Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
R.W. Bro. Hugh David Sandeman, P.D.G. Master Of Bengal.
R . W . BRO . HUGH DAVID SANDEMAN , P . D . G . MASTER OF BENGAL .
The Indian Freemason for June contains the following account of the Masonic career of Bro . Hugh D . Sandeman , who for the past 14 years lias filled the important office of Grand Secretary-General of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of England . No better tribute could be paid to his ability than to say that he has successfully administered the affairs of an
Order that for many years previously had had the advantage of the services of so able a brother as the late Col . Shadwell Clerke , and the increasing prosperity and importance of the Order is owing , in no small degree , to the painstaking labours of its present Grand Secretary-General . What Bro . Sandeman ' s services to Masonry generally in th ' s country have been is known
to most of our readers , and we make no apology ( except to the Editor of the Indian Freemason ) for reprinting the following interesting account of our Brother's Masonic career in India . We may mention that the biography is accompanied by an excellent full-page portrait which we regret we cannot also transfer to our columns : —
" The subject of the portrait in our present number is a brother , who , after distinguishing himself in the Craft in India for over a quarter of a century and attaining the highest position in it , is still for the last twenty years taking an active and leading part in Freemasonry in the old country , occupying a prominent position in the Order there .
R . W . Bro . Hugh David Sandeman , who was District Grand Master of Bengal for eleven years , first saw the light in Lodge Hope , No . 413 ( then 596 ) at Meerut , on the 12 th of July ) 1847 , and took n ' Second and Third Degrees in that lodge respectively on the 9 th August and 13 th September following . He served as Master of no less than eight lodges at different
periods , viz ., Star in the E ist , No . 6 7 , at Calcutta in 1861 and 1862 ; Industry and Perseverance , No . IOCJ , at Calcutta in 1869 ; Independence with Philanthrophy , No . 391 , at Allahabad ; Hope and Perseverance , No . 782 , at Lahore , of which he was one of the founders and first Master ;
fraternity and Perseverance , No . 1746 , 31 Benares ; ( and since his return to England ) Fiiends in Council , No . 13 S 3 , London ; Caterham , No . 2095 , Surrey ; and Old Westminsters , No . 2233 , London . Of the last-named lodge , he is the present Master .
Whilst Master of Lodge Star in the East , No . 6 7 , he initiated into Freemasonry the late Maharajah Duleep Singh at a numerously attended meeting held on the 13 th of March , 1861 . Tne event at the time attracted some attention , and was noticed by the local newspapers .
Besides being Master of the lodges named , Bro . Sandeman -joined several other Calcutta and Mofussil lodges , and took an active interest in them . AH the lodges to which he belonged and several others paid him the compliment of electing him honorary member .
After filling the offices of District Grand Junior Warden in iaoi , and District Grand Senior Warden in 1862 , he was in the latter year appointed Prov . Grand Master of Bengal , under a patent dated the 3 rd of September ,
1 S 61 , and was installed in thaj ; high office at a Special Communication of District Grand Lodge on the 29 th of the following month . By a change in the designation of the ofiice , in the following year , he became District Grand Master of Bengal .
During his tenure of office , the late lamented Earl of Mayo became Lord Patron of the Order , and it fell to R . W . Bro . Sandeman ' s lot to receive and welcome His Excellency into Grand Lodge , at a communication held on the 20 th of January , 1870 . The Hall was crowded to its full capacity , and all the leading Masons were present on the occasion—the Lieutenant-Governor
° ' Bengal , Bro . William Grey , accompanied the Lord Patron . His Excellency , in acknowledging the toast of his health and the welcome accorded to him , said that it was a source of great gratification to him soon after his arrival in the country to find his name inscribed in the Freemasons , ' "' ary , and to notice in the same page the establishment of the Bengal
Masonic Association for the education of the children of indigent Freemasons . He added that it was a source of gratification to him to remembsr 'hat the Association took its birth in the same year that he became Lord " alron of the Order . We may here observe that Lord Mayo evinced his 'Merest in the Institution by subscribing Rs . 500 to its fund . A similar amount was subscribed by the Lieutenant-Governor .
During R . W . Bro . Sandeman's tenure of offiie , 12 [ new lodges were established in different parts of the district , whith then included the Punjab * ° British Burmah , but it should be here noted that the lodges in British urmah and ihe Punjab were , during his rule , created into the separate d | stricts of British Burmah and the Punjab in the years 186 S and 186 9 respectivel y ,
R.W. Bro. Hugh David Sandeman, P.D.G. Master Of Bengal.
R . W . Bro . Sandeman , at District Grand Lodge held on the 27 th of December , 1872 , announced to the brethren that in view of his approaching departure for Europe , he had thought it fit to tender to the M . W . the Grand Master the resignation of his office . The announcement was received with universal regret . He remained in charge of the district until the end of March , 1873 , when he left for England , placing the district in the immediate charge of Bro . J . Pitt Kennedy , P . D . D . Grand Master .
