Masonic Charity.

whether these queries are put by an incognito or not . They must either be explained , or they resolve themselves into charges from which conclusions may be drawn . The Treasurer of Lodge 600 may be proud of his productions ; ho is evidently yearning for fame , but his achievement is now the property of others , and no subtlety can win it back . He cannot even take shelter

under the subterfuge of "the exercise of your discretion . " He would like a personal altercation , but the ¦ matter is now in the hands of the Masonic world , to whom his lodge must answer .

Lodge 600 is required , first , to explain as to Table 1—which divides the funds amongst a number of institiP -tions—whether these institutions , and these divisions , have any solid foundation ? It is further required to answer for the sums . voted in its Table 2 ; also as to its apparent neglect of the real Masonic institutions . Fur'ther , it is asked to explain as to its members , and various

circumstances connected with them . The questions in full appeared in your impression of the 19 th inst . Lodge No . 600 has promulgated a system , and has put forth ¦ institutions , which it is challenged to defend . It has paraded its members , which it is asked to vouch for . IDS statements , having been publicly made , cannot be privately answered . There can be little difficulty in this

if the members are not , along with the institutions , in ¦ ntibibus . Silence on the part of No . 600 must amount to a confession that its Tables are a " mockery , delusion , and snare . " I am , yours truly and fraternally , _ INVESTIGATOR . London , Sept . 29 th , 1863 .

The Boys' School.

THE BOYS' SCHOOL .

"TO THE EDITOB OP TIIE PBEEMASO-TS' MAGAZIWE AJfD MASO-tIC MIRROR . DEAR SIR AND BROTHER , —A writer , under the signature "Masonic , " in your number for September 19 th , inquires how he can vote for eight candidates at the Tiext election to the Masonic Institution for Boys , he having , as I infer from his letter , paid for one vote . If he is an old subscriber he has a riht to record one

g vote at every election for as many boys as are to be elected , in the present case eight , but he cannot accumulate them in favour of one or more ; or he can , if he is . much interested in any case , give what , in Parliamentary language , is called a plumper—that is , foregoing his right to vote for all , and giving his one vote in favour of one candidate . This is the plan I mean to adopt . If my

votes are not allowed to pass , I subscribe no more to the Institution -, for to deprive mo of my votes would be ii fraud on tho part of the managers of the Institution . Yours fraternally , AN OLD SUBSCRIBER . [ We look upon it that the intention of the new law was to limit the votes absolutely to one for any sub--scription . l

Can A Warden Initiate, &C.

CAN A WARDEN INITIATE , & c .

TO THE EDITOR OP THE PBEEKASOXS' MAGAZINE AHD MASOHrO MIBBOB . DEAR SIR AND BROTHER , —The question of a Warden ' s power to perform our Masonic ceremonies has been often mooted in your columns . You have never hesitated to give a positive opinion ou the subject , and that opinion will be always received with the respect due to your high standinin the Craftbutin the absence of judicial

g ; , a decision , so authoritative as to be final , the only course left forthoso of ns who are called on to pronounce on this point is to solicit , through the medium of THE -MAGAZINE , the opinions of brethren more able and more experienced than ourselves , and by that means to endeavour to arrive at a uniformity of procedure . The

provision of the " Book of Constitutions" runs as follows : — " In the Master ' s absence , the immediate Past Master , or , if he be absent , the senior Past Master of the lodge present , shall take the chair . And if no Past Master of the lodge be present , then the Senior Warden , or , in his absence , the Junior Warden , shall rule the lodge . " Passing over certain points , to which exception may not

improperly be taken , the great difficulty lies in the two expressions , "take the chair" and "ride the lodge . " Are these expressions synonymous ? Or , is the Warden to rule without taking tits chair ? And , if so , what is the precise meaning of the word rule ? I think that I am correct in saying that by far the greater number of our English brethren maintain that

the difference of expression imports a difference of meaning . They believe that the Warden , when he rules the lodge , exercises a power far inferior to that of a W . M . or P . M . who ialt-es ilia chair . This difference , according to some , consists in the ability of a Warden to perform the ceremonies ; whilst others , allowing him that privilege , require him , when exercising it , to take up his

position on one side or the other of the Master ' s chair . Both are agreed that , if a Warden place himself in the Master ' s chair , he violates the " Book of Constitutions , " and even removes an ancient landmark . Nor are those who hold these opinions most stringently at a loss for arguments wherewith to support their views . They cite the ceremony of installation as evidence that none but

those who have been thus solemnly inducted can ever occupy the chair : they assert that a lodge is not complete unless presided over by the W . M ., or by one who has been an installed Master : they argue that if , in the interpretation of an ambiguous phrase , the highest prerogative of the Chair is thus conferred on the inferior officers , Masonry thereby loses one of its chief ornaments and one of its most instructive lessons : they tell us that , apart from the supposed authority of the " Book of Constitutions , " a Warden has no greater antecedent right

to perform these ceremonies than a Deacon , or a Master Mason who has never held office ; and that it is impossible for any one below the rank of an installed Master to make the announcement which succeeds an important communication , in the ceremony of closing a Master Mason's lodge . They even fetch an illustration from the usages of a sectional Church , and profess that , as none

but a Bishop can make a Priest , so none but a Master or Past Master can make a Mason ; and , finally , they appeal to the all but universal practice of Masonic lodges , and protest against the innovation as ill-advised and uncalled for . With equal positiveness and equal obstinacy , some brethren contend for what they call the "Wardens '

rights . " They ask what the word " rule " means , if it does not imply that the Warden is to take the chair . It cannot refer to his power to summon the lodge , for his authority in that respect is expressly derived under another clause of the Constitutions . It cannot refer to his right to maintain order , without occupying the chair , for to charge one brother with that dutywhilst another

, is presiding in lodge , is to introduce such confusion as will effectually deprive a lodge of its right to be called a " regular assembly or duly organised meeting of Masons . " But if the " rule" of a Warden neither qualifies him to assemble the brethren , nor to exercise authority over them when assembled , it must be a model of that constitution which attracted the admiration of M . Thiers , in which

" le roi regne mais ne gouverne pas . " They also cite the authority of the ancient charges , in the fourth section of which the Grand Master , the Deputy Grand Master , the Grand Wardens , together with the Masters and Wardens of private lodges , are styled " riders and governors , supreme and subordinate . " They tell us that the warrant is addressed to the Master and Wardens and their successors , not to Past Masters , immediate or senior . "With respect to the solemn announcement before alluded to , they declare it to be as impossible for a Past Master as