Contents

Page 2, ‘The Stone of Destiny’ This month’s cover story is about the Stone of Destiny and its remarkable history.’

Page 5, ‘Brotherhood’

A nice little poem, well named, Brotherhood. Page 6, ‘The Masonic Encyclopaedia.’

This month we look at the letter, ‘T’, from Temple to Tyre.

Page 7, ‘The Old Tiler Talks’,

“A Lodge is Born”, the fifth in the series from Carl Claudy’s ‘Old Tiler Talks.’

Page 9, ‘Famous Freemasons.’

Audie Murphy, the most decorated American soldier during WWII.

Page 11, ‘The Lodge of Journeymen Masons No. 8.’ A short Historical sketch about this ancient Lodge, entitled, ‘The Rebel Lodge.’

Page 13, ‘Book Review’, This month we review, “The MacBride

Ritual.” Page 14, ‘A Cartoon Strip’,

The further Adventures of Billy!

In the Lectures website The article for this month is ‘The Due Guard’ Ever wondered why Scottish Freemasons stand to order as EA with the sign of Due Guard? You will after reading this article. [link]

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The Stone of Destiny. For over seven hundred years the Coronation Stone, or Stone of Scone, rested in St. Edward’s Chapel of Westminster Abbey as a sacred symbol of England’s divine and royal rule. It’s theft on Christmas Eve of 1950,by four Scottish patriots, and eventual return, brought new world-wide interest to the ancient story and tempestuous travels of this national relic.

The amazing story of the Stone of Destiny is closely entwined with Masonic history and tradition, particularly in its early years.

Does the stone rightfully belong to England? No more than to Scotland, unless they choose to evoke a “Statute of limitations” or “possession is nine tenths of the law” argument, by virtue of its seven-century rest in London. Does it therefore belong to Scotland? No more than it belongs to Ireland, who possessed it before them - or to Spain - or to Egypt - or to Palestine - all of whom claim previous custody and rightful ownership at one time or another, prior to it’s arrival in the British Isles.

Perhaps then it belongs to mankind in general, and, if truly a Stone of Destiny, might someday be an international symbol of the Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of Man. It would thus fulfil the Promise of God, carrying out the traditions and teachings of Freemasonry.

Almost 4,000 years ago the Stone of Destiny was merely another stone lying on the plains of Luz, 11miles north of Jerusalem. Fate brought Jacob’s caravan to this place near Bethel one evening, and then, as even now, it was the custom for the traveller in the Middle East to bolster his pillow and bedding with stones for a more comfortable position. With his head resting on this particular stone, Jacob is said to have had his famous dream, in which God revealed his Divine Covenants and Promises.

Jacob blessed the Stone, sanctified it by anointing it with oil, and set it up as a pillar to mark the spot, vowing: “If God will be with me, and keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat and raiment to keep on, so I come again to my father’s house ( Bethel ) in peace; then shall the Lord be my God, and this Stone which I have set up for a pillar shall be God’s House.”

Perhaps it is well to note here that The Stone in calcareous, is called ‘freestone’ by Masons. It is purplish in colour with a few pebbles of quartz embedded in it. The most interesting thing about its geological formation is that no similar rock formation exists in the British Isles, but the Rev. Canon Tristram states that there is a stratum of sandstone near the Red Sea geologically like the Stone of Destiny. In the following years, Jacob who prospered in wealth and knowledge was directed by God to return to Bethel. On his return, the Lord again appeared to him, saying, “I am the God of Bethel.” Thus the Lord associated Himself not only with the place of the vision but with the Bethel Stone, and

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Jacob knew indeed that he had found the true God.

Jacob took the stone with him, and, from that time on it was always set up as a pillar marking the altar to the God of Israel. His twelve sons became the progenitors of the Twelve Tribes of Israel, and The Stone followed them. Thus, The Stone supplied the physical as well as spiritual needs for the Israelites.

Let us again take note of the physical properties of The Stone. The Iron rings and a pole groove along the top of The Stone, worn from handling, bear witness to its long migrations. How and when were they worn? Not while in the temples of Jerusalem, or the castles and abbeys of Ireland, Scotland and England! It must have been on the journey with Jacob to Egypt and during the 40 years of Israel’s wanderings in the wilderness! The Bethel Stone, finally, was returned to Jerusalem where it served as the Coronation Stone for the Jewish Kings, ending with the infamous Zedekiah in 578 B.C.

