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

The only objection to it is one which must be urged, not by the Order,
but
by the individual. It is, that his duties and his responsibilities are
thus multiplied, as well as his expenses. If he is willing to incur all
this additional weight in running his race of Masonry, it is not for
others to resist this exuberance of zeal. The Mason, however, who is
affiliated with more than one lodge, must remember that he is subject
to
the independent jurisdiction of each; may for the same offense be tried
in
each, and, although acquitted by all except one, that, if convicted by
that one, his conviction will, if he be suspended or expelled, work his
suspension or expulsion in all the others.
Chapter VII.
Of Demitting.
To demit from a lodge is to resign one's membership, on which occasion
a
certificate of good standing and a release from all dues is given to
the
applicant, which is technically called a _demit_.
The right to demit or resign never has, until within a few years, been
denied. In 1853, the Grand Lodge of Connecticut adopted a regulation
"that
no lodge should grant a demit to any of its members, except for the
purpose of joining some other lodge; and that no member shall be
considered as having withdrawn from one lodge until he has actually
become
a member of another." Similar regulations have been either adopted or
proposed by a few other Grand Lodges, but I much doubt both their
expediency and their legality. This compulsory method of keeping
Masons,
after they have once been made, seems to me to be as repugnant to the
voluntary character of our institution as would be a compulsory mode of
making them in the beginning. The expediency of such a regulation is
also
highly questionable. Every candidate is required to come to our doors
"of
his own free will and accord," and surely we should desire to keep none
among us after that free will is no longer felt. We are all familiar
with
the Hudibrastic adage, that
"A man convinced against his will,
Is of the same opinion still,"
and he who is no longer actuated by that ardent esteem for the
institution