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  • Dec. 18, 1880
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  • Masonic Notes and Queries.
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Masonic Notes And Queries.

I am trusting to memory , —a draft of a warrant for a lodge of the " Knights of the Holy Tabernacle of St . John of Jerusalem " is extant yet among the papers of the York Lodge . It is still full of interlineations and corrections , as prepared for being transcribed . But such a fact disposes of the 1721 York theory , which I really wonder Bro . Yarker atjain propounds . It is altorrcthci - unhistorical . 2 . I can

find no trace of any thc least connection between thc Rite of Memphis and the "Rite Primitif" of Narbonnc , the Philaletes , and Alartincz Pasqualis , or Paschalis , and his " Elus Coeen's . " The Rite Primitif of Narbonnc seems to have been founded in 17 S 0 by a certain " Chcvalier Pen , " and to have had a mystical religious tendency , as in its grade , — " The Fathers Rose Croix of the Grand Rosary . " But it existed for a verv few years . The

Philaletes issued from the lodge "Les Amis Reunis " in 1771 , when some very learned and enthusiastic Masons formed part of , and is probably in the main thc creaton of , "Savalette de Langes . " It vvas a mixture of Alartinism and Swedenborgianism , and though it had a " concordat" with the Rite of Narbonnc for the " same ends , " it had not the same teaching , as far as we know .

Cagliostro got mixed up with it later , but though it influenced greatly the Convent of Paris , I ^ S J , it thenceforward disappears . Paschalis , who was a Portuguese , born in 1715 . was no doubt alearned Hebrew and metaphysician , & c , seems also mixed up with the " Pierre Philosophalc . " I may mention that early in the eighteen century " Les Archives Me Ia Bastille , " now publishincr , mention

frequently these "Chercheurs , " who were arrested men and women . Paschalis seems to have based his grade on the Jewish Cabala , but there seems in it nothing akin to the Order of Alemphis . All tha * we really know of the Order of Alemphis is based on the evidence of Marconis Is he trustworthy ? I express no opinion thereancnt , though some writers openly contradict his statements , and some

even doubt the " Montauban story , " and limit the date to 'SSO- ' . 3 . I do not quite comprehend Bro . Yarker's statement in How ' s Manual . I had understood that about 1 SG 1 Alarconis gave a charter to Bro . Seymour , which was afterwards vised by Marshal Magnan , and I have seen that alleged patent set out somewhere as dated Paris , iSfii . But now Bro . Yarker says that Alarconis the younger ,

at New York , in 1 S 57 , inaugurated the Rite personally , with Illustrious Bro . David AlcClellan ns Grand Master , and that afterwards , in 1 SG 2 , Marshal Alagnan vised the patent , and Bro . Seymour was appointed Grand Alaster General . Which of these statements is correct and authoritative ? For Bro . Yarker will see there is a great difference between them . I write merely as a " student , " and for information and verification .

MASONIC STUDENT

BRO . H . G . SEYAIOUR . Is this brother , and so often mentioned by Bro . Yarker , the same person about whom so much vvas said some years back in the Ancient and Accepted Rite in America ? Is he legally now , in consequence of certain judiciary proceedings in the Accepted and Ancient Rite , America , any longer a legal member of thc Rite ? ALS .

Alay I ask , too , how thc Cerneau Council , to which Bro . Yarker alludes in How ' s Manual , vvas formed ? Is it not altogether an unauthorized body" The old Cerneau Council surely amalgamated with others to make one Grand Council for the Northern Jurisdiction . How can a few members of a body reinstate a "defunct body ? " I do not say that it might not be done under certain circumstances , but in this case is it not altogether a personal question ?

M . S

I-IOTCiiiN'sos , WILLIAM , may bc fairly termed the father of Alasonic Symbolism . No one writer has endeavoured more than he did to give nn elevating , and classical , and phillosophical tendency to all our Alasonic researches and disquisitions . His is a name which ought always to bc held in reverential regard by all Anglo-Saxon Freemasons . He was born at Barnard Castle , Durham , in 1732 , and died in 1 S 14 . He vvas a solicitor by profession , but an

antiquary and arch .-eologtst by taste—and conviction . He wrote that well-known work * ' 'The History ancl Antiquities of the County Palatine of Durham , " and several other works , being a zealous member of the Antiqparian Society . His "Spirit of Masonry , " -well-known work , was first publn ' 775 > with the especial sanction of Grancl Lodge , and nsecond edition vvas issued in 1705 . Dr . Oliver edited one

of the many later editions . Hutchinson hacl his own peculiar theories , which a later and sounder criticism and a truer exegesis have compelled Alasonic students to discard . His etymology and his symbolism are both somewhat strained , though there will be always a large school in Anglo-Saxon Ercemasonry whic will adhere to the chriftian symdathtep ; and sentiments of Hutchinson . But though We cannot fully atrreewith all his views , we can admire trnlv

the general groundwork of his admirable work , whic will remain a lasting manument , both to his learning and ingenuity , a fitting epitaph , so to say , on the long career of a man and a Mason , whose head and heart went in unison , whose life vvas blameless , and whose memory is still fondly regarded by Fremafons , wherever the English language is spoken , ancl as long as Freemasonry itself endures . — Kenning ' s Masonic Cyclopedia .

