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©Rtginal Corresponucnce,
Militarily , I am quite sure that it is wrong , and contrary to the spirit of the regulations ( except in purely military lodges ) , and Masonically it seems to me to be completely opposed to the peaceful principles of Freemasonry . There is no occasion for such a wearing of the uniforms , unless , indeed , you assume that such lodges are only composed of volunteers . But is such the fact ?—Yours fraternallv , A CHAPLAIN .
IS HE LEGALLY AND REGULARLY ELECTED ? To the Editor of the "Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , — I wish to have my doubts cleared upon the above question , and will state the case shortly . Bro . A left lodge B in 1876 , joined lodge C , of which he duly became S . W .
Subsequently he left lodge C , and went out of England , having previously paid his dues to that lodge up to the time of his leaving . He was away for several years , came back to England , and rejoined lodge B at the begining of last year . Last month he was elected to the chair of K . S ., not having gone through the Wardens' chair of lodge B .
This is the point I want to know , —if Bro . A , not having been a subscribing member to any lodge duringthc timehe was away from his country , until he came back and rejoined lodge B , at the begining of last year , is legally and regularly elected ; and can he be installed into the Master's chair without going through the Wardens' chair of lodge B .
An answer in your next issue of the Freemason will greatly oblige . —Yours truly and fraternally , 4 th January . JOHN GAMBLE , P . M . J The expression in the Book of Constitutions is , " having regularly served as a Warden in a warranted lodge . " Bro . A had therefore a proper qualification for the chair of K . S ., and is legally and regularly elected a VV . M . —Ed . F . M . ' }
A VISIT TO THE BOYS' SCHOOL . To the Editor of the "Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , — The House Committee of the Royal Masonic Institution for Boys may , or may not , consider an annonymous communication deserving of notice , but I hope your
readers will , at least , suspend their judgment on the sweeping denunciations contained in the letter under the above heading in your last issue until opportunity has been afforded to determine what course , if any , it may be desirable to adopt . Your correspondent must pardon my remarking that it
would naturally be imagined that anyone imbued with opinions so unfavourable would have evidenced the courage of his convictions by appending his name and address . — Yours fraternally , FREDERICK BINCKES , Office , Freemasons' Hall , W . C , Secretary . January 10 th .
A BEGGING MASON . To the Editor of the " Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , — A person holding a certificate from'Lodge 62 , 1 . C , has been seeking assistance from the brethren in the neighbourhood of Nottingham and elsewhere . He is
strongly pockmarked , has a cast in the eye , and professes to be a schoolmaster lately returned from America . I believe the above statements arc true , but have heard of other circumstances that would render it doubtful if he is a " worthy object" of Masonic Benevolence . Can any of your readers inform mc on the subject . —Yours & c , J . K . Nottingham , January 6 th . Late member of I . C .
Reviews
REVIEWS
HAND BOOK FOR TRAVELLERS . By H . BAEDEKER . First Part—Northern Italy . Dulau and Co ., 37 , Sohosquare , W . At this time of the year , when the climacteric outcome of our fog-beridden capital , as the French say , "les brouillards de Tamise , " affect many delicate chests , and aggravate inherited weaknesses , a flight of John and Jenny Bulls towards the more sunny plains of Italy generally takes place . It seems so deliirhtfuf , as our young ladies say , to exchange
the dull , grey , yellow , murky fogs of London , and the rawness and dampness of our Britannic Isles , for milder atmosphere and a bluer sky , for sunshine and mild breezes , for the exhilarating perfume of flowers and a gayer outp f-door ' s life . And yet" all is not gold that glitters " even in the " Morgen Land . " There are dangerous winds and chilling blasts , and sudden alterations of atmosphere , which still serve to point to the regions and severity of a
wintry regime . King Charles II . used to say the English climate was the best in the world , and no one was a better judge of most things ; but still there can be no doubt that to many our normal temperature and our abnormal English winters are very trying , and , therefore , they are intent in our ungenial weather and under our gloomy skies , on seeking for health resorts in the Rivcira , and other health resorts where , at any rate , they can see
