Issued Every Three Months By The Right Worshipful Grand lodge of The Most Ancient and Honorable Frate rnity of Free and Accepted Masons of Pen11sylvania and Masonic Jurisdiction Thereunto Belonging, through its
COMMITIEE ON MASONIC CULTURE- William E. Yeager, Past Grand Master, Chairman; William E. Montgomery G. Edward Elwell Jr., Frank R. leech, William A. Carpenter, Charles A. Young and Ashby 8 Paul, Grand Secretary.
APPROVED AND AUTHORIZED TO BE PRINTED BY SANFORD M. CHILCOTE
Right Worshipful Grand Master
Moiling Address: P.O. BOX 688, WARREN, PA.
WILLIAM A. CARPENTER, Editor
Change of Address:
Notify above address, your Lo dge n umber m us b e included.
Vol. VI August, 1959 No. 3
Freemasonry
m The Netherlands
By R. w. wARD K. ST. CLAIR
Chairman of Mus eum and Library Committee
R. W. Grand Lodge of New York
Freemasonry was firs t introduced into The Netherla nd s from England in 173 1, when a del egation vi sited The Hag ue for the purpose of conferring the First and Second Degrees on the Duke of Lorraine, afterwa rds the Emperor Francis I. He received t h e Third Degree subsequently in England. There is a lege nd that there were severa l Dutch and English Lodges operating in Th e Hague prior to 1735 but this l egend has not been confirmed.
On September 30 , 1734, a Lodge was opened by Bro. Vincent de la Chapelle, who ma y be considered as th e originator of Masonry in The Netherlands. T his l odge recei ved a patent from the Grand Lodge of England in 1735 and proceeded to establish several othe r Lodges
On Novembe r 30, of that yea r the Sta t es General i ssued an edict prohibiting all Masonic meetings. Most of the Lodge s cease d to f unction b ut th e Lodge in Am sterd am con tinued to operate in secret. Thi s act ion by the Lodge was s oon discovered by the governmen t authorities. The resulting action led to the cance ll ation of the edict a nd the Lodges again resumed their act ivity.
On December 25, 1756, fourteen Du tch Lodge s assembled and form ed the Grand Lodge of the U n ited Nethe rl ands. Negotiations were soon star t ed with the Grand Lodge of England for an independent Grand Lodge. Accordingly an agr eement was finally signed on Apri l 25, 1770 which establi shed th e Grand Lodge of the United Ne therlands as an indepen dent body.
To become a Mason in The Netherlands requires patience and perseverance. First the
applicant mu st obtain the recommendation of a Master Mason. During the next t welve to eighteen months he is examined very closely in a ll ways, by var ious Bre thren of the Lodge as well as by th e Council of the Lodge. The Council gather s all the information it can concern ing the cand ida te. T his i s d one seve rel y and accurately. His enti re li fe's record is sc rut in ized; if the verdict is favorable h e receives the first degree. For a year the Ente re d Apprent ice r eceives ins tru ction n ea rly eve r y week. After passing a th orough exam ina tion , he is pa ssed to th e degree of Fellowcraft. Another year of ins truction follo ws The Brother is again judged, and wh e n the re su lts are according to th e aims of Masonry h e becomes a Master Mason-two years , with systematic be t ween the F irs t and Third Degree s In addition to the Craft Degrees there are practiced in The Ne therlands the de grees of the Ancient and Accepted Rite and th e Royal Arch degree.
Originally the degrees of the Ancient and Accepted Rite (t o us in the United States the "Scotti sh Ri te") were confer red und e r the control of the Supreme Council of Belgium. Howev e r, in 191 2 a Supreme Council of the Rite was organized in The Nethe rl a nds. Official rec ognition of this body was give n by both the Northern an d Southern Supreme Councils in the United States in 1913. The Supreme Council of The Netherlands was formed under the author ity from the Supreme Coun ci l of Belgium. Th e First De gre e of the Rite conferr ed is the Rose Croix of the 18th. The oth er d egrees of the Rite which are worked are the 22nd, 26th, 28th, 29th, 30th, 31s t , 32nd, and 33rd. Membership in the Rite is by in vi tation and the degre es beyond the 18 th are controlled by t h e Supreme Co un c il.
The Ro yal Arch Degree has be en introdu ced since the end of World War II. A number of Dutch Masons made a journey to Engla nd where the y were initiated into the Ro yal Arch. They th en obtained a Charter for a Chapter to be held in The H ague and have since that time worked in their own country. The y use the English method of wo r k and only confer the Royal Arch Degree in the ir Chapters . Neither th e Cryptic Rite n or the Order of the Temple operates in The Netherlands. Net herlands Freemaso nr y i s a grea t cha ritable organizatio n Th e amount of its charity far e xceeds that of man y countries wi th a larger membership. The y maintain schools and orphanages for the ch ildren and orphans of Masons
Additional Institutes Being Conducted by Committee on Masonic Culture
The n ew series of pamphlets, which are t o be used primaril y f or the instruction of the Membe rs as well as I n iti at es in the fa sc inating and in spi ring fun da mentals of Ma so nic history, tr ad ition and sy mboli sm, have been dis· tributed t o the Lodge Offi ce rs and Mem bers of the Lodge Committee on Mason ic Culture. Th ese new pamphle ts will amplify the instructi o n contained in the presen t bo oklets ("On the Thresh old," et al .) the us e of whic h will be continued.
