Scotland

your services and its regard for your personal worth by requesting Mrs . Murray Lyon ' s acceptance of the accompanying gift of silver plate , and by presenting you with this address , and along with it a purse of sovereigns . It is most gratifying to us to learn that Sir Michael Robert Shaw-Stewart , Baronet , of Ardgowan , the Senior Past Grand Master under whom you have served , and the illustrious Craftsmen who have in succession filled that high office , have given you a memorial expressive of their collective regard and appreciation of the value of your services . "

The Grand Master ' s remarks were frequently applauded , both loudly and long by the brethren . The GRAND SEERETARY , in his reply , said that Grand Lodge had had his best services for 21 years and the bast could do no better . He thanked the Grand Master for the expressions of satisfaction with his conduct in the office of Grand Secretary , and the brethren assembled for the hearty manner in which they had endorsed these expressions . He also thanked all concerned for the many and valuable presents he had received .

Miss MURRAY LYON returned thanks by remarking that she was sure she echoed the thoughts of her mother , who was unable to be ' present , when she thanked them all . The DIST . G . MASTER of Natal assured the meeting of the high regard in which their venerable and accomplished guest was held by the Masons holding furth of Scotland . His name was a cherished household

word in Scottish Freemasonry in the furthest parts of the world . ( Applause . ) Long might he be spared to present a Murray Lyon front to the outside world , and , above all , to instruct , lead , and guide tneir true Scottish Masonic Zion ! ( Applause . ) Bro . PATRICK , Durban , concurred in these remarks . On the motion of Major ALLAN , the Chairman was thanked , and the proceedings then terminated .

A Visit From Grand Lodge Of Scotland To The Provincial Grand Lodge Of Middle Ward Of Lanarkshire.

A VISIT FROM GRAND LODGE OF SCOTLAND TO THE PROVINCIAL GRAND LODGE OF MIDDLE WARD OF LANARKSHIRE .

A deputation from the Grand Lodge of Scotland on the 3 rd inst . visited the Provincial Grand Lodge of the Middle Ward of Lanarkshire . The meeting was held in the Masonic Hall , Douglas and Clydesdale Hotel . There was a large representation of various lodges of the province .

The deputation from the Grand Lodge consisted of Bros . Lord Saltoum Grand Master Major F . W . Allan , S . G . W . ; D . Murray Lyon . G . Sec . ; David Reid , G . Treas . ; Capt . G . B . Wishart , Past G . Marshal ; R . W . Johnstone , President ; Lindsay and Mackersy , G . Stwds ., representing the Grand Lodge of Canada ; and David Laird , Grand Lodge Officer .

The GRAND MASTER installed Bro . R . K . Stewart , of Murdostoun , for his second term of office , and warmly eulogised his past Masonic services . Thereafter , Bros . Major Aikman , of Ross , and J . Cunningham Kay were installed respectively as Depute and Substitute Masters .

The lodge having been called from labour to refreshment , Bro . Major AIKMAN , in the name of the brethren from the province , presented the Provincial Grand Master with a handsome service of plate , consisting of three silver bowls . Bro . STEWART appropriately replied . The proceedings were very enthusiastic .

Summer Outing Of The Whitttington Lodge, No. 862.

SUMMER OUTING OF THE WHITTTINGTON LODGE , No . 862 .

Some of the Past Masters and a few brethren of the above lodge hid a most enjoyable trip to Ostend on Saturday , the Gth instant , returning on the following day , Arrangements had been made for the brethren to put up at the Hotel de la Digue , where everything in the way of comfort and luxury was provided for them .

After dinner , a visit to the Kursall and a walk round amongst the gay throng of visitors who had assembled for the battle of flowers ; a visit to the ball room , and a look in at the " tables " was a sight that cannot be imagined—it must be seen to be believed ; also the view along the front facing the sea is most brilliant , every house painted a different colour , and a blaze of light extending from end to end of the promenade makes up a scene never to be forgotten .

