Consecration Of The Warner Lodge, No. 2256.

Propositions were received , and the SECRETARY announced receipt of numerous letters of regret for non-attendance . The W . M ., Wardens , Secretary , Treasurer , and Bro . Bellingham , were elected a Committee to frame the by-laws . The W . M . was also elected to serve on the Essex Provincial Charity Committee . The lodge was then closed , and the brethren adjourned to a recherche

repast , at the conclusion of which the loyal and Masonic toasts were duly honoured . " The Queen and the Craft , " and " H . R . H . the Prince of Wales , M . W . G . M ., " were first given , and heartily received by the brethren . In proposing "The Grand Officers , " The WORSHIPFUL MASTER said they were honoured that evening by the presence of several Grand Officers ,

who had come from London—and even from Hampshire and Hertfordshire —to be present at the consecration of the lodge . He had no need to say anything about the Pro G . M . and Deputy G . M . He would simply ask the brethren to drink the toast , coupling with it the names of two Grand Officers —one a P . G . Officer , and the other a Present Grand Officer—who had distinguished himself as a G . Chaplain that evening . Bro . Eve , P . G . Treas ., wished him to couple the name of the G . Secretary , first on this occasion .

Col . Clerke was an officer endeared to all of them , and any brother who had had anything to do with the formation of a lodge knew how he recognised an absolute equality when asked for assistance or advice . The G . Secretary manifested a desire to serve them , had kindly and efficiently acted as Chaplain . Bro . R . Eve was a most distinguished Grand Officer , and had made his mark as G . Treasurer , and had exercised that benevolence and charity to such an extent that they felt proud of his election to Grand Office /

The GRAND SECRETARY said that as the W . Master , in the exercise of his power , had called upon him to return thanks before his superior officers , he obeyed orders . He had gone through many vicissitudes in life , but did not think so benign a fate as that of taking Holy Orders was in store for him . He had acted as Chaplain that night for the first time , which was , doubtless , a proper position for a "Clerke" in Holy Orders . He wished to

thank the brethren for receiving the toast in their usual kindly manner . The G . Officers were proud of their position , and were anxious to justify that position , and show they were the right men in the right place . They owed a great deal to the kind feeling and reception they always received from their brethren , for without that their position would be irksome . So long as the brethren gave their more fortunate brethren a kind reception ,

so long would they feel they had done some little work to deserve the promotion they had received . He begged to thank them for the fraternal manner in which , in his official position , he was always received . His work was somewhat of an arduous nature , but so long as he was cheered by the thought that his efforts were fairly successful , so long would he continue to exert himself in the interests of the Craft .

Bro . RICHARD EVE , P . G . Treas ., said he was pleased to be present , and begged to thank the W . M . for the kind manner in which he had mentioned his name . He had a fight for the office of G . Treasurer , and he trusted there would always be a fight for that position . It was an office , the importance of which was not to be exceeded by that of any other , being entirely in the hands of the Craft . It was a great position for any brother to hold , and he trusted it might be attained by some of the brethren

present that evening . As the G . Secretary relieved the G . Treasurer of a large amount of work , the duties were not very heavy , the principal being the gratifying duty of signing cheques . He had the felicity of signing cheques to be distributed by the magistrates of London amongst the poor , and also cheques for the Masonic Institutions connected with the Order , He returned thanks to the W . M . for coupling his name with the toast in the presence of so many distinguished Grand Officers .

" R . W . Bro . Lord Brooke , Prov . G . M ., and Consecrating Officer ; the Dep . Prov . G . M ., and the Prov . G . Officers , " was proposed by the W . MASTER , who said that his experience in Provincial meetings was small , but if every province was served as well as Essex , he thought that Masonry in the provinces ran hard in emulation with Masonry in the Metropolis . As the W . M . of the lodge , and , therefore , the humble representative of all the founders , he felt proud that so many Prov . G . Officers had honoured

them with their presence . At the same time , that pride was modified by the thought that they were honouring them not so much as their Prov . G . Master who was present . The founders might therefore feel proud they were a lodge in a province where the Prov . G . M . was so honoured . It would ill-become him to speak at any length on that toast , but he would say he was gratified to be supported by such distinguished Masons . He asked the brethren to drink the toast with all heartiness .

