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Article PROVINCIAL. ← Page 27 of 36 →
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Provincial.
presented the same old primeval landmarks above that deluge which had swept away the men and the institutions contemporaneous with its birth . Nor did it present the aspect of a venerable ruin—it was not ja wreck of past greatness ; but , on the contrary , its professors were found in every clime , its resources were ample , and its means existed everywhere ; and it was for this reason—that it still taught the same lessons , that it still inculcated the same principles , as in the days of its remote foundation—that it had been weighed in the balance of
3 , 000 years , and not found wanting . If that were the case throughout the wide world , it was much more so in England ; for in no country were its members more highly honoured , its resources more ample , or its charities more valuable and extended . The W . M . had done him the honour to refer to the slight services he had been enabled to perform in furtherance of the advantage of the Order . He felt that he had no claim to praise on that ground ; but from what he had seen of Grand Lodge he was bound to say that those who had been raised to power , so far from endeavouring to correct proved abuses , threw the whole weight of their
official influence in opposition to any measures for removing them . He believed they had entered upon the opening of a year which would prove most eventful in Masonry . Grand Lodge was the representative of the whole body , and the one element of vigour and strength alone required was that the country Lodges should take a more active part in its deliberations , so that it should indeed become in fact what it was in name , the representative of the Craft throughout the whole length and breadth of the land . The difficulties by which they were surrounded might at first appear great , but they would diminish as they were faced , and
everything would revert into its former channel of unruffled flow . This could be effected , and Masonry advanced both in England and the colonies , without in any way interfering with their constitutions , beyond the carrying of them out in their strictest integrity . The noble earl then reverted to the position and prospects of affairs in Canada , and said : Four years of unredressed complaint had perilled the allegiance of the Canadian Lodges ; but he hoped and believed the proffer of a full measure of justice and reconciliation would yet have the effect of preserving
Canada as an affiliation of the Order in England . But to secure this , her just and reasonable claims must be conceded , and she must be admitted to a proper share in the management of her local affairs , and a concurrent voice in the election of her Grand Master—concurrent , not supreme . Were this done he believed their ( banadian Brethren would yet heartily respond to the government of Grand Lodge , and their Order would stand out the more resplendent and with greater strength from the difficulties which neglect at home had for a time engendered . The noble earl resumed his seat amidst loud cheers .
Bro . the Earl of Carnarvon next proposed , in neat and appropriate terms , the " Health of the W . M . Bro . Bagshawe , " who appropriately acknowledged the toast , and gave the "Health of the B . Ms ., " which was responded to in a manly and animated address by Bro . Higginson , who expressed the pleasurable associations with which he should always recall ( in his approaching departure from Bath ) his connection with the Royal Cumberland Lodge . The next toast was the " Grand Lodges of Ireland and Scotland . " The Rev . Bro . W . C . Magee responded , and said , that having been absent some ten or
eleven years from Masonry , he had great pleasure in renewing his acquaintance with it , and he looked upon the circumstance of his having done so that evening as a most auspicious event in his life . The last time he had met a company of the Brotherhood was in the Grand Lodge of Ireland , which was followed by a banquet , at which some English visitors were present , and the Irish Masons had endeavoured on that occasion to do honour to Irish hospitality ; but he was bound to say , after the experience of this evening , that he had been taught that hospitality was not so exclusively an Irish virtue as his fellow-countrymen had flattered themselves it was . ( Laughter . )
The " Brov . Grand Lodge " of Bristol" was appropriately acknowledged by Bro . Nash , D . Brov . G . M . ; who bore kindly testimony to the cordiality which had always existed between the Lodges of the neighbouring cities . He had heard with great satisfaction that evening from the noble lord ' s lips , the expression of those sentiments with reference to central management to which he had given
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Provincial.
presented the same old primeval landmarks above that deluge which had swept away the men and the institutions contemporaneous with its birth . Nor did it present the aspect of a venerable ruin—it was not ja wreck of past greatness ; but , on the contrary , its professors were found in every clime , its resources were ample , and its means existed everywhere ; and it was for this reason—that it still taught the same lessons , that it still inculcated the same principles , as in the days of its remote foundation—that it had been weighed in the balance of
3 , 000 years , and not found wanting . If that were the case throughout the wide world , it was much more so in England ; for in no country were its members more highly honoured , its resources more ample , or its charities more valuable and extended . The W . M . had done him the honour to refer to the slight services he had been enabled to perform in furtherance of the advantage of the Order . He felt that he had no claim to praise on that ground ; but from what he had seen of Grand Lodge he was bound to say that those who had been raised to power , so far from endeavouring to correct proved abuses , threw the whole weight of their
official influence in opposition to any measures for removing them . He believed they had entered upon the opening of a year which would prove most eventful in Masonry . Grand Lodge was the representative of the whole body , and the one element of vigour and strength alone required was that the country Lodges should take a more active part in its deliberations , so that it should indeed become in fact what it was in name , the representative of the Craft throughout the whole length and breadth of the land . The difficulties by which they were surrounded might at first appear great , but they would diminish as they were faced , and
everything would revert into its former channel of unruffled flow . This could be effected , and Masonry advanced both in England and the colonies , without in any way interfering with their constitutions , beyond the carrying of them out in their strictest integrity . The noble earl then reverted to the position and prospects of affairs in Canada , and said : Four years of unredressed complaint had perilled the allegiance of the Canadian Lodges ; but he hoped and believed the proffer of a full measure of justice and reconciliation would yet have the effect of preserving
Canada as an affiliation of the Order in England . But to secure this , her just and reasonable claims must be conceded , and she must be admitted to a proper share in the management of her local affairs , and a concurrent voice in the election of her Grand Master—concurrent , not supreme . Were this done he believed their ( banadian Brethren would yet heartily respond to the government of Grand Lodge , and their Order would stand out the more resplendent and with greater strength from the difficulties which neglect at home had for a time engendered . The noble earl resumed his seat amidst loud cheers .
Bro . the Earl of Carnarvon next proposed , in neat and appropriate terms , the " Health of the W . M . Bro . Bagshawe , " who appropriately acknowledged the toast , and gave the "Health of the B . Ms ., " which was responded to in a manly and animated address by Bro . Higginson , who expressed the pleasurable associations with which he should always recall ( in his approaching departure from Bath ) his connection with the Royal Cumberland Lodge . The next toast was the " Grand Lodges of Ireland and Scotland . " The Rev . Bro . W . C . Magee responded , and said , that having been absent some ten or
eleven years from Masonry , he had great pleasure in renewing his acquaintance with it , and he looked upon the circumstance of his having done so that evening as a most auspicious event in his life . The last time he had met a company of the Brotherhood was in the Grand Lodge of Ireland , which was followed by a banquet , at which some English visitors were present , and the Irish Masons had endeavoured on that occasion to do honour to Irish hospitality ; but he was bound to say , after the experience of this evening , that he had been taught that hospitality was not so exclusively an Irish virtue as his fellow-countrymen had flattered themselves it was . ( Laughter . )
The " Brov . Grand Lodge " of Bristol" was appropriately acknowledged by Bro . Nash , D . Brov . G . M . ; who bore kindly testimony to the cordiality which had always existed between the Lodges of the neighbouring cities . He had heard with great satisfaction that evening from the noble lord ' s lips , the expression of those sentiments with reference to central management to which he had given