The Freemason

THE CHARITYJEWEL AND STEWARDS' BADGES . To thc Editor of the "Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , The article in the Book of Constitutions against thc wearing jewels , badges , & c , other than those sanctioned is considerably intensified in the New Book , and the description of decorations that may be worn are better and more minutel y defined , but no mention whatever

is made of the Charity jewel as sanctioned b y edict of the M . W . Grand Master communicated to Grand Lodge June 7 th , 1876 , and printed at the end of the later reprints of the 1 S 73 edition of the Book of Constitutions . May I ask what is to be inferred from this fact ? Is the prohibition more defined and thc jewels more precisely described as a warning to any future M . W . Grand Master that he has no power or authority to issue edicts allowing

other jewels to be worn ? Or are we to have the old edict reinserted contrary to the law ? and are we to go on wearing Charity jewels and Stewards' badges as heretofore ? If it is the intention to allow these things to be worn due and proper sanction ought to be given by Grand Lodge to this effect . It will be a very severe snub to some of our more charitable brethren , should they be liable to be ordered to doff their Charity jewel with clasos , rosettes , and

tricolourcd ribbon , and vvill nip in the bud thc aspirations of some of our younger ones if they arc told they must not wear their Stewards' badges , and although a good deed ought to be done for its own sake , it is just possible our Charities may suffer if our Stewards are not given decorations , or not permitted to wear them . I am much surprised that no one seems to have yet taken note of this somewhat important matter . —Yours fraternally , A CHARITY STEWARD .

ROYAL ARCH REGULATIONS . _ To the Editor of thc " Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , I suppose that the above book will be revised in a similar manner to the Book of Constitutions ( Craft ) ? There are several rather vague clauses in the existing book , and

one in particular strikes me . What is thc proper and regular way of approving of a petition to form a chapter ? Must the petition be signed complete and be presented to the W . M . in open lodge , or is it sufficient to ask thc VV . M . and Wardens to sign the petition without bringing the matter before the lodge at all ?—Yours fraternally . ¦ - ¦ P . Z . KING SOLOMON AND FREEMASONRY .

To thc Editor of the "Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , 1 notice a query by Bro . Hollon , of York , in your last . But hc must know full well that to answer the question he propounds , we must prejudge and solve thc whole " Crux " of Masonic legend . When hc adds that Lieut .-Col . Warren found no traces of Freemasonry in

underground Jerusalem , he is not correct . That energetic explorer discovered a very curious fact in itself , that the marks of Jewish and Tyrian Masons were still on underground stones , " fresh as paint , " and which thus bear a silent and unconscious witness to the loyalty and reality of our ancient Masonic traditions . Thc earliest allusion to Kiner

Solomon and thc Masons is in the Additional Matthew Cooke ' s MS ., of date , according to Mr . Bond , British Museum , 1425 , not 1490 as generally assumed . Since then thc tradition has been unchanging and the symbolism of thc Temple unceasing . And I may remark , ' there is no " a priori " difficulty in accepting as true this cherished tradition of our world-wide lore . —Yours , & c , MASONIC STUDENT .

Reviews.

REVIEWS .

THE MASONIC WORLD . January , 1 SS 4 . Boston , U . S . This magazine , which has reached its eighth number , is , as far as we can make out , an American organ of the Rite of Misraim and Memphis . Wc have been struck with two Articles in it , on which we think it well to make a few re-VSiarks . 'The first is a paper b y Chas . Sotheran , " the noted author and gcneaologist , " who is well knovvn , we

believe , to many in England , as he seems to be in the United States . It is a defence of the so-called Count Cagliostro , an attempt to " whitewash " him ; indeed , at times t seeks to make him almost a "hero . " Bro . Kenneth Mackenzie did thc same thing and very ably too , in his " Cyclopaedia , " but , in our opinion , vvith but small success . Wc are inclined to think that thc careful verdict recorded

against Balsamo in " Kenning's Cyclopa : dia " is the true one , and , so far , unaffected b y any "gush " which may be putfotth about that " interesting individual . " That his real name vvas Joseph Balsanio is as clear as that he had no claim to that of Count Cagliostro or any other title . That he was " wanted by the police" in more countries than one is equally certain , and that he vvas impostor , adventurer ,

