Merit.

diversity of opinion we should have no desire on tbe part of one brother to emulate another , while there would be no incentive for one Mason to improve on the work as performed by his predecessors , or to carry out bis duties in a

better or more painstaking manner than those around him , for the simple reason that all would be agreed things were being done as well as was possible , and if perfection were arrived at , what more should we have to strive for ? Such

a condition of affairs is not , however , possible . As long as life lasts there will be some who can see a better way to perform a task than others complete it in , and in striving to demonstrate their views they will aim at excelling their fellows , with results more or less meritorious in

different cases . There is also another consideration which induces men to emulate their fellows , which , in the words of the quotation from Goldsmith given above , may be termed the love of " popular glory . " There are few men wholly free from this—may we term it vanity ? and unquestionably both Freemasonry and the world at large owe much of their advancement to the efforts of those who aim at securinc . it . The desire for popularity will induce a man

to undertake tasks , and will lead him to achieve successes which sober reasoning would have deemed impossible , and on this account the uncertainty attending the final result is correspondingly great . A lover of popular glory " must toil , feel every inquietude , indulge every caprice , and perhaps at last be jilted into the bargain . " Freemasonry supplies numerous instances proving tbe truth of these remarks . Proposals have been made which appeared to

possess every qualification for success ; their promoters toiled hard to secure it ; they altered their plans with tbe view of indulging the whims of every objector , and yet , in Bpite of all their exertions , they failed to win the glory which seemed to be within their reach . It may be answered that , despite tbe meritorious character of their proposals , they aimed too high ; they strove to win that " perfect coquette , popular glory , " and met the fate which

attends so many of her lovers . Can ifc be said they secured a reward in proportion to their merit ? The world must answer , " Not in every case , " and such must be the opinion of every Freemason who measures results from the usual std nd point .

Turn we now to the second portion of our quotation , and we have a lesson equal to any which Freemasonry strives

to teach . The seekers after true glory , it tells us , " must

play no tricks , " but on the other hand they need " feel no great anxiety , for they are sure in the end of being rewarded in proportion to their merit . " Ifc is just the matter of merit which here becomes the prime factor in

tbe question—a man must possess ifc , or be cannot win true glory . From this we may infer that popular glory is to be secured by any one , provided he is ready to toil

for so fickle a lover ; while true glory is a reward which only falls to tbe lot of tbe meritorious . But who is meritorious , and what is merit ?

As the basis from which we have to regard our subject is essentially a Masonic one , it is our present duty to

attempt to determine what is merit in Freemasonry , and who among its members are deserving of being dubbed meritorious ? Merit we may in a few words dismiss , as being Masonry of the heart as opposed to Masonry of the

tongue , in brief—acts not words . A meritorious Mason will show a strict observance of the spirit , even if he neglects the actual letter of Freemasonry , and it is on this ground thafc a man of comparative ignorance , in so far as education is concerned , may become a far better Mason

merit , and will assuredly secure , true and lasting glory . Now , as to the particular events of tbe day which have brought this subject prominently to the fore on the present occasion . A correspondent , signing himself " A Freemason , " wrote to the Court Circular , and that paper gives the writer's remarks prominence in its columns in

reference to recent doings at tbe Drury Lane Lodge . The correspondent eaya : — " I was glad to see fche Lodge give

than another possessed of the most profound knowledge . The one will succeed , although quite incapable of expressing himself in public , and making a lamentable failure when the smallest tax is put npon his memory , while the other

will fail , in spite of the most brilliant powers oi elocution , tbe ability of discussing or arguing a subject with anyone , conjoined with a splendid memory , simply because the one possesses and the other lacks the power of promoting happiness and spreading goodwill among his fellows . The one may , perhaps , win popular glory , while the other will

Merit.

Bro . Parkinson a testimonial ; he deserved it . But it was not satisfactory to reflect that it was given for doing the work which should have been done by the Master of the Lodge . During the whole of Brother Augustus Harris ' s

Mastership he did none of the iniations and so forth , and , in fact , delegated his work to Brother Parkinson . This sort of thing is becoming increasingly common , and brings discredit on Masonry . " Wo must at once say we do

not agree with the views which our Brother" A Freemason , " holds , or which he may be inferred to hold from his remarks . Our argument has always been that the

Mason who does his best—no matter what bis best may be , when compared with the acts of others—has done well It is not necessary that a Mason should be qualified to

work tbe various ceremonies of the Order ere be can be described as a good Master , nor does it follow that the strictest disciplinarian in regard to the ritual of Freemasonry makes the beat ruler . We have known cases which have proved actually tbe reverse , and where a

punctilious Worshipful Master has upset the peace and harmony of his Lodge by bis rigid adherence to the letter of tbe ceremonies . Everything was made subservient to his pet hobby , and although he was letter perfect , he sadly lacked the spirit of Masonry . We do not wish our remarks

to become too much identified with any particular body , and on that account shall dismiss from our minds , for the present , the name of the Drury Lane Lodge , and attempt to answer the remarks of " A Freemason " on broad and

general lines . There are brethren in Freemasonry who strive to secure for themselves and their Lodges the reputation of being perfect , or nearly so , in some particular respect . It may

be notoriety they strive for , but we will adopt the language of our quotation , and describe it as glory — whether " popular" or " true" it is not for us to decide , time alone will help ns to a solution on that score . Some strive

to make their Lodge a pattern for good work , others work to make for it a reputation for geniality , good fellowship , or hospitality , while others again pin their faith on Charity , and let everything else sink into the shade , so that the one

object for which they strive may stand out in bold relief . Such tactics cannot always be' described as meritorious , although it would be wrong to describe them in harsh terms ; but Freemasonry should be universal , and on

that account any particular whim or fancy is opposed to its tenets , and any undue prominence may perhaps give offence to some among its members . We will assume for tbe nonce , and particularly on

account of the remarks of " A Freemason , that a Lodge

desires to secure and maintain a reputation for the perfection of its working . It is not reasonable to suppose that all its Masters can find time to qualify themselves for the performance of tbe ceremonies as they desire to see them

worked , while it may happen they do not all possess the

ability to do as well as they wish . Does the admission of this inability become a Masonic crime , or does it reflect " discredit on Masonry ? " Certainly not , it rather proves a willingness to sacrifice one ' s self rather than oppose the wishes of the other members . The brother who stands

aside on snch occasions feels he cannot give as much satisfaction as others would , and gives place so that the reputation or the particular hobby of the Lodge may not suffer through his imperfections . It would be unjust to

say that such men were personally incapable of performing tbe ceremonies , because we believe , after what we have seen and heard , that any man capable of repeating the

words of the ritual after his neighbour , is capable of performing them , if such a jumble is worthy of being called a performance . It is true we do not approve of a

Worshipful Master invariably delegating the work of his Lodge to another , but there is certainly nothing wrong in even that extreme , if by so doing he falls in with tbe wishes of hia fellow members . Besides , a Master ' s duty does not cease with the working of the ceremonies of the

Order ; the maintenance of the comfort and happiness of his Lodge is of equal , if not of greater importance , for although it may be true that first opinions have a

wonderful effect on fche future of a candidate , it is equally certain it is the general working of Freemasonry which will make the greatest impression on him .

Speaking generally it is very difficult to decide who is the most meritorious Master of a Lodge . One excels in one thing , and another in something else : ifc is only by watching the general effect of a man ' s rule that we can

form any reliable guess as to his merit , or lack of it . By