THE BUILDER JANUARY 1929

Some New Year Greetings to the Craft

WE are very happy in being able to present to readers of THE
BUILDER the following letters and messages from a few of our
friends among the Grand Masters of the several jurisdictions of the
country. They will be instructive as indicating the special
problems and immediate aims of the Craft in different sections, and
also inspiring as pointing to possibilities of a practical kind,
which, if followed up at all generally, may help the Fraternity to
actively realize some of its ideals, and to extricate our
organization from the state of inertia into which many of our
keenest observers believe it has fallen to a very considerable
extent. It is the beginning of another year, and we may well as
Masons resolve, among other things, that we will make a definite
attempt to put the principles of Masonry into our daily lives, and
not leave them buried in the ritual, or as subjects for lodge
oratory, which we hear with a little thrill of pleasurable emotion,
and go away and forget.

Most Worshipful Bro. Hamp Williams comes first, chiefly because he
is Grand Master of Arkansas; but did not the alphabet put him in
this place we might have chosen him on other grounds.

GREETING TO THE LODGES AND THE CRAFT

We as Masons are trying to make a better place in this country in
which to live for ourselves, our neighbors and our children. You
may not belong to any church but you are certainly interested in
better society which adds to our pleasure and safety. The
principles of Freemasonry and the teaching of the churches to our
people lessen crime and afford greater protection to us, but unless
we progress there are a lot of lodges and a lot of churches in
Arkansas that are going out of business. Masonry is a progressive
science and we should not allow any lodge to die. When we do, it
demoralizes the community and discredits the Order. If I am
properly informed there are some lodges in Arkansas which are not
fit places for brethren to dwell together.

What Masonry needs is evangelism, something that will set them
afire with brotherly love. Nobody ever follows the icewagon, they
follow the fire-wagon, which seems alive and breathes fire.

Masonry is not a mystery and there should not be anything about our
lodge halls that indicate mysterious acts within their walls. They
are only a mystery when their members are inactive, when the lodge
hall is unattractive and "spooky-looking." Our lodge halls should
stand out like beacon lights and they will if the lodges are
functioning properly. If our lodge halls were inviting and our
conduct one to the other was good and we kept sacred our
obligations a small increase in our initiation and membership fees
would not keep good men out of the Order.

Anciently they never had to solicit men to become Masons. Their own
lives and acts one to another caused good men to have a desire to
join with them. When we reach a point where we need to solicit and
advertise for new members and give them the degrees on the
installment plan, God help us. But it may reach that point unless
we wake up to a realization of our obligations one to the other.

Clean out all envy and jealousy in our minds- use a little charity
and not so much prejudice; use a little salve of affection on our
sore spots; supplement disappointments, regrets and vanities with
a liberal supply of love and gratefulness to the great God of the
Universe for life, liberty and the peaceful pursuit of happiness

Hereafter when I hear one brother Master Mason maligning another,
I will at the time or soon thereafter caution him and remind him of
his obligations. Have you not already agreed to do that?

Hereafter if I know of a brother Master Mason doing an unMasonic
act, I will go to him and warn him. Have you not agreed to do that
also?

A Master Mason who is a law-breaker and is unreliable is more
dangerous to society than a man who is not a Mason and restricted
only by his conscience and neither bound to God nor man by Masonic
vows. Isn't that true?

Masonic lodges which have for their officers bootleggers,
wildcatters and law-breakers, if there are any such in Arkansas,
will not fare very well during my administration. Is this right?

Masons sixty years ago, when I was a boy, were outstanding in this
country. To say a man was a Mason conveyed the idea at once that he
was a good man. What does it mean today? Just what we make it mean.
Are we living up to that standard ?

Belonging to the Masonic Order is one thing, to be a Mason is
another. Is that true?

Wearing a Masonic emblem is to let folks know that you are a Mason,
but there are other ways of proving it which are more essential and
lasting. Is that true?

I pledge my Masonic lodge to which I belong that hereafter I will
not speak evil of any brother Master Mason. If I can't praise him
I will say nothing. Will you make the same promise to your lodge?

From this day hence, I pledge that I will watch myself more closely
and be very guarded and careful to say nothing disrespectful or
disparagingly of any person but more especially of a brother Master
Mason or any member of his family. Are you willing to join in this
pledge?

We are responsible to the higher orders of Freemasonry for the
material they use and we should not be jealous or envy a brother
because he has the higher degrees in Masonry. He is a child of a
subordinate lodge. We are responsible for his Masonic birth and he
has assumed additional obligations of fidelity which only
strengthens his parent lodge and offers to the world a picture
beautiful and sublime, and builds a sacred temple dedicated to God
and the brotherhood of Masonry in the hearts of men.

Good Masons by the multiplied thousands are suffering and paying
the penalty of those who are sailing under false colors and who are
Masons in name only. What is the remedy? Turn them out and be more
careful hereafter as to whom you take into your portals. Am I
right?

Our churches are continually reminding us of our duties to God and
our fellowmen. What are we doing along these lines?

"What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses
his own soul?"

HAMP WILLIAMS
Grand Master


This pregnant saying of the Master, who as at this time was born
into the world as a babe, is as true of institutions as of men. We
may increase in numbers and in riches to the stifling of the spirit
and the final death of the soul.

A WORD FROM ARIZONA

Most Worshipful Bro. Lloyd C. Henning of Arizona has been ill, and
in consequence could send only the following brief greeting. But
he, too, sees the same need to stress the spirit of the Fraternity:

I don't believe that I have any message relative to the
jurisdiction of Arizona that would be of any particular value to
the Craft at large or more particularly the subscribers to your
estimable journal.

