Cheshire .—A Historic Reminiscence.

CHESHIRE . —A HISTORIC REMINISCENCE .

CHESHIEE is almost as famous for its Freemasonry as for its cheese . The cause of this may not be far to seek , for oue historian speaks of it as the " seed plot of gentilitie , " where " the soile is fat , fruitful , and rich , yeelding abundantly both profit and pleasure to man "—

Where Queenly Britain to tho Hibernian sea , Her side presents , Cheshire displays its pleasant fields , Cheshire , a starry crown , set full of noble men , As when a field grows proud with countless flowers .

Other writers speak of the loyalty of its inhabitants in troublous times , of their obedience to constituted authority , and of the inhabitants generally as amply supplied with nature ' s endowments , " their complexions faire , with a cheerful countenance , and the women , for grace , feature , and beautie ,

infenour unto none . " Of the antiquity of Cheshire there can be no more doubt than there is of its present rank and importance among the counties of England . At one time Cheshire comprehended all the country between the rivers Dee and Eibblelong before Lancashire could boast of being a County Palatine .

Afterwards that county was formed by being united to the country north of the Eibble , otherwise Cheshire might have embraced " Manchester and Proud Preston" within her borders ! The county or province may now be said to be bounded on the north by the Mersey , which divides it from Lancashire , and by a

small portion of Yorkshire ; on the east by Derbyshire ( the small rivers of Etherow and Goyt forming the boundary ); south-east by Staffordshire ; on the soulh by Shropshire ; on the south-west by Denbighshire ; and on the west by Flintshire and the Irish Sea . Its area embraces about thirty-two miles from north to

south , and fifty from east to west , being rather above the average of English shires . Were it that it does not come within the scope of an article of this character we might , with Sir Peter Leycester , the historian " par excellence , " begin with " Adam the first monarch and the first man , " following on with the deluge ; illustrating that unfortunate piece of operative Masonry which

led to the confusion of tongues ; the Babylonish captivity , the death of Julius Ctesar , the building of old Chester ' s walls , the Norman Conquest , and other kindred matters , but as these are known to the merest tyro in history we will pass on to the other and , we trust—to the Masonic mind—much more interesting matter .

Premising , then , the antiquity of the county of Chester , tbe Cheshire Mason may also feel proud of the antiquity of his Province . There were great men before Agamemnon , just as there were Masonic Lodges before they were known in Cheshire ; but it is especially interesting to Cheshire Masons to know that under the

Grand Lodge of England , revived in 1717 , Cheshire was , in 1725 , the first Province to derive its functions therefrom . North and South Wales comes next ( 1726 ); Bengal , India ( 1728 ); Shropshire ( 1731 ); Lancashire ( 1734 ) , & c . The first Provincial Grand Master was Colonel P . Columbine , who belonged to an old

Derbyshire family . He was a relative of the Marburys of Marbury , and he probably derived his connection with Cheshire owing to a Marbury having married Miss Columbine , a Derbyshire heiress , in 1683 . Captain Hugh Warburton , who succeeded Colonel Columbine in 1727 , was also oue who took much interest

in the Craft . He was Provincial Grand Master of North Wales in 1726 , and was a member of a now extinct branch of the ancient house of Warburton . For twenty-eight years he ruled over the Province . He was succeeded in 1755 by Mr . John Page , also a descendant of an ancient Cheshire family which resided

for centuries at Erdshaw and Drakelow . In 1771 we find in office Mr . J . Hugh Smith-Barry , ancestor of the present holder of the Marbury estates , Mr . J . Hugh Smith-Barry , M . P . Under what may be termed the old Constitutions , the appointment of Sir Eobert Stapleton Cotton was noteworthy as being the last . He was

the father of the Eight Hon . Lord Viscount Combermere , who later on filled Europe with admiration of his deeds of daring both in the Peninsular aud on the burning plains of India . He represented the county in Parliament from 1780 to 1796 , aud died in 1809 .

It was on 27 th December 1813 that the United Grand Lodge of England was formed , under H . E . H . the Duke of Sussex as Grand Master . Prior to this , Brethren of the rival Grand Lodges were frequently distinguished from each other by the

names of their respective Grand Masters . Thus , the members of Lodges under the " regular " or constitutional Grand Lodge ( 1717 ) were known as " Prince of Wales Masons" or " Moderns , " while those nnder the jurisdiction of the rival Grand Lodge were styled " Atholl " Masons or " Ancients . "

In August 1816 the first regular meeting which had been held for some time was called at the Feathers Hotel , Chester , presided over by Sir John Grey Egerton , Bart ., who on that occasion nominated his Officers , twelve in number . In 1820 Provincial Grand Lodge resolved to present an address of congratulation to His Majesty King George IV . on his accession to tbe throne ,

Cheshire .—A Historic Reminiscence.

setting forth the delight they felt in knowing that tbe lung " is our Brother , that the monarch of England has patronised our Order , and aware of its internal philanthropic excellencies , has sheltered it from tho ignorant by tho fiat of his approbation . " The sermon on the occasion of this meeting was preached by the Eev . George Leigh Chaplain of the Noah ' s Ark Lodge , Middle wich , and gave great satisfaction to the Brethren .