By that time the Bethel Stone had descended to the Ephraimites. Jacob’s favourite son, Joseph, had acquired the land of Bethel, together with the Pillow-Rock, as his inheritance. From Joseph it passed to his younger son Ephraim, of whom Jacob had prophesied: “His seed shall become a multitude of nations.”

As if to carry out this prophecy, a direct descendant of Ephraim, Gatholus by name, had sailed west through the Mediterranean with a large number of followers and reached Celtiberia

(Southern Spain), where he founded a nation. From Celtiberia, a group of Gatholus’ descendants invaded Eireann (Ireland) in the sixth century B.C. and established themselves in Ulster, building a beautiful palace called Team-Hair Breagh, and later ‘Tara’.

It is to be noted that Gatholus did not possess The Stone and yet it did follow his route through Celtiberia and eventually came into the possession of his descendant Eremon. Thus the prophecy of Jacob was fulfilled. Now let us follow The Stone and its eventual sanctification of Eremon’s rule. Jacob was fulfilled. Following the downfall of Zedekiah, Jeremiah and the major part of the Jews were carried captive from Jerusalem to Babylon. Only a few were left under the direction of the prince Gedaliah. Jeremiah was later released and returned to Jerusalem, but following the murder of Gedaliah, he took the remaining Jews to Tahpanhes in Egypt, where the voice of the Lord came to him informing him how to overthrow the image-worshiping Egyptians and seat Babylonia’s Nebuchadnezzar on its throne.

The Lord said:-

“Take great stones in thine hand and hide them in the clay in the brick kiln which is at the entry of Pharaoh’s house in Tahpanes, in the sight of the men of Judah; And say to them, Thus sayeth the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will send and take Nebuchadnezzar the King of Babylon, my servant and will set his throne upon these stones that I have hid; and he

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shall spread his royal pavilion over them.”

Did this mean that, unbeknown to himself, Nebuchadnezzar was given Divine permission to rule Egypt by being coroneted over the hidden Bethel Stone? According to Irish historians, a few years later (581 B.C.) a small but distinguished group of strangers arrived in Ulster.

They had fled from Palestine to Tahpanes, Egypt, whence they had probably come by way of Caltiberia, the land of their Ephraim - Israelite cousins. In this group was an important patriarch saint called Ollam Folla meaning "Prophet" (Jeremiah?). This aged man was the guardian of the beautiful Tea-Tephi, a princess descended from a Pharaoh, and a daughter of Zedekiah. He was accompanied by his scribe, so called Baruch (the name of Jeremiah’s scribe was Baruch). They had brought with them the Bethel Stone, or Stone of Destiny, together with a royal harp and an Ark. It is significant that the Harp of David has been the royal arms of Ireland for the last 2,500 years.

Irish historians referred to Tea-Tephi as the “Daughter of God’s House” and to the people to whom she brought the Stone of B-th-l God’s Stone - she could have been no other than the daughter of that house. According to tradition, King Eremon married Tea-Tephi and the royal palace changed its name to “Tara”, the root word from Taph meaning “One banished “.

According to Professor Totten of New Haven, “The altars of ancient Ireland were called Botal or Bothal, meaning the House of God. It is from the Hebrew world, B-th-l. So in the union of Tea-Tephi, a descendant of David and Eremon, descendant of Joseph, it not only left the Bethel Stone in the possession of the House of Joseph, but united the two principal kingdoms of Israel, Judah and Ephraim. Thus came to pass the fulfilment of another prophecy of Jeremiah who said:

“I am Father to Israel, and Ephraim is my first born. Hear the Word of the Lord.

Ye nations and declare it in isles afar off (Britain?) and say, he that scatters

Israel will gather him.”

Here ends the major Masonic significance of The Stone. It remained in Ireland for over 1,000 years where every Irish Ard-Righ ( King ) was crowned on it, until the advent of King Murchertah, who by some slipshod arrangement without the benefit of council, lent it to his brother Fearghus Mor ( the Great ) who took it to the Scottish island of Iona. Here 48 kings were crowned on it until the ninth century, when raids by the Norsemen became so serious that it was transferred to the town of Scone near Perth for safekeeping by Coinneach Crudalach (the Hardy) who became King of Alba (Scotland). In Scotland it remained for 400 years as that nation’s coronation Stone.

