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Article THE MASONIC MIRROR. ← Page 5 of 14 →
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The Masonic Mirror.
law , did not rise to inform the Brethren that they could not adjourn . ( Hear , hear , and cries * of " They could adjourn—that ' s the question ! " ) They might have presented a memorial to the M . W . the Grand Master , and he would take upon himself to say that the prayer of that memorial , if it had been for a Grand Lodge of Emergency , would have been granted . (<( Oh ! oh ! " cries of " Query ! " and laughter . ) He would not wish Grand Lodge to stultify itself , although he could tell of resolutions which had been three years upon the paper . ¦
( Hear , and loud cries of " Shame ! shame ! " ) It was a shame , and it was because he was anxious to put away that shame that he asked and entreated them not to do a wrong because they could not attain legitimate ends by illegitimate means . Whatever they did that evening would be unquestionably illegal . ( Oh ! oh and cries of " It is questioned . " ) They would be null and void , and was it therefore worth their while to take up their time in going into a fruitless discussion ? They could not without the consent of th « Grand Master hold any meeting , and let him ask them had they the consent of the Grand Master for that they were then
holding ? ( A voice : " We had the consent of the acting Grand Master , who represented the M . W . the Grand Master at our last meeting ; " hear , hear . ) They had not the consent of the M . W . the Grand Master himself ) for he was informed that it had not even been asked . ( Hear , hear . ) He did entreat them to bear in mind what he said , and also the fact , that he had no object in view but to do his duty . ( Cheers . ) And he could assure those who were unaware of the facts of the case , that he must have been keenly sensible of what was his duty , to have attended that evening in spite of the severe domestic calamities under which he was at that moment suffering . ( Hear , hear , and applause . )
A Brother , whose name we did not learn , admitted the difficulty of the position in which Grand Lodge found itself ; hut he thought the Brethren would fall into the greater evil of the two , if they rejected Bro . Beadon ' s advice , and pledged themselves to an unprecedented course of procedure , instead of asking the Grand Master to call a special Lodge . He attempted to show that if there were this power of adjournment , it would throw the power of Grand Lodge into the hands of the London members ; but this idea was very generally repudiated by the Brethren .
Bro . Percy Wells , of Bath : "J consider it a perfectly constitutional act , our meeting here to-night . ( Hear . ) The Grand Lodge was adjourned by the then presiding Grand Master ; and if that act had been illegal , he had no right to have done so . He sanctioned the illegal act , if it was illegal . It has been objected that the Brethren in the provinces could not have sufficient notice of this adjourned Grand Lodge . They might have had notice ; and if they have not , they ought to have had it . ( Hear , hear . ) Something must he done with respect to this Canada question . ( Hear , hear , and loud cheers . ) We are determined ( hear , hear , and
renewed cheering ) ; we will leave no stone unturned . ( Cheers . ) Most of the Brethren on my left have come from considerable distances to-day ; we have some here because the last Grand Lodge was adjourned till to-day by the then presiding Grand Master . ( Hear , hear . ) We have come in the faith of that Adjournment , and then to tell us that we are not to proceed to business , I maintain , with all respect to the Brethren who have spoken before me , and with all respect to you , R . W . Sir , that it is making fools of us . ( Hear , hear . ) If the Brethren in the provinces have not had notice , it is because the Grand Secretary
has not done his duty . ( Hear , hear . ) I venerate his age , Sir , but nothing more . ( Hear . ) If 13 ro . White did his duty like the Secretary of any other public body , every Brother in the provinces would have had notice of what had taken place at Grand Lodge within a fortnight , instead of never getting it for more than three months . ( Hear , hear . ) This is not a mere general charge ; for I can give you dates . ( Hear , hear . ) I respect his age , and wish he would do his duty , —nothing
more . The Grand Master on the last occasion had no right to adjourn Grand Lodge , if he had no power to do so ( hear ) ; but I contend , Eight Worshipful Sir , it is in Grand Lodge itself that rests the inherent power of making its own laws and regulating its own ^ eonduct . ( Hear , hear . ) It is said that no adjourned Grand Lodge has taken place since the union ; but there is no reason anything should not take place simply on the ground that it is without a precedent . I am
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The Masonic Mirror.
