Correspondence.

Correspondence .

[ We do not hold ourselves responsible for , or even approving of , he opinions expressed by our correspondents , but we wish in a spirit of fair play to all to permit—within certain necessary limits—free discussion . ]

SUN , SQUARE , AND COMPASSES LODGE . No . 119 , WHITEHAVEN . To the Editor of the " Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , Replying to Bro . R . W . Moore ' s letter in the Freemason , of the 14 th inst ., which involves two distinct issues , namely , the questions of precedence and

of continuity , I will as briefly as possible deal first of all with the subject of precedence , so far as the lodges at Kendal and Whitehaven are concerned . Bro . G . J . McKay can doubtless take care of himself ; but inasmuch as many readers of the Freemason will probably not have seen the Cumberland Pacquet , it is but right for

me to state that Bro . McKay ' s short note of the 4 th November , which deprecated correspondence on lodge matters in a non-Masonic journal , was called forth by a long article in a previous issue of that paper , so that he did not commence it therein , as might be inferred from Bro . Moore's letter .

Bro . McKay's contention that the Union Lodge , No . 121 , Kendal , is the oldest lodge in the province is unquestionably correct , and ought to be patent to every one who will take only a superficial glance at the matter , for the Kendal lodge was warranted on 31 st July , 1764 , nearly four years prior to the warrant of

the original Whitehaven lodge , No . 157 , which was dated 17 th May , 1768 . The fact that the Sun , Square , and Compasses Lodge is numbered 119 , whilst the Union Lodge is numbered 121 , has no bearing whatever on the question of the age or antiquity of either of them . ¦ This , however , is so well understood that I need not pursue the subject any further .

As to the continuity or otherwise of the Whitehaven lodge , originally No . 157 , let me repeat that the Grand Lodge records unmistakably affirm that the warrant No . 157 had been withdrawn from the lodge which met at the Gins , a village near Whitehaven , for very improper and un-Masonic proceedings . This warrant

was ordered to be delivered up to Lodge No . 154 , or forthwith transmitted to the Grand Secretary , which I assume was done , and the old lodge , in my opinion , thereupon ceased to exist . After some little time , the warrant appears to have been sent back by the Grand Secretary to the W . M . of No . 154 , according to the

custom of the Athol Grand Lodge , for the purpose of constituting certain members of the old lodge into a new lodge at the George Inn , Whitehaven , ' and of installing the first Master and Wardens thereof . If all this had been merely a case of " brief suspension , " as Bro . Moore considers , or that the " so-called withdrawal "

( as he terms it ) was nothing more than a change of address , " there could have been no necessity whatever , in sending the warrant to Whitehaven , to forward it to any person unconnected with the old lodge . It would have been most properly sent to the W . M ., or at least to Bro . Dalton , the Secretary of the old body , who was

in correspondence with the Grand Secretary on the subject . The meagre records do not throw much li ght on this point , but Bro . Moore has not the sli ghtest justification for rendering the word " withdrawn " by " removed . " These words have totally different significations . Moreover , whilst Grand Lodge would never , in my opinion , interfere in such a manner in the

removal of a lodge from one place of meeting to another , it is very clear that if only a " removal " was intended by this peculiar form of procedure on the part of Grand Lodge—as Bro . Moore contends—there certainly was not the least occasion to obtain the " consent and approbation " of any other lodge in the locality before an event of such common occurrence could be allowed to take place .

It was something far more significant and important than a removal , and if Bro . Moore will carefully read the " New Regulations " which governed the removal of lodges , as contained in the Ahiman Rezon of 1807 ( pp . 65-67 ) he will find a complete confirmation of what I have just stated .

Bro . Moore ' s contention that there was " no hiatus in the continuity of the proceedings of the Lodge No . 157 " is so contrary to the recorded facts that I am surprised at his making such a statement . He does not adduce a particle of evidence to support it , while all the facts go to show that there was such a break in the continuity as I have indicated , which no amount of suggested probability can alter .

I hat some of the members of the new lodge were formerly members of the older one is undisputed , but I wish Bro . Moore very carefully to consider the meaning of the phrase " formerly of said lodge , " for if his argument is correct—viz ., that it was the same lodge composed of the same members—then the use

of the word "formerl y" is redundant and misleading . The phrase , in my judgment , must either mean that the members of the new lod ge had formerly been , but had then ceased to be , members of the lodge at the Gins , or that they were members of the lodge

formerly held in that place , which was then extinct , in either case implying a severance and a new beginning . I am convinced that , putting a " common-sense" interpretation on the word , it means nothing less than that the old lodge had ceased , and that the members of

Correspondence.

the new lodge comprised " many respectable brothers " who were " formerl y" members of the older one . In the "History of Craft Masonry in Cumberland and Westmorland , " edited by Bro . W . F . Lamonby , and published in 1879 , there are some interesting particulars about No . 157 . Amongst other things it

gives a full list of the officers in June , 1805 , viz ., "James Byrne , W . M . ; Robert M'Allister , S . W . ; Patrick Blew , J . W . ; Daniel M'Ginnis , S . D . ; Edward Dalton , J . D . ; John Saul , Treasurer ; James Leech , Secretary ; John M'Allister , Tyler ; George Glendinning , Steward ; Joseph Lucas , Steward . " Bro .

