206 lines
11 KiB
Plaintext
206 lines
11 KiB
Plaintext
SHORT TALK BULLETIN - Vol.VII July, 1929 No.7
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LODGE AND GRAND LODGE ORGANIZATION
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by: Unknown
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All Master Masons should be familiar with the organization and
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government of the Craft. Yet, only occasionally is instruction in
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these subjects given to the newly-raised Master Mason. He is
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required to attain a sufficient proficiency in the esoteric work of
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the preceding degrees, and some Jurisdictions insist upon a
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proficiency in the Master's degree, but information regarding the
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structure of Freemasonry is left to time and chance in far too many
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cases.
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To become a Freemason of his own free will and without solicitation,
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a man makes a written application, which is duly endorsed or
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recommended by brethren of the lodge to which he applies. His
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application is laid before the lodge for acceptance, or rejection.
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If accepted, the Worshipful Master appoints a committee, the duty of
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which is to satisfy itself of the applicant's fitness to be a Mason.
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After a certain period of time (usually a month), the report of the
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committee is read to the lodge, and a ballot taken on the
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application. A unanimously favorable ballot elects the applicant to
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receive the degrees, or, in some Jurisdictions, just the First
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Degree. He is initiated into the First or Entered Apprentice Degree,
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attains a suitable proficiency in the esoteric work, waits a month or
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more, is Passed to the Second or Fellowcraft Degree, again attains a
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suitable proficiency in its works, waits another month or so, and
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finally is Raised to the Sublime Degree of Master Mason.
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Before any of these steps can be taken, there must be what is called
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in some Jurisdictions a "just, perfect and regular lodge," in others
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a "just and regularly constituted lodge," to which the petitions can
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be made, and in which the degrees may be conferred.
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Before such a lodge can come into existence, there must be a Grand
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Lodge, or governing body of all private, the particular, or the
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subordinate lodges (they are called by all three names in different
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places) to give a Warrant of Constitution, or Charter, to certain
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brethren, empowering them to work and to be a Masonic Lodge.
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The age-old question which has plagued philosophers; did the first
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hen lay the first egg, or did the first egg hatch into the first hen;
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may seem to apply here, since before there can be a Grand Lodge,
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there must be two or more private lodges to form it! But this
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Bulletin is written of conditions as they exist in the United States
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today - and indeed, in almost all the civilized world - and not of
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the historical conditions which pertained in 1717 when the four
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lodges in London formed the first grand Lodge!
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Today no regularly constituted lodge can come into existence without
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the consent of an existing Grand Lodge. It is certain that other
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Grand Lodges will be formed in the future, but they probably will not
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be many. Let us suppose that Commander Byrd should discover a
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habitable continent at the South Pole. This continent slowly fills
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up with adventurers, travelers and pioneers. Some of them will be
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Masons. They then ask the consent of some Grand Lodge permission to
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form a lodge - Massachusetts, for instance, has five lodges in China.
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Some English Brethren, let us suppose, receive a Charter for a lodge
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in Antarctica from the Mother Grand Lodge of England. Perhaps the
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Grand Lodge of Texas Charters another lodge in "Byrdland." After a
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while these lodges unite to form their own Grand Lodge; the Grand
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Lodges which have Chartered them relinquish jurisdiction, and a new
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Grand Lodge is born. But most civilized countries now do have Grand
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Lodges; the great formative period of Grand Lodges - the Eighteenth
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and Nineteenth Centuries - is practically over. Therefore we may
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consider that most of our hens are grown up and laying, and that the
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vast majority of new lodges which are hatched will grow up to be
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chicks of the mother, and not start out to form other Grand Lodges
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for themselves! It is not contended that no new Grand Lodges will
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ever be formed, but only that less will come into being in the future
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than have in the past.
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A Grand Lodge, then, is formed of particular lodges; the Masters, or
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the Masters and Wardens of which, then represent their lodges in the
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meetings of the Grand Lodge.
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The private or particular lodge usually comes into being when a
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certain number of brethren, in good standing, will petition a Grand
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Master to form a lodge. The Grand Master, if it his pleasure, issues
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a Dispensation to these brethren which forms them into a provisional
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lodge, or a lodge "Under dispensation." The powers of this Lodge
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Under Dispensation are strictly limited; it is not yet a "Regularly
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Constituted Lodge;" but an inchoate sort of organization, a fledgling
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in the nest. Not until the Grand Lodge has authorized the issuance
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of the Warrant, or Charter, does it begin to assume the status of a
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"regular" lodge, and not even then, until the new lodge is
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consecrated, dedicated and constituted by the Grand Master and his
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officers, or those delegated for the ceremony. The ceremony, by the
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way, is one which every Master Mason should make an effort to see, if
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possible. The Charter of the new lodge will name those who are to be
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its first Worshipful Master, Senior and Junior Wardens, who will hold
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office until their successors are duly elected and installed.
