Contents.

CONTENTS .

--LEADERS 32 $ Royal Masonic Institntion for Boys—Annual Anniversary Festival . . ' ... 326 History of tlie Royal Masonic Institution for B 03-S { Continued } 331 Consecration of the Starkie Chapter , No .

• t » 3 S , baltord 33 ' C ORRESPONDENCEAn Old Certificate 333 Errata 333 Grand Lodge of South Australia 333 A Query 333 Sir J . 13 . Monckton ' s Testimonial . „ 333 Reviews 333 Notes and Queries 334

REPORTS OF MASONIC MEET-INKSCraft Masonry .... ' 334 Instruction 33 $ Royal Arch , 33 Mark Masonry 33 & Provincial Grand Mark Lodge of Hampshire and the Isle of Wight 336 New Masonic Hall at Barrow-in-Furness 115

. Jubilee of Menturia Lodge , No . 418 337 Summer Excursion of ' the' Lodge of Fortitude , No . 2 S 1 337 Picnic of the Marlborough Lodge , No . ¦ 1620 , Liverpool 33 8 Royal Masonic Institution for'Girls 338 The Theatres 338 Masonic and General Tidings 33 8 Lodge Meetings for Next Week ... Page 3 Cover .

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WE congratulate Bro . B INCKES arid the authorities of the Boys' School on their very successful Festival , under the distinguished presidency of our Bro . the LORD MAYOR . Though the ^ 14 , 061 us . 6 d . of 1884 is , at first sight , vastly different from the £ 23 , 000 of 1883 , it must be remembered that the " voice of the Charmer" has this time no double votes to hold out

before a willing clientele , and that therefore , as Bro . HEDGES fairly put it and well , thus far the results of the three Festivals have amounted to ¦ ^ 41 , 000 , and which sum is certainly to be augmented and supplemented before the year is ended , despite Papal Allocutions and Archiepiscopal fulmination . . Surely we may all feel proud of our good , old , charitable ,

useful , and tolerant Order . We note that the London return is £ 7712 , and that the provinces and colonies have sent up £ 6349 . . The largest provincial return is West . Yorkshire which sends ^ 589 ; Hampshire sends /¦ ? i 2 ; and Cheshire and Kent , , £ 498 each ; Staffordshire , £ 313 ;

Monmouthshire , £ 307 . The hig hest London lodge was Royal Savoy , with ^ 630 . There were 290 Stewards . The subscriptions of her Majesty the Q UEEN . ( the forty-seventh ) and ^ that of our'lamented Bro . H . R . H . the Duke of ALBANY were sent through the good old Lodge of Antiquity , of whichh is Royal Highness was . one while Worshipful Master .

» - * As we said last week , " it never rains but it pours , " and here we have Cardinal GUIBERT ,. Archbishop of Paris , weakly imitating the bad example of his " superior and his confreres . " We shall never be astonished to hear or read of other cardinals " fulminating" and . other archbishops " charging . "

In the meantime ' the Freemasons only smile at each fresh outburst of impotent malice . What makes the matter more serious and striking is that if the Roman Catholic authorities had ; as they have in some countries , good grounds for . complaint and animadversion , by the exaggeration of their language and the absurd violence and untruthfulness of theirassertions in

general , they lose even the vantage ground they might otherwise possess , and fail utterly in any effect by the very impetuosity and unveracity of their own violent fanaticism . In the Times of Monday appears the following telegraphic paragraph from its correspondent at Paris : " Cardinal GUIBERT , Archbishop of Paris , has issued a pastoral , warning Catholics

against joiningor continuing in Masonic lodges . He describes the destruction of Christianity as the object of Masonry , cites the expunging of the Theistic article by French lodges , and declares that Masons , while supporting any established Governments which enable them to oppress Ch ristian consciences , prefer' those which show themselves most fanaticalin demolishing religious institutions . " Alas for . religion and . for truth I

* * THE more wc think over the unfortunate attitude , taken up by the Roman Catholic- Church as against Freemasonry and Freemasons in this year of grace 1884 , whether expressed by the Supreme PONTIFF or the " Inferior Clergy " of all categories , the ' more we feel persuaded that a more

inopportune and meaningless blunder never has been made if absolutely innocuous as regards the Masonic Order , and only likely to " fall back , " as the French idiom has it , on the "fautors " of such intolerant and unseasonable action . Lord C ARNARVON has most clearly painted the grave defect of the Allocution , and th ' e " gravamen" as English Freemasons we can fairly allege

against it , namely , the mournful measure in which it sins against justice , fairness , and truth . If it be admitted that in some foreign jurisdictions Freemasons seem to be drifting away from the great principles of Freemasonry ,

and to be in hot and angry warfare at this very hour ' with the Roman Catholic Church ; if it be clearly within- the right of the Roman Catholic Church to condemn such a state of strife and contention " ad fideles , " it is clearly in the wrong in including in one wide-sweeping censure , indif-

