Book Of Constitutions At Initiation.

BOOK OF CONSTITUTIONS AT INITIATION .

To the Editor of the "Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , — I note your remarks about the Aldersgate Lodge srivin"' to each initiate a Book of the Constitutions , and that vou rejoice that this is done . I beg to state that as long- as

I have been a Mason , now some thirty-six years , I never saw a candidate initiated in the Percy Lodge , No . 19 S , who did not receive a copy of the Book of the Constitutions . But this may not be generally known , for we object to havinr any report of our meetings .

I am , dear Sir and Brother , yours fraternally , GEORGE LAMBERT , P . M . 19 S and 504 , & c . [ We are much pleased to publish our excellent correspondent ' s letter , but would respectfully observe if his view of Masonic publication be true , " Where ignorance is bliss , 'twere folly to be wise . " —ED . F . M . ]

To the Editor of the "Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , — Your note last week on the advantage of giving to each initiate a copy of the Book of Constitutions causes me some surprise , as I was not aware that to do so is an unusual custom . It certainly ought to be the universal

rule , and in five lodges to which I belong , or have belonged , situated in Kent , in Oxfordshire , and in London , it has always been the custom , and I know of others where it is so too . I am glad you have drawn attention to the subject , as it may , and I hope will , lead to what I thought was the usual practice being adopted as the universal rule . Yours fraternally , S . M . M . C . O .

NUMBER OF LODGES . To the Editor of the "Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , — I note in the " Masonic Tidings " in last week ' s Freemason the following paragraph : "Since the last Quarterly Communication of Grand

Lodge , warrants have been granted for eleven new lodges , the number of the last being 1 S 97 . " As this probably may lead many to suppose that there are eighteen hundred and ninety-seven lodges on the Grand Register of England , it may be of interest to state that

many lodges have for various reasons become defunct , and that the exact number now meeting regularly and sending returns to Grand Lodge , including those for which warrants were granted on Wednesday last , is seventeen hundred and sixty-six . Yours fraternally , EDITOR ,

"COSMOPOLITAN MASONIC POCKET BOOK . " March 3 rd .

THE SWEDENBORGIAN RITE . To the Editor of the "Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , — My attention has been called by a brother from Sweden , who is staying- with me , to the fact that in the Cosmopolitan Masonic Calendar my name is placed on the

list of officers ot the Swedenborgian Rite as the " Provincial Grand Master for York . " Will you permit me to disavow any acceptance on my part of such an office , regarding which I was never consulted , nor had I any intimation whatever . I am not aware of the existence of any lodge of the Rite

in \ ork , and have no knowledge of the Rite itself , further than that of having had the rituals furnished to me some years ago , on payment of a guinea registration fee to a lodge of the Order at Sheffield . The rituals , I may add , are the veriest twaddle , and the guinea was the worst spent money I ever disbursed . 1 am , youis . fraternally , T . B . WHYTEHEAn .

Reviews.

Reviews .

LIFE AND SOCIETY IN AMERICA . By SAMUEL PHILIP DAY . First and Second Series . Newman and Co ., 43 , Hart-street . . We have read this work , but not , we confess , with unmixed satisfaction . It seems to us both too trenchant and too severe in its general tone , and makes too little allowance for the peculiar position and pressing trials of

American society . It has always appeared to us , we confess , that £ > i £ ish books of travel and of visits to America , from Mrs . 1 rollope downwards , have not been fair to America or the Americans . The writers have judged everything from a purely English point of view , forgetting that , owing to special circumstances , America must be " self-made , " so to say , and out of the most heterogeneous materials and the most contrasted

classes . In England , as is well known , „ " ? various circles of society all equally good , indeed , ' ,, Peasant ; but to find fault with America uecatise their society is not built on our model , has always appeared to us neither fair nor farseeing . The habits of hah' ? ° I are differcnt > dependent a good deal , as such nnrl a Xs areon c'imatic influences and engrossing

-. - > In / t 11 1 e hoteI life of America is no doubt uncomurtauic but remembering thatabsorbing pursuit of wealth , ; t v '" . ch alnewly-constituted nationjgenerally indulges itself , twnV t ° - lc that any analogy can ( exist between the for ™? . 1 . ' ??• - We ahvays think il most unjust when writers for . mf fti - " - '"^ 0 »•>»»»* iv most unjust wncn writers 0

