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ROYAL MASONIC INSTITUTION FOR GIRLS , CLAPHAM JUNCTION , S . W . INSTITUTED 17 SS . Chief Patroness : HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN . Grand Patron and President : H . R . H . THE PRINCE oi- WALES , ICG ., & c , M . W . G . M . Grand Patroness : H . R . H . THE PRINCESS or WALES . In accordance with a Resolution of the General Committee , a SPECIAL GENERAL COURT of the Governors and Subscribers of this Institution will be held at FREEMASONS' HALL , Great Queen Street , Lincoln's Inn Fields , London , W . C , on the morning of T HURSDAY , ioth J ANUARY , 1901 , at Half-past Eleven o ' clock precisely , to consider the following Motion by VV . Bro . CHARLES PULMAN , P . Prov . G . D . Northumberland : — "That the Laws relating to Election be and are hereby suspended ior the purposes of the Election , with a view to her immediate admission to the Institution , of Audrey Rennett , a duly qualified Candidate , in consideration of the fact that her father died of Enteric Fever during active service in South Alrica , and she is hereby elected accordingly , subject nevertheless to all the Laws and Regulations pertaining to Girls ' after Election . " Also a GENERAL COURT of the Governors and Subscribers of this Institution will be held at FREEMASONS' HALL , Great Queen-street , Lincoln ' s Inn Fields , London . W . C , on the morning of THURSDAY , ioth J ANUARY , 1901 , at Twelve o ' clock precisely , on the General Business of the Institution ; to consider Motion by VV . Bro . A . C . SPAULL , P . G . Std . Br ., Patron , on behalf of the House Committee as under ; to approve and declare the List of Candidates for the Election on the nth of April next ; and to declare the number of Girls then to be elected . NOTICE OE MOTION . " That the vacancies caused by the withdrawal of Beatrice Mitchell Williams and Nora Floyd , before the expiration of their term , be filled by the admission under Law 94 of Ada Emily Perry and Annie Lewell , the two highest unsuccessful Candidates at the October Election . " F . R . W . HEDGES , Secretary . 5 , Freemasons' Hall , Great Queen-street , W . C , 3 rd January , 1901 . The 113 th Anniversary Festival will be held on Wednesday , Sth May next , under the distinguished Presidency of the Right Hon . the EARL AMHERST , M . W . Pro Grand Master , R . W . Prov . G . M . Kent . Brethren willing to act as Stewards on this important occasion are earnestly solicited to send in their names to the Secretary as early as convenient .

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3 F ^ PW # IyHK jS » <^ Wl ^ r tvf $ f * ' ^ * «*««***^_ . . *^ J $ nki fi isMA v ^ i il ;^^ ^ ' *> m \ > 5 tt * c £ ga * riSWi ! iWrtS ^ 8 £ fel 5 i 35 E & £ ! S-SJ 12 L ? - * ~ . i ; .. E .. « Ufefef . xA > r-jiJ TAIII SATURDAY , J ANUARY 5 , 1901 .

Masonic Notes.

Masonic Notes .

In the list 01 those on whom hur Majesty has htvti pleased to confer honour at the commencement of the New Year and , as it happens , of a New Century as well , will be found the names of three gentlemen who have won distinction in tho rank ; , of tho Craft . Thuuo

Masonic Notes.

are Bro . Thos . F . Halsey , who has been a representafive of the County of Hertford since 1874 , and ,, who as a Privy Councillor will henceforth be known officially as the Right Hon . T . F . Halsey , M . P . ; and Bros . John Aird , M . P ., and Wyndham S . Portal , who have been

created Baronets of the United Kingdom , and the former of whom is a member of the great firm of contractors , Messrs . John Aird and Sons , has represented North Paddington in the House of Commons since 1 SS 7 . and is the first Mayor of the newly-created

Borough of Paddington ; while the latter , who belongs to one of the best known families in Hampshire , has been connected for the last 39 years with the directorate of the London and South-Western Railway Company , of which he was Chairman from 1892 to 1899 .

