Royal Masonic Institution For Boys.

long distances to attend this meeting—it was impossible to discuss all these clauses before they went back . ( Hear , hear , and cheers . ) Therefore , he begged to propose that lthis Report be received and entered on the minutes—and if they liked he would add to it that it he adopted . ( Applause . ) One or two of the paragraphs were of a very comprehensive and salient character , advising the carrying out of the

instructions which this Investigation Committee recommended . He moved that the report be received , adopted , and entered on the minutes . ( Applause . ) Bro . R . C . E LSE , Dep . Prov . G . M . for Somersetshire , seconded the motion . Bro . A . C SPAULL said that if reference vvas made to the minutes , it would be found thatthe report had been

received at the last meeting . The CHAIMAN said the reception of the report was on the minutes , but not that it should be entered . The motion that the report should be received and entered on the minutes was then put to the meeting and carried unanimously . Bro . J . H . H AWKINS said that every one of these

clauses was most important . They had all seen the Report . ( A voice ; "No ! " ) Then he vvas sorry for them , as it was a great treat . It was absolutely impossible for them to discuss every one of these clauses , but the salient points were , to begin with , that they had a House Committee who had grossly neglected and badly managed this Institution . ( Applause and cries

of question . ) He was giving reasons why this . Report should be adopted as a whole . ( Hear , hear . ) Then they had a Secretary about vvhom he was sorry to say he would have to use some severe language . ( Cries of "not here , " and interruption . ) The Report said he had considered his position as paramount , that he had controlled the School and controlled the House Committee .

He had said he was a permanent official , while the House Committee was elected for one year , and that therefore he was superior to them . The Secretary was the servant of the Committee in his view . ( Hear , hear . ) He had received a high salary ( a voice , much too high)—for doing duties which he was bound to say had been seriously neglected . They were told that some accounts had not been kept

properly , that no cash book was kept , and that but for letters which had been written , money which had been given for this important Charity , might have drifted into a wrong channel . He thought it vvas a crying shame that this should occur , especially in connection with Masonry in England , which was composed of a very large number of gentlemen in an important social position , and whowere

_ supposed thoroughly to understand business . Was it that the Auditors and the names of the members of Committees were attached to a report to which they had given no attention . If any of these things had been done by clerks at 30 s . or £ 2 a week they would have distinguished themselves at the Central Criminal Court —(" oh , oh , " bear , hear , and interruption ) — charged with forgery , and he

was bound to say that the action of Bro . Binckes , the Secretary , in the matter in putting the names of these brethren to this document was nothing more nor less than forgery . ( "Oh , oh , " hear , hear , and applause . ) He was prepared to stand the consequence of the statement . Therefore , he said that Bro . Binckes was not entitled to their confidence , and should be removed from the position

he held . ( Applause . ) He hoped , for his own sake and for the reputation he had for such a long time in the Craft as a tower of strength , as he had been called , he would follow the example of some others who had been mentioned , and would resign . The fact that those whose names were on the document did , after it was issued , assent to it was no excuse . Those of the House Committee who

did not retire they would remove . ( "Oh , oh , " and applause . ) It was no use going into the question of the management of the Institution . They had learned that thematron and the house steward had resigned , so the matter was at an end , and they need not discuss the forcing house , and so on . ( Laughter . ) He begged to move that the Report be now adopted . ( Cheers . )

Bro . G . P . BRITTEN said , in common with most persons who had spoken , he had the utmost confidence in the Committee of Investigation , and he was sure that their Report ought to be adopted . There was a grievous state of mismanagement which they were all very much astonished and sorry to find , and the Committee suggested that changes be made , one being that Bro . Binckes should

bethey did not say removed—but removed from the supreme management of the Institution and relegated to the management of the office —( hear , hear , " no , no , " andinterruption)—undoubtedly that was the recommendation of the Committee . ( Hear , hear . ) That that change was requisite he was very confident , and that no good could be done until the duties of the Head Master and the Secretary were

clearly distinct and separate . ( Applause . ) But , while making such a change , and while they were all anxious to do that which vvas necessary for the welfare of the Institution , they ought not to do it without regard to justice to individuals . ( Hear , hear . ) They ought not to forget that Bro . Binckes had for many years rendered valuable services —( applause)—and they ought not to relegate him to a back

seat by carrying out in its entirety the resolution of the Committee , or , still further , deprive him of his means of livelihood by compelling him to resign without giving him some sort of pension . ( " No , no , " hear , hear , applause , and interruption . ) He would therefore move that Bro . Binckes be asked to resign , and that he be granted an allowance of £ 500 a year . ( " No , no , " and applause . )

