Laying The Foundation Stone Of A Church At Blackburn.

was deposited on the stone—about sS 6 o—little g irls strewed flowers upon it , the Masonic body at once left for the town .

Our Obligations.

OUR OBLIGATIONS .

BY B . WILLIAM CARPENTER , P . M . and P . Z . The Lodge is clos'd , not so our duty , That remains while life shall last ; Our obligations ever bind us : The time to keep them ' s never past . —

How wide the circle of that duly , Imposed alike on age and youth ;—They ' re ever active , ever fruitful , Alike in Love , Relief , and Truth .

The . world must find us always upright , The Square and Level our regard ; No words profane , no acts awry , Must rob us cf our great reward .

We'll look for that bright morning star Whose rising cheers the soul depressed , And guides us on the chequer'd way That leads to our eternal rest .

Welcome To The American Masons.

WELCOME TO THE AMERICAN MASONS .

Occasional lines written for and spoken at the Festival held in the City Hall , Glasgow , 27 th June , 1873 , in honour of a visit of American Masons on their European Tour .

Welcome to all the Sons of Light , We bid you welcome here to night ; What ' er your status or degree , As Masons here we welcome ye .

We greet you on this friendly trip , And joyful give the Mason ' s grip . As Masons here we meet each other , Hailing each true man as a brother .

Though seas our birth place may divide , Here heart to heart we stand allied , No matter what our land or name , Our FAITH , our Hoi ' E , is still the same .

While , greatest of the blessed three , We all unite in CHARITY . That Charity that thinks no ill , But doth respect a brother still .

A Charity naught can estrange , That neither place nor time can change ; That still shines constant as the sun On every faithful Widow ' s Son .

Thousand of miles may intervene , But all are brethren here I ween ; In unity we all combine , Alike our password and our sign .

St . Mungo ' s Sons are met once more To greet you from Columbia ' s shore . And all Masonic Grades arc here . To join in giving hearty cheer .

The Royal Order ' s here to ni ght The Ancient and Accepted R ite , Knights of the Temple firm and true , And those of Malta too I view .

Both pledged to still keep watch and ward , All pious pilgrims still to guard ; Ark Mariners are here I see With Kni ghts of the Red Cross degree .

1 o welcome you upon your march , Here are companions of the ARCH ; As you ' re sojourners , here they bring The Priest , the Prophet , and the King .

To greet you and your wives so pretty , From every Lodge within the City , See here to ni ght to welcome you , Hundreds of Masons known as blue .

I hey re the foundation of the whole . Of the Masonic body , they ' re the soul . Without their aid we could not be , Nor e ' er obtain an high degree .

Welcome To The American Masons.

No matter what our rank is now , Each had to take the self-same vow ; As humble 'Prentice bow the knee , E ' re he a ray of light could see .

The badge of Innocence each had to wear , H ' re he could don the Level , Plumb , or Square But all , whate ' er their rank , are here To welcome you with friendly cheer .

To prove to age as well as youth , That Brotherly Love , Relief , and Truth , Are passports to Masonic fame , And Brother more than a mere name .

And now on their behalf I say—May our God speed you on your way , And keep you ever in his hand Till you return to your own land . G . W . WHEELER .

The Order Of St. John Of Jerusalem

THE ORDER OF ST . JOHN OF JERUSALEM

The annual general assembly of the Order of St . John of Jerusalem in England was held on the 24 th u ' t . ( St . John Baptist ' s day ) . Services were held previously , as usual , at the Royal Chapel of the Savoy , at 8 a . m . and ri a . m ., the preacher being the Rev . A . T . Whitemore

Shadwell , one of the brother chaplains . At the general assembly a report of the work during the past year was read by the Secretary , by which it appeared that tbe Order is steadily progressing in numbers and influence , and carrying out its avowed objects and purposes " pro nlilitale

hominunt . " The Council was then appointed for the ensuing year , and afterwards , papers on nursing were read by Dr . li . IT . Sieveking and Dr . T . W . Rumsey . A resolution was passed forming a committee with the view of practically carrying into effect the suggestions contained in

the papers . The following members and associates of the Order were then nominated for the committee : —The Duke of Manchester , Lord Leigh , Lord Eliot , Sir Edward Lechmere , Sir John St . George , K . C . B ., Major-General Sir Jas . Alexander , Mr . C . J . Burgess , Lieut-Colonel

Gould Weston , Mr . J . Furley , Mr . C . Pemberton Carter , Rev . G . R . Portal , Rev . T . Hugo , Rev . D . Cosens , Mr . R . Woof , Mr . E . L . O'Malley , the Countess of Mount-Charles , Lady Lechmere , Lady St . George , Mrs . B nines , Fraiilein Rumpil , the Lady Superior of St . John ' s

House , London , the Lady Superintendent of St John ' s House , Ashford , Dr . E . H . Sieveking , D . F . W . Headland , Dr . A . Julius Pollock , Dr . Lionel Beale , Surgeon Beale , V . C ., Dr . Frank , Mr . W . Mac Cormack , Sit R . Wallace , with power to add to their number . It appeared by

the almoner ' s report , that upwards of 3 , 000 diets had been distributed by the Order during the past year to poor convalescents of the Charingcross and King ' s College Hospitals , and of the Worcester Dispensary , also that an arrangement

had been concluded with Charing-cross Hospital by which non-professional gentlemen , recommended by the Order of St . John , can undergo a six months' training in medicine , surgery , and hospital practice , the first course of which will probably commence in October next .

