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Article CONSECRATION OF THE KENSINGTON LODGE, No. 1767. ← Page 2 of 3 Article CONSECRATION OF THE KENSINGTON LODGE, No. 1767. Page 2 of 3 Article CONSECRATION OF THE KENSINGTON LODGE, No. 1767. Page 2 of 3 →
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Consecration Of The Kensington Lodge, No. 1767.
ther had also . departed , a brother not known perhaps to the younger members of the Craft , Bro . Wm . Foster White , the Treasurer of Christ ' s and Bartholomew ' s Hospitals . That brother had not taken an active part in Masonry for some yiars , and was only known to the older Masons . Since these two brethren died , another gap had been made by the death of Bro . Bagshaw , Provincial Grand Master for
Essex , an old and experienced Mason , with whom he ( Bro . Hervey , ) had been on intimate terms , not only in Masonry , but in private life , for thirty years . He was a man of unblemished character and unbounded benevolence . To add to the list , only a fortnight ago Sir F . M . Williams , having invited a large party to meet him at his country seat , was suddenly seized with an attack of illness ; he laid down
on a sofa , and when he was called to dinner , it was found he was dead . All these brethren contributed largely to thc Masonic Charities , and to the well-being of Masomy , by the manner in which they had passed through life , and he trusted they had now met with their reward . To ' cave this subject and refer to Masonry , it could not be denied that the Order was advancing . Still there must be
drawbacks , and it must be expected that those who had toiled for many years in a Masonic career would be called away at last , and leave the Society which they had loved so well anil the respectability of which they had striven so much to maintain . In England the Craft was progressing speedily , and he hoped , surely . Certainly during the last ten , fifteen , or twenty years , it
had extended very much , not only numerically , but he trusted also in respectability , and in that charity which ought to be thc great aim and object of all Freemasons . There was only one unfortunate spot looming in the distance , the way in which our brethren across the channel were conducting their proceedings . They had just had their annual meeting , and they had decided , by a large
majority , to alter the ritual , so as to eliminate from it all connection between Masonry and the name of and belief in the Deity . They had directed their Grand Master and some of their acting Committee to reform the whole ritual , so as to be consonant with the changes they had made in their constitutions . He understood that , on the first blush , the French Grand Master took
off his clothing , laid it on the pedestal , and left the room , declining to be a party to any such change . However , they formed a committee to wait upon him , and he was persuaded to resume his place . As reported , hc had thc weakness to do so , and consented to do what the Grand Lodge wished , thereby falsifying those undertakings which be entered into when he first became Grand Master . The
English brethren would deeply deplore the course which the French brethren had taken . He feared that the manner in which they acted was such as almost to justify the objection which Foreign Sovereigns made to the Order ; that the members having ceased to acknowledge the name of the G . A . O . T . U . in their rituals , their meetings were changed from the original plan of Freemasonry , and that
they mixed themselves up with politics , and were becoming more of a political than a Masonic Society . French Masonry of course now defined thatthey were giving up all connection between relig ion and Masonry because the name of the Great Architect of the Universe could not be dissevered from relig ion . In every case where His name was invoked some belief or other must be entertained in a
Supreme Being . If that be given up the future of Freemasonry looked very dark , and he hoped that as long as Masonry was carried out in England we should see the old system continue il in which it had worked and flevurished so long . When that was abolished , the soonertheaxe was put to the root of the Order the belter . He hoped that the Kensington Lodge would be a brig ht star in the western side of the
metropolis , and occupy a prominent position among the lodges of the Order . Bro . the Rev . Ambrose W . Hall , in delivering the oration , said : Brethren , it has been usual from time immemorial for mankind to join themselves in what Misonic illy we call " a column of defence and support , " or to establish societies or brotherhoods , and of this you have a clear
instance in the various societies and lodges in this and other countri-s . And after a lolge U brought into existence , and the precepts of Freemasonry are more particularly to be poured out , when societies like this of to-day are dedicated to T . G . A . O . T . U ., it is usual for the c > ns ; crating Chaplain to g ive what is called an or . etion , or , to speak more property , to make a few remarks on the nature and