, , dilC A . •""' . fairness 'n dealing with other nations , rem , 1 11 b , ts ' d , fferent modes of life . America is a very still m „ r coun ' ryin ikelf , its future will , we fancy . be siiouMM S ° 4 i t ( > discover why English writers and 2 . ays s , : t ° ^ prcciate and ridicule American life Th * ,., I y \ . different from ours , " Voila tout !" forcible e a „ 3 V hiSW ? , rk haS his merits- He ' '« clear and rcime , and his words run on agreeably , though we think

Reviews.

a good deal of " padding" might have been spared us . There is much that calls for thought , and deserves perusal in the two " series . "

PROSPECTS OF PERU . By A . T . DUFFIELD . Newman and Co ., Hart-street . This is a little " brochure" which sets the possible future of Peru before us in glowing colours , though its present state seems to be deplorable . The late war with Chili will not make matters more " couleur derose . " Still , with its regions and treasures of unobtained and unexplored mineral wealth , the future of Peru is likely to he as brilliant as its past has been dark , and its present saddening .

WHO ARE THE WELSH ? By J AMES BONWICK , F . R . G . S . David Bogue , 3 , St . Martin's-place . We have read this little striking pamplet with much interest , but we hardly yet realize to what conclusion the writer arrives . He seems to intimate that Wales has been made up of a variety of immigrations , of which the Danish , the Armorican , and the Flemish are most conspicuous .

Whether or not Wales was originally colonised , by Phoenician traders or visited by Grecian sailors seems doubtful ; in fact the whole history of Wales is hazy in the extreme . The writer seems to give up the Triads as comparatively modern , with which we do not agree , but content ourselves with observing that Wales , like other nations , has its prehistoric times . The Welsh are a very interesting people , and we do not seek to ^ conceal that we like to hear of its legends , and to study its old world lore .

THE HOSPITAL SATURDAY FUND . Seventh Annual Report . We have before us the seventh report of this movement , and a very striking one it is . The balance sheet is highly suggestive . Some ^ 6946 2 s . 7 id . have been collected , the expenses , necessarily special , have amounted to £ 1024 , and the balance for distribution to £ 5922 is . u £ d . Of this , 3 C 5 S 00 has been distributed among ninety-six

institutions . It seems that £ 2000 on the last collection day have been raised directl y by the working classes , and that so far from any diminution of interest or receipts , the present balance sheet has jt 4 S 2 more to account for than last year . We cannot but express our opinion that this is a good , useful , and needful movement , and deserves the support of all who seek to bring home to those who are not always able to command it , skilled attendance and curative institutions .

Masonic Notes And Queries.

Masonic Notes and Queries .

MASONIC NOTES . The "Notes" on Masonic History by Bra . Gould are most intcrescintr , and we ought to feel greatly indebted to him , both for his careful researches and his lucid explanations . Bro . Gould has accepted the theory apparently that there was only " one ceremony " and " one grade" in existence before 1717 , and strengthens himself

by quoting Bro . Hughan and Bro . W . P . Buchan in favour of his contention . Now , I venture , despite such high authorities , to enter a friendly " caveat" against such theories and declarations . As regards what is left of our early documents , we have very few which help us in the enquiry . A good deal is sometimes made of alleged old rituals , but I know of no

transcript of ritual which is earlier than the latter part of the last century or the beginning of this . There are none in the Grand Lodge of England library . There are a great many rituals in the Grande Libraine , Rue de Richelieu , Paris , but they are all late , mostly Hi g h Grade , and the symbolic rituals are adonhiramite , which is late . I have never yet seen any English MS . ritual which can by any be admitted to be earlier than end of

means the iSthcentury , nor any valid proof of ceremonial , or authority on thesubject . We havealleged printed rituals of the Three Degrees early iSthcentury , which , if good for anything , and I hold them , for one , but of negative value , might be held to prove thatthe Second and Third Degrees were not of merely iSthcentury use on the well-known ground of " legal memory . " I have

seen a transcript of the well-known Rite de Bouillon , and another copy is , 1 think , at Paris ; but the transcript might be any age—early 19 th century MS . So when we come to theevidence of Degrees it practically is " nil . " The printed evidence is in favour of the earlier date , unless we reject the authority of the writer . Neither can Anderson ' s language be pressed in any way so as to

presume that the writer understood the division of Degrees was a new thing . We have some MS . evidence and some printed whicli , on the contrary , clearly allege the existence of more than one Degree as early in the iSth century . The Sloane MS ., whether of 17 th century composition , is of early iSthcentury transcription , about 1715 , and I will defy any to deny that it contains language which refers to more than one

