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Article CONSECRATION OF THE SAYE AND SELE CHAPTER, No. 1973. ← Page 2 of 2 Article ANCIENT YORK MASONRY. Page 1 of 1 Article ANCIENT YORK MASONRY. Page 1 of 1
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Consecration Of The Saye And Sele Chapter, No. 1973.
their midst , one who had added another depot for their columns to meet at , and gather round ; one who came amongst them in their social circle , and enjoyed with them the social hour , and he asked them to give him a right good "Kentish fire . " He then in eloquent terms adverted to the discrimination ancl tact wilh which his lordship presided over the province , and had no wonder that whenever or wherever the name of Lord Holmesdale
was proposed , it was always received with every honour , but with none more than it deserved . He thanked his lordship for coming among them that day and consecrating the chapter , and said it was with the heartiest good will lhat they welcomed him to that Board , and could only hope that before long , if he could , he would again visit them . The toast was drank most enthusiastically , and
Lord HOLMESDALE , who was received with cheers , said it had once been observed by a great statesman that "life would be tolerable if it were not for its pleasures , " and he himself often thought that Masonry would be tolerable if it were not for the after-dinner speeches . ( Cheers and laughter . ) It would be all right if one had not to respond to them . The M . E . Z . had , however , spoken so kindly of him , that he could do no less than thank him
ior the toast , and ihe companions for their cordial reception of it . So far as the consecration of the chapter was concerned , he must say that it was one of the purposes for which he was appointed to his office by their G . Z ., the Prince of Wales , so that he was only doing his duty , and that alone , in consecrating the chapter , which he hoped would be as good and strong a one as any in the province . As to the installation work , it would only be false
pride on his part to say other than that he certainly could not do it so well or efficiently as Comp . Robinson , and should always slip out of the chair and let Comp . Robinson perform a ceremony ior which that M . E . Companion possessed a special capacity . He again cordially thanked them for the toast , and wished the chapter strength and success among the chapters of the Province of Kent .
Comp . BATEMAN then proposed the toast of ' * The Second and Third Principals " who assisted at the consecration , and Comp . COUPLAND briefly responded . Comp . WOOD followed with the toast of " The Installing Officer , Comp , Robinson . "
Comp . ROBINSON , in response , said he had said so much in the chapter that he should not detain them long . The work of installing the Principals of a chapter was harder than that of installing a Master in the Craft , and required to be carried out with all due solemnity , without which it was as nothing . The Royal Arch was the culminating point of Masonry . Hehad
becn deputed by his lordship to perform the ceremony of installation , and if he had done it to their satisfaction so much the more was he pleased . He was sure the Principals installed that day would do their duty well , and he had no doubt that among the 18 chapters in the province this one would take a foremost position .
The M . E . Z ., in response to a hearty reception of " The Three First Principals , " said that his acceptance of the office was not for any selfish desire for aggrandizement , but simply in response to a verv cordial invitation , and knowing what the members had done for the Lullihgstone Chapter , and feeling that it would be the means of giving the " Saye and Sele " a start , he accepted the office . He fully expected it to be in time one of the first in the province , that it would be a source of strength , and not weakness , and that the province would be proud of it .
Comp . CHILLINGWORTH felt proud of the position he held , and would have accepted a much more humble one had he had his own way . He intended to make the chapter worthy of its name . Comp . WOOD meant to work hard . Their choice had fallen on Comp . Cummings for the office of Z . because of his grand working in the Lullingstone Chapter , and they thought that under him their chapter would surely be a success . He spoke highly of the services of their Scribe E ., on whom nine-tenths of the work of forming the chapter had fallen .
The M . E . Z . then proposed the toast of "Comp . Bateman , the W . M . of the Mother Lodge , " and that companion responded in a lengthy and humorous speech . Comp . MASON responded for "The Visitors , " and the proceedings shortly after terminated .
Ancient York Masonry.
ANCIENT YORK MASONRY .
