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The Irish Daughter Lodge Of Mother Kilwinning.

THE IRISH DAUGHTER LODGE OF MOTHER KILWINNING .

A CENTRE OP THE HIGH DEGREES IN IRELAND . From unpublished Notes on Mother Kilwinning , by D . Murray Lyon , Grand Secretary Grand Lodge of Scotland .

( Continued from page 202 ) . THUS far , the facts related have been drawn from manuscripts that are still preserved at Kilwinning . But it is from the " Transaction Book " of the Lodge

itself , recently discovered by Brother Neilson , of Upper Mount-street , Dublin , P . M . of No . 620 ( and kindly placed

by him at our disposal for the purposes of this work ) , that we learn that it "was constituted under its Scotch warrant on St . John ' s day 1779 , at a " Grand Kilwinning Lodge" presided over by Dr . Cunningham , " erroneously

styled " Past Grand Master , " who installed the principal office-bearers , and thereafter closed his grand communication . This was succeeded by the appointment and installation of the minor officers , the amendment of the Lodge ' s rules , a discourse on Masonry , and a lecture on the Entered

Apprentice and Fellow-Craft Degrees . With the exception

of the pretentious prefix " Early Grand , " of which " E . G . " is an abbreviation to the title of the Master and Warden , whose signatures are appended , the language of the minute is purely that of Freemasonry . It is as follows : — " 1779 : Deer . 27 . Lodge opened in dne form .... High Noon ,

to celebrate the Feast of St . John . The Worshipfnl the Master in the ohair . Lodge was visited by Bro . Edward Zimmerman and George Dillon , both members of Lodge 518 . Oall'd off to refresh , ment and dined . Oall'd on to labour . Opened a Grand Kilwinning Lodge , Bro . George Augustas Cunningham , Esq ., Ayr , Past Grand

Master of said lodge , in the chair . Proceeded to constitute the Lodge under the new charter granted from the Mother Lodge of Kilwinning to the High Knights Templars of Ireland , when Bro .

Robert Colvill waa install'd Master , Bro . John Wheeler Senr . Warden , and Bro . Lewis Alley Janr . Warden , who were properly saluted with the all grand honours , and the Grand Lodge closed . "GEO . AUGST . CUNNINGHAM , P . G . M .

" High Knight Templars Lodge open'd , the Worshipful in the chair . Proceeded to install Bro . Peter Grant Treasurer and Bro . John Cuthbert Secretary . The Worshipful appointed Bro . Sisson Darling to be Senior Deacon , and the Senior Warden appointed John Armor

to be Junior Deacon . Had discourse on Masonry from our principal Instructor , and afterwards a lecture on the .... of the Enter'd Prentice and Fellow Craft Degrees . The rules which were amended , and the whole ended with the usual peace , love , and unanimity . "R . COLVILL - , E . G . M . "JNO . WHEELEE , E . G . S . W . "

No Degrees or Steps are specified in the Charter of 1779 ; but the " powers and privileges " conferred by it could only have reference to Masonry as practised by

Mother Kilwinning , viz ., that embraced in the Degrees of Entered Apprentice , Fellow Craft , and Master Mason . It has been alledged that the Irish brethren subsequently erased from their Charter the word " Lodge" in their

designation , and surreptitiously inserting " Encampment , " began the practice of Black Masonry under warrant thus metamorphosed into one of Knight Templary . In

the then disorganised condition of the so-called High Degrees such precaution was unnecessary ; but to test the correctness of the statement , Brother Neilson has at oar

request carefully examined the original Charter , and no trace of having been tampered with appears on it . The Irish Kilwinning was one of the few Lodges of the period imbued with a taste for " High Masonry " which kept

a record of its transactions in respect to degrees beyond that of Master . Ample evidence , therefore , of its having not onl y practised the degrees of Excellent , Super-Excellent , Royal Arch , and Knight Templar , but even worked under

its Kilwinning Warrants the Degree of Prince Mason Kni ght of the Red Cross , is to be found in the old minutebook to which we have referred , and which we regret to say is in very decayed condition , so much so indeed as to

render portions of the MS . undecipherable . The minutes

The Irish Daughter Lodge Of Mother Kilwinning.

bearing on the Higher Degrees begin with a record of the Royal Arch Degree having been conferred by the Irish

Kilwinning within three months of the date of its constitution under its new warrant—the second step in this direction succeeding at three weeks' interval , when the

Lodge " raised " its Secretary to the Degree of Knight Templar . The following are a few of the many minutes of the same kind embraced within the period over which tbo record in the Lodge ' s original transaction book extends , viz ., from December 27 , 1779 , till August 16 , 1804 : —

' '•1780 . Monday April 17 . Lodge open'd in dne form—Worshipful Pe * er Grant in the chair . A Master Mason's Lodge ; called off from a Master Mason ' s Lodge to a Royal Aroh Lodge , when Brother Sis -on Darling royally descended and ascended the Arch . Called off to a Master Mason ' s Lodge ended in the usual harmony . "

" 1780 . Monday May 1 . Lodge opened in due form—Worshipful Pet r Grant in the chair . A Master Mason ' s Lodge ; called off from a M ister Mason's Lodge to a Eoyal Aroh Lodge . Lodge visited by

Br < i ; hers Zimmerman and George Rainsford . Had a Leotnre on that Step , and called off to a High Knights Templars and raised Brother Sis ? m Darling to that Degree . Called off from thafc Degree to a Master Mason ' s Lodge , and the whole ended in the usual harmony . "

