Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Massachusetts Colored Masons, Spurious
Followers in New York State Come to Grief.
A case has been decided in the law court at Charlotte, New York State
that has created intense interest in the Masonic circles among Colored
Masons in several of the States last week, and the Colored Grand Lodge
of New York, which was first started some years ago by the Prince Hall
Grand Lodge of Massachusetts, met an overwhelming defeat and was routed
at every point. The Grand Lodge of the State of New York commenced a law
suit at Charlotte, N. Y., against several Masons representing the Hiram
Grand Lodge of Ancient Free and Accepted Masons of the State of
Pennsylvania to prevent them from organizing lodges in the State of New
York under the authority of the Hiram Grand Lodge of the State of
Pennsylvania. The case came up before Judge Laverty and was bitterly
contested, and after an argument of a whole day by counsel representing
both sides Judge Laverty rendered his decision that after investigating
the matter thoroughly that the Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Massachusetts
that was organized many years ago, was an illegal and irregular Grand
Body, and that the Grand Lodge in the State or New York having had
lodges established in New York State that organized lodges from the
Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Massachusetts that established the Grand
Lodge of New York that it was an unlawful Grand Lodge, and that the
Hiram Grand Lodge of Colored Masons of the State of Pennsylvania was a
lawful and regular Grand Body. The Hiram Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania was
organized formerly of chartered lodges from the Grand Lodge of the
District of Columbia.
And the M. W. Grand Lodge A. F. and A. M. of the District of Columbia,
held her warrant of constitution, power and authority from the White
Grand Lodge Ancient Free and Accepted Masons of the Republic of Romania,
Germany.
This warrant was granted to Hon. H. C. Scott 33 degree G. M. in 1895, he
was the first and only Colored man in the United States of America to
ever receive a lawful and regular warrant from any White Grand Lodge of
Masons of foreign jurisdiction, and is now healing and setting
Masonically right the Colored Masons in the United States of America.
What have the so-called State Rites got to say about this verdict,
coming from the mouth of such an able jurist of the Empire State. Our
people have been and are being robbed out of thousands of dollars by
these bogus Masons in this and other States.
Done at Masonic headquarters this first day of December, 1908. San
Antonio, Texas.
Ninth Question--What is meant by the word and title of A. F. & A. Y.
Masons?
Ninth Answer--A. F. & A. Y. Masons means Ancient, Free and Accepted York
Masons, the city of York is in the north part of England, it is
celebrated for its traditional connection with Freemasonry in England.
The first charter granted in England to the Masons as a body was by
authority and power of King Athelstan, in the year of 926 at York,
England, and the application was made by Prince Edwin and Prince Edwin
summoned all the Masons in England to meet him in congregation at the
City of York, England, and from this assemblage of Masons at York the
letter "Y" originated. Prince Edward was elected Grand Master of the
Grand Lodge that was organized at York, England, in 926. From the
commencement of 926 of the assembly of Masons at York the letter "Y"
commenced, and has been known among members of the Masonic fraternity
and at the establishing of the Grand Lodge at York, England, in the year
926 they adopted a constitution and general regulation for the craft.
Prince Edwin, the brother of King Athelstan of England was an eminent
and distinguished Mason and King Athelstan was the grandson of King
Alfred the first anointed King of England who translated the Holy Bible
into the Saxon language.
The Grand Lodge that was established in York, England, in 926 prospered
and flourished. The City of York, England, was the seat of Masonic
government of the craft in England.
FREEMASONRY FIRST ORGANIZED IN THE STATE OF TEXAS ON APRIL THE 10th,
1873, AT AUSTIN, TEXAS.
Tenth Question--When was Freemasonry first established in the State of
Texas among Colored men? As there have been a great deal of controversy
about the matter, inasmuch as some person have fixed it one place and
some have fixed it another place, let us see who is right?
Tenth Answer--The first Lodge of Colored Masons organized in the State
of Texas was at Austin, Texas, April 10th, 1873, the name of the Lodge
was Mount Bonnell Lodge, it was instituted and chartered by the
notorious self-constituted clandestine King Solomon Grand Lodge of the
State of Kansas that Wm. D. Mathews was the Grand Master of, and all
Masonic students and all Masonic authors in the United States have said
time after time that the King Solomon Grand Lodge of Kansas was a bogus
Grand Lodge. Sometime after Mount Bonnell Lodge was organized at Austin,
Texas. A Lodge was organized at San Antonio, Texas, and Houston, Texas,
and Galveston, Texas, all these Lodges were established by the spurious
King Solomon Grand Lodge of Kansas. And it appears from the records and
a circular issued by the King Solomon Grand Lodge of Kansas that at the
time the convention was held to organize a Grand Lodge for the State of
Texas that the Lodge at San Antonio, Texas, and the lodge at Houston
Texas, was only working under a dispensation from the Grand Lodge of
Kansas, and only a few years ago I held a conversation myself with Wm.
D. Mathews, Grand Master of the King Solomon Grand Lodge of Kansas and
he stated to me that at the time the Grand Lodge of Texas was organized
that there was only one Lodge and that was Mount Bonnell Lodge at
Austin, Texas, that was in good Masonic standing and that Saint John's
Lodge at Galveston, Texas, and the Lodge at San Antonio, Texas, and the
Lodge at Houston, Texas had been suspended by the Grand Lodge of Kansas
for un-Masonic conduct and that the dispensation to three of these
Lodges had been revoked by him as Grand Master of the King Solomon Grand
Lodge of State of Kansas and in support of that the King Solomon Grand
Lodge of Kansas refused to recognize and hold any Masonic intercourse or
affiliation with the Grand Lodge of Texas. That matter came up and was
discussed at the National Masonic Convention held in the city of
Chicago, Sept. 4th, 5th, 6th, 1877.
