The Rawlinson Ms.

formed , the Master told him he must give him the word very softly , so Mr . Painter turns his Ear to the Master's mouth , at the same time the two Wardens took each of them a candle or Holy Blaze ( as they termed it ) and therewith one burnt his Fingers , the other singes his Hair , whilst thc Master very handsomely made his Teeth almost meet through his Ear .

... . " Having thus endured the pain of scorching , burning , and biting of the ear , the honest Painter ingeniously confesses t hat he had rather be eternally doom'd to grind his own colours , than suffer himself to be installed a second . time a member of the Antique and Honourable Fraternity of Free and Accepted Masons . " If in the year 1731 the proceedings of lodges were

characterised by uniformity of -working , thc foregoing extract proves that the London system involved no slight trial of a candidate ' s fortitude . In connection with the above citation from Dr . Rawlinson ' s MS . some remarks by Bro . Godfrey Higgins , author of the "Anacalypsis" and the "Celtic Druids , " are worthy of consideration . In the former work ( vol . I ., page 724 ) Bro . Higgins says :

" Everybody knows the now ridiculous traditionary fancy that a Mason is , in some way , marked , or branded , or mutilated , before he can be admitted into the Order . I believe this , like most other traditions , had not its origin from nothing . I believe the hig her classes of Masons were originally persons who were admitted into the mysteries of Eleusis and Egypt , and that they were Chaldaeans and Mathemetici ; and 1 believe that what the above tradition

of the branding alluded to , was circumcision , anel that they were circumcised . Origen and Clemens Alexandrinus both affirm , that the secret learning of the Egyptians was only taught to such persons as had undergone the operation of circumcision , for which reason it was submitted to b y Pythagoras . The same word in Hebrew means both initiated and circumcised . " ? Elsewhere , Bro . Higgins has thus summed up his

conclusions in regard to the origin of our society— ' I am of op inion that a certain class of persons initiated into the higher mysteries of the Ancients were what are called Carmelites , Therapeuta ; , and Esseniens , or that they constituted a part of , or were formed out of these Sects , and were what we now call Chaldei or Mathematici . I think that the rite of circumcision was ori g inally instituted for the characteristic mark of the Fraternity or Society . "

The Crichton Lodge Ball.

THE CRICHTON LODGE BALL .

The brethren of the Crichton Lodge , No . ^ 1641 , held their first full dress ball in aid of the Charity Fund , at the Freemasons' Hall , Great Queen-street , on Friday evening , the 9 th inst ., and it passed off very successfully . The quadrille band of Bro . Dan Godfrey was in attendance , and played all the most popular tunes , and a well-varied

programme was gone through . A dispensation having been obtained from the Most Worshipful the Grand Master , thc Prince of Wales , the brethren appeared in Craft clothing . The following brethren acted as Stewards : Bros . T . Gardiner , W . M . j A . Middlemass , P . M . ; T . Griffith , P . M . ; F . A . Nairne , P . M ., D . C ; R . J . Voisey , S . W . ; J . H . Goldschmidt , J . W . ;

D . D . Mercer , Treasurer ; T . Weeks , Secretary ; F . K . Heller , S . D . ; R . Greenwood , St . ; J . Maunder , R . J . Vincent , J . Dallison , H . R . Baker , T . Nettleship , W . ft . Brian t , J . Cross , XV . H . Barber , Sec . 1777 ; *' " Hillar , J . D . 147 s ; and G . P . Gottar , S . D . 1622 . The following brethren were the M . C . ' s , and acted very efficiently , viz ., Bros . W . H . Baker , I . G . 1641 i T . Cull , S . W . 1440 ; and

H . A . Stunt , St . 1641 ; the latter of whom also acted as Secretary to the Ball Committee . Supper was served about twelve o ' clock , during which thc W . M . proposed the usual toasts , "The Ladies" coming in for the greater share of applause . All the arrangements were well carried through , and gave general satisfaction .

Consecration Of The Jersey Mark Lodge, No. 257.

CONSECRATION OF THE JERSEY MARK LODGE , NO . 257 .

The number of lodges of Mark Masons in the Province of Berks and Oxon received an addition on Monday last , when the Jersey Lodge , No . 257 , designated in honour of the Provincial Grand Master , was consecrated at Maidenhead by the Grand Assistant Secretary of the Order , Bro .