To ind oct rin ate the Me mbers of the Lodge Committee on Masonic Culture and Lodge Offi ce r s in th e aim s, objectives and proc edure of the Grand Lodge Committee on Masonic Culture, In stitutes will be held in various sections of the Jurisd iction. These Ins titutes generally embrace the Lodges in two or more adjacent Di stricts.
The fir s t of these Ins titutes embracing the Lodges which comprise the 30 th, 39th and 41st Di s tricts was held in the Mas onic Temple, John st own, at 3 P.M. on Sa turd ay, Ma y 2nd. The twenty-thre e Lodges were represented by a total of one hundred fifty-five Officers and Committee Memb ers. Following a mee ting of one and one-half hours in duration, conducted by Brother Will iam E. Yeager and Brother W illi am E. Montgome r y, Chairman and Secretar y, respec tivel y, of th e Grand Lodge Committ ee , those present parti cipa ted in a delic ious dinner.
The second In sti tute was held at 8:30P.M. o n Monday, Jun e 1s t in the Maso n ic Temple at Erie. Each Lodge in Dist ri c t No 24 was represented by th e Wors hip f ul Mas t er a nd other Officers and Member s of t h e Committee on Maso nic Culture, a t otal of n inety-four Brethren being p rese nt.
I nstitutes have been scheduled for: Augu st 29 th - New Cas tleDistricts No. 26, 27, 37, 53 and 54. September 5th- AltoonaDistrict s No . 20, 21 and 34. September 12th- Oil CityDis tri c t s No. 23, 25, 52 and 56.
The meet ings will co nvene at 3 P.M., followed by a dinner at 5:30P.M.
It is hoped that arrangements may be made whi ch wi ll enable all of t he Dis tricts in Philadelphia t o participa te in an In stitute which is to be held on a Sat urday in October
If, at any tim e, your present mailing address i s changed, please t hat in addition to your new address, yo ur Lodge Number MUST be 1nd1, 1 . F " cated if you wish to continue receiving "The P e nnsy va n1a recmason.
In mailing in a "Ch a n ge of Address Card," it is vitally important to process one card only and to be certain th a t your Name, New Address and Lodge Number are so noted.
.•. YOUR NAME YOUR NEW ADDRESS AND LODGE ARE MOST IMPORTANT, IF AND WHEN YOU MOVE
FREEMASON
Pennsylvania Freemasons Have Part in Pittsburgh
A Message from Our Grand Master
ONE OF THE outst anding Communications of th e Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania in r ecen t years w ill be held in th e City of Pitts burgh o n Septembe r 1 s t , 2nd and 3rd, 1959. The City of Pitts burg h i s cel ebra tin g i ts Bi ce nte nni a l year and it is mos t fitting that Freemaso nr y b e r epresen t e d as an int egra l part of the man y ac ti viti es in connec ti on wit h the Bicentenni a l. A grea t deal of thou ght and p lan ning is in vol ved in brin g ing th e September Quarterly Communication of our Grand Lodge to Pittsburgh. For the firs t time in the hi s to ry of th e Grand Lodge of P e nn syl v ania a Quarte rl y Communication w ill be h e ld away from the City of Philad e lphia
It i s urged th at ever y Mas on mak e careful n ote of what is said h e re. E specially, we ca ll th e a tt ention of a ll Mas on s in th e Pittsburgh area a nd so uth western Pennsy l va nia to note well the program hereinafter d i scussed. If yo u can p lan to be present at some or all of the va ri o u s acti v iti es we fee l quite ce rtain that you will be well r eward e d.
On the even in g of Septem b e r 1 1 959, at 7:30 o'clock , P.M. , in th e Mas onic T emple l ocated at Fifth, L y tton and Tennyson Avenu es, a most promin e nt c itize n of the Comm o n wealth of Penn sylvania w ill b e mad e a Mason At Sigh t. He will receive his Degrees in Veron a Lodge No. 548, w hi c h on that eve ning w ill m eet in the Mas onic Temple. We are certain tha t you wi ll desire t o be pr esent and be a par t of th e eve nts of the evening.
At 9:30 o 'cl ock , A.M., on Septembe r 2, 1959, a Special Communication of th e Grand L odg e of P en ns y l van ia will be h e l d in th e M aso nic T e mple. Th e purp ose of t h is Communi c ation is to Con stitut e a n ew Mason i c Lodge to be known as the Col. H enry Bouquet Lodg e No. 787 of wh i c h Hira m P. Ba ll w ill b e th e Warran t Mas t er. We know that man y Masons will look fo rwa rd to t h e Const i tution of thi s Lodge as a part of M asonr y's con tri bution to the Bi cente nnial. A ll o f t he G r a nd Lodg e Officers w ill be prese nt to p ar ti c ipa t e in thi s ac ti v it y
At the concl u sion of the Constitution of th e Col. H enry Bouqu et Lodge No . 787 and at 12 o'clock Noon s h arp, a M e mori a l Plaq u e w ill be dedicat ed This plaque i s in memory of all Mas o n s w h o have by th e ir individual efforts con tri b ute d to th e g r owth and de velopme nt of the City of Pitts burgh during the pa s t t wo hu ndred years. Thi s plaque h as been beaut ifully des ig n e d and a rranged and will be so lo cated on the Fifth Avenu e side of the Mas oni c Temple that it will be v iewab l e a nd re ada ble b y a ll who will in futur e tim e walk on th e Fifth Avenue s id ewalk abutting the Temple propert y The procee dings in co nn ection w ith this dedi catio n will b e televise d and broadcast i n the Pitts burg h area.
