Correspondence.

Correspondence .

[ We do not hold ourselves responsible for , or even approving of , the opinions expressed by our correspondents , but sve wish in a spirit ; of fair play to all to permit—svithin certain necessary limits—free discussion . ]

¦ THE GRAND LODGE MOVEMENT IN NEW ZEALAND . To the Editor of the " Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , The Freemason has in recent months devoted a great deal of space to discussing the Grand Lodge

movements in Nesv Zealand , Queensland , and Tasmania , and in all these cases has in plain terms declared itself as strongly opposed to the erection of Grand Lodges in those colonies . This , of course , causes no surprise to the large body of Masons in the colonies svho lonp * for the union under one banner of

the lodges holding under the Grand Lodges of England , Ireland , and Scotland , because experience has shosvn us in the cases of South Australia , New South Wales , and Victoria that nothing else vvas to be looked for . I do not impute any blame to the Freemason for exercising its undoubted right of expressing

its opinion on current topics , although at times its mode of expression has struck some of us in the - colonies as being not strictly fraternal . I do not propose to repeat or review the arguments used over and over again for and against concurrent jurisdiction in the Australasian colonies , as to traverse the old ground

would fail to convince either side , neither do I propose to ads'ance any theory as to the number of lodges that must combine to establish a Grand Lodge . Whatever may be the opinion of different brethren on the latter point , I am sure there can exist in the minds of wellinformed Masons no doubt that numerous precedents

have established the right of lodges in a colony to erect an independent Grand Lodge , and that the Mother Grand Lodges have frequently acknosvledged that ri ght . It cannot therefore fail to surprise many brethren in England to hear that attempts are made by officers , high in authority under the Grand Lodge

of England in the colonies , to deprive the lodges of the exercise of that right , which the Grand Lodges of the worid ( including the Grand Lodge of England ) require shall be exercised before a new Grand Lodge can be established . In order that , the Craft in England may see clearly that this is not an unfounded charge , I

append copies of a circular and two letters , addressed to lodges of his district , by R . W . Bro . Thomas Sherlock Graham , District Grand Master of Otago and Southland ( N . Z . ) , under the English Constitution , and svould ask you to publish them svith my letter . It seems to me that a perusal of this correspondence

cannot but reveal to thinking brethren in England that most unfair and illogical measures have been adopted to prevent the lodges exercising their inherent right of free discussion on subjects that do not transgress the landmarks , and that a district Grand Master does not hesitate to usurp posvers not conferred upon

him by the Book of Constitutions in order to force his will upon the lodges . This usurpation of posver is not the first of its kind in the colonies , as it svill be remembered that when the first Grand Lodge of Victoria svas projected , the Deputy District Grand Master ( E . C . ) of Victoria forbid the English Lodges

under pains and penalties from even mentioning the ma'ter , and the consequence in that case was , that the Craft of Victoria svas rent by schism , svhich lasted for several years . Now , the Grand Lodge of England not only admits the right of the lodges in a colony to establish a Grand Lodge , but absolutely insists that , to

make the creation ofa Grand Lodge legal , a majority of the lodges must agree to its establishment . This of course means that the proposal for its establishment must have been discussed and voted upon by the brethren in lodge assembled , as meetings of Masons

beld otherwise than as a lodge cannot bind a lodge nnr declare its will . It is accordingly evident that the District Grand Master of Otago and Southland usurped p svers not conferred upon him by the Constitutions and otherwise acted un-Masonically and tyrannically in

that—Firstly—By his letter of ioth Feb ., 1 S 89 , he censured a lodge for discussing , and prohibited it from further discussing a matter svhich , in parallel cases , the Grand Lodge of England had affirmed that lodges have a right to discuss . He ordered the minutes of a lodo * e to be mutilated , prohibiting discussion thereupon , although the Grand Lodge of England had decided ( at

the Quarterly Communication , Dec , 1874 ) , that the minutes svere "merely a record of what vvas passed and concluded . " and this without giving the lotWe or Master an opportunity of justifying their action . He assumed a power he did not possess in dictauno- to a lodge , instead of proceeding under Clauses 103 and 106 of the Book of Constitutions if he considered he had cause for com pl . t int .

Secondly—By his letter of 17 th April , 1 SS 9 , he as-iiimed the posver of sanctioning discussion on a subject svhich he had ruled to be unconstituti- > inl , the Book of Constitutions not giving this posver of dispensation to a District Grand Master . He further

assumed the posver of dictating to the lodges of his juris liction the form of a resolution ( by " which , if carried , they svould sever their connection with the Ori' . rl Lodge of England ) , and prohibited variation from it . Thirdly—By his letter ot 2 Dth Sept ., 188 9 , he

Correspondence.

prohibited discussion in a lodge on a subject inseparably connected vvith one which he ordered to be discussed ; he usurped the power ot forbidding the reading of correspondence addressed to the lodges ( although the correspondence related to the resolution svhich he had dictated ) ; and he usurped the prerogative secured to

the Master by Article 133 of the Book of Constitutions . The whole of R . W . Bro . Graham's conduct in the matter of the Grand Lodge movement in New Zealand , is in striking contrast to the dignified and constitutional inaction of the neig hbouring District Grand Masters , and has been the cause of much bitterness .

