Stewards' Lists.

NORFOLK . Lodge £ s . d . ion Rro . Walter Diver ... 63 o 0 NORTH WALES . Lodge 1 S 49 Bro . Lt .-Col . the Hon . VV . j E . Sackville West 46 4 0 ' NORTHS AND HUNTS . 445 Bro . James Jenkins ... 10 10 0 j NORTHUMBERLAND . 1

The Province— 1 Bro . B . J . Thompson ... 900 o 0 j NOTTINGHAMSHIRE . i Chapter 411 Comp . S . G . Gilbett ... 5210 o ' OXFORDSHIRE . 340 Bro . Edward Home 7 , . „ „ 340 „ J . M . Dormor j 3 " ° ° 1 S 93 „ VV . A . Simmons ... 15 15 0 ; SHROPSHIRE . 611 Bro . Theo . John Salwey ... 26 5 0 SOMERSETSHIRE . 329 Bro . S . R . Baskett ) ( P . P . G . Reg . Dorset )) W 5 o IIQO .. C . L . Fry Edwards ...

SOUTH WALES ( EAST DIVISION ) , j THE CHAIRMAN 126 00 ' The Province—Bro . Marmaduke Tennant \ Lodge 36 Bro . C . W . Page j no „ W . Howfield i Chapter 237 Comp . Rev . T . Walters , D . D . ... V 72 S io 0 Lodge / 960 Bro . John Munday 1323 , j J * Buckley VVilson ' 573 JJ Robert Parry 157 S j , Henry N . Davies ; J 754 JJ I ? - p . - Adey . I ! 1992 ,, David Williams ' < SOUTH WALES ( WEST DIVISION ) . The Province—Bro . John Andrew Jenkins 108 10 0

Stewards' Lists.

STAFFORDSHIRE . The Province—Bro . Alfred B . Jones SUFFOLK . ; The Province Bro . John G . Oliver ... 162 15 o Lodge 225 Bro . George Abbott ... 57 15 0 37 6 „ J . Hunt S 4 o 0 ! , g 3 j } .. John M . Canova ... S 4 o 0 1453 ,, Husrh VV . II . Elwes ... 61 , o o

SURREY . 163 S Bro . W . J . VV . Bultz ... 30 7 o 1 S 92 ,, William Pile ... 31 10 o 1929 „ E . M . Lott 25 4 o SUSSEX . 1707 Bro . Walter Fitch ... 31 10 0 WORCESTERSHIRE . 253 Bro . E . J . Chambers ... 57 15 o 2034 „ Thos . R . Arter ... 36 15 o YORKSHIRE ( N . & E . ) The Province Bro . Col . R . G . Smith ... 31 10 o YORKSHIRE ( WEST ) .

! ! Lodge 139 Bro . Alexander Tyzack \ l 39 JJ John Taylor ... 521 ,, John W . Turner 521 „ jimmy Firth ... 750 „ Rawson Keiley 904 „ Frederick Cleeves M °° ° ° 904 ,, Frederick Remain 904 „ V . G . S . Dearden 1513 JJ T . W . Embleton ' 545 JJ Thos . M . Holmes / GUERNSEY . The Province

Bro . A . C . Quick 68 5 o FOREIGN . Bro . Lt .-Col . Aubrey W . O . Saunders , Past Dist . G . M . Malta Lodge 1 "Co Bro . William Franks , P . A . Dist . Grand Sec . Bengal

Stewards' Lists.

SUMMARY OF THE PROVINCES .

£ s . d . Berks and Bucks 112 S o Cheshire 63 o o Cornwall 10 10 o Cumberland and Westmorland 1050 o . 0 Derbyshire 26 5 o Devonshire 47 5 o Durham ... 122 15 0 Essex 135 19 6 Gloucestershire ... ... ... IA n fi

Hampshire and Is ' . e of Wight 3 6 15 o Hertfordshire ... 145 16 0 Kent 3 62 17 o Lancashire ( East ) 2 S 73 11 C ,, ( West ) 31 10 0 Middlesex 393 9 o Monmouthshire 438 3 0 Noi / oik 63 o o North Wales 4 G 4 o 127 STEWARDS—LONDON 14 S STEWARDS—PROVINCES GRAND TOTAL

£ s . d . Northants and Hunts 10 10 o Northumberland 900 o o Nottinghamshire 52 10 o Oxfordshire 47 5 o Shropshire 26 " 5 o Somersetshire 137 5 o South Wales , E . Division ... S 54 10 o JJ . W . ,, ... 108 10 o Staffordshire Suffolk 451 10 o Surrev ... S ? r n

Sussex ... ... 3 [ I 0 o Worcestershire ... ... ... 94 10 o Yoikahire ( North and East ) ... 31 10 o „ ( West ) 400 o o Guernsey 68 5 o Foreign Stations £ 57 S 3 9 0 £ 9334 9 < - > £ 15 , 117 iS 6

Analysis Of The Returns.

