Hidden Mystery. —No. Ii.

aring ano t feeling ' , so that it may be seen what your innermost If is capable of appreciating by itself ; it would seem now impossible for you to if ow that another inner self is sitting near you or to say whether , what 1 would 11 an allotrop ic form of life in the shape of a dog , cat , etc ., or , if we press it Till further , a still lower form namely plant life , were present ; I say advisedly that this seem : impossible because , at a later date , I shall not only show that it is ossible but shall give examples of its action both in connection with animal and P stable life . I must , however , content myself here in pointing out that , i , i the

mvstery I have brought before you to-night , we have a force which is analogous to what we call life and which can mahe itself felt to a similar force over enormous distances on a higher plane than that of the material , provided these two forces in perfect sympathy . It has been proved experimentally that the human self vhen divested of its corporeal senses has apparently no appreciation of rotation . This was demonstrated a long time ago by Prof . Tyndal , the subject was placed in and this stand also of rotation

chair which revolved on a stand , was capable , the chair was set in motion from left to right and the person was then told to shut his eyes ; after a short time the stand was also set in motion but in the opposite direction , and , as soon as the stand was revolving at the same rate the chair , the person in the chair was obviously quite stationary compared with the room and its contents ; the rate at which the stand was revolving was now increased until the chair began to move

round from right to left , but the person in the chair was found to be absolutely unconscious of the fact that he had become at one time stationary , and was now turnin ' round from right to left . A phenomenon similar to this is experienced when travelling by railway in a sleeping car . If you go to sleep with your head towards the engine , and the train , by going in and out of a terminus , is running in an opposite direction when you wake , although you may be travelling at a creat pace , it is impossible for you to say in which direction you are travelling ,

and it is the more remarkable because you have all your senses at work , although , owing to the blinds being lowered , your sight is confined to the interior of the carriage . Any of you who have experienced this must also have felt on looking out of the window how difficult it was to realise that you were not going back home again—in fact , it takes a considerable effort ot the mind , even with a compass before you , to force yourself to believe that you are going in the same direction as the one in which you started , and that you are not returning . There

are several other ways in which we can shoivthisapparently total unconsciousness of the inner self to its surroundings , but I must only mention one more , namely , the case of a person put under the influence of nitrous oxide gas . Those of you who have had this experience know that however much you concentrate your will on your identity , you have no cognisance of any time elapsing between the moment when your corporeal senses desert you and when they return , the beginning and the end coalesce , pointing to

the fact that although the senses of the body are subject to time , time has no objective reality to our innermost self , and it is also probable that this is an explanation of the unconsciousness of the inner self respecting rotation , or motion in any direction . We saw in my installation address that , to the Spiritual , time and space had no existence , now motion is the combination of these two , namely , the time that a certain object takes to move over a certain space , and it would therefore naturally follow that the soul apart from the corporeal senses , could have

no cognisance of matter ,- for the same reason that the material cannot perceive life by means of its corporeal senses . We have already seen in Mystery No . i that matter has power to influence other matter at a distance , with extraordinary energy under conditions of sympathetic action ; we have now gone a step further and find the same wonderful power to influence at a distance , working on a plane far above that of the material ; can it be that it is in this region that we are to look for the sympathetic action of soul force ? We cannot , with our present

knowledge , answer this question definitely , we only know that wherever we turn we find ourselves confronted by mysteries beyond our power to explain from a finite material stand-point ; even in material vibrations we meet a mystery almost beyond our power to comprehend . Take for instance those small insects of the same family as the grasshoppers , which mike the prim . eval woads in Central America give out a noise like the roaring of the sea ; by means of a kind of rasp , one of these insects creates a sound whi : h Darwin states can be

heard to the distance of one mile , this insect weighs less than iooth part of an ounce , and the instrument by which the noise is made weighs much less than i-iolh of the total insect , it is less , therefore , than loooth part of an ounce in weight , and yet it was found by calculation that this small , minute instrument is actually able to move and keep in motion for hours , from five to 10 , 000 , 000 tons of matter , and it does this so powerfully that every particle of that enormous bulk of matter gives out a sound audible to our ears ; but even this is not its