Then a good night ' s rest , reluming on Sunday , over the breezy bounding billows , giving an appetite to er . joy all the good things Bro . Emil Daousc had provided for the brethren made the trip one of those most delightful outings which will be remembered by the brethren fcr its geniality and thorough good-fellowship .

Freemasonry At The Cape.

FREEMASONRY AT THE CAPE .

We have much pleasure in reproducing the following address , which was delivered by Bro . Charles F . edtrick Silberbaucr , Orator of the Lodge de Goede Hoop , on the occasion cf the installation of the new W . M . and ollicers , recently , and has been lor varded for publication in our columns : " AnotherMasonicyearisnow ' with the years beyond the flood . ' Itshopes

and fears , its joys and sorro . vs , its triumphs and defeats , its lofty promises and unequal performances , are vanished ; but the effect of the words spoken and deeds done therein upon the lives , characters , and destinies of the human race will outlive the material fabric of our earthly home . These are solemn reflections , but the true Craftsmen is in no wise out of harmony with

the festal nature of the day ' s proceedings , in the course of which a new »\ . M . and officers have entered upon their respective duties for ths ensuing 2 months , nor are they out of place when we thankfu'iy lookback upon the past year as one of unprecedented activity and prosperity in the annals

01 our beloved Lodge de Goode Hoop . Let each member , then , of this venerab | e lodge never forget that in the e > es of the entire Fraternity in South Mnca ^ she is verily like a ' city that is set on a hill , ' and , therefore , ' cannot Je hid , ' inasmuch as from her ( now more than 125 years ago ) the beams of

Freemasonry At The Cape.

Freemasonry first shone forth to enlighten this " quarter of the globe , and resolve never , as far as he at least is concerned , to do aught to derogate from his association with her historic and worthy fellowship , but be zealous in every good work , ' as ever in his Great Taskmaster ' s eve ; ' and adopting as his motto , within , as well as without the walls of the Temple :

Trust no future , howe ' er pleasant ! Let the dead past bury its dead ; Act , act in the living present , Heart within and God o ' erhead . " If these principles are faithfully carried out , we shall indeed find that our lodge will continue as a beaconlight whose lustre , instead of being dimmed , shall be increased by age . With the limited time at our disposal ,

and with the brethren s powers of endurance at a low ebb at this stage of a protracted and exacting ceremonial , it could not be expected that aught can be worthily said on the history , principles , aims , and prospects of our beloved Order ; a command to do so would be equivalent to deputing one to give those who have never visited it an adequate idea of some magnificent forest by showing them a handful of the finest leaves or plants ' , or to exhibit a stone taken from some glorious edifice as a vivid representation of the ground plan , elevation , dimensions , beauty and grandeur of the entire qtrnrttirp .

" Happily , however , those whom I am privileged to address do not require to be informed as to what Freemasonry is , and among them there will always be found a sympathetic and indulgent audience for a few stray meditations on the . Crait by any brother , or for an attempt -humble though it be—on his part to set forth some of his impressions as to the result of the researches of the leading intellectual lights of the Order into its history and

antiquities . It is well for us , methinks , on an occasion like the present , to beat the bounds ( as it were ) of our history—or , to speak more correctly , of the theories founded on strong analogies which have to serve as such —lest , in the all-absorbing nature of our stated ceremonies we insensibly come to regard the Fraternity as something only a little better than a huge benefit society . Freemasonry is a science , i . e ., a philosophy or system of doctrines

inculcating the existence of one God and the immortality of the soul . Its teachings are imparted in a manner peculiar to itself ( and not shared by any other corporation or cult ) by means of allegories and symbols . These have been used from the earliest times by nations who possessed a high degree of civilisation and learning , as being the readiest means of representing abstract ideas and of imparting instruction in moral and other