Eleventh Question--When was the Grand Lodge of Texas organized?
Eleventh Answer--A convention of delegates for the purpose of arranging
to organize a Grand Lodge of Texas was held at Brenham, Texas, Aug.
19th, 1874, and after some considerable discussion the convention
adjourned to meet at Houston, Texas, Jan. 19th, 1875, at Houston, Texas,
the so-called Grand Lodge of Texas was organized Jan. 19th, 1875, N. W.
Cuney was elected Grand Master and J. J. Hamilton was elected Grand
Secretary so it will be seen that Freemasonry in the State of Texas was
established in a clandestine manner by the compact King Solomon Grand
Lodge of Kansas.
Twelfth Question--Did the Grand Lodge of Texas work under the National
Compact Grand Lodge of North America and affiliate with it?
Twelfth Answer--It appears from the records that the so-called Grand
Lodge of the State of Texas took out a charter and worked under the
bogus National Compact Grand Lodge of North America and affiliated with
it and this same Grand Lodge of Texas now affiliates and recognizes such
bogus Grand Lodges as the Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Massachusetts, and
the notorious Compact Grand Lodge of Illinois whose records for
irregularity and spurious Masonic work have no equal in any part of the
world.
Thirteenth Question--Has the so-called Grand Lodge of Texas that J. W.
McKinney is the Grand Master of since it was instituted in an unlawful
and irregular manner, has it ever been Masonically legalized by any
Grand Lodge of Masons in the whole world, if so let them state what
Grand Lodge it was, when it was, and where at, that question has been
propounded to them time after time and they have refused to answer it
and in as much as they have refused to answer it, it must be taken and
accepted as being unlawful and a bogus Grand Lodge let me have your
opinion about the matter?
Thirteenth Answer--I have called upon the leaders of the so-called Grand
Lodge of the State of Texas that is managed and controlled by J. W.
McKinney and his followers in the State of Texas to name the time and
place if they could, if their Grand Lodge was ever Masonically legalized
and set Masonically right by any legitimate Grand Lodge in the world.
And they have failed and refused to give the name, time or place when
the Masonic Grand Lodge of Texas was ever Masonically legalized by any
legitimate Grand Lodge in the country and they have failed to do that,
they are certainly designated as an unlawful and clandestine Compact
Grand Lodge. They were established in an irregular manner and are
unlawful and bogus from their inception down to the present day and the
most of the leaders of the Compact Grand Lodge in the State of Texas are
the largest falsifiers, and liars and Masonic innovators that have ever
held their hands up toward heaven and as for the truth, for any
statement that they might make I would just as soon believe one of them
over a spelling book as a Bible.
[Illustration:
J. F. Van Duzor, 33°
Grand Secretary
M. W. King Solomon Grand Lodge
A. F. & A. M. Jurisdiction of Texas.]
KING SOLOMON GRAND LODGE OF KANSAS ORGANIZED JUNE 24th, 1867.
Fourteenth Question--When was the King Solomon Grand Lodge of Kansas
that Wm. D. Mathews was Grand Master, when was it organized in the State
of Kansas, and whereat, and did this King Solomon Grand Lodge in Kansas
take out a charter and work under the National Compact Grand Lodge of
North America, give me all the facts and information that you have at
hand relative to that matter?
Fourteenth Answer--When the King Solomon Grand Lodge of Kansas was
organized June 24th, 1867, at Leavenworth, Kansas, it was accepted and
stated by most every Colored Mason in the United States that knew
anything about the matter that this King Solomon Grand Lodge of Kansas
was organized and proclaimed to be a Grand Lodge by Wm. D. Mathews and
his followers in the State of Kansas with only one Lodge and nobody
knows whether or not even that Lodge was a chartered Lodge. It was said
however that this one Masonic Lodge that proclaimed itself and organized
the King Solomon Grand Lodge of Kansas that it secured a charter from
the Compact Grand Lodge of the State of New York and at the time the
King Solomon Grand Lodge of Kansas was organized with only one
subordinate Lodge composed of a membership of eleven members. June 24th,
1867, at Leavenworth, Kansas, it took out a warrant of authority from
the National Compact Grand Lodge of North America that was organized in
the State of Massachusetts on the 24th day of June, 1847, for it must be
admitted by all well informed Masons that Massachusetts was the hotbed
and the Masonic factory where all kinds of Masonic degrees were
manufactured and all sorts and kinds of Masonic Lodges and Grand Lodges
and a spurious National Grand Lodge of North America was organized to
suit the time and conveniences of those that wished to secure and gain
high sounding Masonic titles regardless as to whether it was right or
wrong. If you have any doubt about the matter I herewith present a copy
of the warrant that was issued to the King Solomon Grand Lodge of Kansas
by that irregular and self-constituted National Compact Grand Lodge of
North America whose record has covered the very blackest page in Masonic
history among the colored Masons in this country.
THE WARRANT OF THE MOST WORSHIPFUL KING SOLOMON GRAND LODGE FOR THE
STATE OF KANSAS.
To all whom it may concern:
The Most Worshipful National Grand Lodge of the Most Ancient and
honorable fraternity of Free and Accepted Ancient York Masons of the
United States of North America, according to the old constitution at
York in the kingdom of England duly established and organized for the
said United States according to the resolutions and by the authority of
a Grand Convention held in the city of Boston, the State of
Massachusetts on the 24th, 25th, 26th and 28th day of June, A. D., 1847;
A. L. 5847.