A perusal of the first chapter of Bro . William James Hughan ' s new book * suggests the idea that a timely service may be rendered to the readers of this magazine by bringing before them , in a brief compass , some information respecting the Grand Lodges that have existed in England , and about which much confusion still prevails in the minds of Craftsmen of
more than average intelligence . Particularly in this country is the confusion widespread and perplexing , because some jurisdictions retain the style of " Ancient York Masons , " a custom which Bro . Hughan says "is wholly unjustifiable , and has wisely been dropped by Grand Lodges who value historical accuracy beyond purely partv designations . "
No Grand Lodge , and no such officer as Grand Master , was known until the year 1717 , yet Anderson , in his 1723 edition of the Book of Constitutions , make Prince Edwin a Grand Master , and in his 1738 edition creates a Grand Lodge under him at York , fixing the date at 926 . Subsequent writers copied this stuff as fact , until it came to be generally accepted .
The Craft in a vague way associated this mythical Grand Lodge with one that subsequently existed for a time at York , and became permeated with a complacent willingness to be counted among " Ancient York Masons , " identical with that which in society makes easy to convince one that he is connected with the " first families . "
The " Grand Lodge of England " was constituted by members of four old lodges in London , " and some old brothers , " on Saint John Baptist Day , 1717 , and became " the parent , directly or indirectly , of every other Grand Lodge in the Universe . " Of this body , and the impulse out of which grew the Grand Lodge at York , Bio . Hughan says :
" Until 1724 no warrants were granted outside of the Metropolis , but in that year Bath , Bristol , Norwich , and other provincial places were visited Masonically and duly honoured with charters for lodges , and then rapidly the principles of the Craft spread throughout Great Britain and the civilized world .
" The activity of the new Grand Lodge evidently produced a like spirit in the members of the old lodge , which had been quietly working in the neighbourhood of York for many years before Grand Lodges were known , and the result was , that the formation of another organization ( having its
Ancient York Masonry.
seat at York ) was preceded by a procession to the Merchant s Hall , on December 27 th , 1725 , after which the ' Grand Lodge of all England ' was inaugurated , with Charles Bathurst , 'Esq ., as Grand Master . " This Grand Lodge consisted for nearly half a century apparently 0 _ one lodge only , after which period warrants were issued for various parts of the
north ol England , and the renewal of energy led to additional degrees being started which for a time preserved its vitality , but it eventually collapsed about 1790 , and left no representative of any kind to continue its ritual or organization . The York Grand Lodge never chartered any lodges out of England , neither did any of its subordinates ever do so . " words that
It is for the reasons found in these concluding Bro . Hughan is warranted in saying that no lodges in America are justified in calling themselves "Ancient York Masons . " He , however , indicates the chief reason for the prevalence of the custom in this country in his remarks on the formation of the principal rival of the Grand Lodge of England consequent on the great schism of the middle of the eighteenth century : Grand Lod
" These two branches of the Masonic Society ( the ' ge of England' and the * Grand Lodge of all England " ) flourished harmoniousl y together for some years , the English Craft being virtually united and prosperous , until one or more disputes arose in London between some of the lodges and the Grand Lodge , which was followed by the starting of an energetic rivalin 1750-1 , under the denomination of the 'Grand Lodge of
, England according to the Old Constitutions . ' The members were known by the name of ' Ancients , ' those of the Premier Grand Lodge being unfairl y termed ' Moderns , ' the two being a few years later described as 'Atholl Masons' and ' Regular Masons , ' respectively . The junior Grand Lodge , under the Grand Masterships of the third and fourth Dukes of Athol
especially , established many lodges at home and abroad ; and as the warrants recited the ( modern ) legend that their authority was ' according to the Old Constitutions granted by His Royal Highness Prince Edwin , at York , A . D . 926 , ' it is easy to comprehend how brethren not correctly informed as to the facts of the case imagined that the ' Atholl Masons ' had a York
origin . Of the last of the four Grand Lodges existing at one time in England during the last century , Bro . Hughan says : " Still another competitor appeared on the field , but its career was brief , and only two lodges were warranted under its regime , which collapsed when it did . This opposition was occasioned by a disagreement between the Regular Masons and Bro . Wm . Preston and a majority of the members of the
' Lodge of Antiquity , ' who withdrew from lhat ( Regular ) Grand Lodge and accepted ' a deputation ' from the ' Grand Lodge of all England' ( York ) , dated 29 th March , 1779 , constituting them a ' Grand Lodge of England south of the river Trent . ' Happily , on 2 nd May , 1790 , these brethren were restored to all their Masonic privileges ( after an unfortunate 10 years of independence and isolation ) , when resistance to the authorities ceased , and the two parties in the Lodge of Antiquity were heard of no more . "
This left but two rival organizations , the " Regular" and "Atholl " Grand Lodges , and on December 27 th , 1813 , these bodies amicably settled their differences by joining together and forming " The United Grand Lodge of England . " lt will be observed that outside of England no lodge ever sprung from
the " York " Grand Lodge , and that when that body collapsed it " left no representative of any kind to continue its ritual or its organization . " Hence any lodge or Grand Lodge in this country that styles itself "Ancient York " must demonstrate its claim to historical accuracy of speech on other grounds than a supposed connection , either remote or direct , with any " York " Grand Lodge .
