The herald., 1894-08-12
POOR CHILDREN.
Sig Names For Youngsters Of the Future IL
This idea ss<soes."

Sig Names For Youngsters Of the Future 81
This Idea "<soes."
Among the reforms which the coming
woman will probably insist upon when
she has secured her full legal and polit.
icai rights will be modification in the
present custom which requires her TO
adopt the name Of the man whom she
marries Ladies of advanced ideas have
long maintained that this custom was n
reno OF barbarian as well as badge of
sorvitude. Its origin can be clearly
traced to the uncivilized ages of rap;ne.
When q wife YVES captured, not courted:
won after the fashion Of Rornulps not
wooed alter the manner of Romeo. In
barbarous times and among savage peo-
pie II q man wanted a wife he would 90
OUT and hunt one, just as he would food
or some other thing essential to his com
fort, and after he had bagged her would
take her homo and set her to cooxino
and making herself generally useful.
she was his property by right of cap
ture' and he called her by his namo to
prevent any mistakes in the matter of
titie Possibly originally he may have
branded her with his mark to keen
thieves and unprovided bachelors from
helplng themselves to his stock, As time
went en-, however, and women became
more abundant wives were much more
easily captured, their disposition to RIM
away from wife hunters apparently de-
creasing III precise proportion to the in
crease in their number, and it becama
unnecessary to do more than bring them
into the household camp and give them
the name Of their owner
The custom of forcing the wife Co m.
sumo her husbands name and regarding
her as sort of matrimonial chatteI
finally became so firmly established that
woman herself came to acquiesce in il a.
o matter of course and even to take
pride in 1t. But there is clearly neither
logic nor justice in it, and the coming
woman is likely to protest against ID
as survival of barbarism and as a mark
OF inequality. If man nowadays when
he feels in want of q wife, went out, as
he did in tho carly ages, and captured
one, there would be some reason in i'm
posing his name upon her. But in point
OF fact he does not do all the hunting
and capturing at the present day.
lie is quite frequently the hunted and
the captured, and it is the height of
audacity for him in such cases to expect
MS captor to take his name and allow
him all the honors Of war. Apart from
such considerations as these, there is no
more reason why woman should take
mans name when she marries hin
han that the man should take hers. n
here is to be change, why should he
lot change his? When John Jones mar
les Mary SrnisA, why should he not be-
lnown as MIR. Mary Smith rather than
ne as Mrs. John Jones? What has been
ne logic for the goose all these years
Iught to DO logic for the gander under
he new dispensation. Under the old
ustom we have had innumerable Mrs.
Generals Mrs. Presidents, Mrs. Doctors,
&C. The wife, it must be admitted.
early always is Mrs. General in point
fact but why should it not be quite
S logical for the husband to take her
romised us? II she is q judge, DOCTOR,
bishop Or the like, the man could be
and accurately described
s the husband OK Mrs. Bishop or Mrs.
udge So-and-so, giving him the benefit
9th Of her glory and her maiden name.
Before the fall Of man and the period
Vhen he was forced to capture his wives
here appear to have been perfect
guilty and equality in the matter Of
ames in matrimonial contracts. When
I've married, she did not change her
ame to Mrs. Adam She insisted ON
reserving her individuality and her
amily identity by retaining her maiden
anne. Nor do business partners at the
resent time surrender their name when
hey enter into these relations. Why
hould not something of the same sort
Q done in matrimonial partnershipsi
{ woman named Green should marry
man named Dunn, for instance, tbs
rm could be known as Green, Dunn 8
o., the company being the general
anne for the children. If Mrs Green
nould have son John who should
larry woman named Brown, he could
ign himself John Green-Dunn Brown.
n this way the family pedigree could
Q preserved in the Names and the fam
y tree would be easily climbed. The
act that family names would soon grow
5 long as the titles of some Of the for
ign princes who marry American girls
FINISHES no valid objection to this sug-
estion, but rather an aristocratic charm.
-Paltir,1OTo Co.