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To ADVERTISERS . THE Circulation of THE FREEMASON being now at the rate of nearly Ilalf-a-million per annum , it offers peculiar facilities to all who advertise . It is well known that the Fraternity of Freemasons is a large and constantly increasing body , mainly composed of the influential and educated classes of society ; and as The Freemason is now the accepted organ of the Brotherhood in the United Kingdom , and also enjoys an extensive sale in the colonies and foreign parts , its advantages as an advertising medium can scarcely be overrated . For terms apply to GEORGE KENNING , 198 , FLEET STREET , LONDON , E . C .

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NOTICE . v The Subscription to THE FREEMASON is now 10 s . per annum , post-free , payable m advance . Vol . I ., bound in cloth 4 s . 6 d . Vol . II ., ditto 7 s . 6 d . Vol . III ., ditto ... ... 15 s . od . Reading Cases to hold 52 numbers ... 2 s . 6 d . United . States of America . THE FREEMASON is delivered free in any part of the United States for 12 s . per annum , payable in advance .

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NOTICE TO SUBSCRIBERS . —*—The Office of "Tim FREEMASON is now transferred to 198 , FLEET STREET , E . C . All communications for the Editor or Publisher should therefore be forwarde d to that address .

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^ nsfon'S la CoiTcspcrn ^ nfs .

All communications for THE FKKIIMASOS * should be n'ritten legibly on one side of the paper only , : ind , if intended for inse-tiim in the current number , mu-st be received not later than 10 o ' clock a . m . on Thursdays , unless in very special cases . The name and address of every writer must be sent to us in confidence . BRO . J . YARKER , —We . do not consider it advisable to publish the correspondence you have seal .

WE shall be glad to receive votes for the Girls ' and Boys' Schools , on behalf of two very deserving cases .

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1 TheFreemason, SATURDAY , SEPTEMBER 30 , 1871 .

THB FKKRMASON is published on Saturday Mornings in time f . r thc early trains . The price of Tun FKHKMASON is Twopence per week ; annual subscription , IOS . ( payable in advance ) . All communications , letters , & c , to be addressed to the EIUTOK 198 , Fleet-street , E . C . The Editor will jv . vy careful al-emio .. Vo all MSS . en-muitd to h ' wn but cannot undertake to return them unless accompanied by postage stamps .

The Masonic Season.

THE MASONIC SEASON .

THE season of Masonic work again approaches , when thc almost unbroken silence which has prevailed in our lodgerooms during the summer months will give

place to thc stirring realities of renewed labour . Although but a brief period has elapsed since the close of the Masonic season , it will be found that the

membership of the Craft has not been unaffected by the usual chances and changes that chequer this mortal life . Some of the fraternal

band have passed away in the intervaltheir voices never more t . be heard in thc solemn utterances of our secret rites

The Masonic Season.

—their ears never more to listen to the sublime exhortations of our sages—their hands never more to clasp a brother ' s in the living circle of the mystic tie . For them

our words have now no echo—no significance—the dread secret which they have solved can be attained only by passing through the portals of death ; they have

^ eaped the barriers which separate the corporeal from the spiritual , the finite from the infinite , the ephemeral from the eternal . But it cannot be said that their good works

have perished with them ; treasured up in many a kindred breast , they Avill yet beatabundant fruit , and inspire , let us hope , future generations of Freemasons with a

noble emulation of their dead forefathers fame . In Freemasonry , we boast no high Valhalla for departed greatness—neither " storied urn nor animated bust " are

required to perpetuate to all time the honoured names of our Prestons and Ruspinis . Still it should be our pride to

recall the deeds of those worthies of the past , who have striven so zealously and so gloriously in the cause of benevolence and fraternitv .

