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To ADVERTISERS . THE Circulation of THE F REEMASON being now at the rate of nearly Haifa-million per annum , it offers peculiar facilities to all who advertise . ' . It is well known that the Fraternity of Freemasons is a large and constantly increasing body , mainly composed of the influential and educated classes of society ; and as The Freemason is now the accepted organ ofthe Brotherhood in the United Kingdom , and also enjoys an extensive sale in the colonies and foreign parts , its advantages as an advertising medium can scarcely he overrated . For terms apply to GEORGE KENNING , 2 , 3 , & 4 , LITTLE BRITAIN , LONDON , E . C .

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NOTICE The Subscription to THE FREEMASON is now 10 s . per annum , post-free , payable in advance . Vol . I ., bound in cloth 4 s . 6 d . Vol . IL , ditto 7 s . 6 d . Reading Cases to hold 52 numbers ... 2 s . 6 d .

Answers To Correspondents.

Answers to Correspondents .

—?—WELSHMAN . —A brother cannot hold two offices in a lodge , or other Masonic body , at the same time . The Book of Constitutions expressly states how many officers there should be in a lodge ; and certainly does not contemplate more than one being held by the same individual .

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All communications for THE FREEMASON should be written legibly on one side of the paper only , and , if intended for insertion in the current number , must be received not later than io o ' clock a . m . on Thursdays , unless in very special cases . The name and address of every writer must be sent to uj in confidence .

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The Freemason , SATURDAY , DECEMBER IO , 1870 .

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THE FKEEMASON is published on Saturday Mornings in time for tlie early trains . The price of THE FREEMASON is Twopence per week ; annual subscription , ros . ( payable in advance ) . All communications , letters , & c , to be addressed to the EDITOX , , 3 , and 4 , Little Britain , E . C . The Editor will pay careful atteation to all MSS . entrusted to himkut cannot undertake to return them unless accompanied by postage stamps .

A Masonic Life-Boat.

A MASONIC LIFE-BOAT .

" T WENTY thousand lifes saved from shipwreck" — twenty thousand human beings rescued from the raging surge—twenty thousand , or , rather say , one hundred

thousand , homes redeemed from woes and sorrows that are worse than death ! Such is the simple but touching record of the National Life-Boat Institution , the brief

but eloquent epitome of its grand exploits . To a maritime nation like England , whose navies ride on every sea , whose flag is seen in every port , the word " shipwreck " has a

great , a surpassing interest . The traditions of our national glory are so identified with the heroes of the deep , that tales of naval warfare and narratives of disasters at sea

have ever had an irresistible charm for our reading population . Need we quote " Robinson Crusoe , " or the " Mutineers of the Bounty , " as instances ? Are not the

deeds of the former and his man Friday , and the adventures of Christian and his comrades , impressed indelibly on the minds

of young England for all time ? The remark may also be made that some of our most popular songs treat of " a life on the ocean wave " as the very summit and

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perfection of all human ambition . The toils and dangers attendant on a sailor's career are not only lightly ignored , but one is led to fancy from the glowing descriptions of

the verse that the trident of Britannia really rules the stormy billows . Unhappily , the poetic version is scarcely the true one , and cynics may be more inclined to

accept Dr . Johnson s definition of a ship as " a prison , with a chance of being drowned . " The men who navigate the ocean either in the service of their country or of

commerce , have many hardships and little ease . Perils beset them on every sidesunken rocks unnoted in the chart , sandbanks and treacherous winds assail them , sudden leaks baffle their utmost skill . The

fate of the " Captain " adds another awful record to the history of shipwrecks , another terrible unit to the sum of naval catastrophes . With such a loss fresh in our

memories , the account of the good work accomplished by the Life-Boat Institution seems to awaken our thoughts to a fuller appreciation of the services it renders to

humanity . We regret , however , to learn that this noble Society languishes for want of that support which it so pre-eminently deserves . At a meeting held on the 1 st

