Masonic And General Tidings.

The King ' s Head Tavern , Fenchurch-street , which was rebuilt a few years ago in a handsome style and most elaborately decorated , is , it is announced , henceforth to be called the London Tavern . Bro . H . R . H . the M . W . Grand Master has forwarded a letter from Darmstadt , graciously accepting a copy of " The History and case of the Civil Service

Writers , " by Bro . J . Arthur Elliott , of the Royal Hanover Lodge , 1777 . We " lately noticed that Her Alajcsty the Queen had also honoured Bro . Elliott by her gracious acceptance of a copy of thc same work . The exxavations in connection with the Royal Hotel have brought to light some very interesting remains of a secret chamber in trie Palace of Henry VIIL Following

the excavations , for which contracts have been entered into , the building will be completed , and in connection with it a row of shops built at the prominent corner of New Bridge-street . The hotel when finished will certainly be a great ornament to the neighbourhood . —City Press . It has been decided that , on the occasion of the laving of tbe foundation stone of the new cathedral at

Truro it will be necessary to make a charge of 5 s . to all Alasons entering the enclosure on the 20 th Alay , and that no brother can be permitted to join the procession unless provided with a ticket . Brethren desirous of taking part in thc ceremony must apply to the Prov . G . Sec . for Cornwall or to the ' W . AI . ' s of the various lodges in the province for a ticket , accompanied with a remittance , as thc Prov . G . Secretary will not issue any tickets after thc 30 th

inst . On and after April 1 st , 1 SS 0 , thc rates of charge for telegrams to thc principal countries in Europe will be as follows : Austria , 4 ad . for each word ; Belgium , 2 d . ; Denmark , 4 d . ; France , 2 ld . ; Germany , 4 d . ; Greece , f cl . ; Holland , 3 d . ; Hungary , . sd . ; Italy , sd . ; Norway , 4 d . j Portugal , 6 $ d- ; Russia in Europe , ocl . ; Spain , Gd . ; Sweden ,

5 * d . ; Switzerland , 4 d . ; Turkey in Europe , Sd . The Rev . Thomas Bellas , who is supposed to have been the oldest beneficed clergyman in the kingdom , has just died at the age of 90 . He was horn in 17 S 0 , educated at Queen ' s College , Oxford , where he graduated B . A . in the year 1 S 13 , was ordained by Dr . Goodenough , Bishop of Carlisle , and had held the vicarage of Bondgare ,

near Appleby , for fifty-eight years . A method of transporting large vessels over isthmuses has been devised by a French engineer , AL Daubourg , who intends shortly to demonstrate the feasi bility of his scheme at Argenteuil , near Paris , by lifting a 2000 ton ship from the Seine , and taking it on rails to another point on flic river .

The Queen has been graciousl y p leased to make thc following appointment to the Alost Distinguished Order of Saint AJichael and Saint George : To be an Ordinary Alcmber of the Third Class , or Companions of the said Alost Distinguished Order : William Henry Wylde , Esq ., lately Superintendent of thc Slave Trade and Consular Departments , Foreign Office . —Gazette .

The chambers in the Temple will shortl y he in communication by telephone with the law courts at Westminster and the Houses of Parliament . The telephonic apparatus is at presentbeinglaid clown between the Templegardens , the Metropolitan District Railway being utilised for tlie purpose . The Cify Press says the Goldsmiths' Company arc about to make an annual grant of £ 300 for three years

in order to provide suitable practical and technical instruction at the Horological Institute for apprentices and improvers ; and the City guilds are also subscribing a sum of . £ 500 as a donation , with a promise of more if thc results be satisfactory . The Egyptian Gazelle says that during the whole of last week the work of launching the American obelisk

continued . By means of thc hydraulic jacks the raft was bit by bit forced down the ways . By the evening of the 23 th the whole fabric rested in the water , though without floating . In this position it lay exposed to the heavy sea of the last few days , which at times dashed right over the lower portion . In our next issue we will give a full and complete account of the operations , which , we think , will prove interesting to our readers .

