The New Zealand Question.

out that whether our Grand Secretary has or has not been sufficiently communicative to the District Grand Masters in New Zealand ; whether Bro . BELL on his recent visit to England , in his eagerness to bring about a reconciliation of the Constitutions

in his Colony , misrepresented or not the opinion of certain English District Grand Masters on the subject of recognition , and pledged himself or not on behalf of his Grand Lodge to more than he was justified * , whether all or only some of the abstracted

warrants have been returned , & c , & c . —these questions , though interesting in themselves and well worthy of being carefully considered , sink into insignificance by the side of the main point ,

whether the Grand Lodge of England is justified or not m the course it is prepared to adopt of recognising the Grand Lodge of New Zealand . We say it is , not because we look upon the irregularitv of the latter ' s formation with less disfavour now than we did

six years ago , but because the interests of Freemasonry are paramount , and those interests must and will suffer—if not all the world over , at all events throughout the British Empire—if the present unhappy condition in this Colony is allowed'to continue

indefinitely . We say it is justified , because the necessity for recognising the new body must come sooner or later , and , as we have remarked before , it is better we should do so now with a certain

amount of grace and while we still command a strong body of adherents than wait a few years , when the Grand Lodge of New Zealand will be so strom ? that it will be almost a matter of

indifference to it whether we accord it recognition or not . We say further , that however bitter may have been thc feelings of members of the rival orders of things Masonic in New Zealand towards each other during the last six years ; however

harshly the English , Irish , and Scotch Masons may have spoken of or acted towards the New Zealand Masons , and however cordially the latter may have reciprocated that harshness , it cannot very well have exceeded the bitterness and harshness which marked the conduct towards each other of the old

rival sects of "Ancient" and " Modern" Masons in England for upwards of 60 years—from 1751 to 1813 . Yet in the latter year these two Societies met and organised themselves as one body , and have remained firmly united as one body ever since . If these

two rivals , which were at daggers-drawn for 60 years , could unite , we see no reason why the New Zealand Masons on the one hand and the English , Irish , and Scotch Masons on thc

other should not come together , when then * antagonism has existed for only one-tenth part of that time . As for Article 219 of the Book of Constitutions , its meaning is clear enough , but let it be modified in the direction we indicated in a former

article , so as not to apply to the case of majorities withdrawing for the purpose of joining a local Grand Lodge . The law was framed with a view to protecting the interests of minorities ,

not to enable a minority to tyrannise over a majority and deprive it of its undoubted interest in the preservation and retention of its lodge warrants .

The Province Of Derbyshire.

THE PROVINCE OF DERBYSHIRE .

The Province of Derbyshire has played a not unimportant part in the proceedings of the current year , and , as usual , has acquitted itself with considerable credit . In June last , Bro . his Grace the Duke of DEVONSHIRE , K . G ., its respected Provincial

Grand Master of 38 years' standing , presided as Chairman at the Anniversary Festival of thc Royal Masonic Insiitution for Boys , ancl the total of the subscriptions it raised on the occasion was very little short of ^ 1650 . Considering that the Province

has only some 26 lodges on its roll , this must be accounted a most generous contribution , showing , as it does , at one and the same time , both the loyalty it feels towards its Provincial Grand Master , and the affection it entertains for our Masonic

Institutions . But though this has been the most prominent event of the year , it is by no means the only one which furnishes grounds for satisfaction . The lodges have , without exception , fulfilled their duties admirably , while the written reports of the

Worshipful Masters show that in all cases their condition is satisfactory and prosperous . We do not gather from the report we published last week of the annual meeting at Derby that

there has been any material increase in the number of subscribing members . Indeed , the Deputy Provincial Grand Master , in the brief address he delivered , seems inclined to attribute the

The Province Of Derbyshire.

general success of thc Province to the steady progress it has made of . late years . " When , " said he , " he looked back year after year , he could not but note that their record had been one of stead )* advance—not by leaps and bounds , but from a low standard

they hacl risen steadil y in the true principles ancl foundations of the Craft . " Later in his speech , he remarked with satisfaction that " great care was exercised by the lodges as to whom they admitted to the honourable position of brother Masons , " and it

was to this care that he attributed in great measure the success of the Province . Bro . OKEOVER is , no doubt , correct in his inference , and we can only hope that this policy of caution will be continued , and that the lodges , not onl y in

