Saint Andrew.

It was Midlothian's "Doors Open Day" today. For the uninitiated, many local organisations allow free access and guided tours of often inaccessible places in order to gain publicity. Mrs TD opted to visit one of the local Masonic lodges, the Dalkeith Kilwinning Lodge, Dalkeith being the lodge's location, Kilwinning it's chapter. Kilwinning is also the name of a small town in the west of Scotland whose residents are the butt of many a joke about their alleged naivety. One such story concerns a lad who went into a bar and informed his pals that he had just become engaged to a certain young lady; on being told that she was not a good choice having been with every man in the town he leapt to her defence, pointing out that there weren't that many men living in Kilwinning. I refrained from telling this story to the Master who was showing us around; he was actually a nice chap and gave a very interesting tour. I, myself, would not be eligible to join the order of masons because I do not believe in a supreme deity though, had I been a devil worshipper, that would have been o.k. There is a similar restriction to joining the Boy Scouts leading me to wonder if Baden-Powell, the founder of the movement, was a mason. The scouts also have a handshake ritual.

The reason we normally shake with our right hand is because that is the hand that bears the weapon, the offer of an empty right hand shows there is no intention to attack. While B-P was serving in the Boer War he noticed that some natives greeted one another with their left hand, the shield bearing hand, thus demonstration mutual trust; he liked the idea and adopted it for his scouting organisation.

The Lodge's prized possession, donated by Sir James Walker-Drummond of Hawthornden in 1848, is this wooden statue which is insured for £10,000 but, as the Master said, being irreplaceable, it is priceless.