principles of our Order . It was only yesterday that I became aware of the privilege I had of attending here to day . I accepted the invitation with pleasure , hoping and ttusting that you , my brethren , would make every allowance for any shortcomings on my part , on account of the shortness of the notice , and likewise would listen to the brief words I have to say , a * words coming sincerely from one
who greets well yourselves and your new undertaking . I would first then remind you of the importance of the responsibilities that are about to devolve upon you . You arc , so to speak , about to become a beacon light to shine on all , both far and near , those great truths of our Order , brotherly love , relief , and truth . And if you do this well , the lustre of your lodge will be increased . If you elo it ill ,
the harmony of the brethren will be marred . Therefore , in all your dealings , be just , and upright , and true . In all your transactions with the brethren be considerate and kind ; and in thc hour of diffeience , should dissensions at any time unfortunately arise , think of the compasses , which symbolise the keeping down all angry feelings , and take the pacific teaching of our Order to show you what
a Mason ought to do . Since those old days when the good King Solomon built the Temple to the Lord on Mount Moriah , Masonry has gone through different phases of difficulty and danger ; but it has passed through them all , and like the fabled Phoenix of old has come unscathed out of the fire of persecution , only to shine with a brighter lustre , and . to carry its princi ples to every lime * ami among all the people of the world . And why ?
Consecration Of The Kensington Lodge, No. 1767.
Because she bears about her a banner , a glorious banner ; and on it are inscribed those mystic words , Wisdom , Strength , Beauty—wisdom to comprehend all mysteries ; strength to carry out all her teachings ; and beauty in all those rites and ceremonies whicli symbolise the principles of our Order . And on you , brethren , it will now depend to carry out those principles , to cherish them yourselves , and
likewise to inculcate them among the brotherhood . Depend upon it , it is only by doing so that your lodge will take that stand which it ought to take in the Masonic world . May your W . M . open his lodge at sunrise with diligence and punctuality ; may your J . W . ' s call be heard vvith profit and vvith pleasure ; and may your S . W ., when the sun sets in the west , close his lodge at the command of the W . M .,
after seeing that no brother leaves it unimproved in virtue and in science . Such , my brethren , are some ofthe principles which it has been my office to bring before , you to-day . They are high and holy principles , and I ttust will be long remembered by you , and that you will inculcate them upon your brethren by precept as well as by example , and that you will guard the mystic treasures that are to b ;
committed to you against all cowans and all intruders that would invade the repository of your secrets , with Fidelity , Fidelity , Fidelity . Now , brethren , let me thank you for the attention you appear to have paid to the few words that I have been permittetl to address you . Had time been allowed I could have given them more in detail , but as it is they . speak a language dear to every Mason's heart , and
should lead us all to cherish and to love the Craft the more . What I have said , I trust , will lead you in all danger and difficulties , and guide the Craft which you are now about to launch safely over the ocean of the Masonic world , until by the help of the Great Architect of the Universe it is brought safely into the haven where the wicked cease from troubling anil the weary are at rest . And now , brethren , receive my
heartiest good wishes for the success of the Kensington Lotlge . I feel , from thc gratification of those who are to preside over it , that it will in due lime take its stand in the annals of Masonry . May the Everlasting , the Most I lij ; h , of His mercy , guide you by the principles and teachings of our noble Order safely through your walk in life , and lead you with all fortitude over the dark valley of the
shadow of death , until He lands your enfranchised spirit in the peaceful abode of the blessed . The ceremony of consecration was then performed , and the petitioning brethren were constituted into a regular lodge . At the request of Bro . Hervey , Bro . Tnomas Fenn installed Bro . George Read , W . M . 511 , as first Worshipful
Master of the lodge , and the foil living brethren were invested as officers : Bros . Chailes Edward Williams , J . D , ¦ ill , S . W . ; Thomas Hanock , 511 , J . W . ; Barfield , P . M . 511 , Treas . ; C . J . Fo ikes ,,. P . M ., Sec . ; James William Barker , S . D . ; Joseph H . Taylor , J . D . j Charles G . Gumpel , I . G . ; Swanson , D . C . ; Oliver , Organist ; Baugh and Met . * alf , Stewards ; and Thomas Schofield , Tyler .
