PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND. 207 session, a lengthy discussion concerning the admission of women took place. The mo¬ tion to admit them was defeated by 81 to 34 votes. During the spring of 1891 A. P. Sher ¬ wood, a deputy high chief ranger from the of . New Brunswick , visited the Island, and the five courts in the Province signed a petition asking to be attached to the of New Brunswick . This was done, and when the of New Brunswick met in Woodstock on the 5th of August of that year, two of the Island courts were represented, Court Chautauqua by Capt. Joseph 'Read and G. M. Reid , and Court Silvan by R. W. Sprague (now de¬ ceased X and J. H. McLean . Capt. Read was appointed to the office of high senior wood¬ ward and R. W. Sprague was elected as one of the six representatives to the . The five Island courts had then a total membership of 135. The name of the of New Brunswick was changed to that of the of New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island . The sent A. P. Sherwood to the Island in the winter of 1892. He in¬ stituted, on March 3d, Court Avon- dale, No. 1012, Charlottetown . Of the first officers, seven are yet active members, viz., John H. Bell , James R. McKie , C. B. Warren , George W. Worthy , Donald Fraser , Fred Damarell and Dr. Warburton ; while D. K. Dobie , Nelson D. Armour and Charles McFarlane have passed beyond this life. Court Ferndale, No. 1055, was organ¬ ized at Georgetown on May 3d by Deputy Sherwood . He was joined by Rev. S. C. Wells , and the following courts were organ¬ ized: Courts Murray Harbour , No. 1058, South on May 9th; Albino, No. 1070, Eldon, on May 23d; Mazeppa, No. 1086, O'Leary , on June 8th; Prince Ed ¬ ward, No. 1098, Kensington , on July 1st; Westmoreland , No. 1105, Crapaud , July 12th; Nonpariel, No. 1113, New Glasgow , 12th; Nonpareil, No. 1113, New London , on on August 1st; New London , No. 1158, Stanley Bridge , on October 1st; Abegweit, No. 1168, Pownal , on October 14th; Wilt¬ shire, No. 1189, Brookfield , on November 2nd; Northumberland, No. 1204, Cape Traverse , on December 1st; and Aberdeen , No. 1215, Malpeque , on December 13th. The charter lists of members in all these courts contain the names of the leading business and professional men in the different local¬ ities, besides well known farmers and trades¬ men, most of whom are still prominent mem- bers of the Order . The eighteen Courts had on the 1st of January, 1893, 4*5 members. The of New Brunswick and Prince Ed ¬ ward Island had met in Summerside on Au¬ gust 23, 1892. At this meeting Daniel Stewart (since deceased) was elected high vice chief ranger, John Agnew , high senior woodward, and L. U. Fowler , high journal secretary. The next meeting of this was held at 'St. John, opening on Au¬ gust 8th. Only a small percentage of the Island high courts sent representatives. Among them were Rev. W. J. Kirby and Thomas Moyse from Court Minnewawa, Bedeque . At this meeting the Island dele¬ gates plainly saw that it would not be practi¬ cable to have the courts on the Island send delegates to New Brunswick . They there¬ fore asked the supreme chief ranger to grant the Island a of its own. This he did, and accordingly Hon . Judge Wedder- burn, supreme vice chief ranger, was sent to institute the of Prince Edward