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Correspondence.
CORRESPONDENCE .
We do not hold ourselves responsible for the opinions of our Correspondents . We cannot undertake to return rejected communications . All Letters must bear the name and address of the Writer , not necessarily for publication , but as a guarantee of good faith .
THE BENEVOLENT FUND .
To the Editor of the FREEMASON s CHRONICLE . DEAR SIR AND BROTHER , —In tho last issue of the FREEMASON ' CHRONICLE I find your able editiorial article on the subject of the large amount of money in tho Benevolent Fund , in excess , as you state , of what is required for the purposes for which ifc has been sub . scribed , with suggestions as to how this plethora of wealth can be
disposed of , the principle of which is that a certain amount shall be abstracted and applied to other uses beyond those named at the foun . dation of the fund , and yon pertinently put the question , " What better object could the brothren set before them to achieve than to place in the hands of onr young students , after they quit onr Schools , some means whereby they might make a start in . life , and which , without
extraneous aid , they are frequently unable to do . " Now , Dear Sir and Brother , I think without any amount of arrogance , or any better knowledge than is possessed in common by every member of our Craft , and afc the risk of setting myself somewhat in opposition to yonr better judgment , that a ready outlet for this great flood of wealth could be found in other ways . The children of our deceased brethreu
are frequently thrown back upon tho widowed mother , a heavy burden that she is scarcely able to bear , and the only hope of relief thrown open to her is the chance of obtaining admission for one or more of them into our Masonic Schools . They are in due time , accordingly , submitted for the opinion of tho Committee , and being considered fit objects for the Charity , are placed npon the list of accepted candidates
for tho next election , but having no friend standing high in the Craft to advocate their cause and personally take up the case , how often does the hope of gaining admission to our Schools turn out to be but " a mockery , a delusion , and a snare . " After running the prescribed number of elections , the time at length comes which fixes the hopes of the mother on "the last application . " This , like all the rest , ends
only in disappointment , and tho poor child is now "left out in tho cold , " and without tho possibility of ever being received into tho bosom of the Craft , although , perchance , only a few votes separated him or her from moro fortunate competitors . On the other hand , look at the contrast . Once included in the list of " successful candidates " everything is provided for , it may be , for the next nino years of the
child's life , who is well fed , clothed and educated , in many instances in a very snperior manner to what they would ever havo enjoyed had their parents been living , and , for tbo period named , live in tho very sunshine of happiness ; overy want is carefully attended to , friends visit them , amusements are provided , and anything liko ordinary diligence shown by them in thoir studies meets with ready and willing
rewards . Contrast all this with tho condition of tho " unsuccessful candidates , " who go back to their poor homes , iu many cases , no doubt , almost wanting the necessaries of lifo—" without any extraneous aid" to help many , and who are henceforth to be considered dead to the Craft . If all this is calmly reviewed by our brethren I think I may venturo to say that thero is no lack of objects upon
whom this superfluous capital might well bo bestowed . However deserving may have been the conduct ofabi-other during his lifetime , or however ho may havo tried , perhaps in a humble way , to carry onfc the great precepts of the Order , his widow can make but one appeal to the bounty of the Craft , and cannot renew it , however great her necessities may bo . Therefore it is that I plead on behalf of those left behind
who have not been fortunate enough to obtain any of the good things which the Craft dispenses with so liberal a hand . If these few lines servo to elicit any opinion from our elder brethren of the Craft in the direction I have indicated , and have the effect of admitting a bright and cheering ray into the widow ' s home , it will be a great satisfaction to , Yours faithfully and fraternally , 18 th Sept . 1879 . A P . M .