Don . M . Dewar , in the absence of the Earl of Jersey , who up to thc last moment was expected to have attendee ! . The interesting event attracted brethren from Reading , London , and elsewhere , who assembled at the Literary Institution , the Town Hall being in course of rebuilding . Among the brethren present in the lodge , which was opened at one o'clock by the Deputy Provincial Grand

Master , Bro . Charles Stephens , of Reading , we noticed Bros , the Rev . Theodore H . J onsen , E . Margrett , G . S . ; Cousins , G . Org . ; Pulley , Prov . G . Sec . ; Cooper Smith , Prov . G . S . W . ; W . B . Farr , W . M . designate ; H . H . Hodges ; W . Morris ; Don . M . Dewar , G . A . Sec ; W . C . MoiTatt ; G . Westall ; H . Brett , Glasspool ; Hickie ; Collins ; Hinckley ; Hy . Ayres ; Cosburn , Newbury , Mount :

Arrowsmith ; Niciiolson ; Hemmings ; Westfield , and others . The first business was to take the ballot for thirteen brethren proposed as members of the lodge , and these were elected unanimously , as follows : Bros , thc Rev . Edward De Ewer , H . Arrowsmith , W . E . Beal , J . Llewellyn , C . A . Bennett , A . P . Spcechlcy , T . J . Westfield , J . L . Silver , W .

Deacon H . J . Mount , C . W . Cox , E . J . Shrewsbury , and C . Nowell , most of whom reside in Maidenhead and the neighbourhood . With the exception of Bro . XV . Deacon , who was absent , the above were advanced to the Degree of M . M ., the ceremony being abl y gone through by the Provincial Grand Master and the W . M . designate . The new lodge was then consecrated in an impressive and befitting

manner , the choral portion of the ceremony being well sustained by Bros . Cousins , Pulley , and Hickie . Then followed the installation of Bro . Farr , P . M . Cape Stone Lodge , No . 80 , P . D . G . W . Bengal , as W . M . of the lodge for the ensuing year , and the officers of the lodge were

appointed and installed as follows : Bros . W . B . barr , VV . M . E . Margrett , I . P . M . ; H . H . Hodges . S . W . ; W . Morris . J . W . ; R . Nicholson M . O . ; J . VV . Legge , S . O . ; VV . Hinckley , I . O . ; Theodore H . Janson , Chap . ; E . de Ewer , Asst . Chap . ; W . Morris , Treas . ; Shrewsbury , Reg . ; H . J . Mount-Sec ; J . S . Silver , Org . ; C . W , Cox , S . D . ; H . Arrow

Consecration Of The Jersey Mark Lodge, No. 257.

smith , J . D . ; VV . E . Beal , I . G . ; H . P . Spcechley , Stewd . ; and C Nowell , Tyler . The lodge having been closed in due form , the brethren adjourned to the Bell Hotel , where a banquet was served , and a number of toasts usually given on these occasions were proposed and responded to .

Masonic Names Of The Deity.

MASONIC NAMES OF THE DEITY .

The following paper was read before the brethren of the Excelsior Lodge , No . 1042 , Leeds , by Bro . VV . Hutchinson , M . A ., P . P . G . Chap , of the N . and E . Riding , and Vicar of Howden : There have been men who have thought that the name of the Supreme Ruler of the Universe was of little consequence provided men would acknowledge His supremacy ,

either by the inarticulate offering of sacrifice or in the language of prayer and adoration . These havc beein ready to admit the reasonableness of the words of our poet in his universal prayer , as thsy seem to imply this question of name as non-essential , or indifferent when he cries—Father of all in every age , In every clime adored , By Saint , by Savage , or by Sage ,

Jehovah , J ove , or Lord ' . This notion might be allowed to pass if these titles of the Supreme had , by long antiquity , lost their original significance . For then the ideas attaching to the name , instead of arising out of it , are merely received by tradition . We ourselves , unless we are learned in the language in which such titles are used , are naturall y in this position . Take e . g . those titles which Pope employs , Jehovah ,

Jove , and Lord . " Jehovah , " or "Jahve , " as Hebrew scholars tell us , signifies " He who is" as opposed to the gods who are not . Now the abstract idea conveyed herein , however awful and incommunicable it may appear , could by no means serve to raise in the mind of the Hebrew worshipper an object , to which he could appeal . Consequently he attached to the term such attributes or qualities as he learnt from his sacred writings .

Again , if we consider the title "Jove , " which modern research has identified with the Sanscrit " Dyaus , " its meaning is "the sky , " or "the wide spread canopy above . " Th- ; nature worshippers of thc far off East must have had quite another sense of thc term than that which their descendants , in the time of Homer , and long afterwards , gave it . Generations of men , in ar : age before any written history existed , had developed the myth which the

everchanging sky suggested into the tales and stories which we read in the marvellous poetry of the Greeks . Lastly , our own term " Lord , " originally " Bread-giver , " tells , indeed , of thc bounteous Providence which supplies the ever growing needs of all His creatures , but more than this , it appeals to us , to our hearts and minds , with all those blessed associations which our holy religion has thrown around it .

