Chesterfield & Mansfield Province
Royal Antediluvian Order Of Buffaloes of the Grand Lodge Of England
YOU CAN MAKE A CHANGE
IN YOUR LIFE
BY HELPING OTHER'S TODAY
R.A.O.B. Poems
Chase the Buffalo
Come all you young fellows
That have a mind to range,
Into some foreign country
Your station for to change,
Into some foreign country
Away from home to go,
We lay down on the banks...
Of the pleasant Ohio,
We'll wander through the wild woods
And we'll chase the buffalo.
We'll chase the buffalo
We'll wander through the wild woods
And chase the buffalo.
There are fishes in the river
That is fitting for our use,
And high and lofty sugar-canes
That yield us pleasant juice,
And all sorts of game, my boys,
Besides the buck and doe,
We lay down on the banks
Of the pleasant Ohio,
We'll wander through the wild woods
And we'll chase the buffalo.
We'll chase the buffalo
We'll wander through the wild woods
And chase the buffalo.
Come all you young maidens,
Come spin us up some yarn,
To make us some new clothing
To keep ourselves full warm,
For you can card and spin, my girls,
And we can reap and mow,
We lay down on the banks
Of the pleasant Ohio,
We'll wander through the wild woods
And we'll chase the buffalo.
We'll chase the buffalo
We'll wander through the wild woods
And chase the buffalo.
Supposing these wild Indians
By chance should come us near,
We will unite together
Our hearts all free from care,
We will march down into the town, my boys,
And give the fatal blow,
We lay down on the banks
Of the pleasant Ohio,
We'll wander through the wild woods
And we'll chase the buffalo.
We'll chase the buffalo
We'll wander through the wild woods
And chase the buffalo.
THE KANGAROO’S PRAYER
The Kangaroo is the most important Member, that’s for sure,
For without him the R.A.O.B. would exist no more.
So when you propose him, make sure he’s right
To take his place with us, in Brotherhood, this night.
Some never return, I wonder, why not?
Not a good introduction is the impression I got.
So Brothers on all sides, help him to be,
Another great Member of the R.A.O.B.
The Primo has started his climb to the top
For he is supposed to be the pick of the crop
And as it is he that take charge of the Chair
But at all times he has to be fair.
And when the Royal Chair he’s elected to take
You can bet odds on a mistake a mistake he will make.
Don’t ridicule him or make him feel small
Help him and guide him and make him feel tall.
The Knight of Merit, not much can be said
The Brothers elected him to the collar of red.
He’s been a Primo for three years or more
And that means access to yet another door.
He has served his Lodge for a very long time
And in a few short years he’ll reach the end of the line.
Now Roll of Honour, don’t leave it at that
Drop into Chapter, Primo sands Kangaroos to chat,
For what you have learned we’d like to learn too,
So come and help us , as someone helped you.
Some just sit there , say, “Been there, done that”,
We make a mistake and some say, “Be downsat”.
Some say, “We’ve forgotten more than he knows”,
But that’s just it , forgotten, and it shows.
Each time that we meet it is Brotherly Love,
And all in attendance is the Grand Lodge above.
Although they’re forgotten by you and by me,
It was they who founded the R.A.O.B.
We don’t meet to show who has the highest Degree,
We meet for the love of the R.A.O.B.
The Buffalo Deck of Cards
A Member of the Buffalo Order whilst on holiday visited a Minor Lodge in the town where he was staying, and after giving his salutation was invited by the W.P. to take his seat among the Brethren and enjoy all Lodge comforts. Looking around he was surprised to see a Lodge Member laying out a deck of cards and was immediately charged with the same.
