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Article OBSERVATIONS ON BRO. LANE'S "MASONIC RECORDS." ← Page 2 of 2 Article MASONIC ORIGINES—No. II. Page 1 of 1 Article MASONIC ORIGINES—No. II. Page 1 of 1 Article MERCENARY MOTIVES. Page 1 of 1
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Observations On Bro. Lane's "Masonic Records."
the letters " H . M . S ., " is based . Another instance of Bro . Lane ' s impartiality occurs at p . 5 , where the alleged identity of a musical society with a lodge at the Queen's Head is left an open question , instead of being arbitrarily settled on the authority of an anonymous entry of uncertain date . One of the difficulties with which Bro . Lane has had to contend , is the absence of any rule of general application , whereby it may be clearly
determined whether a lodge does , or does not , fall within the category of Military Lodges . The titles used to describe these bodies are as varied as the jurisdictions under vvhich they have at any time been called into existence . Even under the two Grand Lodges of England the practice was dissimilar , for whilst the Ancients were content with the simple term " Military Lodges , " their rivals—at least from 178 * 2—classified such bodies as "Lodges
in Military Corps not stationary . " Here an element of confusion was introduced , for lodges in the Artillery and Marines , though in many cases stationary , would undoubtedly be Military also . The Artillery , indeedwith , from first to last , some twenty-seven lodges—always worked under Atholl warrants , but the Marines divided their allegiance , and therefore the "Amphibious Lodge " constituted in that corps at Stonehouse , by the older
Grand Lodge , in 1787 . Though not styled in the Freemasons' Calendar a Military Lodge , was certainly one in reality . It was the fashionable lodge in the Marines , and continued to be so until 1792 , the members consisting of officers of the corps and of the Army and Navy . The last entry was " Lt .-Col . Thos . Duval , Marines , Stonehouse , ist Oct ., 1792 . " After which
there is a gap until 1803 , when the names of eleven persons—none of them members of the defunct Iodge—are shown as belonging to No . 407 ( Amphibious L . ) at High Town , Yorkshire . The lodge is now at Heckmondwike —No . 258—and we may well wonder if the brethren in that inland town have ever expressed any curiosity with regard to the " briny " flavour of its
name . The Fitzroy Lodge , No . 569 , stands on the same footing , for though stationary in a sense , as meeting in the Armoury House of the Honourable Artillery Company of London , but the lodge would still be attached to that corps were the latter either to shift its quarters or be employed vvith the Regular Forces in the field .
The preface by the author is well and tersely written , and vvith regard to the introduction , it vvill suffice to say that it is from the pen of Bro . Hughan . But that worth y brother—with whom it is somewhat unsafe to differ —will , I am sure , forgive me for withholding my assent to the conclusion he draws from the Engraved List of 1723 , viz ., that five Lodges of earlier date than the Grand Lodge of England were then in existence . He relies , of
course , on the position of the lodge at the Cheshire Cheese , vvhich stands fourth on the list , preceding that at the Horn , the lodge immediately below it—one of the memorable Four . Yet this involves the assumption , that the "Time Immemorial , " unlike the warranted lodges , were always—6 e /* bre the year 1729—arranged according to priority of constitution . It is indeed quite possible that they were , but then , on the other hand , it is equally
possible—for there is nothing whatever to turn the scale in the way of evidence—that they were not . Passing , however , from this digression , it may , I think , be safely affirmed that those who may have the good fortune to possess Bro . Lane ' s work vvill be better posted up in all relating to our English Lodges , than even the officials of the Grand Lodge vvould be without it . In my opinion , it is about the most useful Masonic
publication that has appeared in our times , and to secretaries of lodges it vvill be simply invaluable . Bro . Lane vvill , I daresay , pardon a fraternal note of advice . It is this ; that in future editions , the present title , " Masonic Records , " should be changed for that of " Gazetteer of the Lodges , " under which , in an abbreviated form , say " Lane's Gazetteer , " I think the compiler would find his arduous labours very gratefully recognised by Masonic writers of the future .
