United Grand Lodge Of England.

UNITED GRAND LODGE OF ENGLAND .

The Quarterly Communication of United Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of England was held on Wednesday , at Freemasons' Mall . The Karl of Lathom , Most Worship ful Pro Grand Master , presided . Bro . \ V . W . B . Beach , M . P ., Provincial Grand Master of I [ ants and the Isle of Wight , acted as Deputy Grand Master ; and Bro . Thomas Frederick Halsey , M . P ., Provincial Grand Master of Herts , acted as Past Grand Master ; Bro .

the Karl of Yarborough , S . G . W ., and the Right Hon . Aretas Akers- Douglas , M . P ., J . G . W ., occupied their respective chairs . Grand Lodge was opened at two o ' clock p . m ., on account of the large imber of brethren who were expected to be present for the election of Grand Treasurer , and the new arrangement was fojnd to be an excellent one , as more than ^ ooo brethren attended in the course of the day to record

their votes . The poll was to close at 7 . 15 p . m ., and from the time it was opened unti the time it closed , there was a constant stream of qualified brethren depositing their ballot papers in the box . Grand Lodge was fully officered . the whole time , and there were relays of Grand Officers to take the three principal chairs . After the opening of Grand Lodge , and the reading and confirmation of the minutes of the December Quarterly Communication ,

Bro . ALFRED COOPER , Deputy Master , Prince of Wales s Lodge , No . 259 , rose and said : Most Worship ful Grand Master in the chair , the great honour has fallen upon me of being permitted to propose that his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales be elected as the Most Worshipful Grand Master of Freemasons for the ensuing year . Quite lately , his Royal Highness , at the Chancery Bar Lodge , said he had been our Grand Master nearly

2 ( i years , and during that time had signed warrants for over 1000 new lodges . He also said how very proud he was of holding the high position of our Grand Master . If his Royal Highness is proud to be our Grand Master , in your name , brethren , I beg to assure him , that from one end of this kingdom to the other , all his loyal subjects , who are members of lhe Craft , are more proud than I can express that he should occupy that position .

( A pplause ) . Bro . W . B . COLTMAN , W . M . Chancery Bar Lodge , No . 24 . S 6 : Most Worshipful Grand Masterin the chair , —it is not forme , who am a very junior member of Grand Lodge , to speak of the way in which the Grand Mastcr habitually performs his duties , but I may , perhaps , be allowed to say , having , from the official position which I hold in a lodge to which Bro .

Cooper has just referred , been brought into communication with his Royal Highness I feel I may confidently expect that his Royal Highness will allow no personal inconvenience to interfere with the performance of his Masonic duties he may have to undertake . 1 have very much pleasure in seconding the proposition of Bro . Cooper . ( Applause ) . The motion was carried unanimously and with acclamation , and Sir

AUU . RT W . Woons , C . B . { Carter ) , G . D . C ' ., proclaimed his Koyal I Ugliness dul y elected : Bro . GORDON- BROWN rose lo propo-e Bro . Aldernnn and Sheriff Dimsdale , W . M . No . 1 , for election as Grand Treasurer . He said Bro . Bimsdale in addition lo being VV . M . of No . 1 had served the ollice of Cnind Steward and was a subscriber to all the Masonic Charities . But

belore going into Bro . Dimsdale ' s merits he had to thank Grand Lodge for ( , 'iving the brethren an opportunity of meeting so earl ) ' in the day and thus enabling- those from the provinces , as well as in London , to be present and lake an active part in thc election . It was a great advantage to the brethren 10 be able not only to record their votes but also to return to their homes the same day ; and therefore they felt they owed a debt of gratitude to the Pro

Grand Master for calling the lodge for two o ' clock , because so many of the brethren were anxious lo vole on this occasion . It was one privilege to propose and elect an officer of Grand Lodge , and the brethren looked upon it as a very great privilege , and therefore in great numbers they came to this election . The office of Grand Treasurer was essentially a representative "nice , and he maintained that the brethren required a representative

' ?' ' "'• It was an advantage to Masonry throughout the kingdom that ' ^' . Y had such a representative as the Prince of Wales as Most vViirship fnI Grand Master , for he gave an impetus to Masonry when he J ° mcd the Order . Masonry also required a brother equally known outside as well as insid l to hold the office of Grand Treasurer . Bro . Dimsdale was Wt ' V known as a banker in thc City of London , and surely no one was more

¦ "unentl y qualified for Ihe ollice than a London banker . ( Cries of " Time , time . " ) j-j e would nol detain the biethren much longer , but he wished to sa y that Bro . Dimsdale had a claim to this office , not only because he was a m . anof posilion in the City , but also for his philanthropic work . ( Interruption , which caused the M . W . ' Pro G . M . to call " Order , brethren- " ) . He would

I , - ; "ad two or three of the works he was engaged in in philanthropy outside Att ° ' . " '" Masonry . . ( Cries of " No , no , " and " Time , time . " ) ' last meeting of Grand Lodge one of the nominators was allowed to read Wc H ° ° * ' lc can < Jidatcs had clone in charitable work ; therefore he _ J . "d just say that Bro . Dimsdale was a subscriber to the Masonic Charities ~~' \ cries of " Vote , vote " )—and was also one of the House Committee of the

United Grand Lodge Of England.