limit of action ; for we know that these vibrations must go on until , in the end , every particle of matter connected with this earth has been affected by each of those vibrations . In the subject of my demonstration to-night we , however , have a force infinitely more far-reaching ; we can at the present moment , as we have seen , appreciate its power to the distance of 17 miles , and there is every probability that in the far distant future we shall be able to appreciate it across any distance that we can have on this globe , but this is nothing compared with its

field of action . In the material vibration the power of actio . ; was limited to the presence of matter , whereas this force that we are using now has no limit , its action being independent of matter , and its field of operation can only be coinement with limitless space . One mystery leads to another ; what is the force we ire using ¦ It is derived from what is called chemical affinity , we are , indeed , bottling up and letting loose the passionate desires of those atoms of which matter is composed . This 1 propose taking up as the subject of my next Hidden Mjstcry , ucder the title— " The Loves of the Atoms . "

Dance And Conversazione Of St. Nicholas Lodge, No. 1676.

DANCE AND CONVERSAZIONE OF ST . NICHOLAS LODGE , No . 1676 .

0 n Tuesday , the 22 nd ult ., the 21 st anniversary of the granting of the charter ol the above lod ge was celebrated by a dance and conversazione , and lhe brethren cordiall y seconded the efforts ol the W . M ., Bro . H . Forster , so that over 70 couples Sphered together in the magnificent ball-room of the Central Masonic Hal ) , 'iRnm-street , Newcastle , all bent upon passing a happy evening .

Among those present were Bro . Forster , Mrs . Forster , and Miss Forster ; ' ° . R . H . Holm-, P . M ., an ( j Mrs . Holme ; Bro . T . Lewens , P . M ., P . P . S . G . D . i ' - ost ' r ^ n , ' , , Lewens i Bro- Dr . G . Foster , P . M ., P . P . G . W ., Mrs , and Miss V W c b W ' Anderson . P . M . 1342 , P . P . G . Stwd ., and Mrs . Anderson ; Bro . W M , £ „ ' r ; \ ' 342 . P-1 ' . G . Stwd . ; Misses Pickering ; Bro . Dr . Don , P . M ., 1 ' ' : A ° . . - W . Hudson . P . M . e it . Mrs . and Miss Hudson ¦ liro . Dr . De

and Hi ,, n ; , ? ' •!• Gr ; iham , J . W ., and Miss Graham ; Bro . I . T . Dunn , Sec , l- oster uL M ? ' ' Dunn and Miss Dunn ! Mro - D . Foster , S . D , and Mrs . » fo . 1 Marir ° v vi . 1 "' . "!?•• '( ' ° ' ; lim - ' <• M - " ^> " iil , d Mr : i - M ; uley ; Herbert " R ' J d -i . aild M , s' MarlB >" i Uru- « - ' Kirlj . '•*»*¦ : > iro- •" ««¦ Bro . and ' M « v ? Mr ^ J' PorreU ' Bro . and M « - J ° el \ Bro . and Mrs . Jobey ; Chip- R ro LM V ? ' ° ffmari ; Bro . and Mrs . Bowles ; Bro . and Mrs . 1 . Bro . and Mrs . Franklin ; Bro . Wilson -. and Bro . Drew .

Dance And Conversazione Of St. Nicholas Lodge, No. 1676.

Owing to the serious indisposition of Bro . J . G . Cole , P . M ., who was appointed M . C . along with Bro . R . H . Holme , the whole proceedings were under the control of Bros . Holme and Joseph Graham , J . ., who carried out the desires of the W . M . to the entire satisfaction of the brethren and their lady friends . Bro . Amer ' s celebrated band provided the music , and under their strains the dancing portion proved most enjoyable .