charlatan , is as demonstrable as anything else according to " Cocker . " To make him out a patriot , a philanthropist , a humanitarian , a benefactor to his race , is an insult to our common sense , a sad way of writing history , a perfect paradox , and an entire aberration . His whole conduct , whether in Italy , Spain , Germany , Russia , England , or France , shows him to have been a consummate rogue

and vagabond , and his conduct in respect of Madame De la Mottc and the diamond necklace stamps him with the ineffaceable brand of lying , baseness , and fraud . There is a curious old Masonic print , most rare coloured , even rare plain , which depicts his exposure and expulsion from the Lodge of Antiquity , and the verdict of Freemasonry against him is distinct and decided , and cannot

be upset b y Jesuitical defences , by ingenious if unsound explanations . Lord George Gordon died in Newgate for that very libel vvith which Cagliostro vvas mixed up , and that that amiable but erratic fanatic was connected vvith Balsanio at all , is a proof of his own great weakness , and adds nothing fo the defence of Balsanio .

His stronger brother , Lord William Gordon , withdrew his countenance from thc adventurer and intriguer , and the verdict of 100 years ago is the same as to-day—that his name is a discredit to Freemasonry . At page 117 is a curious passage , termed Masonic history , which so fac may fairly come under Sir Robert Walpole's hearty and emphatic declaration . It reads as follows : " The word remained lost until discovered in the ruins of a temple at

Reviews.

Memphis by workmen employed for the purpose by Hermes thc second . It vvas written in hieroglyphics upon two golden deltas , and was easily deciphered by the most wise and learned Hermes . [ Those who would know more of its interesting history should make themselves acquainted with the ritual of the Royal Arch Degree E . M . R . M . ] This word upon the triangles constituted the signet of the Grand

Hierophant , and was equal to a charter giving authority to work the Degrees . ( It was hereditary . ) For seventy years after the destruction of the temple and loss of thc word , the mysteries were almost entirely suppressed , that is , they were not worked regularly or by any particular authority , but when Apachnas ascended the throne , 1773 B . C ., he released the Masons in Egypt from captivity

and gave them permission to rebuild the temple [ not at Memphis , but at Thebes' ] . His firman read as follows : ' Thus saith , Apachnas , King of Egypt : The God of Heaven hath blessed me and given into my hands thc land of Egypt , therefore I g ive 'to as many of the Masons as dwell in Egypt permission to go free and unmolested to Thebes , where they may build another temple to their

God . '—B y order of APACHNAS , King of Egypt . —Aniouis , Royal Scribe . " We have consulted a learned Egyptologist , and he tells us that the writer of this passage has fallen into a tissue of hopeless and unhistorical blunders . The Firman alleged is an absurdity . Independently of Firman being a comparatively modern Persian word , no such order or declaration exists . Apachnas , who is also called Apachnan , and even Pachnan , was a real person .

Aphobis , or Apliosis as he is mostly called , succeeded him , according to onc or two authorities , though according to another two kings intervened . Any such alleged Decree concerning the Masons , or " Sutekh , " is an entire mistake . VVe regret that people professing to write history will g ive us legend , and we doubt the advisability of any one in 1 SS 4 making deliberate statements as to Egyptian remains , which any Egyptologist can tell us at once are unreal and unreliable , not existent and not forthcoming .

MASONIC CALENDAR AND OFFICIAL DIRECTORY FOR THE PROVINCE OF WILTSHIRE . Edited by Bro . W . NOTT , Prov . Charity Secretary . The fourth annual issue of this useful and well printed Masonic Provincial Calendar is now before us , ana , as in past years , we can most truly commend it to the notice and patronage of thc Craft . These little concise handbooks of Provincial Freemasonry contain a great deal of

information , valuable for the body at large as for those more immediately connected with them . We note " inter alia " how under Bro . Noll ' s zealous labours the Charity work of Wiltshire is progressing , and that the province has now for 42 C brethren 1260 votes for the charities ; of these 412 arc Bcncvolont votes and 8 48 Girls ' and Boys ' . VVe thank Bro . Nott for kindly transmitting a copy to us of his carefully compiled and accurately edited Wiltshire Calendar .

