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 . ]

ROYAL MASONIC BENEVOLENT INSTITUTION . Tothe Editor of the " Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother ,

The proceedings of the Committee of Management of the above Institution , held on Tuesday , the 25 th ult ., as reported in your issue of the 29 th ult ., which has only just reached me , have been to me very

sorry reading . For I have observed with much concern the growing tendency of late years amongst the wire-pullers to convert our great Masonic Charities into common benefit societies , where a quid is exacted for every quo I The amendments of the rules for the admission of candidates to the benefits of the Royal

Masonic Benevolent Institution seem to me to all he 111 this direction—that the proposed " new law " is simply monstrous , and with you I hope it may meet with most successful opposition . Indeed , I think the time has come when the members of the Craft generally should interest themselves in the active management of our Institutions , and not

leave them to be so entirel y handled by a selected few . At any rate , I shall be glad to assist in the organisation of an opposition Committee to this proposed obnoxious change in the qualifications for candidates for admission to the benefits of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution . —Yours fraternally , TUDOR TREVOR , P . M . 206 9 , P . Z ., & c , A Life Governor R . M . B . I . April 9 th .

"HEARTY GOOD WISHES . " To the Editor of the " Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , Some letters have recently been inserted in the Freemason upon the subject of " Hearty good wishes " being tendered by visitors from the lodges of which they are members to the lodge visited . The idea

of the writers ol the letters which I have read ( I may not have seen all ) is , that Grand Lodge has expressed an opinion adverse to the old custom . This is not the fact by any means . It seems that the opinion of the then Grand Registrar , the late Bro . Mclntyre , was asked upon the subject and he replied that "No brother

had the right to offer Hearty good wishes' from his lodge without the permission of the Master . " The foregoing inquiry , and the opinion in reply , constitute the whole that has actually taken place . Grand Lodge has never discussed the subject ; and however highly we may value the opinion of the late Grand

Registrar , it is only the opinion of one man , a trained lawyer , who might probably have viewed the subject as a question of abstract ri ght , and would therefore give his opinion according to the strict letter of the law . An old Latin proverb runs thus—Summum lex est summa injuria ( extreme law is extreme injustice ) , that

which may be a right in law may become a great wrong in practice . We have in favour of the ancient custom the " Lex non scripta , " the unwritten law , sanctioned by precedent , and by immemorial usage . I speak with the experience of close upon half a century ( fully 49 years )

in Freemasonry , during which period I have visited lodges in very many provinces , and I have found no difference in this practice , no break in its continuity , no exception to its universalit y ; it was an old custom when I was initiated ; like a vigorous forest-tree it

has struck its roots deep ; it has spread its branches wide , and the good old tree should not , and it will not , be uprooted , upon no stronger grounds than the opinion of one man , however eminent and however worthy of respect and reverence he may have been .

De minimis non curat lex ( the law does not concern itself with trifles ) , and we may rest assured that Grand Lodge will never take this small matter into serious consideration . We have heard of late—in some debates in the House of Commons—of "

grandmotherly legislation ; " this well describes the character of the attempt to put a stop to our time-honoured custom of each visiting brother tendering , on behalf of his lodge and for himself , " Hearty good wishes " to the lodge in which he is a guest at the time .

That the late Grand Registrar used the words imputed to him there can be no doubt ; but we may well doubt that he uttered those words without any modification or qualification of any kind . He was a practical man and a good Freemason , ancl it is quite possible that he might have taken a practical common-sense view of the question . In that case , his answer to his

interviewers would probabl y be , " Well , if you ask me if a brother has the right to speak on behalf of his lodge , I reply that by law he has no such rightnevertheless , it is a very ancient custom , kindly ' , genial , fraternal , perfectly harmless in itself , and genuinely Masonic ; it existed before we were born , it will endure long after we are buried ; you had better leave it alone . "

This is not the first occasion ( it will probably not be the last ) upon which members of Grand Lodge have expressed opinions which , gathering strength as they have been passed from one to another , have at length been taken for the opinions of Grand Lodge itself . Brethren should not be so read y to take these things

Correspondence.

from hearsay , because , in the great majority of cases , they will find that ( as in this case ) Grand Lodge as a bod y has never heard of the question ; and nothing short of a resolution of Grand Lodge should cause

any brother to forego the time-honoured custom of offering " Hearty good wishes" whenever and wherever he visits a lodge . —Yours faithfull y and fraternally , AN OLD PAST MASTER .

Reviews

REVIEWS

FREEMASONS' CALENDAR AND DIRECTORY FOR THE PROVINCE OF DURHAM , 1890 .