A vote of thanks was aftcrwarels passed to Bros . Hervey , Fenn , Hall , and Boggett , for their services , and they were elected honorary members of the lodge . Propositions for joining and initiation were given in , and the lodge was then closed . An elegant banquet followed the consecration of tbe lodge , after which the usual toasts were proposed .
Bro . Hervey , after acknowledging the toast of the "Grand Officers , " proposed " Success t <> the Kensington Lodge and the Health of the W . M . " There , could be no doubt , he said , that where a lodge was well conducted it tended to the well-being of society and the comfort of thc locality in which it vvas situated . It also conduced to the gnat benefit of the members who were enrolled under its banners . He
trusted , as hc had said in the lodge , that the Kensington Lodge would be so conducted as to reflect honour on itself and credit on the Craft . Under the auspices with which it was started he thought there Wis no question that it would do so . It hatl emanated from an overflow of brethren of another lodge , which , though originally constituted in that
neighbourhood , migrated to Meet-street , where it had so prospered that it had become like a swarm of bees . Many of those brethren lived in Kensington , and fro 11 the number he saw round the table he thought the Kensington Lodge bade fair to rival in number the uinthcr lodge . For the sake of those who had launched the vessel on tbe waters
that day he ho n ied the Kensington Lottie would flourish , and that under the auspices of the W . M . during lhe current yen- it would show that ie had not been established in vain , but that it might add ge > od members and true to the Craft . He did not recommend that the brethren should endeavour to make their lodge great in numbers ; that , he thought , was a mistake ; but let the members of the lodge
be respectable , and worthy of b-. in , j members of the Craft ; then they would be doing good service to the Order and to the lodge . But if they introduced men to the Craft whom they would be sorry to see at their own table , whom they would not receive in private , they had no right to do so , and would not be doing the duty to Freemasonry which it expected at their hands . He vvas sure that under Bro .
Read ' s rule and management such a state of things would not atise , and he trusted that the Wardens who would succeed Bro . Read would exercise the same foresight of the affairs of the lodge , and not look for number but for quality . Masonry did not want those who would not be an ornament to it , and he for one would be heartily glad if a great many now iu the Craft were not members of it , and if it would purify itself of some to whom they
were at present allied , anel with whom they were compelled now to associate . The W . M . in reply said : It was now some twelve years since he was initiated in Masonry in the Royal Parish of Kensington , but he had no expectation that he should be able to occupy the first chair in a lodge in the p irish . They had felt their old lo . lge was too great , and they migrated to the great city ; but after a while the time seemed to have arrived when they should establish a new
Consecration Of The Kensington Lodge, No. 1767.
