Contents.

CONTENTS .

^ fa nti & tecV MMter &; .: ;;;;;" . ' . " . ' ;; : ;;;;;; : ; j + The Warrant of the Grand Master's Lodge No . r on the Register of the Grand lodge of England ) 294 Ouebecw . England 294 Sid Warrants—VIII 295 The History of the Royal Masonic Instieiinb il

tution'or Hum " » v > n .., yon , its Centenary , 1888—{ Continued ) 29 ^ The Grand Master at Blackburn 396 Grand Officers , 1888-Portraits 297 Scotland 297 South Africa 297 Notes and Queries 299 The Girls' School Centenary and the Anglo-Danish Exhibition 299

REPORTS OF MASONIC MBKTINQS — Craft Masonry ,. 299 Instruction 50 J Royal Arch 305 Instruction ,.., 306 Mark Masonry 306

Masonic Service at Swinton 306 Sir Hedworth Williamson's Silver Wedding 306 Interesting Masonic Ceremony at Hull 307 The Late Bro . Alexander Hay 307 Ireland 307 Theatres 307 Obituary 307 Masonic and General Tidings , 308 Lodge Meetings for Next Week iv .

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THE annual meeting of the Governors and Subscribers of the Masonie ° BMe . Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution will take place at the voientInstitution Freemasons' Tavern , to-day ( Friday ) , when the business to be transacted will be of the usual character . The Committee of

Management will present a full report of the proceedings of the past year , together with an audited statement of the year's receipt and expenditure , as well as a statement of the permanent resources of the Institution , and whence they are derived . It will also , in consequence of the lamented death , in March

last , of Bro . EDGAR BOWYER , P . G . Std . Br ., Treasurer , Trustee , and Patron of the Charity , become the duty of the Governors to elect a successor to that brother in the Treasurership and Trusteeship , and also a Committee of Management and Committee of Audit and Finance for the ensuing year . Scrutineers will be appointed , and then will follow the election of brethren and widows to fill the vacancies that have occurred

on the Male and Widows' Funds since the annual meeting in May , 1887—with the exception , of course , of the deferred annuities in each case to which election was made on that occasion . Of these vacancies there were declared at the February meeting of the Committee 13 Immediate and three Deferred on the Male Fund , and four Immediate and 3 Deferred on the

Widows' Fund . But in the interim six deaths on the former and eight deaths on the latter have been reported by the Secretary , and therefore the numbers to be elected to-day will be 22 men ( 19 Immediate and three Deferred ) and 15 widows ( 12 Immediate and three Deferred ) . As regards the candidates from whom the choice will be made , the lists , as finally settled

m February , comprised 6 7 for the Male Fund and 6 4 for the Widows ' Fund ; but two of the former have since died , and two of the latter hailing from West Yorkshire have been nominated annuitants by virtue of the rights of Perpetual Presentation purchased by that province in commemoration of the QUEEN ' S Jubilee , so that the proportion of vacancies to candidates will be

speaking roundly , in the case of the Male Fund one to three , and in that of the Widows' Fund one to four . Every one must regret that the conditions on which the election will be taken are so unfavourable to the poor candidates , and that so many of them will find their prospects of success deferred for at least another year . But the annuitants have been increased

m numbers so frequently and to such an extent during the past 14 years , that having regard to the sum now annually distributed in annuities alone , as well as to the fact that , successful as the Festival in February last unoubted ly was , it produced only sufficient to meet this expenditure , it clearl y wouid be most impolitic on lne part of the Committee of

anagement if it suggested any further augmentation of numbers for e Present . However , save as regards this feeling of regret for circumances which it is impossible to mitigate , and for the loss the Institution s sustained , through the death of Bro . BOWYER , we anticipate the proain

gs to-day ( Friday ) , will be , on the whole , of a highly gratifying r acter . We are confident the members of the Committee of Managewill be able to render a good account of their Stewardship , and the vemors generally will have the consolation of knowing that if they

can-• ° J- P resent carry their benevolent intentions further in behalf of to ri" , ' ^ ' Dret hren and their widows , they are nevertheless in a position c ar ge , to their utmost limit , the duties and responsibilities they have undertaken .

