The Wilmingtonian., 1886-03-27
Entered Apprentices.

The first degree of Freemasonry, in all the
rites. is that of Entered Apprentice. In
French it is callel appread; in Spanish,
apprendezi in Italian, apprendente; and in
German, leJrling in all of which the radi-
cal meaning Of the word is lediner. Like
the lesser mysteries of the ancient limitations,
it is in Masonry preliminary degree, inten-
ded to prepare the candidate for the higher
and fuller instructions of the succeeding de-
grees. 1t is therefore, although supplying
no valuable historical inform ltiou, resete,
in its lecture, with instructions on the inter
nal structure of the order. Until late in the
seventeenth century, Apprentices do not
seem to have been considered as forming any
part of the coufraternity OF Free and accept
ed Masons for althou yh they arc incident
ally mentioned in the Old Co Institutions of
the 10Th, 1dsh and ith centuries, these
records refer only to Masters aud fellows as
constituting the Craft, and this distinction
seems to have been on3 rather of position
thau of degree. The Sloane Manuscript, No.
1929, which FIudsl supposes to have been
written at the end of the seventeenth 3en-
tury, describes Il just and perfect Lodge as
consisting of Two Interprenlices, two Eel
low Crafts, aud two Masters" which shows
that by that time the Apprentices had been
elevated to recognized rank in the frater-
nifty. In the manuscript signed "Mark
Kypling," which Hughan entities "Manus-
crpt Constitutions. No. t." the date of
which is 1893, there is a still further rccogni-
tion in what is there called 'the Apprentice
Charge" one item of which is that she
shall keepe councell in all things spoken in
Lodge or chamber by any Mlsons Fellows
or Freemasons. This indicates that they
were admitted to . closer communion with
the members of the Craft. But notwith-
standing these recognitons, all the manus-
cripts up to 1904 show that only Masters
and Fellows were summoned to the assem-
bly,. During all this time, when Masonry
| was in flct an operative art, there was but
one degree in the modern sense of the wo.d.
| Early in the eighteenth century, if not earl
| ier, Apprentices must have been admitted to
the possession Of this degree for after what
is called the revival of I'LL, Entered Appren
tices constituted the bulk of the Craft, and
they only were initiated in the Lodges, the
degrees Of FeIlow-Cr and Master Mason
! being conferred by the Grand Lodge. This
is not left to conjecture. The thirteenth
of the General Regulations, approved in l72t,
| says that apprentices must be admitted
| Masters and Fellow Crafts only in the Grand
| Lodge, unless by dispensation. But this
having baen found very inconvenient, on tue
22d November, II D the Grand Lodge repeal
ed thealticle, aud decreed that the Master OF
y houSc, WIN no udruena aud UVrnPuuu
number of the Lodge assembled in due form
can make Masters and Fellows at di,cre
| tion.'
The mass of the fraternity being at that
time composed Of Apprentices, they exercis
ed great deal of Influence in the Legislation
of the Order; for although they could no
represent their Lodge in the Quarterly Com
muncations Of sAe Grand Lodgc-a dut,
which could Only be discharged by a Maste
OF Fellow-yet they were always permitted
to be present at the grand feast, aud no gen
eral regulation coull be altered or repealed
without Their consent ;and Of course, in al
the business of their particular Lodges. the,
took the most prominent part, tor there
were bat few Masters or Fellows in Lodge
in consequence Of the difficulty and ncon
venience {, + obtaining the degree, whicl
could only be done at a Qua 'ttry Communi
cation Of the Grand Lodge.
But as soon as the subordinate Lodge,
were invested with the power of coaierrnl
all the degrees. the Masters began lapidly t,
increase in numbers and in corlespondin.
influence. Aud now, the hnk Of the frater
nifty consisting of Master Masons, the legis
lation of the oder is done exclusively b,
them, and the Entered Apprentices auc
Fellow-CrLits have sunk into comparative
obscnrty, their degces being consdereC
only as preparatory TO tie greater initiation
of the Masters degIee