Bro . W . H . SAUNDERS , amid a good deal of confusion , seconded the motion , pointing out that Bro . Binckes had given the Institution 30 years' service . Bro . T . BATBMAN FOX asked whether the proposition now proposed was an amendment to the motion before the Court . He submitted for the Chairman's ruling that as the Report entertained no recommendation that Bro .

Binckes should resign , the amendment was entirely out of order . A BROTHER in the hall urged that as the proposal to give Bro . Binckes a pension was not on the agenda paper , the amendment was out of order . The CHAIRMAN said that there was nothing in the Report to call on the Secretary to resign , and therefore

the adoption of the Report did not call upon him to carry out that step . He thought the amendment which had been proposed and which had been seconded , was not strictly in order . The Report might be carried , and this matter vvas one which could be subsequently taken into consideration . Bro . BRACKSTONE BAKER said that one of the recommendations of the Committee was an entire change in the administration .

Royal Masonic Institution For Boys.

The CHAIRMAN then put the motion for the adoption of the Report to the meeting , and it was carried . The result vvas received with loud cheers . A BROTHER in the body of the hall asked whether that resolution having been adopted the business , according to the agenda paper , was not at an end . The CHAIRMAN replied that it was quite competent to transact other business .

A BROTHER , amidst some confusion , rose and proposed that a cordial vote of thanks be given to the gentlemen who had devoted their time and attention to the investigation . Bro . W . SMITH drew attention to the first recommendation of the Committee of Investigation to the effect that "An entire change in administration , and a thorough breaking

away from the present practice , must take place before the management , discipline , and expenditure of the Institution will be satisfactory . " The Report having been adopted the meeting would , he contended , strictly act upon the report . ( Hear , hear . ) What he understood by the recommendation of the Committee was that the whole administrative power of the Boys' Institution should be changed from the

Secretary downwards . It had been said that at one time only _ fi 20 o was collected and that it vvas by the hard work of Bro . Binckes that the amount had been so largely increased , but they were not told what was the difference in the number of the Craft in i 8 Sg from what it was in those days . ( Hear , hear . ) If they wanted their Charitable Institutions placed on

a sure foundation they must act upon this Report . ( Applause . ) They must make a clean sweep of the whole administrative body . ( Renewed applause . ) They must have men to go into the Institution as the Managing Committee and Finance Committee , who would take it as an honour to be elected by their fellow men—not men who were elected through cliqueism —( applause)—cliques

composed of certain bodies ot Freemasons , wbo made up their minds who were to act on these Committees . This applied not only to the Boys' Institution , but also to the other Institutions . He had always taken a very active part in Freemasonry . ( Cries of " Question . " ) He had constituted himself a Vice-President of the Old People's Institution , and had intended to do the same this year with regard to

the Boys' , that vvas until the Report vvas put into his hands . ( Renewed cries of "Question , " and interruption . ) He He would at once move that the whole administrative power of the Institution be entirely changed ; that the Court request Bro . Binckes and the whole _ of the House Committee and the Finance Committee—with the exception of Dr . Morris —( cries of "Oh , oh" )—to tender to this General

Court their resignation this morning . ( Applause . ) Bro . STIEBEL , P . Prov . J . G . W . Notts , seconded the motion . He said he hoped no brother would be led away by a false sentimentality for past rendered services . What they had to do with was in regard to the present . He asked them whether , if theboys in the Institution who had been ill-used had been their own boys , thev would be

inclined to condone the action of the officers ! Why , if they did , their wives would not allow them . ( Laughter . ) He had thought so much on this matter that he had not been able to spleep for ten days . ( Laughter . ) These boys had a right to protection ; they could not help themselves . No one vvas more anxious than he to render honour to vvhom honour was due . He was a Steward for three

