MASONIC INVESTIGATION
This Short Talk was written expressly for The Masonic Service
Association's educational publications by Walter M. Callaway, Jr., Past Master
of Oakland City Lodge No. 373, and of Lodge of Research No. 104, both in
Atlanta, Georgia. We are deeply grateful to Brother Callaway for his interest
and assistance.
This essay addresses itself to all Freemasons but more particularly to the
Worshipful Masters of all regular Lodges and to those members of the Lodge who
are, from time to time, honored by assignment to Investigative Committees.
Fortunately, there is little in this treatise which has to lean for authority
on the ancient mysteries or on speculation of origin or background, per ye,
to justify the proper use of this tool of Freemasonry. No particular
Masonic scholarship is required to consider the subject of Masonic
Investigation. In this essay a Petitioner is so called from the time he submits
his Petition to the Lodge for admission. It ds after he is accepted that he
becomes a Candidate.
Masonic Investigation covers a broad field, but in this presentation we shall
limit its scope to that particular phase of investigation by which we try to
ascertain all the pertinent information obtainable about a Petitioner for the
Degrees of Freemasonry: his moral, mental, and physical qualifications to become
a Freemason, a member of our ancient Brotherhood.
It is incumbent upon us, upon receipt of his Petition for the Degrees, to
examine his personal background, his habits, his general philosophy of life, his
reputation in the community and among his fellow-workers and associates. We are
to diligently inquire among those who know him best and who can be relied upon
to furnish as unbiased information as possible. From this information we are to
collate and evaluate the Petitioner's qualifications to become one of us. It is
not the easiest of Masonic tasks.
The Lodge Brother who is appointed by the Worshipful Master to serve as a
member of the Investigating Committee should consider such appointment a high
honor, a visible expression of implicit trust and confidence in his ability, his
zeal, and his concern for the welfare of the Lodge and Freemasonry. The
Worshipful Master, by this appointment, has clearly manifested his respect for
the good judgment of the Brother so appointed.
No phase of Masonic work is more important than the thorough, impartial and
unbiased investigation of those who seek admission into our ranks. The members
of the Investigating Committee are the first line of defense against external
enemies of the Craft as well as those who, through indifferent character, might
be pi-one to bring discredit upon the Craft. Our fraternal security depends in
great part on the ability and fidelity of our Investigating Committee and their
findings. In the Ancient Charge at Raising, our duty in this respect is clearly
and unmistakably pointed out to us: "To preserve the reputation of the
Fraternity unsullied must be your constant care." Besides being an admonition to
us in the daily conduct of our lives, it also includes the acceptance of
Petitioners.
Each member of this vitally important Committee should ever bear in mind that
he may be investigating a Petitioner who might one day become Worshipful Master
of his Lodge, or one who may sometime wear "the Purple of the Fraternity" and
rule and govern the Grand Jurisdiction. He may be investigating a man who will
never become renowned in the Fraternity or ever attend Lodge very often but who
would accept the tenets and precepts of Freemasonry and live his future life in
full accordance with the spirit of the Fraternity. A man who does not first have
Freemasonry in his heart is not likely to ever acquire it in the Lodge room.
In 1824 a man was admitted, without due inquiry, into a Masonic Lodge in one
of the Eastern states. As a result, some two years later, this proved the
greatest disaster to ever befall Freemasonry in America. Not long afterwards saw
the beginning of a long period of Anti-Masonic frenzy in the United States which
came close to eradicating the Fraternity. Bigots, political knaves, religious
charlatans, and sincere but misguided people united in trying to suppress the
Order in America. For some fifteen years it was touch and go for the Fraternity
all over the nation. (See S.T.B. of March, 1933, entitled "William
Morgan.")
