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Article Original Correspondence. ← Page 2 of 2 Article REVIEWS Page 1 of 1 Article REVIEWS Page 1 of 1 Article Masonic Notes and Queries. Page 1 of 1 Article REPORTS OF MASONIC MEETINGS. Page 1 of 4 →
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Original Correspondence.
of representatives , its position being such that it has always to be asked to grant these favours . 1 hope in June next our Irish provincial brethren will attend , and assist in carrying the Quarterly Communications , and the brethren who wish to stop the system of reelection for the period of three years each must give notice at latest in May next to change Law 32 .
One thing is clear—that all brethren should join in having next November brethren proposed and in December elected who will never be absent from their places in Grand Lodge , whether the meetings be as at present or quarterly , as I hope sincerely they may be in thc future . —Yours fraternally , JAMES H . NEILSON . 32 , Lceson-street Lower , Dublin , March 12 th .
FRENCH MASONRY . To the Editor of the " Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , — As a reader of your excellent and influential journal I am glad to see you protest against an article contained in Le Monde Maconnique for the current month .
The history of Masonry in France is a tedious history of dissensions and innovations , and for information I would ask you if that community can claim to be considered " genuine and true brethren . " Though at one time and another I have been a good deal in France I have never presented myself at a French lodge , and if in their
socalled convocations political topics are sanctioned and freely discussed I should never wish to do so . If one grand landmark can be set aside so can all others . The interest in the Craft is world-wide . It is therefore our duty to watch the spurious growth and do all in our power to expose and eradicate it . —Fraternally yours , No . 2 , SCOTLAN D . Newcastle-under-Lyme , 12 th March .
Reviews
REVIEWS
THE MAGAZINES . The magazines are again " up to time , " and seem to demand all the space and attention we can give them . It is said , perhaps unjustly , that " conversation " to-day in Society is marked by prevailing symptoms of very partial knowledge and very limited acquaintance with the facts of historv , biography , philosophy , or science , as the case may
be . ft may be so . If rt be so as a reality , we cannot help thinking that a good deal of the fault and thc default must be attributed to a desultory serial literature . It is astonishing to note how much is put forward , often dogmatically , too , " de omnibus rebus et quibusdam aliis , " how much is
evidently pure " padding , " how much is a patient "digest " or deliberate " sheepwalking " in our monthly deliverances . We are simply listening to old writers in a modern dress . On the other hand , the great reading public will have it so , and , like a good many other " autocrats " in Government , fashion , even literature itself , it manages to get its
own way . " Longman ' s " seems to progress , though perhaps hardly to reach up to the " mark " someonceanticipated . Indeed , wc think we trace weakness in the arrangement and outcome . " A Cabal at the Theatre Francais " is most uninteresting and without a point . " The Three Strangers " is admirably told , and " Thicker than Water " trips rilong . The
remaining articles have no great speciality about them , and are nothing more nor less than normal magazine articles . We confess to a sense of disappointment . " TheCentury" is full of remarkable illustrations and very interesting papers , though some appear to us unequal in point of literary merit . ' Thc Migration ot American Colonists" and "The Architectural League of New
York " are very effective . " A Good Fight Finished and " The End of Foreign Dominion in Louisiana " arc perhaps too purely American to interest much English readers generally . "A Woman ' s Reason" and "'through One Administration " seem full of force , and the " Led Horse Claim " end 3 as all could wish . It is a very striking story . There is a very effective article on , and history of "Leon
Gambetta , " and "Signs and Seasons , " " The Village of Ober Ammergau , " and other articles all deserve and invite perusal . "Temple Bar" is strong this month with " Belinda " and "Tone Stewart . " The article on "Sims Reeves " is most readable , and we have no doubt truthful . The account of "Charles Monselet" is very interesting indeed ,
and " Miss Dairsie ' s Diary " is absolutely most pathcthic . " Unspotted from the World" has many admirers . "Scenes from the Winter of I 79 + " **•« us bac H t 0 curious episodes and to persons and things long since passed away and forgotten . " The Century" and "Bibliographer" again appear with articles all tending to a common end , pointing similar
studies , and encouraging identical tastes . We do not think that perhaps any one particular article is so striking in itself as to call for special notice here , but the general tone of the contributions is alike " dryasdustic , " in a good sense , and decided , while the various writers seem to write both enthusiastically and yet rationally . openingout forgotten sources of information , ransacking dusty receptacles ,
exploring old haunts , and developcing a valuable acquaintance with the history , archieology , relics , and remnants of the past . There is an old world flavour about these various papers which seems to fall not unpleasantly on modern tastes and humours to-day . " All the Year Round " for once , we feel bound to
confess , seems a little—a very little indeed—below its wonted standard of excellence and effect . We may perhaps be deemed hypercritical or fanciful , but so it is . Pour Anthony Trollope ' s "The Scarborough Family" speeds on to its close , and " Geoffrey Stirling" is truly sensational , and full of what is weird and subduing . There is also a I' rench story very touching indeed .
