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Article Untitled Page 1 of 1 Article A TRUMPERY APPEAL. Page 1 of 1 Article A TRUMPERY APPEAL. Page 1 of 1 Article GRAND LODGE OF IDAHO. Page 1 of 2 →
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Ar00100
CONTENTS . LEADERS— PAGE . A Trumpery Appeal ... ... ... ... ... 619 Grand Lodge of Idaho ... .., ... ... ... 619 Provincial Grand Lodge of Wiltshire .,, ... ... ... 620 Provincial Grand Lodge of Derbyshire ... ... ... ... G 20 District Grand Lodge of Malta .,, ... ,,. ' .,. ... 620 Provincial Priory of Kent and Surrey ... ... .,, . „ 621
Red Cross of Rome and Constantine ... .,, ... .,, 621 Royal Masonic Institution for Boys ... .,. ... .,. .,. 621 Royal Masonic Institution for Girls ... ... ... ... ,,, £ " Complimentary Banquet and Presentation to Bro . I . R . Clarke , P . M . 18 ... 632 Annual Festival of the Kirby Lodge of Instruction , No . 26 3 ... .,, 622 Annual Festival of the Evening Star Lodge of Instruction , No . 1719 ... ... 033 North Kent Lodge of Instruction , No . 1499 ... .,. ... ,,, 623 Craft Masonry ... ... ... ... .,. ,,, 623 MASONIC
NOTESBi-Centenary at St . Paul ' s Cathedral ... ... .,, .,, 62 s Committee of Management of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution .., 625 Consecration of the Alleyn Rose Croix Chapter , No . 139 ... ... 625 Lecture by Bro . J . Woodall at the Royal Masonic Institution for Boys ... 625 Correspondence .,, ... .,, .,, ,,. .,, 626
Reviews . „ .,, .,. .,. ,,. .,, ... 626 Mark Masonry ... ... ... .,. .,, ... 626 Ancient and Accepted Rite ... .,, ... ... .,. 626 Obituary .,. .,. .,, ... .,, . „ ... 626 Masonic and General Tidings ... ... ... ... ... 628 Craft Abroad .,. ... .,. .,. .,, . „ ,,. 628 Lodges and Chapter of Instruction .,. .,. ... ... 628
A Trumpery Appeal.
A TRUMPERY APPEAL .
It is very desirable that the time of Grand Lodge should not be occupied with the discussion of petty questions . The body which represents the collective wisdom and experience of the whole English Craft of Masonry is not precisely the one that
should he called upon to decide the differenr . e " ' twixt twcedlc dum and twecdledce . " The Grand Officers are the elite of the Craft chosen to receive the honours of the purple in recognition of the services they have rendered to Freemasonry , while the
representatives of the private lodges who are conjoined with them in the government of our Society , whether they he perfect in the discharge of their lodge duties or not , are for ( he most part men of common sense who do not need tiie intervention of
n . legal adviser in order to decide a matter of petty detail . Yet , the brethren present in Grand Lodge last week , were placed under the necessity of considering a trumpery appeal , such as we venture to think would not have been allowed to be submitted to
any other legislative body . It was not a question of principle that was involved ; it had no relation to the different practices adopted by different lodges . It could not by the remotest possibility be interpreted as affecting in any way the general
welfare of the body , Masonic or of any section thereof . There was no question of any body ' s prerogative or of the rights and privileges belonging to any lodge or lodges being endangered whichever way the question was decided .
The appeal had reference merely to the minutest , the most trivial details it has ever been our misfortune to read of and by comparison with which the question whether two drops or three of rain fell upon a given square inch of the
earth's surface in a given time sinks into the most utter insignificance . When a person offers himself as a candidate for initiation in one of our lodges , it is very just that the members should be in a position to learn something about him whom they
are invited to admit to a participation in the rights and privileges they enjoy ; and accordingly Articles 18 4 and 185 of the Book of Constitutions which relate to the question of electing such persons very properly require that particulars shall be furnished
to the lodge affected as to his " name , age , profession or occupation , and place of abode . " Hence when some time since three members of the naval profession offered themselves as candidates for initiation in the United Service Lodge , No . 1341 , Hong Kong , their names , with what was considered to be the necessary
A Trumpery Appeal.
particulars respecting them , were entered in the lodge summons , the letters " R . N . " being used to indicate not only their profession or occupation , but likewise their place of abode . One of the members of the lodge , however , held that these letters
did not meet the requirements of the law as regarded their place of abode , but the Worshipful Master thought otherwise and on the question being put to the vote , there were 52 who voted with the Master and two , including the
plaintiff member , against him . This decision by such an overwhelming majority did not satisfy the latter , and he referred the case to the District Board of General Purposes , which likewise decided in favour of " R . N . " and against the plaintiff .
