Knights Of The Red Cross Of Constantine.

" the scenes of carnage that followed are revolting to humanity . The Roman Pontiff himself , who had granted a plenary indulgence to all who had engaged in fche expedition , was compelled to denounce their brutality . He accused them of ' sparing neither age nor sex , nor religious profession of the allies they came to assist ; deeds of darkness were perpetrated in the open day ; noble matrons and holy nuns

suffered insult in the Catholic camp . ' The captors glutted without restraint every passion . They burst into the church of Santa Sofia and other sacred edifices , which they defiled in the most wanton manner . They converted sacred chalices into drinking cops and trampled under foot the most venerable objects of Christian worship . In the Cathedral , the veil of the sanctuary was torn to pieces for the

sake of the fringe , and the finest monuments of pious art broken up for their material . It would be too revolting to detail all the partionlars of these impious outrages ; let one suffice : They placed on the throne of the patriarch a harlot , who sang and danced in the church , to ridicule the hymns and processions of fche Oriental Christian worship . " * * * "The monuments of ancient art ,

collected from all parts of tbe world , were defaced and broken to pieces , not simply from a bigoted rage against any superstition different from their own , but from a crusade of ignorance against whatever bore the stamp of literature and science . * * * Their ntter contempt for learning was displayed in various ways . In riding through the streets they clothed themselves and their horses in

painted robes and flowing head-dresses of linen , and displayed on them pens , ink and paper , in ridicule of the people who used suoh worthless things . It was , therefore , no exaggeration when tbe Greeks called them ' Barbarians , who conld neither read nor write , who did not even know the alphabet . '" ( Walsh's Historical Sketch of Constantinople , p x . )

At last , in the middle of the fifteenth century , the great capital of the first Christian empire became the prey of the followers of Mahomet , and the Cross , beneath whose shadow "the civilization of the ancient world had been preserved , amidst universal barbarism , " for more than eleven centuries , gave place to the crescent of the Turk .

Constantine was the first Roman emperor who embraced the Christian faith . He was the son of the Roman Emperor Constantins , and was born in England , it is said , 27 th February A . D . 274 . At the early age of thirty-two he succeeded his father in the sovereignty of the western part of the Roman Empire . Seventeen years later , he became the sole ruler of the Roman world . He died

22 nd May A . D . 337 . The celebrated Eusebius , one of the most learned writers of Antiquity , and who is styled " The Father of Ecclesiastical History , " says of Constantine that " He restored the Roman empire to its ancient state of one united body , extending their peaceful sway around the world , from the rising sun to the opposite regions , to the north and the south , even

to the last buM-ders of tbe declining day . " ( Eusebius Ecclesiastical History , Baft 10 , chap . 9 ) . Milner in his " History of the Christian Chnrch , " Vol . I ., pp 510 , 511 , referring to Constantine , says , "An emperor , full of zeal for the propagation of the only divine religion , by edicts restores to the Church everything of which it had been deprived ; indemnifies those who have suffered ; honours the pastors

exceedingly ; recommends to Governors of Provinces to promote fche Gospel ; and though be will neither oblige them nor any others to profess it , yet he forbids them to make use of the sacrifices commonly made by prefects ; he erects churches exceedingly sumptuous and ornamental , with distinctions of the parts , corresponding in some measure to those in Solomon ' s Temple ; discovers , with much zeal ,

the sepulchre of Christ at Jerusalem , real or pretended , and hononrs it with a most expensive sacred edifice . His mother , Helena , fills the whole Roman world with her mnnificent acts in support of religion ; and , after erecting churches , and travelling from place to place to evidence her zeal , dies before her son , aged eighty years . Nor is the Christian cnnse neglected even ont of the bounds of the Roman

empire . Constantine zealously pleads , in a letter to Sapor , King of Persia , for the Christians of his dominions ; he destroys idol temples , prohibits impious Pagan rites ; puts an end to the savage fights of gladiators ; stands np , with respectful silence , to hear the sermon of Eusebius , Bishop of Ctosarea , the historian ; furnishes him with the volumes of Scriptures for the use of the churches ; orders tho

