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Article Untitled Page 1 of 1 Article ROYAL ARCH MASONRY IN WEST YORKSHIRE. Page 1 of 1 Article ROYAL ARCH MASONRY IN WEST YORKSHIRE. Page 1 of 1 Article BOARD OF BENEVOLENCE. Page 1 of 2 Article Untitled Page 1 of 1
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Ar00100
CONTENTS . PAGE LHADBRRoyal Arch Masonry in West Yorkshire ... ... ... 735 Board of Benevolence ... ... ... ... ... ... 735 Provincial Grand Chapter of West Yorkshire ... ... ... ... 736 Provincial Grand Mark Lodge of North Wales ... ... ... 737
THE CRAFT A BROADThe New Church at Woodbrook ... ... „_ . ... 737 SCOTLANDGrand Lodge ... ... ... ... ... ... 73 s Craft Masonry ... ... ... ... ... ... 73 S Science , Art , and the Drama ... ... ... ... ... 739 MASONIC NOTESInstallation of the Hon . Alan de Tatton Egerton as Provincial Grand
Master of Cheshire ... ... ... .. ... 741 Annual Meeting of the Provincial Grand Mark Lodge of North VVales ... 741 Annual Meeting of the Provincial Grand Chapter of Essex ... ... 741 Chine Lodge , No . 1 SS 4 , Shanklin ... ... ... ... 741 Correspondence ... ... ... ... ... ... 742 Reviews ... ... ... •••... ... ... 742
POETRYChristmas ... ... ••¦ ... ... ... 742 The Knights Templar Christmas Observance ... ... ... 742 Craft Masonry ... ... ... ... ... ... 743 Masonic and General Tidings ... ... ... ... ... 743 Instruction ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 74 S
Royal Arch Masonry In West Yorkshire.
ROYAL ARCH MASONRY IN WEST YORKSHIRE .
There is invariably something pleasant and instructive to read in the reports of meetings of the Provincial Grand Chapter of West Yorkshire . For some time past , the Grand
Superintendent ofthe Province—Comp . thc Right Hon . W . L . J ACKSON , M . P . —and his second in command—Comp . RICHARD WlLSONhave made it their business to instil into the minds of our West
Yorkshire companions the importance of doing all in their power , both by precept and example , to enlarge the borders of Royal Arch Masonry . •They take a serious view of the declaration and pronouncement in Article 1 of our Book of
Constitutions , "that pure Antient Masonry consists of three degrees and no more , viz ., those of the Entered Apprentice , the Fellow Craft , a , nd the Master Mason , including the Supreme Order of the Holy Royal Arch . " They are enthusiastic in their
love of Masonry . They point out that the Province has a muster roll of more than 80 Craft lodges , and that these Craft lodges show amongst them an aggregate subscribing membership of upwards of 4000 brethren ; and they argue , naturall y
enough , that if the Royal Arch has been declared by the "Solemn Act of Union " of December , 1 S 13 , to be part and parcel of " pure Antient Masonry , " there ought not to be such a disproportion as is
known to exist between the chapters—in which alone a knowledge of the Royal Arch can be acquired—and their members and the Craft lodges and their membership . Yet even in this favoured Province of West Yorkshire—in which the Roval Arch
is more firmly established than in any other of our English Provinces—there are only 45 chapters to Si lodges , and but 1600 R . A . Masons to over 4000 Craft Masons . They say , in effect , What is the good of laying it down in thc very iirst
Article of our Book of the Law that the Royal Arch is part of " pure Antient Masonry" if this indifference to its claims upon our attention and respect is allowed to continue ? What advantage have we gained by the action of the Supreme Grand
Chapter in sanctioning the greater facilities for the exaltation of Master Masons if the brethren do not avail themselves of these facilities ? It is pointed out in our review of "
Freemasonry m 1900 in the Christmas number of the Freemason , under the head of "Royal Arch Masonry , " that while it is quite possible there may have been during [ the year an in-
Royal Arch Masonry In West Yorkshire.
