United Grand Lodge.

UNITED GRAND LODGE .

Grand Lodge was held on Wednesday evening last in Temple , and considering that this is the dull season of ' 1 . » ear Grand Lodge was numerously attended . There ' however , a marked absence of members of the nobility , , Uhou < rh there was as noticeable an attendance of active t- ding members of the Craft . The day was the anniate Grand Master announcement of

rsary ° f ' ' s public ]'• ¦ withdrawal from the Craft , which created such a pro-}" sensation this time last year ; but so completely had il e brethren buried that unpleasant subject , that when one two brethren mentioned it to others it appeared to have ° ped ( -heir recollection . The subject of the installation " ) tne late Grand Master ' s successor , the Prince of Wales ,

the 28 th of April , however , had not faded from the brethren ' s minds , for it was still the subject of conversation in all parts of the hall . Bro . Maj .-Gcn . Brownrigg , Prov . Grand Master of Surrey , presided ; and he was supported by Bros . J . Rawson p . D . G . M . of China , as Past Grand Master ; Sir H . Edwards , M . P ., Prov . G . M . West Yorkshire , as Dep . G . M . ;

y Pattison , as S . G . W . ; Capt . Piatt , as J . G . W . ; T . Fenn , i > G V ., as G . D . C . ; JE . J . M'Intyre , Q . C ., G . R . ; J . B . Monckton , P . G . D ., Pres . Bd . G . P . ; Revs . Sir J . Warren Hayes , P . G . C ., and S . R . Wigram , G . C . ; Herr Wilhelm Kuhe , G . Org . ; R . J . Spiers , P . G . S . B . ; H . Browse , P . G . D . ; Rev . R- J- Simpson , P . G . C . ; J . M . Clabon , P . G . D . ; Rev . y . S . Brownrigg , P . G . C . ; Rev . C . J . Martyn , P . G . C . ; Dr . Woodman , G . S . B . ; J . A . Rucker , P . G . D . ; Dr . Jabez Hogg ,

P . G . D . ; Henry Smith , Prov . G . Sec , West 1 orkshire ; Peter de Lande Long , V . P . Bd . of G . Purposes ; Capt . Philips , E S . Snell , P . G . D . ; II . Marston , Herbert Dicketts , P . G . S . ; Thomas W . White , P . G . S . ; W . Kindon , W . M . 619 ; Richard Spencer , P . G . S . ; E . P . Albert , A . G . P . ; Wright , G P . ; Joseph Smith , P . G . P . ; . fames Brett , P . G . P . ; C . A . Cottebrune , P . G . P . ; Hyde Pullen , P . G . S . B . ; John Boyd ,

I ' G . T . ; W . Ough , P . G . P . ; N . Bradford , P . G . S . ; Joshua Nnnn , P . G . S . B . ; A . J . D . Filer , P . G . S . B . ; W . Stephens , W . M . 1489 ; T . J . Sabine , W . M . Chaucer ; J . C . Parkinson , W . Dodd , P . M . 1194 ; Israel Abrahams , P . M . , S 8 ; Charles Bennett , P . M . 25 ; W . Watson , P . G . S . ; Henry Thompson , P . M . 177 , & c . ; John While , W . M . 228 ; A . H . Tattershall ; N . B . . Headon ,

W . M . 1426 ; E . Moody , Sec . 1426 ; M . S . Larlham , W . M . ( Surrey Masonic Hall Lodge ) ; F . Adlard , P . M ., and Treas . ;; E . M . Haigh , James Ebenezer Saunders , and about 200 others . Bro . John Hervey , G . S ., and Bro . H . G . Buss , Assistant , were also in attendance . The business of Grand Lodge was very light , lighter indeed than it has ever been known to be before . After

