Our Thirty-Second Volume.

OUR THIRTY-SECOND VOLUME .

WE have one great regret to express in opening our new Volume ; to record the death of the Earl of Carnarvon , Most Worshipful Pro

Grand Master of England , and Provincial Chief of Somersetshire , "which occurred on Saturday last . Throughout the fifteen and a half year's existence of THE FKEEMASON ' S CHRONICLE the late Earl has occupied one of the highest positions in connection with English Freemasonry ; in its earlier days he filled

the office of Deputy Grand Master , and for upwards of 15 years the more important one of Pro Grand Master . It is a very mournful duty in this , the first number of our new Volume , to have to refer to his decease , but the task devolves upon us , and we can

only add our regrets to the many already expressed at this sad event . As regards the future of the CHRONICLE , we can only promise that our actions shall be based on the same lines as have guided us in the past , and we must again express the hope that our efforts will meet the approval of our brother Masons ,

while we trust onr endeavours to advance the welfare of the Craft and its Institutions may be crowned with success . We thank our supporters for the encouragement we have received in the past , and assure them we shall do all in our power to deserve their continued approval .

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THE FESTIVAL OF THE BOYS' SCHOOL .

T / -S 7 E shall have to go back very many years in the " " history of the Eoyal Masonic Institution for Boys before we find a Festival that will compare with the 92 nd Anniversary Gathering , held on

Wednesday , when a total of only - £ 9 , 253 2 s was announced as the contributions of the Craft for the year . This is , unquestionably , a very large amount to secure ; but , in COmnai'isnn wfr . li VPP . ATI * fnfnla if mi-ief . ha

regarded as somewhat in the light of a failure , being insufficient to meet the expenses of the Charity for the year , and giving unmistakeable evidence that the institution has severely suffered in conseauence of

tnei unfortunate differences that have arisen in regard to its management during the last two years . -p . ^ Fes tival was held under the presidency of the *§ T S ? * . LorcI Ge 01 'ge Hamilton , M . P ., First Lord 1

r 7 . ' -aamiralty , Past Grand Warden of England , & c , ihVt -i common justice to that nobleman to say wiat he Jd everything in his power to secure the success he and so many others desired . But he

tw ? undertook the duties of Chairman , onat no ordinary work was before him , and on that for w if deservea the especial thanks of the Craft i wnat he so readily undertook . It is not everv one

oSoii ' * R play a losing 8 ame > or to be mixed up wciaily mth anything likely to result in failure ; and

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as each of these contingencies was probable—nay , almost certain—in connection with this 92 nd Anniversary Festival , when Lord George promised to preside , it is all the more gratifying to be able to refer to a result far in advance of what was looked forward to

in many quarters , among Masons well qualified to form an opinion . The Boys' Festival of the year has been a failurejudged by its predecessors ; but a gratifying success ,

if looked at in a general way , and in connection with the accepted idea of a few weeks back as to what it would realise . There is more uncertainty up to within a week of a Festival as to what it will realise

than most brethren imagine . Even the officials can form but a guess as to the outcome , while as regards outsiders it is next to impossible to arrive at anything

like approximate figures . Better evidence of this difficulty cannot be given than by referring to our conteniporary in Masonic journalism , which last week gave a forecast of the result , and fixed upon a total

which most people regarded as about double what would actually be subscribed , and which has since proved to be absurdly in excess of the actual result . Had we gone so far as to mention figures , we should

have been below the mark , but not so far out as the writer to whom we refer , and we have the further gratification of knowing that we are agreeably

surprised at the result , while our contemporary must feel particularly unhappy at the lack of foresight displayed by its editor . Better by far underestimate such a total than raise false hopes by giving figures far in

excess of what was regarded as possible by even the most ardent believers in ** modern ideas . " The falling off in the support given to the Institution this week was particularly marked in connection

with the London Lodges , for whom only 75 Stewards did duty , securing among them a total of - £ 2 , 887 16 s 6 d . The Provinces sent up - £ 5 , 815 ls 6 d ; Unattached Stewards swelled the list with - £ 497 14 s ; and the Chairman of the day contributed - £ 52 10 s . This is

probably the first time in connection with the Masonic Charities when the contributions of Lodges outside of London was double the amount subscribed by the Metropolis , and it is difficult to know whether to

regard the proportions as a mere coincidence or a fair index of what is to be expected in the future . The following summary shows the amounts sent up by the several Provinces and the number of Stewards who worked in each District : —

Province . Stewards . Amount . Berks and Bucks 7 184 1 0 Cambridgeshire 1 206 12 0 Cheshire 1 10 10 0 Cornwall 1 137 10 0 Derbyshire 7 236 6 0

Devonshire 2 74 11 0 Dorsetshire 1 181 13 0 Durham 1 78 15 0 Essex 7 307 13 0 Gloucestershire 5 69 6 0 Hants and the Isle of Wight 8 266 12 0 Hertfordshire 6 240 9 0