Reviews
"Blackwood , " though not as normally a very strong number , has one or two most effective articles . "Jonathan Swift" is alone worth the greater part of the issue , and will be read and thought over with pleasure and profit .
PROVINCIAL CALENDARS . Three are before us—all of merit , all lucid in detail and clear in arrangement , and likely to be very useful to the brethren of thc locality . They are those for Leicestershire and Rutland , for Gloucestershire , and N . and E . Yorkshire
and the good City of York . We always feel a debt of gratitude is due to those who thus compile with care and accuracy these little records of Masonic life and zeal , these special statistics , which serve to make up the great tottle of our Masonic existence and reality in England .
Masonic Notes And Queries.
Masonic Notes and Queries .
139 ] LEWIS—LOUVE , & c . It wc " peg away " long enough we shall possibly some day arrive at the derivation of Louve and Lewis , and their connection , if any exist . Meanwhile I venture to think that "Masonic Student" is going too far afield in No . 137 , when he seeks for their origin in the Norse tongues . On the same page your reviewer says that " you are not to
seek for what is far off and far fetched when you are able to avail yourself of what is close at hand and clear to the inductive process . " If " Masonic Student" seeks a Gothic derivation sve have it close at hand . To lift , in German , is , " lupfen " and " Iuften , " both words which although not classical are in common use and may be found in the dictionary . Either of these is surely nearer to Louve than
the Scandinavian words quoted by " Masonic Student . " But though close at hand they are not" clear to the inductive process . " In French we have at this day two technical terms—Louve , meaning Lewis , a wedge-shaped iron wherewith to lift a stone ; and Dent de Louve , ( wolf's tooth ) , a long iron nail or holdfast . In this latter case the derivation is evident ; the nail is called a wolf ' s tooth
because it holds as fast as one . Having thus seen that this idea is present in the workman ' s mind , what more probable than that the Lewis , which holds faster than even thc holdfast , should be a wolf itself . This is so likely that it would require a strong argument indeed to shake my conviction , unless it can be shown that some more ancient form of the word Louve
is further removed from this idea . Again , as to Steinmetz , 1 must differ from " Masonic Student . " I hold that the original of Metz is not " meizen , " to hew ; but " messen , " to measure ; that thc German stonemason is not a stone hewer , but a stone measurer , a stone proportioner . According to the 1459 and other ordinances , we find that his special craft was " mass werk , " hitherto wrongly
translated " work on a large scale , work in masses . Bro . Gould has , however , shown ( chapter iii . of his history ) that " masswerk " means carved work , proportioned or measured work , and , therefore , the Steinmetz , or artisan , who produced measured work was a stone measurer . The stone cutter or £ stone hewer in Germany was and is a "Steinhauer . " From an extended study of German documents I
take the difference between a "Steinmetz ( stonemason ) and "Steinhauer" ( stone hewer ) to be this : They both produced squared stones , or ashlar ; but the stone hewer did this without any particular and special design . His stones were cubes , which were afterwards fitted into the walls as most convenient ; the cubes of the stonemason were accurately measured , and each stone was intended for a
definite purpose , in fact , he worked to a design or template . In addition to this they took other forms than the cube , including the most difficult and intricate carving , and even statuary . Hence the term " masswerk , " i . e ., measured , proportioned , and , by inference , carved work—the latter signification being that now given by technical dictionaries .
