SCOUTCRAFT

Wor.Master: Karl Lingard  0413 270 691  [email protected]

Series 4: Number 88, June 2016

Secretary: Charles Reich  0427 534 885  [email protected]

Quarterly Newsletter of Baden Powell Lodge No 505 UGLQ

Editor: Ross Raymond  (07) 3207 7690  [email protected]

Visit us online - https://sites.google.com/site/badenpowellmasoniclodgeno505/

MESSAGE FROM THE EAST

Greetings Brethren. Many thanks to the Brethren for entrusting the Mastership of the Lodge to my care for the ensuing year. I will endeavour, as we say in Scouting, “to do my best” not to discredit the great honour and privilege to serve as Master of the Lodge. To RWBro Graeme Neilson from me personally, and on behalf of the Brethren, a hearty thank you for your wisdom and strength in the governance of the Lodge over the past 12 months. It was especially pleasing for me to serve as your Senior Warden and now to have you by my side as Immediate Past Master. You have provided to me much guidance and advice during my journey to the East and I trust I will have your ear in the future. To the officers of the Lodge, congratulations on taking up your new charges. I look forward to a year of great works and harmony within the Lodge. My first task as Worshipful Master is indeed a sad moment as we bid a farewell to Bro Bill Whitestyles OAM. Brother Bill passed to the Heavenly Mansion above on the 25th May 2016, aged 76 years. At the time of his passing he was an Assistant Region Commissioner (ARC), Brisbane South Region. In his time as a Scouter he accomplished many notable achievements, including reforming the Toohey Mountain Scout Group and the Macgregor Scout Group, now known as the Robertson Scout Group, at which I was Scout Leader. Bill, with aid of his wife, Hope (dec’d) developed the Gilgunya Scout Environment Centre in Nudley State Forest near Jandowae as a centre for leader training and camping, and for use by outside groups. Bill was an Educator; he served as a classroom teacher and later as an itinerant Special Education Teacher, Queensland ScoutCraft No88Jun16

Department of Education. He also served in the Citizens Military Forces and was a member of the Royal Order of the Buffaloes and an Honorary Bearer, Queensland Ambulance Transport Brigade. Bill was also a very active member of the Lions Club and was involved in many charitable and humanitarian fundraising activities. As member of the Yeronga/Dutton Park Sub-Branch, Returned and Services League of Australia he served as Welfare Officer. Bill had been presented with many awards and recognitions for his service to the Lions and Scouting Movement, the most distinguished being the Medal (OAM) of the Order of Australia in the General Division for service to the communities of Chinchilla and Brisbane, and to youth through the Scouting movement. Bro Bill will be sadly missed. Goals during my term are to engage in service projects and raising funds for charity. I will disclose more on these thoughts as time passes. Karl Lingard WM.

THE EDITOR’S DESKTOP

The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. ~ Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968).

Something old, something new! The Lodge has a new Worshipful Master. Congratulations, Karl, on accepting the challenge and responsibility of leading the Lodge for the next twelve months. We wish you every success. The feature article in this edition of ScoutCraft describes one of the oldest, if somewhat obscure, implements in masonry, and which also describes a familial relationship. Intrigued? Read on for a daily advancement in Masonic knowledge! Ross Raymond

HEARD AROUND THE RIDGES AND QUARRIES The sale of all Masonic Care sites (except Gold Coast) to Regis Aged Care was finalised on 31st May. The sale of the Arundel home to St Vincent’s Aged Care is to occur on 1st September. The Board of Benevolence has advised that its strong financial position and longterm strategies – including using lodges as “pillars of philanthropy” - will allow for significant philanthropic and benevolent work into the future. Page 1

