Masonic And General Tidings.

Masonic and General Tidings .

MONDAY NEXT will witness an interesting function in connection with the Jordan Lodge , No . 1402 , Torquay . Bro . Hughan , P . S . G . D . of England , has kindly undertaken to unveil the " John Lane Memorial Library " on that day , and give an address on the occasion , relative to his lamented friend , and the suitability of the library as a memorial of the departed brother , whose Masonic works have been acquired by subscription of the members for that purpose . It is the annual meeting of the lodge , when Bro . J . D . Beer retires from the chair , and Bro . Scholes will be installed by Bro . John Taylor , J . P ., P . P . G . Reg . Devon , the indefatigable Secretary of the lodge .

THE COMMITTEE OF M ANAGEMENT of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution will hold their regular monthly meeting at Freemasons' Hall on Wednesday , the 12 th inst ., at 4 p . m . THE DUCHESS OF F IFE has steadily improved in health since her arrival at Mar Lodge . Her Royal Highness is having capital fishing in the waters of the Dee . ANOTHER OPERATION for cataract on Bro . J . L . Toole has been found necessary . Bro . Toole is staying at Margate , but has been losing much strength of late .

•THIS YEAR the wheat area in Great Britain is 1 , 845 , 042 acres , a decrease of 156 , 939 ac res . Barley and oats show respective increases of S 157 and 66 , 333 acres . THE DUKE AND D UCHHSS OF CONNAUGHT left Victoria at 11 o'clock on Saturday morning last for Innsbruck , in the Tyrol . Their Royal Highnesses are travelling as the Earl and Countess of Sussex .

FATHER OF THE FREEMASONS . —A patriarch named White , who resides in Milwaukee , claims to be the oldest Freemason in the world . Born in the second year of the century , he was affiliated in a Boston Lodge in 1823 . IT HAS BEEN decided to discontinue on the 10 th instant , for the present season , the guinea trips which have , during the summer months , been made daily from

Paddington Station to Henley-on-Thames and thence by steam hiunch to Cliveden Woods or Pangbourne . THE LONDON COUNTY COUNCIL announce that a competitive examination for junior clerkships will be held on Monday , the 17 th instan ' :, at the City ot London College , Moorfields . Candidates must not be underiS or over 23 years of age , and applications will be received up to Monday , the 10 th instant .

SCOTLAND . —The foundation stone of the new Parish Church of Rutherglen will be laid with Masonic honours on Saturday , the 15 th instant , by Bro . Major F . W . Allan , D . P . G . M . of Renfrewshire East , who has been commissioned by Bro . Lord Blythswood , P . G . M ., to perform the ceremony . It is expected there will be a large turn out of the various lodges and of the friendly societies of the Burgh .

HER ROYAL H IGHNESS PRINCESS C HRISTIAN , accompanied by her Highness Princess Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein and her Highness Princess Aribert of Anhalt , and attended by Mrs . Dick-Cunyngham and Major Martin , embarked on board the Royal yacht Victoria and Albert on Friday , the 31 st ult ., for a three weeks'cruise on the West Coast of Scotland . The Royal party will eventually land at Oban , and proceed on a visit to her Majesty the Queen at Balmoral .

PRINCE AND P RINCESS HENRY OF PRUSSIA , attended hy Count SeckendorfT and Baroness Schwichow arrived at Victoria in a Royal saloon on the 2 nd instant from Kiel . The Royal party , who had travelled vid Flushing and Port Victoria , wsre met by Colonel Legge , one of the Queen ' s Equerries , and a representative of the German Embassy . Afterwards their Royal Hig hnesses drove to Buckingham Palace , where they remained until Monday evening , when they left for Balmoral on a visit to the Queen .

WE UNDERSTAND that at the August meeting of the Council of the Association of Men of Kent and Kentish Men an interesting letter , addressed to the President , Lord Harris , was read from General French , expressing the pleasure it gave him to allow his name to go forward for election as honorary member of the association at the annual general meeting on the 31 st prox . This is one of the most exclusive and honourable distinctions in the power of the association to confer , as , according to the rules , it can only be granted for distinguished services upon the recommendation of the council by a two-thirds majority at a general meeting .

THE ACQUISITION of the Alexandra Palace and Park may now be taken to have been accomplished . The amount originally asked for by Mr . Hemy Burt , who has been the promoter of the scheme , was £ 120 , 000 , but it was deemed desirable to enfranchise the leasehold portion of the land and to purchase the Grove . Therefore the amount asked for was increased to £ 150 , 000 . Of this sum , £ i 44 , 5 oo has been promised , and the Parks and Open Spaces Committee of the London County Council now recommend a

grant of £ 7000 , this sum being necessaiy to enable them to have a representative on the board of trustees . This would leave a surplus of £ 1503 , but some re-arrangement of grants will be made to meet this . The scheme upon which the trustees will work is to maintain the grounds as they are , to lease the theatre and _ concert hall for performances , and to continue to let the racecourse , which brings in an income more than sufficient to pay for staff .