This is , again , a deduction which is " clear to the inductive process . " As to the derivation of Lewis , I have no facts to go on ; I incline to the French Louve , which means the same thing ; but when Bro . Rylands shall have looked up the earliest English form of this word we shall be better able to judge . T . WM . SPETH .
140 ] HORACE WALPOLE . I have so often alluded to Horace Walpole ' s quondam and passing interest in Freemasonry in the Freemason that I am tempted to mention the subject again by some remarks I saw in this paper a week or so ago . Horace Walpole at one time seems to have been struck with what he read about our Order , and wanted to know more , and
therefore he wrote to Governor Pownall , as he was called . He was also cognizant of and interested in the so-called " Locke MS . " Had he only exercised common energy in his researches we should probably not be still in the dark essentially as to that mysterious document . For he had opportunities which we have not . He then seems to have lost
faith in , and avowed distrust of the Masonic Body . His unfavourable criticisms may fairly be ascribed to disappointment on the one hand , and his own "fine-gentlemandillettantism" on the other . He alludes to the subject several times , but latterly always in a depreciatory tone , though as it is quite clear , he knew nothing actually whatever about the subject . MASONIC STUDENT .
141 ] NATTER . Can any brother help me as regards Natter the engraver ? Can any one confirm the statement in the " Hand-Buch " that he was at thc Hague , Copenhagen , Stockholm , and St . Petersburgh , consecutively , where he helped to introduce the "High Grades" or the " Rit
Ecossais , " and where he died in 1762 or thereabouts ? Or is the English biographer right who asserts that he settled in England in 1742 and there died ? Was his name L . Natter or L . J . Natter , and was there only one Natter , or were there two Natters , perhaps father and son ? I shall esteem information on these heads a favour in this column . DRYASDUST .
Thc Prince of Wales , the Dukes of Edinburgh , Connaught , and Albany , and the Princess Christian have subscribed to the fund that is being raised in order to present a testimonial to Sir George Elvey on his retirement , after 50 years' active service , from the musical profession .
Reports Of Masonic Meetings.
REPORTS OF MASONIC MEETINGS .
Craft Jflasonrjj .
CONFIDENCE LODGE ( No . 193 ) . —Thc members of this old and excellent working lodge met on Monday evening at Anderton ' s Hotel , when the W . M ., Bro . James Smith , presided , and was supported by Bros . Walter Word , S . W . ; W . Cubitt , J . W . ; I . Shackell , P . M ., Sec ; W . Saint , S . D . ; F . Silvester , J . D . ; G . P . Nightingale , I . G . ; B . D . Kershaw , P . M . ; G . F . S . Warne , P . M . ; F . B .
Bonney , P . M . ; B . Lemare , P . M . ; J . E . Fells , I . P . M . ; H . T . Reed , P . M . ; F . J . Heall , J . Gilderslene , I . I . Craske , J . G . Desave , W . M . Covell , S . Smither , T . D . Clare , J . H . Bayley , VV . C Grounds , T . Thurgood , G . Masters , E . Kiddell , J . Grundy , E . W . Fithian , J . Collins , A . Jay , F . H . Clcmow , H . Morris , E . H . Walden , W . Rickell , and G . L . Reinhardt , Tyler . Among the visitors
were Bros . G . L . Saunders , 1257 ; H . Kemp , 1776 ; and G . G . Symons , P . M . 45 . The lodge having been opened in accordance with ancient rites was advanced , and Bros . J . H . Bayley and J . F . Clare were raised to the Sublime Degree by the W . M ., assisted by his officers , the ' work being admirably carried out . Subsequently the brethren and visitors sat down to a
sumptuous banquet , provided in Bro . Clemow's very excellent style , when the usual loyal and Masonic toasts were proposed from the chair and duly honoured . The Worshipful Master in the course of a very practical speech referred to the reality of Freemasonry and the principles it inculcated for the guidance of our daily practical life . Had it not been for that reality he should not have stuck
to Masonry as he had done , and he hoped he might continue to live as in the past , only as a little better and brighter Mason . Since he had occupied the chair he had felt the responsibilities of the position , and knew that to carry out the duties efficiently the heart must be in the work . He expressed the hope that the brethren would carry the principles they had learnt from the lodge room into their
daily life , and that no one would aspire to the chair of his lodge unless he was convinced of the reality of the system of which they were proud to be members . Bros . Bonney , Reed , Kershaw , and Fells responded for "The Past Masters ; " Bros . Symons and Kemp lor
"The Visitors , " and the various officers in response to the toast of their healths . During the evening there were some excellent songs and recitations , amongst the latter of which Tennyson ' s " Charge of the Light Brigade" by Bro . S . Smither was much appreciated .
