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NOTICE . 0 The Subscription to THE FREEMASON is now 10 s . per annum , post-free , payable in advance . Vol . I ., bound in cloth 4 s . 6 d . Vol . II ., ditto 7 s . 6 d . Vol . III ., ditto 15 s . od . Reading Cases to hold 52 numbers ... 2 s . 6 d . United States of America . THE FREEMASON is delivered free in any part of the United States for 12 s . per annum , payable in advance .

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NOTICE TO SUBSCRIBERS . The Office of THE FREEMASON is now transferred to 198 , FLEET STREET , E . C . All communications for the Editor or Publisher should therefore be forwarded to that address .

Births, Marriages, And Deaths.

Births , Marriages , and Deaths .

—?—DEATHS . STAMP—On the 9 th inst ., at Alnwick , aged 51 , Br . John Ostens Stamp , of Alnwick Lodge , No . 1167 . TEri'ER—On the 10 th inst ., at his residence , 24 , Notting Hill-square , aged 54 years , Bro . Jabez Tepper , AV . M . of the Grand Stewards' Lodge . YOUNG—On the 12 th inst ., aged 54 vears , Bro . AVilliam Young , P . G . S . B .

Answers To Correspondents.

Answers to Correspondents .

o All communications for THE FREEMASON should be written legibly on one side of the paper only , and , if intended for insertion in the current number , must be received not later than 10 o'clock a . m . on Thursdays , unless in very special cases . The name and address of every writer must be sent to us in confidence . J . W . —An officer of a lodge , no matter what his Masonic rank in another capacity may bo , should be invested with the blue collar and silver jewel of his office . If lie chooses to wear also the collar of a Provincial Grand Officer , just as some brethren do in Grand Lodge , under the blue collar , it is a matter of taste , but to our fancy seems somewhat ridiculous .

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TheFreemason, SATURDAY , DECEMBER 16 , 1 S 71 . THE FREEMASON is published on Saturday Mornings in time for he early trains . The price Tint FRKRMASON is Twopence per week ; annua Mifcicriplion , tos . ( payable in advance ) . All communications , letters , & c , to be addressed to the EDITOR jot , Fleet-street , E . C . The Editor will pay careful attention to all MSS . entrusted to him ut cannot undertake ta return them unless accompanied by postage Stamps .

H.R.H. The Prince Of Wales.

H . R . H . the PRINCE of WALES .

AT the moment we write , the spirit of our illustrious brother the Prince of Wales is hovering upon the brink of that awful river which every heir of mortality must cross

before he can attain the Promised Land . Hoping almost against hope , the English nation — nay , the civilised world — has watched the Titanic struggle between the

forces of nature and the spectral might of death , with a prayerful confidence that Heaven would be pleased to spare a life so precious to many and so dear at all . Even

now , in the very crisis of the Royal sufferer ' s fate , the wishes of thousands seem to vanquish their fears , although nought but the miraculous interposition of Providence can to all human ken avert the dreaded doom .

H.R.H. The Prince Of Wales.

Sadness , indeed , fills our heart as we pen these words , and most heartily do we join in the universal prayer that our noble and genial Past Grand Master may be yet

restored to " the affectionate regard of his brethren iii Freemasonry , " to use the touching language of Lord Ripon ' s motion of condolence at the last Grand Lodge . It

seems but yesterday that the Prince took his high place in the Parliament of the Craft ; it seems but yesterday we hailed his Masonic advent with cordial cheers , and

welcomed him as a brother of the mystic tie . Initiated by a King who bears the repute of being one of the best Masons in

the world , our Royal brother had an early and a convincing proof that the Masonic Institution is not hostile to monarchical

principles , or to established forms of government , and we all know how deeply this lesson was imprinted on the heart of the Prince of Wales . We all remember how

frankly and unmistakeably he bore testimony to the excellent precepts of Freemasonry , and to the loyalty of its members , in a speech at a recent meeting of the Grand

Lodge of Ireland . And , now , when the shadows gather around his brow , when the gloom of approaching death seems to envelope his faculties , no Mason can fail to

recall how zealously the Prince bestirred himself in our service , how eloquently he pleaded for the orphans in our midst , and how his kindly , generous bearing had captivated

every faithful Masonic heart . At this solemn moment , let us , however , also recall the lessons of the Craft ; let us take to heart the sublime doctrines unfolded in the

Master Masons' degree , concerning which we wrote in these columus but a few weeks ago . Beyond this transitory life extends

the boundless vista of an everlasting existence . As we then said , " the true Mason does not descend to the grave to contemplate ; " his gaze is fixed upon the Arbiter

of Life , who can raise us to an immortality of peace and glory . Let this belief console us , if the last great summons has really reached our beloved brother and Prince .