truthseven as the signs and formul . c in algebra and the figures in plane geometry are convenient abbreviations of lengthy processes and definitions . The branches of learning just mentioned , as we may remember from our school days , can bs profitably availed of only by those who have been duly initiated therein ; in other words , by those to wham they have bsen properly taught and explained . Let this analogy then induce us to spare no pains in

getting clear and precise ideas of what our symbols and ceremonies really mean , if Freemasonry is to bs in very deed a factor in our everyday life . "At the threshold of any inquiry into the first beginnings of an Order veiled in the mists of a remote antiquity , we are confronted with most striking analogies to some of our allegories , symbols , and rites which occur

in the mysteries of ancient Egypt , Assyria , India , Greece , Rome , and Scandinavia—to say nothing of the Druids and Goths , or of the prehistoric races of America ( the Aztecs and Toltecs )—or coiling down to our own day , of the remarkable ceremonies of the Hindustani , the Chinese , and other Eastern nations . Nor must the Druses of the Mount Lebanon district

be ignored , who have from time immemorial succeeded in keeping themselves free from admixture with the surrounding peoples , and who claim with some plausible show of reason to be the direct descendants of the Solomonic temple-builders ; it is worthy of note that among them even at the present day a bargain is ratified or an agreement concluded by their giving each other the M . M . G ., and that in thiir places of wo-sh'p ( which

are , like our lodges , carefully guarded by Tylers ) the double triangle , seven stars , and other Masonic emblems are conspicuous objects . Th ' . -ir moral law is summarised in the first three outof the seven articles in their religion , as follows : Belief in Gcd and in His Eternal Truth , the exercise of brotherly love , and the practice of Charity , all of which are identical with our brotherly love , relief , and truth .

" Almost every one of the ancient mysteries had an allegorical legend , the principal incidents of which turned on the death by violence at the hands of treacherous friends cf some god or hero ; such as that of Osiris among the Egyptians , and Balder the Beautiful among the Scandinavians . The Druids , in celebrating their mysteries , set forth the death and burial of the god Hu . We , Freemasons , have our familiar H . . c legend ( of which ,

by the way , various versions exist ) , and which presents some points of resemblance to those above referred to . These analogies of symbols , ceremonies , a d allegories are so startling ( even if we omit from the scope of our investigations the highly suggestive identity in the orientation and main features of places of worship of all ages , and the fact lhat the most

satisfactory solution cf the purpose of the so-called King ' s Chamber and sarcophagus in the gieat pyramid of Cheops can only be found in a Masonic interpretation connected with the working of the best-known symbolic degree ) that , in the absence of more satisfactory evidence , or even of oral traditions , we may , in the present state of our knowledge , safely conclude that the rites of Freemasonry and the Ancient Mysteries are derived from

one common source . " For want of any other literature with the same pretentions to antiquity , we are indebted to the Holy Bible for our clearest ideas as to the nature of God , the creation of the world and of man , the mystery of the existence of such a thing as evil , the origin of physical and mental suffering , and of death itself . Its sacred

pages also contain the earlict record of the Flood , the dispersion of the various nations over the face of the earth , the call of Abraham , and above all of the founding of the Hebrew race , who , in spite of many lapses , kept the faith in God pure . The other descendants of Noah ( even as thoss of the ' Father of the Faithful' ) must have originally had the same traditions respecting the God of Creation as the Eternal Reivarder oi good and the Punisher of evil as he had . These recollections were soon after either lost

or they must have become very shadowy , because we find , not from Holy Writ alone , but from the independent testimony of heathen writers , that the mysteries of the ancients , and those of the nations whom the Israelites dispossessed on their return from Egypt , were horrib ' c in the extreme , disgraced by fearful immoralities and atrocities , and—though possessing here and there some faint glimmering of a Divine origin ( which were jealously preserved as secrets to be known only to the priestly caste)—these rites tended to the utter moral and spiritual degra rlAti-- - * - - ^ iv-r da- " in general .