Masonry's Work.

0 f man ' s religious obligation , it is careful so far as it does go to say and to do nothing that shall be out of harmony with the deepest needs and the highest aspirations of the human soul , 'fhe true Mason bows in reverence whenever he . hears the name of God . The Atheist must look outside of this Society for congenial companionship .

There is nothing which of right belongs to Masonry which Interferes in the slightest degree with the attainment of a perfect Christian character . On the contrary a faithful observance of the obligations which Masons assume , the application of the

symbolic teaching of the ritual , and the manifestation in social life of the spirit which pervades the lodge-room , will strengthen and increase those elements of character which it is the province of the church to carry to their perfection .

There comes a time in the life of every man when he needs that which money cannot buy . Sickness lays him low , sorrow throws its pall over his life , his plans fail , all things press heavily

upon him—he needs a friend . Our Institution tries to do its share in lifting the weight of sorrow from human hearts . From thousands of those who have felt the touch of its beneficent hand the song of its praise ascends to heaven .

While this is not in its essential features a society for mutual benefit in a monetary sense , there is developed among its members that spirit of helpfulness which allows no member selfishly

to enjoy the abundance with which he has been blessed so long as a brother , or the widow or orphan of a brother , is in need of that which he can supply to make life comfortable . Masonic Charity is free and full .

Freemasonry is often spoken of as an Order . It is one among many institutions which have sought to bring order into human life . No society established among men has been more

successful in giving men a calm and orderl y view of life . Through ignorance and wilfulness the life of man is full of disorder and confusion , it is often without satisfaction either to himself or to society .

Masonry tries to bring order into man ' s life by teaching him that he is a part of a great order of creation . It points him again and again to the Order which is manifested throughout the realm of nature , by which the stars move in their orbits , and all

processes of growth go on . This order it teaches him to imitate within the sphere of his own life . Geometry and architecture are used as illustrations of the order of moral and spiritual life which man should seek to have established within his own

being . Through the maintenance of rank and station , with a due respect for authority within its own borders , and through the

practice of brotherl y love and relief , among those who are linked in its mystic chain , Masonry seeks to lead men to the truth—it guides men into the presence of God with some power to seek the true meaning of life . —Voice of Maso ? i ? y . '

Royal Masonic Institution For Boys.

ROYAL MASONIC INSTITUTION FOR BOYS .

91 ST ANNIVERSARY FESTIVAL . The 91 st Annual Festival of the Royal Masonic Institution for Boys was held at the Alexandra Palace on Wednesday last , Bro . Richard Eve , P . G . Treasurer , presiding . The banquet was held in the large dining hall , and a very large assemblage of brethren and ladies sat down to dinner . As too frequentl y happens at these crowded gatherings , the dinner was a scramble . The less said about it the better , perhaps ; everybod y is prepared to put up with some inconvenience on such

occasions , and no doubt the resources of the establishment were taxed to the utmost . when the waiters had withdrawn , silence being claimed for the Chairman , iiro . £ VE rose and saJd that the jsrs ( . toast he ha ( j tQ br - before the notice 0 f

, < - Lt"npany was one which he knew they would all greet with a great amount of pleasure . The toast of "Her Majesty the Queen" was always received with P easure in assemblies of Englishmen . It was now 52 years ago since the Queen , then young lady of 17 , ascended the throne , and from that time to the present England

tli j y greater amount of prosperity—socially , morally , and financiallytoat S any ° ther P eriod - Tnere was no body of men that appreciated this Mi m ° ' freemasons , for they knew that the Queen was a mother of Hc- i ! ' S dmother of a Mason , and she was also the daughter of a Mason . asked them to be upstanding to drink the health of her Majesty the Queen . Anfh t 0 aSt was drunk witn enthusiasm , and was followed by the " National m > the solos being sung by Miss Fanny Joyce .

