Thomas Dunckerley: His Life, Labours, And Letters.

the rank of Past Senior Grand Warden of England was conferred upon him by the Grand Lodge " in grateful testimony of his zealous and indefatigable exertions , for many years , to promote the honour and interest of the Society . " Dorset , Gloucester , Hereford , Somerset , Wiltshire , and the Isle of Wight were also placed under his care and supervision by the several noblemen who at that period presided as Grand Masters of the Fraternity in England .

A perusal of these pages will plainly show how well he deserved these honours , which , as Bro . Sadler observes and conclusively proves , were not always of his own seeking . In Royal Arch Masonry , then a distinct and independent Society , his services appear to have been in even greater request , he having been appointed Grand Superintendent of no less than iS different provinces . The Masonic Knights Templar , now a compact and

influential body , arc indebted to him for having first brought them into prominence . He it was who first conceived the idea of consolidating this branch of the Order under a recognised head . The foregoing may be taken as a fair summary of who and what he was Masonically ; that he was possessed of good principles is evinced by his letters , and it is our province this evening to consider whether our brother put them into practice . In his

valuable work Bro . Sadler allows Dunckerley to speak , m the main , for himself , being satisfied , in his own mind , " that the scries of original letters , which now for the first time appear in print , will furnish a far more accurate estimate of his character and Masonic achievements than any words of ' his own , ' as well as throw considerable light on the early history and progress of the Order in many of the counties over which he so ably presided . "

Jiro . Dunckerley was born in London , probably at Somerset House , on the 23 rd of October , 1724 . Of his early life we know but little more than that it was passed in the Naval service , and that his character and conduct were such as to have procured for him , at the age of 22 , the important post of gunner of one of his Majesty ' s ships of war . In this capacity he took part in the siege and capture of Quebec in the year 1759 , and on his return

to England in January , 17 60 , he received intelligence of his mother ' s death , and obtaining leave of absence he went to London and attended her funeral . Among the very few that he invited to that ceremony was his mother ' s old friend and neighbour , Mrs . Pinkney . This lady communicated to him the full particulars appertaining to the incidents of his birth , given her by his mother on her death-bed , and which I do not think it would be well to repeat

here . Suffice it to say that he was led to believe he was a natural son of King George II ., who , when Prince of Wales , had known his mother intimately before her marriage . He was fortunate enough in April , 1767 , to get his mother ' s declaration laid before King George III . ( George II . having died without knowledge of Dunckerley ' s existence ) . His Majesty having read it seemed much concerned , and caused enquiry to be made respecting

the character of the petitioner , which proving satisfactory he was graciously pleased to order him a pension of £ 100 a year , subsequently increased to ^ 800 from his privy purse . It was during his naval career that Dunckerley was made a Mason , at the age of 29 years , in an old lodge at Portsmouth , now defunct , and so well did he apply himself to a study of the principles of our Craft that in 1757 , not much more than three years after his initiation ,

we find him eminently qualified to deliver a charge in a lodge at Plymouth , of which he was then Master , on the occasion of the dedication of a room for the purposes of Masonry . This charge , entitled " The Light and Truth of Masonry , " Bro . Sadler has reprinted , and I cannot forbear making a few extracts from it . ® Dunckerley ' s love of Masonry , its principles and ceremonies , was of so ardent a nature as to induce him to take a most unique

step , that of applying for a warrant to hold a regular lodge on board the ships in which he sailed . Two lodges were thus constituted at his request , one on board the Vanguard , of 70 guns , the other on board the Prince , of 90 guns . On his retirement from the service Dunckerley resuscitated these lodges on shore , and they are now in a flourishing condition in the Metropolis , one being the Royal Somerset House Lodge , No . 4 ( so named from having

met for a short time in Dunckerley's rooms at Somerset House ) , and the other called the London Lodge , No . 108 ( from having been held for many years at the London Coffee House ) . With regard to these ship-lodges Bro . Sadler thinks there are many points which if light could be thrown on them would be of interest to the Fraternity . For instance , he would like to know in what part of the ship the lodge was held ' ! Were the members summoned

in the ordinary way—i . e ., by letter from the Secretary or by the shrill pipe and stentorian cry of the boatswain ' s mate , something after this style : "D ' ye hear there , fore and aft ? All you Freemasons ' 11 muster in the after cockpit at seven bells , or some other bells . " We notice that in the Lodge of Friendship ( No . 6 ) , of which , in 1767 , Bro . Dunckerley became a member , an interesting presentation was made to the

