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Quarterly Communication
Report of the Board of General Purposes
9 June 2004
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Ex Officio and Appointed Members:
The Board has recently lost the services of
three valuable members: RW Bro the Rt.
Hon. the Earl Cadogan, PDepGM (Past
President of the Board) and VW Bro N. J.
C. Buchanan, PGSwdB, GStwd (Past Grand
Treasurer), whose terms as ex officio
members ended on 9 March and 28 April
respectively; and RW Bro J. T. Broadley,
Provincial Grand Master for Yorkshire,
West Riding, who retired as an appointed
member on 28 April.
All three Brethren have served on the
Board from the time that it took its present
form in August 1999 and have therefore
played an important role in the development
of the Board during the past five years.
Both the Deputy Grand Master, in
December 2003, and the Grand Master,
in March of this year, have paid eloquent
tribute in Grand Lodge to the outstanding
service given by Bro Lord Cadogan, and the
Board wishes to add its own thanks not only
to him but also to the other two Brethren.
The Board is most grateful to all three for the
benefit of their wise counsel and Masonic
experience.
The Board welcomes as new ex officio
members W Bro. Q. C. T. Humberstone,
Grand Treasurer and W Bro. Dr. M. R.
Aish, PDepGSwdB, the new President of
the Committee of General Purposes of
Supreme Grand Chapter.
Election of Officers
The Board has given further consideration
to the proposed amendments to Rules
105(a) and 112(a), simplifying the procedure
for the election of the Master and Treasurer,
and now recommends the addition of a
proviso requiring due notice of the intention
to use the simplified procedure to be given
in the summons for the meeting at which
the election is to take place.
The recommendation was approved.
Prestonian Lectures
2003: The contribution of the Provinces to the
development of English Freemasonry:
The Lecturer, W Bro Professor A.
Newman has informed the Board that in
addition to the three official deliveries to
Jubilee Masters Lodge No. 2712 (London);
Hamilton Lodge of Installed Masters No.
5454 (Cheshire) and Gild of Holy Trinity
Lodge No. 6125 (Cambridgeshire), the
Lecture was also delivered on 15 other
occasions throughout the Constitution.
The Board desires to express its thanks
to Bro Professor A. Newman for the
considerable time and effort he has spent
in this connection.
2004: English Speculative Freemasonry:
origins, themes and developments:
The Prestonian Lecturer for 2004 is W
Bro A. T. Stewart. Three official Prestonian
Lectures for 2004 have been or will be given
under the auspices of: Tudor Lodge No.
1792 (Warwickshire), Quatuor Coronati
Lodge No. 2076 (London) and Lodge of
Light No. 7218 (Sussex).
2005: The Board has submitted a
nomination to the Trustees of the
Prestonian Fund and they have appointed
W Bro G. W. S. Davie PSGD, as Prestonian
Lecturer for 2005. Bro Davie states that
the title of his Lecture will be Women
and Freemasonry.
Arrangements for the delivery of
the Lectures to selected Lodges will be
considered by the Board in November
and applications are now invited from
Lodges. Applications should be made to
the Grand Secretary, through Metropolitan,
Provincial or District Grand Secretaries.
The Board desires to emphasise the
importance of these, the only Lectures held
under the authority of the Grand Lodge. It
is, therefore, hoped that applications for the
privilege of having one of these official
Lectures will be made only by Lodges which
are prepared to afford facilities for all
Freemasons in their area, as well as their own
members, to participate and thus ensure an
attendance worthy of the occasion.
Amalgamations
The Board has received reports that the
following Lodges have resolved to surrender
their Warrants:
(a) King’s College Hospital Lodge No.
2973 and Lanesborough Lodge No. 3029
in order to amalgamate with Æsculapius
Lodge No. 2410 (London);
(b) Connaught Lodge No. 3800 in order
to amalgamate with Lodge of Truth No. 521
(Yorkshire, West Riding);
(c) Penwortham Lodge No. 5874 in
order to amalgamate with White Hills
Lodge No. 5209 (West Lancashire);
(d) Noble Brotherhood Lodge No. 6226
in order to amalgamate with Barnato Lodge
No. 2265 (London);
(e) New Elizabethan Lodge No. 7348
in order to amalgamate with Lodge of
Enterprise No. 6494 (London);
(f) Sir Francis Drake Lodge No. 8109
in order to amalgamate with Tower Lodge
No. 2583 (West Lancashire).
The Board accordingly recommends that
the Lodges be removed from the register in
order to effect the respective amalgamations.
The Resolution was approved.
Electronic transmission of Returns
It has come to the notice of the Board that
the original paragraph 3.22 “Electronic
Transmission of Returns” of the Board’s
Report in the Paper of Business for the
December 2003 Quarterly Communication,
was accidentally omitted from the printed
Proceedings of that meeting. The text of the
paragraph was as follows:
“Electronic Transmission of Returns:
The Lodge and membership information
held at Freemasons’ Hall by the Grand
Secretary has recently been transferred to a
new and more sophisticated electronic
database, which when fully developed will
be capable of receiving information and
returns electronically, initially via
Metropolitan, Provincial and District Grand
Secretaries. In order that advantage may be
taken of this facility the Board recommends
that it be given power to authorise, on a
permissive basis, the electronic submission
of returns and forms. It is envisaged that the
process should be introduced gradually,
with an initial pilot scheme covering annual
returns of Lodges in London and some
Provinces, and extended from time to time
both in area and scope.”
Notice of motion to amend the Book
of Constitutions was approved.
Continued...
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