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unveiled in March , having been already defrayed out of the monies raised for the purpose . Among the brethren who were subsequently invested as Prov . G . Officers for the ensuing year will be found the name of Bro . Lord FITZHARDINGE , who was Master of the Royal Faith and Friendship Lodge , No . 270 , in 1 S 61 , and had been elected for the second time , to serve as

W . M . at the Centenary of the Iodge , which will occur next month , the lodge having been founded in London on the 26 th July , 1789 . His lordship , who served as Prov . G . Supt . of Works in 1859 , vvas on this occasionthough unavoidably absent from the meeting—appointed Prov . S . G . W ., and vve doubt not very highly appreciates the compliment thus paid to him

and Lodge No . 270 . Thus everything , including the banquet and an organ recital by Bro . HEMINGWAY , in the Abbey , passed off most satisfactorily , and we feel sure our Gloucestershire friends will long remember the succession of pleasant circumstances which attended the meeting of their Provincial Grand Lodge at Tewkesbury in this year of grace 1889 .

* * * WHATEVER differences of opinion may exist among the bre-Onsiow in New thren of the three Constitut ions in New Zealand as to the Zealand . desirability or otherwise of establishing an independent Grand

Lodge for the Colony , it is clear there can have been no difference as to the propriety of extending towards Bro . the Earl of ONSLOW , P . S . G . W . of England , and P . S . G . W . of the Mark Degree , on his arrival to undertake the duties of Governor , not only such a welcome from the Craft as a brother of his exalted rank was entitled to , but also a welcome that vvould

show his lordship that , though under a different sky , and in a strange community , he vvas yet no stranger , but a brother towards whom every possible kindness and courtesy would be exhibited . Accordingly , on the 22 nd April , on his lordship ' s arrival in Auckland , the English , Irish , and Scotch brethren , under their respective District or Prov . G . Masters ,

and principal officers , and wearing the full insignia of their rank , lined the approaches to Government House , and on his Excellency alighting from his carriage , addresses ( 1 ) on behalf of the three presiding Craft bodies , and ( 2 ) from the Dist . G . Mark Lodge , were read and presented , and suitably acknowledged by his lordship . On the following day , a grand Masonic

banquet was held in the Auckland Choral Hall , at which Bro . G . S . GRAHAM , Dist . G . M . ( E . G . ) , presided , Bros . G . P . PIERCE , Prov . G . M . ( I . C ) , and Sir F . WHITAKER , P . G . M . ( S . C ) , being also present ; while Bro . the Earl of ONSLOW , a > the guest of the evening , occupied the seat of honour to the right of the Chairman . The most complete

harmony prevailed at this gathering , and even if his lordship could have still had any doubts on the subject , after his brilliant reception the day previous , all such doubts must have disappeared vvhen he found himself at this banquet the recipient of so much fraternal kindness and respect . The Earl of ONSLOW is the third Governor whom her MAJESTY has been pleased to

appoint during the last few years to rule over an Australian Colony , and who has been at the same time a distinguished Mason , and , in each case , the effect has been to strengthen the feelings of loyalty and affection between the Colonies thus favoured and the mother country . We hope and believe the same result may always follow when those appointed to Colonial Governments are members of our Society .

Masonic Reprints Of No. 2076.

MASONIC REPRINTS OF No . 2076 .

The long-expected volume of the " Masonic Reprints" of the Lodge " Quatuor Coronati , " No . 2076 ( or , as the Editor describes it , "Quatuor Coronatorum Antigraphia" ) , is now in the hands of the subscribers , and will be eagerly welcomed by the hundreds of members of the " Correspondence Circle , " scattered over the four " quarters of the globe , " as well as by the more select brethren of the " Inner

Circle , " who compose the lodge proper . The Editor , Bro . G . W . Speth , has wisely selected the same size for the Reprints as for the Transactions , and has done his part with scrupulous care and exactitude . His heart is in the work , and , to my mind , it would be simply impossible to secure a more diligent , enthusiastic , or

competent Secretary to fulfil the onerous and important duties of that oflice . Whatever the lodge is and may become , if the sanguine expectations of some of its supporters are realised , will , beyond question , be largely due to the skill and ability displayed by Bro . Speth from the day the lodge was consecrated until now .