An innovation of the usual customs of a dance was made by alternating each dance with a song or glee , so that from the first moment until the last no flagging of the enjoyment took place . Miss Edith Cole and Bro . Philip Milner , P . G . O ., presided over the piano , and Bros . J . Marshal ! and Tom Hoffman ( who was several times encored ) rendered several songs . Of the ladies , Miss Forster ( who is daughter of the W . M . ) and Miss Belle

Cole , who are both well known in Newcastle as excellent vocalists , contributed songs ; and , in addition , the Tyne Quartette sang in unison , " On the Banks of Allan Water , " " Robin Adare , " and " Strike , strike the lyre . " The names of the singers were Messrs . G . Charlton , E . Clarke , T . Smith , and J . Carmichae ' , and their contribution to the harmony was an undoubted attraction , no words being too strong in praise of their almost organ-like cadence ; they were repeatedly encored .

During the evening a supper was served in the refreshment room , and to those responsible for this department—viz .: Bros . J . T . Dunn ( Sec ) , J . Marley , and R . Marley—the highest praise is due . Halfway through the programme , the W . M . addressed the guests , telling them that that innovation of celebrating the coming of age of the lodge by holding a ball instead of a banquet was decided upon because the occasions when the brethren could enjoy the pleasure of the company of the ladies were few and far

between , and he desired that not only the brethren themselves but their wives and families should each and all participate in so auspicious a celebration . He gave a short history of the lodge , and alluded to the premier position the St . Nicholas brethren had taken up in visiting other provinces , and in especial Scotland and Ireland . It might be remembered that it was this lodge which first

journeyed to Dublin , and which afterwards received and entertained the Irish brethren in Newcastle , thereby inaugurating those fraternal visits between England , Ireland , and Scotland which were now so regularly paid . He concluded by thanking all who had so ably supported him on that festive occasion , especially signalling out his Secretary , Bro . J . T . Dunn , for his untiring efforts at the organisation of the entertainment , and Bro . Holme , P . M ., for his guidance and conduct at the dance and conversazione .

Dancing was kept up till midnight with the greatest of enthusiasm , and the occasion will be long remembered as one of the most successful Masonic reunions in the City of Newcastle .

Ladies' Night Of The Lodge Of Perseverance. No. 1743.

LADIES' NIGHT OF THE LODGE OF PERSEVERANCE . No . 1743 .

This lodge s annual ladies night was given on Saturday , the 12 th inst ., at 'Anderton's Hotel , under the W . Mastership of Bro . Harry Watts . The lodge was first held , when the W . M . was supported by Bros . H . C . Lonsdale , I . P . M . ) H . G . Park , S . W . ; W . B . Cossham , J . W . ; T . Lovell , P . M ., Treas . ; C . J . Tollett , Sec ; R . Perry , S . D . ; J . Handley , J . D . ; J . H . T . Bridgman , I . G .: J . Flexman , D . C . ; W . Farrant , A . D . C . ; J . Cunnington and J . T . Dormer , P . M . 1571 , Stwds ; and W . Lane , Tyler .

At the close of the lodge work , Bro . and Mrs . Watts held a reception , Bro . W . Farrant acting as the announcer of the guests most admirably . The company included Bro . H . C . Lonsdale , I . P . M . ; Bro . L . A . Lewis , P . M ., P . Z ., and Mrs . Lewis ; Bro . F . Kearney , P . M ., and Mrs . Kearney ; Bro . John Stait , P . M . ; Bro . T . J . O'Brien , P . M . ; Bro . Roots , P . M ., and Mrs . Roots ; Bro . W . J . Wall , P . M . ; Mr . Tearle , Mr . Swanson and Mrs . Swanson ; Mr . and Mrs . Rogers ; Mr . and Mrs . Taylor ; Mrs . Thompson , Mr . and Mrs . London ; Bro .

Lovell , P . M ., Treas ., and Mrs . Lovell ; Mrs . Smith , Bro . Marcham and Mrs . Marcham , and Mr . Marcham , jun . ; Mr . Terry , Mr . A . W . Smith , Mr . and Mrs . Bromwich ; Bro . H . G . Park , S . W ., and Mrs . Park ; Bro . W . B . Cossham , J . W ., and Mrs . Cossham ; Bro . C . J . Tollett , Sec , Mrs . and Miss Tollett ; Bro . R . Perry , S . D , and Mrs . Perry ; Bro . J . Handley , J . D ., and Mrs . Handley ; Bro . J . H . T . Bridgman , I . G , and Mrs . Bridgman ; Bro . W . H . Butler , D . C . 1687 , and Mrs . Butler ; Bro . J . W . Flexman , I . G , and Miss Flexman ; Bro . W .

