A great many of the Masonic laws and customs and ceremonies, especially the latter, are of a symbolic character. We should like to have him examine this matter from a historical standpoint and give us what he finds in relation to it. In his conclusion he notices efforts that are made to amend Constitutions by making all Grand Officers elective, which he does not favor. The reason given is that the Grand Master has practically the power to indicate who his remote successor shall be. The trouble is in allowing the doctrine of "promotion in line" to get a hold upon our Grand Bodies. We have broken it up in Maine by making a Grand Warden ineligible to re-election, and a Junior Grand Warden ineligible to promotion as Senior, and there has come to be very nearly a reason for putting into the Constitution a provision making a Grand Warden ineligible to any office, on account of an attempt that was made to establish the right of the outgoing Senior Grand Warden to promotion to Deputy Grand Master. But we think that practically this has been broken up. It is true that we do not elect a man Deputy Grand Master whom we do not mean to elect Grand Master, for the reason that a man who is going to be Grand Master of this Grand Lodge, ought to give in advance attention to the study of the duties, and we make our intended Grand Master Deputy, generally for two years, to give him that opportunity. If Brother Drummond will quote the exact words of what he regards as the law governing "physical qualification" we shall be pleased to consider the same and also the authority from which it emanates. Alfred S. Kimball, Norway, Grand Master; Stephen Berry, Portland, Grand Secretary. MARYLAND, 1900. 114th Annual, Baltimore, November 20. Grand Master Thomas J. Shryock being absent from the state on account of his health, his address was read by Deputy Grand Master John A. Russell, who presided in the Grand East. The Grand Master refers to the wonderful progress and marvelous achievements of the past century, in which connection he outlines the work of Masonry in the new era. He says: Freemasonry must keep pace with this development. To do this, she must be ever alert and watchful of the wants of mankind; she must be ever ready to relieve the distressed and comfort the weary, clothe the naked and bind up the wounds of the afflicted. She must make her influences for good felt everywhere; and, to accomplish this, she must ever be alert, never sleeping, never tiring, for time waits not, and development of other human institutions are crowding us so rapidly one upon the other, that she must ever be ready for the call of duty. Such being the conditions, the responsibility rests upon us, as the guardian of our unblemished escutcheon, and grows greater as time flies by. We must be unselfish and sacrificing in all we do. Our deliberations for to-day are not only for to-day, but for the future, as their influence will be felt when you and I have passed through the valley of tears and the earth shall know us no more. Guard well, therefore, I beseech you, the sacred heritage which has been handed down to us by our forefathers. Let no act of ours, individually or collectively, cast the slightest reflection or mar a page of the glorious history of the Fraternity. He says the Fraternity in that Jurisdiction is prospering as never before. He has this to say of the Washington Memorial: It was indeed a memorable occasion and one long to be remembered, and will pass down in history as a credit to the Fraternity, in thus assembling after one hundred years to do honor to the memory of the greatest American-the founder of our country and brother Freemason, whose handiwork-the establishment of this great Republic, which you and I have now the privilege of enjoying. He has the mournful announcement to make of the death of Past Deputy Grand Master William H. Clark, who for thirty-five years gave a large portion of his time to the work of the Craft. He had not been called upon to render any decisions, those chosen for Masters being well schooled in the Constitution of the Grand Lodge. Dispensations are granted direct to the Subordinate Lodges to lay corner stones, and five of these were granted. There is some difference of opinion on this question in the several Grand Jurisdictions, our individual views incline to the opinion that the Grand Lodge alone should lay corner stones, either when specially convened, or by delegated authority to open an occasional Grand Lodge for the pur pose. He commends the good work accomplished by the Masonic Relief Association of the United States and Canada which has almost eliminated the professional Masonic tramp which formerly infested the country. He makes kindly reference to Brother Schultz, and the Committeee on Grand Master's address in noting the same bestows upon him this well deserved tribute: The remarkable vigor of the venerable chairman of the Committee on Correspondence, Brother E. T. Schultz, finds appropriate mention and here in his own home we rely so implicitly on his Masonic lore, as the great treasure house for all such information, that we regard it as a paradox, that nothing escapes his vision and yet he cannot see at all. Would God some magic art could unravel the complicated threads of Masonic facts now