Contents.

CONTENTS .

I EADEPS 3 ° S West Yorkshire and Royal Arch Masonry 3 66 Old Warrants . —IX 367 A Day wi'h tlle Grand Lodge cf the Netherlands 3 ? Provincial Grand I . odr ; e of Devonshire ... 368

provincial Grand Lodge of Lincolnshire 369 provincial Grand Lodge of Staffordshire 369 Reviews •••37 < R KPORTS OF M ASONIC M » STINGSCraft Masonry 371 Instruction 374

REPORTS OF MASONIC MEETINGS ( Continued)—Royal Arch 374 Instruction 375 Mark Masonry 375 Knights Templar 375 Comnlimei tary Dinner and Presentation

to Bro . Berther 3 J 3 Board of Benevolence 37 S Odeif Welcome 37 S Obituary 375 Masonic and General Tidings 376 Lodge Meetings for Next Week iv .

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VERY general is the sympathy felt with the Q UEEN and the Emperor members of her family , as well as with the German Imperial Frederick . fami | y ) at the loss they have sustained through the death of the Emperor FREDERICK . The latter has been twice within the period of a few months bereft of its chief , while her MAJESTY has lost a son-in-law ,

whose fame as a soldier had been established on many a battle-field , and who was generally reputed to be actuated by the most statesmanlike views in all matters concerning the honour , safety , and welfare of the Empire entrusted to his charge . Moreover , his late MAJESTY was looked upon by all as essentially the friend of peace , and for this reason it is that his death

is regarded as being so calamitous . But what had chiefly attracted towards him the sympathy of the civilised world was the heroism with which he bore his protracted sufferings , and the many thousands who were associated with him as Masons both in his own and in foreign lands have not been slow to exhibit their part in the universal sorrow . It is well-known that the deceased

Monarch in his views on Masonry , as in his views on Government , was actuated by the broadest and most philanthropic principles , and the brethren in Germany , as well as in this country , will lament his death the more sincerely from the bright anticipations they had formed as to the more immediate of Prussian Masonry under the Protectorate of a Monarch who

was so enlightened and humane . We feel that we are expressing the feeling of the whole of the English Craft , when we say that the death ol the Emperor FREDERICK is sincerely lamented by all its members , and that all without exception join in the sympathy which is ftlt with the German and English reigning families . # 2 *

The THE last of our great Charitable Festivals of the year—that Boys'School in aid of the Royal Masonic Institution for Boys—will be held festival •in the great hall of Freemasons' Tavern on Wednesday next ,

the 27 th instant . R . W . Bro . Viscount EBRINGTON , M . P ., Prov . Grand Master of Devonshire , will preside as Chairman , and we are glad to see that the Board of Stewards , which has undertaken to support his lordship , though considerably less numerous than it was last year , has at length exceeded in number the smallest that has been known in connection with this

Particular Charity during the Grand Mastership of the Piince of WALES , There were 205 Stewards in 1879 , when Bro . the Earl of ROSSLYN presided , on Wednesday next there will , in all probability , be from 210 to 215 Stewards . Considering the terrible disadvantages with which Bro . BINCKES has had to contend in organising his Board for this Festival , the slight measure of

success which he has at length been able to achieve , is something to be grateful for , and should it be likewise his good fortune to announce a total subscri ptions in excess of the lowest figure recorded during the same Period of 14 years , we shall have still greater cause for rejoicing . But the fxcitement over the Girls' School Centenary has carried everything before 1 and

> the subscri ption Vist at that Festival , which it was expected would ^ en from £ 35 , 000 to £ 40 , 000 , has fallen only a very little short of £ 51 , 000 . er > there has b ° en that series of disgraceful attacks both open and onymou * , upon t ]] e manaCrement of the Institution , to which , unfortunatel y , s been our duty to allude on several occasions . Our readers must not

of K •t t ' 16 Se ^ P asse < ^ awa y without exercising a certain amount On n ? influen ce on the School and the prospects of its coming Festival , prov" E C ? ntrar y « we know of one lodge which is not without weight in the 'arlv " rn " - ' £ s t 0—and there may be other lodges that have been simifuril , 3 ssec *—and which has been , or shottly will be , invited to withhold

ther nbutl 0 ns to the Boys'School till the slanderous statements in to exp ""/ anon }' mous circular had been met . It i ? , of course , unreasonable chanT f a res P onsib ! e executive should descend to answer the baseless what i ° 3 n anonvmous calumniator , but we are not now dealing with which a T ^ reasona ble or unreasonable expectation , but with a fact of

stated—tVi ' . ' reCt P ersonal knowledge , and it is a fact—as we have •"ined t at f one '" Agential lodge has been requested , if it has not deterw hich Via / a . ' - further supplies for the time being . Thus the poison ""agine th , nst ' fJed into the minds of those weaker brethren , who S oun ( ij e . must be some foundation for every charge , no matter how ' impost ' hi be ' aIread - & to take effect in one quarter , and ¦ We to determine to what extent it may not exercise its baneful