The same paper has the following on the hnghsh obelisk : It is satisfactory to learn that a careful examination whicli lias recently been made of thc Egyptian obelisk on the 'Thames Embankment has shown that it has stood the English climate better than could have been expected . Shortly after its erection in London it was coated with a silicate composition , and neither the continuous rains of

last summer , nor the snows , fogs , and frosts of the succeeding winter appear to have affected it . 'The only change apparent is that the hieroglyphics have become partially filled with soot . The structure , however , looks very insecure , standing as its docs on its rounded end , and perched on blocks of cold , grey granite . The following has becn thc result of an appeal

made by Captain Gildea , of 20 , Stafford-terrace , Kensington , for newspapers , books , & c , for "Our Soldiers in Afghanistan , " viz .: 7741 illustrated and comic papers , S 44 S newspapers , books , ancl periodicals , SS _ 4 testaments and tracts , which have been sent during the winter in fortyeight bales to Cabul , Candabar , Kohat , and Jellalahad respectively . The balance of £ 5 Os . lod . in hand , after

paying expenses , Captain Gildea has handed over to the fund now being raised for the much-needed Infirmary for the Soldiers' Daughters' Home at Hampstead . The model of the sphinxes to be erected at the base of Cleopatra ' s Needle on the Thames Embankment has been completed . It is iSft . in length . Two casts will be taken from it , and placed one on each side of the obelisk ,

as if guarding the Needle , similarly to the position occupied by the Landseer lions round the column of Nelson in Trafalgar-square . On the sides of the pedestal of the obelisk there will be inscribed tablets of bronze , which will give the particulars ancl history of the Needle . Constitutions of the Ancient Fraternity of Free

and Accepted Alasons , containing the Charges , Regulations , E . A . Song , _* c . A copy should be in the possession of every brother . lt may be obtained for 2 s . at the office of the Freemason , or will be sent post-free to any part of the United Kingdom on receipt of twenty-five penny stamps . Address , Publisher , ii > S , Fleet-street , London . —[ ADVT . ]

Masonic And General Tidings.

A monument has been placed over the graves of Bros . Lieutenants Melville and Coghill near Rorke's Drift . According to a letter from Mr . Neele , the superintendent of the London and North-Western Railway Company , the arrangements for the conveyance of commercial travellers' luggage at reduced rates are to come into operation forthwith . " Mr . Bairstow , the hon . Sec . oi the Commercial Travellers' Alutual Protection Society , estimates

the number of commercial travellers throughout the United Kingdom at 60 , 000 . The following telegram has been received from Sydney : —There is very little doubt that we are on the eve of a decided improvement in all branches of business , in which change the metallurgical departments will inevitably participate . Already importers and dealers have received larger and more numerous orders , and are sending out

more iron wire , Sic ,, than for some time past . Prices are consequently firmer . The improvement is due , doubtless , to higher figures realised for wool , copper , and other Australian produce in England . A general revival of trade is therefore confidently anticipated . —Ironmonger . The following gentlemen having been appointed Queen ' s Counsel , were on Tuesday last requested by Lord Justice James to take seats within the bar in the Court of Appeal at Lincoln ' s-inn , and they took seats accordingly ,

viz .: Air . VV . Shaw , Air . F . Bailey , Air . E . Rodwell , Air . F . XV . Gibbs , Air . E . Swctenham , Mr . W . C . Beasley , Air . ] . J . Aston , Air . F . C . J . Millar , Air . L . Smith , Air . J . Underbill , Air . J . E . \ V . Addison , Air . A . R . Jelf , Air . Crossley , Air . E . Clarke , Sir W . T . Charley ( Common-Serjeant ) , and Air . Peterham . The same ceremony was afterwards performed in the Rolls Court , in the Courts of Vice-Chancellors Alalins , Bacon , and Hall , and in the Court of Air . justice Fry .

The directors of the Union Steamship Company have decided to despatch the new Royal Mail steamer " Trojan , " with the Cape of Good Hope mails of Alay 20 th , from Southampton , and from Plymouth , Afay 21 st . This date has been selected to ensure beyond all question thc complete preparation of the ship for service . The projected competitive exhibition of works of art , where gold' and silver wire is used , comprehending

almost every article of plate and jewellery , which was to have been held in July , has , in consequence of the general election , been postponed till next year . The Goldsmiths ' Company entertained an application for the loan of their hall for the purpose of holding such exhibition , but were unable this year to accede to the request . It is , however , hoped that they may yet be able to do so . St . Paul ' s Cathedral has been put to many uses

in its time , but I do not think many of us are aware that it was ever , and should be still , a pawnshop . Alichael de Northburg , Bishop of London , who died of the plague at Coptford , Essex , in 1361 , bequeathed one thousand marks , to beput into a chest standing in the Treasury of St . Paul ' s , out of wliich any poor man might , for a sufficient pledge , borrow for one year ten pounds , the Dean and principal Canons twenty pounds , or as far as forty marks , the Bishop

