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Article BRO. BINCKES'S LETTER. ← Page 2 of 2 Article Original Correspondence. Page 1 of 2 Article Original Correspondence. Page 1 of 2 Article Original Correspondence. Page 1 of 2 →
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Bro. Binckes's Letter.
be , if we may so say , passive and silent in the matter . We may be wrong in our opinion , but it is our opinion , and we feel bound to lay it before our readers , as in this as in all other matters , eschewing personalities altogether , and looking only to first principles and the good of Freemasonry , we both say what we mean and mean what we say .
Original Correspondence.
Original Correspondence .
[ We do not hold ourselves responsible for , or even as approving of the opinions expressed by our correspondents , but we wish , in a spirit of fair play to all , to permit—within certain necessary limits—free discussion . —ED . ]
THE INSTALLATION OF THE GRAND MASTER . To the Editor of the Freemason . Dear Sir and Brother , — The installation of His Royal Highness the Prince ot Wales as Grand Master offers a rare opportunity for a demonstration that shall he without parallel in the history of Freemasonry .
As a Welshman , I call upon my brethren in the provinces of Wales to be there to a man . Already I know that arrangements are being made in many lodges in this province to be present . I am sure I shall not appeal in vain to my brethren if I ask every Worship ful Master to bring the matter forward at his next lodge earnestly and warmly , and let intimation be
g iven to the Grand Secretary from every lodge of the number of officers who will attend . Nothing could be better than the suggestion of your correspondent "P . M . 186 , " that Grand Lodge should be held in the Albert Hall . Yours fraternally , "Y nniiAio Gocii A IIDYIIY GVCIIWYK . "
THE OFFICE OF GRAND MASTER . To the Editor of the Freemason . Dear Sir and Brother , — In your last issue , a correspondent ( H . Martin Green ) contends that a Master may render himself incapable of discharging the duties of his office by resigning his membership of his lodge , and so keep within the letter
of the Book of Constitutions , which does not allow for the resignation of a Master . A fair objection to this position seems to be that while the Constitutions do not contemplate the resignation either of a Grand Master or a Master during his year of office , and arc consequently silent on the subject , there is this wide distinction between the two cases ; in the one , nothing can absolve a Master from
his promise to discharge his duties to the best of his skill and ability during the ensuing twelve months , or until a successor shall be appointed and installed in his stead . A Grand Master takes no such obligations , and is therefore bound by no promise , and although the spirit of the
law may be against him , yet the resignation of a Grand Master is so extremely exceptional , that it seems in every way advisable and politic to treat the late instance , as the Grand Lodge evidentlyi desire , to do , with a respectful silence . BUSY BEE .
To the Editor of the Freemason . Dear Sir and Brother , — Will you kindly allow mc ( as one present at both of our late quarterly Communications ) to add a few supplementary words to your admirable article on Bro . Warren's letter , in your issue of Dec . 19 th ? It has been laid down in Grand Lodge ( and that recently )
that " a brother's resignation must take effect from th c moment of its being made . " Lord Ripon , by the act of becoming ( I do not say being ) a Roman Catholic , virtually resigned all connection with the Craft . If , upon this , Lord Ripon had not resigned the M . W . Grand Mastership , or , if the brethren had refused , or even delayed
to have accepted his resignation , they would have been in the anomalous position of having as M . W . Grand Master a man who was ( so far as he could make himself so ) a non-Mason . Apart from all these considerations , Lord Ripon having penned his resignation , it was thereupon a fail accomplithe office was absolutely void , and there was no M . W . Grand Master .
