West Lancashire.

had marked the meeting of the Provincial Grand Lodge in the county town ; the arrangements were most satisfactory in every way , and it had been one of the

most pleasant and successful meetings he had ever attended . Bro . W . Goodacre bore similar testimony to the care and judgment displayed by the Lancaster Brethren .

Leicestershire And Rutland.

LEICESTERSHIRE AND RUTLAND .

BY command of the Et . Hon . the Earl Ferrers Prov . Grand Master the Annual meeting of this Grand Lodge will be held on Thursday next , 4 th October , at the

Three Swans Hotel , Market Harborough , under the auspices of the St . Peter ' s Lodge , No . 1830 , which will be opened at 3 o ' clock , Prov . G . Lodge being summoned for 3 * 30 . The business is of the usual character , with

the addition of a proposition to be submitted by the Deputy Provincial Grand Master , suggesting that a suitable memorial be raised to the memory oi the late Bro . W . Kelly Past Grand Master of the Province .

The sixteenth Annual Eepoit of the Provincial Masonic Charity Association has been issued , and is of a satisfactory character , several new subscribers having recently been enrolled . During the year this Association

has contributed £ 162 15 s to the Girls School , £ 10 10 s to the Benevolent Institution , and £ 5 6 s to the Boys School .

North Wales.

NORTH WALES .

THE Annual assembly of Eoyal Arch Masons of this Province was held on Friday , 21 st inst ., at the Masonic Hall , Portmadoc , under the presidency of Col . the Hon . W . E . Sackville West Provincial Grand Superintendent .

There was a fair attendance of members . The following were appointed as the Officers for the year : Comp , Col . Henry Piatt - - H . R . J . David J . J . G . Tuxford - - - Scribe E .

T . M . Taylor - - - Scribe N . Edward Roberts - - - Registrar Griffith Jones - - - Principal Sojourner

J . Jones --- - Director of Ceremonies J . G . Pritchard - - - Organist . The banquet was subsequently served at the Eoyal Sportsman Hotel .

Warwickshire.

WARWICKSHIRE .

THE Centenary of the Apollo Lodge was celebrated on Tuesday , and in conjunction with it the Annual Provincial Grand Lodge of Warwickshire was held at the Town Hall , Alcester , there being a large attendance of Brethren .

At two o ' clock the Lodge was opened by Lord Leigh Pr . G . M ., and at the conclusion of the business the company attended Divine service at the Parish Church .

The service was a fully choral one , and a practical sermon was preached by the Eev . J . T . Owen P . G . C . ( vicar of St . Paul ' s , Stafford ) who took as his text Ezra vii ., 27 . The offertory was in behalf of the W arwickshire Masonic Benevolent and Pupils' Aid Fund .

Subsequently Lord Leigh presided at the banquet , which took place in the Corn Exchange , and was supported by the Marquis of Hertford , Lord Ernest J . Seymour , and others .

Worcestershire.

WORCESTERSHIRE .

THE Annual meeting of the Provincial Grand Lodge was held at Malvern College , on Wednesday , under the banner of the Eoyds Lodge , of which Dr . Pike is Master . Some 200 Brethren were present . Sir E . A . H ,

Lechmere , Bart . M . P ., the Provincial Grand Master presided .

Worcestershire.

At the conclusion of the business the Brethren adjourned in procession to the Priory Church . The service was fully choral , with an anthem , " Bear ye one another ' s burdens , " specially composed for the occasion

by Bro . F . W . Newton , who also piesidedat the organ . Eev . J . W . Kearns intoned the services , and Eev . Dr . Gregory Smith , vicar , pronounced the Blessing . The sermon was preached by the Eev . G . F . Hough , vicar

of Holy Trinity , Worcester , and Provincial Grand Chaplain .

The offertory amounted to £ 9 10 s 6 d , and will be devoted to various charities . After the service the Brethren returned to the College , and then dined at

the Imperial Hotel . The result- of the working of the Masonic Charities

Association of Exeter is described as most satisfactory . During the last seven years sixty guineas have been subscribed by this means alone on easy terms , fifteen

guineas being devoted to the Eoyal Masonic Benevolent Institution , twenty guineas each to the Eoyal Masonic Institutions for Girls and Boys , and five guineas to the Devon Educational Fund .

O O 0 ' 1-Bro . W . S . Spaull and a few friends have kindly arranged to give a concert to the pupils of the Eoyal Masonic Institution for Girls at Battersea Eise , on

Wednesday next , commencing at 7 p . m . The programme is a varied one , and includes two songs by Bro . Spaull himself , and will be followed by the Calisthenic and Marching exercises by the pupils , which have gained

them so much credit in days gone by . o o o From a report we publish elsewhere of the Installation meeting of the Exmoor Lodge , No . 2390 , it will be seen

the Brethren of Minehead have determined on the erection of a Masonic Hall there , and the scheme in connection with its building has now been approved .

We tender them our congratulations , and hope their efforts to provide a permanent home for Freemasonry in their midst may meet the fullest success .

o o o The Transvaal Government intimate that friendly societies within the Eepublic will shortly be placed on the same footing as in the adjacent colonies , says a

contemporary , from which we also learn that Freemasonry has made rapid progress in the Transvaal , where , by special dispensation of the Grand Lodge of

England , " several Lodges under the English Constitution are now working . The comparatively few Boers who have joined the Craft belong to Lodges working under the Netherlands Constitution , the ritual and oral ceremonies of which are necessarily in the Dutch language .

"A Sprig Of Acacia. "

" A SPRIG OF ACACIA . "

THE funeral of the late Bro . D . Davies , who had held the office of high sheriff for the borough of Carmarthen since 1886 , took place from his residence in Quay

Street on Tuesday , at noon , the interment being at the cemetery . Besides members and officials of the corporation and the borough police force , there were present several members of the local Masonic Lodge , to

which the deceased belonged , and a large number of the most influential men in the town .

THE funeral of the late Bro . Michael Hynes took place at Smithdown Eoad Cemetery , Liverpool , on the 14 th . Deceased was a member of the Derby Lodge , No . 724 , and the Everton Lodge , No . 823 . There were a good number of friends and Brethren assembled at the graveside to pay a last tribute of respect to his memory .

WE regret to hear of the death of Mrs . E . M . Parvin , wife of Bro . Newton E . Parvin Deputy Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge of Iowa , which took place on the 2 nd

inst ., at Cedar Eapids , U . S . A ., and offer our fraternal sympathy with her husband and father-in-law , both of whom are well known throughout the Masonic world , as zealous workers in the cause .