We cannot do better than briefly refer here , to the principal features of his rule , which extended over a decade , and to the various reforms introduced by him in the administration of the affairs of District Grand Lodge and the managements of its funds . The District Grand Steward ' s Fund was instituted by him , by which the cost of District Grand Lodge banquets have ceased to be defrayed even in part from the funds of District Grand
Lodge . It Was chiefly through his exertions that the Fund of Benevolence was placed on a sound basis , and under the immediate control of District Grand Lodge . A new system of accounts was organised , and a new fund opened for the maintenance of Freemasons' Hall , while a regular system of audit was introduced by which a more complete control and check over
District Grand Lodge Funds , which had been more thin once , imperilled , was secured . The Freemasons' Diary was first published under his immediate guidance and support in 1869 ; prior to which , dating from i 860 , Bro . Sandeman used to issue annually an almanac containing useful Masonic information for the guidance of the Freemasons of Calcutta .
Bro . Sandeman was the first District Grand Master who introduced the system of annually appointing a few of the prominent brethren of the Mofussil or country lodges to offices in District Grand Lodge—a practice which has been followed by his successors , and very largely extended by the present District Grand Master of Bengal , R . W . Bro . the Hon . Sir Honry Prinsep . But Bro . Sandeman's chief claim to the gratitude of his brethren is the
establishment by him on the 2 nd of June , 1869 , of the Bengal Masonic Association for the education of the children of indigent Freem-isons . By virtue of his office he was its President , and during the three-and-half years that he was connected with it he took the deepest interest in its development and success , and when he retired from India , in March , 1873 , its invested funds exceeded Rs . 20 , 000 , with children on its roll . It must be very
gratifying to him to find that this Institution has at the present moment an invested capital of one lac of rupees , with 39 children on the rolls . R . W . Bro . Sandeman's laudable example was followed by the newly created districts of British Burmah and the Punjab , and similar Educational Institutions have been created for these districts in the years 1871 and 1872 respectively .
Services such as these , rendered ungrudgingly , could not be silently passed over , and on the announcement of his approaching retirement from India , th » brethren resolved to present him with a farewell address and a suitable testimonial in token of their appreciation of his valuable services , and of their esteem and regard for him . A special committee was appointed to carry out tint object . The farewell address was pres nted to him at
District Grand Lodge held on the 21 st of March , 1873 , and he was requested to sit for his portrait and to accept the testimonial which would be sent to him . Bro . Sandeman thanked the brethren for their generously-worded address , which he said overrated his services to Freemasonry . He considered the address a sufficient reward without being supplemented by any
testimonial , and consented to sit for his portrait on his anival in England . The portrait which now adorns Freemasons' Hall , was received from England in due course , and was presented to District Grand Lodge by Bro , H . H . Lock , P . D . D . Grand Master Bengal , at its communication held on the 29 th of December , 1875 .
No notice of Bro . Sandeman ' s Masonic career could be considered complete , without reference to his connection with the higher Degre .-sof Freemasonry , of all of which he was the ruling head . In the Royal Arch he filled the First Principal ' s chair in four different chapters , and was appointed Grand Superintendent of the Order i : i
Bengal , under a pa ' ent dated the 5 'h of September , 1862 . On his re . irement from India , in March , 1 S 73 , Comp . H . H . Lock , Past Second G and Principal , assumed charge of the district , and ably guided its affairs until the appointment of Comp . the Hon . J . Pitt Kennedy , as Grand Superinten d dent , who was installed in the office on the gth of February , 18 78 , under a patrnt daied 5 th November , 1877 .
Bro . Sandeman took the Mark Degree on the 4 th of October , 1865 , in Lodge Victoria in Burmah , No . 68 . at Rangoon , and subsequently joined the Capeslone Lodge , No . 80 , in Calcutta . He was appointed the First Provincial Grand Mark Master of Bengal . He forma'ly constituted and opened Provincial Grand Mark Lodge en the 21 st of February , 1867 . He resigned his office in March , 1873 , on his retirement from India , placing the province in charge of his Deputy , Bro . J . Mackintosh ,
Bro . Sandeman was Provincial Grand Commander ( now styled Provincial Grand Prior ) of the Order of the Templars and Knights of Malta . He also took the Rose Croix or the iSth Degree , and on his return to England , the 33 rd Degree , which is known as the blue ribbon of Freemasonry , was conferred upon him . and he was appointed a member of the Supreme Council of the 33 rd Degree , and is , since 1880 , the Grand Secretary-General of that body . It is worthy of note that a Craft lodge , Mark lodge . Royal Arch chapter , and Rose Croix chapter have been named after Bro . Sandeman .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
R.W. Bro. Hugh David Sandeman, P.D.G. Master Of Bengal.