TRADERS AND F REEMASONS , BEWARE !—We would warn the Craft and traders generally against a man describing himself as a Freemason . On the aSth ultimo a member of the tramping fraternity , who had some pretensions to respectability , called upon Mr . Carter , auctioneer , of Church-street , Cromer , and describing himself as having been an auctioneer , solicted help . He also stated that he wis a Freemason , and he made enquiries for the heads of that Order . He proffered the name of Frederick Feltham , and Mr . Carter , desirous of assisting one who had been in the same profession

as himself , gave him the wherewithal for a meal . He further promised to give him a good " rig-out" if he could prove that his credentials were satisfactory ; and as references trie names of an auctioneer and solicitor at Portsmouth were supplied . To these gentlemen enquiries were telegraphed , and Mr . Carter meanwhile enquired of Mr . W . Moulton the probable cost of dressiag the man in a decent manner . Air . M jultoi had recollections of the name of Feltham , and , upon referring to the " Drapery Record , " he learned that Mr . A . R . Scott , of Beccles , had been the victim of a spiteful outburst on the part of a "tramping Freemason" giving the name of Frederick

Feltham . He called upon Mr . Scott , who is a Masjn , and solicited chanty , but upon Mr . Scott intimating that he would telegraph to the Secretary of the Pnu'iix Lodge , Portsmouth , mentioned by the man , after using threats Feltham smashed live panes of glass . Before the magistrates , Feltham said his conduct was excusable as Mr . Scott insulted him by wishing to telegraph enquiries about him . He added that he had been in a large way of business , and was respectably connected . He was , however , sentenced to 14 days' hard labour . After dinner , when Feltham returned to Mr . Carter ' s office , the clerk read the paragraph to him , and he admitted the soft impeachments contained therein and quietly departed .

Masonic And General Tidings.

DURING the month Bro . the Archdeacon of London will be out of town . BRO . DR . LOTT , organist of St . Sepulchre ' s , Snow-hill , is spending the vacation in the North of France . He will resume his organ recitals ; after the evening service on Sunday , the 23 rd instant . MUCH satisfaction will be caused by her Majesty ' s approval of an amendment in the Army pay regulations , whereby soldiers taken prisoners of war will not forfeit their remuneration during the period of captivity , unless their loss of liberty was occasioned by their own neglect or misconduct .

WE UNDERSTAND that the interesting papers by Prof . Driver , entitled "The Bavarian Highlands , and a Visit to the'Passion Plav' at Ober-Ammergau , " which appeared in our late issues , will , with the author ' s permission , be shortly published in a leading journal in the United States of America . THE 3 RD INSTANT was the 75 th birthday of Bro . the Earl of Halsbury , the Lord Chancellor , who was born in London , the son of Stanley Lees Giffard , LL . D ., in 1 S 25 , Notwithstanding his great age he has lost nothing of the tenacity of his grip on the Woolsack , and it is said to be very improbable that he will retire .

THE freemason may be obtained from any newsagent or bookseller . Where any difficulty is found , copies will be posted regularly direct from the Publishers , 16 and IGA , Great Queen-street , London , W . C , on the fcllowing terms : Twelve months ( home ) , 13 s . 6 d . ; six months , Cs . o . d . ; and for abroad , twelve months , 15 s . fid . ; six months , 7 s . qd ., post free .

WE UNDERSTAND that there is no truth in the report published by a provincia contemporary that her Majesty the Queen meditates taking charge of a number of children whose fathers have been killed or died of wounds or disease during the South African Campaign . It was stated that the scheme of maintenance had been devised by Princess Henry of Battenberg .

BRO . E \' -SIIERIFF DEWAR has presented a valuable challenge shield for annual competition by teams of 12 each from the battalions ( 15 th and 24 th Middlesex , ist , 2 nd , 3 rd , and 4 th London Rifles , and 1 st and 2 nd Tower Hamlets ) composing the East London Volunteer Brigade . Bro . Dewar has also given a silver cup for competition at the forthcoming regatta at Wapping .

THE LORD MAYOR OF LONDON , Bro . Sir Alfred Newton , Bart ., has accepted the friendly invitation of the Paris Municipal Council to the FiUes des Municipalite ? in Paris on the 22 nd and 23 rd instant . It is three years since a Lord Mayor of the City has paid an official visit to the French capital , the last occasion being in May , 1897 , when Sir George Faudel-Phillips attended the funeral service at Notre Dame in memory of the victims of the dreadful fire at the Chanty Bazaar .