wrapped up in the convolutions of his busy brain and weave a tapestry of his personal reminiscence and historical truths and give us such a chart as few men living could match and none of the fathers could surpass. President Lincoln once replied to a criticism of a general, who had been very successful but unfortunately yielded sometimes to the influence of liquor, “you complain of his drunkenness; I wish some of the others could get hold of his bottle." Some of us clear sighted men would like to share in the light of Schultz's darkness. "Where there is no vision, the people perish." We rejoice that he still points his telescope to the four quarters of the heavens, and chases the wandering stars to cover. His search-light is on the alert for the sly torpedoes and he slyly blows them out of the water. We cannot expect him to give as much help to the new century as he has to the past, but we express the hope that the coming years may be blessed with a green old age, and that his wonderful works in the line of historical research will preserve his name through many generations. In this old and well regulated Jurisdiction, where things move along smoothly from year to year, under the wise direction of a Grand Master who has served consecutively for the past fifteen years, there is little to report of an unusual nature. The present membership is 8,283. During the year three were suspended for unmasonic conduct and five expelled. Seventy-five were suspended for non-payment of dues. The Report on Correspondence is from that veteran reviewer, Brother Edward T. Schultz, who with the aid of a reader and amanuensis is enabled to continue the work which he has so acceptably performed for many years. Colorado for 1899 is concisely reviewed in a page and a half and the essential features of the session are preserved. Thomas J. Shryock, Baltimore, Grand Master; Jacob II. Medairy, Baltimore, Grand Secretary. MASSACHUSETTS, 1900. Quarterlies and Annual, Boston. The annual address of Grand Master Charles T. Gallagher was delivered at the December Quarterly on December 12. He reports a most satisfactory condition of the Craft. He had attended numerous Masonic gatherings of a pleasant character and the number of his visitations were considerable. In his visits to Lodges he went unattended by a suite, generally without previous notice, and as far as possible without ceremony. Nevertheless he was received with the greatest courtesy and an attempt to bestow upon him the honors due to his station. So smoothly do matters move in this old Jurisdiction that he has no new subject of legislation to suggest. The new Temple has been rented with the exception of four rooms devoted to Masonic purposes. The Lodge of St. Andrew, Boston, donated $500 additional to the "Lodge of St. Andrew Fund," the income of which is devoted to the charities of the Grand Lodge. Twenty thousand dollars was left by the will of Brother Franklin Pratt, of Boston, to the Grand Lodge for charitable purposes. Litigation seems to have grown out of the munificent donations of the late Brother John H. Callamore, to which reference was made in our previous reports. We quote the following particulars : Many inquiries have been made relative to the disposition of the estate of Brother John H. Collamore, whereby thirty-two Masonic Bodies were to receive gifts of five hundred dollars each, and the balance of the estate, after long life estates, was to be divided among the same Bodies, the Grand Lodge being one of the beneficiaries. Proceedings of various kinds in the Probate Court and Supreme Court, all against the will and designed to destroy the effect of Brother Collamore's intent, have been disposed of in favor of the will and his wishes. Such being fruitless, attack has been made upon the securities and investments; the last attempt being to prove about one-half the estate invested in mortgages to be without consideration and to belong to other people. All the litigation and attacks have been prompted and promoted by Robert G. S. Collamore, a nephew of Brother John H. Collamore, and so far as heard and determined have proved unsuccessful; the last matter, being the attack on the investments, has been heard by a Master in Chancery and is still in his hands awaiting a report to the Supreme Court. When a distribution of the estate or a payment of legacies will be made is still uncertain. He reports the following statistics: There are now two hundred and thirty-six Lodges under our jurisdiction, including four in Chile and one in China. The number of affiliated members for the year 1900 was. For the year 1899.. .41,019 .39,871 Increase The number of initiates for the year 1900 was. For the year 1899... Increase The totals of the several Funds are as follows: The following shows the membership of the Grand Lodge and may be useful for comparison: 45 Grand Officers present, entitled to.. 45 votes. 33 votes. .465 votes. 543 votes. The Stated Communication was held on December 27, 1900, on which occasion the Grand Officers elected on December 12 were installed, followed by the Grand Feast, where oratory had full swing and the social feature was given first place. No Report on Correspondence. Charles T. Gallagher, Boston, Grand Master; Sereno D. Nickerson, Boston, Grand Secretary. |