Analysis Of The Returns.

But on Wednesday there were as many as four Stewards , namely , Bro . Young , of Lodge No . 441 ; Bro . Elworthy , of Lodge No . 809 ; and Bro . E . M . Money , of the Isaac Newton University Lodge , No . 859 ; together with Bro . Oliver Papworth , a member of the Board of Management , and G . Secretary of the Province , doing duty on his own account . These togethir compiled the sum of ^ 222 5 s ., and increased the aggregate for the year to . £ 248 ios . This is gcod work for a Province which has only six lodges on its roll , and compares very favourably with the ^ 290 17 s . compiled in 1 S 93 , and the £ 325 8 s . of the preceding year .

Four out uf 45 lodges , each represented by a single Steward , did duty for the large and influential Province of CHESHIRE , the total of the four lists being , £ 42 . In May there was a single representative , who returned ; £ io ios ., while at the Benevolent Festival in February the Province was unrepresented , so that the total of this year ' s contributions

stand at the extremely low figure of £ 52 ios . Last year the amount was even lower , consisting of £ 13 13 s . raised for the Girls'School , and £ 21 for the Boys' School , or together . £ 34 13 s . At first sight , therefore , we might assume that a Province of 45 lodges which could raise only , £ 87 3 s . for our Central Charities in two years was negligent of its duties ; but the assumption would be a hasty one , and unjust into the bargain . Firstly , as regards those Institutions which are open to the whole Craft under the English Constitution , the Province raised i " i 9 S 8 ios .

for the Benevolent Jubilee , and minor contributions for the Schools in 1892 , and , £ 1050 for the Boys' School in 1891 . Secondly , it has had an Educational Institution of its own for over 30 years , and has quite recently established a special Benevolent Institution for its poor brethren and their widows , the capital of which already amounts to some £ 3000 . Lastly , Bro . Lord Egerton of Tatton , Prov . G . Master , will undertake the Chairmanship at the Festival of this School in 1 S 95 , and the lodges , chapters , and brethren are very properly reserving their strength in order to support his lordship as be deserves to be supported .

CORNWALL was unrepresented at the Old People ' s Anniversary in February , but last month with Bro . W . Lake as its representative it contributed . £ 131 5 ., while on Wednesday Bro . E . D . Anderton , who is far from being a novice in these matters , took charge of the Province and its 30 lodges and compiled the excellent list of ; £ uo 5 s ., the year ' s total to . £ 241 ios . Last year Bro . Gilbert B .

Pearce , who is equally familiar with the duties of Stewardship , compiled a sum of , £ 225 15 s . for this Institution , while in 1892 the Province devoted its whole strength to the Benevolent Institution , at the Jubilee of which Bro . the Earl of Mount Edgcumbe , its Prov . G . Master , presided , and for which it raised the large amount of £ 77 6 15 . In 1891 , the same Charity received per Bro . Major Ross , £ 1 5 8 ios ., and this School £ 131 5 s . per Bro . G . B . Pearce .

Of the 25 lodges included in the roll of DERBYSHIRE as many as 11 were directly represented , while Bro . Dr . Hoskyns , not content with looking after the interest of two of these n , took the whole Province under his wing , or , at all events , those lodges which did not furnish Stewards of their own . In addition , Comp . W . H . Marsden represented the Chapter of Justice , No . 253

and Bro . G . H . Lawson , St . Mary s Rose Croix Chapter , No . 53 , while a brother and one lady , Mrs . Wright—were Unattached , raising the number of Stewards to 14 , who together amassed the very considerable total of ^ 590 os . 6 d ., the principal item being Bro . Lawson ' s list of , £ 85 us . 6 d . for the aforesaid Rose Croix Chapter . Last month one Steward—Bro . Joseph Cook—representing the Okeover Lodge , No . 1324 , Ripley , returned , £ 47 15 s ., while in February the Province was an absentee from the Benevolent meeting , so that the year ' s total stands at

* ° 37 15 s . 6 d . However , last year the Province raised . £ 1025 8 s . 3 d ., of which all but ; £ io ios . was compiled by the medium of 32 Stewards for this Institution , while in 1892—the year of the Benevolent Jubilee—the Old People , thanks to the 47 brethren who acted as Stewards , received ^ 1362 16 s ., the Girls' School . £ 126 , and this Institution £ 249 18 s , making the grand total for this highly successful year , £ 1738 14 s . In 1891 it raised . £ 136 IOJ- . for " Our Girl .-, " , £ 8 43 17 s . for ' Our Boys-, " or together ^ 9 80 7 s .