lodge in Kensington , as very admirable quarters were to be found there . He had approved of those quarters for the new lodge , and he hoped it would long remain there . He had heard so many expressions of the brethren's esteem that he was at a loss to explain how much he thanked them , but he thanked them very much . They had placed him now in a very responsible position ,
because the Master of a new lodge held a more responsible position than the ordinary Master of a lodge . He did not take the office with any fear or trembling ; he had great confidence in the brethren who nominated him as the First Master , and also in the first Officers . There was a portion of the more advanced ritual , " to the effect that to reign sovereign in the hearts and affections of men was
far more preferable than to rule over their lives and fortunes . He did not know whether it was presumptuous for him to apply that to himself ; but if the esteem in which he was held by the brethren of the Ranelagh and Zetland Lodges was to be measured by the number of those brethren who were present that evening , he felt that they had conferred a very great honour upon him . He had been
associated with them in Masonry for many years , and he had always received from them great kindness and respect . He took it as a further mark of their esteem attending at the consecration of this new lodge , and seeing him installed as the first W . M . Bro . Hervey had expressed the hope that the lodge world succeed , and be an ornamentto the Craft . He icitcrated the wish , and vvith the assistance of The Great Architect of the Universe he would endeavour to
make it so . The W . M . next proposed " The Health of the Consecrating Officers , " and vvas delighted to see present the Kev . Ambrose W . Hall . Many brethren were now out of town , and Bro . HaU had kindly undertaken the office of Chaplain . He was a neighbour in the parish , and the brethren were all delighted to have such a neig hbour as Bro . Hall . The Consecrating Officers had all performed their duties
admirably that evening , and the brethren were very much pleased with what they had witnessed . Bro . Thomas Fenn , P . G . D ., who replied , said he was very much flattered by the remarks that had been made vvith regard to the Consecrating Officers . If it had not been that they should not work a willing horse too much , Bro . Hervey was the proper officer to reply to this toast ,
as he had done so much more of the ceremony than he ( Bro . Fenn ) . However , it is not the fmt time they had appeared together at an interesting ceremony like that . Bro . Hervey's kind and courteous way of going through the work like a good master marked him as a good man , anil therefore those who were associated vvith him had to do their best to do their work as well as he . The notice
he had had vvas very short , but still his attendance had nut been given with less pleasure . They would allow for many shortcomings , but , notwithstanding those shortcomings , he had a great interest in a lodge which wa » formed in his immediate neighbourhood . He lived but five minutes walk from the lodge , and he took sufficient interest in the neighbourhood to hope that such a lodge as this
would be established so near to him . He begged the brethren to receive his thanks for the compliment they had paid him by electing him an honorary member of the lodge . Whenever the brethren would like to see him among them , he should be glad to come anil see the progress which he hoped they would have . He must now congratulate the lodge on coming to the Courtfield Hotel . Their lines had
certainly fallen in pleasant places . In the course of his Masonic visits he had seldom seen such good accommodation as the brethren had at this hotel , and he understood that above the room in which they were now sitting there was one that would be used for the woiking of the lodge , so that they would not be detained between the times of labour and refreshment .
Some time ago a circular was brought down to him to sign a petition against a licence being granted for this house . He went to see the house , and saw it was a nice house , antl he said tothe gentlemen who brought him the pt-tition that the house would nut hurt him , whatever it was ; and it seemed a nice house ; and that in the first place he did not wish to prevent an honest man who tried
to cater for the public from keeping a good house and getting a living . He did not sign the petition . Whenhe looked at the house he looked at it with rather a Masonic eye , and found it well suited fur Mason ' c purposes . It was strange under such circumstances he should have been asked to assist at the consecration of a lodge at that house . He hailed the advent of a lodge there as a success to the
house , and he thought the brethren had done a good thing not only for the house but for the neighbourhood and for Masonry in the neighbourhood . He again thanked the brethren for toasting him the amongst Consecrating Officers , and could assure them that what hc had done had been simply a labour of love , and from a desire and wish he had always had to promote in every way the interest of
Masonry . It was forty-four years since he was first made a Master Mason , and although for thirty years , on account of professional duties , he was unable to attend to the working , as soon as he became free from professional duties he returned to his first love , and had been intimately acquainted with Masonry since . By the blessing of the Great Architect he would endeavour to continue to do so , and he should feel the greatest
pleasure as an honorary member of this lotlge at all times not only to hear of the excellence of its working but to see it prosper in thc way he prognosticated in his address in lodge . Hc thought it would . Bro . Worthington , P . M . 834 , responded to the toast of " The Visitors . " He said he did so with pleasure , for two or three reasons ; first , because he believed , if not the oldest , he was the next oldest in the room as a
Kcnsingtonian ; anil secondly , because he and his late father were two of the oldest friends of the W . M . as Masons . He hatl known Bro . George Read for many years , and his tongue never tired when it spike of his qualities , because his
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Consecration Of The Kensington Lodge, No. 1767.
