Centenary Of Canadian Masonry.

CENTENARY OF CANADIAN MASONRY .

The meeting which was held in Toronto on the 28 th December last to commemorate the centenary of the constitution by the " Ancient" or " Athol" Grand Lodge of the Provincial Grand Lodge of Upper Canada under Bro . WILLIAM J ARVIS as Provincial Grand Master , and to which we briefly alluded in one of our Notes of last week , will , for all time , be a memorable one in the annals of the Grand Lodge of Canada for the

Province of Ontario . It was a grand meeting in respect of mere numbers , but it was grander still by reason of the fact that among the hundrerJs of brethren who took part in it were to be found many of the ablest and most respected Craftsmen in the Province . Others of a like calibre—among whom unfortunately must be numbered Bro . J M . GIBSON , O . C , M . W . G . M ., and Bros . DANIEL SPRY and HENRY ROBERTSON , O . C ,

Past Grand Masters—would gladly have attended , but reasons of health or other sufficient cause rendered their presence impossible . But the nonattendance of these latter was in a measu .-e compensated for by , in the first p lace , the enthusiasm which prevailed throughout the proceedings , and in the second place by the knowledge—in several instances by their own written statements—that these distinguished brethren , though absent

personally , were present in the spirit , and sympathised most fully svith the desire to honour an event to which the Craft in Canada was so largel y indebted for its present state of prosperity , and the influence which its Grand Lodge exercised among the supreme Masonic bodies of the civilised world . As regards the proceedings , nothing could have been belter or have reflected greater credit on Canadian Freemasonry than the

manner in which the constitution of the Provincial Grand Lodge of Upper Canada was celebrated . Our respected Bro . J . Ross ROBERTSON , Past Grand Master , who appears to have made the history of Canadian Masonry his special study , presided in the unavoidable absence of Grand Master GIBSON , and the speeches which he and others delivered , were well calculated to arouse the enthusiasm of the audience , and will prove entertaining and

instructive reading to the general bod y of Craftsmen . The principal speaker was , of course , the Chairman , who proposed the majority of the toasts , and to whom was assigned the duty of replying for that of " Our Centennial Anniversary , " and Bro . ROBERTSON is to be congratulated for the many felicitous remarks lie let fall in the course of his numerous speeches . Thus , in submitting " The Queen and the Craft , " after pointing

out , that just 100 years before Bro . VV . J ARVIS , P . G . M ., who presided at the celebration of St . John the Evangelist ' s Day , 1792 , had proposed the toast of " The King * and the Craft , " he ( Bro . ROBERTSON ) expressed the hope that 100 years hence " Masons who hold allegiance to our Grand Lodge may meet under the shelter of the same old Hag and drink the toast which pledges their love for the Craft universal and their fealty to a world-svide British nation . " In replying for " The Prince of WALES ,

M . W . G . M ., and the Grand Lodge of England , " Bro . GEORGE A . FITZPATRICK , the Lieutenant-Governor of the Province , spoke of his Royal Highness as being not only a " nominal head , " but also as a " working head , " who was competent to do any lodge work he might be called upon , and who , in identif ying himself with Freemasonry , had but followed in the footsteps of his illustrious grandfather , the Duke of KENT ,

and his equally [ illustrious great-uncle , the Duke of SUSSEX , to whom the Craft in England is indebted lor the Union of 1813 . He spoke further of the Grand Lodge of England being the exemplar of the true idea or basis of Masonry—namely , Benevolence and Charity . " It is under her auspices and protecting care , " said Bro . FITZPATRICK , " that you have in England those magnificent Charitable Institutions maintained and caredfor by the Masons

of England , and to whicii they contribute no less a sum , I believe , than § 500 , 000 a year . " The honour of replying for "The Grand Lodge of Canada " was shared between Bro . WHITE , Deputy Grand Master , and Bro . J . J . MASON , Grand Secretary , the latter mentioning that " thc difficulties in the way of the lodges in this country during the years immediately preceding 1855 resulted in the agitation svhich culminated at the city of

Hamilton in the formation of the Grand Lodge of Canada , " and expressing his belief that the advisability of that step was fully justified by thc events that had since occurred . Then , said he , " there were ° nly 41 lodges with , comparatively speaking , few members ; " but "lod ges immediately sprang upas if by magic in every portion of the jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of Canada . Petitions came in on every

s'de , and lodges were rapidl y formed . Masons turned up svhere it was never supposed that there were any at all , and in a very fesv years the Craft had attained a permanent position in this country . A number of Grand Lodges had swarmed off as it were , but still there has been alread y progress , " and " at this moment we have 347 lodges in active work . We have nearly 22 , 000 active members scattered throughout the Province of

Ontario . " He also mentioned that the position of Representative of the Crand Lodge of England , which had been held for many years by the late ' » o . Sir ALEXANDER MACDONALD , had been conferred by the Prince ot " ALES on Bro . Ross ROBERTSON , P . G . M ., an announcement which was received svith loud and prolonged applause . But the great speech of tne evening was that of Bro . ROBERTSON in

replying for " Our Centennial Anniversary . " In this Bro . ROBERTSON 'faced the origin and progress of Masonry in Canada from the earliest times , the first lodge , of whose existence there is undoubted evidence , being 'hat formed at Halifax in 1749 , which svith others took part in establishing " * present Grand Lodge of Nova Scotia . Ten years later , and 0 | *' y a few days after the defeat of the French on the Plains of

Centenary Of Canadian Masonry.