The controversy known to Chinese scholars as the " term question " still continues . The dispute is as to the proper word to be employed in rendering the word God into the language of the Celestial Empire . A person using 'ne pseudonym " Inquirer" has recently charged Professor James Lcn ;< re with unfaithfulness as a translator because in

his versions from the Chinese in " The Sacred Books of tne hast * he uses the word God as an equivalent for atiang-ti . The dispute has been whether that phrase , winch has a more personal significance , or Tien , which is "Equivalent to heaven , should be used as the name of the

1 I ? ' -V •"ofessor Legge has vindicated his position in a letter addressed to Professor Max Miiller . Messrs . Whittaker and Co . will publish immevl i-V ^ their Hand y Volume Series - ' A Dictionary of J-nghsh Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases . " The collection will embrace upwards of iStX ) of the most frequently used proverbs in the language .

Reviews.

Reviews .

ILLUSTRATED NEWS . Christmas Number . The Christmas number of thc Illustrated London News comes before us in amicable and animated conflict with its great rival . Its engravings are all interesting and effective—such as " The Daughter of the House , " " In Wonderland , " "First Steps , " "The Careless Nurse , " "The Vicar ' s Daughter , " "Catarina , " and tlie coloured

illustrations of " A Juvenile Fancy Dress Ball . " Mrs . J . H . Riddel ! , Miss Betham Edwards , Mr . Francillon , and Miss Katharine Alacquoid contribute the " prose selections , " while the " poetic offerings" are from the pens of Mr . Clement Scott , Air . G . R . Sims , Air . Byron VVebber , and Air . Ashley Terry . The Christmas number is a very attractive contribution to our Christmas literature .

THE POAIPADOUR ALBUAL James AlacAIichael , ¦ 42 , South Audlcy-street , Grosvenor-square , W . Air . AlacAIichael , who is well-know for his Christmas cards , and numerous requisites of tabular and stationery •cstheticism , comes before us with his " Nevv Album of Beauty , " which he suggests is a " fitting Christmas present" for many members of "Society" at the present

day . And , certainly , it is a very pleasant and elegant Christmas " etrenne . " Some of us object to the sale of photographs of "fair faces , " but we may bear in mind that wc are only doing what our ancestors did , though in a different manner and degree . They had their " Book of Beauty ^ . ' we have our ' •Album of Beauty , " and where is the real difference ? We cannot sec it ; neither do vve

discern anything to blame , but much to commend , in thc present arrangements . We have now before us an album , and are struck with the pretty faces we see and much admire . We find the Duchess of Westminster and the Alarchioncss of Ormonde , the Countess of Dudley , and Lady Amelia Ward , the Countess of Clarendon , and Lord Hyde . The three charming daughters of Lady Feversham ,

thc Ladies Hermionc , Helen , and Agathea Duncombe , the Duchess of Montrose , Lady Ribblesdale , Lady Forbes , Viscountess Grimston , Hon . Airs . Erskine , and Lady Garvagh . There is a very striking one of the Countess of Lonsdale , Lady Carrington , Lady Beatrice Herbert , Lady Alusgrave , Aliss Graham , Miss Pullen , and Miss Amy Pullen . Wc also are able to keep before us those pleasant

" visions" which come before us , every now and then , of Mrs . Langtry , Airs . Cornwallis West , Mrs . Wheeler , Mrs . Arthur Beave , Airs . Hungerford , and Airs . Alaxse . To these also may bc added the various members of our own Royal Family , commencing with that charming Princess , always so cherished by Freemasons , H . R . H . the Princess

of Wales , and her two daughters . We , therefore , think that Air . AlacAIichaelJis to be ( thanked , as a'benefactor to society , for an idea so artistic in itself , and so full of pleasure to those who like to believe that " a face of beauty is a joy for ever , " at 'least to memory , to sympathy , and to ideality .

