Masonic And General Tidings.

MASONIC AND GENERAL TIDINGS .

The Council of the Royal Masonic Institution for Boys will hold its regular monthly meeting at Freemasons' Hall to-morrow ( Saturday ) , at 3 p . m . The Committee of Management of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution will bold its regular meeting at Freemasons' Hall , on Wednesday next , the nth inst ., at 4 p . m . A convocation of the Supreme Council , 33 , of f he Ancient

and Accepted Rite will be held at 33 , Golden-square , on the 10 th inst . There are three candidates for the 3 i ° and 20 for the 30 . Bro . Horace B . Marshall , P . G . Treasurer , has given a donation of £ 50 , and his son , Bro . Horace B . Marshall ,

jun ., one of £ 25 , to the funds of the St . Bride's Youths ' Institute , Shoe-lane . The latest reports respecting Bro . Sir Arthur Sullivan are favourable . Though he has been suffering a good deal of pain , he has gained slightly in strength . He was visited on Wednesday bv the Duke of Edinburgh .

Bro . Lieut .-Col . Cowan , Alderman of the Ward of Cordwainer , and next in rotation for the office of Chief Magistrate of the City cf London , has placed his resignation in the hands of Bro . Lord Mayor Evans . Bro . the Duke of Fife has very kindly undertaken to preside at the next Anniversary Festival of the Friends of

the Clergy Corporation , which will be held at the Hotel Metropole on Wednesday , the 25 th instant . Lord Wolverton presided at the Anniversary Festival which was held at the Hotel Metropole , in aid of the Warehousemen , Clerks' and Drapers' Schools on the 29 th ult ., when donations and subscriptions amounting to £ 4 , 500 were announced .

The Gaelic Society of London will give a concert at St . James's Hall on the 13 th inst . in aid of the prize fund of the Society's Highland Schools . The artistes will include Miss Macintyre , Miss Marian Mackenzie , Miss J . N . MacLachlan , and Mr . Dalgety Henderson .

Sunday was the 42 nd anniversary of the birth of the Duke of Connaught . His Royal Highness was horn at Buckingham Palace on the ist May , 1 S 50 , the birthday of the Duke of Wellington , who was one of his godfathers , and after whom he received the name of Arthur .

The Empress Frederick of Germany , accompanied by Princess Margaret of Prussia , visited the Queen at Darmstadt on the 2 Sth ult ., and returned the same afternoon to Homburg . Her Majesty has been pleased to confer the Order of the Garter on her grandson , the Grand Duke of Hesse .

Bros , the Right Hon . D . Plunket , M . P ., Henry Irving , J . L . Toole , E . Lawson , and others , entertained Sir Richard Ouain , at dinner at the Garrick Club , on Saturday evening last , and afterwards presented him with two antique silver bowls , in token of the esteem and affection in which they held him .

The Executive Committee of the National Leprosy Fund held a meeting in the Conference Room of the Housa of Commons last week under the presidency of Bro . Ferdinand de Rothschild , M . P ., Bros . Sir Algernon Borthwick , M . P . ( Hon . Treasurer ) , and Sir Somers Vine ( Hon . Secretary ) , being present .

Bro . E . P . Dilevanti , with the assistance of his pupils , has very kindly undertaken to give a performance of " The Mikado" in the Assembly Hall ot the Royal Masonic Institut'on for Boys , Wood Green , this ( Friday ) afternoon . The doors wi'l be opened at 6 p . m ., and th ; performance will commence at G . 30 .

The annual dinner of the Guild of Organists took place at the Holborn Restaurant on Tuesday evening , under the presidency of Mr . J . F . Field . The Guild already consists of some 150 members , and will devote its energies principally to the improvement of their position and that of their brother organists .

At the sale at Messrs . Christie s rooms , on Saturday last . of the Murrieta Collection of Pictures , " The Vale of Clwyd , " by David Cox , realised £ 4725 , while "Going to the Fair , " " Barden Tower , " and " Reapers Returning Home , " by the same artist , were sold for 1050 guineas , 1100 guineas , and £ 1 ISO respectively .

The 22 nd annual ball in aid of the Metropolitan and City Police Orphanage was held at the Cannon-street Hotel on the 2 . Sth ult ., and proved in every way a success . Among those present were Brn . Lord Mayor Evans , the Lady Mayoress , Lieut .-Col . H . Smith , Commissioner of City Police , Sir E . Bradford , Chief Commissioner of Metropolitan Police , and others .