Masonry in Arizona is moving on the even tenor of its way with a
healthy increase in membership. We are interested in the tubercular
situation at Oracle and I think I stated that situation quite fully
in a letter to the Masonic Service Association which was published
in the December number of the Master Mason. I am rather hopeful
that in time to come something may come of the suggestions that I
have made. Since the letter was written our Grand Trustees have
authorized an expenditure of $2,300 for repairs and improvements to
this property. That shows our faith.

In closing I would just like to mention this thought which is
perhaps not new and would not be considered any message:

It is, the longer I labor in Masonry, the more I am convinced that
the good it does to its own members is something that cannot be
measured or tabulated in statistics. It is within the inner man's
spirit or soul that Masonry really makes its mark. I am convinced
of this more than ever even in this day and age when all the old
institutions of humanity are subject to ridicule. A good many of
our brethren seem to be impatient that we are not making the
strides that we should, or doing this thing or that thing for the
benefit of humanity, but I still have faith in the merit of our
Institution, which is the humble attempt to make men see for
themselves the right path throughout this life.

LLOYD C. HENNING,

Grand Master.

There is a feeling abroad, and not only among our younger members,
that this great organization should be doing something as such.
There may be something in that idea, though it is a path that has
its pitfalls and dangers. Our organization might at least be
prevented from hindering group action among Masons apart from and
parallel to it. But this would follow inevitably were Masons
generally ruling their lives by our tenets and practicing the four
cardinal virtues. It is so much easier to demand corporate action
instead of working ourselves in our own sphere of action.

GEORGIA MASONRY'S TOMORROW

The Masons of Georgia have given Most Worshipful Bro. Raymund
Daniel a second term of office. They are to be congratulated upon
their wisdom in doing so. Bro. Daniel thus writes of:

A year of efforts to re-establish the spirit of old Freemasonry- to
rechristen our faith baptized in the sacred waters of a holy past;
a season of "putting our house in order"; in insisting upon respect
for and observance of Masonic law, which too, upholds the statutes
of the land- in clearing up old obligations, and, with such things
behind us, in looking forward to and planning for bigger and better
things for our Fraternity. Such was the year of the Grand Lodge of
Georgia that closed Oct. 30, last.

Outstanding in the twelve months' service was the completion of the
campaign for funds for building the $75,000 Tubercular Hospital for
Little Children, which will also be equipped and deeded by the
Masonic Fraternity to the commonwealth of Georgia as a unit of the
State Sanatorium for Tuberculosis at Alto.

In upholding Masonic statutes there were unfortunate instances
which demanded unpleasant action. Such instances always are to be
regretted, but when remedial efforts are inspired by and performed
in conscience sought of God, such actions bring out of problems the
lasting results of good. Such good has been demonstrated in the
Grand Jurisdiction of Georgia.

Work has been begun on the Alto Cottage, marking the fulfillment of
the long cherished dream of Most Worshipful Joe P. Bowdoin, who, as
Grand Master in 1922 and 1923, conceived the plan.

Every penny in the Cottage and many gifts are made up of pennies is
the imperishable declaration of those who forgot the self of today
and gave that little children may live to continue our world and
build upward our principles.

It is doubtful if ever before members of any fraternity rallied by
their individual voluntary contributions to help all humanity as
the Freemasons of Georgia have. From over this Grand Jurisdiction
responses came to the cry for aid. On Georgia Craftsmen abides the
commendation of a Heavenly Father, Humanity and Little Children.

Gifts of every denomination have been made, from the one dollar by
a blind Freemason, to whom the dollar had been given for his own
wants- from the dollar by a lad who has worked for the money, on to
the one thousand dollars, given by an individual Craftsman; from
the three little girls, who gave a "Penny Show," and sent in their
one dollar and seventy-five cents for their unfortunate little
brothers and sisters, to a lodge that subscribed over $2,500.

The institution will provide fifty beds and an isolation ward of
four rooms. It will be open to children of all creeds and classes.

It is the gift of Georgia Freemasonry to suffering little ones of
humanity. There has been no place in Georgia for a little
tubercular child.

The hospital will be located near the main building of the State
Tubercular Sanatorium. It will be of similar design to the main
building and in conformity with the general plan of that structure.
The hospital will be two stories and a half in height at the rear,
three and a half stories in front, due to the contour of the
ground. The half story, or attic, will be used for the isolation
ward. The building will be constructed in accordance with the
purposes and wishes of the Georgia State Board of Health. It is
being built with the cash contributions deposited in banks and will
entail no cost more than the donations in hand. The equipment will
be made possible by the $19,000 pledges of various lodges and
individuals.

In the accomplishments of the past months have been laid the
foundations for the coming year, for the dawn of a better tomorrow.

In the address of the Grand Master at the October annual Grand
Communication, it was pointed out that "the vital duty of and
obligations upon Freemasonry today are the revival of the old-time
Freemasonry, brotherly love and relief, and the inauguration of a
program of Masonic education along old lines  that will bring
pleasure and profit and create a renewed interest and attendance in
lodges."

In recognition of existing necessities, Grand Lodge fraternally saw
fit to adopt the following "Development Program of Nine Points,"
recommended by the Grand Master:

(1) The ever-increasing desire for the carrying out of the Masonic
tenets of brotherly love and peace.

(2) A program of education for the development of the individual
Craftsman, for the advancement of the subordinate lodge and the
upbuilding of the Fraternity.

(3) Consideration, establishment and inauguration by subordinate
lodges of a financial operation plan by which lodges can be placed
on a more adequate and agreeable basis for the conduct of its
affairs and the fulfilment of its obligations.