1 hercfore there was no Deputy Grand Master . The only thing then remaining to be done was to do exactly what Grand Lodge did , and this not only according to the " unwritten , " but to the " written" law of the Craft , for although our Constitutions ( 1871 ) give directions only in the case of the death of the M . W . Grand Master ( v ., pp . 29-30 , s . 2 ) , yet the General Regulations of 1721
( upon which our Constitutions are based ) direct ( s . xxi . ) — " If the Grand Alastcr shall die duringhis Mastership ; or by sickness , or by being beyond sea , or in any other way should be rendered incapable of discharging his office , the Deputy , or , ° in his absence , the Junior , or , in his absence , any there present , Masters ol lodges , shall join to congregate the Grand Lodge immediately , to advise together upon
that emergency , and to send two of their number to invite the last Grand Master to resume his office , which now in course reverts to him or , if he refuse , then the next last , and so backward ; but if no former Grand Master can be found , then the Deputy shall act as principal until another is chosen ; or if there be no Deputy , then the oldest Master . " This regulation , as it seems to me , entirely takes in the
Original Correspondence.
present case , the " any other" covering ; certainly , such a change of faith as prevents the occupant of the office , not from exercising its functions , but from holding it at all ; and further , with such modifications as have been made to it in the Constitutions , it lays down a law of procedure which Grand Lodge and its Committee fulfilled to the very letter . The office " reverting in course '" to H . R . H . the
Past Grand Master , he was rightly described at once as " M . W . Grand Master . " I remain , Dear Sir and Brother , Faithfully and fraternally Yours , Wsi . TKIHIS , W . M . ' 285 , and P . P . Grand Chaplain , Somerset
UNITED ORDERS OF THE TEMPLE AND HOSPITAL . To the . Editor of the Freemason . Sir and Brother , — The usual December meeting of the Great Priory was held , I presume , on the 1 ith ult , and I have looked in
vain in your columns for an account of the meeting , which promised to be of more than usual interest . Why did it not appear ? Every other body connected nearly or remotely with Masonry , including the Rosicrucian Society ( which , I understand , is not Masonic , but admits only Masons to its mysteries ) , is represented , and
rightly in th . e columns of the Freemason , the only representative of the Craft in England . There are large numbers of your readers Knights Templar , and we are always anxious to know what goes on in our little parliament , and wc naturally look to you to furnish us with the requisite information .
Is it possible the chiefs at head-quarters are so blind to their own interests as to try to ignore your widely-read organ , or are they so determined to divorce the Templar Degree from Masonry as to lose no opportunity of stamping out any effort to keep the connection alive through your columns ? Whilst Masons , and Masons only , can become Templars ,
it seems suicidal policy to prevent Templar meetings being reported in your paper , where they would be most widely read by Masons . Like Brutus , " I pause for a reply . " Yours , P . E . C . [ We have received no report , or wc should immediatel y have published it , —En . ]
MASONIC JURIS PR UDENCE . To the Editor of the Freemason . Dear Sir and Brother , — Referring to the letter of E . F . in your last number , as to the privilege of a P . M . who has omitted two years payment of Grand Lodge dues , by ceasing to subscribe to
some lodge , the Book of Constitutions is clear enoughthat a P . M . cannot regain Grand Lodge privileges until he has been again installed a Master . It is true that Wardens of lodges have the privilege of attending Grand Lodge , but it is quite evident , from the wording of the Book of Constitutions , that the P . M . in question , and any in his
position , cannot regain their privileges by being elected Wardens . He must wait until he has been again installed a W . M . With respect to his status in his own lodge , that is a right , not a privilege , to be recognised as a P . M ., and he
must be the Senior Past Master . That fact has nothing to do with subscription , but refers to the date he passed the chair . On being re-elected in his lodge , he will take his place in the lodge , according to the date of of his passing the chair . MAGNUS OIIIIES , P . M . and P . Z .
To the Editor of the Freemason . Dear Sir and Brother , — I have read vvith considerable interest the correspondence that has appeared in your columns , as well as your own sub-leader , on the status of a re-joining Past Master , so far as his seniority in the lodge is concerned .