ScoutCraft UGLQ has linked up with an organisation called Suit of Change, which collects pre-loved men’s suits and formal/semi-formal clothes and donates them to those who need assistance to look their best for job interviews. First impressions mean a lot and clothes do maketh the man. Grand Lodge is proposing to rationalise the Masonic Dress Code by bringing all codes into the one manual. Comments must be received by the Grand Secretary by Friday 17th June. If Brethren have not seen the draft (43 page) Manual please contact the Lodge Secretary. UGLQ has put out a request for contributions of lectures, training notes etc for an online repository of Masonic educational and training resources. They can be emailed to [email protected]. At our May meeting the Lodge wished a fond farewell to our AGSW for six years, RWBro Allan Connors, and would be very pleased to see him visit any time in the future. No prizes for guessing who were the three most travelled brethren over the past few months – Bill L, Charles and Kirby of course! Bill and Elenor took in Cuba, Panama, Peru, Argentina and the Galapagos Islands. Is there any part of the planet they haven’t visited? Charles kicked off with a flight to Darwin to catch the Ghan to Adelaide, which was followed by the B-P Lodge Installation in Perth; then, in May with Graham and two Davids attended Maroochy Lodge in Yandina to witness Roger Roberts install his successor. Charles then acted as Installing Master for Temple Memorial Lodge in Cairns, followed by a further trip up North to the Installation of the new District Grand Master in Townsville. Charles does return to Brisbane on the second Wednesday of every month! Kirby and Denise jetted off to New York following a trip to a Grand Chapter Installation in Melbourne, and once back in Oz headed off to Adelaide for a Royal Arch Grand Installation. We have learnt that John Anderson, one of our two remaining Foundation Members, is receiving palliative care in Newcastle. Our thoughts are with John and his family at this time. Very sad to hear of the departure of Bro Bill Whitestyles following a stroke on 16th May. See the WM’s tribute in his Message from the East, and a few words in the following column. Our newly initiated Brother, Clive Cooke, has taken on the role of President of the Queensland Branch of the Rhodesian Veterans Association. The Master’s Luncheon is set down for Saturday 11th June at the Lighthouse Restaurant, Cleveland Point. The June Lodge meeting would be the last opportunity for any late comers to put up their hand. ScoutCraft No88Jun16

VALE BRO BILL WHITESTYLES The Lodge is saddened to lose one of its stalwart members, Bro Bill Whitestyles, OAM, who passed to the Grand Lodge Above on 25th May 2016. The WM has paid a glowing tribute to Bill in the Message from the East. We are also reminded of the Courier-Mail feature of Bill’s community activities referred to in the March 2016 edition of ScoutCraft. A Lodge of Sorrow in remembrance of Bro Bill is expected to be held in the near future.

WHAT IS A LEWIS? By WBro Ross Raymond The word “lewis” has a double meaning in Freemasonry, as explained in the first Degree; but, what exactly is its significance and how did it originate? 1o Tracing Board In the First Tracing Board lecture the Entered Apprentice learns that the word “lewis” denotes strength, and is depicted by pieces of metal dovetailed into a stone, forming a cramp, and when in combination with mechanical powers such as a system of pulleys, it enables the operative Mason to raise great weights to certain heights with little encumbrance, and to fix them on their proper bases. The lecture also informs us that “lewis” likewise denotes the son of a Mason; his duty to his parents is to bear the heat and burden of the day, from which they, by reason of their age, ought to be exempt; to assist them in time of need, and thereby render the close of their days happy and comfortable; his privilege for so doing is that of being made a Mason before any other person, however dignified. Lifting Device A lewis is a lifting device used by stonemasons in all ages to lift large stones into place with a derrick, block and tackle, or winch1. The lewis is inserted into a specially prepared hole in the top of a stone, directly above its centre of mass. It works by applying principles of the taper or lever and utilises the weight of the stone acting on the lever arms or pins, which in turn results in a very high reaction force and friction where the pins make contact with the stone inside the hole, thereby preventing slipping. A lewis is most useful when it is not possible to Page 2

ScoutCraft lift the stone with chains or slings, because of the location or shape of the stone, or delicate projections. Examples include a closing stone, cylindrical column drums, decorated capitals, coping stones and heavy ashlar stones1. The lewis is removed when the stone is set in place and the weight is released. The hole that was shaped to fit the device can then be neatly repaired with a matching indented plug. There are several types of lewis, the three-legged type that dates back to Roman times is the one most commonly referred to in Freemasonry. History According to Falconer2, the lewis was used extensively by the Romans from long before the Christian era, which has been confirmed by wide ranging archaeological investigations, and was probably acquired from the ancient Egyptians and the Phoenicians. Some interesting examples of the known use of the lewis by the Romans include the construction of the colosseum in Rome, which was completed in 80 BCE; the construction of the amphitheatre in Pompeii, which was commenced in 70 BCE; and the construction of the temple at Baalbek from about 60 CE until about 250 CE. The Romans introduced the lewis into Britain for the construction of Hadrian's Wall around the year 200, when it was erected to prevent the incursions from Scotland into England. Mortices can still be found in many of the more massive stones in the ruins of Hadrian's Wall. Symbolism The analogy drawn between the son of a mason and a lewis clamp can be explained in terms of the skill and precision required in fabricating the device’s components, locating and cutting the mortice in the stone, and in the strength of the cramp. Falconer2 reasons that “the lewis symbolically comprehends the teachings of all the working tools of an apprentice freemason, reminding us that knowledge, grounded on accuracy, aided by labour and sustained by perseverance will, in the end, overcome all difficulties, raise ignorance from despair and promote happiness in the paths of science. Furthermore the lewis is a most appropriate symbol of strength.” Some Masonic scholars liken the grip of the lewis that lifts the stone to the grip given to raise the candidate in the third degree, while others associate its strength with the strength of character developed through Masonic teachings3. Falconer2 contends that the name “Lewis”, when used with reference to the son of a freemason, originated with the Travelling Masons of France, many of whom were engaged to construct the Abbey of Kilwinning in Scotland during the 1150s, and is an adaptation of the Latin word leuis, which means to levitate or lift. Interestingly, the Greek word leuis found in the New Testament (prior to its English translation) means “joined”. Nevertheless, Falconer2 suggests that the use of the expression “lewis”, ScoutCraft No88Jun16

