Brother Sadler's Answer To Bro. Jacob Norton's

ship . On page 331 have given ono instance of a Past Grand Master of England constituting a Lodge some years after he had ceased his connection with the Graud Lodge , and althou gh it is possible that this particular " Deputation "

may have been issued for a Lodge to meet in Ireland , I think it much moro likely that it was a sort of a " roving Commission , " authorising the holders to meet as a Lodge wherever they thought proper . This appears to me the

mosfc reasonable construction that can be put upon the description of tho incident , for it will account for the officers of " a Lodge from Ireland" being together in

attendance at the very same meeting of the Grand Lodge , their being denied admission , the alternative offered them , and the reference to the " Deputation . "

Bro . Norton appears to have but a poor opinion of my method of arriving at conclusions , viz . : " by reading something here and something there "—and I ndmit that it ia sometimes rather a tedious process , yet I think it preferable

to the acrobatic performance known as " jumping at conclusions , " which althongh possibly more expeditions , occasionally results in the discomfiture of tho jumper ; I

shall therefore go on in my old way of " putting this aud that together , " and trust to his intelligence and good nature to do the best he can with the whole .

I would first ask him to bear in mind the quotation from the History of England , and then turn to page 82 of Masonic Facts , & c , where he may find mention of a complaint made in tho Grand Committee of the " Ancients " by

"" John Robinson , of No . 9 , against Moses Willoughby , of the same Lodge , for defrauding him of nine shillings in a bargain in the exchanging of a loomb . " This matter had been referred to a Committee oi weavers , " who had decided

against the defendant , and he was ordered to refund the money on pain of expulsion , but Moses was a hardened sinner : 'he declared they might expell him , for be would

not conform to the Rules of any Society upon Earth by which he should lose nine shillings . Therefore he was Unanimously Expelled , and deem'd unworthy of this or any other good Society . ' "

This important matter had probably been in dispute for some time , for tho minutes of the Grand Committee of 3 rd June 1752 contain " a formal Complaint , by Bro . John

Robinson , to the above purport , and the committee of investigation was then appointed , consisting of " Thomas Kane , Thomas O'hara , and John Morris , all Weavers , and of the said Lodge , No . 9 . "

The first-named brother appears in Morgan ' s Register as "Thomas Kaan , Weaver , residing in Brick Lane" ( Spitalfields ) , he is No . 117 on the list . Thomas O'Harah ( O'hara ) is No . 50 on the list , and his residence is " Opposite ye

Two Brewers , Brick Lane , Spitalfields . " When this brother joined , or was made , I have no means of ascertaining , for he was one of the original members , i . e ., one of those who belonged to the Society on the 17 th July 1751 ,

when it was decided to start a Grand Lodge on their own a 03 ount , and John Morris is No . 58 on the list , same address as the last named brother . While on the subject of this old register , which I consider the most valuable of

all the records of the " Ancients " for my present purpose , I may mention that out of the first 200 names only about 140 have the " place of abode and occupation " appended . As may be imagined , nearly every trade and calling is

represented , but I notice that the weaving class predominates , there being out of the 140 about twenty-one that come under this designation , and about 35 of the 140 are said to reside in Spitalfields and the immediate

neighbourhood . Doubtless Bro . Norton will consider these facts deserving of attention although there is a lapse of fifteen or sixteen years between the period at which I place the commencement of Ancient regime ( about 1735 ) and the

date of their consolidation as an organized Society , but only about four or five between Preston ' s earliest date ( 1739 ) and mine . That I quite concur with Bro . Norton in his estimate of the character of James Heseltine will be seen

by a reference to page 182 of Facts and Fictions , but that he " had good reason to despise Dermott , " or even that he did despise him , I may be permitted to doubt . I think , as a general rule , people are not disposed to write long letters

about those whom they despise , although they sometimes do so when fear is the motive power . My old friend seems to have lost sierht of the fact that Heseltine was a

lawyer , and that he " held a brief for the other side , " and also that the greater part of the letter of which he thinks so highly was of the " some one told me somebody said " character , for the writer of it had only been a Mason about

Brother Sadler's Answer To Bro. Jacob Norton's

four years , and Grand Secretary not as many months . Ho suys the late Bro . Revis told him that Lor i Blessington had forbidden the Ancients to uso his name as thoir Grand Master , and Bro . Norton believes that Revis did give him

this information ; so do I , bufc fchafc Revis " told the truth " is , to say the least of it , doubtful . What I want to know is—Why this brother , who was Grand Secretary from 1734 to 1756 , did not at the same time tell him how and when

the people he was reviling seceded ? That he did not do so is quite evident , for " the words seceders or schismatics are not to be found in this long aud carefully written document , nor does the writer even insinuate that these terms might with propriety be applied to them .