I his very question has arisen in the lodge of which I have recently had the honour of being installed Worshipful Master , and it falls to my lot to arrange our list of Past Masters in their proper order . I may just add , by way of explanation , that the list appears regularly on our monthly circular . The question , as you remark , is an important one ,
as the precedency of Past Masters in the lodge , at the festive board , or at public ceremonials hinges upon it . It appears to mc that your own dictum , as to placing the re-joining Past Master at the bottom of the list , is unjustly harsh . That a Past Master—suppose , for example , he is Senior Past Master in an old lodge—should , by
reason of his not continuing a subscribing member of his lodge for a short time , forfeit his position and privileges entirely , and place himself in the position of Junior to all the other Past Masters , is , in my opinion , a view of the case that is hardly tenable . On the other hand , there can be no question , I think , that a Past Master who resigns , and afterwards re-joins his lodge is not entitled to the
position he previousl y occupied ; for if this were the case , a Past Master—say that he becomes Senior b y the resignation of the oldest Past Master—might , after occupying the position for ten or a dozen years , be called upon to make way for the Past Master who was his former Senior , such Past Master perhaps having been a subscribing member of the lodge for only a year or two as a Past Master .
It appears to mc that the true solution of the question lies rather between the two proposals of making the rejoining Past Master , Junior , and of re-installing him in his former position . What 1 propose to do is this . 1 take the list of Past Masters , seriatim , and place after each the
Original Correspondence.
number of years that has elapsed since he concluded his Mastership . From the re-joining Past Master I deduct the time during which he was not a member of the lodge , and this enables mc to re-arrange the list according to length of service as Past Master . This appears to mc to be a
just and equitable arrangement , as it is based upon the principle of seniority by merit , which is consistent with the spirit of our constitutions . Faithfully yours , 104 .
SCOTTISH MASONIC BENEVOLENT INSTITUTION . To the Editor if the Freemason . Dear Sir and Brother . The new year has now commenced . Can any one of us , whether Freemasons or non-Masons , look back on the past year and our past lives , and viewing mentally our shortcomings , as regards our duty towards God , our
neighbour and ourselves , say that wc have fully discharged those duties ? Arc there not long arrears of good that we might and ought to have done ? And many things we have done that wc ought not to have done ? Have we honestly and to the best of our abilities exercised that greatest of our virtues— " Charity ?" Brethren of the Scottish Craft , I appeal to you .
" What is Charity ?" " It is the incarnation of , and comprises every virtue moral and social . " In its full sense it means , —charity of mind , —charity o feeling , —charity of character , —and charity of action . Charity of mind—by thinking well of all men so long as they deserve it by their actions ; charity of feeling—by
maintaining the character of a brother m his absence as well as in his presence ; charity of character and purpose , —by never maligning him , ever upholding him so long as he acts conscientiously to ourselves and others ; charity of action—by a practical exemplification of the whole—by doing unto your neighbour as you would wish him to do to you—by relieving the distressed , soothing the sick , helping
the aged , and assisting in all good works . Brethren , I ask you to consider this duty ( so thoroughly Masonic ) fully and earnestly . We sec in other countries , schools for children of aged , deceased and distressed Masons ; men who have led , as far as we can see , blameless lives ; schools wherein the children not only receive good education , but are also maintained , fed and clothed , till able
of themselves to battle with the world . Wc see asylums and homes of refuge for those worthy brethren , who , from no fault of their own , are plunged in their old age , in the deepest distress . England , Ireland , America , Sweden , and other countries , aye , even provinces , viz .: Lancashire , have nobly done their duty in this respect . Shall it be said then of us who are brethren of the Craft in Scotland ,
a country full of benevolent institutions , rich in its general unity of purpose ( clanship , if I may so call it ) , shall it be said of us , I ask , that we alone have failed in our duty ! Nay , rather refuse to exercise that great virtue that we all profess to admire . Brethren , let not this be said of us ; though we come late into the field , let us show by our redoubled energy and
zeal that , ve fully appreciate this great virtue . Let our maxim be , " Scotland and the Craft expects every brother tc do his duty . " In furtherance of this design , we , the the promoters , publicly bring before your notice , and the public at large , "The Scottish Masonic Benevolent Institution , " a scheme that has been devised to supply the want already felt . Our aims are , 1 st , to establish schools
for children ( boys and girls ) of aged , deceased , and distressed Freemasons of good character . To maintain , clothe and feed said children . To find halls at the universities , for older children , wherein students may be maintained / clothed , and educated , their university and professor's fees paid , as well as pecuniary assistance given .