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In the reign of England’s Edward I, and now known as the “Stone of Scone”, the stone was removed from Scotland and placed in Westminster Abbey, in 1292, either by force or mutual agreement ( authorities disagree ), and there it has remained almost ever since. But the Scottish were ever mindful of their ancient King Kenneth’s admonition that “Wherever the Stone should be, a King of Gaelic blood would reign”. And so in1950 Scottish Nationalists, under the cover of darkness, removed the Stone from the Abbey and fled with it to Scotland. Four months later it was tracked down and promptly brought back to London. But in 1996 reason prevailed and by an Act of the British Parliament, the Stone was formally returned to Scotland.

An interesting story, some of whose connections would appear to be a bit slim, while others may stretch the imagination a little. Never-the-less, given the total time span and the distances over which, this no doubt ‘unremarkable stone’, has travelled, who is to say that it was not so. From” the Tracing Board” of The Grand Lodge of Saskatchewan - 1986

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BROTHERHOOD

Should the chances of life ever tempt me to roam, In a Lodge of Freemasons I'll still find a home; There the sweet smile of friendship still welcomes each guest,

And brotherly love gives that welcome a zest.

When I'm absent from Lodge, pleasure tempts me in vain, As I sigh for the moments of meeting again; For friendship and harmony truly are there, When we meet on the level and act on the square.

There the soul-binding union surely is known, Which united both the peasant and prince on the throne; There the rich and the poor on the level do meet, And as Brothers each other most cordially greet.

On the quicksands of life should a Brother be thrown, It is then that the friendship of Brethren is known; For the heart points the hand, his distress to remove; Our motto is "Kindness and Brotherly Love".

When the Master of all, in His far-seeing love, Shall issue His call to the Grand Lodge above; May each Brother be found, prince, peasant, or lord, To be duly prepared to receive his reward.

Anon

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The Masonic Encyclopaedia The Letter ‘T’ Temple The Greeks had temenos, a sacred enclosure, a plot of ground marked off to be a holy place; the Latins had templum, a consecreated place. A temple is a building set apart because it is holy, dedicated to religious uses. It has its place in Masonry largely because of the prominence of Solomon’s Temple in the Ritual. It is interesting to note that in Masonic nomenclature the ideal life, here and hereafter, is described metaphorically as a temple, one of a thousand examples of the extent to which Freemasonry is saturated with religious language and emotions. Token The word token is derived from the Anglo-Saxon tacen, which means a sign, presage, type, or representation, that which points out something; and this is traced to taecan, to teach, show, or instruct, because by a token we show or instruct others as to what we are. Bailey, whose Dictionary was published soon after the Revival, defines it as "a sign or mark"; but it is singular that the word is not found in either of the dictionaries of Phillips or Blount, which were the most popular glossaries in the beginning of the eighteenth century. The word was, however, well known to the Fraternity, and was in use at the time of the Revival with precisely the same meaning that is now given to it as a mode of recognition. Tongue of Good Report Being "under the tongue of good report" is equivalent, in Masonic technical

language, to being of good character or reputation. It is required that the candidate for initiation should be one of whom no tongue speaks evil. The phrase is an old one, and is found in the earliest rituals of the eighteenth century. Tracing Board The Masonic tracing board took several decades to develop into its pictorial form. Initially a chalk drawing was made on the table or floor in the centre of the hired tavern room in which a Masonic Lodge met, the work being executed either by the Tyler or Worshipful Master. Evidence suggests that a simple boundary in the shape of a square, rectangle (or "double square"), or a cross was drawn first, with various Masonic symbols often of a geometric type were drawn later, the former usually being drawn by the Tyler and the latter possibly by the Master. Later various symbolic objects, were added. At the end of the work a new member was often required to erase the drawing with a mop, as a demonstration of his obligation of secrecy. Tyre An ancient city of Phoenicia, which in the time of King Solomon was celebrated as the residence of King Hiram, to whom that monarch and his father David were indebted for great assistance in the construction of the Temple at Jerusalem. Tyre was distant from Jerusalem about one hundred and twenty miles by sea, and was thirty miles nearer by land. The inhabitants of Tyre were distinguished for their skill as artificers, especially as workers in brass and other metals. Next Month the Letter ‘U’.