(4) The strengthening of lodges.

(5) The establishment of a permanent voluntary subscription fund
for the Masonic Home and its proper enlargement.

(6) Advancement of the Penny Box Fund plan.

(7) Inauguration of further beneficial programs for Masonic
District Conventions.

(8) Extension of the Masonic County Conventions.

(9) Development of the Georgia Secretaries' Association.

The lack of interest in lodges, the decreasing attendance of
members, the consequent increasing suspensions and the drifting
away of the Craft have been and are a constant source of alarm and
distress to all loyal members of the Craft.

Many causes have been set forth for this condition but to the Grand
Master's mind it is due to the fact that lodges, for the greater
part, offer little to interest, inspire or hold the Craft. There
are other associations and bodies that often afford greater
pleasure and profit.

In the hope of securing some advisory program which could be
suggested, at least as a basis to subordinate lodges, the Grand
Master revived the former Committee on Masonic Education and
appointed thereon Craftsmen who have not only considered
educational advancement, but have achieved performances in these
lines.

To be of assistance to such a plan as well as to the committee and
the Craft, the Grand Master undertook a survey of our lodges by
furnishing to lodges series of questionnaires similar to those of
the Masonic Educational Commission of the Most Worshipful Grand
Lodge of Missouri.

The report of the Committee on Masonic Education was one of the
most remarkable ever presented before Grand Lodge, and plans are
now being formed for the inauguration of Masonic programs. Local
committees on education are likewise being created in subordinate
lodges.

The campaign for establishment of County Conventions is already
showing wide-spread results. Educational programs are to be
employed in District and County Conventions.

Particular attention is being paid to the strengthening of lodges.

Most beneficial of all, is the manifestation of unity and
fraternity as Georgia Freemasonry, in a revival of brotherly love
and understanding, awakes and arises in its plans for future
service to God and Humanity.

RAYMUND DANIEL,

Next comes a greeting and review from the Grand Master of Illinois.
Most Worshipful Bro. Louis L. Emmerson is quite aware of the pre-
eminence of the ideals, but he sees also the importance of the
business and administrative affairs of our lodges. The spirit
cannot function as it might if the organism is not sound and
healthy.

Again that tender anthem of "Peace on Earth, Good Will Toward Men"
comes out of the distant past as a whispered greeting to warm the
hearts of mankind. It is like an echo of the ages. Humanity,
represented by a busy world, again spreads the spirit of brotherly
love and once more good will and good cheer prevail at every
fireside.

And now, in this glad season, I pray that the ideals of Yuletide
and their material expressions may be ever present with you and the
New Year be filled with peace, plenty and happiness. It is my wish
that you may find yourselves helped onward and upward to the summit
of success.

The festival of the nativity, recently observed, has left with us
many innate feelings toward life itself. We take a broader view of
life at this season than at any other period of the year. We are
lifted onto a higher plane of action through introspection.

As we turn our faces to the New Year, which has just crossed the
threshold of brighter hopes, we realize that the record of another
year has been folded up a year full of interest and activity.
Institutions as well as men, should take stock of the past and plan
for the future. The year just closed reflects much of development
in our Order.

During the past year Masonry in the Grand Jurisdiction of Illinois
has continued to exhibit the same qualities of broad activity in
growth and stability which have characterized preceding years. We
have enjoyed unusual and happy advantages, and in peace and good
fellowship have been permitted to practice the noble tenets of our
Order. There has been a large and gratifying increase in those
things that make for effective strength.

A review of the proceedings of the several Grand Lodges reveals
that in not a few instances there has been a loss in membership for
the past year. It must be realized and expected that the death rate
will continue to increase because many in the Fraternity are
advancing in years and must ultimately pay the last debt. It must
further be realized that the Fraternity is commencing to stabilize,
and that as soon as it can pass through the period of adjustment in
the matter of suspensions it will reach a point when the net gain
per year will attain normalcy. In times past there has been
entirely too much stress placed upon numbers, overlooking the
important fact that the real growth of the Fraternity lies in the
development and expansion of the principles for which it stands.

As a rule Masons do not care for statistics, but facts of material
interest are disclosed in an exhaustive report compiled by the
Committee on Financial Research of the Grand Lodge of Illinois.
This research represents an extensive and exhaustive examination
into the general financial condition of subordinate lodges in
Illinois. An analysis of the information obtained may be of service
to Masons elsewhere, and to that end I address my remarks.

In determining upon the procedure to be followed, the committee
decided that it would concern itself only with the financial
condition of Illinois lodges as a whole, and not in any way go into
the financial status of the individual lodges as such. In order to
make a satisfactory study, it was necessary to secure from each
lodge its figures of income and expense for the past year solely
for the purpose of arriving at totals and averages for the state
and for several groups into which the lodges could analytically be
divided.

Returns were received from 804 out of 1006 lodges, or 80 per cent.
The lodges reporting had a membership of 248,176 of a total
membership at that time in Illinois of 290,642.

In round numbers, lodges in Illinois spend annually $2,575,000 and
take in from dues $1,900,000, leaving $675,000 to be made up out of
petition fees. Such fees amount to $850,000, thus leaving a credit
balance of $175,000. To this is added sundry income from rentals
and other sources to bring the total net income to $250,000.

The assets of Illinois lodges, totaling $8,662,800, have been
grouped into four classes, comprising cash on hand, furniture and
other paraphernalia, investment in Masonic temples and other
investments. Sixty-two per cent of the total assets of the lodges
has been pub into Masonic temples or temple stock. The liabilities
outstanding against these assets are comparatively small, being
only 19 per cent of the total assets.