The explanation suggested by Bro . Hughan , that the warrants granted by the " Atholl or seceding Grand Lodge , recited the apochryphal legend that their authority was according to the Old Constitutions granted by his Royal Highness Prince Edwin , at York , A . D . , " probably sufficiently accounts tor the lodgment among the Masons of this country , who derived their existence from that body , of the notion that they were " York
Masons " by some sort of descent . The Regular Masons , contemporary with the "Ancients , " knew that the latter claimed that they held under the " Old Constitutions " simply to throw discredit upon the former , who had accepted the work of Anderson , whom it had authorised to " digest them in a new and better method , " but the Masons of this country who derived their characters from the " Ancients , " after the days of schism were past ,
still retained as traditions , without remembering their origin , what had once been only the war cries of a faction . Those who had formerly been of tlie other party had no interest in combating this claim after the union had taken place and American Grand Lodges had been formed , and knew no better than their former opponents to what extent Anderson had drawn the long bow in his account of pre-existing " Grand Lodges , " which he published
with his Book of Constitutions , particularly in the edition of 1738 , making St . Alban , the proto-martyr of England , to preside as Grand Master , about the year 293 , over a general council of Masons to which he gave the name of Assembly ; creating a Grand Lodge at York in 926 , with Prince Edwin as Grand Master ; holding a Grand Lodge at York , in 1561 , with Sir Thomas Sackville as Grand Master , making the Earl of St . Albans Grand the
Master in 1663 , and ending with Sir Christopher Wren in that office in beginning of the eighteenth century . Anderson did not indeed invent the stories of all these gatherings , but quoted them , or some of them , front manuscripts really existing or then reported to have been recently destroy ed , but he did interpolate the word " Grand , " instead of General , before Lodgd and the title " Grand Master , " when in truth no Grand Lodge existed until 1717 , and no such office as that of Grand Master until it was created by
the lormation of the Grand Lodge of England in that year , and was firw filled by " Mr . Antony Sayer , gentleman . " The St . Albans story seems to have drawn too heavily upon the credulity of the Craft ; at all events it has not found much of a lodgment . Tn " Prince Edwin story , with his " Grand Lodge " at York , however , has stud ' with a good deal ot tenacity , and has prepared many minds to entertain the notion that there is something more than sound in the expression " Ancle 11 ' York Masonry" as applied to a still existent entity
, . . Doubtless it will be kept afloat with the apochryphal story upon w , 1 ' it unconsciously rests , because the latter is supported by many names tha have had weight in so-called Masonic history ; but gradually the Craft **" get hold of the truth of Bro . Gould ' s remark that " an opinion may be he ' bv a laree number of oersons who have been misled bv some eri * oneo _
authority , and have all mechanically followed the same blind guide ; so tha their number has , in fact , no weight , and they are no more entitled torecUpas independent voices ' than the successive compilers who transcribe an m torical error are eniitled to reckon as independent witnesses . "—Bro . J osEJ ROBBINS in the Voice of Masonry ,
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Consecration Of The Saye And Sele Chapter, No. 1973.
