Lodge Officers.

Lodge Officers .

THEIR QUALIFICATIONS , DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES .

® I | 3 Setter l ^ eatm

" Then that have , lascrf the office of a Deacon veil purchase to themselves a flood Degree . ' '—ST . PAUL . HHERE are no offices in a Masonic Lodge which are otherwise than of great importance in relation to the proper conduct of all its ceremonials , and although the necessities con-. 1 nected with ritual and performance require a subdivision

of the Officers into Principals and Assistants each in his station forms a necessary strand in that cord of union without which confusion and general disorder would prevail , and the work be jeopardized . Of the principal officers absolutely required by the constitutions of the Order for the purposes of Masonic work , and of the two important auxiliaries not included in the number of

Principals and Assistants , we have already treated . And now we approach the task of endeavouring to instruct those who should , of necessity , qualify themselves for the discharge of higher functions when the promotion which should attend merit is offered for their acceptance . Chief amongst these , as nearest by station to one of the principal chairs in the Lodge , and . as an occupant thereof , to

membership in Grand Lodge , is the Senior Deacon , the medium of communication betAveen the Worshipful Master and his Senior-Warden , and whose duty it is to see that all the Master ' s orders and commands are carefully and correctly conveyed and subsequently obeyed . He should be at all times sensible that this dirty is not one of the least important , and that by a thorough acquaintance with

the ritual of the three degrees , a gentlemanly and dignified manner of conducting the candidates throughout the respective ceremonies , and a ready and courteous reception of those brethren who honour his Lodge by their visits , he can make for himself a reputation which will surely advance his further preferment , and greatly enhance the credit and reputation of his Lodge .

We shall not here enter into the question of the institution of the office of Deacon as a necessary complement of working Freemasons in a perfect lodge . Whether before or after 1770 , it would have nothing to do with the present order of things . But it is interesting to know that the Deacons were appointed as the immediate deputies and assistants of the respective Wardens , and that the Wardens '

columns were at that time under the superintendence of the Deacons . It would appear that part of the Senior Deacon ' s duty was to see " that when the lodge is at labour the column of the Senior Warden is elevated . " Whether or not the control of that emblem is now rightly left with the principal officer in the west , it still remains a duty of the Senior Deacon to see that

the pillar of strength is " in evidence" during work , and that the tracing board of the degree is in its proper situation . Indeed it should be the care of that officer to observe all matters connected with the arrangement of the Lodge and its furniture , whether previous to commencement of or during- labour , so that all things connected with the reception of the brethren and the performance

of the work may be in order . In an old charge , delivered to the Senior Deacon , Ave read : " You will be attentive to the Master ; careful in introducing visitors , and in accommodating them ; watchful in preparation ; and although you halt at the door of the Temple , leading rightly those who require it . " This is an excellent summary of a Senior Deacon ' s duties , and needs only the addition

of an exhortation for punctual and early attendance at all meetings of the Lodge to make it perfect . A few words as to the accommodation of A'isitors—we have used the argument before , and shall probably do so again and again , and here they are pertinent to the charge above referred to : —The Senior Deacon ' s position is at or near the W . M ., and he should recognise that these words are

intended to convey to him that the place of honour allotted to the chief rulers of the Order and to distinguished visitors is on the immediate right of the W . M . He should in courtesy give place to these , and such courtesy never fails to be observed in favour of the Lodge . So long as the Senior Deacon is near the right of the W . M ., he is properly placed to receive commands .

As to the admission of A'isitors . we have noticed in some Lodges the invariable practice of reception of the visitor by the Senior Deacon ( or in some cases by the Director or Master of Ceremonies ) at the inner porch , whence , after salutation , he has been conducted to the East and presented to the AVorshipful Master before beinginvited to take his seat on the Master ' s right ; and we strongly

commend that practice as evidencing a full appreciation of the courteous manners and brotherly affection we are taught by our Antient Charges to observe towards one another . In Lodges wherein there is no regularly appointed Director or Master of Ceremonies , the functions of that office are , or should be . discharged by the Senior Deacon . It is essential that but one

Officer , or at the most two , should be permitted to move about the Lodge during labour , in order that the regularity and peace , without which there can be no perfect Masonic work , should not be disturbed . The Jewel of the Deacon ' s Office , a dove , is an emblem of that peace , and is characteristic of his duty and the orderly manner in which it should be discharged . It should also keep him

in mind that , as the Senior of the Assistant Officers , his influence should be used amongst the brethren of his Lodge in particular , as well as in the Craft generally , to maintain peace , harmony and unity , and to promote , without the intervention of Master and Wardens , the settlement of any differences Avhich might arise .