The amount invested in Masonic temples is approximately represented
by an investment of $4,406.329. The assets per capita of the lodges
are greatest for those having the smallest expenses and income per
capita.

It is apparent from the several analyses made of the lodges grouped
according to their losses and gains in annual income that the
amount of profit or loss depends in only a small number of cases
upon the amount of the income from either dues or petitions. The
fact that practically all lodges have accumulated some assets
indicates to me that they are not operated at a financial loss
every year.

From an analysis appearing in the report, it would appear that
growth of lodges depends on three things: First, location of the
lodge in a center of population where plenty of material is
available; second, the enthusiasm and vitality possessed by the
younger lodges; and third, the maintenance of lodge activities in
the form of wholesome entertainments and other features aside from
strictly ritual work.

While the totals for the entire state show that Masonry is living
within its income and is putting aside a little money, the
necessity for laying aside a larger amount is apparent. It would,
of course, be almost impossible to design a standard budget that
would be appropriate for each individual lodge. In preparing a
budget, however, it has been suggested through an analysis of the
report, that the individual lodges should give consideration to the
following steps:

1. Make a conservative estimate of expected income from dues and
petitions based upon the experience of preceding years.

2. Subtract the amount which it is planned to save and add to
surplus for the year.

3. Apply the remainder to the various items of expense, cutting
down on the variable items, if necessary, to come within the
expected income.

4. From a yearly budget prepared in this way, make up a budget for
each month. Monthly budgets are necessary for the purpose of
checking actual receipts and expenditures with the budget so that
modifications can be made, if necessary to meet reduced income or
unavoidable increases in certain items of expense.

A final picture appears in the report with an analysis of the item
of investment, particularly the investment of lodges in Masonic
temples. This picture is alluded to as one of sharp contrasts. In
the shadows is shown the sad failure of many temple projects and
the vast sum of money sunk in non-earning properties. In the high
lights appear the careful, conservative management necessary to
accumulate the funds for these projects. Of course, this does not
mean that all temples are financial failures, and it is true that
a few eases may exist where the sacrifice of capital to provide
Masonic homes is justifiable. In several instances it appears that
the very poor returns from such investments and the consequent
shrinkage in their value is evidence that these investments have
been unwisely made.

Too many projects are undertaken through vanity, either on the part
of the lodge itself to build a monument, or on the part of
individuals to obtain the glory of promoting such a project.

Most of the temples are being financed on a conservative and
businesslike plan, which is necessary to insure success just as
necessary as in any private endeavor. The one real value growing
out of building a temple is that it provides something for the
lodges to save for. As a matter of fact, it is argued that Masonry
has no other financial object outside of its own operations and
expenditures for charity. The committee in its report on this phase
of the investigation recommends that the Grand Lodge should give
careful study to the possibility of controlling this temple
situation.

From an analysis and careful study of the research made by the
committee it is hoped to disseminate practical information that
should be of great value in the solution of the financial problems
that confront many of the lodges of today. The report made by the
Committee on Financial Research is worthy of the attention of every
Mason.

The true Mason, however, labors for the benefit of those that are
to come after him, for his is a poor ambition indeed which merely
contents itself within the limits of a single life. "The Spartan
mother, who, after giving her son his shield, said 'With it, or
upon it,' afterward shared the government of Lacedaemon with the
legislation of Lycurgus; for she too made a law that lived after
her. Long ages ago the temple built by Solomon and our ancient
brethren sank into ruin when the Assyrian armies sacked Jerusalem,
but the quiet and peaceful Order of which the son of a poor
Phoenician widow was one of the Grand Masters, with the Kings of
Israel and Tyre, has continued to increase in stature and
influence, defying the angry waves of time and the storms of
persecution."

The New Year will furnish us the opportunity for added effort
toward the making of a stronger institution and the ultimate
success of the Order will, as it does now, depend upon the energy
exerted by the individual brother toward that end. We must all do
our part, not part of the time, but all the time remembering that
"the strongest argument for or against Masonry is the Mason
himself."

LOUIS L. EMMERSON,
Grand Mastor

The lesson that seems most important to be drawn from this review
is that lodges should be able to meet their usual and normal
expenses from their membership dues. Fees in a well-managed lodge
should go to form a reserve for benevolent purposed In too many
places lodges would go bankrupt had they only their dues to depend
on. It is unnecessary, for even the smallest and poorest lodges can
live within their income if they plan wisely and spend
economically.

GREETINGS FROM MAINE

Most Worshipful Bro. Harold E. Cooke sends a brief message. To
paraphrase a well-known saying "Happy the jurisdiction that has no
history." The Craft in Maine has evidently been fortunate during
the past year, and we wish them equally good fortune in the coming
one. Bro. Cooke says:

In extending brotherly greetings and best wishes for the New Year
to all brother Master Masons, I do so in behalf of forty-three
thousand Free and Accepted Masons under the jurisdiction of the
Grand Lodge of Maine. Our year past has been marked by the absence
of anything sensational or unusual, but we have, I trust, made
substantial progress in bringing the body of the Craft closer to
the best ideals of Masonry, closer to our fellow-men, and through
them closer to the Grand Architect of the Universe. We have been
privileged, out of our own store of material things, to assist
worthy brothers, not only within our own jurisdiction, but to
render substantial aid to brethren in those localities which have
been Scourged by tempest, flood and disease. These privileges are
among the highest which Masonry offers to its votaries, and to be
able to respond in such times of need is one of the greatest joys
of Masonry.

