Masonic Notes.

It was stated last week in our report of the proceedings at the recent Quarterly Court , that after the numbers for and against the recommendation of the Provisional Committee re Bro . Binckes's pension had been announced , protests were entered against the vote ,

and that a certain brother then "called upon the brethren to subscribe to a fund of ^ 500 to carry the question to the Chancery Division of the Hig h Court . " From our report of the Committee Meeting last

Saturday , it appears that the brother referred to by Bro . J . S . Cumberland as having threatened Chancery proceedings , declared he had " never used the word Chancery " at all .

So far , so good . But what about the advertisement which appeared in the Daily Telegraph of the day following that on which the Quarterly Court was held ? In this advertisement it was stated that " As this pension , of ^ 350 per annum for life , was only carried by a

majority of seven votes . . . steps will be taken to restrain the funds of this Charity from being thus applied . " And it was added , " Life Governors or Subscribers desirous of supporting an application to Chancery will kindly send their names and addresses

to the brother who was reported—erroneously , as it now appears—to have " called upon the brethren to subscribe to a fund of ^ 500 to carry the question to the Chancery Division of the High Court , " " who has been desired by a large number of Masonic brethren to convene an early meeting . "

* * * As our reporter was careful to note that the question put by the brother referred to at the Quarterly Court was asked amid " renewed interruption , " it is not unreasonable to suppose that the brother ' s statement or

invitation of this brother may have been imperfectly or improperly reported . Even skilled reporters cannot always catch what is said amid" renewed interruption . " But explanation from " whom it may concern " should

be forthcoming as to the appearance of this brother ' s name in the advertisement we have quoted from . The coincidence is one which we certainl y think should be explained .

Bro . T . B . Whytehead , P . G . W . North and East Yorks , delivered a most interesting lecture , entitled " Profits and Pleasures of Freemasonry , " in the Starkie Installed Masters' Lodge of Instruction , Manchester , on Thursday , the 31 st ult . The W . M . ' s chair was filled

by Bro . J . H . Sillitoe , P . G . Std . Br . At the close of the lecture a vote of thanks was proposed b y Bro . J . L . Hine , P . P . S . G . W ., and seconded b y Bro . Col . H . L . Rocca , P . P . S . G . D ., to Bro . Whytehead , and carried

with acclamation . There was a large attendance of Installed Masters present , and everyone of them seemed heartily to enjoy the intellectual treat afforded them b y the able lecturer .

* * * The respected Provincial Grand Master for Middlesex , Bro . Sir Francis Burdett , calls our attention to an art'cle in the last number of the Freemason on the Girls' School Election , and points out that we described

the case of Isabella M . G . Lane ( No . 3 ) as a London case , whereas she was purely a Middlesex candidate . Her father was a Twickenham man , and his daughter lived there all her life . The votes given to her were

through brethren of the province , and for the credit of Bro . Forge and those who worked so strenuousl y in her behalf , Sir Francis thinks the correction should be made known . We have much pleasure in giving this explanation of the facts .

* * * The centenary of the Lodge of Harmony , No . 275 , Huddersfield , is to be celebrated by all the lodges in West Yorkshire being invited to take part in a service to be held in Huddersfield Parish Church , on Sunday

the ioth inst . The sermon will be preached by Bro . the Rev . Percy F . J . Pearce , M . A ., vicar of Pulloxhill , oae of the Provincial Grand Chaplains . The attendance of Bro . Thomas W . Tew , Prov . Grand Master is

anticipated , and doubtless the number of brethren who will be present in honour of the occasion will be exceptionally large . A procession will be formed from the Masonic Hall , in South-street , at 9 . 45 a . m ., and proceed to the church .

* * * We observe that the City Press and several other papers have fallen into the error of stating that Bro . Binckes had tendered his resignation as Secretary of

the Boys' School . As will be seen by reference to our report of the meeting of the General Committee on Saturday last , Bro . Binckes himself expressly stated that he had not , and , although his resignation may be imminent , it is certainly not yet a fact .

Masonic Notes.