Grand Lodge had been opened , Bro . John Hervey , G . S ., read letters apologising for absence from the Marquis of Hamilton , S . G . W ., who was in attendance on the M . W . G . M ., and the Lord -Mayor , who was also absent from London . Grand Secretary also read a letter from the clerk enf Bro . W . Speed , G . D ., informing Grand Secretary that Br'o- Speed had " left England for a six weeks' tour ,

anu ' ifrls address will not be known till his return . " ( Great hunter . ) G / rand Secretary then read the minutes of the Quarterly Coipmunication of 2 nd June , which were put and confiiJLed . trie afterwards read the Report of the Lodge of Benevoleif ice for the last quarter , in which are recommendations

fa the following grants , viz .: — Die widow of a brother of the Union Lodge , No . 129 , Kendal £ 50 o o The widow of a brother of the Acacia Lodge , No . 1309 , Southall 100 o o A brother of the Lodge of I larmony , No . 298 , Rochdale 50 o o A brother of the Westminster and Keystone

Lodge , No . 10 , London 150 o c Bro . Joshua Nunn , Senior Vice-President of the Lodge of Benevolence , moved the adoption of the first of these recommendations , and said that the late brother whose widow was proposed to be relieved was a serviceable member of the Craft for many years , and the lodge thought that the widow was fairly entitled to the £ 50 recommended .

Bro . Clabon , President , seconded the motion , which was unanimously adopted . Bro . Clabon moved the second grant . The deceased brother had been in the Craft over twenty years , and had hardly begun to save for his wife and children when he was carried off by death . It was a grant to a most deserving case .

Bro . Joshua Nunn seconded the motion , which was also unanimously carried . Bro . Clabon moved the third grant . The brother to be relieved was an architect , but was struck down by paralysis . His , also , was a most deserving case . Bro , Joshua Nunn seconded this motion also , which was carried . Bro . Clabon , in moving the fourth grant , said it was hi

a gher one in amount , being £ 150 . The brother was a clergyman of the Church of England , who had lost his Property through misfortune , and not through his own fault . He was in possession now of a small living—very small indeed . He had been struck down by paralysis , and ne had to pay almost the whole of the emoluments of his living to some one else to perform his duty . Bro . Nunn having seconded the motion , it was put and earned .

Bro . j 0 hn B # Monckton , P . G . D ., President of the Board General Puiposes , then moved that the following Re-1 > 0 , wp f tnc Boar < 1 ° f General Purposes be taken as read : — ' 0 the United Grand Lodge of Ancient Free and Accepted Masons of England : — sub ' . B ° ° f Gencral Eposes beg to report that the auth - ° wcarin S special or commemorative jewels un"' norized b y the Most Worshi pful Grand Master having

United Grand Lodge.

been brought under their notice , they have considered it desirable to direct the Grand Secretary to issue a circular to the Provincial Grand Secretaries and other Masonic authorities , requesting them to warn the brethren under their sereral jurisdictions against wearing any such jewels , except those which have previously received the sanction of the Most Worshipful Grand Master . ( Signed ) "PETER DE L . LONG . "Vice-President .

" Freemasons' Hall , London , W . C ., " 17 th August , 1875 . " Bro . Peter de L . Long , Vice-President Board of General Purposes , seconded the motion , which was adopted . Bro . Monckton , in moving the adoption , & c , of the Report , said there ' was nothing in it which required the confirmation of Grand Lodge ; but the members of Grand

Lodge would see that the Report itself comprised that which would be of some importance to the Craft . There was no doubt that for some time past , in country districts mainly , the practice had been springing up of wearing unauthorized jewels . It had been known for some time , but great emphasis had not been laid on the occurrence until just lately ; and it did so happen , that the suggestion

probably of those who had something to do here and there , and were interested in the manufacture and issuing of Masonic jewels , had led to a vast lot of enquiry on the subject , through the Grand Secretary and the Board of General Purposes . It had been thought wise that the Grand Secretary should ifsue the communications referred to in the report of the Board , that