of London forty pounds , a nobleman or citizen twenty pounds ; but , if the money was not returned at the expiration of the time , thc preacher at St . Paul ' s Cross was to give notice that the pledge for it would be sold within fourteen days , if not redeemed in the meantime , and the surplusage , if any , of the pledge sold was to be returned to the owner . —Truth . What a wealth and dignity there is about Cheapside ; what restless life and energy ; with what vigorous

pulsation life beats to and fro in that great commercial artery ! How pleasantly on a summer morning that last of the Alohicans , thc green plane-tree , now deserted by the rooks , at lie corner of Wood-street , flutters its leaves ! How fast the crowded omnibuses dash past with theirloads of young Grcshams ancl future rulers of Lombard-street ' . How grandly Bow steeple bears itself , raising proudly in the sunshine . Hoiv the great ivcb . s of gold chain sparkle in the

jewellers ' windows ! How modern everything looks ! And yet only a short time since some workmen at a foundation in Cheapside , twenty-five feet below thc surface , came upon traces of primeval inhabitants in the shape of a deer ' s skull , with antlers , and the skull of a wolf , struck down , perhaps , more than a thousand years ago , by the bronze axe of some British savage . So the world rolls on : the

times change , ancl we change with them . —From "Cassell ' s Old and New London . " The Fifteen Sections were worked at the Manchester Lodge of Instruction ( No . 170 ) , held at the Yorkshire Grey , London-street , Fitzroy-square , on Saturday evening , April 3 rd . Bros . Koester , P . AL , W . M . j Kew , P . AL , S . VV . j Baker , P . AL , J . W . ; Harvey , Secretary .

FIRST LECTURE . ist Section -------- Bro . Alarx . 2 nd ,, --------- ,, J . C Smith . 3 rd „ „ Paul . 4 th „ .-.- „ Sillis . 5 th „ -.---... - (> Cook , fith ,, .-.- .... - ty Robinson . 7 th „ - - „ Baker .

SECOND LECTURE . ist Section --------- Bro . Blundell . 2 nd „ --------- , f Koester . 3 rd „ „ Paul . . th „ „ Kew ; . 5 th ,, --.---..- „ Robinson . THIRD LECTURE . ist Section Bro . Radstock . 2 nd „ --------- , Koester . 3 rd ,, - ,, Baker .

The following notice has been issued by the Sheriff of Cornwall on the approaching visit of the Grand Alaster , for the purpose of laying the foundation stone of the new Cathedral : " A requisition having been presented to me , signed by the noblemen , magistrates , and other inhabitants of the county of Cornwall , requesting me to convene a county meeting for tlie purpose of considering the

best means of showing the respect felt by the Cornish people for the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall , and of insuring a fitting reception of tlieir Royal Highnesses on their approaching visit to Truro , I herebj ' , in pursuance of such requisition , convene a meeting of the inhabitants of Cornwall , to be held at the Town Hall , in the town of St . Austell , on Monday , the 12 th day of April instant , at 1 . 30 p . m ., for the above purpose . "

Masonic And General Tidings.

The testimonial of the county of Devon to Bro-Colonel Buller has been completed at a cost of ^ Soo , and will be handed over to the gallant officer in a few days . The testimonial is a centrepiece , the principal figures of which are Colonel Buller in hunting costume , with a friendly Zulu on the watch crouched at his feet . The panels of the pedestal from which three figures rise bear representations

of the rescue of a dismounted trooper by the Colonel in the affair of the Zomblani , for which act he received the Victoria Cross ; and another bas-relief pictures the field of Ulundi . On either side of the central figures are dismounted troopers and their chargers , the man in one case being the Colonel's orderly , and in the other a member of the Mounted Infantry ; The whole design is very spirited . The testimonial is of solid silver .