the sun , and do not live in a perpetual dcvelopement of throat affections , and uncomfortable catarrhs . This handbook of Baedeker for Northern Italy , familiar and welcome to many of our readers for its useful hints , gay cover , and accurate information , takes us through many spots and scenes 01 historical importance ,
artistic pretensions , and personal interest . We hear , "inter alia , " of the famous cities of Turin and Genoa , of Nice , and Pisa , and Milan , the Lake of Como , and Mantua , and Verona , of the Lago di Garda , Brescia and Modena , of Parma , Venice , and Bologna , of , last , not least , Trieste -and Corsica . Surely here is enough for the most travelled
Reviews
and travelling' Gourmet ; enough , in good sooth , of interest , novelty , excitement , and information . It is not a little remarkable how the taste for travelling grows on us stay-at-home and insular Britons ? VVe forget the routine of town life and home life , the artificial wants of a still more artificial routine . All , as it were , floats away before us and departs from us , when equipped for the journey , with
our faithful Baedeker , or sagacious Murray , and the unfailing "Bradshaw's Continental , " we leave the shores of Old England for foreign climes or outlandish localities . It is all the same whether we are in the Desert or up the Righi , on the Bridge of Sighs or at the Invalidcs , in Amsterdam or Constantinople , Seville or St . Petersburgh , we are proud to J reckoned among the "travelled host . "
How courageously we brave the many dangers of a foreign tour , and find ourselves complacently sitting at strange " tables d'hotes , " and master the mysteries of continental railway arrangements . After a little we become hardened , reckless , and daring . Wc even can affect to be stern to the complaints of our own dear , confiding , and managing angel , and to contemn the
complaints and moans of that uneasy cherub , Mary Elizabeth Jane . We are men and Britons , " Civis Komanus Sum , " as Lord Palmerston liked to aver , and so we really cannot allow ourselves to be bothered about baggage or other "inpedimenta ; " and "women are always grumbling , " and we go on our way rejoicing , and speak our bad French and worse Italian with equanimity , self-satisfaction ,
and even with "gusto . Have we not done Venice ? have we not stood in the amphitheatre at Verona ? Do we not remember how at the Lyceum we applauded Bro . Irving , and were sympathetic with Miss Ellen Terry ? Such a j aunt is , at any rate , a pleasant tour for those who can go , who have money in their pockets , who have aesthetic tastes ; and just now , for many reasons which we need not stop to
particularize , we do not wonder at any one who can do so , seeking or enjoying a foreign trip . For all who travel for pleasure or information , we wish for them health all that pleasure and comfort and good luck which may carry them through all difficulties and dangers safe " out and home again . " For those who seek for fine weather and more genial climes , under
medical advice , or for reasons of happier hygiene , we trust that as they leave an ungenial climate behind them so they may find in many a sunny spot that wondrous and goodly blessing of health , without which all other earthly gifts arc useless ; and that when they see our colder shores again , theirs ' may indeed be , in the providence of T . G . A . O . T . U ., renovated hopes and reanimated lives .
MAGAZINES . The Century reached us later than general , but it contains its usual amount of first-class letterpress , and artistic illustrations . It certainl y stands at the head of the serial literature of Great Britain and America . " Hydraulic Mining in California" is very good , and so is "The Planting of New England , " both illustrated as only the Century
illustrates , as a non professedly art journal . " Who are the Creoles , " is a well written sketch , and "The Rudder Grangers in England" most amusing . "Farming for Feathers" and "The Debt of Science to Darwin" are well worth perusal . The stories . are "Through one Administration , " the "Led Horse Claim , " and the "Christian League of Connecticut . "
BOOKS . According to the " Publishers' Circular" there were 5124 books published in 1 SS 2 , or about 200 less than in 18 S 1 . This number of 5124 is made up of 397 s new works and 1146 new editions . Curiously enough , in 1 SS 2 juvenile books and stories head the list with 0 S 7 , or nearly double
to 1 SS 1 . Theology comes next with 7 S 9 , or 200 less than in 1 SS 1 ; and in 1 S 81 , it is to be noted , theological works far exceeded all others . Educational , philosophical , Classical , & c , & c , return CS 2 . Novels show a falling off of about 200 , as in 1 SS 2 they were 420 , in 1 SS 1 674 . Biograph y and history are slightly in advance for 1 SS 2 over 1 SS 1 ; in the former year they amount to 452 , and to 437 in 1 SS 1 .