Duchess of Beaufort , as lady Patroness of the lodge , of a pair of gloves , at a cost of Jive gtti iiens . In the records of the same lodge we also find that on December gth , 1767 , 1 ( 10 Duke of Beaufort ( Grand Master ) being present , the brethren requested the Grand Master to indulge them with the privilege of wearing their swords in lodge hours , which his Grace was pleased to comply with , but being- afterwards informed that this was an innovation

and contrary to the ancient usages and customs of the Society , he withdrew his dispensation at a subsequent meeting of the lodge . Our ancient brother seems to have frequently used the quaint term " serious brother" in his correspondence . In a letter addressed to the Grand Secretary , in 1785 , 11 c writes : "When our Lodge of Harmony , at the Toy ( Inn ) Hampton Court , is increased and can workwhichI hopewill be soonwe shall be 1 ~

, , , , very , ' ' } J ~ 1 ) •" •j — .-, .. . . . . happy to see you and any serious brother . " In that letter he also mentioned that a man named Tombs had behaved very ill at Bristol ; and concludes another letter with " Greetings to all serious Brethren . " Another of his lodges , the Prince of Wales ' s ( No . ^ ja . ) , affords an interesting item in the shape of \ V'ii- ' '' stof "icmbers returned to Grand Lodge by the Secretary , the Rev . William Peters , Grand Portrait Painter . Against the name of each

member on the list is written a brief description of the individual , from the artists point of view . For instance—Francis Broderip , 37 , musical instrument maker , is "a good , jolly fellow ; " John Mickey , 20 , sculptor , " a very j | , " ; , ' , young man ; " George Saunders , 26 , carpenter , " a smart dapper < ld ; 1 nomas Hammersly , 41 , banker , " much the gentleman , but go not "ear him with forged drafts ; " Thomas Dunckerley , 6 3 , gentleman , "

some-Tl '" " >' al about him ' * " Hcn , T Holland , 3 6 , architect , " a comely man ; " \\ nv ' S' ° ' "J " ' S ' to the Prince of Wales , " very well—not too tall ; " o , ' Aldington , 511 , Justice of the Peace , " go not near him at Bow it . 'eUt' x *' lc rccorcls of the Medina Lodge ( No . 35 ) contain some quaint l c ' , - ^ the 121 I 1 of March , 17-59 , " Bro . Carter , on his marriage , generously treated the lodge to a gallon of wine . " ist Nov ., 1753—" ' Bro " . Seyour , being intoxicated with liquor , interrupted our R . W . Master in the

Thomas Dunckerley: His Life, Labours, And Letters.

course of his lectures on Masonry , therefore it was unanimousl y agreed that he should be fined one bottle of wine for such offence . " iSth April , 1754—" Bro . Wright proposed that every member or visitor who bring a Dogginto this Lodge shall be fined in the sum of one Shilling . A Ballot was demanded , and carried by a majority , that there should be no Dogg brought . " . . . . * Another memorial of Bro . Dunckerley in this city is St . Paul's Church in Portland-square , the foundation-stone having been laid by him in the year

1794 , an account of which Bro . Sadler reprints from the " Freemason ' s Magazine " for August of that year . The ceremony having been performed in the customary manner , the brethren proceeded to St . James's Church to hear a sermon by the Prov . Grand Chaplain , Bro . Small . During the service a Masonic hymn , and an hymn upon his Majesty ' s happy recovery , written by Bro . Dunckerley , were sung by the choir . The Fraternity then dined

together at thcMcrchant Taylors' Hall , and welcarn "that thegrcatestharmony , good humour , and brotherly love prevailed , and the brethren departed at an earl y hour , not without uniting in the grand design of being happy themselves and of communicating happiness to others , " a donation of 20 guineas being sent to a widow in great distress There were impostors in those days , for Bro . Dunckerley writes under date 16 th November ,

1786 , " That a person travelling by the name of Clark , who sometime since , kept a tavern in London , having fraudently obtained money from the lodge at Wells , notice of the same is given to prevent farther imposition , and whereas several persons disguised like Turks , who pretend they were made prisoners in attempting to relieve Gibraltar , have imposed on lodges at Bristol and Bath ; notice of the same is hereby given that such itinerant

mendicants may be detected Our brother had that well grounded comprehension of religion which is the surest protection against infidelity , and 1 take it that he would do nothing , be nothing , or say nothing that he would wish his dearest not to do , be , or say , and if we follow him in this respect our lives will prove one continuous blessing to ourselves as well as to those around us . He died at Portsmouth in 1795 , in the 71 st year of

his age , deeply regretted by the brotherhood . " Brother Dunckerley ' s Masonic example was lost on his son , whose follies embittered the last years of his existence . Extravagance straitened the means , disorderly conduct afflicted the mind of the fond , unhappy parent . Every means were tried , ineffectually , to reclaim the wretched son . At his father ' s death , there being no provision left , he became a wanderer and an outcast . Being a Mason ,

