THE ARCANE SCHOOLS - Fort Myers Beach Masonic Lodge No. 362

of our institution, have existed from its very beginning. No lodge
could
ever have been opened until a Tiler was appointed, and stationed to
guard
its portals from the approach of "cowans and eavesdroppers." The
qualifications requisite for the office of a Tiler are, that he must be
"a
worthy Master Mason." An Entered Apprentice, or a Fellow Craft, cannot
tile a lodge, even though it be opened in his own degree. To none but
Master Masons can this important duty of guardianship be intrusted. The
Tiler is not necessarily a member of the lodge which he tiles. There is
no
regulation requiring this qualification. In fact, in large cities, one
Brother often acts as the Tiler of several lodges. If, however, he is a
member of the lodge, his office does not deprive him of the rights of
membership, and in ballotings for candidates, election of officers, or
other important questions, he is entitled to exercise his privilege of
voting, in which case the Junior Deacon will temporarily occupy his
station, while he enters the lodge to deposit his ballot. This appears
to
be the general usage of the craft in this country.
The Tiler is sometimes elected by the lodge, and sometimes appointed by
the Master. It seems generally to be admitted that he may be removed
from
office for misconduct or neglect of duty, by the lodge, if he has been
elected, and by the Master, if he has been appointed.
Chapter V.
Of Rules of Order.
The safety of the minority, the preservation of harmony, and the
dispatch
of business, all require that there should be, in every well-regulated
society, some rules and forms for the government of their proceedings,
and, as has been justly observed by an able writer on parliamentary
law,
"whether these forms be in all cases the most rational or not, is
really
not of so great importance; for it is much more material that there
should
be a rule to go by, than what that rule is."[50] By common consent, the
rules established for the government of Parliament in England, and of
Congress in the United States, and which are known collectively under
the
name of "Parliamentary Law," have been adopted for the regulation of
all
deliberative bodies, whether of a public or private nature. But lodges
of
Freemasons differ so much in their organization and character from
other