Ar00400

® 1 JJ > Jttasfliiir ^ iar . Iffc .

THURSDAY , I 'Si @ ffr # ^! = MAY 23 , 1889 . Edited by W . BRO . JAMES STEVENS , P . M ., P . Z ., do ., & c .

Ar00404

Published every Thursday Morning , price ONE PENHY , and may be had from all Newsagents through the Publishers , 123 to 125 , Fleet Street , E . C .

Subscribers to THE MASONIC STAR residing in London and the Suburbs will receive their copies by thc first post on THURSDAY MORNING . Copies for Country Subscribers Avill be forwarded by thc NIUHT Mail on Wednesday .

TERMS , including postage , payable in advance : — United Kingdom and Countries comprised Places not in General comprised in India , Tostal Union . Postal Union . iil Brindisi . Twelve Months ... 6 s . 6 d . ... 8 s . 8 d . ... 10 s . lOd . Six Months 3 s . 4 d . ... 4 s . 6 d . . . . 5 s . 6 d . Three Months ... Is . 9 d . ... 2 s . 4 d . . . . 3 s . Od .

Post Office Orders , payable at thc General Post Office , London , E . C , to Messrs . ADAMS BROS ., 59 , Moor Lane , London , E . G . Postal Orders and Cheques should be crossed & Co . and all communications concerning Subscriptions and Advertisements should be addressed to " Manager . "

AH other communications , letters , & c , to bo addressed "Editor of Tim MASONIC STAR . 59 , Moor Lane , Fore Street . London , E . C '

Publishing Offices : 123 to 125 , FLEET STREET , E . C . In Masonic Cloth Cover—How Ready—Price 3 s . 6 d . . I VOLUME

Original Correspondence.

Original Correspondence .

Without in any \ vny holding ourselves responsible for , or oven approving of the opinions expressed , wc freely throw open our columns for the proper discussion of all matters <> f a general character relating to Freemasonry . Correspondents must bo as brief as possible , must write plainly , only use one side of the paper , and cannot expect the return of rejected contributions . Every contribution must be accompanied with tho name of thc writer , not necessarily for publication , hut as a guarantee of good faith .

To the Editor of THE MASONIC STAB . DEAR SIR AND BROTHER , In your foot-note to thc letter of SUBSCRIBER in your paper of the Oth ' inst ., you state that you arc informed officially that no sum of £ 2 , 000 has been spent in enlarging the Hall of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution at Croydon . I doubt this " official

statement , " for I knoAV that the original Hall has been enlarged , though in AS'hat year the addition was made I cannot say with certainty , nor do I remember the exact cost . It may have been £ 1 , 999 or £ 2 , 001 , and therefore not the exact figures you have stated ; so far justifying the official information you appear to have been supplied Avith , but nevertheless misleading you and others , for I am sure

THE MASONIC CHARITIES .

the amount Avas something like that stated . As to your other statement , that there is now a Warden at the Institution receiving £ 20 per annum , I should like to knoAV It-is name . I doubt this statement also , for . if what I have heard is true , Matron and Warden axe one and the same person . Yours fraternally , W . M .

* „* We cannot do more than ash for information at headquarters , and communicate what we learn . W . M . has as much as we can give , and , can only now he referred by v-s to the same source , whenee- ' oiir statements arc derived . —ED . M . S .

" HEARTY GOOD WISHES , " kc .

' To the Editor oj THE MASONIC STAR . DEAR SIR AND BROTHER , If there be one feature about our usages more ancient than any other , it is our usual pleasant greeting as above . In some form or other , closely resembling it , it Avas customary with every mcdiaiA'al Craft or Guild throughout Europe . In the I 8 th century tho

Masonic form Avas " Thc Worshipful Master and Fellows of tho Holy Lodge of St . John's , Avhencc I come , greet you , greet you , greet you heartily , " and the Master ' s reply Avas , " God's greeting to you , good Fellow . " I can produce German equivalents of very early date , in all trades , before our present Freemasonry Avas thought of . That any brother should object to tho present curtailed form , not even requiring a reply except a bend of the head , is

astounding , and implies ignorance of ancient custom . On thc other hand , for a brother to rise Jive or six times and greet for five or six different lodges of Avhich he may be a member , as I have seen done , is an abuse of a good thing and should bo laughed down . Also , in my opinion , no brother , a member of the lodge addressed , should thus rise ; tho custom should be confined to visitors , pure and simple . G . W . SVKTU . P . M ., Margate , May 10 th , 1889 . Sec . Quatuor Coronati .

Royal Masonic Institution For Boys.

ROYAL MASONIC INSTITUTION FOR BOYS .