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A Lodge Is Born

WHAT did you think of it?" inquired the Old Tiler of the New Brother as they came out of the lodge room in which a lodge had just been consecrated, dedicated and constituted. "It isn't often that we have a chance to see that ceremony."

"I don't care if I never see it again," returned the New Brother. "It's hot in there, and it struck me as a lot of blah, just words which mean nothing. Why do they have to go to all that bother? Why the corn and wine and oil? Why not just say, 'you are a lodge-go ahead and work,' and have it over with?"

"Would you have the Master say, 'this lodge is open and 'this lodge is closed' for an opening and closing ceremony?" asked the Old Tiler.

"I wouldn't go as far as that," answered the New Brother. "But this ceremony leaves me cold. I can't see any sense in having this new lodge anyhow!"

"Oh! So that's it!" The Old Tiler smiled wisely. "You are objecting to the beautiful ceremony we have just witnessed because you are not in sympathy with the creation of a new lodge at this time and place!"

"I wouldn't say that." The New Mason flushed.

"Did you, by any chance, happen to want election to an office in the new lodge, and they chose someone else?"

The New Brother made no answer.

"There will be other new lodges!" comforted the Old Tiler. "And you are a little too young in Masonry to aspire to office in a new lodge. But I can't let you keep this wrong attitude about one of the really beautiful ceremonies of our beloved order. Have you ever attended the graduation exercises of any grammar school, high school, or college?"

"My little girl graduated from the eighth grade into high school last week," answered the New Brother. "Why?"

"It's at least an even bet that you saw half of that ceremony through wet eyes," answered the Old Tiler. "As you watched all those fresh young faces, boys and girls leaving childhood for youth, taking the big step that is between the grade schools and high school, facing the unknown future so

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blithely, was not your heart touched with a knowledge of all the disappointments and heartaches these happy and carefree children must undergo?"

"Of course."

"You wouldn't be a human father otherwise! To me a consecration, dedication and constitution of a lodge is something like that. The new little lodge starts out so bravely. It is composed of Masons who have had no Masonic responsibilities. Sometimes one can find an old Past Master who will go into the new line, but generally they are new and untried officers. They satisfy the authorities that they are competent to confer the degrees, but who knows their abilities to form a new lodge into a coherent whole, their tact in keeping harmony, their knowledge of the necessity for practicing brotherhood in the lodge?

"They come here, these brave bright brethren, and the Grand Lodge performs this beautiful ceremony. The corn, the wine, the oil, are poured for them. They are consecrated to God, dedicated to the Holy Saints John, and constituted a member of the family of lodges under this Grand Lodge. Masters of other lodges are present to wish them well. Some come bearing gifts-the jewels the officers wear, the working tools, perhaps a modest check from the lodge which sponsored them, to help the new thin treasury get a start.

"They have no traditions to steady them. They have no matters of common knowledge to bind them together. They

have no past of which to talk. All they possess is their mutual Masonry and their mutual responsibility-their hopes, their fears, their plans and their determination. An unwritten page is theirs on which to record their Masonic future. The Mystic Tie is all they know of lodge life. The Grand Master pronounces them a lodge, the charter or warrant is presented and they are born. To me it is a simple, beautiful, pathetic and interesting sight, and one I never tire of seeing."

"I am a fool." The New Mason spoke with conviction. "Old Tiler, why did the Senior Deacon gather up the corn that was used and put it carefully away?"

"He couldn't gather the wine and the oil, since they were spilled for good," answered the Old Tiler. "But that little horn of corn will be kept until this new lodge itself sponsors another new lodge, then to be offered to them, that they may be consecrated with the same corn poured for the Mother Lodge."

"Oh, I am a fool, indeed," cried the New Mason. "Please take me with you to the next such ceremony, will you?"

The Old Tiler grunted. But it sounded like a promise.