observation of the festivals of maftyrs ; has prayers and reading of the Scriptures at his conrt ; dedicates churches with great solemnity ; makes Christian orations himself , one of whioh of a considerable length is preserved by the historian , his favourite Bishop ; directs the sacred observation of the Lord ' s Day , to whioh he adds that on Friday also , the dav of Christ ' s crucifixion ; and teaches the soldiers of his

army to pray by a short form made for their use . " The historian Gibbon says , " The person , as well as the mind , of Constantine , had been enriched by nature with her choicest endowments . Hia stature was lofty , his countenance majestic , his deportment graceful ; his strength and activity were displayed in every manly exercise ; and , from his earliest youth to a very advanced

season of life , he preserved the vigour of his constitution by a strict adherence to the domestic virtues of chastity and temperance . He delighted iu the social intercourse of familiar conversation ; and though he might sometimes indulge his disposition to raillery wifch lees reserve than was required by fche severe dignity of his station , thc courtesy and liberality of his manners gained the hearts of all

who approached him . * * * * In the despatch of business , his diligence was indefatigable ; arid the active pjwers of his mind wero almost continually exercised in reading , writing , or meditating ; in giving audience to ambassadors , and in examining the complaints of lit .- * subjects . Even those who cenaurod tho propriety of his measures were compelled to acknowledge that ho possessed magnanimity to

• jonceive and patience to execute the most arduous designs , withont lining checked either hy the prejudices of education , or by the clamours of the multitude . In the field he infused his own intrepid p . pirit into the troops , whom he conducted with the talents of a consummate general ; and to bi : j abilitiis , rathor than to his fortune , wo nay ascribe the signal victories which he obtained over tho foreign

Knights Of The Red Cross Of Constantine.

and domestic foes of the republic . " Gibbon ' s " Decline and fall of tbe Roman Empire , " chap . XVIII . ) It is worthy of note that in the year 331 fifty copies of the Bible were made nnder the care of Eusebius by order of the Emperor Constantine ; and it is supposed that the only one preserved from tho destroying hand of Time is the MS . known as tho Codex Sinaitions ,

discovered in the monastery of St . Catherine , on Mount Sinai , by ProfessorTischendorf , in 1841 , and which was presented , in 1859 , to the Emperor of Russia , Alexander II . That MS . contains the Old Testament in the Septuagint Version , and the New Testament , with the addition of the Epistle of Barnabas . ( Dorc ' s " Old Bibles , " p 318 . London , 1888 . It is a singular faot that England was the birthplace of Constantino ,

the first Christian ruler of the Roman Empire ; and also , after the lapse of eleven centuries , tbe burial-place of the family of the last of his successors on the throne . A monument , still to be seen in Llanulph Church , in Cornwall , England , records the faot that there repose the ashes of the family of the last sovereign of the Christian Empire founded by Constantine the Great . Walsh ' s " Historical Sketch of Constantinople , " p XXXIV .

The New Zealand Grand Lodge.

THE NEW ZEALAND GRAND LODGE .

THERE were about 250 brethren at the meeting of the Grand Lodge of Masons at Wellington , on Monday , the 28 th July . A considerable amount of general bnsiness was transacted . A lengthy report by the Board of General Purposes was adopted . The recent opening of a Lodge in Wellington by the Grand Orient of France was mentioned , and a resolution carried unanimously protesting against the invasion of New Zealand by foreign Masonio power , and strongly

condemning those brethren who had joined the new Lodge . A resolution was also passed declaring the French Orient Lodge irregular and nnworthy of recognition , and that one month's grace be given either to retire or be strnok off the roll of Lodges holding allegiance to the Grand Lodge of New Zealand . The Treasurer ' s statement was considered satisfactory . Several nominations were received in the

room , and votes passed expressing regret at the death of Earl Carnarvon Pro Grand Master of England , and ab the serious illness of Bro . E . T . Gillon Past Deputy Grand Master . Great enthusiasm was displayed by those present in the proceedings , which wound np with a banquet . The following letter has been received from M . W . Bro . Harman

