The Retiring Masters Of The Boys' School.

are damaged to the extent of some £ 500 , more or less , within the brief space of two years . This , in short , is the pecuniary fine inflicted on the School because the governing body proves to have been unfortunate in its selection of Head Masters . Thus , on moral , educational , and financial

grounds , a frequent change of Masters , is , in our opinion , impolitic . Surely there is no bias in affirming a proposition so simple , so self-evident ? Then , as to the report of Mr . Finlaison . We may , first of all , set Bro . Binckes ' s mind at rest as to there having been any foul play on the

part of him or them who sent us a copy of it . It did not come from any one connected with the Secretary ' s office , and we presume it was sent us in order that we might either print it in extenso or quote from it . Considerations of space alone induced us to adopt the latter alternative . But does

Bro . Binckes seriously consider it an act of partisanship in us to have quoted from this report ? Should we not rather have been guilty of partiality towards tho Committee if we had suppressed what was favourable to their opponents ? We quoted fairly , that is , we took the blame and

the praise equally , just as they came . At the distribution of prizes , on the 30 th nit ., the Lord Balfour of Burleigh thanked both the Masters and the Committee , and spoke highly of the admirable discipline and demeanour of the boys . To have quoted from a

satisfactory report without giving credit to the Masters for their conduct of the School would have been an act of gross unfairness to them . There would seem to be far more of bias in Brother Binckes when he impugns that part of Mr . Finlaison ' s report in which the latter praises

the general conduct of the boys , on the grounds that they would be sure to carry themselves with propriety before a stranger , and that four days are insufficient for Mr . Finlaison to have formed a trustworthy judgment . The questions at issue between the Rev . Bro . Perrott , Bro . Tew ,

and the " Four Retiring Masters " on the one hand , and the Committee , the Secretary , and the Matron on the other , we have refrained entirely from discussing . We have pointedly refused to touch upon the matters raised by Bro . Tew . The complaints of the Assistant Masters

against the Matron we have passed by without a word of comment . We said last week , and we say again this , "They are ex parte to begin with . The Matron may be in a position to meet them , or they may be incontrovertible . At all events , it is no business of ours to pass judgment on the

merits . ' We have not the slightest doubt the Committee and the Secretary believe themselves to be right , but the retiring Head and Assistant Masters must be excused if they are not of the same mind as regards themselves . The Committe have sat in judgment on these latter , and passed

sentence , "his it was fully competent for them to do , but the masters appeal , either directly or indirectly , against this verdict—and this they havo an unquestionable ri ght to do . The Committee say of them , We are not satisfied with their conduct , and we have thought it expedient , in

the interest of the Institution , over whose welfare we have been called upon to preside , to dispense with their services . They urge , on the other hand , We have striven to do our duty and we believe we have been successful . The noble Chairman , at tho last examination , thanked us ,

and the Examiner has praised the school , both for the general excellence of the training and for tho discipline and bearing of the boys . In order to have shown any partiality towards one or other of these views , we must have said either to the Committee : We think you are in error in

your conduct towards the Masters ; or to the Masters , We do not think your conduct of the School has been satisfactory . We have done neither . We have said a frequent change of Masters is undesirable—an undeniable proposition . A Head Master , if he is to do good service ,

must be responsible to the governing body alone , all other masters and resident officials being subordinate to himanother undeniable proposition . As for Bro . Binckes ' s long and faithful services to the Institution , we shall not esteem him or them the less that we think he has utterly

misconstrued our article of last week . With the rest of Masomy , we deplore that differences connected with the Boys ' School have arisen , but we cannot shut our eyes to the fact of their existence . Those whose conduct has been impugned

must be less than men if they do not seek , by eveiy means in their power , to set themselves right in the eyes of the world . The matters to which we have been referring are matters of general noteriety throughout the Craft , but they are still , as it were , sub jvdice , and we have very carefully observed the well-known rule of journalism , not to

The Retiring Masters Of The Boys' School.

pass judgment till both sides have striven to justify themselves . Our opinion , however , would be utterly without value if we did not express it freely , at the proper time , and irrespective of all party influences .

If this squabble goes further , as we are assured it will , then , if the Rev . Bro . Perrott and his late subordinates are proved to have been guilty of misconduct in their several offices , we shall not hesitate to justify the action of

the Committee , but if the Rev . Brother and his assistants succeed in proving that the Committee ' s conduct towards them has been harsh , unjust , and unreasonable , we shall not

hesitate to speak our mind freely . At present we have said nothing to warrant Bro . Binckes ' s somewhat discourteous refusal to accept our disclaimer of last week" We are strictly impartial in the matter . "

We need say nothing , we think , as to the propriety of laying down certain general propositions in connection with what is known everywhere throughout the Craft .

We have not made these differences public , nor do we see how the interests of Masonry can suffer by referring to them in our columns . Facts are sometimes very disagreeable , but it iB seldom wise to ignore them .

The Philosopher's Stone,

THE PHILOSOPHER'S STONE ,

CABALA AND NECROMANCY CONSIDERED AS THE FALSE SYSTEM OF FREEMASONRY . ( FROM THE FRENCH OF J . L . LAURENS . )

IN regarding Solomon as the founder of Freemasonry , and in attributing to him a knowledge of all the speculative sciences , we establish , as has already been shown , the important fact that these sciences form the principal system , and the purpose which Freemasons propose to themselves . This view , which has its supporters ,

is a natural result of that supposed relationship which men of grave thought have brought themselves to recognise between the idea of the Temple of Jerusalem and Freemasonry . Such an inference , in fact , would suggest itself , even if it had not already an existence in an infinity of writings and oral traditions .

If the search after the philosopher ' s stone could be one of the objects of Freemasonry , its founders would have placed in its very bosom the germ of its own destruction , and the virtues which we still see illumine it would form

a striking contrast , if , indeed , they were not a wretched make-believe . What could we hope from a body of men which , under a false exterior of wisdom and philanthropy , confined their labours to searching in the midst of a mysterious obscurity for that vile metal which is

destructive of every noble principle , and which , as regards the happiness of mankind , should have remained buried in the depths of the earth ? What claims would they

possess to public esteem r By what secret means would they have attracted to themselves the good will of so many princes , who admire in them only the splendour of their wisdom ?

We know too well that the study of the cabalistic art , and the search for the philosopher ' s stone , has much occupied men , who Avere dazzled by the seductive hope of amassing wealth , or who were led astray by an ardent thirst for pleasure . We know , too , that utter failure has

always been the result of these long and difficult researches . Misery and despair at having wasted their time and means in a laborious search , such have been the fruits they have gathered . And it is in the full tide of this illusion that most of these men have taken upon themselves to write

upon these sciences , either to extort from public curiosity some trifling compensation for the loss of their time , or to conceal , amidst the number of their dupes , their shame and spite . The list of writings is immense . Some have remained in manuscript , and they are sought for by reason

of their rarity ; very many are in print . Germany , above all countries , is inundated with this class of book , nearly all written in Latin , and in a mystic sense and style , and , consequently , almost incomprehensible . When an outcry is raised against this dark obscurity , the answer seriously

given is always that each of these books has its particular key . To seek out this key , this is the special study of mankind , and to have found it is to have attained the desired end . But what man has ever been fortunate enough to disgover the key of these barbarous writings ? He must