their midst , one who had added another depot for their columns to meet at , and gather round ; one who came amongst them in their social circle , and enjoyed with them the social hour , and he asked them to give him a right good "Kentish fire . " He then in eloquent terms adverted to the discrimination ancl tact wilh which his lordship presided over the province , and had no wonder that whenever or wherever the name of Lord Holmesdale
was proposed , it was always received with every honour , but with none more than it deserved . He thanked his lordship for coming among them that day and consecrating the chapter , and said it was with the heartiest good will lhat they welcomed him to that Board , and could only hope that before long , if he could , he would again visit them . The toast was drank most enthusiastically , and
Lord HOLMESDALE , who was received with cheers , said it had once been observed by a great statesman that "life would be tolerable if it were not for its pleasures , " and he himself often thought that Masonry would be tolerable if it were not for the after-dinner speeches . ( Cheers and laughter . ) It would be all right if one had not to respond to them . The M . E . Z . had , however , spoken so kindly of him , that he could do no less than thank him
ior the toast , and ihe companions for their cordial reception of it . So far as the consecration of the chapter was concerned , he must say that it was one of the purposes for which he was appointed to his office by their G . Z ., the Prince of Wales , so that he was only doing his duty , and that alone , in consecrating the chapter , which he hoped would be as good and strong a one as any in the province . As to the installation work , it would only be false
pride on his part to say other than that he certainly could not do it so well or efficiently as Comp . Robinson , and should always slip out of the chair and let Comp . Robinson perform a ceremony ior which that M . E . Companion possessed a special capacity . He again cordially thanked them for the toast , and wished the chapter strength and success among the chapters of the Province of Kent .
Comp . BATEMAN then proposed the toast of ' * The Second and Third Principals " who assisted at the consecration , and Comp . COUPLAND briefly responded . Comp . WOOD followed with the toast of " The Installing Officer , Comp , Robinson . "
Comp . ROBINSON , in response , said he had said so much in the chapter that he should not detain them long . The work of installing the Principals of a chapter was harder than that of installing a Master in the Craft , and required to be carried out with all due solemnity , without which it was as nothing . The Royal Arch was the culminating point of Masonry . Hehad
becn deputed by his lordship to perform the ceremony of installation , and if he had done it to their satisfaction so much the more was he pleased . He was sure the Principals installed that day would do their duty well , and he had no doubt that among the 18 chapters in the province this one would take a foremost position .
The M . E . Z ., in response to a hearty reception of " The Three First Principals , " said that his acceptance of the office was not for any selfish desire for aggrandizement , but simply in response to a verv cordial invitation , and knowing what the members had done for the Lullihgstone Chapter , and feeling that it would be the means of giving the " Saye and Sele " a start , he accepted the office . He fully expected it to be in time one of the first in the province , that it would be a source of strength , and not weakness , and that the province would be proud of it .
Comp . CHILLINGWORTH felt proud of the position he held , and would have accepted a much more humble one had he had his own way . He intended to make the chapter worthy of its name . Comp . WOOD meant to work hard . Their choice had fallen on Comp . Cummings for the office of Z . because of his grand working in the Lullingstone Chapter , and they thought that under him their chapter would surely be a success . He spoke highly of the services of their Scribe E ., on whom nine-tenths of the work of forming the chapter had fallen .
The M . E . Z . then proposed the toast of "Comp . Bateman , the W . M . of the Mother Lodge , " and that companion responded in a lengthy and humorous speech . Comp . MASON responded for "The Visitors , " and the proceedings shortly after terminated .
Ancient York Masonry.
ANCIENT YORK MASONRY .