law , did not rise to inform the Brethren that they could not adjourn . ( Hear , hear , and cries * of " They could adjourn—that ' s the question ! " ) They might have presented a memorial to the M . W . the Grand Master , and he would take upon himself to say that the prayer of that memorial , if it had been for a Grand Lodge of Emergency , would have been granted . (<( Oh ! oh ! " cries of " Query ! " and laughter . ) He would not wish Grand Lodge to stultify itself , although he could tell of resolutions which had been three years upon the paper . ¦
( Hear , and loud cries of " Shame ! shame ! " ) It was a shame , and it was because he was anxious to put away that shame that he asked and entreated them not to do a wrong because they could not attain legitimate ends by illegitimate means . Whatever they did that evening would be unquestionably illegal . ( Oh ! oh and cries of " It is questioned . " ) They would be null and void , and was it therefore worth their while to take up their time in going into a fruitless discussion ? They could not without the consent of th « Grand Master hold any meeting , and let him ask them had they the consent of the Grand Master for that they were then
holding ? ( A voice : " We had the consent of the acting Grand Master , who represented the M . W . the Grand Master at our last meeting ; " hear , hear . ) They had not the consent of the M . W . the Grand Master himself ) for he was informed that it had not even been asked . ( Hear , hear . ) He did entreat them to bear in mind what he said , and also the fact , that he had no object in view but to do his duty . ( Cheers . ) And he could assure those who were unaware of the facts of the case , that he must have been keenly sensible of what was his duty , to have attended that evening in spite of the severe domestic calamities under which he was at that moment suffering . ( Hear , hear , and applause . )
A Brother , whose name we did not learn , admitted the difficulty of the position in which Grand Lodge found itself ; hut he thought the Brethren would fall into the greater evil of the two , if they rejected Bro . Beadon ' s advice , and pledged themselves to an unprecedented course of procedure , instead of asking the Grand Master to call a special Lodge . He attempted to show that if there were this power of adjournment , it would throw the power of Grand Lodge into the hands of the London members ; but this idea was very generally repudiated by the Brethren .
Bro . Percy Wells , of Bath : "J consider it a perfectly constitutional act , our meeting here to-night . ( Hear . ) The Grand Lodge was adjourned by the then presiding Grand Master ; and if that act had been illegal , he had no right to have done so . He sanctioned the illegal act , if it was illegal . It has been objected that the Brethren in the provinces could not have sufficient notice of this adjourned Grand Lodge . They might have had notice ; and if they have not , they ought to have had it . ( Hear , hear . ) Something must he done with respect to this Canada question . ( Hear , hear , and loud cheers . ) We are determined ( hear , hear , and
renewed cheering ) ; we will leave no stone unturned . ( Cheers . ) Most of the Brethren on my left have come from considerable distances to-day ; we have some here because the last Grand Lodge was adjourned till to-day by the then presiding Grand Master . ( Hear , hear . ) We have come in the faith of that Adjournment , and then to tell us that we are not to proceed to business , I maintain , with all respect to the Brethren who have spoken before me , and with all respect to you , R . W . Sir , that it is making fools of us . ( Hear , hear . ) If the Brethren in the provinces have not had notice , it is because the Grand Secretary
has not done his duty . ( Hear , hear . ) I venerate his age , Sir , but nothing more . ( Hear . ) If 13 ro . White did his duty like the Secretary of any other public body , every Brother in the provinces would have had notice of what had taken place at Grand Lodge within a fortnight , instead of never getting it for more than three months . ( Hear , hear . ) This is not a mere general charge ; for I can give you dates . ( Hear , hear . ) I respect his age , and wish he would do his duty , —nothing
more . The Grand Master on the last occasion had no right to adjourn Grand Lodge , if he had no power to do so ( hear ) ; but I contend , Eight Worshipful Sir , it is in Grand Lodge itself that rests the inherent power of making its own laws and regulating its own ^ eonduct . ( Hear , hear . ) It is said that no adjourned Grand Lodge has taken place since the union ; but there is no reason anything should not take place simply on the ground that it is without a precedent . I am