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Bg-gaV . W-i VJjgj ^^ jjWVLA ^ - 'AAA-BJP < XKm a ^^^^ W ^^ a SATUBDAY , 25 TH NOVEMBBE 1899 .

Board Of Benevolence.

BOARD OF BENEVOLENCE .

rTIHE monthly meeting of the Board was held on Wednesday JL evening , at Freemasons' Hall . . The presiding Officers were Bros . J . H . Matthews President , D . D . Mercer Senior V . P ., and Henry Garrod Junior V . P . The Grand Secretary , the Assistant Grand Secretary , Bro . W . Dodd . and Bro . G .

S . Recknell were present , and there was a very large attendance of other Brethren , who , at the general Committee of Grand Lodge , which was held previously to the sitting of the Board of Benevolence , heard read the paper of business for the Quarterly Communication of 6 th December .

When the Board of Benevolence was opened , on the motion of Bro . D . D . Mercer , seconded by Bro . Henry Garrod , a vote of thanks was unanimously passed to Bro . J . H . Matthews , for the very able , kind , and courteous manner in which he had discharged the duties of President of the Board during the past twelve months .

The Brethren then confirmed the recommendations of the October meeting , to the amount of £ 240 , and afterwards took up the new list of petitions , forty-seven in number . Two of these were dismissed and three deferred . Of the remaining forty-two , the Board recommended Grand Lodge to

sanction £ 75 in two instances , and £ 50 in one case . Six were recommended for the Grand Master ' s approval for £ 40 each , and' nine for £ 30 each . Fourteen grants of £ 20 each , one of £ 15 , five grants of £ 10 each , and four of £ 5 each completed the record .

R. M. I. Girls.

R . M . I . GIRLS .

WE are asked to notify that Thursday , 7 th December , is the latest day by which petitions for the April election 1900 must reach the office of the Institution at Freemasons' Hall , London . It is , however , very desirable that they should be received as much before that date as possible .

The Mayor of Gravesend , Bro . J . N . Willis W . M . 483 , has devised a novel and it is to be hoped a popular method of assisting the Widows and Orphans Fund for the relief of those left dependent through the death of the soldiers and

sailors now fighting in South Africa . He proposes to hold a series of dances , of which he will bear the entire cost , and those who attend will contribute one guinea each to the Fund . An influential Committee has been appointed to carry out the necessary arrangements .

The regular meetings of the' St . John Lodge , No . 6 97 , Warrenpoint , Ireland ,, are held on the first Tuesday in each month , and of the Chapter attached thereto on the second

Tuesday . Visitors to the district would , we are sure , be heartily welcomed if they paid a visit to either the Lodge or the Chapter .

At the annual meeting of the Snowdonia Mark Lodge , No . 259 , recently held at Menai Bridge , it was decided to remove the Lodge to Bangor , where the great bulk of the members reside .

An invitation ball under the banner of the St . Giles Lodge , No . 1587 , took place in the Town Hall , Cheadle , on the 15 th inst ., a party numbering about fifty being present .

Quietly Laid Away.

QUIETLY LAID AWAY .

MANY Masons are quietly laid away on the shelf , so covered _ with dust as to almost relieve mother earth from the necessity of receiving their bodies and " piously covering their

Quietly Laid Away.

remains within her bosom . " Cobwebs have grown about the pictures of ceremony and ritual . Memory has lost much of ita power , and is treacherous : Long disuse has nearly paralysed the senses of seeing , feeling , and hearing . The " faithful breast " has been locked so tight that the secrets cannot be extracted save by the power of the setting maul , which will crush its thick , encrusted shell of forgetfuluess .

Many of those whose days of Masonic usefulness have passed once occupied prominent positions in the Craft . Some were Masters , some were District Deputies , and some others were even Grand Masters . During the climbing process they were filled with enthusiasm . They were present afc every communication of the Lodge , both stated and special . They were interested in

everything pertaining to its welfare , were ready to " post " candidates , serve on committees and do anything that might be required of them . They were always ready to give advice , and lend their energies to carry on any work undertaken . They were models of zealous Craftsmen , always oc hand to help in the third degree , and never missed a banquet where they were given an

opportunity to make a " few remarks . " As years wore on and they ascended " round after round of the ladder thafc leads fco fame in our mystic circle , " and wifch modest humility and gracious condescension received " the purple of the Fraternity , " their interest grew apace . They condescended to grace the meetings

of the Lodge at such times and on such occasions as the " dignity" of their " exalted stations " would allow . When once they reached the goal of their ambition , the cynosure of all eyes , they stood for a moment upon the pinnacle of fame , the " purple " resplendent in its royal beauty . Then the transformation scene took place , and they disappeared .

As rockets shot into the air , they went up , filling the eyes of their Brethren with admiration at their increasing beauty , leaving behind them in their passage streams of glorious enthusiasm . When the climax had been reached , like the rockets , they burst forth in all the glory of their high and exalted positions , dazzling the sight and causing exclamations of delight ; and , like the

rocket , the brilliant display was bufc for a moment . Where was the rocket ? The sky was blank . No spot was left to mark the high altitude which the rocket had reached . All that was left was the stick , burned afc one end , picked up by a boy , who trundled his hoop with it . " Imperious Csesar , dead , and turned to clay , might stop a hole to keep the wind away . "

Every Lodge has its members who are laid away , members who are still active in the affairs of life . Some have " gone up higher" in Masonry and forget the days when they were younger and took delight in the plain , old-fashioned " blue Lodge . " They have been attracted by the gew-gaws and trappings of display and the high-sounding names and titles of

the " higher bodies . " Others claim that " business cares" and " other ties" prevent their taking an " active" part in Lodge affairs . Those " other ties " are often " the club , " where they have unsatisfied ambitions . They go yachting , fishing , gunning , and follow all sorts of pleasures without finding that they interfere with business . When asked to take an interest in

Lodge affairs they have the ready answer : "I have served my apprenticeship ; let the younger men bear the burden . " Having reached the summit ; of their ambition they pessimistically remark : " Well , after all , the game was not worth the caudle . " While en route to the goal they thought it worth many candles , and fchey burnt them freely .

The lack of interest manifested by the members laid away seems almost to prove that their zealous attachment to the " tenets of their profession " was _ a selfish ambition . It would seem to indicate that they had " an axe to grind , " and as soon as the members of the Lodge had turned the grindstone sufficiently to whet the edge they had no more use for the Fraternity . It is

a lamentable fact that many of these members who have been leaders and have been quietly and decently interred in the grave of memory , could scarcely find anyone to vouch for them shovdd they desire fco visit a Lodge . The Lodges everywhere need the support of all their members . The work to be done requires thafc those who attempt to do it shall be in earnest , and those who

have once been honoured by the Fraternity , whose experience ought to qualify them to direct affairs in a proper and successful channel , are in duty bound to assist and encourage in every way they can those who are bearing the " heat and burden of the day . " The principles and lessons of Masonrv are orecisely the

same to-day as they were when theso " shelf-members " were active , and ought to appeal as much to tbem now as then . A good work should never be abandoned , but should be prosecuted with even greater enthusiasm as the years go by . Let then the Past Masters , the Past District Deputies , and the Past Grand

Masters not forget their firsfc love , nor the days when they were active in the good cause of humanity . Let not fche " decking " with a jewel , or the " watching " with a watch ; fche " caning " with a cane , or the " ringing " with a ring , mark the closing of a useful career , or a cessation of interest in the affairs of the Lodge . — " Masonic Standard . "