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raised was £ 3 , ( 350 . Insignificant as that amount roaj seem in the lig ht of more modern Festivals , it was a sub st . 'uitial advance on any previous contribution ; and we art told that the services of Bro . Binckes wero " prompt ! }

recognised by the Committee in a manner that was at oiid substantial and gratifying . " It is impossible to speak o the subsequent career of the Institution down to tin present time , its vast increase in dimensions , woalti

and power for doing good , without mingling with our thoughts the name of Bro . Frederick Binckes . Hi : name is , and for ever will be , so closely entwined with tin History of the Institution that the ono can never be men

tionod without the other . Blessed with a robust constitution , clear judgment and foresight , urbanity of manner and eloquence of a practical , rather than of an ornamental character , Bro . Binckes began a raid upon the Provinces ,

stirring tho brethren into a new life , aud shaking up the hitherto " dry bones" to some purpose . Tho visits of Bro . Binckes to tho Provincial Lodges excited the most popular enthusiasm , and his appeals on behalf of tho Boys

commended themselves to our country brethren by their sound reasoning and manly outspokenness . Probably few men amongst us could have stood the immense physical and mental toil which has marked the last twenty-five

years of Bro . Binckes' life , yet we still find that his motto is " Excelsior , " and in pushing forward the interosts of the Institution what may be lacking in p hysical force—for we are all growing older—is more than compensated for by

experience , and the deep-rooted affeetion in which the Secretary of the Boys' Institution is held by Masons everywhere , not only in the metropolitan district , but in every nook and corner of the Finglish Masonic

world . The Festival of 1863 , presided oyer by Lord De Grey and Ripon , resulted in a subscription list of £ 4 . 679 , of which sum , it was announced , considerably

more than one-half was raised by the Provincial Section of the Board . Here , then , was an immediate proof of Bro . Binckes' active work amongst the Provincial Lodges ; and so eratified were the Governors and Subscribers

with the result—which at tho time was entirely unprecedented—that it was unanimously resolved that , irrespective of his salary , au honorarium should be annually bestowed on him , amounting to Five per cent , on all Festival proceeds in excess of £ 2 , 000 .

From this time forward the tide of prosperity flowed OD and increased iu volume . Bro . Binckes travelled the

country , in all directions , organising Boards of Stewards , and enlisting the services of brethren to aid in the general work . The growing responsibilites cast upon the Institution rendered necessary increased efforts , and these were

stimulated and encouraged by the unceasing energies ot Bro . Binckes , whoso new and improved system , as it became developed , was productive of the most gratifyingresults . Tear by year the number of boys in the School

was augmented , the dimensions of tho buildings enlarged , aud the scope of the Institution widened and strengthened in every respect . By 1867 , the School had been increased to its "full strength " of one hundred boys ; and some

idea may be formed of what has been achieved in the last twenty years when we consider that there a . re now no fewer than two hundred and fifty pupils in the establishment , and that the Festival returns have run up to a

threefold extent . We pass over the changing fortunes of the Festivals for the next few years , and of the gradual improvements which were made from time to time at the Wood Green Institution ; but the happy results achieved

during the first eight years that Bro . Binckes held the office of Secretary were shown by the fact that he had been mainly instrumental in raising , from Festival and similar celebrations alone , fully £ 50 , 000 . It may readily be imagined

that these successes aroused groat enthusiasm amongst the brethren generally , and supremo efforts were made in 1869 to clear off the mortgage on the buildings , which , as already stated , amounted io o 610 , 000 . On tho

completion of the new building the House and Building Committee sent in their report , which showed that ., irrespective of the amount of the mortgage , there was about £ 9 , 000 outstanding in respect of liabilities on this account . It

was , therefore , determined to pay off only a moiety of the mortgage , while with the aid of a loan from the bankers , of £ 4 , 000 . the contractor ' s balance and other similar

liabilities were reduced by payment of £ 8 , 600 , the total amount paid during the year 1869 , including interest on mortgage and £ 8 , 400 for the maintenance of the Insfitn tion being £ 18 , 840 . But , enormous as this reduction

