To Whom Is Honour Due?

TO WHOM IS HONOUR DUE ?

"TO THE EDITOR OF THE EREEHASOIfs' MAGAZINE ___{ D MASONIC MIRROR . Dear Sir and Brother , —In your Magazine of the 12 th and 19 th ult . there is two letters headed " To Avhom is honour due ? " In the first letter one has great difficulty in getting at the writer ' s meaning ; it ¦ appears to be veiled iu mystery , and must have some

resemblance to the writer's thoughts . The second letter , signed " R . A . C , " is written Avithout seeing an authentic report , for he at once condemns the conduct of the M . E . Z . I beg to refer the writer to the report of the Union Chapter ( No . 310 ) , Carlisle , in your publication of the 19 th ult . Had our worth

y Comp . C . J . Banister ' s name not been mentioned in a manner to lead some of your readers to suppose that he is not held in high admiration in the North , I should not have troubled you ivith these few lines . 1 advisedly say there is not a companion or brother held in higher esteem and respect than Comp . C . J .

Banister for his many good qualities by the whole of the companions of the Union Chapter . Yours fraternally , THOIIAS BLACKLOCK , Z .

[ We are glad to hear from Comp . Blacklock his confirmation of the very high estimation in Avhich Comp . C . J . Banister is held by the Union Chapter , hut such testimony is quite unnecessary , as the Masonic fame and high reputation of Comp . and Bro . -C . J . Banister extends far beyond tbe province

of Cumberland and Westmoreland . The question was not as to Bro . Banister's Masonic stauding or high reputation , hut the good or had taste of the presiding officer who raised an objection to a certain toast being given at all , or , at least , iu the order in which it had been proposed . That , we take it , is the question , and not the one which Comp . Blacklock hy his letter allows us to suppose . —En . F . M . l

Freemasonry In Scotland.

FREEMASONRY IN SCOTLAND .

\ TO THE EDITOR OE THE FREEMASONS * MAGAZINE AND MASONIC MIRROR . Dear Sir and Brother , —I see in your issue of the 19 th ult . a letter from an English Mason ivho signs himself " P . M ., " the concluding paragraph of Avhich I do not consider to be quite Masonic . He says , " He told me all he paid for his initiation ivas two

guineas . Is this correct ? If so , thank goodness I am not a Scotch but an English Mason . " The expression " thank goodness , " & c , reminds me of the words said to have been used by a certain individual , as recorded by St . Luke , viz ., " God , I thank thee that I am not as other men are . " Perhaps

" P . M . " may be able to see the difference between the two . He only paid two guineas ! I can fancy the attitude of Masonic horror that "P . M . " would assume thereanent . But , be that as it may , it is the fact that many good and true Masons have been made in Scotland for two guineas ( good character

being more the essential qualification in Masonry than a large , well-filled purse ) , and , although I paid considerably more on my initiation into the Scotch lodge I belong to , I do not think myself any better upon that account . Masonry is universal ; consequently , while there are many men able to pay a large fee , there are also many men of good character who are only able to pay a moderate fee . The fee , I Avould

Freemasonry In Scotland.

consider , ought to be in keeping with the locality and circumstances of the lodge , being neither too high nor too low anywhere . A Masonic lodge is not a House of Lords , where none but lords or men in the highest social position may aspire to , but rather a House of Commons ,

where the peer and the peasant may meet on the level as men , mind being the standard , not gold . So much for "P . M . " As to English Masonry , I am sorry to say that as yet I hai'e not seen much of it personally , but , as to ivhat I know and have heard of it , there are many

points in which it holds a position second to none in the ivorld . Its educational and charitable institutions are beyond my praise ; and I only hope that , in these as ivell as in other points also , Scotland will soon begin to do better than she has yet done , showing , as England has already done , that in Masonry there is something more than the mere name . Yours fraternally , W . P . B .

Looseness In Masonry.

LOOSENESS IN MASONRY .

TO THE EDITOR OF THE EREEMASOJJS' MAGAZINE AND MASONIC MIBEOIi . Dear Sir and Brother , —The same brother as was referred to by your correspondent "P . M . " in the MAGAZINE of the 19 th ult . called on me on the Sfch ult ., and the very same remarks were made by me as to his certificate being so recently dated , and his

statement about his being a Mason some years was repeated . I knoiv that it is not tho custom for Scotch lodges to give certificates , as ive are bound to doaud the observation about his getting it for improper purposes is only too evident—hut what was my surprise to see him walk in again on the 20 th ult .,

after having been relieved only tivelve days before . 1 thought this a very good opportunity of reading the letter of "P . M . " to him , which I did , and refused him any relief from the lodge . Our J . W . came in just at the time , and Ave strongly recommended him to altar his mode of living . He told me he had just come from a certain town , and confessed that the letter I had read to him emanated from the Almoner

of that place . Now , I think the only way to get rid of this pest is to refuse all relief to any brother not producing his Grand Lodge certificate , as directed in the Grand Lodge circular , and those producing them to enter on the back of the certificate the date , place , number

and name of the lodge , with the amount of relief given . It would then soon he seen if the brother Avas a regular itinerant begging Mason . I wish some eminent brother would call the attention of the Grand Lodges of Scotland and Ireland to the fees of both Grand Lodges being such as to open the

doors of lodges to a class of persons utterly un-Avorthy to be made Masons , for I find , on reference to my relief list , that the proportion of Scotch and Irish brethren relieved are five to one of English ; and , further , I wish some of our Almoners would give this matter their most serious consideration , for

my experience ( some six years as Almoner ) is such that calls for stringent action to stop it . Yours fraternally , 18 ° .