The Society Of Eight.

[aprado]

Hi Brethren,

I'm looking for information regarding the above group, as far as i can find out, its members included: W.W.Westcott, John Yarker, A.E. Waite, but i can't find any more history or details. Also do we know if there are any transactions & a list of members available? I dont think it was limited to just SRIA members but i could be wrong?

[eric384]

I don't know a lot about it, but as far as I do know, it is open to Master Masons. Have a look at this archive of their website.

https://sites.google.com/site/augustorderoflight/home

[aprado]

thats the August Order Of Light, I'm after the Society Of Eight, which was pretty much a correspondance circle which ceased to existin the early 1900's i believe.

[eric384]

Sorry mis-read that.

[Joe]

Probably your best bet might be to look at some of the Golden Dawn (and related) fora and knowing those names quite well and their other associations even though they were masons it's not likely to be what you might call 'masonic'

[middlepillar]

The Society of Eight was very short lived, I believe it was started by Frederick Holland.

The idea was for a group of like minded individuals would send correspondence around with each person receiving the correspondence adding to it. Unfortunately unlike today when things are pretty instant, the society lost its way in as much that the correspondence just took too long and people lost interest, and they never recruited other like minded people!

This is just a thumbnail I am sure if you do dig deeper you will find out more but it really isn't a very interesting group (although I believe a great idea) it just wasn't around for very long

[aprado]

I think i will cross this off the list lol.

Thank you for the knowledge sir. :D

[Lazza21]

A quick search on "Google" reveals:-
Society of Eight
Formed in 1912 this group of predominately Scottish Artists whose founder members included Patrick Adam, James Paterson, James Cadenhead, John Lavery, David Alison and Scottish Colourists, Peploe and Cadell. As they began to die off, younger artists were invited to exhibit. These included Duncan Grant, John Nash, Hugh Adam Crawford, H. J. Lintott, Archibald McGlashan, William MacTaggart and William Giles not all of whom were Scottish. The prime aim of the group appears to have been to attempt to bridge the divide, artistic and political between Glasgow and Edinburgh. The year that the Society ceased to be active is not certain but they did hold an exhibition in 1938, but it is probable that World War II ended their activities.

[Lazza21]

A further search found this link which sounds like what you are looking for http://autorbis.net/kenneth-mackenzie

[Sarastro]

While Kenneth Mackenzie was a prominent member of the Soc:.Ros:. in Anglia and had a rapid rise through the Grades, in 1875 he resigned after Robert Wentworth Little deliberately offended him. It was later recorded how on 28 August 1883 Mackenzie wrote to F.G. Irwin that the Society of Eight "means work not play. It is by no means poor [R.W.] Little's foolish Rosic[rucian] Society. We are practical and not visionary and we are not degree-mongers. That nonsense is played out." ... said the man who had every single degree in his book The Royal Masonic Cyclopedia

The Society of Eight was founded by Frederick Holland for the study of practical occultism. Mackenzie probably wrote the Initiation Rituals and Ceremonies for the Society which were never used. These Ceremonies, once encoded, could have become the basis of the Golden Dawn Cipher Manuscript... but this is a different Chapter

Members of the Society of Eight were Frederick Holland, K.R.H. Mackenzie, John Yarker, F.G. Irwin, Frederick Hockley, Benjamin Cox, William Alexander Ayton, and W.W. Westcott. Mathers became a member after the death of Hockley in 1885.