Follo wi ng the dedi c ation of th e Memori a l Plaque lun cheo n will be se rved to all Masons present, in t h e Dining Room of the M as onic Temple and a lso in the Dinin g Room o f Syri a Mosque l ocated n earby At the co nclu s ion of the luncheon a Spec ia l Comm uni ca ti on of the Grand Lo dge of Penn syl va nia will be h e ld in Syria Mo sque a t whic h time man y distinguis h ed Maso ns fr om a ll over the United S t a t es a nd Canada w ill be r ecei ved and introdu ced 'by th e Grand Mas ter. At th e conclusi on of this Special Communication Dinn e r w ill be se r ve d to a ll Masons prese nt, in th e Dining Rooms of Syria Mosque and the Mas onic T e mpl e.
At 7 o 'cl o c k , P.M. t he Sept em be r Quarterly Communication of th e Grand Lodge of Pennsy l van ia will be held in Syria Mosq u e. As a part of t h e September Quarterl y Commun i cat i o n th e Oration will be d e li ve red by th e Honorable Broth e r Cly de S S huma ke r , Pres id e nt Judge of the Court of Common Pl eas of Butler Co unt y, Pennsy l va nia.
The Penn sy l va ni a Mason Juv e nile Court I nstitute w ill hold its T e nth Anni versa r y Dinn e r on the evening of September 3, 1959 a t the Mas onic T e mpl e. The Grand Master h as in vi t ed a ll of the Judge s of all o f th e Cour t s in Alleghen y Co unt y to be hi s (Continued on page 2)
Message from Our Grand Master
(Con t inued from page 1)
guests at this T e nth Anniversary Dinner. An outstanding Mason, Dr. Thomas S. Ro y, M os t Worshipful P as t Grand Master of Mas ons of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts , w ill deli ve r th e Address. We are certain tha t you w ill wa nt to be pres ent on th a t occas ion. Arrangements for ti c k ets for this function s hould be made thr ough the H o norable and Brother Gustav L. Schramm, Jud ge of the Juve nile Court of Allegheny County, 3333 Forbes S tre et, Pitts burgh , Pennsylvania.
The g ro w th and development of any great City i s th e result of the efforts of the i ndi vidu a l c iti zens. Freemasons ha v e been m ost ac ti ve in th e building and d evelopment of the City of Pittsburgh. It is t he p urp ose of th e Grand Lodge of P enns ylvania to re cog niz e and m e morialize those w h o have labored diligen tl y in the development o f this great Cit y. We kno w th a t if it
Arthur E. Myers Resigns After Decade of
Excellent Administration at The Homes
After more than a de cad e of highly effi c ie nt, conscientious service, Brothe r Arthur E. Myers has r esig ned as Supe r intendent of The Mas onic Homes at Elizabethtown, effe c ti ve September 1, 1959.
Sh o rtl y after the s udd en death on October 3 1948, of Brother Fr ed erick C. Au ch Brother Mye rs , who had been e nga ged in in s titutional work for 18 ye a rs i n Dauphin County, was conside r ed f or this mos t impo rt a nt pos t. Af ter se veral c onference s, Br oth er Myer s was offi ciall y appoi nt ed a s th e new S u perin ten de nt on December 17, 1948 , effe ct ive Januar y 1, 194-9 Brother Myer s served a s Super in tende nt during one of the m ost ac ti ve p eriods in the his tory of The Ma so nic H omes At the e nd of 1948 , t h ere were 596 Gues t s, including 55 children , in The Homes, and th e h ighes t number of Gues t s in th e Philadelphia Freemas on s' Memor ia l H ospital that year wa s 174. By m id1959 there were 695 Gu e sts in T h e of wh ich 279 were in the Hos pi tal a nd 87 in All eghen y County Res t H om e D u ri ng the same period, Th e Ma son i c Homes a t Eli zabethtown al so wi tnesse d its greatest bu ildin g program. I n 195 1 th e Nurses Mem or ia l H ome was dedicated. A year lat er the sw immi ng pool wa s complete d, and th en the kitch en in Grand Lodge H all was c omple te ly rebuilt a nd n ew equipment ins talled. I n 1954a walk-in tunn el with ne w u tilit y service s was erected from th e pow e rhou se to the Hos pita l, a di s ta nce o f a m il e . A large im poun d in g da m with a capa cit y o f 3 ,5 00 ,000 gall ons was complete d in 1956 The l arge addi tion to the Philadelphia Freemas ons' Memo r ial Hospital and th e alte rati ons to the exi s ting bui lding were completed the following year.
i s at all poss ibl e for yo u to com mit yourself to b e present yo u will be we ll plea sed w ith w ha t y o u observe
We a l so call your a tt ention to th e f act that on August 23, 1959 th e Pittsburgh Sun -Telegraph will publish a special s e ction devote d to Freemasonry. Much work and pla nning has g o ne int o thi s publication. We are certain that it will be most valuable as a source o f Ma sonic informat i o n.
Will y ou please make car eful not e of the above and b y your prese n ce cont ribut e to the s uccess o f this outs t anding r ecogniti o n of Freemasons in the development o f the City o f Pittsburgh.
Cordially and fr aternall y,
The First American Masonic Book
By HAROLD V. B. VooRHis
The Pennsylvania Gazette, p ubli s hed by Benjamin Franklin , in numbers 283 285 and 286, contained this advertisement (May 9, 1734) : " Jus t Publis hed The CoNSTITUTIONS oF THE FREEMASONs: Containing the Histor y, Charges R egulations, etc. of that most ancient a nd Right Worshipful Fraternity, Londo n printed. Reprinted by B FRANKLIN, in th e year of Masonr y 5734. Price stitch d 2s. 6, bound 4s."
la beled " In the Year of Masonry 59 06; Ann o Domini 1906" on th e tit le page. H oweve r , the official bookplate in the cop ies reads " Reprinted by th e Committee on Li b rary-A L. 5907A.C. 1907 " In thi s facsimile the pagination 87-87 is correc ted t o 87- 88.
