sons in my jurisdiction would attend, I determined to be on hand myself, that I' might know the kind of food that would be given out to the Masons on the border of our jurisdiction.

By the proceedings of the session you will see that I attended four days, and saw degrees conferred.

I did not approve the work nor the manner of conferring degrees-and as to its being Webb work I then denied it, and Morris requested me to keep quiet on the subject, as I might create confusion in the "class."

Morris told me he had the best evidence on earth that it was the identical work and lectures of Webb and said he had the manuscript of Webb and some others he named. That I denied, and demanded an exhibition, and he failed to produce them. Many of the attendants called on me at the hotel, where I explained controverted points, and without one exception they agreed with me at the time.

I now unequivocally say that any system of work and lectures used in the United States, or in Europe, compares as favorably with that taught by Thomas Smith Webb as the Rob work taught by Morris; and any Grand Lodge that would have permitted the work to be printed and sold under its approval, ten years since, would have been discarded from the correspondence of all Lodges and Masons in good standing.

Your work as taught by Bro. Blanchard, G. Visitor, is far preferable to the Rob work, and from what I saw of it when Bro. Blanchard visited our G. Lodge with P. G. M. Allen, I freely say, it has more of Webb's or Snow's work than the Rob work. The manner of communicating the lectures to a candidate and conferring the degrees, by Bro. Blanchard is far more impressive, correct and beautiful than the Rob work or lectures. You may think I talk plainly, that is my desire. The work and lectures taught in Indiana, and Michigan, or any other State, before Rob was seen or felt, were better than Morris, or any other book Mason can produce. If a man is a man, and is a Mason at heart, he will not peddle the Masonic work in book form as the Conservators do, to aid Morris or any other man who has lost his fortune in wild speculations.

Yours, Fraternally,

SOL. D. BAYLESS.

MASONIC INCIDENT.

THE day after the battle of Antietam the 5th New Hampshire formed the picket line along the edge of the cornfield where Richardson's Division fought. The reserve was in one edge of the corn, and the pickets about middle way of the field concealed in the corn, as the sharpshooters of the enemy fired on all who undertook to walk around on the battle field at that locality. Early in the morning one of the wounded rebels who laid just outside the pickets called one of the New Hampshire men and handed him a little slip of paper, on which he had, evidently with great difficulty, succeeded in making some mystic signs in a circle with a bit of stick wet in blood. The soldier was begged to hand the paper to some Freemason as soon as possible, and he took it to Col. E. E. Cross of his regiment. The Colonel was a Master Mason, but could not read the mystic token, it belonging to a higher degree. He therefore sent for Capt. J. B. Perry of the 5th who was a member of the 32d degree of Freemasonry, and showed

him the letter. Capt. Perry at once said there was a Brother Mason in great peril, and must be rescued. Col. Cross instantly sent for several Brother Masons in the regiment, told the story, and in a few moments four "Brothers of the mystic tye" were crawling stealthily through the corn to find the Brother in distress. He was found, placed on a blanket, and at great risk drawn out of range of the rebel rifles, and then carried to the 5th New Hampshire hospital. He proved to be First Lieutenant Edon of the Alabama volunteers, badly wounded in the thigh and breast. A few hours and he would have perished. Lieut. Edon informed his Brethren of another wounded Mason, who, when brought out, proved to be a Lieutenant Colonel of a Georgia regiment. These two wounded rebel officers received the same attention as the wounded officers of the 5th and a warm friendship was established between men who a few hours before were in mortal combat. This is one of the thousand instances in which the Masonic bond has proved a blessing to mankind.

FROM WEST TO EAST-FROM EAST TO WEST.

FROM WEST TO EAST.

"How ought a Mason's Lodge to be situated?-Due East and West. Why so?-- Because all churches, chapels, and places of divine worship ought to be so situated. For what reason?-Because the sun rises in the East and spreads its influences towards the West; and because the Gospel was first preached in the East, and afterwards propagated in the western parts of the world."-FROM AN OBSOLETE RITUAL,

IN Freemasonry, the East, or sun rising, constitutes an unchangeable landmark; and accordingly in an ancient Masonic MS., which was reputed to have been copied by Leland, the celebrated antiquary, we find the following passage :— "Where dyd ytt (Freemasonry) begynne? Ytt dydd begynne with the ffyrste menne of the ESTE, whych were before the ffyrste menne of the Weste; and comynge westlye ytt hathe broughte herwythe alle comfortes to the wylde and comfortlesse." Mr. Locke's presumed annotation on this passage induced Bro. Preston to observe that "the opinion there were men in the east before Adam is a mere conjecture, although it may be countenanced by some learned authors; but Masons comprehend the true meaning of the Craft taking its rise in the East and spreading to the West, without having recourse to the preadamite theory." East and West are terms peculiar to the society and when Masonically adopted are very intelligible, as they refer to certain forms aud customs established many centuries ago, a few of which will form the subject of the present lecture.