" He says they ' first made their appearance about the year 1746 . ' " Do these words indicate secession ? I think not . In my opinion their meaning is clear and conclusive , viz ., that these people " made their appearance" from some

other quarter . Heseltine was not the man to have neglected this most effective of weapons had he known , or even thought of , its existence ; it was reserved for fche more clever bufc less scrupulous Preston to concoct and propagate

this stigma . I have shown that in 1766 a member of the " Ancient " fraternity was described in a Minute Book of the rival Society as an " Irish York Mason " —in 1776 the "Ancients" were described by a distinguished Masonic

author as " the Irish Faction , ye A . M . s as they call them * selves ; " in 1786 their Warrants were referred to as " Irish Warrants ; " in 1793 their Lodges were designated "Irish , " and in a pamphlet printed iu 1806 they are called

" Irishmen . " I will now add that since my book was published I have seen their Lodges mentioned in another pamphlet , printed in 1766 , as " Irish Lodges . " And these terms have all been applied by different persons , totally

unconnected , and uninfluenced by any sinister native . I shall be very much obliged if Bro . Norton will give me his opinion on the foregoing points . If not troubling him too much , I should also like to know his explanation of the

reason of a large majority of the "Ancients" on their first register being Irishmen , and , without going into further details , how he can account for the numerous points of resemblance between the Irish fraternity

and the Ancients in England to which I have drawn attention . How it was that the customs , ceremonial and otherwise , of the latter were totally different to those of the body from which they are said to

have seceded , and how he accounts for the persistent ignoring of the " Moderns" by the Grand Lodges of Scotland and Ireland ; those bodies having been from tho first in close alliance with the despised and so-called " Schismatics . " ( To be continued ) .

Royal Arch.

ROYAL ARCH .

— : o : — ST . JOHN'S CHAPTER , No . 673 , THE annual Convocation was held on Wednesday , the 12 th tilt ., at the Temple , Hope-street , Liverpool , when there waa a good assembly . The Chapter , under the presidency of its late Chief Com * panion il . H . Smith , has been successful during the past year , and a satisfactory statement of finances was given at the meeting . There were present—Companions II . H . Smith M . E . Z ., G . Musker P . Z .,

T . Roberts P . Z ., D . Jackson P . Z ., G . Godfrey P . Z ., C . Marsh P . Z ., Dr . Clarke , H . P . Hockeu P . Z . Treasnrer , W . Sweets man N ., J . P . Parker P . S ., & c . Among the Visitors were Companions J . C . Robinson , T . Vernon , J . H . Tyson , Dr . A . Samuels , Dr . F . J . Bailey , J . P . Bryan , & o . Tho installation ceremony was very

effectively performed by Companion C . Marsh . The following are now tbe Officers : —Dr . T . Clarke M . E . Z ., Godfrey EL , Barker J ., Caldwell S . E ., Foulkes S . N ., Hocken P . Z . Treasurer , Rawlinson P . S ., Morton 1 st Assist ., Barrow 2 nd Assist . During the proceedings , in

which a handsome donation was voted to the Charities , a valuable P . Z . ' s jewel was presented to tbe retiring M . E . Z ., Companion Smith , on behalf of the Chnpter . The Companions afterwards dined , under tbe efficient supervision of Companion Casey .

RYBURN CHAPTER , No . 1283 . THE annual meeting was held on Wednesday , the 2 nd inst . The mer .: ber of the Chapter took tea together afc the Bull ' s Head

Hotel , Sowerby Bridge , after which the following Officers were iu . stalled and invesled : —Comps Smithies Z ., Dyson H ., William Haigh J ., Hallas E ., Ball N ., Thorp P . S . The ceremony of installing the Principals was performed by Comp . Holdsworth and Comp . Walker .

rSlO THE DEAF . —A Person cured of Deafness and noises in the A . head of 23 years' standing by a simple remedy , will send a description of it iui . z to tiny Person Who applies to NicnjL » o ; f , 21 BecU ' ortl-sq ., Loadon , W . O