The volume is complete in itself , and so may at once be bound ; but I suggest that the arrangement of the parts might advantageously be altered by placing the reprints forming Part II . at the beginning , so as to let Parts II . and III . be in consecutive order . With that view , I refer to Part II . first of all , which consists of—1 , The "Plain Dealer , " No . 51 , of September 14 th , 1724 , containing an

article on the " Gormogons" ( pp . 426 to 433 ) , with several curious references to Freemasonry indicative of opposition to the Degrees promoted by the Revivalists of that period . All the portion concerning the Craft and its peculiar rival will be found in the "Grand Mystery , " second edition , of A . D # 1725 , and an excellent reproduction of which is to be found in Bro . Gould ' s noble

History ( Vol . 3 ) . Bro . J . Ramsden Riley gave the rare volume of the "Plain Dealer " to our Library , and Bro . T . B . Whytehead—another member—gave the extremely scarce copy of " An Ode to the Grand Khaibar , " of 1726 , these two

gifts being of great interest and value , and add much to the unique character of our rapidly increasing collection of books . * If as many pounds were offered as there are pages in these two treasures , in order to secure copies , the attempt would fail to duplicate them , as they a ? e simply unobtainable and invaluable .

The "Ode" is a singular production , long known as such , to Masonic Bibliographers , and most suggestive withal , based upon our " Old Charges , " written in a sarcastic vein , but at times so amusing and descriptive of the society as to merit reproduction and critical examination . "Athelstan ' s and Edwin's Charter , " of course , is duly noted , and the Royal Solomon with other notabilities are alluded to by the gifted Poet , who sought to ridicule , in verse , the pretensions of the Frater-

Masonic Reprints Of No. 2076.

nity . Having been " printed and sold by y . Roberts , " Warwick-lane , London , who was the Publisher of the " Roberts' MS . " of the " Old Charges , " of A . D . I 722 , it ' s just possible the author of the former was a diligent student of the latter pamphlet , which was reproduced by the late Bro . Spencer in his fine edition of the " Old Constitutions , " the unique original of which is now safely housed in the famous library of the Grand Lodge of Iowa .

The third reprint is taken irom Smith ' s Free Masons ' s Pocket Companion " of 173 8 ( Torbuck , London ) , and is entitled "A Defence of Masonry , " which as Bro . Gould states , vvas announced in the " Daily Journal , " of December igth 1730 , but the earliest issue of it known , is to be found in the work aforesaid . This " Defence" provides a key to the motives and aspirations which possibly animated !

the Revivalists of 1717-23 , and , without doubt , deserves to be familiar to all Masonic Students , who are anxious to appreciate and estimate the precise character of the Fraternity in relation to " Degrees " of that period . The other reproduction completing the quartette , is " Brother Euclid's Letter to the Author Against unjust Cavils , " which appeared in the Book of Constitutions , 173 8 , by the Rev . James

Anderson , D . D ., in which work also is 3 rd edition of the " Defence . " The title page ( exactly reproduced ) of the "Constitutions , " fitly introduces this epistle , but I should very much have preferred the whole "Book" of 1738 , Laws , History , and Appendices , List of Lodges , & c , & c , having been -mhMy reprinted , instead of being done in such a piecemeal manner , especially as the 2 nd edition of the

"Constitutions " is by far the most in request just now of that important series . Besides which , I feel assured that such a reprint would prove much more useful to the members of the " Correspondence Circle" than another reproduction of the " Cooke MS ., " when the volume published by Spencer and Co ., of that celebrated Masonic MS . can be obtained , and is of itself fairly well done . However , this is

but a matter of opinion , possibly my own only , but as our lodge was not founded as a " Mutual Admiration Society , " and has been conducted on the princi ple of promoting the utmost freedom of speech amongst its members—their being abundance of diversity without any un-Masonic friction—I claim my liberty to differ

from the plan followed by the Publication Committee , whilst at the same time recognising their conspicuous abilities and accepting all they have done , and all they intend to do , with gratitude and loyal support . It is a pleasure for me to note that the last two of the foregoing have been reprinted from copies in the Library of the Grand Lodge of England , and duly acknowledged by the Editor .