In a Mason's Lodge the W. M. is placed in the East as a type of the rising sun, which opens the day, that the inhabitants of the world may go forth to their labor, and the behests of the Most High executed to his glory and the advantage of his creatures.

Let there be light, said God; and forthwith light
Ethereal, first of all things, quintessence pure,

*From Dr. Oliver's Freemasons' Treasury.

Sprung from the deep, and from her native EAST

To journey through the airy gloom began,

Sphered in a radiant cloud."-MILTON.

The candidate is obligated in the East and invested in the West; advances from West to East by right lines and angles, to typify the necessity of an upright life and well-squared actions; and he is subsequently placed in the North-East to receive instruction, as a corner-stone, from which a superstructure is expected to rise, perfect in its parts, and honorable to the builder. The Brethren, with their faces to the East, reverently attend to the dictates of wisdom which proceed from the chair, in commemoration of the same custom used by the early Christians; for light, truth, and virtue, as Bro. Dunckerley, in his code of lectures, predicates, "sprang out of the darkness which overshadowed this globe when the work of six days began."

I now proceed to explain an anomaly which has crept into our Lodge practice, and which many Brethren would be glad if they could distinctly understand. In the traditionary history of Masonry, as it was embodied in the primitive ritual, we are informed that "our ancient Brethren, after the completion of King Solo mon's Temple, travelled from one country to another in search of employment, and for other Masonic purposes." Amongst the rest certain Entered Apprentices are said to have proceeded from the West to the East, hailing from the Lodge of St. John of Jerusalem," for the purpose of receiving scientific instruction from their more experienced Brethren. And this declaration occupies a prominent place in the system adopted by most Grand Lodges at the present day; but having sustained some alteration, a difficulty has arisen which requires a brief notice.

It is easy to imagine that, as the East is a place of light and wisdom, a novice might beneficially travel thither to seek for information in the science; for, if our traditious are to be relied on, the Dionysiacs, who built the Temple of Solomon, travelled eastward from Jerusalem, bearing with them their skill and taste in architecture, and other secrets of the Fraternity, into various countries, where they were more readily employed, and received better wages than those who did not possess the same advantages.

In many places where they sojourned they obtained special privileges; and because they taught their secrets only to the freeborn, their successors acquired the name of FREEMASONS; constituting Lodges and erecting stately piles of building under the patronage of great and wealthy princes, many of whom were accepted as members and Brothers of the Order, and became Grand Masters, each in his own dominions, in imitation of King Solomon, whose memory as a Mason was reverenced by all other peoples, and will be till architecture shall be consumed in the general conflagration.*

It follows, therefore, that the above formula was strictly correct when applied to Solomon's Masons, for they proceeded literally from the West to the East, hailing from the Lodges at Jerusalem, which constituted the undoubted origin of this peculiar phraseology, and, having been embodied in our primitive rituals,

*See Anderson's "Const.," pp. 16, 17, ed. 1738.

still applies with accurate consistency to the practice of the Fraternity in India and the Australian Islands. But how is it borne out in countries westward of Jerusalem? That is the question to be considered.

The discrepancy in the phrase from West to East, starting from the Lodge of St. John at Jerusalem, as it was expressed in the ordinary ritual of the last century, and applied to the several countries of Europe and America, where the institution at the present time flourishes in its greatest purity, appears to have entered into the deliberations of the Committee appointed, in 1814, to reconstruct the Lodge Lectures; and being unable to solve the difficulty, like Alexander they cut the knot, by utterly repudiating both St. John (who is styled by Preston "our ancient and venerable patron') and his Lodges, and expunging his honored name from the ritual, although it was probably introduced at the formation of the York Grand Lodge; and not ouly acknowledged by Calcott, Dunckerley, and Hutchinson, but advisedly embodied by Preston in his version of the lectures, which contain a plain record of the fact. But the misfortune is, that the alteration was accompanied by no certain clue to direct us how to account for the anomaly. The lectures simply stated that the visitor, or more correctly the Senior Warden of the Lodge, who was the actual respondent, came from the West for instruction; and when the name of his Lodge was demanded, he distinctly replied "the Holy Lodge of St. John at Jerusalem," with a recommendation from "the Right Worthy and Worshipful Brothers and Fellows of that Lodge, who sent their hearty greeting." But the Lodge of St. John of Jerusalem lies geo. graphically eastward of this country; and therefore the sojourner in his course from thence to Europe or the new world, would not literally proceed from West to East, but from East to West. This is the difficultly. How is this to be reconciled? The solution of this problem will form the subject of another lecture.

Obituary.

BROTHER MAJOR GENERAL HIRAM G. BERRY.