ther had also . departed , a brother not known perhaps to the younger members of the Craft , Bro . Wm . Foster White , the Treasurer of Christ ' s and Bartholomew ' s Hospitals . That brother had not taken an active part in Masonry for some yiars , and was only known to the older Masons . Since these two brethren died , another gap had been made by the death of Bro . Bagshaw , Provincial Grand Master for
Essex , an old and experienced Mason , with whom he ( Bro . Hervey , ) had been on intimate terms , not only in Masonry , but in private life , for thirty years . He was a man of unblemished character and unbounded benevolence . To add to the list , only a fortnight ago Sir F . M . Williams , having invited a large party to meet him at his country seat , was suddenly seized with an attack of illness ; he laid down
on a sofa , and when he was called to dinner , it was found he was dead . All these brethren contributed largely to thc Masonic Charities , and to the well-being of Masomy , by the manner in which they had passed through life , and he trusted they had now met with their reward . To ' cave this subject and refer to Masonry , it could not be denied that the Order was advancing . Still there must be
drawbacks , and it must be expected that those who had toiled for many years in a Masonic career would be called away at last , and leave the Society which they had loved so well anil the respectability of which they had striven so much to maintain . In England the Craft was progressing speedily , and he hoped , surely . Certainly during the last ten , fifteen , or twenty years , it
had extended very much , not only numerically , but he trusted also in respectability , and in that charity which ought to be thc great aim and object of all Freemasons . There was only one unfortunate spot looming in the distance , the way in which our brethren across the channel were conducting their proceedings . They had just had their annual meeting , and they had decided , by a large
majority , to alter the ritual , so as to eliminate from it all connection between Masonry and the name of and belief in the Deity . They had directed their Grand Master and some of their acting Committee to reform the whole ritual , so as to be consonant with the changes they had made in their constitutions . He understood that , on the first blush , the French Grand Master took
off his clothing , laid it on the pedestal , and left the room , declining to be a party to any such change . However , they formed a committee to wait upon him , and he was persuaded to resume his place . As reported , hc had thc weakness to do so , and consented to do what the Grand Lodge wished , thereby falsifying those undertakings which be entered into when he first became Grand Master . The
English brethren would deeply deplore the course which the French brethren had taken . He feared that the manner in which they acted was such as almost to justify the objection which Foreign Sovereigns made to the Order ; that the members having ceased to acknowledge the name of the G . A . O . T . U . in their rituals , their meetings were changed from the original plan of Freemasonry , and that
they mixed themselves up with politics , and were becoming more of a political than a Masonic Society . French Masonry of course now defined thatthey were giving up all connection between relig ion and Masonry because the name of the Great Architect of the Universe could not be dissevered from relig ion . In every case where His name was invoked some belief or other must be entertained in a
Supreme Being . If that be given up the future of Freemasonry looked very dark , and he hoped that as long as Masonry was carried out in England we should see the old system continue il in which it had worked and flevurished so long . When that was abolished , the soonertheaxe was put to the root of the Order the belter . He hoped that the Kensington Lodge would be a brig ht star in the western side of the
metropolis , and occupy a prominent position among the lodges of the Order . Bro . the Rev . Ambrose W . Hall , in delivering the oration , said : Brethren , it has been usual from time immemorial for mankind to join themselves in what Misonic illy we call " a column of defence and support , " or to establish societies or brotherhoods , and of this you have a clear
instance in the various societies and lodges in this and other countri-s . And after a lolge U brought into existence , and the precepts of Freemasonry are more particularly to be poured out , when societies like this of to-day are dedicated to T . G . A . O . T . U ., it is usual for the c > ns ; crating Chaplain to g ive what is called an or . etion , or , to speak more property , to make a few remarks on the nature and
