USA > Washington DC > History of the Grand lodge and of freemasonry in the District of Columbia : with biographical appendix > Part 6
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GREENLEAF'S POINT, WASHINGTON CITY, April 24, 1815.
SIR-According to the Directions you give me I send you this line and in hoaps that you will find the character of me that will be suitable to the purpose that I have mentionned to you and by appling to Lieut. Baden or Mr. Rodgers and Mr. Wise you will find. Sir you will peticion for me after you are satisfied of my conduct and by doeing soe you will oblidge yours Intended associate.
The present secrecy surrounding the condition of the ballot does not seem to have obtained in the early days, as we note an instance in 1815 in one of the lodges where the ballot being passed and " S black balls appearing, he was of course re- jected ;" and about the same period it was announced after the ballot that the applicant had been " unanimously rejected."
Before leaving these interesting glimpses of the time, it is perhaps worthy of note that non-payment of dues was fre- quently punished by expulsion from all the rights and privi- leges of Masonry ; that subordinate lodges sometimes officiated at the laying of cornerstones, and that it was the custom at the opening of each meeting to have read "the charge and. prayer."
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CHAPTER VI.
THE FIRST DECADE.
WAR OF 1812-ANNUAL VISITATIONS INAUGURATED-FRA- TERNAL CORRESPONDENCE-PUBLIC APPEARANCES -DISCIPLINE-THE FIRST CONSTITUTION.
" And Statesmen at her councils met Who knew the Seasons."-TENNYSON.
THE FIRST DECADE of the existence of the Grand Lodge shows a slight falling off in point of numbers, for while the two new lodges referred to in the preceding chapter were formed within that period they were drawn almost entirely from the other lodges, and altho for the first few years the aggregate membership can only be deduced approximately from fragmentary returns, yet a reasonably accurate compu- tation shows about 250 members in 1814, while the complete returns for 1821 show only a total of 219.
It is not the province of the historian to theorize on the facts presented, for the intelligent reader will draw his own conclusions, yet in seeking an explanation of this apparently retrograde movement attention should be given to the fact that instead of separate units owing allegiance to distant grand bodies the lodges were now welded together with com- mon interests, and responsible to a common authority at their very doors, and this condition might well be supposed to re- sult in the exercise of more especial care in the selection of material and the weeding out of objectionable timber.
At the communication of the Grand Lodge of July 14, 1812,
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which, in the quaint phraseology of the day, " closed in ample form and great harmony," a Committee on Correspondence was appointed, which subsequently at each annual communi- cation until November 6, 1821, reported that they found noth- ing worth the attention of the Grand Lodge, but on the latter date suggested the printing of certain extracts culled from the proceedings of other grand lodges in our own annual publi- cation. The systematic review of the proceedings of our sister grand lodges did not, however, approach its present form until 1849, when quite an exhaustive report was sub- mitted, signed by Brother Charles S. Frailey, Grand Master, 1855-6, and Brother Thomas Miller, since which time this valuable and instructive feature of the annual reports has been handled by a succession of eminent local Masonic writers, among whom it involves no invidious comparison to mention especially our late Brother, Grand Secretary Wm. R. Single- ton, whose work along that line was for many years of na- tional reputation, and P. G. M. George W. Baird, the present chairman, a profound student of Masonry, whose work is of the most scholarly character. While a scarcity of funds has from time to time necessitated limiting the space allotted to these unselfish toilers, yet ample recognition of their worth has never been withheld, and the cumulative result of the last half century constitutes a liberal education in Masonic jurispru- dence to him who cares to take advantage of the opportunity offered.
The War of 1812, while bringing many exciting and terri- fying days to the inhabitants of Washington, especially at the time of the occupation of the city by the British, does not seem to have affected the Fraternity, the destructive work of the troops being confined to the public buildings, private prop- erty, in the main, being respected. In the defense of the Capital it is a matter of record that many members of the Fraternity took part either in the force under Commodore Barney or in the militia called out to aid in repelling the in- vading army. A little later we find among the visitors to the various lodges English and Irish brethren whom it is reason-
MASONIC HALL, JEFFERSON STREET, GEORGETOWN, D. C. Home of Potomac Lodge, No. 5, 1810 to 1840.