he was ever besieging lodges and individuals . At last he became a bricklayer ' s labourer , and was seen carrying a hod on his shoulder ascending a ladder . This poor fellow ' s misfortunes and misconduct at length terminated , and the grandson of u king died in a cellar in St . Giles ' s . Worshipful Master and brethren , —I thank you very much for your kind attention

this evening , and cannot do better than close with a recital of Henry W . Longfellow ' s " Psalm of Life , " which breathes so much of the true Masonic spirit that one would be led to believe that he was of our Order , or to express an opinion that if he was not he ought to have been . Bro . Fulford then recited the beautiful poem mentioned , with which our readers are doubtless familiar .

The American Knights Templar And The Quatuor Coronatl Lodge.

THE AMERICAN KNIGHTS TEMPLAR AND THE QUATUOR CORONATl LODGE .

The party , about 200 strong , of our American brethren , who , under the auspices of Temple Commandery , No . 2 , Albany , N . Y ., arrived in these islands last week by the City of Berlin , have timed their visit at such an awkward period of the year , and made their stay in London so short , that it has been found almost impossible to entertain them Masonically , as more than one lodge would have liked to do . So many of them were , however ,

members of the Quatuor Coronati Correspondence Circle , like Bros . MacCalla and Strasser , or candidates for membership in the Circle , that it was felt by Bro . W . M . Bywater , the W . M . of the lodge in question , that a supreme effort must be made to give our visitors a welcome . The only possible way to do this at the short notice available was to ask them to an informal meeting

for a chat , and to ask those of the members who were still in London and therefore get-atable to assist him in entertaining them . As events proved , this departure from the ordinary ways of Masonic hospitality was a great success , and much enjoyed by all present , not the less so probably as the occasion allowed of the American brethren being accompanied by some of their relations of the fairer sex .

On Friday , the 31 st ult ., therefore , the following brethren of the Quatuor Coronati Correspondence Circle assembled in one of the private rooms of the Holborn Restaurant : Bro . W . M . Bywater , P . G . S . B ., W . M .. accompaniedby iMiss Bywater and Miss K . Bywater ; Bros . R . F . Gould , P . G . D . ; G . W . Speth , Sec ; Dr . B . W . Richardson ; Colonel Sir Norman Pringle , Bart . ; R . A . Gowan ; C . B . Barnes ; C F . Hogard , P . G . Std . Br . ; Jabez Hogg , P . G . D . ;

G . J . McKay , G . Std . Br . ; and W . Lake . The visitors arrived about five p . m ., viz .: Bros . C . IT . Armatagc , E . C . 2 , the leader of the pilgrimage ; A . N . Guthrie , Gen . 2 , second in command ; C P . MacCalla , P . G . M . Pennsylvania ; H . H . Ingersoll , P . G . M . Tennessee ; Miss Mabel R . Ingersoll ; B . F . Atkinson , P . G . C , Arkansas ; Solomon Strasser , P . M . 3 ; W . IT . Perry , P . E . C . R . I . ; HoscaQ . Sargent , 32 , Ohio ; Miss Mabel H . Sargent ; and G . W . Clark , P . E . C , P . J . G . W . Arkansas .

lea , fruit , ices , and general conversation served to pass an hour or so very agreeably , after which Bro . BYWATER , W . M ., addressed the visitors , expressing his sorrow that the necessarily short notice had deprived the lodge of the pleasure of entertaining their guests in a more worthy manner , but bidding them heartily welcome , and trusting that this would not be the last occasion on which the lodge would be favoured with their company .

Supplementary addresses of welcome were then delivered by Bro . R . F . GOULD , and by the Secretary , Bro . G . W . SPETH , and replied to by eloquent speeches from Bros . C P . MACCALLA , H . IT . INGERSOLL , C A . ARMATAGE , B . F . ATKINSON , and A . A . GUTHRIE . The speeches concluded with an eloquent oration , which was loudly applauded , by Bro . Dr . B . W . RICHARDSON , on the purposes of the Masonic Institution , the ladies especially being much amused by his description of the way Miss St . Leger arrived at the distinction of being made a Mason .

The ladies having been presented with handsome bouquets , at which they expressed their delight , and previous engagements calling the visitors elsewhere , the guests bid their entertainers adieu , although with manifest regret . The little impromptu entertainment was an evident success , and all who took part in it appeared to have enjoyed themselves to the full . Bro . William IT . Avery , P . E . C . Cincinnati , and Miss M . Atkinson were unfortunately prevented at the last moment from attending .