Tracings Boards Of Lodge, No. 262,

Tracings Boards of Lodge , No . 262 ,

Jield in the ? th Bight dragoons , subsequently Mo . 331 , ] th JCussars .

- ''I ^ HPl Tracing Boards here depicted may be considered I unique in more ways than one . They are painted on strips of canvas , each being of a different size , and were probabl y designed by one of the members of the lodge , who evidentl y cut his Tracing Boards " according to his ¦ cloth . " No . 262 being a travelling lodge , i . e ., not fixed in a

So . l—Orii / inal Size , . ' 15 /// . Ii . i / IN in . certain town , but accompanying the regiment , it was essential that the paraphernalia should be as compact as possible , the boards therefore had neither frames nor stretchers ; when in use they were simply fastened to the iloor at each corner ,

and when not in use they were rolled up in a very small compass . The whole of the regalia , books , and furniture , both Craft and Royal Arch , including robes , & c , of this lodge , were kept in a box under two feet square . The date on the coffin lid probably indicates the year the

boards were painted , thus enhancing their value as relics of the past , for , although there are many old Tracing Boards in existence , we are in most cases left quite in the dark as to their age . Apart from the peculiarity of their design and

construction , the fact of their having been with , or near , the regiment during the battle of Waterloo will doubtless add to their historic interest . It is hardly likely that they were actuall y on the ground during the great light , yet it is possible , as no doubt the box was with the baggage of the regiment . Under

the circumstances , therefore , we might be almost justified in designating them Waterloo Tracing Boards . We learn from Lane ' s Masonic Records that in 1807 the Grand Lodge of the Antients in London , in response to a petition from certain brethren in the 7 H 1 ( or Queen ' s Own Regiment of ) Light Dragoons , re-issued warrant No . 262 ( the

lodge to which it had originally been granted having lapsed ) , for a lodge to be held in that regiment , the warrant bearing date 22 nd April , 1807 . This lodge , judging from the Grand Lodge records , appears to have been fairly successful from the first , notwithstanding the demands made upon its members by the service in which they were engaged , and

they were many and urgent at that period . No sooner had the regiment returned from the Peninsular war and had settled clown for a short period of rest and recuperation than Napoleon's escape from Elba and his determination to try conclusions himself with Wellington , necessitated an

immediate call to arms and a hurried return to the Continent . In a letter to the Grand Secretary dated 26 th December , rSiq , from Brighton Barracks , the Secretary ( Sergeant William Edwards ) says : " The deranged state of our Lodge , owing to our late return from service , is the only excuse

which can be offer'd for the delay which has occur'd in forwarding the enclosed Return , but in future this shall be avoided . " In consequence of the Union of the two Grand Lodges the lodge had now become No . 331 . His next letter , dated 2 nd April , 1813 , states that "This Regiment being under immediate orders for service , the Brethren are

extremely desirous of obtaining their respective certificates before they leave this country . " At first sight the pressing need of Masonic certificates on the eve of departure for the battle-field appears somewhat peculiar , but I think a probable explanation may be found in the fact that at the period indicated scarcely a regiment in the British Army but had a

Freemasons' lodge attached to it , either under the English , Irish , or Scotch Constitution ; moreover , in view of the stirring nature of the times and the uncertain incidents of war , the brethren might reasonabl y have some doubts as to when they would see England again . However , their desires

X „ . - l—O ,-i , / ,,,,, ! Size , : CI ill . lii ) 17 iii .