"FORREST HALL" HIGH (NOW THIRTY-SECOND) STREET, GEORGETOWN, D. C. Home of Potomac Lodge, No. 5, 1852 to 1859.
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able to suppose wore the uniform of the enemy. Once over the threshold of the lodge, however, they met as brethren and not as foes, and who can estimate the vast influence for good that sprang, then as now, from this practical application of the spirit of universal brotherhood?
Systematic correspondence with other jurisdictions was in- augurated by order of the Grand Lodge in 1813, and the year following the proceedings were printed and distributed for the first time, the pamphlet being 21/2X5 inches and the bill $10.
In 1813, also, a resolution was passed to visit the subordi- nate lodges once a year, and while there is no record of com- pliance with the order until 1818, yet the former date marks the inauguration of a custom peculiar to the District of Co- lumbia, which has been observed with comparatively few omissions to the present time. From a mere perfunctory busi- ness inspection, at which not infrequently several lodges, and on at least one occasion, in 1849, as many as five lodges. would meet in joint session for that purpose, the visitations were later, in the administration of Grand Master Donaldson. made entertaining and instructive by the introduction of com- petent lecturers with suitable topics, and in the earlier days of this innovation the speakers were selected by the Grand Mas- ter, who only in comparatively recent years has given over this duty to the subordinate lodges. The presence of the entire official line of the Grand Lodge at each of the subordinate lodges once a year is, as has been said, only possible in a juris- diction as compact and limited as this, and is a privilege as unique as it is agreeable and educational.
The year 1813 was one of initiative, for, in addition to the matters above mentioned, a set of jewels was obtained for the grand officers for the first time. According to the custom of the period, the jewels proper were subordinated to the collars, from which they were pendant, the latter being of huge size to our modern local eyes, and in marked contrast to the jewels of the present, with their modest ribbons clasping the neck. The evolution was the work of a century, and has been along a line practically untouched by many other jurisdictions, the
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more conservative still holding tenaciously to the elaborate collar.
At the communication of January 10, 1815, it was decided to recognize the services of the Grand Secretary by the pay- ment of a salary, and this was fixed at $20. This sum was increased and decreased at various times until the Grand Lodge, entering upon an era of comparative prosperity, in the middle of the century, in 1850 increased it to $100, and in 1872 to $300, from which time its growth was steady until the present salary of $1,200 was reached, but has hardly kept pace with the immense increase of the business of the office, which now requires the undivided time and attention of the Grand Secretary. This position, for so many years held by that noted Masonic scholar and writer, the late Brother Wm. R. Singleton, has now been filled for more than ten years by Brother Arvine W. Johnston, who has won an enviable repu- tation by the acceptable transaction of the arduous duties of his office.
The first public appearance of the new Grand Lodge took place September 14, 1815, when the cornerstone of St. John's Episcopal Church, Sixteenth and H Streets, N. W., was laid according to ancient Masonic usage, R. W. Grand Master Davidson presiding.
During this decade there was also laid the cornerstones of a building for Brooke Lodge, No. 2, at Alexandria, Va., July 8, 1818; of the Second Presbyterian Church, in Georgetown, July 29, 1820, and of the new City Hall, August 22, 1820, the latter being attended with especial ceremony and display and justifying the following brief description :
A procession according to the form usual on such occasions was formed at Union Lodge Room and moved under the command of three grand marshals to Strother's Hall, where, according to the arrangements previously made, it was joined by the clerks of the several judicial tribunals of the District of Columbia, the Clerk of the Supreme Court of the United States, the Marshal of the District of Columbia and his deputies, the Attorney of the United States for the District
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of Columbia, Ambassadors from foreign governments and their secretaries, Commissioners of the public buildings, Secre- taries and other heads of Departments of the Government of the United States, President of the United States, Master Builders and Principal Architect of the work, officers of the Corporation of the City of Washington, Mayors of the towns of Georgetown and Alexandria, ex-Mayors of Washington, the Boards of Aldermen and Common Council of the City of Washington, officers civil, military, and naval, of the United States, and the citizens of the District of Columbia and the adjoining country generally, and strangers then within the City of Washington. The procession thus formed, augmented by a large concourse of spectators, proceeded to the site, where M. W. Grand Master William Hewitt made an address and after an invocation proceeded to lay the cornerstone with the customary ceremonies, upon the conclusion of which Brother John Law delivered the oration of the occasion.
