Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
History Of The Royal Masonic Institution For Boys.
. unanimously " that the thanks of the meeting be given to Bro . Lindo for his eminent services as Treasurer , and that a resolution to that effect ( svhich Mr . Edsvards Harper undertook to prepare ) be transmitted to Bro . Lindo by the Secretary . " Bro . Lindo , after this , passes entirely out of sighta circumstance svhich is the more to be regretted osving to the difiicultics ssilh which his successors for a . lime were confronted , and svhich he no doubt ssould have materially assisted in preventing .
I bus far sve have given our attention to thc measures svhich sverc instituted by Bro . Lindo in person or in which hc seems to have taken a leading part , as much from his individual anxiety to remove all difficulties and disagreements and the small remains of ancient risalries as from his high sense of duty as the chief officer of the Institution . But these are by no means all the csen . ts svhich , so long as the Charity endures , svill make
memorable the term of his government , and amply justify the eulogy bestosved at the lime by Bro . Daniel , svhen he svrotc of him as " our svorthy ¦ and most respected Treasurer , Bro . L . Lindo , Esq ., svhose zeal for Masonry can be equalled only by the goodness of his heart . " The Festivals that svere held during his tenure of office , so far as any information respecting them is vouchsafed to us , appear lo have been on thc svhole successful . That of thc
year 1 S 15 svas Held on the loth April , svhen Lord Dundas , Dep . G . M ., presided in place of the Duke of Sussex , and subscriptions sverc announced lo thc extent of £ t / 7 ios . Cd . On the 15 th February , iSifi , it svas held at the Crosvn and Anchor , under the presidency of the Duke of Sussex , and £ 222 2 s . Cd . svas the sum announced . Nothing is recorded about the Festival of 1817 , svhich svas held at Freemasons' Tavern , and lo svhich a
passing reference has already been made . The minutes state that " the company is-as more numerous and the collections after dinner much greater than on any former occasion , " and yet , as if in sheer mockery of our very natural curiosity to knosv more about thc " collections , " the space for recording their total is left blank . This is thc occasion on svhich the Duke of Sussex , svho presided , presented Bro . Lindo svith his testimonial , afler
svhich his Royal Highness svith many kindly svords of recommendation handed the medals given by Bros . Lindo and Daniel to the boys to svhom the Stesvards had respectively adjudged them—one to David Humphreys , svho , sve arc told , " although only 9 years . of age , recited an ode svritten by the Rev . G . A . Ilrosvn , Fcllosv of Trinity College , Cambridge , in such a manner as to astonish and delight the company , " and the other to Thomas
Sassgood . The hoy Humphreys is referred lo in tlie Memoir eif Sir F . C , Daniel , Knt ., M . D ., as having been one of thc " 15 promising Boys , " svho svere received into the Daniel Charity . His remarkable powers ol oratory as well as abilities in svriting are also alluded to , and for these gills he is said to have been honoured by three different medals , presented to him by the Duke of Sussex at different anniversaries , " on svhich occasions ,
according . to ihe author of the said memoir , he appears to have recited an . " appeal to Masonic Benevolence ( svritten by Sir Francis ) . " Atthe Festival of 1822 , thc last svith svhich he had anything to do , Bro . Lindo himself occupied thc chair , thc Duke of Sussex being unable lo attend , but the Donations and Subscriptions shosved a considerable falling off , amounting only to , £ 194 7 s ., and as a consequence it svas resolved that no election
should lake place till July , 1 * 23 . In September , lSirt , Grand Lodge , al the suggestion of the Grand Master , resolved "that it be recommended to the Governors of the tsso Schools to consider svhat number v ( votes the M . W . Grand Master may , svithout prejudice to those Institutions , exercise , in consideration of the Grants antl Payments from the Funds of thc Grand Lodge , at all elections
relative to those Establishments . " Il somcsshal grates on our feelings to read of Princely . personages suggesting a mutual interchange of equis * alents , at least in cases in svhich they are themselves concerned , and those who are fond of establishing contrasts svill doubtless compare the request of the Royal Duke for his quid pro quo svith the quiet dignity of- his " . Ancient " predecessor , the Duke of Atholl , to svhom the idea of asking for himself
votes in respect of the "Grants and Payments " made by his Grand Lodge seems never to have presented itself . I losvcvcr , the suggestion svas referred to the School'Executives and a letter from the Secretary of thc Girls' School having been read at the Ouarterly Meeting svhich follosved next after the suggestion made in Grand Lodge , a Committee consisting of Bros . James Agar and Thomas Harper , Past D . G . Masters , and Bro . Lindo , P . G . S . W ., svas appointed to confer on the subject svith a Committee to be appointed
by the Girls' School . Nothing is said as to thc proposal recommended by the Committee , and sve have not as yet had the good fortune to meet svith a list of Governors and Subscribers , but . in one for 1 S 29 , wc find 16 votes credited to his Royal Highness thc Grand Master , but svhether these svere in respect of the Duke ' s personal subscriptions or for " the Grants and Payments from the Funds of the Grand Lodge , " it is out of our posver to determine .