A word in conclusion . What Bro . Lane has done for the lodges in England , it may be hoped will be attempted for those in Scotland , Ireland , and foreign countries . The chief desideratum is a list of the lodges , chartered by each Grand Lodge , out of its own immediate jurisdiction . With the increase of lodges in by far the majority of countries , under what in strictness should be termed the native jurisdictions , vve are all now more or less familiar , but the peculiar manner in which Masonry
has penetrated from one country into another , lies even at this period very much in the dark . This , as it seems to me , is the discovery for which we should most earnestly pray , and in bringing these observations lo a close , I shall express a hope that brethren may be found in Scotland , Ireland , and continental Europe , who vvill pursue on the same lines , the interesting inquiry , which in the case of England has resulted in such a monument of research as the Masonic Records of Bro . Lane .
Masonic Origines—No. Ii.
MASONIC ORIGINES—No . II .
In the Freemason for April 24 th , 1886 , I alluded to an interesting pamphlet , entitled " Masonic Origines , " by my good friend , General Pike . Besides partly criticising the treatment that important subject received at the hands of the General , I also endeavoured to supply the information . he asked for , respecting the earliest records of the several Grand Lodges of England which flourished during the last century . Not being a
manufacturer of facts , if the latter has not come up to Bro . Pike ' s anticipations , the fault is not mine , my province and aim simply being to furnish , in brief , the main points about vvhich light was desired , and about which authentic information was desired . It is undoubtedly true that no actual minutes exist of the ori gin of the premier Grand Lodge of England , at London , in 1716-7 ; hence it is as well to admit that unfortunate fact , and do the best we can
under the circumstances . Substantially , I take it , vve have a fair account of the eventful proceedings of that body from 1717 to 1723 , narrated b y Dr . Anderson in the " Book of Constitutions , " 1738 , for several who were prominentl y connected with the Craft during some portion of the period 1717-23 were also energetic workers in 1738 , and therefore would not have tolerated
any version of the origin , vvhich vvas glaringly incorrect , or generally untrue . 1 entirely agree vvith General Pike in the desire to have the minutes of the Grand Lodge of England from 1723 reproduced , verbatim et literatim , in such shape as they can be accessible for small cost to Masons generally , " hut the expense would be rather a serious item , and there are not many , 1 tear , who vvould support such an enterprise .
As to the " Four Old Lodges , " vve are literally without any information as to their proceedings prior to the advent of the Grand Lodge , of vvhich hey were the declared founders . We know , however , there were several
Masonic Origines—No. Ii.
lodges working in England , of a pre-1717 origin , e . g ., the lodge at Warrington , 1646 , in which Ashmole vvas initiated , the one noted in a York MS ., and others of the 17 th century . Then there are the records of the lodge at Alnwick , vvhich , though not the first volume of its proceedings ( apparently ) are of value , because the minutes begin October 3 , 1703 , and
the " orders are dated September 29 , 1701 . Those interested in their character should consult the Freemason of January 21 , 1871 , which contains a description of their chief features by me , and Bro . Gould ' s noble " History of Freemasonry , " Vol . IV ., should also be carefully read , giving as it does so many authentic particulars of that and other old lodges .
As regards the old lodge and the Grand Lodge at York , and their origines , it is not in my power to add to the facts in my " Masonic Sketches and Reprints , " and Bro . Gould ' s History , as in these works , all the preserved records are given "in extenso" down to 1730 , and several others also , of a later period , are noticed . From these it is clear that the first mention of the Grand Lodge is in 1725 . So far as vve can tell , the
lodge and Grand Lodge were formed by the same members , and were virtually one and the same body , as at Philadelphia ( LLS . A . ) , 1731 , & c . Bro . Pike says he vvas not aware that "there were any early records" of the York organisafion , and so one good result has followed my criticism , though , as the General says , " its origines are not even hinted at . " The fact is , all vve know is to be found in the roll of minutes lately published in full , and that is certainly not much .