This is the fifth article in this regular feature, ‘The Old Tiler Talks,’ each month we will publish in the newsletter one of these interesting and informative pieces by Carl Claudy

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Famous Freemasons

Audie Murphy

Audie Leon Murphy (June 20, 1924 to May 28, 1971) was the United States' most decorated combat soldier of World War II. He later became an actor and singer/songwriter. Among his thirty three awards and decorations was the Medal of Honour, the highest military award for bravery that can be given to any individual in the United States of America, for "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty." Murphy received every decoration for valour that the U.S. had to offer, some of them more than once, and five decorations by France and Belgium. He served three years active service as a combat soldier in World War II. Murphy became one of

the best fighting combat soldiers of this or any other century. What Murphy accomplished during this period is most significant and probably will never be repeated by another soldier, given today's high-tech type of warfare. The U.S. Army has always declared that there will never be another Audie Murphy. Murphy was released from the Army as an active member and reassigned to inactive status on September 21 1945.

After the war he moved to Hollywood; his first starring role came in a 1949 released film called Bad Boy. He went on to star in 44 feature films over the next 25 years. His 1949 autobiography To Hell and Back was a best seller. Murphy starred as himself in the 1955 film version which held the record as Universal’s highest grossing picture until 1975 when it was finally surpassed by Jaws.

In 1955, Audie Murphy became interested in Freemasonry. Encouraged by his close friend, Texas theatre owner Skipper Cherry, Audie petitioned and joined the Masonic Order in California. Later he returned to Texas to conduct his 32 degree work and to join the Shriners. Audie remained active in various Masonic events and was a member of good standing at the time of his death.

Audie received his first degree in Masonry when he was regularly initiated, February 14, 1955 through the North Hollywood (California) Lodge No. 542 F & AM (Ancient Free and Accepted Masons). He was passed to the 2d degree of Fellowcraft April 4, 1955. On June 27, 1955, he was raised to the 3d degree of a Master Mason.

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Later, he became a dual member with Heritage Lodge No. 764 F & AM (North Hollywood, California) on May 14, 1956.

Audie took his 32d degree work (degrees 4 through 32) at the Scottish Rite Temple in Dallas on November 11-14, 1957 according to records located at this temple. After receiving his 32d degree, Audie was elected vice president of the Thomas B. Hunter Memorial Class of the Dallas Scottish Rite. Audie became a Shriner (Hella Temple, Dallas) on November 15, 1957. Audie was made a "Master of the Royal Secret" in the Valley of Dallas, Orient of Texas, on November 14, 1965. Audie was also decorated a Knight Commander of the Court of Honour (KCCH) on December 11, 1965. Audie affiliated with the Long Beach (Scottish Rite) Consistory on April 2, 1971. Two weeks previously, on March 19, 1971, Shriner Murphy affiliated with the Al Malaikah Temple in Los Angeles. Audie often participated in Shrine parades in both Texas and on the West Coast. He was especially involved with the annual Mariner's Night, which included a dinner held in the memory of the dead and to honour the living seafaring men. The annual Mariner's Night is sponsored by San Pedro's Los Angeles Harbour Lodge No. 332, Long Beach California. As an honoured guest, Audie made one of his last public speeches for the Mariner's Night Dinner on April 15, 1971.

Shortly after Audie Murphy's death, the Long Beach California Scottish Rite Bodies of the Masonic Order honoured Brother Audie Murphy by naming the

111th Scottish Rites Graduating Class the "Audie Murphy Memorial Class." The class, which graduated on Saturday, November 19, 1971, had 124 members from forth-five California cities and towns. One of the highlights of "graduation day" for the members of the Memorial Class was a special showing of the film TO HELL AND BACK. The film took the place of the 31st degree and was shown to give the candidates a much better understanding of the character and background of the distinguished Mason and late member of the Long Beach Bodies. While on a business trip on May 28, 1971, he was killed at the age of 46. A private plane flying in fog and rain crashed in the side of a mountain near Roanoke, Virginia. Five others including the pilot were also killed. Although Audie owned and flew his own plane earlier in his career at Hollywood, he was among the passengers that tragic day. Audie Murphy was buried with full military honours in Arlington National Cemetery. His gravesite, near the Amphitheatre, is the second most visited gravesite year round. President Kennedy's grave is the most visited. In 2000, during the November Ladies Night Dinner of the Valley of Long Beach, Audie Murphy was recognized when local Scottish Rite members presented to his widow, Mrs. Pamela Murphy, a 33 degree cap in honour of the posthumous election of her husband to that degree at an earlier Biennial Session of the Supreme Council of the Scottish Rite

This sketch of Audie Murphy’s Masonic life was taken from many different sources.