'The Prince and Princess of Wales , with Prince George and the Princesses Victoria and Maud , returned to England from their sojourn on the continent on Tuesday afternoon . Their Rojal Highnesses , who crossed the Channel in the Calais-Douvres , were received on landing at the Admiralty Pier , Dover , b y the naval and military authorities , and on reaching Charing Cross were respectfully saluted by the people who had gathered together to witness their anival .

The annual meeting of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution was held on Saturday evening last . In the absence through illness of the Duke of Westminster , the chair was occupied by Sir Edward Birkbeck , M . P ., among those present being Bro . Sir M . E . Ilicksll .-ach , Bart ., M . P ., President of the linard of Trade , and Bro . the Earl of Mount Edgcumbe . 'I he report , which was read by the Secretary , was of a very gratifying character , and was adopted unanimously .

'The marriage of Viscount Chelsea , eldest son of the Earl of Cadopan , and the Hon . Mildred Sturt , third daughter of Lord Alington , was solemnised at Holy Trinity Church , Sloane-street , on Saturday afternoon last , and at the wedding party given by Lord and Lady Alington , at

Alington House , there were present among the guests Bro . the Earl and Countess of Lathom , Bro . the Earl and Countess of Arran , Bro . Lord and Lady llalsbury , the Austrian Ambassador and the Countess Deym , Bro . Sir Frederick Johnstone , Bart ., and others .

Masonic And General Tidings.

The anniversary dinner of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers was held at the Criterion on Wednesday evening , the chair being occupied by Dr . William Anderson , while the principal guest was the Duke of Cambridge . Owing to the death of the Duke of Clarence and Avondale the Duke and Duchess of Fife will be unable to open , as originally intended , the St . Martin ' s iLeague Bazaar at the Portman Rooms , on Tuesday , the 17 th inst .

The 29 th Annual Exhibition of Horses was opened at the Royal Agricultural Hall , Islington , on Thursday , and will remain open till Wednesday next , the nth inst . There are upwards of 300 entries and the amount distributable in prizes is £ 1000 .

The Duchess of Albany left Claremont for Germany , via Queensborough and Flushing , on Tuesday , on a visit to her father , the Prince of VValdeck-Pyrmont , at Arolsen . Her Royal Highness will be absent from England for about two months .

The Duke and Duchess of Coburg celebrated their golden wedding on Tuesday , and to commemorate the event Mr . Harris , the British Consul at Nice , on behalf of her Majesty the Queen , presented their Highnesses with a handsome piece of plate .

The 105 th annual meeting of the Marylebone Cricket Club was held in the Pavilion at Lord ' s Cricket Ground on Wednesday , under the presidency of Mr . V . E . Walker . The report showed that the number of members in 1 S 91 was 37 69 , of whom 3303 paid , 21 S are life members , and 24 S were abroad . The annual dinner took place in the evening .

The sixth Universal Cookery and Food Exhibition was opened in the Portman Rooms , Baker street , on Tuesday by Bro . Lord Mayor Evans , who attended in State with the Lady Mayoress , accompanied by Bro . Sheriff and Mrs . Foster , there being also present the Baroness Burdett-Coutts and Bro . Burdett-Coutts , M . P ., the President of the Executive Committee .

The Prince of Wales and his son Prince George were present at the regular monthly meeting of the Royal Agricultural Society on Wednesday , when on the motion of his Royal Highness it was resolved to recommend the Duke of Westminster to the general meeting of governors and members on the 23 rd instant for election as President for the ensuing year .

Bro . James Stevens asks ui to notify to the subscribers for the entire first edition of his new work , " The Evolution of Symbolic Masonry , " that , owing to holiday arrangements , the publication of the book has been unavoidably delayed , which he much regrets . The distribution is now being made , and the second edition will be ready , as per notice in our advertisement columns , on Monday next , the

gth inst . The annual inaugural banquet of the Royal Academy took place on Saturday evening last , under the presidency of Bro . Sir Frederick Leighton , P . R . A ., among the principal guests being the Duke of Cambridge , the Archbishop of Canterbury , the Right Hon . A . J . Balfour , M . P ., First Lord of the Treasury , Bro . Lord George Hamilton , M . P ., First Lord of the Admiralty , Sir John Lubbock , Bart .,

M . P ., Professor Butcher , and other notabilities of the day . There was a Court dinner of the Fishmongers' Company in their fine hall at London Bridge on Wednesday evening . The Prime Warden occupied the chair , and among the distinguished company present were Dean Gregory , Bro . Alderman Sir J . W . Ellis , Bart ., M . P ., Bros . G . A . Sala and Chailes Dickens , the President of the Royal Statistical Society , Sir Archibald Geikie , the Archdeacon of London , and others .

