History Of The Lodge Of Emulation, No. 21.

History of the Lodge of Emulation , No . 21 .

( By HENRY SADLER , Sub-Librarian to the Grand Lodge of England . )

I- ^ EB . 17 th . —At this meeting it was resolved that medals " * be presented to the Treasurer and Secretary in recognition of their services to the Lodge . Dec . 21 st . — "A motion being made by B - Whitford , seconded by B - White , that 15 Guineas be subscribed b y this Lodge toward the Jewel voted by the Grand Lodge to

the Earl of Moira , A . G . M ., on his going to India , and that each member do pay 10 / 6 . in addition to the annual subscription to defray the same , and , the question being put , was carried unanimously . " 1813 , Jan . iSth . —At this meeting , on the motion of

Bro . White , it was agreed that a second Tyler should be appointed , also that no waiter be in future admitted into the interior of the Lodge .

CI . AI'DIIS STKI'IIKX HUXTKR , I . OKI ) MAYOR OF I . ON'DOX , lS \ 2 , CKAN'IJ STEWARD FOR TilIC I . OIHiK OK KMCI . ATION , 1 SI I . " Brother White observed that the present Emolument of the Tyler was inadequate , whereupon it was , Resolved ,

that the R . W . M . and Treasurer , with the assistance of the Officers for the . time being , do make such alteration and addition to the Emoluments of the Tylers as they shall from time to time deem reasonable and necessary . " " There not being three installed Masters present , the

installation of Brother Deans as R . W . M . for the ensuing year , was adjourned until the next Lodge . " April , iotli . —" Brother White moved that Three dozen Masonic glasses be provided for the use of the lodge , which was seconded by B' - Whitford and carried . "

June 18 th . — " B Past Master White moved that an humble Address be presented from this Lodge to H . R . Highness , the Duke of Sussex , congratulating him on his being elected Grand Master , which motion being duly seconded by P . M . Whitford was carried in the affirmative unanimously .

The R . W . M ., Br- Deans proposed that the following address be adopted , which being duly read and seconded by the S . W . was unanimously approved . " The Address is duly entered in the minutes but it is too lengthy for reproduction , apart from the fact that it contains nothing material to tlie history of the Lodge , being of the

usual fulsome character of Addresses to Royal personages . The Duke's reply to the Address was read in the Lodge and entered on minutes of 18 th Oct . following , the original , bearing the signature and seal of His Royal Highness , being still preserved in the archives of the Lodge .

Nov . 15 th . — " Brother Whitford P . M . proposed that Lodge boards similar to those adopted by and used in the Lodge of Friendship should be prepared for the use of this Lodge , which was seconded by Brother Percy and carried in the affirmative . "

Dec . 20 th . —On the motion of Bro . White , P . M ., the initiation Fee was raised at this meeting from four to live guineas . We have now arrived at a momentous epoch in the history of English Freemasonry—that of the Union of the two Grand Lodges in London—and as at least three of the

members of this Lodge played an important part in bringing about that auspicious event , a brief sketch of the rival Societies may not be deemed out of place in these pages .

For about sixty years prior to the year 1813 these two antagonistic Grand Lodges had existed , each having many subordinate lodges under its jurisdiction in nearly every part of the civilized world . The older of these bodies , that from which this Lodge emanated , was established in the year 1717 , and has been variously designated " The Grand Lodge of

Free and Accepted Masons of England , " "The Regular Grand Lodge , " " The Modern Grand Lodge , " and , later , " The Grand Lodge under the Prince of Wales , " George , Prince of Wales , afterwards King George the Fourth , having been its Grand Master from 1790 to 1813 .

The rival Grand Lodge started in the year 1751 as a Grand Committee , which merged into a Grand Lodge two years later . This body was at first chiefly composed of Irish Masons , and for this and other reasons I have designated it the Ang-lolrish Grand Lodge . It was commonly known as

"The Grand Lodge of the Antients , " or , to give it its full title , " The Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons According to the Old Institutions . " Its members were also referred to as " Athole Masons , " because two Dukes of that name had presided over them as Grand Masters . For the

sake of brevity and as a simple distinction these two Societies were , and still are , referred to by Masonic writers as ' 'Antients" and " Moderns , " the "Antients" being the organization of 175 1 , and the " Moderns" that of 1717 .

The regular Grand Lodge , although undoubtedly the older as an organized body , had so altered the ceremonies and neglected the old customs of the Craft , that , according to their opponents of 175 1 , they had forfeited their right to the title of "Antient , " while they having preserved the traditional usages and ceremonies unaltered , were the real

" Antient Masons , " and no doubt there was a certain amount of truth in these allegations . A strong and bitter rivalry existed between the two Societies for many years , promoted and fostered , I regret to say , chielly by some of the leading Masons on both sides . In fact , it was at first a struggle for

absolute supremacy on the part of the Moderns—the older and possibly more respectable community—and for existence as an organization on the part of the Antients , who were stigmatized by their rivals as seceders , schismatics , rebels , and even still more offensive terms being applied to them .

Edicts and proclamations of non-intercourse were freely promulgated by both parties , the brethren were forbidden to visitor join the opposition lodges under severe pains and penalties , unless they consented to be re-made and pay the