Correspondence.

cost that will be incurred by one if this word " maintain " is allowed to stand part of Bye-law I . In making these remarks I claim a knowledge gained by actual work at a cost of timo and money . My experience is fortified by others , who for years past have worked in the Provinces of Lancashire , Cheshire , and Yorkshire , whore locil Masonic funds for

educational pnrposes are no now idea , but during tho last twenty yours havo been most successfully carried out . Tho united oxperienco of these brethren is , that whilst those Provincial educational funds are kept and mado secondary or subservient to onr great National Masonic Charities in London , they do immense good to a class of orphans who never could hopo to bo placed on tho great Charities by tho aid of

the Province of which thoir late father was a member . An orphan can , by means of these local funds for education & c , bo taken in hand by the Province at small cost , and this can bo dono without injury , or taking from the funds that by a natural right are devoted to our great National Masonio Charities . If you add the cost of maintenance to the local fnnd , designed for

education and olothing only , and this maintenance quadruples your expenditure , whero is the money to come from to support tho local scheme ? Why , if it comes at all , it must be from Provincial Grand Lodgo and private Lodges and Chapters , to whom you will be compelled to make frequent applications , and by so doing rob the great National Charities of what is justly their duo . It is well

known that neither Provincial Grand Lodgo nor private Lodges can bo continually giving to bith tho groat National Charities and this local fund ; it is equally well known that tho Province of Devon has not givon its fair sharo to tho great National Masonio Charities for tho past few years . That every ponny , therefore , the Province can give to thoso great Charities is urgently needed , and

needed in a sense of justice—for it is also an indisputable fact that Devon has lately , in fact during tho few years past , placed npon tho fv , nds of all tho Groat Charities moro than her fair share of candidates ; and this has beon brought about by tho onorgy of thoso who undertake her charity work , and organize so successfully on behalf of tho Province .

Tho real promoters of this local Edncational Fund do not in the future even intend to canvass Lodgo or Chapter for funds , but hopefully look to and depend npon the Craft of Devon , as a body , to come forward with their annual subscription of 5 s or 19 s year after year . Tho Lodges have not been enabled to givo thoir ten guineas to each of tho great Charitios , to qualify as Lifo Governors ; had snch

been possible , Devonshire would not now stand in need of a local Educational Fund , for with these votes tho Provinco conld easily placo in the great National Masonic Charities each case or orphan ns they camo forward at each recurring election . Although Devon utilises and organises her voting power for the great Charities most successfully , arid places upon thoso Charities

more than her shiire , yet unfortunately her surplus orphans outnumber her power of relief . It is on behalf of these tho original promoters of this Local Educational Fund hopef ally ask tho great body of tho Craft of Devon to come forward and give annn-. illy tbeir 5 s nr 10 s , which will provide ample funds to give each and all the

advantages here shadowed forth , and this will be accomplished without injury , or taking from the funds that shonld bs devoted to the great Charities , and without trenching by one ponny on the monies which aro tho natural right of those Institutions that support our kith and kin—male and female—and our orphans of both sexes .

I remain , Dear Sir and Brother , Yours fraternally , CHAS . GODTSCHALK P . M . Representative in London of the Committee © f Petitions of Devon ; P . P . G . D .

FREEMASONRY AND ITS CHARITIES .

To the Editor of THE FREEMASON ' S CHRONICLE . DEAR SIR AND BROTHER , —The letter of Bro . Perceval in yonr last issue will certainly call forth a certain amount of sympathy for him , even from his opponents . He is evidently still a believer in some of tho principles upon which it was supposed by a few enthusiasts that a great London Masonic Charity Association could be

successfully founded ; and although so large a majority of the subscribers havo withheld thoir support , ifc must be generally , if not universally , admitted that his zeal and perseverance havo deserved , if they could not command , success . Experience has , apparently , taught him that one , at least , of the leading features of the moribund society has been unable to bear the test of time , as he now

considers two last applications to be unworthy of a moment ' s consideration , notwithstanding that we have been invited to entrust our votes to the Association in order to ensure tho election of every London candidate for the Schools . Bat what has become of Bro . Perceval's supporters in this Metropolitan scheme ?

A few months since the London Masonic Charity Association was the only subject with which the learned Lord Chief Justice could fill his columns . Weakly leaders praised the efforts of the Committee , and extolled the objects of tho Association ; lengthy reports of meetings were dished up every fortnight ; correspondents , pro and con , were numerous , tho pros being received with silent approbation , whilst the cons were favoured with editorial snubs . Even the advertising

sheet boasted its quarter column of London Masonic Charity Association , with an imposing list of officials in capitals ; and every addition to the small list of subscribers formed the subject of a special paragraph . So lately ns the last week in January we were informed that " the need of the Association is so obvious to all who will only condescend to look beneath the surface that we think the Association is destined to be a great success . " How , then , can we account , firstly , for a subsequent ominous

Correspondence.

