Original Correspondence.

according as they are skilled and may deserve" for their work , and not outrageously . Also—if any one of the said trade will not be ruled or directed in due manner by the persons of his trade sworn thereunto , such sworn persons are to make known his name

unto the Mayor ; and the Mayor , by the assent of the Aldermen and Sheriffs , shall cause him to be chastised by imprisonment and other punishment , that so other rebels may take example hy him , to be ruled by the good folks of their trade .

Also—that no one of the said trade shall take the apprentice or journeyman of another , to the prejudice or damage of his master , until his term shall have fully expired ; on pain of paying to the use of the Commonalty half a mark each time that he shall be convicted thereof . —( Page 280 , 1 and 2 . )

The following extract from the Preface to the said book may also be new to many of the readers of THE FREEMASON : — The word " mystery , " or its old-fashioned and now obsolete " mistery , " as signifying a trade , it will be remarked , has not been used in this translation ; westerly , or mester , having always for its equivalent the word

" trade" or " craft . " These words are derived , in fact , from the Latin ministerium , " a serving to , " and are in no way connected with mysterium , " a secret , " which the use of the misguided English word " mystery" as their representative might easily lead the purely English reader to suppose . I shall only add , that throughout the book from

which the above was extracted I could not perceive the slightest indication of any difference in the religious aspect between the masons , coopers , saddlers , & c , & c , of which trades anecdotes are interspersed . Nor could I find any allusion—either in that book or in any other book , constitution , charge , & c , written previous to the establishment of the

Grand Lodge of England—of " our ancient brethren " ever having paid homage to the Saints John , either as Grand Masters , Grand Patrons , or as members of the Masonic fraternity . I find , indeed , in several old constitutions , such as that of Strasburg , Halliwell's poem , & c , mention made of "four holy crowned martyrs . " These may probably have been

regarded by the * brotherhood as Masonic patron saints , but that these four holy crowned kings , architects , sculptors , and painters ever existed very few of our modern brethren can believe , and how our ancient brethren came to believe in the legend of the said martyrs can only be accounted for on the principle that Masons have always been credulous . They

were imposed upon precisely in the same manner as our modern Masons were with the legend of Grand Mastership of the Saints John—as Dr . Oliver was imposed upon when writing his "Antiquities of Masonry "—as our high-degree-mongers were with

the Most Puissant Grand Commandership of Frederick the Great—and a hundred other little matters besides . Fraternally and respectfully yours , JACOB NORTON . Boston , U . S ., February 22 , 1 S 71 .

District Grand Lodge Of Bengal.

DISTRICT GRAND LODGE OF BENGAL .

At the last Quarterly Communication of the DistrictGrand Lodge of Bengal , held at the Freemasons' Hall , Calcutta , there were present , the Right Worshipful Hugh David Sandeman , District Grand Master ; W . Bro . G . H . Daly , M . D ., Deputy District Grand Master , and about sixty brethren , including visitors .

The District Grand Lodge Avas opened in due form at 6 . 30 p . m . The R . W . D . G . M :.: W . Brethren—Before addressing you on the general subject of business to be brought before Grand Lodge , I have , to my great sorrow , to make an announcement

to you which I am sure will be received with very deep regret , and which is , the great loss that has been sustained by Masonry in India by the death , since we last met , of the District Grand Master of British Burmah . It would be superfluous for me to recapitulate all that Col .

Greenlaw did for the good of Freemasonry up to tlie very time of his decease ; how he laboured for its interests with his pen as well as with his personal support and countenance , or to tell you how dearly loved he was by all with whom he came in contact , whether as a Freemason or

as a con ¦ : nion in ordinary life Personally , I have hai to deplore the loss of" a very deai friend , Avith Avhom I was very intimately acquainted , and in close and constant correspondence for many years . The Craft has lost in

him an honest supporter , a hardworking , conscientious , and upright brother , whose memory will long live in the annals of the Order . I propose that a letter be addressed to the District Grand Lodge of British Burmah , express-

District Grand Lodge Of Bengal.

ing , on behalf of this Grand Lodge , sincere condolence with them in the loss of this eminent brother . I have further the painful task of announcing to you the demise of W .

Bro . Conway , Avho was well-known among the Masonic fraternity in this province , and much esteemed by us as well for his private and social good qualities as for the interest which he manifested in all matters connected with our ancient

Craft . You will remember that he was especially conspicuous for the manner in Avhich he laboured for the advancement of our Masonic Charities . I have reason to know that his loss was acutely felt in his own lodge , and I am equally well assured that this feeling is not

confined to Lodge Excelsior . The D . G . M . then moved : — " That a letter of condolence from this District Grand Lodge be addressed to the District Grand Lodge of British Burmah . " Seconded by W . Bro . Col . Ford , D . S . G . D ., and carried unanimously .