LODGE OF FRIENDSHIP ( No . 206 ) . —The usual monthly meeting ot this lodge was held on Thursday , the 8 th inst ., at the Ship and 1 urtle , Leadenhall-street , E . C Present : Bros . Charles St . Barbe Williams , W . M . ; Charles T . Scrivener , S . W . ; J . L . Anderson , J . VV . ; W . Rumsey , P . M ., Steward ; Allen R . Rumsey , P . M ., Sec . ; William Gowland , J . D . ; Henry M . Collier , P . M . ; Alfred
Mams , f . M . ; John Waters , P . M . ; Thomas J . Steel , P . M . ; E . B . Barnard , P . M . ; John Stewart , P . M . ; J . lewitt Stephens , P . M . ; Elijah Squirrel ! , P . M . ; and others Visitors : Bros . William Kibble , W . M . 1426 ; John Sunley , P . M . 267 ; Henry Gehlcken , 172 ; and Geo . Wood , I . G . 7 . There were three candidates for raising , viz .: Bros . A . VV . Tobin , William H . Arberand William Steel . The ceremonies were performed in an exceedingly efficient
manner by Bros . William Rumsey , P . M ., and Elijah Squirrel , P . M . After the lodge work the brethren adjourned and sat down to banquet , presided over by thc VV . M ., when the usual loyal and Masonic toasts were honoured . The brethren and visitors after an exceedingly pleasant evening spent together dispersed . A telegram was received from Bro . Paul Boyton , dated from Liverpool , regretting his inability to be present .
KENNINGTON LODGE ( No . 1381 ) . — The last meeting for the season of this lodge was held at the Horns Tavern , Kennington Park , on the 6 th inst ., when there were present among others , Bros . Cockburn , W . M . ; Appleton , S . W . ; Stranger , J . W . ; W . Mann , . P . M ., Treas . ; W . Stuart , P . M ., Sec ; Cooper , S . D . ; Meredyth , I . G . ; I'oalc , W . S . ; Feuillade , A . W . S . ; Webb . I . P . M . ; Koch , P . M . ; Ceorge EverettP . M . H . HigginsPM
, ; , .. T . C Walls , P . P . G . S . B . Middx ., P . M . ; Kobler , P . M . ; and Reinardt , lyler . Among the visitors were Bros . Martin , S . W . iSS ; H . Price , S . D . 177 ; Hoole , l 7 6 s ; and Turner , 1216 . The minutes of the previous meeting having been read and confirmed Mr . James Dennis was most ably initiated into the Craft by the W . M . Several communications from
absent members having been read the lodge was closed and the members and visitors adjourned to refreshment . Upon the removal of the cloth a few toasts were given . " The W . M . " was cordially proposed hy the I . P . M ., and this toast having been drunk the W . M . briefly responded . " The Initiate " followed and Bro . Dennis duly acknow-Idd the
ged compliment . " The Health of the Visitors" came next in order , and Bros . Price , Hoole , Martin , and Turner in their replies warmly congratulated the Kennington Lodge upon its eood working . & r t . The toast of "The Past Masters" was replied to by Bros . Webb and Everett . "The Treasurer and Secretary " was responded to by Bros . Mann and Stuart .
"The Officers , " coupled with the names of Bros . Appleton and Stranger , brought the proceedings to a termination .
THE GREAT CITY LODGE ( No . 1426 ) . — The last meeting for thc season of this lodge was held on Saturday evening , the 10 th inst ., at thc Cannon-street Hotel , and the following brethren were present : Bros . W . J . Kibble , W . M . j F . T . C . Kceble , S . W . ; W . Baber , kv ; V - B > Headon , P . M ., Treas . ; G . W . Blackie , P . M ., Sec ; R . Fendick , S . D . ; F . W . Potter , J . D . ; J . T . Skinner , I . G . ; H . Durant , D . C . ; G . Jenkins , E . H .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Original Correspondence.
of representatives , its position being such that it has always to be asked to grant these favours . 1 hope in June next our Irish provincial brethren will attend , and assist in carrying the Quarterly Communications , and the brethren who wish to stop the system of reelection for the period of three years each must give notice at latest in May next to change Law 32 .
