M. U. I. O. O. F.

Clutha Leader, Volume II, Issue 81, 27 January 1876, Page 5

M. U. I. O. O. F.

As announced in our last issue, the/ • j " Purple Lecture,'" in connection with j the Man el-ester Unity Independent j Order of Oddfellows was given, and fie " Purple Degree " was conferred in the Loyal Dalton lodge-room, Balclutha, on Saturday last. This is the first time this ceremony has been gone through in the Province, out of Dunedin, excepting once in Port Ch-ilmer?, and il created much interest amongst the brotherhood here P.O. VI. Anderson presided, D.P.G.M. Leslie, being vice-chairman • P.O S. Sligo acted as Secretary, and P.P.G.M. Palmer, occupied the G.M.s chair. The P.Gr.M. was supported on the right by P.P.G. M.. Swan, ard on the left by P.G. Harrop. D PiG.M. Leslie was supported on the right by P.P.G.M. Swan, and on tbe left by 'P.G. Braid. There we-e also present at the opening. of the Degree Lodge, PG. Hope, P.G. Dunne, P.G. I^ilgour, and P.G. Mason (of the Loyal Dalton Lodge), P.P.G.M. Pobin (of the Hand and Heart, Dunedin), P.G, Tnnes (of the Loyal Prince of Wales Lodge- (Poit Chalmers), who acted as Inside Guardian, P.G. Wilson and P.G. Shields (of the Alexandra Lodge, Port Molyneux). The Dunedin Lodgps were further represented by PG, Woodland?, P.G. Stromack, and P.G. Forsyth. The lecture for the district having been constituted, a considerable number of the brethren of the Loyal Dalton, Alexandra, and several Dunedin Lodgps took past officer's Degrees. The Purple Lecture was then opened, and the Purple Degree was conferred upon officers who had passed through the various offices in their respective Lodges. Instruction was given in the working oi the Degree, and the Purple Lecture was closed. A lecture of general in-s-traction in connection with the subordinate degrees was then given by the District Officers. THE BANQUET. A banquet to celebrate the proceed-? ings of the day was given in the even - ing in Barr's Hall, when upwards of forty gentlemen sat down to a substantial and excellent spre:id provided by Mr Lloyd, of the Parmer's Arms Hotel. The chair was taken by N.G. Reunert, jof the Loyal Dalton Lodge, supported on the right by P.G.M. Anderson, and on the left by P C.S. Sligo. The vicechair was occupied by G.M. Dunne, of the Loyal Dalton Lodge, supported on the right by D.P.G.M. Leslie, ahd the left by P.P.G.M. Sherwin. The first f oast was by the Chairman — " Her Majesty the Queen and the Manchester Unity," and which was received with enthusiasm. The Vice-Ci-airman then proposed, " The health of the District Officers," and said he was there to testify to the care, skill, kindness, judgment, and ability with which district matters had been carried out for a number of years ia Otago. The officers, were selected for their skill, kindly feeling, ability, and zeal in forwarding the interests of the Order, and he haa the greatest possible pleasure in proposing their health. Their Society was now thoroughly organised and substantial, and as ono of the great Chancellors of the Exchequer said, it stood in the same relation to other societies as the British navy did to the navies of other nations. He only wished that the laws of the land we lived in— the land laws in particular: — w-re administered with the same judgment and skill as were the laws of O.'dfellowship by the District Officers. — (Applause.) There wa 1 ? a great deal to be said with regard to the government of their Order. Great must have been the minds of those men who framed their laws', which extended even to thia distant part of the world. Perhaps they were aware of the extent to which tbe Order had suffered some years ago, t before it was acknowWged by the British Government. During*, three successive Parliaments the Oddfellows "sent • delegate's- to report upon their grievances, and to afford- information to those, members who were working to get a Friendly Societies' Art passed, and it was the "Manchester Unity that the Friendly Societies had to thank for 'the Act. that protected their money. At one time the Oddfellows of England ■clubbed together and ruisedH-£50.00 to send" to ---'Ireland, but out- iof ' tin's sunt only £500 : reached* its 5 destination, and . there 7was then no la w to-punisii bfficera who mi3appropridted;-the/-iVihdy ft-pf the , 7 Order. ; This ;■ f act "create d^ a pXrA confidence ih •the^Gfdeji^^ Bntisir^arliit-rieri^^ fellowship ; was^found^l* Sp^il 7p&r&^n^j eiplesr the ? !(>hSy^|isl^(in "fjjr&^st^f passed.— ; He^o^ -aU'mat^rs^ 7 and lie f was^glSSftT^bS mM^^t^|t|||tpai@| *mbhey^nctl&nl tlieMplo^iWi^^S V-iki'^thl^