Masonic Notes And Queries.
Masonic Notes and Queries .
99 ] CHARLES SACKVILLE . In answer to the inquiry made some few weeks since by " Masonic Dryasdust " as to " who was really the Charles Sackville commemorated on Natter ' s Florentine Medal of 1733 , " the same to whom is attributed the establishment of the first lodge under the speculative system in Italy , at Florence , I have been successful in finding a good deal of
information . He was son and heir of Lionel , first Duke of Dorset , and for the greater part of his life , until his accession to the dukedom , bore the courtesy title of Earl of Middlesex—the earldoms of Middlesex and Dorset having been merged in the Sackville family by intermarriage , just as the Earl of Arundel is the courtesy title of the eldest son of the Duke of Norfolk , and the Earl of Lincoln that
of the eldest son of the Duke of Newcastle . _ He was born in 1711 , and died at Knole by Sevenoaks in 17 6 9 , in the fifty-eighth year of his age , after having held the dukedom of Dorset for only three years . While a commoner he was returned to Parliament at different times for the borough of East Grinstead and for the county of Kent . In 1743 he was appointed a Lord of the Treasury . In 1744
he married Grace Doyle , daughter and sole heiress of Richard Viscount Shannon , with whom he appears to have received a large fortune variously stated at from , ( . 30 , 000 to £ 130 , 000 . In 1747 he became Master of the Hurse to Frederick Prince of Wales , while his wile became a great favourite with the Princess , in whose household she filled the ollice of Mistress of the Robes . Charles Sackville was
also somewhat of a poet , and some of his effusions , and especially a song entitled " Arno's Vale , " are said to have been creditable . But his great passion was to play the part of an operatic impresario , and it was in his ambition to satisfy this that he squandered large sums of money , his father , the Duke , having several times to pay bis debts .
He died in the year stated in straitened circumstances , and was succeeded by his brother John's son , third Duke of Dorset , who died , unmarried , from an accident in the hunting field . His youngest brother was the Lord George Sackville , afterwards Lord Germain , who got into such hot water through his conduct at the battle of Minden in 1 759 .
In John Bridgman ' s "Sketch of Knole , " published in 1 S 17 , Charles , the second Duke of Dorset , is described as one who " was a fine gentleman , and had an excellent taste for poetry and the fine arts ; but was prevented exercising his benevolence and patronage by the straitness of his fortune . " Horace Walpole , in his letters , is far less complimentary , and says many unpleasant things of him ; while
in his " Memoirs of the last ten years of the reign of George" ( Murray , 1 S 22 ) he speaks of him in the following terms : "His figure , which was handsome , had all the reserve of his family , and all the dignity of his ancestors . He was a poet , too , because they had been poets . As little as he came near them in this talent , it was what he most resembled them in , and in what he best supported their
honour . His passion was the direction of operas , in which he had not only wasted immense sums , but had stood lawsuits in Westminster Hall , " & c . In a footnote on the page from which the latter extract is taken are given as details from the public journals for Gth January , 17 G 9 , the day following the duke ' s death , still fuller particulars , from which I gather that be " received the first rudiments of his education at
Westminster School , in which he was introduced by the late celebrated Prior , and there gave strong indications of genius . The duke afterwards visited France and Italy , with the latter of which he was particularly delighted , being accompanied by the late learned and very benevolent Mr . Spence , who cherished the love which his grace naturally bore to the polite arts . At his return from his travels
, he encouraged learning and learned men . The duke was honoured with the esteem and affection of the late muchlamented Prince Frederick , and it was thought that his grace would have made a very considerable figure in the State . He was skilled not only in the learncd ' languages , but also in the modern . He had not the talent of speaking
in public , so was not distinguished in the I louse of Commons ; but he was a fine prose writer , of which ( among other pieces ) his ' Treatise concerning the Militia' is a proof . Some few printed specimens of his poetry show his happy talent for that engaging art , and especially the manuscript pieces left behind him , which , it is hoped , will not be lost to the world . " G . B . A .