The Duke and Duchess of Connaught hive promised to attend the opening of the International Horticultural Exhibition at Earl'sCourr , to-morrow ( Saturday ) afternoon . His Royal Highness will perform the inaugural ceremony , and among those expected to be present to support him are the Duke of Westminster , Bro . the Duke of Abercorn , the Bishop of London , Bro . Lord Mayor Evans and the Lady Mayoress , and others .

Bro . J . E . Shand , P . M . of the City of Westminster Lodge , No . 15 G 3 , having completed 10 years' service as Secretary and 17 years as member , having mooted his resignation , a Committee has been formed , the W . M ., Bro . Charles Filhon , as President , and Bro . E . B . Cox , P . M ., P . P . G . Std . Br . Bucks , 73 , Wigmore-street , VV ., as Treasurer , to arrange for a substantial testimonial to be presented to him at the next meeting in recognition of his past services to the lodge .

The Queen , accompanied by the Prince and Princess Henry ot Battenberg , arrived at Flushing from Darmstadt early on Tuesday morning , and embarkedat once on board the Royal yacht Victoria and Albert . After a brief delay the yacht left the harbour , and escorted by the Immortalite and Enchantress and the Trinity yacht Irenemade for Port

, Victoria , which was reached in the evening , the Royal party landing and continuing their journey by train to Windsor . The day before her departure from Darmstadt the Oueen conferred the Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath" upon Prince Henry of I lesse , brother of the Grand Duke .

From the published statistics of the tour of Lord Sheffield ' s cricket tiam in Austialia , it appears that Dr . VV . G . Grace obtained the highest avera ; e both in the representative contests and in those against odds , his 154 not-out being the highest individual score of the tour . Mr . A . E . Stoddart obtained the highest aggregate of runs , while the highest

total obtained in an innings by the Englishmen was 499 in the last match of the tour against Combined Australia , when the latter was defeated with ease in a single innings . Of the eight representative matches that were played , the team won six and lost two , while of all the 27 matches put together , they won 12 , lost 2 , and drew 13 .

1- | OI . . OSVAV ' S Oix-i'MBST AMI 1 * 11 . 1 . * . —Few protons are so favoured by circumstances , or sri fnrtiliecl by nature , as to enable them lo pass unscathed the sore tnnls of an inclement season . With catarrh-, coughs , ami influenza everywhere abounding , it should be universally known lliat I lulloway ' s Ointment , diligently rubbed up'm the chest , cheeks the worst assaults of these

maladies , and securely wards oil * more grave anl dangerous diseases of tbe throat and lungs . The truth of this assertion must remain uni | tiestioned in the lace of thousands of unimpeachable living witnesses , who have personally derived the utmost possible benefits from this treatment when their preset sufferings were appalling , and their future prospects most disheartening , Both remedies act admirably together . —Anvr ,

Masonic And General Tidings.

Bro . the Duke of Devonshire has contributed £ 5 t 0 vc funds of the Church of England Burial , Funeral , and Mourning Reform Association . The natural increase of the population of England and Wales , or the excess of births over deaths , which had amounted to So , g 52 , 60 , 322 , and 71 , 854 respectively in the first quarters of 1 SS 9 , 1 S 90 , and 1 S 91 , was only 37 , 36 9 hJ quarter .

The memorial to the late Bro . John Maclean , which has been erected principally by the brethren of the lod ges with which our late brother was connected , was unveiled at Paddington Cemetery on Tuesday last . We hope to g \« further particulars of the proceedings in our next .

The extraordinary novel , "The Fate of Fenella , " each chapter of which has been written by a different author--24 in number—has just been published in 3 vol . form W ; TL the 70 original illustrations which appeared in The Gentle woman .

The largest shooting rental of any county in Scotland is Inverness-shire , with over £ 90 . 000 . Perthshire follows with about £ 75 , 000 , then Ross-shire with nearl y £ 60 000 Argyllshire with about £ 35 , , and Aberdeenshire ' with over £ 30 , 000 . Bro . Lord Egerton of Tatton was prevented by illness from presiding at the festival dinner held at the Hotel Metropole , on Tuesday , in aid of the British Home for Incurables , but his place was ably filled b y Bro . Earl Amherst , and the subscriptions amounted to £ 5000 .

At the next meeting ot the Leopold Lodge of Instruction No . 1571 , on the 12 th inst ., at the City Arms Restaurant ' St . Mary Axe , E . C , the ceremonies of consecration and installation will be rehearsed by Bro . James Terry , Past G . S . B . and Secretary of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution , at seven p . m . precisely .