same time being as libsral to the lodges as possible. With the exception of the < occasion when they went' to Port Chal- i mers, this was the first time they had been out of Dunedin to deliver tho Purple Lecture* Now that the railway j was opened they would make a point of visiting different places, and Oddfellows , would have an opportunity of getting ! degrees, and of getting refreshed, and meeting together and spending a social j evening. He thanked them heartily for the toast on behalf of the district officers. P.P.G.M. Leslie also responded to the toast. He said he was not prepared to do full justice in response to the speech of the proposer. He said it was eleven years since he first visited the Clutha district and he had noied the wonderful changes that had taken place since then. He had known the worthy Treasurer of the Loyal Dalton Lodge] for some time, and on all hands he had heard it said that he Was a man of j whom any lodge might feel proud. He I was told in years gone by, when things were looking dull, their Treasurer was true to his name and hoped on — (laughter) — and brought them to their present position, which was a satisfactory one. Their district report showed that there had been a steady increase in the funds and the number of members ; and though he was sorry such a large amount of sick pay had been rendered necessary, it would show the people of the Clutha the benefit of being a member of the Order. The Manchester Unity was second to no society in the world and every workman should become a member of it. They were often called upon to put their hands in their pockets to relieve cases of distress, when the necessity would never have arisen had the head oi the family been a member of a Friendly Society. A man lost none of his self-respect by receiving aid from a Society,* for if he suffered from ill-health, or was unable work, he was only receiving the money he had provided for himself. He had provided for it, and could sue for it in any Court of Law in the country. He was really astonished at the speech of the worthy Vice-Chairman, for he had no idea that he had taken such an interest in the Order as he appeared to have done. A Friendly Societies Bill was talked of at the last session of the New Zealand Parliament, and he could say that it was much wanted. With the best intentions in the world, officers and managers of Friendly Societies found it difficult to detei mine the proper scales j ot contributions and benefits to be paid in r a country like this. The rate at home would not do here, and the rate in Dunedin would not do for the Clutha. Action was being taken in this matter, and in a short time the District Officers would be able to- report that somthing definite had been done. There was another matter he would touch upon before he sat down. They had a considerable sum to the credit of their lodge but they were only getting a small rate of interest for their money. He thought they could get three times as much in interest as they were getting at the present time. There were plenty of good substantial buildings going up just now, and he thought they could lend their money out safely at a good rate of interest. In conclusion, he would thank them for the toast, end he might add that it gladdened his heart to notice the progress made in the Clutha district, and in the condition of the Loyal Dalton. He would now propose the toast of " The Loyal Dalton Lodge." The Chairman said the duty devolved upon him to reply to the toast that had just been given, and did so with very great pleasure, although, at the same time with considerable reluctance. Upon the. one side they had got great credit for all they had done ; but on the other side he did not consider that he was able to reply in a fit manner to all that had been said of them by the District Officers. He wished in his own heart that the duty had devolved upon P.G. Hope, who was the oldest officer of the lodge, and would have been able to do better justice to the toast. The D.G.M. had said with great truth that had it not been for the efforts of their worthy P.M. Bro. Hope, the Loyal Dalton Lodge would not occupy the position it did at the present time amongst the lodges in Otago — (applause) — and there was no doubt that he had been the main instrument in working it up to the present position. As a member of the Loyal Dalton Lodge he might say that felt proud to think that the District Officers had done them the honor to deliver the Purple Lecture j which, of course, he new nothing about (laughter) at Balclutha. He considered that a very great honor had been conferred upon them. He was sorry there was saot a larger number of their members present that night, for there were nearly seventy members connected with the lodge. Unfortunately there appeared to be a feeling amongst a few of the married people in the township, that the Society was only a Benefit Society, and they appeared to take little interest in it beyond paying their subscriptions. He was sorry that this should be the case, for he would like to see . all the members attend the lodge meetings, j and take, an active interest iri all j matters connected with the Order. If this was tbe case Oddfellowship "would prosper far more than it had done. He thanked the District Officers again for their visit, as it showed the position the Loyal Dalton Lodge held amongst the country lodges of Otago. i

