Masonic And General Tidings.

Masonic and General Tidings .

THE AUTHORITIES of the Imperial Institute have issued a pocket lecture and concert calendar for the ensuing winter session . Copies can be had at one penny each . BRO . SIR J . BLUNDELL MAPLE , M . P ., has kindly consented to preside at the Holborn Restaurant on Saturday , the 7 th prox ., over the 41 st annual dinner of the City of London Master and Foreman Tailors' Society . BRO . LORD BRASSEY , the new Governor of Victoria , who met with so splendid a reception on Friday , the 25 th ult ., held his first Levee at Melbourne on Monday and eulogised the representatives of different public bodies who were present for the loyalty they had exhibited towards the Queen .

THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEB in charge of the preparations for the approaching banquet to be { riven to Bro . the Earl of Dunraven at Cardiff , have arranged to present his lordship with an illuminated address and a silver model of the Valkyrie as a memento of his plucky attempt to win the America Cup .

THE PRIZES AND CERTIFICATES awarded to the successful students of the Guildhall School of Music were distributed on Saturday afternoon last by Bro . Alderman Sir H . Knight , who was supportedby Bro . Sir Joseph Barnby , Principal of the School , the Sheriffs , and others interested in the institution . THE USUAL PROCESSION in honour of the Lord Mayor's inauguration into office will take place on Saturday next , the gth instant , and it is expected that the " Show " will be on a somewhat grander scale than usual . The Marquis of Salisbury and other Ministers have accepted invitations to be present at the banquet .

THE DUCHESS OF ALBANY , who is President of the Middlesex Needlework Guild , visited an exhibition of work collected by members and associates of the society , at Oakhood , Ravenscourt Park , on Monday . Her Royal Highness , who was attended by Mrs . Heron Maxwell , expressed her satisfaction with the work . THE DUKE OF YORK , accompanied by Sir Charles Cust , arrived at Marlborough House from Vork Cottage , Sandringham , on Saturday , while on the same day the Duke ot Connaught . having concluded his leave of absence , returned to the command of the Aldershot Division .

THE DUKE OF YORK left Marlborough House on Monday for Quidenham Park , Norfolk , on a visit to the Earl and Countess of Albemarle , while the Duchess of York arrived in London from Sandringham , and after calling at Marlborough House , proceeded to the White Lodge , Richmond Park , on a short visit to the Duke and Duchess of Teck .

THE LONDON , CHATHAM , _ DOVER COMPANY ' S mail steamer Victoria , while lying in Dover Roads , was run into on Sunday morning last by the barque Fantasia , of Tonsberg , bound with timber for Lr ith , and sustained very considerable damage . The weather was fine at the time , and those on board the Victoria shouted to warn the crew of the barque when they saw she was bearing down upon them . The Victoria was subsequently brought into port and placed in the Granville Dock .

THE DUCHESS OF TECK visited Rochester on Monday , forthe purpose of opening a Shakespearian Bazaar in aid of the funds of the denominational schools in that city . Her Royal Highness was mot on her arrival at the railway station by the Mayor and Corporation , the civic officials , the Lord Lieutenant of Kent ( Earl Stanhope ) , and others , and , after being presented with an address by the Recorder , proceeded , under an escort of Yeomanry , io the Deanery . After a brief rest , she proceeded thence to the Corn Exchange and opened the bazaar .

THEIR ROYAL HIGHNESSES the Prince and Princess of Wales , accompanied by the Duke of York and Prince Nicholas of Greece , visited McLean ' s Galleries in the Haymarket on Monday for the purpose of inspecting his annual winter exhibition . During the same afternoon their Royal Highnesses visited the French Gallery , the annual exhibition of the Society of Portrait Painters , and Messrs . Arthur Tooth and Sons ' Galleries . In the evening the Prince and Princess , accompanied by their daughters and Prince Nicholas , witnessed a performance of " Romeo and Juliet" at the Royal Lyceum Theatre .

AFTER MORE than a century since her death , Flora Macdonald , whose resolute daring in accomplishing the escape of " Bonnie Prince Charlie" cost her imprisonment and nearly her life , is to receive her long-delayed memorial , one of her descendents having commissioned Mr . Taylor , of Berners-strcet , to execute a stained glass window in her honour , to be erected in the Isle of Skye , the home of the Macdonalds . Hitherto a simple monument in Kilsmuir Churchyard alone records Flora ' s courage and devotion and the romance which surrounds her history .

