On The Origin Of Grand Lodges And The Powers Of Grand Masters.

scurel y than we would wish , endeavoured to express our views ancl g ive reasons therefor , upon the various points embraced in the heading of this jiortion of our l-eport . We have embodied in our own language , the opinions of others agreeing with us in sentiment , and combatted those ideas which we have met with in your correspondence differing from our own . A

proper understanding of the fundamental princi p les of our Order , its nature , powers , & c , are of such vital importance , that a mistake would almost prove fatal , and this is our excuse for the length and manner of our treatment of these questions .

Masonic Notes And Queries.

MASONIC NOTES AND QUERIES-

THE TERM BROTHER . In the sixth vol . of Tha Ha . rhian Miscellanctj , p . 268 , is Bishop Sprat ' s "Relation of the Contrivance of Blackhead and Young , & c , against the lives of several persons , " in which a series of fraudulent bills of exchange were obtained bforgery & cone of which was procured

y , , through a letter as follows -. — " Coventry , June 12 th , 1683 . "BEOTUES BIILERS , —At sight of my bill , hearing date June 12 th . he pleased to pay unto Mr . Robert Young the sum of a hundred pounds , which I have received from him . I have nothing else at present but this letter of advice from him who is " Your loving brother and servant

, , "JOSEPH OIUS . " To Mr . Billers , at the Three Kings , in Cheapside , London . " The query I make is—Was this intended to be understood as an address from one Freemason to another ? or if not , why was the word " Brother" twice pointedly introduced ?—Ex Ex .

BllO . HUCKLEBRIDGE . To what lodge did Bro . Hucklebridge belong ? He was Secretary to the Girls' School in 1818 , and resided at 20 , Elizabeth-place , Kemiington . —Ex . Ex . BEO . ROBERT HALL . A song

beginning—When Masonry , by Heav ' n's decree , Arose from father Adam ' s brain ; This Avas the chatter of the fraternity , Ancl secrecy shall guard the . same . CUOKUS . Hail Masonry , for ever may ' st thou he , To all but us a mystery . This is evidently an adaptation to "Rule Britanuia , " but what I wish to know is , who was Bro . Eobert Hall —its author ? Could it be the celebrated Rev . Robert Hall , the non-conformist ?—H .

PAST GRAND SECRETARIES . I read in a list of Grand Officers for 1819 that the " Grand Secretaries attend at Preemasons' Hall , on the business of the Society , on Tuesday and Saturday evenings . " There were two G . Sees ., Bros . White and Harper at that time , who could not have been overburthened with business , seeing two evenings per week was all the attendance they gave . —P . S .

SIR CHRISTOPHER WREN . What truth is there in the subjoined statement cut out of an American paper ?— " Most of the so-called histories of Freemasonry assert that Wren was Grand Master of England , and held a lodge in regular working throughout the building of St . Paul's . This we are inclined to doubt , for two reasons : first , because there was no such office as Grand Master until after 1717 , when the four lodges then in London constituted themselves

Masonic Notes And Queries.

a Grand Lodge , which was after Sir C . Wren had given up all interest in the fraternity;—and , secondly , because Wren was not a Freemason until 1691 , which date is long after the commencement of building St . Pauls , ( 1675 . ) We quote from Aubrey ' s Natural History of Wiltshire , a MS . in the library of the Royal Societ y : "Memorandum .- —This day , May 18 th , being Monday ,

1691 , after Rogation Sunday , is a great convention at St . Paul ' s Church of the fraternity of adopted Masons , where Sir Cristopher Wren is to be adopted a brother , and Sir Henry G-oodric , of the Tower , and divers others . " He could not , therefore , according to Anderson , have been Grand Warden in 1633 , nor Deputy in 1666 , nor Grand Master in 1685 . —* * * .

BLACK MAS 0 NR 1 * . What is Black Masonry ? We have all heard of the Blue aud Red Masonry , but what is denominated Black ? —A BLUE MASON .- —[ We have never heard of it . Perhaps it is a new importation signifying Ternplary ?] AMERICAN MASONIC PERIODICALS . Add to the list of Masonic periodicals published in America , the following : Tha Ashlar , Tha Masonic Hevieiv , The Masonic Messenger , The Masonic Jourmd , The Triangle ( in German . )— * * * .

Notes On Literature, Science, And Art.

5 TOTBS ON" LITERATURE , SCIENCE , AXD ART .

As calendar folloAvs calendar from the Queen ' s printers , the extent and richness of our state papers daivn upon ns with considerable poiver . The calendars already fill a shelf , and will in time fill a library . In 1857 the first tome appeared , and Ave have IIOAV tAventy-one of these useful and bulky volumes in a roil * . For readers Avho have not the whole set of these

important works before them , it may be Avell to state in a feiv words Avhat has "been done . Mr . Lemon dated the first volume of the series December , 1856 ; he had been many years at ivork upon it ; some of its sheets had been three or four years intype ; and it has not yet been folloAved by a second volume . Mr . Lemon is a competent and meritorious public servant ; but

he has served a long life in office , and it is apparent , on comparison with his fellows , that his speed is not very great . Since Mr . Lemon ' s Calendar AA-as in the press , Mr . Bruce has sent out . five volumes of Calendar , Mrs . Everett Green seven volumes . The folloAving list is complete up to the present moment : —Of our Domestic Papers , Mr . BreiA-er ' s Papers of Henry the

Eighth , one volume ; Mr . Lemon ' s Elizabeth , one volume ; Mrs .. Green ' s James the First , four volumes ; Mr . Bruce ' s Charles the-First , five volames ; and Mrs . Green's Charles the second , three volumes : —of our Colonial Papers , one volume by Mr . Sainsbury : —of our Irish Papers , one volume by Mr . H . C . Hamilton : —of our Scottish Papers , tAvo volumes hy Mr . J . Thorpe : — of our Foreign Papers , tAvo volumes by Mr . Turnbull .

Some months ago the scientific hooks in the Radclifie Library Avere transferred from Gibbs ' s-huilding to the neAV museum , where sufficient room has been found for them in the immediate neighbourhood of the Science Schools , Laboratories , and Museum—a removal greatly to the advantage of students in bringing the whole of their materials and opportunities , so to

speak , under one roof . The Radclift'e Library has been converted into a reading-room , open day and evening—a sort of annexe of the Bodleian . The two edifices are separated by a considerable uncovered space , and architecturally distinct . It has been proposed to connect them by a covered Avay , for which a design Avas made by Mr . WoodAvard that appears to us extremely beautiful , and to harmonise , as well as anything can