within a convenient distance, could attend, once or twice in a year, under the auspices of one general head, who was elected and installed at one of these meetings; and who for the time being received homage as the sole governor of the whole body."[9] The office is one of great honour as well as power, and has generally been conferred upon some individual distinguished by an influential position in society; so that his rank and character might reflect credit upon the craft.[10]

The Grand Mastership is an elective office, the election being annual and accompanied with impressive ceremonies of proclamation and homage made to him by the whole craft.  Uniform usage, as well as the explicit declaration of the General Regulations,[11] seems to require that he should be installed by the last Grand Master.  But in his absence the Deputy or some Past Grand Master may exercise the functions of installation or investiture.  In the organization of a new Grand Lodge, ancient precedent and the necessity of the thing will authorize the performance of the installation by the Master of the oldest lodge present, who, however, exercises, pro hac vice, the prerogatives and assumes the place of a Grand Master.

The Grand Master possesses a great variety of prerogatives, some of which are derived from the “lex non scripta,” or ancient usage; and others from the written or statute law of Masonry.[12]

I. He has the right to convene the Grand Lodge whenever he pleases, and to preside over its deliberation.  In the decision of all questions by the Grand Lodge he is entitled to two votes.  This is a privilege secured to him by Article XII. of the General Regulations.

It seems now to be settled, by ancient usage as well as the expressed opinion of the generality of Grand Lodges and of masonic writers, that there is no appeal from his decision.  In June, 1849, the Grand Master of New York, Bro.  Williard, declared an appeal to be out of order and refused to submit it to the Grand Lodge.  The proceedings on that eventful occasion have been freely discussed by the Grand Lodges of the United States, and none of them have condemned the act of the Grand Master, while several have sustained it in express terms.  “An appeal,” say the Committee of Correspondence of Maryland, “from the decision of the Grand Master is an anomaly at war with every principle of Freemasonry, and as such, not for a moment to be tolerated or countenanced."[13] This opinion is also sustained by the Committee of the Grand Lodge of Florida in the year 1851, and at various times by other Grand Lodges.  On the other hand, several Grand Lodges have made decisions adverse to this prerogative, and the present regulations of the Grand Lodge of England seem, by a fair interpretation of their phraseology, to admit of an appeal from the Grand Master.  Still the general opinion of the craft in this country appears to sustain the doctrine, that no appeal can be made from the decision of that officer.  And this doctrine has derived much support in the way of analogy from the report adopted by the General Grand Chapter of the United States, declaring that no appeal could lie from the decision of the presiding officer of any Royal Arch body.