What Do You Most Desire?

WHAT DO YOU MOST DESIRE ?

THE question , so familiar to every Mason , so often repeated , " What do you most desire ? " is worthy of the careful study of every member of the Fraternity , and indeed by every member of society . It appeals to a man ' s soul ,

heart , and brain . Its proper answer is an index to the aspirations of his soul , the desire of his mind and the longings of his heart . These aspirations , desires and longings are the very life of the moral character . We often do things without computing the cost to ourselves or the effect upon

others . We have no right to infringe upon our neighbour ' s grounds , or to force a fulfilment of our desires at the expense of our Brother ' s weal . He has as much right to breathe as we , and we have no right to abridge his right . An unbridled tongue may greatly offend . An unrestrained license to our selfish desires is dangerous to ourselves and to others .

" What do you desire ? " The ancients replied . " Light and a knowledge of what is truth ; The search for truth has been the effort of man , from the time our first parents lost it in Eden . Churches , societies , prophets , philosophers , and all wise men have been turning the bowels of the earth inside out in their endeavour to find some hidden truth .

"What do you most desire ? " is a practical question , which every man and woman should apply to the daily life . We are all in the world for a purpose . We should desire to know what that purpose is , and then in every way possible fulfil it . Masonry seeks to point out the proper answer to

the question , by teaching important lessons of purity and virtue , and , as far as lies in its power , bringing light to the eyes and truth ta the heart . We may go down deep into metaphysical problems , wander off into unexplorable fields of theory and wonder where man ' s duty to his fellow man

begins , how it runs its course through the family of humanity , and where it ends , and to what extent he is his Brother ' s keeper ; and , while we are theorising and planning beautiful systems of morality , and painting enchanting pictures of Elysian fields of virtue , the days of our brief period of earthly

existence may pass away , and the practical benefit we might have been , may be lost . Life is real , life is earnest , life is practical , life is intensely personal , and its duties must be individually performed , l-ife may be prosaic , but it is a daily repeated monotony of duty to be performed .

With this practical view of life , what do you most desire ? Is it to sit down and theorise ? Is it to count the moments as they pass in scenes of pleasure and dissipation ? Do we learn the lessons of duty merely to > repea / t them , parrot-like ? Do we attend the Lodge only to enjoy the

social features and mingle with congenial spirits ? Is it enough that we teach with our lips a reverence for duty and a love of truth ? Do we seek only a superficial knowledge of life ? Do we desire to behold the light , then turn our back upon it and go into darkness ?

In coming into Masonry , what do you most desire ? Is it merely to spend a few hours in idle pastime ? Is it for no other purpose than to be connected with a society , timehonoured and revered ? Is it to benefit ourselves and no one else ? Are the forms and ceremonies , lessons and

lectures , mere playthings , simply a show for an hour ? Is there nothing of practical benefit to you and your fellows ? If so , then you have mistaken your place , have wasted your time , and lost sight of your real being . If every man who beholds the light of Freemasonry would ask himself the

question-, " What do you most desire ? " in the quiet watches of the night , when the forms and ceremonies , symbols , signs and legends come vividly before him , and would hold his heart to the answer , there would be more men who would realise the profound importance of their living in the world ,

and of their connection with the Fraternity . When each one will make the answer to this question a personal matter , weigh it to its fullest extent , and measure it in all its length and breadth of influence , then will Freemasonry rise in its might to the dignity and power its divine principles make possible .- — " Masonic Standard . "

****************** Lord Leigh Provincial Grand Master of Warwickshire , Lord Lieutenant of the county , on Saturday distributed South African war medals to the Warwickshire Imperial

Yeomanry and Volunteers . His lordship congratulated officers and men on their bravery and endurance , and said no county had done better with its reserve forces than Warwickshire ,

What Do You Most Desire?

The Provincial Grand Lodge of Mark Masons of Gloucestershire and Herefordshire will be held next week at Cheltenham .

