Ad00704

fHE ALEXANDRIA CIGARETTE CO . 'S NEW BKAND . DRAGOUMIS . PREPARED OF THE PUREST TURKISH TOBACCOS . The highest classes of tobacco , however , are converted into the well-known " Dragoumis , " for which the Alexandria Cigarette Company have gained a deservedly high reputation , and we have no hesitation in saying , after a practical test so far as our taste and judgment permit , that they are superior to any we have yet tried , either imported or otherwise . — Whitehall Review . Their latest brand , " Dragoumis , " made of a skilful blend of fine Egyptian tobaccos , is full of flavour , yet delicately fragrant enough to please the most fastidious palate . We shall be surprised if "Dragoumis " do not prove the cigarette of the season . —Pump Court .

Ad00705

W . A , VAN SANTEN & CO ,, 4 , Fenchurch Avenue , London , CIGAR AND CIGARETTE IMPORTERS . Sole Agents for—THE MEXICAN PUFFS CIGARETTES , Manufactured by KOSENTHAL BEDS ,, New York .

Ad00706

NEW MASONIO HALL , FOR Festival Banquets , Dinners , Balls , 8 fc . ABERCORN HOTEL , STANMORE . BRO . CHARLES VEAL , Proprietor .

Ad00708

RO YAL ARCH MASON desires reengagement as CLERK , SECRETARY , or POSITION of TRUST . Excellent character and references . Abstainer . —F ., 6 , Parade , Forest Hi ]] , S . E .

Ad00707

ADVERTISEMENT SCALE OF " Zhc freemason . " „ PEE IlfSBBTIOlT ¦ SINGLE COLUMN per inch £ 050 0 NE PAGE 10 o o ° COLUMN 3 10 o PIJBLIC COMPANIES' & PARAGRAPH ADVERTISEMENTS , IS . PER LINE . W ANTS , & C , FOUR LINES , 2 s . 6 d ., and 6 d . PER LINE additional . t TO OUR EEADEES . c < my ' l MAS 0 N is PubIished every Friday morning , price 3 d ., and 0 f '™ nsthe fullest and latest information relating to Freemasonry every degree . Subscriptions , including Postage : — Unit A rr United States , ¦ " ¦ tt Kingdom . Canada , the Continent , India , China , Ceylon , the Colonies & c . Arabia , & c . * 3 S . 6 d . 15 s . 6 d . 17 s . 6 d . c hemf ' ttances ma-y be made in Stamps , but Post Office Orders or Chief n «* Preferred , the former payable to GEORGE KENNING , ^ AJ ^ ra ee ^ London , the latter crossed London Joint Stock Bank . ® o € am 8 $ QrCiimt 8 . ,. BOOKS . & c „ RECEIVED . " $ K ? l Sione > " "Masonic Advocate , " "Voice of Masonry , " Tyler >> . ? .. ' Repository , " "South African Freemason , " "The " » . and « La Chaine d'Union . "

Ar00709

' ^^^^^^^^^^^^ i ^^ K ^ Si ^ MS l ^ a £ ^ S ^^^^^ g ^' 'g ^^^^^ S £ ^ s ! sSi ! SATURDAY , SEPTEMBER 15 , 1888 . ¦ ¦ , ¦ ¦ 1 * fe—

Original Correspondence.

Original Correspondence .

" AN IMPORTANT POINT . " To the Editor of the "Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , Bro . Woodward , in his letter to you of 3 rd September , headed as above—re voting—suggests an alteration of Rule 210 in the Book of Constitutions , and I agree vvith him that it should be altered , but I propose that

the word present be taken out , and the word voting substituted ; this would be far preferable , and be clearer to all than the alteration he proposes . One thing is quite certain , if the Rule be not altered the members of some Iodge may find themselves in the position he suggests might occur in the House of Commons—for instance , take a lodge with 39 members present , two-thirds being 26 . Now , under our present Rule , if 25 voted for exclusion , five against , and

nine looked on , the brother could not be excluded , however desirable it might be for the comfort or interest of the lodge , but if the alteration I propose were made the 25 members would have carried the point , viz ., 25 for and five against = 30 ; two-thirds of 30 being 20 there would be five votes more than necessary to exclude . There is no law laid down to compel a . man to vote , and for that reason the Rule should be altered as I suggest to two-thirds of the number voting . —Yours fraternally ,

MAGNUS OHREN , P . A . G . D . C . England September ioth .