Farrant , A . D . C , and Mrs . Farrant ; Bro . J . Cunnington , Steward , and Mrs . Cunnington ; Bro . J . T . Dormer , P . M . 1571 , Steward ; Mr . Tyrell , Miss Winney , Miss Lovell , Miss Ewbink , Miss Carpenter , Mr . Smee , Mr . and Mrs . Huntley , Mr . Barton , Mr . J . Boyles , Mr . Millman , Miss Watts , Mr . Turner , Mr . and Mrs . Hawkins ; Mr . and Mrs . White ; Mr . and Mrs . Calver ; Bro . J . E . Lyons , Mr . and Mrs . Hannan ; Mr . and Mrs . Laurie ; Bro . H . Massey , P . M . 619 and 1928 , and Miss Massey ; Mr . and Mrs . Headdey ; Bro . Greves , P . P . G . Std . Br . Herts ; Mr . and Mrs . Pearce ; and Miss Young .

The company sat down to banquet at six 0 clock , punctually to the time appointed , and each individual was presented with a pretty button-hole flower , and each lady having given to her , in addition , a bottle of scept , enclosed in a tasty box . The dinner was followed by a short list of toasts and some nice singing by Miss May Davy , Mr . W . T . Spencer , Miss Flexman , and Miss Lilian Corner . Bro . R . B . Hopkins gave his beautiful performance on the silver bells .

Cryptic Masonry.

Cryptic Masonry .

Grand Masters Council , No . 1 . The election meeting of this distinguished council was held on the 25 th ult . ) at Mark Masons' Hall , Great Queen-street , W . C . Among those present were Comps . J . 1 . Pakes , T . I . M . ; VV . A . Scurrah , P . T . I . M ., as D . M . ; H . P . Hay , P . C . W . ; Rev . R . C . Fillingham , M . A ., G . Chap ., Chap . ; G . Graveley , P . T . I . M ., Treis . ; Mai ) r T . C . Walls , P . D . G . M ., P . T . I . M ,, Recorder ; Baron de Ferrieres , P . D . G . M , P . T . I . M . ; G . Briggs , J . I . Thomas , W . H . Toye , Jjhn Smith , P . Dormin , and E . Mills , O . S .

The minutes of the last meeting were read and confirmed . Bro . and Comp . Mjulton , by request of the G . M ., wis obligated in the Four Degrees as a serving brother by the T . I . M . Comp . George Gregory , D . M ., was unanimously elected Thrice Illustrious Master ; Comp . G . Graveley , P . T . I . M ., Treas . ; Comps . G . Briggs and B . Stewart , Auditors ; and Comp . E . Mills , O . S . A vote of thanks was passed , and ordered to be entered on the minutes , to Comp . J . J . Pake * for his services as T . I . M . Apologies for non-attendance were received from Comps . G , Gregory , D . M . ; Rev . C . II . VVrig ' it ,

M . A , P . G . Chap ., Asst . Chap . ; R . Loveland Loveland , J . P ., Q . C , P . D . G . M , P . T . I . M . ; F . Storr , P . T . I . M . ; II . J . Lardner , P . T . I . M . ; Rev . Or . Lemon , P . O . Chap . ; A . McDowall , l ' . I ' . l . M . ; Basil Stewart , and many others . The council wis closed in the Degree of Select Master . lhe banquet was held at the Holborn Restaurant , an ! the usual toasts fullowed . Comp . Baron de Fenieres responded on behalf of " the Grand Officers , " Co np . G . Graveley for ' * The Past Masters , " and Comps . Rev . R . C . Fillingham and W . H . Toye for «• The Officers . "