Cornwall.

CORNWALL .

AT the Provincial Grand Lodge , to be held at Saltash on 16 th inst ., the Prov . Grand Sec . Bro . E . D . Anderton will move three important alterations in Prov . Bye-law No . 9 , viz .: —( A ) TO insert after the word " meantime" in seventeenth line , " In cases of urgency , when there is no other business necessitating a meeting of the committee , the Prov . G . Treasurer , Prov . G . Sec ,

the Treasurer of the CM . A . and B . Fund , and one elected member each from East and West Cornwall , or any three of them , shall have power to grant temporary relief to the extent of £ 5 , as aforesaid . " ( B ) TO omit the second paragraph " N . B . to Form , " and id lieu thereof to add at end of Bye-law , " Petitions must be

sent to the Prov . G . Sec . at least a month before the meeting of Prov . G . Lodge , and unless this rule is complied wifch no grant ( other than for temporary relief ) shall be made . " ( c ) To alter heading to form of Lodge recommendation so as to read , " To prevent mistakes in the recommendation of petitions the following form is suggested , which may be altered as circumstances require . "

Kent.

KENT .

AT a meeting of the Provincial Grand Mark Lodge , held on the 29 th ult ., upon the proposition of Bro . H . Ward , of Canterbury , it was unanimously decided to recommend Bro . the Eev . H . Cummings for appointment as Provincial Grand Master .

Sussex.

SUSSEX .

THE annual meeting of this Provincial Grand Lodge will be held at Eastbourne in November , and it is gratifying to learn that the Provincial Grand Master H . E . H . the Duke of Connaught has intimated that he will make an especial effort to preside on that occasion . — " Sussex Daily News . "

Church Service.

CHURCH SERVICE .

THE second annual Masonic service , under the auspices of the Bootle-Wilbraham Lodge , No . 2463 , took place on Sunday afternoon , at Knotty Ash Church , and , favoured by fine weather , was attended by about 600 members of the Craft , besides a considerable number of the general public . Special tram and train facilities were afforded for the occasion , and the influx of so

many visitors created great interest among the villagers and others , who gathered in large numbers to witness the proceedings . The rendezvous was the Village Hall , where the Brethren donned

their full Masonic clothing , with the badges and jewels of their respective offices , and afterwards , headed by the Officers of Provincial Grand Lodges , proceeded in processional order to the church .

The choral service , conducted by the Eev . Frank Powell , M . A ., vicar of Knotty Ash , and Chaplain of the Bootle-Wilbraham Lodge , included the anthem " Behold , how good and joyful a thing it is , " which was splendidly rendered by the members of the choir .

Bro . Powell occupied the pulpit , and preached from Neh . iv ., 17 , " They which builded on the wall , and they that bare burdens , with those that laded , every one with one of his hands wrought in the work , and with the other hand held-a weapon . " He

pointed out that the workers mentioned in the text showed an example in earnestness , vigour , and watchfulness which all might imitate in building up the fabric of individual spiritual life and the walls of the Church of Christ . The words also taught them a lesson as members of the ancient and honourable institution of

Freemasonry . If Masonry was to fulfil its high and noble ideal , if its three fundamental principles of Brotherly love , relief , and truth were to be an example to the world at large , then every Mason must be vigorous and watchful in doing his part . Linked together in a common Brotherhood , men of every station had

laboured side by side in the cause—emperors and kings , princes and nobles , the rich and influential with the more humble ancl lowly , had been promoters of the art , and had united in justifying the boast that they were Brethren indeed . It lay with them now to vigorously build up the impregnable walls of this world-wide

society , and to be watchful by adhering to the ancient landmarks of the Order , by obedience to its laws and regulations , by preserving inviolate its rites and ceremonies , and maintaining its dignity and beauty . At the conclusion he appealed for a liberal offertory in aid of the funds of the West Lancashire Masonic Educational Institution .

The collection , which was subsequently made , realised £ 38 17 s 4 d , as against £ 48 5 s 3 d , last year , when the offertory was m aid of the Hamer fund . — "Liverpool Courier . "

Arch Masonry In Canada.

