Installation Of Earl De Grey And Ripon As Grand Master.

his back the goodwill , the confidence , and the good wishes of hundreds of thousands of his fellow-men . The influence of the Grand Lodge of England extends throughout the habitable globe . Looking to the events of the past , looking to the' enormous interest of our charities , looking to your happy

fortune in having gone through some troubles And many anxieties , you see us all at last happy , content , and prosperous ; and last , but not least , the most gratifying circumstance that during your reign our Prince , the future king of this great empire —( immense applause)—looking , I say , my lord ,

to the happy circumstance that our Prince , in the words of our ancient charge , has not thought it derogatory either to patronise our mysteries and even join in our assemblages—I say , looking to these circumstances , it is not too much to claim that your lordship ' s name will ever be inseparably connected

with some of the brightest days in the annals of Freemasonry . My lord , in the name of all the brethren , absent as well as present , I beg to offer you this gift—this deed , and that little present . In their name I beg to assure you of our gratitude , respect , and affection ; in their name I venture to add an

anxious and heartfelt hope that you may long be spared to gladden us by your presence , to aid and sustain us with your counsel and advice . ( Cheers . ) Sir ALBERT WOODS presented the deed , the banker ' s book , and the inkstand to the Earl of Zetland .

The Earl of ZETLAND ( whose utterance was choked by his emotion ) said ; Most Worshipful Grand Master , for your favours I can only return my grateful thanks ; and for the kindness ofthe Zetland Memorial Committee and those in connection with it for the very handsome gift which they have

presented to me on this occasion , I also beg to tender my best acknowledgments . I feel assured that no brother would suppose it was from any motives of pride that I refused a gift of money from those whom I have so long known , and who have wished to pay so high a compliment to me . But ,

brethren , I thought that although I should like to have some slight memorial of thc goodwill of my brethren that I might hand down to my successors ; yet I did feel that I should act a selfish part if I appropriated to myself money which I did not want , and which I thought might form a fund for

the benefit of poorer members of the Craft , and which might be distributed far more beneficially than on worldly goods for myself . I could not reconcile to myself the receiving of such a gift . Brethren , I hope this fund , as Bro . Havers said , may accumulate , and do much good to our poorer

brethren , and to those who once in prosperity may be overtaken by calamity and fall into distress . It is naturally a very proud thing for me that during my Mastership the Masonic charities have flourished so much ; and I really do hope that this handsome memorial will , as Bro . Havers suggested , form thc

nucleus for further Masonic chanties being in thc hands of future Grand Masters . With regard to the inkstand which has been presented to me , I should say that the committee expressed a wish to me that I should say what kind of memento or memorial I should desire ; and my idea was a

thing of this sort . Not wishing to take much from thc fund , the great part of which I wished to go for the benefit of Masonic charity , I said that I thought 20 guineas would be ample to produce something that might be handed down to my successors , and would bcinuch better than any other ;

at the same time that thc fund would not be made to suffer . I thank you most sincerely for this very handsome memorial , ancl I beg to assure you that while I live I shall ever be mindful of my brethren , who have so ably supported me during my tenure

of office ; and I always shall bc anxious to do what 1 can for the benefit of the Craft in general . ( Cheers . ) The Grand Master then closed Grand Lodge in ample form .

At the banquet which followed , the Earl of Zetland presided , surrounded by the Grand Officers and nearly 400 brethren , and when the cloth was drawn , grace was sung by the professional brethren and ladies , who assisted Grand Organist . The EARL of ZETLAND then said : Brethren , you

will all anticipate the toast which I am about to give you , and I have no doubt you will all drink it with the honour due to it , and with loyal and affectionate regard for thc person of her who is the subject of it . We have been honoured this day , for thc first time , with thc presence of the Prince of Wales at

the Grand Festival . I am sure every brother present must have rejoiced lo see a prince , the heir to the Crown , taking such an interest in Freemasonry as he does —( cheers , )—and knowing the patronage which Her Most Gracious Majesty thc Queen , has

extended to Masonry , and to thc Charities ol Masonry , we must all feel how much wc owe to the patronage of thc Royal Family ; but no deeds ol this kind arc necessary to recommend this toast , because all Masons arc loyal , all Masons love our

Installation Of Earl De Grey And Ripon As Grand Master.

