Masonic Notes And Queries.

peculiar character . It must come to us under circumstances that will alone ensure its being heard . To the signal thus qualified the response will always be favourable . The first of these qualifications is , that lie who knocks must come freely and voluntarily—or , as we technically say" of his own free will and accord "—

, without the solicitation of friends , without the counsel of advisers . There must be no persuasion , and no promised inducements . The door of Freemasonry will open only to those who eome willing and even anxious to be received . They who would learn from us must seek instruction ; it will not be tendered .

The gift we offer is" too valuable to be thrust into unwilling , or even indifferent hands . The giver is ready , but he must be importuned ; and when our door is thus approached , cheerfully , anxiously , without persuasion , but with all the free heart of the comer , then , to him that so knocketh , it shall be opened . But this is not all . While there must be no pressure from without moving the candidate to seek admittance , neither must there be any improper one

from within himself . He must not come influenced by mercenary motives . There must bo no hope of bettering his worldly condition , of securing pecuniary advantages , of enlarging his list of friends . Interest cau be no legitimate motive ; for so prompted the knocker will not be heard . Freemasonry presents no inducements of worldly gaiu or prosperity to its

neophytes . It offers truth alone as the guerdon for all the labours that it imposes . And he who seeks its light with other motives than to grasp this truth is unworthy to receive a single ray . Therefore , coming freely , coming unpersuaded by others , coming uuiufiuenced by mercenary motives ,

the . candidate must be prompted solely by the love of truth , by the hope of acquiring and comprehending its lessons as taught in our sacred asylums ; and thus enlightened as to the head , and improved as to his heart , trusting to augment his usefulness with his knowledge—so let him come , and so let him boldl y knock ; and then , so coming and so knocking , will he find the promise fulfilled— " to him that knocketh , it shall be opened . "—Ex . Ex .

THE ABBEY OT KILWINNING . Is there any picture of the Abbey of Kilwinning ? —AN IRISH BROTHER . —[ Yes . See Grosse ' s Antiquities for a sketch of the ruins , in 17 S 9 , now entirely disappeared . ]

WATCHING A JCNIGHT ' ARMOUR . Is there any degree , or order of Kni ghthood , in which it is necessary for an esquire to watch his armour , fasting , before he attains the rank of knight ? —K . T . —[ None that we know of . We presume you have seen the very pretty fable on the subject

exhibited at the Pol ytechnic Institution as a vehicle to show the ghost illusion . That is the onl y instance we ever heard of where a warrior was compelled to such a penance after a hard day ' s fight . ]

MASONIC QUADRILLES . In what do Masonic quadrilles differ from any other quadrilles . —TREMLETT . —[ Ask Bro . Thos . Alexander Adams—a very good authority on Masonic working , and equally eminent in all that relates to dancing and dance music . ]

THE EARLY GRAND AND HIGH KNIGHTS TEMPLARS . Iu the Fratrimoiiium Fxcelsum , or New Ahiman Rezon , edited by "A Worthy Brother , " and published in Dublin in 1770 , at p . viii . are to be seen the two lists here appended : — " Grand High Knig hts Temlars Encampment of Irelandand K . E . O . No . 1 .

p , Eig ht Worship ful aud Eig ht Hon . Sir Richard , Lord Baron Donoughmore , Grand Master of the Order . " Sir John Fowler , D . G . M . Sir Oswald Edwards , G . Sec . Sir Edward C . Keane , C . Gen . Sir Thomas Molonv , G . Mar . "

Sir James Mills , DG . Mar . Sir Joseph Logee , G . S . B . meet the second Thursday of every month at the Old Bristol , Craue-lane . " Immediately succeeding comes the" Early Grand Knights Templars Encampment ..

" Sir John Gamble , E . G . M . Sir Andrew Kelly , D . G . M . Sir John Kennedy , C . G . Sir John Hunter , E . G . Mar . Sir Edward Gilmore , D . E . G . M " . Sir Thomas Cuffe , E . G . S . B . meet the last Thursday of every month at Cressens ' , Kenedy ' s-lane . "—A K . T .

THE DESCENDANTS OE DR . PERFECT . Dr . Perfect was Prov . G . M . for Kent some years ago . Are any o £ his descendants alive , and who , and where , are they ?—INA ' ICTA . THE BROOM AND WARMING-PAN . As well as " P . M ., " I have seen a Masonic eDgraving

which has an unmistakeable hirchbroom as one of the symbols . There is another crossed with it , and I cannot liken it to anything else but a warming-pan . Can a broom or warming-pan ever have been used in earnest amongst Masonic draughtsmen ? If so , what do they stand for ?—ANOTHER P . M .

CHAUCER ' S CRAIT KNOWLEDGE . In what work of Chaucer ' s is his knowledge of the Craft to be perceived ?—SPES . —[ Chaucer , like all the poets iu Europe of his time , not only wrote of what we now call the Craft , but also the knightly degrees . The story called " Patieut Urizel" was very popular

iu the 15 th century . It is a Masonic political allegory , and was used in many nations to disseminate Freemasonry . In The Canlerhtry Tales it will be found as " the Gierke ' s Tale , " and , if read with its concealed meaning , will show how those who were brethren were persecuted by the ruling power of the

keys . Romance of the Rose is even more explicit , and there are such numerous allusions in it that it seems a wonder the majority of readers do not , at once , see its drift . We cannot , here , advance to you such proofs as would immediately convince you ; but we may add that it is such a body of Masonic lore that , if our principles were entirely lost , Freemasonry could be resuscitated from these two works . ]

THE HIGHEST LIVING MASONS . Who are the highest living Masons at the present time ?—A . F . —[ We don't know , but Bros . Coxwell and Glaisher have , we believe , been higher than any other brethren . ]