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Brett, a vote of thanks was passed to the Rev. J. D. St. Quintin for kindly granting the use of the excellent room.About 60 persons gave in their names for membership.The next meeting was held in the St. Leonards Assembly Rooms.

Mechanics' Institution - Adelaide Lodge of Oddfellows

But very little time was lost by the provisional committee in getting to work, it being deemed to be the wisest course to strike the iron while it was hot. In the following week, therefore, those who had promised to become members together with others, met the committtee in the St. Leonards Assembly Rooms, when it was reported that the only ​building​ that could be hired for the Institution was part of the old school rooms at Mercatoria, which Mr. Carey? was using as a furniture warehouse, and which he consented to give up for £10 per year until more eligible premises could be obtained. It was decided to accept this liberal offer, and on Nov. 3rd, the first general meeting took place, when 90 members were enrolled, some two or three persons with seemingly undue, but perhaps pardonable haste, striving to be No. 1 on the list. Among the company thus got together were some who had been mere loungers in the street, and

'Twas thus in a measure
Already a pleasure
To know the good work was begun;
Where nothing was dreary
But prospect most cheery,
On all that had yet to be done

Advancing to the table, Mr. Austen said he had much pleasure in presenting the new institution with the guinea which his opponents had talked so much about during the Council election. The money was received with applause, but that sort of demonstration was increased when Mr. Chamberlain laid on the table a ten-pound note as the united gift of himself and his father. In electing the officers, the presidency was left open, but was afterwards filled by Mr. Alfred Burton. The Vice-presidents were Mr. Hollond, Mr. D. Burton, Capt. Hall, W. Chamberlain, J. Putland and J. Austin. The treasurer was J. Carey and the secretaries were C. T. How and W. Walter. The first committee of 18 were T. B. Brett, J. J. Ryall, R. Coleman, A. and H. Parks, H & J. Beck, F. R. Gausden, W. Orton, S. Chester jun., S. Putland, jun., G. Voysey, S. Stubberfield, G. Carey, C. Neve, A. Sellman, C. Lane and J. Smith.

Although grim death has made havoc in the ranks of that first committee, nearly a third of them were in existence in 1897 (50 years later), namely H. and A Parks, A. Sellman, T. B. Brett, and (probably) R. Coleman. As the said institution when this History is being revised has reached its jubilee year whilst many others of its class have died out, the foregoing particulars should not be out of place.

The present writer, at the time of moving for the founding of the said institution, was filling the office of Permanent Secretary to the Adelaide Lodge of Oddfellows, which held its sittings at the Warrior’s Gate Inn; and it so happened that the secretarial work of the one association and the promotion of the other had to be carried on, as it were, conjointly. Eight days antecedently to Mr. Banks’s lecture the members of the Adelaide Lodge celebrated their ninth anniversary with a dinner at the Warrior's Gate Inn, which was then kept by Mr, (afterwards Councillor) George Cuthbert. On that occasion Mr. Peter Pagden, of the White-rock Brewery (now the Palace Hotel) was chairman, and Mr. (afterwards Councillor) John Austin was the vices chairman, Mr. Pagden was ”a man of infinite jest,” and by his conduct as chairman added greatly to the enjoyment of the large company present. As the said lodge of Oddfellows has recently attained to its jubilee existence, and as there are but a very few of the members now alive who belonged to the association forty-two years ago, it may be of interest to the present members, if to no one else, to reproduce so much of the report of the anniversary dinner of 1848 as will show the condition of the lodge at that period. In describing the post-prandial proceedings, the newspaper report made it known that

“Mr, Clitheroe proposed the health of Secretary T.B, Brett, and thanks for his assiduous attentions, his application of time, and the clear and precise account which he is ever ready to lay before the lodge in the most intelligent manner.” (Applause).

Mr. Brett, in returning thanks, said it was on such occasions that he seized the opportunity of submitting his annual report; and it was his happiness to say that at no previous anniversary since the formation of the lodge had the society been in a more prosperous and promising condition. It had gone on from year to year amidst many changes, but each anniversary had found it in a better state, although not quite so satisfactory as was now the case. The members had been pleased to compliment him for some reforms that had been wrought mainly through his instrumentality, and it was, of course, gratifying to him to find that his calculations had been realised, The amount of funds in 1845 was £150, and at the present moment, after paying a sum of £89 for the relief of sick members, they had a balance of £300, [Applause], That, he thought, was a subject for congratulation, inasmuch as the sum had not been got together by any increase in the scale of individual payments, but by a system of retrenchment in the general expenses. It should be borne in mind that very considerable sums had been paid to sick and distressed members, averaging something like £80 or £90 a year, and that up to the year 1844, the lodge could boast of a fund of only £48, Thus, in four succeeding years, the fund had realised a sixfold increase, and without the levying of an additional impost, He felt a pleasure in stating that it was in contemplation to reduce the scale of charges for the initiation of members, He knew not to what extent nor in what way, but if he had been rightly informed the proposal had emanated from some members of the Victoria Lodge. If adopted, as he confidently felt it would be, the members generally would be benefited, and young men who might be the more induced to join the Order would of course share in the benefit.

On previous occasions, he had invited public attention to the great utility of benefit societies in general and of the Order of Oddfellows in particular. He had endeavoured to explain its benevolent principles, its most salient merits, its moral and social obligations, its tendency to relieve parochial burthens, and its claims upon society at large. It would be sufficient on that occasion to state that the Manchester Unity was established nearly forty years ago [about 1810], and that the number of lodges had increased to about 3,800, with a total of 330,000 members. The money distributed among the sick and distressed in one year was £300,000. The Unity’s ranks had been joined by 130 Members of Parliament and 600 ministers of various denominations, The entire unity could also boast of 9,000 honorary members, He need only add that in those statistics alone were volumes of material for calm reflection. In conclusion, he would express a hope that Oddfellowship would be more and more appreciated, and that the world would rally round its standard, [Prolonged applause].”

At the conclusion of the Secretary’s remarks Mr. Elford, who had presided at the pianoforte, was obliged to leave to fulfil another engagement, and Mr. Brett, with his guitar, took the place of the accompanyist. He also sang one of his original songs, specially written for those anniversaries, and afterwards published in the Universal Melodist, The -