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NOTICE . The Subscription to THE FREEMASON is now icw . per annum , post-free , payable tn advance . Vol . I ., bound in cloth 4 s . 6 d . Vol . II ., ditto 7 s . 6 d . Vol . III ., ditto 15 s . od . Reading Cases to hold 52 numbers ... 2 s . 6 d . United . States of America . THE FREEMASON is delivered free in any part of the United States for 12 s . per annum , payable in advance .

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NOTICE TO SUBSCRIBERS . The Office of " THE FREEMASON is ncza / ransferred lo 19 S , FLEET STREET , E . C . All communications for t \ e Editor or Publi Iter should therefore be forwarded to that address .

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|) trtljs , Ufarragcs , ant ) £ ) cafljs . —*—DEA TIL IlAVnEN . —On the 1 st instant , Bro . William R . Ilayden , M . M . Lodge Caledonian , Edinburgh , No . 392 , S . C .

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Notice . A Supplement of two pages is issued with this impression ; it enables vis to chronicle the great Masonic events of the past few days , but is inadequate to the extinction of the pile of communications we still have on hand , all of which , however , we hope to publish in duo time .

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The Freemason , S ATURDAY , F EBRUARY TO , 1872 . THK FRRKMASON is published on Saturday Mornings in time for the early trains . The price of THR FRRKMASON is Twopence per week ; annual subscription , IOS . ( payable in advance ) . All cotiirmnicatiniis , letters , & c . 10 be addressed to the EDITOR , 108 , Fleet-street , E . C . "Pie lv m < - will pay careful attention to all MSS . entrusted to him , % tt cannot mdertakc to return them unless accompanied by postage stamps .

At A Masonic Festival.

AT A MASONIC FESTIVAL .

BY A PROVINCIAL BROTHER . [ We have great pleasure in giving publicity to the following graphic sketch from a valued correspondent . ]

IT is a trite , but a true saying that an Englishman likes a good dinner , and we , for one , can bear vigorous witness to the fact that an English Mason nobly sustains

the repute of his nationality in this , as , indeed , we may add , in every other respect . However , a poor provincial brother like the writer has but few opportunities of doing

justice to the exquisite gastronomic ability of an Ude or a Francatelli , for the very good reason that sublime geniuses of their calibre are not wont to " waste their

sweetness on the desert air , " or to perpetrate their chef d anvrcs in the absence of abdominal appreciation . Having thus formidably prepared the minds of our readers , we

make at once the straightforward confession that , on hospitable thoughts intent—or , in other words , bent upon our own temporal regalement—we wended our solitary way

to Freemasons' Tavern on Wednesday , the 31 st January , 1872 ( we love precision in dates ) , on purpose to participate in the varied pleasures which are usuall y asso-

At A Masonic Festival.

ciated with doing a good action and demolishing a dainty dinner . Lest any curious reader should desire more copious details of this remarkable event , we will forthwith

anticipate his anxiety , and homreopathically relieve his pain . About twenty minutes to six o ' clock , post meridian , on the daybefore mentioned , two hansom cabs might have

been seen traversing the devious pathways and unsavoury lanes which lead to Metropolitan Freemasonry ' s not unhandsome abode . The vehicles arrived at their

destination simultaneously—their occupants performed the customary exploit of jumping out , and the ( sometimes ) unusual feat of paying the Jehus , after which they entered

the building , where they encountered a Tyler , dressed up for the occasion in a uniform coat , with brass buttons of the Georgian era , a cap with a fiery peak , like

that of Mont Blanc at sunrise , and a pair of orthodox cerulean breeches , whose hue , mellowed in the gaslight which streamed around , reminded us of days when all with

us was serenely blue and fair . Our fellowtraveller—for , although we journeyed in different conveyances , it is permissible to call him so , inasmuch as we entered the

building together— well , our accidental partner in arrival—lightly bounded up the staircase—wc paused to look around ; and although nothing like the halls of Vathck

met our view , we gained some information . The brother who had so incontinently preceded us was no less a personage than the Right Hon . Henry , Earl Percy , M . P ., Provincial Grand Master for

Northumberland ( of which he is also Duke , in fiiluro ) , and likewise the Right Worshipful , and , we are sure , very worthy , Chairman of the evening !