When the W.P. asked the nature of the charge the reply was, “Playing Cards in the Lodge Room.” The W.P. then asked the Brother if he had any defence against the charge, and he replied, “I do Worthy Primo, and I hope to satisfy you with the purity of my intentions, and so he began. “You see Sir, when I see the ACE I think of the Worthy Primo who has full control of the Lodge, the TWO reminds me of the two questions asked at my Initiation, one of which was, Do you enter this Lodge Room of your own free will and consent? the THREE reminds me of the three objects of our Order, JUSTICE, TRUTH and PHILANTHROPY. The FOUR reminds me of the four Offices at the will and pleasure of the Lodge, CITY SECRETARY, CITY TREASURER, CITY MINSTREL and CITY WAITER. The FIVE reminds me of the five Offices I must fill if I am attain my position as a Candidate at the Examining Council, i.e. CITY CHAMBERLAIN, CITY MARSHAL, CITY TYLER, CITY CONSTABLE and CITY REGISTRAR. The SIX reminds me of a Decided Question which cannot be raised again for six months. The SEVEN reminds me that my Lodge meets every seven days, and the EIGHT serves to remind me that I must have eight attendances in the last thirteen weeks to remain in voting compliance in my Lodge. The NINE reminds me of the nine Officers of the EXAMINING COUNCIL who are elected each year at Provincial Grand Lodge. The TEN reminds me of Rule 10 of the Schedule of FINEABLE OFFENCES which reads as follows, EATING, SMOKING or DRINKING without permission, or failing to toast the Lodge with the Loyal Toast which is the Queen, the Order, and this Lodge in particular.
The JACK or KNAVE reminds me of the type of person to avoid when they seek to become a Member of our great Order. The QUEEN reminds me of the second question asked at my Initiation, Are you a true and loyal supporter of the British Crown and Constitution? Whilst the KING reminds me again of the W.P. who must see that all his Officers carry out their duties correctly, and pass judgement on all wrongdoers, such as the poor Brother who now stands before you all. As I look further through the deck of cards I find that there are 365 spots in the deck, equal to the number of days in the year, and on each of these days somewhere in the world, a Lodge Meeting is being held. There are 52 cards in the deck, similar to the number of weeks in a year, the same as an ANNUAL MEMBER’S subscription. There are FOUR SUITES in every deck, equal to the four Degrees of our Order, KANGEROO, CERTIFIED PRIMO, KNIGHT ORDER of MERIT and ROLL of HONOUR.
So you see Sir, I was not playing cards, I was consulting my RULE BOOK, and my DIARY.
The W.P. looked at the Brother and said, “Brother, be down sat, City Constable, be upstood and collect D’s from every Brother here
for the finest defence I have ever heard to a charge”.
And Brethren, this is a true story, I was that Brother.
Buffalo Alphabet
A – is for ANCIENT,
ancient without a doubt.
B – is for BENEVOLENCE,
to help those who are down.
C – is for CONVIVIALITY,
which we have in our midst.
D – is for DISPENSATION,
which allows us to exist.
E – is our EMBLEM, that we all posses.
F – is for the FRIENDSHIP,
our basis of success.
G – is for GATER,
to take our usual toast.
H – is for HARMONY,
also our genial host.
I – is for INITIATION,
the first step that we take.
J – is for JUNIPER,
for Primo’s that we make.
K – is for KNIGHTS,
whose health we always drink.
L – is for LIBERTY,
and the grand old buffalo link.
M – is for MAGNA CARTER,
which was signed in 1215.
N – is for NOMINATION,
and many there have been quite a few.
O – for our OBLIGATION,
which we remain in right.
P – is for PHILANTHROPY,
which constitutes our right.
Q – is for the QUEEN,
her “noble majesty”.
R – is for REGALIA,
which we wear with dignity.
S – is for the SIGNS,
that all brothers hold.
T – is for TRADITION,
which often we are told.
U – is for UNITY, united, we will stand.
V – is for the VOWS,
all degrees demand.
W – is for the WORKER,
who helps the cause along.
X – is for EXULTATION,
for which we always long.
Y – is for YOURSELF,
I wish you all the best.
Z – is for the ZEAL,
of brothers who never rest
AND NOW MY STORIES ENDED, HAPPY SHALL I BE TO TAKE MY SEAT AMONGST YOU, AND WISH YOU S.T.B!
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