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I^KSaBOflM SATURDAY , AUGUST IO , 1901 .

Masonic Notes.

Masonic Notes .

The Quarterly Convocation of Supreme Grand Chapter was held under the presidency of Comp . Canon J . Studholme Brownrigg , as' M . E . Grand Z ., at the Freemasons' Hall , on Wednesday , the 7 th instant , when it is hardly necessary to say the sad death of

Comp . the Right Hon . W . W . B . Beach , M . P ., Grand J ., was referred to in terms of the deepest sympathy , a resolution of condolence with Mrs . Beach and the family being passed in solemn silence . Comp . Beach , who had been Grand Third Principal for the last nine years very frequently presided at these convocations , and outside his Province there are no meetings where

his presence will be more greatly missed than at those of Supreme Grand Chapter . It was only at the May convocation that he so presided and paid a handsome compliment to Comp . Sir George D . Harris for the admirable manner in which he discharged his duties as President of the General Committee of Grand Chapter .

* # * There were only two chapters—both attached to London Lodges—for which , on the recommendation of the General Committee , warrants of constitution were granted , namely , the I / Iaida Vale Chapter , No . 2743 , and the Army and Navy Chapter , No . 2738 . These

raise the number for which warrants have been granted during the year to seven , four of which meet in the Provinces of Essex , Durham , West Lancashire , and Guernsey and Alderney , while the other three are located in London . These figures do not convey the "lea that Royal Arch Masonry is gaining in popularity .

? » » Our last week ' s issue contained the following announcement : " Bro . W . W . B . Beach , Prov . G . Master , will hold the annual meeting of the Province ° f Hants and the Isle of Wight on Tuesday , the •Sth instant , at Aldershot . Visiting brethren will be

Masonic Notes.

welcomed at the meeting , which will take place at the Tin Hall . " A more signal—and , we may add , a more painful—illustration of the truth of the old adage— " Man proposeth , God disposeth "—has not come , and is not likely to come , under our observation for many a long , long day . ( ••*

Viscount Valentia , M . P ., as Prov . G . Master , pre - sided at the recent annual meeting at Abingdon of the Prov . G . Mark Lodge of Berks and Oxon , and as this was the first occasion on which his lordship had met the brethren since his return home from the war in South Africa , it is not surprising tint he should have

been greeted with more than the usual cordiality . Hence , before the regular business was entered upon , the Dep . Prov . G . Master rose in his place , and , after expressing the pleasure it gave them all to find his lordship once again presiding at their meeting , proposed that a resolution should be placed on the

minutes recording the satisfaction which the brethren experienced at the safe return home from arduous military duty of their Prov . G . M . M ., and the resolution having been seconded and carried by acclamation , was very gracefully and feelingly acknowledged by his lordship . #

* * As regards the condition of the Mark in the Province , it would seem from the reports that were laid before the meeting to be most satisfactory . There are but six lodges on the roll , yet the number of subscribing members returned for the past year is 297 , or

as nearly as possible 50 per lodge . The finances , too , were shown to be in a healthy state , while the Prov . Grand Master was pleased to remark that the manner in which the lodge minute books had been kept reflected great credit on the several Secretaries . In the course of the proceedings a resolution recommending that his lordship's patent be renewed for a further term

of three years was cordially adopted , and Lord Valentia returned his thanks for the compliment thus paid to him . We trust that future annual meetings may prove as encouraging and that Mark Masonry in Berks and Oxon may go on prospering as it has done under the guidance of its present popular ruler and that of his predecessor the Earl of Jersey .

# * * From the report we published last week of the installation of Bro . Dr . Ogilvie as Dist . Grand Master of Jamaica under the Scottish Constitution , it is evident that in the newly-installed chief our Scottish brethren in that old British possession hive not only

a worthy successor to the late Bro . S . Constantine Burke , but likewise one who has a very exalted opinion of the Craft , and is , in every respect , well qualified to give effect to that opinion . His more comprehensive definition of Freemasonry as being " a system of Morality and Charity , which

acknowledges the Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of Man , " is , as he said , "wide enough to admit all sorts and conditions of men to come and find refuge under our holy banner . " Further on in his address Bro . Ogilvie laid stress on the good which Freemasonry was continually doing , how it brought together on one

common platform men who differed widely from each other in politics and religion , and how at all times it was ready to help those who were in distress . He enlarged , with natural pride , on the vast sums that are annually raised and disbursed for Charitable purposes , but at the same time very carefully

pointed out that the Craft was not a benevolent society in the same sense as the Foresters and Oddfellows , and that the J lodges must always be on their guard against accepting as candidates those who were influenced by purely mercenary motives to join our ranks . Those who

look to make a profit out of Masonry must be denied admission to membership of our lodges , so that in the future , as in the past , it may be the proudest boast of the Craft that those who have been admitted hive presented themselves voluntarily as cindidates , and have been influenced to seek to place themselves under our

banner , not by the improper solicitation of friends , or any mercenary or other unworthy motive , but by a belief in the sterling nature of the principles which jt is known to profess . The caution is more than ever necessary now , when all the world is aw _ re how vast is the amount of good which Masonry is always doing . ?

