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severe , difference between Canada and England when the United Grand Lodge of Victoria was established and recognised by us , and the absurd pretensions of the Grand Chapter of Canada ceased to interest us . Still more recently—indeed , no further

back than the 15 th June last—a third case of a somewhat similar character appears to have arisen in connection with two applications for warrants by brethren in Western Australia to the United Grand Lodge of Victoria . Our information

respecting these applications and the subsequent action of the Grand Lodge of Victoria thereupon is derived from the Report of the Board of General Purposes , which was submitted to that Grand

Lodge at its Regular Quarterly Communication on the afoi-ementioned 15 th June last , the paragraphs in which the Board dealt with these applications being as follow :

" 17 . A letter was received from a member of the Order askino- if the Board would recommend a warrant to be granted

for the purpose of opening a Lodge in Perth , Western Australia , to which a reply was ordered to be sent to the effect' That this Grand Lodge has no jurisdiction . ' " " 22 . A communication was received from a brother residing

at Cue , W . A ., asking for particulars to guide him in forming a new Lodge under the United Grand Lodge of Victoria . To which the Board replied— ' That this Grand Lodge has no jurisdiction . ' "

When the discussion on the first of these paragraphs was reached , the Rev . Bro . MEADOWCROFT , who is G . Sec . for Foreign Correspondence , is reported to have asked " Why the Board said it had no jurisdiction in Western Australia ? " and was given to

understand by the President of the Board—Bro . J . H . A . MATTHEWS—in reply , that it " considered it would be an unfriendly act to the English , Irish , and Scotch Constitutions holding District Grand Lodges there . " On this , " R . W . Bro . EDWARD EDWARDS said he could have understood the Board

saying that they did not wish to accept jurisdiction there , " while " R . W . Bro . ANGEL ELLIS was of opinion that they had no more right to issue warrants for lodges to be held there or in Fiji than Canada had a right to come into this territory ; as well

might they grant a warrant to open a lodge in England . " However , common sense does not appear to have carried the day , though represented by Bro . ELLIS , who made this remark ; b y W . Bro . THOS . SMITH , who said the United Grand Lodge of

Victoria " would be trespassers in Western Australia ; and b y R . W . Bro . SCOTT , who maintained " that Western Australia was outside the jurisdiction of this Grand Lodge . The Victorian Grand Lodge had no jurisdiction beyond its own political

boundary . Western Australia belonged to Great Britain . This was a colony , not a nation , and possessed no territory . Neither America nor any other country would attempt to open here , so that the jurisdiction of Grand Lodges was confined to political boundaries . " Bro . MEADOWCROFT maintained " that there was

nothing in the Constitutions to bind them from granting a warrant to the crowds of Victorian brethren who had gone to reside there ; " while Bro . W . B . EDWARDS moved "That the Clause " or Paragraph " be amended to read ' Had no desire to

undertake jurisdiction in that Colony , ' " and it was the clause as thus amended , not as originally framed , which was adopted . Our Melbourne contemporary Masonry , from which we have derived our information , in commenting upon the discussion over this matter , remarks :

" The Board of General Purposes received some excellent hints re the applications from Western Australia for charters to open lodges there . It is evident that the Board utterly misconceived its powers , and talked absurdities as to the Grand Lodge

having no jurisdiction in that Colony . " And , having thus delivered itself , it proceeds to lay down the following monstrous doctrine , which , if acted upon , would have the effect of rendering the government of Masonry an impossibility : "They"

that is , the Board of General Purposes of the United Grand Lodge of Victoria— " have evidently yet to learn that every Grand Lodge has jurisdiction in every country unless a Grand Lodge of the Territory itself forbids its entrance there . " This is

tantamount to saying that every Grand Lodge or Grand Orient in Europe , Asia , Africa , America , and Australia has the legal right to warrant lodges in any country , or any part of any country , in which a Grand Lodge has not been established . Perhaps our

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contemporary will be kind enough to quote its authority for this audacious statement . In the meantime , however , it will be noted that the United Grand Lodge of Victoria , which is composed for the most part of lodges of English , Irish , and Scotch constitu .

tion , which was recognised by the Grand Lodges of the United Kingdom as recently as 188 9 , and of which H . R . H . the Prince of WALES , M . W . G . M . of England , is Patron , though it has been only seven years in existence , already claims to exercise the

right of issuing warrants of constitution for the establishment of lodges in British territory outside its own territorial boundaries . True , by the acceptance of Bro . EDWARDS ' S amendment , it declares that it has " no desire to undertake jurisdiction

in that Colony" of W ' estem Australia , or , we presume , in any other British Colony , with which territorially it has nothing whatever to do . But to forego the exercise of what it claims to be legally entitled to do differs entirely from the

authoritative declaration made in the first instance by this Board of General Purposes , but set aside by a majority of the Grand Lodge , that the latter " had " absolutely " no jurisdiction " whatever . The Grand Lodge of Victoria claims to have

jurisdiction outside its territorial limits , but , out of friendly consideration for the Grand Lodges of the United Kingdom , it " has no desire to undertake " it . So long as this desire exists , so long the Masonic relations between Victoria and England will go

smoothly enough ; but our authorities had better be prepared for a change of opinion , and guard themselves against so absurd a claim , especially in the case of any new Colonial Grand Lodges which may appl y to them for recognition , " Forewarned is forearmed . "

North And East Yorkshire.

NORTH AND EAST YORKSHIRE .

It is gratif y ing to learn from the report we publish elsewhere of the proceedings at the recent annual meeting in Hull of the the Prov . Grand Lodge of North and East Yorkshire that the past year has been exceptionally prosperous . As regards the

meeting itself , though the disappointment caused by the unavoidable absence of Bro . the Marquis of ZETLAND , Prov . G . Master , was great , no efforts had been spared by Bro . THOMAS MORRILL , W . M ., and the officers and members of the Humber

Lodge , No . 57 , in order to ensure its success , and before the brethren separated , the strongest evidence was forthcoming on all sides that those efforts were fully appreciated , not only by Bro . Lord BOLTON , D . P . G . M ., who presided , but also by the

Prov . Grand Officers , the representatives of lodges , and the visitors generally . As to the progress made during the past year , the several reports from the executive officers showed that both numerically and financially the position of Masonry

in the Province had been greatly strengthened , while in the brief address which the Deputy Provincial Grand Master delivered , ' it was in his lordship ' s power to confirm the evidence of those reports in other ways by

mentioning , in the first place , that a new Masonic Hall had been dedicated at Saltburn-by-Sea , and that two new lodges , whose prospects of a successful future were most encouraging , had been consecrated since the previous meeting

at Selby , namely , the St . Nicholas Lodge , No . 2586 , Scarborough , and Beresford Peirse Lodge , No . 2610 , Bedale . The Deputy Provincial Grand Master was also in a position to congratulate the brethren on the very marked success of the efforts made in

behalf of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution , at whose Anniversary Festival in February , North and East Yorkshire subscribed no less than 7 ^ 900 . This , and the circumstances we have referred to before , redound greatly to the credit of the

Province , and we sincerely hope that when the time for the next annual meeting arrives , it will be found that the 12 months on which it has just entered have been , at least , as satisfactory as those which a few days since were brought to so honourable a

conclusion . There is some good work to be done—a fifth festival to be held 'in aid of the Provincial Educational Fund and the centenary of the lodge at Whitby to be celebrated . 'I ' 1115

the opportunities will not be wanting for maintaining and even extending the prestige of the Province , and we doubt not our North and East Yorkshire brethren will turn them to the hest possible account .