United Grand Lodge.

The widow of a brother of the Domatic Lodge , No . 177 , London ... 75 o o A brother of the Glamorgan Lodge , No . 36 , Cardiff ... ... 75 o o A brother of the Constitutional Lodge , No . 55 , London ... ,.. 50 o o The widow of a brother of the Lodge La Tolerance , No . 53 S , London ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 5 ° o o The widow of a brother of the St . John the Baptist Lodge , No . 39 ,

Exeter ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 75 o o A brother of the Temple Lodge , No . 101 , London ... ... 150 o o A brother of the Lodge of Prudent Brethren , No . 145 , London ... 50 o o A brother of the Mizpah Lodge , No . 1671 , London ,.. ... 50 o o

The following report of the Board of General Purposes was taken as read and ordered to be received and entered on the minutes : — To the United Grand Lodge of Ancient Free and Accepted Masons of England . The Board have to report that they have had under their consideration

the rates of salary hitherto received by Bro . Wm . Henry Lee , third clerk , and Bro . Neville Green , fourth clerk , in the Grand Secretary ' s Office , who have served , therein for 13 years , and have already arrived at the maximum rate of , £ 200 a year , as fixed for all the junior clerks by Grand Lodge in the year 1874 , and whose prospects of future advancement are remote .

As it appears to the Board that the maximum rates of salary of these two officials might fairly be fixed in gradation between that of the second clerk , which is ^ 300 a year , and that of the junior clerks , the Board now recommend the following arrangement for the approval of Grand Lodge ,

viz ,: — The salary of Bro . Wm . Henry Lee to be raised to £ 230 from the 1 st January last , and to increase by £ 10 a year until it arrives at £ 250 , which shall be the maximum salary of the third clerk .

The salary of Bro . Neville Green to be also raised to . £ 225 from the 1 st January last , which shall be the maximum salary of the fourth clerk . ( Signed ) THOMAS FENN , President . Freemasons' Hall , London , W . C ., 16 th February , 1886 .

To the report is subjoined a statement of the Grand Lodge accounts at the last meeting of the Finance Committee , held on Friday , the 12 th day of February ult ., showing a balance in the Bank of England ( Western Branch ) of ^ 4414 is . 5 d ., and in the hands of Grand Secretary for petty cash , /' 100 , and for servants' wages , £ 100 , and balance of annual allowance for library , £ 28 18 s , 6 d .

Bro . THOMAS FENN , P . G . D ., President of the Board of General Purposes , acting G . M ., in the chair , in proposing that the report of the Board of General Purposes be adopted , said : I scarcely think it necessary that I should say anything in support of the recommendation of the Board . I will merely observe that in 1874 Grand Lodge then limited the salary of the junior clerk to £ 200 a year . There were but five clerks in the Grand

Secretary ' s office at that time ; there are now seven . At that time there were in round numbers 1800 lodges and chapters ; there are now 2700 , or an increase of 50 per cent ., thereby entailing a very large increase of business in the Grand Secretary ' s office . The two brethren whose salaries it is proposed to increase in a small degree are in this position that , although they

have served 13 years , they are in precisely the same condition with respect to salary as their juniors , who have served only eight years . I think it quite unnecessary for me to make any further observations . I am sure you will all agree with me that the small addition to these salaries is but a small act of justice . ( Loud applause . )

The motion was seconded and carried unanimously , The following report of the Colonial Board was taken as read , and ordered to be received and entered on the minutes : —

REPORT OK THE COLONIAL BOARD . To the United Grand Lodge of Ancient Free and Accepted Masons of England . The Colonial Board have to report to Grand Lodge that they have had brought under their notice an official copy of a circular issued by the Most Worship ful Grand Master of the Grand Lodge ; of t he State of Illinois , United States of America , dated 12 th November , 1835 , and sent from that Grand Lodge to the Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge of England .

This edict is addressed to the lodges in obedience to the Grand Lodge of Illinois , and recites a resolution of that Grand Lodge to the effect that certain lodges existing in the Province of Quebec , and not holding allegiance to the Grand Lodgeof that province , are illegal and irregular , and charging the brethren ol ' the Grand Lodge of Illinois not to hold Masonic intercourse with such lodges or with any members thereof , and the Most Worshipful Grand Master of Illinois thereon issues his edict accordingly .