The first celebration of St. John's day occurred December 27, 1817, on which occasion the Grand Lodge, escorted by the several subordinate lodges and led by a brass band, formed a procession and proceeded to the Protestant Episcopal Church near the Navy Yard and listened to an appropriate discourse by the Rev. Bro. Andrew T. McCormick. It may be said in passing that this method of observing the day was for a num- ber of years a popular one, and invariably included a band and substantial refreshments, the latter feature, indeed, being considered of such paramount importance that when, in a spasm of economy in 1821, the Grand Lodge resolved that not more than $20 be expended for refreshments at one time, the provision was inserted that this would not apply to St. John's day. A moment's reflection makes this understandable, for the difficulties of travel from one part of the city to another was such that these affairs were practically all-day matters, and it was not only desirable but necessary that food and drink be provided.
In striking contrast with the point of view of the present, is the fact that on October 19, 1819, a resolution was passed by
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the Grand Lodge to petition Congress to authorize a lottery to raise $50,000 for the purpose of erecting a Masonic Hall in this city, a favorite method of the time for raising funds for such purposes. No action, however, was taken under the resolution.
The matter of the proper designation of the various officers having been under discussion it was, in 1820, ordered that the appellation of the grand officers be Most Worshipful Grand Master, Right Worshipful Deputy Grand Master, and Right Worshipful Grand Wardens, Secretary, and Treasurer, re- spectively, while the Masters of the subordinate lodges should be styled Right Worshipful and the Wardens Worshipful. These titles remain unchanged as far as the grand officers are concerned, but have long since been modified in the sub- ordinate bodies, where the simple Worshipful Master and Wardens alone are used.
A standing resolution, which provoked a great deal of dis- cussion in the Grand Lodge and was finally repealed after some years' operation, provided that " it shall be the duty of the lodges working under the jurisdiction of this Grand Lodge to advertise all expulsions for unmasonic conduct in one or more newspapers published in the District of Columbia after such expulsion shall have been sanctioned by the Grand Lodge."
The matter of disciplining the brethren for unmasonic con- duct these days was not neglected, and if in reading over some of the charges and specifications we are in turn shocked and amused, we must, for a proper appreciation of the situation, consider the radical difference between the social conditions of that day and this. Thus fortified we can read with some degree of equanimity of the trial and suspension of Brother -, in 1815, on the following charge and specification : " Violation of his obligation by entering into and breaking the cellar of my house in the absence of myself and family. and taking out for his own use a quantity of liquor, for which he has never made or offered any explanation or acknowledg- ment *
WILLIAM W. BILLING, GRAND MASTER, 1835-1837.
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At a later date, in one of the lodges we find this quaintly- worded entry: "Brother exhibited the following charge against Brother : 'Brethren, I hereby charge Brother with unmasonic conduct, inasmuch as he threatened to cut my throat. Yours, respectfully, -,
Again we read as one of the specifications against a brother that he " has been seen by a member of this lodge riding a bull about the streets and acting in an unmasonic manner.
In another place is shown the charge against a member of the Fraternity, " that he threatened to cowskin a brother."
Happily many of the differences were settled "out of court," it frequently being found only necessary to bring about mutual explanations to effect harmony ; but it is indicative of their stern sense of duty that our early predecessors never shirked that most unpleasant of Masonic duties, the trial.
It is a matter of regret that altho 100 copies of the first constitution of the Grand Lodge were printed in 1812, the most diligent search has failed to bring one to light, and, in- teresting as that document in its entirety would have been, we must perforce be satisfied to judge of it by the few amend- ments which are of record and which have already been quoted, together with the constitution of 1820, which, being the first available instrument of its kind and possessing the merit of brevity, is quoted in full.
CONSTITUTION.
Article 1. The Grand Lodge shall meet in the city of Washington on the first Tuesday in every November and May, at 10 o'clock a. m.