2 nd . 1 o find homes and asylums for aged and distressed Masons of good character , and widows of Masons . To maintain , clothe , and support them therein , or to grant annual sums for their maintenance . It depends on you , brethren , how far we can carry out these high aims : if you respond freely to this appeal , we may shortly have an institution equal to any existing .
freely ye have received , freely give . " Every Masonic body in Scotland has already received circulars , prospectuses , of the undertaking , as well as every brother of wealth and eminence , so far as we have been able to find out that they belong to the Craft . If any brother has been accidentally omitted , we shall be glad to forward copies on application . Copies of circulars are now sent to
every newspaper in Scotland , together with this appeal . A list of representatives is also appended . No money will be called for till after the first General Court of Donors and Subscribers has been held , on which occasion a Treasurer and Secretary will be appointed . No General Court can be held til ! a sufficient quorum of donors ( large and small ) , and annual subscribers has been obtained .
Brethren of the Craft , you are earnestly requested to send in your names and amounts of donations or subscriptions to myself , the interim Secretary , Bro . , | . Laurie , Grand Secretary of Scotland , or the nearest representative as per list . Any brother who may wish to act as a representative is requested to apply to mc . Representatives are particularly
required in Dundee , Kirkcaldy , Ayrshire , Perth , and Inverness . Brethren , need I say more . You who are able , give of your abundance . You , my poorer brethren , give your Conimitee , either individually or collectively . The scale of donations will be found in short Prospectus .
I am , Sir and Brother , Yours Fraternally , GEO . R . HAHHIOTT , of Killienord , Provincial Grand Master of Wigtown , and Kirkcudbright . Promoter and Originator of the Scheme .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Bro. Binckes's Letter.
be , if we may so say , passive and silent in the matter . We may be wrong in our opinion , but it is our opinion , and we feel bound to lay it before our readers , as in this as in all other matters , eschewing personalities altogether , and looking only to first principles and the good of Freemasonry , we both say what we mean and mean what we say .
Original Correspondence.
Original Correspondence .
[ We do not hold ourselves responsible for , or even as approving of the opinions expressed by our correspondents , but we wish , in a spirit of fair play to all , to permit—within certain necessary limits—free discussion . —ED . ]
THE INSTALLATION OF THE GRAND MASTER . To the Editor of the Freemason . Dear Sir and Brother , — The installation of His Royal Highness the Prince ot Wales as Grand Master offers a rare opportunity for a demonstration that shall he without parallel in the history of Freemasonry .
As a Welshman , I call upon my brethren in the provinces of Wales to be there to a man . Already I know that arrangements are being made in many lodges in this province to be present . I am sure I shall not appeal in vain to my brethren if I ask every Worship ful Master to bring the matter forward at his next lodge earnestly and warmly , and let intimation be
g iven to the Grand Secretary from every lodge of the number of officers who will attend . Nothing could be better than the suggestion of your correspondent "P . M . 186 , " that Grand Lodge should be held in the Albert Hall . Yours fraternally , "Y nniiAio Gocii A IIDYIIY GVCIIWYK . "
THE OFFICE OF GRAND MASTER . To the Editor of the Freemason . Dear Sir and Brother , — In your last issue , a correspondent ( H . Martin Green ) contends that a Master may render himself incapable of discharging the duties of his office by resigning his membership of his lodge , and so keep within the letter
of the Book of Constitutions , which does not allow for the resignation of a Master . A fair objection to this position seems to be that while the Constitutions do not contemplate the resignation either of a Grand Master or a Master during his year of office , and arc consequently silent on the subject , there is this wide distinction between the two cases ; in the one , nothing can absolve a Master from
his promise to discharge his duties to the best of his skill and ability during the ensuing twelve months , or until a successor shall be appointed and installed in his stead . A Grand Master takes no such obligations , and is therefore bound by no promise , and although the spirit of the
law may be against him , yet the resignation of a Grand Master is so extremely exceptional , that it seems in every way advisable and politic to treat the late instance , as the Grand Lodge evidentlyi desire , to do , with a respectful silence . BUSY BEE .
