The D.G.M. Of Canada At The Quatuor Coronati Lodge.

THE D . G . M . OF CANADA AT THE QUATUOR CORONATI LODGE .

The following address was delivered by Bro . Ross R OBKRTSON , D . G . M . Canada , at the recent meeting of the above lodge : — R . W . Sir and Brethren , —Words fail to express the gratification I feel in being present with my brethren of Quatuor Coronati Lodge this evening , a p leasure enhanced by the fact that I have the honour of being a

member of the Correspondence Circle . The kindl y words spoken by yourself and Bro . Gould inspire me with the feeling that I am at home , and assure me that , although remote from my own jurisdiction , I am with those who , in thought and speech , are united to me by the bond that cements the fellowship of Canadian Craftsmen with that of those who first

received light at an altar of the mother Grand Lodge of the world—the United Grand Lodge of England . Gladly , indeed , did I postpone a visit to the French Capital , with its Eiffel Tower and array of attractions , to be present with my brethren of this lodge who are doing so much for Craft lore , giving , as they are ,

renewed life to those who like myself are delving into the bygone days of the Craft , to find facts that will g ive the modern Mason a knowledge of the work of the veterans of old , who , in the earl y times , carried the banner of the Craft , and have planted it on the pedestal of victory—in the centre of a jurisdiction that we are

proud to hail as Mother , where the pure princi ples of our Order are exemplified in the truest sense—an example to be emulated by the Masonic world at large . We , as Canadians , are proud of our ancestors in the dear old land , and although we inscribe on the banners which hang on our outer walls " Canada for the Canadians , "

yet for our kinsmen and Craftsmen on this side of the Atlantic—be they English , Irish , or Scotch—we have the feeling that we hail from one common stock , the subjects of an empire that is climbing up to perfection in art , science , and literature , having within its realms a myriad of Craftsmen loyal to the old flag and faithful

to the obligations of the Order we all love so well . My visit here this evening is indeed to me one that will be long remembered . You , W . Sir and Bro . Gould , have said many pleasant words for the Grand Lodge of Canada and for myself as Deput y Grand Master , and from my heart I thank you . Indeed , I feel that I

would fail in my duty did I not convey the fraternal message that you send to our Grand Master . He is not personally known to many of you , but I can assure you that M . W . Bro . R . T . Walkem is a brother that we delight to honour , the unanimous choice of a thousand Craftsmen in Grand Lodge assembled ,

an exemplar in his dail y life and Masonic work of all that should endear him to his brethren . Our Grand Master is one whose endeavour is to discharge his duty on the lines laid down in the ancient charges , and within a few months many of you will have the pleasure of meeting him , as he purposes visiting

Brjtain during the coming winter . For the Canadian Craft let me say that although we are young in years , and cannot look very far into the vista of the past for our antiquity , yet we have a history—and one full of interest , and some day soon the types may tell our story as yours has been , and so well , told by my friend ,

Bro . Gould . We hope in 18 92 to celebrate our centennial . In our work our desire is to emulate all that is good—all that endears Masons one to another , and stand , as we hope we do , at the front of all fraternal organisations in the world . With 3 60 lodges and 20 , 000 Craftsmen in the Grand Lodge of Canada in the

Province of Ontario , with 5000 Royal Arch Masons and 80 chapters , with a score of preceptories , and nearly 2000 Templars , we are surely , as our American cousins would say , keeping up with the procession , endeavouring to avoid as much as possible the mistake of making too many members , and not enough Masons . Our

membershi p is active , and by visits of Grand Officers to all parts of the jurisdiction , we hope to inspire with new zeal the active Craftsmen , and quicken those who lag by the way and need but an hel ping hand and a kindl y word to lead them to success . Our friend , Bro . Gould , made an allusion to-ni ght to the work of Relief

pertinent to an application made by a brother in distress , and Bro . Junior Warden has used a term familiar to all engaged in the work of relief , when he speaks of not encouraging " the Masonic tramp . " We in Canada and in the States have a peremptory method of dealing with the tramp through the medium of the General

Board of Relief of the United States and Canada . 1 'his Association is comprised of representatives from aH Grand Lodges and local Boards of Relief that affiliates in this Association on payment of one half-penny Per head for the entire membership . Thus , the Grand Lod ge of Canada , with 20 , 000 members , pays § 200 per

year . When brethren who are unworth y apply , we take their names , ages , and description . This is sent by the Secretary of the local board to the General Secretary at Baltimore , U . S . This officer then sends out monthly to all subscribing members a printed circular , with a list and accurate description of all the tramps for the month

. In three years we have caught about 800 , and ln that time we estimate we have saved the Craft b y our warnings the sum of $ 20 , 000 . We have so few 'ramps calling now at Toronto that we hope in a year to take the photograph of " the last Masonic tramp " to feep as a souvenir of , as we call him"the Masonic

, ourist . " But I am wearing out my welcome , and you ? so patient and appreciative that in closing , I know 11 will please English Masons to know that in 25 years we have expended nearly § 200 , 000 in the relief of the v 'dows and orphans of those of our brethren who have Passed away . It is our pride to think that these