It svill doubtless be gathered from thc favourable terms in svhich sve have spoken of Bro . Lindo ' s Treasurership that the financial position of thc Charity caused little or no anxiety to him and the Executive Committee , but the minules by no means justify such a conclusion , and at njore than one meeting the question of svays and means svould seem to have given rise to serious misgivings . Thus sve read in the minutes of the Ouarterly
Court held on 1 st July , 1 S 1 fi , that * ' upon hearing a statement maae by the Treasurer respecting the finances of the Institution , it svas unanimously resolved that a report thereupon be presented to the Board of Finance , and that Bros . Agar , Harper , and Browne be requested to prepare and present such report accordingly . " Again , on 6 th October , 1 S 17 , Bro . Leslie , jun ., gave notice of his intention to move lhat at the next Quarterly Meeting
application be made lo Grand Lodge to order payment of certain additional sums by lodges and brethren , lo be applied in equal moieties to the tsvo Schools . " At the meeting on the 3 rd May , 1819 , sve read that " thc Committee ( having been specially summoned for the purpose ) proceeded to take into consideration the present state of the finances of the Charity , svhen , after full deliberation , il svas unanimously resolved lhat a memorial be presented to thc United Grand Lodge for the purpose of-soliciling aid and
assistance , and that it be referred to the Chairman , Bro . T . Harper , P . !) . G . M ., the Treasurer , and the Secretary to prepare such memorial accordingly . " Al the Ouarterly Meeting on 2 nd October , 1820 , the funds of the . Charity svere such that it svas resolved that no more children should be admitted until July next , svhen the ( ihen ) present and intermediate vacancies were to . be filled up . At the Ouarterly Meeting on 2 nd April , 1821 , the
1 reasurer having announced to the meeting that thc Grand . Master had . appointed the 28 th May for holding thc Festival , " then reported that the balance "—over £ 110— " svhich remained in his hands on the audit of the accounts "—thc previous January— " had been since entirely expended , and that the bills for clothing the children for the present year , amounting to upsvards of £ 100 , still remained unpaid * that 52 boys svere then on the
History Of The Royal Masonic Institution For Boys.
establishment , and that there syere iS vacancies to be filled up in July next from a list of 55 candidates , 30 of svhom sverc orphans . " It should be stated in explanation of the number of vacancies that thc establishment svhich , ' on the union of the original and the Daniel Charities , had been raised from 55—the number at the close of 1 S 13—to 65 , had been augmented 10 70 from July , 1 S 1 S . Thai such a report should become the subject of very grave
consideration svas a matter of course , nor svill . it occasion surprise to any one that it should have been " unanimously resolved that it svould not be prudent to order the above vacancies to be filled up until the amount of the subscriptions at thc Festis- ' al . be previously ascertained , and therefore that it be referred to the Committee at their meeting in June to ascertain and determine svhether the then stale of the finances svill authorise the
admission of any and svhat number of the children remaining on the list , and that in the meantime the state of the Charity be made knosvn to the lodges and to thc Governors and Subscribers , and that they be respectfully requested to exert themscls * es on its behalf . " It is clear from the sequel that the invitation to lodges and brethren to exert themselves must have been respond : d lo vcry cordially ; but it is extremely disappointing to be left in
ignorant : 1 of the result of such extraordinary efforts . The Juiie minutes only stat * 3 that " upon hearing from the Treasurer a statement of the amount of the collection of the last Festival , it svas ordered that all thc s'acancies for children be filled tip in July next , " and accordingly svhen the time arrived , such s'acancies , svhich in the meantime had increased to tsventy , svere filled up from the somesvhat slightly diminished list of -n candidates .