THE FREEAJASONS' AUNUAL , by Bro . J EREMIAH How . John Hogg , Patcrnostcr-row . VVe are among those old fashioned Alasons who cannot , and do not , approve of the "Freemasons' Manual " in its particular idea and outcome . VVe think that much which appears in it belongs entirely to the region of lodge and chapter . We may be altogether wrong , butsuch isouropinion , andas

we have still " liberty of prophesying " Masonically , vve say so openly . But the work has reached a third edition , andcomes before us , no doubt , admirably printed , and carefully edited . It is in many respects , too , a very interesting work , and the the authcrhas got together a great deal of information , which some may like to have as a "bird ' s eye view of Alasonry , symbolical and High Grade . " As we have perused its ample

pages ( 463 ) , of clearly printed mattcr . we have found , as might be expected , some little errors which deserve noting . 1 . VVe cannot agree with the now very questionable theory of Ramsay and the High Grades . Ramsay is represented as the "Fautor" of High Grade Masonry , with a Jacobite intent . This seems to us a most doubtful fact . There is , as far as vve are aware , no proof of it , except commonly

received and constanly repeated assertion . If Ramsay did any morethan set up his " Rite de . Bouillon , " ( if even he did that ) , it is as much as he did . There is no trace of Ramsay in Alasonry after 173 C , and his famous oration vvas delivered in 173 G , not in 1740 . It has been said that Dermott obtained from Ramsay his name "Royal Arch , " as the translation and equivalent of " Arche Royale . " It is hist

possible , and that fact , probably , explains the great difference between the " working" of the "Ancients" and the " Aloderns " in that respect . Dunkcrley's workingvvas identical in part , though not fully , with our present working , which was re-arranged in 1 S 13 , or thereabouts , when the " antient working , " which , no doubt , in some respects is identical with a foreign Grade , was entirely n-iven up , and

Dunkerley ' s old "working" maintained , and developed , and completed . We , therefore , greatly doubt Ramsay's influences on English Alasonry , or even the High Grades . A High Grade of some kind vvas known in London in 1721 , if it be not the " Royal Arch , " ( though we think clearly not ) , as it has been suggested , to which the author of " Long- Livers" alluded . Neither can we aorec to the

statement that in Great Britain the use of " Marks" was universal . It vvas so in Scotland , but not in England or Ireland . The use of " Alarks" in English lodges , ( in our so far sparse and unsatisfactory history ofthe past ) , is comparatively late ; certainly not before the end of the eighteenth century , with one exception at Alnwick , which is near Scotland , and where we find it in 1704 . The Enerlish

use is undoubtedly so far as is yet known , practically late eighteenth century . There are many other points to which we might allude , but they perhaps are better fitted for our " Notes and Queries . " With these allowable-reservations and many more , indeed , vve have read with interest the third edition of the " Freemasons' Afanual by Bro . How as published by Bro . Hogg .

WARD AND LOCK'S UNIVERSAL INSTRUCTOR . Cd . monthly . Ward and Lock , Salisbury-square , London . The first two numbers of this work are now before the public , and we scarcely know which to admire most , the enterprise of the publishers in preparing such an exhaustive programme of instruction at such a small cost , or the way in which the various writers have succeeded in carrying out that programme so far . No branch of study appears to be

Reviews.

overlooked , and the student , whether desirous of acquiring general knowledge or devoting himself to special subjects , will find all his wants in these crowded pages .

THE BRITISH AND COLONIAL PRINTER AND STATIONER . 5 , Ludgate Circus Buildings , London . The winter number of this publication has just been sent us , and vve know of no other production which show so well the advances that have been made in the Typographical Art during the past few years . The

"display " is perfectly unique , and will be of great use to those printers who desire to advance with the times , and present their work as a thing of beauty as well as utility . The contents , too , seem worthy of the letterpress . _ Notes upon trade concerning this country and the colonies , and other matters interesting to printers and stationers , are also dealt with .

Literary, Art, And Antiquarian Notes.

Literary , Art , and Antiquarian Notes .

A notice of the life-work of the late Sir Benjamin Brodie appears in Nature , signed "H . E . R ., " presumably from the pen of Professor Roscoe . The Paris Solon is being- seriously reformed at last , and in addition to the decision not to admit more than 2500 pictures , it has been further determined to abolish the privileges of certain artists whose works were exempt from examination , and entitled to a place on the walls , whatever

their merits . Artists may now send any number of pictures ; while works of industrial art—including porcelain , goldsmiths' productions , bronze-work , & c . —will also be admitted to the Exhibition . The plan of a triennial Salon has been abandoned in favour of a decennial Exhibition , the first of which will take place in 1 SS 4 . Wc are pleased to note that Bro . R . A . Douglas Lithgoiv , LL . D ., F . R . S . L ., & c , is engaged in editing an

edition of the poetical works of John Critchlcy Prince . Prince belongs to the class of artizan poets , but the perfect melody of his verse and its intellectual quality show no sign of "class , " although he has contributed as much as most men to the literature of labour . The biography which Bro . Litbgow will add to this edition will give lor the

first time in detail particulars of Prince ' s life , which will unfold in all its simplicity the history of a man whose career was a continual struggle against the direst poverty and temptation , and whose failures are full of pathetic interest . "The work is to bc published , by subscription , by Abel Heywood and Son , Manchester .

