The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1891-07-30
ARAmsLE AMONG sURNAMEs.
Annual Address Delivered by Rev. j. Wal
tor Daniel Before the Alumni Asso-
citation OF Newberry College,
Juno 49, 1891.

without it. Like the doves of which
Israeps sweetest singer speaks Of hover
ing among the pots upon the fat house
tops of the Jews, there seeking a rest
ing place for the night, but soaring
away in the early dawn with their
wings ''covered with silver" and tnelr
"Sesthers with yellow gold," untar-
nished by the sooty cooking utensils,
so the Cooks and Cooksons made them
selves name in the crude kitchens OF
our Anglo-Saxon ancestors.
We have also Brewers and Brewsters,
showing that the brewers art was also
in the hands of women. Over the pro-
ducts of their art many brave knight
uttered the common Saxon toast Woes
hod (be weli) to his drinking compan-
ion, and drank to the king, queen, or
his lady love. But many of the descen-
dsnts of the Brewers and Brewsters
are to-day heart and hand against the
traffic Of their progenitors.
Macaulay speaks OF tie gay appear
snee of London in the olden times,
caused by the painted signs Of the store
andshop-keepers. i orts OF animals
frightful dragons ID monsters were
painted to attract tie attention Of the
passer-by and invite his custom. The
shop-keepers OF feudal times were am
bilious to excel each other, as they are
to-day, in the novelty of their signs;
and this, together with the ignorance
of the times, gave rise to many anus
ing scenes. "The story is told of GER
tain shoemaker, who hearing or seeing
the Latin expression-Mens co1ascao
recti, though knowing nothing Of its
meaning, thought it would be an addi-
tionsl attraction to his sign, and had it
inscribed beneath lis pictorial shoe. A
rival son of Crispi;1, not to be outdone
in business enterprise, st once offered
an amendment, and placed upon his
sign the words Mems and aDoneen's con-
scia recti. These signs gave rise to per-
sonal names, thus John doing
smiths business ut the "Arln and
Hammer" might after awhile become
known as John Hammersmith. Or an
other John-a rival blacksmith-zeal-
Gus to portray the muscular capacity OF
his arm, had the sign painter to deal
somewhat in pictorial hyperbole, and
may have thus secured for himself the
title John Armstrong.
In this manner, many of the names
of the animals of the forest were
fastened as surname upon men. A
number Of rival butchers doing busi-
ness in the same town or city took
their names from the painted images
of certain animals over their places OF
business-thus we have from the NAM
mails Bcek, Bullock, Lamb, Roe and
man others. The Fishers made their
name with hook and line, but the COM
peting fshmengers took their names
doubtless from the pictorial representa-
ton of their craft painted in gaudy
colors over their fish stalls, hence we
have Bodfsh, Bass, Pike, Roach and
Fish.
The birds OF the forest were not
ignored in the day of surnsme-making
for we have the names-Wren, Dove,
Sparrow, Swami. Nightingale, Finch,
Bullfnch, Jay, Hawkes., Crane, Drake,
Partridge, Wookcock, Henshaw, which
is properly speaking Rernsha~, an
other name for heron: and this brings
TO mind thesaying- doesn't know
hawk from q hand-saw," wherein
the last word is corruption of hern-
shaw. By substituting this word the
drift of the proverb is apparent, in
timating that one does not know the
difference between the hawk, or falcon,
or the heron or hernshaw which the
hawk pursues.
The major part of these names, per
haps, came from the painted signs Of
hucksters, though some of them may
have originated from trivial character
isttics and incidents. Carlyle informs
US that Hsrald, the first Christian king
of Norway, as early as A. D. 96l, 'got
the name Of GreWsH froiu his people
on q very trivial account, but seeming
" with perfect good-humour on theil
part. Some Iceland traders had brought
. cargo of furs to Trondhjem (Lade)
for sale; sale being Stacker than the
Icelander wished, he presented chosen
specimen, cloak, doablet, or whatever
il was, to Harald, who wore it with
acceptance in public, and rapidly
brought disposal Of the lcelander':
stock, and the surname Of GreWeu te
himself"
The surname Of the first conquere
of the numerous jarls Of Norway
Harald, Fairhair, and that Of the au
thor Of the Norman conquest of En-
gland, Rolf the Ganger (Walker) cam
from incidents equally as trivial a
that which gave Harald Greyfell hi
appellation. Rolf Ganger was 81
welghty man no horse could carr!
him, says Carlyle, and he walked
"having a mighty stride withal, ant
CREST velocity on foot, Thence his name
Earald aspired to marry the beautiful
Gyda-the proud beauty answered hin
Her it would not beseem to we'
any jarl or poor creature of that kind
let him do as CORN Of Denmark, Fri
ofSweden. and Egbert Of England
subdue into pesce and regulation tn
confused, contentious bits of jar
around him, and become king; the