Homes Of English Freemasonry.

never die . The " secret ' consisted of a brew of weak Russian tea , with a squeeze of lemon in it , and with a decanter of this in front of him he used to preside over the meetings of the new wise men . Then there are such old musical friends as the " Bohemians " and the " Old Acquaintances " who have their meetings here ; without' forgetting the Bedfordians in London , the

Lancastrians aud Lothians—each " in London , " the various German societies—with a large sprinkling in between of Jewish weddings —making up in all a good 200 regular functions meeting in the house , many of them six , eight , or even more times every year . Yet there is never any ill-regulated rush and hurry . And what is most to be praised—it sets a good example to some of the West

End palaces—is that each function is separately catered for . There is no utilising the remnants of one feast for the furnishing of another . The system of bringing in . everything whole , and carving in front of the guest , renders this impossible . It is a good old-fashioned inn , conducted on the good old-fashioned principles of honesty and consideration . Everv dinner is to the

separate order of the people giving it . There are no fixed menus , arranged for combination purposes . Every menu is a separate compilation , and separately provisioned ; and the givers of the feast are at liberty to go down into the kitchens and see it prepared . And if they do , how much more thoroughly they will enjoy it , for they will eat without suspicion . Such capacious

kitchens are not to be found elsewhere in London ; nor such old-fashioned cleanliness ; such long lines of old-fashioned spits on which joints and birds turn automatically before a huge fire . The gas oven has not been introduced for cooking ; gas being only used for warming plates . Prime joints well roasted , well basted , and splendidly served , are what you get at the Freemasons' Tavern .

And then the surroundings of the dinner are so comfortable . In the ' ^ good old-fashioned day s " men loved rough fare served on rough" deal tables ; they liked sanded floors ; bare walls , and the most meagre of table decorations . But the Freemasons ' Tavern is not old-fashioned enough for this . It has not preserved any rickety old furniture because Sir Godfrey Kneller , or Joshua

Reynolds , its one-time neighbours , used to sit at them . Rather it has been the aim to provide every aid to comfort and enjoyment . Some of the furniture is a bit ponderous , perhaps , but what an air of substantiality there is about everything . There are pieces of furniture here which if sold would reach fabulous prices ; art treasures over which connoisseurs would fight for weeks ; and a

wealth of table ornaments—gold and silver and Bohemian glass —that would do credit to a Lord Mayor ' s banquet and not disgrace a feast for Kings . From the time one enters the oldfashioned portico doorway the learned begin to wonder that such things can linger still . The old-fashioned marbled walls in the entrance hall are quite a marvel of the painter ' s art ; and there

is an old clock which in an unique specimen of its kind . Ascend the noble staircase—the art of making staircases seems to have died out—and one reaches the large hall , which is used for banquets and balls—a noble room which has much in common with the more renowned Hall next door . Here some 450 guests can be seated at dinner ; and it is much in request by musical

societies because of its wonderful acoustic properties . It is a fine hall , with arched roof , handsome pilasters carrying a noble frieze , and a fine oak dado panelled with looking glass . Connected with this is a handsome suite of retiring and withdrawing rooms , and there is a balcony leading to a spacious gallery in the hall , with seating accommodation for 150 people . It is in these splendid

apartments that the principal functions are held , and here we discover a fact that is quite unique with regard to London Taverns . It is that when a big function is given here—whether it is a ball , or a dinner , or a reception—here are a magnificent suite of apartments entirely cut off from the rest of the hotel , the moment the visitors start up the staircase . It does not matter what other

- —and there may be several—functions are going on at the same time , the guests here , in this central suite , do not see them , or hear them , or know of their existence . They are as much cut off from the rest of the world as though in a private mansion in Park Lane or Grosvenor Square . And they are in a suite of rooms it would be impossible to rival . The fine old staircase leads into a central

saloon from which on the one hand is a reception room leading into a large and handsome drawing room , while on the other is the large hall . Staircases on either side of the open well staircase lead to a magnificent supper room , and various other retiring rooms , making up a singularly complete suite of rooms all entirely self contained , in a way that is absolutely unique , and which is so commodious that it accommodates the guests of any

function that is ever likely to be given . But this is not all . There are quite a host of smaller rooms . The Crown room , which will seat 140 people at dinner , has also a polished floor and can be used as a ball room , or for general Masonic gatherings . Its dome lighted ceiling is one of its features ' . Then there is the Cambridge room , chastely decorated in pink , for small parties ; the Glee room , containing some fine old portraits ; the Edinboro ' room , in green , with some choice oil paintings of unknown wealth ; the

Homes Of English Freemasonry.

