Reviews.

REVIEWS .

AU Books intended for Beview should be addressed to the Editor of The Freemason ' s Chronicle , 87 Barbican , B . C . Tlie Groundwork of Freemasonry . — An address delivered by Bro . Robert Bell at the third annual social meeting of tho brethren of Lodge " Mother Kilwinning , " resident in Glasgow and neighbourhood , 24 th April 1875 . Glasgow : John Tweed , 9 Howard-street .

Bro . Bell ' s address is governed mostly by common sense , which is after all paying it and him a far higher compliment than if we had enlarged on his wonderful powers of oratory , the depth of his learnin " , and so forth . Bro . Bell is simplicity itself in his treatment , and common sensible in his remarks , these latter being devoted to what

are taken as "the three parts of the groundwork on which onr Order is founded , " namely , Brotherhood , the Bible , and Solomon ' s Temple As an approp riate specimen of what a short Masonic address should be , we cordially commend this , on The Groundwork of Freemasonry , to tho notice of onr readers .

Magazines Of The Month.

MAGAZINES OF THE MONTH .

SECOND NOTICE . In the Gentleman ' s are a short sketch of " Gambetta" by " Spectavi , " an account of " The late John Mitchel and the Young Ireland Party , " by a " Young Irelander of ' 48 , " with a comparison of the

merits of " Mr . Irving and Signer Salvini , in which the Hamlet of the former is , to our mind , too lightly estimated . Wo are promised next month a sketch of " The Member for Stoke , " by " The Member for tho Chiltern Hundreds , " and in July , tho opening chapters of a new novel by Mr . K . C . Francillon , the author of " Olympia . "

There is , in the Cornhill , an admirable article on " The Art of Furnishing , " an acconnt of the " Success of the Transit Expedition , " and the conclusion of' a biographical sketch of the artist , " Lnca G ' anovelli . " In the way of fiction we have tho three tales " Miss Angel , " "The Marriage of Moira Fergus , " and "Three Feathers" continued . It is a great pity the illustrations are not on a better footing with the contents .

Belgravia is admirably illustrated , ancl contains a variety of light readable papers , with tho further advantage of not having a heavy uninteresting tale to overweight it . Amongst the most noticeable of the contents are No . III . of Mr . Compton Reado ' s " Oxford Raffles ; " Mr . J . H . Eyre ' s " Brighton Reminiscences , " in which we

are introduced to tho Pavilion , and its illustrious occupant , George Prince of Wales ; a paper by Mr . T . H . S . Escott , on " Thespis and Themis ; " and further chapters of "Hugh Milton , " in which are narrated somo important incidents in the story . " Tho Family Ghost " is an amusing tale .

Our readers will find some rather dry , but very sound , readable matter in Macmillan . Such , for instance , is tho paper on the " Irish Land Question , " the treatment , thus far , of which is a success , from the writer ' s view . F . J . G . contributes an elaborate notice of Sir Henry Rawlinson's recently published essays on "England and Russia in tho East , "

and the closing article on " The Foreign Loans Committee , " by W ., is worth studying . There is , too , a sketch by Mr . J . Delaware Lewis , of " Eton thirty years ago , " in which the system of teaching , and the disciplinary arrangements are shown to have been scarcely what we should have expected in the most eminent of our great Public Schools .

The Scottish Freemasons' Magazine , in its last issue , contains an article on tho recent Installation , which our contemporary must excuse us for saying is in very questionable taste . It is not for us to analyse the feelings of English Masons generally , but wo do not think that flunkeyism had much to do with the recent excitement at the Prince ' s election . Nor do wo think tho terms which are applied , either directly or by inference to His Royal Highness , are such as should have been nsed . They are , to say the least , un-masouic .

Tho Westminster Papers contain a good translation of some criticisms by J . Bcrger of Griitz , on " The British Problem Tourney , " and some admirable " Dramatic Notes , " besides tho usual array of Problems and Whisfc Hands . Chambers ' s Journal opens with a well-written paper , by William Chambers , of " The Story of Kitty , Duchess of Queensbnry . "

Kitty , of course , fills the greater part of the sketch , but the whole family of the Queensberries , from the 1 st Duke in the reign of Charles , down to " Old Q ., " who died in 1810 . appears . Wo have noted also an article on " Free Libraries , " "Recollections of Old Coaching Days , " by W . Chambers , which will be read with avidity by those who take an interest in the present coaching " revival . " An article " About Spiders" is far more engaging than its subject is

nth active to look at . There are also a notice of the fourth Report of the Historical Manuscripts' Commission , ancl an amusingly written paper entitled , "Animal Volunteers , " the gist of which may be gathered from tho answer of a sentry at some cavalry barracks to the inquiry if a certain dog , always at the gates , had a master in the Regiment . " No , sir , " replied he , " but I'm thinking he wants to enlist . Dogs often come to us in this way . " The two articles on " Lancashhe Recreations" will he found also very interesting .

The most attractive reading in the Argosy is Johnny Ludlow ' s contribution— " The Syllabub Feast . " This completes tho story commenced last month in " The Key of the Church . " Of course " the murder ' s out " iu the present paper , and everybody comes round to a proper sense of everything . "An Unsolved Mystery , " ancl the ' ¦ Penalty of Genius , " as well as the serials—in fact , the whole number is very readable . This literary Argosy is certainly a rich one .