The Investigator has much to consider during his inquiry. How far does he go,
how deeply does he delve, what questions are proper to ask, where is a
satisfactory stopping place in his task? There is no easy answer to these
questions, but lie should go far enough and deep enough to satisfy himself
beyond doubt that the Petitioner is indeed worthy of consideration for
membership. One point should always be stressed: that the Investigator,
perhaps pushed for time on his assignment, should never, under any
circumstances, restrict his inquiry to contacting the Petitioner's Recommender
and asking him for evaluation. When the Recommender brought in the Petition, -it
was implied that he himself was satisfied. The Recommender i-nay have thought he
knew enough personally about the Petitioner to so recommend him, but at the same
time he was relying on the Committee to obtain the full picture of the
Petitioner. Nor should the Investigator, at the last minute before time to
report, contact the other Committee members, ask the results of their
discoveries and, if favorable, to "go along" with their reports. Such an
investigation, on its face, is worthless. Each investigator should make an
independent inquiry and file his own report, regardless of what the others may
do. If the investigator needs more time, the Worshipful Master will grant him
whatever reasonable time is needed. Freemasonry is in no hurry and works by no
timetable.
How does one go about conducting a full and proper investigation? Obviously,
no investigation can be "foolproof" and leave no margin for error or
miscalculation. All the highly skilled and professional investigators in the
world cannot guarantee the ultimate results of a character investigation. Men
change. A man may be one thing today, another tomorrow. There is always the
calculated risk. All of us have read of bankers who, after years of utterly
honest dealings, have skipped the country with a suitcase full of money
belonging to his depositors. Who has not heard or read of the minister, with a
wife and family, who runs off with the pretty young widow in the choir: the
respected public official who, after a quarter-century of honorable service,
suddenly succumbs to a Ruffian named Bribery? No amount of investigation can
fully prevent such occurrences.
Fortunately, such contingencies are rare. Many Freemasons express
astonishment when they learn that General Benedict Arnold, once a brave,
gallant, and faithful American soldier, but whose name has become synonymous
with the word, Treason, was a practicing and faithful Freemason who used to
visit Lodges during the war with General and Brother Washington. The most
skillful and thorough investigation in the early days of Brother Arnold would
not likely have presaged such a future possibility.
The Worshipful Master, in making appointments, should not concern himself
with the convenience of the Investigator, to appoint him merely because he lives
near or works in some proximity to the Petitioner. Not all Brethren are skilled
or adept at investigative work. It is always advisable for the Worshipful
Master, wherever possible, to select those who have investigative experience, or
a talent for such. If they are available, the Worshipful Master might appoint
those who are lawyers, law enforcement officers, private investigators, and the
like. Because a Brother is a fine ritualist or a great coach does not mean that
he is a competent investigator. At the beginning of his "year" the Worshipful
Master would be well advised to examine his membership roll and select certain
Brethren whom he knows to be qualified or to have such talents as are required.
He should rotate such committee assignments among those chosen so that no one
group is overly burdened with work.
He should then call a meeting of those selected for the year and explain to
them their duties and what the Lodge requires of them. The meeting should
produce a broad outline of what normally constitutes a thorough investigation
and the Master should emphasize that no phase of investigation is to be left to
chance or assumption. The members should be cautioned that there are certain
limitations to the scope of their investigations; that each investigator should
take into account that although a Petitioner's politics may be different from
his own, and they may be of differing religious denominations, that these
differences have no bearing on the evaluation of the Petitioner's qualifications
for admission into the Lodge. So long as the Petitioner expressly believes in
the existence of One Supreme Being, the investigator has no right to probe
further and quiz the Petitioner about his church affiliation, or perhaps his
lack of same.
Brother Albert G. Mackey said it well: . . no other religious test is
necessary or proper in the candidate, except that he declare himself a
firm believer in the existence of a Supreme Being." For the investigator to
probe further than this on this question is to turn his inquiry into an
inquisition, which would be highly un-Masonic on his part.
Likewise, if one is a Democrat and the other a Republican, this is of
absolutely no consequence and should not even be discussed. (Note: in matters
political it should be borne in mind that the Communist Party is not a bona fide
political party but is held to be an instrument of a foreign power inimical to
both the American way of life and to Freemasonry.) Partisan politics and
sectarian religion are forbidden subjects in every Masonic Lodge and every
Freemason knows this, or should know it.
The investigator should be strongly advised that after a thorough and
painstaking investigation, and after he has exhausted all known sources of
information, if he is still possessed of doubts of the Petitioner's
qualifications, he should always, without variation or hesitation, resolve his
doubts in favor of Freemasonry and the Lodge and not in favor of the
Petitioner. No man has a right to become a Freemason; it is a privilege
controlled at the ballot box.