ROYAL INSTITUTION OF G REAT BRITAIN . — The following are the arrangements for the Friday evening meetings before Easter , 1 SS 1 : —January 2 r , Mr . Warren De La Rue , D . C . L ., F . R . S ., Sec . R . I ., "The Phenomena of the Electric Discharge with 14 , 000 Chloride of Silver Cells ; " January 2 S , Dr . Andrew Wilson , F . R . S . E ., "The Origin of Colonial Organisms ; " February 4 , Dr . Arthur Schuster , F . R . S ., "The Teachings of Alodern Spectroscopy ; " February 11 , Air . Roberts . Ball , LL . D ., F . R . S ., "The Distances of the Stars ; " February iS , Sir John

Lubbock , M . P ., D . C . L ., F . R . S ., M . R . I ., " Fruits and Seeds ; " February 25 , Dr . J . S . Burdon-Sanderson , LL . D ., F . R . S ., "Excitability in Plants and Animals ;" Alarch 4 , Sir William Thomson , LL . D ., F . R . S ., " Elasticity viewed as Possibly a Mode of Motion ; " March 11 , uncertain ; March iS , W . H . Stone , M . D ., "Afusical Pitch and its Determination ; " Alarch 25 , Mr . Alexander Buchan , ALA ., F . R . S . E ., Sec . Met . Soc . Scot ., "The Weather and

Health of London ; " April 1 , uncertain ; Aprils , Professor Tyndall , D . C . L ., F . R . S ., M . R . I . The Friday arrangements depend in great measure on the free kindness of eminent men , whose time is subject to the sudden claims of public or professional duty . They arc therefore liable to change . The discourse for each Friday will bc announced in Tlie Times of the Tuesday previous . The doors will be open at 8 o'clock ; the discourse will begin at 9 o ' clock . Professors Tyndall and Dewar will lecture after Easter .

THE NATIONAL GALLERY . —Mr . Burton ' s tenure of office in thc National Gallery has again been signalised by the acquisition of a famous and beautiful picture , one of those which every student would covet tor the English collection . It is the large Leonardo da Vinci known as "La Vierge aux Rochers , " which was lent by the late possessor , the Earl of Suffolk , to the Royal Academicians in 1 S 70 , when it vvas No . 6 , and hung in gallery No 1 , at

, Burlington-house . Itiswell known that there are two versions of the design—that which is now in the National Gallery waiting to take a p lace on a wall in one of the public rooms , and that other which is in the Long Gallery of the Louvre , and belonged to Francis I . Desnoycrs engraved and Bodmcr lithographed the latter version , and Desnoyer's print is a masterpiece . It has been much disputed which is the superior picture . There is a preponderance of opinion

in favour of the former , a judgment in which , having carefully examined both , we are able to concur . To take the highest element of the painting , the faces are better in the work from Charlton Park , and the drawing throughout is better . Dr . Waagen , however , vvas probably right in recognising the hand of a pupil in much of the background , and the picture has gained nothing from a flood of brown varnish , which might , wc suppose , be safely removed .

Lomazzo , who , within 70 years of Leonardo ' s death , saw the painting in the Capella della Concezione in the Church of St . Francesco at Milan , described it as the work of Da Vinci , and by the name of the "Concezione . " In 1796 Air . Gavin Hamilton bought it out of the chapel for thirty ducats , and some time afterwards sold it to the Earl of Suffolk for a much larger sum . VVe believe the nation has paid jeCoooo—a price which is decidedly below the value of

this important work . It vvas at the British Institution in 1 S 51 , and again in 1856 . In Air . Holford ' s collection is a head of the Virgin painted in brown , and so closely resembling that in this picture as to justify the idea that it is the study for the principal portion . The head was No . 144 of the Manchester Art Treasures . " La Vierge aux Rochers " is supposed to have been executed in 14 S 3 . Two anuels at

the side are represented in the Melzi Collection at Milan . There are several copies in public museums—e . g ., at Nantes . There are drawings in the gallery at Turin and at Windsor Castle which evidently refer to this picture , and exhibit some variations in the design . Nagler , " Kunstler-Lexicon , " xx . 329 , says that other drawings of this order , executed in black chalk on blue paper , are at Chatsworth . Atheweum .