To the Editor of the Freemason . Dear Sir and Brother , — Will you kindly allow mc ( as one present at both of our late quarterly Communications ) to add a few supplementary words to your admirable article on Bro . Warren's letter , in your issue of Dec . 19 th ? It has been laid down in Grand Lodge ( and that recently )
that " a brother's resignation must take effect from th c moment of its being made . " Lord Ripon , by the act of becoming ( I do not say being ) a Roman Catholic , virtually resigned all connection with the Craft . If , upon this , Lord Ripon had not resigned the M . W . Grand Mastership , or , if the brethren had refused , or even delayed
to have accepted his resignation , they would have been in the anomalous position of having as M . W . Grand Master a man who was ( so far as he could make himself so ) a non-Mason . Apart from all these considerations , Lord Ripon having penned his resignation , it was thereupon a fail accomplithe office was absolutely void , and there was no M . W . Grand Master .
1 hercfore there was no Deputy Grand Master . The only thing then remaining to be done was to do exactly what Grand Lodge did , and this not only according to the " unwritten , " but to the " written" law of the Craft , for although our Constitutions ( 1871 ) give directions only in the case of the death of the M . W . Grand Master ( v ., pp . 29-30 , s . 2 ) , yet the General Regulations of 1721
( upon which our Constitutions are based ) direct ( s . xxi . ) — " If the Grand Alastcr shall die duringhis Mastership ; or by sickness , or by being beyond sea , or in any other way should be rendered incapable of discharging his office , the Deputy , or , ° in his absence , the Junior , or , in his absence , any there present , Masters ol lodges , shall join to congregate the Grand Lodge immediately , to advise together upon
that emergency , and to send two of their number to invite the last Grand Master to resume his office , which now in course reverts to him or , if he refuse , then the next last , and so backward ; but if no former Grand Master can be found , then the Deputy shall act as principal until another is chosen ; or if there be no Deputy , then the oldest Master . " This regulation , as it seems to me , entirely takes in the
Original Correspondence.
present case , the " any other" covering ; certainly , such a change of faith as prevents the occupant of the office , not from exercising its functions , but from holding it at all ; and further , with such modifications as have been made to it in the Constitutions , it lays down a law of procedure which Grand Lodge and its Committee fulfilled to the very letter . The office " reverting in course '" to H . R . H . the
Past Grand Master , he was rightly described at once as " M . W . Grand Master . " I remain , Dear Sir and Brother , Faithfully and fraternally Yours , Wsi . TKIHIS , W . M . ' 285 , and P . P . Grand Chaplain , Somerset
UNITED ORDERS OF THE TEMPLE AND HOSPITAL . To the . Editor of the Freemason . Sir and Brother , — The usual December meeting of the Great Priory was held , I presume , on the 1 ith ult , and I have looked in
vain in your columns for an account of the meeting , which promised to be of more than usual interest . Why did it not appear ? Every other body connected nearly or remotely with Masonry , including the Rosicrucian Society ( which , I understand , is not Masonic , but admits only Masons to its mysteries ) , is represented , and
rightly in th . e columns of the Freemason , the only representative of the Craft in England . There are large numbers of your readers Knights Templar , and we are always anxious to know what goes on in our little parliament , and wc naturally look to you to furnish us with the requisite information .
