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and not by a subscription which all who please may evade . It is , of course , an open question , whether a subscription-list is the means best adapted for the purpose to be obtained . On the one hand , all would be included under a tax , while on the other it would deprive persons of
an opportunity of showing their sympathy for the sufferers by the war , making that compulsory which would otherwise have been cheerfully given of " free will and accord . " But the question is not whether a tax or a subscription-list is the best , — -that has been settled long ago . The question is , shall we , so far as we are concerned , allow the widows and orphans of our brave soldiers to starve , or go into the workhouse ? There can be but one answer from every true Mason .
The last class of objectors with which we propose to deal , are those who think that Masonic money ought not to be given to any but Masonic purposes . We are perfectly agreed upon this point , The whole question is , what are " Masonic ' ¦ ' purposes ? Are they purposes in which none but Masons are concerned ? We answer , most decidedly no . Masonry is an institution for maintaining certain
principles ot truth , morality , and charity , among men m general . It is universal , not local , — -we do not only speak the truth among Masons , and falsehoods among the rest of the world , but we uphold truth universally , and so with morality and charity . It is no doubt true that we are bound to support purely Masonic charities in the first instance , and could it be maintained that Masonic charities would
suffer by our carrying out our principles in a wider field , we should at once concede the point , but the very reverse is the case ; the Masonic charities are amply provided for , and in so far as we localize and narrow the limits of Masonic action , in place of extending it , and making it universal , so do we descend from our high position , and take our standing bv the side of local benefit clubs , such as Odd
Fellows , or Druids , or the Manchester , or any other "Unity . ' It may be also well to bear in mind , that so entirely is this the recognised principle of Freemasonry , that there is no Provincial , and scarcely any private Lodge , whose funds do not assist in the maintenance of schools , hospitals , and other works of general utility and benevolence- Upon what principle then is it that an exception
should be made in favour of Grand Lodge ? If the money of Masons may be spent for the benefit of those who are not Masons in the country , why not in London ? It cannot be Masonic in one place and un-Masonic in another . For these reasons we sincerely trust that the vote in March may be as unanimous as was the feeling in
December . We hope this for the sake of consistency , for the sake of the reputation of the Masonic body , and last , but not least , for the sake of those , whose fathers and husbands have fallen in the performance of their duty on the plains of Alma , or under the walls oi Sevastopol .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Untitled Article
and not by a subscription which all who please may evade . It is , of course , an open question , whether a subscription-list is the means best adapted for the purpose to be obtained . On the one hand , all would be included under a tax , while on the other it would deprive persons of
an opportunity of showing their sympathy for the sufferers by the war , making that compulsory which would otherwise have been cheerfully given of " free will and accord . " But the question is not whether a tax or a subscription-list is the best , — -that has been settled long ago . The question is , shall we , so far as we are concerned , allow the widows and orphans of our brave soldiers to starve , or go into the workhouse ? There can be but one answer from every true Mason .
The last class of objectors with which we propose to deal , are those who think that Masonic money ought not to be given to any but Masonic purposes . We are perfectly agreed upon this point , The whole question is , what are " Masonic ' ¦ ' purposes ? Are they purposes in which none but Masons are concerned ? We answer , most decidedly no . Masonry is an institution for maintaining certain
principles ot truth , morality , and charity , among men m general . It is universal , not local , — -we do not only speak the truth among Masons , and falsehoods among the rest of the world , but we uphold truth universally , and so with morality and charity . It is no doubt true that we are bound to support purely Masonic charities in the first instance , and could it be maintained that Masonic charities would
suffer by our carrying out our principles in a wider field , we should at once concede the point , but the very reverse is the case ; the Masonic charities are amply provided for , and in so far as we localize and narrow the limits of Masonic action , in place of extending it , and making it universal , so do we descend from our high position , and take our standing bv the side of local benefit clubs , such as Odd
Fellows , or Druids , or the Manchester , or any other "Unity . ' It may be also well to bear in mind , that so entirely is this the recognised principle of Freemasonry , that there is no Provincial , and scarcely any private Lodge , whose funds do not assist in the maintenance of schools , hospitals , and other works of general utility and benevolence- Upon what principle then is it that an exception
should be made in favour of Grand Lodge ? If the money of Masons may be spent for the benefit of those who are not Masons in the country , why not in London ? It cannot be Masonic in one place and un-Masonic in another . For these reasons we sincerely trust that the vote in March may be as unanimous as was the feeling in
December . We hope this for the sake of consistency , for the sake of the reputation of the Masonic body , and last , but not least , for the sake of those , whose fathers and husbands have fallen in the performance of their duty on the plains of Alma , or under the walls oi Sevastopol .