“The Freemason: 1880-12-18, Page 7” Masonic Periodicals Online, Library and Museum of Freemasonry, 14 June 2025, django:8000/periodicals/fvl/issues/fvl_18121880/page/7/.
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Title Category Page
CONTENTS. Article 1
CONSECRATION OF THE STRANTON LODGE, No. 1862. Article 1
THE ROYAL CUMBERLAND LODGE, No. 41. Article 1
MASONIC CHARITIES OF WEST LANCASHIRE. Article 2
ANNUAL DINNER OF THE FAITH LODGE OF INSTRUCTION, No. 141. Article 2
PROVINCE OF WARWICKSHIRE. Article 2
THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH AND THE SECRET SOCIETIES. Article 3
BURGLARY AT THE MASONIC HALL, NEWPORT. Article 3
CONSECRATION OF THE WILLIAM OF WYKEHAM LODGE, No. 1883. Article 3
REPORTS OF MASONIC MEETINGS. Article 3
Royal Arch. Article 6
Knights Templar. Article 6
Ancient and Primitive Rite. Article 6
Obituary. Article 6
Masonic Notes and Queries. Article 6
Reviews. Article 7
Literary, Art, and Antiquarian Notes. Article 7
Untitled Ad 8
Untitled Ad 8
Untitled Ad 8
To Correspondents. Article 8
Untitled Article 8
Untitled Article 8
THE NEW CERNEAU COUNCIL IN AMERICA. Article 8
Original Correspondence. Article 9
ANCIENT AND ACCEPTED RITE. Article 10
Masonic and Geneal Tidings. Article 10
Birth, Marriages, and Deaths. Article 11
Untitled Ad 12
Untitled Ad 12
Untitled Ad 12
Untitled Ad 12
Untitled Ad 12
Untitled Ad 12
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Masonic Notes And Queries.

I am trusting to memory , —a draft of a warrant for a lodge of the " Knights of the Holy Tabernacle of St . John of Jerusalem " is extant yet among the papers of the York Lodge . It is still full of interlineations and corrections , as prepared for being transcribed . But such a fact disposes of the 1721 York theory , which I really wonder Bro . Yarker atjain propounds . It is altorrcthci - unhistorical . 2 . I can

find no trace of any thc least connection between thc Rite of Memphis and the "Rite Primitif" of Narbonnc , the Philaletes , and Alartincz Pasqualis , or Paschalis , and his " Elus Coeen's . " The Rite Primitif of Narbonnc seems to have been founded in 17 S 0 by a certain " Chcvalier Pen , " and to have had a mystical religious tendency , as in its grade , — " The Fathers Rose Croix of the Grand Rosary . " But it existed for a verv few years . The

Philaletes issued from the lodge "Les Amis Reunis " in 1771 , when some very learned and enthusiastic Masons formed part of , and is probably in the main thc creaton of , "Savalette de Langes . " It vvas a mixture of Alartinism and Swedenborgianism , and though it had a " concordat" with the Rite of Narbonnc for the " same ends , " it had not the same teaching , as far as we know .

Cagliostro got mixed up with it later , but though it influenced greatly the Convent of Paris , I ^ S J , it thenceforward disappears . Paschalis , who was a Portuguese , born in 1715 . was no doubt alearned Hebrew and metaphysician , & c , seems also mixed up with the " Pierre Philosophalc . " I may mention that early in the eighteen century " Les Archives Me Ia Bastille , " now publishincr , mention

frequently these "Chercheurs , " who were arrested men and women . Paschalis seems to have based his grade on the Jewish Cabala , but there seems in it nothing akin to the Order of Alemphis . All tha * we really know of the Order of Alemphis is based on the evidence of Marconis Is he trustworthy ? I express no opinion thereancnt , though some writers openly contradict his statements , and some

even doubt the " Montauban story , " and limit the date to 'SSO- ' . 3 . I do not quite comprehend Bro . Yarker's statement in How ' s Manual . I had understood that about 1 SG 1 Alarconis gave a charter to Bro . Seymour , which was afterwards vised by Marshal Magnan , and I have seen that alleged patent set out somewhere as dated Paris , iSfii . But now Bro . Yarker says that Alarconis the younger ,

at New York , in 1 S 57 , inaugurated the Rite personally , with Illustrious Bro . David AlcClellan ns Grand Master , and that afterwards , in 1 SG 2 , Marshal Alagnan vised the patent , and Bro . Seymour was appointed Grand Alaster General . Which of these statements is correct and authoritative ? For Bro . Yarker will see there is a great difference between them . I write merely as a " student , " and for information and verification .

MASONIC STUDENT

BRO . H . G . SEYAIOUR . Is this brother , and so often mentioned by Bro . Yarker , the same person about whom so much vvas said some years back in the Ancient and Accepted Rite in America ? Is he legally now , in consequence of certain judiciary proceedings in the Accepted and Ancient Rite , America , any longer a legal member of thc Rite ? ALS .

Alay I ask , too , how thc Cerneau Council , to which Bro . Yarker alludes in How ' s Manual , vvas formed ? Is it not altogether an unauthorized body" The old Cerneau Council surely amalgamated with others to make one Grand Council for the Northern Jurisdiction . How can a few members of a body reinstate a "defunct body ? " I do not say that it might not be done under certain circumstances , but in this case is it not altogether a personal question ?