DEVONSHIRE , like its neighbour Cornwall , has taken part in the School Festivals of * he year , but not that of the Benevolent Institution , two of its 52 lodges being represented last month , and betwen them raising . £ 109 7 s . for the senior Institution , while on Wednesday Bro . F . B . Westlake , Unattached , handed in a list of ^ 26 5 s ., and

placed the total for 18 92 at £ 135 163 . Last year the Girls' School was left out in the cold , the sum distributed to the other two Charities being ; £ I 8 I 2 s ., of which this Institution had the good fortune to secure i ' 154 7 s ., and the Old People the balance . In 1892 , the sum of . £ 807 18 s . 6 J . was raised for the Benevolent Jubilee , £ 6 % 5 s . for the Girls' Festival , and . £ 47 5 s . for that of " Our Boys , " the year ' s total standing at the respectable sum of . £ 923 8 s . 6 d .

DURHAM , as is mostly its custom , has been present at all three Anniversary meetings , Bro . Barlow , of Lodge No . 1862 , returning i . 154 7-1 . at the Benevolent Festival in February ; aad Bro . J . R . Pattison , as Provincial representative , and Bro . Hans B . Olsen , of Lodge No . 764 , together raising , £ 213 for the Girls' School in May , while on Wednesday , Bro . Olsen , for the Province , compiled . £ 130 for this

Institution , the list-of Bro . Lamb , of No . 7 64 , not having been returned . The aggregate of these Returns reaches . £ 497 7 s ., which compares most favourably with the . 6338 2 s ., distributed , not vt ry unequally , among the three Charities in 1893 though , in 18 92 , in consequence of the Jubilee , the year ' s total reachtd , £ 1034 5 s ., of which the Old People received / 7205 s . ; Ihe GirL' School , / 105 , and this Institution , . £ 209 .

After its very substantial contribution lo the Girls' School last month , follow ing as it did upon two exceptionally heavy years , the Province of

ESSEX has been content to play a less conspicuous part in the proceedings of this Festival its contingent of Stewards being only seven , of whom four acted in behalf of four of its 34 lodges , and one for a Royal Arch chapter , while two were Unattached , the lists amounting in theaggrt-gate to . £ 99 12 s . In 18 91 , the sum of , £ 1648 was distributed among the three Charities , the lion ' s share in the shape of . £ 1265 15 s . 6 d .

falling to this Institution . In 1892 , theytarof the Benevolent Jubilee , the Province raised no less than . £ 2318 2 s . 6 d . for that ever . t , the sums assigned to the Schools raising the year ' s total to . £ 2608 5 s . Last year the support given to the Old People and the Girls ' School was on a modest scale , and amounted for the two to only X 102 17 s . 6 d . But the Prov . Grand Master had undertaken to preside at the

Boys' Festival , and the lodges and brelhren , rightly resolving to give his lordshi p all the help in their power , worked to such good purpose that their donations and subscriptions reached . £ 2155 6 s . Thus , the present year has been one of comparative rest , the Benevolent Institution receiving . £ 158 2 s . ; the Girls' School , . 6816 14 s . 6 d . ; and this Institution , as already stated , , £ 99 12 s . ; making the total for 18 94 , / . 1074 8 s . 6 d .

GLOUCESTERSHIRE , p ^ u " has 15 lodges all told , was represented at the Benevolent Festival in f ebniary , when it raised £ 73 ios ., and at that oi the Girls' School in May , when

Analysis Of The Returns.