After this , wc modestly ascended the spiral staircase , and proceeded to the robingroom , where we donned the mystical apron ( whose first sight brought tears into our

beloved consort ' s eyes ) , adjusted our hair with an invisible comb , and felt " all a man and a brother . " In the corridors leading to the Festival Hall a considerable number

of brethren had assembled—many bearing wands in their hands , and blossoming in all the vernal magnificence of exceedinglyhandsome rosettes . These , we were

informed , were the Stewards . Other brethren wandered to and fro , gossipping here , exchanging fraternal salutations there , and looking very much as if they liked it . About the middle of the corridor a vision

of startling splendour burst upon our view . On looking down the steps leading to the Hall , we saw , passing and repassing , ascending and descending , like Jacob ' s

angels , some of the gentle sex , arrayed in wealth of smiles , as well as regal fabrics , and looking so beautiful that we wishedwell , we wished we were — a bachelor .

In the distance shone the brilliant scarlet of what appeared to be a whole posse comilatits of the Household Troops ,

though we were sorely exercised , in a mental sense , at the first blush , to account for the presence of these sons of

At A Masonic Festival.

Mars . Fortunately , at this juncture , we fell in , promiscuously , with a learned and obliging brother , who , in answer to our

somewhat anxious inquiry as to whether the hosts of Dilke and Odger were threatening our peace , kindly responded , " Oh , these arc members of the Honourable

Artillery Company—all brother Masons and good fellows —who have come to support our friend ' Peter , ' the excellent surgeon of the corps , as one of the Stewards of the festival . " Upon this hint , we

approached somewhat closer to the warriors—who really looked soldiers every inch of them—and to our great joy , as well as amazement , found that one of them was an

old friend of ours , a merry Islingtonian to wit , and aquandam Yorickof many a jovial crew . By this time the company had mustered — the ladies had taken their

places , cither in a spacious gallery overlooking the dining-hall , or in the porchway of the hall itself—we had almost profanely said in the " pit . " The Stewards then entered in procession

each looking as solemn as though the fate of empires depended upon the perpendicularity of his wand of office . Wrapped in this funereal gloom , they passed round the tables , climbed the dais in the East , safely

descended on the other side , and arrived at whence they came . At the rear of the procession walked the Chairman , and with him a brother who , wc subsequently ascertained , was the Acting President of the

Stewards , Bro . Raynham W . Stewart , one of the Grand Deacons , and a warm supporter of the Masonic Institutions . The

lugubrious silence ceased as the youthful chairman took his seat in the orient—cheer after cheer broke forth , and after this somewhat stoimy welcome grace was said .

Shall we enlarge upon the dinner ? Our native bashfulness suggests , No ; our bump of candour loudly proclaims , Yes . Suffice it to say that the viands were very good—on

the carte ; the wines passable—but certainly guiltless of age ; the waiters animated with abundant esprit de corps , and extremely attentive—towards the close of the

entertainment . Indeed , one injured Steward assured us , with indignant mien and flashing eyes , that , upon going in quest of a waiter , he had unwarily stumbled behind a screen , whence he was summarily ejected by the

aroused British lion in the form of an enraged servitor whom he had rudely disturbed during the agreeable process of quaffing Masonic champagne . For ourselves , we arc a philosopher—trifles do not

disturb the immobile composure of our brow ; but , if that waiter had thus tackled us , we should either have placed him in disagreeable proximity to the floor , or there would have been one man the less in

the room—that is all . The best of the banquet were , the " sweets " — there the artist ' s genius shone , and from " Russian

Charlotte " and " Nessclrode Pudding "ancasy transition , by-the-bye—we extracted the honey of consolation for the other deficiencies of the repast .

" Order , pray , silence for grace , " and in response to the stentorian injunction , all rise while the after-meat thanksgiving is very prettily sung by the choir . The ladies

flock back to their seats in pit and gallery some even invade the vacant seats at th ; table , and the real business of the evening commences with a speech from Earl Percy in proposing " The Health of her Most