No. 79 Once More.

issued before 11 th June 1735 . Well , on Picard ' s Lodge List , above " 79 , " is engraved " Little St . Martin ' s Lane , " and above that is ongraved two angelic figures holding up a crown , and , in a Lodge List of 1736 , I find that No . 79

was located at tho " Two Angels and Crown , Little St . Martin ' s Lano . " Taking , therefore , all these facts into consideration , I must come to the conclusion that tho Dublin reprinter of

Smith's Pocket Companion was , like many other Masonic scribblers , a mere blunderer . The truth is , Philadelphia had no legal Masonry before 10 th July 1749 , when Thomas Oxnard , of Boston , who w . s Grand Master of North

America , made Benjamin Franklin Grand Master of Pennsylvania . Such being the case it must be mere cheeky assumption for any ono to call Philadelphia " Mother of Legal Masonry in America , " or to claim precedence or priority in behalf of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania over tho Grand Lodge of Massachusetts . BOSTON , U . S ., 15 th November 1889 .

The Ancient Guild Of Bhistis.

THE ANCIENT GUILD OF BHISTIS .

DOES any one know that a fraternity exists in India under vows of brotherly love , secrecy and universal benevolence , savouring much of Freemasonry , quite entitled to the above designation ? It must have been remarked by all who live in India that the bhisti or water-carrier everywhere is distinguished

by a coarse red cloth tied round his waist . His capacity , however , is so humble that I do not think many have troubled themselves to ascertain anything about his business or antecedents . After a life-long residence in India the writer , though always much interested in the manners and customs of tho people , has only just discovered

that this red cloth , besides its utility as a protection againsfc wet , is the sacred insignia of a very large and liberal fraternity , inhabiting the whole of India , and

willing to accept within what they consider a holy brotherhood all classes of people that will take the vows of their humble guild and credit its traditions . The subject in this very illiberal and bigoted country , and afc the present time when the insociability of the different classes of the inhabitants is on the tapis , is one that should be of special interest , as illustrating the possibility of combination in India without regard to creed ,

and particularly to Freemasons , who , I believe , have already traced a Craft in some respects similar to their own existing in Afghanistan . The burden of a very old English song is"And I hope that his soul in heaven may dwell , Tho first who found out the leather bottell , "

and I suspect that the use of skin and leather bags as rpceptables for liquids may be traced to the most primitive times with all people . I remark this , as it leads me to believe thafc the mussnk or leather bag of the bhisti was known in India , as leather bags for irrigation and huge raw hide bottles for keeping ghi certainly were , long before the

advent of the Mahomcdans , and tbat the guild has a Hindu and far more ancient origin than the rather prejudiced brotherhood of fche present day , chiefly Mahomedans , assigns to ifc . The bhisti of the present day says that he is a follower of the great Khwaja Khidir , a prophet now in heaven ,

placed in special charge over all the waters of the earth , and thafc his apron is the archetype of the red cloth now worn round the loins by bhistis generally . Who this gentleman was historically I leave to thoso to discover who have more leisure than myself . It may be useful to note that there is a place in Calcutta called Kidderpore . Certain it is

that the investiture of the longi or apron is a ceremony carried out in the presence of a meeting of the brotherhood and after the aspirant has been tutored by a guru or

preceptor in the mystic observances and identifying questions and answers of the Craft and has taken vows . One of these vows I know to be never to refuse a drink of

water to any soul that asks for it , never to demand payment but to beg it if in need , and not to press if refused ; never to refuse a drink to the thirsty , even if giving it results

in inconvenience to yourself , as for example when going a distance with a full waterbag , for opening ifc and giving out only a small poition of the contents would have the effect of making the water shake , which is unpleasant to

The Ancient Guild Of Bhistis.

the carrier . Another vow is always to help a brother of the apron when in distress , assist his family should he die , ancl start his boys in life with the implements of the profession . When a member of the fraternity meets a person he does not know , with a longi round his waist and carrying water , ho proceeds to put to him certain questions , the answers of

which are known only to the initiated , and are secrets never yefc divulged to others . Some of these questions aro : —How many mouths has a well ? How many mouths has a mussnk ? How many straps in a mussnk get wet __ nd how many remain dry ? and the like . If the man displays ignorance he is reported to the brotherhood as one carrying on fche profession out of the pale of the fraternifcv .

and is promptly obliged to select a preceptor and get properly instructed and initiated . Caste and creed havo nothing to do with the matter . Hindu bhistis who wear the longi sit in panchayat with Mahomedans , and , as far as [ can see , there is nothing to prevent Christians joining the brotherhood . - A master-bhisti is recognised by his proficiency in leather

work and leather decoration . One is spoken of as being fco make leather hoolcah bottoms of such strength that they recover their shape after a heavily-laden carfc has gono over them . Bhistis never hesitate to take service in any part of India , and you rarely meet an old bhisti who has nofc

travelled , and who does not , when applying for a place , talk of having gone with Mr . Thompson to Assam , and with some one else to Peshawar , and to a dozen other opposite points of India . The reason is that . they know they will find , like Freemasons , a protecting brotherhood everywhere . They are less liable , I understand , than any

ofcher Native camp-follower to shirk the battle-field ; and their neutrality , evinced in the moral obligation to givo drink to friend or foe being recognised by all , secures them , an immunity from hostile interference that would nofc , I am afraid , be accorded to a Sister of Mercy . The quickness and ease with which bhisfcis organise a strike must havo been often remarked , particularly in hill stations .

With regard fco the strap and hook worn over tho shoulder by the bhisti for suspending the bucket while filling his bag and the leather , belt worn over the apron , I believo their adoption is not enforced by the brotherhood ; but as the alternative in the absence of the hook is to suspend the bucket by holding the . rope with the teeth , Hindus , who are very particular about contamination , refuse to drink

water from those who do not wear it . I have not had an opportunity of analysing the cause of objection by the Hindus in fche Punjab to drink from bhistis who do not wear a leather belt over their aprons . A bhisti who , by some extraordinary good fortune , sat on the throne of Delhi for a few days , is said to have issued

a leather currency :. a leather disc with a gold pin riveted , in the centre , worth about Rs . 2-8 . I have never seen a . specimen myself , but have heard of the existence of the coin ; and if my memory does nofc deceive me , Thomas says something about it in his Chronicles of the Pathan

Kings . The motto of every true bhisti should be , " There is nothing like leather . " I feel sure that similar associations will be found to exist in many other Indian trades and professions . —Allen ' s Indian Mail .

Sir Henry Morland , Scottish Grand Master , presided on Monday , the 3 rd inst ., afc the largest Masonic gathering ever held in Bombay , the occasion being the . presentation to the Duke of Connaught of the patent of his

nomination as Honorary Past Grand Master of Scottish Freemasons in India . Five hundred European , Parsee , Mohammedan , and Hindoo brethren , from all parts , attended the Lodge . A grand banquet , at which covers were laid for 300 persons , was afterwards given . The entertainment was altogether a very brilliant and successful one .

Bro . W . J . Terrill S . W ; has been xmanimously elected W . M ., and Bro . Thomas Gill re-elected Treasurer , for the Threo Grand Principles Lodge , No . 967 .

| The annual festival of the Madoc Lodge , No . 1509 , was celebrated at Portmadoc on the 4 th inst ., when Brother J . E . Greaves ( Lord Lieutenant of Carnarvonshire ) was ; installed W . M . The ceremony of installation was impressively performed by Bro .- Dr . W . Jones-Morris . — - {