Correspondence.

applicants the benefit of the donbt , when any can be thonght to exist , a number of cases have been relieved which have subsequently been found to be utterly nnworthy . Yonr correspondent seems to think that every Masonic beggar should be at once relieved , for fear he should be better than he seems or looks . Perhaps this might be the pleasantest and easiest way to settle the charity question . At any

rate , it would no doubt save the donor any fear of such torrents of blasphemous abuse as I have had directed at me by begging blackguards to whom I have declined to give money . But that such a plan would be promoting the interests of Masonry I refuse to believe . I have on several occasions considered it a duty to expose , in yonr columns , nnworthy and plausible brethren who I knew were making

a living out of the good nature of the Craft , and my only regret is , that I have not more often adopted a similar course . The reluctance to damage even tbe faintest prospects of reform has alone prevented me from so acting . At this moment I have a case before me of a brother who arrived here a short time ago , in undoubted distress , and craved assistance . He got it . His board and lodging was paid for

a fortnight , until work in his own line of business conld be obtained for him . Proper clothes were provided , so as to enable him decently to undertake his work , a situation at SOs a week Wi * s secured for him , and he was presented with a railway ticket and two pounds in cash to enable him to secure lodgings in the town to which he was recommended . Result—this " heart sick and weary " brother never turned up afc his destination , but got drunk on the way , ancl cruised off to

some fresh pastures , where by this time he may be fleecing another section of the Craft . My observations have led me to the belief that the everyday charities of the brethren are very numerous , and that the genuine cases soliciting relief are very rare . I shall not publish my name on this occasion , but , of course ,

I enclose it for your own satisfaction . If " CONSTANT READER " chooses to declare himself in your columns , yon are perfectly at liberty to give my name also . I am , & o . CARITAS CUM DISCRIMINE . 4 th July 1882 .

" HONOUR TO WHOM HONOUR IS DUE . "

To the Editor of the FREEMASON ' CHRONICLE . DEAR SIR AND BEOTHRR , — I thank " 609 " for his kind appreoiation of my former letter . I must still hold to my opinion thafc Freemasonry and its Institutions are entirely distinct from one another . Freemasonry is a system of morality ; morality includes charity , and charity almsgiving , while almsgiving may take the form of subscri p-

tion to a school or asylum for the aged . In this sense there is , of course , a bond of union between Freemasonry and our three Institutions , and he who subscribes to the latter puts in practice one of the fundamental principles of the Craft . But I cannot shut my eyes to the fact that there is a growing belief thafc Freemasoniy was made for onr Institutions , and not the Institutions for Freemasonrv . I

maintain that , if onr Institutions were swept entirely away to . morrow , Freemasonry would remain what it always has been , the grandest system of morality ever proponnded by man , while the principle of charity wonld still remain , as heretofore , one of the bases on which ifc rested . It must always be borne in mind that Freemasonry is not , and never was intended to be , what I fear too manv nowadavs

look upon it as being , —a mere benefit society . In its present ; form , it was invented , if I may use the word , as offering a common ground on which men of all religious and political creeds might meet together and grasp the hand of good-fellowship . It was started afc a time when religious and political animosities were very bitter , and men in the opposing camps were inclined to regard each other as personal enemies . This , of coarse , had the effect of weakening the influence of that charity—in its fullest sense—which is innate in the maioritv of

oien , while , at the same time , it was gradually undermining that sense of loyalty by which all men shonld be animated towards " the powers that be . " It is in this sense , and also becanse our Institutions were a kind ot afterthought , due to the spread of the Craft , that I still maintain that Freemasonry and its Institutions are distinct from one another . Fraternally yours , A READER .

SOME PECULIARITIES OF LODGE MANAGEMENT .

To the Editor of the FREEMASON ' CHROMCLB . DEAR SIR AND BROTHER , —I have before me the balance-sheets of wo rather important Metropolitan Lodges , tho figures in which prosnt a contrast which appears somewhat striking and singular . It is Ton ne ( ^ ; ry to mention names , nor wonld it serve any useful pnr-P SB ; bufc it occurs to me that the figures present an anomaly in

the ° mana o ement from which a lesson may be drawn . Apparently 7 possess a muster roll of about equal numerical strength , bnt meer ^ *"' ecre * : ary om ia enabled to come np at the annnal j , S and present a healthy financial statement , the other appears in th ^ a io , P less state of arrears . In tho former a balance remains •_ x , e . easu . er ' s hands of nearly £ 50 at the end of the vear . whilst

subsT * ! ' - them stands to the account of the Lodge nearly £ 170 in 8 o crP t ° ? dne * It is inexplicable how in a Lodge of fifty members tnn « f I a falHn g off could have been brought about . Either there

tho Se V ° een an extraordinary amount of laxity on the part of "mat h ° e fc "" e nnancial control , or the members themselves in r ave very shallow ideas as to their responsibilities aay g . the Craft , Of course , it is a proud thing for secretary or Treasurer to come before his Lodge and