-r . - _ . ,, silence on tho merits of the London Masonic Charity Association ; secondly , for an editorial note to a letter from Bro . Perceval on tho 15 th inst .: " We publish our correspondent ' s letter , bnt we do not think the discussion seasonable or advisable , as all has been said that oan bo said j" nnd , lastly , for the arliolo of last woek , denouncing

tho proposal as tantamount to a revolntion , and dismissing ifc " to tho limbo of hopeless and chimerical projects P " Possibly some of ns may connect this divergence of opinion with passing events , but few will consider that Bro . Percoval has been

handsomely treated by those who professed to be his friends and supporters in an unpopular suggestion ; nor is it likely that many will attach much importance to tho advice of a journal which can adopt such extremely opposite views within the spaco of a few weeks , without giving its readers any reasons for the change . I am , Dear Sir and Brother , Fraternally yours , II . 26 th March 1879 .

To the Editor of the FREEMASON ' S CHRONICLE . DEAR SIR AND BROTHER , —The letter of your correspondent , CHARLES JonN PERCEVAL , is as littlo intelligible as his former epistle . He , moreover , is wroDg in stating that there are but ; two last applications on tho Girls' School list of candidates ; thero aro three , and "Allison " is not ono of them—they aro respectively named "Jay , " No . 1 ,

" Peele , " No . 7 , and " Williams Edith Corrall , " No . 24 . Tho idea of Bro . Perceval is not only unworkable , but its adoption wonld be an injnstice to fntnre candidates , as well as to many now accepted by the Committee , Inasmuch as if tho list for April wore thinnod of all the last and penultimate applications , it might , happen that from amongst thoso much lower down on the list than tho first

of tho excluded applicants , as many would have , in perpetuation of Bro . Perceval's scheme , to bo brought forward as there aro vacancies for , and thus erontually no candidate could be returned until the last application , as undoubtedly the friends of applicants would select Buoh as could bo taken into the School without delay and without expense , by virtue of tho operation of a law rendering the election of snch cases a paramount dnty .

It haB often been urged in another Masonic weekly i ° sne , that the Craft did not understand the raison d ' etre of the London Masonio Charity Association . Is the Craft enlightened by tho change of front now manifested by one of its promoters ? I fenr the response mnsfc be in the negative . That Bro . Perceval means well , will be the candid admission of every ono conversant with the objects of our noble Chnritab ' o Institutions , but are not his effusions to a great extent Quixotic , and his ways past finding ont ? Yours fraternally , INQUIRER .

Shortly after the insertion in onr columns of a report of the meeting of the Robert Burns Lodge , No . 999 , held at Manchester on the 24 th February , we received a communication from its Secretary , Bro . R . W . Aitken , complaining of the blundering way in which the names of the members

were manipulated , and further finding fault with ns for having stated , that " it is deplorable to witness the working as now set forth . " He considers the fact of our representative not having been invited to banquet is the reason for this which he calls " unfair criticism , " and he further

assumes that anything but praise from a visitor comes with a bad grace . We have taken the pains to communicate with our Bro . Davies , who furnished the report in question , and so far from his remarks being incorrect , he assures us he hears the same opinion expressed by others regarding

the working of this Lodge . As to the motive assigned for the " unfair criticism , " we can assure our Bro . Aitken that our dnties as representatives of the Masonic press so frequently call us out that we are at times plen . sed to be relieved of the latter portion of the evening ' s work ; it is

really a greater treat for TIS to spend a quiet evening at home than it would be to many of our brethren to attend an Installation Festival . In stating that visitors should only praise , Bro . Aitken betrays the Avholc secret of his objection . Unfortunately there are too many members of

our Order who hold such opinions . We have frequently met with such brethren , and as a rule have found them to be such as our report describes the Officers of No . 9 D 9 . To use a similar expression to that made use of by our brother , we might say—if a visitor is expected to praise and

compliment his entertainers without due regard to either honesty or truth , it is about time that visiting should belong to the past . What can be more disgusting than to hear the officers of a Lodge praised for their work when not two sentences oi the ritual have been given correctly .

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Free by Post for 12 Stamps . AFTER THE TURTLE . —Thirty-one Years' Ministerial Policy , as set forth at LORD MAYOR ' S DAY BANQUETS , from 1 SJS to 1878 . Collected by RicitAitD SETD , F . S . S . London : W . W . MOHGAH , 87 Barbican , E . C .