* * If there is any fault to find with this admirable address , it is that , in his enthusiasm for Freemasonry , Bro . Dr . Ogilvie has shown a disposition to speak in somewhat exaggerated terms of our numbers , and the largeness of the sum that is distributed in benevolence . There are no doubt thousands of our lodges spread

Masonic Notes.

over the face of the earth . Bro . Hughan , in his last week's review of the " Proceedings of the Grand Lodge of New York , " quoting sundry of the statistics contained in the volume , gives the number of lodges in " North America ( U . S . A . and Canada ) , " as 12 , 391 , and the total membership as 873 , 07 "* , Canada

mustering 626 lodges and 40 , 244 members , while the rest belong to the U . S . A . If to these be added the number of Masons in the British Empire exclusive of Canada , but inclusive of those under the independent Grand Lodges—say at the very outside , 350 , 000 ; in Germany at 50 , 000 , and in the other countries in

which Masonry is sanctioned by the State , say at 100 , 000 , we find the total is still short of 1 , 400 , 000 . But even if we incline to hi gher figures still , and place the grand total at a million and a half , we are . still a long way from the " millions of Freemasons that now exist and have existed from the very earliest times . "

» As regards what is dispensed by the Order , in benevolence , it is difficult , if not impossible , to give anything more than a general idea . In the speech he made after his installation last month , the Duke of Connaught placed the amount contributed * to our

Grand Lodge Fund of Benevolence and the three Institutions during the last 25 years at close on ^ 2 , 000 , 000 , or . £ -0 , 000 a year , and if we add a further £ 20 , 000 per annum as being contributed to the Provincial and other local Charities , we shall find ourselves not so very far removed from the £ 300 per day

which , according to Dr . Ogilvie , is spent in England "in relieving dis ' ress in one form or another , " and what enhances the value of this evidence of what is done here for Charity is the fact that except in the case of the quarterages to Grand Lodge , the whole of this is given voluntarily . But we need not accompany

Bro . 'Dr . Ogilvie further in his very able address . We have referred at some length to the more salient points to which he directed attention , but the whole address is of a character that is not often delivered , and reflects the greatest credit on its author . We commend it strongly to the careful perusal of our readers .

Appendix No . 2 of the printed Proceedings of the District Grand Mark Lodge of Bengal at the regular half-yearly Communication , which was held at Free masons' Hall , Calcutta , on the 30 th March last , under the presidency of Bro . the Hon . Mr . Justice Burkitt , District Grand Master , contains a tabular statement of

the numerical strength of the lodges in the District , both severally and collectively . There are'nominally iS lodges on the roll of this District Grand Mark Lodge , but one of these is in abeyance , and the aggregate of the subscribing members of the 17 other lodges on the 31 st December , 1 9 , was 401 as

compared with 384 on the same day of 1899 . This gives an average membership of over 23 per lodge , which 1 having regard to the frequent removals of both soldiers and civilians from one station to another , as probably a very fair one . The strongest is the Capestone Lodge , No . 80 , Calcutta , with 52 members , while

the weakest are the Zaredatha , No . 307 , Fyzabad , and the Ashlar , No . 474 , Dum Dum , which have only n and 12 members respectively . The District Grand Master , however , in his address , does not appear to look upon the figures as satisfactory . " In the Mark Degree , with the exception of a very few lodges , they

indicate stagnation , " is the remark he makes , and , in calling attention to the subject , he adds : " I can only hope for better results in the future , and meanwhile 1 trust the brethren will hi unremitting in their endeavours to bring brethren of the Craft within our Order . "

But while Bro . Mr . Justice Burkitt says the figures we have quoted " indicate stagnation , " in the Mark he regards the state of things in the Degree of Royal Ark Mariner as being still worse , there being a reduction in the number of members on the roll from 124 to 113 . The elevations during the half year to 31 st December were

11 , and the rejoinings 2 , but the withdrawals reached 24 . The number of Royil Ark Mariner lodges on the roll is eight , the strongest being the Rainbow , moored off No . 80 , which musters 30 members , while the weakest are the Olive Branch , No . 207 , Allahabad , and the Calthrop , No . 307 , Fyzabad , with nine and eight members respectively .

» * * On the other hand , the financial position of the District is described as very satisfactory , the Dist . G . Treasurer ' s statement of account for the hall year to

28 th 1 'ebruary , 1901 , showing receipts , including a balance of < 5 n Rupees brought forward from previous account , amounting to 1358 Rupees , and expenditure of over 458 Rupees , the balance remaining in hand at the clos-e of the account being 899 Rupees .