^ Sllre ., CHAIRMAN said the next toast he had to bring before their notice he was Quee { wouid drink with the greatest enthusiasm . Next to her Majesty the the hi " Was no P erson m England who was more entitled to the consideration of that 1 .. en than trie Prince of Wales . As their Grand Master , and having held their p tlon for H or 15 years , Masons felt the greatest affection and devotion to doub ]„ T , Master . During the time of his reign Masonry had more than

The pf ' numoer ot lodges , and in the number and influence of its members . : vIt ectir , f rnia ? conciuded by saying that he knew of no one who had a greater H ealth fi , 0 rder than the Grand Master , and he should now propose " The Thp 1 Prince of Wales , the Grand Master , and Patron of the Institution . " \ Val > . V ? ast Was du , y honoured , and was Iollowed b y "God bless the Prince of > the solo being rendered bv Miss Marv Belval .

health nf « A ' ' ' sing again > said he had much pleasure in proposing " The Earl of I ! u ght Hon - the Earl of Carnarvon , Pro G . M . ; the Ri ght Hon . the the Prov ; . ^ > D . G . M . ; ( both ex-officio Vice-Presidents of the Institution ) , and ¦ nasons ? and Masters , and the Grand Officers , Present and Past . " Free-Prornote & a d < 2 ep debt of gratitude to the Earl of Carnarvon for his efforts to them ; p great institution of Masonry . He had not only served Podes in ^ gland , but he had gone abroad , travelling to the Anti-Was alwavs ] nterests of Freemasonry . The Earl of Lathom also } read y to support the Grand Master when called upon , and

Royal Masonic Institution For Boys.

among the other Grand Officers there were a number of brethren who were distinguished in the Order . They had brethren of distinction , who had been selected by her Majesty to fill various positions in the State and in the administration of this great Empire , and knowing that those brethren of Grand Lodge were so distinguished , they might safel y drink to their health . They had men of all kinds and all classes ; all the various professions were duly represented among the

list—law , divinity , and physic were represented ; also literature and science ; and what they knew of these men was that they had devoted themselves for years , and had been selected by the Grand Master . They would , therefore , drink with pleasure to the Earl of Carnarvon , the Earl of Lathom , and the rest of the Grand Officers , Present and Past . He would call on one of the Grand Officers present to respond , and he would therefore mention Bro . Cama in connection with this toast , who was his ( Bro . Eve ' s ) immediate predecessor in the office of Grand Treasurer .

Bro . Cama , P . G . Treas ., said , in reply , that it gave him great pleasure to return his hearty thanks for the honour done to the Grand Officers , Present and Past . The way in which the toast had been proposed b y the Chairman , and received b y those present , showed that all the brethren had confidence in the G . Officers . For the honour of being associated with that body , he was indebted to several brethren who were present that evening , and , among others , to the Chairman himself . It was very good of the Chairman to couple his ( Bro . Cama ' s ) name with this toast , when there were so many present who were more entitled to the honour .

Bro . Col . SHADWELL H . CLERKE , G . Sec , said he had been permitted to propose the next toast , which he was sure all present would receive with the utmost enthusiasm . He was about to ask them to drink the health of the distinguished brother who presided over them on that occasion . On these occasions they were always honoured by the presidency of some distinguished Mason , and he was sure they would all agree with him when he said that to-ni ght that rule had been strictly

followed . The chairman of the evening , Bro . Eve , was not only a gentleman wellknown and highly esteemed in private life , but he was also a hi ghly distinguished and highly honoured Mason . He had belonged to the Order for some five and thirty years , and he ( Col . Clerke ) knew personall y that during that time he had always been most active , most energetic , and enthusiastic for the best interests of the Order . The greatest proof that that was so was shown by the Craft of

England , when , four years ago , they unanimously elected him as their Grand Treasurer . Therefore , he said that this assembl y was well and worthily presided over , and now he might point out that Bro . Eve ' s qualification for such a Chairman , ship , by his own personal support of the Charities , because he stood in the proud position of being a Patron of all the Charities . That was a position that was held

by very few , and , therefore , those present would agree with him in thinking that that reflected the greatest honour upon their distinguished Chairman . He ( Col . Clerke ) would not detain them longer . He was sure that the toast spoke for itself , and required no further eulogium on his part to drink to " The Health and prosperity of Bro . Richard Eve , P . G . Treas . " ( Applause . )

