Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Contents.
CONTENTS .
LEADERS 273 Masonic History and Historians 274 Thc American Vast . Master's Degree 274 Unjustifiable Fears 274 Public Installations 275 Wasting Time 275 The Masonic 1-csUval of 1 S 09 275 CurtRF . sroxnEN'ci : — Increase of Louies 276 Correct Terminology 276 Masonic Directory ^ -A Query 276 Reviews . ' 276
j Masonic Notes and Queries 277 Royal Masonic Institution for Boys 277 : New South Wales 277 i REPORTS OF MASONIC MEETINGSj Craft Masonry 277 j Instrnction 270 1 Royal Arch 270 ; ' New / caiand 279 ! Tasmania 2 S 0 Masonic Tidings 2 S 1 J General Tidings 2 Sr 1 Lodge Meetings for Next Week 2 S 2
Ar00101
OUR esteemed confrere , Bro . GRIMAUX , in the " Monde Maconnique" for May , congratulates English Masons on the result of the returns for our great Masonic Charities . He says , " These figurcsdo great honour ' toEnglish Masonry , and arc unrefutable witness of the great prosperity to which it has
attained . " Wc wonder a little if it ever occurs to our good friend and genial antagonist of old , that if other jurisdictions kept themselves to the proper work of Masonry , active charity , and eschewed nil healing and unseasonable discussions , whether it would not be better for themselves ancl better for thc world .
THE "Monde Maconnique" tells us also that , as we expected , thc Masonic Congress of Milan is to discuss six questions , two of which arc clearly not Masonic— -namely , thc 2 nd , "The attitude which Freemasonry ought to take as regards thc social question / ' whatever that may be ; and the 5 th , "The means of obtaining the suppression of the
religious corporations . " No . 1 ., ' •' Thc necessity of assembling at Rome an universal Masonic congress , " is so hopeless in itself that it is out of thc region of practicality . Wc hare no faith in " Masonic congresses . " They have never done any good ; they generally unsettle everything and settle nothing . As far as we arc concerned in England , we havc nothing to discuss , nothing to arrange , and nothing to alter .
WE notice in thc Australian . Freemason of March last two statements which we venture to think deserve careful notice and some few words of comment at our hands . One is , that there arc " about ninety lodges , or more , " of the "Three Constitutions" in New South Wales , and that so far only twenty lodges , and none of the English Constitution , havc joined the
independent Grand Lodge . If that be so a very serious question arises at once , and one which we think some of thc American Grand Lodges havc too hastily disposed of . Is there any precedent in thc history of Masonic life , we venture respectfully to ask , where with lodges of three jurisdictions a few lodges of two jurisdictions , mainlv , wc believe , even of one , to the entire
exclusion ofthe third , have been recognised as a legal Grand Lodge ? Wc should like to have such a precedent pointed out to us . Wc know of none and can find none . We are among those who always deplored the premature action of many American Grand Lodges , for the Canadian precedent is " nihil ad rem , " and is not nt all on " all fours" with this Antipodean
movement . We say this in all good feeling for those who think themselves in the right . The other fact is , that the Committee of Bcncvolonce of the District Grand Lodge , E . G ., New South Wales , has given £ 300 to indigent brethren , not only of the English but of the Irish and Scottish Constitutions . This fraternal good feeling is very creditable to the District Grand Lodge oi New South Wales .
THE joke of our correspondent" Quotation" in our last is not a bad one , and is , in fact , a very lenient and genial manner of exposing a proposition of singular absurdity . Whether the brother who made it intended to be witty or satirical , or both , or simply made a proposal " without sense or meaning for the purpose of making one , " is one of those mysteries which it is not permitted to
us to explain , and , perhaps , is not well for us to explain . Certainly the time of Grand Lodge ought not to be taken up with ridiculous propositions and childish speeches , lt is not fair to many worth y brethren who come
there at great personal inconvenience and sometimes expense to do their duty to the Craft , and any thing like "fatuity" or "burlesque , " or idle and baneful personalities , arc greatly to be deprecated on any ground of right reason and Masonic good feeling .