_ To the Editor of the "Freemason . " ¦ Dear Sir and Brother , I imagine Bro . Woodward must be wrong in thinking the point raised by him has not been considered . The revisers of the Book of Constitutions were most probably fully aware what they were doing . Doubtless Bro . Woodward knows that previous to the

last revision it seems to have been held by the writers on Masonic Jurisprudence that in these cases a two-thirds majority was necessary to carry a vote of exclusion ,: and that there was also a feeling that it was not altogether Masonic to abstain from voting on any question before the lodge ; and Bro . Hollar is not alone in thinking that a W . M . can call upon brethren to vote or leave the lodge in

some cases , if not in all . It seems as if the Constitutions said in effect "To exclude a brother , which is a very serious matter , a bare majority ought not to be enough—it ought to be two-thirds at least , and if those who wish to exclude cannot convince two-thirds of those who are present that it is a case for exclusion , let the brother remain . " If brethren are present and do not vote , their vote seems to me to be equivalent

tothe Scotch verdict of " not proven , " and their votes ought to be counted in favour of the accused . Bro . Woodward has surely heard of assemblies where , for certain purposes , a clear majority of those present is required , though in most cases a majority of votes is alone necessary . I think on re-consideration Bro . Woodward will see that the neutral brethren do , to a certain extent , vote , and that the present rule is better as it stands . —Yours fraternally , LEX SCRIPTA .

LIST OF FRENCH LODGES . To the Editor of the "Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , Will you permit me to tender my thanks to Bro . Hughan for the list of French lodges in 1809 , extracted by him from "Chariot ' s L'Indicateur de Ia Tenue des Loges et L'Orient de Paris , " and published in your issue of the Sth inst . ? The pamphlet is quite new to me , and will be

very useful in verifying French lodges existing after the Revolution of 1798 , when so many became extinct and dormant . If any other of your readers should happen to know or come across similar lists published , either in France , Germany , or the Netherlands , between 1 740 and 1840 , they

vvould confer a favour on Masonic students by republishing them as Bro . Hughan has done . Masonry in France has undergone many vicissitudes in consequence of the Revolutions of 179 S and 1848 , and these lists materially assist us in identifying those mentioned on medals , but not novv on the roll of the Grand Orient . —Yours fraternally , GEO . L , SHACKLES . September ioth .

CATHOLIC FREEMASONS . _ To the Editor of the "Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , The extract given from the New ) York Dispatch in this day ' s Freemason gives an opportunity of placing before your readers a subject as important , one vvould suppose , to the Craft in England as to American brethren .

We all know that Catholics , among all the varied forms of religious belief held by our brethren , are alone harassed by the denunciation of our Order by the Mead of their Church . To what extent they have entered our lodges in this country must be unknown ; but whether there be 5000 or 50 makes no difference as regards the principle involved , which is , Are we justified in declining to consider the position of these brethren or to use every effort for the

removal of this unrighteous ban off their consciences ? I think not . Personally , my strongest sympathy has been for years with the cause , but must confess I have never yet been able to see , as the Neix York Dispatch appears to see , how to proceed . After much thought on many occasions , my deliberations have always landed me at the same obstacle—the law as Catholics understand it . So long as an Act of Parliament is in force , however unjust , it is law until repealed , and the question is , " Are vve to wait

Original Correspondence.

until the Pope redresses a wrong , or is it possible to do anything at all to hasten that redress ?" Referring to the extract alluded to , I would say that our American brethren understand better than I can tell them how to proceed in their own country , and , as success there will be certain to extend here , I am not particular as to the method they adopt . But in England the signing of a

petition to the Pope vvould , in my opinion , be not only a grave error of judgment , but expose every Catholic member of the Craft to all the direct ( and I would say all-powerful ) influences of priest , family , and friends . Those influences he already has to contend with in a less strategic and general way . As disobedient children of the Church , what could Catholics expect but to be peremptorily ordered to return

to their duty ? As Masons , wfc respect the religious scruples of our brethren . With due deference to the opinions said to have been expressed by priests in America , such statements are mere "leather and prunella" —signifying nothing at all . But I refrain from any expression of opinion anent the religious side of the case , because vve have nothing to do with it .

