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Article FACTOTUMS AND TEETOTUMS. Page 1 of 2 Article FACTOTUMS AND TEETOTUMS. Page 1 of 2 →
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Factotums And Teetotums.
FACTOTUMS AND TEETOTUMS .
IN" the holiday season it is allowable even for the Editor of a Masonic Journal to relax somewhat from the sterner duties of his office , and if not exactly to make light of those duties , at all events he is justified in reducing them to within as light a compass as possible . Those subjects
which engross his attention during the business portion of the year need not be considered—indeed , it would be extremely undesirable to refer to them seriously , when the Craft generally is inclining its attention to Prov . Grand Lodge Meetings , Summer Excursions and Banquets , and
the lesser yet not less genial duties of a Freemason . It is permissible , therefore , and unquestionably more convenient at this season , to make note , in a kindly spirit of course , of the more eccentric among individual Masons . Hence the title of this article " Factotums and Teetotums . "
A Factotum , as our readers are aware , is a man who can successfully give his attention to most—we hardly dare venture to translate it literally and say all—things . For instance , a man in some business office , who is equal to any and every demand on his resources ; who can give safe and
sound service on important questions with as great facility as he can keep the office books ; who is as orderly in the arrangement of his papers as he is skilful in the dressing of a juicy steak ; who is a peripatetic cyclopaedia in respect of all information ; who can translate Bradshaw into plain
English , and knows every clause of the Cab and Hackney Carriage Act ; who in his lightest moments will describe , with unusual geniality , the innumerable entertainments which are given in the Metropolis ; who , as was said of the late Earl Russell , could , at a moment's notice , take
command of the Channel with as great ability as he would deliver a speech or write an essay on the subject of Parliamentary or Municipal Reform—such a one is a perfect genius of a Factotum , and not to be encountered often . But their are inferior Factotums , —men who can do a
multitude of little things fairly well , whom we meet with in all circles of society , in all descriptions of business , and , unquestionably , in the ranks of Freemasonry . There is , for instance , the active little brother—Factotums are generally compact and of modest dimensions—who , if called upon
suddenly , will play the Tyler , and stand sternly erect at the portals of the Lodge , with a mien and bearing that tell yon unmistakably , you have a very Cerberus to pass by before you can gain admission into the sacred precincts of the Masonic temple . The same Brother will preside off-hand
as W . Master , and fulfil any office from that of S . W . down to Wine Steward , with less hesitation than when he sits down with an appetite that is not easily to be satisfied to his midday or evening repast . He is to be met with in Lodges of Instrnction , where he has come to be looked up
to as an authority on Ritual . He will rush you through the Fifteen Sections with lightning speed , so that when he has completed the task , you are just beginning to realise the fact of your being one of an admiring but puzzled audience . tie
¦ will show you how Preston , Stephen Jones , Peter Gilkes , and the other great lights of Freemasonry , might have made themselves far more famous as lecturers . He will take you through the whole curriculum of Masonic study , from the E gyptian Mysteries to the Architects of the miaaie
Ages , and Speculative Masonry of modern times . He is posted in all that relates to our Institutions , and makes a capital M . C . at a Summer banquet , when he is prepared to cut a cucumber with even the Grand Master himself , if he honoured the banquet with his Most Wor-
Factotums And Teetotums.