100 ] AUBREY'S OXFORD MS . At page 14 S of "Hawkins' Gothic Architecture , " 1 S 13 , the "Antiquarian Repertory , " Vol . III ., page 45 , is laid under contribution for an extract from Aubrey ' s MS ., which discusses the now familiar subject of Bulls having been given by the Pope to the Freemasons . Unfrotunately , the reference to the " Antiquarian Repertory " being inexact , I have been unable to verify it . An interesting point
, however , arises . The Oxford , or original copy of the Aubrey MS ., which I have personally examined , contains on the right hand page the allusion to the Papal Bulls , whilst on the left hand page , which is really the back of the previous folio , is the subsequent entry or memorandum relating to Wren ' s approaching admission . It has been generally supposed that the letter was first published b y Mr . Halliwell in 1 S 44 , and from the previous silence of all
Masonic historians on a point of so much interest to the fraternity , this view is probably the correct one . It would , however , repay the trouble incurred to search the " Antiquarian Repertory " for the actual excerpt from the Aubrey MS . Therein embedded , whoever searched the Oxford MS . could not fail to have seen the mention of Wren ' s name , and if this incident or prediction was thought of inferior interest to the statement respecting the Bulls , the circumstance , to say the least , is a little singular . R . F . GOULD .
ioij CURIOUS BOOKS . One of the most remarkable books which I have lighted upon for some time , is a collection of four Hermetic Tracts , in our volume , all printed at Frankfort on the Maine in 1625 , by " Luca Jennis . " The first is entitled " Vier Tractiitlein Fr Basilii Valentini Benedicter Ordens , " & c . This tractate contain four parts or divisionsall relating to the discovery
, of the Philosopher ' s stone , and of the availing and transforming , and transmittating "Tinctura . " It is illustrated by some curious mystical and hermetic figures . The second tract is a very remarkable one indeed , also a quasi hermetic tract , in that it seems to foreshadow hermetically the triad form of mystical import , as illustrated by our Masonic traditions , of the three rulers of the Royal Arch Chapter . It is
a remarkable fact , that this " Triad " is to be found in hermeticism , under almost apparently similar circumstances , though with some divergencies of arrangement . The tract is called " Lammspring , das ist ein herzlicher Teutschcr Tractat Vom Philosophischen Steine" & c . It is said to have been written by a certain Lampert Spring , or Lammspring , a German noble , and a " Philosopher . " The illustrations are most quaint and remarkable , and must
strike everyone . The third is called " Vom Philosophischen Steine , ein schemer Tractat , Von einem Teutschen Philosopho sur Vahre 1423 beschrieben " & c . By H . C . D . This has a curious title page . The fourth is , " Ein Kurzes Tractiitlein , " & c , by the same writer , H . C . D ., called also "Liber Alze . " Whatever the worth of these Rosicrucian and Hermetic works may be , they seem to me to point to the existence of a fraternity and distinct Hermetic teaching known only really and truly to the Adepts . BOOKWORM .
102 J OLD ROYAL ARCH CHAPTERS . I am now in correspondence with Comp . VV . J . Hughan upon this subject , and hope in a short time , with his able assistance , to furnish your readers with some interesting information about the early working of the Royal Arch Degree . MANCUN 1 UM .
" Sapo Carbonis Detergens" is a physician ' s name for a remedy prescribed for the past quarter-century for every variety of skin disease . The public have also adopted the same as a preventive of smallpox , scarlet fever , and measles . Purchasers should see that the Latin Brand is on every tablet , and WRIGHT'S COAL TAR SOAP on each wrapper , without which none arc genuine .
It is certain tlicfjueen ' s Physician , Dr . Pairbank , has written strongly recommending LENT 1 LLA , orTONIC DAILY FOOD . It cures Indigestion , Heartburn , Constipation , Liver and Stomach Complaints , & c , besides having such wondrous nourishing properties . Makes Soups , Porridge , Custards , Puddings , Biscuits , & c . Tins , lib . is . Gd . ; ilb ., iod . Barrels , 2 Slb ., 30 s . ; 141 b ., iGs . Of all Chemists . —Proprietor , II . J . Deacon , Beckenham , Kent . —f ADVT ,
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
©Rtginal Corresponucnce,
Militarily , I am quite sure that it is wrong , and contrary to the spirit of the regulations ( except in purely military lodges ) , and Masonically it seems to me to be completely opposed to the peaceful principles of Freemasonry . There is no occasion for such a wearing of the uniforms , unless , indeed , you assume that such lodges are only composed of volunteers . But is such the fact ?—Yours fraternallv , A CHAPLAIN .
