The Kansas City sun. (Kansas City, Mo.) 1908-1924, 1916-03-18


high character and ability as a teach
er, citizen and Mason, delivered a well
come address at the opening which
was a masterpiece of cordiality and
good will. Under his personal direc-
ton other features of entertainment
were made most happy for the visitors.
In his annual address the Grand
Master was panied to announce the
loss of two prominent members of the
fraternity. One was Brother William
Cross of Macon, and the other Brother
]. H. Jenkins of Sedalia. Brother
Cross was one of the finest examples of
refined, educated manhood and was a
devoted follower of Masonry. He was
a quiet, hard worker in all sessions
of the Grand Lodge, and being of de-
cidedly mild temperament was beloved
by all. Brother Jenkins, though some
what opposite in temperament, was
none the less beloved. He was very
aggressive. brave and outspoken, quick
to detect either the good or bad fea-
lures of any proposition. On this &C
count he was not popular with the
Grand Master and the touching tribute
paid to him from the Grand East after
his death was all the more pathetic to
those who heard it,
Discordant affairs existing within
the Masonic circles at Omaha were
again brought up for consideration.
This time a new lodge had been pro-
posed for that city and had met with
strong objections from the two other
lodges. In order not to loos the or
ganization the Grand Master had or
ganized the lodge and assigned its To-
cation to South Omaha, which at that
time was a separate corporation. This
plan would have worked put all right
had no the new lodge as o 20 as it
was established decided to move up
to Omaha proper. Then the trouble
was renewed. the Omaha brethren
claiming the whole matter to have
been a mere s~ubterfuge for getting by
their approval. The Grand Lodge gra-
ciously left the whole matter with the
Grand Master for settlement, as he
had begun it, and sat down to await
developments.
Then the o. E. S. trouble came up
again, the so-called Walker Faction"
refusing to abide by the decision Of
the Grand Lodge previously rendered
in favor of the Wood Faction" The
Grand Lodge took the position that it
had no actual right or control over
the degrees of the Eastern Star or
the administration of its affairs. The
brethren were willing to extend a de-
gree of sympathy and support to the
organization, not because it was re-
garded as Masonic, but because its
votaries were the wives and daugh-
tiers of Master Masons. Therefore, if
rival factions in this work should car
ry their contentious so far as to
the lodges then the Grand Lodge
would step in and if necessary order
the Masons to withdraw their activi-
ties from each side of the controversy.
The Grand Lodge really never went
deeply into the merits of the case as
- "A%NA oNaS Nao NliiAANQ W lnt luOlt
favorable consideration. 1t always
happened that the Wood Faction"
had the most friends upon the floor of
the Grand Lodge and these friends,
feeling that one side ought to be
squelched and the other tolerated, act
ed accordingly, influenced very large
ly without the trouble of being CON
WINGED OF supported by any particular
Masonic precedents, So it was again
ordered that all Masons withdraw
from the tabooed faction or suffer the
consequences OF disobedience and the
edict was worded and handed down
with such force as to practically ac-
complish the purpose desired in a
very short time. The contending
spirits, all except Walker himself,
soon got together and formed a treaty
under the head of The United Grand
Chapter, o. Il. s., and the order has
since made great Roadway under the
direction and influence of some most
able men and women.
A feature of the Grand Lodge SEES.