THE LORD MAYOR ELECT ( Bro . Sir Walter Wilkin ) , has invited the King of Portugal to lunch with him at the Mansion House on his way through London , and in the event of the King ' s acceptance of the invitation , a numerous and distinguished company of guests will be invited to meet his Majesty . It is not unlikely that the visit , if paid , will take place on Tuesday , the 12 th inst ., that being the only day on which the King will be in London before returning to Lisbon . HER ROYAL HIGHNESS the Princess of Wales and her daughters , the Princesses Victoria and Maud , accompanied by Prince Nicholas of Greece , and attended by

Maior-General Stanley Clarke and Miss Knollys , returned to England on the conclusion of their visit to the King and Oueen of Denmark , on Saturday last . The Royal party crossed the North Sea in the yacht Osborne , the Thames being reached , after a somewhat rough voyage , in the early morning . Owing to the prevalence of a dense fog , however , it was not till _ 11 a . m . that the yacht was safely berthed at Port Victoria Pier , where the Commander-in-Chief at the Nore and his staff were in-waiting to receive the Royal travellers . At Charing Cross they were met by the Danish Minister and Madame De Bille and drove at once to Marl borough House , where they were shortly afterwards joined by his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales .

A COMPLIMENTARY BANQUET was given on Wednesday evening to Bro . T . F . Halsey , M . P ., _ in recognition ot his 21 years' service to the county of Hertford as one of its representatives in the House of Commons . Bro . Halsey was returned for the county for the first time in February , 1874 , and since 1885 has sat as M . P . for the Western or Watford Division . The banquet was held in the Clarendon Hall , Watford , and Bro . Halsey was presented with an illuminated address in commemoration of the event . Among those present to do honour to the guest of the evening were the Prime Minister ,

the Earl of Clarendon , the Earl of Dudley , Bro . Earl Cowper , Earl Brownlow , Lord Rothschild , Lord Hyde , Bro . Baron Dimsdale , Bro . Sir J . Blundell Maple , M . P ., Mr . Vicary Gibbs , M . P ., Bro . Abel Smith , M . P ., Alderman Faudel Phillips , Mr . J . S . Gilliat , M . P ., Mr . G . B . Hudson , M . P ., Mr . A . H . Smith , M . P ., Admiral Cator , and others . Covers weie laid for some 700 guests , while the galleries were crowded with ladies , and the number present , including those for whom standing room only could be found , was about 1500 . Bro . Halsey was most enthusiastically received .

THE ANNUAL MEETING of the Provincial Grand Lodge of Cambridgeshire will be held at Cambridge , in connection with the Scientific Lodge , No . 88 , on Monday , the 18 th instant .

THE ANNUAL MEETING of the Provincial Grand Lodge of Sussex will be held at the Queen's Hotel , Eastbourne , on Wednesday , the 20 th inst ., and not on Friday , the 15 th , as previously arranged . It is expected that H . R . H . the Duke of Connaught , P . G . M ., will preside on the occasion . THE DUKE OF NORFOLK has consented to distribute the prizes to the members of the Electric Athletic Association at a conversazione at the Holborn Town Hall on Friday , the 15 th inst .

A MEETING of the Distribution Committee of the Hospital Sunday Fund was held at the Mansion House on Wednesday , under the presidency of the Lord Mayor ( Bro . Sir J oseph Renals ) . The Secretary announced that the receipts to date now amounted to £ 61 , 500 , of which £ 10 , 000 had been subscribed by Bro . B . I . Barnato and his friends , and £ 3400 by the Stock Exchange . Of this £ 45 , 766 had already been distributed ; and , on the motion of Bro . Sir Sydney Waterlow , seconded by Bro . R . B . Martin . M . P ., it was resolved to distribute a further £ 15 , 850 , leaving £ 1084 to carry forward . A further sum of £ 1200 is expected to be received for the lund before the year ' s accounts are closed . THE LORD CHANCELLOR ( Bro . Lord Halsbury ) and Lady Halsbury have returned to Stanmore from visiting Sir Francis and Lady Jeune at Arlington Manor , Berkshire .

Masonic And General Tidings.