I ha ve held every copy of this book extant in my hands, and it was a rare privilege to h ave m y finge r s o n th e ve ry pages on which once res ted those of " the first civ ilized American," as Philips Russell calls Fra nklin Dr. A. S W . Rosenbach , th e famo us bibliophile, sa id th at Fra n kl in "orig inated alm ost everything ori g inal in America."
T he Masoni c T emple of The Ma sonic Homes and th e Re cr eation Bu ilding were d edicated last ye ar, while the el ec trica l wir ing an d facilities in Grand Lodge Hall an d man y of th e Gues t H omes are now being r eplaced.
I t has been an extreme ly bus y a nd most interesting peri od in the his t ory of our Masonic H omes wi th new de vel opmen ts be ing experi enced almos t dail y The tranquili t y, happine ss a nd con t inuing exce ll en t care o f our Gues t s durin g this he ctic period , alo ng with t he ab le manage ment of The Ho mes, is a g rea t tribute to th e ab ili ty, res our cefulness and d evotion of our Superintendent Bro th er Arthur E. Mye rs
I t is hoped that h e and his graciou s lady will contin ue to enjo y life f or many yea r s to come.-A.B. P.
Patmos Lodge, No. 348
Dedicate s New Masonic Temple
The members of Patmos Lodge No. 348 can well be proud of their n ewl y cons tru c ted Masonic Temple. Located at 8 55 Broadway on an amp le plot near th e out s kirts o f Hano ve r , thi s one-s tor y and ba se me nt stru ctu r e will p r ovid e a c om fortable h ome for th e Mas on ic bodies in this area.
Th e build ing has an e x te r ior width o f 4-2 feet and a depth o f 123 fe et The L odge R oom o n th e firs t fl oor i s 40 feet b y 70 fe e t wi th a perm a nent sea tin g capac ity of 155. Al so on the fir s t flo or is a spac iou s lobb y, office, fi r s tai d room and s tora ge s pac e The 4-0-foot by 80-foot Soci al Room in t h e ba sement sea t s 450 a nd i s eq ui pped with modern kitch en fa ciliti es All uti li ties are also loca ted in the basem ent. Th e prope rty p r ovides off-s treet parkin g f or 60 cars . Th e Patmos Masonic Corp or a tion is h eade d
M. CHILCOTE, R. W. Grand Master
by Brother J ohn P Wildasin President, while the B uild in g Committee in cl ud es B ro th e rs Luke W . R oh rb augh, Chairman; J. Walter Rohrbaugh and Ray mond C. Markle. Br othe rs Paul G. P e nsinger, Di s t r ict Depu t y Gra nd Master, and Claude 0. Meckl ey, the latter a P as t Mas ter o f thi s L odge and a Past Dis tric t Deputy wer e enthu sias tic supporte rs o f this proj ect. Ground -bre aki ng ce remonies were held on March 16, 19 58, whil e the co rn e rs tone was laid on Sep tember 28 , 1958. T he T emple was d edi cated o n Januar y 2 5, 195 9 while the Ri ght Wors h ip f ul Grand Mas te r , Brother Sa n ford M. Chi lc o te , and a c orps of Gra nd Lodge Officer s d edi ca te d the Lodge Room t o Freemas onr y at a Sp ec ial Commun ica ti on of Gra nd Lodge on February 14, 1959 .
I n ad d iti o n t o P a tmos Lod ge No 348, Hanover Ro y a l Arch Chapt e r No 310 , Penn Co un ci l No. 6 7, Beth el Comma nder y No 98 wi th i t s Au xiliar y and a Chapter of DeMolay will mee t in thi s T emple - A.B.P.
DO YOU DESIRE A BICENTENNIAL MEDALLION?
Bro thm· Sanford M. C hilc ote , Right Worshipful Grand l\faste•·, h as authori zed the casting o f a spec ial 3- inch solid bronze M edallion , co mm e •norating th e !VIas onic C e remonies in connection with Pittsbm·gh ' s Bicentennial Y e ar Celebration. T hi s is a limite d i ss u e of a unique and hi s toric Masonic piece. These Medallions sell at 83 .7 5 each, postage included. Should yo u d es ire one or ple a se mail yo u•· c h eck to B roth e r
O s c ar R. Ol s on, 209 Boulevard of Allies, Pittsburgh 22 Pennsylvania, b e ing car e ful t o g i v e yo ur· nan1e and cor re c t address.
Thus was h eralded th e first Masonic book print ed in America- some six months before its printer became Grand Master of P e nnsy lvania Freemasons and th ree months before the actual di stribu tion of the first copies This book is the rarest and, con sequentl y, the m os t pri zed Masonic book in America. I ha ve tra ced 127 copie s sold by Franklin bet ween August 1734 and March 1735, f rom hi s accou nt boo ks 5 cop ie s being bound and the oth er 122 being unbound Of th ese I have di scove re d sev enteen-a ll extant but one owned b y Annapolis R oyal Lodge in Nova Scotia, whic h had been presented t o Grand Mas ter Ph illip s in 1738, whi ch was destroyed in a fire in t he Lodge Room. The copies a re as follows :
1 -GRAND LoD GE LIB RARY-Iow a
2 - A. & A. S RITE LIBRAR YWashington, D. C.