meaning the son of a mason, was transmitted from operative freemasonry in Scotland to speculative craft freemasonry in England during the seventeenth or eighteenth century, when the catechisms of speculative craft freemasons define the duty of a lewis as being "to bear the heavy burden of his aged parents, so as to render the close of their days happy and comfortable." The catechisms also define his privilege for so doing as being made a mason before any other person, however dignified by birth, rank or riches. From these old catechisms are derived the references in modern rituals2. In today’s lodges the tracing board usually displays a lewis inserted in a perfect ashlar suspended from a tripod. In some lodges a model of the perfect ashlar is physically raised when the lodge is opened and set back on its base when the lodge has closed, respectively signifying that the lodge has commenced labour or that it has ceased labour and is going to refreshment. Types of Lewis Many different types of lewis have been used over the centuries, some of which are still in use today, while others have been adapted or modernised. Samples are:

The Roman three-legged Lewis, or St Peter’s Keys. The 3 legs fit into a dovetailed seating (hole) in the top of a building stone. The middle leg is square while the outer legs flair outwards towards the bottom. This traditional type of lewis is the safest to use because it relies on its dovetailed shape for security instead of friction alone; however, the seating is time-consuming to prepare.

Chain-linked lewis. The legs fit neatly into a rectangular hole cut in the top of the stone. When the tops of the curved legs are pulled together by the chain, the bottom portions are forced into the lower part of the seating, thereby providing enough friction to lift the stone.

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ScoutCraft MASONIC MIRTH

Modern split-pin lewis. The semi-circular pins joined by rings are inserted into a vertical round hole in the stone. When lifted, the weight of the stone forces the pins to grip opposite sides of the hole by friction.

Modern 2-pinned lewis. Each pin is inserted into an angled hole in the stone and connected by a chain. The weight of the stone provides a friction grip by the pins in their holes.

Conspiracy In the wild colonial days a horse thief was about to be hanged for his crime. As he was placed on the gallows the hangman asked him if he had any last words. “Yes”, came his reply, “I hate Masons!” “Why do you hate Masons?” asked the hangman. “The man who owned the horse was a Mason, the trooper who arrested me was a Mason, the prosecutor was a Mason, the judge was a Mason, and all of the men on the jury were wearing Masonic lapel pins. This is a Masonic conspiracy against horse thieves.” “Don’t be ridiculous, you were caught and convicted fair and square,” said the hangman, as he blindfolded the prisoner and placed a rope around his neck. “Now take a short step forward with your left foot.” [Have you noticed that there are not too many horse thieves around these days?]

WELCOME BRO COOKE

Modern external lewis or In the Lodge Room. A slab lifter. The 2 hinged model of a perfect ashlar friction pads close astride cramped by a lewis and the top of a stone slab, and suspended from a tripod are pulled tightly together can be found in some by the weight of the slab lodge rooms. itself. Conclusion A Lewis is a secure mechanical device used to lift heavy stones, which probably originated with the Ancient Egyptians and Phoenicians. In Freemasonry it denotes strength. To many Freemasons, the word “lewis” represents the strength of one's own ability to improve oneself and rise above one's faults. Lewis also describes the son of a Freemason, whose duty is to support his parents in the same way a lewis lifts and supports a stone. This analogy, together with the Latin origin of the word, can be traced to the French travelling masons who worked in Scotland in the 1150s; these meanings subsequently finding their way into speculative Freemasonry.

Bro Clive Cooke is welcomed into Baden Powell Lodge by the WM, RWBro Graham Neilson and his proposer, RWBro Kirby Leeke on Clive’s initiation into Freemasonry (March 2016).

INSTALLATION 2016

Sources: 1: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_(lifting_appliance). 2: http://www.freemasons-freemasonry.com/falclewis.html. 3: http://www.myfreemasonry.com/threads/the-masonic-wordlewis.9169/.

Installing Master, RWBro Graham Neilson places WBro Karl Lingard in the Chair of King Solomon (May 2016). ScoutCraft No88Jun16

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