shipful presence . He will write yoxi an article on the antiquity of our Fraternity , or , in a letter to some Masonic journal , describe , with unerring sagacity and a vehemence which nothing can stem , his notion of the newest grievance which afflicts the brethren . This is the Masonic Factotum
who is ready at any moment to take upon himself tho fulfilment of the most Herculean task , and who , to his credit be it said , does fairly well in all that he sots his hand to . He is an active little body and no fool , and tho
result is , he enjoys a high degree of popularity , and is well received wherever he goes , and in whatever capacity he figures . But thero is another class of Factotum— " The Jack of all Trades and Master of
none "—who is not to be placed in the same category . He is a brother who does not hesitate to offer his opinion on even the nicest points of grammar , of Ritual , of ceremonial . Ho is , in his own opinion , as capable a Chairman or Director of Ceremonies as any one of his
contemporaries . He will order a banquet with the air of a gourmet , and partakes of it with the greasy unctuousness of a gourmand . He is nothing of a scholar , but will entertain you with words , —the scscjiii ^ cdalia . verla of Horace are his favourites—the meanin g of which is
entirely beyond his powers of understanding . In his interference at inopportune times , when the direction is in somebody else ' s hands , and he thinks it should be in his , he is irrepressible . Knowing no law but his own will , and respecting no authority but
that of his own overbearing temper , as may be imagined , ho is the reverse of facile in his disposition . There is a presumption in his manner , as there is a grating harshness in his voice and a lack of delicacy about his language . His energy is great , yet it is not the energy of
the quiet and earnest worker , but of the boisterous man , who is always overstepping the limits of reason . He has , it is true , some good points about him . He is smart and can accomplish a vast amount of work without straining his powers too much ; bnt he lacks the discretion to
keep those good points prominently before the world , so that in time they become partially , if not wholly , obscured by his more objectionable characteristics . He must take the lead , when he should , if he studied himself and others , leave the initiative to some better qualified person . He
cannot see that for every task to be carried out symmetrically , by a body of men , not only must harmony prevail among them , but every one mnst be in his proper place , and occupy himself with that particular function which he
is best qualified to undertake . But we are forgetting ourselves . He is a Factotum , aud in his own estimation is equally qualified to discharge any one of the offices thero are to be distributed .
Let us now give a brief attention to the Teetotums of Freemasonry . As our readers know , a Teetotum is a toy which is spun by children or others on the ground , or on a table . It is a many-sided figure , and on each face is inscribed a letter of the alphabet or a numeral . In a
contest among players—supposing it to be used for other than spinning purposes—whoever names the letter or number on the uppermost face of the Teetotum , when it has ceased revolving , is declared the winner . Thus a Teetotum is an implement , which , being an inanimate body , has no
volition of its own , but is manipulated by the player who , according to his skill or want of skill , makes it or does not make it revolve so as to secure the success of his particular letter or number . Are there not many Teetotums in the ranks of Freemasonry , brethren who , having no volition of their own , are twirled round and round as often
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Factotums And Teetotums.
FACTOTUMS AND TEETOTUMS .
IN" the holiday season it is allowable even for the Editor of a Masonic Journal to relax somewhat from the sterner duties of his office , and if not exactly to make light of those duties , at all events he is justified in reducing them to within as light a compass as possible . Those subjects
which engross his attention during the business portion of the year need not be considered—indeed , it would be extremely undesirable to refer to them seriously , when the Craft generally is inclining its attention to Prov . Grand Lodge Meetings , Summer Excursions and Banquets , and
the lesser yet not less genial duties of a Freemason . It is permissible , therefore , and unquestionably more convenient at this season , to make note , in a kindly spirit of course , of the more eccentric among individual Masons . Hence the title of this article " Factotums and Teetotums . "
A Factotum , as our readers are aware , is a man who can successfully give his attention to most—we hardly dare venture to translate it literally and say all—things . For instance , a man in some business office , who is equal to any and every demand on his resources ; who can give safe and
sound service on important questions with as great facility as he can keep the office books ; who is as orderly in the arrangement of his papers as he is skilful in the dressing of a juicy steak ; who is a peripatetic cyclopaedia in respect of all information ; who can translate Bradshaw into plain
English , and knows every clause of the Cab and Hackney Carriage Act ; who in his lightest moments will describe , with unusual geniality , the innumerable entertainments which are given in the Metropolis ; who , as was said of the late Earl Russell , could , at a moment's notice , take
command of the Channel with as great ability as he would deliver a speech or write an essay on the subject of Parliamentary or Municipal Reform—such a one is a perfect genius of a Factotum , and not to be encountered often . But their are inferior Factotums , —men who can do a
multitude of little things fairly well , whom we meet with in all circles of society , in all descriptions of business , and , unquestionably , in the ranks of Freemasonry . There is , for instance , the active little brother—Factotums are generally compact and of modest dimensions—who , if called upon
suddenly , will play the Tyler , and stand sternly erect at the portals of the Lodge , with a mien and bearing that tell yon unmistakably , you have a very Cerberus to pass by before you can gain admission into the sacred precincts of the Masonic temple . The same Brother will preside off-hand
as W . Master , and fulfil any office from that of S . W . down to Wine Steward , with less hesitation than when he sits down with an appetite that is not easily to be satisfied to his midday or evening repast . He is to be met with in Lodges of Instrnction , where he has come to be looked up
to as an authority on Ritual . He will rush you through the Fifteen Sections with lightning speed , so that when he has completed the task , you are just beginning to realise the fact of your being one of an admiring but puzzled audience . tie
¦ will show you how Preston , Stephen Jones , Peter Gilkes , and the other great lights of Freemasonry , might have made themselves far more famous as lecturers . He will take you through the whole curriculum of Masonic study , from the E gyptian Mysteries to the Architects of the miaaie
Ages , and Speculative Masonry of modern times . He is posted in all that relates to our Institutions , and makes a capital M . C . at a Summer banquet , when he is prepared to cut a cucumber with even the Grand Master himself , if he honoured the banquet with his Most Wor-
Factotums And Teetotums.
