A Forecast For 1889.

their declining days necessitate an appeal for fraternal assistance , which assistance is so judiciously and faithfully administered through the channels of the

Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution to those who are fortunate enough io secure election to its benefits . Oh , that those benefits might be so far extended as to allow of all the eligible candidates being admitted

to a participation in them , but uniortunateiy tms is not possible ; nor is it feasible to hold out a hope for even a small minority of those who have so far been approved as eligible and worthy of assistance . There are at the present time close on 140

candidates who seek a participation in the benefits of the Benevolent Institution . All of them have been approved as worthy to receive whatever help it is in the power of the Craft to accord , and very many oi

them have already passed anxious years of waiting in the hope of one day being placed in comparative affluence through the medium of this Institution . For how many of these must sad disappointment

be continued , until death puts an end to their sufferings ? Unfortunately , a very large number will die ere the Institution is able to relieve them ; not from any lack of desire on the part of its

executive to do so , but trom a very simple , yet insurmountable objection , —an absence of the necessary funds to perform all that the heart dictates . Will our readers help to remove this

objection We have called it insurmountable , and so it is—but it is possible by heartily answering the appeal now before the Craft to lessen its severity , as bv a

liberal subscription the Institution will be enabled to declare further annuities , and a few of those who would otherwise have to be turned away will receive the much coveted grant . But such an extension can

only be hoped for after an exceptionally good year , and as we said on starting our present remarks we

have grave fears as to what will be the result of next year ' s Festivals . We cannot imagine they will be unaffected by the splendid total of the Girls' Centenary Celebration , and if that of the Benevolent Institution

falls short of what it has hitherto reached , how will it be possible to make any extension ? As we have already said , the annuities promised

require a sum of £ 15 , 000 , and to this has to be added the ordinary expenditure of the year , while on the opposite side the permanent income

amounts to only £ 3 , 600 . The large balance has to be raised by the voluntary contributions of the Craft , and in order to ensure this work being satisfactorily fl . fifimmiYlishfid it is nficessarv that everv ona with

influence should use his best efforts in support of the Benevolent Festival of the coming year . If he cannot personally undertake the office of Steward he may be able to induce some one else to do so , or he mav be able to make a personal donation in aid

of the good cause . With the hope , then , that each will help so far as he is able , we close our remarks with the best of good wishes for the Festival of the 27 th February next , and would once more point out

the great need which exists for a hearty and liberal contribution , there being one-hundred and forty approved candidates , with only about a dozen annuities available for distribution among them .

The Lion's Paw.

THE LION'S PAW .

TO explain clearly the symbol of the Lion ' s Paw as it relates to Masonry is a difficult matter . Mackey terms it a symbol of recognition , so-called because of the

rude resemblance made by the hand and fingers to a lion ' s paw . The emblem of tbe Lion ' s Paw was found in the

sarcophagus of one of the great kings of Egypt , entombed in the pyramid erected to his everlasting remembrance . It brings to mind the representation of the king ' s initiation into those greater mysteries of Osiris held to be the highest

The Lion's Paw.

aim of tbe wise and devout Egyptian . It is claimed by some writers that the Hebrews were probably instructed in the legend of Osiris , and afterwards changed the whole

to accord with tho wonderful and wise Solomon and his master architect Hiram . Very many Craftsmen reject the death of Hiram only

as a mytn . The emblem may be thus explained . The form thafc lies dead before the altar is that of Osiris , the personified sun god , whom the candidate represents in the drama of

raising , lying dead at the winter solstice , slain by grim Archer in November , the fatal month in the year of the sun . The figure of the lion grasping the dead sun god alludes to the constellation of Leo , which did prevail four

thousand years ago , to raise the sun god to his place of power and glory on the summit of the Grand Royal Arch of heaven at the summer solstice , and denoted then , as it

does now , that the sun or the candidate is about to be raised from a symbolical death to life and power , by the strong grip of the lion ' s paw , or as it has been termed , " the lion of the tribe of Judah . " The cross which the

lion holds in his other paw is the ancient Egyptian symbol of eternal life . The figure erect at the altar is doubtless that of the grand hierophant , with his hand raised in an

attitude of command , forming a right angle , with eyes fixed on the emblematic lion as he gives the sign of command that Osiris , or the candidate , be raised from death

and darkness to light and life . It cannot be determined who Osiris was , but he was certainly to the Egyptians what Jupiter was to the Greeks .

It is even difficult to determine whether the legend as recorded in mythology is reliable and authentic , but the lesson sought to be conveyed is the triumph of good over evil , or light over darkness . If we view the scene that has just been described we see an exact representation of an instance that occurs in the

making of every Craftsman . He may look upon the form as somewhat inconsistent , but a little study will show him

that it was quite the reverse , and that his part was enacted by the devout Egyptian in the days of the most remote antiquity . The story of the sun starting iu weakness and ending in victory , waging a long warfare against darkness , clouds and storms , and scattering them all in the end , is the story

of all heroism , of all patent sacrifices , and of all Christian devotion . If there is monotony ° in the thought of the daily toil of the sun for beings weaker than himself , of his wrath as he

hides his face behind the dark cloud , of his vengeance as he tramples on the vapours which crowd around him at his settiner . of the doom which serves him from the dawn at

the begining of his journey to restore her at its close , then there is monotony also in the bare record of birth and love , and toil and death , to which all human life may be pared

down . To show that the Lion ' s Paw had reference to the sun , I refer to a form in the mysteries of Hindoostan . While performing a ceremony the candidate was taught to exclaim on his arrival each time in the south , "I copy the example of the sun and follow his benevolent course . "

This being completed , he was again placed in the centre and solemnly enjoined to the practice of religious austerities , as the efficient means of preparing his soul for final absorption . In the Mysteries of Bacchus the candidate

was imprisoned in a pastos , or cell . He was alarmed by a crash resembling the rush of waters bursting with sudden impetuosity from a deep abyss , or the deafening fall of

a tremendous cataract , for now was the representation displayed of the waters of the deluge breaking forth from Hades to inundate the globe . The monstrous Typhon , raging in quest of Osiris , discovered the ark in which he

bad been secreted , and violently rending it asunder , scattered the limbs of his victim over the face of the earth , amidst the din of dissolving nature . The aspirant heard the lamentations which were instituted for the death of

their god , whose representative he was , accompanied with doleful cries and bowlings of men , women and animals , to symbolise the death shrieks and exclamations of terror , consternation and despair , which prevailed throughout the

world at the universal destruction of animated nature , and which would undoubtedly salute the ears of Noah while within the vessel of safety . Should we follow up the ceremonies of the various mysteries we will find that in all instances the candidate passes from darkness to light , as

personified in the third degree .