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as to the authenticity of his mother ' s natal certificate . Much has been said and Avritten for and against the propriety of Bro . Buchan ' s investigations into the historical character of St . John ' s Lodge , 3 bis , hut I am quite content Avith the fact of his having

explored , Avithout endorsing the facts said , to have been discovered . I am perfectly satisfied with the fact of St . John ' s having a recognised charter without attempting to recognise those who granted it ; and I am sufficiently pleased Avith the fact of having taken part in the ceremonial of laying a foundation

stone in company with the Lodge St . John , 3 his , without attaching any importance to the tradition of that lodge having taken a conspicuous part in laying the foundation stone of Solomon ' s Temple . My Masonic princi ples date only from the time of my initiation , and I am fully convinced of the Masonic duties of to-day without worrying myself Avith the modus operandi of antiquity . The Avholesome lesson afforded

me iu my youth respecting the history of " Whang the Miller , " deters me neglecting my allotted task to indulge in explorations after foundation stones or pots of gold . But , as the foundation of our present chemical science was laid through the impotent attempts of our forefathers to discover the mythical

Philosopher ' s Stone , so Bro . Buchan ' s Antiquarian Eesearch has not been entirely barren of results , as witnessed b y the contributions with which he from time to time favours your readers . But to our subject , Ero . Buchan having resoh ed to ransack every available depository of ancient

data and musty MSS . which could lead or allure him to the goal of his research , of course frequently found himself cornered through lack of lingual acumen , or bogged to the armpits in quagmires of antiquated thought and expression . Nevertheless , our inverted Excelsior pushed backAvard and downward into the labyrinths of the past with unabated vigour , until he stumbled over the hitherto buried records of the

" Scottish Ei ghts Association . " Hei'e , at last , was something venerable looking and intelligible , AA-hich filled his brain with dreams of unutterable glory , as he inwardly chuckled over the intellectual treasure troA-e . The only document , hoAveA'er , of the lot which had withstood the ravages of time was the Secretary ' s

minutes of the grand final festival , which , although rather shaky in the matter of penmanship , Avas amply sufficient for the requirements of our learned brother . The fragmentary allusions in the other documents to a specific and all-important Avord whetted the zeal of our brother until by feverish diligence he found it to

be " Scots . " Yes , " Scots " was unmistakably and decidedly the Avord . But the Minutes Avere the crowning document of his fame . It was evident that the Association had gracefully , yea , swan-like , died in song . The lay of its last minstrel was faithfully chronicled as having beeen appropriateartisticand

, , touching beyond measure . It was that glorious old national lyric " Logie o' Buchan . " But the Secretary evidently overcome AA'ith grief , had blurred the word " Logie" with a tear , which so distorted its character as to give it a strong resemblance to " Logus , " and as such was it read by our erudite

brother . ITereAvas a discovery ! Logus O ! Buchan . The classical offices of his elbow friend , a venerable pedagogue of Mother Kilwinning were UOAV obtained ,

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and the mystic phrase was soon determined as meaning— " The word , 0 ! "Buchan . " Was this not a weird-like voice calling upon our worthy brother by name , from the vistas of the past , to g ird up his loins and disseminate the word " Scots " in all its pristine purity , in antagonism to the vulgarism " Scotch . "

Most certainly . Need I say how nobly he has performed the duty thus wondrously imposed upon him . Your columns bear ample evidence of this , but whether for the edification or weariness of your readers I cannot determine . This I know , that the chair of his lodge was looked upon as a slight

recognition of his many and varied accomplishments , but this was grudgingly withheld by a prejudiced majority . He nevertheless has the consolation of knoAving he has done , and will doubtless continue , to do his duty ; and he may possibly discover some solace from the memorable axiom of Dr . Johnson , when he says :

" Blessed are they who expect nothing , for they will not be disappointed . " Yours fraternally , " VEEDANTPOTATO . " Glasgow , ISth January , 1 S 69 . [ We insert this letterthat the question may now be

, considered closed , so far as " Scots " and " Scotch" is concerned . We do not agree with the spirit of tho communication , aud we ftiwtu that many of the statements are contrary to fact . —ED . P . M . ]

The Late Emperor Maximilian.

THE LATE EMPEROR MAXIMILIAN .

TO THE EDITOR OF TEE FBEEllASONS' MAGAZINE AUD MASONIC 3 TIEROB . Dear Sir and Brother , —I have this moment read a paragraph in your Magazine relative to the Emperor Maximilian -and Mexico . I beg to say I stated at the Panmure Lodge that all the lodges in the city of Mexico— -six in number—as well as many other lodges

in the provinces , in concert with all Masons in the Mexican army , under President Juarez , exerted all their energies to saA'e the Emperor . Amongst these Avere several Mexican generals in Juarez ' s army . I was in Mexico during the late struggle , and arrived a few months ago from the city of Mexico , where I

hope to return soon . Yours fraternally , HEXEY SEWELL . 21 A , Hanover-square , London .

A MASOXTC STATESMAN ' S THHEAT . —Tho late Count Cavonr , an elighteiied and liberal brother , who was the famous and wise prime minister of A ietor Emanuel , threatened to overthrow Papal domination over the consciences and actions of his Masonic and other subjects in this stle : " I will attack Rome" said he"b

y , , y railways , by the electric telegraph , by agricultural improvements , by establishing national banks , by gvatuitious education on a large scale , by civil marriages , by the secularization of conventual property , by the enactment of a model code , embodying the most lenient laws iu Europe , and by suppression of corporeal punishment . I will place the spirit of modern expansion face to face with the old spirit of obscuration ; I am rpiite certain the

former will triumph . I will establish a blockade of civilization around Home . If she undergoes a modification she will come to us ; if she remains unchanged , she will , by constant comparison , become so disgusted with her state of inferiority , that

she will throw herself into our arms to escape destruction . "