No attempt is made in these pages to go into the techniques of successful
investigations. No specific rules would be applicable everywhere. Generally
speaking, all sources of information should be explored which would lead to a
complete picture of the Petitioner. He should be a man who first has Freemasonry
in his heart, a man of unimpeachable character who enjoys a good reputation
among his friends, neighbors, acquaintances and associates wherever he is known.
It should be made clear to him, and possibly to his wife, that if he is accepted
into the Fraternity, he must sacrifice some time and energy which call for
evenings away from home. He should be a man who has a record for paying his just
debts and living up to his word, who has no record of living a dissolute life or
having immoderate habits. He should have no criminal record. He should have
sufficient education to be able to grasp and retain the precepts of Freemasonry
as taught him in the lodge. He must be literate and sufficiently fit physically
to participate in the degrees. He must have filed his Petition for the mysteries
of Freemasonry of his own free will and accord and not from any improper
solicitation of friends. He must be unbiased by any mercenary motives. He should
not view the Craft Lodge as being nothing more than a stepping stone for what he
thinks is something more desirable or where he can have more fun, but
where admission is dependent upon his being a member of the Lodge and
in good standing.
All these are areas to be explored in detail by the investigator. Such
inquiry should be conducted with the utmost tact, discretion, and as
diplomatically as possible. Derogatory information developed from the
investigation does not become a subject for later gossip and rumors and talk to
the detriment of the Petitioner whether he be accepted or rejected.
A negative investigation is utterly worthless. It is not acceptable to file a
favorable report because the investigator talked to a number of persons who said
"I never heard anything against him." An investigator might talk to scores of
people who could say that much. What the investigator is looking for are
positive statements attesting to the Petitioner's good name, or his bad
name, as the case may be.
What are the advantages of Masonic investigation? The answers, while obvious,
warrant repetition: to preserve the reputation of the Craft, to ensure harmony,
promote our advancement and our progress in our service to God and man, to
maintain our reputation before the world, and to confound our enemies by
accepting none but good men and making better men of them, men whom we are proud
to address as "Brother," men who can be counted on to practice fidelity even
unto death, if need be, to keep the faith of our Masonic ancestors and to pass
it on, unsullied, to our Masonic descendants. Make Freemasonry hard to get into;
don't sell it cheaply. Worthy men, and worthy men only, are the ones we want. We
cannot afford less.
Not only is your own Lodge dependent on you as a successful investigator; so
are your neighboring lodges, your Grand Lodge, and Freemasonry the world over.
This is a universal Brotherhood; what affects one affects all. When you admit a
man to the degrees and to the status of Master Mason, you are opening thousands
upon thousands of doors to him over the Masonic world. You are giving him the
right to wear the Square and Compasses and to have a claim upon the kindnesses
of millions of Freemasons. Let us never forget one of the great maxims of
Freemasonry: "Careful inquiry into the physical, intellectual, and moral fitness
of every candidate for the mysteries of Freemasonry is indispensable."
All components of the Craft look to you, the Investigator, for the security
and well-being of our beloved Fraternity. You are under the gravest of
obligations to discharge your duty to the very best of your ability. When you
have accomplished this duty with efficiency, zeal, and impartiality, you will
have rendered your Brethren, wherever dispersed, an invaluable service. You will
have complied with the dictates of your own conscience and the Masonic law which
specifies your duty in this field.
Your compensation will be the satisfaction of a job well done and the
knowledge that you have been the eyes and ears of the Craft during this period.
Whether spoken or not you will have earned the gratitude of your Brethren.
You, the Investigator, have a solemn responsibility. Look well to it!
OUTLINE for a TALK
I. Introduction
II. Definition of Subject
III. The Investigator
A. Honor
B. Carefulness
C. Potentials of petitioner
D. Pitfalls to avoid
E. Qualifications of
IV. Investigation
A. Selecting committee
B. Meeting for instruction
C. Politics and religion NOT investigated
D. Individual reports
E. Qualities required of petitioner
F. General principles
V. Values of Investigation
A. To the Lodge
B. To others
C. To universal Masonry
VI. Conclusion: a Charge to Investigators.
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