Ihe ninth installation meeting of The Abbey ( Westminster ) Lodge , No . 2030 , will take place on Monday , the gth inst ., when Bro . Charles Christmas Piper will install Bro . Francis Jas . Smith , S . W . —one of the first initiates of the lodge—into the chair . The audit took place on Thursday list , and with very successful and satisfactory results as shown by the balance-sheet . '

Among those present at the marriage in St . Paul ' s Church Knightsbridge , on Tuesday , of Capt . the Hon . Osbert Lumby , nth Hussars , with Miss Constance Wilson-Patten eldest daughter of the Marchioness of Headfort , and the ' late Capt . E . J . Wilson-Patten , were Bro . the Marquis and Marchioness of Headfort , Bro . the Duke and Duchess of Abercorn , Bro . the Earl and Countess of Zetland , the Countess of Lathom , the Countess of Bective , and Lady Skelmersdale .

Bro . Sir Michael Hicks-Beach , Bart ., presided on Tues . day at a meeting of the Committee of members of the House of Commons formed to promote the erection of a stained-glass window in St . Margaret ' s , Westminster , to the memory of the late Right Hon . VV . H . Smith , Leader ol the House , when it was resolved to invite designs for the window , and a general feeling prevailed that any surplus which might remain over should be expended in a bust of the late Leader , to be placed in the library of the House .

The editor of The Gentlewoman has asked his readers to reply to the question " Do women desire to vote for Members of Parliament ? " by voting on the subject , and as soon as possible he will announce the total votes on either side . Mr . Gladstone has affirmed that until the " womanly mind " of the country declares itself

unmistakably in favour of having the power to vote , that they should not be enfranchised . As the Gentlewoman is not a political journal it will be enabled to get at the views of a large and representative and thinking body of women , nonpolitical as well as political , which should afford a useful and instructive answer to Mr . Gladstone ' s question .

CHANCERY-LANE SAFE DEPOSIT EXTENSION . —Since the inauguration of this institution in 1 SS 5 , the proprietors have been compelled from time to time , owing to the public demand , to increase the number of safes and strong rooms . The improvements and additions now proceeding , and being executed by Messrs . Ratcliff and Horner , of St . Paul ' schurchyard , E . C ., will more than double its present size ,

and make it one of the most perfect and complete safe deposits in the world . There will be 10 , 000 small safes added , extra strong rooms , and additional waiting and writing rooms for visiting renters . It will be redecorated throughout , and fitted with the electric light . We should certainly recommend those visiting London to inspect the Chancery-lane Safe Deposit , which is impregnable both against lire and thieves .

St . Martin ' s Lodge , No . 510 , held a successful dance in aid of the Masonic Cha'ilies on the evening of Thursday , the 23 rd ult ., at the Public Hall , Liskeard . The ball was originally fixed for the day on which the Duke of Clarence died . I he hall presented a charming appea > ance . Mottoes and devices connected wiih the Order adorned the walls , and several portraits of distinguished brethren were consp icuous .

The gasliers were tastefull y draped with bunting of various colours , and underneath were affixed large Chinese lanterns . Lady friends ol brethren had also in the window recesses executed pretty designs with primroses and violets on beds of moss , which considerably enhanced the effect . Music was furnished by members of the Royal Marine Band , and Bro . J . Lleave proved an efficiei t caterer . The Commit ' upon whom responsibilities devolved were Bros . E . V

ennmg ( Chairman ) , J . T . Cheves , R . A . Courtney , L j * - Moon , A . Hancock , W . Nettle , and A . H . Wenmouth , W Honorary Secretaries being Bros . W . Hammondand >>¦ IT . Stantan . Bros . Stantan , Wenmouth , and Ha " j * must , however , be credited with a large amount of tne decorating . The brethren wore full Masonic clothm / fi which , of course , contributed to the brightness of the scene . Amongst the visitors was the Right Hon . Leonard > ' ¦ Courtney , M . P . Dancing was kept up until about lour o ' clock .

FISH ! FISH ! FISH ! The CO-OPERATIVE F ISII Sui'i ' - } Co ., LTD ., are now sending out cheap BASKETS of I ' or OY . STF . KS , carriage paid , to any part of the King'i'V "' from 2 s . Cd . each and upwards , direct from the , an S stage . Address orders and remittances to the Co-Ope rat Fish Supply Co ., Ltd ., Pontoon , Grimsby , or to Billwgsg ? Buildings , London , E . C , as may be most convenient . _ * our London House for their celebrated Bloaters , r " Haddocks , Kippers , & c .