The approaching season beckons us once more to tread the mosaic pavement , and to play our parts in that mimic world

—a " lodge of free and accepted Masons . In what spirit do we again return to the scene of Masonic labour ? Is it with the firm determination to be '' brothers ofthe

Craft in more than tbe mere name—to be intelligent workers for good , instead of routine attendants at ceremonies , which , however solemn and impressive , lose much

of their import , ancl all their elevating tendencies , unless the duties they enjoin are practised out of the lodge ? It is incumbent upon every man who wears the badge of Masonry to endeavour , at all times and

at all seasons , to harmonise his conduct with tbe principles of thc Craft . Yet , although this dictum will be generally accepted as true by the brethren , how

frequently clo we find instances in which the influence of PVeemasonry appears to count for nought—when thc choicest precepts of , the Order are practically

contemnedwhen , instead of generous encouragement in the trials of i : _ , we witness the baneful presence of envious malice to retard our course—when , instead of the hand to help

ancl the outstretched arm to succour , we seem to view the gleaming eyes and thc uplifted weapon of a Cain-like assassin . How repugnant such actions arc to thc

verygenius of Freemasonry tew will deny , and yet thc tide of hatred and uncharitableness rolls on unchecked , bearing with it to tbe boundaries of existence man )* bitter

thoughts and sad reflections upon the frailty of all human ties . Can nothing be clone to awaken those erring brethren to a sense of their own peril and miserv ? Are all the

solemn vows , tlie oft-repeated covenants of the various grades of Freemasonry , merely tinkling cymbals and sounds that vex thc air ? Forbid it , Faith in humanity ! forbid it , Hope in the Brotherhood ! forbid it ,

The Masonic Season.

Charity that crowns , and glorifies , and sustains the whole ! We do not toil in vain , and though distant may be the day when none shall be admitted to our mysteries

but those who can abide the Ithuriel touch of truth , yet even now we can labour in the goodly work of elevating and purifying thc

minds of such unhappy brethren as may fall into evil because they cannot comprehend the beauty of good .

Let us , then , all with one accord , return to Masonic work with a due sense of our responsibility as Masons ; the old and the experienced to act the part of shepherds to

the flock—to restrain the wayward , reprove the inconstant , and reward the diligent . But it must not be forgottenthattheyoungest Mason , the most juvenile Apprentice ,

has also his appointed station and allotted task , and no man can desert his post or betray his watchword without exposing the whole Body to danger . If the Craft

were merely a convivial society , its progress or decay would be of little moment to mankind ; but we , the proselytes within its gates , know that it is more—infinitely more

—than a bibulous club of joyous spirits . Even if thc antiquity of Freemasonry and all the quaint traditions which seem to link it with a remote , but splendid past , be

indeed but pleasant myths , like the fabled deities of Olympus—even if all its claims to Temple-glory be scattered to the windsthe framework of the Order — fraternity

and charity , unity , peace , and goodwill to all—would still remain enthroned upon the pinnacle of honour , within the human heart . We have , therefore , a standard of

excellence before us—a goal which should be reached by all who profess to be Masons ; and it will not do to fold our arms and let thc few perform thc work of the many .

Unhappily , so much apathy prevails amongst the bulk of the Craft , that many well-meaning and intelligent efforts to achieve thc purpose of Masonry are viewed

in certain quarters with suspicion ancl dislike , simply because brethren will not take the trouble to study the bearings of the questions involved . We are glad to say ,

however , that the claims of charity are not unheeded ; but we want also more of that charity of spirit—that temperance in word ancl deeds which is the wise man ' s coronal .

Let us simplify the maxims of Freemasonry by doing to others as we would be clone by —a fitter interpretation of Masonic truth than all the homilies ever written or spoken .

For be it remembered , Masonry does not deal in abstractions—it is a living force ; it offers no vague code of morals , no Utopian

system of philanthropy , to the earnest student , but rather points to solid principles and _ rcat realities .

The sooner this is understood by the Fraternity , the better it will be for mankind , ancl it is to be hoped that English Masons will not be the last to comprehend or to apply the lesson to their lives .

BOOTS of the Period at BLAKEY ' , Lime-street Liverpool ( under thc Alexandra Theatre ) . —[ Advt . '