Is it possible the chiefs at head-quarters are so blind to their own interests as to try to ignore your widely-read organ , or are they so determined to divorce the Templar Degree from Masonry as to lose no opportunity of stamping out any effort to keep the connection alive through your columns ? Whilst Masons , and Masons only , can become Templars ,
it seems suicidal policy to prevent Templar meetings being reported in your paper , where they would be most widely read by Masons . Like Brutus , " I pause for a reply . " Yours , P . E . C . [ We have received no report , or wc should immediatel y have published it , —En . ]
MASONIC JURIS PR UDENCE . To the Editor of the Freemason . Dear Sir and Brother , — Referring to the letter of E . F . in your last number , as to the privilege of a P . M . who has omitted two years payment of Grand Lodge dues , by ceasing to subscribe to
some lodge , the Book of Constitutions is clear enoughthat a P . M . cannot regain Grand Lodge privileges until he has been again installed a Master . It is true that Wardens of lodges have the privilege of attending Grand Lodge , but it is quite evident , from the wording of the Book of Constitutions , that the P . M . in question , and any in his
position , cannot regain their privileges by being elected Wardens . He must wait until he has been again installed a W . M . With respect to his status in his own lodge , that is a right , not a privilege , to be recognised as a P . M ., and he
must be the Senior Past Master . That fact has nothing to do with subscription , but refers to the date he passed the chair . On being re-elected in his lodge , he will take his place in the lodge , according to the date of of his passing the chair . MAGNUS OIIIIES , P . M . and P . Z .
To the Editor of the Freemason . Dear Sir and Brother , — I have read vvith considerable interest the correspondence that has appeared in your columns , as well as your own sub-leader , on the status of a re-joining Past Master , so far as his seniority in the lodge is concerned .
I his very question has arisen in the lodge of which I have recently had the honour of being installed Worshipful Master , and it falls to my lot to arrange our list of Past Masters in their proper order . I may just add , by way of explanation , that the list appears regularly on our monthly circular . The question , as you remark , is an important one ,
as the precedency of Past Masters in the lodge , at the festive board , or at public ceremonials hinges upon it . It appears to mc that your own dictum , as to placing the re-joining Past Master at the bottom of the list , is unjustly harsh . That a Past Master—suppose , for example , he is Senior Past Master in an old lodge—should , by
reason of his not continuing a subscribing member of his lodge for a short time , forfeit his position and privileges entirely , and place himself in the position of Junior to all the other Past Masters , is , in my opinion , a view of the case that is hardly tenable . On the other hand , there can be no question , I think , that a Past Master who resigns , and afterwards re-joins his lodge is not entitled to the
position he previousl y occupied ; for if this were the case , a Past Master—say that he becomes Senior b y the resignation of the oldest Past Master—might , after occupying the position for ten or a dozen years , be called upon to make way for the Past Master who was his former Senior , such Past Master perhaps having been a subscribing member of the lodge for only a year or two as a Past Master .
It appears to mc that the true solution of the question lies rather between the two proposals of making the rejoining Past Master , Junior , and of re-installing him in his former position . What 1 propose to do is this . 1 take the list of Past Masters , seriatim , and place after each the
Original Correspondence.
number of years that has elapsed since he concluded his Mastership . From the re-joining Past Master I deduct the time during which he was not a member of the lodge , and this enables mc to re-arrange the list according to length of service as Past Master . This appears to mc to be a
just and equitable arrangement , as it is based upon the principle of seniority by merit , which is consistent with the spirit of our constitutions . Faithfully yours , 104 .
SCOTTISH MASONIC BENEVOLENT INSTITUTION . To the Editor if the Freemason . Dear Sir and Brother . The new year has now commenced . Can any one of us , whether Freemasons or non-Masons , look back on the past year and our past lives , and viewing mentally our shortcomings , as regards our duty towards God , our
neighbour and ourselves , say that wc have fully discharged those duties ? Arc there not long arrears of good that we might and ought to have done ? And many things we have done that wc ought not to have done ? Have we honestly and to the best of our abilities exercised that greatest of our virtues— " Charity ?" Brethren of the Scottish Craft , I appeal to you .