WE ARE REQUESTED to state that the Royal Savoy Mark Lodge of Instruction is now held at the Old Cock Tavern , Highbury , N ., on Sunday evenings , at 7 o ' clock . MR . LFCKY , the historian , has issued his address as a candidate for the seat ( or Dublin University , rendered vacant by the elevation of Bro . the Right Hon . Dav id Plunket to the Peerage . OWING to the great demand for seats at the Wednesday and Saturday matinees to witness " The Strange Adventures of Miss Brown " at Terry's Theatre an extra matinee will be given on Thursday , the 7 th inst .

IT IS NOW definitively arranged that the marriage of the Duke of Marlborough with M iss Consuelo Vanderbilt will be solemnised at New York on Wednesday , the Gth instant . BRO . VISCOUNT WOLSELEY has consented to take part in the . formal opening on Thursday next , the 7 th inst ., of the new Rifle Range at Trent , which has been provided by the Corporation of Nottingham for the Robin Ho : > d Rifles , the local volunteer corps of which Bro . the Duke of St . Albans is the honorary colonel .

THE QUEEN has been pleased to give her consent to the marriage of the Princess Maud , youngest daughter of H . R . H . the Prince and Princess of Wales , to the Prince Charles , second son of the Crown Prince and Princess of Denmark . The Prince was born on the 3 rd August , 1 S 72 . SATURDAY NEXT , the gth instant , is the anniversary of the birth of H . R . H . the Prince of Wales , who was born on the gth November , 1841 , and will therefore complete h is 54 th year . The auspicious event will be celebrated in the usual manner by the Royal tradesmen , and there will also be the customary illuminations at their establishments , as well as at the clubs , & c , & c .

APPLICATION is shortly to be made to the Duke of Connaught , as Provincial Grand Master ot Sussex , for a lodge to be established at Shoreham , to be known as St . Mary of the Harbour . The application has been influentially signed by a representative bod y of brethren in the town and neighbourhood . The Town HaU is the proposed meeting place .

PRINCESS CHRISTIAN has consented to open a bazaar in Reading about the middle of the present month , in aid of the funds of the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children . _ Lady Camoys has accepted the presidency of the bazaar , while Edith Lady Auckland is the honorary Secretary . INTERESTING DISCOVERY IN THE CITY . —A discovery which is exciting great

interest among arcb .-EoIogists has just been made in the City , in connection with the construction of the new electric railway between Waterloo and the Mansion House . At Queen Vic toria-street the workmen have come unexpectedly upon an interesting number of Roman remains , con-fisting of bricks and tiles , mosaic pavements , & c , evidently associated with the Roman occupation of Great Britain . The remains are being carefully collected .

THE FOUNDATION-STONE of a new Cottage Hospital for Tilbury and Grays was laid on Saturday last by Bro . J . Passmore Edwards , who has kindly undertaken to defray the cost of erection , amounting to some ^ , 2000 . The site forthe building has heen given by the London and India Docks Joint Committee , who have also contributed £ 500 towards the expense of the foundation . The day was kept as a holiday in the neighborhood , and Bro . Edwards met with a most cordial reception .

As A MEMORIAL of his visit on board the Tantallon Castle to Hamburg at the time of the Kiel Canal fetes , and in recognition of the kindness and hospitality which he and his friends received , Sir Donald Currie has presented a donation of £ 500 for Charitable purposes to the City , and the Senate have resolved on devoting it to the foundation of a scholarship open to pupils of the Technical School and the institutions connected with it , preference being given to boys of the Shipbuilding School and the sons of Hamburg

seamen . THE SPOT-BARRED billiard match between Roberts and Peall , 24 , 000 up , in which the latter received a start of 9000 , terminated towards the close of last week in favour of Roberts , who reached his total of 24 * 000 , with an unfinished break of over 200 , when Peall was 23 , 851 . " The champion thus won by 149 points . On Monday Roberts commenced a similar match with Memmott at the Egyptian Hall , in which the latter receives a start of 10 , 000 in 24 , 000 . A THIRD GIFT OF £ 22 , 500 has been handed over to the Roval National Pension

Fund for Nurses , of which her Royal Highness the Princess of Wales is President , raising the total of the Donation Bonus Fund to £ 67 , 000 , in addition to the £ 11 , 179 standing to the credit of the Junius S . Morgan Benevolent Fund . The above turther sum of £ 22 , 500 has been subscribed since the Princess received the third and fourth thousand nurses at Marlborough at the end of July . When 5000 nurses have become members and the Donation Bonus Fund has reached £ 100 , 000 , it is expected that the compound interest as it accumulates each 25 years will suffice to provide every nurse of each series by the aid of her own contributions , the sum of ios . per week .