Correspondence.

snbmit snch a report as testifies to the sonnd position in whioh ifc stands ; and wo can scarcely quarrel with such an Officer for putting on a little pressure just before the annual meeting , to secure such a happy result . It may be argued that no true-hearted Mason should need the stimulating reminder of the Secretary to rouse him to a sense of his duty in this respect , hat I suppose we are all more or

less affected by circumstances , and do not too promptly recognise the necessity of keeping our accounts " close up , " in these depressed times . But it is a sad comment upon Lodgo management when , in a body of fifty members , arrears should be allowed to accumulate to the tune of £ 170 , because the question naturally arises , how are these recalcitrant brethren to be brought to the " scratch ? " It looks

very much , on the face of it , thafc these subscriptions may never be realised in full , and the consequence npon such laxity in management is either an nnpleasant nudge on the part of the executive , or a weeding ont of the members who have not sufficient interest in their Lodge to keep themselves clear upon the books . I merely allude casually to these facts to impress npon Secretaries the urgent desir .

ableness of putting into practice the maxim that " short reckonings make long friends ; " for the Lodge that keeps itself within due bounds of solvency is always happier than that which is allowed to drift into irretrievable arrears , and there is much more likelihood of maintaining an esprit de corps amongst the brethren when the

financial atmosphere is clear than when it is clouded by debt . While giving the hint to Secretaries to be a little more active in tho discharge of their duty in the collection of dues , it may also serve to incite tardy subscribers to relieve the Lodge executive of a considerable amount of anxiety and trouble .

I remain , Dear Sir and Brother , Fraternally yours , EX-SECRETART . 26 th June 1882 .

The Annual Meeting of the Provincial Grand Lodge of Surrey will he held at Woking on Friday next , the 14 th instant , under the banner of the Wayside Lodge , No . 1395 , Woking , and the presidency of the Right Worshipfnl Provincial Grand Master General Brownrigg , C . B .

The business will include the consecration to Masonic purposes of a new Hall , the roll call of Lodges , the reception of the Report of the Financial and Audit Committee , the

election of a Provincial Grand Treasurer , and the appointment and investiture of the Provincial Grand Officers . The reference of Grand Lodge as to the propriety of increasing the fees to the Fund of Benevolence will likewise be taken

into consideration , and we are not without hope that the proposition will meet with a successful opposition . There are strong reasons why the Lodge of Benevolence should keep its expenditure within its income ; there are no reasons

in our opinion , why it should allow the one to exceed the other , and consequently there are no reasons why it should propose an increase of contribution from the members of Lodges . The moment this is done there will bean increase in the number of applicants for relief .

The duties which devolve on the Lord Mayor of London are the reverse of light , as instanced by the engagements our Worthy and Worshipfnl Bro . Alderman Sir John Whittaker Ellis , Bart ., has had to fulfil only since last Tuesday . On that day he attended the distribution of

prizes at the Royal Masonic Institution for Boys , Wood Green , in the afternoon , and in the evening entertained Her Majesty ' s judges at the Mansion House . On Wednesday he presided at the Festival of that Institution , at Brighton , leaving by special train , at 7 p . m ., to keep

another appointment at his official residence . On Friday there was a Rose Show in the Egyptian Hall , and banquets have also been given to the Bar of England , and on

Wednesday to the Chairman Bro . Sir J . M . G . Hogg , Bart ., M . P ., and the members of the Metropolitan Board of Works . These , it must be remembered , by no means represent the whole of his labour during the brief period referred to .

The members of the Domatic Lodge , No . 177 , will celebrate their Summer Festival , on Tuesday , the 11 th July , at the Star and Garter Hotel , Richmond Hill . Arrangements have been made for an open air concert , at thi * ee o ' clock ; the banquet will be served at 4 . 30 punctually , while , at

seven , tbe votaries of Terpsichore will have an opportunit y of indul ging in their favourite exercise . Given a fine day , ancl we prognosticate a successful gathering . The members of the Domatio spare no pains to make these meetings of an enjoyable character .

Thursday was fixed for tho meeting of the Trinity Coliegti Lodge , No . 1765 , under the presidency of Bro . W . J . Shirk , W . M . Tho work was to include three joinings , two initiation--:, three passings , and a raising . Refreshments and music will follow .