The Irish standard., 1898-04-30
THE O'S AND THE MACS.
Long List os Eminent Men Who Have
Borne One Of the Prehxes.

CHAN, ito enable people of Irish birth
or extraction to adopt the use of the pre-
fix o. or Mac before their surnames I"
The right to bear that prefix is an honor
which a man inherits, and the long list
OF eminent men who have borne it have
added to the distinction.
1t may be coincidence, but the COS"
and the Macs" have always been the
foremost men of ireland and Scotland
for the last century or more There is
an old jingle in Ireland which runs:
BY Mac and o
You always will know
True lrishmen, they say;
For il they lack
Both O and Mac
No 1rishmen are they.
This is somewhat OF an exaggeration.
AS matter of fact, the COS" and The
Macs are not even in majority in
Ireland. The Pail Mall Gazette year
or so ago published list of the fifty
most common names in England, Scot
land and Ireland The Smiths, of course,
led in England and Scotland, but there
were five other names moro prevalent
than any 20" or Mac" on the Irish list.
1t would seem that the Murphys are
largely in the lead in Erin, and next
come Kelly, Sullivan, Walsh and Smith
before any 20" is reached, the first fam
lily being that of O'Brien. These are the
other surnames among the fifty given:
Bryne, Byrne, Connor, O'Neill. Reilly,
Doyle. Mccarthy, Gallagher, Doherty,
Kennedy. Lynch, Murray, Quinn, Moore.
Mclaughlin. Carroll, Connolly, Daily,
Cornell, Wilson, Dunno, Brennan, Burke,
Collins, Campbell, Clarke, Johnson,
Hughes, Farrell, Fitzgerald, Brown, Mar
tin, Mcguire, Nolan, Flynn, Thompson,
Callaghan, O'Donnell, Duffy, Mahony.
Boyle, Healy, Shea and White.
The prominence of tho los" and
Macs therefore, it will be seen, is not
due to mere numbers, for O'Brien is
sixth on the list O'Neill tenth and
O'Donnell forty-fourth-only three out
OF fifty-while Of MACS" there are only
Mccarthy. thirteenth, and Mclaughlin,
twenty-first-but two-a total of five in
forty for the "O's" and the Macs"
There are no "O's" in the Scotch list
OF fifty most frequent names, while the
Macs" number but six.
"O's" and Macs are nearly as COM
mon in the United States as they are in
Scotland or Ireland, for the Irish and
Scotch contributed a great share in the
building up of the country when it was
new.
1t would be interesting to run over the
names of the Macs" and los" who have
achieved fame. Tho list is rather long,
but a few might be mentioned which oc-
| cur to me at this moment
First of the Macs" one thinks of
William Mckinley. Perhaps the most
conspicuous statesmen of the others are
Hugh McCulloch, eX-secretary of the
treasury, and the Macdonald family, who
have ruled Canada; Alexander MacKen-
zie, another Canadian statesman; Wayne
MacVeagh, ex-attorney general of the
United States; Louis McLanc, secretary
Of state under Jackson; Thomas Nc
Kean signer of the Declarations; John
Mclean, secretary of war in Tyler's cabi-
net; Thomas NJ. T. MciIernon, In charge
OF the interior department under Fill
more, and Robert McCelland, who had
the same portfolio in Piercc's admins
tration John r. McCuloch the famous
English political economist, might be
mentioned in this connection.
1t is as SCIENTISTS however, that the
''Macs" have chiefly distinguished them
selves, and some of the most eminent
physicians and surgeons have borne that
patronymic. Among those whose names
are readily recalled are Alexander S. MIC
Dill. Edward d. Mcdaniel, George Nc
Culloch, James II. McClelland, Alexander
Macalistcr, Donald MacAlister, Sir Will
liam +. MacCormac, Grevillo Mcdonald,
John d. Macdonald, John Gray McKen-
dree, Douglas Maclagan, John MacW!or-
ter and Professor McVail. Some of
those who havo achieved fame in strict
ly scientific pursuits are James Maccul-
lagh, gcomctcr; John Macculloch, geolo-
gist; William Macgillvray, pioneer
American ornithologist, William Mac
lure, pioneer American geologist;
John T.. McIennon, anthropologist;
James Macintosh and James McCosh
philosophers; James Macbride, botanist;
James Mccormick, William Carmichael
Macintosh and Robert McLachlan, zoolo-
gists. And there is Cyrus II. Mccormick
the inventor of the reaper.
There have been many brave soldiers
among tho Macs" George b. McClel-
Ian and Marshall MacMahon are tho best
known. But the fame of the fighting
McCooks is great. In this family were
the soldiers John, George Wytha, Robert
L., Alexander Med. Edwin S., Charles
NJ, John James, Edward NJ, Arson G.,
Robert S. and two Daniels. all OF whom
shed blood for America. Other fighters
were Etienne Macdonald, marshal OF
France, who became Duke of Toronto;
James II. Macbride, Duncan Macarthur,
Benjamin McCulloch, Admiral McClin-
took, and perhaps Admiral McNair, who
has just been detailed to command our