Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Festival Of The Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution.
Festival of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution .
''pHE Annual Festival of this Institution took place at the I Hotel Cecil , on Wednesday , 22 nd February , under the presidency of the Right Hon . Lord Stanley , M . P ., Provincial Grand Master for East Lancashire . The gathering proved the largest on record for an ordinary festival , so large indeed as to tax the immense dining hall to
its utmost capacity , and to necessitate an " overflow" into the Victoria Hall , which had been set apart for the entertainment of the ladies . In all there could not have been less than one thousand brethren and ladies present The toast of " His Majesty the King , protector of the
Order , " and that of " The Most Worshipful Grand Master , the Duke of Connaught and Strathearn " having been drunk with great enthusiasm , that of " The Pro Grand Master , the Deputy Grand Master , and the Grand Officers " was given by the chairman .
There was one thing , he said , that was essential to the Craft—that those who were put in high position should be men of good repute not only in the Masonic world , but in the world in general . If they were to retain their self-respect ;
W . DUO . . TAMES STEPHENS ( PATRON k THUSTEE ) , P . n . O . !) . (' ., ' TltEASUUEIt OK THE INSTITUTION . if they were to be respected by others , it was essential that those they chose to rule over them should have the respect and conlidence of every one . He did not think a single
brother in the room would take any exception to the fact that he and his younger brother enjoyed the unenviable distinction of belonging to the House of Commons . They were told in the House of Commons that they did nothing but talk . That might be so . He was glad to think that
some , at all events , reserved their energy for work , and one of those was Bro . Halsey , one of those whose names were associated with this toast , which he knew they would pledge heartily . He felt some hesitation in proposing this toast , because he had to associate it with the name of his own
brother . He had known him longer than anyone in the room , and he was quite content to think , and he hoped the brethren would think , as he was glad to think , that the fact of his being Grand Master of ( lie province of East Lancashire had not prevented his brother from being appointed Grand Master of the Isle of Man . Speaking of the other Grand Officers , besides his brother and himself , none were known
better in the Masonic world than the Grand Officers , and they upheld the good name and character of the Craft . If the brethren believed him they would join him in enthusiastically drinking their health . The Hon . Arthur Stanley , Provincial Grand Master for the Isle of Man , responded . On behalf of Grand Lodge
and the Grand Officers he congratulated the brethren and the Chairman very sincerely on what probably would be the result of the night ' s meeting . His Masonic brother justly remarked that they had been brothers for a considerable number of years , and he was kind enough to allude to him .
He had one fault to find with him , and only one , not only on being a brother , but on insisting on being an elder brother , but the circumstances were perfectly beyond his brother ' s control , and if he had been in his brother ' s place he should have done exactly the same thing . Might he say , in cutting this speech
short , although it was no disparagement to his brother , his impression , from a glance at the toast list , was that before the evening was over the brethren would have heard enough of the Stanley family . Lord Stanley , in proposing the toast of the
evening" Success to the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution for Aged Freemasons and Widows of Freemasons "—said his brother had paved the way for the boredom to be inflicted on the brethren by him . Before he thanked the brethren , as
he must do , for what they had done now and in the past , yet he had ground to think of an appeal to them in the future , and the best incentive he could give was that they should continue in the good work that they had clone and were doing . The object of the Masonic Benevolent Institution w ; is well known to the brethren , but the }* might not know to
what extent they were able to carry their generosity and charity . There were at the present moment on the books of the Institution 334 widows and 236 men as annuitants . The total of 570 persons involved the outlay of £ 22 , 000 on the part of the Society . For the next election to thirty-two
vacancies ( here were no less than 121 candidates . When he said he hoped there would be a good return that evening it was in that hope it had been thought it had been possible to put on an extra thirty annuitants . That was what they had clone in the past . He asked them to drink the health of this
Institution , and in drinking it they would think it was an embodiment of all that Masons held most dear to Masonry , doing in practice what they preached . It was a strenuous life which always went on . There was no room for the waster ; there was little help for those who fell by the wayside . It was true Masons had their secrets ; but there was a secret
which at the same time was no secret ; it was that perhaps which reminded them more than any other ol their secretsthat they wished to dispense charity to the best of their means and ability ; and the secret they wished to insist on was not to let their left hand know what their right hand did . Brother Masons throughout the world knew no distinction of county or
country , of creed or political party . There was a password that went to the heart of every Mason—it was the password of a brother fallen by the wayside holding out his hand for charity , asking brethren who possessed this world ' s goods to give to Masons equally good , with them a happy ending to
a hard life . This was the appeal that was made to them ; it was the appeal of the chairman , whoever he might be ; it was the appeal which had been made by the chairmen in the past , it would be the appeal of those who might have to take that position . Masons' chief feeling was charity ;
and that , if they would do what they wished to do—their duty to the Craft—was to do to others as they wished others to do to them . He had the happiness to go last Saturday to tiie Institution , where the annuitants , male and female , were enjoying the results of the brethren ' s generosity in the p .-tst . They were happy and content , and were looking forward to what would he the outcome of ( his
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Festival Of The Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution.