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The Lodge of Journeyman Masons No.8

The Rebel Lodge

I am very proud to be member of a historical lodge in Edinburgh, Scotland. The title of my lodge is “The Lodge of Journeymen Masons No 8” on the roll of the Grand Lodge of Scotland. At this point I would like to point out that we are the only lodge under the Scottish constitution that has the word Masons as part of its name. Then consider that we do not hold a charter from Grand Lodge. The circumstances surrounding this are unique to No.8. The story goes back to 1707 and before. At this time in Edinburgh the crafts each had their own organisation and masons were part of the Incorporation of Wrights and Masons. This incorporation met in Mary’s Chapel, Edinburgh. As part of this incorporation the masons had a lodge where they would give degrees (probably only the E..A. and F.C.) The master masons at this time were the employers of the apprentices and the journeymen or fellow crafts. They kept control over the way the trade was conducted in the city and the wages paid to their employees. They also decided how monies collected to help poor masons would be allocated. The journeymen, perhaps I should explain here that this is the name given to a working mason in Scotland and is thought to derive from the French “journee” referring to the travels done by early masons going to work on different large buildings. Anyway, the journeymen of No8 were dissatisfied with the way the monies were allocated

and started meeting by themselves and collecting monies to help their fellows who had fallen on hard times. In 1708 the journeymen requested information from the warden and masters of Mary’s Chapel about the monies paid to widows and were allowed access to the books but in 1712 the masters rescinded this arrangement at a meeting, whereupon every journeyman present except two got up and, headed by James Watson, the deacon of the Incorporation and preses of the lodge of Marys Chapel, they left the meeting. The journeymen then met and entered apprentices and raised fellow crafts and while not known definitely their meetings would probably be held in the back rooms of public houses or something similar. On the Incorporation of Wrights and Masons becoming aware of this they passed acts to try and stop the journeymen, however, the journeymen defied the Incorporation until eventually the Incorporation obtained a warrant to arrest the preses and the warden of the journeymen and had them taken to the Tolbooth (jail) by the Town Guard (forerunner of Police). They were soon released when their colleagues learned of their arrest. A legal process was then raised by the journeymen at the Court of Session. The judges there decided to send the matter to arbitration . The journeymen chose as their arbiter the deacon of the goldsmiths while the Incorporation chose as their arbiter the deacon of the surgeons. These arbiters published their findings in a Decreet Arbital and found mainly in favour of the journeymen. One of the points in favour was that the Incorporation were to pay the two arrested men the sum of 100 pounds Scots, not as much as it seems as one pound Scots was worth

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one shilling and eight pence sterling. But the main and most important point was that the Incorporation of Wrights and Masons were to enact in their books that the journeymen could meet as a society for giving “the massons word” and receive dues therefor. The incorporation failed to meet all they were supposed to do: so the journeymen went back to the Court of Session and obtained “Letter of Horning” to enforce this. The three documents “Deed of Submission”, Decreet Arbital and Letters of Horning have been copied and framed and these hang on the wall of the lodge behind the master’s chair and constitute our right to operate as a masonic lodge. After the completion of the court process it was obvious that the judges of the Court of Session sympathised with the journeymen as they presented Journeymen with a purse bearing the words “Court of Session” to keep their monies in. As will be obvious this is a simple explanation of a fairly complicated story. I should mention that the lodge which formed part of the Incorporation of Wrights and Masons and which met in Marys Chapel is now known as The Lodge of Edinburgh (Mary’s Chapel) No1 on the roll of the G.L.of Scotland. The oldest known minute of this ancient lodge is dated the last day of July 1599. It is on the subject of a breach of the employment rules by one of their members who had employed a “cowan” which is the old Scots word for men not qualified as masons. Their meeting place Mary’s Chapel was first mentioned in the minutes of the lodge on 25th Nov. 1613. The chapel had been built in 1504 by the Countess of Ross and bought by the Incorporation in 1618