Queen . I give you therefore , '' The health of Her Majesty the Queen . " The National Anthem followed . The . EARL of ZETLAND : Brethren , it is now my pleasing duty to propose to you the next toast , which is , " The Prince of Wales , the Princess of Wales and all the Royal Family . " I am sure you

will all drink this toast with the most grateful and kind feelings , because I know that not only the Prince of Wales , but the Princess of Wales , and thc other members of the Royal Family must all be dear to the hearts of Masons , seeing not only how much the Prince has endeared himself by joining our Fraternity , but the interest which you , in common

with all England , must take in the members of the Royal Family which has so long and so advantageously presided over the destinies of this country , and in whom we as Masons , above all others , takethe most lively interest . I give you , " The health ofthe Prince and Princess of Wales , and the rest of the Royal Family . "

The EARL of ZETLAND : Brethren , I claim your special silence for this toast . I have to propose to you a toast which must be most interesting to every Mason . It is the first time this toast has been given in reference to the Earl De Grey and Ripon . I have now to propose to you , " The Earl De Grey and Ripon as Most Worshipful Grand Master , " and

in doing so , I trust you will drink this toast with very peculiar satisfaction . The Earl De Grey and Ripon lias served as Deputy Grand Master for a lengthened period of seven or eight years ; he has been elected by the Grand Lodge of England unanimously , without hesitation ; and I have to express my strong opinion , that abetter Grand Master could

possibly not have been elected —( hear , hear , )—and I fee " , confident that he will fulfil all the hopes that his sanguine friends could entertain of his capability , and his peculiar adaptation for the high honour you have conferred upon him . To me it is most gratifying , indeed , to find that he has been chosen as my successor . He has acted with me as Deputy Grand

Master , for—I do not recollect thc exact period , but for seven or eight years- * during which time he has afforded me thc most efficient aid in my duties , and has ever shown himself willing to take off my hands those onerous duties which I was always anxious to perform myself , but which on occasions I have been unable to fulfil . Whenever that has been the case

he has come forward most willingly and most anxiously to do my duties . ( Hear , hear . ) On all occasions , on the difficult questions which have been submitted to me with regard to the rule of the Craft , I have consulted the present Most Worshipful Grand Master , andhavealwaysfoundhim ready and willing to take up questions , and to discuss them in the

most efficient manner , and he and I have always acted most harmoniously together . I can say this , that on no single occasion have we differed in opinion . ( Hear , hear . ) It is , therefore , you may conceive , most gratifying to me to know that without any expression of opinion of my own , he has been unanimously elected to thc important office of

Grand Master of England . If you will take my opinion as worth anything , I will tell you that I believe you could not have elected any nobleman or any man in this country more capable , more willing , more desirous , and more anxious to act for thc benefit and good of the Craft , than thc present Most Worshipful Grand Master . ( Hear , hear . )

Therefore 1 give you , with thc utmost confidence that you will coincide with me in my opinion , "The health of thc Most Worshipful Grand Master . ' The KARI . of DALHOUSIE : Most Worshipful Senior ancl Junior Wardens and Brethren , as this is a toast which can scarcely emanate from thc chair , thc duty of proposing it has been placed in my

hands , and I need scarcely say to you , that it is a duty which I undertake with very great satisfaction . The toast which I have to propose to you is to " The health of the Past Grand Masters of thc Grand Lodge of England . " ( Hear , hear . ) Brethren , in my knowledge of the festivals of Grand Lodge , which extends over a period of upwards of thirty years , I

have never jet heard this toast proposed in Grand Lodge . It is only recently that wc have had admitted into Grand Lodge a Past Grand Master , and he was admitted as a testimony of Grand Lodge of loyalty to thc throne of England ; and thc appointment was accepted by His Royal Highness thc Prince of Wales as a mark of his confidence in

that loyalty . ( Hear , hear . ) But now , brethren , we have a second Past Grand Master —( hear , hear , )—to whom is due the tribute of our gratitude . For upwardsof twenty-five years he ruled supreme by thc unanimous choice of the Masons of England , o \ cr thc Craft in this country . He ruled it with a sway at once firm , gentle , and at thc same time conducive

to the best interests of the Craft . ( Hear , hear . ) And brethren , when you came to thc conclusion , that ( at his own request , ) it was necessary solvere suain sancte requiem , summum , you have sent him to his retirement this clay , from the high office that he held , convinced that his labours of fivc-and-twenty years have been appreciated by that Craft over which he so worthily presided . If it is , brethren , a gratifica-