ANALYSIS OF THE RETURNS .

Having described the Festival , and recorded the subscriptions and donations , we pass to our next duty of reviewing the latter . That the Returns amount to a far higher figure than even the most sanguine well-wishers of the Institution could have foreseen , has already been noticed , as well as the fact that , as compared with the brilliant celebration of 1887 , the total shows a very large decrease , amounting , indeed , in round figures , to over X 4000 .

Nevertheless , what may be called Bro . Sir George Elliot ' s year will always occupy a leading place among the Benevolent Festivals , and had the lodges in the Metropolis been more numerously represented , perhaps even thegrand total of last year might have been repeated . However , 5 the result must , under any circumstances , be a subject of congratulation . The Board of Stewards consisted of 275 brethren , of whom 127 represented lodges in

London , and compiled the handsome sum of £ 5783 93 ., and the remaining 148 hailed from the Provinces , the total of their lists amounting to £ 9334 9 * 6 d ., or very nearly as much as Bro . Terry had the satisfaction of announcing at the Festival of 1887 . The grand total from all sources , as announced in the Hall , was £ 15 , 081 iSs . 6 d ., but a few additions since received have raised this to ^ ' 15117 iSs . 6 d .

, , Let us now examine carefully the two great sub-divisions of Wednes day ' s list . The Stewards for

LONDON are unusually few in number , and the aggregate of their Returns not only below that of last year , which , as it was an exceptionally brilliant Festival , might well have been expected , but likewise the average of the last few Festivals , which probably would not have been the case , but for the occurrence this spring of the Centenary of the Girls' School , The London

section of the Board mustered only 126 brethren and one lady , and the sum of their Returns vvas . £ 5783 93 .. But of these , 36 brethren and the lady were unattached , so that the representatives of lodges and chapters mustered no more than 90 , of whom 85 acted on behalf of 82 lodges and a lodge of instruction , and the remaining 5 for as many Royal Arch Chapters . Now the number of lodges in the Metropolitan district is about 350 , and in the course of our experience we have found that about one-third of them are represented at a Festival , while , in the case of the Benevolent Institution , it has been Bro . Terry ' s good fortune—in more recent years especially—to obtain Stewards from more rather than less thaiUhisavera

Analysis Of The Returns.

On this occasion the Fates and the aforesaid Girls' School Centenary have been arrayed against him , and on Wednesday the usual third turned out to be a very indifferent fourth . Nor was the paucity of the represented lod ges counter-balanced by anything remarkable in the way of specially good lists those ranging from £ 100 upwards being only 14 in number , whereas last year and in 1886 , there were 25 three-figure lists , in 188533 many as 32 and the previous year 21 . The highest ol the principal lists was that of Bro ! Stephen Hayward , who acted ns Steward for the Merchant Navy Lod ge ' No . 781 , and was successful in compiling a Hit of £ 225 , the Steward for the City of London Lodge , No . ipi , running him very close for first honours with a total of £ 210 ios . Bro . Wi'liam Smith , of the Doric Lodge , i \ 0 933 , stands third with £ 159 is ., and Bro . L . E . Eagle , of the Sehvyri Lodge , No . IQOI , next , vvith £ 136 105 . Then , all close together , come a regular contributor in the shipeof the Friends in Council , No . 1383 , who , by the hands of Bro . Jas . H . de Ricci , are entered for £ 126 is . ; the indefatigable Secretary of ihe lnstituiion ( Bro . Terry ) who acted as Unattached Steward , and obtained . £ 125 . and Bro . Chas . Lacey , the wellknown representative of an equally well known lodge—the Sincerity Lodge

No . 174—with £ 120 163 . Bro . R . S . Gushing , of the Loyalty Lodge , No . 1607 , has fully justified the title o ! the bod y he represented ' as regards its observance of the Masonic principle of Charity , for his canvass resulted in a return of £ 118 2 s . 6 d ., while Bro . VV . Walker , as Steward for the Prosperity Lodge , No . 65 , very closely approached him vvith ¦ £ 114 14 s . Bro . G . E . Fairchild , whose name is by no means new to these

lists , represented the Urban Lodge , No . 1192 , very successfully , his total amounting to 101 guineas ( £ 106 is . ) , and at his heels are thiee brethren , who each were fortunate enough to raise li *> t 3 of 100 guineas ( . 6105 ) , namel y , Bro . J . G . Millbourn , of Union Waterloo Lodge , No . 13 ; Bro . \ v ' , Shurmur , of the Islington Lodge , No . 1471 ; and Bro . H . Cattermole , of

the Duke of Cornwall Lodge , No . 1839 . Bro . W . A . Scurrah , of the Hendon Lodge , No . 2206 , which was only consecrated last year , brings up the rear with a total of £ 100 163 ., which for a new lodge is worthy of all praise . There were other good lists ranging between £ 50 and . £ 90 , which will be found carefully recorded in the Returns elsewhere . The Stewards from the