We would bid our brethren, wheresoever dispersed over the face of
the earth, Godspeed in all their laudable undertakings and ask to
unite with them in efforts and hopes and prayers that the standards
and ideals of Masonry will be held even higher in the years to
come.

HAROLD E. COOKE,
Grand Master

A WARNING FROM MISSOURI

We now come close to the present home of THE BUILDER. Most
Worshipful Bro. Byrne E. Bigger, Grand Master of Missouri, writes
thus:

In response to your kind letter of Nov. 28, I would call your
attention to the fact that one thing the Freemasons of Missouri
have accomplished during the past year under the able leadership of
Most Worshipful Bro. Ittner, was to raise a voluntary gift of a
block of twenty-five thousand dollars for the George Washington
National Masonic Memorial Association in addition to the quota that
the Freemasons of Missouri have heretofore contributed. For some
time Missouri has been in the one hundred per cent class, and has
provided for a maintenance of that one hundred per cent ratio, and
in addition thereto has made this contribution as a slight token of
its appreciation of the magnificent work of building the memorial.

Having well accomplished the task of national import the program
for the future lays in the development of the interest and welfare
of the individual lodge. Already plans have been under way and are
being carried out that will be beneficial for the revival of
interest and the stimulation of further interest in the welfare and
prosperity of each individual lodge, large and small, in every
Section of the state. To this task the Deputy Grand Master, the
Senior Grand Warden, the Junior Grand Warden and myself have
dedicated ourselves and in every effort so far expended the lodges
have responded nobly and royally.

Having thought in terms of national interests we must not overlook
the fact that the chain is not any stronger than the weakest link,
and the link in Masonic affairs is the individual lodge.

In recent years the tendency has been too much to think in terms of
national Freemasonry and not enough in terms of individual Masonry.
American Freemasonry must learn to think in terms of both at one
and the same time, because the national program cannot succeed
without the individual program succeeds nor can the individual
program succeed to its fullest extent without thinking in terms of
national Masonry. To arise to the best interests each program must
proceed hand in hand.

A whole host of Freemasons have come into Freemasonry who have not
bean taught and who do not understand the fundamental and
rudimentary basic principles. There has been so much mass movement
that there has not been a sufficient amount of individual progress.

In Missouri the program for the coming year is to make each
Freemason a better Freemason with a broader and more general
knowledge of the purposes and function of the great Fraternity and
thereby a more efficient Freemason.

BYRNE E. BIGGER,

Grand Master.

Bro. Bigger's warning should be heeded. American Masonry is weakest
in the individual links, in this sense: that in many of them the
spirit of fraternity is being lost and forgotten in a huge and
imposing machine, an efficient, mass production concern for
grinding out degrees. How brotherly love, and intimate friendliness
and companionship are to be recovered is one of the most difficult
and in truth most pressing problems facing the Craft in America. It
is always something, however, to have a problem pointed out and
defined. It may not carry us far, but until it has been done, no
constructive plan can be devised.

NEBRASKA'S MESSAGE

The Grand Master of Nebraska, Most Worshipful Bro. Frank H.
Woodland, touches on the problem of education unhappy word! Yet
there is no other to take its place. First in place comes the
foundation work of the ritual, then its meaning and implications:

Illness and absence from the city have combined to delay my
acknowledgment of your kind invitation of Nov. 28 to send you a New
Year's greeting to be published in the January number of THE
BUILDER, and I fear that this delay will make it impossible to
comply with your request.

Masons in Nebraska are gratified in the continued growth of the
Fraternity in this state, as shown by the last published reports.
This increase in membership, while small is, we feel, significant
in view of the continued business depression common to most of the
states in this Mid-West Section of the country. More gratifying
than mere increase in numbers is the continued interest in the
welfare of the Fraternity as manifested by the large number of
building projects carried to completion in the last year by the
Blue lodges and allied Masonic organizations in this Grand
Jurisdiction, each of which, without exception, being well financed
and giving every prospect that financial difficulties, only too
frequently occurring in the past, will be avoided.

Even more gratifying is the evident interest of the more active
members of the Fraternity in the study of the history of
Freemasonry and their evident desire to perfect themselves in the
ritual, as manifested by the large attendance at Schools of
instruction which are carried on under the personal supervision of
the Grand Custodian. As an example, the writer attended the last
session of such a School the other day, at which twenty-five lodges
in four adjacent counties were represented, and more than one
hundred members of the Fraternity attended the all-day meeting
which concluded the session of this School.

During the past year, Nebraska Masons have renewed with marked
enthusiasm and Success their efforts to raise their share of the
contribution of American Masons to the construction and completion
of the George Washington Memorial. Their failure in the past to
keep step with most other Grand Jurisdictions in carrying out this
great undertaking was due to circumstances beyond the control of
those now in authority. Scarcely a week goes by without our being
able to credit at least one Blue lodge with having met its share,
placed at $1 per member.

We therefore face the New Year with the hope and expectation that
the Craft in this Grand Jurisdiction will continue in the future as
it has in the past to measure up to the duties and obligations we
assumed at the altar of Freemasonry, confident that the Fraternity
will continue to do its share in the promotion of the peace,
happiness and well-being of the state of which we are so proud.

Nebraska Masons extend through the courtesy of THE BUILDER to its
brothers throughout the land their best wishes for a happy and
prosperous New Year.