In Masonry all these three gentlemen have , as we have said , greatly distinguished themselves . Bro . T . F . Halsey was initiated , while at Christ Church , Oxford , in the Apollo L'niversity Lodge , No . 357 , early in 1861 , is a P . M . of the Westminster and

keystcjie Lodge , No . 10 , and the Watford Lodge , No . 404 , Watford , and a Past Prov . G . Warden of Hertfordshire . In 1 S 73 , on the resignation oE the late Bro . William Stuart , he was appointed to succeed him as Prov . G . Master of Hertfordshire , and was installed

in office in the county town of Hertford in April of the following year , one of his earliest official acts being the consecration of Lodge No . 1479 , which meets in the City of St . Albans , and is named in his honour the Halsey Lodge . In 18 75 he was appointed and

installed Grand Superintendent of the Province , and in 1 S 85 , on the erection of Hertfordshire as a Province under the Mark Grand Lodge—of which he was at the time a Past G . Warden—he was appointed and installed Prov . Grand Mark Master . He is also a

Past E . P . af the Stuart Preceptory , No . 28 , Watford , and Past Dep . P . G . P . Herts in the Order of the Temple , and has done good service to our three Masonic Institutions , for each of which he has served

more than once as Steward , while in addition he has qualified as Vice-President of the Girls' School , and Life Governor of the Boys' School and Benevolent Institution .

* * * Bro . John Aird—now Sir John Aird , Bart ., M . P . — was initiated in the Prince of Wales ' s Lodge , No . 259 , on the 25 th November , 1 S 6 S , served as Grand Steward in 187 S , and had the honour of being in the

chair of Deputy Master in 1890 , in which year the lodge celebrated the centenary of its constitution , under the presidency of H . R . H . the Prince of Wales , K . G ., M . W . G . Master , who is permanently its W . Master . In 1 S 91 he was appointed S . G . Deacon of

Grand Lodge and Asst . G . Sojourner in Supreme Grand Chapter . He is a Vice-Patron of the Girls ' School , a Vice-President of the Boys' School , and a Life Governor of the Benevolent Institution , and has served as Festival Steward for all three .

* » * Bro . Wyndham S . Portal—now Sir Wyndham S . Portal , Bart . —was initiated in the Apollo University Lodge , No . 357 , Oxford , in 1849 , and having a few years later joined the Westminster and Keystone

Lodge , No . 10 , as one of the brethren who helped to revive that distinguished lodge , was installed as W . Master in 1856 , in which year also , being a member ol ( . Economy Lodge , No . 77 , Winchester , he was appointed Prov . J . G . Warden of Hampshire . In 1858

he was honoured with the collar of J . G . Warden of Grand Lodge and of Asst . G . Sojourner of Supreme Grand Chapter , as well as with that of Junior G . Warden of the Mark Grand Lodge . He is a Life

Governor of our three Institutions , and has served once as Steward for each of the Schools . We congratulate the new Privy Councillor and Baronets on the honours they have just had conferred upon them by her Majesty the Queen .

In forwarding his statement of the Income of the Royal Masonic Institution for Boys , the Secretary has very kindly furnished us wilh some most interesting statistics from which it is possible to see how wonderfully the Institution has progressed during the last 17

years . It appears that the amounts received by the Institution year by year during this period reach the immense sum of , £ 433 , 349 iSs . 2 d ., of which £ ^ 5 6 , 5304 s . was received during the i 4 yearsfrom 18 S 4

to 1 S 97 , both inclusive , and £ 176 , 810 14 s . 2 d . during the last three years . Of this latter sum . £ 124 , 308 Ss . 6 d . wat . received by the School in 1 S 9 S—the year in which it celebrated the Centenary of its foundation .

Masonic Notes.