Festival of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution .
''pHE Annual Festival of this Institution took place at the I Hotel Cecil , on Wednesday , 22 nd February , under the presidency of the Right Hon . Lord Stanley , M . P ., Provincial Grand Master for East Lancashire . The gathering proved the largest on record for an ordinary festival , so large indeed as to tax the immense dining hall to
its utmost capacity , and to necessitate an " overflow" into the Victoria Hall , which had been set apart for the entertainment of the ladies . In all there could not have been less than one thousand brethren and ladies present The toast of " His Majesty the King , protector of the
Order , " and that of " The Most Worshipful Grand Master , the Duke of Connaught and Strathearn " having been drunk with great enthusiasm , that of " The Pro Grand Master , the Deputy Grand Master , and the Grand Officers " was given by the chairman .
There was one thing , he said , that was essential to the Craft—that those who were put in high position should be men of good repute not only in the Masonic world , but in the world in general . If they were to retain their self-respect ;
W . DUO . . TAMES STEPHENS ( PATRON k THUSTEE ) , P . n . O . !) . (' ., ' TltEASUUEIt OK THE INSTITUTION . if they were to be respected by others , it was essential that those they chose to rule over them should have the respect and conlidence of every one . He did not think a single
brother in the room would take any exception to the fact that he and his younger brother enjoyed the unenviable distinction of belonging to the House of Commons . They were told in the House of Commons that they did nothing but talk . That might be so . He was glad to think that
some , at all events , reserved their energy for work , and one of those was Bro . Halsey , one of those whose names were associated with this toast , which he knew they would pledge heartily . He felt some hesitation in proposing this toast , because he had to associate it with the name of his own
brother . He had known him longer than anyone in the room , and he was quite content to think , and he hoped the brethren would think , as he was glad to think , that the fact of his being Grand Master of ( lie province of East Lancashire had not prevented his brother from being appointed Grand Master of the Isle of Man . Speaking of the other Grand Officers , besides his brother and himself , none were known
better in the Masonic world than the Grand Officers , and they upheld the good name and character of the Craft . If the brethren believed him they would join him in enthusiastically drinking their health . The Hon . Arthur Stanley , Provincial Grand Master for the Isle of Man , responded . On behalf of Grand Lodge
and the Grand Officers he congratulated the brethren and the Chairman very sincerely on what probably would be the result of the night ' s meeting . His Masonic brother justly remarked that they had been brothers for a considerable number of years , and he was kind enough to allude to him .
He had one fault to find with him , and only one , not only on being a brother , but on insisting on being an elder brother , but the circumstances were perfectly beyond his brother ' s control , and if he had been in his brother ' s place he should have done exactly the same thing . Might he say , in cutting this speech
short , although it was no disparagement to his brother , his impression , from a glance at the toast list , was that before the evening was over the brethren would have heard enough of the Stanley family . Lord Stanley , in proposing the toast of the
evening" Success to the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution for Aged Freemasons and Widows of Freemasons "—said his brother had paved the way for the boredom to be inflicted on the brethren by him . Before he thanked the brethren , as
he must do , for what they had done now and in the past , yet he had ground to think of an appeal to them in the future , and the best incentive he could give was that they should continue in the good work that they had clone and were doing . The object of the Masonic Benevolent Institution w ; is well known to the brethren , but the }* might not know to
what extent they were able to carry their generosity and charity . There were at the present moment on the books of the Institution 334 widows and 236 men as annuitants . The total of 570 persons involved the outlay of £ 22 , 000 on the part of the Society . For the next election to thirty-two
vacancies ( here were no less than 121 candidates . When he said he hoped there would be a good return that evening it was in that hope it had been thought it had been possible to put on an extra thirty annuitants . That was what they had clone in the past . He asked them to drink the health of this
Institution , and in drinking it they would think it was an embodiment of all that Masons held most dear to Masonry , doing in practice what they preached . It was a strenuous life which always went on . There was no room for the waster ; there was little help for those who fell by the wayside . It was true Masons had their secrets ; but there was a secret
which at the same time was no secret ; it was that perhaps which reminded them more than any other ol their secretsthat they wished to dispense charity to the best of their means and ability ; and the secret they wished to insist on was not to let their left hand know what their right hand did . Brother Masons throughout the world knew no distinction of county or
country , of creed or political party . There was a password that went to the heart of every Mason—it was the password of a brother fallen by the wayside holding out his hand for charity , asking brethren who possessed this world ' s goods to give to Masons equally good , with them a happy ending to
a hard life . This was the appeal that was made to them ; it was the appeal of the chairman , whoever he might be ; it was the appeal which had been made by the chairmen in the past , it would be the appeal of those who might have to take that position . Masons' chief feeling was charity ;
and that , if they would do what they wished to do—their duty to the Craft—was to do to others as they wished others to do to them . He had the happiness to go last Saturday to tiie Institution , where the annuitants , male and female , were enjoying the results of the brethren ' s generosity in the p .-tst . They were happy and content , and were looking forward to what would he the outcome of ( his