Upon the chancel-ceiling of an ancient church in Cornwall , England , the emblem of Solomon's seal is sculptured . A writer in the Gentleman ' s Magazine , Alarch , 1 SG 7 , thus describes it : "Very remarkable in the mid-roof is the boss of the pentacle of Solomon . This was that five-angled figure which was engraven on an emerald , and wherewith he ruled the demons , for they were the vassals of his mighty seal . The five angles in their original

mythiclsm , embracing , as they did , the unutterable name , meant , it may be , the fingers of Omnipotence . " " Be this is as it may , " says a Boston writer , "it is strange to find the pentacle , pentagram , or seal of Solomon , which is no other than the five-pointed star which idle school-boys all want to draw on their slates , appearing- on the coinage of Velia , two centuries-and-a-half before the Christian era . " In this figure , called also the Sign of Pythagoras , we have

evidence that the Alasonic fraternity existed and flourished at that remote time ; at least , if we accept the theory that all esoteric wisdom ( understood only by the initiated ) has ever been Alasonic , so far as it tends to build up the inner life of a man . —Voice of Masonry . The Telegraphic Journal of April 1 st contain s a description of a new form of lamp for the electric light , wliich has recently been invented by Bro . Charles Stewart ,

ALA . It consists of a number of square carbon rods placed radially upon a disc of wood or metal in such a manner that tbe inner ends of the carbon rods form a complete circle . There is a circular opening in the wooden disc through which the electric li ght is seen from underneath . The carbons , which are all forced towards the centre by a uniform pressure , move forward as they are consumed , and together form the positive electrode of the lamp . The negative

electrode consists of a covered hemispherical cup of copper , which before the current enters the lamp rests upon the ring formed by the carbons . On the current entering the lamp an electro-magnet raises the metal electrode , and thc electric arc is then formed between the circle of carbons and the metal electrode . There is a ( low of water through the latter to keep it cool . The advantages which this lamp

possesses are : 1 . It is automatic in its action . 2 . It is capable of burning for a very considerable period . 3 . It does not throw any shadows . 4 . It is of simple and comparatively inexpensive construction . 5 . The intensity of the light may be increased if so desired . This is the second lamp for the electric light which Bro . Stewart has recently invented .

The arrangements for the Technological Examinations of the City and Guilds Institute are now complete , and notice has been issued to all secretaries of science classes throughout Great Britain ancl Ir . land of the system to be adopted . These examinations are worked concurrently with , ancl on the same system as , those of the Science and Art Department . They will be held on May the 12 th , on which day also part of the science examination

is held . By thus availing itself of the existing organisation of thc Government , the City Institute is enabled to hold its examinations all over the kingdom , as there are now no places of importance at or near which there is not a centre for the Government system . There are thirty-two subjects of examination , covering all the chief industries of the country , all at least in which the application of science is such as to enable theoretical knowledge to be tested by

examination . Any workman , or any other person connected with any manufacture included in the scheme , wishing to obtain a certificate testifying to his knowledge of that manufacture , has merely to appl y to any one of the numerous local secretaries of the Science and Art Department , and ask him to return his name as a candidate to the oflice of the institute at Gresham College . When the day for examination arrives , the candidate will have to present himself at thc centre where he has sent in his name ,

and he will find a paper of questions ready for him . If he succeeds in answering these , he will in due course receive a certificate . There are now over fifty classes in different parts of the kingdom , in which students are being prepared for these examinations , but the examinations are also open to any person whoever who likes to try for a certificate , or for one of the prizes given by the institute . Further information can be obtained on application to the halls of thc , Companies of Alercers , Drapers , and Clothworkers .

MASONIC GRIPS . —A brother who does a good deal of travelling , and likes to " get acquainted as he goes , " says there are six kinds of Masonic grips , and he has felt them all . He classifies them in this way : —1 . The pendulum shake , where the parties move their locked hands right and left , illustrating the jewel of the Senior Warden . 2 . The pump-handle shake , where the motion assimilates to the emblem of the Junior Warden . Now if

a Alason who is accustomed to number one grapples with the Mason who has been used to number two , there will be trouble , sure . 3 . Thetourniquet shake , where you squeeze the hand until a pleasant sound of cracking follows , that denotes a weakness in the ossification of your opponent . 4 . The melancholy shake , which is a pensive , tranquil motion , suggesting livercomplaint and dyspepsia . 5 . The effeminate

shake , which only reaches to the fingers , sometimes only to the forefinger , and makes you think of your maiden aunt . There are also the anvil shake , thc gripe-royal , the malicious shake , & c , but the best of all is , 6 . The cordial shake , which is a hearty agitation of hands , accompanied by kindly greetings and a certain thrill , affecting most pleasantly all the nerves , even the heart . —Masonic Review .

MASONIC SONGS . —A selection of Masonic Songs , set to popular airs , written by Bro . E . P . Philpots , AI . D ., F . R . G . S ., is now read y , forming a handsome volume bound in cloth , with gilt edges , js . Sent post free from the office of this paper on receipt of stamps or P . O . O . value 3 s . 2 d . —[ ADVT . J