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IP^SasojiB SATURDAY , APRIL 28 , rgoo . ,

Masonic Notes.

Masonic Notes .

The Queen , who has always taken the warmest interest in Freemasonry and is , as our readers are aware , the Patron of our Masonic Institutions in this country , paid a signal honour to the Irish Craft on

Tuesday by visiting the Masonic Female Orphan School , Ball ' s Bridge , Dublin . Her Majesty was received by Bros . Sir James Creed Meredith , Dep . G . Master , Lord justice Fit / . Gibbon , and Oliver Fry , of the Committee of the School , the Bishops of Down

Masonic Notes.

and Limerick , and Archdeacon Greeves , who with the Matron ( Miss Grant ) and the Head Governess ( Miss E . L . Jones ) were presented to her Majesty by Colonel the Hon . W . Carington , the Equerry in attendance . A beautiful bouquet having been presented by one of

thc girls—Miss E . Flood— -the Dep . Grand Master thanked her Majesty for the honour done to the Institution , and then the Queen having made sundry inquiries as to the number of children in-the School ,

took her departure amid the hearty cheers of ths 104 girls and also of the 86 pupils from the Masonic Boys' School , who lined the approach from the entrance gate . * * *

United Grand Lodge held its Grand Festival , in accordance with a custom of very many years ' standing , on Wednesday , the 25 th instant , being the Wednesday following next after St . George ' s Day ( 23 rd April ) , nor , save in one respect , was there any

departure from the usual course of proceeding . The Grand Oflicers for the ensuing year were appointed , and invested with the insignia of their rank , and , from the applause with which they were greeted as they advanced to the dais for investiture , we may reasonably

assume that the appointments were hailed with general satisfaction . Doubtless every member present , who was not already a G . Officer , or of the company of the newly-decorated , was fully persuaded that the appointments would have been more complete , and certainly

more resplendent and more strictly representative of the general body of Craftsmen , had he been included in the latter company . But this is very natural , and furnishes after all the strongest testimony to the merits of the brethren who have just been honoured with the purple of Grand Lodge .

• * On this occasion also his Royal Highness the M . W . Grand Master by way of commemorating the completion of a quarter of a century of his tenure of office , appointed 25 brethren of distinction to the brevet

rank of Past Grand Oflicers . The full list of these will be found in our report of the proceedings , but among them will be found the names of Bro . Sir F . R . Wingate , K . C . B ., & c , Sirdar of the Egyptian Army and Governor General of the Soudan , who not long

ago gave the coup dc grace to Mahdism by finishing off the Mahdi ; and Bro . Lieut .-General Sir L . Rundle , K . C . B ., & c , who almost at the very moment of his appointment was conducting important operations

against the Boer positions around Wepener , in the South East of the Orange Free State . The announcement of their names was received with the heartiest applause from all parts of the Hall . A full record of their services will appear next week .

* * * The one particular in which the proceedings differed from those of an ordinary Grand Festival was in the proposal and adoption of a resolution congratulating his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales , K . G ., M . W .

Grand Master , on his providential escape from the hands of an assassin . It is probable that had there been no Grand Festival imminent , when the news arrived of the attempted outrage on the life of our Grand Master and its failure , there would have been a

special meeting of Grand Lodge for the purpose of passing such a resolution . But the stated meeting for the purposes of the Festival rendered this unnecessary , and the resolution was passed amid acclamations , again and again renewed . The terms of the Resolution itself will be found in our report of Grand Lodge .

The regular Quarterly Convocation of Supreme Grand Chapter will be held at Freemasons' Hall on Wednt & day , the 2 nd prox ., when the Grand Principals will bc installed and the Grand Officers for the ensuing year appointed and invested . There will also be

considercd the recommendation of the General Committee that the application for recognition by the Grand Chapter be acceded to—the Grand Lodge of New Zealand having already been recognised by the Grand Lodge of England—Supreme Grand Chapter

undertaking not to issue Warrants for any new Chapters in the Colony " other than for chapters to be attached to lodges remaining under the jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of England . " The Committee also recommend that Warrants be granted for three new chapters , of which one will 1 ) 5 attached to the Cavendish Lodge ,

No . 2620 , and meet in London ; one to be called the Fort Dufferin Chapter , and attached to the Mandalay Lodge , Mandalay , in the District of Burma ; and the third to be called the Cleveland Chapter , and attached to the Cleveland Lodge , No . 2503 , Townsville , in the District of Queensland .

Masonic Notes.

