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CONTENTS . PAGE LKA DSRSRespecting the Grand Mastership ... ... ... ... S 9 The Festival of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Instituton ... ... 89 Masonic Jurisprudence ... ... ... ... ... ... 90

Special Grand Lodge ... ... ... ... ... - ... 91 Grand Mark Lodge ... ... ... ... ... - ... 92 Provincial Grand Mark Lodge of Derbyshire ... ... ... 93 Provincial Grand Mark Lodge of Sussex .. ... ... ... 94 Provincial Grand Lodge of Sussex ... ... ... ... ... 94 Our New Grand Master ... ... ... ... ... 94

T HB C RAFT ABROADFreemasons at the Calcutta Cathedral ... ... ... ... 94 Wills and Bequests ... ... .. ... ... ... 94 Science , Art , and the Drama ... ... ... ... ... 95 MASONIC N

OTESSpecial Grand Lodge ... ... ... ... ... 97 Special Grand Mark Lodge ... ... ... ... ... 97 Annual Festival of the Emulation Lodge of Improvement ... ... 97 Special Meeting of the Provincial Grand Lodge of Warwickshire ... 97 Annual Meeting oi the Drury Lane Lodge , No . 2127 ... ... 97 Death of Bro . Thomas Barnes , P . M . ... ... ... ... 97

Correspondence ... ... ... ... ... ... gS General Committee of Grand Lodge and Board of Benevolence ... ... 9 8 Royal Arch ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 98 Craft Masonry ... ... ... ... .. ... ... 99 Mark Masonry ... .., ... ... ... ... 101 Allied Masonic Degrees ... ... ... ... ... ... 101 Instruction ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 101 Masonic and General Tidings ... ... ... ... ... 102

Respecting The Grand Mastership.

RESPECTING THE GRAND MASTERSHIP .

There are doubtless many reasons why a Sovereign should not retain an ofiice which hc had held as a subject , albeit his tenure of that ollice had been attended with honour to himself

and the greatest possible benefit to the Society over which he presided . But we feel confident that no better or more sufficient reason will be forthcoming for his non-retention of the Grand

Mastership of English I ' reemasons than that , in the pressure of those multifarious duties which will now devolve upon him as King , it will no longer be in his power to discharge thc duties of that exalted position with the same satisfaction to himself as

hitherto . If we have read the past career ol his Majesty aright , there is no man throughout the length and breadth of the British Empire who has a higher sense of duty than King EDWARD VII . It is the plain unvarnished truth to say that his Mai est ) ' has

never undertaken a duty which he felt that lu ; could not perform , and that liaving undertaken it , he has spared no effort within his ability to discharge effectively the obligation he had contracted . We Freemasons of England who

have been under his MAJESTY ' S rule as M . W . G . Master for more than a quarter of a century are well assured of this fact , none , indeed , can know or realise the full force of this statement better than ue ; and for this reason it is that we regret the imperative

necessity in which his MAJESTY has felt himself placed of resi gning a position in which he has gained such lionour , and which has been attended with such inestimable advantage to our Society . At the same time , wc feel that the KING has adopted

the right course in following the precedent set by his predecessor on the throne , GEORGE IV ., the uncle of our late gracious Soverei gn . As Prince of WALES it was possible for him , as a Mason , to be our Grand Master ; as KING lie is Grand Master of

all his subjects . At thesametime whilewc recognise that we cannot expect from the Sovereign any greater measure of consideration tnan he is able to mete out to other communities of his subjects , u'e have the fullest reason for rejoicing over the fact that the

special tie which has bound his Majesty to us for so many years will not be entirely severed , and that he will continue , as heretofore , to be the gracious Protector of our Grand Lodge . Moreover , we have every reason to congratulate ourselves on

Respecting The Grand Mastership.

the good fortune which awaits us in the near future . His Majesty has vacated the office of M . W . Grand Master , and has become our Protector , but the Royal Craft of Masonry will still have a Royal member to preside over it in

the person of the KING ' S brother , H . R . H . the Duke of CONNAUGHT , K . G ., who was initiated into our mysteries in 18 74 , and who as Senior Grand Warden in 18 77 , Provincial Grand Master of Sussex since 1 S 86 , and District Grand Master of

Bombay since 188 7 , and more recently still as M . W . Past Grand Master , has rendered the most signal services to English Freemasonry . We offer our most respectful homage to his Royal

Highness the M . W . Grand Master nominate , nor can wc have a scintilla of doubt that under his auspices , as under those of his Majesty the KING , the Society of English Freemasons will enjoy a like measure of prosperity .

The Festival Of The Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution.

THE FESTIVAL OF THE ROYAL MASONIC BENEVOLENT INSTITUTION .

If in ordinary circumstances it is deemed unwise to undertake the role of prophet , still more unwise must it be to venture on such a part when the circumstances of the time are likel y to prove unfavourable . To the heavy demands which are pressing upon all classes of the community owing to the continuance of

the struggle in South Africa must now be added the stress upon the trade and commerce of the country caused by the lamented death of our late beloved Sovereign ; and if last year we had doubts as to the effect of the war upon the results of our three ereat Anniversary Festivals , still more doubtful must those

results appear to us when the whole country is 111 mourning . Still , if in the face of untoward circumstances thc Festivals of 1900 were , as a whole , more satisfactory than they had been known lo be for many years , it is quite on the cards that liie

prospects for the present year may not prove- so gloomy . On Wednesday next the first of these important annual fixturesthe Festival of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution—will be celebrated at Freemasons' Tavern under the presidency of the

Earl of WARWICK , Dep . Grand Master of England , Prov . Grand Master of Essex , and it will be our privilege next week to record the result which may then be achieved . It may be premised that his lordship and Ihe Board of Stewards will spare no effort

in order to ensure a successful return , and we are glad to be in a position to announce that the Board , though falling short by a score or two of members of last years' total is about 540 or 550

strong as compared with the 600 and odd of ladies and brethren who did duty in 1900 . The Chairman ' s Province of Essex , as may be surmised from its past record , is well represented , and so likewise are many of the other Provinces and London .

Hence we are encouraged to hope that rather more than the actual deficiency of income amounting to between £ 14 , 000 and £ 15 , 006 will be forthcoming , and that to this extent at all events , all anxiety on the part of the

Committee of Management of the Institution will be set at rest for the current year . But , as we mentioned in our article of a fortnight since , notwithstanding the additional annuities created by the Committee in 18 99 and last year , there is a

woeful disproportion between the number of old men and widows who are seeking admission to thc Institution and the number of vacancies that will be available at thc annual election in May . For the Male Fund there are 50 candidates , of whom

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Now Ready . —The Cosmopolitan Masonio Calendar for 1901 . Price 1 / -, by post 1 / 1