Is not thc time arrived when a combined effort should be made to put down a system of vulgar personality and unmasonic bad form , which seems on thc 'ncrease amongst us ? If any brother is aunot-ed or thinks he lias cause to
complain , he proceeds to " circularize " the brethren . This in itself is a great nuisance , and a greater impertinence . We none of us want to be dragged mto childish controversies about which we do not care " two straws . " We "one of us arc anxious to read compositions in which , too often , good sense and
Ar00102
good grammar are insulted , and in which all Masonic teaching and all Masonic good feeling are ignored and put on one side altogether . We do not speak " without book , " for wc have seen similar productions , which , in our opinion if the subject was " worth the candle , " might bring the writer before the ? ' Board of General Purposes . " Ceaseless attacks on the living and
reflections on the dead are not the proper methods of exhibiting the true principles of Freemasonry , of endearing it to its friends , or recommending it to its foes . We always make allowances for personal idiosyncrasies or temporary
excitement , but we think that we have " had enough of it " in the metropolis , and trust that we may not have to allude to these nonsensical proceedings again , as , like some contagious disorders , they are " infectious , " and may spread far and do much evil .
* * WJ ; mentioned iu our last , that a new "History of Freemasonry" was in preparation , and wc rejoiced to make the announcement . All the contributions to the archrcology of Freemasonry with which late years have enriched us can well now be turned by the historian to the purposes of his
work . We arc , perhaps , at thc present moment in a better position to rewrite Masonic history than at any previous period , though the difficulties of the subject arc still many , and as a previous article in our paper sought to point out , much yet remains to be done , to discover , and to prove , before we
can hope to overcome the difficulties of thc situation , or to escape many of those stumbling-blocks which thus far have rendered all professed Masonic history so eminently unsatisfactory to the careful critic on the one hand , or the accurate archaeologist on the other .
* * WE publish elsewhere a review on an official publication of the Grand Lodge of Indiana , U . S ., which suggests many serious considerations . Under its avowed ceremonial we do not hesitate to say that no W . M . thus installed can be admitted into a Board of Installed Masters in
England , and we do not profess to realize the meaning of such a document , nor t hs absolute defiance of all Masonic precedent and usage . It is to us a very disagreeable " fact , " and we deeply regret to receive and read such a wanton departure from our normal Masonic usag-es and solemn undertakings . Wc hope that in America , as with ourselves , some protests will be recorded against such an unusual and unwise proceeding .
* BY the report of the proceedings of the Grand Commandery of Knights Templar of Massachussets and Rhode Island , U . S ., for 1 SS 0 , it would seem that great prosperity has fallen on that august body , and that its " lines are in pleasant places . " There are , it seems , 5 S 90 members of the Order in
. Massachussets , thc third highest total of Templars in America , New York boasting of 6 775 , Massachussets of 5936 , and Pennsylvania of 5 S 90 . It appears also from a tabular statement that there were lo the end of 1880 54 , 8 3 8 Templars in America and Europe . Of these England and Wales claim 2700 , Ireland 1100 , Scotland 270 , Canada 636 ; 30 , 132 members
belonging to America . This is a lower figure than we had anticipated , and we do not feel quite sure that the English total is a correct one . There are it seems 774 " Commanderies ; " of these America claims 621 , England and Wales 128 , Canada 25 , Ireland 41 , and Scotland 9 . Again we ask , are these figures as regards England absolutely correct ?
THE "Monde Maconnique" reports a gathering of what is called "White Masonry" in France , where the ladies were admitted , and where
tho guests numbered 200 . lt seems this " fete de famille , " "family fete , " as Bio . GRIMAUX calls it , began with a banquet , and ended with a ball . What a subject for the enterprising energy and tender solicitude of our young and bachelor brethren ! * * WE understand lhat the IKIGO J * ES MS . will appear in the " Masonic-Magazine " for July .
* * AN - amusing extract elsewhere tells us of an "initiated tramp , " and as we havc many of the " species" in England , ancl our good brethren in the northern provinces suffer much from the " epidemic , " we commend thc extract to their notice and appreciative goodwill .
* * MASONS' Marks are attracting the attention of our archaeologist non-Masons . We shall in our next issue havc an interesting review of a recent " deliverance " on the subject . A *
IT seems from what of the new census has been published that our own " iitt / c village " has increased 560 , 311 , 01- 17-2 , in ten years . In 1871 the population was 3 , 254 , 260 , in i 88 r it is 3 , 814 , 577 . In the previous decade the increase had been 16 ' 1 .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Contents.
