Contents.

CONTENTS .

„« , < , PAGF . LtADERSNext Week ' s Festival ... ... . - - - ° 5 Bro J . H . Drummond , Past G . Master of Maine ... ... - = 5 5

Masonic Veterans of Illinois ... ... ... - S < An Address to the Robert Burns Lodge , No . 25 ... ... ... ¦¦• Ao Ladies' Night of the Strong Man Lodge , No . 45 ... ... ••• !> s > Annual Concert of the Old Masonians ... ... ... ' ¦•¦ Sg General Committee of Grand Lodge and Board of Benevolence ... ... S > 0 Craft Masonry ... ... ••¦ ••¦ ¦¦• S 'J

M ASONIC NOTESFestival of the Emulation Lodge of Improvement ... ... ... Qt Quarterly Communication of the District Grand Lodge of Queensland ... 91 " Home of St . Barnabas" ... ... ... ... 9 t Correspondence ... ... ... ••• ¦•¦ 0 2 3

Reviews ... •¦• •¦• •¦¦ ••¦ ••¦ ••¦ 9 Craft Masonry ... ¦•• ••• ¦•• ••• ••• '> Royal Arch ... ... . - ••• •¦• • ' -H Red Cross of Rome and Constantine ... ... ... •¦• 95 Obituary ... ¦¦• ••• ••• ••• ••• 95 Our Portrait Gallery ... ... ... ¦•• ¦¦• ¦•• 05 Masonic and General Tidings ... ... ... ••• •¦¦ 9 G

Next Week's Festival.

NEXT WEEK ' S FESTIVAL .

The festival of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution will take place in the great hall of Freemasons' Tavern , on Tuesday next , the 22 nd inst ., under the presidency of Bro . the

Rig ht Hon . thc Earl of JERSEY , G . C . M . G ., Prov . G . Master of Oxfordshire , and from the announcements wc have made from time to time during the last two or three months our readers

will , no doubt , have gathered that the prospects which await us on this occasion are the reverse of encouraging . Many and many an ordinary Festival—that is lo say , one thatisuninlluenccd bv any specially favourable or unfavourable circumstances—has been held since it has devolved on us to declare so moderate a

Board of Stewards as Bro . T-ERRY has succeeded in enrolling for Tuesday next . Last year , for instance , when thc Duke of CONNAUGHT occupied the chair , there was a Board of 432

Stewards ; in 18 9 6 , a Board of 395 , which very successfully supported the chairmanship of Bro . Lord GEORGE HAMILTON ; and in 18 95 and 18 94 , under thc presidency of Bro . Viscount DUNGAR-\ Ax , Prov . G . Master of Somersetshire , and the late Bro . Col .

( ' . NOEL MONEY , C . B ., Prov . G . M . of Surrey , respectively , llie Boards were of considerable strength though less numerous han the two we have specified . In this case the ladies : i | i'l brethren who have volunteered their services do not

greatly exceed in number the half of last year s Board , and there , s i therefore , no small amount of depression among the friends : l"l supporters of the Institution , but more particularly among li 11 ' members of the Committee of Management , upon whom , in

'' conation with the Secretary and his stalf , rests the respon-M ;> ility of raising thc sum required to make good the year ' s ¦• ''fin ' ency of about £ 14 , 000 . Occasionally it happens that the S | 'ialler Board is successful in raising a total of donations and

s "'> scriptions in excess of what may reasonably be expected ; ¦ "" - £ 50 is a high list average , even when there are no special nncntives for unusual exertion in anc ther quarter , and it will "' l almost that average in order to obtain £ 10 , 000 . However ,

"' ' have no alternative but to resign ourselves to the inevitable , ' " < ' next year , perhaps , there may be such a return as will coml '' '"sate the Institution for the smallness of this year ' s total . " , ; thing is certain—that everyone , from the Chairman

down-^• 'i ' ds , will do their utmost for our Old People , as , indeed , all of K-ni have been doing their best ever since the arrangements for "esday ' s celebration were completed .

Next Week's Festival.

As regards the strength of the establishment on the two Funds , it is hopeless to suppose that any additions to the number of Annuitants will be possible . The amount disbursed in annuities alone—to say nothing of the co ^ ts of management

—is not far short of £ 16 , 500 , and if the year ' s deficiency is not forthcoming there can be no fresh annuities created . Yet the number of candidates remains as formidable as ever , while the vacancies are few . As we mentioned last week , there are Ki

approved applicants for the benefits of the Male Fund and 62 for those of the Widows' Fund , while the vacancies to be filled in May next are , thus far , only 22 in number , namely 14 on the Male and eight on the Widows' Fund , the three deferred in

each case being included . Doubtless other vacancies will occur between now and thc 20 th May , and will be filled up in the usual manner at the annual meeting , but there is little likelihood of more than about one-fourth of the 119 candidates being

elected , and therefore there will be not far short of 90 old folks in thc most urgent need of the means of support who will of necessity remain unprovided for for at least another 12 months . This state of things is greatly to be deplored , but we do not sec that anything can be done to reduce the number .

» All this we have stated in former articles , but as we have at the same time been careful to point out , our duty is to keep on pegging away , recapitulating the circumstances in which the Institution is placed , and renewing ever more and

more earnestly our urgent appeals to the brethren for that support without which these Benevolent Funds cannot be maintained at their present strength , and which , it is no more than just to say , they are at all times so ready and willing to provide .

May wc : then express thc hope that even at this late period there may be some lodges and brethren who will give their services in connection with the Festival which will take place on Tuesday , the 22 nd inst ., in behalf of that most deserving Charity , the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution !

Bro. J. H. Drummond, Past G. Master Of Maine.

BRO . J . H . DRUMMOND , PAST G . MASTER OF MAINE .

We mentioned some time since in our review of the concluding part of Volume X . " Ars Quatuor Coronatorum , " that one of the most instructive papers it contained was that in which the story of Bro . J . H . DKUMMOND ' Masonic career was

told by Bro . R . h . GOULD , and w * e promised that at no distant dale we would draw particular attention to that memoir , our reason for so doing being , firstly , that the subject of it

is one of the most distinguished among our American brethren , and in every way worthy on that account to be included in the roll of " Masonic Celebrities , " whose career have been from

time to time so ably described by Bro . GOULD ; and secondly , because the memoir itself is of general Masonic interest . It is not necessary that we should recapitulate all the claims that Bro . J OSIAH H . DRUMMOND has upon the respect of the Fraternity

at large . It will be sufficient for us to state that he has presided over each of the Grand bodies—Craft , Royal Arch , Templar , and Cryptic—which are established in his native State of Maine as well as over the General Grand Chapter of the Royal Arch and

General G . Council of Royal and Select Masters of the United States and the Supreme Council , 33 ° , of the Ancient and Accepted Rite for the Northern Jurisdiction of the U . S . A . He is , too , one of the foremost , if not the foremost , member of the Corps of American reviewers or reporters of Correspondence , and