One thing is clear—that all brethren should join in having next November brethren proposed and in December elected who will never be absent from their places in Grand Lodge , whether the meetings be as at present or quarterly , as I hope sincerely they may be in thc future . —Yours fraternally , JAMES H . NEILSON . 32 , Lceson-street Lower , Dublin , March 12 th .
FRENCH MASONRY . To the Editor of the " Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , — As a reader of your excellent and influential journal I am glad to see you protest against an article contained in Le Monde Maconnique for the current month .
The history of Masonry in France is a tedious history of dissensions and innovations , and for information I would ask you if that community can claim to be considered " genuine and true brethren . " Though at one time and another I have been a good deal in France I have never presented myself at a French lodge , and if in their
socalled convocations political topics are sanctioned and freely discussed I should never wish to do so . If one grand landmark can be set aside so can all others . The interest in the Craft is world-wide . It is therefore our duty to watch the spurious growth and do all in our power to expose and eradicate it . —Fraternally yours , No . 2 , SCOTLAN D . Newcastle-under-Lyme , 12 th March .
Reviews
REVIEWS
THE MAGAZINES . The magazines are again " up to time , " and seem to demand all the space and attention we can give them . It is said , perhaps unjustly , that " conversation " to-day in Society is marked by prevailing symptoms of very partial knowledge and very limited acquaintance with the facts of historv , biography , philosophy , or science , as the case may
be . ft may be so . If rt be so as a reality , we cannot help thinking that a good deal of the fault and thc default must be attributed to a desultory serial literature . It is astonishing to note how much is put forward , often dogmatically , too , " de omnibus rebus et quibusdam aliis , " how much is
evidently pure " padding , " how much is a patient "digest " or deliberate " sheepwalking " in our monthly deliverances . We are simply listening to old writers in a modern dress . On the other hand , the great reading public will have it so , and , like a good many other " autocrats " in Government , fashion , even literature itself , it manages to get its
own way . " Longman ' s " seems to progress , though perhaps hardly to reach up to the " mark " someonceanticipated . Indeed , wc think we trace weakness in the arrangement and outcome . " A Cabal at the Theatre Francais " is most uninteresting and without a point . " The Three Strangers " is admirably told , and " Thicker than Water " trips rilong . The
remaining articles have no great speciality about them , and are nothing more nor less than normal magazine articles . We confess to a sense of disappointment . " TheCentury" is full of remarkable illustrations and very interesting papers , though some appear to us unequal in point of literary merit . ' Thc Migration ot American Colonists" and "The Architectural League of New
York " are very effective . " A Good Fight Finished and " The End of Foreign Dominion in Louisiana " arc perhaps too purely American to interest much English readers generally . "A Woman ' s Reason" and "'through One Administration " seem full of force , and the " Led Horse Claim " end 3 as all could wish . It is a very striking story . There is a very effective article on , and history of "Leon
Gambetta , " and "Signs and Seasons , " " The Village of Ober Ammergau , " and other articles all deserve and invite perusal . "Temple Bar" is strong this month with " Belinda " and "Tone Stewart . " The article on "Sims Reeves " is most readable , and we have no doubt truthful . The account of "Charles Monselet" is very interesting indeed ,
and " Miss Dairsie ' s Diary " is absolutely most pathcthic . " Unspotted from the World" has many admirers . "Scenes from the Winter of I 79 + " **•« us bac H t 0 curious episodes and to persons and things long since passed away and forgotten . " The Century" and "Bibliographer" again appear with articles all tending to a common end , pointing similar
studies , and encouraging identical tastes . We do not think that perhaps any one particular article is so striking in itself as to call for special notice here , but the general tone of the contributions is alike " dryasdustic , " in a good sense , and decided , while the various writers seem to write both enthusiastically and yet rationally . openingout forgotten sources of information , ransacking dusty receptacles ,
exploring old haunts , and developcing a valuable acquaintance with the history , archieology , relics , and remnants of the past . There is an old world flavour about these various papers which seems to fall not unpleasantly on modern tastes and humours to-day . " All the Year Round " for once , we feel bound to
confess , seems a little—a very little indeed—below its wonted standard of excellence and effect . We may perhaps be deemed hypercritical or fanciful , but so it is . Pour Anthony Trollope ' s "The Scarborough Family" speeds on to its close , and " Geoffrey Stirling" is truly sensational , and full of what is weird and subduing . There is also a I' rench story very touching indeed .