Art. 2. The installed officers of the Grand Lodge shall be elected by ballot at the meeting in November, after the business of the Grand Lodge shall have been acted on and disposed of. The officers elected shall be declared as elected for their respective offices from St. John, the Evan- gelist's Day, inclusive, for one year, or until their successors are elected and installed; and they shall be accordingly so installed and invested as the Lodge may determine, at any time on or before St. John's Day next succeeding the election.
If any officer-elect be absent at the General Installation, the Lodge, or
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the Grand Master, shall appoint some suitable brother to install him at some other time and place soon after.
No person shall be declared elected to office who hath not received a majority of all the votes given in on the last ballot.
And in case of the death, removal, resignation, or inability to serve, of any of the officers so elected, the vacancy shall be filled with the least possible delay for the remainder of the term. Notice of resignations to be given at a meeting previous to being acted on, and may be accepted or rejected by the Lodge.
Art. 3. The officers to be elected according to the above articles, are-
1. The Most Worshipful Grand Master.
2. The Right Worshipful Deputy Grand Master.
3. The Worshipful Senior Grand Warden.
4. The Worshipful Junior Grand Warden.
5. The Worshipful Grand Secretary.
6. The Worshipful Grand Treasurer.
The officers to be chosen by ballot or otherwise as the members present may agree on, are-
7. Grand Chaplain.
8. Grand Senior Deacon.
9. Grand Junior Deacon.
10. Grand Marshal.
11. Grand Steward.
12. Grand Sword Bearer.
13. Grand Pursuivant.
14. Grand Tyler.
And shall each (except the Tyler) be entitled to a vote on all questions.
Art. 4. Each installed Grand Officer who shall not attend the Grand Lodge at each regular or extra meeting, being duly notified thereof, shall pay a fine of five dollars, unless the Lodge shall consider the excuse, if any, reasonable.
Art. 5. The honorary members of the Grand Lodge are, Past Installed Grand Officers, being members of a lodge, the Master and Wardens of the lodges working under this jurisdiction.
Every Past Master who hath served six months in the chair, being a member of a lodge.
Art. 6. Every lodge, working under the jurisdiction of this Grand Lodge, shall be represented at every meeting of this Lodge by their deputy or deputies, not exceeding five, who shall be Past Master Masons; and each lodge, by their deputy or deputies, shall have a vote on all ques- tions before the Grand Lodge.
Art. 7. Each lodge failing to be represented by their officers, or to send a deputation duly authorized at each meeting of the Grand Lodge, shall pay a fine of five dollars, unless satisfactory excuse shall be given to the Grand Lodge: Provided, The lodge, or Master or Wardens thereof, shall be duly notified of such meeting.
Art. 8. The Master and Wardens of a lodge shall be the legal repre-
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sentatives, unless the lodges shall think proper to be represented by other members; the names of all deputies thus chosen, to be communicated to the Secretary of this Lodge. A representation from five lodges shall be sufficient to elect or disqualify officers, to expel members, and to act on all cases within the jurisdiction of this Grand Lodge.
Art. 9. Every lodge under the jurisdiction of this Grand Lodge, shall make a just and true return to this Lodge, at the meeting in November, of all their members, the grade in which they stand, resignations, deaths, rejections, suspensions and expulsions; and for every neglect to make return as aforesaid, shall pay a fine, to this Lodge, of five dollars; they shall pay one dollar for every new-made brother, and fifty cents for every member at each return. Every lodge neglecting to make return and pay- ment of their dues and fines, shall not be allowed to vote by their deputies in this Lodge. And if they refuse or neglect to make return and payment as aforesaid, for two years, the warrant of such lodge or lodges, shall be recalled.
No lodge shall initiate more than five at the same meeting, or any candi- date that has been rejected by another lodge under this jurisdiction, within one year after such rejection; nor shall any candidate receive more than one degree at the same meeting (cases of emergency only excepted).
Art. 10. All fines to be assessed at large on the proceedings.
Art. 11. This Grand Lodge shall have, exercise, and enjoy, full and complete appellant and corrective powers, in all cases relating to the Craft, within its jurisdiction, to assess such contributions from time to time, as the good of the Craft may require, to warrant and organize lodges in this District; such warrant to be prepared by the Secretary, and signed by the installed officers; and there shall be paid therefor, before the same is delivered, twenty-five dollars for the use of this Lodge, and five dollars for the Secretary.
