The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-09-20
THEORY OF PROPER NAMES.
Curious Instances of a Certain Char.
set r or Fate Following a Certain
Name

From The Week.
1t is curious thing that this money
grubbing nineteenth century, which prides
itself on being practical and realistic and is
ashamed of tears or sentimental express
sions, should be also an age of romantic
names, will find in it a fair sprinkliug of
Elatnes, COrdelias, Ethelwofs and Cory
dOns or at least of names somewhat like
these. while Percy, Roland, Gladys, Hilda
and Beatrice easily outnumber Susan and
Martha, Peter and Dick.
or course reaction will some day bring
us an era OF keZia and keren- happuch,
with an occasional Jashu- bilchem. | came
upon a sermon by DIR. Talmage the other
day, written with the intention Of consohng
ana encouraging people who start han0i-
capped IN the race of hfe-among others,
those Athlete with such names as the Jew-
ish ones mentioned; but believe too fine q
name to be an equal misfortune. If a
Gwendolen or Guinevere does not happen to
be beautiful, can you expect her TO be use
full And 1t is rarely that man with
either very high-hown or a very uncouth
name makes very brilliant success in life.
You will find that most people, il they have
a choice, prefer safe aud solid medIocrity
of name for the persons with whom they do
business, probably from an unconscious i'm
will be equally free from embarrassing OF
dangerous originality (which is by no means
sure to be the CASE. 1t would be rather in
teresting to ascertain if the "John Smiths
in the penitentiary records bear the same
proportion 10 other names as they do in the
directory.
1t seems quite reasonable to think, like
Miss Betsy Trotwood, that sit would be
much easier to have been born a Jack ION,
xy.Ff k,ab
a South Sea island" name as "Peggotty."
Few people can help forming an idea of the
person from the name. and that certain
characteristics are associated with certain
names or classes of names can be pretty
we'll proved from fiction. "Margaret'tis al
most invariably lowered with hight and
force of character, and generally with
beauty aud goodness. +. Marion Craw-
ford's Countess Margaret" Mrs. Gas
kell's Margaret Hale" and Mrs. Alexan-
der's Margaret Grantham" will serve as
specimens. The latter lady suggests well
the contrast between Maggie" and MAR
garrett" "Helen" is very often similar in
character to Margaret, but not so strong
nor so invariably good. There are, of
course, almost as many varieties OF "Maries"
in fiction as in real life, but l can
not recall single frivolous or
Giddy Mary and a few unaimable ones.
Nelly a favorite name with Walter
Besaut, is usually of gay and rather inn
petuous disposition, and "Herty" and
kitty have generally something of the
same character. Every one must remark
the different expectations formed of John"
from what we look for in Jack, and it is
odd that while "Johu" is generally good
boy, and Jack" very often bit of scape-
grace "Francis" is much more likely TO he
q william than Frank" il fiction at least.
Many authors have favoriJe name
which they are prone TO repeat; Anthony
Trollope has more than dozen Maries, and
d. Christie Murray is very partial to this
name Jean Ingelow's favorte Tor more
often repeatedly name is certainly John, and
the Rev. S. Baring-Gould has remarkable
fancy for giving his female characters
names which begin with T. 1t is curious
circumstance that bad heroine has nearly
always a fine name, while the good ones
may have quite simple and common names ;
it is not rare to find charming
heroines called Jane or Susan. With
heroes it is quite otherwise; man evil
IDENTIFY needs more to make him heroic es-
pecally In the hands of modern novelists,
and derives assistance from A name such as
Guy, Bernard, Kenneth, Basil or Geofrey.
| will almost defy a veteran novel reader
30 find a Peter or Jacob with any romantic
pretensions; Anthony TrolloDe's Phineas
Finn and Jonathan Stubs merely prove
the rule, being certainly so called out OF
pure contradictoriness Dickens and Thack-
cray hardly ever made heroes in the mod
ern sense, but Bulwer went inn for both
fiue names and heroes extensively. George
Eliot is, think, the hapDiest Of all novel
lists in giving thoroughly characteristic
names, without a tinge of caricature, and
this is another proof Of support of my the
DRY that the name affects or expresses the
character. my friends say that, like the
lieutenant in THE Taxing Of Lung Tung-
Pen, " am too fond of "theorism," but will
any one maintain that Arthur Donnithorne
could have acted as he did If his name had
been Joseph? Or that Caleb Garth could
possibly have been called Francisl George
Eliot knew better)
Here is a whimsical passage from Jean
Ingelow on the subject Of name-characters;
"She Sarah de Berenger) said: I've a new
gardener named David. Now we can hardly
suppose that providence interferes, when a
child is called David, to change the color Of
his hair lift was going 10 be black; but il is
strange that you will find any man named
David always has sandy hair, or, at any
rate, light hair. But that con-
tinued Sarah, is only one out Of hundreds
of names. Does it result from the
eternal fitness Of things that a
woman named Fanny always in fiction
and generally in real life is frivol>
Gus! In fact, believe it is the
observation of this fact which causes people
not to use the name half so much. Then
again some names are quite gone out, be-
cause it has been observed that the ri Is
who bore them always became old maids.
Miss Grizzle, for instance; Griselda was
once favorite name; Miss Penelope, Miss
Rebecca, Miss Tabitha. Iwouldn'G
call a son Lionel on any account, she con-
tinued, unless | wished him to go into the
army; nor Robert, If l objected to bis
taking holy orders nor Godfrey, unless l
knew beforehand that he would be fat and
nothing | could do would prevent it;
nor Gilbert, if l wished him to pay his
debts.'n
l have myself seen some curious instances
of a certain character of fate following a
certain family name, and, though no
doubt mere coincidents, | think there are
strong arguments for naming children
after persons you would wish them to re-
semble; however, it is necessary to remem-
Der that, though we can all be good per
haps), we can't all be great. Charles Dick
ems named all his eight sons after writers OF
note, and not one of them has attained fame.
After all, the perversity of human nature
is such that the most carefully chosen name
might appear to act by contrarles; name>
sake Of Mark Twain might abhor jokes, or
even brigham Young" remain q per-
sistent bachelor.
The Spring Medicine.
Thu poD,,Iaritv which Hoods Sarsanarilla