The position taken up by him is clearly illogical . The Grand Lodge of England demands that a nesv Grand Lodge must be erected by a majority of the lodges , consequently the only mode , by resolution , that the lodges have of making their will known must be legal , It is manifestly absurd to say that lodges must declare

themselves favourable to a project before it can be accomplished , and at the same time to prohibit them from considering a proposition in its favour . J must apologise for the length of my letter , and beg that you will fraternally excuse it in consideration of the importance of the subject . As I write at a distance

of many thousand miles from London , I have endeavoured , trusting to your indulgence , to state my case clearly and completely , as I am debarred from writing in ordinary course in support of my position and in reply to any comments that may be made upon it . —Yours fraternally , COLONIAL . [ We regret vve have not space to publish the letters referred to in full , but as our correspondent has himself summarised them their insertion is not so necessary . — Ei ) . F . M . " ] .

FREEMASONRY IN BERMUDA . To the Editor of the "Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , Thinking possibly that it svould be interesting to the readers of the Freemason to hear of their Masonic brethren in the far off Bermudas , I have taken the liberty , as a subscriber to your valuable paper , in

sending you a little information concerning them . We have in the islands eight Masonic lodges—four under the Grand Register of England , fsvo under the Scotch Constitution , and tsvo under the Irish Constitution . One English , one Scotch , and tsvo Irish meet in the tosvn of St . George ' s , the former capital of the islands .

The Scotch lodge—St . George , No . 200—is the oldest charter in the islands , the above bearing date August 7 th , 1797 . They meet in the old Court House , which was presented to them by Governor Cockburn , a colonial governor of these islands , in the year 1812 . The lodge has worked svithout a break since the receipt of its charter .

The Scotch Constitution is the only one in the islands that has a Provincial Grand Master , this office being filled by the Worshipful Bro . W . C . J . Hyland , the popular Mayor of the town of St . George ' s . —Yours faithfull y and fraternally , A MEMBER OF THE CRAFT IN THE "STILL VEXED BERMOOTHES . "

St . George ' s , Bermuda , October 29 , 188 9 . [ We have much pleasure in inserting our correspondent ' s report under the head of " Lodge Meetings . "ED . F . M . I

A CAUTION . To the Editor of the " Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , On Sunday last , an individual , who gave the name of Robert Anderson , of Prince of Wales Lodge , No . 426 , Renfresv , called on me for relief . He stated

that he was a printer seeking employment . He had heard that the local printer wanted a hand . This was the case , but up to Monday night he had made no application . He has no certificate , and I svould therefore suggest to lodge Almoners not to relieve him . He is about 5 feet 7 inches in height , and says he vvas initiated 24 years ago , and talks about having attended

a meeting at Glasgow of about 4000 Masons , & c . I have written to the Secretary of his lodge for in . formation , and will communicate the result to you . He informed me he was on his way to Chichester , where he had requested his certificate to be sent , so in all probability by the time this communication reaches your readers he will have passed into Surrey or beyond the borders of Kent . —I remain , yours fraternally , THOS . FRANCIS . December 31 st .

The Cosmopolitan Masonic Pocket Book ( Kenning ) is justly popular among Freemasons . — Athenccum . On Friday evening , the 27 th December , a numerously attended meeting-of the General Committee of the Masonic Ball svas held at the hall , Hope-street , Liverpool , under the presidency of Bro . James De Bels Adam ( Chairman ) . The Honorary Secretary reported the receipt of anssvers from the patrons of the ball , and that the sale of tickets svas

proceeding most satisfactorily . The annual Masonic festival , to svhich the public svill be admitted , is again organised on behalf of the West Lancashire Masonic Educational Institution , and promises to be eminently successful . I he meeting of Stesvards , of svhom there are about 150 , svill be held _ next Friday , at eight o'clock , for the purpose of appointing a captain and making final arrangements for the ball , which takes place at the 'Town Hall on the 14 th inst .

