Installation Of Rt. Hon.Bro. Sir R. W. Duff As Grand Master, New South Wales.

R . W . Duff having been installed and proclaimed M . W . Grand Master of the United Grand Lodge of New South Wales , the INSTALLING GRAND MASTER then delivered the following address : t Mosl Worshipful Grand Master—The honourable and responsible task laid upon me by the goodwill of this Grand Lodge is not entirely accomplished . Having placed you in your chair , it becomes my duty to address

tb j » ou a few words . Insetting out in the discharge of this obligation I cannot resist placing on " record the feeling of disappointment which animates yoU ; and the feeling akin to despair which oppresses me , in the knowledge that you are deprived on this occasion of the invaluable assistance of him Who I may in truth call the most distinguished among many distinguished Australian Freemasons —of one whose services at the installation of Lord

Carrington , of Sir William Clarke in Victoria , of myself in South Australia , and of Bro . the Rev . R . D . Poulett Harris in Tasmania , will long be gratefully remembered . I refer , of course , to the Most Worshipful Pro Grand M & stef of my Grand Lodge , tbe Chief Justice of South Australia . I may not now pause to refer at any length to the many services his honor has rendered to Freemasonry from one end of Australia to the other ; but , indeed ,

there is little need , for is not Bro . Way ' s praise in every mouth *' He will never need a champibn ; were it otherwise , I would hail with delight an opportunity to acknowledge some at least of the debts Which 1 owe to his unvarying kindness . M . W . G . Sir , amid splendid and solemn surroundings , and with much magnificence , this impressive ceremonial has climaxed by your having been placed in

the throne , of Grand Lodge and invested with all lawful authority . 1 offer you , alike personally as also in the name of the Grand Lodge of South Australia , respectful and hearty congratulations , and I reflect with sortie pride that this is not the first time you have given me your countenance in the discharge of Masonic duty . . Your memory and mine cannot fail to look back to a spot far away , but dear to us both , where an event

passed into history with the establishment and consecration of a Provincial Grand Lodge of Kincardineshire , and when I had the extreme satisfaction of nominating you , my neighbour and life-long friend , as Provincial Grand Master Depute at the close of a long term of office in the Provincial Grand Lodge of Banffshire . As we reflect oh that scene and witness this orie the truth of the fact , both in regard to Freemasonry and to other aspects of life ,

is brought home to us that Cceliim non aiiiiiiiim mutant , qui trans mare cnrruiit , ' . Your first experience of an Australian Grand Lodge will satisfy you , that Scottish and Australian Masonry are substantially and in all essentials identical . The same li ght streams from the East upon the same Sacred Law lying open before us . The ritual is imbued with the same beauty , the same simplicity , the same reverence . The same secrets are

confided and preserved . We undertake the same obligations ; we are governed by the same rulers and the same authority ; we are united by the same good fellowshi p and brotherhood ; we bow the knee to the same Great Architect of the Universe , and look to Him for His guidance and blessing . As from that throne , M . W . G . M ., you gaze upon the thousands of biethren who are here to witness and to do honour to your installation and to

manifest their fealty to you as their Masonic chief , your b * east , like mine , must glow with patriotic pride at the consciousness that from the venerable Scottish Constitution , in which you and I first saw the light of Masonry , has been derived much that has given strength and fibre , loyalty and earnestness to Freemasonry in Ncw South Wales and in every part of Australia . Installed Sir , as the Masonic head of a Constitution whose

territory , is in area ten times as large as thc kingdom of Scotland , and whose adherents are more numerous b y thousands than those of any other Australian Constitution , the responsibilities of your exalted office will impress themselves deeply upon your mind . The sense of that responsibility will , moreover , be heightened when you remember the high standard of excellence which has been achieved by the illustrious brethren

by whom you have been preceded upon the throne you now occupy . The M ' , \ Y . P . G . M ., Lord Carrington , enjoyed the unique distinction of being the first Supreme Ruler over United Masonry in New South Wales . His brilliant personal and social qualities , his energy , his enthusiasm , his never-failing , tact , and his keen sympathies well fitted him to lead to victory the movement for the consolidation of all the branches of the Craft in this great

Colony under one United and Supreme Grand Lodge . His successor , M . W . P . G . M ., Bro . the Earl of Jersey , whose term of office as Grand Master was all too short , who to modest ) 'and sincerity added great sagacity , manliness , and true-hearted kindness , by which he succeeded in winning and is certain of retaining- universal esteem and affection , maintained the prestige of his great office with undiminished lustre .