Lamonby sajs the whole of these were re-elected the following year . Later on we are informed that " Between December 1 st , 1806 , and March 14 th , 1807 , no meeting was held , and on the latter date it is stated ' At a lodge of No . 157 , held for the purpose of re-establishing it , on the warrant having been suspended

and the warrant withdrawn , when the same was restored by the W . Master , Wm . Campbell Heatley , of Lodge No . 154 ( Concord ) , to the W . Master , James Nicholson , who was chosen unanimousl y by the members then present , and thereupon he immediately took the chair ; also Bro . James Dodd , being Senior Warden , and Bro .

Joseph Fox , Junior Warden , and also done through the sanction of the Grand Lodge . Also at the same time was chosen Bro . George Colt , Treasurer , Bro . Edward Dalton , Secretary , also Bros . John Shields and Michael Rochford , Senior and Junior Deacons ; and Bro . John M'Allister , Tyler , until next St . John ' s Day . ' "

I quote this in extenso to show that only two of the officers of the old body were appointed to office in March , 1807 , namely , Bro . Edward Dalton and the Tyler . Why were all the former officers—duly elected in December , 1806—cashiered in March , 1807 ? They do not appear to have been at all implicated in the

charges made against the W . M ., James Byrne . It was , moreover , not the regular period of election , and if all that was done was merely an ordinary restoration after suspension the old officers would have continued in their several chairs until the next St . John ' s Day . I wish also to accentuate the very significant statement

that all this was " done through the sanction of the Grand Lodge , " or , in other words , by the direction of that body . Does not this , and the statement that the meeting was held for " re-establishing it , " evidently indicate that the warrant was re-issued by the Grand Lodge to a new organisation ? If not , what possible

explanation is there for the interference of the Grand Lodge in the matter ? The choice or election of Master and Wardens was the undoubted prerogative of the members of the lodge , yet here it is evident that they were called upon to elect the three principal officers " through the sanction [ and , by inference , the previous

nomination ] of the Grand Lodge . " And the attendance of the W . Master of No . 154 is explainable on no other ground than a compliance with the Grand Lodge Regulation No . 20 , in reference to the constituting a new lodge , which enacted that no new lodge could be constituted " without at least one of the present Grand Officers ; except in places at too great a distance from

the Grand Lodge , and in such case some faithful brother who has passed the chair , & c , shall have a proper deputation under the Grand Lodge seal for constituting such new lodge or lodges in distant parts where the Grand Officers cannot conveniently attend . " Bro . Heatly , the first W . M . of No . 154 , was a former member and Past Master of the old No . 157 .

Bro . Moore is good enough to say in effect that one can scarcely imagine that the Grand Lodge or any sane person would grant an entirely new lodge an old warrant without any remark or endorsement upon it . Yet

this is what both the Grand Lodges ( Moderns and Ancients ) actuall y did on many occasions during the first decade of this century—ample proof of which Bro . Moore may find in my Handy Book . The cases there cited , however , are not all that could be given .

Again , how are we to regard the very peculiar fact that , although there was a subsequent enquiry , and the W . M ., Bro . Byrne , was acquitted of any complicity in the " un-Masonic proceedings , " yet he and many other members of the old lodge never obtained any status as members of the new lodge , of which , however , they must have been actual members if the organisation

had been continuous ? By the " restoration " of the warrant in the manner already indicated , and the peculiar proceedings consequent thereupon , many members of the older organisation were excluded , a course of procedure , I do not hestitate to affirm , that could have no possible justification if the new bod y was a direct and continuous successor of the old one .

Before I conclude I would point out a great difference in the names of the first Master and Wardens of No . 157 , as quoted in the warrant , and those that appear in the Grand Lodge records . The copy warrant published in the Cumberland Pacquet , of 31 st October ,

gives the names of Jeremiah Elliott , Richard Boardman , ancl James Macdonald as the Master and Wardens , but neither of these names appear in Grand Lodge Registers in connection with No . 157 , the only names recorded in 1768 being those of Thomas Hartley , William Collins , and William Groves .