10 Stewards did duty on its behalf , and compiled amongst them £ 249 16 s . 6 s On Wednesday Bro . Vassar-Smith , D . P . G . M . and a member of the Board of Management , with the representatives of two lodges , handed in lists amounting together to - £ 99 15 s . Thus the year ' s to ' . al reaches £ 443 is . 6 d ., which is

in excess of what was raised last year . But these would be moderate totals for such a Province were it not that in 1892 , when Sir M . E . Hicks-Beach , Bart ., M . P ., took the chair at the Festival of this Institution , the lodges and brethren amassed the large sum of , £ 1645 us ., a minor contribution of , £ 63 to the Old People placing the total for the year at ^ 1708 us .

Six of the 4 S lodges on the roll of HAMPSHIRE AND THE ISLE oi- - WIGHT , represented by seven brethren , with Bros . Richard Eve and Major J . E . Le Feuvre , Chairman and Vice-Chairman respectively of the Board of Management , among them compiled the sum of . £ 316 2 s ., which , with the , £ 208 iSs . 6 d . subscribed to the R . M . B . L in February , and £ 477 19 s . to the Girls' School last month , gives

a total for 1894 amounting to , £ 1002 19 s . 6 d . Last year the Returns were on a smaller scale , and totalled up only ; £ 6 Si 2 s ., but in 1892 they reached ^ 1650 17 s . 6 d ., of which / " 1345 19 s . 7 d . was in respect of the Benevolent Jubilee . In 1891 , the year yielded a few pounds short of . £ 700 . It should be noted , as an additional feather in the cap of this influential Province , that there is a local Charity , for which during the few years it has been in existence , a goodly sum has been subscribed .

A glance at the Returns shows that four of the 21 lodges in HERTFORDSHIRE sent up Stewards , who , with two Unattached Stewards in the persons of Mrs . Apelt and Bro . Baddeley made up the goodly sum of £ 264 16 s . Last month £ 227 6 s . 6 d . was subscribed to the Girls' School , and in February ^ 464 9 s . 6 d . to the Old People , the well-deserved popularity of Bro . Terry , who has been a Hertfordshire Mason for over a quarter of a century , accounting for the greater favour in which

the Benevolent Institution is held . These three Returns give a total of £ 956 I 2 s ., a sum which will bear comparison with the totals of all former years , with the excep . tion ol 1892 , when the product of the year was . £ 2135 6 s . 6 d ., of which , £ 1883 6 s . 6 d . was subscribed to the Old People ' s Jubilee , and 1893 , when it stood at . £ 2106 14 s ., and included ^ 1444 13 s . 6 d . to the Benevolent Institution , at whose Anniversary Bro . C . E . Keyser , a prominent Hertfordshire brother , occupied the place of Chairman .

One of the seven lodges in J ERSEY furnished a Steward in the person of Bro . John Kenyon , whose name must be tolerably familiar to brethren who study our Festival Returns , his list amounting

to , £ 10 i ° " Last year the Province was represented by its distinguished chief , Bro . Colonel Malet de Carteret , who had the good fortune to hand in a list of . £ 263 . It was among the contributing Provinces at the Jubilee of the R . M . Benevolent Institution , when it subscribed . £ 63 , and , in spite of its distance from head-quarters , it has borne its part with credit at other Anniversary gatherings .

KENT shows up well , especially as we know that it is committed to the purchase of a Perpetual Presentation to this School , as a mark of the respect it entertains for Bro . James S . Eastes , D . P . G . M . Its full complement of lodges is 59 , and of those nine furnished in all 12 Stewards , while Bro . W . Walker and Mrs . Ker were Unattached . The sum total of their lists was . £ 397 ios . 6 d . Last month the contribu .

tion to the Girls' School was ± 239 16 s . 6 d ., while in February the Benevolent Institution was benefited to the extent of ^ 582 17 s . Thus the total for 1894 , amounting only to £ 1220 4 * ., is below the average for this Province . Last year , however , including . £ 249 8 s . 6 d . subscribed to this Institution , it reached , £ 2103 12 s . 6 d . ; in 1892 , when it raised . £ 1868 15 s . 6 d . for the Benevolent Jubilee , to . £ 3003 13 s . 6 d . ; and in 1893 , to , £ 4018 6 s ., of which the large sum of £ 3483 14 s . 6 d . was in support of the Provincial Grand Master ' s chairmanship at the Benevolent Anniversary .