Frank H. Woodland
Grand Master


Now we have a word from the "hill country" of the West. Most
Worshipful Bro. Charles F. Cutts sketches a most interesting
picture, which we could hope sometime to have in more detail, of
Masonry in wild places, where men come to realize what it may mean,
and what high purposes it may serve. Bro. Cutts writes:

I thank you very much for so kindly asking me to send you a word of
greeting from this western land. While I grew up as a lad in the
far East I have come to love and know this mountain country until
it seems as if I had always lived here.

Nevada is a land of magnificent distances, a land of golden
sunshine and blue skies, but our population is scattered and small
in number. However we carry on the responsibilities of statehood,
form social groups in fertile valleys or on the slopes of high
mountains of the mining regions, living quite as wholesome lives,
with as many varied activities as do our Masonic brothers in the
more populous states of the far East.

Masonry had its beginning here when Nevada was a territory. It has
seen lodges grow strong and fine and then disappear with the
decline of our mining towns. Often though, there will be found
little groups of faithful brothers who still love these ghost towns
and live there, and who meet together with a fine fellowship and so
carry on.

Here in this mountain land Masonry draws into a sympathetic
fellowship groups of men with high ideals who have reverent respect
for the ancient landmarks of this noble Institution.

The purpose of our hearts as we face the future is to bring the
inspiration of these ancient symbols to meet the needs of the
constantly changing conditions of our every-day life. We cannot
escape the fact that the masses of humanity only move forward as
they respond to the intelligent advance of their leaders. To meet
fairly and frankly our responsibilities and problems as a great
fraternal organization is to test our own advancement and breadth
of vision. We cannot shut ourselves away from the crying voices
demanding help and assistance we cannot escape the destiny of our
responsibilities.

The future of mankind, the stability of a growing and more
intelligent civilization, can only be assured when men have fixed
in their hearts the eternal principles of righteousness and
justice.

Just so long as we live together as an organized society for a
common good and a common happiness, so long will it be necessary
for men to plan and work for a greater and kindlier tolerance, for
less prejudice and bigotry, and so create a practical, helpful
spirit of cooperation.

Is it not within the power and destiny of this age-old
organization, composed as it is of thoughtful representative men of
their communities, to mold and change for better such forces as are
known to be destructive into forces that shall make for the best
and wisest growth of this structure we call life?

Shall we not learn to see that all humanity is of one blood with
common hopes and fears, that the great ideal and hope of mankind is
to work for a real spirit of unity?

It was an old philosopher of long ago that said, "When man will not
help man the end of the world is come."

CHARLES FRANCIS CUTTS,
Grand Master.

Masonry, indirectly, in the efforts and influence exerted by
Masons, might be, and should be, one of the great formative social
influences in favor of world peace. Peace that is merely a
negation, or the result of negatives cannot live. It must be
positive, active. We must live, and act for it, first in our lives
and then in the life of the community. When the standards of right
and wrong that Masonry, in common with the churches, upholds as
between man and man, are also admitted as binding upon states and
nations, then the question will solve itself.

NEW MEXICO'S ACHIEVEMENTS

Most Worshipful Bro. Samuel E. Wood, Grand Master of New Mexico,
speaks of the relief work being done in that state. And relief work
in the Southwest, as our readers well know, means almost entirely
tubercular relief, and the relief of sojourners. We have many times
acknowledged the honor due to the Masons of New Mexico for what
they have done in this matter. New Jersey, too, must also receive
honor for the contributions which she has made to this pressing
work.

Masonry in New Mexico has had a good year. Unless there are an
unusual number of suspensions for non-payment of dues we should
show a fair gain in membership. A majority of the lodges are active
and doing good work. Relief work is being carried on quietly and
earnestly and only in extreme eases beyond the financial resources
of the subordinate lodges is aid requested from the Grand Lodge
relief fund.

Our Masonic Home fund totals approximately $100,000, all invested
in Government bonds. This fund will undoubtedly be allowed to
accumulate into an endowment fund sufficiently large that the
interest therefrom will be ample to take care of our aged and
infirm brethren, not in a Masonic Home, but among friends and
neighbors.

The Grand Lodge revolving student loan fund amounts to
approximately $4,000, and is in great demand by college and
university students requiring assistance to complete their
education. Great credit is due to the loan committee who have so
judiciously handled this fund. The same committee is also handling
the Knight Templar Educational Loan Fund with equal success.

The Sojourners' Club, at the Government Tubercular Hospital, Fort
Bayard, N. M., is the particular pride of the Grand Lodge of New
Mexico. The Sojourners' Club was brought into existence shortly
after the close of the World War by a few of the Masonic brethren,
patients and employees of the hospital with the idea of aiding
their less fortunate brethren. Neighboring lodges at Silver City,
Santa Rita and Hurley became interested and aided in this work in
every way possible. Through these lodges the work being done was
brought to the attention of our Grand Lecturer, M. W. Bro. John J.
Kelly, who in turn brought the matter before the Grand Master M. W.
Francis E. Lester. Bro. Lester visioned the wonderful opportunity
for service to our afflicted brethren and started a campaign to
raise funds for the club. The Northern Jurisdiction Scottish Rite
contributed $25,000 to erect a suitable club building, the Southern
Jurisdiction Scottish Rite assisted in furnishing, and many of our
sister jurisdictions have contributed liberally. The Grand Lodge of
New Mexico annually contributes $1,500 towards the support of the
club. The Grand Chapter, Royal Arch Masons, the Grand Commandery
and the Grand Chapter, O. E. S., of New Mexico, are liberal
contributors. In addition to this many of the subordinate lodges
and Eastern Star chapters remember the club at Christmas time with
liberal offerings.