Art. 12. The Most Worshipful Grand Master to preside when present; he may call an extra meeting of the Lodge when an emergent occasion shall require; he shall preserve peace and harmony in the Lodge, or cause it to be done. In case of the absence of the Most Worshipful Grand Master, the Deputy Grand Master shall preside, and so on to the Junior Warden. And if none of the above-named officers be present, then the senior officer of a lodge, not less than Junior Warden, shall preside, the officers of the senior Lodge to have the preference, in case there be two of the same grade; the presiding Master to make appointments pro tem. to fill all vacancies for the meeting, to decide all questions of order not provided for in this constitution, with the right of an appeal from his decision to the Lodge.
Art. 13. All Past Grand Masters, Past Deputy Grand Masters, and Past Grand Wardens, shall, in each grade collectively, be entitled to one vote.
Art. 14. The Past Masters of each lodge present, at any meeting of the Grand Lodge, shall have one vote collectively, but any Past Master otherwise entitled to a separate vote in the Grand Lodge, shall not have a right to a voice in this vote. And if no Past Master be present, from
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any lodge which has a Past Master, then the delegates from that lodge shall give the Past Master's vote.
Art. 15. All questions before the Grand Lodge shall be determined by a majority of the votes of the members present, entitled to vote, except on motion (the mover and seconder being of different lodges) it may be determined by a vote by lodges, that the question be taken by lodges.
Art. 16. The members of the Grand Lodge shall take their seats accord- ing to the seniority of their respective lodges, and shall not remove from, or change the place assigned them by the Pursuivant during the commu- nication, without the permission of the presiding Master.
Art. 17. No person shall be admitted in the Grand Lodge, before his name shall be announced in the Lodge, and leave given by the presiding Master.
Art. 18. The duty of the Treasurer is, to keep a fair and just account of all moneys received and paid by him, on account of this Lodge, and to exhibit the same to this Lodge at every regular meeting, and, on the order of the Most Worshipful Grand Master, or the presiding officer, attested by the Secretary, to pay any money in his hands or possession, belonging to this Lodge.
Art. 19. The duty of the Secretary is, to keep a fair record of the pro- ceedings of the Lodge, to sign all drafts on the Treasurer, to keep an account with the Treasurer, and with the respective lodges under this jurisdiction, and also to keep an account of all fines incurred under this constitution, and make report thereof to this Lodge at every meeting, to take care of, and safe keep the books, papers, and seal of this Lodge, to issue summonses when directed by the senior officer of this Lodge, in the District, and to do and perform all other duties appertaining to the office of the Secretary; and he shall deliver to this Lodge, or a committee thereof, all books, papers, etc. in his possession, whenever directed so to do by the Lodge.
Art. 20. The duty of the Marshal is to conduct and command all pro- cessions of the Grand Lodge, to enforce the orders of this Lodge, or of the presiding Master, and to serve all special summonses.
Art. 21. The duty of the Pursuivant is, to attend the admission of every member or visitor, to see that they enter the Lodge in a proper manner, and that they take and keep the stations assigned them.
Art. 22. The Lodge to be opened within half an hour of the time appointed in the constitution, or in the notification, in case of an extra meeting; or as soon thereafter as a sufficient representation shall appear.
Art. 23. All amendments and additions to this constitution, must be submitted at a previous meeting; or a copy of such alteration, addition or amendment, must be served on and left with the Masters of the several lodges under this jurisdiction, two months previous to being acted on.
The foregoing is the constitution of the Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia, as amended up to the 20th May, A. D. 1820, A. L. 5820, and ordered to be published.
SAMUEL BURCH,
Secretary Grand Lodge.
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An amendment was adopted May 24, 1822, which grew out of several unsatisfactory experiences and was as follows :
Art. 24. That it shall not be competent for the Grand Lodge to hold any procession or ceremony for the purpose of laying the cornerstone of any edifice, except such building be intended for Masonic purposes, unless the persons requesting the same, or those having an interest in, or super- intending the erection of such edifice, shall previously agree to pay all expenses, if any there may be, attending said procession or ceremony, including music and necessary refreshments.
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