There are other points of interest m connection with the duties of a Senior Deacon , which , as in the case of the officers already named in our former numbers , we must defer mention of until the future opportunity which we anticipate . The subject of our next article will be " The Junior Deacon . "

Ritualistic Nuts To Crack.

Ritualistic Nuts to Crack .

Answe r * to Queries in No . 4 , Sept . 13 th .

1 . Was M . A . B . the principal ARCHITECT or the principal ARTIST irho presided , at the Building of King Solomon ? s Temple ? I differ from our Bro . Lovegrove on this question , and consider that either Architect or Artist can be used to describe our Master . H . A . B .

It is singular that in the Sacred Law there is not one word implying that he was the architect of the Temple . The designing and casting of the sacred vessels used in the service , the molten sea , the overlaying of the pillars with gold , the cunning work of lilies and pomegranates , the network and chain , the veil of the Most Holy Place , all point to him as the principal ARTIST employed

in adorning the Temple , as distinct from the Architect . On the other hand , those plans and designs regularly furnished , spoken of in tradition , point to his having had a much larger share in the construction of the Temple than its adornment and furnishing . May it not be that , like Michael Angelo at St . Peter ' s in

Romelike Giotto at the Duomo of Florence , he first designed the building itself , and then adorned it with its rich ornamentation . These two great men , and others whom time and space preclude me from naming , were architects , and as painters and sculptors , artists also and so it may well have been , and most probably was , with our Master of old . JOHN K . GWYN .

In answer to your question , Whether H . A . B . was the principal architect or the principal artist who presided at the building of King Solomon ' s Temple ? may I be permitted to say a few words . The word Abif , I believe , is an adjunct intended to express some title of honour , and may be read in two Avays . First , that he was the son of his father Huram or Hiram , of the house of Huram or

Hiram , of Tyre , a cunning workman . Secondly , that the word Abif denotes the title of master , inventor , or chief operator . Hiram Abif is said to correspond with the term Khurum Abai . To prove this statement let me now call attention for a moment to the narrative as given in 1 Chron . xxviii . ( 5 , where it says : " The Lord God said to David ( King of Israel ) , Solomon , thy

son , he shall build My house , and My courts , for I have chosen him to be My son . and I will be his Father . " ( Therefore he was son of the King of the kings of the earth , and Prince Royal . ) Then David went to Solomon , and showed him the pattern and the design which the Most High had given him of the porch , the holy place , and the place of the mercy-seat , of the treasures thereof .

of the upper and inner parlours or chambers , the pattern and design of the courts of the Lord , and all the chambers round about , of the treasuries of the House of God and the treasuries of dedicated things . King David received all these instructions from the Most High , or great Architect of the universe—the design and dimension of

the building , the weight , size , and materials of which the vessels were to be made and handed them down to ; his son Solomon to execute , as a prince of architects . Under him he had two principal assistants , viz .. Huram , or Hiram , of Tyre , the prince and ruler of the merchants or merchant jirinces of Tyre , who contracted , supplied and wrought up the raw material into proper form , known as the prince of builders , and Huram , or Hiram Abif , of the

house of Hiram of Tyre , the widow ' s son , who was famed for his skill and ability in modelling , moulding , and casting into shape and form those materials which were put into his hands , and cunningly designed , invented , clothed in allegory , and executed the necessary -work specified for him to carry out . Therefore he was without doubt the head or principal artizan or artificer , Prince of Artificers , or Prime Warden .

K . S ., = Egyptian KHNUMU , King . Architect . II . K . T ., = KHNUM , Prince . Builder . HAB __ KHUFU

. . ., , Prime M ' mister . Artificer . E . HIDE , W . M ., Evening Star , No . 1719 , Architect and Surveyor .

2 . Boes the Tide REGULARLY ebb and , flow twice -in every twenty four honrn . I differ from Bro . Lovegrove . The word " regular " is correct

and should not be omitted . The variation of the time of day has nothing to do with the fact that a spot a certain distance from the shore is regularly covered with water by the ebb and flow twice in twenty-four hours . —M . O .

I cannot quite understand the reply made by Bro . H . Lovegrove , in your issue of the 20 th inst ., to the query on the above subject , where he states that " the word ' regularly' might be well omitted , as the tide varies every day . " True , it does ; but the ebb and now of the ocean continues day

by day and night by night with the greatest regularity , like the beating of the heart ; but it varies in this Avay , that instead of the tide flowing and ebbing once in 12 h ., it occupies a period of 12 h . 24 m ., or thereabouts . Six hours go to the flow , Oh . to the ebb , but at the top or highest point of the tide , as well as at the lowest , there is a distinct pause of 12 m . rest , making up the period before mentioned .