Belfast Masonic Charities.

BELFAST MASONIC CHARITIES .

ON the 25 th ult ., a special service was held in the Cathedral , Lisburu , under the auspices of St . John ' s Lodge , No . 178 , in aid of the Belfast Masonic Charities . Bro . the Rt . Rev . Dr . Welland , Lord Bishop of the Diocese preached , and the appeal he made on

behalf of the Widows' Fund met with a generous response . The character of this Fund , and its careful management—out of every £ 1 received 19 s 3 d is

distributed—should commend it to every member of the Order , aud not only them but every one who sympathises with the widow and the orphan . Since it was founded the amount of assistance it has been able to afford and

the suffering , sorrow , and pain it has been the means of relieving , even somewhat , is only known to those intimately associated with its working . The very name of the fund should strike a chord of sympathy in every breast , and the fact that there are now some

eightyeight widows deriving benefit from it must impress upon every Freemason its importance and the necessity that they should give it liberal and generous support . The congregation was gratifyingly large . The sacred edifice

was crowded , and many had to be provided with seats in the aisles and passages . The attendance of the members of the Order was large and encouraging . Many of the Brethren of Lisburn and district were present , and numbers travelled from Belfast by special train .

The Bishop selected as his text I . Kings vi , 7

" And the house , when it was iu building , was built of stone made ready before it was brought thither : so that there was neither hammer nor ax nor any tool of

iron heard in the house while it was in building . " His

observations were listened to with marked attention . At the conclusion of his address the preacher said A man might join their Order hoping to find in it amusement , privileges , and advantages for himself , because he knew as he wandered over the world he

would ever find a hand that would grip his and a heart that would beat with his ; he did not say that those were great objects , but if he were only thinking of himself , his own privileges , and pleasure he had not risen to the high and to the true spirit of Freemasonry . The

great ornament and beauty of that Order was love of their fellow-men , love of all men , love particularly of the Brotherhood , unselfishness , desire to help and sympathise with all in their pleasure and in their sorrow ; " weep with those that weep , rejoice with those

that do rejoice ; and so it was that there were in connection with that institution funds especially for the assistance of those who were in need , those who were

still amongst them who were in poverty or distress ; and he was glad to say that this fund never refused assistance to a worthy Brother in need . But there was another fund , the Widows' Fund , the objects of which were for

those who were left behind when their Brethren were removed by the hand of death , and was it not a blessed relief to them to think that for the love they bore towards them and the bond that existed between them their Brethren would be kind and helpful to those they

left behind , and that they would not be forsaken nor forgotten . In that part of the country there were large numbers of their Brethren , and they were glad of it , who were not in a position to make such provision for those left behind , and there was a very heavy strain , therefore

upon the funds of the institution . He found that in the last year there were eighty-eight widows on the roll of this fund , and that a sum of £ 773 had been expended , but he also found that the subscriptions received from all sources only amounted to £ 673 . £ 100 less than the sum

required for the purposes of the fund . That deficiency was made up from a reserve fund , but he appealed to his Brethren not to draw upon that fund during the coming year , but to give liberally and largely . He made that appeal to the whole congregation , and especially to his Masonic Brethren—to give liberally and

largely , and in the true spirit of love , so that in the coming year they might not be obliged to turn from their doors any poor widow and her defenceless family , bereft of her support and guardian , and that they would be able to give her the help she so much needed . He also appealed to them to give cheerfully , because " God oveth the cheerful giver . "—" Belfast News . "

Christmas Holiday Arrangements.

CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY ARRANGEMENTS .

Midland Railway Company . TO prevent inconvenience and crowding , tho Midland Company have arranged for the booking offices at St . Pancras and Moorgate Street stations to be open for the issue of tickets all day on Friday , Saturday , and Monday , 21 st , 22 nd , and 24 th inst ., and

tickets to all principal stations on the Midland Railway can bo obtained beforehand at any of their offices , a list of whioh can be had on application . Tho tickets obtained at these offices will bo available from St . Pancras Station , and will be issued at the same fares as charged at that station , and dated to suit the convenience of passengers .

Cheap Excursion Trains will be run from London ( St . Pancras ) to Carlisle , Edinburgh , Glasgow , Greenock , Dundee , Aberdeen , & c „ and from principal provincial stations to Carlisle , Edinburgh , Glasgow , & c , on Fridays , 21 st , for five or eight days , and 28 th for five or seven days , by which return tickets will be issued at a Third

Class Single Fare for the double journey . The Single Fare Tickets issued on the 21 st will be available for returning on any day up to and including 29 th December , and Single Fare Tickets taken on the 28 th will be available for returning any day up to and including 4 th January 1895 .

Cheap Excursion Tickets will be issued from London ( St . Pancras ) and principal provincial stations on Thursday , 20 th inst . to Dublin , Cork , Killarney , Limerick , & c , via Liverpool , available for sixteen days ; on Friday , 21 st , to Dublin , & c , via

Morecambe , available for returning on 27 th , 29 th December , and 1 st , 3 rd , or 5 th January ; on Friday , 21 st , to Belfast , Londonderry , Portrush , & c , via Barrow , available for sixteen days , and on Saturday , 22 nd , to Londonderry , via Morecambe , available for returning 31 st December , or 3 rd or 7 th January .

Cheap Excursion Trains will also be run from London ( St . Pancras ) on Saturdav night , 22 nd , to Leicester , Birmingham , Nottingham , Derbv , Newark , Lincoln , Burton , Manchester , Liverpool , Blackburn , Bolton , Sheffield , Leeds , Bradford , York , Hull , Scarboro' , Newcastle , tho Lake District , & c , returning 26 th or 28 th December .

On Christmas Eve the pressure of traffic will be relieved by tho running of duplicate trains from St . Pancras as circumstances may require .

It is stated that Sir Michael R . Shaw Stewart , Bart ., Past Grand Master of Scotland has promised a subsciption of £ 300 towards the building of a Masonic

Temple for Greenock St . John ' s Lodge , No . 175 ( S . C . )

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THE CRITERION , PICCADILLY . ALL DEPARTMENTS NOW RE-OPENED AFTER RE-DECORATIONS AND IMPROVEMENTS . THE EAST ROOM , Enlarged to meet its Constantly Increasing Patronage , and entirely Be-decorated for the service of the most JZOJ ± J 0 . J ^ -H J-EV ; OZ 3 .-CJ DINNERS & SUPPERS t IS THE BEST VENTILATED AND MOST ELEGANT RESTAURANT IN LONDON .