Major General HIRAM G. BERRY, who fell in the late battle of Chancellorsville, was buried at Rockland, Me., on the 14th of May, with Masonic honors. The escort was performed by a portion of the 7th Maine regiment and Co. A, State Guards, of Bangor. The order of the services was as follows:-The procession of Masons (nearly 300 of whom participated in the exercises) and military proceed. ed to the late residence of the deceased, when a portion of Scripture was read by Mr. Hart. After a prayer and sermon by Rev. Mr. Butler, of Auburn, and the benediction by Rev. Mr. Kallock, the body was escorted to the cemetery, where it was buried with Masonic honors, Past Grand Master Chase, of Belfast, conducting the ceremonies. A volley was fired over his grave by the military. Among those present to do honor to his memory and bear testimony to his distinguished military services, were Vice President Hamlin, Governor Coburn and staff, ex-Governor Washburn, Adjutant-General Hodsdon, Senator Morrill, Hon. S. C. Fessenden, Judge Rice and many others. The ceremonies were solema and impressive, and the thousands of people present testified by their sorrowful countenances, the regard they felt for the deceased officer and patriot.

MASONIC CHIT CHAT.

CONSERVATORS IN MISSOURI. A correspondent, under date St. Louis, May 28, writes, "Our Grand Lodge, just closed, condemned in the strongest terms the Conserva tors' Association, and recommended in the strongest possible manner, that the most effectual means be used throughout our borders, against all and any of the aforesaid Rob Morris' men and doctrines.

Fiftynine subordinate bodies, Lodges, Councils, Chapters and Consistories, made their Annual Returns to the Supreme Coun. cil of the Northern Jurisdiction, at its late session in this city. These bodies are located in the States of Main, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey Pennsylvania, Ohio Michigan, and Illinois-representatives from each of which were present at the meeting of the Supreme Body. The entire jurisdiction is in a more healthy and prosperous condition at the present time than ever before; and this prosperity rests on so firm a basis that no factious element can disturb it.

SOCIAL POSITION. We see it announced by the Eratic Blazer, in his little 7×9 sheet, that the body here calling itself a Supreme Couneil, has appointed "the Hon. Richard H. Hartley its Minister near the Supreme Council of Peru." Whether any such appointment has been made and accepted, or what it means, is a matter of no kind of consequence whatever; but the Hon. Mr. Hartley referred to-(and who will be greatly as tonished to find himself so unexpectedly elevated to the dignity of one holding high civil or political position) is a respectable sub clerk in an English house at Lima, and unless our personal acquaintance with him has led us to form a false estimate of his character, will not thank his quasi friends here for attempt. ing to pass him off on the public, like counterfeit coin, for more than his true value. Such frauds but indicate a bad cause. But our surprise is that they should be resorted to by persons who hold "social position" to be of small account-except when it suits their purpose to assume a virtue they have not N. Y. Cour.

GODEY'S LADY'S Вook, for June, has been upon our table for some days. There is no periodical in the country issued with so much punctuality, and there is none more uniformly chaste and high-toned in its literary department, or beautiful in its embellishments. The present number concludes a volume; a new one will, therefore, be commenced in July; thus affording a good opportunity for new subscribes to send forward their names. No more pleasing and useful work can be introduced into the family cirele. Godey, Philadelphia, is the publisher, at three dollars a year.

Officers of the Grand Lodge of MaineM. W. William P. Preble, Grand Master; R. W. John J. Bell, D. G. M.; E. B. Hinkley, S. G. W.; Francis L. Talbot, J. G. W.; Moses Dodge, G. Treasurer; Ira Serry, G. Secretary, Portland; Freeman Bradford, A. B. Thompson, Oliver Gerrish, Finance Committee; J. W. Drummond, and Charles Cobb were elected to fill vacancies in the Board of Trustees of the Charity Fund.

Officers of the Salem G. Lodge of Per fection.-Wm Sutton, T. P. G. M.—A. L. Pierson, H. of T. D. G. M.-Dana Z. Smith, S. G. W.-Henry A. Brown, J. G. W.Joseph Farnum, Secretary.

Officers of N. Bedford G. Lodge of Per fection-Henry Tabor, 2d, 'T. P. G. M.George H Tabor, H. of T. D. G. M.-John B. Baylies, S. G. W.-Albert H. W. Carpenter, J. G. W.-Wanton T. Drew, Secretary.

Officers of Worcester G. Lodge of Perfection.-Rev. J. W. Dadman, T. P. G. M.Benjamin Lewis, D. G. M.-Timothy W. Wellington S G. W.-Charles G. Reed, G. Treasurer-Charles B. Whiting, G. Sec.S. B. Marsh, G. Orator.

Officers of Mercer Lodge of Perfection, Trenton, N. Jersey.-Joseph H. Hough, T. P. G. M-William R Clapp, H. of T. D. G. M.-William T. Nicholson, S. G. W.David Naar, J. G W.-John T. Houdayer. G. Treasurer; M. Roberts Hough, G. Sec. and K of the S.-Thomas Booth, G. Captain of the Guard.