CME
Activities
The
following extract is from the commemorative booklet entitled “The Masonic
Historians” by Brother Jack Harewood, prepared to mark the inauguration of the
Masonic Library and Museum at the National Library, Port of Spain, on February
6th 2004.
CONTINUING
MASONIC EDUCATION
RELATED
ACTIVITIES
Printing
and Publishing
From the outset, C.M.E. has been involved in
printing and publishing, as all Seminar Papers
were printed and published, distributed (to participants) and sold. As time
went by other small printing and publishing projects for Masonry were
undertaken. In 1993 C.M.E. published it first book – a second edition of
Seemungal’s The District Grand Lodge of
Trinidad & Tobago and it Precursors. Since then this activity has
flourished.
Selling of Masonic Publications and Regalia
C.M.E. has also been involved in the selling of its Seminar/Lecture papers from the start, and continues to do so. From the early 1990s, however, books and publications from abroad have been obtained, on request. Masonic regalia are also obtained for Brethren on request, either imported, or locally made.
OTHER C.M.E. EDUCATION ACTIVITIES
Masonic
Education For District Grand Lodge (S.C.)
In 1997 Brother Peter E Salvary, Vice-President of C.M.E. was appointed District Grand Master by the Grand Master Mason in Scotland. Br Salvary, in turn, appointed Brother Jack Harewood, President of C.M.E. as his Depute, with special responsibility for Masonic education, and with C.M.E as an executing agency for the District in this field. When in 2002 Brother Dr. Wilbert Winchester, was appointed District Grand Master, he continued the arrangement of Brother Harewood and C.M.E. being responsible for Masonic education. This is now one of C.M.E.’s significant functions.
C.M.E. and non-Craft Masonry.
But C.M.E. is not confined to Craft Masonry. A One-Day Seminar for Royal Arch Masonry was held in 2000, and commemorative reports have been prepared and published for, and at the request of three of the four Scottish “Higher degrees”, and a seminar may be organised for the fourth in the not distant future. C.M.E. also provides regalia and books for some of these orders n request.
C.M.E. and Non-Masons
In planning one of the early One-Day Seminars, a young Mason urged that we should not always have Mason addressing Masons at these seminars, but should invite non-Masons as Speakers. This was done on two occasions – once with a Roman Catholic layman, and later with a Roman Catholic priest. On both occasions the discussion was lively, cordial and instructive to both sides. Arrangements are being considered to invite non-Masons as participants at some seminars.
THE
LIBRARY/MUSEUM/ARCHIVES COMPLEX
The Museum
Brother The Honourable Garvin Montagu Scott, District Grand Master (SC) from 1977 to 1987, an accomplished and highly decorated Scottish Mason, also had the distinction of heading, simultaneously, in the 1970’s, every Scottish Masonic Order in Trinidad & Tobago, as well as every Regional body in the English-speaking Caribbean. As such, he collected a wealth of Masonic regalia, photographs and memorabilia, which his widow – Mrs Melina Scott, generously donated to C.M.E. for our proposed Masonic Museum.
Brother Lionel Seemungal also gave some Museum items along with his library, and so did Brother Peter E Salvary with gifts he received as District Grand Master. Other Brethren have also made gifts even though C.M.E. still has no building to display its collection. It is expected that such gifts will multiply when the Museum is properly housed.
Brother Jerry Besson
has been recently appointed C.M.E. Museum Curator, and with the guidance of
Brother Peter Salvary, this will soon be organised.
The Archives
The Manuscripts of Seemungal’s papers
Brother Seemungal,
because of failing health, gave the
manuscripts of his Masonic research papers to Brother Jack Harewood, who passed
them to C.M.E. [1]
These are being used in C.M.E.’s education programmes, and there is an ongoing programme of publishing selected papers. Brother Emile Charles, Past District Grand Secretary – has arranged the typing of many of the papers, of which he has selected some for publication. In addition, this will be a vital contribution to C.M.E.’s project of putting the complete set of papers on computer, to make them quickly available to present-day and future historians and researchers.
The Archival Material
Seemungal also gave archival material stored in 301 large envelopes, each with a brief description of its contents on the outside. These contained Minute books and other records of Masonic bodies, and research notes. This remains an important task for the recently appointed C.M.E. and District Grand Archivist – Brother Richard Saunders, Past Master.
Archives for Scottish Craft Masonry
During the
Bicentennial year, a proposal was made to District Grand Lodge that C.M.E. be
invited to set up Archives for Scottish Craft Masonry. This was approved and a
C.M.E./District Grand Lodge Archivist (Brother Eugene des Anges) appointed.
Work has been done on the Seemungal and on the District Grand Lodge archival
materials, but much still remains to be done. There are also plans to assist
Daughter Lodges to organise their archives.
The recently appointed Archivist is Brother Richard Saunders. In due
course, the other Orders will be invited to participate.
The Masonic Library
At the time that C.M.E. came into existence, Lionel Seemungal had long been involved in Masonic history, research, writing and lecturing. Understandably, C.M.E. looked to him for advice and guidance in their pioneering efforts. Impressed with the Seminars and Lectures, when, in 1993, he decided, because of failing health, to withdraw from Masonic research and writing, Brother Seemungal made a personal gift of his vast library collection to Brother Jack Harewood.
Brother Harewood, aware of the great opportunity as well as the grave responsibility that this gift involved, passed it to C.M.E. This organisation decided to attempt to set up a professional library so that the great store of knowledge could be made available to Masonic researchers and historians of the present and the future.
Shortly after, invited to address the District
Grand Royal Arch Chapter, Brother Harewood read a Seemungal paper on the
origin, development and eventual demise of their Trinidad & Tobago Masonic Library, and suggested that they
transfer their remaining books to the new C.M.E. Library. This was readily
agreed.
C.M.E. then faced the enormous task of preparing a
catalogues of the books and publication, as those for both collections were no
longer available. A brisk start was made with the Royal Arch Chapter
collection, but this faltered and could never be revived. After years of
inactivity interspersed with ineffectual attempts by volunteer Masons, Brother
Darnley Campbell, now C.M.E. and District Grand[2]
Librarian, offered to undertake and complete the cataloguing in an unbelievably
short time.
The task of
cataloguing the various collections was accomplished over a period of about one
year, and was completed in late 2001. The lists of volumes are computerized by
title, by author and various other sub-classifications in many cases. These are
now accessible in a searchable database on the newly created CME web site https://cme-group.tripod.com/. The total
number of volumes in the database is one thousand one hundred and seventy six.
While engaged on that
task, the widow of Brother C Richard I Robinson - at whose home the first
Seminars Committee meeting was held – graciously made a gift of her husband’s
personal Masonic Library to Brother Peter E Salvary for the C.M.E. Library.
This, too, was catalogued by Brother Campbell and his small group.
The next challenge was
to find a suitable building to house the library, with accommodation for
readers. This last is necessary since C.M.E. decided that the Library should be
for reference only, not lending, as many of the books, particularly from the
Seemungal collection, are worn and/or irreplaceable.
Brother Jerry Besson,
a Master Mason of Lodge United Brothers No. 251, suggested that we approach
NALIS to see if they were willing to have the Masonic library for a trial
period. Having had previous association with NALIS, Brother Besson initiated
discussions with NALIS, which he and Brother Campbell successfully completed.
It is this agreement,
and our joint plans to make this material available to present and future
historians and researchers, that we are celebrating today.