Bro . Hudson , the energetic and courteous Prov . Grand Secretary of Durham , has again placed the brethren of that province under a deep obligation by the issue of another edition of his excellent directory . It is as good as ever and a multum in parvo . Wh y does not our Brother Hudson give his name on the title

page ? Certainly he has been so long to the fore , and has discharged his secretarial and editorial functions so ably , that if he considers it the right thing to issue such a wonderful compilation anonymously , much smaller productions may well be published in like manner . We venture , however , to differ from our brother ,

and hope he will fall into line in A . D . 1891 . There are 32 lodges , 12 chapters , 11 mark lodges , three preceptories and two Rose Croix chapters in Durham County , for which the days of meeting , installation , dates of warrants , names of Prov . G . Lodge Officers , & c , from earliest records to 18 90 , and of W . M . ' s , P . M . ' s , & c , are

given as far as possible , and well arranged . An index is a feature also of this publication , which is so complete and perfect as to leave nothing to be desired . The " Knights Grand Cross of the Hol y Temple of Jerusalem , " held at Freemasons' Hall , Newcastle , is , we believe , a body peculiar to the province , and

represents there , the chief supporters of the K . T . The presiding officer is called " Illustrious Grand Master , " the next two officials being termed " First and Second Assistants . " The " Knig hts Grand Cross" are selected from those who have served as Preceptors of the " Royal Kent Preceptory , " or are Preceptors in that body

connected with the Province of Northumberland and Durham . Cheering reports are published relative to the Masonic Charities , and locally 17 children are being educated at a cost of about £ 90 per annum . The province is evidently fully alive to all present wants of the Craft .

MASONIC CALENDAR FOR THE PROVINCE OF WILTSHIRE .

We are very glad to find that the mantle " of the late Bro . William Nott has fallen on the able Craftsman Bro . F . H . Goldney , P . G . D ., & c , as editor of the " Masonic Directory , " so long efficiently conducted b y the former brother , who originated that capital annual . Bro . Goldney makes his debut in a neat preface , whicli

deals with the progress of the province during 18 S 9-90 and has done his work so well that it appears to us that he is already established in that office . Our brother is well known locally and generally as the historian of Masonic Wilts , ancl a member of the " Quatuor Coronati" Lodge , No . 2076 , London . Sir " Gabriel

Goldney , Bart ., P . G . W ., the D . Prov . G . M . of the province , is the father , and Bro . G . P . Goldney , P . G . D . is a brother of the editor , so that Bro . F . H . Goldney belongs to a distinguished Masonic famil y . There are but 11 lodges and six chapters in Wilts , so that although the particulars given respecting these and other bodies

in the province are all that can possibl y be desired , the enumeration is not such heavy work as in our larger provinces . The table of the Stewards from 18 70 is an interesting and suggestive compilation , alike honourable to the brethren and the province they so efficientl y represent . For the three Institutions nearl y £ 5000

have been raised in the 20 years , so that the average is most creditable . Bro . Nott , so sincerel y lamented , was always to the fore in this direction , and will long be missed by the province he served so faithfull y . The list of votes held and summary , showing a total of over

1200 votes , proves that the strength of the province in this direction is much beyond their numbers as compared with several provinces , and , of course , is due to the members so generously aiding the Masonic Charities . We say , well done , Bro . Goldney , and " thank you for the next . "

Masonic Notes And Queries.

Masonic Notes and Queries .

8 77 ] VALUABLE PAMPHLETS . Under the above heading I note Bro . W . J . Hughan ' s note in your last issue concerning three old pamphlets belonging to Bro . Bain , of Sunderland , in which the name "Union" occurs in No . 1 , of date 1779 . It struck me I could supply an earlier instance , and ,

turning to the Masonic section of my book-case , I turned up a volume entitled "The Principles of Free-masonry Delineated , " published in Exeter in 1777 . The dedication is as follows : " To Sir Charles Warwick Bampfylde , Bart ., Provincial Grand Master of the Ancient & Honourable Society of Free & Accepted Masons for the county of Devon & city & county of Exeter , these

Masonic Notes And Queries.

principles of Free-masonry delineated are with the greatest respect , inscribed ; by , his most obedient servant and brother Robert Trewman . " It contains various charges , ceremonies , addresses , odes , anthems , songs , prologues , and epilogues , and I find that in a

prologue of the date January 31 st , 1772 , the following : ( A Father . Speakers < , A Mother . ( . A Daughter about ten years old . _ The curtain draws up , and discovers the mother sitting at a table knitting , upon which lies a playbill ; the daughter enters and takes it up .