IS HE LEGALLY AND REGULARLY ELECTED ? To the Editor of the "Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , — I wish to have my doubts cleared upon the above question , and will state the case shortly . Bro . A left lodge B in 1876 , joined lodge C , of which he duly became S . W .
Subsequently he left lodge C , and went out of England , having previously paid his dues to that lodge up to the time of his leaving . He was away for several years , came back to England , and rejoined lodge B at the begining of last year . Last month he was elected to the chair of K . S ., not having gone through the Wardens' chair of lodge B .
This is the point I want to know , —if Bro . A , not having been a subscribing member to any lodge duringthc timehe was away from his country , until he came back and rejoined lodge B , at the begining of last year , is legally and regularly elected ; and can he be installed into the Master's chair without going through the Wardens' chair of lodge B .
An answer in your next issue of the Freemason will greatly oblige . —Yours truly and fraternally , 4 th January . JOHN GAMBLE , P . M . J The expression in the Book of Constitutions is , " having regularly served as a Warden in a warranted lodge . " Bro . A had therefore a proper qualification for the chair of K . S ., and is legally and regularly elected a VV . M . —Ed . F . M . ' }
A VISIT TO THE BOYS' SCHOOL . To the Editor of the "Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , — The House Committee of the Royal Masonic Institution for Boys may , or may not , consider an annonymous communication deserving of notice , but I hope your
readers will , at least , suspend their judgment on the sweeping denunciations contained in the letter under the above heading in your last issue until opportunity has been afforded to determine what course , if any , it may be desirable to adopt . Your correspondent must pardon my remarking that it
would naturally be imagined that anyone imbued with opinions so unfavourable would have evidenced the courage of his convictions by appending his name and address . — Yours fraternally , FREDERICK BINCKES , Office , Freemasons' Hall , W . C , Secretary . January 10 th .
A BEGGING MASON . To the Editor of the " Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , — A person holding a certificate from'Lodge 62 , 1 . C , has been seeking assistance from the brethren in the neighbourhood of Nottingham and elsewhere . He is
strongly pockmarked , has a cast in the eye , and professes to be a schoolmaster lately returned from America . I believe the above statements arc true , but have heard of other circumstances that would render it doubtful if he is a " worthy object" of Masonic Benevolence . Can any of your readers inform mc on the subject . —Yours & c , J . K . Nottingham , January 6 th . Late member of I . C .
Reviews
REVIEWS
HAND BOOK FOR TRAVELLERS . By H . BAEDEKER . First Part—Northern Italy . Dulau and Co ., 37 , Sohosquare , W . At this time of the year , when the climacteric outcome of our fog-beridden capital , as the French say , "les brouillards de Tamise , " affect many delicate chests , and aggravate inherited weaknesses , a flight of John and Jenny Bulls towards the more sunny plains of Italy generally takes place . It seems so deliirhtfuf , as our young ladies say , to exchange
the dull , grey , yellow , murky fogs of London , and the rawness and dampness of our Britannic Isles , for milder atmosphere and a bluer sky , for sunshine and mild breezes , for the exhilarating perfume of flowers and a gayer outp f-door ' s life . And yet" all is not gold that glitters " even in the " Morgen Land . " There are dangerous winds and chilling blasts , and sudden alterations of atmosphere , which still serve to point to the regions and severity of a
wintry regime . King Charles II . used to say the English climate was the best in the world , and no one was a better judge of most things ; but still there can be no doubt that to many our normal temperature and our abnormal English winters are very trying , and , therefore , they are intent in our ungenial weather and under our gloomy skies , on seeking for health resorts in the Rivcira , and other health resorts where , at any rate , they can see
the sun , and do not live in a perpetual dcvelopement of throat affections , and uncomfortable catarrhs . This handbook of Baedeker for Northern Italy , familiar and welcome to many of our readers for its useful hints , gay cover , and accurate information , takes us through many spots and scenes 01 historical importance ,
