Bro. Binckes On Things In General.

course they were pursuing ; and they have therefore now no right to complain of the miserable minority in which they find themselves . Leaving that portion of the letter somewhat personal to ourselves , we come to a paragraph in which Bro . Binckes out-Herods Herod in his assertions and assumptions with regard to Bro . Havers , who he

insinuates has " ends of his own to serve . " Anything more , unworthy , not to use a stronger term , than such an assertion could not well have been imagined ; for even those who disagree the most with Bro . Havers , must admit that a more independent , zealous , and able brother is not to be found in the Order—and that , he has devoted an amount of time to . endeavouring to remedy past blunders and to

promote the efficiency of the Masonic government , more than could be reasonably expected from any brother , with a due regard to the attention necessarily required in the pursuit of an arduous and responsible profession . That Bro . Havers has done so , we confidently assert , on the authority of brethren who have acted with him on the Board of General Purposes ; at whose pressing representations

alone he consented again to assume office as President of the Board this year . Whilst therefore we deny the truthfulness of Bro . Binckes ' s portrait of Bro . Havers as the " arch apostle of discord , " for which

he takes so much credit to himself because Bro . Havers recognized that he was meant by the description—as ( from previous efforts in the same line of pictorial language by Bro . Binckes ) other brethren no doubt also did , in the same manner as the majority of the world constantly recognize the sketches of public characters which appear in the pages of our talented contemporary , Punch , though they are not regarded

as such finished or truthful portraits as would be selected for admission into a national portrait gallery—we cannot but feel that , whilst making the charge against others of having " personal ends to serve , " Bro . Binckes goes out of his way to ostentatiously disavow any personal views on his own part . We certainly should never have thought of attributing personal motives to him , but the charge and

the disavowal conies with an ill grace from a brother who tqiplied for ( he office of " Grand Secretary , " in a letter by which , as wc have understood , he endeavoured to explain that he had never taken any part in opposition to the Grand Master ; and were we disposed to follow the example of Bro . Binckes in attributing motives , we might ask how far recent events have been connected with the / WM-appointment to the office sought for ? We confess that the last paragraph of Bro . Binckes ' s letter somewhat puzzles us , for we arc at a loss to understand whether it is " the

prominent members of the executive , " or " all good Masons , " who are exhorted to better learn those " lessons of charity and brotherly love" of which he sets them so notable an example . We can seriously assure him that there is no spirit of " vindictive animosity" against him ; but the truth is , that Bro . Binckes , though a talented , is a disappointed , beaten man ; and forgetting how much his own temper— - not to add his vanity—has done to precipitate his fall , he rails at us ,