As regards the sum of £ 256 , 530 4 s . received during the 14 years from 1884 to 1897 , both inclusive , the Secretary has divided it into two parts , of which one , amounting to £ 98 , 434 lis . 8 d . represents the total of the sums received year by year during the first seven years , giving an average per year of £ 14 , 062 is . 8 d .

and the other amounting to £ 158 , 095 12 s . 4 d ., and representing the total of the sums similarly received during the other seven years ; the average per year in the latter case being £ 22 , 585 is . 9 d . It is not , perhaps , altogether just to institute such a comparison ; the old regime , which was gradually falling

into disfavour with the Craft , would necessarily show to a great disadvantage , while the new regime would as certainly appear at its very best ; Still the comparison is by no means unnatural , and as there is such a marked difference between the two , averages amounting to more than £ 8500—not at all unreasonable .

* * * Nor must we omit to notice the immense increase which has taken place in the amount of the invested capital of the Institution since the present regime was inaugurated in 1890 . In that year this stood at £ 17 . 500 , now it stands at £ 150 , 116 us . nd ., and as there is a further sum of £ 3500 on deposit with the

bankers of the Institution , the available assets amount t 0 ^ ' 53 i 6 i 6 ns . 1 id . Thus there has been an increase of capital during the last 10 years of £ 136 , 116 us . nd ., and this , notwithstanding , as we are told , that about £ 59 , 500 bas been thus far expended on the new School at Bushey . Such figures as these almost take one ' s breath away . ¥ * *

We are glad to hear that the Board of Management have decided as to the form the Memorial shall take which it is proposed to raise in honour of our late Bro . Richard Eve , Past G . Treasurer , a Patron , and one of the Trustees of the Institution , and , above all , the Chairman from its formation of the Governing Body

of the School . Two recommendations were made to the Board , one proposing the establish ment of a fund to benefit deserving boys on leaving School , and the other the erection of a Stained Glass Window in the Assembly or Dining Hall of the new Schools at Bushey . It was shown , however , that the former

scheme would , in the event of there being a permanent endowment for the purpose , give rise to legal difficulties , and the Board have , therefore , resolved on adopting the project for placing a Stained Glass Window in the Hall . But is there no other—no more adequate—plan for doing honour to the memory of Bro . Eve ?

* * The School Quarterly Courts will be held at Freemasons' Hall next week—that of the Governors and Subscribers to the Royal Masonic Institution for Girls being appointed for Thursday , the 10 th instant , at the hour of 12 noon ; and that ol the Royal Masonic

Institution for Boys on Friday , the 1 ith instant , at 4 p . m . The principal business at both meetings will be the approval of the Lists of Candidates and the declaration of the vacancies to be competed for by them at the April Elections . In the case of the Girls' School , a Special Court will be held half-an-hour

earlier ( at 11 . 30 a . m . ) , at which Bro . C . Pulman s motion will be considered for the immediate admission without ballot of the daughter of a brother who died of enteric fever while on active service in South Africa ; or rather , we should say , for the suspension of the laws relating to election , in order to enable the child to be admitted .

The friends of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution are almost invariably fortunate in the matter of weather when their annual entertainments to the annuitants in residence at Croydon take place , and Wednesday , when the commencement of the New Year was celebrated with all the accustomed joviality ,

proved no exception . There was a large muster of visitors to do honour to the occasion , not the le ; ist kindly and genial amongst them being Bro . James Terry , the Secretary of the Institution , to whose initiative the "Old Folks at Home , " at Croydon , are indebted for the establishment of these annual fetes .

It will be seen from the report we publish elsewhere , that the meeting passed off successfully , the excellent after-dinner programme of music under the direction of Bro . Schartau being greatly appreciated , while the Secretary delivered a very effective address , in which

he reviewed the present fortunes of the Institution and the prospects awaiting it in connection with the approaching Festival to be held next month under the presidency of the Earl of Warwick , Dep . G . Master , Prov . Grand Master of Essex .