R . W . BRO . HUGH DAVID SANDEMAN , P . D . G . MASTER OF BENGAL .
The Indian Freemason for June contains the following account of the Masonic career of Bro . Hugh D . Sandeman , who for the past 14 years lias filled the important office of Grand Secretary-General of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of England . No better tribute could be paid to his ability than to say that he has successfully administered the affairs of an
Order that for many years previously had had the advantage of the services of so able a brother as the late Col . Shadwell Clerke , and the increasing prosperity and importance of the Order is owing , in no small degree , to the painstaking labours of its present Grand Secretary-General . What Bro . Sandeman ' s services to Masonry generally in th ' s country have been is known
to most of our readers , and we make no apology ( except to the Editor of the Indian Freemason ) for reprinting the following interesting account of our Brother's Masonic career in India . We may mention that the biography is accompanied by an excellent full-page portrait which we regret we cannot also transfer to our columns : —
" The subject of the portrait in our present number is a brother , who , after distinguishing himself in the Craft in India for over a quarter of a century and attaining the highest position in it , is still for the last twenty years taking an active and leading part in Freemasonry in the old country , occupying a prominent position in the Order there .
R . W . Bro . Hugh David Sandeman , who was District Grand Master of Bengal for eleven years , first saw the light in Lodge Hope , No . 413 ( then 596 ) at Meerut , on the 12 th of July ) 1847 , and took n ' Second and Third Degrees in that lodge respectively on the 9 th August and 13 th September following . He served as Master of no less than eight lodges at different
periods , viz ., Star in the E ist , No . 6 7 , at Calcutta in 1861 and 1862 ; Industry and Perseverance , No . IOCJ , at Calcutta in 1869 ; Independence with Philanthrophy , No . 391 , at Allahabad ; Hope and Perseverance , No . 782 , at Lahore , of which he was one of the founders and first Master ;
fraternity and Perseverance , No . 1746 , 31 Benares ; ( and since his return to England ) Fiiends in Council , No . 13 S 3 , London ; Caterham , No . 2095 , Surrey ; and Old Westminsters , No . 2233 , London . Of the last-named lodge , he is the present Master .
Whilst Master of Lodge Star in the East , No . 6 7 , he initiated into Freemasonry the late Maharajah Duleep Singh at a numerously attended meeting held on the 13 th of March , 1861 . Tne event at the time attracted some attention , and was noticed by the local newspapers .
Besides being Master of the lodges named , Bro . Sandeman -joined several other Calcutta and Mofussil lodges , and took an active interest in them . AH the lodges to which he belonged and several others paid him the compliment of electing him honorary member .
After filling the offices of District Grand Junior Warden in iaoi , and District Grand Senior Warden in 1862 , he was in the latter year appointed Prov . Grand Master of Bengal , under a patent dated the 3 rd of September ,
1 S 61 , and was installed in thaj ; high office at a Special Communication of District Grand Lodge on the 29 th of the following month . By a change in the designation of the ofiice , in the following year , he became District Grand Master of Bengal .
During his tenure of office , the late lamented Earl of Mayo became Lord Patron of the Order , and it fell to R . W . Bro . Sandeman ' s lot to receive and welcome His Excellency into Grand Lodge , at a communication held on the 20 th of January , 1870 . The Hall was crowded to its full capacity , and all the leading Masons were present on the occasion—the Lieutenant-Governor
° ' Bengal , Bro . William Grey , accompanied the Lord Patron . His Excellency , in acknowledging the toast of his health and the welcome accorded to him , said that it was a source of great gratification to him soon after his arrival in the country to find his name inscribed in the Freemasons , ' "' ary , and to notice in the same page the establishment of the Bengal
Masonic Association for the education of the children of indigent Freemasons . He added that it was a source of gratification to him to remembsr 'hat the Association took its birth in the same year that he became Lord " alron of the Order . We may here observe that Lord Mayo evinced his 'Merest in the Institution by subscribing Rs . 500 to its fund . A similar amount was subscribed by the Lieutenant-Governor .
During R . W . Bro . Sandeman's tenure of offiie , 12 [ new lodges were established in different parts of the district , whith then included the Punjab * ° British Burmah , but it should be here noted that the lodges in British urmah and ihe Punjab were , during his rule , created into the separate d | stricts of British Burmah and the Punjab in the years 186 S and 186 9 respectivel y ,
R.W. Bro. Hugh David Sandeman, P.D.G. Master Of Bengal.
R . W . Bro . Sandeman , at District Grand Lodge held on the 27 th of December , 1872 , announced to the brethren that in view of his approaching departure for Europe , he had thought it fit to tender to the M . W . the Grand Master the resignation of his office . The announcement was received with universal regret . He remained in charge of the district until the end of March , 1873 , when he left for England , placing the district in the immediate charge of Bro . J . Pitt Kennedy , P . D . D . Grand Master .
