Masonic Portraits. (No. 42.)

cepted Rite . He has likewise had conferred upon him the honorary rank of a Past Grand Warden of the Grand Lodge of Greece . There is , indeed , hardly a Masonic Order , be it pure and ancient Craft Masonry , Royal Arch , Mark , or any other , with which he is not connected , and in which

he has not had conferred upon him ono or more honours in token of his skill and ability . We all know it is far from being a light matter to work the three degrees in Craft Masonry , and to interpret them skilfully as well as accurately . But here we have a brother who is proficient in

well-nigh all the degrees of Freemasonry , with what branch soever they may be connected . He cannot only do with ease whatever is required of the Master of a Craft Lodge , be it an initiation , a passing , a raising , or an installation , he can instal a Mark Master , or consecrate a Mark

Lodge . He is ready at any moment to work , and quite at home in working , almost every other known Masonic ceremony , be it the consecration of a Provincial College of the Rosicrucian Society and the installation of the Chief Adept , the consecration of a new Council

of Royal and Select Masters , or the Installation of a Worshipful Master of the Order of St . Lawrence . By reason of his firmness , suavity , and knowledge of the Ritual , he is an admirable President of a Lodge , Chapter , Conclave , Council , or other body . He is , in short , one of those few

members of the Masonic Society to whom we may rightly attribute the very highest degree of culture . He is not only an officer of marked ability , but he is likewise a learned Masonic jurisconsult , and one deeply versed in all the mysteries of symbolic Masonry . He is indebted for much

of the knowledge he possesses to his great natural ability , and the advantages of a sound classical training , but not to these alone . A singularly retentive memory , the power to grasp at once , and , as it were , by intuition , the inner and occult significance of an

important ceremony , and , superadded to these , the ability to follow closely and consistently even the most intricate argument ;—to these he is still more indebted than even to his early and admirable scholastic training . A few years since , he frequently took part in the discussion in

the columns of the -Masonic Journal of the day of the most abstruse and subtle questions . We frequently , in turning over the pages of former Craft Journals , light upon some essay of his , or some minor contribution in the shape of a letter , written for the purpose of elucidating

some difficult point , and we readily admit there is nothing we have read of his which has not materially increased the sum of our knowledge . Thus he has earned for himself a

high reputation , not only within the precincts of the Lodge , but also outside them , as an able expositor of our laws and mysteries , —so far as these latter may properly be discussed in the Masonic press .

But his claims to the love and respect of our readers do not rest on this foundation alone , magnificent as it undoubtedl y is . He has been , throughout his connection with our Societ y , a most eager student , and one of the most brilliant exponents of our system ; but this is far from representing the whole

of his achievements . As a supporter of our Charitable Institutions , he has laboured hard and successfully in their behalf . He is more than a Life Governor of both the Boys ' and Girls' Schools , and has served the office of Steward for one or other of them—but more frequently for the

formersome five or six times . He is , likewise , at the present time a Steward for the Festival next year of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution . That the heavy claims upon his time have not allowed him to act more frequently is most probable ; that he has never lost the opportunity of actively supporting

or advocating their cause is beyond all possibility of question . It was but the other day , indeed , when , in the absence of the Provincial Grand Master , it became his duty to occupy the chair at the meeting of the Lancashire and Cheshire Provincial Grand Lodge of the Royal Order of Scotland , that

he took upon himself to make a most earnest appeal to those present to support our magnificent Institutions , and the appeal was not in vain . More recently still he has been heard excogitating some plan by which the benefits

conferred by our several Institutions might be supplemented and extended , through the aid of other Masonic organisations . It is , in fact , a duty , in the fulfilment of which he takes the utmost pride , to bring on the carpet at all seasonable times the claims of these Charities to our

ever-increasing support . The duty is always well and gracefully performed , aud his appeal is seldom unattended by one or more promises , more or less satisfactory . We have now described him briefly , yet sufficiently , as

Masonic Portraits. (No. 42.)

the trusty and capable minister of one of onr firms of merchant princes , as well as fully , yet insufficiently , in his Masonic capacity . It remains for us to say a few words more , and our portrait is finished . Let us for once in the wav denart from that excellent custom we have so

steadfastly observed from the very beginning of these series of sketches . Let us present him to our readers such as wo find him at the festive board , in quiet , homely converse , or

at those informal weekly gatherings , when the hours pass all too quickly in abstruse definitions , in merry jests , or playful narratives . On theso occasions is it we learn to appreciate him most fully .

" A merrier man , Within the limit of becoming mirth , I never spent an hour ' s talk withal : His eye begets occasion for his wit ; For every object that the one doth catch ,

The other turns to a mirth-moving jest : Whioh his fair tongue ( conceit ' s expositor ) Delivers in such apt and gracious words , That aged ears play truant at his tales , And younger hearings are quite ravished ; So sweet and voluble is his discourse . "

Where shall be found a more admirable chairman to preside at any board , but especially where there is , in greatest abundance , " the feast of reason aud the flow of soul ? " Where is there a more genial companion , a kindlier neighbour , a trustier or more unselfish counsellor ,

a truer or more faithful friend ? We may travel the country through , for many a day ' s march , and not find one so diligent in fulfilling the stern duties of life , and yet so ready , like a very Counsellor Pleydell , to play high jinks , and enjoy himself , the while he is the cause of

enjoyment in others ; or one in whom the higher qualities of the mind are more conspicuous by their presence than are the faults and failings of the heart by their absence . Such a one as this has troops of friends , and each of them , we dare venture to affirm , will proclaim our brother , in the words of Shakspeare , as

" The dearest friend to me , the kindest man , The best-condition'd and nnweary'd spirit In doing courtesies . " And , saying this , we wish him God speed in all his undertakings .

Self-Supporting Hospitals For The Working Classes.

SELF-SUPPORTING HOSPITALS FOR THE WORKING CLASSES .

IT is a mere truism to say that what interests the community at large must of necessity interest the Masonio and any other section of it . All classes of society are so mutually dependent the one on the other , that what affects any among them , be it prosperously or adversely , must affect all the others . Thus , if we take the medical , which

is one of the noblest and most beneficent of the professions , we find they have no separate interests of their own to subserve . They do their duty according to their ability , and they prosper or are unprosperous according as the rest of the commonwealth is able or unable to remunerate their

services justly . But when we find members of this particular profession devoting a considerable portion of their time and skill to benefit certain classes who can , but do not , compensate them for their trouble , it is high time , we consider , the matter should be brought prominently under the notice

of the 'public . The truth is , the system of gratuitous medical and surgical aid is more grossly abused than ever , and notably by those who have no reasonable apology to offer for the abuse of which they are guilty . Working men , in the receipt of excellent wages , never for one moment

hesitate , in a case of illness , to consult the house physician or surgeon of the nearest hospital . It never occurs to them , in return for the advice they receive , to offer anything in the shape of a money equivalent . When they and their families are hungry and thirsty , they betake

themselves to the provision dealer and buy their meat and drink , that is , they part with some of their earnings in order to procure the wherewith to sustain life ; but it never occurs to them it is equally their duty to pay for the means

whereby they and their families may escape death . The medical practitioner ' s capital is his ability to cure disease , and this ability is only acquired after the expenditure of a considerable sum of money , and the devotion of several