CONTENTS .
LEADERS 273 Masonic History and Historians 274 Thc American Vast . Master's Degree 274 Unjustifiable Fears 274 Public Installations 275 Wasting Time 275 The Masonic 1-csUval of 1 S 09 275 CurtRF . sroxnEN'ci : — Increase of Louies 276 Correct Terminology 276 Masonic Directory ^ -A Query 276 Reviews . ' 276
j Masonic Notes and Queries 277 Royal Masonic Institution for Boys 277 : New South Wales 277 i REPORTS OF MASONIC MEETINGSj Craft Masonry 277 j Instrnction 270 1 Royal Arch 270 ; ' New / caiand 279 ! Tasmania 2 S 0 Masonic Tidings 2 S 1 J General Tidings 2 Sr 1 Lodge Meetings for Next Week 2 S 2
Ar00101
OUR esteemed confrere , Bro . GRIMAUX , in the " Monde Maconnique" for May , congratulates English Masons on the result of the returns for our great Masonic Charities . He says , " These figurcsdo great honour ' toEnglish Masonry , and arc unrefutable witness of the great prosperity to which it has
attained . " Wc wonder a little if it ever occurs to our good friend and genial antagonist of old , that if other jurisdictions kept themselves to the proper work of Masonry , active charity , and eschewed nil healing and unseasonable discussions , whether it would not be better for themselves ancl better for thc world .
THE "Monde Maconnique" tells us also that , as we expected , thc Masonic Congress of Milan is to discuss six questions , two of which arc clearly not Masonic— -namely , thc 2 nd , "The attitude which Freemasonry ought to take as regards thc social question / ' whatever that may be ; and the 5 th , "The means of obtaining the suppression of the
religious corporations . " No . 1 ., ' •' Thc necessity of assembling at Rome an universal Masonic congress , " is so hopeless in itself that it is out of thc region of practicality . Wc hare no faith in " Masonic congresses . " They have never done any good ; they generally unsettle everything and settle nothing . As far as we arc concerned in England , we havc nothing to discuss , nothing to arrange , and nothing to alter .
WE notice in thc Australian . Freemason of March last two statements which we venture to think deserve careful notice and some few words of comment at our hands . One is , that there arc " about ninety lodges , or more , " of the "Three Constitutions" in New South Wales , and that so far only twenty lodges , and none of the English Constitution , havc joined the
independent Grand Lodge . If that be so a very serious question arises at once , and one which we think some of thc American Grand Lodges havc too hastily disposed of . Is there any precedent in thc history of Masonic life , we venture respectfully to ask , where with lodges of three jurisdictions a few lodges of two jurisdictions , mainlv , wc believe , even of one , to the entire
exclusion ofthe third , have been recognised as a legal Grand Lodge ? Wc should like to have such a precedent pointed out to us . Wc know of none and can find none . We are among those who always deplored the premature action of many American Grand Lodges , for the Canadian precedent is " nihil ad rem , " and is not nt all on " all fours" with this Antipodean
movement . We say this in all good feeling for those who think themselves in the right . The other fact is , that the Committee of Bcncvolonce of the District Grand Lodge , E . G ., New South Wales , has given £ 300 to indigent brethren , not only of the English but of the Irish and Scottish Constitutions . This fraternal good feeling is very creditable to the District Grand Lodge oi New South Wales .
THE joke of our correspondent" Quotation" in our last is not a bad one , and is , in fact , a very lenient and genial manner of exposing a proposition of singular absurdity . Whether the brother who made it intended to be witty or satirical , or both , or simply made a proposal " without sense or meaning for the purpose of making one , " is one of those mysteries which it is not permitted to
us to explain , and , perhaps , is not well for us to explain . Certainly the time of Grand Lodge ought not to be taken up with ridiculous propositions and childish speeches , lt is not fair to many worth y brethren who come
there at great personal inconvenience and sometimes expense to do their duty to the Craft , and any thing like "fatuity" or "burlesque , " or idle and baneful personalities , arc greatly to be deprecated on any ground of right reason and Masonic good feeling .
