Glasgow Green ( 1 st August , 1806 ) , as the following from the minute books of St . Mungo Lodge shows : —Extract from letter from lames Young , R . W . M ., St . Mungo , No . 28 , to " Wm .

Guthrie , Grand Secretary , dated Glasgow , 26 th July , 1806 . ' I have further lo request your positive orders how I am to regulate myself in my official capacity as Master of St . Mungo Lodge here , being the senior lodge , the Glasgow St . John Operative Lodge claiming precedence of ours in the

intended procession through their resting their claim on a pretended charier granted them by , King of Scotland , anno 1051 , but upon examining the book entitled History of Freemasonry , printed by Alex . Laurie , & Co ., 1804 , and addressed to the Earl of Dalhousie , G . M ., I find that all lodges not

holding of the Grand Lodge are excluded from holding any intercourse with constituted lodges at any procession or meeting whatever . ' See pages 171 and 172 , ot Laurie ' s ( 1859 ) History of Freemasonry for account of ceremony at which 'The P . G . M ., assisted by the brethren of Lodge Glasgow Si . John ,

then laid the foundation-stone with the accustomed solemnities , & c . ' The local influence St . John's possessed , therefore enabled it tobeprcsent . although it was not then connected with the Grand Lodge . The words ' St . Mungo Lodge , here being the senioi lodge ' merely means that it was then ' the senior

lodge , ' holding of the Grand Lodge . At the laying of the foundation-stone of Burns's Monument at Ayr , in 1820 , ' The Glasgow Freemen Operative St . John ' s Lodge , ' were prevented from appearing , as they intended , in the procession , the P . G . M . refusing to recognise them , as they were not then on the Grand Lodge roll . They , in their letter

to the P . G . M . stated they were the ' most ancient lodge in Scotland , they being erected by royal charter from Malcolm the Third of Scotland , ' in 1051 . ' " As showing how difficult it is to put down an error once set up , it is only a few years since one of our P . M . 's altered the flag by turning 1051

Original Correspondence.

into 1057 , which was the first year of Malcolm the Third's reign . " Dr . Anderson , writing about this ' pretended charter , ' in his ' Memoirs of the House of Hamilton , ' says , ' apart from other considerations , the writing is not above 200 or 300 years old . ' He also says ,

' it is easy to give the parchment the appearance of age . ' " Our ' pretended charter' is in Latin . It is 14 ^ inches deep by 12 inches broad , and contains 19 X lines of writing , reaching down about three-fourths of its depth , and appears as if intended for a seal , which is gone . The idea has struck me that the

writer may have written out the English first , which he afterwards turned into Latin with the help of charters mentioned in M'Ure ' s History of Glasgow and elsewhere . If not , why did he not copy off the Latin from our ' pretended charter , ' and print it ? which would have been of more importance than the ' translation , ' which could have been made at any time , and we could have seen if said translation were

correct . " Bro . D . Murray Lyon , Esq ., one of our most accurate and painstaking Scottish Masonic scholars , characterises this pretended charter as ' the Malcolm Canmore swindle . ' " Our late P . G . M ., Bro . Captain Spcirs , M . P .

also characterised it as an imposition . ' He considered that be also had been imposed upon ( although not necessarily intentionally ) , and thereby been caused to make statements which he would otherwise not have made . The following honourable extract is from a letter of his on the subject : — ' I am

very giad indeed that you have investigated the matter , and although wc should have liked if our charter had been a genuine one , still , as it is an imposition , it is a good thing that it should be showed up , and I shall hope that the St . John's Lodge will get on better without it . '

" Need I say more about this forgery , impudent forgery , ' ' pretended charter , ' ' Malcolm Canmore swindle , ' ' imposition , ' & c . ? I trust not . I should have been most glad if our Malcolm writ bad been genuine—wc all wish so ; but seeing it is not , what is the use in ' crving over spilt milk ? ' We only

waste our time , when we might be better employed in building up our history on real historic data ; but before we begin to build we must have a foundation ; and past experience and the proof now brought forward must surely show us that nothing can be made of our Malcolm writ . It is a bad

stone , and must be , sooner or later , heaved over ; and I consider the sooner the better , knowing the wisdom contained in the remark of our departed brother and P . G . M ., ' the St . John ' s Lodge will get on better without it . '—I am , & c , W . P . B . " After the above it would be superfluous to say

more , only I might add that in 1850 , when St . lohn ' s joined the Grand Lodge , the authenticity of this pretended charter was then unacknowledged , and the position of No . 3 bis given upon other grounds . I might also observe that even Glasgow

itself did not receive its charter of erection as a burgh until 1175 , far less did the Glasgow incorporation of Masons—which did not exist until long after—receive any royal charter from any Malcolm King of Scots .

As Bro . Buchan " s name docs not appear among the list of Masonic notables , wc suppose he was not present at this " 812 th Anniversary . " 1 am , yours fraternally , LEO .

A RE-ECHO . ( To the Editor of The Freemason . ) DEAR SIR AND BROTHER , — Whilst joining with " Echo " in his congratulations , J also heartily join him in his remarks as regards your correspondent " Leo , " who has mistaken his

cognomenit should have been Leaden . Poor fellow , ever since he was refused the dignity of the chair in his mother lodge , he ( too bad ) seems to have taken a spite at everything Masonic . Who wishes " proof" for everyih ing—except one , and on that rock he has split . 1 hope " Leo " will take unto himself the sage advice of '' Echo . " Yours fraternally , RE-ECHO .