Since the issue of the "Masonic Origines , " Bro . John Lane in searching for information in the archives of the Grand Lodge of England , detected the veritable " Morgan ' s Register , " vvhich was handed to Bro . Dermott on his becoming Grand Secretary in 1752 . This important volume contains the evidence as to the origin of that Body , and is thus of special value . Bro . Lane does justice to that fact in his Grand " Masonic Records , " now published , so I need do no more than say that the " Ancients " began as a separate organisation on July 17 , 1751 . *
General Pike declares that" the criticisms of Bro . Hughan do not touch the principal matter treated of in the ' Masonic Origines , ' i . e ., the total absence of original minutes and records , or of authentic evidence in regard to beginnings of Masonic Bodies and Grand Bodies in general . He has not succeeded in throwing much light on the origin of two of the English Grand Lodges . " I reply , that so far as there is evidence , I have done my best to meet the wants of American Masonic students , and shall have
pleasure in continuing so to do . It is better to have the facts however few and unimportant they may be deemed to be , than to write at length purely fanciful accounts of the early transactions of such Bodies . I am proud to belong to the school of English Masonic students , represented by the Quatuor Coronati Lodge , who , whilst not objecting to legends , prefer above all , the actual records of the early Masonic Bodies , and do their utmost to trace and publish particulars of their proceedings for the information of all concerned .
General Pike concludes by asking me "to tell where are to be found the minutes of the formation and earliest proceedings of the Grand Lodge of the Royal Order of Scotland . " The oldest proceedings which are preserved of this Body are at Edinburgh , and are duly described by Bro . D . Murray Lyon , in his splendid History of the Grand Lodge of Scotland . Strange to say , the earliest minutes have to do with England !
In conclusion he asks " the date of the invention and first working of the Mark Degree . " My reply is , I do not know . When the Degree began is not known , but possibly soon after the Royal Arch . The earliest Mark records , as a Degree , date from 1773 . Those of the Arch , however , are a little earlier . - W . J . HUGHAN .
Mercenary Motives.
MERCENARY MOTIVES .
" If there is any one thing that has destroyed harmony in our Iodgea and between members , it is the want of a sense of pecuniary obligation , too often found among brethren . Many think that if they can join the Masons they will prosper , because Masons are bound to help each other . If such failed to support themselves before they were made Masons , they grew worse after joining a lodge . We have known Masons to demand a
credit because they were Masons , when , if they were not Masons , they could not even ask credit for a pipe , of tobacco . We have heard indolent brothers complain against those who had worked hard and saved something of this world ' s goods , because they refused to give credit , or divide with these shiftless fellows . And what forehanded Mason is there that has not met with such things ? If an applicant cannot support himself , or is not doing so in some creditable occupation , when he asks to join a lodge he
should be rejected . If he seeks to become a Mason vvith the hope or expectancy that the brethren will feed and clothe him , whether he works or not—as no doubt some do—he should be referred to the almshouse , for that is the place he is hunting . We have known cases where such applicants were industrious enough to get into a lodge , but never enough so afterwards to make a creditable living ; but such cases are , fortunately , not numerous . " —Proceedings Grand Lodge of Florida .
ENGBOND was a formation of Masons about 1797 , though the movement had begun much earlier , to restrict the esoteric leaching of Masonry to that of the three symbolical degrees , to do away with the influence ot the high grade mysticism , and to return to a truer representation of Masonic principles . Many able men were mixed up in the meeting—such as the Brothers Mossdorf , Schneider , Krause , Bode , Fessler , Schroder ,
Heldmann , etc . It is true that Fessler and Schroder divide on some points , as , the " Handbuch" fairly puts it , men do in the history of the Church and State , who , though agreed on the mam question , differ on subsidiary points . They called themselves at one time " Vertrauten Bruder . " This system of instruction was also termed
" Histonsche Kentmssstufe —historical knowledge grades—and some have said that it was a 4 th gracie . But that vvas incorrect ; it vvas an attempt to give an intellectual , scientific , humanitarian , and cosmopolitan character to Freemasonry . Our learned Bro . J . G . Findel might perhaps agree that Bode ' s Deutscher Freimaurer Bund at Weimar in 1790 was the germ , so to say , of the idea , which was completed in the useful Verein Deutscher Freimaurer . —Kenning ' s Cyclopcedia of Freemasonry .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Observations On Bro. Lane's "Masonic Records."