DAUGHTER . By desire of the Union Lodge ! What ' s this ? This Union Lodge , Mamma ? MOTHER . Freemasons , Miss .

DAUGHTER . Freemasons , my good Madam ! Lack-a-day , What sort of things ( I long to know ) are they ? This clearly shows the use of the name " Union " seven years anterior to that of the Newcastle pamphlet . The work referred to also contains the

ceremony observed at laying the foundation-stone of Freemasons' Hall on the ist of May , 1775 , and the ceremony observed at the dedication of Freemasons ' Hall , 23 rd May , 177 6 , with the oration delivered by William Dodd , LL . D ., G . C , who , by the way , was

executed at Tyburn the following year for forging the name of the Earl of Chesterfield , his former pupil and patron , on a bond for £ 4200 . I have also bound up in the same volume " A Masonic Key , with an elucidation on the Religious and Moral Beauties of Freemasonry ,

Ziydvjxyjpx , Zqjisgstn , Wxstxjin , & c , for the use of Lodges and Brothers in general . Dedicated , by permission , to William Perfect , Esqre ., Provincial Grand Master for the County of Kent , by W . Finch , Canterbury . Please to observe that every Book has here on the Title Page ty Qxzf , and Oivjjxg Qvwgzjpix . Printed by W . Bristow ,

Canterbury , 1801 . The cipher is a very easy one , and , as the preface says , there are " various vacuums that frequently occur throughout the book that render the far greater part unintellig ible to all but Masons , which vacuums are to be supplied by various characters and hieroglyphics , which the well-informed Mason is fully competent to refer to . " Are these works scarce f

Any information on the subject will be welcomed by W . FRED . VERNON ( Kelso ) , Associate Quatuor Coronati . Query 1 . —I find I have made a note that the wellknown Masonic song , frequently called the E . A , song " Come let us prepare , We Brothers that are , " & c ,

is by Matthew Burkhead , a brother I persume . When did he flourish , and of what lodge was he a member ? 2 . —Can any brother supply me with a copy of an old Masonic song about Adam and Eve , to lines of which I can only remember : " The fig leaf aprons' they put on

To show their Masonrie . 3 . —In Dec , 1761 , a large deputation went from Kelso to Wooler to assist in forming a lodge there . On 25 th July , 1765 , a deputation went from here to assist at the laying of the foundation stone of Wooler

Church at the request of All Saints' Lodge there , When did this lodge cease to exist ? 4 . —There was a lodge at Ford about the same time , is there any memento of it extant ? Bro . the Rev . G . Marsh was rector there in 176 3 . Any information on the above will greatly oblige , W . FRED . VERNON ( Kelso )

Reports Of Masonic Meetings.

REPORTS OF MASONIC MEETINGS .

Craft flDasonrp ,

PROVINCIAL MEETINGS .

BEAMINSTER . Beaminster Manor Lodge ( No . 1367 ) . — The 115 th regular meeting of the above lodge was held at the White Hart Hotel , on Tuesday , the ist instant . The brethren present included Bros . J . S . Webb , P . P . J . G . W ., W . M .: C . Toleman , I . P . M . ; R . R . Samson , J . W . ; J . Andrews , P . M ., Treas .: A . Hann , Sec . : O . M . Beament ,

S . D . ; R . Toleman , P . M ., P . P . G . P ., acting J . D . C . G . Purkiss , P . M ., P . P . G . P ., Org . ; S . R . Baskett , P . M ., P . P . G . R ., D . C ; W . Oxley , I . G . ; H . A . P . Genge , acting I . G . ; J . Keech , Tyler ; and S . Cox , P . P . G . Stwd . The minutes having been read and confirmed , the resignation of Bro . R . Smith through ill-health was communicated to the lodge . Several new members were proposed

for the ballot at the next meeting . Bro . S . R . Baskett then read a paper written by Bro . T . B . Whytehead , on " Women and Freemasonry , " illustrating it from Picart ' s "Rites and Ceremonies" and an old ritual ( 1775 ) " 10 Adoption ou Ia Maconnerie des Femmes , " both of which he produced for the inspection of the brethren . On the proposition of Bros . R . and C Toleman , the W . M ., S . W ., I . W ., Sec , and P . M . ' s of the lodge were appointed

to act as a Reception Committee on the occasion of the approaching visit of Prov . Grand Lodge to Beaminster in the course of the ensuing summer . Bro . R . Toleman gave notice that at the next meeting he should propose that the sum of five guineas be voted from the lodge funds to the funds of the K . M . I . B ., the same to be placed on Bro . Baskett ' s list . The customary adjournment took place at a later hour than usual .