It was with very sincere regret that just as we had gone to " press with our last week ' s number the news reached us of the death of the Earl of Londesborough , who , - .-40 years ago , was appointed S . G . Warden of United Grand Lodge , and who during the whole of his Masonic career had exhibited the greatest interest in

Freemasonry , more especially in the Province of North and East Yorkshire . Among the latest of his lordship ' s acts was to send a wreath to decorate the tomb of George Washington at the commemorat ion of the Centenary of the great American ' s death . Particulars were published at the time in our columns , and so also were those of the interchanges of courtesy

which passed between our Constitutional Lodge , No . 294 , Beverley , and the lodge at Beverley , Massachussetts , U . S . A . A brief sketch of his career will be found in another column . We tender our most respectful sympathy to the Countess of Londesborough and his eldest son , Viscount Ra incliffe , who succeeds to the earldom , and has for some few years been a member of our Society .

The voting papers for the approaching elections of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution were issued towards the close of last week , but owing to thc heavy demands upon our space we defer our usual article on the list of candidates till next week . However , if we cannot give attention to the number and

distribution of the Men and Widow applicants , whose chances of becoming annuitants will be settled , at least for a twelvemonth , on Friday , the 18 th prox ., there is , accompanying the papers , a statement of account for the year 1 S 99 , which may be examined with pleasure and profit .

* * * Including a balance of £ 2041 from the year 1 S 9 8 , the receipts of the Male Fund for 18 99 reached the splendid total of . £ 22 , 357 , while the expenditure , including the purchase of a consideable amount of stock , was £ 19 , 988 , the balance remaining in hand to

be carried forward to the current year ' s account being £ 23 69 . The principal items of receipt were the Donations and Subscriptions amounting to £ 10 , 99 1 ; the Grants from Graud Lodge and Grand Chapter , £ 900 ; Dividends , £ 1124 ; and the sum paid for a Perpetual Presentation—at the old rate— £ 1260 . The

expenditure for annuities , management , and maintenance of Asylum was £ 9728 , of which £ 8018 was absorbed in annuities , while the other princi pal items were Postages ( £ 183 ) , Printing . i & c . ( £ 277 ) , Collector ' s Commission ( £ 213 ) , Salaries ( £ 594 ) , Work done at Asylum ( £ 100 ) . In addition £ 8760 was spent in the Purchase of . Stock and £ 1500 was placed at call .

* * As regards the Widows' Fund , the receipts , including a balance of £ 1421 from the 1 S 9 8 account , amounted to £ 16 , 611 , and the expenditure to £ 15 , 182 , the balance remaining to be carried forward to the 1900 account being £ 1429 . The receipts included Donations and

Subscriptions to the extent of £ 10 , 306 ; Dividends , £ 2012 ; Grants from Grand Lodge and Grand Chapter , £ 850 . The expenditure for Annuities , Management , and Maintenance of Asylum , was £ 9932 , of which Annuities alone absorbed £ 8171 ; while the other principal items were the same in amount as for the

Male Fund , with the exception of the Collector ' s Com . mission , which was £ 204 instead of £ 213 . For this Fund there was also placed at call £ 1500 , while the sum devoted to the purchase of Stock was £ 3750 . Thc Sustentation of Building Fund is too small to be noticed but thc balance of £ 67 to be carried forward

to this year is on the right side . Taking the two principal Funds together , the principal features to bc noted are that the sum received in Donations and Subscriptions was close on £ 21 , 300 ; that within a fraction of £ 16 , 190 was spent in Annuities and £ 12 , 510 in the Purchase of Stock , while £ 3000 was placed at call .

* * » It remains for us to add that the Permanent Income of the Institution amounts to £ 5855 , of which £ 1600 , in equal moieties of £ 800 to each of the Annuity Funds is granted by Grand Lodge , and £ 150— £ 100 to the Male and £ 50 to the Widows' Fund—by Grand

Chapter . The balance is in the shape of Dividends , of which £ 2066 is received by the Male Fund ; £ 2012 by the Widows'Fund ; and £ 27 by the Sustentation of Building Fund . We congratulate the Committee of Management on their ability to place so favourable

an account of the financial position of the Institution before the Governors and Subscribers . The mere fact of their having been able to purchase Stock to the value of over £ 12 , 500 is about the strongest testimony that could be forthcoming to the merits of their administration .

* * * A stated meeting of thc Quatuor Coronati Lodge , No . 2076 , will be held at Freemasons' Hall , on Friday , the 4 th prox ., when , in thc course of the proceedings , a paper on the " Relics of the Grand Lodgo at York" will be read by Bro . T . B . Whytehead ,

P . G . S . B ., the W . M ., than whom no one is better qualified lo give a full and faithful account of thc Relics , or more likely to place his information before the lodge in an attractive form . The brethren will afterwards dine together in thc Gordon Room of the Holborn Restaurant .