MASONIC GRAND-LODGE

Press, Volume XLVIII, Issue 14349, 8 May 1912, Page 10

MASONIC GRAND-LODGE

'ANNUAL COMMUNICATION. !

_ I i (SPECIAL TO "niE TRESS.") \ DUNEDIN, May 7- j Tho legislative gathering of repre- ; sentatives of tho Masonic institution.? ! in tho Dominion, styled in tho termin- j ology of tho fraternity, '' The anJnnal Communication of ■ tho Grand of t I New Zealand," crows in dimensions j i year by year r.s the scopo of tho or- j ganisation extends. Tho system of j representation which was adopted some i ten years ago enables every lodge in I tho Jurisdiction to send a represent.!----i tive- if it will, and by its results th<» expectations of tho promoters cf th'tt I schemo have been amply justified. Or j tho 18S lodges that now range from I Mongonui in the far north to Bluff in i j tho south, nearly all will be repre- j ! rented at the Communication, which opens at Burns Hall in thus cit).-, tomorrow afternoon, and tho attendance f of accredited delegates is expected to | bo tiie largest recorded lip to date. Until a week or two ago, it was expected that tho business of the present Communication would .Lave been more | than ordinarily important. Not:; , -? had been givou of a series of motions j ! that would, if carried, havo materially : altered tho constitution of Grr.nd j Lodge, particularly with regard to the ! vexed question of tho method of elect- j ing certain grand officers and the pro- , rogative powers of the Grand Master. . These motions, however, have boon. I withdrawn by their author, , so that; j what would certainly have been a long and stirring debnto has been averted, i Tho business remaining on tho orde;paper is of a non-controversial nature, and will almost certainly be disposed j I of in the usual two days' sittings. MASONIC FINANCE. ! Tho most gratifying circumstance j disclosed by tho papers circulated for t tho purposes of the session is tho j steady growth of the Craft in financial strengthand tho consequent widening of the field of masonic benevolence. Tho assets of the institution havo been ! accumulating consistently ever sineo j the erection of the-Grand 1/odgo in i 18!X>. For several years past the j capital funds have increased by sums | varying from £:>(X)0 to £3703 per an- ! num, according to tin* ■ prosperity and expenses of tho year. hi thy past twelve months tho increment lias amounted to £2950, the third largest addition on record. Tho total amount standing to tho credit of Grand Lodgo on tho 31st March last'was £27,35>0. which is divided as follows:—General fund, £3£75; fund of benevolence, £2812; widows and orphans and aged masons' fund £18;813; representation fund, £458; circular appeals, £16.'5i>. As to the uses raado of tho interest earned by the charity funds, it is shown that during the past year £2-10 has been disbursed from the benevolent fund in relieving urgentcases of distress, apart from whatever has been done in this direction by individual lodges. Then there have been seven cases relieved by means of what a.ro known as circular appeals to lodges. These appeals have realised sums of £172, £107, £IoG, £179, £196, £110 (incomplete), and £10S (incomplete). Altogether twenty-one appeal funds aro in thehands of tho Benevolonco at tho present time in various stages of administration. A recommendation '"a mado by tho Board that the amount which it is ompowered to vok>. for tho relief of a caso of distress should bo increased. It is considered that if this were done, tho necessity for a- circular appeal could frequently bo obviated, and such appeals could be confined to exceptional caseSj whilo tho state of tho fund shows an aniplo margin to warrant increased expenditure of tho kind suggested. Another matter to which tho Board calls attention is tho frequent neglect of life insurance. It is suggested that steps be taken to bring home to intending members of tho fraternity their responsibility in tho way of making provision for their families in this respect. THE ANNUITY SYSTEM. The institution in which the New Zealand Freemasons take tho greatest interest and pride is that under "which they aro assisting a number of their nged members and tho widows and children of deceased brethren, by means' ofj annuities, supplementing in many cases tho pensions received from tho State, and in no caso interfering therewith. Within tho year death has amoved five who.were Masonic annuitants, and at present there aro twcnty-fivo persons I m receipt of annuities, six ik;w names having been added to tho* list during the year, tho annual cliarge upon tho fund being £59G 10s. Tho capital value, of tho fund has been increased in tho year by £3958, and its annual incomo for tho year 1912-13 will be about £7GO, leaving a margin of £lb*4 for tbo creation of further annuities. Last June, by way of commemoration of tho Coronation of his 'Majesty tho King, tho Board of General Purposes decided to inako a special effort for tho augmentation of tho Annuity Fund by an appeal to tho interest of tho separate lodges in its working. Tito lull returns of tho contributions of the different Masonic districts aro not yet to hand, as tho fnnd does not close till Juno next, but the amounts remitted to tho Grand Secretary so far show a total of £1279. Auckland province heads the list with £371, Wellington comes next with £310, Canterbury follows with £144, and Otago and Southland with £110 each- The largest iodgc contribution is that of Lodgo Maungawhao. in tho Mount- Eden district of Auckland. £38, and New Zealand Pacific (Wellington) comes next witli t £-3S. jMISCELLANEOUS From tins report of the Board of General Purposes it is learned that fire new lodges have been constituted during tho year, via., Lodge Amuri, at Rotheram, Canterbury; Avon, at Ohristchurch (transferred from tho English constitution); To Marama, at Ngaruawhia. Auckland; Connaught, at Karamea. West Coast; and Tawera. at Oxford, Canterbury. A charter has been issued for the opening of tho lodge at Gladstone (Southland), aiul steps are being taken for the formation of another at Ngaio, a suburb of Wellington. These additions will bring the roll strength to 190 lodges. Mention is made by the Grand Secretary of the fact that not one of tho lodges in the jurisdiction is languishing; all aro active and vigorous. Grand Lodge is in tlw unique position of never having had any of the lodges chartered by it- during the past twenty years suspended from work* and there ii ample evidence of steady progress on healthy lines. Regret-is expressed at the intended retirement from active office, of three Provincial Grand Masters,: M.W.,-Bro. O. Nicholson (Auckland),, after, eight years' service; - R.W., Bro. Monerioff (Wellington), and R.W., Bro. Watts (Otago), after two years' work. Tho next annual Communication should, in the ordinary course, take place at Auckland in Mey of 1913. In accordance with the itinerant plan under wluch tho Grand Secretary (M.W., Bro. Niccol) is located for two years in turn in each of the four cities, his office has just been transferred to Dunedtn, where it. will remain until its removal to Christchurch in 1914. M.W. Bro. C. J. W. Griffiths, of Blenheim, -who -will preside over the

11 ■'-— — present proceeding?, surrenders with. this session tho office of Grand Master, j which ho has held for the past two years. Otago is entitled to nominate his successor, but by friendly arrangci ment it has conceded its right- to ! Southland, which has nominated R.\>m j Bro Maurice Thompson, cf luvercargill. ! As there is no other nomination. •• ' i Bro- Thompson stands as the Grand ( ! Master designate. I Incidentally, a ir.blo prepared for an- j other purpose show,-; that tho total number of registered members of tlk> I lodge? under tho Now Zealaud Consti- | tution, at present, is just- orer 12,000. ■ I