A perusal of the first chapter of Bro . William James Hughan ' s new book * suggests the idea that a timely service may be rendered to the readers of this magazine by bringing before them , in a brief compass , some information respecting the Grand Lodges that have existed in England , and about which much confusion still prevails in the minds of Craftsmen of
more than average intelligence . Particularly in this country is the confusion widespread and perplexing , because some jurisdictions retain the style of " Ancient York Masons , " a custom which Bro . Hughan says "is wholly unjustifiable , and has wisely been dropped by Grand Lodges who value historical accuracy beyond purely partv designations . "
No Grand Lodge , and no such officer as Grand Master , was known until the year 1717 , yet Anderson , in his 1723 edition of the Book of Constitutions , make Prince Edwin a Grand Master , and in his 1738 edition creates a Grand Lodge under him at York , fixing the date at 926 . Subsequent writers copied this stuff as fact , until it came to be generally accepted .
The Craft in a vague way associated this mythical Grand Lodge with one that subsequently existed for a time at York , and became permeated with a complacent willingness to be counted among " Ancient York Masons , " identical with that which in society makes easy to convince one that he is connected with the " first families . "
The " Grand Lodge of England " was constituted by members of four old lodges in London , " and some old brothers , " on Saint John Baptist Day , 1717 , and became " the parent , directly or indirectly , of every other Grand Lodge in the Universe . " Of this body , and the impulse out of which grew the Grand Lodge at York , Bio . Hughan says :
" Until 1724 no warrants were granted outside of the Metropolis , but in that year Bath , Bristol , Norwich , and other provincial places were visited Masonically and duly honoured with charters for lodges , and then rapidly the principles of the Craft spread throughout Great Britain and the civilized world .
" The activity of the new Grand Lodge evidently produced a like spirit in the members of the old lodge , which had been quietly working in the neighbourhood of York for many years before Grand Lodges were known , and the result was , that the formation of another organization ( having its
Ancient York Masonry.
seat at York ) was preceded by a procession to the Merchant s Hall , on December 27 th , 1725 , after which the ' Grand Lodge of all England ' was inaugurated , with Charles Bathurst , 'Esq ., as Grand Master . " This Grand Lodge consisted for nearly half a century apparently 0 _ one lodge only , after which period warrants were issued for various parts of the
north ol England , and the renewal of energy led to additional degrees being started which for a time preserved its vitality , but it eventually collapsed about 1790 , and left no representative of any kind to continue its ritual or organization . The York Grand Lodge never chartered any lodges out of England , neither did any of its subordinates ever do so . " words that
It is for the reasons found in these concluding Bro . Hughan is warranted in saying that no lodges in America are justified in calling themselves "Ancient York Masons . " He , however , indicates the chief reason for the prevalence of the custom in this country in his remarks on the formation of the principal rival of the Grand Lodge of England consequent on the great schism of the middle of the eighteenth century : Grand Lod
" These two branches of the Masonic Society ( the ' ge of England' and the * Grand Lodge of all England " ) flourished harmoniousl y together for some years , the English Craft being virtually united and prosperous , until one or more disputes arose in London between some of the lodges and the Grand Lodge , which was followed by the starting of an energetic rivalin 1750-1 , under the denomination of the 'Grand Lodge of
, England according to the Old Constitutions . ' The members were known by the name of ' Ancients , ' those of the Premier Grand Lodge being unfairl y termed ' Moderns , ' the two being a few years later described as 'Atholl Masons' and ' Regular Masons , ' respectively . The junior Grand Lodge , under the Grand Masterships of the third and fourth Dukes of Athol
especially , established many lodges at home and abroad ; and as the warrants recited the ( modern ) legend that their authority was ' according to the Old Constitutions granted by His Royal Highness Prince Edwin , at York , A . D . 926 , ' it is easy to comprehend how brethren not correctly informed as to the facts of the case imagined that the ' Atholl Masons ' had a York
origin . Of the last of the four Grand Lodges existing at one time in England during the last century , Bro . Hughan says : " Still another competitor appeared on the field , but its career was brief , and only two lodges were warranted under its regime , which collapsed when it did . This opposition was occasioned by a disagreement between the Regular Masons and Bro . Wm . Preston and a majority of the members of the
' Lodge of Antiquity , ' who withdrew from lhat ( Regular ) Grand Lodge and accepted ' a deputation ' from the ' Grand Lodge of all England' ( York ) , dated 29 th March , 1779 , constituting them a ' Grand Lodge of England south of the river Trent . ' Happily , on 2 nd May , 1790 , these brethren were restored to all their Masonic privileges ( after an unfortunate 10 years of independence and isolation ) , when resistance to the authorities ceased , and the two parties in the Lodge of Antiquity were heard of no more . "
This left but two rival organizations , the " Regular" and "Atholl " Grand Lodges , and on December 27 th , 1813 , these bodies amicably settled their differences by joining together and forming " The United Grand Lodge of England . " lt will be observed that outside of England no lodge ever sprung from
the " York " Grand Lodge , and that when that body collapsed it " left no representative of any kind to continue its ritual or its organization . " Hence any lodge or Grand Lodge in this country that styles itself "Ancient York " must demonstrate its claim to historical accuracy of speech on other grounds than a supposed connection , either remote or direct , with any " York " Grand Lodge .