so tha matter should be set at rest for some time . The Craft would ; ee that it was in the order and fitness of things that those jewels only should be worn in Craft lodges which appertained to Craft Masonry . ( Hear , hear . ) Bro . Peter de L . Long seconded the motion , which was unhesitatingly adopted . To the Report Ot Hie Board was subjoined a . statement of the Grand Lodge accounts at the last meeting of the Finance Committee , held on Friday , the 13 th day of August

last , showing a balance in the hands of the Grand Treasurer of £ 3482 10 s . 7 d . ; and in the hands of the Grand Secretary , for petty cash , £ 75 ; and for servants ' wages , £ 9 6 15 s . The annual Report of "The Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution for Aged Freemasons and Widows of Freemasons , " dated the 21 st May , 1875 , was laid before Grand Lodge , and Grand Lodge was then formally closed and adjourned .

Masonic Tidings.

Masonic Tidings .

Bro . Lord Skelmersdale , D . G . M ., Eng ., R . W . P . G . M ., West Lancashire , and Lady Skelmersdale , have returned to their country seat , Lathom _ House , Near Ormskirk , which has been re-decorated throughout .

Bro . Lord dc Tabley , P . G . M . Cheshire , after attending his daughter ' s marriage in London , returned to Tabley House , Cheshire , on Thursday week . Bro . the Rev . P . H . Ernest Brette , D . D ., will be installed as W . M . of St . Mark's Lodge of Mark Masters No . 1 . on Tuesday , the 7 th inst ., at Masons' Hall Tavern , Masons' Avenue , Basinghall-street .

A few days since the choir of St . Botolph , Aldersgatestreet , paid a holiday visit to Southend , and , having offered their services to the vicar of Prittlewell ( the Rev . Bro . S . R . Wigram ) , there was a special choral service at the parish church . They were afterwards entertained by Bro . and Mrs . Wigram .

Bro . T . P . Josland ( Josland ' s Hotel , Falcon-square ) has been elected guardian for Cripplegate by a majority of 90 votes over and above the whole of the votes given to the other three candidates .

Prince Leopold ' s intended visit to the residence of Colonel Campbell , of Blythswood , is creating a good deal of interest in the west of Scotland . It is expected that his Royal Highness will arrive at Blythswood about the 23 rd of September .

The most cheering accounts continue to arrive from all parts of the country with reference to the Irish harvest . A Skating Rink on a large scale is being organised in Dublin . Baroness Burdett-Coutts has sent £ 100 to the funds of the Open-Air Mission .

A handsome stained glass window has been presented to the parish church of Sandown , Isle of Wight , by the Imperial Crown Prince and Princess of Germany , in commemoration of their visit there last season . At a meeting of farmers held at Bro . Pawley ' s , the Royal Crown Hotel , Sevenoaks , on Wednesday , under the

presidency of Mr . Richard Russell , of Orford Castle , it was decided to form a Farmer's Club and Chamber of Agriculture for that part of the county of Kent , and a large number of agriculturists gave in their names as members . Rules for the guidance of the new society were adopted , and officers were appointed , Mr . Russell being the chairman .

Two sturgeons , each seven feet long , have been captured off the Lancashire coast , and conveyed , to the aquarium recently opened at Southport . The " Maconick Weekbland , " is the organ of the Craft in Holland , and a well-encouraged Masonic publication .

Masonic Tidings.

The Prince of Wales is to be invited to become the patron and one of the presidents of the Great National Eisteddfod at Wrexham next year . An Autograph of Bro . Monckton , President of the Board of General Purposes , appears in the " Figaro " of the 1 st inst .

The Fifteen Sections will be worked at the Dalston ( Rose of Denmark ) , Lodge of Instructicn No . 975 , held at th » I lavelock Tavern , Albion Road , " Dalston , on Wednesday next , the 8 th instant , at seven o'clock precisely . Bro . Gilchrist , P . M . 933 , will preside .

The Grand Lodge of New Jersey are having prepared a steel engraving of Grand Master Cox , who , in 1730 , was appointed first Provincial Grand Master of New York , New Jersey , and Pennsylvania , by the Grand Lodge of England . The cost is to be 275 dols ., and a copy is to be presented to the living representatives of Bro . Cox , as a mark of esteem for the Father of Freemasonry in America .

