USA > Washington DC > History of the Grand lodge and of freemasonry in the District of Columbia : with biographical appendix > Part 23
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so much so, indeed, that in 1891, when the project of building a Masonic Home was under discussion, the then Grand Mas- ter, W. Bro. Thos. F. Gibbs, strongly recommended the placing of the matter wholly in the hands of this Association.
MASONIC BOARD OF RELIEF.
This Board was the logical outcome of a condition which, in the latter part of the last century, became so increasingly annoying and difficult to handle as to necessitate active meas- ures for relief. This condition was the ceaseless procession through our midst of a class of worthless impostors who, as has been aptly said, " wandered around the country on the strength of a Masonic pin or half-forgotten obligation," and besieged the local lodges and individual brethren, in season and out of season, for aid. The impossibility of differentiat- ing between the worthy and unworthy frequently led to great injustice being done to the deserving and substantial aid being given to the professional parasites, a situation most distressing to the thinking and feeling members of the Fraternity. While the whole country suffered from the plague it was perhaps more virulent in this city, by reason of its large floating popu- lation and general reputation for prosperity, than elsewhere.
The matter of organizing a Board of Relief to meet the situation was formally before the Grand Lodge as early as 1866, and was referred to the then existent " Board of Mas- ters," which reported favorably upon the project, but for some reason the movement came to naught, and, altho the subject was urged upon the attention of the brethren by practically all the succeeding Grand Masters, it was not until the early days of 1879 that the Masonic Board of Relief came into actual existence. At the date of the first report, Novem- ber 1, 1879, thirteen of the twenty-one lodges in the juris- diction were contributing to its support, and, while for quite a period of years a small number held aloof, the wisdom and effectiveness of the plan finally brought all within the fold,
THOMAS F. GIBBS, GRAND MASTER, 1891.
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and the Association now has the entire Fraternity as its sup- port and every brother a well wisher.
The objects, as stated in the first report, were: "First, to avoid granting relief to imposters; second, to avoid hasty or inconsiderate action, and, third, to distribute the work and expenditure proportionably among the several lodges."
The revenue has been derived from the first by an annual per capita assessment upon the lodges represented, and has never entailed a great burden, running as low as five cents per capita, and even at times passing the year without any assessment whatever. As in the case of St. John's Mite, the income has been in past years further increased by entertainments of various character.
The experience obtained by the few years of its existence in 1887 dictated the wisdom of certain changes in the matter of the personnel of the Board and the methods of dispensing charity, and led to a reorganization in that year, on the sug- gestion of the then president, W. Bro. L. Cabell Williamson. Under the new system each lodge elected and has continued to elect two representatives, one for one year and one for two, thus insuring a continuing Board. Other important changes were the fixing of the maximum annual assessment at twenty cents per capita and the definite limiting of the works of the Association to strangers and sojourners in the District.
At the date of the organization of the local Board similar boards existed in several States, and, the number of these rapidly increasing, a General Masonic Relief Association of the United States and Canada was organized, September 1, 1885, in Baltimore, Md., and through this medium the several jurisdictions have kept in intimate touch with each other, and by a perfected system of intercommunication have been able successfully to cope with an unbearable evil which had for years been diverting the funds of the Fraternity from their legitimate charities.
In this General Association the local workers have been active, and have been honored with important official posi- tions, and as an evidence of their influence it may be noted
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that the sixth annual session of that body was held in this city in 1891.
From the organization to the present day full reports of the operations of the local Board have been published annually in the Grand Lodge Proceedings and are available to any brother who desires details of figures, but the presentation and analysis of statistics so easily available does not fall with- in the scope of this work, and the matter is therefore briefly treated in its more general aspects.
