Contents.

CONTENTS .

LHADERS— PAQB . The Next Festival of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution ... 523 Some Statistics of West Lancashire Freemasonry ... ... ... 524 Another Old MS . ... ... .., ... ... ... 524

Provincial Grand Lodge of Sussex ... ... ... Z . ... 524 Provincial Grand Lodge of Northumberland ... ... ... ... 525 Supreme Grand Chapter ( Quarterly Convocation ) ... ... ... 526 Presentation to Bro . and Comp . George B . Laffan ... ... ... 526 East Lancashire Systematic Masonic Educational and Benevolent Institution ... 526 Craft Masonry ... ... ... ... ... ... 526

MASONIC NOTESQuarterly Convocation of Supreme Grand Chapter ... ... ... 529 Masonic Banquet at the Mansion House ... ... ... ... 529 Asaph Lodge , No . 1319 ... ... ... ... ... 529 Correspondence ... .,. ... ... ... ... 530 POETRY—Lines ... ... ... ... ... ... 530 Craft Masonry ... ... ... ... ... . „ 530 Royal Arch ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 531

Royal Ark Manners ... ... ... ... ... ... 532 Kni g hts Templar ... ... ... ... ... ... 532 Ancient and Accepted Rite ... ... ... ... ... 532 Practical Masonry ... ... ... ... ... ... 532 Obituary ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 533 Allied Masonic Degrees ' ... ... ... ... ... ... 533 Instruction ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 533 Masonic and General Tidings ... ... ... ... ... 534

The Next Festival Of The Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution.

THE NEXT FESTIVAL OF THE ROYAL MASONIC BENEVOLENT INSTITUTION .

Under ordinary circumstances we do not consider it incumbent on us to draw attention to the approaching Festival in behalf of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution until a month before Christmas . But the year in which so enormous a

contribution has been raised for the Boys' Centenary as his Royal Highness the M . W . Grand Master had the pleasure of announcing in the Royal Albert Hall on the 10 th June last , has also witnessed the comparative failure of the support which is invariably accorded to the Girls' and Benevolent Institutions . We mention this as

a simple fact . We have no intention of finding fault with the brethren for distributing their subscriptions and donations so unequally among our Charities that two of them together realised only about one-seventh of what was raised for the

third . Everyone expected that something of this kind would happen , while none more gracefully fell in with this general expectation than the Secretaries of the Girls' School and Benevolent Institution , who were less urgent , if not less earnest , in

their appeals for contributions , in order that as clear a field as possible might be left to their colleague of the Boys' School in his efforts to make the Centeuary of that Institution the bumper Festival which was both expected and desired . Yet the fact remains that while the Girls' and Benevolent Institutions were

unable to raise either of them more than about one half of their Festival Returns in ordinary years , the Boys' School obtained about seven times as much . It must also be borne in mind that the total sum annually raised for our three Institutions has this

year been exceeded by , in round figures , £ 100 , 000 , and the problem which now confronts us is how , in the face of so exceptionally successful a year as 18 9 8 has proved , to raise for " Our Girls " and " Old People " sufficient , not only for their respective

requirements in 18 99 , but likewise to make good , if possible , or as far as possible , the deficiencies of the present year . It seems hard lines to be perpetually appealing for funds to a body which has just given so magnificent a proof of its generosity . But the thing

must be done . It is the settled determination of the Craft that the Girls' School shall provide fora certain number of children , and the Benevolent Institution for so many aged and indigent

men and widows ; and as the permanent incomes of these hilarities are insufficient for the . purpose , the wherewith to fulfil "us task must be obtained from the general bod y of Craftsmen .

The Next Festival Of The Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution.

For the present , however , we must confine our attention to the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution , seeing that , in the order of time , its Festival takes precedence of that in aid of the Girls ' School .

We have again and again set before our readers the claims of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution to the generous support of the brethren both in town and country , but in view of the fact that its requirements are more pressing than usual , we

feel we shall be justified in describing them even more circumstantially than is our wont . The number of annuitants , at £ 40 a year on the Male Fund is 202 , the total sum distributable amongst them being £ SoSo . The number on the Widows '

Fund in receipt of £ 32 a year each is 245 , the sum necessary to defray their annuities being £ 7840 . In addition , there are 28 Widow Annuitants in receipt of £ 20 a year for a short term of years , who together receive £ 560 ; these being the widows of Annuitants entitled under the laws of the Institution to the

half of their late husbands annuities . Thus the total required for annuities alone falls only a little short of £ 16 , 500 . The expenses of management and the maintenance of the Asylum together absorb about £ 1 , 000 a year , so that we

shall not be exaggerating the expenditure if we declare it at £ 19 , 000 and upwards . The permanent income , consisting of the annual grants from Grand Lodge and Grand Chapter of £ 1600 and £ 150 respectively , and interest on invested capital ,

amounts to between £ 5000 and £ 6000 , so that the sum required to be raised in the shape of donations and subscriptions—obtained principally by means of the Anniversary Festival—is in round figures about £ 13 , 500 . This year the usual Festival which was

held in February under the presidency of Bro . the Right Hon . the Earl of JERSEY , G . C . M . G ,, Prov . G . Master of Oxfordshire , produced about £ 9700 . Fortunately the grant of £ 2000 voted by Grand Lodge in commemoration of the Queen ' s Diamond

Jubilee was paid over to the Institution in the earl y part of the year , but before 18 9 8 is ended the Committee of Management will have found themselves under the necessity of trenching upon the invested capital to the extent of about £ 2000 . Hence the

sum required to be raised chiefly , as we have said , through the medium of the approaching Festival , cannot be estimated at much less than £ 16 , 000 , and that will just suffice to re-establish the equipoise between income and expenditure , which has been so seriously disturbed during the present year .

As regards the Festival itself , we had some time ago the pleasure of announcing that Bro . Lord LLAN'GATTOCK , Prov . G . Master of South Wales ( E . D . ) has very kindly consented to preside as Chairman , and that the date fixed for the celebration

is Wednesday , the 2 Jiid February , 1 S 99 . The Board of Stewards for so great an undertaking is hy no means large , the number of those whose services Bro . JAMES TERRY , P . G . S . 13 ., the Secretary of the Institution , has thus far succeeded in

enlisting being about 120 . But even 111 ordinary years , when there has been no exceptionally heavy demand upon the brethren the difficulty of obtaining between £ 13 , 000 and £ 14 , 000 to meet the necessary outlay is sufficiently great ; while in 189 . 0 this difficulty

will be far greater , not only by reason of the lesser amount raised than usual towards the current year ' s expenditure , lout likewise , and more particularly , in consequence of the serious

drain which lias been made in all directions upon the resources of our lodges and brethren which arc available for . the purposes of Charity . It matters not to which direction we turn . whether to London or the Provinces , we have but to glance