the letters " H . M . S ., " is based . Another instance of Bro . Lane ' s impartiality occurs at p . 5 , where the alleged identity of a musical society with a lodge at the Queen's Head is left an open question , instead of being arbitrarily settled on the authority of an anonymous entry of uncertain date . One of the difficulties with which Bro . Lane has had to contend , is the absence of any rule of general application , whereby it may be clearly
determined whether a lodge does , or does not , fall within the category of Military Lodges . The titles used to describe these bodies are as varied as the jurisdictions under vvhich they have at any time been called into existence . Even under the two Grand Lodges of England the practice was dissimilar , for whilst the Ancients were content with the simple term " Military Lodges , " their rivals—at least from 178 * 2—classified such bodies as "Lodges
in Military Corps not stationary . " Here an element of confusion was introduced , for lodges in the Artillery and Marines , though in many cases stationary , would undoubtedly be Military also . The Artillery , indeedwith , from first to last , some twenty-seven lodges—always worked under Atholl warrants , but the Marines divided their allegiance , and therefore the "Amphibious Lodge " constituted in that corps at Stonehouse , by the older
Grand Lodge , in 1787 . Though not styled in the Freemasons' Calendar a Military Lodge , was certainly one in reality . It was the fashionable lodge in the Marines , and continued to be so until 1792 , the members consisting of officers of the corps and of the Army and Navy . The last entry was " Lt .-Col . Thos . Duval , Marines , Stonehouse , ist Oct ., 1792 . " After which
there is a gap until 1803 , when the names of eleven persons—none of them members of the defunct Iodge—are shown as belonging to No . 407 ( Amphibious L . ) at High Town , Yorkshire . The lodge is now at Heckmondwike —No . 258—and we may well wonder if the brethren in that inland town have ever expressed any curiosity with regard to the " briny " flavour of its
name . The Fitzroy Lodge , No . 569 , stands on the same footing , for though stationary in a sense , as meeting in the Armoury House of the Honourable Artillery Company of London , but the lodge would still be attached to that corps were the latter either to shift its quarters or be employed vvith the Regular Forces in the field .
The preface by the author is well and tersely written , and vvith regard to the introduction , it vvill suffice to say that it is from the pen of Bro . Hughan . But that worth y brother—with whom it is somewhat unsafe to differ —will , I am sure , forgive me for withholding my assent to the conclusion he draws from the Engraved List of 1723 , viz ., that five Lodges of earlier date than the Grand Lodge of England were then in existence . He relies , of
course , on the position of the lodge at the Cheshire Cheese , vvhich stands fourth on the list , preceding that at the Horn , the lodge immediately below it—one of the memorable Four . Yet this involves the assumption , that the "Time Immemorial , " unlike the warranted lodges , were always—6 e /* bre the year 1729—arranged according to priority of constitution . It is indeed quite possible that they were , but then , on the other hand , it is equally
possible—for there is nothing whatever to turn the scale in the way of evidence—that they were not . Passing , however , from this digression , it may , I think , be safely affirmed that those who may have the good fortune to possess Bro . Lane ' s work vvill be better posted up in all relating to our English Lodges , than even the officials of the Grand Lodge vvould be without it . In my opinion , it is about the most useful Masonic
publication that has appeared in our times , and to secretaries of lodges it vvill be simply invaluable . Bro . Lane vvill , I daresay , pardon a fraternal note of advice . It is this ; that in future editions , the present title , " Masonic Records , " should be changed for that of " Gazetteer of the Lodges , " under which , in an abbreviated form , say " Lane's Gazetteer , " I think the compiler would find his arduous labours very gratefully recognised by Masonic writers of the future .