years—( interruption , and cries of " Question " )—but he would not serve again , and he said to his province , "Don ' t let us give one penny to the Boys' School , but let us have our own benevolent fund . " They did not think all that money should be spent— £ 51 a head was too much . ( Renewed cries of "Question . " ) Therefore , he hoped the Court would assent to the unanimous voice of Freemasonry , and

would sweep away the whole administration . ( Applause . ) Controller BAKE urged the brethren to go to the fountain-head and see where the mischief arose . Do not let them condemn the men who had done the work and borne the heat of the day . They must blame themselves for not having sufficient foresight . ( " Oh , oh . " ) Let them look to the large increase which had taken place in

their Benevolent Institutions , and not visit their own sins on those who , although they were not wanting in good intention , had an incapacity to grasp the changed conditions . ( "Oh" and hear , hear . ) The whole system of the Benevolent Institutions should be considered now . Instead of sending all the children to London , they ought to be provided for in the districts in which they resided .

( Cries of " Question . " ) He concluded , amid interruption , by moving that a Committee be formed to consider the whole matter of administration . Bro . BATEMAN FOX said that if the same policy were pursued as they had been going on the meeting would last all the afternoon . He asked whether it would not be better to carry a general resolution ? ( A VOICE : Sweep them

all away . ) He should like the brethren to discuss this matter in a business-like spirit . He thought it most outrageous that they should be compelled to listen to terms such as "forgery , " or anything of that kind being urged against any officer . ( Applause . ) They would not benefit the Institution by using language such as had been used . ( Hear , hear . ) Their object vvas to purify the

management of the Institution , and what they had to decide vvas as to the best way of doing that . They must ultimately appoint a strong Provisional Committee who would have to carry out the feeling of the meeting that an entire change should take place in the administration . He asked them not to bandy words and exchange insults from one end of the room to the other . There were

brethren on the platform who had done good work for the Institution , and he implored them not to drive away any supporter of the Institution—whether a member of the House Committee or not . The House Committee would require all the support they could give them , and in order that the administration should be put on a proper footing , he would move— " That this Special Quarterly Court ,

having adopted the Report of the Committee appointed to investigate the management of the Boys' School , desires to express its most complete confidence in the ability and absolute impartiality of the members of such Committee ; its opinion that the recommendations of such Committee should be supported to the utmost ; and that an entire

change in administration , and a thorough breaking away from the present practice , must take place . " ( A VOICE : That is the same thing as the motion , ) If they adopted that amendment , they would have recorded their opinion of the work of the Committee of Investigation , and of their determination thatthe recommendations of the Report

Royal Masonic Institution For Boys.

should be carried out , and he hoped in a few minutes thev would appoint a strong Provisional Committee to carry on the work . Several Brethren rose to a point of order , declaring that the motion and this amendment were practically the same .

The CHAIRMAN : "I think this is scarcely an amendment to the proposition that the spirit of the recommendation of the Committee should be carried out . ( Hear hear . ) As to the question of the course to be proposed- ! whether it is possible to appoint a Committee to carry out the Report in the spirit and intention of the meeting and of the subscribers in general—I think it is scarcely possible

for us at the present meeting , and without due time to consider the exact spirit of the proposition , to carry it out in its integrity . I think it is rather a reasonable proposition that a Committee should be appointed . ( Hear , hear and No , no . ) Bro . W . SMITH said he had moved that Clause I . should be acted upon . An amendment had been moved that a

Committee should be appointed . If this meant a General Committee representing the whole Craft , he had no objecion , but he decidedl y obected to any packed Committee . He proposed the removal of all the paid officers of the Institution , with the exception of the teaching department . ( Disorder , and cries of " All of them . " ) Then , to suit the meeting , he would include the whole of the paid staff

of the Institution . ( Cheers , and cries— "and the Committee . " ) Yes , he intended to include the Committee , the the Managing and the Finance Committee . ( " They have already gone . " ) They wanted a clean sweep . Bro . STIEBEL ( Nottingham ) seconded the amendment . Bro . F . W . IMBERT TERRY suggested that the brethren who had prepared the Report should te asked to take up

the question of reorganising the Institution . ( Loud Cheers . ) The resolution was then put and carried unanimously . Bro . ABNER TORKINGTON understood that it vvas now proposed that Bro . Philbrick and the gentlemen who had sat with him on the Special Committee should be asked to carry out their own recommendations . ( Cries of " No ! " ) Those gentlemen now knew all about the Institution ; thev

also knew what was wanted , and they were the most likely persons to carry out rightly and justly the wishes of the majority of the members of the Order . ( Cheers . ) Bro . DIXON wanted to know whether the resolution had been carried ? The CHAIRMAN : Yes . He thought that any of those who were involved in the resolution should have an opportunity of making a statement . ( Hear , hear . )