It is becoming somewhat irksome to be continuall y offering apologies for the modesty of the Returns from

LANCASHIRE—EAST DIVISION . It has a Systematic Educational and Benevolent Institution which it maintains in a highly creditable state of efficiency , and on special occasions it contributes largely , as only a strong Province can do , to our Anniversary Festivals . At the same time , it has 107 lodges on its roll with a membership of about 4500 brethren , or if we make allowance for those who are members of more than one lodge , we

shall be about near the mark if we place the number at 4000 . Yet this Province with its hundred and odd lodges and their thousands of members has raised during the current year less than , £ 1000—or to give the precise figures , , £ 290 8 s . 4 d . for the Old People in February ; . £ 355 195 . for the Girls' School in May ; and . £ 168 for this Institution on Wednesday . This gives a total of , £ 814 7 s . 4 d ., or less than is raised habitually and cheerfully year by year by

many a Province which musters only from 20 to 30 lodges . In 1888 it subscribed ^ , " 28 73 to the Benevolent Institution and £ 1350 16 s . 6 d . to the Girls' Centenary , or together , £ 4223 16 s . 6 d . In 1891 the Benevolent Institution received . £ 126 , the Girls' School . £ 183 8 s . 6 d ., and the Boys' School - £ 963 12 s . ; the year ' s total thus amounting to , £ 1278 os . 6 d . In 1892 it reached . £ 2824 15 s ., of which the two Schools between them received £ 157 103 ., and the Benevolent in of its to

Institution ^ 2667 5 s . respect Jubilee . Last > err the total dwindled as low as . £ 38 9 i 8 s ., of which £ 41 was subscribed to the Old People ; . £ 157 17 s . ta the Girls' School ; and . £ 190 is . to the Boys' School . Thus for 18 93 and 18 94 the donations and subscriptions from East Lancashire amounted to no more than , £ 1199 os . 4 d . This is undoubtedly creditable to the 19 lodges which sent up representatives to their six Festivals , and the 50 brethren and one lewis who

banded in the lists which make up this total ; but what has become of the remain , ing 88 lodges and 3960 members , who have had no part in these proceedings V Are they , at this advanced period , still in ignorance of the existence of our three great Masonic Charities : There would seem to be here an excellent field in which Bro . McLeod mi ght exercise his persuasive powers to the ultimate advantage of the three Institutions .

Ten out of the 107 lodges in LANCASHIRE—WEST DIVISION , took part in the proceedings of Wednesday , the contingent of Stewards being made up of 12 lodge representatives and two ladies Unattached , and the sum total of their lists . £ 220 ios . In February three brethren , two being lodge Stewards and one Unattached , compiled the modest sum of ^ 46 , but in May , in

support of Lord Lathom ' s Chairmanship at the Girls' Festival , the Stewards numbered 74 , and their lists amounted to £ 2500 . Thus the year ' s labours have resulted in the subscription of . £ 2 7 66 ios . Last year the Benevolent , received by the hands of 12 Stewards the sum of £ 216 ios . ; the Girls' School , per 15 Stewards , . £ 253 is . ; and this Institution , with the help of 18 Stewards , , £ 323 7 s .,

making the total for 18 93 . £ 792 18 s . In 1892 the di nations and subscriptions totalled up to . £ 16 97 14 s . 6 d ., the Benevolent Jubilee being supported to the extent of , £ 1197 8 s . 6 d ., while the Girls' and Boys' Schools received , £ 363 16 s . 6 d . a"d . £ 136 ios . respectively . In 1891 the year ' s total was . £ 6341 19 s . 4 d ., out of which , £ 6126 14 s . 4 d . was subscribed in support of Lord Lathom ' s Chairmanshi p