The next examination of candidates for admission to the Royal Military Academy , Woolwhich , will commence at the London University on Tuesday , the joth September , 1873 , the medical inspection taking place on the previous day at the Royal Military Academy , Woolwich .

Nearl y ^ jo . ooo has been laised for the decoration of St . Paul ' s Cathedral . More than s £ i 1 , 000 of this amount , however , has been

expended in salaries , in the re-erection and enlargement of the organ , and upon various alterations , all of which were made before Mr . Burgess was appointed architect .

HOSPITAL SUNDAY . —The returns up to the present time show that the sum of £ 2 - 1 , 0 ^ 0 has been received as the result of the collections . The British and Foreign Bible Society , have presented to the Shah a magnificently bourd Bible in the Persian language .

The Order Of St. John Of Jerusalem

MASONIC VETERANS . —The second annual re-union of this select body of Masons , which was recently held in the city of New York , was very largely attended , and the proceedings were replete with great interest . The address of the President , Daniel Sickles ,

presented m a terse and concise form the present prosperous condition of the Association , and gave a brief resume , of its history from the beginning . John W . Simons , from the Committee on Ways and Means , fully explained the situation on

secular matters , while the report of the Committee on Deceased Members ( Henry C . Banks chairman , ) was elaborate and complete in its narrative of the interesting matter committed to their charge .

The officers of the past year were re-elected by acclamation , after which the venerable brethren partook of the usual feast . There was a magnificent display of the choicest flowers on the table , the considerate gift of Bro . Fred . Thompson , not a member of the As-ociation ,

but entitled to its warmest thanks for his liberal : y . After the cloth was removed , the " feast of reason and flow of soul'' was initiated , wherein the distinguished brethren participated with infinite relish . The regular toasts were duly honoured in a style peculiar only to the " Yets , "

succeeded by voluntary sentiment , song and innocent merriment . Among those present were John L . Lewis , James W . Husted , John W . Simpson , John Moon , James AI . Austin , Albert P . Moriarty , James A . Reed , John S . Perry , Frank L . Stowell , Stephen H . Johnson ,

Charles D . Brown , Edward E . Thorn , Charles Roome , Robert E . Roberts , James B . Bensels Eugene Valet , Royal G . Millard , Thomas Forsyth , N . B . Mountfort , O . P . Quintard , L . H . Ilsey , William W . Withs , Henry B . ShaphofF , James Parish , Judge Sufl ' ern , James Jenkinson , Henry D . Walker , Hiram Hyneman ,

S . Percy Ellis , Adolphus Andreas , Theophilus Pratt . J . Brown , and a host of others . "The convivial festivities continued ' til the wee sma hours ayent the twal , " and th'j proprieties of the occasion terminated the second annual re-union by the Masonic Veterans of the State of New York .

Great preparations are being made for laying the corner-stone of the Masonic Temple at Memphis It is expected that the day will bo made a general holiday in the city . The

ceremonies and the music will be mostl y new , and the speakers will comprise the most learned and distinguished in the Masonic Order . The proceedings will terminate with a grand picnic , to which everybody is invited .

The British Medical Journal states that the Shah has expressed a desire to give diplomatic adhesion to the convention for neutralising the sick and wounded in war , and the persons and materials provided for their succour . The

Convention of Geneva , has already been signed by all European monarchs , including the Sultan of Turkey , who gave his adhesion in 1865 . The adhesion of the Shah will be addressed to the High Federal Council of Switzerland .

Another of the choice reprints by Mr . John Pearson , of York-street , Covent-garden , is in the press , and will shortly be issued . It consists of " The Dramatic Works of Thomas Dekker " ( 1600—1658 ) , now first collected , with illustrative notes , and a memoir of the author .

The park and pleasure grounds with the worldrenowned Monastic ruins of Fountain Abbey ( which by the kindness of the Most Hon . the Marquess of Ripon , K . G ., are fully thrown open to ticket holders , are now in the full glow of their unrivalled summer beauty .

tloi . iowAv ' s OINTMENT AND I ' M . I . S . —Experience before Authority . —For nearly tile thiid of a century hate these remedies stood in the f . uemost rank in tiveicoming ulcers , sores sv .-ellings , rashes , and all descriptions of skin diseases . At hist tlie faculty denounced these medicaments but the experience ol suffeiers soon overthrew all interested opposition . Those whom Holloivay ' s medicine hail cured

told other invalids the benefits they had derived from their use , these in their turn tried them and found equally satisfactory results . Old and new stoics of knowledge were ransacked to discover the surest and simplest method of meeting ami conquering sickness . The issue was the invention of Holloway ' s curatives , which the testimony of patients universally endorses as indisputable defence against disease . —Aim .