The following letters are reproduced from The Freemason of 18 th inst .: — [ COPY ] " To thc AV . Brethren F . W . Ramsay , M . D ., Rota Chairman of the House Committee , and Chas . Fred , llogard , Rota Chairman of thc Finance and Audit Committee . EoA al Masonic Institution for Boys .

" Lamb Building , Temple . " 13 May . 1889 . "Sirs and Brothers , " I have to acknowledge your letter of May Oth , received by nic after it had appeared in thc columns of thc Freemason of 11 th inst .

"In that letter it is stated that" ' Without unrestricted access to those notes ( i . e . tho shorthand Avritcr ' s notes of evidence before the Committee of Inquiry ) , it is manifestly impossible to draw up an exhaustive reply' to the report of that Committee . " You thus plainly suggest that unrestricted' access to these

notes had not been afforded to you . " I now call your attention to thc I ' olIoAving facts : On 29 th April , thc Secretary ( Bro . Binckcs ) by your instructions , ' applied ' to me for these notes . " I replied , full access could always be had here , and , instructions , if more convenient , I offered to lend them you , to bo returned to

mc when required . " Accepting the offer I thus made , his clerk called and took all 15 vols , of the notes , on 3 rd May , and . signed the receipt for them , Avhich I now hold . " They have since remained in your possession . It is difficult to

conceive IIOAV you could have alloAved yourselves to sign a letter , thus directly suggesting an inference the reverse of the truth , had the Secretary informed you of these facts . " I observe , however , that tho letter of May 9 th . doAvn to thc actual signatures , is entirely in the Secretanfs handieritinq .

" Brother Binckcs AVCII kneAv when he penned that letter that he then held these notes on your behalf , and that he had so held them for six days , at the moment he put that letter before you to affix your signatures thereto . " I forbear comment on that which speaks for itself . li Nor shall I enter into correspondence on the report Avhich my

colleagues and myself have presented to the Quarterly Court . " If that body thinks right to publish these notes , the Committee of Inquiry cannot entertain the slightest objection—at least , so far as I am concerned , or may speak beforehand for the other members . " Only the evidence must , in that case , appear in its entirety as given , and no part be suppressed . It will then be seen that it fully

justifies every conclusion to Avhich the Committee of Inquiry came . " As , desiring ' to avoid any Avant of courtesy' to any member of thc Committee or to myself , you sent your letter to the Freemason for publication before I received it , you Avill not complain that I am sending a copy of this letter for insertion in that neAvspaper . — Yours faithfully , " FREDERICK A . PHILBRICK ,

" Chairman of the Committee of Inquiry ., To the Editor of thc " Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , Kindly give insertion to the accompanying letter . —Yours fraternally , JOYCE MURRAY . CHAS . FREDK . HOGARD .

V . W . Bro . F . A . Philbrick , Q . C ., Grand Registrar . Chairman Committee of Inquiry . V . W . Sir and Brother , Your letter of thc 13 th has been considered by a Special Meeting of thc Committees of this Institution held this day . AVc regret that

our expression " unrestricted access" to the shorthand Avritcr ' s notes of evidence Avas misapprehended by you . We—the House and Audit Committees—Avere given the fullest access to them for our OAvn information , but as they AA ere to remain for thc present Avith the papers of the Committee of Inquiry ( see your letter of 30 th April , 1889 ) , and as the inquiry was private and confidential , Ave felt that AVC could not . Avithout the sanction of your Committee .

have " unrestricted access " to them for publication . From your letter of Kith May , 1889 , AVO gather that Ave must Avait authority from thc Special or Quarterly Court before Ave can have Avhat wc intended to convey by thc term " unrestricted access " to the notes . Thc letter sent to you in the handwriting of the Secretary of tho Institution Avas drafted at a Special joint meeting of the Committees by members of those Committees on behalf of thc Avholc—We are , V . W . Sir and Brother , yours fraternally ,

JOYCE MURRAY , On behalf of the House Committee CIIAS . FREDK . HOGARD , Kith May , 1889 . On behalf of the Audit Committee

Answers To Correspondents.

Answers to Correspondents .

O . ll . li . !( ., 75 , R . I . MOI . TII . —liitve sent your letter to " I'riar Tuck , " who will ilunbtltss communicate Willi you . H . 1 ) . P ., Isi . iN . iTON ' . —Your friend will " appear again " ; probably next week . P . M . AMI I ' IIKCHI'T OU . —Yours is but the last of many requests of a si" 1 '' 1 ' . ' ' nature . We insert a trial " ( Questions and Answers " in tills number , awl » ll is approved of as useful , will continue it .

Press Exchanges And Books Received.

Press Exchanges and Books Received .

Canadian Craftsman ; South , Australian Freemason .