crease of membership in the private chapters previously con- ' stituted , there has been a decided falling off in the number of new chapters for which warrants have been granted—from 18 in the previous to 12 in thc present year . Again , if we turn
tothe Provincial Calendars , of which so many are now published annually , we shall find that in thc majority of our Provinces the disproportion between the Craft and the Royal Arch , which is the complement of the Craft , is very marked , notwithstanding : those
further facilities to which we have just alluded . Some time a ^ o we published a letter in which it was estimated that under the English system there were some 26 , 000 Royal Arch to about 130 , 000 Craft Masons—we are writing from memory , but we
think the figures were Bro . HUGHAN ' S , or based on his calculations . It follows , then , that while there is about one Royal Arch chapter to every three Craft lodges , only one out of every five Craft Masons has been exalted to the Royal Arch . Hence
as regards these several facts and figures , while Grand Chapter is fully alive to the importance of encouraging as far as possible the study and practice of Royal Arch Masonry , the Craft Masons , at all events up to the present
time , have not responded either very readily or very generally . The Grand Superintendent of West Yorkshire and Comp . WlLSON boldly advise their Royal Arch companions to invite Craft brethren to enrol themselves as members of chapters , and
wc see no reason why the advice should not be followed . It is against the laws of Masonry for members to ask outsidersto join the ranks of the Craft ; but there is no law that we wot of against one who has taken " the Supreme Order of the Holy Royal Arch " from
inviting his friends who arc already Master Masons from completing their curriculum as " pure Antient Masons , " according to the Constitutions of the Grand Lodge of England . But excellent as is the advice of these distinguished brethren and companions ,
wc are of opinion that something further is needed in order to p lace thc Royal Arch on a proper footing ; and he will deserve well of the Supreme Order who shall offer one or more practical suggestions to this end .
In the meantime , we commend to our readers' attention the very able address whicli Comp . WlLSON , as acting Grand Superintendent , delivered at the recent half-yearly meeting at Halifax of the Prov . Grand Chapter of West Yorkshire , and
which is reported in full in another column . Thev will find it contains much valuable information , some of which it is not unlikely may be new to them—unless they should happen to
have enjoyed special facilities ol access lo a good Masonic library—while the whole is certain to create in their minds a favourable impression as to the claims of the Royal Arch on their consideration .
Board Of Benevolence.
BOARD OF BENEVOLENCE .
The monthly meeting of the BoJrd of Benevolence—lhe last meeting of the century—was held on Wednesday evening at Freemasons' Hall , when the three presiding officers were Bros . Jarnes Henry Matthews , President ( re-appointed and invested December 5 th ); D . I ) . Alercer , Senior Vice-President ; and Henry Garrod , Junior Vice-President ( re-elected December 5 th ) .
Bros . R . Letchworth , G . Sec ; W . Lake , Asst . G . Sec . ; W . Dodd , G , S . Recknell , and H . Sadler , G . Tyler , represented the official department of Grand Lodge . The other brethren who attended
were—Bros . Charles J . R . Tijou , E . W . Nightingale , Felix Kite , W . Fisher , James Block , S . H . Goldschmidt , R . W . Ker , W . AL 13 y > vuer , F . VV . H . mcock , S . J , Notley , E . JVI . E . Hamilton , W . Kipps , Lieut .-Col . G . E . E . Blunt , G . S . B . ;
Ar00104
Now Ready . —The Freemasons ' Calendar & Pocket Book for 1901 , Price 2 / -, by Post 2 / 14 .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Ar00100
CONTENTS . PAGE LHADBRRoyal Arch Masonry in West Yorkshire ... ... ... 735 Board of Benevolence ... ... ... ... ... ... 735 Provincial Grand Chapter of West Yorkshire ... ... ... ... 736 Provincial Grand Mark Lodge of North Wales ... ... ... 737
THE CRAFT A BROADThe New Church at Woodbrook ... ... „_ . ... 737 SCOTLANDGrand Lodge ... ... ... ... ... ... 73 s Craft Masonry ... ... ... ... ... ... 73 S Science , Art , and the Drama ... ... ... ... ... 739 MASONIC NOTESInstallation of the Hon . Alan de Tatton Egerton as Provincial Grand
Master of Cheshire ... ... ... .. ... 741 Annual Meeting of the Provincial Grand Mark Lodge of North VVales ... 741 Annual Meeting of the Provincial Grand Chapter of Essex ... ... 741 Chine Lodge , No . 1 SS 4 , Shanklin ... ... ... ... 741 Correspondence ... ... ... ... ... ... 742 Reviews ... ... ... •••... ... ... 742
POETRYChristmas ... ... ••¦ ... ... ... 742 The Knights Templar Christmas Observance ... ... ... 742 Craft Masonry ... ... ... ... ... ... 743 Masonic and General Tidings ... ... ... ... ... 743 Instruction ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 74 S
Royal Arch Masonry In West Yorkshire.
ROYAL ARCH MASONRY IN WEST YORKSHIRE .
