The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1881-10-10
The MISUSE Of a Great Name.
Hartford Courant.l /

1t is expressly forbidden by divine command
ment to take the name of God in vain. II
there is no specific commandment forbidding
to take tho names of men in vain, there is
nevertheless an ordination of common law to
that effect Propriety, to say the least, utters
its prohibition. And especially, when the name
is one Of peculiar honor. And more especially,
when the name is one which death has made
sacred.
The name of James A. Garfield is one Of pc
culiar honor and sacredness. 1t was made
honorable by the man who bore it, it became
thrice honorable by virtue of the position to
which he was elevated, it became hallowed
name through the circumstances of his suffer-
ings and death.
1t is quite possible that this name shall be
taken in vain. Indeed, unless we misiudge
it is being so taken, and feeling of something
akin TO disgust is excited by some things
which one reads and hears A contemporary
alludes to the same evil in describing what it
calls the "Garield grindstone," T" and the innu-
merable axes that arc being brought to bear
thereupon for grinding.
There are excellent reasons for approving
the efforts being made to secure some worthy
and useful memorial of Mr.. Garfield in Hiram
institute and Williams college, with which
institutes he was most intimately related.
There is good reason, too, for attempting 10
secure a suitable monument to mark the spot
where his body repoSes. But how utterly rlo-
iculous and worse than that, for TINS and tnat
college and seminarys in need OF tunds, TO De
instituting and begging for Garfield" endow-
ments thus openly and indecently using it,
TOO. in a manner that would never be thought
of were tho man alive and able to protect his
name from abuse 1t does not help the matter
at all that the ends sought are good Men have
no right to dead mans name thus. They
have no property in it or liberty with it.
It would be about as fair to use the name of
some distinguished living citizen on begging
circular without his permissian or knowledge.
1t is not the attempt of greedy seltishness
to coin money out of great national MOURN
ing" which we now reprobate, for we believe
there are few persons in the country who
would now consciously make such attempts,
but rather the thoughtless, needless misuse OF
a name to promote ends which are thought to
be desirable. Just SO many persons use the
Divine name in vain, but not without some
degree of guilt.
Whether the name OF the everlasting hills
shall be here and there changed on the inn
pulse OF the hour, and re-christened, or wheth-
er public avenues and buildings shall likewise
be invested with the dead Presidents name,
is question of taste perhaps. The oircum-
stances OF each case might be considered. 10
found and endow q hospital, for instance,
with the original and special purpose Oh erect
ing memorial to him, would be quite another
thing than seizng the occasion OF public
mourning to use his name for the purpose Of
raising money for some hospital, college, or
church.
Some one has received the idea OF taking up
a collection in the churches throughout the
land for the Michigan sufferers, as Garfield