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The Grand Lodge (consisting of the particular lodges represented by
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their Masters - in most cases also include the Senior and Junior
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Wardens, Past Masters; and Past Officers and Past Grand Masters of
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the Grand Lodge), is the governing body in its Jurisdiction. In the
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United States, Jurisdictional lines are coincident with the state
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lines; there are currently forty-nine United State Grand Lodges; the
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forty-ninth being that of the District of Columbia. Each Grand Lodge
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is supreme unto itself; its word is Masonic law within its own
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borders.
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Grand Lodges adopt for themselves a Constitution and By-Laws for
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their own government, just as particular lodges adopt by-laws for
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their government. These documents are the body of law of the Grand
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Jurisdiction, which, however, rest upon the Old Charges and the
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ancient Constitutions (which have descended to us from the first
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Mother Grand Lodge).
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The decisions in mooted questions made by Grand Masters, or the Grand
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Lodge (or both); are usually based on the Ancient Landmarks, Usages
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and Customs of the Fraternity.-."
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In the interim between meetings of a Grand Lodge, the Grand Master is
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the Grand Lodge. His powers are arbitrary, absolute and almost
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unlimited; at least in theory. Most Grand Lodges provide that the
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acts of the Grand Master may be revised, confirmed or rejected by the
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Grand Lodge in its meetings; which is, of course, a check against any
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too radical moves. But, as a matter of fact, a brother rarely
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becomes a Grand Master without having served a long and arduous
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apprenticeship. Almost invariably he has been Master of his own
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lodge, and by years of service and interest in the Grand Lodge has
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demonstrated his ability and fitness to preside over the grand Lodge.
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The real check against arbitrary actions of the Grand Master is more
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in his Masonry than the law, more in his desire to do the right thing
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than in the legal power compelling him to do so.
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Private lodge and Grand Lodge officers arrive at their respective
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stations either by election or appointment. In some lodges, all
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officers in the "line" are elective. In other lodges, only the
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senior officers (Master, Senior and Junior Wardens, Secretary and
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Treasurer) are elected, all other being appointed by the Master. The
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same is true of Grand Lodges; for instance, in the District of
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Columbia all officers are elected. In New Jersey, the Grand Master,
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Deputy Grand Master, Senior Grand and Junior Grand Wardens, Grand
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Secretary, Grand Treasurer are elected; all other Line officers are
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appointed by the Grand Master.
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In particular lodges, as a general rule, appointed officers are re-
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appointed to one station higher each year; the highest appointed
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officer is then, usually, elected to the lowest elective office.
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This custom is broken, of course, when incumbents are no longer
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available, or when the lodge decides, for any reason, not to re-elect
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an officer. In the normal course of events, in most lodges, both
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particular and Grand Lodges, election or appointment at the "foot of
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the line" will eventually lead to the highest office, provided the
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officer works, is able, willing and demonstrates that he can fill the
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highest chairs. It is this system which is depended upon to give
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long experience and years of Masonic knowledge to future Masonic
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leaders.
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The term of office for Masters and Grand Masters is one year; in some
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Jurisdictions, by custom and not by law, Grand Masters are elected
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two years in succession and in one he serves three consecutive terms.
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In some Jurisdictions, also, the "line" is not advanced, but Grand
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Masters are elected "from the floor." Occasionally the Master of a
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particular lodge will be elected for a second or third, or even
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greater number of years, but generally the "line" proceeds to "move
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up" at the annual elections.
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Secretaries and Treasurers generally serve as long as they are
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willing; a lodge which has a good Secretary and Treasurer almost
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invariably re-elects the same incumbents year after year, which is
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also true of Grand Lodges. These officers, then, become the
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connecting links between different administrations, which makes for
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stability and smooth running, except in those rare instances in which
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a Secretary, from long service, comes to believe that "his" lodge and
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"his" Master should do "his" will, not their own. When the tail thus
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attempts to wag the dog, the remedy is found in the annual election!
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In Grand Lodges, decisions are reached in four ways:
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"by Viva voce" or rising votes, by a showing of hands, votes by
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lodges and/or written ballot. The method is usually a matter of
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constitutional law; ordinary questions are decided by the least
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cumbersome method; difficult and involved questions by votes of/by
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lodges; elections and matters of grave import, such as expulsions,
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are usually by paper (secret) ballot.
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The same holds true of the particular lodge; except of course that it
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cannot "vote by lodges" and that it uses the ball or cube instead of
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the paper ballot.
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In the absence of a Master, the senior Warden presides sand has, for
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the time being, the powers and duties of the Master; in his absence,
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the same devolves upon the Junior Warden. Should all three be absent
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the lodge (1) either cannot be opened at all, or (2) can be opened by
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a Past Master, or (3) only by the Grand Master, or his Deputy acting
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in his stead. Which of these three depends upon local law in the
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particular Grand Jurisdiction.
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In these few pages, only the broad outlines of the organization of
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Lodges and Grand Lodges can be given. But enough has been written to
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indicate that the simple skeleton of the Fraternity has a complicated
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and involved body of law and procedure, that there is much to know,
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and much, therefore, which the individual Mason should make it his
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business to study.
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In these words we point out the way, and indicate the extent to which
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his inquiring mind should reach, and if followed they will have been
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written to a good purpose.
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