Abraham by the immortal WOLFE , the soldiers of the victorious army , who were members of the Craft " met Masons in a barrack room within the citadel , and practised our rites and ceremonies , thus commencing a work on new soil , svhich led within three months to the foundation on the 27 th December , 1759 , of the first Provincial Grand Lodge under Lieut . GINNETT , of the 47 th Regiment , and subsequent

lodges , the number established betsveen 1759 and 1764 being set dosvn as II , and between the former year and 1800 as about 40 . The first notice of Craft doings was to be found , according to Bro . ROBERTSON , in the Quebec Gazette of the 21 st June , 1764 , and was to the follosving effect : " Notice is hereby given , That on -Sunday , the 24 th , being the Festival of St . John , such strange brethren who may have a desire of joining the Merchants '

Lodge , No . 1 , Quebec , may obtain liberty by applying to Miles Prentice , at the Sun in St . John ' s Street , who has tickets . Price five shillings for the day . " Many other interesting circumstances were mentioned by Bro . ROBERTSON , but it is not necessary we should follow him in all bis details . As a clear and succinct sketch of Masonr } ' in svhat is nosv thc Province of Ontario it is certain to prove interesting , and it is only necessary we should add that the speech , which was in all respects creditable to our distinguished

brother , was frequently interrupted by the warm applause of those present , and that when he resumed his seat his historical essay was rewarded with a succession of cheers , which were as prolonged as they were cordial . We heartily congratulate our Canadian brethren on the great success which attended this celebration , and we trust the Craft in the Province , under the auspices of the Grand Lodge of Canada , may every year become more and still more prosperous .

The Grand Lodge Of Ulster.

THE GRAND LODGE OF ULSTER .

Bv HENRY SADLER . ( Continued from page . jn . ) The " copy of said Memorials marked A . " is a printed folio sheet containing a series of Resolutions passed at what , judging from the number of lodges represented , appear to have been influential assemblages of the Irish Fraternity in the North during the year 1 S 06 . First on the list is a meeting at Cavan , on the 4 th March , at whicii 20 lodges svere represented .

The second , svhich seems to have been the most important , as it was by far the most numerous gathering , 72 lodges " belonging to the County of Tyrone" being represented , was held at Dungannon , on 24 th March . Next in order is a meeting of the representatives of 33 lodges , convened at Armagh on the same day . Thirty-six lodges were represented at Castle Dawson on the 31 st March , 25 at Ballymoney on the 14 th April , 11 at Carnfenton , County Antrim , on the 1 ith April , and 39 at Enniskillen on the 2 ist March .

As the resolutions passed at these meeting all tended to the same purport , it will doubtless suffice if I transcribe those adopted by the tsvo that appear to have been most numerously attended , viz ., those held at Dungannon and Enniskillen . At the former seven resolutions are said to have been unanimously agreed to as follows :

ist . That it appears to us that the innovations proposed by the Grand Lodge of Ireland ( as appears by their resolutions of the 5 th of September , 1805 " , to be laid on the higher Orders of Masonry , are totally and absolutely unnecessary , because those Orders have , since their introduction into our Lodges , enjoyed actual and uninterrupted peace and satisfaction without any assumed controuling

power . and . That sve pledge ourselves to one another , and to all our Worshipful Royal Arch and Knight Templar Brethren in the Kingdom , that sve never will consent or agree to any innovations svhich may be assumed by any power whatever , conceiving that innovations so assumed are inconsistent with , and svould , if

persisted in , tend to injure and destroy those higher Orders of Masonry . 3 rd . That we earnestly recommend to the Grand Lodgeof Ireland to relinq fish the idea of raising money from the Country Lodges by any such nesv invented mode , as a taxation on the higher Orders of Masonry , as sve are fully persuaded that such taxation would manifestly cause disatisfaction and discord throughout the Kingdom at large .

4 th . That sve cannot suppress our disapprobation at the variety of dissentions svhich have of late occurred in the Grand Lodge , and particularly at that part of its conduct by which an oh ) officer and confidential countryman was removed from the office svhich he filled svith honour to himself , and satisfaction not only to us , but to all the Lodges in the North of Ireland , and that therefore we look upon his restoration to office as essential to the advantage of Masonry in Ireland .

5 th . That sve recommend that the office of D . G . Treasurer do cease , as sve cannot see any use in such officer , as in times heretofore the Country Lodges were not acquainted svith any such person or place , having always transacted all their business with the D . G . Secretary , and with svhom sve are svilling to do all our business in future , provided such D . G . Secretary be fairly and honestly appointed , and not through the influence or as the tool of any faction or party .

6 th . lhat if the Grand Lodge of Ireland does not attend to these our representations , we will call upon our Brethren in the North ot IreUnd and establish a Provincial G . L . under svhose controul alone sve are determined to live . 7 th . That a copy of these our Resolutions be transmitted to the Right Worshipful the Grand Master , and another to the D . G . Secretary to be laid before the Grand Lodge .

Signed by order , WM , RICHARDSON , Chairman . At Enniskillen the four following resolutions ss'ere unanimously agreed to .-ist . That it appears to us that the measures lately proposed respecting c-rt 1111 Orders of Masonry are unwarrantable innovations , infringing on ancient inviolable