ARCH MASONRY IN CANADA .

THE indifference displayed in many places to the interest of Capitular Masonry induces a hesitation in extending the work by the issue of dispensations or of Warrants to new Chapters . Our printed records , with the roll of Chapters scattered over all parts of the Jurisdiction , are external evidences of internal welfare . And yet , it is an easy thing to have an

army on paper , with cannons on the ramparts and shot and shell stored ready for any emergency . But paper armies have vanished before to-day , and the sad lessons of defeat have shown that what is represented on paper must have material existence in the field . So it is with the work of Eoyal Arch Masonry . We

may issue dispensations and establish Chapters , but if the workers are only represented by names on the roll call , but if the Officers are those who are on hand only at a church parade , an

" At Home , " or an official muster , where Masonic Millinery is the best thing in the outfit , then is not a Grand First Principal justified in refusing to touch the button and give vitility to an organisation which would not reflect credit upon Masonic life .

Chapters cannot prosper in small centres . One Lodge rarely developes searchers after the higher mysteries of the Eoyal Arch in sufficient numbers to give strength to a Chapter . Different Lodges have different characteristics , but these are

harmonised in the higher and unified life of the Chapter . One great element of strength in our system is its power to build stones hewn from many quarries into the perfected beauty of the Eoyal Arch .

While outward and visible signs of revival cheer our hearts , we have , nevertheless , to contend with difficulties which have not to be surmounted by other institutions . The ground floor of our fraternal structure holds the initial part of the work , which gives , by the three sections of the Craft

degrees , the right to go up higher and seek in the fourth section the brighter and clearer light of Masonry in the degrees of the Eoyal Arch . The Capitular degrees are of admitted antiquity . They contain the essentials of knowledge that give perfection to

the Craft degrees , and which were not manufactured to suit the whims of those whose delight it was to face the camera and look pleasant as the artist perpetuates the grandeur of their regalia for the edification of generations yet unborn .

These thoughts meet us when we find that there are those who claim that the higher light shines elsewhere , that the Eoyal Arch is but a minor constellation , and that if the Craft Mason desires to see the sun of knowledge in all its radiance and

eventually finds himself placed amongst the immortals , he must have a guide who knew not Moses , one of a tribe that is not descended from the princes and rulers of the Craft , but who can lead the wayfarer by pleasant roadways , where obligations vegetate and good company is the leading characteristic .

For other degrees in the field of Masonic labour one has , and truly , every regard and veneration . Men have the right to join any branch of Masonic work , but no man or men have the

right to better the condition of the rites , to which they are partial , at the expense of an institution which saw the sunlight almost half a century before the rites alluded to were known to have either a father or mother .

' The Eoyal Arch degree is one of merit . Its worth is shown in the fact that in the motherland it was for years an integral part of the Craft work . It stands and will stand as the perfection of Masonry . Other degrees may have in them the essentials and be good enough Masonry for those who want them . Our

degrees , however , are counted as the millionaire counts bis cash . We are not turning into the highways and byways Companions as moving advertisements of our work . Nor do we call to our aid the notation table , and teach

the innocent Craftsman to believe that a concentration of numerals proves that the possessor has the pathway to his greatness lined with libraries of knowledge , when every friend knows that all he owns are the steps that lead up to the empty

shelves . The higher rites , any that you may select , are not the exalted end of the Masonic student ' s journey . They are pleasant pic-nic grounds on the upward road , were worthy Brothers , with the price of admission , may turn aside to be refreshed with good

companionship and adorn their names with Eoman numerals indicative of nothing but ability to pay for degrees . The Eoyal Arch Chapter is the real summit of the true Mason ' s journey , a height which is not to be attained by the sweat of a pocket-book , but which must be won by mental toil .

The Eoyal Arch has the right of way . It follows in the van of the primal degrees , and is the living impersonation and the recognised terminus of all that is legitimate in the Masonry that has been handed down by our fathers in the Craft . —Extracted from address of Grand Z at thirty-eighth Annual Convocation .

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