A word in conclusion . What Bro . Lane has done for the lodges in England , it may be hoped will be attempted for those in Scotland , Ireland , and foreign countries . The chief desideratum is a list of the lodges , chartered by each Grand Lodge , out of its own immediate jurisdiction . With the increase of lodges in by far the majority of countries , under what in strictness should be termed the native jurisdictions , vve are all now more or less familiar , but the peculiar manner in which Masonry
has penetrated from one country into another , lies even at this period very much in the dark . This , as it seems to me , is the discovery for which we should most earnestly pray , and in bringing these observations lo a close , I shall express a hope that brethren may be found in Scotland , Ireland , and continental Europe , who vvill pursue on the same lines , the interesting inquiry , which in the case of England has resulted in such a monument of research as the Masonic Records of Bro . Lane .
Masonic Origines—No. Ii.
MASONIC ORIGINES—No . II .
In the Freemason for April 24 th , 1886 , I alluded to an interesting pamphlet , entitled " Masonic Origines , " by my good friend , General Pike . Besides partly criticising the treatment that important subject received at the hands of the General , I also endeavoured to supply the information . he asked for , respecting the earliest records of the several Grand Lodges of England which flourished during the last century . Not being a
manufacturer of facts , if the latter has not come up to Bro . Pike ' s anticipations , the fault is not mine , my province and aim simply being to furnish , in brief , the main points about vvhich light was desired , and about which authentic information was desired . It is undoubtedly true that no actual minutes exist of the ori gin of the premier Grand Lodge of England , at London , in 1716-7 ; hence it is as well to admit that unfortunate fact , and do the best we can
under the circumstances . Substantially , I take it , vve have a fair account of the eventful proceedings of that body from 1717 to 1723 , narrated b y Dr . Anderson in the " Book of Constitutions , " 1738 , for several who were prominentl y connected with the Craft during some portion of the period 1717-23 were also energetic workers in 1738 , and therefore would not have tolerated
any version of the origin , vvhich vvas glaringly incorrect , or generally untrue . 1 entirely agree vvith General Pike in the desire to have the minutes of the Grand Lodge of England from 1723 reproduced , verbatim et literatim , in such shape as they can be accessible for small cost to Masons generally , " hut the expense would be rather a serious item , and there are not many , 1 tear , who vvould support such an enterprise .
As to the " Four Old Lodges , " vve are literally without any information as to their proceedings prior to the advent of the Grand Lodge , of vvhich hey were the declared founders . We know , however , there were several
Masonic Origines—No. Ii.
lodges working in England , of a pre-1717 origin , e . g ., the lodge at Warrington , 1646 , in which Ashmole vvas initiated , the one noted in a York MS ., and others of the 17 th century . Then there are the records of the lodge at Alnwick , vvhich , though not the first volume of its proceedings ( apparently ) are of value , because the minutes begin October 3 , 1703 , and
the " orders are dated September 29 , 1701 . Those interested in their character should consult the Freemason of January 21 , 1871 , which contains a description of their chief features by me , and Bro . Gould ' s noble " History of Freemasonry , " Vol . IV ., should also be carefully read , giving as it does so many authentic particulars of that and other old lodges .
As regards the old lodge and the Grand Lodge at York , and their origines , it is not in my power to add to the facts in my " Masonic Sketches and Reprints , " and Bro . Gould ' s History , as in these works , all the preserved records are given "in extenso" down to 1730 , and several others also , of a later period , are noticed . From these it is clear that the first mention of the Grand Lodge is in 1725 . So far as vve can tell , the
lodge and Grand Lodge were formed by the same members , and were virtually one and the same body , as at Philadelphia ( LLS . A . ) , 1731 , & c . Bro . Pike says he vvas not aware that "there were any early records" of the York organisafion , and so one good result has followed my criticism , though , as the General says , " its origines are not even hinted at . " The fact is , all vve know is to be found in the roll of minutes lately published in full , and that is certainly not much .