PROVINCES mustered 148—two of them , however , hailing from Stations Abroad—as against 201 in 188 7 , 130 in 18 S 6 , iSS in 1885 , and 140 in 1 S 84 ; the total of the Returns being £ 9334 9 s . 65 ., as compared vvith £ 9376 14 s . 6 d . in 188 7 , £ 622 IJS . in 18 S 6 , £ 7911 3 s . Sd . in 188 5 , and £ 6240 173 . in 1884 . In this sub-division about the usual proportion of the provinces vvas

represented—some of them very numerously and productively—there being 11 absentee Provinces and 34 which sent up Stewards . The former comprised the following , namely , BEDFORDSHIRE ( five lodges ) , of which we have reason to believe we shall hear some account before the Festival season has ended ; BRISTOL ( ei ght lodges ) , which has usually given Bro . Terry the benefit of ils assistance . It may be , however , that it is reserving

itself for another occasion , and we know that it has been engaged in organising a Charitable Association of its own . CAMBRIDGESHIRE ( six lodges ) , though but a small province , raised £ 537 1 is . for our three Institutions last year , and £ 547 5 s . in 18 S 6 , to say nothing of its performances in the two previous years , so that its absence from this list of Returns is not surprising . DORSETSHIRE ( 13 lodges ) was a contributor to this

Institution last year to the extent of £ 113 , and figured to still greater advantage in 1886 , when it gave upwards of £ 320 between the Benevolent and the Girls' School . HEREFORDSHIRE ( four lodges ) , perhaps on account of its smallness , is more frequently absent than present on these occasions ; while LEICESTERSHIRE and RUTLAND ( 12 lodges ) , having raised £ 250 for this Institution in 1887 , will devote its attention to one or other of the Schools

this year . LINCOLNSHIRE ( 22 lodges ) , plays its accustomed part as in past years ; but we believe it will be represented on the occasion of the Girls ' School Centenary . As for WARWICKSHIRE ( 31 lodges ) , whose Provincial Grand Master , Bro . Lord Leigh , is Honorary Treasurer of the Girls ' School Board of Stewards , we must expect to find it very strongly represented at the Festival of that Institution . Moreover , it vvas represented

at two of the 18 S 7 Festivals , and in previous years likewise . WILTSHIRE ( 10 lodges ) gave the Boys'School the benefit of its services in 1887 , while both the Schools had its support in 18 S 6 , and the Benevolent and Girls' the year previous , so that , in the ordinary course of things , we might have looked for it to be represented on Wednesday , but doubtless the reasons for its absence , when they appear , will be found good and sufficient . The other two absentees were J ERSEY ( 7 lodges ) , and tha ISLE OF MAN ( 6

lodges ) , from neither of vvhich do we look for much in the way of support , such contributions as find their way thence to our Charities being , however , none the less welcome on this account . Here then in the provinces we have enumerated we have an aggregate of some 130 lodges , vvhich had no part or parcel in Wednesday ' s proceedings , though nearly all of them show creditably and some even conspicuously in those of other celebrations of a similar character .

At the head of the list of represented provinces stands , not for the first time , BERKS AND BUCKS , which has 21 lodges , and which , though it never much exceeds a certain excellent average , has acquired for itself the tide of a regular as well as a generous contributor to all our Institutions alike . In 1887 , certainly , as

the year of the Queen ' s Jubilee , it distributed amongst them nearly £ 774 * the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution receiving over £ 218 , the Girls ' School over £ 381 , and the Boys' School over £ 171 , vvhich vvas more than £ 200 in excess of its average for the three preceding years , but we have not heard that anyone has taken it to task severely for this excess , and

possibly the worthy Secretaries of our Institutions will gladly see it repeated as often as our Berks and Bucks brethren can find the wherewith to do so . At all events , the three Stewards hailing from this province succeeded in comp iling the excellent total of £ 112 8 s . on Wednesday , the list of Bro . J . T . Morland , of the Abbey Lodge , No . 945 , Abingdon , amounting to £ 62 . Three of the 40 lodges in CHESHIRE have sent up Stewards , one of them—the Cope , No . 1357 , Sale—having two strings to its bow , but the total of their lists amounts only to £ 63 J Last year its contribution to this Charity—which was the only one it assisted—was even less ( £ 30 5 s . ) , though the returns for the three preceding years were decidedly more favourable , being over £ 280 in 1886 , over £ 3 ^ 7 in 1885 , and £ 680 in 1884 . This looks very much as if the province had adopted what is commonly supposed to be the Irish mode of progression ! and withdrawn £ 1 ios ., or thereabouts , from the previous year ' s total , for every £ 1 it advances . We expressed our belief in connection with tne