The R . W . D . G . M . then proceeded to address the brethren of District Grand Lodge , and said —Your attention this evening will be mainly directed to the committee reports , which have always to be considered at our meetings . From the report of the Finance Committee it would

appear that the state of our funds is somewhat improved since June , yet it must be remembered that in addition to the sum exhibited as a balance against the Grand Lodge Fund , there is a debt of .- £ 250 , which still remains unliquidated , and which every effort must be made to

clear off . I hope that during the next half-year we may see this done , and that we may then be able to work on in a state of positive solvency . It will be a matter of regret to you to see the names of certain lodges reported as defaulters by the Finance Committee , who have , however ,

done but their duty in the matter . I pass over the cases of " True Friendship " and " Marine , " as they have in part complied with thc laws of Grand Lodge in respect to the payment of their dues , without further comments than to remark upon the discredit which attaches to lodges

remaining debtors to Grand Lodge , notwithstanding all that has been said from time to time by myself and others in Grand Lodge on the subject , and notwithstanding their knowledge of the urgent necessity Avhich exists of relieving Grand Lodge from an embarrassment which is

partly attributable to their negligence . In the other cases , upon the recommendation of the Finance Committee , I directed the Masters to appear before a Committee , which I appointed , to investigate their cases , together with their books and warrants of constitution . The

Committee have reported to me in the case of Lodge Temperance that the disregard to the instructions which are issued from time to time from the Grand Secretary ' s ofiice , has resulted from ignorance and not from intentional motives of disrespect , and they are of opinion that a

reprimand , which they administered to the officer in charge of the lodge , was sufficient to meet the case . I have , of course , supported their judgment and their action . I am sorry to be obliged to add that the lodge is very far from being in a satisfactory state , and I have been compelled ,

upon the appeal of one of its members , to interfere with the election of its Master for the ensuing year . The Master of Lodge Anchor and Hope paid no attention to the orders communicated to him to appear before the Committee , and a peremptory summons Avas

accordingly issued * upon this he appeared with his Secretary , but without his warrant or books , as he was desired to do . His replies were considered by the Committee to be so unsatisfactory , and his statements regarding the lodge so suggestive of thc fact that it was in a completely

disorganised state , that they felt themselves bound to recommend a withdrawal of the warrant . This I have directed to be done , and it will be for you to decide , upon hearing the case , which will be laid before you during the

evening , whether it will be prudent again to entrust the warrant to the keeping of a Master who is apparently unable to comprehend the responsible nature of his duties as a ruler in the Craft . The Master of the lodge is himself under sentence of suspension from his Masonic

District Grand Lodge Of Bengal.

privileges , until such time as he shall obey my order to deliver his warrant into the hands of the Grand Registrar . While on the subject of irregularities , I have to notice a case which has occurred at Fyzabad in Lodge Light in Ajoodhya , lvhere the Master , on being removed from the

station prior to the expiration of his term of office , placed a new Master in the chair , instead of handing over the lodge , as he should have done , to the rule of his Senior Warden . As the irregularity in this instance arose entirely from ignorance on the part of the -Lister , I have

contented myself with reprimanding him for his want of knowledge of ordinary Masonic law and procedure . The case is painfully illustrative of the fact that a Mason does not always make himself sufficiently acquainted Avith the duties of a Master before taking upon himself that very

responsible office . As regards the reports from the Fund of Benevolence and the Bengal Masonic Association , I have nothing to say further than that , under the existing relations between the Fund of Benevolence and this District Grand Lodge , relations which I believe

to be entirely founded upon error , no discussion can take place regarding a report which is sent to us for information and record only * and that the progress made in the affairs of the Bengal Masonic Association ought to be a matter of congratulation . This report also is sent to us

for record and information only . Fears were entertained for a short time that Lodge Rock of Gwalior , at Morar , might collapse , owing partly to the transfer of its Master and some of its members to a distant station , and partly to resignations and deaths . I am happy , however ,

to add that W . Bro . Major Wroughton , Avhose name has been for some time prominently associated Avith the Dinapore and Fyzabad lodges , and who is now stationed at Morar , has taken the affairs of the lodge in hand , and holds out every hope of its again working prosperously .

I wish to call attention to the handsome mural tablet which has been placed in the monumentroom of this building , by brethren of Lodge Excelsior , to the memory of our departed Bro . Abbott ; and also to notice that the erection of the handsome monument in memory of the late

Bro . J . J . L . Hon , has been delayed in consequence of repairs to St Andrew ' s Kirk , in which it is destined to remain . Consent to its erection has been formally obtained from the church authorities . I have to report three exclusions from lodge for non-payment of dues .

Reports of the Finance Committee and Grand Committee of the Bengal Masonic Fund of Benevolence were read and adopted . The District Grand Master then appointed the officers of the District Grand Lodge for the year 1 S 71 . He took the opportunity of

thanking W . Bro . Daly and the officers of the past year for their general services , and for the support which they had given him during their tenure of office , and further expressed a hope that he might continue to receive the benefit of their future advice and counsel . He remarked

that while it Avas absolutely necessary to ask some brethren to retire from office for a season , it was of course understood that they retained full possession of their privileges as Past Officers as long as they continued to retain their names on the roll of some regular lodge , and he hoped ,

after the lapse of a twelvemonth , to be in a position again to recognise their merits and their claims , by promotion to higher office . He thought it advisable , as in previous years , to bestow some rewards upon deserving Masons in the Mofussil , AVIIO frequently had great difficulties

to contend with 111 their endeavours to promote the interests of the Order , and who , by holding office in Grand Lodge , would necessarily be led to take a still deeper interest in matters connected with the Craft ; and he had endeavoured , to the best of his ability , to apportion the remainder ot the appointments fairly among the

town lodges , selecting brethren whose real worth and personal merit he believed to be acknowledged and respected by their fellows . He thought it unadvisable to bestow any offices upon the members of those lodges which had been unfavourably reported upon by thc Finance Committee , as neglecting to comply Avith the