The Royal Benevolent Institution For Aged Masons And Their Widows.

THE ROYAL BENEVOLENT INSTITUTION FOR AGED MASONS AND THEIR WIDOWS .

LONDON , SATURDAY , OCTOBTSU 0 , 1 S 0 O .

It is with p ain vre have to call the attention of the brethren to a notice of motion of Bro . Smith , P . G- . Purst ., to he brought forward at the committee of the above Institution , on "Wednesday next , to the effect that on his resignation of the office of Secretary , Bro .

Farnfield be allowed a retiring pension of £ 60 a year , or one half his present salary . On reading this notice any brother would naturally suppose that either from a pressure of other duties , failing health , advancing age , or other sufficient cause , Bro . Farnfield felt he could no

longer give proper attention to the business and "wished , to retire . But it is not so—Bro . Farnfield is hale and hearty , and most efficiently discharges all the duties -which the position imposes upon him to the general satisfaction of the committee , and , we are sure we may add , of the subscribers to the Institution .

What , then , is the meaning ol the motion r It is a p lain intimation from the Committee , who have always expressed their hig h appreciation of the endeavours of Bro . Farnfield , that he must resign , or , in other words , that if lie does not walk down stairs lie will be pitched out of the window . And why so ? We answer ,

distinctly , to please Bro . Wm . Gray Clarke , the Grand Sec ., who has been heard to declare that Bro . Farnfield must take his choice and cither resign the situation of Asst . Grand Secretary , ox the Secretaryship to the Benevolent Institution—aud for no other reason , that we can

imagine , than that the Craft thought fit to mark its appreciation of the services of Bro . Farnfield , by adding £ 100 a year to his salary as Asst . G . Sec , an act of grace afterwards extended to Bro . Clarke himself ; and , in order to cany his object he has lately applied to the Board of General Purposes for an additional clerk , on the ground

that Bro . FarnfieM ' s time is too much taken up with tho duties attaching to the office of Secretary to the Benevolent Institution . Even were it so , "which we do not believe , we maintain it would be better for the interests of the Craft and the Charity—aye , and more economical —to ap |) oint the extra clerk and continue the present arrangements .

The duties of Secretary to the Benevolent Institution arc unlike those of the other charities , and no where can they be so well or so appropriately conducted as in connection with the Grand Secretary ' s office , and that fact was uot only acknowledged , but discussed at the time of adding to Bro , Farnfield ' s salary . Even if the alteration is made

much of the duties at present performed b y Bro . Farnfield in the Grand Secretary ' s office must still be performed there , and that , too , by the clerks belonging to the office , and paid by Grand Lodge . The certificates required by candidatesfor the annuity must be examined and prepared

iu the Grand Secretary ' s offices , and will occupy as much time as at present . The clerics must answer questions relative to the charity—at least if they do their duty to

their aged brethren—and that will take up their time as it does now . What other duties than these does Bro . Farnfield perform for the Benevolent Institution in the Grand Secretary ' s office ? The preparation of the minutes of meetings , and the directing of circulars , are

done at his own house , and , in times of pressure , by other hands than his . But he has to pay the annuities . Where so fit a place for them to be paid as in a building belonging to the Craft in which a Mason may freely enter without saying " I am a pensioner here and I am going to

receive my annuity / ' as he will bo in fact doing when he has to knock at the door of an office emblazoned "Boyal Benevolent Institution for Aged Masons and their Widows . " But even of this duty more than half is not performed in the Grand Secretary ' s office ; but , as the

majority of the annuitants live in the country , through the medium of the post-office . Has Bro . Farnfield any further duties in connection with the Benevolent Institution , which are performed in the time that ought to be devoted , according to Bro . Clarice , to the business of Grand Lodge ? Yes , one other ; once a month , an hour is abstracted from that time to

attend the meeting of the Committee of Management ; but Bro . Clarke being a member of the Committee , loses the hour also ; and if the office is removed , that time so far as Bro . Clarke is concerned , will be increased without the benefit of his being on the premises , should any brother have business to transact with him . In truth , the

Benevolent Institution , though aided by individual subscriptions , is to a- great extent supported by Grand Lodge , hi virtue of which every lodge has a voice in the election of annuitants ; and we expect the business can no where be so properly and appropriately carried on as

in connection with the Grand Secretary ' s office . But now , with regard to the economy of the proposed arrangement . An additional clerk will cost at the most £ 100 a year—Bro . Moss commenced with £ > 10—and will come out of the general funds of Grand Lodge ; whilst the

forcing Bro . Farnfield to resign his position will cost something like £ 150 a year , for what we maintain will be a positive injury to the Institution : and , coming out of the funds of the charity , will deprive at least six poor aged Masons of the means of passing the close of life in comparative comfort . Let us illustrate one statement . We will take the

Pension to Bro . Farnfield at £ 00 Bent of office 40 Messenger "> 0 Firing , li ghting , cleaning , < £ c 20 Total £ U 0

The average of the pensions not exceeding £ 25 . So that we are now called upon to deprive ourselves of the power of adding six annuitantri to our list , and for what ? To gratif y the Grand Secretary , and thereby reduce the income of the assistant below that of the principal , for there need be no disguising the fact that therein lies the whole secret of the movement .