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ferently , the great majority , of existing Freemasons , who have nothing whatever to do with such controversies , and entirely repudiate such proceedings . When we are told by some Roman Catholic writers , — " Oh , do not be too angry , you are not included in the censure ; " " such allocutions are silent or obsolete declarations as far as you English Freemasons are concerned ;"

" you are to read between the lines , " " we know you sin through invincible ignorance , "—we can only say that in our humble opinion such " glosses " " add insult to the injury . " . The PorE is not so ill-informed that he does not know that in Great Britain and its colonies the , Freemasons are a most distinguished , loyal , and religious body of men , with Royalty at their head ,

with some of the most distinguished in the land for rank , intellectuality , moral excellence , political distinction ( on both sides , ) members of their lodges . To describe these men as unbelievers , revolutionists , immoral , banded together for the unholiest purposes , friendly to social anarchy and confusion , inimical to all religion and the safety of society is not only a" monstrous paradox , " .

but is absolutely devoid of foundation , reality ,, actuality , as any earthly statement well can be . Ii ^ fact , we hardly like to characterize such an assertion in these peaceful pages . And therefore the only effect of such " unlicensed printing and publication" and must be a serious blow to Roman Catholic authority itself . We live at a period when the disapproval of

intolerance , injustice , persecution and " boycotting , " whether material or spiritual , is most marked and pervading alike among our publicists , our all pervading press , the great mass of society , and all thoughtful men generally . To note then a great religious body sinning openly and sinning grossly against the normal . canons of courtesy , kindness , consideration ,.

common sense , and historical veracity can have but one effect , namely , to discredit any religious body which thus sacrifices everything at the shrine of sectarian bitterness and denominational intolerance , which confounds

truth and falsehood , and which , arguing from a particular to an universal , does not even discriminate between whatis fair of a small sectional subdivision of a great organization subjectively and specifically , and what is entirel y unfair towards the whole body objectively and abstractedly .

* » yVE hope our foreign readers in some jurisdictions will take in good part what we are about to say to them . Their is no doubt that many of their words and acts in some countries to-day are utterly indefensible , and are not at all unnaturally resented , whether by Roman Catholics or even

members of Protestant bodies and Episcopal Churches . In one foreign jurisdiction lodges " out Herod " some other lodges in selecting the most apparently meaningless ( Masonically ) , and the most serious questions , ( apart altogether from Masonry . ) for habitual discussion in secret . No wonder that often religious bodies and national rulers regard such proceedings with suspicion

and dismay . No wonder that as they will profess , so people believe of them ., and-that in some lands educated and uneducated alike look on Freemasons and Freemasonry with absolute defiance and disapproval . Forgetting the real aim and pbject of Freemasonry , they are allowing themselves to be seduced by the "Will-o ' -the-wisp" of philosophic tendencies and social

"facts . " But in those pursuits and tendencies they forget they are departing from the one safe and neutral ground of Freemasonry , which none can forsake without great danger to the Order and to themselves . What would become of English Freemasonry if we allowed social , or municipal , or political , or religious questions to be discussed in our lodges , is not at all

difficult to point out or foretell . We should fall asunder at once , like a rope of sand , and our most useful and benevolent organization must collapse , and disappear from the face of the earth . It- constitutes our safeguard and our vitality as English Freemasons that we confine ourselves to Masonic . work

and Masonic duties alone , and , keeping clear of political , and social , and religious controversies , make Charity and Loyalty our unfailing watchwords . We are by no means insensible to the fact that secular and spiritual persecution of the most fanatical and senseless kind has often been exercized

against intelligent and harmless Freemasons . But , as "two blacks do not make a white , " Freemasons cannot . be justified in imitating to-day tlfe worst follies of their persecutors in olden times , and " running riot , " sq to say , in their open . antagonism to constituted authority , to ecclesiastical sanctions , to the sacred and inalienable princip les of moral order ) family life , social duty , and even relig ious toleration .

* * * SOMETHING has been said by somebody of a Masonic Congress ; but , in our opinion , any such idea will find very little favour in Anglo-Saxon

Masonry . We cannot see what a Congress is to be holden for ; what there is to settle or unsettle , to confirm or change . 'We are perfectly contented as we are , alike with our old landmarks and our modern outcome , our principles of profession and our evidences of work .