Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Contents.
CONTENTS .
L PADERSThe Approaching Festival of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution ... S 3 The Masonic Home of Pennsylvania ... ... ... ... 84 The Schaw Statutes of 1598-9 ... ... ... ... ... 84 Another Masonic MS . ... _ ... _ ... ... ... ... Sj Provincial Grand Lodge cf Stirlingshire ... ... ... ... 85 Piovincial Grand Lodge of Banffshire _ ... ... ... ... S 6 Provincial Grand Chapter of Aberdeenshire ... ... .. ... 86
Ladies' Banquet , Concert , and Ball of the Scots Lodge , No . 2319 ... 86 Craft Masonry ... ... ... ... ... ... 87 Masonic Notes ... ... ... ... ... ... 89 Correspondence ... ... ... ... ... ... 90 Reviews ... ... .:. ••• ••• ••• ••• 9 ° Royal Arch ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 93 Lodges of Instruction ... ... ... ... ... ... 93 Otituary ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 93 Masonic and General Tidings ... ... ... ... ... 94
The Approaching Festival Of The Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution.
THE APPROACHING FESTIVAL OF THE ROYAL MASONIC BENEVOLENT INSTITUTION .
There is fust about time remaining for us to take a last look round and form , as far as possible , some idea of the prospects lhat await us on VVednesday , the 26 th instant , when the first of thc great Anniversary Festivals of the year—that of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution—will take place under the
auspices of Bro . the Right Hon . Lord GEORGE HAMILTON , M . P ., Secretary of State for India , Provincial Grand Master of Middlesex . "VVe cannot say there is much that is new to be added to what we have already written on the subject , but that
little is , at all events , of an assuring character , and unless the omens prove false altogether , there are fair grounds for hoping tliat the gathering on the day in question will prove a success . It
is very necessary that this should be the case . The demands upon the resources of the Institution are greater than at any previous period in its existence . Last year the number of annuitants on the Male Fund at , £ 4 0 per annum was augmented from 195 to 200 , and there are 240 on the Widows' Fund in
receipt of £ 32 per annum each , the sum annually distributed imongst these 440 old people and the 30 widows who receive each one-half of her late husband's annuity being £ 16 , 280 . 10 this must be added the salaries of the executive officers and
other expenses of management and for the maintenance of the Asylum at Croydon , so that the total outlay cannot be Set down at less than £ 19 , 000 per annum , and to meet this are the grants hy Grand Lodge and Grand Chapter and the interest on invested
capital amounting in round figures to some £ 5000 . There is , therefore , an annual deficiency to be made good of about £ 14 , 000 , and it is from the Anniversary Festival that we . look to obtain this sum . We are aware that all this has been said
times out of number , and will be repeated annually so long as here is a Benevolent Institution to claim our support . But none the less is it our duty to keep on pegging away and stating and restating the facts again ancl again , so that the Institution may not
lose even the smallest fraction of a contribution for want of these periodical reminders . Our readers , when they lind these particulars are being described at such frequent intervals in our columns , must bear in mind that there are three large Masonic
Institutions to be provided for . These three Institutions dis-Hlrse 'imongst them in the course of each succeeding year a sum amounting in the aggregate to £ 45 , 000 , and we shall be overstating the case if we set down the income—including the several
grants b y Grand Lodge and Grand Chapter—at £ 10 , 001 ? . -us the amount which it devolves upon the authorities of the ree Charities to raise by voluntary subscriptions is £ 35 , , ' > t is needless to say that so enormous an amount takes a eal of raising . The Secretaries who arc chiefl y concerned
The Approaching Festival Of The Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution.
in enlisting the services of Stewards , and the Stewards whose duty it is to canvass for subscriptions and donations have an uphill task to fulfil in order to obtain what is required . But , taking one year with another , they are generally successful , and
they are so , because they and we and all who are anxious to maintain our Institutions in the hi ghest possible state of efficiency never dream of relaxing , even for a single year , their efforts to raise the sinews of Charity .
