The Union times. [volume] (Union, S.C.) 1894-1918, 1912-12-13
GRAND LODGE MASONS
MET IN CHARLESTON
ANNUAL COMMUNICATION OF
THE GRAND LODGE.
Attendance is Very Full-GeOrge S.
Mower, Grand Master, Reads In
teresting Annual Address.
Committee Appoint
ments Made.


annual communication of the Grand
Lodge of Ancient Free Masons of
South Carolina was opened at the Ma
sonic Temple in this city at noon to-
day, with Grand Master George S.
Mower of Newberry presiding in the
appointed stations.
The attendance upon the grand
lodge is very full, over 200 subordi-
nate lodges being represented.
After the grand lodge had been
opened in due and ancient form and
the freedom of the hall had been ex-
tended to all master Masons in good
standing, the grand lodge proceeded
to business. The reading of the min
utes of the last grand communication
was, upon, motion, dispensed with.
The grand master read his anual
address, which was closely followed.
The grand master then read his
annual address, which was very full
review of the work of the past year
and called attention to the principal
business of the session of the grand
lodge. In the neurological record, the
death of Past Grand Master James
F. Izlar had prominent place. On
the state of the order, the grand mas
ter gave report of harmony and
prosperity. He reported numerous
dispensations granted, the constitu-
tion of 10 lodges, formerly working
under diSpensation, and the issuing
of dispensations to three new lodges.
A long list of decisions was read, il
lustrating many interesting points of
Masonic law and Jurisprudence.
The grand master called attention
to the proposed change in the law of
physical qualification for membership
In the order and expressed his own
doubt of the wisdom of its adoption.
tie reported the appointment of a
committee to revise the laws of the
grand lodge and stated that the COM
mittee would make full report at
the present session.
The fund for the Masonic home, the
grand master reported, had reached
total of $4,000. The grand master
said that the institution should not
be established until it's support was
we'll guaranteed by resources in hand.
He said he had considered the advis-
ability of recommending that the fees
for degrees in the jurisdiction be
placed, uniformly at $25, $5 of which
should be set aside as an endowment
fund for the home.
Regarding the Masonic Temple at
Charleston and the improvements
that had been made to the building,
the grand master called attention to
the desirability of converting the
space now taken up by the central
stairway into a store, from which a
good revenue might be derived. He
recommended that this matter be in
vestigated
A new and convenient edition of the
Altman Recon is in course of prep
aration, and the grand master rec
commended its early publication. The
grand master also reported that the
committee appointed to prepare his
WY VI VIC SidIlu rouge ndU maOe
good progress in it's work.
Many other matters of general in
terest were covered in the address.
The usual committee appointments
were made for the consideration of
the various matter, referred to them
by the grand master. These matters
will be considered by the committees
between sessions of the grand lodge.
The physical qualification amendment
will again come up for consideration
with bright prospects of the more lib
eral Interpretation of the rule being
adopted A feature of the night ses-
sion was the presentation of testi-
monial to Past Grand Master James
X. Johnson of Charleston. The grand
lodge will probably complete it's bus
mess and odjourn tomorrow, instead
OF Thursday. All officers will tomor-
row be reelected, under the rule of
rejecting the grand master for a sec
ond term.
The South Carolina grand lodge of
Free Masons adopted by close vote
tonight an amendment so modifying
the physical qualifications clause of
the constitution as to do away with
the famous perfect man" require
ments to be met by applicants for ad-
mission to the order This removed
the bar imposed by even slight
physical defect, such as a missing
finger point or an imperfect ear
lobe. The adoption of the amend