3 -GRAND Lo DGE LIBRARY- New Y ork
4 - GRAND LoDGE LIBRARY- Pennsy l vani a
5 -GRAND LoDGE L IBR ARY-Penn syl vania
6 - AMERICAN PHILOSOPHICAL LIBRARYPennsylvania
?*-UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVAN IA LIB RARY -Pennsy lvania
8*-HISTORICAL Soci ETY oF P ENNSYLVANIA - Pennsylvania
9*- GRAND LoD GE LIBRARY- Massachusetts
10*-GRAND LoDGE LIBRARY- Massachusetts
ll
*-GRAND LoDGE LIBRARY-Massachusetts
12 - YALE UNIVERSITY LIBRARYConnecticut
13 - ALEXANDRIA-WASHINGTON Lo DGE, No. 22-Virginia
14*- AcADEMY BoRNEMAN coPYP ennsylvani a
15 - GRAND LoD GE LIBR ARY- E ngland
16*- W ALLACE HEATON- England
*R e-bo u nd cop es
The orig inal London edit ion contains 91 pages. The "FRANKLIN REPRINT" contains 94 pages -i ncludi ng " A New Song " on page 93
There a re some minor errors in Franklin's bo ok, th e m os t obvious being two page s numbered 87, and no page 88.
The Grand Lo dge of Pennsylva nia publi s h ed a facsim ile edition of th e "FRANKLIN REPRI NT"
Knights Templar Educational Foundation
Young men a nd young wome n , who otherwise might not ha ve h ad th e opportunity of completing th eir education, are taking ad va nt age of the se r vices o f th e Pennsy lva niaKnig hts T em pla r Educational Foundatio n to a f a r greater ext ent than a t any previous time. Thi s is indi cate d in a report by i ts Chairman, Brother James N Dee ter, St. Mar ys , P ennsylvan ia, whic h gives the fo llo wi ng co mparisons :
19 55- 8 1 loan s fo r $ 18,025.0 0 19 56 - 10 lloans for$ 22,700.00
Not e: A full description of each copy extant m ay be fo und in the TRANSACTIONS OF THE AMERICAN L ODGE OF RESEARCH (New York) Volume VI- N umb er 2- 1954-1955, pages 182-186.
Our Circulating Library
Available to All Pennsylvania Freemasons
The libra r y in the Masonic Temple in Philadelphia belongs to the Maso ns of Pennsy lvania. I t is financed by them and ma naged for them by th e Committee on Mason i c Culture of t he Gran d Lodge. An y P e nn sylvan ia Mason m ay borrow books t hro ugh the Circulating Library in perso n or b y mail. There are no fee s a nd no expen se except for re t urn pos tage. Regar dl ess of the n eeds or desires of any Maso n , whe th er it be hi s tor y, biography, symbo lis m or th e rom a nce of the Fraternity , outs tanding works b y di s ti ng uis hed a uthors a r e a vailable.
Bre thren who desi re to m a ke u se of the faciliti es of t he librar y s hould writ e to:
William J Paterson, Librarian Masonic Templ e, Broa d and Filbcr·t Sts. Philadelphia 7, Pa.
Council of D e liberation Mef!ts in Pittsburgh
Th e high l ights of the meeting of the Penns yl va nia Council of Delibera ti on at the ,Mason ic Temple in Pitts b urg h on Jul y 10, 19 59, we re the addresses b y Ill. Sco tt S. Le ib y, 33 °, Deputy for P en n syl van ia , and Ill J ohn A. Fl eck, 3 3°, Assistant to the Sove re ign Grand Commander a nd Editor of the N ews -Letter.
Oth er th an th e adoption of a reso lutio n pro hi biting ac tion withi n th e Dis tri c t u pon peti ti ons fo r dual or plural members hip until th e Co un ci l of Delib erat ion of Pennsy lvania ha s a dop t ed re g ulations go ve rning s u ch members hi p in our subo rd inate bodi es , onl y busine ss of a routine n a tur e was tra nsacted a nd th e session closed wi th a delicious dinner fo ll owed b y a very diversified entert a inment prov ided b y the m e mbe rs o f th e Scottis h Rit e Bod ies in th e Valley of Pitts burgh -W E.Y.
1957-149 loa ns for$ 43,471.0 0 1958-325 lo a ns for $120,0 14.0 0 On December 3 1, 1958, 334 boys and girls owed the Foundation $ 187,8 12.90 O f the se 136 h av e graduated a nd 198 are still in college. It is apparent t hat in 1959 s tud e nts will benefit from the u se of the mone y in th is Foundation in an am ount far in excess of an y previous yea r ; loans t o 224 s tuden ts totaling $ 8 7, 579. 0 0 we r e made fr om J a nuar y 1, 1959 to May 31, 1959 and new appl ications are being rece i ved d a il y The f unds of th e F oundation are available to s tu d e nt s during the ir Junior and Senior yea rs o f a four-y ear co urse, or th e las t two yea rs o f a fi ve, six, or mo re year co urse of s tud y These l oa ns, t he maximum amou nt of whi ch $750.00 a year fo r two y ears , are no l onger r e s tri c ted t o s ons and d a ughte r s of members of th e Mas o ni c Fraternit y W hil e any P en nsylvania Mas t er Mason o r K night Templ a r may serve a s a recomme nde r , inquiries s hould be made of Brother Deeter at S t. Marys, P ennsyl va nia .-W.E.Y.