The D.G.M. Of Canada At The Quatuor Coronati Lodge.

beneficiaries have a claim upon us , for have they not been left to us as a sacred charge for the Craft to shield ? Many brethren are sometimes inclined to minimise the influence of the Craft . The work of Masonry is , however , not seen to its best advantage in the days of peace and prosperity , but the darker the night of human sorrow the brighter shines the light of

the Craft . We are earnest in our work , and if we cannot pour the oceans of gold into the lap of Charity , as the generous Craftsmen of England do , we give as we are able , and in our gifts we try to remember the lesson taught us in the Book of Books , " that he who shutteth his ear to the cry of the poor and needy , shall cry himself , and not be heard . " The R . W . brother sat down amid loud applause .

West Lancashire Masonic Educational Institution.

WEST LANCASHIRE MASONIC EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION .

On Thursday , the 3 rd inst ., the Annual Court of Governors of this Charity was held at the Masonic Hall , Hope-street , Liverpool , and was very numerously attended . Bro . Councillor Houlding , P . P . G . R ., presided .

The minutes of the last Court of Governors , and also of the General Committee , were confirmed , which involved the election of the children who were mentioned therein . The accounts were passed , and the children on the foundation re-elected . Bro . J . Callow , P . P . G . T ., was re-elected honorary Treasurer . Bros . G . Broadbridge , P . P . G . D . C . ; T . H .

W . Walker , P . P . G . T . ; and Capt . Macnab , I . P . M . 241 , were again chosen honorary Secretaries . It was resolved Bros . H . W . Johnston , E . Pierpoint , P . P . J . G . W . ; W . Goodacre , P . G . Sec ; and Thos . Salter , P . P . S . G . D ., should be the Auditors for the next Court . Bros . Drs . J . Kellett Smith , Christian , Irvine , Pitts , and White were re-appointed honorary medical officers .

On the motion of Bro . G . BROADBRIDGE , seconded by Bro . T . SALTER , Bro . Dr . J . Kellett Smith was unanimously elected Trustee , vice Bro . Lord Stanley of Preston , resigned in consequence of foreign service . The TREASURER stated that the funds for the period since the date of the Court had been changed , nine

months ago , were £ 1376 , as against £ 1196 in the corresponding period of last year . Bro . R . H . Leake was re-elected honorary legal adviser , and 30 members were selected to sit on the General Committee . Four children were elected on the foundation , and it

was stated that several of the present pupils had passed the Oxford local examinations with credit . A vote of thanks to the officers was responded to by Bro . CALLOW . It was resolved that the annual ball in aid of the

Institution should be held in January , and that all W . M . ' s , Principals , & c , should be notified therefore . A hearty vote of thanks was unanimously accorded to Bro . Houlding , P . P . G . R ., for his conduct in the chair , and the proceedings terminated . +

Lancaster United Masonic Charities Association.

LANCASTER UNITED MASONIC CHARITIES ASSOCIATION .

A meeting of the members of the above Association was held , on the 4 th instant , in the Masonic Hall , Church-street . There was not a large attendance . The Association — which numbers 35 subscribers — has been formed of members belonging to the lodges in Lancaster who agree to give 5 s . annuall y in aid of the

three West Lancashire Masonic Charities , namely , the West Lancashire Educational Institute , the West Lancashire Hamer Benevolent Fund , and the West Lancashire Alpass Benevolent Institution . A subscription of one guinea confers a Life-Governorship of any of the above Institutions .

A copy of by-laws for the guidance of the Association was read and approved , and the following officers elected : Bros . Dutton , I . P . M . 1353 , Chairman ; C . F . Seward , P . M . 1051 , Treas . ; and G . Kelland , P . M . 282 , Sec .

The brethren then proceeded to ballot for six Life-Governorships of the above Institutions , with the following result : Bros . P . Dutton , 1353 , Educational Institute ; Dr . Wingate Saul , 281 , Hamer Benevolent Fund ; R . Nicholson , 281 , Alpass Benevolent Institute ; H . Haigh , 1353 , Hamer Benevolent Fund ; Capt . Garnett , 10 5 , Educational Institute ; and J . R . B . Pilkington , 281 , Alpass Benevolent Institute .

The Poet Burns.

THE POET BURNS .

The holiday season and other causes have prevented me sooner taking notice of my friend Bro . McKenzie ' s letter of the 6 th , and published in the Freemason of the 13 th July last . He now founds strongly on the circumstance as establishing his contention of certain eminent brethren , named by him , having been

members of the lodge over certain periods embracing the date of the alleged election and installation of Burns as Poet Laureate of the lodge , and on their not having publicly contradicted the assertion . But before such an argument can have wei ght , it must be shown that

they knew of the assertion , and had at the same time the means of knowing its truth or falsity . It is well known that many noblemen and gentlemen become members of lodges , and cease afterwards to take interest in their affairs . The general and indefinite statement , made incidentally in an appeal for subscrip-

The Poet Burns.

tions , that Burns " had been Poet Laureate of the lodge , " was made for the first time 28 years after his alleged election and inauguration , and very few persons would in such circumstances be in a position or care either to contradict or affirm it . In the " History of the Lodge Canongate

Kilwinning" ( p . 121 ) , it is stated that Bro . Samuel Somerville , of Amplerlan , a distinguished Scottish Craftsman , " knew Brother William Petrie , of our lodge , who had been present at the inauguration of Burns as Poet Laureate , and has heard from his lips many very interesting reminiscences of the Poet , and of events

which had occurred m the lodge room when there in company with him . " This statement , if true , would be conclusive of the question , for it expressly states that Petrie witnessed the act of inauguration ! But , like every other statement made in support of this contention , it does not bear the test of investigation .