Since the issue of the "Masonic Origines , " Bro . John Lane in searching for information in the archives of the Grand Lodge of England , detected the veritable " Morgan ' s Register , " vvhich was handed to Bro . Dermott on his becoming Grand Secretary in 1752 . This important volume contains the evidence as to the origin of that Body , and is thus of special value . Bro . Lane does justice to that fact in his Grand " Masonic Records , " now published , so I need do no more than say that the " Ancients " began as a separate organisation on July 17 , 1751 . *
General Pike declares that" the criticisms of Bro . Hughan do not touch the principal matter treated of in the ' Masonic Origines , ' i . e ., the total absence of original minutes and records , or of authentic evidence in regard to beginnings of Masonic Bodies and Grand Bodies in general . He has not succeeded in throwing much light on the origin of two of the English Grand Lodges . " I reply , that so far as there is evidence , I have done my best to meet the wants of American Masonic students , and shall have
pleasure in continuing so to do . It is better to have the facts however few and unimportant they may be deemed to be , than to write at length purely fanciful accounts of the early transactions of such Bodies . I am proud to belong to the school of English Masonic students , represented by the Quatuor Coronati Lodge , who , whilst not objecting to legends , prefer above all , the actual records of the early Masonic Bodies , and do their utmost to trace and publish particulars of their proceedings for the information of all concerned .
General Pike concludes by asking me "to tell where are to be found the minutes of the formation and earliest proceedings of the Grand Lodge of the Royal Order of Scotland . " The oldest proceedings which are preserved of this Body are at Edinburgh , and are duly described by Bro . D . Murray Lyon , in his splendid History of the Grand Lodge of Scotland . Strange to say , the earliest minutes have to do with England !
In conclusion he asks " the date of the invention and first working of the Mark Degree . " My reply is , I do not know . When the Degree began is not known , but possibly soon after the Royal Arch . The earliest Mark records , as a Degree , date from 1773 . Those of the Arch , however , are a little earlier . - W . J . HUGHAN .
Mercenary Motives.
MERCENARY MOTIVES .
" If there is any one thing that has destroyed harmony in our Iodgea and between members , it is the want of a sense of pecuniary obligation , too often found among brethren . Many think that if they can join the Masons they will prosper , because Masons are bound to help each other . If such failed to support themselves before they were made Masons , they grew worse after joining a lodge . We have known Masons to demand a
credit because they were Masons , when , if they were not Masons , they could not even ask credit for a pipe , of tobacco . We have heard indolent brothers complain against those who had worked hard and saved something of this world ' s goods , because they refused to give credit , or divide with these shiftless fellows . And what forehanded Mason is there that has not met with such things ? If an applicant cannot support himself , or is not doing so in some creditable occupation , when he asks to join a lodge he
should be rejected . If he seeks to become a Mason vvith the hope or expectancy that the brethren will feed and clothe him , whether he works or not—as no doubt some do—he should be referred to the almshouse , for that is the place he is hunting . We have known cases where such applicants were industrious enough to get into a lodge , but never enough so afterwards to make a creditable living ; but such cases are , fortunately , not numerous . " —Proceedings Grand Lodge of Florida .
ENGBOND was a formation of Masons about 1797 , though the movement had begun much earlier , to restrict the esoteric leaching of Masonry to that of the three symbolical degrees , to do away with the influence ot the high grade mysticism , and to return to a truer representation of Masonic principles . Many able men were mixed up in the meeting—such as the Brothers Mossdorf , Schneider , Krause , Bode , Fessler , Schroder ,
Heldmann , etc . It is true that Fessler and Schroder divide on some points , as , the " Handbuch" fairly puts it , men do in the history of the Church and State , who , though agreed on the mam question , differ on subsidiary points . They called themselves at one time " Vertrauten Bruder . " This system of instruction was also termed
" Histonsche Kentmssstufe —historical knowledge grades—and some have said that it was a 4 th gracie . But that vvas incorrect ; it vvas an attempt to give an intellectual , scientific , humanitarian , and cosmopolitan character to Freemasonry . Our learned Bro . J . G . Findel might perhaps agree that Bode ' s Deutscher Freimaurer Bund at Weimar in 1790 was the germ , so to say , of the idea , which was completed in the useful Verein Deutscher Freimaurer . —Kenning ' s Cyclopcedia of Freemasonry .