New Pamphlets Now Avai lable to Membership T he eight pamphl e ts recently pu b lis h ed by th e Committee o n Mason i c C ulture are now availabl e a nd can be p ur chased by the m embers These interes tin g pa mp hlets include important phases of Free maso nr y n ot co vered by th e ritu a l and wi ll be inst ru cti ve t o m emb ers as well as in iti ates
Their titles are:
1. Fraternalism Through the Ages
2. The Old C har·ges
3. From an Operative A rt to a Speculat ive S c i e n ce
4. Symbolism-Part I
5. Early F r eemasonr y in Pennsylvania
6. Major· Ben evolen ces of th e G rand Lodge of
7. Symbolism-Part II
8. The Committee on Masonic C ulture
The se pamp hl e t s can be p ur cha sed for $ 1.00 b y writing to:
William J. Pa te r son , Librarian Masonic Temple, Broa d and F ilbe rt Sts. Philadelphia 7, Pa.
SANFORD
From Our Grand Secretary's Office
OUR JUNE QUARTERLY COMMUNICATION
The June Quarterly Communication was just about as busy as the two days preceding it had been. Numerous meetings were held Tuesday morning, June 2nd, while th e Finance Committee meeting which started at 2 P.M. was not concluded until late that night.
The Grand Lodge Officers held a very inter· esting meeting with th e District Deputy Grand Masters on Wednesday morning, while the Committee on Masonic Culture was in session much of th e afternoon. Other important meet· ings were also held after lunch.
The Quarterly Communication opened at 7:00 P.M. with 175 Lodges represented.
Fraternal Recognition
Reques t s for fraternal recognition were re. ceived from the Grand Lodges of E cuador and Occidental of Colombia, which were refer red to t he Committee on Correspondence.
Some time ago, our Grand Lodge recognized the United Grand Lodge of Germany. The socalled Land Grand Lodges of Germany have now been united with that Body, all under th e name of the United Grand Lodges of Germany.
A request has been rec eived to trans fer our recognition to thi s new Body. This was also re · ferred to the Committee on Correspondence.
A communication from the Deputy Grand Ma ster of the National Grand Lodge of Italy outlined the condition of Masonry in Ital y The above Grand Lodge is recognize d by few Grand Lodges in the United States, most of which recognize the Grand Ori ent of Ital y as we do.
Th e Committee on By- Laws is alwa ys busy. Propo sed a m e ndments were r ece ived from 27 Lod ges and th e Th omas R. P a tt on Memorial Charity Fund. Thi s Committee had reviewed the s ugges te d amendments of 30 other Lod ges and recommended the approval of 25, either as submitted or as re vised, while tho se of 5 Lodges were either disa pproved or held for fur th er information.
Four Resolutions Adopted
Broth e r George H. De ike, R. W. Pas t Grand Master, Cha irman of the Committee on Finance, in additi on to presenting the Quar t erly finan cial report a lso offered four resolu ti ons which were adopted. I n b ri e f, they are as follow s :
l. The un ex pend ed balance of approximatel y $129,000 rema ining after the completion of the rebuildin g of the utilities, the erection of an extension to the Philadelp hia Freemaso ns Memoria l Hospita l and th e erection of the Re crea tion Building and Lodge Hall, all at The Ma so nic Hom es at E lizabeth· town, be allo cated to The Ma so nic Ho mes Res erve Fund.
2 The electrical system su ppl ying power and telephone se r vice to the "Farm L oop" at
The Masonic Homes is considered t o be badly in need of replacement and th e Committee on Masonic Homes was authorized t o proceed with this work at a cos t not to exceed $3 10,000.
3. It i s deemed advisable to es tablish a H ospital Reserve Fund to care for future major projects in connection with the Phila. delphia Freemasons Memorial Hospital at The Ma sonic Homes at Elizabethtown and Grand L odge was authorized to create such a fund
4. A small sch ool propert y now adjoins the land on which is located the Thomas Ranken Patton Masonic I nstitution for Boys at Eli za bethtown. The above school is n o longer used and it is th ough t to be mos t advisable to purchase thi s property Authorit y was given th e Trustees of th e Patton Institution to ac. qu ire this plot and the building for $2400. Bro ther Deike also proposed an Amendmen t t o the Ahima n Rezon , which will la y over until the Decemb er Quarterl y Communication when action will be ta ken The purpose of this Amendme nt is t o permit Grand Lodge act ing through the Committee on Finance, to allocate gifts, devises and bequests for th e Masonic Homes of th e Grand Lodge, unless s pecifically designated, to The Mason i c Homes Endowme nt Fund, to the Masonic H o mes Rese rve Fund or partly t o each a s deemed neces sar y or advisab le from time to time
Brother William J. Wallace, Chairman of the Committee on T emple, outlined th e improvements a nd maintenance work, cos ting app roxima te ly $27,500, that had been pe rformed during th e past Quarter.
Newest Lodge Approved
A petition was r ecei ved f or a new Lodge at Pitt s burgh, to be called Col. Henry Bouqu et Lodge No. 787, signed by thr ee Master Masons and recommended by Br o th e r Benj am in S. Barbour , District Deputy Grand Master, and by Corinthian Lodge No. 573 . There were 20 signatures on th e petition
This newest Lodge wi ll be Cons tit uted at a Special Communi catio n of Grand Lodge in Pittsb urgh on September 2, 1959.
Broth er Albert T. Ey ler, R. W. Past Grand Master , Chairman of the Committee on Ap· peal s, reported on th e ac tivi ties of this Com· mittee A reso lution s ustain ing a T rial Committee's appeal was ad op ted.
