The examiner. [volume] (Louisville, Ky.) 1847-1849, 1847-10-23
The Ars.sosracy Of Names,

Our readers are aware that the strange
Thesis has been maintained before now that
"private vices arc public Benefits" and
some may have wondered al the desperate
ingenuity which could work evil into good
by the simple rule OF multiplication. But
we live in 4 world OF seeming anomalies !:
and however difficult their reconciliation
may be, there is no doubt that the errors OF
individuals are over-mastered in their coIec-
tive tendency, and that We all, good, bad,
wise, and foolish alike, cooperative uncon-
sciously, in the great work Of human pro.
gress.
As familiar illustration of what We
mean-the philosopher smiles al the enthu-
sasm OF the vulgar in their aspirations after
a. underlined and undefnable good they
call the Genteel; but the philosopher NAV
smile on, for the wisdom OF the learned
Thebsn is foolishness. Such aspirations
are the beginning Of all refinement They
lead, it IS true. TO the preparation of in
Vulnerable caTlcatures; but these in time
correct themselves, or are corrected by col.
lision, I'LL every day some individuals, rising
gradually above the mass, ascend into the
region OF true tsste-oT what is taken for
such by the present generation. And what
is true of individuals, is true of nations.
and Of society at large. The history of
manners and costume, or, so TO speak,
Fashion, is the history OF virtue and inieIl.
gen1e. How many revolutions have we
passed through, before reaching our present
simplicity Of attire! And how many hor.
rors have We encountered before subsiding
into our present condition OF comparative
charity and peace! Our contemporaries
are better, as well as better dressed. than
their ancestors; and our posterity will be
better, and better dressed, than ourselves
Already our women have more elegance
and less busIle; end already our men have
grown ashamed Of their pig-tailed coats, not
q thread Of which will survive for their heirs
al law. Already, in like manner, do we
begin TO pick up little thieves and beggars
Ion the streets, to imprison them in schools,
insiead Of communicating them in iaiis; TO
turn them TO knowledge and industry, in
stead OF confirming them in ignorance and
crime and to lead them on TO public USE
fulrsss, rather than the hulks and the gal
lows. Condemn not therefore, the vulgsr
gen.eel, any more than our ancestors, for,
like the latter, they ore pilgrims on the
road, and their very errors are paths that
lead to truth.
But here is one thing in the general bear.
ing and tendency of the present age TO-
wards the Genteel which is little puz
zling-not that we think the thing unnatu-
raj or improper in itself, but we cannot
well see in what way the result is 10 benefit
society. Gaudy or Unmatched colors be-
tray mental Struggle, which may end in
advancing the individual in the path to
taste ard control, however rude, of the
language and movements Of the body, may
in like manner result in an approach to
wards politeness. But Of what utility in
our social progress is the present chronic
revolution in proper names' Suppose, for
instance. the whole race Of Smiths get on
to writing their name Smyth, or even reach
the ne plus ultra Smythe, chi bono
Smythe is not inlrinsically better than
Smitn II Is only more uncommon; and
every advance the multitudinous tribe makes
in this direction defeats its own object. II
Smythe were a good, or beauty in itself
If it were the beau ideal of Smith-tbat
would be another thing; but il does not
even make the name a dyssyllable-it
leaves 1t the same short, squan, ruturiey
word as ever. Nothing, in fact. can be
done for Smith but giving it an amiable
prename, or, better still, title. Sir Sid
ney Smith, for instance, has decidedly
aristocratic sound; and this has no depend
ence upon its personal associations, other
wise Adam Smith would be recognized as
the Legitimate chief of the clan. Without
sprename at all, Count Smith, and Baron
Smith, SO common on the continent, are
highly respectable; and If a suggestion had
been adopted, which was kindly and happi-
ymade. on the occasion Of the marriage of
snlrish beauty of the name with scion Of
Italian royalty, Smith would have become