On the procession reaching the entrance of the enclosure, the brethren composing it halted, opened to the right and left and faced inwards to leave room for the two Grand Masters to pass up the centre (English represented by Lord Sandhurst and Scottish by Rt.WBro J.W. Smith, Past Grand Master. They were preceded by their respective Standard and Sword Bearers, the Grand Officere following in succession from the rear. When the Grand Masters and Principal Officers had taken their places on the dais, the Past Grand Master of ASFI read a short history of the movement for a Joint Hall for the Masonic bodies in Bombay and then asked His Excellency to lay the Stone.

After this has been done, the Grand Master delivered the tools to the Architect and having examined the Plans, returned them to that officer for guidance.

His Excellency then addressed the gathering. The procession then returned to the Novelty Theatre and the District Grand Lodge was closed in due form.

The inscription on the plaque on the lower stone read:
“This cornerstone of the Freemasons Hall was laid by His Excellency the Rt Hon’ble William Barron Sandhurst, GCIE, Governor of Bombay, Pro. District Grand Master and Grand Master of all Scottish Freemasonry in India on 5th June 1897.”
Within 2 years (1899) the construction of the Freemasons’ Hall was completed. The year 1899 was remarkable for the construction and dedication of the Hall which was described as “Home Street” Fort, Bombay. This was the consummation of the project initiated in 1877, but put off from time to time until both the EC and SC could be put under one Master who would also be the head of the Bombay Presidency. It was estimated that the building would cost Rs. 1,10,000 while fittings and furniture would cost Rs. 36,900. It was planned to raise Rs. 53,000 by donations and Rs. 94,000 by bonds, debentures etce. Thanks to liberal response from the Brethren, bodies and the N.N. Framji Trust which handed over funds at its disposal to the Petit family and the savings of the Joint Hall Committee, the total reached Rs. 76,952. The building Committee resolved to name one of the banqueting halls as “Framji Dinshaw Petit Banqueting Hall” and the larger hall as “Framji Cowasji Banqueting Hall”. Needless to say, the main temple is named as “the Sandhurst Temple”. The call for Debentures also met with ample response.

Lord Sandhurst said “the more these two bodies (EC & SC) are united in their head, the better it will be for the Craft in every respect.” At the conclusion of the ceremony of dedication, a silver bowl and cup were presented to W.Bro. Khan Bahadur Darashaw R. Chichgar, Secretary of the Building Committee .

Other matters
During the year (1897), the DGL voted a congratulatory address to Her Majesty Queen Victoria on her having completed the longest reign recorded in English history.

At the November Communication, the WM of Lodge St. Andrew’s No. 500 of Kamptee, Nagpur requested that his Lodge be placed under the jurisdiction of Bombay District instead of Madras as at present. Later, the Past Dy.DGM visited Nagpur to Lodge St. Andrew’s and welcomed it to the jurisdiction of Bombay District. The DGMs of both having concurred with the petition of the Lodge, the transfer was duly approved by the Grand Master with effect from 1st January 1898 . Fifty years later, the Lodge was shifted from Kamptee to Nagpur to meet at premises owned by Lodge Corinth No. 1122. In 1961 Lodge St. Andrew’s opted to join the Grand Lodge of India.

A petition to form a Lodge at Rajkot called “Kathiawar” though forwarded to the Grand Lodge, the Pro. DGM felt after enquiries that he should withhold his recommendation for the present. The Petition was therefore rejected by the Grand Master. In December 1899, Lord Sandhurst announced that the difficulty about the Lodge “Kathiawar” at Rajkot has now been overcome. The Warrant later arrived and the lodge was assigned No. 2787. This Lodge was later transferred to GL in 1961.

Another Lodge Rajputana No. 2800 was founded in Mount Abu. This Lodge was closed in 1954.

Lord Sandhurst visited Sukkur (Sind) and laid the foundation stone for Masonic Hall there.

Lodge St. George No. 549 celebrated its Golden Jubilee in 1898, the first such in the District.

A Special Communication of the DGL was held in Freemasons Hall in Karachi in November 1899.
The first time the DGL met in Karachi, Lord Sandhurst who presided, bade farewell to the Brethren as he was leaving India shortly.

The District Grand Secretary read out the communication from the Grand Master regarding the reversal by the Grand Lodge of Peru of its former action in removing the VSL from the Altar of Lodges and in suppressing the word ‘Bible’ in the ritual. The Grand Master welcomed the return of the Grand Lodge of Peru to the fold of Masonic bodies which acknowledge then G.A.O.T.U. and the presence in Loges of the VSL as essential Landmarks of the Craft.

The DGL met in February 1900 at Freemasons’ Hall when for the first time a Joint Communication of the District along with the Grand Lodge of ASFI presided over by Lord Sandhurst took place. Several speakers paid tribute to Lord Sandhurst on a farewell resolution. The proposer said:
“He carried on his duties with unswerving fidelity and for the good of the Craft. We are at present assembled in a building which has grown up under his foster care and influence. The present condition of sister Constitutions of England and Scotland has been cemented in a manner which has never before been experience in the history of Freemasonry in India.”

The seconder spoke of him as:
“A perfect English gentleman and though not a Scotsman, a good Scottish Mason.”

One of the supporters pointed out that Lord Sandhurst had fulfilled the promise made five years ago to procure a local habitation and a home for the Craft.

Lord Sandhurst said Lord Northcote would succeed him as Pro. DGM as well as the Grand Master of ASFI. He too succeeded Lord Sandhurst as the Governor of Bombay Presidency.

An autograph album was presented to WBro. Chichgar. He announced that an anonymous donor had given Rs. 5,000 to the building fund to perpetuate Lord Sandhurst’s regime on condition that the temple be named after him and that no other individual name be henceforth associated with the entire Masonic Hall.

Replying to tribute at the banquet, Lord Sandhurst echoed the sentiments of Hon. Bro. N.G. Chandavarkar and said:
“In no country in the world do we need freemasonry more than in India. The more the opportunities we get of being brought together in India and thoroughly understanding one another the better it will be for all of us. We need to understand one another to appreciate one another’s good qualities, to sweep away the froth of public life and to uphold what is sterling and good and that is the backbone of Freemasonry.”