MASONIC TRADE MARKS ,
To the Editor of THE FREEMASON ' S CHRONICLE . DEAR SIR AND BROTHER , —I think that great praise is due to you for reproducing from the Masonic Newspaper the excellent article inserted in your last number on " Masonic Trade Marks , " and I really believe that few right-thinking Masons will disagree with the opening sentence of that article , which sets out by stating— "The not
infrequent use of Masonic emblems in outward display has rarely met withtheapprovalof tight-thinkingmembers of the fraternity , and when an exhibition of this nature presents itself we are at once led to suspect the good faith , if we might not add , the good sense of the ex . hibitor . " _ There can be no doubt that the display of the Masonic emblems is a privilege greatly abused , for no sooner in some instances does the novitiate receive tbe first light of Freemasonry than he is
anxious to make an outward display of having been admitted within the portals of the Order by every means in his power , and to my own knowledge in one instance a publican , who had been proposed for initiation in a Lodge that shall be nameless , actually had the Masonic emblems painted on the front of his house before he was admitted a member . Amongst publicans it is the rule , and not the exception , to make the most ostentatious display of their connection with the Order , and which goe 3 a long way in my mind to prove that one of the first
Correspondence.
questions put to them at their initiation , has been altogether disregarded . I am not aware whether thero is any Masonio law to reach such cases , but I think if the members of the Lodges to which these placarding Masons belong were to express their disappro . bation of such practioes a remedy wonld soon be applied , and the objectionable exhibition removed . The display of matters whioh ought to be confined to the sanotity of onr Lodges can have but one
object , and that is a mercenary consideration . As I began with an extract from the article referred to , so will I close with another from ifc , which thoroughly expresses my views npon tbe subject . "Among Masons , with whom this token has a moral significance its use in that capacity ( a trade mark ) would undoubtedly be regarded as a base prostitution of it to mercenary purposes , while with others its mystio force would often dissipate its virtues as a trade mark , and perhaps in somo instances place the article it appeared npon undor a ban . " I am , yours fraternally , ALMA . 20 th Sept . 1879 .
FREEMASONS PAINTED BT ONE OF THEMSELVES .
To the Editor of the FREEMASON ' S CHRONICLE , DEAE SIR AND BROTHER , —In an editorial article in yonr contemporary of the 20 th instant , I find the following description of Free , masons , and , having called your attention to it , I shall leavo yourself and readers to draw their own conclusions : —
" In Freemasonry to-day we are , and must bo , struck by the fact that the professions in lodge are widely different from the praotice out of lodge , and that if we were to judge of Freemasonry by what we hear brethren say , and what wo see them do , our opinion of the worth and value , tho utility and need of Masonry in the world would
be very low and slight indeed . " Now such an opinion as this , found in tho organ which professes to be the exponent of Freemasonry , and constantly censuring evil speaking and slandering in others , comes with an exceedingly bad grace indeed , but unless the writer of those " charitable" senti .
ments may say that his observations have been garbled , I give the rest of the passage : — " Tho brother , for instance , who dilates unremittingly and magnificently about Masonic charity and brotherly love in Lodge , to the intense admiration of a moat select circle , is out of Lodge , or in print
sometimes , the most illnatured , tale-bearing , and slanderous of mor . tals . He doos a frightful amount of mischief , and not only does reveal ' secrets , ' but ho very often ' separates chief friends . ' You and I , kind readers , havo often heard Bro . Mugginbotham , who is quite ' touching' in all ho says about' charity , ' Ac , in our Lodge gatherings ;
he affects the ' visiting brethren , ' and ' moves' the ' reporters , ' ( pro . verbially a hard-hearted race ) , but search tho lists of our Charities , we find him not ; and neither does Bros . Terry , or Binckes , or Hedges record with an approving pen the classic and euphonious namo of 'Mugginbotham' in their veracious lists . And , once more , we all
know ' Crusher / what a'swell' he is , how he lays down the law , how tho Lodgo listens intent npon his words ; how no one delivers an impressive ritual like ' Crusher , ' and yet , alas , as we all know , his daily and hourly existence is a most mournful illustration of the utter hollowness of the , principles he avows , the ritual he knows so well , aud ' spits out' so glibly . "
Such , Dear Sir and Brother , is the elegant diction of this champion of brotherly love , & c , and I ask you , need I offer another word in " illustration of tho hollowness of the principles" avowed by the writer , or whether it is worth my wbilo even to expectorate upon such a production f I am , Dear Sir and Brother , Yours truly and fraternally , P . M .