Nor svere the efforts svhich had secured so satisfactory a result unrecognised , for svhen thc election svas over the Governors and Subscribers present " unanimously resoh * ed that the grateful thanks of this meeting be given to the members ofthe Board of Stesvards for thc last Festival for the zeal , liberality , and un wearied exertions svhich have enabled the Governors this evening to undertake the pleasing duty of electing tsventy Children into the
Charity . " But though the Gosernors and Subscribers and those interested in thc Charity appear to has * c exerted themselves vigorously enough on such urgent occasions as that just recorded , they do not seem to have sufficiently appreciated the necessity of making a sustained effort , such as svould place the maintenance of the Charity at its established strength beyond the probability of doubt . It is true thc funded property of the Institution svas
vcry small—so small that the interest did not suffice to pay thc Secretary ' s salary—but the annual payments regularly and by lasv made by Grand Lodge constituted a very much larger proportion—betsveen one-third and one-half—of thc total income of thc Charity than it does nosv , and it ought not to have been a matter of such extreme difficulty as it appears to have been , if sve may judge from the frequent notices and resolutions sve have
just quoted , to raise by means of the Festival and othersvisc the remaining £ 300 , more or less , that svas required to meet thc ordinary expenses of the year . Bul though the Committee at its next meeting after the election just referred to agreed to " recommend to the next Ouarterly Meeting to pass a resolution ' That every Lifc Subscriber of this Charity shall , upon payment of an additional sum , of 5 guineas , be entitled to thc privileges of a Life
uovcrnor , " and though thc utmost care svas taken , under the vigilant supervision of the Treasurer , to keep thc expenditure svithin the narrosvest possible limits , the Festival of thc very next year , at svhich , as already mentioned , Bro . Lindo presided in the absence of thc Duke of Sussex , exhibited so serious a diminution of receipts—the donations and subscriptions amounting only to a fraction over £ u ) i—that it is recorded in the minutes
of thc Committee meeting in June , 1822 , that " as the result of the Festival ( £ l V 4 7 S- ) wi- scarcely sufficient to defray thc expenses of clothing the children at present in thc establishment , it svas unanimously resolved lhat the vacancies for candidates be not filled up until July , 1823 . " Indeed , svhen Bro . Lindo resigned , and his resignation svas shortly aftersvards follosved by that of the able and long-experienced Secretary . Bro . AVilliam
Hancock , the condition of the Charity became far less satisfactory , and as sve proceed , it will be seen that very many ycars elapsed erc'thc Governors - and Subscribers again had entrusted to them the " pleasing duty " of restoring thc establishment to its full strength of seventy children . Among other matters which engaged thc attention of the authorities , either incidentally or in the ordinary course of their duty , the Question of
the Trusteeship of the Charity ' s funded property svould seem to have been the cause of frequent trouble . It had been arranged as far back as April , 1 S 14 , svhen Bro . Leslie svas still Treasurer , that a nesv bod y of Trustees , consisting of Bros . Leslie , Gill , Scott , and Lindo , should be appointed . In June , 1815 , sve learn thai "Bro . Charles Humphreys , one of the old Trustees , having declined lo be a party to thc transfer of the funded
property of the Institution to the new Trustees until it shall have been ordered in accordance svith his viesvs of thc Rules and Regulations submitted , " it svas resolved that the question be submitted at the Annual Meeting , and steps taken to compel thc transfer . At tho said Annual Meeting in July the question svas " referred to a Sub-Committee , consisting of Bros . James Agar , Isaac Lindo , Thos . Harper , and Robert Leslie , svho svere to