There is invariably something pleasant and instructive to read in the reports of meetings of the Provincial Grand Chapter of West Yorkshire . For some time past , the Grand
Superintendent ofthe Province—Comp . thc Right Hon . W . L . J ACKSON , M . P . —and his second in command—Comp . RICHARD WlLSONhave made it their business to instil into the minds of our West
Yorkshire companions the importance of doing all in their power , both by precept and example , to enlarge the borders of Royal Arch Masonry . •They take a serious view of the declaration and pronouncement in Article 1 of our Book of
Constitutions , "that pure Antient Masonry consists of three degrees and no more , viz ., those of the Entered Apprentice , the Fellow Craft , a , nd the Master Mason , including the Supreme Order of the Holy Royal Arch . " They are enthusiastic in their
love of Masonry . They point out that the Province has a muster roll of more than 80 Craft lodges , and that these Craft lodges show amongst them an aggregate subscribing membership of upwards of 4000 brethren ; and they argue , naturall y
enough , that if the Royal Arch has been declared by the "Solemn Act of Union " of December , 1 S 13 , to be part and parcel of " pure Antient Masonry , " there ought not to be such a disproportion as is
known to exist between the chapters—in which alone a knowledge of the Royal Arch can be acquired—and their members and the Craft lodges and their membership . Yet even in this favoured Province of West Yorkshire—in which the Roval Arch
is more firmly established than in any other of our English Provinces—there are only 45 chapters to Si lodges , and but 1600 R . A . Masons to over 4000 Craft Masons . They say , in effect , What is the good of laying it down in thc very iirst
Article of our Book of the Law that the Royal Arch is part of " pure Antient Masonry" if this indifference to its claims upon our attention and respect is allowed to continue ? What advantage have we gained by the action of the Supreme Grand
Chapter in sanctioning the greater facilities for the exaltation of Master Masons if the brethren do not avail themselves of these facilities ? It is pointed out in our review of "
Freemasonry m 1900 in the Christmas number of the Freemason , under the head of "Royal Arch Masonry , " that while it is quite possible there may have been during [ the year an in-
Royal Arch Masonry In West Yorkshire.
crease of membership in the private chapters previously con- ' stituted , there has been a decided falling off in the number of new chapters for which warrants have been granted—from 18 in the previous to 12 in thc present year . Again , if we turn
tothe Provincial Calendars , of which so many are now published annually , we shall find that in thc majority of our Provinces the disproportion between the Craft and the Royal Arch , which is the complement of the Craft , is very marked , notwithstanding : those
further facilities to which we have just alluded . Some time a ^ o we published a letter in which it was estimated that under the English system there were some 26 , 000 Royal Arch to about 130 , 000 Craft Masons—we are writing from memory , but we
think the figures were Bro . HUGHAN ' S , or based on his calculations . It follows , then , that while there is about one Royal Arch chapter to every three Craft lodges , only one out of every five Craft Masons has been exalted to the Royal Arch . Hence
as regards these several facts and figures , while Grand Chapter is fully alive to the importance of encouraging as far as possible the study and practice of Royal Arch Masonry , the Craft Masons , at all events up to the present
time , have not responded either very readily or very generally . The Grand Superintendent of West Yorkshire and Comp . WlLSON boldly advise their Royal Arch companions to invite Craft brethren to enrol themselves as members of chapters , and
wc see no reason why the advice should not be followed . It is against the laws of Masonry for members to ask outsidersto join the ranks of the Craft ; but there is no law that we wot of against one who has taken " the Supreme Order of the Holy Royal Arch " from
inviting his friends who arc already Master Masons from completing their curriculum as " pure Antient Masons , " according to the Constitutions of the Grand Lodge of England . But excellent as is the advice of these distinguished brethren and companions ,
wc are of opinion that something further is needed in order to p lace thc Royal Arch on a proper footing ; and he will deserve well of the Supreme Order who shall offer one or more practical suggestions to this end .
In the meantime , we commend to our readers' attention the very able address whicli Comp . WlLSON , as acting Grand Superintendent , delivered at the recent half-yearly meeting at Halifax of the Prov . Grand Chapter of West Yorkshire , and
which is reported in full in another column . Thev will find it contains much valuable information , some of which it is not unlikely may be new to them—unless they should happen to
have enjoyed special facilities ol access lo a good Masonic library—while the whole is certain to create in their minds a favourable impression as to the claims of the Royal Arch on their consideration .
Board Of Benevolence.
BOARD OF BENEVOLENCE .
The monthly meeting of the BoJrd of Benevolence—lhe last meeting of the century—was held on Wednesday evening at Freemasons' Hall , when the three presiding officers were Bros . Jarnes Henry Matthews , President ( re-appointed and invested December 5 th ); D . I ) . Alercer , Senior Vice-President ; and Henry Garrod , Junior Vice-President ( re-elected December 5 th ) .
Bros . R . Letchworth , G . Sec ; W . Lake , Asst . G . Sec . ; W . Dodd , G , S . Recknell , and H . Sadler , G . Tyler , represented the official department of Grand Lodge . The other brethren who attended
were—Bros . Charles J . R . Tijou , E . W . Nightingale , Felix Kite , W . Fisher , James Block , S . H . Goldschmidt , R . W . Ker , W . AL 13 y > vuer , F . VV . H . mcock , S . J , Notley , E . JVI . E . Hamilton , W . Kipps , Lieut .-Col . G . E . E . Blunt , G . S . B . ;
Ar00104
Now Ready . —The Freemasons ' Calendar & Pocket Book for 1901 , Price 2 / -, by Post 2 / 14 .