Degree . I venture to conceive that I am capable to understand ' and realize what words mean , and no one can read the Sloane MS . through without seeing that allusion is made , ( perhaps ignorantly ) , to more than one Degree . It would be impossible in a public print to prove this statement , but mine must be taken " quantum valet . " The of

language Long Livers , whatever it may mean , mentions an " exalted Degree , " and , therefore , the theory that between 1717 and 1721 our present Degrees were arranged is one which 1 must really respectfully decline to consider or argue . That Payne and Anderson understood so is impossible to conceive , or that they would be parties to such a deliberate fraud . The absence of'distinct " evidences " as to the Third Degree is undoubtedly to be explained bv the fact that until

sometime in the iSth century the Second and Third Degrees were given in the Grand Lodge . It was so at York , for there is a distinct record of a ceremony so performed , which made a great impression on me when I read it . It was so in the South , and even where Masters Lodges were holden no minutes were kept of them . The ceremonial of the Degree was too "ineffable" to be alluded to openly , much less " minuted . "

I quite agree with Bro . Gould that we cannot rely on Dermott or Dr . Oliver , and that their statements relative to the ritual are not trustworthy . But certain "facts " are before me . There was a ritual in 16 4 6 at Warrington . What was it ? There was a ritual in 1717 , when those old Masons met . What was it ? Any one who could give us a glimpse into English Ma-

Masonic Notes And Queries.

sonry between 1717 and 1721 , ( as if Stukeley ' s evidence is reliable just below , the " status" of Masonry in London in 1721 was not flourishing ) , would be a benefactor to all who , like myself , dub themselves MASONIC STUDENT .

ANTHONY SAYER . Is Bro . Gould quite sure that Anthony Sayer was an Operative Mason ? I have a very curious print of him as Anthony Sayer , gentleman , painted by Higmore , engraved by Faber . ihe fact may be so , but I should like to know if his will cou ! d _ be found at Doctors' Commons . I have longbeen of opinion that we ought to try and find out more about Sayer and Payne , Anderson and Desaguliers , than is known to us at present . MASONIC STUDENT .

LISTS OF LODGES . I have the lists of Cole of 1762 , 1770 . The printed lists ° f ' 735 > 1765 ^ 176 S , and several others . M . S . '

SIR CHRISTOPHER WREN . Anderson , in the Constitutions of 173 S , says , that on St . John ' s Day , December 27 th , 1663 , Henry Jermyn , Earl of St . Alban's , held a general assembly or feast , when certain regulations were made , which are in fact a transcript of Harleian , 1942 , with the exception that where Anderson says "Grand Master , " the MS . says " Master . " I do not think that Anderson meant intentionally to misrepresent the

articlebut understood from the " context" Master to imply Grand Master . Anderson I see says that Sir Christopher Wren and Mr . John Webb were Grand Wardens , Sirjohn Denham , D . G . M ., " according to a copy of the Old ' . Constitutions . " I have not been able to trace any earlier actual reference to Sir Christopher Wren as a Freemason in Masonic writers . In the 1723 edition Anderson says Webb was a

son-m-law of Inigo Jones , but nowhere alludes , I admit , to the fact of Sir Christopher Wren being a Mason , though he claims James the First , Charles the First , Charles the Second , William the Third , and as distinctly Inigo Jones , Nicholas Stone , and John Webb as Freemasons . From what" Old Constitutions" did Anderson derive his authority in 173 S ? It has always appeared to me that the 1723 edition was hastily written , and simply Jbr a purpose and an occasion . MASONIC STUDENT .

In a very interesting paper on the Preceptory of Dinmore , read by Bro . the Rev . W . C . Lukis before the York Rosicrucian College , in November last , the following passag-e occurs . It is taken from the " Common-Place Book " of the well-known antiquary , Dr . Stukeley . He was , it seems , initiated January 6 th , 1721 , and thus records the event as taking place at the " Salutation Tavern , " Tavistock-street : " I was the first person made a Freemason in London for

some years . We had great difficulty to find members enough to perform the ceremony . " What will Bro . Gould say to this ? and can he , great "lodgeographer" as he is , tell us what this lodge was ? Perhaps it was an " occasional lodge . " Its name does not occur in any list . Bro . Dr . Stukeley is said by Bro . Lukis to have assisted in forming a lodge at the Fountain , Strand , December 27 th , 1721 , and this lodge appears in the list of 1723-1735 , but not after . It is out in 1729 . Can it be traced ? A . F . A . W .

Royal Masonic Institution For Girls.