Bro . BRACKSTONE BAKER then rose , and vvas received with loud cries of "Oh , " and " Sit down . " The CHAIRMAN appealed to the brethren to give Bro , Baker a fair hearing . There was continued uproar , but ultimately Bro . BAKER ' S voice was allowed to be heard , and he vvas understood to say that the whole question should be referred to a Committee of six .

This suggestion vvas received with loud cries of ' •No , " but Bro . BAKER thought that the proposal was a very reasonable one . Bro . BEVIR , Wiltshire , said as the Report had been adopted in its entirety there vvas no necessity of putting individual clauses to the meeting . The meeting was faced with the fact that a large number of the members of the

Committees connected with the Institution had resigned , and practically at that moment there was no effective House Committee , and no effective Audit Committee , or Finance Committee . ( Hear , hear . ) The other members might resign , but whether they did or not it had been practically decided that day that the members of the Committees had forfeited the confidence of the Order . Strong

feeling had been shown that day with regard to the past management of the Institution ; but they must not allow the School to lapse into a state of disorder . Hear , hear . ) It was absolutely necessary that the working of the School should be carried on from day to day . Was that meeting the best tribunal—off-hand—to deal with the questions raised in the Report ? ( Cries of "No" and

"Yes . " ) He said it was not . He did not think the Committee of Investigation would like to be the executioners of their own recommendations . ( Hear , hear . ) He intended therefore to propose a strong , powerful , and influential Committee to look after the interests of the Institution . He then proposed that Bros . Philbrick , Sir R . Hanson , Allcroft , Richard Eve , P . G . T . ; Sir R . Fowler , G . Corbie ,

Essex ; G . Glass , Essex ; G . Lambert , London ; Lord Euston , Captain S . G . Homfray , R . V . Smith , Gloucestershire ; W . F . Smithson , West Yorkshire ; Col . Perkins , Somerset ; Alderman Harwood , East Lancashire ; J . S . Eastes , Kent ; Gerard Ford , Sussex ; Le Feuvre , Hants ; A . C Spaull , Salop ; Brodenham , Staffordshire ; Wylie , W . Lancashire : and Edward Terry ,

Grand Treasurer , be invited to act as a Provisional Commitee to manage the affairs of the Institution , and be requested to report to a future Court the best and most effective mode of carrying out the recommendations in the Report which the brethren had unanimously adopted . ( Cheers . ) Bro . PHILBRICK , who vvas received with loud and prolonged cheers , said they would best consult the interests of

the Institution and the feelings of the Committee of Investigation if they would kindly not ask them to discharge any further duty of an official nature . They would be very glad to give any assistance that vvas needed in the way of explanation of the recommendations , and so forth . Bro . W . F . SMITHSON seconded the resolution , which was unanimously carried . Bro . PHILBRICK said if it was the wish of the meeting

he would of course put aside his own personal feelings-( Cheers . ) The CHAIRMAN said he thought the matter might very well be left in the hands of the gentlemen whose names were embodied in the resolution . ( Cheers . ) Bro . RAYNHAM STEWART , P . G . D ., rose to speak ifl favour , as he said , of the House Committee , but vvas im " mediately met with a storm of interruptions , and the CHAIRMAN declared the meeting closed .

The Prince and Princess of Wales and their three daughters , with Prince George of Greece and Prince Charles of Denmark , visited Sheen on the 30 th ult . for the purpose of being present at a garden party given by' «•* Count and Countess of Paris in celebration of their silver wedding . In the evening their Royal Highnesses visitea the Royal Italian Opera , Covent Garden .