The methods of handling cases are simple. Two represent- atives are on hand at the Masonic Temple each evening to receive applications for aid and to act immediately if a case ap- pears urgent. An applicant, for instance, represents that he is a member of such a lodge in such a State, that he is in good standing, and that he is temporarily embarrassed and without means. He is usually, after a reasonable examination, es- corted to a boarding house and made comfortable for the time being. The wire is at once used, and in a few hours his story is verified or disproved, and further relief is extended or denied as the case warrants. Temporary embarrassment is tided over and the applicant placed on his feet, or, as is more often the case, transportation to his home is furnished. Ex- penditures are frequently refunded by the applicant's home lodge, and a surprising amount of relief work is thus done at comparatively little cost. This is but one of hundreds of cases of varied character, which readily suggest themselves, and call for the exercise of great tact and discretion. The net result of the operations of the Board has been the reduction of this class of cases to a minimum, and the entire relief of the lodges and individual brethren from embarrassing im- portunities.
The credit of this happy result is due in no small measure to the men who have given of their time and talents and energy to the work, and among them we may properly men- tion P. G. Master L. Cabell Williamson, at one time president, and who has represented the District in the General Asso- ciation and held the positions of vice-president and secretary
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of that body ; P. G. Master Lurtin R. Ginn, who has also been a representative in the General Association, been honored by election as its president, and who has filled, most ably and ac- ceptably, both the position of president and that of secretary of the local Board; Junior Grand Warden, W. Bro. T. John Newton, a member of the Advisory Board and president of the General Association, and who has also been president and secretary for many years, of the local Board; the late W. Bros. John N. Birckhead and Nathaniel B. Fugitt, both of whom served as president of the local Board; Past Presidents, W. Bros. William Mehn, of Takoma Lodge, No. 29 ; Luther F. Speer, of Columbia Lodge, No. 3, and others im- possible of enumeration in the limited space at command. It is purely a work of love for sweet Charity's sake and the good name of the Fraternity, and merits and receives the universal commendation and gratitude of the brethren who know something of the unselfishness and onerous character of the labor thus performed.
THE MASONIC AND EASTERN STAR HOME.
This institution marks the final successful culmination of one of a number of movements in this direction set on foot from time to time during the century just closed. From the very earliest days it has been a hope, the subject was fre- quently agitated, and an occasional feeble start made, but probably the first promising effort was in the late fifties, when an organization of an executive committee to build a Masonic Home was effected by representatives of the Grand and subordinate lodges. The plan contemplated the enlisting of the aid of other jurisdictions, and in furtherance of this object the W. G. Chaplain, Rev. Bro. W. D. Haley, was made general superintendent of the work, and to him was assigned the mission of interesting the Fraternity at large in the charity ; but experience soon demonstrated that the conception was too comprehensive, ill-advised, and impracticable, and, being coldly received, was in a short time given up.
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In 1881 Pentalpha Lodge, No. 23, decided to endeavor to establish a " Masonic Institute" in the District, in memoriam of our late Bro. James A. Garfield, a member of that lodge at the time of his death, and invited Columbia Commandery, No. 2, K. T., and Mithras Lodge, A. A. S. R., with each of which he had been affiliated, to join in the work. The invita- tion being accepted, a corporation was formed under the name of the " Garfield Masonic Memorial Institute," and, with the approval of the Grand Lodge, active work in soliciting sub- scriptions was begun. Again came failure, through inability to arouse sufficient interest, and in 1885 the executive commit- tee, having at that time on hand but $1,000, decided to aban- don the project and turn over the money contributed to the Masonic Widows' and Orphans' Home, of Louisville, Ky., which was accordingly done, the donation being most accept- able and receiving the thankful acknowledgment of that model institution.
While the matter now rested for a period of years, it was the subject of frequent recommendation by the succeeding Grand Masters, and thus the ground was kept in good condi- tion against the time when the seed should be finally planted.
It remained for the Order of the Eastern Star to initiate the movement that has finally resulted in the establishment of a Home for the care of indigent Masons, their dependent widows and orphans, and members of the Order of the Eastern Star.