P,G. Hope proposed, " The Visiting Officers." PP.G.M. Robin in responding said he was at the Clutha when he was one of the officers of the district, but now he had passed on to the shelf. When he was there before, the Dalton Lodge was at its lowest ebb. He enjoyed himself coming up, and he had not had so much pleasure on an excursion for some time. He was pleased to see so many signs of prosperity and progress at Balclutha. One of the members who had spoken must have made a mistake when he spoke of the interest they got for their money. They got 6 per cent., and he did not think they could not get more with safety. He would call their attention to the District Relief Fund in connection with the Order, and he might say that lately there had been a great many calls upon it, from newlyarrived immigrants and others who had found themselves without money, and had not found things as they expected. He would appeal to the Loyal Dalton Lodge to do something to augment this district relief fund, which helped to cheer new comers, and to relieve the widow and the orphan. He wished to express the great pleasure he had in coming there that night, and he might say it would not be long until he was there again. — (Applause.) P. C.S. Sligo expressed the pleasure his visit had given him, and proposed the toast of " Kindred Societies." All these kindred societies were aiming at a common good, especially for the working classes. The greatest minds, the brightest intellects of Great Britain,had expressed their approval of these so- ' ciedes, and the saving they had effected in the poor rates at home had been set down at an enormous sum. The Manchester Unity held a front place amongst these societies. It had placed itself upon a firm and sure basis, to command the confidence of its members, and for this purpose it had gone to more expense and trouble than any society in the world — (applause). It had been said by a member of a kindred body that the Manchester Unity was a selfish body, and that when the value of the assets was taken in Great Britain, it was found there was a deficiency,and that the assets did not cover the liabilities. The society had not taken a selfish course, but had simply taken care to ascertain that it was in a sound position by demanding valuations of the assets "end liabilities of the different lodges. There was then found to be a deficiency, but during the last twenty years this had been reduced by about 50 per cent. He had no doubt that the law that had been passed in Great Britain would become the basis of an Act to be passed in the Colony • and, while on this subject, he might state that' the officers of theManchesterUnity had given valuable information to the Royal Commission that sat at home. He w T ould now propose the toast of " Kindred Societies," coupled with the name of Brother Low. The toast was drank with enthusiasm. P.G. J. Low briefly responded, The following* toasts were also proposed and responded to : — " The Commercial interests," proposed by P.G. Mason, responded to by P.G. Braid- " The Agricultural Interest," proposed by P.G. AL Sherwin, responded to by P.G. Dunne ; " The Ladies," proposed by P.G, Kilgour, responded to by Mr Swan j " The Press," proposed by Mr Teague, responded to by Messrs Fleming and Nichols ; <( The Host and Hostess," proposed by the Chairman, and duly acknowledged. The health of the Chairman and P.G. Hope were also proposed and duly responded to. Throughout the evening* a large number of songs, both comic and sentimental, were also sung*, and the very pleasant and successful banquet was brought to a close by the company singing " God Save the Queen," and " Auld Lang Syne."