Ears Of Wheat From A Cornucopia.

lend Burns the small sum of money was the sole cause of his penning the bitter piece . ' ' I am perfectly certain of it ; for until that time we had been two of the greatest friends in that part of the country ; and it was only a few months before

that I received a silver snuff-box from the society to which I have referred , as an expression of the sense the members entertained of my services as treasurer , Avith a very handsome poetical effusion written by Burns himself . ' ... "

BUBNS ' S MASONIC APRON . More than one of the old leather aprons that were in use in the Lodge Tarbolton Kilwinning St . James in the Poet's time are represented as being " Burns's Masonic Apron . " All that can

Avith truth be said of any of these old badges is , that Avhile possibly enough each or all of them MAY occasionally have been worn by Burns when sitting in the Tarbolton Lodge , none of them are in any other respect entitled to be identified with the

Bard . Burns , however , had a Masonic Apron , the gift of his friend Mr . Sharpein 1791 , between which time and the Poet ' s death , in 1796 it was given to an actor of professional eminence named Grant , who about the year 1810 presented it to

Mr . Edwin H . Heywood , solicitor , Whitehaven . This genuine relic of Coila ' s Bard may still be preserved within cable-tows ' s length of the Lakes of Cumberland ? It was in some one ' s possession in Whitehaven in 1852 .

THK FIRST PAKTICK LODGE . At the recent celebration of the centenaiy of St . Mary ' s , Partick , it was stated "that in 1763 there was a lodge in Partick bearing- the name of Partick Kilwinning , No . 77 ; " and that the

present lodge in Partick was an offshoot from it . Partick Kilwinning , No . 64 , was erected by Mother Kilwinning on May 24 , 1759 ; and "in consideration of its being an Operative Loclge , " its charter Avas granted on payment of one guinea ,

being one half of the fee exacted for charters issued to lodges of " Gentlemen Masons . " The following letter , which in November , 1806 , was addressed to the Lodge of Kilwinning by its Partick daughter , may not be uninteresting to

brethren in the Glasgow province : — " The Master , Wardens , etc ., and other brethren of your daughter lodge of Partick Kilwinning , No . 64 , beg leave to represent that , agreeably to your charter conferred on them in the year 1759 , they have always from that date till the

present time upheld the dignity of their Lodge Avith due attention and behaviour , —and still wish to continue their charter in the same manner as they have formerly done from the Ancient and ^ Grand Mother Lodge . They also beg leave

torepresent that from circumstances that havenaturally taken place , and from the now low stateof the village of Partick , there is not more than one or two members of this Lodge that are : inhabitants of said village , ancl though the Lodge

is numerous and respectable , yet the members composing it are mostly or neai'ly wholly resident : in Glasgow and neighbourhood , and hava for these many years found great inconvenience-ha attending its regular meeting . It had been

several times proposed to remove the Lodge .: to Glasgow or vicinity ; and accordingly ait two different meetings ( one in January last and the other in February ) , when the members were vesy fully convened for the purpose , unanimously

agreed that the Lodge should be removed ta Glasgow or vicinity . Also , that the Mother Lodge : should be applied to , to confirm their proposals ,, or to alter their charter in such a manner as to

comply with their request . It is- upon these grounds that our present application is made , hoping you will without delay write us an > answer so far as you are disposed to comply with this request ; and upon granting us a new charter ,, or

altering our present one , a committee from our lodge will Avait upon you for that purpose at any-time you may appoint . " The Mother Loclge having agreed to "granfe the request of its respectable and dutiful daughter

lodge of Partick , by a new charter or by a writing , on the back of its old one , " a deputation of three of the petitioners attended at Kilwinning on 22 nd December , 1806 , ancl were admitted members of the Kilwinning Loclge , and treated to a share in ,

the " porter and toddy" ( 5 s . worth ) that wasconsidered necessary to be consumed over thesettlement of the business that had led to their visit . Some time after its removal to Glasgow it became subject to the Grand Lodge of Scotland ,

upon whose roll it was placed as " Partick Kilwinning , No . 77 . " It has been dormant for about thirty-five years .

THE Athenceum states that it is the intention of Mr . Henderson ,, of Montagu-street , London , to bequeath to tlie British Museum , his noble collection of the works of David Cox and William Muller ,