In the strong language of the Committee of Correspondence of Maryland:[94] "The object of Masonry never was to extort, _nolens volens,_ money from its votaries.

Such are not its principles or teaching.

The advocating such doctrines cannot advance the interest or reputation of the institution; but will, as your committee fear, do much to destroy its usefulness.

Compulsive membership deprives it of the title, _Free_ and Accepted." But as it is an undoubted precept of the Order that every Mason should belong to a lodge, and contribute, so far as his means will allow, to the support of the institution, and as, by his demission, for other than temporary purposes, he violates the principles and disobeys the precepts of the Order, it naturally follows that his withdrawal must place him in a different position from that which he would occupy as an affiliated Mason.
It is now time for us to inquire what that new position is.
We may say, then, that, whenever a Mason permanently withdraws his membership, he at once, and while he continues unaffiliated, dissevers all connection between himself and the _Lodge organization_ of the Order.

He, by this act, divests himself of all the rights and privileges which belong to him as a member of that organization.