M . S

I-IOTCiiiN'sos , WILLIAM , may bc fairly termed the father of Alasonic Symbolism . No one writer has endeavoured more than he did to give nn elevating , and classical , and phillosophical tendency to all our Alasonic researches and disquisitions . His is a name which ought always to bc held in reverential regard by all Anglo-Saxon Freemasons . He was born at Barnard Castle , Durham , in 1732 , and died in 1 S 14 . He vvas a solicitor by profession , but an

antiquary and arch .-eologtst by taste—and conviction . He wrote that well-known work * ' 'The History ancl Antiquities of the County Palatine of Durham , " and several other works , being a zealous member of the Antiqparian Society . His "Spirit of Masonry , " -well-known work , was first publn ' 775 > with the especial sanction of Grancl Lodge , and nsecond edition vvas issued in 1705 . Dr . Oliver edited one

of the many later editions . Hutchinson hacl his own peculiar theories , which a later and sounder criticism and a truer exegesis have compelled Alasonic students to discard . His etymology and his symbolism are both somewhat strained , though there will be always a large school in Anglo-Saxon Ercemasonry whic will adhere to the chriftian symdathtep ; and sentiments of Hutchinson . But though We cannot fully atrreewith all his views , we can admire trnlv

the general groundwork of his admirable work , whic will remain a lasting manument , both to his learning and ingenuity , a fitting epitaph , so to say , on the long career of a man and a Mason , whose head and heart went in unison , whose life vvas blameless , and whose memory is still fondly regarded by Fremafons , wherever the English language is spoken , ancl as long as Freemasonry itself endures . — Kenning ' s Masonic Cyclopedia .

The controversy known to Chinese scholars as the " term question " still continues . The dispute is as to the proper word to be employed in rendering the word God into the language of the Celestial Empire . A person using 'ne pseudonym " Inquirer" has recently charged Professor James Lcn ;< re with unfaithfulness as a translator because in

his versions from the Chinese in " The Sacred Books of tne hast * he uses the word God as an equivalent for atiang-ti . The dispute has been whether that phrase , winch has a more personal significance , or Tien , which is "Equivalent to heaven , should be used as the name of the

1 I ? ' -V •"ofessor Legge has vindicated his position in a letter addressed to Professor Max Miiller . Messrs . Whittaker and Co . will publish immevl i-V ^ their Hand y Volume Series - ' A Dictionary of J-nghsh Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases . " The collection will embrace upwards of iStX ) of the most frequently used proverbs in the language .

Reviews.

Reviews .

ILLUSTRATED NEWS . Christmas Number . The Christmas number of thc Illustrated London News comes before us in amicable and animated conflict with its great rival . Its engravings are all interesting and effective—such as " The Daughter of the House , " " In Wonderland , " "First Steps , " "The Careless Nurse , " "The Vicar ' s Daughter , " "Catarina , " and tlie coloured

illustrations of " A Juvenile Fancy Dress Ball . " Mrs . J . H . Riddel ! , Miss Betham Edwards , Mr . Francillon , and Miss Katharine Alacquoid contribute the " prose selections , " while the " poetic offerings" are from the pens of Mr . Clement Scott , Air . G . R . Sims , Air . Byron VVebber , and Air . Ashley Terry . The Christmas number is a very attractive contribution to our Christmas literature .

THE POAIPADOUR ALBUAL James AlacAIichael , ¦ 42 , South Audlcy-street , Grosvenor-square , W . Air . AlacAIichael , who is well-know for his Christmas cards , and numerous requisites of tabular and stationery •cstheticism , comes before us with his " Nevv Album of Beauty , " which he suggests is a " fitting Christmas present" for many members of "Society" at the present

day . And , certainly , it is a very pleasant and elegant Christmas " etrenne . " Some of us object to the sale of photographs of "fair faces , " but we may bear in mind that wc are only doing what our ancestors did , though in a different manner and degree . They had their " Book of Beauty ^ . ' we have our ' •Album of Beauty , " and where is the real difference ? We cannot sec it ; neither do vve

discern anything to blame , but much to commend , in thc present arrangements . We have now before us an album , and are struck with the pretty faces we see and much admire . We find the Duchess of Westminster and the Alarchioncss of Ormonde , the Countess of Dudley , and Lady Amelia Ward , the Countess of Clarendon , and Lord Hyde . The three charming daughters of Lady Feversham ,

thc Ladies Hermionc , Helen , and Agathea Duncombe , the Duchess of Montrose , Lady Ribblesdale , Lady Forbes , Viscountess Grimston , Hon . Airs . Erskine , and Lady Garvagh . There is a very striking one of the Countess of Lonsdale , Lady Carrington , Lady Beatrice Herbert , Lady Alusgrave , Aliss Graham , Miss Pullen , and Miss Amy Pullen . Wc also are able to keep before us those pleasant

" visions" which come before us , every now and then , of Mrs . Langtry , Airs . Cornwallis West , Mrs . Wheeler , Mrs . Arthur Beave , Airs . Hungerford , and Airs . Alaxse . To these also may bc added the various members of our own Royal Family , commencing with that charming Princess , always so cherished by Freemasons , H . R . H . the Princess

of Wales , and her two daughters . We , therefore , think that Air . AlacAIichaelJis to be ( thanked , as a'benefactor to society , for an idea so artistic in itself , and so full of pleasure to those who like to believe that " a face of beauty is a joy for ever , " at 'least to memory , to sympathy , and to ideality .