Reviews
"Blackwood , " though not as normally a very strong number , has one or two most effective articles . "Jonathan Swift" is alone worth the greater part of the issue , and will be read and thought over with pleasure and profit .
PROVINCIAL CALENDARS . Three are before us—all of merit , all lucid in detail and clear in arrangement , and likely to be very useful to the brethren of thc locality . They are those for Leicestershire and Rutland , for Gloucestershire , and N . and E . Yorkshire
and the good City of York . We always feel a debt of gratitude is due to those who thus compile with care and accuracy these little records of Masonic life and zeal , these special statistics , which serve to make up the great tottle of our Masonic existence and reality in England .
Masonic Notes And Queries.
Masonic Notes and Queries .
139 ] LEWIS—LOUVE , & c . It wc " peg away " long enough we shall possibly some day arrive at the derivation of Louve and Lewis , and their connection , if any exist . Meanwhile I venture to think that "Masonic Student" is going too far afield in No . 137 , when he seeks for their origin in the Norse tongues . On the same page your reviewer says that " you are not to
seek for what is far off and far fetched when you are able to avail yourself of what is close at hand and clear to the inductive process . " If " Masonic Student" seeks a Gothic derivation sve have it close at hand . To lift , in German , is , " lupfen " and " Iuften , " both words which although not classical are in common use and may be found in the dictionary . Either of these is surely nearer to Louve than
the Scandinavian words quoted by " Masonic Student . " But though close at hand they are not" clear to the inductive process . " In French we have at this day two technical terms—Louve , meaning Lewis , a wedge-shaped iron wherewith to lift a stone ; and Dent de Louve , ( wolf's tooth ) , a long iron nail or holdfast . In this latter case the derivation is evident ; the nail is called a wolf ' s tooth
because it holds as fast as one . Having thus seen that this idea is present in the workman ' s mind , what more probable than that the Lewis , which holds faster than even thc holdfast , should be a wolf itself . This is so likely that it would require a strong argument indeed to shake my conviction , unless it can be shown that some more ancient form of the word Louve
is further removed from this idea . Again , as to Steinmetz , 1 must differ from " Masonic Student . " I hold that the original of Metz is not " meizen , " to hew ; but " messen , " to measure ; that thc German stonemason is not a stone hewer , but a stone measurer , a stone proportioner . According to the 1459 and other ordinances , we find that his special craft was " mass werk , " hitherto wrongly
translated " work on a large scale , work in masses . Bro . Gould has , however , shown ( chapter iii . of his history ) that " masswerk " means carved work , proportioned or measured work , and , therefore , the Steinmetz , or artisan , who produced measured work was a stone measurer . The stone cutter or £ stone hewer in Germany was and is a "Steinhauer . " From an extended study of German documents I
take the difference between a "Steinmetz ( stonemason ) and "Steinhauer" ( stone hewer ) to be this : They both produced squared stones , or ashlar ; but the stone hewer did this without any particular and special design . His stones were cubes , which were afterwards fitted into the walls as most convenient ; the cubes of the stonemason were accurately measured , and each stone was intended for a
definite purpose , in fact , he worked to a design or template . In addition to this they took other forms than the cube , including the most difficult and intricate carving , and even statuary . Hence the term " masswerk , " i . e ., measured , proportioned , and , by inference , carved work—the latter signification being that now given by technical dictionaries .
This is , again , a deduction which is " clear to the inductive process . " As to the derivation of Lewis , I have no facts to go on ; I incline to the French Louve , which means the same thing ; but when Bro . Rylands shall have looked up the earliest English form of this word we shall be better able to judge . T . WM . SPETH .