While the advisability of entering upon the work of estab- lishing such an institution received the attention of the Order for some years, the actual crystallization of thought and effort grew out of the circumstance that in 1898 the untimely death of a brother left three children without adequate means of support. At the instance of the then Grand Matron of the District, Carolyn A. Handy, arrangements for the temporary care of the orphans were made by members of the Eastern Star, and at the next annual communication of the Grand Chapter the Grand Matron urged the establishment of a Home for the needy of both the Masonic and Eastern Star Orders,
FIRST MEETING PLACE OF M. M. PARKER LODGE, NO. 27. Third and H Streets, N. E.
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THIRD MEETING PLACE OF M. M. PARKER LODGE, NO. 27. Twelfth and H Streets, N. E.
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and recommended the appointment of a committee to formu- late a plan to this end.
The recommendation being agreed to, a committee was appointed, which committee reported favorably in 1899, and, having sounded the various subordinate chapters in the mean- time, made certain specific recommendations, among others that the name of the institution should be " The Masonic and Eastern Star Home," that it should be regularly incorporated, and that an annual per capita tax of twenty-five cents should be levied on the subordinate chapters for the support thereof, together with other provisions as to the selection of incorpo- rators, said incorporators to constitute the Board of Directors.
At the annual communication of the Grand Lodge, Novem- ber 8, 1899, the cooperation of that body was solicited, and a special committee was appointed to take up the matter. This committee reported at the May communication of 1900 and recommended that, in view of the undertaking of building a new Masonic Temple, it would be unwise to assume additional burdens at that time; and while the opinion was also expressed that as the Grand Lodge was the ruling Masonic body it should have entire control and direction of such an enterprise, the committee expressed hearty sympathy in the objects, aims, and purposes to be accomplished, and also recommended the ap- propriation of a sum not to exceed $500 as a donation to the work. While the report and recommendations were adopted, the character of the appropriation recommended was such that no action was taken under it, but in 1902, in response to an appeal for the Grand Lodge to aid and approve of a pro- posed fair to be held for the benefit of the Home, the sum of $300 was appropriated, and paid over to the Home officials in 1903.
The action of the Grand Lodge necessitated a change in the name of the institution, and the word " Masonic" was accord- ingly dropped, and an act of incorporation under the changed conditions was passed by Congress and approved March 10, 1902.
In the meantime, by a series of entertainments and by a
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fair held in 1903, together with donations from the different Masonic bodies and individuals, a building fund of $12,500 had been accumulated.
In the spring of 1904 Mrs. Sarah Seek, as an act of pure beneficence, donated five acres of land on Sligo Mill Road, about one-half mile north of Stott's Station on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, as a Home site, and the Board of Direct- ors, under authority given by the Grand Chapter, purchased five adjoining acres at a cost of $5,000, payable in twenty equal annual installments without interest. By the will of this lady, who died in 1907, the notes for the remaining de- ferred payments subsequent to the date of her death were cancelled, and the Home came into absolute possession of the entire ten acres.
Early in 1905 ground was broken for the erection of the west wing of the proposed building, plans for which had been accepted some time previously, and the cornerstone was laid by the Grand Lodge, W. Bro. Lurtin R. Ginn, Grand Master, officiating, on May 17, of that year, in the presence of a large assemblage of Masons, members of the Order of the Eastern Star, and friends.
At the annual communication of the Grand Lodge, Decem- ber 22, 1905, Grand Master Ginn made a most eloquent appeal for the cooperation of the Grand Lodge in the noble work, both by a per capita assessment and permission to use the word " Masonic." The appeal was not in vain, and at the St. John's Day communication following permission was granted to amend the title of the Home and the appointment of three representatives on the Board of Directors authorized. The three first named were P. G. Masters Wetmore and Ginn and W. Bro. Charles J. James, all active workers in the cause. In December, 1907, P. G. Master Williamson succeeded P. G. Master Wetmore, the latter declining to serve longer, and the Grand Lodge trio of representatives thus formed remains so constituted to the present.
The Grand Chapter of the Order of the Eastern Star, January 6, 1906, in acknowledgment of this action of the
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Grand Lodge, authorized the amendment of the act of incor- poration to include the word " Masonic" and to provide for a representative from each of the Masonic Lodges on the Board of Directors, and at the first session of the Fifty-ninth Con- gress the Act was accordingly so amended.