Thus in these three names of Deity which the poet has put before us , we find that although the original significance was absent from the mind of thc several peoples who used them , yet the notions they suggested were b y no means indifferent . Surely it must be allowed that the " Jehovah " of the Hebrew , especially of the later ages , and the Lord ol the Christian , conveyed a far nobler , and purer , and juster conception of the Ruler over all than that of thc sensual ,

rollicking , vengeful Jove of classic story . And is not the nature of tbe Deity , as conceived in thc mind of His adorers , reflected in their character and actions ? We must then set aside the dictum applied in Pope ' s language as untenable . From these general appellations of Deity we pass on to a class which present to the mind single attributes for its contemplation . Such arc Omnipotent , or Almighty ,

Omniscient , or All-knowing , Eternal , or Ever-living . _ These arc terms which give a direct intimation of their significance , and although our finite minds cannot grasp them in their full extent , yet so far as they betoken qualities which wc ourselves possess , by expanding these in an illimitable degree , we gain a true apprehension' of the nature of the Divine attributes from the limited portion allotted us . We can conceive of power , of knowledge , and of life . But

according to our human experience , these are all hedged in within narrow bounds ; remove this boundary line , let there be no limit , and although wc may sink down in utter helplessness in the endeavour to seize the quality which is not comprehensible , yet the kind of power , of knowledge , and of life wc feel assured is the same as our own . When , then , we think of these qualities , as we possess them , we must regard them as relative or conditioned—I mean we

possess them in a certain degree , according to our limited conditions ; when we think of them as existing in God , we must regard them as absolute or unconditioned . So far by way of introduction , I have attempted to show —ist , that it is not a matter of indifference what titles of the Deity we employ ; that indeed it is fraught with the highest consequences ; 2 ndly , those titles which single out for our contemplation and use special attributes are in a

manner comparative , inasmuch as they exist to a certain degree in ourselves . Of this latter character are the titles of the Deity which we make use of in our First and Second Degrees ; not so much , however , in an abstract as in a concrete sense , we speak not e . g . of wisdom , and power , and knowledge , but of One who puts into action His wisdom , power , and knowledge ; of the G . A . and the G . G . O . T . U . Anel yet I say they are comparative terms , since we are A—s

and G—s . Wc are builders and designers , but when we are acting in that capacity , we arc always to remember Him whose name we invoke as the perfect builder and thc perfect designer , the G . A . and the G . G . Now it is well worth observing that those two titles are not used indiscriminately , but are in strict conformity with that principle which is laid down for the candidate before he is instructed in the first regular step in Freemasonry viz ., that

in Masonry there are several degrees with peculiar s-s restricted to each . Bearing this in mind , we shall perceive the the singular fitness and appropriateness of the titles throughout the whole of the ritual to which they are severally applied . In the First Degree we are , by a well known symbol , made to understand our perfect ignorance ,

ignorance amounting to blindness , of that wide universe of which we are denizens . Groping our way in this darkness , the first step towards its removal is a solemn act in the presence of that Ruler over all , whom we designate its G . A .. This is in some sort a confession , an acknowledgment of Him under that special attribute in whom at our entrance wo professed to put our trust . Again , under

Masonic Names Of The Deity.

a sense of the universe , which of course includes ourselves as moral creatures , being the outcome of His formative or architectural skill and wisdom , we are placed in a position in the ** corner , which in our figurative method , represents that which lies as the basis of character . From this basis , the acknowledgment i . e . of character being the work of the G . A ., is to arise further development , which to be in the direction of perfectness in all its parts , must be sustained

and regulated constantly by the same perfect Builder . Now it might be objected that thc term " Architect " implies that of Designer , and that no ' Architect " worthy of the name can perform his function without a knowledge of Geometry , in other words he must be a Geometrician also . That is very true . But in our Craft , we must not forstal ulterior processes . We have very properly to serve an apprenticeship , and to an apprentice , as in the ancient

guilds , his whole callingis at first a mystery . He is not yet in a position to consider by what methods the G . A . has produced tbe order and harmony which reign throughout the universe . He can in the first stage onh / wonder and admire the excellence and perfection of the whole , and desire lo be led in a course conformably to the reigning Order . 'The Architect is to be seen as revealed in His work . As progress is made in che actual work of building upon the

foundation laid in the novitiate , then , and not till then , thu more hidden paths , opening out to the eye of the understanding , the laws , according to which the G . A . has planned His work , will be disclosed . So the very instruments put into bis hands at this stage must intimate to him that his business is only with the rough shaping of each stone which is to form the building he is engaged in ; he is to measure his time into thc

prescribed periods , forgetting none , exceeding none ; he is lo keep down all excesses , and prepare himself by elint of continued application to remove those defects which unfit him to receive the gracious approval of Him , who has given him his p lace as a learner in a school which demanels patience , humility , and a child-like trust and confidence in the G . A . the Master and Sustainerof thc Universe . Thus prepared he is in a condition to contemplate the

