Installation Of Lord Plunket As Grand Master Of New Zealand.

Installation of Lord Plunket as Grand Master of New Zealand .

fTM-IK installation of His Excellency Lord Pliinket , I Governor-General , as Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of New Zealand , took place on May 9 th at Christcluu'ch , in the presence of a large representation of Craftsmen from lodges in all parts of the colony and further afield . The occasion was the most auspicious in the history

of Freemasonry in New Zealand , inasmuch as it marked the first installation of vice-royaltv to the highest office in the New Zealand Order . Bro . Lord Phmket is following the example of Governors in Victoria who have held the position of Grand Masters , and it is only quite recently that Bro . Sir

Harry Rawson , Governor of New South Wales , was installed in Sydney as Grand Master of that Grand Lodge . Bro . Lord Onslow , a former Governor of New Zealand , was asked in 188 9 to accept the high office as first Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of New Zealand , but he declined , after going

deeply into the matter , on the ground that there was not unanimity among the New Zealand lodges in their relation with the proposed Grand Lodge . Of the 147 lodges in the colony at that date , only ninety-two were definitely in favour of the proposal . After a great deal of opposition from one

side or another , the Grand Lodge was formed in 1890 , and Bro . Henry Thomson was installed first Grand Master , and Bro . Lord Plunket is the ninth Freemason to fill the position . The ceremony of installation having been performed , the

retiring Grand Master 111 addressing the brethren said : lhat in an eloquent sermon preached some time ago by the Grand Chaplain of Nova Scotia , he stated that " the idea seems to be gaining ground that the obligation of a Master Mason does not extend to and cover his relations with the brethren in private life , but only extends to the converse and work of the

lodge room , and unkindness and injustice amongst the brethren in their relations as private citizens is a matter entirely beyond and outside the Alasonic cognisance . " The preacher went on to say : " If this view is correct and should become generally adopted and acted upon ,

it must surely eventually tend not only to render the terms of a most solemn obligation unintelligible and foolish jargon , but also in a very great measure to nullify entirely the principle of brotherly kindness , which is as strictly enjoined as any other of the tenets to which we give assent

in that obligation . If brethren are only to be kind , just and true to one another when in lodge assembled , and when untiled and unclothed are absolved from their obligation in this respect , then shall we in vain seek to impress upon the profane that there can be in our system consistency , integrity and stability . " I say it maybe that this "touches us not , "

and that in this relation " our withers are miwrung , " but nevertheless a little candid self-examination by every one of us may not be out of place or unwise . For it is most true that " conscience is harder than our enemies , knows more , accuses with more nicety . " My own experience , gathered in all parts of the territory- —north , west , east , south—would

lead me to think that the larger cities are not conspicuous over smaller places for manifestation of a true Masonic spirit . I will not say more than this , except to echo the declared conviction of the reverend brother whom I have already quoted , that the idea should iv . > t be entertained

" that a Mason can ever at any time , or in any place or in any way wilfully injure a brother Mason , and at Mie same time maintain unsullied his own honour and reputation , or remain true either to the spirit or the letter of his obligations . " Verily , to quote the American philosopher ,

" the only way to be a friend is to be one . " You will , I think , brethren , bear with me in this my parting word , when 1 exhoi t you to maintain the dignity of our beloved Institution . Do not let our claims to a high morality end in mere talk , but let us show to thewoild that our beautiful tenets are exemplified in our life and daily dealings ; and in our lighter hours let our joyousness be reasonable , and never may we

forget that we have markedly declared temperance to be one of the cardinal virtues . All this being so , we shall take new delight in that utterance of the poet— " Oh , what a precious comfort 'tis to have so many like brothers , commanding one another ' s fortunes . "

The Most Worshipful Grand Master announced the appointment by him of the following officers , viz . : —Deputy Grand Master , Bro . J . M . Brown ( Oamaru ) ; Senior Grand Warden , R . W . Bro . J . H . Keesing ( Wanganui ) ; Junior Grand WardenR . W . Bro . H . C . Tewsley ( Auckland ) .

, The Deputy Grand Master , Grand Superintendents , Grand Wardens and the other Grand Lodge officers elected at the afternoon sitting of the Grand Lodge were duly invested . Lord Plunket , in delivering his installation address , said : — " In opening my address I desire again to assure the

brethren how fully I appreciate the honour conferred upon me , and how deeply conscious I am of the serious responsibilities which must necessarily form part of the high office to which I have been elected . It is no small thing to be chosen by the members of so flourishing , important and

increasing an institution to be their head , and I must confess that , when first asked to allow my name to be submitted to the lodges , I hesitated , for I had grave doubts as to whether the brethren as a whole would wish to choose one who might by some be considered an interloper , and who certainly

could not claim any personal knowledge of the peculiar requirements and aspirations of the Craft in New Zealand . I was , however , so earnestly assured that the brethren would welcome one \ yho was both the representative of his Majesty , our Patron , and an earnest Mason , that 1 hesitated no longer , and from the fraternal way in which my nomination was

received , I see that my advisers were not mistaken . It is a double satisfaction to me to realise that their judgment was correct , since it will be necessary for me to rely for some time upon the advice of prominent members of the Grand Lodge , and to be guided by their counsel to a considerable

extent . In this connection , I thank you for having given me such an able and agreeable coadjutor as M . W . Bro . Binns , upon whom so much of the usual work of the Grand Master must fall , owing to my public duties outside the Craft . The special needs and the immediate interests of the

Freemasons of New Zealand have been ably dealt with , and I propose only to submit to you a few remarks of a more general character . The point and ceremony of the dignified and perfectly carried out installation of this evening is upmost in our minds at the moment . Our hearts are filled with satisfaction at the material progress and

prosperity of the ancient Craft in this young country , and we are congratulating ourselves upon the splendid reunion of brethren gathered here to-night from all over the colony . It would be pleasant and easy for me to frame an address merely upon these lines , but if I am to be worthy of the honour you have paid me I must endeavour to probe more

deeply beneath the surface . Ritual is interesting , 'but the lesson and duties it teaches are its real use and object . How often one hears the symbolic portion of our ritual elaborately given , and the meaning it represents gabbled or spoken without any tone of conviction . And what is the result ? Our

new brethren either drop out of Masonry or accept the convivial and social side as its only usefulness . In my opinion , this hesitation to point the moral more often proceeds from the instructor ' s feeling of personal unworthiness rather than from indifference to the noble morals which it his duty to

inculcate . And if I am right in this , such a brother should take heart , for surely , that very feeling of unworthiness proves that his mind is not dead to the nobler aims of our Craft . Brethren , if Masonry is to be of genuine service to us , and is to attract our fellow men , we must keep ever before our minds its real object , which is to help us to live better lives , to act on the square in all our doings . No brother in