Egypt.

EGYPT .

THE M . W . G . M .. His Royal Highness the Duke of Connaught bias appointed Major-General Sir Francis R . Wingate , Sirdar , P . G . W . England , to be District Grand Master for Egypt and the Soudan , in place of Lord Kitchener .

Board Of Benevolence.

BOARD OF BENEVOLENCE .

THE quarterly meeting of the Board of Masters was held on Wednesday evening , at Freemasons' Hall , Bro . J . H . Matthews presiding . The agenda paper for the next

meeting of Grand Lodge was read to the Brethren , and afterwards the monthl y meeting of the Board of Benevolence was held , Bro . J . H . Matthews President , Bro . D . D . Mercer Senior Vice-President , Bro . Henry Garrod Junior

Vice-President . Brother E . Letchworth Grand Secretary , Bro . W . Lake Assistant Grand Secretary , Bro . W . Dodd , Bro . G . S . Recknell , and Bro . H . Sader G . Tyler represented the official department of Grand Lodge .

The recommendations to the Grand Master that he should approve of grants voted at the April meeting of the Board to the amount of £ 640 , which His Royal Highness had since sanctioned , were confirmed , and the Brethren then dealt with forty-five new cases . In the course of a three

hours sitting the Board deferred two of these and dismissed one . Another case was withdrawn . The remaining cases were voted a total sum of £ 1 , 475 , which was made up - as follows -. one petitioner was recommended to Grand Lodge

for £ 100 , two petitioners for £ 75 each , and six for £ 50 each . Eight petitioners were recommended for the Grand Master ' s approval for £ 4 . 0 each , and fourteen for £ 30 each ; eight petitioners were awarded £ 20 each , one was given £ 15 , and another £ 10 .

The meeting was more largely attended than on any previous occasion .

Royal Masonic Institution For Girls.

ROYAL MASONIC INSTITUTION FOR GIRLS .

PRIZE day at the Royal Masonic Institution for Girls , on the 6 th inst . was an event to be remembered by the pupils in the School , and by others who were among the company ,

for not only were there the usual pleasing features of the annual gathering to cheer and gladden the hearts of the subscribers , but a special treat was provided for the girls by the Countess Amherst , who distributed the prizes and afterwards made a forcible address to the young charges of the Craft .

The Countess Amherst said : Ladies and Gentlemen , —It has given me the very greatest pleasure to come here this afternoon to help to give away " these prizes . It is always a pleasure to have anything to do with something that has succeeded , and a prize means that someone has

worked very hard and that someone has gained . To you who have succeeded we say : " Go on and succeed again ; " and when you leave this school , do your best to make up your minds to succeed outside as you have succeeded here . And to you girls who have , not won prizes—it seems to

me there are very few of you—but there are a few ; to those , I would say : "Do not despair . " We all know that everybody is not equally gifted , and what comes quite easily to some people is almost impossible to others , and very often a girl has worked quite as hard who has not

won a prize , as one who has . . but take my advice—do not give up . Do not say : "lam so stupid , it is no use for me to try . " Remember that Life ' s prizes go very often not to the most brilliant , but to the most persevering . I think most of you girls must have heard in one way or another of

Royal Masonic Institution For Girls.

one of the fundamental principles of the great Craft to whose care you owe your education . I mean the recognition of the brotherhood of man . Now if you wish to do credit to that , care , try to carry out that principle in your own lives by being ( both tender-hearted and helpful . to everybody

that you come in contact with throughout your lives . I do not know if you girls have ever thought what you are going to make of life . I do not expect you have , for you are all very young . But there is no reason , because you

are young , that you should not do so . A sculptor , when he sees a great block of marble before him , makes up his mind what he is going to carve out of it—a Venus , Satyr , or Cupid—and you and I , and every one of us , we all have to carve our own lives . No one else can do that

for us . If you would give to > life its fairest proportions , it should have three qualities—length , breadth , and height , and they should be asi near as possible of equal proportions . First , there is length . I mean by that , making up your minds what you are going to do , and when you

have done so , go straight at it . It may be the aim of your life to follow some profession or art , or it may be just the common homely lite of woman , which consists of doing an innumerable number of very small things well , and that makes a comfortable and happy home . I would

remind you with regard to this home question , of the noble example that has been set us by her late Most Gracious Majesty our venerated Queen Victoria . Of her great qualities as a ruler and stateswoman it is not for me to speak here , but of what she was as wife , mother , and ,

as tar as her great position allowed her to be , as a neighbour . fler kind sympathy in the joys and sorrows of all around her . These are all things we can all imitate . Let no one despise these homely duties of life when we think that our great Queen , as she was , not only carried

tnem out most faithfully , but found in so < doing the greatest pleasure in her long , long life . We none of us can excuse ourselves if we neglect home duties , in sharing the joy and sorrow of those amongst us—for we cannot say we are following Queen Victoria ' s example . Homeliness no doubf

is a very old-fashioned recipe , but it is a real good one to make nations strong and full of vitality , and a most successful one . Then comes breadth . When you have made up your mind what you will do , do not let it make you narrow , self-centred , selfish , but give out a broad sympathy all

through your life to your tellow-passengers in life ' s journey and' that broad sympathy will bring a pleasure into your own life that nothing else can give . It will make your life warm and full of a joy which those who are selfish do not

possess . And , lastly , there is height . By that I mean , that looking up , that asking of aid from the Great God above us , for without that aid we cannot carry out Life ' s highest ideals , and no one ever asked for that aid in vain who trulv

sought it . And now you elder girls , those of you who , perhaps next term , but certainly before the year is out , will be leaving the home where so * much care and love have been shown you , and will be going out into the world . Each one will take up her booK of life , those pages are fair ,

unsoiled , there is nothing written in them . Do take care when you write in them ; and as years go on , if you should be tempted to do something which would sully those pages , just think how its being written would look if you saw it written , and perhaps just that little thought may ' save you .

Dear girls , I wish with all my heart that the pages of your books may be filled with the records of many , many happy days and happy years of joy to you and all you love . Of pleasure in your work , and pleasure in your play and the record of many lovel y thoughts , kindl y actions , and of all