But the collective Masonic wisdom of Hong Kong and South China did not suffice to carry conviction to the mind of the appellant , who resolved on submitting the question to Grand Lodge , the ultimate court of appeal in all cases of danger and
difficulty to the honour and safety of Freemasonry . Hence , at the Quarterly Communication of United Grand Lodge , held on the 1 st inst . under the presidency of Bro . W . W . B . Beach , M . P ., Prov . G . M . for Hampshire and the Isle of Wight , the question
was gravely , not to say solemnly , considered whether the familiar magic letters " R . N . " sufficiently describe the place of abode of members of the naval profession on a naval station where the ships are close to the Navy Yard and the naval
barracks and Navy Yard arc close to the ships . The Deputy G . Registrar , who is a Q . C ., considered they were a sufficient description ; the President of the Board of General Purposes , who is also a Q . C ., was of the same opinion ; and Grand
Lodge , taking the cue from these learned brethren , dismissed the appeal with ignominy , the only suggestion worth noting that was made during the discussion being that the name of the ship should be stated-as well as the letters " R . N . " But is it not
deplorable that the time of Grand Lodge should be occupied in seriously discussing a petty detail when the lodge itself was satisfied and had the full support of the District Board of General Purposes ?
Grand Lodge Of Idaho.
GRAND LODGE OF IDAHO .
This is one of the more-recently established Grand Lodges in the United States , having been founded only 30 years since . It is , therefore , the more interesting to note the course and character of its proceedings , the nature of the more important
questions which have been considered , and the decisions in relation to such questions which have been adopted . In the main , the proceedings appear to be very much like those of other American Grand Lodges . The Grand Master ' s address occupies
very properly the most prominent place in the report , while the matters with which he was called upon to deal were such as are usually referred to the head of a jurisdiction for him to settle , subject , of course , to the approval of the Grand Lodge . Sundry
of these matters were of a very trivial character . Thus a brother , having been elected a joining member of one of the lodges , but not having presented himself—though notified of his election—for the purpose of signing the lodge by-laws , the
Secretary writes to know if the brother is a member of the lodge , and is told , in reply , that he is , and should be censured for failing to attend as specified . In another case inquiry is
made as to whether a brother , who had been appointed W . M . of a lodge when ' . ts charter was issued , but who had left the jurisdiction , could be installed b y proxy . In a third case information is seriousl y desired of the Grand Master as to .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Ar00100
CONTENTS . LEADERS— PAGE . A Trumpery Appeal ... ... ... ... ... 619 Grand Lodge of Idaho ... .., ... ... ... 619 Provincial Grand Lodge of Wiltshire .,, ... ... ... 620 Provincial Grand Lodge of Derbyshire ... ... ... ... G 20 District Grand Lodge of Malta .,, ... ,,. ' .,. ... 620 Provincial Priory of Kent and Surrey ... ... .,, . „ 621
Red Cross of Rome and Constantine ... .,, ... .,, 621 Royal Masonic Institution for Boys ... .,. ... .,. .,. 621 Royal Masonic Institution for Girls ... ... ... ... ,,, £ " Complimentary Banquet and Presentation to Bro . I . R . Clarke , P . M . 18 ... 632 Annual Festival of the Kirby Lodge of Instruction , No . 26 3 ... .,, 622 Annual Festival of the Evening Star Lodge of Instruction , No . 1719 ... ... 033 North Kent Lodge of Instruction , No . 1499 ... .,. ... ,,, 623 Craft Masonry ... ... ... ... .,. ,,, 623 MASONIC
NOTESBi-Centenary at St . Paul ' s Cathedral ... ... .,, .,, 62 s Committee of Management of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution .., 625 Consecration of the Alleyn Rose Croix Chapter , No . 139 ... ... 625 Lecture by Bro . J . Woodall at the Royal Masonic Institution for Boys ... 625 Correspondence .,, ... .,, .,, ,,. .,, 626
Reviews . „ .,, .,. .,. ,,. .,, ... 626 Mark Masonry ... ... ... .,. .,, ... 626 Ancient and Accepted Rite ... .,, ... ... .,. 626 Obituary .,. .,. .,, ... .,, . „ ... 626 Masonic and General Tidings ... ... ... ... ... 628 Craft Abroad .,. ... .,. .,. .,, . „ ,,. 628 Lodges and Chapter of Instruction .,. .,. ... ... 628
A Trumpery Appeal.
A TRUMPERY APPEAL .