The toast was drunk most enthusiastically , and , Bro . Eve , in replying , said he- had to thank them very heartily for the kind way in which they had received the toast that had been so kindly •proposed by his Bro . Col . Shadwell Clerke . He could assure them that it was with very great hesitation that he took upon himself the position of Chairman of such a festival as this , but he could assure them that whatever hesitation he had had , had been removed by the pleasure and gratification that he felt in meeting that ni ght so many friends of the Institution . Col . Shadwell . H . Clerke had referred to his loner association

with the Masonic body . There was l . othing more gratifying to him than to reflect how long he had been a member of the Craft . It was now 30 years ago since he became a Master in the Order , and he had never had reason to regret the fact that he was member of the Order . He took the position of chairman because he felt that the Institution was in want of some energetic and prompt action . He was told , and he believed that the information was perfectly true , that a number of distinguished Masons , noblemen and gentlemen of position , Provincial Grand Officers ,

and others had been asked to take the position , but they hesitated because of the possibility of a report that would be adverse to the Institution . He could assure them that he had no hesitation ; he felt this , that the Institution , if it required a friend , they should never cease to find a friend in him , and that , if by means of his accepting the presidency of that Festival the Institution could be advantaged he would be highly gratified , and he considered himself hi ghly honoured in having the opportunity of so acting .

After resuming his seat , Bro . EVE almost immediatel y rose again to propose the toast of the evening . He said he would ask them to bear with him for a few minutes , for he would not detain them longer , but he asked them kindly for a few minutes to be as quiet as they could under the circumstances . He wanted to call their attention to the next toast , which was the toast of the evening . It was a toast which he was sure that they would receive with very great pleasure , and that they would drink it with enthusiasm , and that all present would throw their hearts into that

toast , because the very fact of their being there showed that they were in hearty accord with the toast itself . ( Hear , hear . ) Now , he could assure them it was with some diffidence that he approached the toast , because he felt that individuall y he was scarcely able to fully enunciate the claims which the Institution had upon them , and the efforts that this great Institution required at their hands . He knew that he was a very weak instrument to advance its cause , but nevertheless he would do his best —( hear , hear)—to put forward its claims to the favourable consideration of the brethren . The Masonic

Institution for Boys had now been in existence something like 90 years , and in the course of another 10 years they would be hoping to hold the centenary of that grand Institution . ( Applause . ) The Institution had been somewhat under a cloud —( hear , hear)—for the last 12 months , because the claims of a kindred Institution —the Institution for Girls—held its Centenary Festival last year , and was presided over by the M . W . Grand Master . With all the efforts that the brethren of the

convocation of England and of the Colonies , when those were relied upon to do their utmost in order to present a grand return , and to make apparent to the M . W . Grand Master the devotion they had for him , and also for the Institution—they knew that the great exertions made resulted in a collection of over ^ , " 50 , 000 for the Institution . Well , when such great exertions were made in favour of one Institution , it must be at the expense of the others in that year , and they knew that in

fact that was the case , and that it was in consequence of that that the contributions to the Institution for Boys last year amounted to only £ 8000 . That lee-way had to be made up . That was an Institution which required from . £ 12 , 000 to ^ 13 , 000 to keep it going , to pay all working expenses of it , and , therefore , they knew that the very fact that the subscriptions in last year had fallen short , made it all the more necessary that there should be a good return this year to place the

Boys in a good position . ( Hear , hear . ) Well , they had had another matter which had also retarded , to some extent , the movements of the Boys' School . He referred to the Inquiry —( hear , hear)—which , through the wisdom of the brethren and subscribers of the Institution had been held . ( Applause . ) They desired that this Inquiry should be made . The Inquiry had been made ; it had taken nearly 12 months to make a Report upon that Inquiry . The Report had been

before the brethren : the brethren could best consider the Report . before the brethren ; the brethren could best consider the Report . And at a great meeting of the brethren and subscribers to the Institution , it was determind to receive that Report , and to carry that Report into effect . The brethren mig ht depend upon it Masons never shrank from a

dutythey might be mistaken in carrying it out , but they never shrank from it , and the Masons who had the conduct of this great Institution —( cries of " Question" )—they had devoted their best abilities for the purpose . His object was to show —( clamour , and cries of " Chair " )—there mig ht be differences of opinion , but he was sure that any brother who fairly considered the matter —( renewed noise ) . He was going to