artistic pretensions , and personal interest . We hear , "inter alia , " of the famous cities of Turin and Genoa , of Nice , and Pisa , and Milan , the Lake of Como , and Mantua , and Verona , of the Lago di Garda , Brescia and Modena , of Parma , Venice , and Bologna , of , last , not least , Trieste -and Corsica . Surely here is enough for the most travelled
Reviews
and travelling' Gourmet ; enough , in good sooth , of interest , novelty , excitement , and information . It is not a little remarkable how the taste for travelling grows on us stay-at-home and insular Britons ? VVe forget the routine of town life and home life , the artificial wants of a still more artificial routine . All , as it were , floats away before us and departs from us , when equipped for the journey , with
our faithful Baedeker , or sagacious Murray , and the unfailing "Bradshaw's Continental , " we leave the shores of Old England for foreign climes or outlandish localities . It is all the same whether we are in the Desert or up the Righi , on the Bridge of Sighs or at the Invalidcs , in Amsterdam or Constantinople , Seville or St . Petersburgh , we are proud to J reckoned among the "travelled host . "
How courageously we brave the many dangers of a foreign tour , and find ourselves complacently sitting at strange " tables d'hotes , " and master the mysteries of continental railway arrangements . After a little we become hardened , reckless , and daring . Wc even can affect to be stern to the complaints of our own dear , confiding , and managing angel , and to contemn the
complaints and moans of that uneasy cherub , Mary Elizabeth Jane . We are men and Britons , " Civis Komanus Sum , " as Lord Palmerston liked to aver , and so we really cannot allow ourselves to be bothered about baggage or other "inpedimenta ; " and "women are always grumbling , " and we go on our way rejoicing , and speak our bad French and worse Italian with equanimity , self-satisfaction ,
and even with "gusto . Have we not done Venice ? have we not stood in the amphitheatre at Verona ? Do we not remember how at the Lyceum we applauded Bro . Irving , and were sympathetic with Miss Ellen Terry ? Such a j aunt is , at any rate , a pleasant tour for those who can go , who have money in their pockets , who have aesthetic tastes ; and just now , for many reasons which we need not stop to
particularize , we do not wonder at any one who can do so , seeking or enjoying a foreign trip . For all who travel for pleasure or information , we wish for them health all that pleasure and comfort and good luck which may carry them through all difficulties and dangers safe " out and home again . " For those who seek for fine weather and more genial climes , under
medical advice , or for reasons of happier hygiene , we trust that as they leave an ungenial climate behind them so they may find in many a sunny spot that wondrous and goodly blessing of health , without which all other earthly gifts arc useless ; and that when they see our colder shores again , theirs ' may indeed be , in the providence of T . G . A . O . T . U ., renovated hopes and reanimated lives .
MAGAZINES . The Century reached us later than general , but it contains its usual amount of first-class letterpress , and artistic illustrations . It certainl y stands at the head of the serial literature of Great Britain and America . " Hydraulic Mining in California" is very good , and so is "The Planting of New England , " both illustrated as only the Century
illustrates , as a non professedly art journal . " Who are the Creoles , " is a well written sketch , and "The Rudder Grangers in England" most amusing . "Farming for Feathers" and "The Debt of Science to Darwin" are well worth perusal . The stories . are "Through one Administration , " the "Led Horse Claim , " and the "Christian League of Connecticut . "
BOOKS . According to the " Publishers' Circular" there were 5124 books published in 1 SS 2 , or about 200 less than in 18 S 1 . This number of 5124 is made up of 397 s new works and 1146 new editions . Curiously enough , in 1 SS 2 juvenile books and stories head the list with 0 S 7 , or nearly double
to 1 SS 1 . Theology comes next with 7 S 9 , or 200 less than in 1 SS 1 ; and in 1 S 81 , it is to be noted , theological works far exceeded all others . Educational , philosophical , Classical , & c , & c , return CS 2 . Novels show a falling off of about 200 , as in 1 SS 2 they were 420 , in 1 SS 1 674 . Biograph y and history are slightly in advance for 1 SS 2 over 1 SS 1 ; in the former year they amount to 452 , and to 437 in 1 SS 1 .