********** Probate of the will of the late Bro . Sir Robert Sexton has been granted . In addition to numerous private bequests the testator willed close upon £ 3 , 000 to Dublin Charities ,

among the sums being £ 250 to the Masonic Orphan Boys School , £ 250 to the Masonic Female Orphan School , £ 200 to the Masonic Jubilee Fund . The gross value of the personal property of the deceased amounted to close on £ 70 , 000 .

"A Sprig Of Acacia."

"A SPRIG OF ACACIA . "

THE funeral took place on Monday , 16 th inst , amid general signs of mourning and sorrowful regret , of Brother Herbert K . Lloyd , who met his death the previous Thursday ( 12 th ) at his residence at Webheath , near Redditch , by the

accidental administration of carbolic acid in place of a harmless dose of Carlsbad water . Thousands of people witnessed the sad ceremony , which took place in Tardebigg Churchyard , the line of route being crowded by sympathising residents , and blinds and shuttered windows being everywhere manifest .

Early in the morning the body , enclosed in an oak coffin , with solid brass mountings , was taken to St . Luke ' s Church , Headless Cross , where a short service was held , none but members of deceased's family being present . The funeral took place in the afternoon . The whole of the officers and

men of tne four batteries comprising the 1 st Worcestershire Volunteer Artillery , in whicn deceased held the rank of Lieutenant , attended the funeral , and the respect in which deceased was neld by all ranks in the regiment was evident . Each battery sent large contingents of men , the Redditch Battery ,

to which deceased was attached , furnishing over a hundred . Of officers and men there were altogether over 300 present . The combined bands of the Worcester and Redditch Batteries , forming the brigade band , was in attendance under Brigade-Bandmaster Barry , the firing party of forty being furnished

by the Redditch Battery . Among the various institutions represented were aeputations from the Apollo Lodge , Alcester , of which deceased was a member ; the Grosvenor Lodge of Mark Masons ; and the Seymour Lodge , Redditch . The gun carriage with team of four horses was supplied by the

Worcester Battery , all in black and white trappings . On this was the coffin , which was covered with the Union Jack , and upon which were placed deceased's sword and busby , these in turn being almost covered with wreaths of immortelles . Behind came deceased's horse , with jack boots hanging from the

empty saddle , and draped in the trappings of mourning . Many of the leading residents of the district sent their carriages , of which about twenty followed the various batteries . Starting from deceased's late residence , " Pennthorpe , " Birchfield Road , the mournful cortege wended its way slowly

through Webheath and Foxlydiate to the churchyard at Tardebigg , the combined bands , with muffled side and bass drums , playing the Dead March from " Saul . '' At the service at the graveside the clergy present were Brigade-Chaplain Melville , and the Revs . Brown ( St . Luke ' s ) , Griffin ( former

curate at St . Luke ' s ) , and Lloyd ( brother of deceased ) , all of whom took part in the service . The customary three volleys were fired by the firing party , the roll of the drums being heard between the volleys .. Muffled peals were rung from the bells of the parish church , and a very large number of wreaths were sent by sympathising friends .

SERGEANT W . WATKIN , who had been custodian of Carnarvon Castle for thirty-seven years , and who died last week at the age of seventy-eight years , was accorded a Masonic and semi-military funeral on Wednesday , the interment taking place at Llanbebhg Parish Church . The band of the

Cheshire and Carnarvonshire military headed the funeral procession , playing the Dead March en route . Then followed the members of the Masonic Lodge of which the deceased was a member , the Mayor and Corporation of Carnarvon , and the general public . Our deceased Brother was Tyler of the Segontium Lodge at the time of his death .

ON Tuesday afternoon , 24 th inst , the remains of Col . C . G . Trevor-Roper , of Plas Teg , Mold , were interred at Hope Cemetery , there being as assemblage estimated at about 2 , 000 persons . The deceased colonel was the senior

magistrate for Flintshire , and the head of one of the oldest families in North Wales . The funeral procession was led by a number of the local clergy , followed by members of local friendly societies , and the Sir Watkin Lodge .