The Directors of the Crystal Palace District Gas Company havo issued their report for the half-year ending the 30 th June 1879 , which was presented to the proprietors at the ordinary general meeting on the 25 th September 1879 . They recommend that an addition of £ 20 per annum be made to the remuneration of each auditor , in consideration of the increased labour thrown on those officers . The financial
positiou of the Company is declared as follows : —The balance of Profit and Loss Account amounts to £ 11 , 745 3 s lOd . Out of this sum tho Directors recommend the declaration of a Dividend for the half-year ending 30 th June last at the following rates per annum , viz . —6 per cent , on tho Preference Stock ; 7 per cent , on the Ordinary 7 per cent . Stock ; 10 per cent , on tbe ordinary 10 per cent . Stock ; and 7 per
cent , on the new ordinary 7 per cent . Shares ; all less income tax ; thi 3 will absorb £ 10 , 452 12 s Id , and leave £ 1 , 292 lis 9 d to be carried forward to tho profit of the succeeding half-year . The prosperous state of this Company—with which many of our brethren are connected—here exhibited , must be eminently gratifying to the shareholders .
We have received Prospectus of tho Street Accident and Dangerous Driving Prevention Society , whose headquarters are at 17 Devonshire Square , Bishopsgate . The intention of this Society is to enforce existing laws ; to petition Parliament to amend the present insufficient statutes : to urosecute offenders : r / rant-, dnnahinnn nr loans to
sufferers ; obtain compensation for injuries ; compulsory carriage of o lamp on all vehicles , trimmed and lighted after sunset ; compulsory use of proper brake power ; to station the society ' s officers in all tho leading thoroughfares of the metropolis and other towns . Those who desire to know more of this Society can obtain all particulars from the Secretary , E . C , Keevil , at the Offices as above .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Correspondence.
CORRESPONDENCE .
We do not hold ourselves responsible for the opinions of our Correspondents . We cannot undertake to return rejected communications . All Letters must bear the name and address of the Writer , not necessarily for publication , but as a guarantee of good faith .
THE BENEVOLENT FUND .
To the Editor of the FREEMASON s CHRONICLE . DEAR SIR AND BROTHER , —In tho last issue of the FREEMASON ' CHRONICLE I find your able editiorial article on the subject of the large amount of money in tho Benevolent Fund , in excess , as you state , of what is required for the purposes for which ifc has been sub . scribed , with suggestions as to how this plethora of wealth can be
disposed of , the principle of which is that a certain amount shall be abstracted and applied to other uses beyond those named at the foun . dation of the fund , and yon pertinently put the question , " What better object could the brothren set before them to achieve than to place in the hands of onr young students , after they quit onr Schools , some means whereby they might make a start in . life , and which , without
extraneous aid , they are frequently unable to do . " Now , Dear Sir and Brother , I think without any amount of arrogance , or any better knowledge than is possessed in common by every member of our Craft , and afc the risk of setting myself somewhat in opposition to yonr better judgment , that a ready outlet for this great flood of wealth could be found in other ways . The children of our deceased brethreu
are frequently thrown back upon tho widowed mother , a heavy burden that she is scarcely able to bear , and the only hope of relief thrown open to her is the chance of obtaining admission for one or more of them into our Masonic Schools . They are in due time , accordingly , submitted for the opinion of tho Committee , and being considered fit objects for the Charity , are placed npon the list of accepted candidates
for tho next election , but having no friend standing high in the Craft to advocate their cause and personally take up the case , how often does the hope of gaining admission to our Schools turn out to be but " a mockery , a delusion , and a snare . " After running the prescribed number of elections , the time at length comes which fixes the hopes of the mother on "the last application . " This , like all the rest , ends