Tarrant , Provincial Grand Master New South Wales Grand Lodge of Freemasons , addressed to the Grand Secretary of the New Zealand Grand Lodge : — "Dear Brother Ronaldson , —It affords me much pleasure to inform yon that at a Special Communication of our Grand Lodge , it was unanimously decided that fraternal recognition of the Grand Lodge of New South Wales be extended to the Grand Lodgo

of New Zealand , and I trust our action will help your cause . I think we have tha honour of being the first Australian Grand Lodge to extend yon recognition , and will you kindly convey my very deep sympathy to yonr Grand Master . I sincerely trust he is by this time recovered from his severe illness . I have requested th ** . Grand Secretary to send you a copy of our earlier Proceedings before the United

Grand Lodge was established . Wishing yonr Grand Lodge every success , &<* -. " The following is a copy of the resolution : — " That tho United Grand Lodge of New South Wales recognises the Grind Lodgo of New Zealand as legally constituted , and the supremo and sovereign Masonic authority in that territory , and invites to the usual interchange of representatives . "

A meeting of Master Masons of Lodges holding und * -r the Grand Lodge of Now Zealand was held , on 19 th July , at the Freemasons Hall , Princes-street . There was a good attendance of about 50 or GO present , and a great deal of interest was takeu in the proceedings , which were of a very important character . Bro . A . S . Russell R . W . D . G . M . presided , and explained the business of the meeting ,

which was the discussion of the advisability of establishing a District Grancl Lodge of New Zealand Constitution in Auckland Province . The speakers recognised the faot that there were now a large number of Lodges in this Province holding under the New Zealand Constitution , and that there was a necessity for a Provincial Grand Lodge . Finally , Bro . M . Nicoll Grand Superintendent moved , "That tbe

Grand Lodge Officers , and the W . M . 's of Lodges Ara , United Service , St . Andrews , Albion , and Franklin be constituted a committee to communicate with all the Lodges in the Provincial District holding under the New Zealand Constitution , for the purpose of ascertaining their views , and obtaining , if possible , their unanimous consent to the formation of a Provincial Grand Lodge . This motion was unanimously

agreed to . A brother brought np the snbjeot of a Lodge having been established under the Grand Orient of France , but as suoh a Lodgo could not be recognised by the Now Zealand Grand Lodge it was not deemed necessary to move any resolution on the subject . Groat satisfaction was expressed nt the recognition of the New Zealand Grand Lodge by the Grand Lodgo of New South Wales , this being the "first

foreign recognition of the newly-formed Constitution , and it wad hoped that a similar recognition would shortly be accorded by tho other Grand Lodges of the Australian Colonies . The amma . 1 meeting of tho Masonio Lodge Eden , E . G ., was held in the Masonic Hall , Karaugabape Road , on the 29 i . h July , for tho installation of Officers . There was a large attendance , aud amongst

those present wore thf D . G . M . Bro . G . S . Graham and his Officers , and visiting brethren from s-ster Lidges . The following brethren were installed in office : —Bros . J . C . Dickenson VV . M , H . Robinson S . W ., W . S . Willi-mis J . W ., G . P . Cox Tr . msur ** r ( re-elected ) , M . *"> . Laurie Secretary , W . J . Wright S . D ., P . Crowe J . D ., T . Philpot D . C ,

W . Johnston IM ., J . Bouskill S . S ., C . A . Fawcett J . S ., J . Mooru Tyler . Afc tho close of the ceremony the br-thron adjourned to the supper-room , where ample i-efre .- * hments had been provided . Lodgo Sfc . Andrew hold a -nesting on 2 'Jth July , in the FreemaHoiiS ' Hall , t ' . -r tho instullat-ion -i Offi-jor *" - aw , other " i-nr-oi-vd-- - . busine ** .-