Yet , Sir , let not the story of the successful rule of your predecessors be accounted a cause of discouragement . No ; far from that : let it rather afford you a standard of excellence to strive after , to emulate , and , if possible , to surpass . You , like them , may seek the same D ' vi- e aid and direction from the Most High , which is "ever denied to those who ask for it with humble trust . This great assembl y of your brethren and the

enthusiasm b y which they are actuated are significant of the sympathy and loyalty with which you will be supported by the Craft in every part of your vast terriorily . Ypu will have the advice and co-operation of the officers and members of your Grand Lodge , and especially 1 know I may say , of M . W . Bro . the Hon . Dr . Harman Tarrant , who , as Pro Grand Master , has placed at the disposal of your predecessors the experience gained in so

many years of signal service to Freemasonry in New South Wales . Upon one circumstance do I especially congratulate you , M . W . G . M ., and that is that , as is the case of our own dear native land , you have been called upon topreside over a united brotherhood having all the privileges and responsibilities of self-government . In Australia our Masonic as well as our political institutions have had a gradual development . In New South

Wales and in her sister colonies there were at first Blue lodges only , holding warrants from the two British and the Irish Constitutions . Next came Provincial and District Grand Lodges , and Grand Lodges followed in natural and orderly sequence . Masonic unity was here happily accomplished five years ago , in Victoria six months later , in South Australia four years earlier , and in Tasmania , where I had myself the privilege of taking part in the Inauguration of Grand Lodge , in 1890 .

As Grand Master of South Australia , and an occasional visitor ( though a less frequent onc than I could wish ) to this and the other Australian Colonies , I have watched with keen interest the progress of the Craft under autonomous Government in all the four Constitutions I have named . In each of them , in spite of the severe commercial depression through , which we are passing , united Masonry has more than held its own . It has progressed both in the number of its lodges and of its members , and it has Become more widely spread and more firml y established . This , as the mother colony , both in the date of settlement and in the establishment of

Installation Of Rt. Hon.Bro. Sir R. W. Duff As Grand Master, New South Wales.

Masonry , appropriately continues to surpass her sister Constitutions in the number of Masonic adherents . There are few cities in which Freemasonry is more palatially housed . than in Sydney . And you , M . W . G . M ., when I seated you upon that throne became the ruler of a Brotherhood numbering nearly 200 lodges , with between 9000 and 10 , 000 subscribing members , or if we include brethren not directly attached to lodges , quite 15 , 000 strong .

Between the four Australian Constitutions there are minor differences . For example , here and in South Australia the American , or , , elective , system of appoinling Grand Lodge Officers prevails . In Victoria .. nd Tasmania the method of nomination by the Grand Master has been continued . The Australian Constitutions have , therefore , an opportunity of comparing on the spot the relative advantages and inconveniences ' of both methods—a

comparison which will be instructive to lhe student of Masonic jurisprudence on both sides o tbe world . In all four Constitutions the Grand Master necessarily derives his authority from the suffrages of his brethren . The difference in the appointment of his officers is a matter upon which further experience may produce uniformity or . compromise . In the three Constitutions of Australia proper both the ritual and Book of

Constitutions have been subjected to careful revision . In no case has a quest for novelty been discernable . The endeavour has been in each colony to bring together in the ritual the common excellencies of the three parent Constitutions , to prune avvay redundancies and solecisms , aiid to preerve the simplicity and beauty of language and the appropriateness of symbolism which have been the admiration and solace of successive generations of the

Craft . You are well aware that " No innovation can be made in the bod y of Freemasonry , " so you will find that , notwithstanding slight divergencies , the Australian Grand Lodges are in close and happy agreement with each other and with all the sister Grand Lodges of the world . One living bond of union exists , M . W . G . M ., between each of the Australian Grand Lodges , betw . en them and English , Scottish , and Irish Masonry ,. as well as . with the

independent arid subordinate Constitutions all over the Empire . Weare all uni'ed in having as our Grand Patron or Grand Master the most illustrious Freemason of our time , H . R . H . the Prince of Wales . This fact , your own election , M . W . G . M ., and that of ) our distinguished predecessors , afford cogent evidence that , whatever party sides we ma ) ' take out of doors , in our lodges " we are resolved against all politics , " and that eve y