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influence in other quarters . We trust , however , that the bulk of the Craft will take no heed of these calumnies . We claim no infallibility of judgment for the Committee of this Institution , but we do claim for it that its administration of the affairs of the School is characterised by wisdom and discretion and disinterestedness , and as such enjoys the absolute confidence of the vast

majority of the Governors and Subscribers . We know how difficult is the task with which it is entrusted . There are about 260 boys in the School , and though the cost per boy ranges from £ 41 to £ 42 per annum , a sum of nearly £ 11 , 000 is annually required for their education , maintenance , and clothing , while the permanent income , from all sources together , is only about £ 800 .

Nor must we lose sight of the fact that in spite of the various augmentations of numbers which have taken place during the past few years , there is an everincreasing list of candidates for admission . At the election in April there were 65 candidates for 15 vacancies , and when the next election comes off in October , whatever may be the number of vacancies to be filled , it is tolerably certain there

will be from 70 to So candidates . This need not be the case , for care was taken when the Preparatory School was being erected to provide accommodation for a School of 300 boys , and it is only because the funds have not allowed of any further additions being made that the School has remained for the last year or two at the present number of about 250 . Under these

circumstances , we must hope for the best , and that to the credit of the Chairman and his board of Stewards , as well as to the advantage of the Institution itself , the issue of the 90 th Anniversary Festival on Wednesday next , will prove more satisfactory than the number of brethien who have given their services as Stewards would justify us in expecting . Those who have only

lately given in their names will have little or no opportunity for canvassing , but an additional display of energy on the part of those who have been in the field for some time may have the effect of raising the total of donations and subscriptions to something like a footing of equality with the sum required for the year ' s expenditure . It would not be the first lime a small Board

had beaten a more numerous one . In 18 76 a Board of 276 Stewards raised £ 12 , 000 , while in 188 7 one of 22 S Stewards obtained within a [ few shillings of £ 13 , 250 . Tne 239 Steward , of 18 7 S raided less than £ 10 , 150 , but the 205 of the year following obtained upwards of £ 10 , 500 . More recently still , in 1886 , 290 Stewards raised a total of ^ 12 , 690 , while last year

precisely the same number of 290 were able to raise only £ 11 , 165 . Consequently , as there is no general law which regulates the totals of our Festival Returns by the number of Stewards engaged in obtaining them , the brethren who have given their services in that capacity , in aid of this Anniversary , must not he discouraged by their paucity of number , but should regard it

rather as an incentive to that additional exertion which we have referred to already , and which , in circumstances far less hoptful than the present , has oiten enabled people toachieve results out of all proportion to their strength . However , wiiatever may be the result of next Wednesday ' s Celebration , we are confident that everyone engaged in it will do his duty to the utmost of his ability .

V THE Report of the General Board for the last half-year , to Gr Lodge ' . wn ' > owing to the demands on our time and space , we have hitherto been prevented from giving the attention it merits , contains highly satisfactory evidence of the continued prosperity of the

Mark Degree . The certificates issued during the period it treats of were 781 111 number , and warrants were granted for the constitution of five new lodges—one in London , two in the Provinces at home , one in the West Indies , and one in New South Wales . The financial position of the Grand Lodge is evidently stronger than it has ever been belore . The sums

invested for the several Funds amount to £ 9300 . The account of the General Fund shows that the receipts for the hall-year were £ 1133 , the expenditure £ 974 , and the balance remaining in hand at the close ot the period £ 672 . The sum of £ 131 was disbursed in relief of distressed brethren , the balance on the Benevolent Fund being within a fraction of £ 230 . As for the

Educational Fund , there are 13 boys and 13 girls being now clothed and educated , the sum disbursed on their account being slightly in excess of £ 245 , and the balance remaining in hand £ 134 , while the Annuity Fund , which is the most recently established of the Benevolent Funds , shows a balance on the tight side amounting to £ 105 , the annuitants on the Fund beinc four in

number . The Report further announces that the total received in respect of the Festival last year of the Mark Benevolent Fund was slightly over £ 2207 , and that , after defraying the necessary expenses , £ 705 had been paid to the Benevolent Fund , £ 705 to the Educational Fund , and £ 70443 . 9 d . to the Annuity Fund . This Mark Benevolent Fund was established in 1869 ,

Brc . BINCKES , Mark Grand Secretary , taking a principal part in its establishment , and the first Festival on its behalf , at which Bro . the Rev . Canon PORTAL . Past G . M . M . M ., and President of the General Board , presided as Chairman , yielded £ 94 , the number of brethren who gave their services as Stewards being six . Consequently the Fund , which has been in existence only 19 years , has progressed at a rate which is truly marvellous , while the