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T 7 IELD LANE INSTITUTIONS . REFUGES , RAGGED and INDUSTRIAL SCHOOLS , CRECHE , YOUTHS' INSTITUTE , CHRISTIAN MISSION , & c . FUNDS URGENTLY NEEDED . F INANCIAL YEAR ENDS 31 st MARCH . £ 1 , 500 REQUIRED to ENABLE the COMMITTEE ' to CLOSE the ACCOUNTS FREE OF DEBT . Bankers , Barclay & Co . ( Limited ) . Treasurer—W . A . BEVAN , Esq ., 54 , Lombard-st ., E . C . Secretary—PEREGRINE PLATT , The Institution , Vine-street , Clerkenwell , E . C .

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C PIERS AND pOND'S OTORES ( NO TICKETS REQUIRED ) . QUEEN VICTORIA STREET , E . C . Opposite Blackfriars Station ( Dist . Ry . ) and St . Paul ' s Station ( L . C . and D . Ry . ) PRICE BOOK ( 1000 pages , illustrated ) , free on application . FREE DELIVERY in Suburbs by our own Vans . LIBERAL TERMS FOR COUNTRY ORDERS . For full details see Price Book .

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ElsiisssM SATURDAY , MARCH 24 , 1900 A .

Masonic Notes.

Masonic Notes .

The Reports which accompany the School voting papers show that both Institutions have fared very prosperously during the past year . In the case of the Girls' School it is stated that notwithstanding the higher contract prices for some of the provisions and

the fuel , the average annual expenditure during the last five years has been only slightly exceeded . During the first half of the year , there were a few cases of scarlet fever , which , however , did not spread , and also somccasesot mumpsand chicken pox , but the latter half of the year is declared to have been the healthiest ever experienced . We are also informed that owing

to the splendid success of the Festival , held in May , 18 99 , under the presidency of Viscount Dungarvan , Prov . Grand Master of Somersetshire , when the Donations and Subscriptions totalled over , £ 21 , 000 , the Committee had been enabled to materially increase their funded capital by the purchase of £ 7470 India 2 } per cent , stock , and £ 4330 London County Council

Masonic Notes.

Consolidated 2 J per cent , stock , the total sum paid for these two Stocks being £ 10 , 878 . In consequence , the total invested funds s ^ and at £ 100 , 301 , of the estimated value of £ 99 , 853 .

* # » Turning to the work accomplished by the Institution , we find that a whole array of successes were achieved in the College of Preceptors , sundry musical , science and art , drawing and shorthand examinations

at which girls were entered , the proportion of failures to passes being very small . The result of the Cambridge Local Examinations for 18 99 were not known at the time the Report was being drawn up , but it has been since communicated , and appeared in our columns

a short time since , and then in a very condensed form . Two entered and passed in the Senior Division , of whom one was awarded Second Class honours , with one distinction . Of 31 entered for the Junior Division , 20 passed , three taking Second Class honours and two

Third Class honours , while three distinctions were awarded . There were also 22 entered for the Preliminary , of whom 20 passed , three taking honours and live distinctions being also awarded . Thus , of

the whole 45 who entered , 42 passed the prescribed testa ? In the 10 preceding years , out of 259 candi . dates , 242 passed , in many cases with honours and distinctions .

* * ? Thus there can be no question as to the value of the educational work done by the Institution . We trust this fact will be borne in mind in connection with the Festival in May under the auspices of the Earl of

Dartmouth , P . G . M . of Staffordshire , and also the fact that the Civil Service and Commercial classes continue to work satisfactorily , and that the girls are making

considerable progress in shorthand and typewriting , so that on leaving school they will be in a good position to obtain appointments in which these acquirements will be of service .

# * » As regards the Boys' School , the Report of the Board ol Management is equally gratifying . The Festival , under the presidency of Bro . Charles E . Keyser , P . G . D ., the Treasurer of the Institution , was ,

under the circumstances , a distii . ct success , the amount obtained in the way of Donations and Subscriptions being over £ 9000 . The health of the boys is declared to have been excellent , while if we turn to the report of the examiners appointed by the Cambridge

University Syndicate to examine the whole School in October last , wc have every reason to be satisfied with the manner in which the Head Master and his staff discharge their arduous and responsi ble duties . The examination was conducted both in writing and vhd voce , and in each

subject the work done by the several classes is carefully noted , there being no hesitation on the part of the examiner in pointing out the faults of omission or commission that have come under his notice , while when praise is due it is awarded .