From a relief club aiding in a small way, the Sojourners' Club has
developed into not only a wonderful relief organization but has
become the social center of the entire hospital personnel. Here the
ladies of the post entertain their friends in the spacious and cozy
tea room. Here the patients who are able to leave their beds enjoy
the conveniences of the well-stocked reading room and write their
letters on stationery furnished by the club. Then there is the
billiard room, where the boys pass many pleasant hours. The
spacious auditorium, equipped with stage projection booth, Victrola
and radio, is the scene of many entertainments and social
gatherings. The Club is open to all.

The Sojourners' Club is under control of the Grand Lodge of New
Mexico. Its affairs are administered by a committee of three
appointed by the Grand Master. Both the Grand Lodge and the
Sojourners' Club are fortunate in having such a capable and
efficient club secretary, Bro. Paul R. Gantz, who was one of the
organizers of the club and a former patient of the hospital. Bro.
Gantz not only looks after the financial affairs of the club but
helps to arrange the entertainments, visits the bed patients daily,
writes their letters and gives aid and encouragement in every way
possible. He also makes two or three weekly trips to Silver City to
shop for the boys who are not able to get out.

By means of an amplifier and ear phones all the confined patients
are able to enjoy the entertainment from the radio world.

Loans are made by the club to those requiring temporary assistance,
and to the credit of the patients requesting these loans, very few
remain unpaid. Gifts of clothing and necessities are also made to
those without sufficient funds.

The work of the club is not confined to members of the Craft, but
is extended to all. There are many stories, some with tragic some
with happy endings, hidden within the records of the club.

The cost of operating the Sojourners' Club varies from $6,000 to
$7,000 per year. All funds are placed in the hands of the Grand
Secretary and paid over to the club monthly in such amounts as
needed upon recommendation of the committee and the approval of the
Grand Master.

Everything in the way of hospitalization and up-to-date medical
treatment is being done by the Government for our boys, but the
social contact and entertainment features supplied by the
Sojourners' Club has proven a wonderful aid in keeping up the
morale of the patients.

At present there are 330 patients in the hospital, 50 of whom are
Masons hailing from many jurisdictions. The capacity of the
hospital is 440 patients and the prospects are that the hospital
will be filled during the coming year.

The Grand Lodge of New Mexico deeply appreciates the aid we have
received in the past from the Craft and Masonic organizations, and
trust that we will continue to receive encouragement and financial
support in this splendid constructive work.

The Grand Lodge of New Mexico is also sponsoring the work of the
Trowel Club at the Tubercular Marine Hospital, Fort Stanton, N. M.,
contributing $50 per month for the work being done by this club.

The Masonic tubercular problem is still with us. Like Banquo's
ghost, "it will not down." our afflicted brethren continue to come
to the dry climate of the arid Southwest, "chasing the cure," many
of them without sufficient funds to provide the bare necessities of
life. It is pitiful to be compelled to dole out charity to these
brethren when rest and hospitalization is what they need.

Our dream of a National Tubercular Masonic organization has been
shattered. Many of our sister jurisdictions state that migration is
not necessary, that they are willing to take care of their own at
home, that the National Tubercular Sanatoria Association as
instituted is too unwieldly and cannot be efficiently managed.
These statements may be true, but nevertheless our afflicted
brethren continue to come, and we cannot turn a deaf ear to their
appeal.

At the last annual communication of the Grand Lodge it was decided
to take over the work of the National Masonic Tubercular Sanatoria
Association and handle this work through the Grand Lodge, placing
as many of our afflicted brethren, who need hospitalization, in
existing sanatoriums as our funds will permit. With approximately
$22,000 that the Masons and Eastern Star of New Jersey have so
generously contributed and with the $1 per capita tax voluntarily
assessed by the Masons of New Mexico, we can materially aid our
brethren for a time at least. 

SAMUEL E. WOOD
Grand Master.

THE MAIN ISSUES BEFORE THE CRAFT

Most Worshipful Bro. St. Clair Smith, Grand Master of South Dakota,
calls attention to the same problem as others of his fellow rulers
have done, but from a somewhat different point of view. Pride of
antiquity is good if it inspires to emulation of the great
achievements of antiquity. Otherwise it is but an opiate, "dope,"
which leads to degeneration and decay. He sums up the true function
of history in a single sentence. It is indeed the only guide we
have to the future, without it we are blind and can only blindly
guess. But perhaps even more important in this message is the
insistence that Masonry is not a mere system of copy book
moralities, but is designed to aid in the exceedingly difficult
task of putting those same trite moralities into life and action.
It is labor, work, not talk.

You have requested an expression of opinion as to what may be done
to enhance the effectiveness of Masonry in America. The purpose of
this letter is to reply briefly.

The same method of keeping attention fixed on the main issue which
has so contributed to the success of organized business needs
application in the administration of our beloved institution of
Freemasonry. The lore of Masonry, the majestic sweep of its
history, its heroes, its ritualistic ceremonies with the
accompanying insistence upon the right word, and its gala days have
so engrossed the interests and occupied the potential of the Craft,
that too small a proportion of our strength remains available for
the accomplishment of its objective. In fact, so much stress has
been placed upon these aspects of Freemasonry in our assemblages
and in our literature, that to many these things have come to
represent the institution itself. Pride in a past has become more
important than the opportunities of today and tomorrow. Just as
families of strong fiber have gone to seed through such a process,
so will Masonry be dwarfed.

Our objective, as I understand it, is to increase the capacity of
men to live wholesome, successful, satisfying lives, and by thus
moulding the character of the individual, raise the level of
present and future civilization. We cannot travel far on the road
towards achievement with our eyes fixed on the past. Neither will
men enlist themselves to the task of preserving a history. We can
afford no more time for our history than is required to discover
the lessons it teaches as guides for the future. Our energies and
all of our intellectual powers are required in a study of the men
who constitute the raw material on which we propose to exercise our
skill, and in the analysis of methods available for the
accomplishment of our bask.