report at the next Ouarterly Meeting . " No doubt this Sub-Committee delivered a report ; but it is not till the Committee Meeting of 4 th February , 1822 , that thesubject re-appears in the Minutes , and then sve read that "thc Secretary svas requested to see Mr . Charles Humphreys on thc subject of transferring the funded property of the Charity lo new Trustees to be appointed at the next Quarterly Meeting . " The Secretary evidently
earned out his instructions , for svhen , the month follosving , the-Committee took into their consideration the propriety of dissenting from receiving Four per Cent . Annuities in lieu of thc then funded property of the Charity , it appears to have been resolved " to accept the . Four per Cent . Stock if Mr . Charles Humphreys should , on application , refuse to join in . a sale and trans- . fcr of the £ 500 Navy Annuities standing in his name and in the names of *
Bros . Leslie , Scott , and Gill ; and that as the latter gentleman had very recently died , and the tsvo former svere very aged and infirm , it would be advisable to proceed to a nesv election of Trustees at the next Ouarterly Meeting . " At the appointed time , Bros . John Ratnsbotlom , MTP ., Isaac . Lindo , Benjamin Rouse , and Jas . Alexander Frampton sverc elected Trustees , and in July , the Secretary having read a letter he had svritten lo
Bro . Humphreys on the 13 th March , and the Iatter ' s anssver thereto , "it svas unanimously resolved that the Secretary be authorised and emposvered lo take the necessary measures to procure a transfer of the funded property of the Institution by Bros . Robert Leslie , Thomas Scott , and Charles Humphreys to Bros . John Ramsbottom , H ! sq ., M . P ., Isaac Lindo , Esq ., Benjamin
Rouse , Esq ., and Jas . Alexander Frampton , Esq ., the nesv Trustees elected at the Ouarterly Meeting in April last , the Secretary undertaking at the same time to make no charge in that respect to the Charity beyond the money he might necessarily expend in doing it . " " ( To be continued . ) "
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
History Of The Royal Masonic Institution For Boys.
. unanimously " that the thanks of the meeting be given to Bro . Lindo for his eminent services as Treasurer , and that a resolution to that effect ( svhich Mr . Edsvards Harper undertook to prepare ) be transmitted to Bro . Lindo by the Secretary . " Bro . Lindo , after this , passes entirely out of sighta circumstance svhich is the more to be regretted osving to the difiicultics ssilh which his successors for a . lime were confronted , and svhich he no doubt ssould have materially assisted in preventing .
I bus far sve have given our attention to thc measures svhich sverc instituted by Bro . Lindo in person or in which hc seems to have taken a leading part , as much from his individual anxiety to remove all difficulties and disagreements and the small remains of ancient risalries as from his high sense of duty as the chief officer of the Institution . But these are by no means all the csen . ts svhich , so long as the Charity endures , svill make
memorable the term of his government , and amply justify the eulogy bestosved at the lime by Bro . Daniel , svhen he svrotc of him as " our svorthy ¦ and most respected Treasurer , Bro . L . Lindo , Esq ., svhose zeal for Masonry can be equalled only by the goodness of his heart . " The Festivals that svere held during his tenure of office , so far as any information respecting them is vouchsafed to us , appear lo have been on thc svhole successful . That of thc