and the lodge in due course took its name from that building and met there until 1787 when Marys Chapel was demolished to build the South Bridge. The chapel was only 200 to 300 yards away from the meeting place of Journeymen in Blackfriars Street. Because the action in court was between Journeymen and the Incorporation and not the lodge of Mary’s Chapel then we of No8 consider No 8 to be a sister lodge of No 1, sprung from the same stock which of course was the Incorporation of Wrights and Masons. No.8 as a lodge of operative masons as were the other ancient lodges in Scotland at that time; only worked two degrees until 1750 when it asked Lodge No.1 to raise three of its members to the dignity of Mark.M. No. 8 was one of the lodges which helped to found the G.L. of Scotland in 1736 and in 1740 they as an operative lodge were asked to supply one of three brethern to test visitors to G.L. After G.L. was formed Journeymen no longer appointed a deacon or preses but had master mason, depute master, Snr. and Jnr wardens to bring it into line with the other lodges. In 1753 No 8 enacted that not more than 11 non- operatives be admitted members. Later that year the first non-operative was elected master but only after a heated debate. As an operative lodge No. 8 claimed the privilege of carrying the working tools when G.L. of Scotland was laying a foundation stone. This right was later reduced to carrying the tools in the Edinburgh area only. No.8 also claimed the right to carry the Blue Blanket. The original flag is in a museum in Edinburgh and is the flag of the

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Edinburgh Trades Guild. It is believed to date back to 1200 when the Scottish Trades went on a crusade to the Holy land. The reason No. 8 should be so honoured is that it is recognised as the oldest operative lodge in Edinburgh and as masons, wrights, blacksmiths, goldsmiths etc were all included under the Hammermens Incorporation which had custody of the Blue Blanket it was right and proper for No.8 to carry it. The operative members of No.8 did acts of charity of a public nature. In 1734 when the Orphan hospital was being built they worked without wages for 591days in summer and 231 in winter, a total of 821 days and as a result were given the right to nominate an orphan for care. They last did so in 1857. Then when the new Royal Infirmary was being built from 1738 they again worked without wages. There is no record of the days they worked but it must have been a large amount because a ward within the hospital was set aside for their use as a meeting place. Their first meeting was on St Johns day 1741. Their meetings were not just business ones because the minutes show they laid in a supply of “All Liquors” and other necessaries for the days’ entertainment. Their meetings were held in the hospital ward until 1753 when they erected their own lodge rooms. In 1868 when work on a new Royal Infirmary was begun No.8 contributed in cash only as the altered circumstances did not allow them to work on the walls. One aspect of No.8 I should mention was that the monies collected by them for their poor developed into a Friendly Society, which paid sickness benefit and funeral expenses to members. The lodge

worked closely with the Friendly Society but eventually with the admission of non-operatives not all members of the lodge became members of the Friendly Society. Then in 1904 the Society agreed to disband and it was agreed that monies collected and any property owned by them should be given to the lodge to form a benevolent fund. However when the matter was looked into it was found that legally the lodge rooms and other property was owned by the Friendly Society! No.8 now pays rent to Benevolent Fund A! This fund is managed by the lodge. Our history is recorded in a book which stretches to 400 pages of which 59 are devoted to the origin of the lodge so you will realise that this is only a brief outline. We still meet at our lodge rooms 63 Blackfriars Street, Edinburgh, which is in the old town just off the Royal Mile. Our present lodge rooms were built in 1870 near the spot where our previous lodge had been. We meet 2nd and 4th Thursdays each month from October to April. We have meetings by ticket only on Burns night fourth Thursday in January and our installation night on third Saturday in December. At all other meetings we welcome visitors and I hope if you are in Edinburgh in the future you will be sure to visit No8 where I am certain you will receive a welcome equally as warm as the one your own Lodge would give. This excellent article was sourced for the website of the Lodge of Journeymen Masons No.8 and was written by Bro. Dave Arnot. Our thanks go to both the Lodge and Bro. Arnot for permission to use it in the newsletter. If your Lodge would like to have its history published in the newsletter, please contact the editor.

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Book Review ……. The MacBride Ritual

Boorangof th

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Price £18.00

k Reviews……. Circle publications and Masonic Publishing produce a wide

e of Masonic Books, each month we will include a book review page of some e books available from them.

The Adventures of Billy!

The Lodge Goat By SRA76 Web comics

Have to be careful tonight! Why?

The Candidate is a BIG lad!

Take care!

Later………..

He was a BIG lad!

15

© SRA76 - 2010/4

Until next month, Keep the faith!

The Editor.