» * * We commend this carefully prepared report to the notice of our readers , contenting ourselves with quoting the summary in the Examiner ' s own words , " The general impression left upon my mind , " he remarks ,

" both by a two days' Oral Examination and by inspection of the papers , is that a deal of honest work has been done in the School with good results ; some of the weakness noticed is certainly due to a very pardonable ambition : there is a decided advance made in

rising from Form to Form ; and no boy is neglected by reason of his lack of ability . The behaviour of the boys left nothing to be desired . " The Examiner had already spoken well of the increased facilities

afforded for Technical Education and of the excellence of the domestic accommodation , so that on all counts his report must have been satisfactory to the Board of Management .

* » » Turning to the statement of account , we remark that the general expenditure for the year , including £ 493 disbursed for the Education and Maintenance of boys out of the Institution was £ 14 , 252 , and this total

was augmented by a few items of Special Expenditure to £ 14 , 556 , the principal item in this further outlay being upwards of £ 15 ° f ° the education and maintenance out of the Institution of the unsuccessful

candidates at the Elections during the Centenary year . A sum of £ 5000 was applied to the purchase of additional stock , while a further outlay of close on £ 16 , 660 was incurred in respect of the new School buildings at Bushey .

Masonic Notes.

According to the Balance the present total of the investments is of the nominal value of £ 163 , 140 , the cost price being £ 160 , 116 . In this amount are included the sums paid from time to time for sundry Perpetual and Life Presentations , and a number of

Prize Funds . The land and buildings at Wood Green are valued at £ 30 , 400 , and the estate and outlay on buildings at Bushey have so far cost about £ 30 , 700 . Thus we have the satisfaction of knowing that there

will remain a goodly sum in hand when the cost of the new School has been defrayed , which will be still further increased when the property at Wood Green has been disposed of .

* * » It remains for us to add that the foundation-stone oi the new premises will be laid with full Masonic ceremonial on a day , yet to be fixed , in the month of May by the Duke of Connaught , K . G ., Past Grand Master

Prov . Grand Master of Sussex , and District Grand Master of Bombay , and that his Royal Highness has also graciously consented to preside at the 102 nd Anniversary Festival , which will be celebrated at Brighton some time during the month of July . We

trust the excellent report of what has been accomplished during the past year will have a favourable influence in the arduous task of raising the necessary donations and subscriptions towards the expenditure of the current year ..

* * It has given us very great pleasure to announce the different amounts that have been received in respect of the recent Festival of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution . The sums thus reported during the

weeks ending . the 10 th and 17 th instant respectively , fell not far short of £ 1100 , and the total of the sums announced in the present issue , raise the amount to £ 1383 5 - 6 d . This increases the donation and

subscriptions to the recent Anniversary to £ 21 , 604 's . 6 d ., so that the Committee of Management and their Secretary , Bro . James Terry , have good reason to be thankful for what has been done this year for our Old People .

# * # We heartily congratulate the Jubilee Masters ' Lodge , No . 2712 , its newly-installed Master , Bro . Imre Kiralfy , and his predecessor in office , Bro . J . D . Langton , Past D . G . D . C , I . P . M ., on the successful

manner in which the installation meeting of the lodge passed off . All things appear to have combined to make it a great success , and the ample report of the proceedings , which will be found in another column , prove it most clearly .

# * With regard to the letter which appeared last week from " P . M . 124 , " we must point out to our correspondent that a right , though it it may be " unalienable "and we think the writer of our " communicated "

articles is correct in thus defining the right of visitation—cannot be exercised without some kind or degree of legal restraint . The ri ght of a brother to viiit a lodge is a landmark in Freemasonry , but the law very properly steps in and declares that the right of

visitation can only be exercised under certain conditions , the reasonableness of which is beyond question . The first and most necessary of these conditions is that the applicant for admission shall prove himself to be a Mason , which he can do in

either of the way 3 prescribed in Article 150 , as referred to by our correspondent . ' By Article 151 the Master of the lodge must be able to satisf y himself that the intending visitor is not one whose presence " will disturb the harmony of the lodge" or a man " of

known bad character , " in either of which cases it is in his ( the Master ' s ) power to refuse admission . By Article 152 a brother who has ceased to be a sub . scribing member of any lodge cannot visit " any one lodge more than once until he again becomes a subscribing member of some lodge . "

* * * Such are the restraints imposed by our Book of Constitutions on a Mason ' s " unalienable " right of visitation . We are afraid , however , that we cannot go further and define the different interpretations

which , in the exercise of their intelligence and discretion , different Masters feel themselves justified in placing upon the meaning and intent of Articles 150

and 151 . Some may interpret them too laxly , some too severely , but no doubt the majority of W . Ms , will do the right thing when they have satisfied themselves that the intending visitor is a true man and Mason .