" ounday , Deer . 24 , 1780 . An Entered Apprentices Lodge of Emergency opened in due form—the Worshipful in the ohair . Were visit-id by Brors . Dillon and Zimmerman , certify'd members of this Lod , _ , -e , when Mr . William Humphreys was initiated into the Degree of an Entered Apprentice and afterwards made a Fellow Craft , when

the Blue Mason's Lodge was clos'd . Royal Arch open'd—the Wor . hipful High Priest in the ohair , when Bros . Steel and O'Flaherty roya'ly descended and ascended the Aroh . Oall'd on to an High Knights Templars Lodge—Wor . Early Grand Master in the ohair ,

when Bros . Steel and O'Flaherty were after a severe tryal of skill and valour raised to the Sublime Degree . And the whole ended with the usual harmony . Jno . Wheeler , E . G . M . ; S . Darling , pro E . G . I . W . ; Wm . Maclean , J . W . p . E . G . J . W . ; Henry Wheeler , p . E . G . Seo . "

"Jane 17 , 1781 . Kilwinning Lodge open'd—High Priest in the chair . Excellent and Super-excellent Lodge . Examined Bro . Chas . Crai ; , ' on the three Degrees in Bine Masonry , and finding him perfect

proceeded to raise him to the Degrees of Excellent and Super-excellent Mason . . . Was visited by Bro . Wade of the Royal Arch Lodge , and the whole ended in the usual harmony . W . Rainsford , pro E . G . M . S ., S . Darling , E . G . S . W ., Wm . M'Clean , E . G . J . W . "

" 1781 . Deer . 2 nd . Kilwinning Lodge opened—the Worshipful Bro . Rainsford in the chair . Were visited by Br . Wm . Ayres , Esq ., and John Marsh , of the former Knight Templars Lodge , and Bro . George Rainsford , late of 518 , and Bro . John Peree , Esq ., of the Royal Arch Lodge—when Bro . Ford was made Excellent and

Superexcellent , and afterwards royally descended and ascended the Aroh , and having sustained the usual tryals with becoming fortitude waa raised to the Degree of High Knight Templar . . . and the whole ended in piece , love and unanimity . W . Rainsford , pro E . G . Mr . ; S . Darling , E . G . S . W . ; F . Heath , pro Secretary . "

" Deer . 16 , 1781 . Kilwinning Lodge opened in due form a Master Mason ' s Lodge—Br . Wm . Rainsford , P . M . of this Lodge in tbe chair . Resolved unanimously that no Brother belonging to this Lodge be admitted to the Higher Degrees from this day forward without being proposed by a Brother of it left on the books a week at least to be

ballotted for . Resolved unanimously that from this day any Master Mason joining Lodge 584 and desirous of being initiated to the Higher Degrees pay half a guinea to this Kilwinning Lodge in addition to his admission to Lodge 584 as a Master Mason . Raised Br . Byrne ,

Br . Todderiok , and Br . Dewitt to the Sublime Degrees of Excellent and Super-excellent . Had a lecture on those degrees from our principal instructor , and the whole ended with harmony . W . Rainsford , pro E . G . M . ; F . Heath , pro Sec . " [ Byrne and Todderick were subsequently raised to fche Arch and Templar Degrees . ]

" 1782 . Jan . 20 . Kilwinning Lodge of Emergency opened in form a Prince Mason Knt . of fche Red Cross Lodge—Bror . Laurent [ from Paris ] in the chair—when Brs . W . Rainsford , S . Darling , Francis Heath , G . Rainsford , J . Wheeler , and Joseph Byrne were raised fco the Sublime Degree of Prince Mason Knight of the Red Cross , and our

Worshipful Br . Darling was by Br . Laurent invested with the authority of Wise Sovereign Prince Mason wifch all fche accustomed hononrs . Resolved thafc as there are many necessary matters of preparation and furniture for the room wanting in order to give this degree its full sublimity , that no other person be made till suoh apparatus be

provided . Resolved that it appears to these members that this degree is of snch consequence thafc ifc is absolutely impossible that any person can i * eceive it till he is sufficiently grounded in all the previous ones , therefore the 12 th rule of this Lodge mnsfc be most strictly attended to . Resolved that these members do meet from time to time fco prepare

such further regulations as are necessary and to provide such apparatus as is wanting . Resolved that they shall fix such sum as ia necessary for the Brethren to pay who receive this degree , which shall be appropriated to defray the Lodge the expences ifc will be ab in providing snch necessary apparatus , etc . Resolved that as the

smallest acknowledgment of the grateful sense of this Lodge for the favour Bro . Laurent has this evening conferred on us , that he be elected Honorary Member of our Kilwinning Lodge , and when be leaves the Kingdom that he be presented with a certificate from this

Lodge . And the whole ended with peace and unanimity . I . P . * Laurent , Mr . ; S . P . Emanuel Zimmerman ; S . P . W . Rainsford ; S . P . # S . Darling ; S . P . * Frans . Heath ; S . P . Geo . Rainsford ; S . P . Jno . Wheeler ; S . P . Jos . Byrne . " " 1782 . Feb . 7 . A Prince Mason Lodge assembled afc Br . W . Rainaford ' a- —fche Worshipful in the chair . Present : Brs . Darling ,