Catholic Freemasons can , however , inform us whether , by energetically taking the matter up , they think it possible to get this unjust burden removed ; and , if so—How ? We cannot seek these brethren in lodges , for I doubt whether , unless in very rare instances , they are known to be Catholics . Let them speak , then , through you , and I venture to say neither moral weight nor active , assistance in any shape vvill be wanting . —1 am , Sir , yours fraternally , J . RAMSDEN RILEY . September Sth .

Reviews

REVIEWS

PROCEEDINGS OF THE GRAND LODGE OF MINNESOTA , 1888 . Saint Paul . The Pioneer Press Company . 18 S 8 . In this volume are contained full particulars of the proceedings of the 35 th Annual Communication of the Grand Lodge of Minnesota , held in the Masonic Hall , St . Paul ,

on the 1 ith , 12 th , and 13 th June , under the presidency of Bro . John H . Brown , M . W . G . M . The Grand Officers were in attendance , and 140 out of the 156 lodges in active working were represented . The address of the Grand Master is of unusual length , covering close on 30 pages , but the matters dealt vvith were mostly of local interest .

The various reports vvere submitted , that of the Grand Treasurer showing a balance at the close of the year amounting to 38 S 4 dollars . The Treasurer of the Widows ' and Orphans' Fund was able to show a total of assets amounting to 76 S 5 dollars , the bulk of which is invested in Minnesota State Bonds , while the statistical report shows

there are 155 lodges on the roll and eight lodges under dis-. pensation , with a subscribing membership of io , iS 6 , being 345 in excess of last year's return . The principal Grand Officers for the year now current are Bros . J . H . Brown , M . W . G . M . ; J . A . Kliester , D . G . M . ; Alphonso Barto ,

S . G . W . ; George S . Acker , J . G . W . ; J . H . Thompson , G . Treas . ; and A . T . C . Pierson , G . Sec . There are several Appendices to the report , of which Appendix H , on Foreign Correspondence , compiled by Bro . Pierson , occupies some 114 pages .

Masonic Notes And Queries:

Masonic Notes and Queries :

795 ] "APOLLO" AND "PHCENIX" LODGES . I am puzzled to know the real meaning of the last paragraph of Bro . J . Ramsden Riley's note in the Freemason of Sept . Sth ( Notes and Queries , 704 ) . I cannot discover that I have been guilty of "tacking on" the "life" of the Phcenix Lodge " to the age of the Apollo . " My references to them ( Masonic Records , p . 130 , ) are in a totally

different direction , as I hold that these lodges were altogether separate and distinct . On the authority of a very well-informed Yorkshire brother , I stated that the Apollo Lodge "came to an end early in this century , " and Bro . Riley himself admits ( Yorkshire Lodges , p . 36 , ) that " it expired soon after the Union . " With regard tothe Phrnnix Lodge , my " Records " state , "Warrant delivered

to G . Sec . 1835 . Erased in 1836 . " Why the statement of this fact , which Bro . Riley himself corroborates , should now be designated by him " misleading to young students , as having a tendency to shut out the existence of the Phcenix by tacking on its life to the age of the Apollo , " I really am unable to understand . Assuming the authenticity of the letter quoted by Bro . Riley , dated " York , April

Sth , 1 S 17 , " it affords no evidence whatever that such a proceeding , as it indicates , vvas ever sanctioned by Grand Lodge , and 1 am of opinion that the " very bad practice of obtaining dormant warrants for new lodges" was as much at that period an "important historical fact " as it is to-day . By this I mean that the practice had ceased prior to the Union of the two Grand Lodges

in 1 S 13 , and thus in 1817 had become a matter of history . I do not recollect a single instance in vvhich the warrant of a dormant or extinct lodge was transferred after that date . There are many points of interest in relation to the warrants of these extinct and dormant lodges , but I propose to deal with them at greater length in a new work now in preparation for publication . I must , however , ask

Bro , Riley for some authentic evidence in support of his assertion that the warrant of the " Phatnix Lodge , No . 256 , " delivered to the Grand Secretary in 1 S 35 vvas "the Apollo warrant under which [ as he affirms ] the Phoenix Lodge worked . " I think , if Bro . Riley vvill investigate the matter carefully , he will find that each lodge had a separate

and distinct warrant—that the original warrant of the Apollo Lodge , dated 31 st July , 1773 , vvas returned to the Grand Lodge in 1817 , and was endorsed "Returned from Hull , now 368 , " evidently indicating the number of the Apollo Lodge at that date , and clearly showing that it could not have been the warrant of the Phcenix Lodge ,