Masonic Notes And Queries.
Masonic Notes and Queries .
99 ] CHARLES SACKVILLE . In answer to the inquiry made some few weeks since by " Masonic Dryasdust " as to " who was really the Charles Sackville commemorated on Natter ' s Florentine Medal of 1733 , " the same to whom is attributed the establishment of the first lodge under the speculative system in Italy , at Florence , I have been successful in finding a good deal of
information . He was son and heir of Lionel , first Duke of Dorset , and for the greater part of his life , until his accession to the dukedom , bore the courtesy title of Earl of Middlesex—the earldoms of Middlesex and Dorset having been merged in the Sackville family by intermarriage , just as the Earl of Arundel is the courtesy title of the eldest son of the Duke of Norfolk , and the Earl of Lincoln that
of the eldest son of the Duke of Newcastle . _ He was born in 1711 , and died at Knole by Sevenoaks in 17 6 9 , in the fifty-eighth year of his age , after having held the dukedom of Dorset for only three years . While a commoner he was returned to Parliament at different times for the borough of East Grinstead and for the county of Kent . In 1743 he was appointed a Lord of the Treasury . In 1744
he married Grace Doyle , daughter and sole heiress of Richard Viscount Shannon , with whom he appears to have received a large fortune variously stated at from , ( . 30 , 000 to £ 130 , 000 . In 1747 he became Master of the Hurse to Frederick Prince of Wales , while his wile became a great favourite with the Princess , in whose household she filled the ollice of Mistress of the Robes . Charles Sackville was
also somewhat of a poet , and some of his effusions , and especially a song entitled " Arno's Vale , " are said to have been creditable . But his great passion was to play the part of an operatic impresario , and it was in his ambition to satisfy this that he squandered large sums of money , his father , the Duke , having several times to pay bis debts .
He died in the year stated in straitened circumstances , and was succeeded by his brother John's son , third Duke of Dorset , who died , unmarried , from an accident in the hunting field . His youngest brother was the Lord George Sackville , afterwards Lord Germain , who got into such hot water through his conduct at the battle of Minden in 1 759 .
In John Bridgman ' s "Sketch of Knole , " published in 1 S 17 , Charles , the second Duke of Dorset , is described as one who " was a fine gentleman , and had an excellent taste for poetry and the fine arts ; but was prevented exercising his benevolence and patronage by the straitness of his fortune . " Horace Walpole , in his letters , is far less complimentary , and says many unpleasant things of him ; while
in his " Memoirs of the last ten years of the reign of George" ( Murray , 1 S 22 ) he speaks of him in the following terms : "His figure , which was handsome , had all the reserve of his family , and all the dignity of his ancestors . He was a poet , too , because they had been poets . As little as he came near them in this talent , it was what he most resembled them in , and in what he best supported their
honour . His passion was the direction of operas , in which he had not only wasted immense sums , but had stood lawsuits in Westminster Hall , " & c . In a footnote on the page from which the latter extract is taken are given as details from the public journals for Gth January , 17 G 9 , the day following the duke ' s death , still fuller particulars , from which I gather that be " received the first rudiments of his education at
Westminster School , in which he was introduced by the late celebrated Prior , and there gave strong indications of genius . The duke afterwards visited France and Italy , with the latter of which he was particularly delighted , being accompanied by the late learned and very benevolent Mr . Spence , who cherished the love which his grace naturally bore to the polite arts . At his return from his travels
, he encouraged learning and learned men . The duke was honoured with the esteem and affection of the late muchlamented Prince Frederick , and it was thought that his grace would have made a very considerable figure in the State . He was skilled not only in the learncd ' languages , but also in the modern . He had not the talent of speaking
in public , so was not distinguished in the I louse of Commons ; but he was a fine prose writer , of which ( among other pieces ) his ' Treatise concerning the Militia' is a proof . Some few printed specimens of his poetry show his happy talent for that engaging art , and especially the manuscript pieces left behind him , which , it is hoped , will not be lost to the world . " G . B . A .