R . W . Bro . Lord BROOKE , Prov . Grand Master , said he felt that the words in which he could return thanks were not sufficiently adequate or eloquent to thank them for the manner in which they had received the toast . It was no new thing for him to receive a hearty reception in the Province of Essex , for he knew the brethren were most friendly disposed

towards him . He was happy to be present on that occasion , and pleased to that find new members coming into the province . It was a great pleasure to see Freemasonry so flourishing in that part of the country . He had had the honour of being Provincial Grand Master for seven years , and the Warner Lodge was the seventh he had consecrated , being a healthy sign of increasing Masonic prosperity . He believed the house in which they

had met , had been the scene of many similar festive occasions , and there was certainly no place they could have more suitable . He believed that in the new lodge which they had consecrated there was the nucleus of one of the most flourishing lodges in the province . It would be out of place to dilate at length upon Masonic questions ; he would simply say that the Province of Essex came forward in a splendid manner to support the M . W . G . M . at

the Centenary of the Girls' School . It was the most splendid affair in which any of them had taken part , the King of Sweden having remarked that he had never before seen such a Masonic sight . He hoped the province would not be backward in its Charity , for it was the principal item for consideration . He trusted he should see many of the brethren at the Provincial Grand Lodge he hoped to hold soon at Colchester . It afforded him

great pleasure to see and hear the ceremony of installation performed by his excellent Deputy , Bro . Philbrick , who was one of those eloquent by nature , and who had cultivated that power to a marvellous extent . The next toast which he would give them was one of paramount importance that evening , being " The Health of the excellent Worshi pful Master , " who

occupied the chair so worthily . As he had the pleasure of saying in the lodge , he was well aware that a lodge , well started like that , required a considerable amount of effort and work , and he knew that Bro . Lennox Browne , W . M ., had taken a great deal of trouble and interest in the formation of the lodge . He could only say that the knowledge of the

Consecration Of The Warner Lodge, No. 2256.

Masonic Craft possessed by the W . M . was of so high an order , that it was prudent to prophecy a great success for the Warner Lodge . He trusted that would not be the last occasion on which he should be with them , and had much pleasure in proposing the health of the W . M ., wishing him a prosperous reign .

Bro . LENNOX BROWNE , W . M ., said that words failed him to express all he would say and he must therefore fall back upon a little plagiarism . He remembered hearing a distinguished American—no less a man than Mr Russell Lowell—commence a speech in returning thanks for his health bv saying they had called upon the right man—Mr . Lowell went on to saythere was no man like himself for an after dinner speech , but they would

not hear it that night , as it was his custom to make his after dinner speeches in the cab going home . Mr . Lowell commenced his speech in that fashion but finished by making one of the best speeches he had ever heard . As he ( the W . M . ) wenthome , in his heart would arise many kind things to which his tongue could not at that moment give utterance . The Prov . G . M . had alluded to the King of Sweden , and he would like to recall to those who were present at the Albert Hall what his Majesty had the courage to sav

He said patriotism was a good thing , but the fear of God was a far better thing . He repeated those words with all humility , and trusted that whatever they might do , they would do it in the fear of God . He had the courage to say that on this ^ occasion for he wanted that lodge to be regulated by such feelings . He hoped that so long as he was W . M . they would be actuated by those feelings , from which sprung Charity and all the attributes of Masonry . He begged to thank the Prov . G . M . for the kind things he had said of him and which he should endeavour to deserve .

The WORSHIPFUL MASTER in proposing " The Installing Master , " said Bro . Philbrick had the advantage of being as well known in the Metropolis as he was in that province and all were proud of him . He was proud that Bro . Philbrick had honoured him by installing him . As Lord Brooke had said the Installing Officer of that evening was a thoroughly eloquent man . The

other evening he heard him , on the occasion of the consecration of a new conclave of the Secret Monitor , make an address on the objects of that Order , which he wished could have been promulgated in the Freemason so that all brethren might understand what an excellent Order it was . Bro . Philbrick always touched the hearts of his listeners , for he spoke from the heart with an excellence that few could hope to emulate .

