Correspondence.

and promise not to offend in such manner in future ; and I would advise it to establish its claim by paying over the funds of the spurious to the genuine Masonic Institutions , and commence de novo , with a determination to secure for itself a position of charitable Masonic benevolence worthy of the lodge , the town , and the province . I would suggest , on this being adopted , the Secretaries

of the various charities should acknowledge the receipts by letter through your columns , and that your able pen should be employed in smoothing down asperities , and ,, in the name of all Masons , grant a full and free absolution , accompanied with your patriarchal blessing . So would end , in a pleasant manner , creditable to all parties , what might otherwise . remain a source of grief and dissatisfaction . I am , yours fraternally and truly . October 27 th , 1863 . AN OM MASON .

TO THE EDITOR OP THE FREEMASON'S' MAGAZINE AUD aiASOSTC IHRROH . DEAR SIR AND BROTHER , —In reply to "P . M ., " whose letter appeared in the number for October 24 th , I beg to say that I was not actually or apparently pub forth as ¦ a scout . " P . M . " has alluded to me under the signature I appended to my note , and it is quite as far from my wish as it can be to his to bandwords with him .

y My forbearance teaches me to overlook his rudeness , but I claim to call things by their right names with ¦ quite as much vigour as he does , and it appeared to me that Lodge 600 and its Treasurer had been , and still are , treated very unfairly . As a London brother , never having been in the town in which Lodge 600 meets , knowing no brother who is ,

or ever was , to my knowledge , one of its members , I can he no scout—no tool of those of whom I know nothing . My signature expressed my feelings on the matter , and I can only regret that a brother can be found who fieems desirous of withholding from those who conscientiously differ from him that which should be extended to both sides of a question . FAIR PLAY .

Can A Warden Initiate, &C. ?

CAN A WARDEN INITIATE , & c . ?

TO THE EDITOR OP THE PREEStASOUS JTAGAZIJTE AUD 3 IASOUIO MIRROR . DEAR SIR AND BROTHER , —Bro . William Blackburn ' s questions aud assertions , intended to be looked upon as unanswerable , prove too much for his case . In " 161 . 6 , there were two Masonic jurisdictions in England . That at York—thc elder sister—styled the Grand Lodge of ¦ all England , had lodges , holding under it , sparsely

scattered throughout the land , whilst the other ruling power was an occasional aud fitful Grand Master in the South , having no Grand Lodge , but regarded by various isolated lodges as their head . The regulanions of these two systems were as widely different as their respective governments . The Union in 1813 did all that Bro . Blackburn claims

for it , and something more into the bargain , when it proceeded to " alter , repeal , and abrogate all past regulations , " yet retaining as one of its fundamentals the principle enunciated by the Southern Grand Lodge , in 1723 , " that it is not in the power of any man , or body of men , to make innovation in the body of Masonry : " so that even Bro . Blackburn must admit that to " alter ,

repeal , and abrogate all past regulations" was as great an innovation , aud thorough clean sweep , as any body of men could possibly make either iu the body or spirit of Freemasonry . Of course , a different individual cannot answer Avhether another is sure or not about any point unless they have compared notesbut Bro . Blackburn treats the

, Athol and York lodges as synonymous , and actually places the junior first . The York lodge was founded about A . D . 928 , and the Athol lodges were York lodges , but never termed so until the Duke of Athol accepted the Grand Mastership o £ tho " Ancient Masons" in the

year 1772 , and resigned it to the Duke of Kent on the 1 st of December , 1813 , in order that the latter should , iu his turn , abdicate to the Duke of Sussex on the following St . John ' s day , the 27 th of December , in the same year . Bro . Blackburn cannot be complimented on his knowledge of comparative philology , for the word " Warden" is

nob Anglo-Saxon , or Saxon , but pure low Dutch , waerden , " a keeper , a guardian , a head officer , " and in no one ease does his definition of an irresponsible head apply to a Warden , who was the chief executive officer under the head . Old Oowel tells us that "the Warden of the Cinque Ports is a magistrate of those havens in the east of England , called the Oinque Ports , who has there all

that jurisdiction which the Admiral of England has in places not exempt "—and this was by no means , at any time , to be likened to the kingly power . Without entering into the question of what the "Book of Constitutions" indicates as to the duties and privileges of Wardens—one sentence by Bro , Blackburn disposes of his entire argument . He writes , " Where a Fellow Craftsman is chosen Warden of the work under

the Master , he shall be true both to Master and Fellows , shall carefully oversee the work in the Master ' s absence , " & c . " Here , " says Bro . Blackburn , " is nothing about taking an apprentice only as to ' the management of the Craft in working , ' id . est , work already in hand ; and in that sense only may a Warden rule a lodge at the present day . " Surely Bro . Blackburn ' s gloss on the passage

above quoted is fatal to his argument , for if a Warden has the power to complete the work already in hand , he must be able to initiate . An imaginary case , but founded on those of daily occurrence , will show how untenable Bro . Blackburn ' s doctrine is . A lodge is summoned—the W . M . is absent , it then falls to the lot of one of the Wardens to preside . There is an initiation , a passing , and

a raising , to be performed . Well , says Bro . Blackburn , he can'ttake anapprentioe ; all he can do is to rule the lodge as far as the work already in hand goes . But the work in hand comprises conferring the second and third degrees , and does Bro . Blackburn mean to say a Warden can admit brethren to an equal status with himself , oiS . ce of course exceptedand not be able to receive a candidate ?

, Is there any secret that a W . M . can communicate to an E . A ., F . C , or M . M . that caunot be done as well by a Warden of equal ability ? Or , again , to what can an installing W . M . or P . M . allude when he says , in his address to the Wardens , " in his [ the newly installed W . M . ' sJabsence you will succeed to higher duties ; your

attainments , therefore , should be of such a nature , that the brethren may not suffer for want of proper instruction . " And what instruction is half so proper or profitable to the brethren of a lodge than to see the three degrees performed ? Therefore , if a Warden can pass and raise brethren to superior degrees , it is a manifest absurdity to contend he cannot confer the first aud lowest degree .

Bro . Blackburn then quotes the following declaration : — " The Grand Lodge al « ne has the inherent power of enacting laws and regulations for the government of the Craft , and of altering , repealing , and abrogating them ; ahvays taking care that the ancient landmarks of the Order be preserved . " He then adds , " I call upon the members of Grand Lodge to take that care . " "Our

duty is not to inquire what wove the practices in 1646 , 1682 , 1725 , or any period anterior to the ' solemn act of union between the two Grand Lodges of Freemasons of England , in December , 1813 , but to transmit to our successors the ancient landmarks of the Order , ' and ' the laws and regulations for the government of the Craft , ' and unsullied as we have received them . "

pure Granting Bro . Blackburn ' s citation to be correct ,- as an extract , how can the ancient landmarks be preserved if they have been , as he tells us at the beginning of his letter they were , —altered , repealed , and abrogated ? If we are not to inquire what they were , how can we observe them ? Or in what maimer cau they be transmitted pure