Grand Lodge.

GRAND LODGE .

[ Published by the permission of the M . If . the G . A / ., upon the Pub-Usher ' s responsibility for the accuracy of the report . ] The Quarterly Communication was held on Wednesday evening , June 2 nd . The M . W . the Grand Master presided , assisted by Bro . the Right Hon . the Lord Panmure , D . G . M . ; Bro . Frederick Dundas , M . P ., P . G . W ., as S . W . ; and Bro . Frederick Patteson , P . G . W . as JW . This being the day for the election of the Board of General

Purposes and other boards , the following Brethren were appointed Scrutineers : —James Burton , Gay , Moss , Odell , Lambert , Levinson , and William Watson . UNAUTHORIZED NOMINATIONS . The M . W . the Grand Master said that he wished to call the attention of Grand Lodge to the inconvenience arising from the placing of names on the list of candidates for their boards without the authority of the Brethren so named . This had been done on the

present occasion , and three names were withdrawn on the application of the Brethren so nominated without their consent . Those Brethren were—Lord Carnarvon , W . M ., No . 10 ; Richard Havers , P . M ., No . 5 ; and the Rev . G : R . Portal , P . M ., No . 460 . These Brethren said they could not accept the office , and that if elected they would be unable to attend to the duties . The Scrutineers were then directed to retire .

CANADA . On the order for the reading of the minutes , Bro . the Earl of CARNARVON said : —Most Worshipful Grand Master , in accordance with an intimation I conveyed to your Lordship , by letter , of my intention to ask a question , I shall now proceed to do so in as few words as possible . You presented to the last quarterly communication , amongst other papers , two letters referring to Canadian matters . The first was from the late Prov . Grand Master for Quebec , Bro . Harington , resigning his office , and

the second was your Lordship ' s answer to that letter , acknowledging the receipt of it , and accepting the resignation of Bro . Harington . It is currently reported that since then a further correspondence has taken place on the same subject ; that there has been a reply from Bro . Harington , dated March 25 th ; that that communication has been answered by your Lordship or by the Grand Secretary ; and that there has been a subsequent reply . My question is , whether your Lordship will place these papers before Grand Lodge , togetherwith any replies which may . have been made to them .

( Hear , hear . ) The M . W . the Grand Master replied : —In the first place I cannot account for the fact that I have not received the communication on this subject from the noble earl to which he refers , nor did I know anything of it till 1 arrived at Grand Lodge . The question has therefore taken me by surprise . I may find the letter when I return home . I can , however , have no hesitation in saying that I will lay this correspondence before Grand Lodge . ( Applause . ) The last communication has only been lately received ; it shall be answered ROOD , and the answer shall be laid before you along with the other documents . ' ( Applause . )

TASMANIA . The minutes of the previous quarterly communication wore then read ; and , on the question for their confirmation being put , Bro . H . G . WAKREN rose to move , that portion of them relating to Bro . Toby and other Brethren at Hobart Town be not confirmed . He said , that he was aware that such- motions added nothing to the dignity of their proceedings , but his present motion was a necessary one , for it should be recollected , that when G . L . was called upon to decide the question , they had no other

information to rely upon except the lucid statement of Lord Panmure , and in that statement there were some errors . When Bro Ewing was recommended by three out of the four Lodges in the colony for the office of P . G . M ., two of those Lodges were not in legal existence , as they were working under dispensation and not under-warrant ; indeed , the same mail which carried out the patent of Bro . Eviing ' s appointment also carried out the warrants constituting the Lodges which recommended him . He thought that Bro . Ewing had acted hastily towards Bro . Toby and the other Brethren of 781

at Hobart Town , in suspending them from their masonic functions exactly 17 days after he was placed in authority . The motion having been seconded , Bro . the Lord PANMURE , D . G . M ., said—As I was the individual who entered into this subject , and made the motion on it at the last quarterly communication , I think it only right and respectful to the Brother who now differs from the records which are

to be this day confirmed , that I should go so far at least in following him as to make some little explanation on some parts , in which he says I have fallen into error , ( Hear , hear . ) I beg to assure the worthy Brother , in the first place , that I undertook the duty , not as the defender of Bro . Ewing , as he supposes , but as the amicus csrrn appointcd by the Grand Master to go into the whole case , on the part of Bro . Ewing and Bro . Toby , and to report to the Grand Master our opinion upon the subject . I went further , on my own account , thinking that the matter should be disposed of as early as