" What is Charity ?" " It is the incarnation of , and comprises every virtue moral and social . " In its full sense it means , —charity of mind , —charity o feeling , —charity of character , —and charity of action . Charity of mind—by thinking well of all men so long as they deserve it by their actions ; charity of feeling—by
maintaining the character of a brother m his absence as well as in his presence ; charity of character and purpose , —by never maligning him , ever upholding him so long as he acts conscientiously to ourselves and others ; charity of action—by a practical exemplification of the whole—by doing unto your neighbour as you would wish him to do to you—by relieving the distressed , soothing the sick , helping
the aged , and assisting in all good works . Brethren , I ask you to consider this duty ( so thoroughly Masonic ) fully and earnestly . We sec in other countries , schools for children of aged , deceased and distressed Masons ; men who have led , as far as we can see , blameless lives ; schools wherein the children not only receive good education , but are also maintained , fed and clothed , till able
of themselves to battle with the world . Wc see asylums and homes of refuge for those worthy brethren , who , from no fault of their own , are plunged in their old age , in the deepest distress . England , Ireland , America , Sweden , and other countries , aye , even provinces , viz .: Lancashire , have nobly done their duty in this respect . Shall it be said then of us who are brethren of the Craft in Scotland ,
a country full of benevolent institutions , rich in its general unity of purpose ( clanship , if I may so call it ) , shall it be said of us , I ask , that we alone have failed in our duty ! Nay , rather refuse to exercise that great virtue that we all profess to admire . Brethren , let not this be said of us ; though we come late into the field , let us show by our redoubled energy and
zeal that , ve fully appreciate this great virtue . Let our maxim be , " Scotland and the Craft expects every brother tc do his duty . " In furtherance of this design , we , the the promoters , publicly bring before your notice , and the public at large , "The Scottish Masonic Benevolent Institution , " a scheme that has been devised to supply the want already felt . Our aims are , 1 st , to establish schools
for children ( boys and girls ) of aged , deceased , and distressed Freemasons of good character . To maintain , clothe and feed said children . To find halls at the universities , for older children , wherein students may be maintained / clothed , and educated , their university and professor's fees paid , as well as pecuniary assistance given .
2 nd . 1 o find homes and asylums for aged and distressed Masons of good character , and widows of Masons . To maintain , clothe , and support them therein , or to grant annual sums for their maintenance . It depends on you , brethren , how far we can carry out these high aims : if you respond freely to this appeal , we may shortly have an institution equal to any existing .
freely ye have received , freely give . " Every Masonic body in Scotland has already received circulars , prospectuses , of the undertaking , as well as every brother of wealth and eminence , so far as we have been able to find out that they belong to the Craft . If any brother has been accidentally omitted , we shall be glad to forward copies on application . Copies of circulars are now sent to
every newspaper in Scotland , together with this appeal . A list of representatives is also appended . No money will be called for till after the first General Court of Donors and Subscribers has been held , on which occasion a Treasurer and Secretary will be appointed . No General Court can be held til ! a sufficient quorum of donors ( large and small ) , and annual subscribers has been obtained .
Brethren of the Craft , you are earnestly requested to send in your names and amounts of donations or subscriptions to myself , the interim Secretary , Bro . , | . Laurie , Grand Secretary of Scotland , or the nearest representative as per list . Any brother who may wish to act as a representative is requested to apply to mc . Representatives are particularly
required in Dundee , Kirkcaldy , Ayrshire , Perth , and Inverness . Brethren , need I say more . You who are able , give of your abundance . You , my poorer brethren , give your Conimitee , either individually or collectively . The scale of donations will be found in short Prospectus .
I am , Sir and Brother , Yours Fraternally , GEO . R . HAHHIOTT , of Killienord , Provincial Grand Master of Wigtown , and Kirkcudbright . Promoter and Originator of the Scheme .