Masonic Impostors.

of him is , that he is about 5 ft . Sin ., not over stout , leans a little forward ; dressed in shabby genteel clothes ; very little hair on his head , rather grev ; his face has an oily appearance , and , when standing , keeps one hand ( I think it is his right one ) behind him , under his surtout coat ; he also appears to be

about 45 to 50 years of age . Sir , I wrote to the W . M . of No . SS 7 Lodge the same night , and on Saturday last I received the following letter : —

" Clarendon Chambers . " 2 , Upper Temple-street , Birmingham . "April 30 th , 1 S 69 . '" Dear Sir and Brother , —In reply to your letter of the 27 th mst ., to the W . M . of the Leigh Lodge , Rifle Volunteersmaking inquiries as to a Mr . John Dee

, , I beg to inform you that the person you name has never been a member of our lodge , and is unknown to us . He is also wrong in the amount of our subscriptions . I don't find any such person as ¦ John Dee , hairdresser , Stafford-street , ' mentioned in our ¦ local directory . " I am dear Sir

, " Tours fraternally , "W . H . POWELL , " Hon . Sec . L . L . R . V ., 887 . " " To A . Woodhouse , Esq ., Union Lodge , 310 , " Carlisle . "

Now , Sir , it is a pity we cannot—as Masonspunish him for obtaining money under false pretences . I hope you will insert this in your next issue . I may as well say that , should Bro . Dee ever ceuie within range of my legs , I will kick him ( if possible ) into the middle of next week . Tours fraternally , ARTHUR WooDHor / sE , SEC . 310 & 1 , 220 .

The Masonic Philosopher's Stone.

THE MASONIC PHILOSOPHER'S STONE .

TO TEE EDITOB OF THE FREEMASONS' MAGAZINE AND MASONIC JIIBBOB . Dear Sir and Brother , —Bro . Melville has taught us the true value of the short cut to knowledge , promoted by Freemasonry . It will teach a Mason astronomy , Hebrew , hieroglyphics , but it will not teach him English grammar . It is strange that

Masonry should be in the same boat with spiritualism and the unknown tongues , and that each can communicate to its mediums the knowledge of the spheres but not the art of spelling . This is in some way to he regretted , but there is a philosophical reason for it . If becoming a Freemason would enable a man by his

smell or taste to spell decently , we should have all the illiterate in the land who can muster a few pounds become members of our lodges . It is , however , considered to be a general law of Masonry that men who cannot read and write ought not to be made Masons .

Considering the vast stores of knowledge stowed away in ourlodges , it is likewise strange that Masons have made so few discoveries , and that such a large proportion even of hieroglyphic and cuneiform discoveries have been made by non-Masons . There is further this curious circumstance , that men of learning who have been initiated have generally had

enough of us after a little time , and forego our society as unprofitable . The pretensions of Bro . Melville may gratify some ,

The Masonic Philosopher's Stone.

who believe that his wonderful lucubrations are the liberal fruit of Masonry , but they are calculated to make most of us blush for indulging in the pretensions of charlatans . Tours fraternally , M . M .

Masonic Celestial Misteries.

MASONIC CELESTIAL MISTERIES .

TO THE EDITOE OF THE FREEMASONS' MAGAZINE AND MASONIC MIRROB . Dear Sir and Brother , —Whilst I am willing to pay every attention to such Freemasons as may attack my writings , I will not notice the splenetic effusions of men who either dare not acknowledge themselves , or else are ashamed of their own ignorance . I do

not consider it Masonic for one man to fire his venomous shots—however futile they may be—from behind a wall as thick as his own head , such cowardly aggression being , in my opinion , of assassin-like character . I -will sincerely thank any intellectual brother who will candidly and openly point out to me such

portions of my writings as appear inconsistent or incomprehensible , and 1 will , if in my power , render them more lucid . With respect to the dates of Charles , I fancied I had in my 4 th Paper sufficiently shown that the meaning of sncient dates was unknown , at the present time , and at p . 306 I wrote , with trifling variation , as follows : — "With all the selfconceit of this age , it is impossible to believe that documents purporting to be printed by Kings ,

Bishops , and Chiefs of Enlightened Men , were those of men who did not know what they themselves meant , and that it is left to such men as Timb ' s , or to a writer in the Times of 1861 , to discover what they did intend to mean . The solution of the dates respecting Charles was given in the last paragraph of Paper 5 , perfectly clear to those who understand

true Masonry . Capt . George Smith , elsewhere quoted , says the mysteries of Masonry are not adapted to every capacity , and the present Deputy Grand Master considers that , however interesting , they are beyond the scope of ordinary Masonry . I am decidedly of a different opinion , and I will guarantee that , with

trifling instruction , the Masonic mysteries may be rendered comprehensible to the meanest capacity . A child must learn to walk before he can run ; he must learn the al p habet before he can read . It is otherwise with Masonry ; instruction in picture-reading requiring less time and less mind than is necessary for the learning of the commonest alphabet . Tours fraternally , H . MELTILLE .

Masonic Impostors And An Official Gazette.

MASONIC IMPOSTORS AND AN OFFICIAL GAZETTE .

, 10 I B BDITOB 01 THE FREEMASONS' MAGAZINE AND MASONIC MIBBOB . Dear Sir and Brother , —There is a simple but effectual way of putting a stop to the career of these worthies . Immediately on the detection of an attempted swindle , let the case with full particulars be reported to the Grand Secretary . He should be

empowered to insert a notice in the Freemasons ' Magazine , giving the personal description , & c ., of the detected impostor ; while a statement of all such cases should be attached to the Quarterly Commu-