Bro . F . A . PHILBRICK , Cj . C , Grand Reg ., said he lost no time in obeying the commands of the VV . M ., but he felt that Bro . Browne had done him that crowning unkindness which was sometimes practised by the maladroit host when he announced to those at the table that Mr . So-and-So was going to be funny . A more chilling announcement could not be imagined , for he knew what it was to hear a learned friend tell the 12

stolid gentlemen sitting in an uncomfortable box , of the wonderful eloquence to which they were about to listen . The announcement was bound to be received with a smile and taken by the other learned friend as a compliment to himself . Whenever he had found himself in the Province of Essex , he had always been received with a kindness which not only went to his heart , but which he should be ungrateful if he did not acknowledge , for the kindness he received rendered his duties a labour of love . As one who had the

interests of Freemasonry generally , and especially in that province , at heart , that reception was as grateful and encouraging as any act on the part of his brethren could be . Lord Brooke had been good enough to refer to the installation that evening , but any service he could render was at the command of his brethren in the province . The Warner Lodge was the 27 th now standing on the roll of their province . When Lord Brooke

assumed the throne , after the lamented decease of the late Prov . G . M ., there were 18 lodges , they had , therefore , added 50 per cent , in the period under the sway of their present ruler . If there was a luck in numbers he might venture to prophecy that that Lodge bore a happy number in the province . He sincerely believed—and he thought he might perhaps say he had had some experience in the province—that their

lodges were doing well and were strong . He did not want " weedy lodges , that burst up into a blaze at their start , and then—to use an Americanism— "fizzled out" in a short time . They wanted lodges for sincere Masonic work , which could not be carried out without considerable labour and trouble , which was the condition of all things human , High had been the keystone struck by the W . M . that evening , and rightly ,

for more especiall y during the first year was the honour , reputation , and usefulness of the lodge in his hands . Fortunately , that new lodge was in the hands of one with whom the honour was safe , its reputation ensured , and its usefulness , he trusted , would be great . He again thanked them for their kindness , and any effort he had been able to make , had been a

pleasure . He trusted the lodge would go on and prosper , holding hig h that standard of Masonry which the W . M . had so eloquently announced . Bearing that in mind , he could not but think that Masonry would set an example , not merely of a great benefit society , or of a social o rganisation , but an example that would show the world what real worth there was in the name b y which they were proud to call themselves .

"The Visitors" having been given in felicitous terms by the W ORSHIPFUL MASTEE , Bro . Dr . SANSON , W . M . 2032 , P . M . 1 494 , replied , and tendered thanks for the kindl y reception accorded the visiting brethren . It had been a most

enjoyable evening for him , for he had been amongst those who ne nau known long since . The visitors had had an excellent treat in the lodge , the founders having shown they had the good principles of Masonry at heart by the way in which the work had been done . From the evidence adduced there was no doubt is would be made a real working lodge .

"The W . M . and Wardens of the Chigwell Lodge , " which recommended the petition of the Warner Lodge , was next introduced by tne WORSHIPFUL MASTER . ., Bro . BUCK , P . M . Chigwell Lodge , P . P . S . G . W ., responded . He said that , although he had actprl in trip infprmr nffirP nf I . G . that evening , ne

had never attended a consecration that had given him greater p leasure . 1 he Chigwell Lodge , which he represented , had reached its jubilee , and m tne name of that lodge , and particularl y in the name of its Secretary , ne assured the brethren they would only be too happy to render assistance the Warner Lodge . ., . In submitting "The Officers" the WORSHIPFUL M ASTER said n desired to acknowledge rii = s inrlphfprW . « . n thp nffir-prs . for although tn y

had only been appointed that evening , they had all being work , n fJlnce and soul to ensure the success ot the lodge . He looked wllh con pled to his officers to support him during the iorthcoming year . He con K , with the toast the name of the sponsor and godfather of the lodg e ' ¦ ° ' Warner , S . W ., and Bro . S . Jackson , J . W ., who had also done much tor lodge .