only in disappointment , and tho poor child is now "left out in tho cold , " and without tho possibility of ever being received into tho bosom of the Craft , although , perchance , only a few votes separated him or her from moro fortunate competitors . On the other hand , look at the contrast . Once included in the list of " successful candidates " everything is provided for , it may be , for the next nino years of the
child's life , who is well fed , clothed and educated , in many instances in a very snperior manner to what they would ever havo enjoyed had their parents been living , and , for tbo period named , live in tho very sunshine of happiness ; overy want is carefully attended to , friends visit them , amusements are provided , and anything liko ordinary diligence shown by them in thoir studies meets with ready and willing
rewards . Contrast all this with tho condition of tho " unsuccessful candidates , " who go back to their poor homes , iu many cases , no doubt , almost wanting the necessaries of lifo—" without any extraneous aid" to help many , and who are henceforth to be considered dead to the Craft . If all this is calmly reviewed by our brethren I think I may venturo to say that thero is no lack of objects upon
whom this superfluous capital might well bo bestowed . However deserving may have been the conduct ofabi-other during his lifetime , or however ho may havo tried , perhaps in a humble way , to carry onfc the great precepts of the Order , his widow can make but one appeal to the bounty of the Craft , and cannot renew it , however great her necessities may bo . Therefore it is that I plead on behalf of those left behind
who have not been fortunate enough to obtain any of the good things which the Craft dispenses with so liberal a hand . If these few lines servo to elicit any opinion from our elder brethren of the Craft in the direction I have indicated , and have the effect of admitting a bright and cheering ray into the widow ' s home , it will be a great satisfaction to , Yours faithfully and fraternally , 18 th Sept . 1879 . A P . M .
MASONIC TRADE MARKS ,
To the Editor of THE FREEMASON ' S CHRONICLE . DEAR SIR AND BROTHER , —I think that great praise is due to you for reproducing from the Masonic Newspaper the excellent article inserted in your last number on " Masonic Trade Marks , " and I really believe that few right-thinking Masons will disagree with the opening sentence of that article , which sets out by stating— "The not
infrequent use of Masonic emblems in outward display has rarely met withtheapprovalof tight-thinkingmembers of the fraternity , and when an exhibition of this nature presents itself we are at once led to suspect the good faith , if we might not add , the good sense of the ex . hibitor . " _ There can be no doubt that the display of the Masonic emblems is a privilege greatly abused , for no sooner in some instances does the novitiate receive tbe first light of Freemasonry than he is
anxious to make an outward display of having been admitted within the portals of the Order by every means in his power , and to my own knowledge in one instance a publican , who had been proposed for initiation in a Lodge that shall be nameless , actually had the Masonic emblems painted on the front of his house before he was admitted a member . Amongst publicans it is the rule , and not the exception , to make the most ostentatious display of their connection with the Order , and which goe 3 a long way in my mind to prove that one of the first
Correspondence.
questions put to them at their initiation , has been altogether disregarded . I am not aware whether thero is any Masonio law to reach such cases , but I think if the members of the Lodges to which these placarding Masons belong were to express their disappro . bation of such practioes a remedy wonld soon be applied , and the objectionable exhibition removed . The display of matters whioh ought to be confined to the sanotity of onr Lodges can have but one
object , and that is a mercenary consideration . As I began with an extract from the article referred to , so will I close with another from ifc , which thoroughly expresses my views npon tbe subject . "Among Masons , with whom this token has a moral significance its use in that capacity ( a trade mark ) would undoubtedly be regarded as a base prostitution of it to mercenary purposes , while with others its mystio force would often dissipate its virtues as a trade mark , and perhaps in somo instances place the article it appeared npon undor a ban . " I am , yours fraternally , ALMA . 20 th Sept . 1879 .
FREEMASONS PAINTED BT ONE OF THEMSELVES .