Sussex room , and the Gavel room , the three last mentioned being in the old part of the house , and having decorative features that are quite unique . Then there is the Albion room , which is built over what was originally the front garden . In all these rooms one sees the dominant note is personal comfort combined with

luxuriant ease . The real antiquity of the place is largely hidden by draperies and decorations ; but on the lower floor , where are the still and service rooms , the difference is very marked . Here one sees woodwork strangely warped by time ; floors that are curiously undulating ; strange passages , odd rooms , pantries , and

apartments of so labyrinthine a nature that it seems as though it would be quite a course of study to get accustomed to the geography of the place . And when one gets to the kitchens they are quite a revelation . Some of their characteristics have already been mentioned ; and one cannot but admire the general

arrangements . Kitchens on a large scale have not always an appetising appearance ; but there is nothing here to spoil anyone ' s appetite . Every part is isolated ; the most scrupulous cleanliness prevails ; and nothing is kept from day to day , the remnants being given each day to the Little Sisters of the Poor . It is while roaming

around the nether regions that one alights on the curious club rooms of the Gavel Club—a haunt of Freemasonry given over to social enjoyments , and bearing evidence of high spirits in the humorous announcements upon its walls . Everything here is quite Bohemian . It gives the final touch to a picture of an old inn , which unlike most old places has not outlived its usefulness ,

but has kept pace with the times in all material matters ; and is to-day one of the most satisfying and all-sufficient that it is possible to find . It does not flaunt its age , or make any attempt at tawdry modernity . It is like that Freemasonry with which it is so closely allied—founded on good principles , and endeavouring to achieve the best of ends in the best of ways .

It is here that most of the great successes in connection with the Charitable Institutions of the Craft have been announced , at the Anniversary Festivals which for many years were regularly held under its roof , and the majority of which are so held at the present day , the exception being in the case of the Boys School ,

the celebrations of which , falling in the summer months , generally take place at Brighton . Here , too , have for many years past been fought the half-yearly and annual elections of pupils or annuitants of the . great Funds , and there is certainly no place anywhere throughout the country where larger numbers of the most zealous

members of the Craft have assembled , for hard work and social intercourse , than within the precincts of Freemasons' Tavern , the glories of which will , we trust , be as safe in the hands of Messrs . Spiers and Pond , the present lessees , in the future , as they have been during the eighteen years which they have been associated with the establishment , in succession to our dear old friend

Bro . Alfred Best . There is no reason to doubt this will be so , and as proof of the confidence shown in them by the Craft it is only necessary to recall that when the Boys School Centenary Festival was given in the Albert Hall , with the Prince of Wales presiding over 3 , 000 guests , the catering was given to Messrs . Spiers and Pond without competition ; and the greatest satisfaction was expressed .

Entertainment Notes.

ENTERTAINMENT NOTES .

Sunday Concert Society . —We have previously spoken of the good work promulgated by the National Sunday League , in providing rational recreation in the shape of orchestral concerts and ballad music on Sunday afternoons and evenings , and our remarks will apply with equal force to the Sunday Concert Society , whose aims are in a similar direction . An English Sunday afternoon has long been a standing reproach , as " flat , stale and unprofitable , " and we maintain that by opening our national museums and

other places of interest to the public on the Day of Rest , the Government performed a wise action . With the advance of education the old fashioned ideas of Mrs . Grundy must necessarily be relegated to obscurity , for certainly no enlightened mind can contend that a man , woman , or child is any the worse for listening to tbe choice musical compositions of the best masters . We were present last Sunday afternoon at the Queen ' s Hall , Langham Place , W ., when Mr . Robert Newman ' s fine orchestra of sixty performers , conducted

by Mr . Henry J . Wood , gave selections from the works of Hayden , Wagner , Mendelssohn , and others , while the marvellous violinist Johannes Wolff expounded Benjamin Godard ' s beautiful symphony in A minor . We particularly noticed the audience , which evidently contained members of most ranks of society , and nothing could be better to witness than the

appreciative attention with which the various items of the programme were received , while it forms the greatest rebuke to the bigoted objectors . The Society is formed , not for purposes of profit , but to provide such concerts on Sundays as the law may permit . No financial benefit may be made among its members ; and any surplus of receipts from the Concerts are applied to such charitable or other public purposes as the Council of the Society may from time to time determine .

THE Mazawattee Tea Company , Limited , paid to Her Majesty ' s Customs , on Monday , the sum o £ £ 85 , 862 8 s 8 d , representing over 5 , 000 , 000 pounds of tea . This is the largest duty payment , and the greatest clearance from bond , in the history of the tea trade . This great bulk of tea is being deposited in the Company's new warehouses at New Cross , which have a cubical capacity of over two million feet .