Masonic Cu lture
Brother Will iam E Yeager, R. W. P ast Gr and Master , Chairman of the Committe e on Masonic Culture, di scussed the eight pamph· lets wh ich had bee n prepared and fo r wa rd ed re cen tly to each Lodge with a let ter exp lai ning the purpose and proposed method of usi ng the pamphle ts He also pointed o ut that th e fo ur previously p repared boo klets will be continued in use
Broth er Yeager mentioned the Institutes wh ich a re being held in various parts of the Jurisdiction to familiarize th e District Deputy Grand Masters, Lodge Officers, Aid es and Lodge Committe es on Masonic Culture with the aims, objectives and procedures in making the new program effective.
Brother Yeager, who is also Chairman of the Children 's Serv ice Comm ittee, pointed out that the tenth sessio n of the P enns ylvania Mason Ju ve nile Court Institute will be held in Pittsburgh s tarting on August 30th and ex tend. ing to September 3, 1959. It is expected that twenty Judges will attend.
Order of DeMolay
Brother Sanford M. Chilcote, R. W. Grand Maste r, discussed his edict dated March 18, 1959 relative to the In ternational Order of D eMolay and his letter with which the edic t was se nt to the L odge Officers and District Deput y Grand Masters. The purpose of this edict is to vigorously s timulate interest in the Order of DeMolay and authorizes an y Lodge or group o f L odges to sponsor a Chapter or Chapters of th e International Order of DeMolay
Pittsburgh Bicentennial
Brother Hiram P. Ball, General Chairman of the Pittsbu rgh Bi ce nte nnial Mas onic Celebration, disc usse d in d e ta il the vario us Maso nic activities whi ch will be held in Pittsburgh in connec tion with this Celebration The u sual Quarterl y meeting of the Fin ance Committee will be on Tuesday a fternoon September 1, 1959, while Col. He nr y Bouqu e t Lodge No. 787 will be Constituted the next morning, followed by the unveil ing of a Commemorati ve Plaque. The Quarterl y Commun ica tion of Grand Lod ge will be h eld Wednesday night September 2, 1959, preceded by a Special Communicati on th a t aft ernoo n. The tenth Sess ion of th e Pennsylvania Mason Juvenile Court Institute will hold its con cluding meeting s on Thursday, September 3 rd.
It is th e Gra nd Mas t er' s desire th at as many Maso ns as possible attend the above a ctivities
Broth er Sanford M. Chi lcote, R W. Grand Maste r announced that Broth er George H. Deike, R. W. Past Grand Mast er, h ad 1again made a s ubstantial gift to Grand Lodge. One hundred shares of common s tock of t he National Da iry Pr od ucts Corporation ha ve been received as a joint gif t f rom Mrs. Deike and Br other Deike to be used in connection with the recreational faci lities of the Masonic H omes at El iza betht own.
Grand Lodge closed this unus ua ll y busy June Quarterl y Communication at 9:05 P.M.
Pennsylvania Host to Fourth Annual Northeast Conference on
Masonic Libraries and Education
The Fourth Annual Northeast Conference on Masonic Libraries and Education was held in the Banquet Hall of the Masonic Temple at Broad and Filbert Streets, PhiJadelphia, beginning on Friday morning, June 12, 19 59. After invocation, Brother W. LeRo y McKinley, R. W. Senior Grand Warden of the Grand Lodge of P ennsylvania {in the absence of Brother Sanford M. Chilcote , R. W. Grand Master, who was unavoidably prevented from being present) brought the greetings of the Grand Lodge and welcomed th e delegat es to the Ke ys t one S tate. To this, Brother Alt on L. Miller, Past Deputy Grand Master of Massachusetts, grac iously responded. The Cha irm an of th e meeting, Brother William E. Yeager, P. G. M., Chairman of the Committee on Masonic Culture in Pennsylvania, presented the theme of the Conference, "Work. ing Tool s for Masonic Edu ca tion." In keeping with this gene ral subject, during the morning and afternoon sessions, the following papers were presented and afterwards thoroughly di scussed : {a) " Tools Available in New York and Methods b y Which the Desi red Res ults Are Attained" by Brother Wendell K. Walker, Director , Li brary and Museum, Grand Lodge of New York; (b) "The Working Tools in New Jersey and Ho w Utilized" by Brother Walter W. Kunze Chairman, Committee on Education Service; (c) "Tools Now Availabl e in Penn sylvania " by Brother William E. Mon t. gome r y, Secretary, Committee on Maso ni c Culture; (d) "The Indiana Plan" by Broth er Laure nce R. Ta ylo r, Chairman , Committee on Mason ic Edu cation , Grand Lodge of Indi ana; (e) "Ritual as a Tool in Ma soni c Education" by Bro ther Andrew J. Schroder, Ins tru ctor of Rituali s tic Work , Grand L odge of Pennsylvan ia. Following the del ic ious luncheon which was served with t he compliments of the R. W. Grand Mas ter, Reverend and Brother Thomas S. Ro y, M. W. Past Grand Mas t er ofMassachu. setts, in his u s ual eloquen t style delighted t h e delegates with a disse rt a tion on the val ue of the wo rk being done in the di ssemination of information concern ing Masonic ideals Following th e aftern oon session, most of the out-of-State delegate s made a specially conducted tour of th e Mason ic T emple and were much impressed by its beauty and grandeur. I n the evening ma ny of the v isi t ors from other Juris dictions, mos t of whom were unfamiliar with the P en nsyl va nia Work attended a meeting of University Lodge No. 6io where th roug h arrangements made by Broth er Schrod er , th ey h a d an oppor tuni ty to witness th e conferring of the Second Degree and an exemplifica tion of th e Degree of Mas te r Mason.