We cannot do better than briefly refer here , to the principal features of his rule , which extended over a decade , and to the various reforms introduced by him in the administration of the affairs of District Grand Lodge and the managements of its funds . The District Grand Steward ' s Fund was instituted by him , by which the cost of District Grand Lodge banquets have ceased to be defrayed even in part from the funds of District Grand
Lodge . It Was chiefly through his exertions that the Fund of Benevolence was placed on a sound basis , and under the immediate control of District Grand Lodge . A new system of accounts was organised , and a new fund opened for the maintenance of Freemasons' Hall , while a regular system of audit was introduced by which a more complete control and check over
District Grand Lodge Funds , which had been more thin once , imperilled , was secured . The Freemasons' Diary was first published under his immediate guidance and support in 1869 ; prior to which , dating from i 860 , Bro . Sandeman used to issue annually an almanac containing useful Masonic information for the guidance of the Freemasons of Calcutta .
Bro . Sandeman was the first District Grand Master who introduced the system of annually appointing a few of the prominent brethren of the Mofussil or country lodges to offices in District Grand Lodge—a practice which has been followed by his successors , and very largely extended by the present District Grand Master of Bengal , R . W . Bro . the Hon . Sir Honry Prinsep . But Bro . Sandeman's chief claim to the gratitude of his brethren is the
establishment by him on the 2 nd of June , 1869 , of the Bengal Masonic Association for the education of the children of indigent Freem-isons . By virtue of his office he was its President , and during the three-and-half years that he was connected with it he took the deepest interest in its development and success , and when he retired from India , in March , 1873 , its invested funds exceeded Rs . 20 , 000 , with children on its roll . It must be very
gratifying to him to find that this Institution has at the present moment an invested capital of one lac of rupees , with 39 children on the rolls . R . W . Bro . Sandeman's laudable example was followed by the newly created districts of British Burmah and the Punjab , and similar Educational Institutions have been created for these districts in the years 1871 and 1872 respectively .
Services such as these , rendered ungrudgingly , could not be silently passed over , and on the announcement of his approaching retirement from India , th » brethren resolved to present him with a farewell address and a suitable testimonial in token of their appreciation of his valuable services , and of their esteem and regard for him . A special committee was appointed to carry out tint object . The farewell address was pres nted to him at
District Grand Lodge held on the 21 st of March , 1873 , and he was requested to sit for his portrait and to accept the testimonial which would be sent to him . Bro . Sandeman thanked the brethren for their generously-worded address , which he said overrated his services to Freemasonry . He considered the address a sufficient reward without being supplemented by any
testimonial , and consented to sit for his portrait on his anival in England . The portrait which now adorns Freemasons' Hall , was received from England in due course , and was presented to District Grand Lodge by Bro , H . H . Lock , P . D . D . Grand Master Bengal , at its communication held on the 29 th of December , 1875 .
No notice of Bro . Sandeman ' s Masonic career could be considered complete , without reference to his connection with the higher Degre .-sof Freemasonry , of all of which he was the ruling head . In the Royal Arch he filled the First Principal ' s chair in four different chapters , and was appointed Grand Superintendent of the Order i : i
Bengal , under a pa ' ent dated the 5 'h of September , 1862 . On his re . irement from India , in March , 1 S 73 , Comp . H . H . Lock , Past Second G and Principal , assumed charge of the district , and ably guided its affairs until the appointment of Comp . the Hon . J . Pitt Kennedy , as Grand Superinten d dent , who was installed in the office on the gth of February , 18 78 , under a patrnt daied 5 th November , 1877 .
Bro . Sandeman took the Mark Degree on the 4 th of October , 1865 , in Lodge Victoria in Burmah , No . 68 . at Rangoon , and subsequently joined the Capeslone Lodge , No . 80 , in Calcutta . He was appointed the First Provincial Grand Mark Master of Bengal . He forma'ly constituted and opened Provincial Grand Mark Lodge en the 21 st of February , 1867 . He resigned his office in March , 1873 , on his retirement from India , placing the province in charge of his Deputy , Bro . J . Mackintosh ,
Bro . Sandeman was Provincial Grand Commander ( now styled Provincial Grand Prior ) of the Order of the Templars and Knights of Malta . He also took the Rose Croix or the iSth Degree , and on his return to England , the 33 rd Degree , which is known as the blue ribbon of Freemasonry , was conferred upon him . and he was appointed a member of the Supreme Council of the 33 rd Degree , and is , since 1880 , the Grand Secretary-General of that body . It is worthy of note that a Craft lodge , Mark lodge . Royal Arch chapter , and Rose Croix chapter have been named after Bro . Sandeman .