A fine new mosque has been added to Constantinople . Being near the Konak of the Grand Vizier , it has been named Aali Pasha Jamissi ; a great complincnt to the learned and devout minister .

BREAKFAST . — EPPS'S COCOA . — Grateful and Comforting . —The very agreeable character of this preparation has rendered it . 1 general favourite . The Civil Sen-ce Gn : e ! te remarks : " l ! y a thorough knowledge of the natural laws which govern the operations of digestion and nutrition , and bv a careful application of the fine

properties of well-selected cocoa , Mr . Kpps has provided our breakfast tables with a delicately-flavoured ljcvcrage which may save us many heavy doctor ' s bills . " Made simply with boiling water or milk Sold only in tin-lined packets , labelled J . S Errs & Co ., Homoeopathic Chemists , London . —[ Advt . ]

Opening Of A New Mark Masters Lodge At Sleaford.

OPENING of a NEW MARK MASTERS LODGE AT SLEAFORD .

The St . Botolph Lodge of Mark Masters , No . 108 , was consecrated by Bro . Binckes , G . Sec , at Sleaford , Lincolnshire , on Dec . the 27 th . This lodge was originated by Bro . E . Beverley

Bogg , M . D ., 30 , W . M . and LP . M . of the St . Botolph Craft Lodge , and seems likely to assume an important position , being the only Mark Lodge in the province , and in the centre of a flourishing district .

Bro . Bogg is the first W . M . of the new lodge . Bro . the Rev . Wm . Lynes , was ballotted for as a joining member , and five members of the St . Botolph Craft Lodge wcie afterwards advanced to the degree of Mark Masters . Bro . Bogg then appointed Bros . Bellamy , S . W . ; Jacobson , J . W . ; T . J .

Tomlinson . M . O . ; the Rev . W . Lynes , S . O . ; R . Sharpe , J . O . ; and Bro . Chapman was elected Tyler . The brethren then adjourned to Bro . Sharpe ' s , where an excellent banquet was awaiting them ; after which they were delighted bv Bro . Binckes' kindly genial eloquence , for which , and for all his fraternal kindness , thev felt deeply indebted to him .

The Jewels Of The Lodge.

THE JEWELS OF THE LODGE .

On each side of the Blazing Star are disposed the Compass , Square , Level , and Plumb , which are called the moveable Jewels because they distinguish the Officers of the Lodge , and are transferable to their successors . The mind of man would be his Compass ;

his conduct would be squared by strict rectitude and justice toward his fellow-creatures ; his demeanour would be marked by the level of courtesy and kindness ; while uprightness of heart and integrity of actions , symbolized by the plumb , which be his distinguishing characteristics ; and

thus guided by the Moveable Jewels of Masonry , he might descend the vale of life with joy in the hope of being accepted by the Most High , as a successful candidate for admission into the Grand Lodge above . The Moveable Jewels used in the construction of

the Temple consisting of gold and silver vessels , and other sacred utensils , amounted to , £ 6 , 904 , 822 , 500 ; and the value of the stones , timber , ivory , brass , iron , and other materials , which were classed under the head of fixtures or Immoveable Jewels , at £ 150 , 000 , 000 .

The Worshipful Masters I racing Board is near the Blazing Star , while the corresponding Immoveable Jewels are considerably higher up towards the East , the one called the Brute Stone , the other the pointed Cubical Stone . The Immoveable Jewels were formerly called the Trestle Board , the Rough Ashlars , and the

Broached Turncl . The Tracing Hoard is for the W . M . to draw his designs on ; the Rough Ashlar for the E . A . P . to mark an indent on ; and the Perfect Ashlar for the experienced F . C . to try and adjust his Jewels on . They arc termed Immoveable Jewels because they are distributed in places assigned to them in the lodge for the Brethren to moralize upon . —Oliver's Landmarks .

A Masonic Prayer.

A MASONIC PRAYER .

The following form of prayer was used August 31 , 1843 , before the Provincial Grand Lodge of Lincolnshire , prefacing a Sermon on Freemasonry , by Rev . J . Osmond Dakeyne : — " Let us pray for all sorts and conditions of men . And herein for our Sovereign Lady , the Queen ,

that she may be endued plcntcously with heavenly gifts , and long reign over a loyal , united , and happy people ; for Adelaide , the Queen Dowager , the liberal and pious patroness of those excellent schools which have been established for the orphan children of our poorer brethren ; for Prince Albert ,

Albert Prince of Wales , and all the Royal Family . Let us pray especially for the Ancient Order , as members of which , we have this day assembled ; particularly for the Most Worshipful , the Right Honourable the Earl of Zetland , Provincial Grand Master ; for the Officers of the Grand Lodge of

England , especially of that Provincial one to which we belong ; for those who bear rule amongst us ; for the Right Worshipful and Right Honourable , the Provincial Grand Master and his Deputy . Let us further implore the Most High to bless all private lodges , particularly those gathered together to worship in this I lis Holy Temple . May God

present us in all our doings with his most gracious favour , and further us with his continual help , that in all our works , begun , continued , and ended , in His most Holy Name , we may promote the happiness of our fellow-creatures , and ever set forth His honor and glory—through Jesus Christ , our Lord . " Our Father which art in Heaven , " & c .