With reference to this announcement , the Colonial Board have to call attention to the proceedings of Grand Lodge of the 3 rd December , 1884 , when a correspondence between his Royal Highness the Grand Master and the G . M . of the Grand Lodge of Quebec was laid before the brethren . It appeared by that correspondence that the Grand Lodge of Quebec demanded that the warrants of the three lodges holding under this Grand

Lodge , which have existed and were working in Montreal long before the formation of the Grand Lodge of Quebec , should be at once withdrawn , because of the subsequent creation of that Grand Lodge , to which demand the Grand Master replied that he was unable to accede so long as these three lodges elected to remain under their original and lawful adherence to the Grand Lodge of England , and the Grand Lodge unanimously approved of the action thus taken by the Most Worshipful Grand Master .

Since the Grand Secretary communicated the reply of the Grand Master lo the Grand Lodge of Quebec , no official communication on the subject has been received from that body ; but in the Proceedings of the Grand Lodge of Illinois for the year 1885 an announcement appears in the report of the Committee on Masonic Correspondence that the Grand Master of Quebec had issued his edict " severing fraternal relations " with the " three

recusant lodges holding authority from the Grand Lodge of England , and stating that the claim to have these lodges recognised as legally existing " does not find any justification in law or common sense , " and , after quoting the edict of non-intercourse by the Grand Lodge of Quebec , it reports that the Committee had requested the Representative of that Grand

Lodge at the G . L . ot Illinois to present the subject for consideration . This having been done , the Grand Lodge of Illinois , at the instance of the Representative of the Grand Lodge of Quebec , requested its Grand Master to issue the edict of the 17 th November , 1 S 85 , whereby all intercourse with the three lodges in question has been severed .

Inasmuch as the sole ground for thus ostracising the three lodges is their continued allegiance to the Grand Lodge of England , the Colonial Board feels bound to submit to Grand Lodge that it would not be consistent that direct relationship should continue to exist between it and the Grand Lodge

United Grand Lodge.

of Illinois , and that the action of that body in thus intervening leaves no other course open than to vindicate the undoubted rights and privileges of this Grand Lodge by respectfully recommending to the Most Worshipful Grand Master that he should withdraw the patent issued by him to the brother representing this Grand Lodge at that of Illinois , and should call

on the brother who represents that Grand Lod ge here to return the patent appointing him its Representative ; and this they submit accordingly . ( Signed ) J ANTHONY RUCKER , President . Freemasons' Hall , London , 15 th February , 1886 .

Bro . J ANTHONY RUCKER , P . G . D ., President of the Colonial Board , said that as the report was in the hands of every brother he would merely ask that it be approved and adopted by Grand Lodge . Bro . BRACKSTONE BAKER , P . G . D ., in seconding the motion , said that the matter was a very serious one . When Grand Lodge of Canada was established in 1859 there was an understanding that those English lodges

in Canada which wished to retain their allegiance to Grand Lodge of England should do so , as it was admitted on both sides they had a perfect right to do . In fact , Bro . Col . Mercer Wilson , G . M . of the Grand Lodge of Canada , writing to the Earl of Zetland , on the 9 th February , 1859 , said that " he had ever held that any subordinate lodges preferring to continue under their English warrant , had a perfect and undoubted right to do

so , and were entitled to all their Masonic privileges . " On this principle being admitted , the Grand Lodge of Canada was at once recognised . Again , when the Grand Lodge ot Quebec was formed the very same conditions- were laid down , and those conditions having been now violated by the Grand Lodge of Illinois , he , as the representative of that Grand Lodge in Grand Lodge of England , begged respectively to be permitted to throw up his representative patent .

The report of the Colonial Board was adopted unanimously , and Grand Lodge of England is therefore now unrepresented in the Grand Lodge of Illinois , and that lodge is unrepresented in United Grand Lodgeof England . The Scrutineers of t { ie ballot for Grand Treasurer having returned to Grand Lodge , Bro .. SANDEMAN , after receiving the declaration from Bro .