G . A . under another aspect . With a mind humbled and acquiescent under thc wise anel good arrangements amidst which he finds himself placed , be is at liberty to iiuiuiie into the constitution of those arrangements . Hence arises tbe study of geometry . For it is by science that we can extend our researches into the furthest heavens , ascertain the movements of those bright luminaries which form the canopy of our terrestrial lodge , anel are , as it were , the

brilliant glittering jeivelfi that on all sides adorn tbe throne of the G . G . He has given them their places , their orbits , their relative position , and in all we discover the most perfect acuracy of movement , the most perfect symmetry anel beauty in form . And when we are taught , on our investiture as F . C ' s that we are henceforward to make the liberal arts and sciences our study , the last reason for this is given , " that we may be the better enabled to estimate the

wonderful works of the Almighty Creator . ' Under the impulse , then of such movements what more suitable name could be ! used in our invocations to the Heavenly Majesty than the G . G . Wc behold Him as designing all things in His boundless Universe with precision , order , and harmony ; anel these same qualities we seek to transfer to ourselves , to mark our own characters ; tbat not only as in the former Degree , are we to build ourselves on the foundation

laid on the principles of moral truth and virtue ; but wo should aim at the direction of our conduct with intelligence ; no longer be children in understanding , but exercise that rarest gift of the great Creator in distinguishing for ourselves the right and the wrong in the various questions that are addressed to the intellect no less than to the moral faculty within us . I conceive there is great meaning , importance , anel

excellence as well as a certain amount of beauty in this Second Degree with its short ritual . Anel the framers of that ritual seem to have attached greater weight to it than prima facie we mi g ht consider . For you will observe that every W . M . elect is called upon to profess his . solemn aelhesion to our ancient laws , & c , when the lodge is on the square . And when the same VV . M , has discharged the duties of his high office and taken his place as a P . M . the

very symbol that is to mark his elistingiiisheel standing for the future is one that is the very crown and glory of geometry , the diagram for the 47 th prop , of Euclid , Rook ist . In fact , with our forefathers the terms Masonry and Geometry were synonymous , as might be seen by any one . consulting our Masonic Archives . 1 come now to thc last and most sublime title e > f the Deity which is employed in Craft Masonry . 1 need hardly

say that this is not so strictly M . as those we have considered . Thev are indeed almost confined to the Craft . It is abstract and vague ; and yet who shall say that it is not most appropriate to express the unutterable awe , greatness , and sublimity of Him in whose hands are the issues of life and death ? and when we bear in mind the peculiar object of research in this Degree , and when by a kind of anticipatory action , we prefigure the reality that must one day be undergone by each one of us , on what object can the

thoughts rest in calm repose and humble confidence in such a moment , and in what language shall they express their desire to be raised from the depth of their low estate more fitly than the solemn M . H . ? This seems to sum up in its brevity and solemnity the whole course of our Masonic instruction , and to ) ca % 'e its traces on our minds never to be obliterated , bidding us to be heedful , circumspect , anel loyal to Him , to whom belong thc building up of our character , the intelligent guidance and conduct of our steps , and the eternal custody of our imperishable souls .

The art conversazione at the Mansion House has been arranged to be held on Tuesday , May 23 th . 'The whole of the livery companies have placed at the disposal of the Lord Mayor for this occasion their pictures and other objects of interest , and the collection will be both an interesting and a valuable one . —City Press . HOLLOWAY ' S PILLS are the medicine most in repute for curim . the multifarious maladies which attack humanity , when wet and colli weather gives place to more genial temperatures . In short , 111

these Tills atlbnl relief , if they fail of being an absolute remedy all the disturbances of circulation , digestion , anil nervous energy , which at times oppress . 1 e-ast portion ot the * population . Under the wholesome , purifying , and strengthening powers exerted by these excellent Pills , the tongue . ' becomes clean , tlie appetite improves , digestion is quickened , and assimilation rendered perfect . Holloway ' s medicine possesses the highly estimable property ot cleansing tlic whole mass of blood , which , in its renovated condition , carries purity , strength , anel vigour to every tissue of the body , —[ A DVT . )