In September, 1906, the Grand Lodge levied a per capita tax of twenty-five cents upon the subordinate lodges, which at once, with the Eastern Star per capita, gave a fixed income of $2,600, which has since, by natural growth in both Orders, been materially increased.
The completed portion of the Home was dedicated by Grand Master Walter A. Brown, assisted by the other officers of the Grand Lodge, October 16, 1906, and, as upon the occasion of the laying of the cornerstone, a special train was used to transport the great gathering of friends to and from the city.
Thus the institution so long dreamed of became a fact. The policy of the management from the beginning has been not to incur a cent of debt, and this has been rigidly adhered to, so that the Home is today absolutely without incumbrance.
It is located on a commanding eminence, north of the Soldiers' Home grounds, and while still difficult of access and with crude environment, the time is not far distant when the opening of avenues and the spread of the city in that direction will bring great and desirable changes. The accompanying halftone and engraving show the wing already erected and occupied and the plan of the completed building, which will be one of the most thoroughly equipped modern institutions of the kind in the country.
While avoiding the mention of names in this connection, where so many workers have given liberally of their time and efforts, it is yet the simplest justice to say that to the enthu- siasm and executive ability of Mrs. Alcena Lamond, the first Grand Matron of the Order of the Eastern Star in the District of Columbia and President of the Board of Directors since its organization, is in a large measure due the successful out- come of the movement.
The building was at once thoroughly furnished through the
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generosity of the several Eastern Star chapters and individual members of that Order, and immediately started on its labor of love by receiving and caring for the needy. That the charity was a much needed one is vouched for by the fact that in a few years the limited space available, which in 1909 had been further augmented by the conversion of the attic story into a number of rooms, had already been taken up by accepted applicants, since which time an undesirably crowded condition has obtained, which can only be relieved by the completion of the original plans, funds for which purpose have been accumulating from various sources, but not in such volume, up to the date of publication, as to justify early action. The same indomitable spirit, however, that has brought the work thus far will, beyond the shadow of a doubt, press it to successful conclusion.
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CHAPTER XVII.
THE WORK.
GRADUAL EVOLUTION OF LATTER-DAY RITUALISM-ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE CEREMONIAL IN THE DISTRICT.
"The center of Masonic unity is faith in God; its chief manual is the Holy Bible."
ONE OF THE GREATEST and at the same time most common misconceptions in the Fraternity is that of investing our ritual- ism with the antiquity and importance of the fundamental principles upon which the institution is builded, and, as a con- sequence, we find the tendency in a certain school of Masons to violently oppose the slightest change in ceremonial, holding all such departures as infringements of the ancient land- marks.
While this is not the time nor place to advance an argument for or against this position, yet, in order that the mind of the average brother may be prepared to receive without shock the disillusioning story of the evolution of our modern degrees, we hold it proper to emphasize the thought that ritualism is not Masonry ; that the ceremonial is but the casket in which the imperishable jewel rests, and that this great sys- tem of morality we call Masonry depends in small degree upon the changing forms and ceremonies with which successive generations have clothed it, but has stood the test of un- known ages simply by reason of the fact that it contains
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within itself those great and eternal principles which make for the development of the moral nature, the uplift of the human race, and the practical demonstration of the great truth of the Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of Man.
But the ritual, though constantly changing-naturally, in- evitably, and properly changing-is still an essential, perhaps indispensable, part of the system, and is deserving of the most careful study. Therefore, as concisely as may be, let us trace the development of our symbolic degrees from their simple primitive origin to the pretentious ceremonial as practiced in the District of Columbia at the present day.
While some writers do not admit that ritualism is wholly modern, predicating their belief on the fact that it was all esoteric, and therefore not of record, yet it is sufficiently established by research and deduction that the degrees, using the word in its common acceptation, had their origin imme- diately subsequent to the formation of the Grand Lodge of England in 1717, a revolutionary event in the history of the Fraternity, but in nowise disturbing those basic principles which establish the claim that Freemasonry is the most ancient, the most complete, and the most extensive institution ever devised by man.