He will but have gone to a region of " more light , " for which the dying poet sighed ; to a region where mystery ceases , and where the vain speculations of science fade before

the revelations of supreme wisdom . Let us be ready to say , in the affecting language of the divine : — " Low lies the head that was once crowned with honour . Silent is the tongue

to whose accents we surrendered up the soul , and to whose language of friendshi p and affection we wished to listen for ever . Bcamless is the eye , and closed in night ,

which looked serenity , and sweetness , and love . The face that was to us as the face of an angel , is mangled and deformed . The heart that glowed with the purest fire , and

beat with the best affections , is now become a clod of the valley . But shall it always be so ? If a man die , shall he live again ?

Have the wise and the worthy , the pious and the pure , the generous and the just , the great and the good—the excellent ones of the earth who , from age to age , have shone

H.R.H. The Prince Of Wales.

brighter than the stars of heaven—withdrawn into the shade of annihilation , and set in darkness to rise no more ? No ;

while the dust returns to the earth as it was , the spirit shall return unto God , who gave it . " SO MOTE IT BE .

AVe rejoice to be enabled to state , on indisputable authority , that his Royal Highness the Prince of AA ales is now decidedly better , and that his condition gives much less anxiety to his physicians .

The following official bulletins were issued on Thursday : — Sandringham , Dec . 14 , 1 . 0 a . m . His Royal Highness the Prince of AArales

continues to be less restless . ( Signed ) WILLIAM J ENNER , M . D . AVILLIAM GULL , M . D . J LOWE , M . D .

Sandringham , Dec . 14 , 8 a . m . His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales has slept quietly at intervals during the night . There is some abatement of the gravity of the

symptoms . ( Signed ) WILLIAM J ENNER , M . D . WILLIAM GULL , M . D . J LOWE , M . D .

Sandringham , Dec . 14 , Noon . His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales has passed a tranquil morning .

The gain during the night is maintained . ( Signed ) WILLIAM J ENNER , M . D . WILLIAM GULL , M . D . J LOWE , M . D .

( FROM THE COURT NEWSMAN . ) Sandringham , Dec . 13 . The Queen continues in health , notwithstanding her Majesty ' s great anxiety . The Princess of A \ ales , although worn by constant watching , anxiety , and distress , keeps well .

AT the meeting of the Lodge of Joppa , held at the Albion Hotel , Aldersgate-street , last Monday , great interest was shown in the favorable telegram received of the health of the Prince of

AA ales . The Chaplain called on the brethren to stand up , to join him in a prayer for the recovery of the Past Grand Master , His Royal Highness the Prince of AA ales , and the brethren

solemnly joined in a most fervent prayer . The whole ceremony was worthy of the Lodge of Joppa . May other lodges imitate their prayer for the same object .

IN consequence of the dangerous illness of His Royal Highness , the Prince of AVales ( who had condescended to become a Member ) , the consecration of the Royal Albert Edward Lodge , No . 1362 , has been postponed for the present .

THE Most Hon . the Marquis of Ripon , K . G ., & c , M . W . G . M ., has consented to preside at the anniversary festival of the Royal Masonic Institution for Girls on Wednesday , Sth May next .

AT the last Grand Lodge , the M . AV . Grand Master nominated Bros . Brackstone Baker , P . G . D ., J . Nunn , P . G . S . B ., and F . Bennoch ,

as a committee to recommend the division and distribution of the ^ 500 voted for the relief of the sufferers by the Chicago and prairie conflagrations .

THE brethren of Cornwall have resolved to present to the R . AV . the G . M . of that province , Bro . Augustus Smith , of Tresco Abbey , Scilly , a

handsome , framed , life-size Portrait of himself in full Masonic clothing , and that the presentation shall take place at the next meeting of the Provincial Grand Lodge .