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appears , the Institution was still liable for the remaining moiety of the mortgage ( £ 5 , 000 ) and for the moneys advanced by the [ tankers ( about £ 5 , 900 ) with say £ 600 due to other creditors ; and a further extraordinary effort

became necessary in order to restore tho Institution to a state of financial equilibrium as regards its incomo and expenditure . Tho Festivals of successive years wero highly encouraging , aud enabled the Executive to still

further reduce their liabilities , while afc fche same time the number of boys admitted to the School gradually increased . In the year 1874 the time for holding the Annual Fostival

was changed from March to Juno , with tho object of having the Anniversaries of the three Charities spread ovor a longer period , one effect of which was to give fche friends of the Institution an extended interval in which to secuvo

suppoi t . There is a rather wide-spread feeling now abroad that a further extension of time would tend to the benefit of tho Institution ; but it is as yet a moot poiut , th . it will require careful and deliberate thinking out . For the last

ten years the amounts produced at the Festivals have fluctuated very considerably , bnt never has tho product been less than £ 10 , 000 . In 1877 it was close on £ 13 , 200 ; in 1880 slightly over £ 14 , 000 ; in 1883 , when a supremo

effort was made on behalf of the Preparatory Schoolanother splendid conception of Bro . Binckes—the magnificent total of £ 23 , 000 was realised , a sum unprecedented in the annals of the Institution ; iu 1884 it was £ 14 , 060 ; in

1885 £ 11 , 746 ; last year it again rose , to £ 13 , 000 ; but m consequence it is alleged of depression of trade and the intervention of the Jubilee festivities , this year tho " somewhat disappointing" total only reached £ 11 , 200 . The wauts of the

current year are so fully set forth in this Supplement that ifc is unnecessary to prolong our sketch of the progress of tho Institution ; but we would commend to our reader ' s

special attention the Qualifications of Individual Donors , Festival Stewards , Lodges and Chapters , & c , which we give iu full , from the official annual publications of the Institution .

The Royal Masonic Institution For Boys.

THE ROYAL MASONIC INSTITUTION FOR BOYS .

Reprinted from the FREEMASON ' S CHRONICLE , 18 th June 1887 . THE Eighty-ninth Anniversary Festival of this Institution , ou Tuesday , 14 th June 1887 , attracted to tho Crystal Palace a very numerous attendance of the brethren , with their friends of both sexes . The day was gloriously

fine , and those who went down early had an opportunity of sauntering through the grounds , which are now in their brightest summer livery . Many Provincial friends had remained overnight , after attending the Jubilee

gathering at the Albert Hall the previous day , in order to be present at the Festival , and to them tho Palace no doubt presented especial interest . Additional attraction was vested in the event by the knowledge that a valuable testimonial was to

be presented to Bro . Frederick Binckes , the esteemed and universally popular Secretary of tho Institution ; and thus the company afc dinner was somewhat in excess of that witnessed on some previous occasions . The

banquet was served in a large salon , constructed immediately underneath and in front of tho organ gallery , and the otherwise sombre aspect of the interior was enlivened by trophies , shields , and flags

tastefully suspended from the pillars supporting the roof . By five o ' clock the banqueting-room was well filled , tables being allotted to members of the various Provinces , an arrangement which invariably gives satisfaction . Tha

occasion was graced by a large number of ladies , whoso bright summer toilettes heightened the picturesque effect . By regulation , the brethren did not appear in Masonic clothing , but the majority of them wore the elegant

Stewards' jewel provided for the occasion . Another feature of the day , and one we were pleased to witness for the first time at our Boys' Festivals , was the gathering of a numerous party of " Old Masonians , " who had accepted

the kind and considerate invitation emanating from Bro . Dinckes , and judging from tho hearty spirit which prevailed at this particular table , it was evident they thoroughly

appreciated their '" first appearance" at a Masonic banquet . A dais had been erected for the principal guests , and behind thi . s was the orchestra , embellished with flowers and ornameutal plants , palms , fern 3 , & c The chair waa