140 ] HORACE WALPOLE . I have so often alluded to Horace Walpole ' s quondam and passing interest in Freemasonry in the Freemason that I am tempted to mention the subject again by some remarks I saw in this paper a week or so ago . Horace Walpole at one time seems to have been struck with what he read about our Order , and wanted to know more , and
therefore he wrote to Governor Pownall , as he was called . He was also cognizant of and interested in the so-called " Locke MS . " Had he only exercised common energy in his researches we should probably not be still in the dark essentially as to that mysterious document . For he had opportunities which we have not . He then seems to have lost
faith in , and avowed distrust of the Masonic Body . His unfavourable criticisms may fairly be ascribed to disappointment on the one hand , and his own "fine-gentlemandillettantism" on the other . He alludes to the subject several times , but latterly always in a depreciatory tone , though as it is quite clear , he knew nothing actually whatever about the subject . MASONIC STUDENT .
141 ] NATTER . Can any brother help me as regards Natter the engraver ? Can any one confirm the statement in the " Hand-Buch " that he was at thc Hague , Copenhagen , Stockholm , and St . Petersburgh , consecutively , where he helped to introduce the "High Grades" or the " Rit
Ecossais , " and where he died in 1762 or thereabouts ? Or is the English biographer right who asserts that he settled in England in 1742 and there died ? Was his name L . Natter or L . J . Natter , and was there only one Natter , or were there two Natters , perhaps father and son ? I shall esteem information on these heads a favour in this column . DRYASDUST .
Thc Prince of Wales , the Dukes of Edinburgh , Connaught , and Albany , and the Princess Christian have subscribed to the fund that is being raised in order to present a testimonial to Sir George Elvey on his retirement , after 50 years' active service , from the musical profession .
Reports Of Masonic Meetings.
REPORTS OF MASONIC MEETINGS .
Craft Jflasonrjj .
CONFIDENCE LODGE ( No . 193 ) . —Thc members of this old and excellent working lodge met on Monday evening at Anderton ' s Hotel , when the W . M ., Bro . James Smith , presided , and was supported by Bros . Walter Word , S . W . ; W . Cubitt , J . W . ; I . Shackell , P . M ., Sec ; W . Saint , S . D . ; F . Silvester , J . D . ; G . P . Nightingale , I . G . ; B . D . Kershaw , P . M . ; G . F . S . Warne , P . M . ; F . B .
Bonney , P . M . ; B . Lemare , P . M . ; J . E . Fells , I . P . M . ; H . T . Reed , P . M . ; F . J . Heall , J . Gilderslene , I . I . Craske , J . G . Desave , W . M . Covell , S . Smither , T . D . Clare , J . H . Bayley , VV . C Grounds , T . Thurgood , G . Masters , E . Kiddell , J . Grundy , E . W . Fithian , J . Collins , A . Jay , F . H . Clcmow , H . Morris , E . H . Walden , W . Rickell , and G . L . Reinhardt , Tyler . Among the visitors
were Bros . G . L . Saunders , 1257 ; H . Kemp , 1776 ; and G . G . Symons , P . M . 45 . The lodge having been opened in accordance with ancient rites was advanced , and Bros . J . H . Bayley and J . F . Clare were raised to the Sublime Degree by the W . M ., assisted by his officers , the ' work being admirably carried out . Subsequently the brethren and visitors sat down to a
sumptuous banquet , provided in Bro . Clemow's very excellent style , when the usual loyal and Masonic toasts were proposed from the chair and duly honoured . The Worshipful Master in the course of a very practical speech referred to the reality of Freemasonry and the principles it inculcated for the guidance of our daily practical life . Had it not been for that reality he should not have stuck
to Masonry as he had done , and he hoped he might continue to live as in the past , only as a little better and brighter Mason . Since he had occupied the chair he had felt the responsibilities of the position , and knew that to carry out the duties efficiently the heart must be in the work . He expressed the hope that the brethren would carry the principles they had learnt from the lodge room into their
daily life , and that no one would aspire to the chair of his lodge unless he was convinced of the reality of the system of which they were proud to be members . Bros . Bonney , Reed , Kershaw , and Fells responded for "The Past Masters ; " Bros . Symons and Kemp lor
"The Visitors , " and the various officers in response to the toast of their healths . During the evening there were some excellent songs and recitations , amongst the latter of which Tennyson ' s " Charge of the Light Brigade" by Bro . S . Smither was much appreciated .