The question as to the correctness of the dates given in the " Cosmopolitan Masonic Calendar" ( which differs in very many instances from the " Freemasons ' Calendar and Pocket Book" ) is too important to be

dealt with at the close of this long letter , but I shall be quite ready to deal with it at a future and convenient occasion . —Yours fraternally , JNO . LANE . December 18 th .

"Old Masonians."

"OLD MASONIANS . "

This Association , which is composed entirely of old boys of the Royal Masonic School at Wood Green , and which seeks to mutually assist its members by placing those who are in quest of employment in good and permanent situations , and to generally assist them by

means of funds or otherwise where possible , as also to endeavour to keep the " old boys" in touch with each other , held its third social concert for the season at Anderton ' s Hotel , Fleet-street , E . C , on Friday evening , the 10 th inst ., the chair being taken by Mr . J . C Johnson , one of the members , who also provided the

programme . During the interval Bro . Charles Webber attended the meeting , and expressed the wish of some of the brethren of the Domatic Lodge , No . 177—who were dining in the building , and who had heard of the meeting of the Association—to attend the concert , a desire which was very readily acceded to by the

members , and accordingly Bros . S . W . Ramsden , P . M . and P . Z . 425 ; Richard Harvey , W . M ., P . M . 2012 ; F . J . Chapman , I . P . M ., ] . J . Perkins , J . W . 1278 , F . Cole , and James McLean , P . M ., all of 177 ; and John Thompson , 144 6 , attended , and Bro . S . W . Ramsden having been voted to the chair ,

the remainder of the programme was carried through , amongst others who were called upon to sing being Bro . F . Cole , whose song was encored , and the members and their friends separating shortly before 12 o ' clock , a most enjoyable evening having been spent and a capital programme carried through .

The Hon . Treasurer , Mr C H . UWINS , announced that the result of the dramatic performance given at St . George's Hall in aid of the Benevolent and Grant Fund had resulted in a loss of £ 2 2 s . 7 d ., an amount which was immediately subscribed by the brethren present , Bro . Harvey giving £ 1 is . The Hon . Secretary is Mr . R . Harold Williams , 72 ,

Oxford and Cambridge Mansions , Hy de Park , W ., who will be glad to g ive all particulars relating to the Association , and also to receive the names and addresses of Freemasons and Patrons of the School having vacancies for boys , and who are willing to assist the Association in the furtherance of its objects , and also of any such who would wish to attend any of the meetings .

Lord Wolseley And The Waifs And Strays Of Humanity.

LORD WOLSELEY AND THE WAIFS AND STRAYS OF HUMANITY .

The Hon . Secretary of the Liverpool Boys' Brigade has received the following letter from Lord Wolseley , who takes a deep interest in movements for the improvement of boys ; " 6 , Hill-street , W ., " 14 th December , 1889 . " Dear Mr . Richards ,

" I am glad to know that a brother Mason has taken up this matter of our young " waifs and strays . " It is very fitting that such work in the cause of humanity should be done by one of our Craft , and no one can wish you success more earnestly than I do . If we wish our people to be virtuous , imbued with faith in

God , and with loyalty to the Queen , we must watch over the education of our boys . I believe this can be done in no better way than by these " boys ' brigades . " There the mind and body are both cared for , and the boys learn that discipline and respect for authority which civilizes them and , above all things ,

contributes to make them useful subjects and good Englishmen . The boys are the fathers of the future , and that future , as regards our great Empire , as well as the United Kingdom , depends upon what we make of these boys , that is , how we educate and bring them up .

All who love England and who hope she may continue to be the great country our fathers made her must wish you God speed . I do with all my heart . " Believe me to be , very truly yours , " WOLSELEY . " To Lieutenant Frank Richards . "

Hughan's "Apollo" Lodge.

HUGHAN'S "APOLLO" LODGE .

" The histories of Masonic lodges , such as the 'Apollo' of York , are valuable in many respects . Their worth consists not alone in the record of iacts presented , but likewise in the flashing of light upon many obscure places along the way of Masonic progress . Indirectly they benefit by the notice of events and

persons that may lead to investigation in various directions , and thus be productive of future larger results . Any history of a prominent Masonic organisation , even of a strictly local character , if edited in a careful ancl wise manner , must have value both because of its narrations and its suggestions . The

history now in hand deserves commendation for such wise and careful condensation and editing . Bro . Hughan has not attempted a full and comprehensive work , but what he has clone has been well clone , and includes much valuable information . We shall refer

to the history in a subsequent number , and give to our readers the author ' s treatment of several important topics . The work may be obtained by applying to Bro . Hughan , at Torquay , England , ancl sending price of volume , 5 s . "—Freemasons' Repository , Providence , Rhode Island .

The Canadian Craftsman thinks that a " rough ashlar " is a Mason who does not subscribe for a Masonic paper or read a Masonic book .