For a proper understanding, then, of our ritualistic gene- alogy it will be necessary to take a brief but reasonably com- prehensive survey of the history of ritualism from the above date to the present, following, of course, its ramifications only so far as they lead us to a proper understanding of the devel- opment of our own work in this year of our Lord 1910.
The ancient guilds of operative Masons, from which we sprang, had their simple but binding obligations, their regula- tions, and their modes of recognition, but no elaborate cere- mony marked the induction of the novitiate. The earliest records of the Craft show them divided into three classes : the Masters, to oversee the work; the Fellow-crafts, the skilled operatives, and the Entered Apprentices, the apprentices under instruction. The latter, of course, were subordinate, and had
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no voice in the councils, the Fellow-crafts constituting the great body of the association.
As Masonry gradually changed from operative to specula- tive and commenced to include the brightest minds of the period, the institution became more and more a social body, linked together by a moral code, and the subordinate character of the initiates changed until, early in the eighteenth century, the Entered Apprentices constituted the great majority of the Fraternity, the Fellow-craft and Master Mason being merely honorary communicated degrees, conferred as rewards of merit, and the latter only upon those elected to preside, and they, and they only, were known as Master Masons.
Practically the Entered Apprentice degree constituted the essential part of the system, and the initiated became at once full-fledged Masons. The ceremony was yet of the simplest character, and the main feature was the obligation, which, while of course couched in different language, was substan- tially the obligation of today and carried the same penalty.
All business was conducted in the E. A. degree, and this continued after the F. C. and M. M. degrees had been elabo- rated into something like their present importance. This ju- risdiction, indeed, held to the custom until 1849, and to the present day it survives in this city in the fact that the corner- stones of public buildings, when Masonically placed, are laid by lodges opened on the first degree of Masonry. It may be remarked, however, parenthetically, that on at least one occa- sion, July 5, 1851, the Grand Lodge returning from such a function was obliged, by lack of sufficient members present, to dispense with the E. A. and open on the M. M. degree. In some other jurisdictions, notably England, the ancient method is still adhered to. Even the obligations of the F. C. and M. M. degrees were originally given in an E. A. lodge and in the hearing of Entered Apprentices not yet honored by ad- vancement.
From this primitive beginning come our degrees.
The restriction as to the third degree being only conferred on those elected to the Chair was, in the course of time,
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removed, and the several degrees separated and elaborated until, carly in the last century, they assumed substantially the form they are now in.
Returning to the earliest recorded movement toward a pre- tentious ritual, we are told that the legend of the third degree was introduced about the year 1721, having been adapted to Masonry from certain idle tales taken out of the Jewish Tar- gums, published in London in 1715, from manuscripts in the University Library of Cambridge. This theory, while un- supported by competent evidence, is at least interesting, and does no special violence to the generally accepted opinion of Masonic writers that this legend, in more or less similar form, played an important part in the mysteries and rites of the ancient secret organizations of different countries which stretch back to prehistoric times.
Soon after the formation of the Grand Lodge of Ancients Lawrence McDermott, an expelled Mason from Ireland, but doubtless of honest convictions and certainly of brilliant in- tellect, introduced into the lodges of the Ancients, with the Grand Lodge of which he had become connected in the capac- ity of Secretary, certain "improvements," which were later reluctantly adopted by the Moderns. This ritual appears to have been the foundation of our modern ceremonial.
About the middle of the eighteenth century the desire to especially honor those elected to the East again asserted itself in the separation of some of the essential parts of the M. M. degree and the formation therefrom of another, which was called the Royal Arch, and for many years this degree was conferred in blue lodges on Masters and Past Masters only. Later the degree was given in so-called Chapters appendant to and under the control of individual lodges. Later, however, by the creation of the Past Masters degree, originally an in- stallation ceremony, a way was found to confer the degree upon all found worthy to receive it.
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