principles of our Order . It was only yesterday that I became aware of the privilege I had of attending here to day . I accepted the invitation with pleasure , hoping and ttusting that you , my brethren , would make every allowance for any shortcomings on my part , on account of the shortness of the notice , and likewise would listen to the brief words I have to say , a * words coming sincerely from one
who greets well yourselves and your new undertaking . I would first then remind you of the importance of the responsibilities that are about to devolve upon you . You arc , so to speak , about to become a beacon light to shine on all , both far and near , those great truths of our Order , brotherly love , relief , and truth . And if you do this well , the lustre of your lodge will be increased . If you elo it ill ,
the harmony of the brethren will be marred . Therefore , in all your dealings , be just , and upright , and true . In all your transactions with the brethren be considerate and kind ; and in thc hour of diffeience , should dissensions at any time unfortunately arise , think of the compasses , which symbolise the keeping down all angry feelings , and take the pacific teaching of our Order to show you what
a Mason ought to do . Since those old days when the good King Solomon built the Temple to the Lord on Mount Moriah , Masonry has gone through different phases of difficulty and danger ; but it has passed through them all , and like the fabled Phoenix of old has come unscathed out of the fire of persecution , only to shine with a brighter lustre , and . to carry its princi ples to every lime * ami among all the people of the world . And why ?
Consecration Of The Kensington Lodge, No. 1767.
Because she bears about her a banner , a glorious banner ; and on it are inscribed those mystic words , Wisdom , Strength , Beauty—wisdom to comprehend all mysteries ; strength to carry out all her teachings ; and beauty in all those rites and ceremonies whicli symbolise the principles of our Order . And on you , brethren , it will now depend to carry out those principles , to cherish them yourselves , and
likewise to inculcate them among the brotherhood . Depend upon it , it is only by doing so that your lodge will take that stand which it ought to take in the Masonic world . May your W . M . open his lodge at sunrise with diligence and punctuality ; may your J . W . ' s call be heard vvith profit and vvith pleasure ; and may your S . W ., when the sun sets in the west , close his lodge at the command of the W . M .,
after seeing that no brother leaves it unimproved in virtue and in science . Such , my brethren , are some ofthe principles which it has been my office to bring before , you to-day . They are high and holy principles , and I ttust will be long remembered by you , and that you will inculcate them upon your brethren by precept as well as by example , and that you will guard the mystic treasures that are to b ;
committed to you against all cowans and all intruders that would invade the repository of your secrets , with Fidelity , Fidelity , Fidelity . Now , brethren , let me thank you for the attention you appear to have paid to the few words that I have been permittetl to address you . Had time been allowed I could have given them more in detail , but as it is they . speak a language dear to every Mason's heart , and
should lead us all to cherish and to love the Craft the more . What I have said , I trust , will lead you in all danger and difficulties , and guide the Craft which you are now about to launch safely over the ocean of the Masonic world , until by the help of the Great Architect of the Universe it is brought safely into the haven where the wicked cease from troubling anil the weary are at rest . And now , brethren , receive my
heartiest good wishes for the success of the Kensington Lotlge . I feel , from thc gratification of those who are to preside over it , that it will in due lime take its stand in the annals of Masonry . May the Everlasting , the Most I lij ; h , of His mercy , guide you by the principles and teachings of our noble Order safely through your walk in life , and lead you with all fortitude over the dark valley of the
shadow of death , until He lands your enfranchised spirit in the peaceful abode of the blessed . The ceremony of consecration was then performed , and the petitioning brethren were constituted into a regular lodge . At the request of Bro . Hervey , Bro . Tnomas Fenn installed Bro . George Read , W . M . 511 , as first Worshipful
Master of the lodge , and the foil living brethren were invested as officers : Bros . Chailes Edward Williams , J . D , ¦ ill , S . W . ; Thomas Hanock , 511 , J . W . ; Barfield , P . M . 511 , Treas . ; C . J . Fo ikes ,,. P . M ., Sec . ; James William Barker , S . D . ; Joseph H . Taylor , J . D . j Charles G . Gumpel , I . G . ; Swanson , D . C . ; Oliver , Organist ; Baugh and Met . * alf , Stewards ; and Thomas Schofield , Tyler .