ROYAL MASONIC INSTITUTION FOR GIRLS .

VISIT OF WEST YORKSHIRE BRETHREN , FEB . 24 th . The following brethren and ladies from the Province of West Yorkshire visited the Girls' School , on Thursday , the ? , 24 th ult .: Bros . Lieut .-Colonel Sir Henry Edwards , Bart ., D . L ., P . M . Gi , P . G . M . W . Y .: I . Booth ,

61 , P . P . G . W . ; Mrs . Booth ; C . T . Clarkson , 61 ; H . W . Wrigley , P . M . 149 ; J . W . Sykes , J . W . 149 ; George Blackburn , W . M . 264 ; John Hey , sen ., P . M . 264 ; B . P . Parker , P . M . 2 ( 34 , P . P . G . P . ; Lieut .-Col . J . Day , W . M . 275 ; Alfred Jubb , S . W . 275 ; Thomas Ruddock , P . M . 275 , Past Provincial Grand Deacon ; W . J . Beck , P . M . 2 S 9 , P . Prov . G . D . of C . ; William Harrop ,

P . M . 290 , Prov . Grand Deacon ; Harold Thomas , 29 6 ; Henry Smith ; P . M . 302 , Prov . G . Sec . ; Thomas Hill , P . M . 302 , P . P . G . W . ; Wm . Blackburn , P . M . 337 , P . P . G . D . ; John Hirst , P . M . 337 , P . P . G . W . ; F . W . W . Booth , P . M . 3 S 7 , P . P . G . D . of C ; Edwin Lee , W . M . 40 S ; Wm . Wood , P . M . 49 s ; Lieut .-Col . J . Hartley , P . M . 495 , Prov . G . Stwd . ; George Marshall , P . M . 521 ; Wm . Henry Jessop , J . W . 521 ; John Fawcett , P . M . 004 ,

P . P . G . D . ; Joseph Quarterman , W . M . 910 ; W . C . Lupton , P . M . 974 ; John Richardson , jun ., P . M . 1001 , P . P . G . Purst . ; W . F . Smithson , P . M . 1001 , Prov . G . Stewd . ; T . T . Powell , P . M . 1001 ; Edward Ferrand , W . M . 1018 ; Mrs . Ed . Ferrand , George Althorp , P . M . 1018 , Prov . G . Purst . ; Mrs . George Althorp , John Wordsworth , P . M . 1019 , Vice Chairman , C . C ., W . Y . ;

John Haslegrave , P . M . 1019 ; George Newton , P . M . 1019 ; Wm . Henry Gill , P . M . 1019 , Asst . to Prov . G . Sec ; Benj . Watson , 1019 ; Saml . Stead , P . M . 1042 ; Eli Pullan , P . M . 1042 ; Joseph Ibberson , P . M . 1102 , P . P . G . Reg . ; John K . Ibberson , P . M . 1102 ; John Walmsley , P . M . 1102 ; John Barker , P . M . 1102 ; Arthur A Stott , P . M . 1102 ; W . H . Bradford , J . W . 1211 ; Geo . F .

Crowe , I ' . M . 1211 , r . r \ L .. U . ; Joseph Pickering , jun ., 1239 ; Joseph Pickering , sen ., 1239 ; J . B . Hargreaves , J . W . 1311 ; C . E . Richardson , J . D . 1311 ; Thomas Crossley , P . M . 1311 ; J . H . Gration , P . M . 1513 ; Peter Wilson , S . D . 1513 ; James Wood , 1513 ; Joseph Mitchell , P . M . 1513 ; Thomas W . Embleton , 1513 ; Geo . Horsfall , W . M . 1514 ; Job Marling , P . M . 1542 ; Alfred Stephenson ; P . M . 164 S ; Mrs . Stephenson , and George Gardiner ,

P . M . 17 S 3 . The Company was received by the following members of the House Committee : Bros . Dr . Wm . Hope , Chairman for the month ; H . A . Dubois , A . H . Tathershall , J . Nunn , Hammertoe , F . R . W . Hedges , Secretary ; and were accompanied by Bros . Frederick Binckes , Sec . R . M . I , for Boys ; Ben . Watkins , 162 , P . P . G . S . B . Mon . ; S . Lee Bapty , P . M . Mother Kilwinning .

Old Matured Wines and Spirits . —J . E . SHAND & Co ., Wine Merchants ( Experts and Valuer *) , a , Albert Mansions , Victoriastreet , London , S . W . Price lists or ; application . —[ ADVT . 1