THE NATIONAL T HRIFT SOCIETY , the Secretary of which is Bro . T . Bowden Green , has < f late been rapidly extending its important work , and further developments are in progress . It is proposed to establish a Thrift Industrial Home for Boys at Methwold , Norfolk- to hold I hrift campaigns at Glasgow , Bristol , Southampton , and East London ; and to obtain a travelling van for the distribution of Thrift literature , and the delivery of Thrift addresses in country districts . For these purpo es a sum of f , 5 ° » is required . Contributions should be sent to Colonel Jasper Willett , Dr . Greville Walpole , or the Secretary , 1 , Finsbury-circus , E . C .

OLD C OINS . —To collectors of coins the coming season at Sotheby's will be one of note . Ihe sale of the first portion of the Montagu collection will commence on the iSth inst ., and occupy six days . _ Mr . Hyman Montagu , F . S . A ., Vice-President of the Numismatic Society , began this branch of study and search in 1878 , the coinages of his own country , including those of the ancient _ Britons , being the first to occupy his thoughts , while at the same lime his ambition aimed at amassing specimens of all classes from the eailiest to the latest times . In a few years the collection grew considerably .

and comprised , in addition , English historical medals ; and , in 1883 , he purchased the whole of the Addington cabinet . Later he acquired en bloc the collection ot Mr . William Brice , of Clifton , which , added to the rest ot his treasures , placed Mr . Montagu in the position of chief of private owners of coins in the country . Greek and Roman coins then became his pursuit , with the good beginning of purchasing the whole stock of Mr .

Hoffman , of Paris , and also the gold coins that belonged tu the V * icomte Ponton d'Amecourt . Many transactions with foreign dealers went on to increase this numismatic wealth , and the Greek series filled several cabinets and includes many of the rarest pieces , nearly all in a fine state of preservation . The English medals number over 3000 , and , in some of the petit ds lepresented , is more extensive than the National collection .

LADY LOUISE L ODER laid the foundation-stone of a new nave for the Church of St . Augustine ' s , Preston Park , Brighton , on Saturday last , among those present be" "'? Bro . Gerald Loder , M . P ., and the Mayor and Mayoress of Brighton . IT IMS BEEN decided by the inhabitants of Middleton , Lancashire , to restore the parish church as a memorial to the late Bishop of Chichester , who held the living ior 31 years .

GENERAL SIR R ICHARD HARRISON was presented with an illuminated address , on Satuiday last , at Government House , Devonport , in view of his relinquishment on Thursday , of the command of the troops in the Western District . A TERRIBLE ACCIDENT occurred apout 7 p . m . on Tuesday evening in one of the little courts turning out of the Strand , opposite Somerset House . An escape of gas had been noticed for some time previously , but at that hour the neighbourhood was alarmeo by a report like that of a large piece of ordnance , and it was found that a coupl-j , <" houses in the court in question had collapsed owing to an explosion of gas , and subse-IJU'jaCa til III * . kUUIl 111 H uw * ji , iuii > iuu \ , \ J 1 n-, ^ r- .-- -iiti-if . t . w UM VAIVJIUII u- f _**~ 'r — ' # J 0

^ quently it turned out that as many as 30 people had been more or less severely injur ' by the disaster . A fireman , too , has since died through injuries received by the fall <*' a wall , & c . An inquiry as to the cause of the accident will take place . THE DEATH is announced of Bro . T . Day , the highly respected custodian of the Ueiuy Masonic Hall . The deceased brother was a member ot a highly respected Essex fan" i > and at one time was a manufacturer of velvet , and also manager of a silk null Haarlem-street , Derby . Twelve years ago he accepted the custodianship of the na ' and prior to that time he was Secretary to the Arboretum Lodge . .

BKO . BARNEY BARNATO , Major J . Roper Parkington , Mr . E . Lee ( the Chief Com moner ) , Mr . W . R . Pryke , C . C , Mr . VV . Rome , C . C , and Bro . Ex-Sheriff Hand , ***' the City Press learns , be among the new City Lieutenants ,