Robert Grey , said the result of the scrutiny of votes for the election of Grand Treasurer was largely in favour of Bro . Cama . There were here loud cries of " Numbers , " and " Give the numbers , " but Bro . Sandeman said he did not think there was any necessity to give the numbers . The same cries , however , being renewed all over the hall , Bro . Sandeman announced that the numbers were :

For Bro . D . P . Cama ... ... ... 599 „ Bro . R . B . Martin ... ... ... 150 Majority ,,. 449 Loud and long continued cheering followed the announcement , and Bro

Cama , who was sitting near the entrance of the hall , was heartily congratulated by the numerous brethren , who left immediately after the declaration . The report of Bro . Stanley G . Harding , Auditor of the Grand Lodge accounts , of receipts and disbursements during the year 1885 was received , and ordered to be entered on the minutes .

The following two appeals were explained by Bro . PHILBRICK , Grand Registrar , and , on his recommendation , were dismissed : — 1 . By Bro . Albert Gerdes , P . M . of the Pitt-Macdonald Lodge , No . 119 S , Madras , against a ruling of the District Board of General Purposes , on a complaint made by him against the VV . M . of that lodge for having taken the voting for the election of an Hon .

Member by show of hands instead of by ballot . 2 and 3 . By Bro . Rustomjee C . Jaboolee , P . M . of the Cyrus Lodge , No . 1359 , Bombay , and also by Bro . Cursetjee N . Pavri , P . M . of the same lodge , against a judgment of the District Grand Master censuring them for a breach of Article 205 of the Book of Constitutions . Bro . DAVID D . MERCER , P . M . No . 1641 , then rose to

move-That no brother who is in receipt of an annuity from the funds of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution shall be entitled to participate in the funds at the disposal of the Board of Benevolence . In making the motion he said it arose out of what happened at the Board of Benevolence in January . A brother who was then and now receiving the annuity of £ 40 from the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution , applied

for relief . He had been relieved in 1870 . When he looked at the Book of Constitutions at that meeting he found there was no rule as to how such a case should be treated . There was a difference of opinion among the brethren sitting round the Board whether they should entertain the case or not ; but the petition was so strongly supported by many influential brethren who were present , that they determined at last to recommend that a sum should

be granted to the brother ; but , in order to know how to act in the future , he ( Bro . Mercer ) thought it better that Grand Lodge should decide . At the meeting he said , and he said now , that it was opening the door to a very bad principle to grant relief to brethren who were annuitants of the Benevolent Institution . The supporters of this said brother made a very strong appeal

that , inasmuch as he had done a very great deal ( or Masonry and a great deal for the Masonic Charities , he should be relieved . He ( Bro . Mercer ) admitted the brother had done a great deal for both , but his reply was , that if the brother had done all this amount of good his work was most munificently rewarded by a grant on a former occasion of . £ 250 from the Board of Benevolence . This was all he had to say in putting the motion .

Bro . J OSHUA NUNN , P . G . Swd . Br ., President of the Board of Benevolence , seconded the motion , as Grand Lodge gave ^ 1600 a year to the Benevolent Institution , and the brother having been previously relieved very handsomely by the Board of Benevolence , he thought that brother had no right to appeal to the Board of Benevolence . Bro . F . BINCKES , P . G . Stwd ., opposed the motion , and repeated the

statements as to the great amount of good the brother in question had done to Freemasonry , but he contended that the leading principle and tenet of Freemasonry was Charity . If a brother , or a widow , or children were in distress , that distress was not to be refused relief because these objects of Charity were in receipt of , £ 40 . It had been stated at the Board of Benevolence that if this particular case was relieved by the Board , every annuitant of the Benevolent Institution would be coming to the Board of

Benevolence for further relief , but he begged the Grand Lodge to remember this , that the members of the Board ol Benevolence had confidence reposed in them to deal with every individual case on its own merits , and if any annuitant ' s case was brought before the Board , if it was unworthy , the Board would have sufficient discrimination to discover the fact . He asked G . L . not to indulge in a systematic legislation of disfranchisement , or to deprive the Board ot Benevolence of the discretion with which it was entrusted . Bro . JAMES STEVENS , P . M . 7 20 , supported Bro . Binckes . Several brethren having spoken against the motion , it was put , and lost by a large majority , and Grand Lodge was closed in form ,