THE GRAND FEAST. The menu of the feast bore upon its first page a portrait of M.W. John Marshall, Grand Master of Virginia, 1794-1795. After the Brethren had assembled in the Banquet Hall and the serving of the courses had begun, the Grand Master called the Craft to order saying: Brethren, we will now honor the four regular toasts: To the memory of the Holy Saints John. (The toast was duly honored by the Brethren, all standing.) Brethren, the second regular toast: To the memory of our Illustrious Brother, George Washington. (The second toast was duly honored by the Brethren in the same manner.) Brethren, the third regular toast: To the memory of our departed Brethren. (The toast was duly honored by the Brethren in the same manner.) Brethren, the fourth and last regular toast: To all the Fraternity, wheresoever dispersed upon the face of the earth. (The toast was duly honored by the Brethren in the same manner.) At the close of the dinner, when the tables had been cleared, the Grand Master arose, and was greeted by loud and prolonged applause and three cheers. THE GRAND MASTER: One does not always have such a royal reception for his swan song. [Laughter.] Tonight I begin to feel really like a Past Grand Master, like a veteran, for I am presiding at this feast for the last time. I have enjoyed beyond measure the feasts at which it has been my privilege to preside, and that we have now for the third time taxed the capacity of our banquet-room speaks well, my Brethren, for the interest of the fraternity in Massachusetts in Freemasonry, for the desire of the Brethren to take hold and assist in every respect, and for their interest in that which you come here for, after all—not the banquet, but that we may commune together. Brother Horton commented some time ago on the good ventilation of this hall. I notice that most of you are smoking; smoking is permitted. To those who are not I suppose we might apply the remark which was made to a gentleman after a dinner, when some one lit up his cigar and said, "Don't you smoke?" to his friend. "No." "Why," said the smoker, "you lose half your dinner by not smoking." "Well," said the other, "I would lose the whole of it if I did." [Laughter.] I trust that the ventilation will be good enough so that none of you who do not smoke will be disturbed in that way. I am sorry that His Excellency, the Governorelect, our Brother McCall, is unable to be with us. He had promised to be here, and had planned to be here, but the death of a member of his immediate family has called him to Vermont and required the cancellation of all his engagements for the next few days. I said, Brethren, this was my swan song. Yes, I am now much like an attorney who appeared before a court in Boston some time ago, and the Judge, not knowing him, said, "Who are you, anyway?" after he had listened to the rather ineffective way the case had been tried. "Why, I am John Jones, from Springfield." "Well," said the Judge, "are you a lawyer?" "Yes," I am a member of the bar; my specialty is patent practice." "Well," responded the Judge, "I am inclined to think that when your patent expires you won't get it renewed." [Laughter.] My patent will expire one year from tonight and then another will be issued to some one else to carry on the executive work of the Fraternity. ers. It would, I know, not be proper nor what is expected did I say nothing this evening other than by way of introduction of the other speakYou do not want me to turn in my report of this feast as if it were the report of a superintendent of a factory. You know they have now, in some of these factories belonging to companies that our Past Grand Master looks after in the accident insurance line, very comprehensive and detailed blanks that have to be filled out when any accident happens in the industrial plant, giving the name of the person injured, the employer's name, the time of the injury, the place of the injury, how it happened, and all about it; and the final space on the blank is headed, “Remarks." On one occasion the foreman in one of these factories turned in a blank with all the rest of it filled in, but nothing under the head of Remarks; and the superintendent to whom he turned it in said to him, "So Red-headed Joe Donovan has got hurt: why didn't you put something down there under Remarks?" And the foreman replied, "Considering who it was that was hurt, and the fact that the injury was caused by a sledge-hammer falling on his toe, I didn't think the remarks ought to be repeated." [Laughter.] I am wondering, with this grand crowd attending here, what some of our old friends, could they return, would think of this occasion and how happy they would be. It was suggested tonight, at my left, by one of my predecessors [Right Worshipful Brother Gallagher], that it would be interesting to note some of the things that Brother Nickerson would think of were he here. Unfortunately, the news that we had restored Brother McGrew to the rights and privileges of Masonry did not reach him personally before he died; and it was suggested that we should issue a commission to Past Grand Master Nickerson to notify him of the decision restoring him to the |