LODGE OF FRIENDSHIP ( No . 206 ) . —The usual monthly meeting ot this lodge was held on Thursday , the 8 th inst ., at the Ship and 1 urtle , Leadenhall-street , E . C Present : Bros . Charles St . Barbe Williams , W . M . ; Charles T . Scrivener , S . W . ; J . L . Anderson , J . VV . ; W . Rumsey , P . M ., Steward ; Allen R . Rumsey , P . M ., Sec . ; William Gowland , J . D . ; Henry M . Collier , P . M . ; Alfred
Mams , f . M . ; John Waters , P . M . ; Thomas J . Steel , P . M . ; E . B . Barnard , P . M . ; John Stewart , P . M . ; J . lewitt Stephens , P . M . ; Elijah Squirrel ! , P . M . ; and others Visitors : Bros . William Kibble , W . M . 1426 ; John Sunley , P . M . 267 ; Henry Gehlcken , 172 ; and Geo . Wood , I . G . 7 . There were three candidates for raising , viz .: Bros . A . VV . Tobin , William H . Arberand William Steel . The ceremonies were performed in an exceedingly efficient
manner by Bros . William Rumsey , P . M ., and Elijah Squirrel , P . M . After the lodge work the brethren adjourned and sat down to banquet , presided over by thc VV . M ., when the usual loyal and Masonic toasts were honoured . The brethren and visitors after an exceedingly pleasant evening spent together dispersed . A telegram was received from Bro . Paul Boyton , dated from Liverpool , regretting his inability to be present .
KENNINGTON LODGE ( No . 1381 ) . — The last meeting for the season of this lodge was held at the Horns Tavern , Kennington Park , on the 6 th inst ., when there were present among others , Bros . Cockburn , W . M . ; Appleton , S . W . ; Stranger , J . W . ; W . Mann , . P . M ., Treas . ; W . Stuart , P . M ., Sec ; Cooper , S . D . ; Meredyth , I . G . ; I'oalc , W . S . ; Feuillade , A . W . S . ; Webb . I . P . M . ; Koch , P . M . ; Ceorge EverettP . M . H . HigginsPM
, ; , .. T . C Walls , P . P . G . S . B . Middx ., P . M . ; Kobler , P . M . ; and Reinardt , lyler . Among the visitors were Bros . Martin , S . W . iSS ; H . Price , S . D . 177 ; Hoole , l 7 6 s ; and Turner , 1216 . The minutes of the previous meeting having been read and confirmed Mr . James Dennis was most ably initiated into the Craft by the W . M . Several communications from
absent members having been read the lodge was closed and the members and visitors adjourned to refreshment . Upon the removal of the cloth a few toasts were given . " The W . M . " was cordially proposed hy the I . P . M ., and this toast having been drunk the W . M . briefly responded . " The Initiate " followed and Bro . Dennis duly acknow-Idd the
ged compliment . " The Health of the Visitors" came next in order , and Bros . Price , Hoole , Martin , and Turner in their replies warmly congratulated the Kennington Lodge upon its eood working . & r t . The toast of "The Past Masters" was replied to by Bros . Webb and Everett . "The Treasurer and Secretary " was responded to by Bros . Mann and Stuart .
"The Officers , " coupled with the names of Bros . Appleton and Stranger , brought the proceedings to a termination .
THE GREAT CITY LODGE ( No . 1426 ) . — The last meeting for thc season of this lodge was held on Saturday evening , the 10 th inst ., at thc Cannon-street Hotel , and the following brethren were present : Bros . W . J . Kibble , W . M . j F . T . C . Kceble , S . W . ; W . Baber , kv ; V - B > Headon , P . M ., Treas . ; G . W . Blackie , P . M ., Sec ; R . Fendick , S . D . ; F . W . Potter , J . D . ; J . T . Skinner , I . G . ; H . Durant , D . C . ; G . Jenkins , E . H .