The arrangements for the consecration of the London Irish Rifles Lodge are now complete , and the ceremony will take place at Freemasons' Hall , on Saturday , the 16 th inst . The honorary colonel of the regiment , H . R . H . the Duke of Connaught , is the W . M . designate ,

and the office of Deputy Master will be filled by Bro . Major C . W . Carrell , to whose energy and zeal the lodge will in a great measure owe its existence . We trust it will not be long before the brethren will have the satisfaction of meeting at their own head-quarters .

* * * The office of Deputy Master exists only where a Prince of the Blood Royal honours a private lodge by accepting the office of Master—the Deputy in this case

must be regularly installed , and he is entitled when in office to all the privileges of actual Master , and , after he has served his period of office , to those of a Past Master .

* * Our columns last week bore strong evidence of the indefatigable energy and great acquirements in the field of Masonic archaeology of our old and valued contributor , Bro . W . J . Hughan . Yet another of the

" Old Charges " has been unearthed , and , as a matter of course , falls into the hands of Bro . Hughan . He has , with his usual acumen , submitted it to critical

analysis , determined its points , and in the present issue g ives the first instalment of a transcription verbatim et literatim . This is only one out of many he has introduced to Masonic students in the pages of the

Freemason . * * * Bro . Augustus Harris proposes to follow up his success in the Armada Exhibition of last year by a Waterloo Exhibition in 1890 . The 75 th anniversary

of the great battle and the opening of the panorama by the Chevalier Philip Fleischer , in Victoria-street , next year , seem to have suggested the idea , and , as after the lapse of three-quarters of a century , it is not likely

that the sensitive pride of our neig hbours will be affected by it , we think there can be no reason why such an opportunity should be missed . In Bro . Harris ' s hands its success as an exhibition is certain .

* * * At the banquet which followed the installation of Bro . James Beveridge , of the Adelphi Theatre , as W . M . of the Asaph Lodge , on Monday , the speeches were naturally in praise of the drama , and the close

connection that had so long existed between Freemasonry and the professors of the dramatic art . In this connection reference was made to the fact that Bro .

Edward Terry occupied at this moment the high office of Grand Treasurer , and that on numerous occasions the Theatre had been the means of relieving distressed and indigent brethren .

Bro . Beveridge , in his speech , cited a case in point when the tragedy of "Cato" was performed in 1731 , the male characters of which were taken by gentlemen Masons ; the prices were advanced , and " so crowded and

brilliant an audience had never been seen in this kingdom . " If Bro . Augustus Harris is not above taking a hint from his brethren of 150 years ago , we suggest that he celebrates the connection between Freemasonry and the drama in some such way in 1890 .

" The Old Masonians , " composed , as our readers are no doubt aware , of former pupils of the Boys' School , have shown great activity in the short time they have been in existence , and they deserve all the support that can be given them in maintaining and perpetuating

the connection between the Institution and those who have received its benefits . Last Saturday a somewhat more ambitious attempt than usual was made to provide at once an evening ' s entertainment and a muchneeded contribution to the funds of the Institution

The former was successfully accomplished , much to the satisfaction of those present , but we fear the attendance was not large enough to accomplish the more important object . We trust , however , this will not deter the " Old Boys " from future attempts in the same direction .

We congratulate Bro . Lord Mayor Whitehead on the honour which has been bestowed upon him by the Queen in recognition of his services during an eventful Mayoralty , the Prime Minister having notified his

lordship that her Majesty had been graciously pleased to create him a Baronet of the United Kingdom . His lordship , therefore , who has done signal service to the Volunteers , and presided at the reception of thc Shah , is now Sir James Whitehead , Bart . We trust he may live long to enjoy his honours .

Correspondence.

Correspondence .