A vote of thanks was aftcrwarels passed to Bros . Hervey , Fenn , Hall , and Boggett , for their services , and they were elected honorary members of the lodge . Propositions for joining and initiation were given in , and the lodge was then closed . An elegant banquet followed the consecration of tbe lodge , after which the usual toasts were proposed .
Bro . Hervey , after acknowledging the toast of the "Grand Officers , " proposed " Success t <> the Kensington Lodge and the Health of the W . M . " There , could be no doubt , he said , that where a lodge was well conducted it tended to the well-being of society and the comfort of thc locality in which it vvas situated . It also conduced to the gnat benefit of the members who were enrolled under its banners . He
trusted , as hc had said in the lodge , that the Kensington Lodge would be so conducted as to reflect honour on itself and credit on the Craft . Under the auspices with which it was started he thought there Wis no question that it would do so . It hatl emanated from an overflow of brethren of another lodge , which , though originally constituted in that
neighbourhood , migrated to Meet-street , where it had so prospered that it had become like a swarm of bees . Many of those brethren lived in Kensington , and fro 11 the number he saw round the table he thought the Kensington Lodge bade fair to rival in number the uinthcr lodge . For the sake of those who had launched the vessel on tbe waters
that day he ho n ied the Kensington Lottie would flourish , and that under the auspices of the W . M . during lhe current yen- it would show that ie had not been established in vain , but that it might add ge > od members and true to the Craft . He did not recommend that the brethren should endeavour to make their lodge great in numbers ; that , he thought , was a mistake ; but let the members of the lodge
be respectable , and worthy of b-. in , j members of the Craft ; then they would be doing good service to the Order and to the lodge . But if they introduced men to the Craft whom they would be sorry to see at their own table , whom they would not receive in private , they had no right to do so , and would not be doing the duty to Freemasonry which it expected at their hands . He vvas sure that under Bro .
Read ' s rule and management such a state of things would not atise , and he trusted that the Wardens who would succeed Bro . Read would exercise the same foresight of the affairs of the lodge , and not look for number but for quality . Masonry did not want those who would not be an ornament to it , and he for one would be heartily glad if a great many now iu the Craft were not members of it , and if it would purify itself of some to whom they
were at present allied , anel with whom they were compelled now to associate . The W . M . in reply said : It was now some twelve years since he was initiated in Masonry in the Royal Parish of Kensington , but he had no expectation that he should be able to occupy the first chair in a lodge in the p irish . They had felt their old lo . lge was too great , and they migrated to the great city ; but after a while the time seemed to have arrived when they should establish a new
Consecration Of The Kensington Lodge, No. 1767.