Freemason of New South Wales and of every part * of Australia is firm in devoted unswerving loyalty to our Mosl Gracious Queen . The benefits of Masonic union find their fullest development in the grand princip les of our Order " Broth rly love , relief , and truth . " It has often been said that Freemasonry is not a creed . No ; but it is a faith . Our belief in the Great Architect of the Universe is the keystone of the whole M sonic

fabric . Thank God , that nowhere in these lands . ias there been any sign of perversion from this ruling principle of our Order . And second only to this is our testimony to the brotherhood of man . Ours is not a benefit society or an insurance association . Praiseworthy and beneficial as those institutions may be , our organisation has higher , nobler aims . We are Freemasons not for what we can get , but for what we can do . We seek to

promote the social virtues , and we manifest our sympathy to others . You will not , M . W . G . M ., find Masonic schools and orphanges in Australia . Our conditions have not necessitated their establishment . But on examining the records of this Grand Lodge you will find that in the few short years of its existence it has created an orphan fund of , £ 17 , , and that it has distributed thousands of pounds for the relief not ol poor and distressed

Masons alone , but of poor and distressed humanity . The recent disastrous floods in Queensland and in this colony , misfortune and distress of every kind , haviTbeen and are opportunities eagerly seized for putting our princip les into practice . Every private lodge has its benevolent fund , and every true Freemason who has the means endeavours himself to help the poor , the bereaved , and the suffering . M . W . G . M . — Your sojourn in the southern lands is only beginning . Mine is nearly at an end . Even had I wished

it , I have found it impossible ( as you will also ) to escape a keen interest in the welfare of these young commonwealths of ihe same blood and of the same nationality as ourselves . When foreas ing the future with its possibilities and its dangers , I confess to a feeling of satisfaction that already Freemasonry has obtained so strong and so wid . spread a development throughout Australia . I perceive in it influences making for stability , for patriotism ,

for rig hteousness . Religious controversies 1 suppose there will always be , but it will tend to prevent their being carried to extremes that our Order witnesses to our common dependence on thc Great Architect of the Universe . New political doctrines and wild and ill-considered social theories may be agitated , but Freemasons will ever hold fast to good citizenship and loyalty . Financial straits and commercial difficulties may be encountered , but the Craft will continue to square their actions by the rules of equity and the

d'Ctates of justice . The closer union between these great colonies , which is the ardent aspiration * , of many lovers of their country , will surely be aided in no small degree by the brother 'ood of Freemasonry . And so , Most Worship ful Grand Master , under your wise and benignant rule , and beyond that for long centuries to come , 1 doubt not that the members of the Craft here and everywhere will uninterruptedly continue , both by example and precept , to teach mankind this grand lesson— " Honour all men , love the brotherhood , fear God , honour tbe king . "

Thc GRAND MASTER having replied , he then appointed Bro . Hon . Dr . Harman Tarrant , M . L . C ., Pro Grand Master , aud invested the newlyelected Grand Officers for the ensuing year . The proceedings then terminated . —South Australian Freemason .

Masonic Service By The Bishop Of Bathurst.

MASONIC SERVICE BY THE BISHOP OF BATHURST .

The Bishop of Bathurst , Grand Chaplain of the G . U . L . of N . S . W ., conducted a Masonic service at the Cathedral , Bathurst , on the ist ult . Members of Lodges Livingstone and Ulmarra , with brethren from thc city lodges to the number ot about 70 , assembled at the Masonic Hall , Baco" - streut , and arrayed in regalia , inarched in procession to the Catlled '' - ' where the front pews were very considerately reserved for the Masons . 1 , c edifice was filled to overflowing , and much interest was manilcstcd '»¦ l , service . The lessons and prayers were read by the Archdeacon and R * "

J . I . Evans . . r The Bishop selected for his text Revelations 2 nd ch ., part of jotn **•> " Faithful unto death . " The gathering that afternoon was , in one sense , singular one , as there had never been one similar to it in the Cathcdf previously . He trusted that the result of lhat Masonic service would be much advantage , not only to the Brotherhood , but likewise to the men lb e of the church , and hoped that it would not be the last of such services »