shipful presence . He will write yoxi an article on the antiquity of our Fraternity , or , in a letter to some Masonic journal , describe , with unerring sagacity and a vehemence which nothing can stem , his notion of the newest grievance which afflicts the brethren . This is the Masonic Factotum
who is ready at any moment to take upon himself tho fulfilment of the most Herculean task , and who , to his credit be it said , does fairly well in all that he sots his hand to . He is an active little body and no fool , and tho
result is , he enjoys a high degree of popularity , and is well received wherever he goes , and in whatever capacity he figures . But thero is another class of Factotum— " The Jack of all Trades and Master of
none "—who is not to be placed in the same category . He is a brother who does not hesitate to offer his opinion on even the nicest points of grammar , of Ritual , of ceremonial . Ho is , in his own opinion , as capable a Chairman or Director of Ceremonies as any one of his
contemporaries . He will order a banquet with the air of a gourmet , and partakes of it with the greasy unctuousness of a gourmand . He is nothing of a scholar , but will entertain you with words , —the scscjiii ^ cdalia . verla of Horace are his favourites—the meanin g of which is
entirely beyond his powers of understanding . In his interference at inopportune times , when the direction is in somebody else ' s hands , and he thinks it should be in his , he is irrepressible . Knowing no law but his own will , and respecting no authority but
that of his own overbearing temper , as may be imagined , ho is the reverse of facile in his disposition . There is a presumption in his manner , as there is a grating harshness in his voice and a lack of delicacy about his language . His energy is great , yet it is not the energy of
the quiet and earnest worker , but of the boisterous man , who is always overstepping the limits of reason . He has , it is true , some good points about him . He is smart and can accomplish a vast amount of work without straining his powers too much ; bnt he lacks the discretion to
keep those good points prominently before the world , so that in time they become partially , if not wholly , obscured by his more objectionable characteristics . He must take the lead , when he should , if he studied himself and others , leave the initiative to some better qualified person . He
cannot see that for every task to be carried out symmetrically , by a body of men , not only must harmony prevail among them , but every one mnst be in his proper place , and occupy himself with that particular function which he
is best qualified to undertake . But we are forgetting ourselves . He is a Factotum , aud in his own estimation is equally qualified to discharge any one of the offices thero are to be distributed .
Let us now give a brief attention to the Teetotums of Freemasonry . As our readers know , a Teetotum is a toy which is spun by children or others on the ground , or on a table . It is a many-sided figure , and on each face is inscribed a letter of the alphabet or a numeral . In a
contest among players—supposing it to be used for other than spinning purposes—whoever names the letter or number on the uppermost face of the Teetotum , when it has ceased revolving , is declared the winner . Thus a Teetotum is an implement , which , being an inanimate body , has no
volition of its own , but is manipulated by the player who , according to his skill or want of skill , makes it or does not make it revolve so as to secure the success of his particular letter or number . Are there not many Teetotums in the ranks of Freemasonry , brethren who , having no volition of their own , are twirled round and round as often