THE FREEAJASONS' AUNUAL , by Bro . J EREMIAH How . John Hogg , Patcrnostcr-row . VVe are among those old fashioned Alasons who cannot , and do not , approve of the "Freemasons' Manual " in its particular idea and outcome . VVe think that much which appears in it belongs entirely to the region of lodge and chapter . We may be altogether wrong , butsuch isouropinion , andas

we have still " liberty of prophesying " Masonically , vve say so openly . But the work has reached a third edition , andcomes before us , no doubt , admirably printed , and carefully edited . It is in many respects , too , a very interesting work , and the the authcrhas got together a great deal of information , which some may like to have as a "bird ' s eye view of Alasonry , symbolical and High Grade . " As we have perused its ample

pages ( 463 ) , of clearly printed mattcr . we have found , as might be expected , some little errors which deserve noting . 1 . VVe cannot agree with the now very questionable theory of Ramsay and the High Grades . Ramsay is represented as the "Fautor" of High Grade Masonry , with a Jacobite intent . This seems to us a most doubtful fact . There is , as far as vve are aware , no proof of it , except commonly

received and constanly repeated assertion . If Ramsay did any morethan set up his " Rite de . Bouillon , " ( if even he did that ) , it is as much as he did . There is no trace of Ramsay in Alasonry after 173 C , and his famous oration vvas delivered in 173 G , not in 1740 . It has been said that Dermott obtained from Ramsay his name "Royal Arch , " as the translation and equivalent of " Arche Royale . " It is hist

possible , and that fact , probably , explains the great difference between the " working" of the "Ancients" and the " Aloderns " in that respect . Dunkcrley's workingvvas identical in part , though not fully , with our present working , which was re-arranged in 1 S 13 , or thereabouts , when the " antient working , " which , no doubt , in some respects is identical with a foreign Grade , was entirely n-iven up , and

Dunkerley ' s old "working" maintained , and developed , and completed . We , therefore , greatly doubt Ramsay's influences on English Alasonry , or even the High Grades . A High Grade of some kind vvas known in London in 1721 , if it be not the " Royal Arch , " ( though we think clearly not ) , as it has been suggested , to which the author of " Long- Livers" alluded . Neither can we aorec to the

statement that in Great Britain the use of " Marks" was universal . It vvas so in Scotland , but not in England or Ireland . The use of " Alarks" in English lodges , ( in our so far sparse and unsatisfactory history ofthe past ) , is comparatively late ; certainly not before the end of the eighteenth century , with one exception at Alnwick , which is near Scotland , and where we find it in 1704 . The Enerlish

use is undoubtedly so far as is yet known , practically late eighteenth century . There are many other points to which we might allude , but they perhaps are better fitted for our " Notes and Queries . " With these allowable-reservations and many more , indeed , vve have read with interest the third edition of the " Freemasons' Afanual by Bro . How as published by Bro . Hogg .

WARD AND LOCK'S UNIVERSAL INSTRUCTOR . Cd . monthly . Ward and Lock , Salisbury-square , London . The first two numbers of this work are now before the public , and we scarcely know which to admire most , the enterprise of the publishers in preparing such an exhaustive programme of instruction at such a small cost , or the way in which the various writers have succeeded in carrying out that programme so far . No branch of study appears to be

Reviews.

overlooked , and the student , whether desirous of acquiring general knowledge or devoting himself to special subjects , will find all his wants in these crowded pages .

THE BRITISH AND COLONIAL PRINTER AND STATIONER . 5 , Ludgate Circus Buildings , London . The winter number of this publication has just been sent us , and vve know of no other production which show so well the advances that have been made in the Typographical Art during the past few years . The

"display " is perfectly unique , and will be of great use to those printers who desire to advance with the times , and present their work as a thing of beauty as well as utility . The contents , too , seem worthy of the letterpress . _ Notes upon trade concerning this country and the colonies , and other matters interesting to printers and stationers , are also dealt with .

Literary, Art, And Antiquarian Notes.

Literary , Art , and Antiquarian Notes .

A notice of the life-work of the late Sir Benjamin Brodie appears in Nature , signed "H . E . R ., " presumably from the pen of Professor Roscoe . The Paris Solon is being- seriously reformed at last , and in addition to the decision not to admit more than 2500 pictures , it has been further determined to abolish the privileges of certain artists whose works were exempt from examination , and entitled to a place on the walls , whatever

their merits . Artists may now send any number of pictures ; while works of industrial art—including porcelain , goldsmiths' productions , bronze-work , & c . —will also be admitted to the Exhibition . The plan of a triennial Salon has been abandoned in favour of a decennial Exhibition , the first of which will take place in 1 SS 4 . Wc are pleased to note that Bro . R . A . Douglas Lithgoiv , LL . D ., F . R . S . L ., & c , is engaged in editing an

edition of the poetical works of John Critchlcy Prince . Prince belongs to the class of artizan poets , but the perfect melody of his verse and its intellectual quality show no sign of "class , " although he has contributed as much as most men to the literature of labour . The biography which Bro . Litbgow will add to this edition will give lor the

first time in detail particulars of Prince ' s life , which will unfold in all its simplicity the history of a man whose career was a continual struggle against the direst poverty and temptation , and whose failures are full of pathetic interest . "The work is to bc published , by subscription , by Abel Heywood and Son , Manchester .