THE LANCASTER MASONIC CALENDAR for 1 SS 4 . Lancaster : H . Longman , Market-street . Bro . H . Longman , P . M ., P . P . G . S . of W . West Lancashire , the courteous and energetic Secretary of the Rowley Lodge , No . 1051 , Lancaster , has recently compiled and issued for thc first time a very neat pocket Masonic calendar , entitled "The Lancaster Masonic Calendar for 1884 , "

which will be lor the local Masons of that town what the Cosmopolitan Masonic Pocket Book is to the general bod y ofthe Craft . It is of handy size , contains 24 pp ., and is brimful of information , being in fact a vade nice tint for local Masons . It contains dates of meetings and list of officers of the various lodges , chapters , conclaves , & c , held

in the town ; brief and concise information relative to thc different local and principal Masonic Charities , with the number of votes possessed by each lodge for the same ; and what will prove of particular interest , a chronological list of local Masonic events . The almanac is nicely printed , and reflects the highest credit on our worthy brother's Masonic spirit .

PROCEEDINGS OF THE GRAND CHAPTER OF NOVA SCOTIA , 1 S 83 . VVe have received the official report , and though it is but as it were a normal report of a Grand Chapter far away , it presents one particular feature in it which calls for note and animadversion . Thc presiding officer at thc fourteenth annual convocation calls special attention to the

proceedings of a chapter which shall be nameless to us . To his immense astonishment he finds in a particular chapter under his jurisdiction a certain companion returned as a member , though for 14 yet ts previously had never been returned b y the chapter . On inquiry ho finds that particular chapter , though it has never returned this companion's name since the formation of the Grand Chapter , has for the

ment of "six dollars condoned his past absences and arrears and declared him to be in full membership . It seems to us , firstly , that any chapter is grossly in fault which , for a payment of a trifling sum ignores 14 years' of arrears , pays up nothing to the Grand Chapter , except for the current year ( we presume , of course ) , and proclaims this companion " in absentia " as

good a member ot the chapter as those who had faithfully adhered to its fortunes , good or bad . And what can we say of the companion himself , except that he must be a very half-hearted companion , with no interest in thc welfare of his chapter , no sympathy for Royal Arch Masonry . We should not advert to this little matter but for thc growing number of unaffiliated members on the American continent , who may be counted by tens of thousands , and constitute

the weakness and burden of Freemasonry . We trust that the Grand Chapter of Nova Scotia vvill suspend that same chapter until it makes a proper " amende , " and compel it to pay up thc companion's capitation payment for 14 years . If the chapter likes to compromise its own annual payments for six dollars let it do so ; but let it not take away from the Grand Chapter what is lawfully and Masonically its due .

HOLIOWAY ' S PILLS . —Invalids distracted hy indlRcstion and discouraged in their search for ils remedy should make trial of this never-failing medicine . A lady , long a martyr to dyspeptic tortures , writes that Holioway ' s Pills made her feci as if a burden had been taken off her . Her spirits , formerly low , have grcatlv improved ; her capricious appetite has given place to healthy hunger ; her dull , sick headache has departed , and gradually so marvellous a change has been effected that she is altogether a new creature , and again fit for herdulics . These Pills may be administered with safety to the most delicate . They never act harshly , nor do they ever induce weakness ; they rightly direct deranged , and control excessive , action , —[ ADvr . ]

Masonic Notes And Queries.

Masonic Notes and Queries .

VV . BRO . TEW AND ROYAL ARCH MASONRY 300 ] AT DONCASTER . I am always pleased to read any oration or address by thc zealous D . Prov . G . M . of West Yorkshire , and so have carefully studied his interesting observations delivered to the companions of the Magdalen Chapter , No . 242 , Doncaster . His praise of the labours of Bro . Delanoy ,

M . E . Z ., was well deserved , and it is pleasant to find the services of Masonic Historians being generally so well received . I trust it will stimulate other brethren to write accounts of their old lodges , not only for the sake of their fellow members , but for the information of all of us who make Freemasonry a study . The VV . Bro . Tew says " the charter of the Magdalen Chapter is dated 1 S 20 , and on

the Sth May , 1 S 22 , the old . ' charter of 447 was returned to Supreme Grand Chapter , when I pcesumc a new one was sent back in due course . " I have looked into the matter , and find that the Magdalen Chapter was chartered in 1 S 03 , at Doncaster , as No . 124 , ( when the chapters were kept distinct from the lodges ) and in response to the order of the " United Grand Chapter" ( that " regular chapters

existing prior to May , 1 S 17 , " on making knovvn to what lodges they attach themselves to , shall "receive renewal charters free from expence" ) the warrant was exchanged for the one dated in 1 S 22 . In a list of chapters ( over 100 in number ) that had obeyed such order , printed in the report

of Grand Chapter of November 27 th , 1 7 21 , occurs " 447 , Magdalen Chapter , Doncaster , " so that it is quite clear the companions of No . 242 date from 1803 , and connected themselves with St . George ' s Lodge when No . 447 , which became 208 in 1 S 32 , and has been 242 from 1 S 63 . No . 242 completed its centenary in 18 S 0 , and thc chapter its / t' 61 / ce in 1 SS 3 . VV . J . HUGHAN .