Reviews

REVIEWS

MASONIC ALMANAC , PROVINCE OF SUSSEX . This is first for 1890 , and one of the best issued . Bro . V . P . Freeman , the ever courteous Prov . G . Secretary , has done well to issue it , for although his octavo report of the Prov . G . Lodge , published annually , g ives an immense amount of information , the handy form of

the calendar and the additional particulars , to our mind , render it an indispensable to the members , and sve trust it will be continued . The editor has done his work carefully and well , and on similar lines to those of last year . The statistics , often absent from others of the kind , exhibit a total of 27 lodges vvith 1200

members ( an increase of 21 on last return ) , and nine chapters with 235 members . The tables are most interesting and instructive , as they set forth the number of initiations , joining members , resignations , deaths , and exclusions in connection with each lodge , as also the amount of fees paid and payments to Provincial

Charities' Committee . The report of the latter body , which is doing excellent work , and also that of the Board of Finance , are printed for the information of those concerned , and then follow the names of the Prov . Grand Officers from 1854 , and likesvisethe names of the Masters of the various lodges for the same

period to the year 1889 . The Officers of the Prov . Grand Chapter duly succeed this extensive roll , from the year 1881 , and those of the Prov . Grand Mark Lodge from 1 S 74 . Other features of the capital calendar vve have alluded to in previous years . We note , however , that the error is still perpetuated of adding 4004 instead of 4000 , to the Christian year to

obtain " The Ancient Craft Date . " It is very needful to secure uniformity on this point , and , without any desire to dogmatise , we submit that the custom of the Grand Lodge for over 160 years should of itself be decisive as to this rule . Bro . Freeman deserves the hearty thanks of the members of his province for such a trusty and ably-edited calendar , for in that and many other ways the Province of Sussex is heavily his debtor .

Reports Of Masonic Meetings.

REPORTS OF MASONIC MEETINGS .

Craft m > asonn > . METROPOLITAN MEETINGS .

Royal Athelstan Lodge ( No . 19 ) . —A meet . ing of this lodge vvas held at the Cannon-street Hotel , on Thursday , December 12 th , when there svere present Bros . VV . Nicholson , VV . M . ; A . Wormull , S . VV . ; R . W . Hilby , J . W . j VV . M . Bywater , P . M ., P . G . S . B ., Treas . j C . B . Barnes , P . M ., Sec . j A . R . Ramsey , S . D . j A . D . Green , I . G . ; A . E . VV . Gsvyn , Org . ; D . Nicholson , P . M . ; W .

Pound , P . M . ; J . P . Hinckel , P . M . ; J . Charles , P . M . ; H . Glenn , P . M . ; F . E . W . Collard , P . M . ; J . Glenn , P . M . ; G . A . Corderoy , P . M . ; G . Sneath , P . M . j C . E . Moser , Milton Smith , Wm . F . Stauffer , and Geo . R . Carsberg . The lodge svas opened , and the minutes of the previous meeting were read and confirmed . The by-lasvs ( in accordance svith No . 24 thereof ) svere read , after svhich the ballot

svas taken for the chair for the ensuing year , Bro . Arthur Wormull , S . W ., being unanimously elected VV . M ., for which honour he appropriately thanked the members . Bro . VV . M . Bysvatcr , P . M ., P . G . S . B ., vvas unanimously reelected Treasurer . The Audit Committee svasthen appointed , consisting of the VV . M ., the P . M . ' s , the Treasurer , thc Secretary , the W . M . elect , and Bro . Milton Smith .

On the motion of Bro . IT . Glenn , P . M ., the sum of £ 10 svas voted to the Girls' Institution . Bro . Byss'ater , P . M ., proposed , and Bro . Dan Nicholson , P . M ., seconded a vote of thanks to the retiring VV . M ., coupled svith the presentation of a jewel . Bro . VVm . Nicholson , W . M ., expressed his regret at not having any work to do , and also his gratitude for the vote of thanks and the jewel

voted him , and for the kindness the members extended to him . Hro . C . B . Barnes , Sec , dresv the attention of the lodge to the usefulness of the Quatuor Coronati Lodge , No . 207 C , and the value of the ' printed proceedings of its transactions sent to the subscribers of that lodge , and proposed that this lodge become a subscriber to the Quatuor Coronati Lodge . This svas seconded by Bro . Bvsvater ,

P . M ., Treas ., and adopted . The lodge being duly closed , the brethren adjourned to the banquet . The first toast , as usual , svas that of "The Queen , " which svas given svith musical honours .

The VV . M . then proposed "H . R . H . the Prince of Wales , M . W . G . M ., " saying that he svas the proper brother for that position , and referred to him as being a very busy man , both in and outside Masonry , and that they were all proud of him , and he trusted he svould long continue to hold that office .

Ihe toast of " Hie Pro G . AL , the Deputy G . M ., and the rest of the Grand Officers , Present and Past , " liaving been proposed , Bro . Bysvater , P . M ., P . G . S . B ., responded . Bro . D . Nicholson , P . M ., proposed "The Health of the W . M ., " and said he svould not disguise the fact that the W . M . came into the lodge through his introduction , and that he had a natural pride in seeing his nephesv in the

chair . Every one svould find him a good fellosv in or out of the lodge . He had proved himself a good general , and he believed svould prove himself a good member , and he hoped might stick to the lodge like his old uncle for 32 years . Tlie VV . M . said he svas exceedingly obliged for all the kind svords said of him . He svas very proud of the position he had attained , and thanked the brethren heartily for