The explanation suggested by Bro . Hughan , that the warrants granted by the " Atholl or seceding Grand Lodge , recited the apochryphal legend that their authority was according to the Old Constitutions granted by his Royal Highness Prince Edwin , at York , A . D . , " probably sufficiently accounts tor the lodgment among the Masons of this country , who derived their existence from that body , of the notion that they were " York
Masons " by some sort of descent . The Regular Masons , contemporary with the "Ancients , " knew that the latter claimed that they held under the " Old Constitutions " simply to throw discredit upon the former , who had accepted the work of Anderson , whom it had authorised to " digest them in a new and better method , " but the Masons of this country who derived their characters from the " Ancients , " after the days of schism were past ,
still retained as traditions , without remembering their origin , what had once been only the war cries of a faction . Those who had formerly been of tlie other party had no interest in combating this claim after the union had taken place and American Grand Lodges had been formed , and knew no better than their former opponents to what extent Anderson had drawn the long bow in his account of pre-existing " Grand Lodges , " which he published
with his Book of Constitutions , particularly in the edition of 1738 , making St . Alban , the proto-martyr of England , to preside as Grand Master , about the year 293 , over a general council of Masons to which he gave the name of Assembly ; creating a Grand Lodge at York in 926 , with Prince Edwin as Grand Master ; holding a Grand Lodge at York , in 1561 , with Sir Thomas Sackville as Grand Master , making the Earl of St . Albans Grand the
Master in 1663 , and ending with Sir Christopher Wren in that office in beginning of the eighteenth century . Anderson did not indeed invent the stories of all these gatherings , but quoted them , or some of them , front manuscripts really existing or then reported to have been recently destroy ed , but he did interpolate the word " Grand , " instead of General , before Lodgd and the title " Grand Master , " when in truth no Grand Lodge existed until 1717 , and no such office as that of Grand Master until it was created by
the lormation of the Grand Lodge of England in that year , and was firw filled by " Mr . Antony Sayer , gentleman . " The St . Albans story seems to have drawn too heavily upon the credulity of the Craft ; at all events it has not found much of a lodgment . Tn " Prince Edwin story , with his " Grand Lodge " at York , however , has stud ' with a good deal ot tenacity , and has prepared many minds to entertain the notion that there is something more than sound in the expression " Ancle 11 ' York Masonry" as applied to a still existent entity
, . . Doubtless it will be kept afloat with the apochryphal story upon w , 1 ' it unconsciously rests , because the latter is supported by many names tha have had weight in so-called Masonic history ; but gradually the Craft **" get hold of the truth of Bro . Gould ' s remark that " an opinion may be he ' bv a laree number of oersons who have been misled bv some eri * oneo _
authority , and have all mechanically followed the same blind guide ; so tha their number has , in fact , no weight , and they are no more entitled torecUpas independent voices ' than the successive compilers who transcribe an m torical error are eniitled to reckon as independent witnesses . "—Bro . J osEJ ROBBINS in the Voice of Masonry ,