We have said that the deficiency to be made good in the case of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution is , in round figures , about £ 14 , , or , perhaps , as it is desirable we should allow a
small margin for any unforeseen expenditure that may arise , we shall do well to state the sum as £ 14 , 500 . Are the prospects of obtaining this amount encouraging ? We think so . Since we last wrote a substantial addition has been made to the Board of
Stewards , which now numbers , all told , about 350 ladies and brethren . This is somewhat in excess of the Board which so successfully supported Bro . Viscount DUNGARVAN as Chairman at last year ' s Festival , so that , as far as numbers go , the case is
hopeful . Again , we have noticed in the numerous reports of lodge meetings which we have published during the last few weeks many instances in which lodges who are sending Stewards have shown themselves jubilant over the prospect of
obtaining big lists , and , though these instances are only few in number , still , as a straw suffices to show the direction of the wind , so these few cases may be looked upon as indicating the possibility of a satisfactory result . But , again we sav , such a result
is greatly needed . The total of the Returns received at the three Festivals which have been held since the Jubilee was celebrated is only £ 3 6 , 633 , or , an average per year of £ 12 , 211 , and in this is included a sum of £ 1260 paid for a Perpetual Presentation tothe
Male Fund ; but the total of the four years preceding the Jubilee was £ 58 , 525 , giving an average per year of £ 14 , 631 . It will be seen , therefore , that there is plenty of ground to be made good if the average for the four years since 189 . 2 is to be brought to a level with that of the four years which preceded it . Nor in our review of the circumstances connected with the
Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution must we altogether lose sight of two other important facts . Though , in consequence of the magnificent success of the Jubilee Festival , the Committee of Management found themselves in a position to fund £ 50 , 000 ,
and , by so doing , materially augmented the permanent incomethat permanent income still stands at little more than one-fourth of the permanent expenditure . Hence , when more is raised at any g iven Festival than is absolutely required for the service of
the year , the Committee are enabled to invest the surplus , and thereby slill further augment the capital of the Institution . It is the necessity for raising so large a sum annually that causes so serious a pressure on the general body of the Craft to
maintain our Institutions in a state of efficiency , and whatever lightens that pressure must be a decided boon to the Craft . We must also bear in mind that , notwithstanding the great increase which has been made of late years in the number of annuitants on the
two Funds , and the greater stringency of the regulations as to the qualifications of candidates , there is still at each succeeding election a marked disproportion between the number of vacancies to be filled and that of the candidates who have been found
elig ible to fill them . The lists of candidates for the election in May next were approved at the meeting of the Committee of Management on Wednesday and they contain no less than 113 aged people—60 men and 53 widosvs— all in a state
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Contents.
CONTENTS .
L PADERSThe Approaching Festival of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution ... S 3 The Masonic Home of Pennsylvania ... ... ... ... 84 The Schaw Statutes of 1598-9 ... ... ... ... ... 84 Another Masonic MS . ... _ ... _ ... ... ... ... Sj Provincial Grand Lodge cf Stirlingshire ... ... ... ... 85 Piovincial Grand Lodge of Banffshire _ ... ... ... ... S 6 Provincial Grand Chapter of Aberdeenshire ... ... .. ... 86
Ladies' Banquet , Concert , and Ball of the Scots Lodge , No . 2319 ... 86 Craft Masonry ... ... ... ... ... ... 87 Masonic Notes ... ... ... ... ... ... 89 Correspondence ... ... ... ... ... ... 90 Reviews ... ... .:. ••• ••• ••• ••• 9 ° Royal Arch ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 93 Lodges of Instruction ... ... ... ... ... ... 93 Otituary ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 93 Masonic and General Tidings ... ... ... ... ... 94
The Approaching Festival Of The Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution.
THE APPROACHING FESTIVAL OF THE ROYAL MASONIC BENEVOLENT INSTITUTION .