year 1 S 15 svas Held on the loth April , svhen Lord Dundas , Dep . G . M ., presided in place of the Duke of Sussex , and subscriptions sverc announced lo thc extent of £ t / 7 ios . Cd . On the 15 th February , iSifi , it svas held at the Crosvn and Anchor , under the presidency of the Duke of Sussex , and £ 222 2 s . Cd . svas the sum announced . Nothing is recorded about the Festival of 1817 , svhich svas held at Freemasons' Tavern , and lo svhich a
passing reference has already been made . The minutes state that " the company is-as more numerous and the collections after dinner much greater than on any former occasion , " and yet , as if in sheer mockery of our very natural curiosity to knosv more about thc " collections , " the space for recording their total is left blank . This is thc occasion on svhich the Duke of Sussex , svho presided , presented Bro . Lindo svith his testimonial , afler
svhich his Royal Highness svith many kindly svords of recommendation handed the medals given by Bros . Lindo and Daniel to the boys to svhom the Stesvards had respectively adjudged them—one to David Humphreys , svho , sve arc told , " although only 9 years . of age , recited an ode svritten by the Rev . G . A . Ilrosvn , Fcllosv of Trinity College , Cambridge , in such a manner as to astonish and delight the company , " and the other to Thomas
Sassgood . The hoy Humphreys is referred lo in tlie Memoir eif Sir F . C , Daniel , Knt ., M . D ., as having been one of thc " 15 promising Boys , " svho svere received into the Daniel Charity . His remarkable powers ol oratory as well as abilities in svriting are also alluded to , and for these gills he is said to have been honoured by three different medals , presented to him by the Duke of Sussex at different anniversaries , " on svhich occasions ,
according . to ihe author of the said memoir , he appears to have recited an . " appeal to Masonic Benevolence ( svritten by Sir Francis ) . " Atthe Festival of 1822 , thc last svith svhich he had anything to do , Bro . Lindo himself occupied thc chair , thc Duke of Sussex being unable lo attend , but the Donations and Subscriptions shosved a considerable falling off , amounting only to , £ 194 7 s ., and as a consequence it svas resolved that no election
should lake place till July , 1 * 23 . In September , lSirt , Grand Lodge , al the suggestion of the Grand Master , resolved "that it be recommended to the Governors of the tsso Schools to consider svhat number v ( votes the M . W . Grand Master may , svithout prejudice to those Institutions , exercise , in consideration of the Grants antl Payments from the Funds of thc Grand Lodge , at all elections
relative to those Establishments . " Il somcsshal grates on our feelings to read of Princely . personages suggesting a mutual interchange of equis * alents , at least in cases in svhich they are themselves concerned , and those who are fond of establishing contrasts svill doubtless compare the request of the Royal Duke for his quid pro quo svith the quiet dignity of- his " . Ancient " predecessor , the Duke of Atholl , to svhom the idea of asking for himself
votes in respect of the "Grants and Payments " made by his Grand Lodge seems never to have presented itself . I losvcvcr , the suggestion svas referred to the School'Executives and a letter from the Secretary of thc Girls' School having been read at the Ouarterly Meeting svhich follosved next after the suggestion made in Grand Lodge , a Committee consisting of Bros . James Agar and Thomas Harper , Past D . G . Masters , and Bro . Lindo , P . G . S . W ., svas appointed to confer on the subject svith a Committee to be appointed
by the Girls' School . Nothing is said as to thc proposal recommended by the Committee , and sve have not as yet had the good fortune to meet svith a list of Governors and Subscribers , but . in one for 1 S 29 , wc find 16 votes credited to his Royal Highness thc Grand Master , but svhether these svere in respect of the Duke ' s personal subscriptions or for " the Grants and Payments from the Funds of the Grand Lodge , " it is out of our posver to determine .