Derbyshire , but throughout the Provinces generally , and in London and abroad , will invariably exercise the utmostcarein their acceptance of candidates for " the honourable position of brother Masons . " . As for the rest of the proceedings , they were

devoted chiefly to the consideration of the all-absorbing question of the day—the Removal of the Boys' School—the brethren expressing their approval of the step with no uncertain voice and thus ranging themselves with Kent , Sussex , Hampshire and

the Isle of Wight , Cornwall , Northumberland , Gloucestershire , and the many other Provinces which have pronounced in favour of the removal . For this we are , no doubt , indebted to the fulness of the information furnished by Bro . HUGH E . DIAMOND

the representative of Derbyshire on the Board of Management , and the very cordial support he received from Bro . W , H . MARSDEN , P . G . Std . B . England . But it is not every Province that is fortunate enough to have such a representative on the

Board , or failing that , a brother among its members who is as well informed on the subject as Bro . MARSDEN , and it is just possible that , if in such less favoured Provinces , and even in those who have a representative but do not consult him , a member of

the Board , or the Secretary were occasionally to attend a Provincial or a few lodge meetings and furnish such ample information as he alone from his intimate knowledge of the circumstances can possess , what is now only the voice of a large

majority of the Provinces and lodges in support of the proposed removal might be converted into the unanimous voice of the whole English body Masonic . However , in Derbyshire—as in other provinces under similar circumstances—where information based or official data has been forthcoming , the brethren

have declared themselves favourable to the removal , and we venture to congratulate the Province as well on the course it has adopted in this respect as on the general success of its proceedings during the present year .

Provincial Grand Lodge Of Jersey.

PROVINCIAL GRAND LODGE OF JERSEY .

The annual meeting of ihe above Provincial Grand Lodge was held at the Masonic Temple , St . Helier , on Friday , the 20 th ult ., when Bro . Col . E . C . Malet De Carteret , Prov . G . M .. presided and opened the lodge , being supported by Bros . Dr . J . Le Cronier , D . P . G . M . ; J . O . Le Sueur , acting

S . W . ; F . J . Godfray , J . W . , * and several other prominent brethren of the province . After the usual salutations to the Prov . and Deputy Prov . Grand Masters , the roll of lodges was called , when it was ft und that all the lodges of the province were represented ; the brethren of the Mechanics , La Cesaree , and Royal Alfred Lodges being particularly numerous . The roll of Prov . Grand Ofiicers was then called , nearly all of whom were present or had sent apologies for their absence .

The minutes of the annual meeting of 1 S 95 having been read and confirmed , the report of the Audit Committee was read and adopted . The PROV . GRAND MASTER then made a few remarks with regard to the progress of Masonry during the past year and congratulated the brethren on there having been but one death amongst prominent Masons during that

period , alluding to that brother , Philippe Le Feuvre , P . M . 59 ° > P-P * ' Reg ., in a few well-chosen words . He then impressed on the members of the Craft the necessity for the careful selection of candidates for initiation and hoped that harmony would reign supreme in the province , as the fewer the cases brought before his notice in his official capacity , the better would he be pleased .

The Provincial Gr-ind Lodge then proceeded to discuss the various notices of motion on the agenda paper , when Bro . F . J . GODFRAY , P . J . G . W ., proposed the re-election as Prov . G . Treasurer of Bro . J . O . Le Sueur , r . r-S . G . W . This was seconded by Bro . W . PUGSLEY , P . P . S . G . W ., and there

being no olher candidate Bro . Le Sueur was declared duly elected a returned thanks to the brethren for the continued confidence reposed in Wta-Bro . Dr . M . LE CRONIER , P . J . G . D ., then moved the following proposition— " That this Provincial Grand Lodge approves of the action or tn Board of Management of the Royal Masonic Institute for Boys with regar to the purchase of a new site for the School House . " He briefly recap » u"