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THEIMPERIALHOTEL, HOLBOKN YIADUCT , LONDON , Adjoining the TERMINUS of the LONDON - CHATHAM and DOVES RAILWAY , but distinct from tho Viaduct Hotel . THE BEST FURNISHED AND MOST COMFORTABLE HOTEL IN LONDON HOT & COLD WATER LAID ON IN ALL BED ROOMS Tlie itpiHuiitmeiits tln-ouglioiit so ni'i-migett an to ensni' (> ( lonifHtic comfort . EVERY ACC 0 MM 0 DA 1 T 0 N FOR MASONIC LODGE MEETINGS , J ^ ublic ^ Dinners & " ^ TtWuxQ Jlkeahfasts . Tins ALEXANDRA PALA . CE LODGE , ! NO . 13-11 , THE MORNINGTON LODGE , No . 1 G 72 , TnK CRUSADERS LODGE , NO . 1677 , AND PKRSEVEBANCK LODGE , NO . 1713 , HOLD THEIR MEETINGS AT THIS ESTABLISHMENT . GOOD COOKING . FINE WINES . MODERATE CHARGES . The . Edison Eleotrio Light * TAEIFF on APPLICATION to Bro . A . BEGBIE .

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Masons Whom We Have Met.

MASONS WHOM WE HAVE MET .

No . nr . JNTRINSICALLY to study tho characters of men with whom one might become intimate , in the Lodge room , the banquetfcing hall , or in public aud private life ,

is a matter that requires a double safeguard—on the one hand against unconscious over-estimation , and on the other a censorship dictated by natural dislike . We can only gauge , after many years of practical observation , the

peculiar merits or the reverse of those who may come within the scope of our review ; and then it must be with a hand guided , and mind balanced , by true charity and caution . Probably inside a Lodge there is greater

inducement and opportunity to carry on this study than anywhere else , because it is well known that here men exert their utmost powers to appear to the best advantage . Very amusing it is to watch the

varying deportment of those who , having struggled after office , and reached the apex of their ambition , confess to the brethren who have conferred upon them so distinguished an honour that " this is the happiest

moment of my life . " We have before us a sample of that self-complacent Mason , who while in the humbler walks of his career upon the chequered floor carried himself with due humility and obedience , but who when he had reached

the blissful moment referred to stuck on such fantastical airs that made the brethren giggle all round . True it is that on one previous and memorable occasion the brethren tittered , though over a much more serious matter , when

an initiate in the north-east produced his purse , and offered to bestow to the utmost his charity when solicited by the Junior Deacon . Our illustrious brother was at that

time Director of Ceremonies , and the effect of the very unusual contretemps may be better imagined than described . But the ignominy of that retreat is forgotten now that the " summit of a Mason ' s ambition " has been

attained , and the frisk y little Worshipful Master has shaken hands with the brethren all round—if not physically , in a manner equally significant and well known—at the banquet table . He has grown confident whilst

working up in his degrees , and has even gone so far as to " back his intelligence " against that of any brother who has preceded him in the chair . To smile and shrug the shoulder at this perhaps unintcntioued outburst of egotism

was pardonable on tl . e part of the company assembled at that reunion ; yet elevate the eyebrows and nudge the elbow they did , as they anticipated the style in which the new Master would prove his own assertion to the

satisfaction of the brethren , lo accomplish this feat he must necessaril y speak loquaciously , and he "let \ s drive " at the toasts to all intents and purposes ! He tells us all we knew before about the Gracious Patroness , the Most Worshi pful Grand Master , and noble Rulers of the Craft , pain-

Masons Whom We Have Met.

fully reiterating their excellencies , which practicall y as yet he knows very little about . As the postprandial heat intensifies , so does his burning eloquence increase in volume , and the " intelligence "

illumines , if not the interest of the evening , at any rate the countenances of the amused guests . But it is in the crowning moment of admitted " happiness " that our hero rises , Icarus-like , to the occasion ; he soars into the regions

of oratory until the waxen wings become molten , and he flounders about in a perfect slough of grotesque despond . The programme is got through at last , with evident satiefaction to the chief actor on the scene , who promises all

sorts of possible and impossible things which he intends to carry out in the interests of the Lodge during his term of office , at the expiration of which he hopes to " hand down the insignia to his successor with its dignity untarnished and its lustre undimmed . " Whereat there are loud

outbursts of ironical approbation , and he who has " strutted his brief hour upon the stage " finds himself in a condition of superlative ecstasy and self-importance . All this is pretty enough while it lasts , but subsequent events do not

quite convince tho brethren of the superior " intelligence " assumed at the outset . The year glides by with wonderful monotony , and although more by sympathetic courtesy than admiration engendered b y the " Master of all the

Talents , " he goes up armed with a decent list as a Steward at one of the Festivals , the shining light never again burns so brilliantly as on the night when it was first kindled , and finally goes out when he descends from the

pinnacle of power and takes his place among the veterans whose " intelligence " he promised to eclipse . The financial condition of the Lodge has not improved under his rule , nor has the spirit of harmony and accord become

more vigorous than before . Instead of blending his own . exertions with those of men of less pretensions but greater experience and discernment , he has tried to rule the roost with an iron hand , and the brethren , instead of being

struck with his " superior intelligence" are inclined to exclaim with Celia , in As you like it , " We must have your doublet and hose plucked over your head , and show the world what the bird hath clone to her own nest . " This is

but a specimen of the men who aspire to a point they are unable to retain , after they have been assisted to it , and who kick away the ladder by which they have climbed to transient eminence . The moral which adorns the tale is

that modesty and plodding industry tell with greater weight in the long run than all the fireworks of overweening complacency and confidence , and in the result are of far more solid and lasting benefit to any Lodge . Who

has not seen in his experience many a man thus fl ying at too high game and finishing in disappointment , which would never have overtaken him had zeal been tempered with discretion ? Such individuals are not to be wholly

blamed , for probably the intentions at the outset were genuine , though the aim might have been Utopian . The harm clone , however , is often found to vibrate through

the whole ranks of the Lodge , creating discontent where harmony would otherwise have been supreme , and the amenities of the brethren been most thoroughly cemented .

As a contrast to this we have before us the image of one who , with but little show or ostentation , has passed with sterling merit to a high position in Grand Lodge , equally as he has risen in Parliamentary and municipal esteem , and

the affection of all who know his name—especially the poor . Not a soul begrudges the honours which have fallen upon this worthy brother thick and fast ; not one who regards him other than the friend of every class with which

he is brought into contact , if we may except those of the criminal orders who are brought before him in his magisterial capacity . Even then there is a leaning sympathy towards the guilty ones , a profound solicitude for those

who " have erred and been deceived , " and thus stern justice is ever tempered with mercy . The Brother of whom we are now thinking is never loth to step down from his

lofty social position to take part in any labour of charity and benevolence , whether inside or without the pale of the Craft of which he is so brilliant an ornament . Whether it

be a public meeting , having for its object the amelioration of distress in this or any other country , whether by the depression of trade , a colliery explosion , or any other accident by flood or field at home , or by famine or pestilence

abroad , there is the weight and influence of his great name , drawing after it the ready aid of troops of sympathising and willing followers . Inside the Lodge room his demeanour is in exact juxtaposition with that of the " cock sparrow "