possible , and therefore I made my motion in Grand Lodge at the last quarterly communication . At that time Bro . Warren proposed that delay should take place ; but as there was not a Brother found to second the motion , it fell to the ground . In fact , the whole Grand Lodge seemed to agree with me , that wo had papers before us sufficient to guide us to a decision in the matter . Moreover , although he states the Brethren had no knowledge of the subjects before them , the Magazine which purports to be published by Bro . Warren a fortnight before contained the whole case of Bro . Tob " .

( Hear . ) I had received some days before , from Bro . Toby , a very voluminous paper , containing a vast quantity of correspondence , and unfortunately ( and I fancy the same paper had been circulated among the Brethren ) Bro . Toby's case , set forth by Bro . Toby himsel *' , in as full a manner as could be , cleared . This being the case , it did seem to me that we might come to a decision on the subject . ( Hear . ) I am charged in Bro . Warren ' s speech to-night , and in his published works which I hold in my hand , and which I presume contain all the points which I could not follow in his speech

tonight ( laughter ) , first with undue precipitancy , in endeavouring to dispose of the case . Next , I am charged with being the advocate of Bro . Ewing . Here again Bro , Warren is entirely mistaken ; for if I had found in those papers , according to my conscience , that Bro . Toby was right , I should have been just as much in that case the advocate of Bro . Toby ( applause ) as 1 now appear of Bro . Ewing . ( Hear , hear . ) It appeared to me that Bro . Ewing was supporting the dignity of the Craft ( hear ) , and I thought that in so doing he

ought to be supported by the Craft . ( Hear , hear . ) It appeared to me that Bro . Toby had taken an opposite course , and therefore merited the suspension which Bro . Ewing has passed upon him , but which I hope , by his coming to a right view , may be speedily removed from him . With regard to the statement 1 made , that Bro . Ewing had been selected for Prov . G M . by three Lodges , 1 now find that I was correct , because of the three Lodges , Faith Hope , and Charity , numbered respectively 901 , 989 , and 992 , the last two received the warrants by the same mail as Bro . Ewing ' s patent was

received . But they were previously working under a dispensation , and I believe I am not wrong in saying , that if a Lodge has a dispensation drawn up in regular form , all its acts are just as valid as if it had received its warrant . ( Hear . ) These Lodges had been working under a dispensation previous to their receiving their warrants in 1856 . There is another Lodge , No . 1021 , which had also been previously working under a dispensation , and it has not long received its warrant , though it had in fact been applied for ; but there was some informality in the applicationand therefore it

, was not granted , and the Lodge still worked under a dispensation . I am justified , therefore , in stating that there were three Lodges , all of them uniting to recommend Bro . Ewing as Prov . G . M . However , I certainly did fall into an error in stating that Bro . Ewing had been five years consecutively Master of his Lodge ; but this was such a mistake as any Mason could not fail to see , since it is well known that no Brother can be Master of his Lodge for more than two years—that is , not for more than two years ' consecutively ;'

and Bro . Ewing had been Master of his Lodge live different years , although not five years ' consecutively . ' That is the extent of the mistake I made . ( Hear , hear . ) I think , therefore , really that the motion I made was founded upon just and reasonable grounds , that it was for the benefit of the Craft in general , and the Craft in Tasmania in particular ; and I do trust that the motion of Bro . Warren will not be acceded to . The amendment was then put and negatived , and The confirmation of the minutes was agreed to . The minutes of the Grand Festival were read and eonntmed .

BRO . THORY CHAPMAN ; The M . W . G . M .: Brethren , in pursuance of the notice I have given , I now beg to move : That the rank of Past Grand Deacon be conferred on the W . Bro . Thory Chapman , on account of his long and zealous services as Assistant Grand Director of Ceremonies . Bro . Chapman has now very efficiently fulfilled the duties of his office during a period of seventeen years ; and this , it is felt , will be a graceful compliment in acknowledgment of services so long and so zealously rendered . He has not only during that period never