London Hospital , he was a manager of the London Orphan Asylum , Trear surer of the London Fever Hospital , of the Small Pox Hospital , the Royal Humane Society —( renewed interruption ; and Bro . the Rev . C . \ V . STENCHR Srwiioi'i : : You arc killing his chance )—he begged to propose Alderman Dimsdale . Bro . Col . GADSDEN seconded .

Bro . ALFRED KING , Prov . S . G . W . Sussex , proposed Bro . Charles William Hudson .

Bro . Col . BROOKIIELD , M . P ., Prov . J . G . W . Sussex , seconded , and said it had the approval of the whole of Sussex . Bro . WALTER MARTIN- proposed Bro . William Mason Stiles , who was Vice-Patron of all the Masonic Institutions . Bro . Stiles' qualifications were known to all the members of Grand Lodge , and he left it to the kind consideration of the brethren to elect him Bro . E . W . NIGHTINGALE , P . M . 87 , seconded . The poll was then declared open , and the voting commenced .

The Earl of Lathom , the Earl of Yarborough , and Bro . Akers-Douglas , with many other Grand Officers , thereupon retired , and the Earl of Lathom ' s seat was taken by Bro . Sir George David Harris . Bro . W . W . B . Beach , M . P ., presided at seven o ' clock when the following Report of the Board of Benevolence was confirmed .

Report of the Board of Benevolence for the last quarter , in which are recommendations of the following grants , viz : — A brother of the Prudent Brethren Lodge , No . 1 45 , London ... £ 50 o o A brother of the Lodge of Amity , No . 171 , London 60 o o

A brother of the Belgrave Lodge , No . 749 , London 50 o o The Report of the Board of General Purposes which appeared in our last issue was , on the motion of Bro . Dr . ERNEST POCOCK , seconded by Bro . L . G . GORDON ROBHINS , taken as read and received , and ordered to be entered on the minutes .

On the motion of Bro . Dr . ERNEST POCOCK , seconded by Bro . L . G . GORDON ROISHINS , the part of the report which referred to the 13 lodges summoned to show cause wh y they should not be erased was deferred till the next Quarterly Communication . At this point the ballot for Grand Treasurer was closed , and one brother , amidst much laughter , though he had ju > t arrived at the ballot-box , was declared to be too late .

Bro . W . BEACH announced that the place of the late Bro . Brackstone Baker on the Colonial Board , vacant by his death , had been filled by the appointment of Bro . James Henry Matthews , P . D . G . D . C . The report of the Auditor was adopted . The next business was the consideration of thc appeal by Bro . W .

Maxfield Mead , I . P . M . 1805 , and Bro . Tom Green , P . M . 1805 , against a decision of the Board of General Purposes suspending them from all Masonic rights and privileges for six months for acting contrary to Book of Constitutions , Rule 140 , in holding that a resolution displacing a brother from ollice hatl been duly carried by the lodge .

Bro . F . A . PJIII . I . RICK , Q . C , ( J . Reg ., after referring the brethren tothe statement of the case in the report of thc Board , said : The rule in the Book of Constitutions , No . 1 . pi , was— "Should the Mastcr be dissatisfied with the conduct of any of thc officers , he may lay thc cause of complaint before the lodge at a regular meeting ; seven days' notice thereof in writing having been previously sent to the brother c ' omplained of ; and if it shall appear to the

majority of lhe breihren present that the complaint be well founded , the Master shall have power to displace such officer , and to appoint another . " There were 4 . 3 brethren present at lhe meeting in question . The resolution was put ; the Master was present , but being the complainant he asked a Past Master lo occupy the chair . That brother put the resolution—12 voted for it , and two against it ; therefore , . _ tj abstained altogether from

voting , and the resolution was not carried b y a majority of the brethren present ; ic was carried b y a majority of those who voted , but that was not what the Constitutions said ! The W . M . in the chair declared it carried . The brother complained of then took his collar off and put it down , and the Master in the chair requested him to put it on , his attention having been called to Article 140 . This was on

November 2 ist . ' 1 here was an emergency in December on account of arrears of work , and the same W . M . was called upon to preside . The W . M . was present during some part of the evening . No one had taken the collar of S . D ., and Bro . Peterkin , P . M ., was asked to take it . After this came the complaint to the Board of General Purposes and the suspension . The brethren suspended appealed , and he now moved lhat thev be called in .

Grand Lodge having assented , Bros . Mead and Green ( unclothed ) were conducted into Grand Lodge , and placed in front of the throne . Bro . Mead being asked whether he wished to state his case , he replied by requesting that the ( Jrand Secretary might read his written statement . This was done , and the statement , while admitting to the full the misinterpretation of Ihe rule , regretted the fault , sincerely apologised for it , confessed that the sentence was correct , but threw Bro . Mead on the mercy of Grand Lodge ,

which , it was hoped , would modify the judgment of the Board , from which Bro . Mead had already suffered severely . The complete submission expressed in the statement was frequently cheered . Bro . Green was then asked if he wished to address Grand Lodge . Bro . J . K . LE FEUVRE thought the two cases should be taken separately . Bro . \ V . BEACH thought there was no occasion at present for this . Tlie statements might be heard now , and the difference between the two cases could be adjudicated on afterwards .