December , ^ 3 , 000 stock of the funded capital of the Institution was ordered to be sold out to meet the heavy disbursements required . This is not as it should be , nor

we venture to say , as it will be , when the public are once fully aroused to the pressing wants of-the Society . With a sectionand a not uninfluential section—of that

public we are on extremely good terms , and it is to them—to the members of the Masonic body—that we now appeal to do their fair share of labour in so praiseworthy

a cause . We ask our readers whether it is creditable to the Fraternity to have , week after week , set forth in the columns of THE FREEMASON " such a beggarly array of

empty boxes as the Masonic Life-Boat Committee are fain to exhibit ? How is it that associations not half so numerous , not a tenth part so wealthy , as the Masonic

Order , have placed around our coasts lifeboats to attest the sincerity of their efforts ? We know that Freemasons have many calls upon their charitablesympathies , many

urgent claims in connection with their own institutions ; but still wc cannot admit the supposed inference that they are unable , or unwilling to contribute to obj ' ects so

truly noble as those which we now advocate . We are , therefore , reluctantly compelled to accept the conclusion which has been forced upon us by the inexorable logic of facts

namely , that the Craft have no confidence in undertakings which arc not stamped with the seal of authority . Some time ago we alluded to this subject , and commended the

exertions of the worthy men who were striving to obtain funds for a Masonic Life-Boat . It was then stated that a certain

brother had previously made an almost identical appeal , had collected subscriptions , but had failed to give a clear account of their appropriation . A similar state-

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ment , affecting the same individual , has since been made by one of our correspondents in reference to a society bearing the pretentious title of the "Masonic

Archaaological Institute , which , it appears , has sunk into chaos , carrying with it sundry coins bearing Her Majesty ' s effigy , five sovereigns and five shillings thereof

representing a life donation from the proprietor of THE F REEMASON . The golden silence since maintained by the promoters of both those collapsed speculations , speaks more

eloquently than words in praise of their discretion ; but we fear that a spirit of distrust has been engendered thereby , and that our brother Masons are beginning to

put in practice that caution which under other conditions is doubtless most admirable . The consequence is , that "The Freemasons' Life-Boat "is not yet launched—the

consequence is , that even with the potent aid of such respected names as those of Bro . Stebbing , Bro . De Carteret , Bro . Boyd and many others , the indefatigable Life-Boat

Committee cannot galvanise the movement into life and vigour . This must be remedied ; the failures of the past must not be suffered to retard the triumphof the whole-hearted men

who now advocate a mission of mercy . WE MUST HAVE THIS LlFE-BoAT , and we must have it soon ; let no jealousies or discord impede the fulfilment of our resolve . Such

men as Bros . Harris , Davis , and Gotthiel are worthy of support ; they are men of integrity , honour and zeal , and it behoves the Craft to help them energetically , and

at once . Remember the old proverb , " He gives twice who gives quickly , " the winds of winter are already howling around our doors , the hurricanes of winter

are already speeding their terrific course around our island-shores . Let us build our bark of hope , and speedily send it forth on its errand of redemption ; let the boat

be called "The Craft , ' and may it long weather every gale , and be instrumental in snatching many of our brave seamen from a watery grave . The object is good , the

appeal is sure to meet with a generous response from all who have—and who has not ? —some one near and dear to them among "Ye Mariners of England . " We therefore

commend it , and the claims ofthe National Life-Boat Institution generally , to the best sympathies of our readers , in the hope that

a shilling subscription will be at once set on foot , and that every brother will feel it a pleasure as well as a duty to contribute to the fund .

If this suggestion be adopted , it will be found that without unduly taxing the resources of the brethren , not only one , but two , andeven three Life-Boats might be

provided , and presented to the "Institution " as a practical example of that benevolence which is denominated the highest and purest characteristic of genuine Freemasonry .

Want of space precludes our inserting the following : — " Rosicrucians , " an extract ; Petition of Lodge of Glasgow St . John ; continuation of " Origin of Freemasonry ; " Notes and Queries ; reports of lodges—Asaph ( 1319 ) , Dalhousie Lodge of Instruction ( 860 ) , Unity ( 613 , Southport ) , Rose of Denmark Chapter ( 975 )