ROYAL INSTITUTION OF G REAT BRITAIN . — The following are the arrangements for the Friday evening meetings before Easter , 1 SS 1 : —January 2 r , Mr . Warren De La Rue , D . C . L ., F . R . S ., Sec . R . I ., "The Phenomena of the Electric Discharge with 14 , 000 Chloride of Silver Cells ; " January 2 S , Dr . Andrew Wilson , F . R . S . E ., "The Origin of Colonial Organisms ; " February 4 , Dr . Arthur Schuster , F . R . S ., "The Teachings of Alodern Spectroscopy ; " February 11 , Air . Roberts . Ball , LL . D ., F . R . S ., "The Distances of the Stars ; " February iS , Sir John

Lubbock , M . P ., D . C . L ., F . R . S ., M . R . I ., " Fruits and Seeds ; " February 25 , Dr . J . S . Burdon-Sanderson , LL . D ., F . R . S ., "Excitability in Plants and Animals ;" Alarch 4 , Sir William Thomson , LL . D ., F . R . S ., " Elasticity viewed as Possibly a Mode of Motion ; " March 11 , uncertain ; March iS , W . H . Stone , M . D ., "Afusical Pitch and its Determination ; " Alarch 25 , Mr . Alexander Buchan , ALA ., F . R . S . E ., Sec . Met . Soc . Scot ., "The Weather and

Health of London ; " April 1 , uncertain ; Aprils , Professor Tyndall , D . C . L ., F . R . S ., M . R . I . The Friday arrangements depend in great measure on the free kindness of eminent men , whose time is subject to the sudden claims of public or professional duty . They arc therefore liable to change . The discourse for each Friday will bc announced in Tlie Times of the Tuesday previous . The doors will be open at 8 o'clock ; the discourse will begin at 9 o ' clock . Professors Tyndall and Dewar will lecture after Easter .

THE NATIONAL GALLERY . —Mr . Burton ' s tenure of office in thc National Gallery has again been signalised by the acquisition of a famous and beautiful picture , one of those which every student would covet tor the English collection . It is the large Leonardo da Vinci known as "La Vierge aux Rochers , " which was lent by the late possessor , the Earl of Suffolk , to the Royal Academicians in 1 S 70 , when it vvas No . 6 , and hung in gallery No 1 , at

, Burlington-house . Itiswell known that there are two versions of the design—that which is now in the National Gallery waiting to take a p lace on a wall in one of the public rooms , and that other which is in the Long Gallery of the Louvre , and belonged to Francis I . Desnoycrs engraved and Bodmcr lithographed the latter version , and Desnoyer's print is a masterpiece . It has been much disputed which is the superior picture . There is a preponderance of opinion

in favour of the former , a judgment in which , having carefully examined both , we are able to concur . To take the highest element of the painting , the faces are better in the work from Charlton Park , and the drawing throughout is better . Dr . Waagen , however , vvas probably right in recognising the hand of a pupil in much of the background , and the picture has gained nothing from a flood of brown varnish , which might , wc suppose , be safely removed .

Lomazzo , who , within 70 years of Leonardo ' s death , saw the painting in the Capella della Concezione in the Church of St . Francesco at Milan , described it as the work of Da Vinci , and by the name of the "Concezione . " In 1796 Air . Gavin Hamilton bought it out of the chapel for thirty ducats , and some time afterwards sold it to the Earl of Suffolk for a much larger sum . VVe believe the nation has paid jeCoooo—a price which is decidedly below the value of

this important work . It vvas at the British Institution in 1 S 51 , and again in 1856 . In Air . Holford ' s collection is a head of the Virgin painted in brown , and so closely resembling that in this picture as to justify the idea that it is the study for the principal portion . The head was No . 144 of the Manchester Art Treasures . " La Vierge aux Rochers " is supposed to have been executed in 14 S 3 . Two anuels at

the side are represented in the Melzi Collection at Milan . There are several copies in public museums—e . g ., at Nantes . There are drawings in the gallery at Turin and at Windsor Castle which evidently refer to this picture , and exhibit some variations in the design . Nagler , " Kunstler-Lexicon , " xx . 329 , says that other drawings of this order , executed in black chalk on blue paper , are at Chatsworth . Atheweum .

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