There is fust about time remaining for us to take a last look round and form , as far as possible , some idea of the prospects lhat await us on VVednesday , the 26 th instant , when the first of thc great Anniversary Festivals of the year—that of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution—will take place under the
auspices of Bro . the Right Hon . Lord GEORGE HAMILTON , M . P ., Secretary of State for India , Provincial Grand Master of Middlesex . "VVe cannot say there is much that is new to be added to what we have already written on the subject , but that
little is , at all events , of an assuring character , and unless the omens prove false altogether , there are fair grounds for hoping tliat the gathering on the day in question will prove a success . It
is very necessary that this should be the case . The demands upon the resources of the Institution are greater than at any previous period in its existence . Last year the number of annuitants on the Male Fund at , £ 4 0 per annum was augmented from 195 to 200 , and there are 240 on the Widows' Fund in
receipt of £ 32 per annum each , the sum annually distributed imongst these 440 old people and the 30 widows who receive each one-half of her late husband's annuity being £ 16 , 280 . 10 this must be added the salaries of the executive officers and
other expenses of management and for the maintenance of the Asylum at Croydon , so that the total outlay cannot be Set down at less than £ 19 , 000 per annum , and to meet this are the grants hy Grand Lodge and Grand Chapter and the interest on invested
capital amounting in round figures to some £ 5000 . There is , therefore , an annual deficiency to be made good of about £ 14 , 000 , and it is from the Anniversary Festival that we . look to obtain this sum . We are aware that all this has been said
times out of number , and will be repeated annually so long as here is a Benevolent Institution to claim our support . But none the less is it our duty to keep on pegging away and stating and restating the facts again ancl again , so that the Institution may not
lose even the smallest fraction of a contribution for want of these periodical reminders . Our readers , when they lind these particulars are being described at such frequent intervals in our columns , must bear in mind that there are three large Masonic
Institutions to be provided for . These three Institutions dis-Hlrse 'imongst them in the course of each succeeding year a sum amounting in the aggregate to £ 45 , 000 , and we shall be overstating the case if we set down the income—including the several
grants b y Grand Lodge and Grand Chapter—at £ 10 , 001 ? . -us the amount which it devolves upon the authorities of the ree Charities to raise by voluntary subscriptions is £ 35 , , ' > t is needless to say that so enormous an amount takes a eal of raising . The Secretaries who arc chiefl y concerned
The Approaching Festival Of The Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution.
in enlisting the services of Stewards , and the Stewards whose duty it is to canvass for subscriptions and donations have an uphill task to fulfil in order to obtain what is required . But , taking one year with another , they are generally successful , and
they are so , because they and we and all who are anxious to maintain our Institutions in the hi ghest possible state of efficiency never dream of relaxing , even for a single year , their efforts to raise the sinews of Charity .
We have said that the deficiency to be made good in the case of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution is , in round figures , about £ 14 , , or , perhaps , as it is desirable we should allow a
small margin for any unforeseen expenditure that may arise , we shall do well to state the sum as £ 14 , 500 . Are the prospects of obtaining this amount encouraging ? We think so . Since we last wrote a substantial addition has been made to the Board of
Stewards , which now numbers , all told , about 350 ladies and brethren . This is somewhat in excess of the Board which so successfully supported Bro . Viscount DUNGARVAN as Chairman at last year ' s Festival , so that , as far as numbers go , the case is
hopeful . Again , we have noticed in the numerous reports of lodge meetings which we have published during the last few weeks many instances in which lodges who are sending Stewards have shown themselves jubilant over the prospect of
obtaining big lists , and , though these instances are only few in number , still , as a straw suffices to show the direction of the wind , so these few cases may be looked upon as indicating the possibility of a satisfactory result . But , again we sav , such a result
is greatly needed . The total of the Returns received at the three Festivals which have been held since the Jubilee was celebrated is only £ 3 6 , 633 , or , an average per year of £ 12 , 211 , and in this is included a sum of £ 1260 paid for a Perpetual Presentation tothe
Male Fund ; but the total of the four years preceding the Jubilee was £ 58 , 525 , giving an average per year of £ 14 , 631 . It will be seen , therefore , that there is plenty of ground to be made good if the average for the four years since 189 . 2 is to be brought to a level with that of the four years which preceded it . Nor in our review of the circumstances connected with the
Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution must we altogether lose sight of two other important facts . Though , in consequence of the magnificent success of the Jubilee Festival , the Committee of Management found themselves in a position to fund £ 50 , 000 ,
and , by so doing , materially augmented the permanent incomethat permanent income still stands at little more than one-fourth of the permanent expenditure . Hence , when more is raised at any g iven Festival than is absolutely required for the service of
the year , the Committee are enabled to invest the surplus , and thereby slill further augment the capital of the Institution . It is the necessity for raising so large a sum annually that causes so serious a pressure on the general body of the Craft to
maintain our Institutions in a state of efficiency , and whatever lightens that pressure must be a decided boon to the Craft . We must also bear in mind that , notwithstanding the great increase which has been made of late years in the number of annuitants on the
two Funds , and the greater stringency of the regulations as to the qualifications of candidates , there is still at each succeeding election a marked disproportion between the number of vacancies to be filled and that of the candidates who have been found
elig ible to fill them . The lists of candidates for the election in May next were approved at the meeting of the Committee of Management on Wednesday and they contain no less than 113 aged people—60 men and 53 widosvs— all in a state