To the Editor of the FREEMASON ' S CHRONICLE , DEAE SIR AND BROTHER , —In an editorial article in yonr contemporary of the 20 th instant , I find the following description of Free , masons , and , having called your attention to it , I shall leavo yourself and readers to draw their own conclusions : —
" In Freemasonry to-day we are , and must bo , struck by the fact that the professions in lodge are widely different from the praotice out of lodge , and that if we were to judge of Freemasonry by what we hear brethren say , and what wo see them do , our opinion of the worth and value , tho utility and need of Masonry in the world would
be very low and slight indeed . " Now such an opinion as this , found in tho organ which professes to be the exponent of Freemasonry , and constantly censuring evil speaking and slandering in others , comes with an exceedingly bad grace indeed , but unless the writer of those " charitable" senti .
ments may say that his observations have been garbled , I give the rest of the passage : — " Tho brother , for instance , who dilates unremittingly and magnificently about Masonic charity and brotherly love in Lodge , to the intense admiration of a moat select circle , is out of Lodge , or in print
sometimes , the most illnatured , tale-bearing , and slanderous of mor . tals . He doos a frightful amount of mischief , and not only does reveal ' secrets , ' but ho very often ' separates chief friends . ' You and I , kind readers , havo often heard Bro . Mugginbotham , who is quite ' touching' in all ho says about' charity , ' Ac , in our Lodge gatherings ;
he affects the ' visiting brethren , ' and ' moves' the ' reporters , ' ( pro . verbially a hard-hearted race ) , but search tho lists of our Charities , we find him not ; and neither does Bros . Terry , or Binckes , or Hedges record with an approving pen the classic and euphonious namo of 'Mugginbotham' in their veracious lists . And , once more , we all
know ' Crusher / what a'swell' he is , how he lays down the law , how tho Lodgo listens intent npon his words ; how no one delivers an impressive ritual like ' Crusher , ' and yet , alas , as we all know , his daily and hourly existence is a most mournful illustration of the utter hollowness of the , principles he avows , the ritual he knows so well , aud ' spits out' so glibly . "
Such , Dear Sir and Brother , is the elegant diction of this champion of brotherly love , & c , and I ask you , need I offer another word in " illustration of tho hollowness of the principles" avowed by the writer , or whether it is worth my wbilo even to expectorate upon such a production f I am , Dear Sir and Brother , Yours truly and fraternally , P . M .
The Directors of the Crystal Palace District Gas Company havo issued their report for the half-year ending the 30 th June 1879 , which was presented to the proprietors at the ordinary general meeting on the 25 th September 1879 . They recommend that an addition of £ 20 per annum be made to the remuneration of each auditor , in consideration of the increased labour thrown on those officers . The financial
positiou of the Company is declared as follows : —The balance of Profit and Loss Account amounts to £ 11 , 745 3 s lOd . Out of this sum tho Directors recommend the declaration of a Dividend for the half-year ending 30 th June last at the following rates per annum , viz . —6 per cent , on tho Preference Stock ; 7 per cent , on the Ordinary 7 per cent . Stock ; 10 per cent , on tbe ordinary 10 per cent . Stock ; and 7 per
cent , on the new ordinary 7 per cent . Shares ; all less income tax ; thi 3 will absorb £ 10 , 452 12 s Id , and leave £ 1 , 292 lis 9 d to be carried forward to tho profit of the succeeding half-year . The prosperous state of this Company—with which many of our brethren are connected—here exhibited , must be eminently gratifying to the shareholders .
We have received Prospectus of tho Street Accident and Dangerous Driving Prevention Society , whose headquarters are at 17 Devonshire Square , Bishopsgate . The intention of this Society is to enforce existing laws ; to petition Parliament to amend the present insufficient statutes : to urosecute offenders : r / rant-, dnnahinnn nr loans to
sufferers ; obtain compensation for injuries ; compulsory carriage of o lamp on all vehicles , trimmed and lighted after sunset ; compulsory use of proper brake power ; to station the society ' s officers in all tho leading thoroughfares of the metropolis and other towns . Those who desire to know more of this Society can obtain all particulars from the Secretary , E . C , Keevil , at the Offices as above .