[ We do not hold ourselves responsible for , or even approving of the opinions expressed by our correspondents , but we wish in a spirit of fair play to all to permit—within certain necessary limits—free discussion . ] THE RECENT MEETING AT THE BOYS ' SCHOOL . To the Editor of the " Freemason . "

Dear Sir and Brother , I should be glad to know your opinion on two points connected with the recent meeting of the Governors of the Boys' School . Is it incumbent that a notice of the General Court should be sent to each subscriber ? There are five subscribers here , including myself , and

only one of them received a notice . In the second place , is voting by proxy allowed at the meeting ? It is , I suppose , impossible that all the subscribers should attend any one meeting ; and if they did the room would probably not hold them , so that voting by proxy when any important question is brought forward would be a boon to those subscribers who live at a distance from town . —Yours faithfully and fraternally ,

GEO . C . CASTER , Peterborough , Nov . 4 th . S . W . 422 . [ The Laws of the Institution , which may be had on application to the Secretary , will answer Bro . Caster ' s queries . —ED . F . M .

ROYAL MASONIC INSTITUTION FOR BOYS . To the Editor of " The Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , The frequently expressed desire of the Chairman of the Quarterly Court on the 25 th ult . to urge the business to a speedy conclusion ( in the interest of the election of boys ) , and a clamouressness of a section

of the meeting , prevented a full discussion of the question of pension to the Secretary . The remark in your leading article of Saturday last , that the opposition " evidences malignity towards Bro . Binckes " shows that the lack of opportunity to explain their views has caused the opponents of the pension scheme to be misjudged .

Some of us , at least , utterly disclaim the slightest malignity or anything approaching thereto , and affirm that our opposition is based upon strict equity , and due to the interests of the Institution . Assuming that Bro . Binckes has done everything for the Institution , which his best friends claim that he has done , we simply say

that he has been more than amply rewarded for all and every service rendered , so that not the sli ghtest indebtedness exists , but that the connection as between Institution and Secretary may honourably be terminated by a legitimate notice for the engagement to cease . There does not exist any contract , specified , or by

implication , either that Bro . Binckes shall give his services after his emoluments ceased or that the Institution shall pay him a stipend after his services have ceased . Permit me now to endeavour to show upon what ground we maintain that Bro . Binckes has been adequately

remunerated for all his services by a reference to his annual receipts , viz . : Salary as Secretary £ § n 0 Allowance do . ... ... ... ... 200 Average Annual Donation from Festival

Total ^ 1075 In addition to the above , Bro . Binckes received ^ 125 per year for three years ( £ 375 in all ) from the new School Building Fund . It may be said that the Institution has no right to consider the Grand Mark salary , but surely no man can be in two places at

once , and whilst Bro . Binckes was earning that , he was away from the duties of the Boys' School Secretary . But even eliminating that amount , there remains £ 82 $ per annum ( and a bonus of ^ 375 ) , which is surely a lavish emolument , and covers all possible services of Secretary to an Institution with an annual turnover of

; 6 i 2 , ooo to ^ 14 , , and providing for onl y 200 to 250 boys . Out of an annual income such as the above , it is not unreasonable to hope that Bro . Binckes has been happy enough to be able to make liberal provision for himself . Again , pensions for life are & first change on the existingpropertyof the Institution , and at present the only

funded assets are ^ I 7 , ooo , producingannually ^ 601 4 s . Sd ., from which has to be deducted ^ 23 interest on Bro . W . Winn ' s gift and £ 4 . 7 s . interest on Bro . Edward Cox ' s gift ( both presented for specified purposes ) , leaving onl y £ 573 17 s . 5 d . to be dealt with , and of this jf 106 4 s . is already pledged for pensions , viz ., £ jS to

late Matron , and £ 31 4 s . to late Nurse , so that there only remains ^" 467 13 s . 5 d . per year accruing , and consequentl y , if Bro . Binckes has ^ 350 and Bro . Dr . Morris £ 200 ( as has been suggested ) , then the entire funded property of the Institution is mortgaged for pensions , and an additional ^ 82 6 s . 7 d . required from

some other source to pay the mortgagees their claims . Now , beyond doubt or cavil , this funded property was given by the donors for the purposes of the Institution , as specified in its constitutions , viz . . " To maintain , clothe , and educate sons of Freemasons .... requiring the benefits of the Institution . "

and to my mind the application of it to any other purpose is a misappropriation , and a distinct breach or faith with deceased donors . There is yet another view of the matter . Only last week the doors of the Institution were closed in the

Stewards' List ... ... ... ... 125 Secretary to Grand Mark Lodge 250