On 21 st October 1830 the Eight Hon . Lord Viscount Combermere was appointed , by patent from his Eoyal Highness Prince Frederick Augustus Grand Master of England , to the office of Provincial Grand Master for the County Palatine of Chester , and the installation followed in due course at the King ' s Friends '' Lodge , Nantwich . At the first Provincial meeting , held

under his sway in 1832 , it was resolved that a local fund be established for Charitable and Masonic purposes , evidently the forerunner of the Provincial Fund of Benevolence . It was in 1839 , that Mr . E . H . Griffiths , of Nantwich , was appointed Provincial Grand Secretary , an office which he continued to hold until the year 1887 , when he was succeeded by Bro . Eichard Newhouse , the present Prov . G . Sec . In 1843 , the first of the

annual meetings of Provincial Grand Lodge , which have been held uninterruptedly since that time in various parts of the Province , was held at Stockport . In the year 1862 , at Sandbach , Bro . Willoughby introduced a scheme for the establishment of an Educational Institution for the children of distressed Masons in the Province , on the basis of the one established in West Lancashire twelve years before , " aud which had been found to answer exceedingly well . "

A Provincial Grand Lodge of Emergency followed at Crewe , at which the P . G . M . Lord Viscount Combermere was requested to act as President , and Lady Combermere as Lady Patroness , and this was followed by the appointment of Officers . On the death of Lord Combermere , on the 21 st February 1865 , at the

ripe age of 91 , Lord de Tabley was installed as Provincial Grand Master , at Knutsford , in August of the same year , in the presence of a large assemblage of Brethren . In 1870 , at the annual meeting in the ancient borough of Congleton , his Lordship stated in the course of his address that when he first took office

they had hardly a vote for any of the Charities , and they had then upwards of 500 . Some idea of the immense progress made since then may be gathered from the fact that this year Provincial Grand Lodge , Lodges , Chapters , and Brethren hold an aggregate of 5 , 907 votes ! In like manner , when Lord de Tabley was installed P . G . M ., the Lodges numbered twenty-six ; thev now

number fifty-two . In 1877 the Hon . Wilbraham Egerton , M . P ., now Earl Egerton of Tatton , and Grand Master of the Province , assumed the office of D . P . G . M ., and in 1886 , Lord de Tabley , after twenty-one years' service as P . G M ., placed his resignation in the hands of H . E . H . the Prince of Wales , and in doing so tendered his sincere and heartfelt thanks to the Brethren for their loyal and affectionate support .

He alluded to the progress made during his term of office , and added that it was with satisfaction and thankfulness that he could hand over his beloved Province to his successor , and praying always for their unity , harmony , and prosperity , he , with heartfelt regret , bade them farewell . Lord de Tabley died on the 19 th October 1887 . In the light of subsequent events it will be

admitted that his mantle has fallen on a worthy successor in the Earl Egerton of Tatton , who was installed as Provincial Grand Master in that year in the Town Hall , Chester , where the annual meeting was held for the first time since on Wednesday last . The attendance of Grand Officers , Provincials , Masters , and Brethren at his installation was the largest and most

brilliant in the history of the Province . His Lordship was installed by his noble kinsman the late Earl of Lathom Deputy Grand Master of England , supported by the late Col . LeGendre Starkie P . G . M . East Lancashire , Earl Amherst P . G . M . of Kent , & c . Under his Lordship ' s beneficent rule the Province continues to flourish , and many movements have been taken up

on his initiation , notably the Cheshire Masonic Benevolent Institution , while on all occasions his Lordship has taken his share in Masonic functions in various parts of the county . That this progress may continue , and that our Provincial Grand Master may be spared not only to Masonry , but to the country at large , is the desire of every true Mason . — Alfred Ingham , in " Manchester Herald . "

Qualifications Requisite In Candidates.

QUALIFICATIONS REQUISITE IN CANDIDATES .

WHO are ancl who are not eligible for the Mysteries of Freemasonry ? is a question that should be determined by the authorities in each Jurisdiction in such a manner as to leave no room for misunderstanding . The desire for work on the part

of W . M . s has led , and does now lead them to stretch the laws and traditions of the Institution , when left open for individual interpretation , to their uttermost attenuation , even to the extent of bringing themselves and their Lodges under well-merited rebuke .