VK OLD SHIP AND TURTLE ( PAINTER ' S ) . —This well-known restaurant has been purchased by Messrs . Pirn and Co . The Masonic temple , which is one of the finest in the City , is being re-decorated and embellished by Colls and Son , and when completed will be well worth a visit . It will be splendid ' y lighted by electricity , and handsomely re-furnished . The Tyler ' s clothing room , which is capacious , privately adjoins , with a lift from the ground floor . The catering of Messrs . Pirn and Co . speaks well for this department .

THE DUKE AND DUCHESS of YORK arrived by special train at Crieff Station on the ist instant , on their way to Drummond Castle , where they are visiting the Earl and Countess of Ancaster . The weather was fine , and an immense crowd of spectators congregated in the vicinity of the station and gave their Roval Highnesses an enthusiastic welcome . A beautiful arch , formed of heather and flowers , and bearing the words , " Highland Welcome to the Duke and Duchess of York , " spanned the main thoroughfare . Their Royal Highnesses were met by the Earl of Ancaster , who drove with them in the carriage to the Castle .

LA MARGUERITE ' S LAST TRIP . —On Tuesday and Wednesday last La Marguerite concluded her trips to Ostend and Boulogne respectively for this season , taking to the former place on Tuesday 1 C 00 passengers , and to Boulogne on Wednesday 1 S 00 , which shows that La Marguerite is extremely popular even at the end of the season . Leaving Tilbury at 7 . 10 and Margate at 10 a capital run was made across the

, Channel to Boulogne , about two and-a-half hours being allowed on shore . The entire population seemed to have turned out to give La Marguerite a parting cheer , and the mayor having made a pleasant little speech , the ropes were cast off , and to the tune of " Marseillaise , " La Marguerite steamed away on her homeward journey , reaching Tilbury at 9 . 30 .

MIDLAND RAILWAY . —It is generally allowed that none of our great railway companies lays itself out to better purpose in meeting the needs of the travelling public than the Midland Railway Company . Its service is always excellent , and carried out most punctually . Its charges , too , are very moderate , and as it will be seen from the particulars in our advertisement columns , those who may be desirous of spending a fortnight in Ireland or Scotland , a week in the Isle of Man , or English Lake or other popular Districts , or even making still shorter excursions to our chief provincial towns and seaside resorts , will find it in every way to their advantage to avail themselves of the facilities provided for them by the management of the Midland Company .

FREEMASONS' CRICKET MATCH . —The members of the Coins Valley Lodge , No . 1 C 45 , and Armitage Lodge , No . 22 G 1 , played a friendly cricket match on the Linthwaite enclosure on the 29 th ult ., this being the return fixture . A good number of spectators assembled , and the proceedings were followed with the greatest inteiest . The Armitage Lodge team took first turn at the wickets , and compiled the large total of 121 for the

loss of only six wickets , when the closure was adopted . Their opponents only scored 5 S , thus giving the Milnsbridge team a substantial victory . At the conclusion of the match an adjournment was made to the lodge room at Milnsbridge where a substantial repast was partaken of , The evening was spent in conviviality , under the presidency of Bro . Herbert Whitwam . A long programme of songs was gone through , and the party broke up about 11 o ' clock , under very happy conditions .

THE 135 TH election of annuitants of the Goldsmiths' and Jewellers' Annuity and Asylum Institution was held on Thursday , the 30 th ult ., at the Horological Institute , Northampton-square . The 147 th half-yearly general meeting of subscribers was held later in the evening . The Committee regretted the death of Mr . F . B . Thomas , who for nearly 30 years was one of the trustees of the institution , and a generous contributor to the funds . The balance-sheet showed the institution to be in a very healthy financial condit ion , the total amount standing to the credit of the institution being d 12 , 43 s Gs . 1 id .

The report was carried unanimously , and the following officers were re-elected : President , Bro . Lieut .-Col . George Lambert , V . W ., K . S . A . ; Treasurer , Mr . H . F . Smith ; Trustees , Hon . W . F . 13 . Massey Mainwaring , M . P ., Sir Albert Iv . Rollit , and Mr . W . A . Smith ; Committee , Mr . A . Wooley , Mr . H . ) . Partridge , Mr . J . Mears , Mr . R . Leaver , Mr . J . Prosser , Mr . F . Nash , Mr . J . Taylor , Mr . G . Court , and Mr . W . Snook . Mr . W . G . Daniels and Mr . G . W . llriault were elected on the Committee in the place ot Mr . R . Pannett and Mr . A . Smith ( resigned ) . A vote of thanks to the Chairman concluded the meeting .

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