lodge in Kensington , as very admirable quarters were to be found there . He had approved of those quarters for the new lodge , and he hoped it would long remain there . He had heard so many expressions of the brethren's esteem that he was at a loss to explain how much he thanked them , but he thanked them very much . They had placed him now in a very responsible position ,
because the Master of a new lodge held a more responsible position than the ordinary Master of a lodge . He did not take the office with any fear or trembling ; he had great confidence in the brethren who nominated him as the First Master , and also in the first Officers . There was a portion of the more advanced ritual , " to the effect that to reign sovereign in the hearts and affections of men was
far more preferable than to rule over their lives and fortunes . He did not know whether it was presumptuous for him to apply that to himself ; but if the esteem in which he was held by the brethren of the Ranelagh and Zetland Lodges was to be measured by the number of those brethren who were present that evening , he felt that they had conferred a very great honour upon him . He had been
associated with them in Masonry for many years , and he had always received from them great kindness and respect . He took it as a further mark of their esteem attending at the consecration of this new lodge , and seeing him installed as the first W . M . Bro . Hervey had expressed the hope that the lodge world succeed , and be an ornamentto the Craft . He icitcrated the wish , and vvith the assistance of The Great Architect of the Universe he would endeavour to
make it so . The W . M . next proposed " The Health of the Consecrating Officers , " and vvas delighted to see present the Kev . Ambrose W . Hall . Many brethren were now out of town , and Bro . HaU had kindly undertaken the office of Chaplain . He was a neighbour in the parish , and the brethren were all delighted to have such a neig hbour as Bro . Hall . The Consecrating Officers had all performed their duties
admirably that evening , and the brethren were very much pleased with what they had witnessed . Bro . Thomas Fenn , P . G . D ., who replied , said he was very much flattered by the remarks that had been made vvith regard to the Consecrating Officers . If it had not been that they should not work a willing horse too much , Bro . Hervey was the proper officer to reply to this toast ,
as he had done so much more of the ceremony than he ( Bro . Fenn ) . However , it is not the fmt time they had appeared together at an interesting ceremony like that . Bro . Hervey's kind and courteous way of going through the work like a good master marked him as a good man , anil therefore those who were associated vvith him had to do their best to do their work as well as he . The notice
he had had vvas very short , but still his attendance had nut been given with less pleasure . They would allow for many shortcomings , but , notwithstanding those shortcomings , he had a great interest in a lodge which wa » formed in his immediate neighbourhood . He lived but five minutes walk from the lodge , and he took sufficient interest in the neighbourhood to hope that such a lodge as this
would be established so near to him . He begged the brethren to receive his thanks for the compliment they had paid him by electing him an honorary member of the lodge . Whenever the brethren would like to see him among them , he should be glad to come anil see the progress which he hoped they would have . He must now congratulate the lodge on coming to the Courtfield Hotel . Their lines had
certainly fallen in pleasant places . In the course of his Masonic visits he had seldom seen such good accommodation as the brethren had at this hotel , and he understood that above the room in which they were now sitting there was one that would be used for the woiking of the lodge , so that they would not be detained between the times of labour and refreshment .
Some time ago a circular was brought down to him to sign a petition against a licence being granted for this house . He went to see the house , and saw it was a nice house , antl he said tothe gentlemen who brought him the pt-tition that the house would nut hurt him , whatever it was ; and it seemed a nice house ; and that in the first place he did not wish to prevent an honest man who tried
to cater for the public from keeping a good house and getting a living . He did not sign the petition . Whenhe looked at the house he looked at it with rather a Masonic eye , and found it well suited fur Mason ' c purposes . It was strange under such circumstances he should have been asked to assist at the consecration of a lodge at that house . He hailed the advent of a lodge there as a success to the
house , and he thought the brethren had done a good thing not only for the house but for the neighbourhood and for Masonry in the neighbourhood . He again thanked the brethren for toasting him the amongst Consecrating Officers , and could assure them that what hc had done had been simply a labour of love , and from a desire and wish he had always had to promote in every way the interest of
Masonry . It was forty-four years since he was first made a Master Mason , and although for thirty years , on account of professional duties , he was unable to attend to the working , as soon as he became free from professional duties he returned to his first love , and had been intimately acquainted with Masonry since . By the blessing of the Great Architect he would endeavour to continue to do so , and he should feel the greatest
pleasure as an honorary member of this lotlge at all times not only to hear of the excellence of its working but to see it prosper in thc way he prognosticated in his address in lodge . Hc thought it would . Bro . Worthington , P . M . 834 , responded to the toast of " The Visitors . " He said he did so with pleasure , for two or three reasons ; first , because he believed , if not the oldest , he was the next oldest in the room as a
Kcnsingtonian ; anil secondly , because he and his late father were two of the oldest friends of the W . M . as Masons . He hatl known Bro . George Read for many years , and his tongue never tired when it spike of his qualities , because his