Masonry offers to men an understanding of the simple laws of
conduct governing successful living. Because of the complexity of
present day civilization men are more confused and bewildered and
more in need of an understanding of the fundamental and practical
laws of living today than at any time in history. Therefore
Freemasonry has a larger place in our social political and economic
life, and a greater opportunity than at any time during its
history. It can only embrace its larger opportunities effectively
by improving the efficeciney of its methods of instruction, and by
adapting those methods to the psychology of the day. Men of today
pride themselves in being practical above all else. Anything that
can be branded as idealistic is handicapped in advance in its
appeal. The lessons of Masonry are in fact intensely practical when
applied to everyday life because no success can be attained without
their application. We must present them in a practical as well as
in an idealistic manner.

Supplementing our method of instruction need in no manner change
the body of Masonry. A literature, a slogan, group discussions and
councils are needed for the purpose of impressing upon the
apprentice in life that not only his personal and practical
interests, but his selfish interests demand that he honest. moral,
just, friendly and charitable: that time is given him that he may
exchange it for knowledge; that he can only succeed in any phase of
his life by increasing his capacity; and that no human talent or
skill expands except through use. The trade apprentice was kept in
close personal contact with his instructors over a long period of
time. Under our practices, when we could make the greatest
impression on the life of the apprentice, we are satisfied with
little more than demanding an exercise of his powers of memory. By
constant reiteration we need to teach him that a true Mason gives
of himself and can be no less than a certain type of rugged,
wholesome, trustworthy friendly man. Every man who kneels at our
altars must be repeatedly brought face to face with his personal
responsibility to himself, to Freemasonry and to society to measure
up to our standards. None of this should be done haphazardly, but
should be followed out according to a well thought out plan. We
need an organized and directed program of self-betterment. 

Masonry will not long be honored and loved for what it has been. It
will be Judged by the conduct of living men.

This year could well be spent in seeking new and supplementary
methods of translating the lessons of Freemasonry into the lives of
practical men.

ST. CLAIR SMITH
Grand Master.

RELIES IN SOUTH CAROLINA

Last comes Most Worshipful Bro. William A. Giles, Grand Master of
Masons in South Carolina. He speaks of the relief and benevolent
work of the Craft in his jurisdiction, and it is to us exceedingly
good news that South Carolina Masons have undertaken the erection
of a hospital unit for tubercular cases. Every step taken in this
direction will prove an incitement for others to go and do
likewise:

The Grand Lodge of South Carolina extends fraternal greetings to
the Craft wheresoever dispersed.

The past year in the Grand Jurisdiction of South Carolina has been
one of material progress. We have no Masonic Home, instead we have
a Masonic Relief Fund of approximately $160,000, the income from
this fund being used to take care of aged and indigent Masons and
widows of Masons in their own homes and among their own kindred and
friends.

The orphans also are cared for in the home when it is possible to
do so, but if not, we have an arrangement with the four
denominational orphanages in the state whereby they take our
Masonic orphans and the expense is borne from this fund. In
addition to the income derived from this fund we have a per capita
tax of $1 on every member in the state which is used entirely in
this way. Last year we expended about $31,000 for this purpose. The
figures are not available for this year, but the amount is
gradually growing each year.

The crippled children's hospital at Greenville is maintained and
supported by the Shriners, but the Grand Lodge appropriated $1,500
this year to be used in improving and beautifying the ground. There
are a large number of children on the waiting list.

The Educational Fund of the Grand Commandery has also been
successfully handled and many young men and women are enabled to
complete their education who might otherwise have never had a
chance to do so.

But to me the outstanding work of the year was the erection of a
sixteen-bed unit at State Park for T. B. patients. This is a state
institution and we have the peculiar situation that a sufficient
amount of money is always appropriated by the state for
maintenance, but none for buildings. At the last report made to me
there were over 180 on the waiting list, about 40 per cent of these
being young women.

Unless outside aid could be obtained most of these would die before
they could be admitted, and the Grand Lodge, recognizing this need,
appropriated $10,000 to erect a unit at State Park and present it
to the state. This was accepted and the building is now complete
and in use. In addition to this we are now attempting to raise, by
voluntary contribution from Masons and lodges in the state, a
sufficient sum to erect a twenty-eight bed unit for women, and
while the amount raised is yet comparatively small, I am much
encouraged at the reports from the several districts in the state,
and I believe we will be successful in building this unit also. I
feel that this step, which was taken by the Grand Lodge at its last
annual communication in March, has been the most outstanding
accomplishment of Masons in our state in many years, because it is
for the good of humanity in general and Masons have no claim ahead
of anyone else The above gives a brief outline of what we are doing
in a charitable way. our Educational Director, C. K. Chreitzberg,
Past Grand Master, is doing a fine work, and the reports from all
sections of the state confirm me in the belief that the Grand Lodge
made no mistake in adopting its educational plan, thus giving
Masons an opportunity to learn what Masonry really means, and I
think the results so far are very encouraging.
W.A. Giles
Grand Master

On behalf of members of the Research Society and other readers of
THE BUILDER the Editor expresses his gratitude to these brethren
who have taken time in the midst of the cares and responsibilities
that throng upon them to send us these messages. With such leaders
the Craft should go on to greater and higher achievements. We in
our turn may wish them all happiness and success in their efforts
in this New Year just begun.