The Leisure Hour is very well illustrated , and contains several articles of an instructive aud entertaining character . Such for instance is " Franking Letters , " or a glance at the Post Office of last

Magazines Of The Month.

century , and long , therefore , before Sir Rowland Hill ' s system of Penny Postage had come into force . Of another , but equally agreeable style , are the articles headed , " Under Canvas : A Lady ' s adventures in the Himalayas , " a region which not many ladies are venturesome enough to traverse . Then there is an account of " The Palaces of Old London , " many of which were situated in parts of the

city where the present generation of Londoners would hardly expect them to have been , while others were located at somo distance from the city , as at Kew , Richmond , Eltham . The " Original Fables " are pleasant reading , and Dr . Rimbault contributes an excellent paper on " Some of tho Characteristics of National English Tunes , " abundantly illustrating it by such specimens as " The Old Lancashire Hornpipe , " "Tho King ' s Jig , " and others .

Sunday at Home , which is the companion publication of the foregoing , contains , likewise , a goodly programme of articles , appropriately illustrated . Both these periodicals are specially adapted for tho instruction of children , and , indeed , " children of a larger growth " need not hesitate to consult their pages . Among the more note *

worthy contents of tho present number of Sunday at Home are an account of tho "Tombs of the Ming Emperors in China , " an "Anecdote of Sir William Napier , " ancl Part VII . of a description of " Jewish Life in tho Time of our Lord , " by the Rev . Dr . Edorsheim . Some of the poetical contributions are fair specimens of fluent versification .

" Give me a grip of your Hand , " a Now Masonic Song . London Hopwood ancl Crew , 42 New Bond Street . " GIVE Me a Grip of Your Hand " ia not by any means a bad title for a song dedicated to the Craft , but , as the terminating lino of each stanza , tho words do not lend themselves to poetic expression . The hypothetical cases set forth by the author as fitting occasions for

" gripping the hand are sufficiently comprehensive in scope , for they range from tho patriot and " Statesman too , " through tho Doctor of Medicine , tho Soldier and tho Tar , to the Man of humble means . Such amiable sentiments as these are likely enough to be effective with the mnsic-hall audiences , ? the song is intended to amuse , ancl ,

when sung in the dramatic style which is Mr . Macdermott ' s peculiar merit , wo have little doubt that they are so . We give the author credit for the best intentions in dedicating his verses to the Craft but we fear , that , like his brother poet ' s " Ode to Posterity , " they will never reach the address .

The Drama.

THE DRAMA .

" Weak "Woman " at the Strand . —Kecent Announcements .

THE name of Mr . Byron has lately become as much identified with the Strand Theatre as that of the late Mr . Robertson was with the Prince of Wales ' s . This close association with any ono theatre must bo prejudicial to the work of any dramatist ; having to write pieces suitable to the particular theatre , and to describe characters suited to the peculiarities of a particular body of artists , he falls into one

groove , and his productions are wanting in variety . "Weak Woman" is a piece precisely similar in character to " Old Sailors , " its predecessor . With only the merest skeleton of a plot , its dialogue is smart , and ou that , and tho closeness of the acting , the piece depends . A somewhat eccentric gentleman , lately deceased , has bequeathed his fortune to one of two sisters , his nieces , on condition that until both are

married , neither shall disclose which is the lucky legatee , this condition being apparently made in order that both may secure disinterested husbands . The hand of one , Lilian , is already secured by a young farmer , a neighbour ; the other , Helen , the supposed heiress , is an object of attraction to two country worthies , and she is also loved by a poor cousin , a disinherited son of her benefactor ,

whom the girls have engaged to manage the estate . This gentleman , Frederick Fanshawe by name , thinks it would be mercenary to make love to Helen , and , in order to conceal his affection for her , somewhat euullv pays attentions to Lilian ; but on discovering a later will cons i . tiling him iho heir , he no longer seeks to disguise his feelings , and at once , < i !' i : rs himself to Helen . She , thinking that

he has discovered that she is tho heiress , orders him out of the house which he knows to bo his own . A farewell visit sets matters right , and the curtain falls on a double wedding . Miss M . Terry is a graceful Lilian , and Miss Ada Swanborough as Helen plays better than she has hitherto done ; Mr . Vernon is tho cousin , and is extremely well suited to the part ; his pleasant bearing and careful acting

would be of service on any stage . Mr . C . H . Stephenson plays tho part of a doctor , a friend of the family . This is a class of character in which Mr . Stehpenson has had good experience , and in which he always appears to advantage . Mr . E . Terry manages to extract much fun out of " Captain Ginger , " one of the country fortune hunters . The piece is received with every sign of favour , but it cannot bo called a

good comedy : the plot is conventional , the characters stereotyped . It is probable that anything written by Mr . Byron , and played by tho STK . VND company , would find favour in the eyes of a STUAND audience , but Mr . Byron knows how little tho long run of a play is a proof of its intrinsic merit , and he should remember that pieces like " Weak Woman , " however successful for the time , are unworthy of his great

reputation and his undoubted ability . Mr . Albery ' s new comedy entitled " The Spendthrift , " will bo produced at the OLYMPIC on Monday , the 21 th inst . . The Cn . uiiNO CROSS re-opens to-night , with a new play , "Jeanne Dubarry , " in which Miss Edith Lynd will appear , and a new operetta ,

in which Miss Kate Santley will no doubt charm her numerous admirers . We believe that the next novelty at the ST . JAMKS ' will beau operetta , of which the libretto will be contributed b y Mr . Gilbert , aud the music by Mr . Sullivan .