The statement was originally made in 1873 , in a letter to Bro . David Murray Lyon , by Bro . H . C . Peacock , who was then , and for several years subsequently , Secretary of the Lodge Canongate Kilwinning , and custodian of its records . Coming from such a source it was accepted without enquiry as correct , and misled our eminent Historian .

Bro . Peacock appears to have made the statement without the sli ghtest enquiry , for Bro . William Petrie was not as he stated a member of the Lodge 1 anongate Kilwinning in 1787 . He is neither recorded as such in the books of the lodge nor in the register of its members in Grand Lodge . He was then a mere

youth in humble circumstances . He was a tailor by trade , and he never rose in it , in so far as I have been able to discover , above the rank of a journeyman or operative . His social circumstances were very different from those who formed the membership of the Lodge Canongate Kilwinning . They were all men of high

social and professional position , and most unlikely to identify their associations and surroundings with a youth of Petrie ' s stamp . Bro . Murray Lyon has very kindly , at my request , been at pains to examine the Registers of Grand Lodge from 173 6 , the date of the instutition of Grand

Lodge , for many years downwards , and he has failed to find that Petrie was a member of any lodge within the Edinburgh district within the period of his search . My friend , Bro . Francis Suther Melville , D . C . S ., the oldest active member of the Lodge of Edinburgh ( Mary ' s Chapel ) , No . 1 , having informed me that he

and Bro . J . Linning Woodman , W . S ., P . M . of No . 1 , and sometime Grand Clerk of the Grand Lodge , attended Bro . Petrie ' s funeral in the churchyard of Restalrig , near Edinburgh . I caused the Burial Register of that parish to be examined , and found the following entry— " December 22 , 1 845 . Interred

William Petrie , from Union Place , Edinburgh , aged 79 . Died of old age on 21 December . " Petrie ' s age is thus ascertained as having been 21 in 17 S 7 , the date of Burns' alleged inauguration , at which he is said to have been present . Now , although so young a man , it was perfectly possible , but I think

unlikely , that he was then a member of the Craft . The History of the lodge , however , sets forth that he was " of our lodge , " and " had been present at the inauguration of Burns as Poet Laureate , " that is , that he was a member of the Lodge Canongate Kilwinning in 1787 . This vital statement is shown by the lodge ' s

records , and other circumstances , to be incorrect . If Bro . Petrie was ever a member of Lodge Canongate Kilwinning , of which there is no evidence , his intimate connection with that lodge , if it ever existed , had ceased for many years prior to his death , for he held the humble office of Outer Guard—or Tyler—of the

Lodge of Edinburgh for the long period of iS years , from December , 1827 , until his death in December , 18 45 ; it being thus shown that the fundamental statement , that Petrie was a member of the Lodge Canongate Kilwinning when Burns visited it and was inaugurated as its Poet Laureate , is untrue , the whole story ,

in so far at least as Petrie is concerned , is discredited , and falls to the ground . The second Laurie , in his History , represents Petrie as having died while holding the office of Assistant Grand Tyler , prior to St . Andrew ' s Day , 1 845 , mit tne Parish Records show that he died three weeks later .

Bro . McKenzie further founds on the statement of Marshall , that he obtained his information from Petrie , and with that object visited him " subsequent to November , 18 45 . " But Petrie was so ill prior to the annual Grand Lodge nominations , in October 1 845 ,

that he was not even renominated for office ; and as he died of " old age" on 21 st December , 1845 —• three weeks afterwards—his mental faculties at the time of such an interview , if it ever occurred , must have been greatly impaired , and render any statements Petrie may have then made of little value .

WILLIAM OFFICER . Past Grand Deacon of Scotland , Edinburgh , 15 th Oct ., 188 9 .

Bro . the Earl and Countess of Rosslyn have been cruising ' about in the English Channel in the yacht Pandora , lent them by Mr . W . H . Smith , and his lordship has already derived considerable benelit from the trip . His eldest son , Lord Loughborough , is about entering the army , having recently been up for examination at Colchester .

The Prince and Princess of Wales , accompanied by Princes Albert Victor and George , and the Princesses Victoria and Maud , arrived at Munich , en route for Athens , at S . 30 a . m . on Monday , and were received by the British Charge d'Affaires . On Tuesday morning the : < oyal party , which was travelling incognito , proceeded on their journey to Brindisi , whence they were to take ship for Athens .