Installation Of Earl De Grey And Ripon As Grand Master.

tion to him to retire under such circumstances , what a delightful reflection it must be to you , and to me , and to all of us , to see him retire with vigour still unimpaired —( hear , hear , )— with eye still undimncd , capable of rendering to thc position which he has voluntarily assumed , duties and benefits to

the Craft at large still . ( Cheers . ) I will not further enlarge upon this topic , but I will ask you to drink in a flowing bumper , " Long life still to our \* enerable Past Grand Master , and may he enjoy in his retirement all those blessings which we Masons most sincerely wish him . " ( Cheers . )

The EARL of ZETLAND : Brethren , I hope you will indulge me with silence that I may endeavour to express the gratification I feel at the manner in which you have received this toast . I would cordially assure you that I have not words to express my feelings on this occasion . ( Hear . ) After having

presided over the Craft for six-and-twenty yearsnot five-and-twenty , as my noble and good friend has said—it is beyond my power to express the gratification I feel at the kind welcome which you have accorded to thc toast so kindly , and in so friendly a manner proposed by my noble friend and

brother on my right hand . I assure you— I think I need hardly assure you , because you gave me credit for it by the way in which you have received the toast—that since I have had the honour of presiding as Grand Master over the Craft in England , it has been my constant and most anxious desire to

do my duty to thc best of my power to the Craft , and if I have succeeded in performing that duty to the satisfaction of the Craft in general , and to my friends in particular , I must ascribe it to the kind assistance that I have derived from some very able brethren who are most anxious

for the prosperity of thc Craft , and who have given me their kind advice on every occasion on which 1 have asked it ; and it is mainly to having made a choice of able and good friends that has put it in my power to do those onerous duties which have devolved on me to thc satisfaction of the Craft in

general ; and it is to me a source of thankfulness that I have been enabled to surround myself with friends and brethren , who knowing my anxious desire to act and to perform my duties in the most efficient manner , have advised me to act as 1 have done . Because I think I may say that when a

Minister of State undertakes the ruling of this great nation , the first thing he docs is to try to surround himself by . able men , and to act in accordance with " their advice in managing the affairs of the country ; and it would be a bold thing for any minister to undertake to rule thc nation by his own free will

and his own abilities alone . He must surround himself by able men who are willing to give him that assistance which a single mind is not able to embrace , but which requires a consultation , an acting together of men who may form different opinions , in order that they may decide upon those general

maxims of policy which arc necessary to conduct the affairs of a nation , and which in a minute degree—though not much less minute degree—to guide thc councils of Freemasonry . I assure you , brethren , that I do not take to myself all thc credit which has been accorded to me . I have to thank

many able and good Masons for the counsel and advice which they have given me . Brethren , thus far for myself , I assure you I appreciate most highly the manner in which I have been received and thc compliments which have been paid to me on my administration ofthe affairs of I ' rcemasonry for 26

years ; but it is also a great gratification to me to know that my name is coupled with that of an illustrious personage—the Prince of Wales . I consider it of the greatest benefit and advantage to the Craft that His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales should have condescended to join the Order , and

I believe that auspicious event to bc one of thc most important in thc history of my rule over the Craft , that at thc end of it H . R . H . thc Prince of Wales should have become a Mason and accepted thc rank of Past Grand Master , thereby identifying himself with Freemasons , and giving us the hope

that he will always , in time to come , lake a livelyinterest in thc affairs of Masonry , and thc wellbeing of the Craft . I thank you , brethren , most sincerely , and hope that I may have strength still to attend sometimes at thc banquets and thc business of this Grand Lodge . If I should bc called

upon for my opinion or advice , I can only say that it will always bc my highest gratification to do anything in my power to carry out that system of government which , as appears to me , and I think I may say to the Grand Lodge in general , to bc conducive to thc prosperity and best interests of Freemasonry . ( Cheers . )

Thc KARL of ZETLAND ; Brethren , 1 have now to propose to you thc toast of " * The Grand Lodges of Scotland and Ireland , " and in proposing that toast I have thc pleasure to notify to you that thc

Grand Master of Scotland is here present at my right hand —( great cheering)—and though 1 dare say it is known to most of you , it may not be known to all—that the Grand Master of Scotland , the Earl of Dalhousie , was for many years Deputy