The eighty-eighth annual communication of the Grand Lodge of New Jersey was held at Trenton , on the 20 th ult ., when the following officers were elected : —M . W . Bro . William A . Pembroke , S 3 > G - - i R - - Bros- Marshall B . Smith , 67 , D . G . M . ; Joseph L . De La Cour , 15 , G . S . W . ; Julius C . FitzGerald , 112 , G . J . W . ; Charles Bechtel , 5 , G . Treas . ; Joseph H . Hough , 50 , G . Sec . ; William D . Rutan , 55 , D . G . See .

The Knights Templars of Pennsylvania have taken the Centennial celebration in hand , and intend to make it a grand affair , all who profess Christian Knighthood in the world will be invited , so that it is probable the gathering will be an immense one . By the way . is it not strange that the brethren of th ' e lower ranks of Masonry are not to participate ? Chivalry is up , and the city of Brotherly Love is determined to have the largest encampment of Templars ever seen .

The Philadelphia "Keystone , " than which there is not a better Masonic journal in existence , has entered on its ninth year , and does so with an extended address to its readers , in which it justly claims to be free from all such influences as would deprive it of the real sympathy and support of the Craft generally . We are pleased to se « the

" Keystone" making good progress , but regret that it cannot boast of doing more than to hold its own . In other words , the earnings of the paper are all required to keep it up , thus giving us further proof of the indifferent way in which the fraternity support papers wholly devoted to the interests of the Order .

The oldest authentic Masonic portrait in the worldthat of Bro . Sir Walter Hawksworth , Knight and Baronet , who was " President " of the Lodge of York , England , in A . D . 1713—one hundred and sAxty-two years ago—now adorns the York Lodge .

The house still exists at Stonegate , York—the Starr Inn —in which Francis Drake , M . D ., F . R . S ., a celebrated entiquarian and historian of York , was initiated , at a private lodge , on September 6 th , 1725 , nearly one hundred and fifty years ago .

The Grand Orient of Portugal has forty-eight lodges affiliated with it , some of which are located in Portugal and others in Spain . Bro . William Worrell , P . M . and Sec . 766 , and P . Z . and S . E . 766 , has been appointed Secretary to the South London Conservative Club , Stockwell . Bro . Worrell will still continue to hold his appointment as Secretary to the Royal Albert Orphan Asylum , Bagshot , Surrey .

The first Masonic Lodge of Jerusalem is a beautiful illustration of the cosmopolitan nature of the princi ples of brotherly love in practical operation . The Master is an American , the Past Master an Englishman , the Senior Warden a German , the Junior Warden a native , the Treasurer a Turk , the Secretary a Frenchman , the Senior Deacon a Persian , and the Junior Deacon a Turk . There are Christians , Mohammedans and Jews in the lodge .

The Grand Lodge of New York , at the late annual communication , amended its constitution with reference to unaffiliated Masons , so that it now reads : " One who shall remain an unaffiliated Mason within this jurisdiction one year or more shall not be allowed to visit any lodge , or join in a Masonic procession , nor be entitled to receive Masonic relief or burial . "

The Baroness Burdett Coutts will visit Manchester on the 10 th inst ., for the purpose of formally opening the drinking fountain which her ladyship has presented to the town . The Ritualistic party in the church of England has now taken up the cudgels against the Freemasons , whose part

is admirably defended in " The Freemason , " a sixteenpage weekly newspaper , published every Friday , price 2 d ., by George Kenning , 198 , Fleet-street . In addition to its leading articles , it contains a great digest of information interesting to Masons , and we recommend it to the Craft as an admirably-conducted journal . — " Figaro . "

The Freemasons' Club of New York is said to be in a flourishing condition . It has a valuable library , and affords all the comforts of a home to the travelling brother who may happen to be on a visit to the great city . There is a board of directors and seven committees , so that the management must be pretty complete .