The real gem of the volume has yet to be considered , and now my difficulty begins , first , because such an artistic and faithful facsimilie of the "Halliwell " or " Regius M . S . " demands a lengthy notice , but , primarily , from the fact that

Bro . Gould ' s " Commentary " is of such magnitude and value that quite as much space would be needed to do it justice , as the exhaustive essay itself occupies , even though the critique were written by one who , like myself , has had to acquire the faculty of condensation .

" The Regius MS . " ( known hitherto as the " Halliwell MS ., " but the new title adopted by Bro . Gould is assuredly the most appropriate ) , which came to the British Museum in 1757 , with the " Royal Library , " for all practical purposes may be accepted of the 14 th century . True , as Bro . Gould remarks , a later date has been ascribed to it by Mr . E . A . Bond , C . B ., but David Casley , Deputy Librarian ,

and the compiler of the " Catalogue of the Manuscripts of the King's Library , " 1734 , placed this precious document at " XIV . Century" ; though he styled it " A Poem of Moral Duties , " yet my faith in his ability to correctly judge the age of MSS . remains as firm as ever . He says himself : "I own I maybe mistaken in assigning the Century in which a Book was written , and instead of the IXth may

have fixed upon the VHIth or Xth Century . * * * And yet , I have studied that point so much , and have so often compared MSS . without Date with those that have happened to have a date , that I have little doubt as to that Particular . "

The four lines each in facsimile , from Wycliffe ' s Bible , late 14 th century , and a poem of early 15 th century , are useful aids ; but as Bro . Gould is content to introduce these typical reproductions for comparison , without stating his final decision , deferring the point to another opportunity , I shall do likewise .

The lithographed facsimile of the Regius MS . has been most carefully executed by Mr . F . Compton Price , and doubtless , may be accepted as an exact copy of the orig inal . Nothing could be better than this beautiful reprodution , which appears faultless . As the size is so small of the MS . itself , and the "Reprints" are in large octavo , two pages of the original occupy the first half of each page of the

latter , the remaining portion containing the corresponding transcripts , line for line , of the MS . proper . No other plan could be adopted under the circumstance , and it has the merit also of being handy for reference and comparison . Those of " Urbanitates " ( similar to lines 6 93-794 in the " Regius MS . " ) and " Instructions for a Parish Priest" ( of 15 century ) are not page for page as their originals , the

text , " owing to the exigences of space , " not exactly representing the actual sizes ot the MSS . No one but the most captious can complain , notwithstanding this slig ht departure , for they are beautiful reproductions , and will rank amongst the triump h 5 of Mr . Compton Price ' s skill as a most conscientious and painstaking transcriber . The cost , of course , has been heavy , in regard to this , the artistic part of the

" Reprints , " but that has been borne by our good Bro . H . J . Whymper , CLE-( one of our most respected members ) who was having the work done for himselt , when this volume was projected ( though without the knowledge of Bro . Speth , or , in fact , of any of us ) , and wrote me thereon . I at once put him in correspondence with our indefatigable Secretary , when to the surprise and pleasure of we

lodge , he generously placed the whole of the transfers at the disposal of the meW ' bers I His own edition of the " Regius MS ., " superbly bound ( on vellum , vellum paper , or ordinary paper ; three editions really ) is , without excep tion , the most recherche work ever published in connection with the Craft , and is an honour

to him and all concerned in its editing , description , and reproduction . Bro . Gow " refers " in grateful terms to the good feeling and generosity evinced by Bro . H . J ' Whymper [ P . D . D . G . M . Punjab ] , towards this [ 2076 ] lodge , of which , to the great satisfaction of us all , he has since become a member . "

Bro . Whymper tells us that the " Regius MS . " was " bound in its present covet in or about the year 1838 , " in exact imitation of its previous cover , which , in " ' special copies prepared for Bro . Whymper , has been scrupulously followed . 1 " is important , as Bro . Gould notes , because the title on the back of the cover read * " POEM ON THE CRAFT OF MASONRY , " and therefore must have been so impressed in 1839 , when the late Mr . Halliwell-Phillips , F . R . S ., announced h '