It is very desirable that the time of Grand Lodge should not be occupied with the discussion of petty questions . The body which represents the collective wisdom and experience of the whole English Craft of Masonry is not precisely the one that
should he called upon to decide the differenr . e " ' twixt twcedlc dum and twecdledce . " The Grand Officers are the elite of the Craft chosen to receive the honours of the purple in recognition of the services they have rendered to Freemasonry , while the
representatives of the private lodges who are conjoined with them in the government of our Society , whether they he perfect in the discharge of their lodge duties or not , are for ( he most part men of common sense who do not need tiie intervention of
n . legal adviser in order to decide a matter of petty detail . Yet , the brethren present in Grand Lodge last week , were placed under the necessity of considering a trumpery appeal , such as we venture to think would not have been allowed to be submitted to
any other legislative body . It was not a question of principle that was involved ; it had no relation to the different practices adopted by different lodges . It could not by the remotest possibility be interpreted as affecting in any way the general
welfare of the body , Masonic or of any section thereof . There was no question of any body ' s prerogative or of the rights and privileges belonging to any lodge or lodges being endangered whichever way the question was decided .
The appeal had reference merely to the minutest , the most trivial details it has ever been our misfortune to read of and by comparison with which the question whether two drops or three of rain fell upon a given square inch of the
earth's surface in a given time sinks into the most utter insignificance . When a person offers himself as a candidate for initiation in one of our lodges , it is very just that the members should be in a position to learn something about him whom they
are invited to admit to a participation in the rights and privileges they enjoy ; and accordingly Articles 18 4 and 185 of the Book of Constitutions which relate to the question of electing such persons very properly require that particulars shall be furnished
to the lodge affected as to his " name , age , profession or occupation , and place of abode . " Hence when some time since three members of the naval profession offered themselves as candidates for initiation in the United Service Lodge , No . 1341 , Hong Kong , their names , with what was considered to be the necessary
A Trumpery Appeal.
particulars respecting them , were entered in the lodge summons , the letters " R . N . " being used to indicate not only their profession or occupation , but likewise their place of abode . One of the members of the lodge , however , held that these letters
did not meet the requirements of the law as regarded their place of abode , but the Worshipful Master thought otherwise and on the question being put to the vote , there were 52 who voted with the Master and two , including the
plaintiff member , against him . This decision by such an overwhelming majority did not satisfy the latter , and he referred the case to the District Board of General Purposes , which likewise decided in favour of " R . N . " and against the plaintiff .
But the collective Masonic wisdom of Hong Kong and South China did not suffice to carry conviction to the mind of the appellant , who resolved on submitting the question to Grand Lodge , the ultimate court of appeal in all cases of danger and
difficulty to the honour and safety of Freemasonry . Hence , at the Quarterly Communication of United Grand Lodge , held on the 1 st inst . under the presidency of Bro . W . W . B . Beach , M . P ., Prov . G . M . for Hampshire and the Isle of Wight , the question
was gravely , not to say solemnly , considered whether the familiar magic letters " R . N . " sufficiently describe the place of abode of members of the naval profession on a naval station where the ships are close to the Navy Yard and the naval
barracks and Navy Yard arc close to the ships . The Deputy G . Registrar , who is a Q . C ., considered they were a sufficient description ; the President of the Board of General Purposes , who is also a Q . C ., was of the same opinion ; and Grand
Lodge , taking the cue from these learned brethren , dismissed the appeal with ignominy , the only suggestion worth noting that was made during the discussion being that the name of the ship should be stated-as well as the letters " R . N . " But is it not
deplorable that the time of Grand Lodge should be occupied in seriously discussing a petty detail when the lodge itself was satisfied and had the full support of the District Board of General Purposes ?
Grand Lodge Of Idaho.
GRAND LODGE OF IDAHO .
This is one of the more-recently established Grand Lodges in the United States , having been founded only 30 years since . It is , therefore , the more interesting to note the course and character of its proceedings , the nature of the more important
questions which have been considered , and the decisions in relation to such questions which have been adopted . In the main , the proceedings appear to be very much like those of other American Grand Lodges . The Grand Master ' s address occupies
very properly the most prominent place in the report , while the matters with which he was called upon to deal were such as are usually referred to the head of a jurisdiction for him to settle , subject , of course , to the approval of the Grand Lodge . Sundry
of these matters were of a very trivial character . Thus a brother , having been elected a joining member of one of the lodges , but not having presented himself—though notified of his election—for the purpose of signing the lodge by-laws , the
Secretary writes to know if the brother is a member of the lodge , and is told , in reply , that he is , and should be censured for failing to attend as specified . In another case inquiry is
made as to whether a brother , who had been appointed W . M . of a lodge when ' . ts charter was issued , but who had left the jurisdiction , could be installed b y proxy . In a third case information is seriousl y desired of the Grand Master as to .