Is not thc time arrived when a combined effort should be made to put down a system of vulgar personality and unmasonic bad form , which seems on thc 'ncrease amongst us ? If any brother is aunot-ed or thinks he lias cause to
complain , he proceeds to " circularize " the brethren . This in itself is a great nuisance , and a greater impertinence . We none of us want to be dragged mto childish controversies about which we do not care " two straws . " We "one of us arc anxious to read compositions in which , too often , good sense and
Ar00102
good grammar are insulted , and in which all Masonic teaching and all Masonic good feeling are ignored and put on one side altogether . We do not speak " without book , " for wc have seen similar productions , which , in our opinion if the subject was " worth the candle , " might bring the writer before the ? ' Board of General Purposes . " Ceaseless attacks on the living and
reflections on the dead are not the proper methods of exhibiting the true principles of Freemasonry , of endearing it to its friends , or recommending it to its foes . We always make allowances for personal idiosyncrasies or temporary
excitement , but we think that we have " had enough of it " in the metropolis , and trust that we may not have to allude to these nonsensical proceedings again , as , like some contagious disorders , they are " infectious , " and may spread far and do much evil .
* * WJ ; mentioned iu our last , that a new "History of Freemasonry" was in preparation , and wc rejoiced to make the announcement . All the contributions to the archrcology of Freemasonry with which late years have enriched us can well now be turned by the historian to the purposes of his
work . We arc , perhaps , at thc present moment in a better position to rewrite Masonic history than at any previous period , though the difficulties of the subject arc still many , and as a previous article in our paper sought to point out , much yet remains to be done , to discover , and to prove , before we
can hope to overcome the difficulties of thc situation , or to escape many of those stumbling-blocks which thus far have rendered all professed Masonic history so eminently unsatisfactory to the careful critic on the one hand , or the accurate archaeologist on the other .
* * WE publish elsewhere a review on an official publication of the Grand Lodge of Indiana , U . S ., which suggests many serious considerations . Under its avowed ceremonial we do not hesitate to say that no W . M . thus installed can be admitted into a Board of Installed Masters in
England , and we do not profess to realize the meaning of such a document , nor t hs absolute defiance of all Masonic precedent and usage . It is to us a very disagreeable " fact , " and we deeply regret to receive and read such a wanton departure from our normal Masonic usag-es and solemn undertakings . Wc hope that in America , as with ourselves , some protests will be recorded against such an unusual and unwise proceeding .
* BY the report of the proceedings of the Grand Commandery of Knights Templar of Massachussets and Rhode Island , U . S ., for 1 SS 0 , it would seem that great prosperity has fallen on that august body , and that its " lines are in pleasant places . " There are , it seems , 5 S 90 members of the Order in
. Massachussets , thc third highest total of Templars in America , New York boasting of 6 775 , Massachussets of 5936 , and Pennsylvania of 5 S 90 . It appears also from a tabular statement that there were lo the end of 1880 54 , 8 3 8 Templars in America and Europe . Of these England and Wales claim 2700 , Ireland 1100 , Scotland 270 , Canada 636 ; 30 , 132 members
belonging to America . This is a lower figure than we had anticipated , and we do not feel quite sure that the English total is a correct one . There are it seems 774 " Commanderies ; " of these America claims 621 , England and Wales 128 , Canada 25 , Ireland 41 , and Scotland 9 . Again we ask , are these figures as regards England absolutely correct ?
THE "Monde Maconnique" reports a gathering of what is called "White Masonry" in France , where the ladies were admitted , and where
tho guests numbered 200 . lt seems this " fete de famille , " "family fete , " as Bio . GRIMAUX calls it , began with a banquet , and ended with a ball . What a subject for the enterprising energy and tender solicitude of our young and bachelor brethren ! * * WE understand lhat the IKIGO J * ES MS . will appear in the " Masonic-Magazine " for July .
* * AN - amusing extract elsewhere tells us of an "initiated tramp , " and as we havc many of the " species" in England , ancl our good brethren in the northern provinces suffer much from the " epidemic , " we commend thc extract to their notice and appreciative goodwill .
* * MASONS' Marks are attracting the attention of our archaeologist non-Masons . We shall in our next issue havc an interesting review of a recent " deliverance " on the subject . A *
IT seems from what of the new census has been published that our own " iitt / c village " has increased 560 , 311 , 01- 17-2 , in ten years . In 1871 the population was 3 , 254 , 260 , in i 88 r it is 3 , 814 , 577 . In the previous decade the increase had been 16 ' 1 .