It svill doubtless be gathered from thc favourable terms in svhich sve have spoken of Bro . Lindo ' s Treasurership that the financial position of thc Charity caused little or no anxiety to him and the Executive Committee , but the minules by no means justify such a conclusion , and at njore than one meeting the question of svays and means svould seem to have given rise to serious misgivings . Thus sve read in the minutes of the Ouarterly
Court held on 1 st July , 1 S 1 fi , that * ' upon hearing a statement maae by the Treasurer respecting the finances of the Institution , it svas unanimously resolved that a report thereupon be presented to the Board of Finance , and that Bros . Agar , Harper , and Browne be requested to prepare and present such report accordingly . " Again , on 6 th October , 1 S 17 , Bro . Leslie , jun ., gave notice of his intention to move lhat at the next Quarterly Meeting
application be made lo Grand Lodge to order payment of certain additional sums by lodges and brethren , lo be applied in equal moieties to the tsvo Schools . " At the meeting on the 3 rd May , 1819 , sve read that " thc Committee ( having been specially summoned for the purpose ) proceeded to take into consideration the present state of the finances of the Charity , svhen , after full deliberation , il svas unanimously resolved lhat a memorial be presented to thc United Grand Lodge for the purpose of-soliciling aid and
assistance , and that it be referred to the Chairman , Bro . T . Harper , P . !) . G . M ., the Treasurer , and the Secretary to prepare such memorial accordingly . " Al the Ouarterly Meeting on 2 nd October , 1820 , the funds of the . Charity svere such that it svas resolved that no more children should be admitted until July next , svhen the ( ihen ) present and intermediate vacancies were to . be filled up . At the Ouarterly Meeting on 2 nd April , 1821 , the
1 reasurer having announced to the meeting that thc Grand . Master had . appointed the 28 th May for holding thc Festival , " then reported that the balance "—over £ 110— " svhich remained in his hands on the audit of the accounts "—thc previous January— " had been since entirely expended , and that the bills for clothing the children for the present year , amounting to upsvards of £ 100 , still remained unpaid * that 52 boys svere then on the
History Of The Royal Masonic Institution For Boys.
establishment , and that there syere iS vacancies to be filled up in July next from a list of 55 candidates , 30 of svhom sverc orphans . " It should be stated in explanation of the number of vacancies that thc establishment svhich , ' on the union of the original and the Daniel Charities , had been raised from 55—the number at the close of 1 S 13—to 65 , had been augmented 10 70 from July , 1 S 1 S . Thai such a report should become the subject of very grave
consideration svas a matter of course , nor svill . it occasion surprise to any one that it should have been " unanimously resolved that it svould not be prudent to order the above vacancies to be filled up until the amount of the subscriptions at thc Festis- ' al . be previously ascertained , and therefore that it be referred to the Committee at their meeting in June to ascertain and determine svhether the then stale of the finances svill authorise the
admission of any and svhat number of the children remaining on the list , and that in the meantime the state of the Charity be made knosvn to the lodges and to thc Governors and Subscribers , and that they be respectfully requested to exert themscls * es on its behalf . " It is clear from the sequel that the invitation to lodges and brethren to exert themselves must have been respond : d lo vcry cordially ; but it is extremely disappointing to be left in
ignorant : 1 of the result of such extraordinary efforts . The Juiie minutes only stat * 3 that " upon hearing from the Treasurer a statement of the amount of the collection of the last Festival , it svas ordered that all thc s'acancies for children be filled tip in July next , " and accordingly svhen the time arrived , such s'acancies , svhich in the meantime had increased to tsventy , svere filled up from the somesvhat slightly diminished list of -n candidates .
Nor svere the efforts svhich had secured so satisfactory a result unrecognised , for svhen thc election svas over the Governors and Subscribers present " unanimously resoh * ed that the grateful thanks of this meeting be given to the members ofthe Board of Stesvards for thc last Festival for the zeal , liberality , and un wearied exertions svhich have enabled the Governors this evening to undertake the pleasing duty of electing tsventy Children into the
Charity . " But though the Gosernors and Subscribers and those interested in thc Charity appear to has * c exerted themselves vigorously enough on such urgent occasions as that just recorded , they do not seem to have sufficiently appreciated the necessity of making a sustained effort , such as svould place the maintenance of the Charity at its established strength beyond the probability of doubt . It is true thc funded property of the Institution svas
