Eminent Masons At Home.

world , and engagements terminated . You then took me , a comparative unknown Mason , only thrice W . M . of " St . Oswald ' s " Lodge , No . 910 . I have tried to win your confidence and to merit your esteem . If I part with these bright and sparkling jewels in the office now accepted by me tell me your opinion frankly ; because only by the universal assent of the Craft , and the co-operation of the

Provincial Grand Officers , could this government of Masonry be conducted with satisfaction to the West Yorkshire Lodges , and the affairs of this Province administered with the approbation of all of you . If I part with these , then , let me retire , and carry with me into that retirement the esteem of faithful allies and friends . To keep your affections and loyality will be the work of my proudest efforts .

This silver trumpet must not itself sound the deeds of Masonry too loudly or too long , lest the ear tire of its own laudations : but we can echo this aspiration that it may be our good fortune to emulate these works of the past , and that the future may be so prolific of noble works of usefulness and good-will , that all outside our mystic circle may appreciate the excellence of our efforts to rendci' this Brotherhood

extensively serviceable to our fellow-creatures . A Brotherhood animated by such sentiments is , I am constrained to say , worthy of all that estimation which the language of eulogy can bestow upon it . To be permitted , then , to shave in this emulation of generous principles is indeed an honour such as the . Sovereign on the throne might think not unworthy of participation . To guide the energies of

such a philanthropic Order is an aspiration of the loftiest kind . Into this position of responsibility you have enthroned me to-day . The chain placed around my neck strengthens the links of attachment that have bound me to you for the past twenty-five years in bonds of friendship more indissoluble than ever . The Collar will be the symbol to remind me of another's wants ; and the Apron , that badge

of mutual co-operation between us , to labour for the welfare of the Craft , without distinction of office or without asperity of opinion , only to be laid aside when , by the mutability of time , these things are cast away— " When this mortal must put on immortality "; when " death , is swallowed up in victory " ; when the tomb of transgression is burst at the Resurrection dawn ; and when , by the mercies of the " Sun of Righteousness , " we are permitted , in the " Grand Lodge above , to shine as the stars for ever and ever . "

To find whether these promises and hopes for the future have been attained , it is but necessary to inquire of the first Master Mason you meet in his Trovince . He is almost sure to know his Provincial Grand Master personally . He will tell you how his Chief has contributed most valuable and

instructive addresses to the brethren over whom he presides , and takes every opportunity on every possible occasion to impress upon the Craft the beauties and advantages of Freemasonry , and that his perfect geniality , bouhommie , universal kindness , and good nature have won the heart

of the most loyal and devoted Province of English Freemasonry to H . R . H . the M . W . Grand Master . A Vice-Patron of the R . M . I , for Girls , Vice-President of the R . M . I , for Boys , a Vice-Patron of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution , and Life Governor of the Leeds Benevolent Masonic Educational Association , William Thomas Tew takes the warmest interest in the greater affairs of the Craft .

He is frequently to be seen at Grand Lodge occupying one of the chairs in the absence of its proper owner . Perhaps this genial Yorkshire gentleman has no ambition beyond the Masonic welfare of his Province . As he sits with you this long afternoon in the little parlour of the bank discussing the

weightier questions of the hour you detect the extraordinary enthusiasm he possesses for all things Masonic ; and all things antiquarian , for he will stop suddenly in his conversation to persuade you to call , before you leave Pontefract , on his neighbour and friend Bro . Holmes , who has worked

in antiquarian and Masonic matters for many years with his patron . And , then , through many other matters you come to the Pension Indemnity Fund , and wonder what the Craft would have done in its dilemma had not the foresight and tact of West Yorkshire supported Bro . Tew , who came to the rescue with an offer to advance the ^" 2 , 500 until such time as the Craft would pay him back .

Eminent Masons At Home.

If nobody else will trust the subscribers of the Boys ' Institution a couple of thousand pounds , I will 3 " said the Yorkshireman . Though " the offer was not accepted , the brethren of his Province came to their Master's call and subscribed their quota of £ 2 . 10 s . a Lodge , and a bit over .

What AVest Yorkshire does in the person of its Grand Master , it does quickly , thoroughly , and well . The very kernel of sincerity in the beliefs of Freemasonry is centred round William Tew , and extends to the limits of his Province . It is a Province full to the brim of sound

Masons , and the soundest of them all is its Provincial Grand Master , who loves his generous Province , and who is himself a brilliant light in all that shines on English manhood and English PYeemasonry .

The Session.

THE SESSION .

B EFORE our next number' is before the public the session of Masonic work will have commenced , and Senior Wardens will be thinking of the fast approaching moment when the early dreams of their ambition may be realised , and they may imagine themselves at the head

of their respective lodges to rule and govern during the ensuing year . In the absence of any guidance from Grand Lodge , it has proved somewhat fruitless to entrust the dignity of the Craft to the tender mercies of many 'Worshipful Masters , who , with the spirit of emulation strong

upon them , endeavour to outstrip their predecessors by introducing a greater number of candidates to Masonry , and " put in" more business during the session . It is to be earnestly hoped that the view of the Masonic press—or , at any rate , a portion of it—upon this momentous

question of fit and proper candidates may take the place of a very necessary action on the part of Grand Lodge , for until the ruling body do take this matter into its sound consideration , the calamitous overcrowding of Lodges with men totally unfit to conscientiously undertake the

obligations of the Order will still go on . The antidote to this is , of course , class and exclusive Lodges ; and it becomes very evident that in the minds of many

Masons they are necessary to ensure the respectability of the Craft . One cannot gain a very extended idea of what the rank and file of Masonry consists of by visiting just a few of the " crack " Lodges from time to time . One must get out into the highways and byeways of the Craft to meet

with those extraordinary sights which would shock even a hardened man of the world . No slur upon the gentility of any brethren need be inferred by greater care being used in the election of men to join us , for even if it became as difficult to enter Freemasonry as it is to enter a respectable

London club , where in most cases the utmost care is given to elections , there would be less necessity for gentlemen to obtain the formation of class Lodges . If it is a matter of having something to do in Lodge , it is much more interesting to listen to a tracing board lecture than

the working of either of the degrees ; and the history of the antiquity of Masonry is vast enough to furnish thousands of topics for discussion or for instruction in any Masonic Lodge . The mere gabbling of a set ritual , learned as a school-child learns his lesson , is not Masonry , it is not religion it becomes a farce for getting over a certain period of time whilst the " banquet" is preparing at a neighbouring " pub . " All this