The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1905-02-14

Thirty seventh Annual Con-
vention Of the Order to
Be Held This Week
In Trenton.

Prominent Pythians will attend the
thirty-seventh annual convention of the
New Jersey Grand Lodge, knights Of
Pythias, which will be held Wednesday
and Thursday at Masonic Temple.
The session is usually attended by all
of the past grand lodge officers and the
Representatives of the subordinate lodges,
besides number Of past chanceHors,
who attend for the purpose Of having The
grand lodge rank conferred upon them.
The morning of the first days session
will be occupied with the reading and
adoption of the reports Of committees.
The afternoon win be devoted to the
discussion of pending amendments, etc,
and the Introduction of new business.
The election Of officers will take place
on Wednesday evening. On Thursday
morning me newly elected officers viii
be installed, and in the afternoon the
business will be concluded.
The most important legislation to come
before the present session will be the
adoption or rejection of an amendment
to the grand lodge constitution, altering
the number of electing grand lodge Off
GERS. Under the present system grand
lodge officers are voted for annually by
the past chancellors of the subordinate
lodge. and the candidate for each Office
receiving the majority of all votes cast
is declared elected There is usually no
contention for any of the offices except
that of grand outer guard, to which sew
eral candidates aspire every year. 1t is.
therefore very rare that candidate re-
ceives a majority, which necessitates the
holding Of a new election by the grand
lodge. The above system has been found
unsatisfactory in many ways, therefore
the proposed amendment, which provides
that the candidates receiving the largest
number of votes in the subordinate lodg-
es shall be declared elected. Under the
present system it often happens that the
decision Of the past chancellors in the
subordinate lodges is reversed by the
grand lodge representatives 1t is be-
lieve that the proposed amendments will.
be adopted
Fortyttwo years ago the order was ine
stituted in Washington, D. c.. by JUS
tiee FL. Rathbone. 1t has rown steadily
ever since and now numbers nearly
G00,Ooo. The membership in New Jer-
sey is nearly 14,oo0. While it was in
tended originally TO confne the order to
tho United States, it has extended to
Canada, Alaslzs, Hawaii and Cuba, and
a proposition to establish the order in
England aud other foreign countries is
DetHS HGtBdJ9us i HeES u fill duSuIdHtt
feature connected with the order, known
as the Endowment Rank. The rates for
insurance in this branch are those es-
tablished by the Fraiernal Conress.
Another branch is the Uniformed Rank
The order III this State during the last
year has prospered, and it is expected
that the report of the grand keeper Of
records and seals win show substan-
tial increase in membership and finances.
Grand Lodge officers are:Grand
chancellor, John W. Laws, of Jersey
City; grand vice chancellor, William G.
Congili. Of Paulsboro; grand prelate,
Joseph Wilson, Jr. Of South Anboy
grand keeper of records and seal, Elmer
n. Margernln. Of Trenton; grand master
of excheauer John Patrick, Of RutheT
ford; grand master-at-arlns William Z.
Hilliard, of salem; grand inner guard,
abfan lSleucrt. AZ Paterson grand o,,ter
guard. John II MAN, Of Newark Each
al tho above officers viii be advanced ii
The coming session The candidates for
grand outer guard are SIessrs. Druck-
eg traner spenseaaan and steelnlala,
afr I9rasker viii probabIy be elected,