vcry small—so small that the interest did not suffice to pay thc Secretary ' s salary—but the annual payments regularly and by lasv made by Grand Lodge constituted a very much larger proportion—betsveen one-third and one-half—of thc total income of thc Charity than it does nosv , and it ought not to have been a matter of such extreme difficulty as it appears to have been , if sve may judge from the frequent notices and resolutions sve have
just quoted , to raise by means of the Festival and othersvisc the remaining £ 300 , more or less , that svas required to meet thc ordinary expenses of the year . Bul though the Committee at its next meeting after the election just referred to agreed to " recommend to the next Ouarterly Meeting to pass a resolution ' That every Lifc Subscriber of this Charity shall , upon payment of an additional sum , of 5 guineas , be entitled to thc privileges of a Life
uovcrnor , " and though thc utmost care svas taken , under the vigilant supervision of the Treasurer , to keep thc expenditure svithin the narrosvest possible limits , the Festival of thc very next year , at svhich , as already mentioned , Bro . Lindo presided in the absence of thc Duke of Sussex , exhibited so serious a diminution of receipts—the donations and subscriptions amounting only to a fraction over £ u ) i—that it is recorded in the minutes
of thc Committee meeting in June , 1822 , that " as the result of the Festival ( £ l V 4 7 S- ) wi- scarcely sufficient to defray thc expenses of clothing the children at present in thc establishment , it svas unanimously resolved lhat the vacancies for candidates be not filled up until July , 1823 . " Indeed , svhen Bro . Lindo resigned , and his resignation svas shortly aftersvards follosved by that of the able and long-experienced Secretary . Bro . AVilliam
Hancock , the condition of the Charity became far less satisfactory , and as sve proceed , it will be seen that very many ycars elapsed erc'thc Governors - and Subscribers again had entrusted to them the " pleasing duty " of restoring thc establishment to its full strength of seventy children . Among other matters which engaged thc attention of the authorities , either incidentally or in the ordinary course of their duty , the Question of
the Trusteeship of the Charity ' s funded property svould seem to have been the cause of frequent trouble . It had been arranged as far back as April , 1 S 14 , svhen Bro . Leslie svas still Treasurer , that a nesv bod y of Trustees , consisting of Bros . Leslie , Gill , Scott , and Lindo , should be appointed . In June , 1815 , sve learn thai "Bro . Charles Humphreys , one of the old Trustees , having declined lo be a party to thc transfer of the funded
property of the Institution to the new Trustees until it shall have been ordered in accordance svith his viesvs of thc Rules and Regulations submitted , " it svas resolved that the question be submitted at the Annual Meeting , and steps taken to compel thc transfer . At tho said Annual Meeting in July the question svas " referred to a Sub-Committee , consisting of Bros . James Agar , Isaac Lindo , Thos . Harper , and Robert Leslie , svho svere to
report at the next Ouarterly Meeting . " No doubt this Sub-Committee delivered a report ; but it is not till the Committee Meeting of 4 th February , 1822 , that thesubject re-appears in the Minutes , and then sve read that "thc Secretary svas requested to see Mr . Charles Humphreys on thc subject of transferring the funded property of the Charity lo new Trustees to be appointed at the next Quarterly Meeting . " The Secretary evidently
earned out his instructions , for svhen , the month follosving , the-Committee took into their consideration the propriety of dissenting from receiving Four per Cent . Annuities in lieu of thc then funded property of the Charity , it appears to have been resolved " to accept the . Four per Cent . Stock if Mr . Charles Humphreys should , on application , refuse to join in . a sale and trans- . fcr of the £ 500 Navy Annuities standing in his name and in the names of *
Bros . Leslie , Scott , and Gill ; and that as the latter gentleman had very recently died , and the tsvo former svere very aged and infirm , it would be advisable to proceed to a nesv election of Trustees at the next Ouarterly Meeting . " At the appointed time , Bros . John Ratnsbotlom , MTP ., Isaac . Lindo , Benjamin Rouse , and Jas . Alexander Frampton sverc elected Trustees , and in July , the Secretary having read a letter he had svritten lo
Bro . Humphreys on the 13 th March , and the Iatter ' s anssver thereto , "it svas unanimously resolved that the Secretary be authorised and emposvered lo take the necessary measures to procure a transfer of the funded property of the Institution by Bros . Robert Leslie , Thomas Scott , and Charles Humphreys to Bros . John Ramsbottom , H ! sq ., M . P ., Isaac Lindo , Esq ., Benjamin
Rouse , Esq ., and Jas . Alexander Frampton , Esq ., the nesv Trustees elected at the Ouarterly Meeting in April last , the Secretary undertaking at the same time to make no charge in that respect to the Charity beyond the money he might necessarily expend in doing it . " " ( To be continued . ) "