Working To ol" by Brother Ray Baker Harris, Past Grand Mas ter of Masons in the District of Columbia; {b) "New Publications of Value to Masons" by Brother Ward K. St. Clair, Chairman, Committee on Library and Museum, New York; {c) "Grand Lodge Sanctioned and Approved Publ ica tions as a Wo rking Tool" by Brother William A. Carpenter, Editor, The Pennsylvania Freemason; (d) " Working Tools Made Available by the Masonic Service Associat ions" b y Brother William C. Edmunds, Chief Field Agent , Masonic Service Association.
Registrations from the various Jurisdictions were as f ollo ws: Pennsylvania-12; New York -7; Connecti c ut and Massachusetts-3 each; Maine, District of Columbia, Virginia and New Jersey-2 each; Indi ana, Ohio and California-! each, a t otal of 36.
The Northeast Conference on Masonic Libraries and Education originated several years ago , the First and Second Conferences being held in New York Ci t y in 1956 and 1957, and the Third in Boston last summer The Fifth Conference will be in Hartford, Connecticut a year hence.-W.E.M.
1 OOth Annual Conclave of Grand Commandery Held in Scranton
The lOOth Annual Conclave of th e Grand Commandery of Pennsylva nia was held a t the Maso nic Temple in Scranton on May 24 to 26, 1959.
It was a well-planned affa ir and although the death of the Right Eminent Grand Commander, Sir Knight Rob ert W Michael, just prior to th e Conclave ca used a fee ling of deep sorro w t o pe rvade the activities, the prog ram was carried ou t as it had been planned by Sir Kni ght Mi chael.
The m embe rs hip report s howed that for th e first time since 1901, Pennsylvan ia is not th e largest Grand Commande r y in the nation, the Grand Commandery of Texas ha vi ng ended the yea r wit h 28, 648 members or 206 more th an Penns yl va nia.
Th e Concla ve closed with the ins tallat ion of the following officers :
Grand Commander
HARRY F. HosTETLER , Lewi s t qwn
D eputy Grand Commander
HARRISON C. HARTLI NE, Erie
Grand Generaliss imo
PERRY L. LABARR Pittsburgh
Grand Captain -General
JoHN B. CoTTRELL, JR. Medi a
Old Minute Book of Franklin Lodge No. 134
a Treasure of Art Alm ost a centur y ago, Brother George J. Becker, who had come to this co untry from Germany a s a bo y, was elected Secre tar y of Franklin Lodge No. 134 in Philadelp hia He had developed g re a t artistic ability, and although handicapped by the loss of an eye, he proceeded to produce a series of most unusual, illu strated Minute Books.
Brother Becker was born in Carlsruhe, German y, in 1816 and came to this country wi th his parents when about sixteen. He became a lithographer, but yea rs of close application t o this me t iculous work resuJted in the loss of one eye. He was thus obliged to abandon his trade and subsequentl y became a Professor of Drawing and Writing in Philadelphia High School. In 1852 he was appoin ted Professor of Drawing, Writing and Bookkeeping in Girard College, where he remained until 1896 when he was re tired as an Emeri tus Professor at the age of eigh ty.
Meanwhile he had become intere sted in Masonry , and on November 17, 1846 was made a Mason in Lodge No. 3. Shortly th ereafter he resign ed and was admitted into Franklin Lodge No. 134. He was elected Wors hipful Mas ter in 1858 and th en as Secretary in 1860, serving in th e latter capacity until November 30, 1892, when h e declined re-election.
ASHBY B. PAUL, R. W. Grand Secretary
On Saturday morning a t th e Benjamin Franklin Hotel , a s hort bu sin ess sessi on was h el d, af ter which these papers were read and discu ssed: (a) " Th e Maso ni c Library as a
Grand Senior Warden
PA UL C. RoDENHAUSER, Columbia
Grand Junio r Warden
F. PARSON KEPLER , Milton
Grand Tr easurer
RAYMOND F. H o FFMA NN, Pitts burgh
Grand Recorder
JoHN W. LAIRD , Philadelphia
Franklin Lodge No. 134 recent ly presented one of Brother Be cker's Minute Books to our Librar y and Museu m with the request that it be placed in "our rare book collection, as the y had no proper pla ce to dis play it. " The fronti s pi ece of this Minute Book is a bl ack and white pen and ink, richly ornamented et ching of Brother Benjamin Franklin, while on th e t itle page is a s imilar etching of Brother Peter Will iamson, P as t Grand Master. A beautiful reproduction of the Char ter of " Franklin Lodge No. 134·, A.Y.M." f ollows. Another high l y artistic page states th at " The Frontisp iece and Title Page of this Minute Book were Executed and Presented b y Pas t Mas ter Brother George J. Becker in token of hi s regard and good will to Frankli n Lodge." The book is replete with black and white ink etchings as well as beautifull y p a inted a nd brilliantly colored illustrations . Each deceased Brothe r was honor ed by a dis tincti ve, appropriate sketch; every unu s ual Masonic occasion was highligh ted by hi s talented pen o r brus h. Hi s writ ing was clear and firm; his minutes appa ren tly most co mplete; his ledgers and accounts concise and in formative The result-a Minute Book that in the opinion of man y di s tingui shed Masons who h ave see n it " has no equal in th e Fraternity for art istic sk ill in execution."
On yo ur next visi t to our famous Library and Muse um be sure to see Brother George J . Becker's Minute Book.