100 ] AUBREY'S OXFORD MS . At page 14 S of "Hawkins' Gothic Architecture , " 1 S 13 , the "Antiquarian Repertory , " Vol . III ., page 45 , is laid under contribution for an extract from Aubrey ' s MS ., which discusses the now familiar subject of Bulls having been given by the Pope to the Freemasons . Unfrotunately , the reference to the " Antiquarian Repertory " being inexact , I have been unable to verify it . An interesting point
, however , arises . The Oxford , or original copy of the Aubrey MS ., which I have personally examined , contains on the right hand page the allusion to the Papal Bulls , whilst on the left hand page , which is really the back of the previous folio , is the subsequent entry or memorandum relating to Wren ' s approaching admission . It has been generally supposed that the letter was first published b y Mr . Halliwell in 1 S 44 , and from the previous silence of all
Masonic historians on a point of so much interest to the fraternity , this view is probably the correct one . It would , however , repay the trouble incurred to search the " Antiquarian Repertory " for the actual excerpt from the Aubrey MS . Therein embedded , whoever searched the Oxford MS . could not fail to have seen the mention of Wren ' s name , and if this incident or prediction was thought of inferior interest to the statement respecting the Bulls , the circumstance , to say the least , is a little singular . R . F . GOULD .
ioij CURIOUS BOOKS . One of the most remarkable books which I have lighted upon for some time , is a collection of four Hermetic Tracts , in our volume , all printed at Frankfort on the Maine in 1625 , by " Luca Jennis . " The first is entitled " Vier Tractiitlein Fr Basilii Valentini Benedicter Ordens , " & c . This tractate contain four parts or divisionsall relating to the discovery
, of the Philosopher ' s stone , and of the availing and transforming , and transmittating "Tinctura . " It is illustrated by some curious mystical and hermetic figures . The second tract is a very remarkable one indeed , also a quasi hermetic tract , in that it seems to foreshadow hermetically the triad form of mystical import , as illustrated by our Masonic traditions , of the three rulers of the Royal Arch Chapter . It is
a remarkable fact , that this " Triad " is to be found in hermeticism , under almost apparently similar circumstances , though with some divergencies of arrangement . The tract is called " Lammspring , das ist ein herzlicher Teutschcr Tractat Vom Philosophischen Steine" & c . It is said to have been written by a certain Lampert Spring , or Lammspring , a German noble , and a " Philosopher . " The illustrations are most quaint and remarkable , and must
strike everyone . The third is called " Vom Philosophischen Steine , ein schemer Tractat , Von einem Teutschen Philosopho sur Vahre 1423 beschrieben " & c . By H . C . D . This has a curious title page . The fourth is , " Ein Kurzes Tractiitlein , " & c , by the same writer , H . C . D ., called also "Liber Alze . " Whatever the worth of these Rosicrucian and Hermetic works may be , they seem to me to point to the existence of a fraternity and distinct Hermetic teaching known only really and truly to the Adepts . BOOKWORM .
102 J OLD ROYAL ARCH CHAPTERS . I am now in correspondence with Comp . VV . J . Hughan upon this subject , and hope in a short time , with his able assistance , to furnish your readers with some interesting information about the early working of the Royal Arch Degree . MANCUN 1 UM .
" Sapo Carbonis Detergens" is a physician ' s name for a remedy prescribed for the past quarter-century for every variety of skin disease . The public have also adopted the same as a preventive of smallpox , scarlet fever , and measles . Purchasers should see that the Latin Brand is on every tablet , and WRIGHT'S COAL TAR SOAP on each wrapper , without which none arc genuine .
It is certain tlicfjueen ' s Physician , Dr . Pairbank , has written strongly recommending LENT 1 LLA , orTONIC DAILY FOOD . It cures Indigestion , Heartburn , Constipation , Liver and Stomach Complaints , & c , besides having such wondrous nourishing properties . Makes Soups , Porridge , Custards , Puddings , Biscuits , & c . Tins , lib . is . Gd . ; ilb ., iod . Barrels , 2 Slb ., 30 s . ; 141 b ., iGs . Of all Chemists . —Proprietor , II . J . Deacon , Beckenham , Kent . —f ADVT ,