30 O OLD MSS ., & c . Can any brother put me in the way of studying any bonafide eighteenth century Masonic MS . ofthe Ritual . I have heard of one or two " floating about . " COLLECTOR . Care of Editor Freemason .

302 ] PORTRAITS OF FREEMASONS . If any brother will let me have a list of Masonic portraits of which hc knows , or has seen , I will exchange references with him . I hear of some eighteenth century prints not now easil y procurable . COLLECTOR . Care of Editor Freemason .

Reports Of Masonic Meetings.

REPORTS OF MASONIC MEETINGS .

Craft Jflasonrg * LODGE OF TRANQUILLITY ( No . 185 ) . — Presentation to Bro . Staley . —A very numerous assembly of members and visitors met at the Guildhall Tavern , Gresham-street , E . C ., on Monday , thc iSth inst . Bro . A . Staley , VV . M ., whose reign was about to close , occupied the chair during the first portion of the programme , the business of which included the initiating of Messrs .

Charles Louis Thompson , David Loebl , and Wilhelm Bucchcumachcr . Bro . R . 7 .. Bloomfield having been appointed Installing Master , proceeded with the ceremony and installed Bro . Bro . S . Barnett , S . VV ., into the chair of King Solomon according to ancient custom , and acquitted himself in a manner that left little to be desired . The new VV . M . then appointed his officers as follows : Bros . A .

Staley , I . P . M . ; 5 , M . Boaz . tJ . W . ; H . Peartree , J . VV . ; W . D . Bailey , P . M ., Treas . ; A . S . Myers , Sec . ; W . S . Lyons , S . D . ; Harry Tipper , J . D . ; A . Marks , I . G .: J . M . Levy , D . C ; L . Bloomfield , A . D . C . j S . Roscnfcld , W . S ., and Potter , Tyler . The lodge was next called to refreshment , which was ample and well served , and upon the removal of thc cloth grace vvas sung and the usual loyal and Masonic toasts at

once proceeded with . The new VV . M ., occupying for the first time a position which with not a few induces a considerable degree of nervousness , seemed to be quite at home at once as if hc had been in thc habit of conducting a Masonic lodge all his life . He also showed a great amount of tact in thc brevity and practical good sense in all he had to say . It is needless to describe the manner in

which the toasts of " The Queen , " "Grand Master , " and " Grand Officers" were given and received , for the cordiality and enthusiasm these names call forth in Masonic lodges is well known . The toast of " The Initiates " was most abl y responded toby Bro . C . L . Thompson , who remarked that he had opportunities of witnessing many ceremonies most striking

and solemn in their character , but the ceremonies in one of which he had to take part and in the other had the privilege of being present , appeared to him most impressive , especially the ceremony of installation . He trusted to become a good and faithful Mason and eventually to reach the position of Master of thc lodge . Bros . Benjamin and Beam replied for "The Visitors , "

and both strongly eulogised the working of the lodge and expressed their appreciation and delight at the manner in which the installation was conducted . Bro . A . Staley , I . P . M ., in proposing " The Health of the W . M . " said it was vvith high gratification he for the first time rose to propose the health of the VV . M . It had beenjso pleasant tovvitness the very able and courteous way in which the various duties appertaining to the different

offices were performed during his progress towards the chair by the W . M ., that he felt sure the selection of the brethren would prove of the highest interest and conduce to the prosperity of thc lodge . The VVorshipful Master expressed his warmest thanks and submitted the name of Bro . Staley , whom he characterised as no unworthy successor to Jhe _ many able and talented brethren who had preceded him in the chair . By his energy , zeal , and perseverance the I . P . M . had immensely benefited the lodge , for during his year of office he had initiated no less than 20 candidates .