* m * T g appro aching ^ ^ ^ ourselves again under the necessity of calling the " Pestfvai attent ' ° f our readers to the paucity of the brethren who in ? t ? ^ vomnteered their services as Stewards at the approachfestival of the Royal Masonic Institution for BoysWhen our first article

. ISO 6 i ect a Ppeared on the 21 st April , the Board mustered in all about The 6 rs ' d a fortnight later this was increased to 160 members . of „ nrn ° 's now somewhat in excess of 170 , so that , if the present rate

\ il , j ° ress ls continued , we shall consider ourselves fortunate if the total year * t reacnes 20 ° - With the exception of 1879—Lord ROSSLYN ' S has as e " there were 20 5 Stewards—this will be the smallest Board that ed at any one of the Festivals of this Institution since the Prince of

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WALES became G . Master , while , if we reckon the Returns at the Festivals of all three Charities during the same period , we shall find the occasions on which so few brethren have given their services extremely rare—indeed , we can call to mind only one instance among the Festivals of the Benevolent Institution , and we believe there are only one or two , or it may be three ,

cases among those of the Girls' School . But what makes the position still less satisfactory is that only about one fifth of the London lodges have sent Stewards , while as regards the provinces , 20 are entirely unrepresented in the list at present , and of the 24 that are represented , only a very small proportion make anything like the appearance to which we have become

accustomed during the past 14 years . With the full knowledge we possess of the praiseworthy efforts which are being made in connection with the Girls ' School Centenary , we have always looked forward to a considerable falling off in the number who would do duty at the Festival of this Institution , but unless matters mend very considerably between now

and the 27 th June , the falling off will be far more serious than we had anticipated . We quite realise also that , when a special effort is being made in behalf of one of our Charities , the subscriptions that will find their way into the coffers of the other two will be proportionately less in amount , and the area of contribution will be more contracted . But our contention is that

the provision of the necessary supplies for the year ' s requirements is , as it were , a first charge on the benevolence of the brethren . In other words , let them contribute as generously as they please or as their means will justify , in order to meet a particular need or in honour of a special anniversary of one of the three I nstitutions , but let them not do this greater service

on behalf of the one to the neglect of the imperative requirements of the other two . The Benevolent Institution has obtained the £ 15 , 000 which is required for the payment of its annuitants , and we trust that , bad as matters look just now , the Festival of the Boys' School will yield sufficient for the maintenance , education , and clothing of the 260 pupils on its

establishment . The Chairman , Bro . Viscount EBRINGTON , Prov . G . Master of Devonshire , who has undertaken the arduous and responsible task of presiding , and his Province of Devonshire , which is striving hard to support him to the best of its ability , have a claim upon the assistance of the lodges and brethren in London and the other provinces . Moreover , we must point

out again , as we have pointed out already on numberless other occasions , the Boys' School is the least favoured of our three Charities in the matter of permanent income , which yields only about ^ 700 orat the most ^ 800 a year , and a diminution of £ 2000 or ^ 3000 in its Festivals is of greater consequence . We do hope , therefore , for the sake of the Craft , but more particularly for

the sake of the School , that when the Board of Stewards holds its second meeting on the 29 th instant , Bro . BINCKES will be in a position to speak more hopefully than hitherto of the prospects of the coming Festival of the Bovs' School .

WE are on the eve of celebrating the Centenary Anniversary Bi-Centenary of the establishment of the Royal Masonic Institution for Festival . Qj r ] S ) anc j j t was on ] v ] ast week that we published a long account of the 150 th anniversary of the Lodge of Peace and Harmony ,

No . 60 , on the roll of United Grand Lodge . But bi-centenary Masonic celebrations are of very rare occurrence , not because the Society is of comparatively modern origin , for it is quite the reverse , but because there are but few Masonic bodies now in existence which can trace their career back for 200 years and upwards . The majority of these

few the Grand Lodge of Scotland is fortunately able to number in its ranks , and elsewhere in our columns will be found a short report of the celebration by the Leith and Canongate Lodge , an offshoot of the Lodge of Edinburgh , No . I . ( Mary ' s Chapel ) , of the 200 th anniversary of its constitution . There was , as may be supposed , a large gathering of the Craft in honour of so

unusual an occasion , while the presence of Bro . Col . Sir A . CAMPBELL , M . W . G . M . of Scotland , and many of his Grand Office Bearers testified to the importance attached to the anniversary by the rulers of the Craft north of the Tweed . We congratulate the lodge on the admirable manner in which the proceedings were conducted , and we hope its third century will be as prosperous as the two that have passed .

# » The British AN urgent appeal is being made to the general public in aid Ophthalmic 0 f the funds of the British Ophthalmic Hospital which was Jerusalem , established at Jerusalem in 1882 under the auspices of the

English branch of the Order of St . John , and the authorities of which are anxious to erect more commodious premises on some suitable site in the Holy City . The cause is a good one and well worthy of support . The

Hospital already enjoys the protection of the Sultan and the patronage of the Prince of WALES , and we trust that Bro . Sir EDMUND LECHMERE , Bart ., M . P ., Prov . G . Master of Worcestershire , who is greatly interesting himself in order to secure the success of the appeal , will receive a