United Grand Lodge.

LAMONHY ' s motion to put an end to canvassing for office , we shall be very glad if Grand Lodge sees its way to adopting it . The practice is now carried to such an extent as to be a public scandal , and the sooner steps an ; taken to put an end to it the better it will be for the interests of Freemasonry .

The Approaching Festival Of The Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution.

THE APPROACHING FESTIVAL OF THE ROYAL MASONIC BENEVOLENT INSTITUTION .

Several months have elapsed since it devolved upon us to call our readers' attention to the Festivals of our Institutions . There have been occasional announcements either as to the ultimate totals of those which took place in the first half of the current

year , or to the effect that this or that distinguished brother had kindly offered his services as Chairman at one or other of the anniversaries which will be held in iSgfi . There have , too , been the constant references in our reports of Provincial and private

lodge proceedings which are to be found there as regularly as one year succeeds another , or either as to what those Provinces or lodges have done in the past or what they are anticipating the pleasure of doing in the future . But the claims which our

Institutions have upon the support of the Craft , though ever present to our minds , have not been the subject of any special article , nor have we made any urgent appeals to our readers for that support to which one and all of our Charities arc entitled . The

time , however , has now come when it is necessary wc should bestii ourselves and invite attention to the first of the three great Festivals which will take place , as usual , in 1896 . This is the Festival in behalf of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution ,

which will be held on Wednesday , the 26 th February , under the presidency of Bro . Lord GEORGE HAMILTON , M . P ., Provincial Grand Master of Middlesex . It will not be his lordship ' s first experience as a Masonic Festival Chairman . He presided in

1890 , some time before he was installed 111 his present office , at the 92 nd Anniversary of the Royal Masonic Institution for Boys . But the circumstances—to which we need not particularly allude—were not favourable to a large subscription , and

though his lordship was supported by a fairly numerous Board of Stewards , the Returns were less than £ 10 , 000 . On the present occasion the circumstances are altogether clear . In the first place , the needs of the Benevolent Institution , which is , in fact ,

two Charities under one management , will be greater in 18 9 6 than were those of the Boys' School in 1890 . In the next place , it is not , as the Boys' School then was , in the unfortunate

position of being in a kind of gulf between the close of an old ri'trhnn and the commencement of a new one ; and lastly , his lordship , instead of being merely a Past Grand Warden ot England is the Grand Master of a strong and influential

Province , from which , during the time he has presided over it , he has won the esteem and respect of the lodges and their members There is yet another circumstance in connection with his lordship's Chairmanship which inclines us to be hopeful as to the

result of his advocacy . Jt has been known for a long time that he had accepted the invitation to preside on this occasion , and as soon as the last Festival of the current year had taken place , the brethren of Middlesex set about making the needful

preparations for supporting their chief worthily . Hence as regards the Anniversary we are alluding to , the prospects are most encouraging . There will be an experienced and influential Chairman , and the strong Province he has ruled over for close

upon four years will support him loyally , and , if we may judge from what it has done on previous similar occasions , to very good purpose . It is as well that it is so . The requirements of the Benevolent Institution arc ; very great . There are 200

annuitants on the Male Fund receiving £ 40 each , and 240 annuitants on the Widows' Fund receiving £ 32 each , and the sum required annually to meet the obligations of the Institution towards these 440 Old People is no less than £ 15 , 680 . In addition , there are

some 30 widows in receipt of half their late husbands' an unities . The sum distributed amongst these is £ 600 , so that the total amount disbursed by the Institution in annuities alone is £ 16 , 280 .

To this must be added the sum required for the expenses of management—that is lo say , lor the salaries of the Secretary and his very limited staff , postages , printing , stationery , rent of offices , < Sx . j & c . —and the maintenance of the Asylum

The Approaching Festival Of The Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution.

at Croydon . This may be set down as averaging about £ 3000 , so that the total annual expenditure which must be provided amounts in round figures to £ 19 , 000 . Per contra , the assured income , with which to meet these liabilities , does not

greatly exceed £ 5000 , and comprises annual grants—by United Grand Lodge , £ 1600 ; and by Grand Chapter , £ 150 ; interest on invested moneys ( say ) , £ 3 600 ; giving a total of £ 5350- It follows then that to make both ends meet and leave a small

margin over for contingencies a sum of quite £ 14 , 500 must be raised from the Craft by means of donations and subscriptions , and the main hope of obtaining this enormous amount rests with the annual Festival . If this sum is obtained actually or

approximately next February , the Institution will be able to pay its way ; if more is obtained , it will be in a position either to increase the roll of its annuitants or augment the total of its invested capital ; but if the sum obtained is substantially less , it will be

under the necessity of curtailing its expenditure or trenching upon its capital . Either of these courses would be a regrettable —we may almost venture to say , a calamitous—one , nor do we

think the general body of English Masons will ever , intentionally , be so far forgetful of its obligations to this Institution as to place its Committee of Management in the unfortunate position of choosing between the alternative courses we have mentioned .

However , as far as this particular Festival is concerned , the indications , as we have said , are very favourable . There have been years when , only a few weeks before the day appointed for the celebration , our worthy Bro . TERRY has been at his wits' end

to find a Chairman , or when , having enlisted the services of some distinguished brother in that capacity , he has found it a task 0 exceptional difficulty to enrol a Board of Stewards strong enough to support him well . This year matters have gone more

smoothly . The Chairman was obtained early , and as the Chairman ' s Province of Middlesex has been long busying itself in making the necessary preparations to back up their

chief , there arc already some 200 brethren who have given in their names to serve as Stewards , and it will be " hard lines , " indeed , if this number is not very materially strengthened in the time that remains for completing the arrangements .

It will , indeed , be a subject for congratulation to Bro . Lord GEORGE HAMILTON and the ladies and brethren who may help him , if , by his and their instrumentality , such a result is obtained as will justify the Committee of Management

in slightly reducing the list of candidates , of whom at the close of the election in May last there were some 40 men and 30 widows remaining on the lists . These numbers have been considerably augmented since , and there is every

likelihood that when in January next , the last of this years petitions have been dealt with by the Committee , the list of approved candidates will turn out to be as formidable as they wen '

for this year ' s ballot . There were then 61 men and 51 widows , or together 112 candidates , who claimed to be admitted annuitants on the Funds , and amongst them were several poor old brethren and widows whose names had been before tin '

electors several years . But though live fresh annuities were created on the Male Fund , it was only possible to elect 20 men and 20 widows , including , in each case , the three chosen to fill vacancies as they arose after the election was over . And

as there is every prospect of the lists of candidates being as numerous as they have been of recent years , so , unfortunately , from all we hear , is the paucity of vacancies to l't ; competed for in May next , likely to be as conspicuous . 11 ere .

then , we have additional reasons of the utmost importance win the strongest possible efforts should be made in order to ensun the success of the approaching Festival of the Royal Masonu Benevolent Institution . The small permanent income , and ll "

large permanent expenditure are alone sufficient to justify urgency of our appeal , but when there must be added to these . long roll of candidates , and a paucity of vacancies , the necessity for the appeal becomes still more obvious . We , therefore , addre . ^ ourselves to our readers in the hope that many among them vU

be influenced by our appeal . If they have not tendered th ' services as Stewards let them do so forthwith , or let them ra * round those who have undertaken to represent Provinces , lodg ( ? and chapters , with a view to ensuring that the lists ol tm , ; representatives shall be as productive as they can be mad'' I"