The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-09-27
By
A
CLUB
WOMAN
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G. A s u A L
G. 9 NJ NJ f N T

bears through life the name OF Preserved
Fish Austin.
About the middle of last century the fash
ion Of pretty and fanciful names suddenly
came in. No pen can describe the sufferings
of the little girl named Hannah or Saman-
tina or some other name that did not admit
of diminutive ending in lie. However, there
were few Of them that did not find some
syllable in their old-fashioned names 10
which the undesirable termination could
be added Happy was the Matilda that dis
covered that her name could justly be short
ened TO Maud. whence the step 10 Maudie
was easy. have even known a Permelia
transformed to Nellie. AT that era parents
were found explaining that the little daugh-
ter's name was really Carrie or Maggie. not
Caroline or Margaret Often one would see
families where the older daughters bore
such names as Sarah Jane and Betsy Ann.
and the younger ones, whom their elder
sisters. keenly mindful OF their own suffer-
ings, had named, would be Lille May and
Daisy Ellie All manner OF flower names
and jewel names came into use, and some
times inventions almost incredibly fanciful-
such as Prairie Bird Green and Fairy Fern
Jones.
Now the fancy has gone back to old-fash-
toned names; something strong and digni-
fed is required. Jane and Elizabeth and
Rebecca suddenly find ii distinguished to
resurrect their original names, free them
from all fanciful DISCUSSES and wear them
as a crown Of glory. Such are the strange
reversals of fashion, that Flossie and
Minnie grown to womanhood, are studying
up some way to dignity their names. and
invent modification that will look well
a professional card or In a wedding an
nouncement.
One girl who had been duly and dutifully
named Sarah. for her mother. but never
called anything but Birdie, so that her own
father was completely puzzled when fam
lily friend inquired, How is little Sarah2"
appeared on her wedding cards as Birdie.
Another, who. by special interposition OF her
elder sisters, had been named Fanny May.
now appears her professional cards with
much distinction as Frances Marion Adams.
NJ D.-the Marion being her mothers FAM
lily name.
A rather pretty fashion Of recent years
is to give girl some graceful family sur
name as her first name. This works well as
long as such names as Mead, or Sidney, or
Royce are available and are chosen, but
think of its awful possibilities if ii should
ever become fad. so that proud mothers
would give their little girls family names,
regardless of euphony and fitness. Think OF
christening girl Jones, or Higgins or Sned-
ecor, not to mention worse possibilities,
from which the pen recoilsl
1.-THE poet in a golden cline was born,
With golden stars above,
lowered with the hate OF hate.
The scorn of scorn, the love OF love-
Quoted the Critical One. Now what do the
last two lines mean?'
Her friends looked as startled as school,
children u d EN- y
Farmers Col called on for dcfini-
lege, Indiana. tior OF a word they
had always comfort
ably supposed had no meaning.
''Why, suppose" said the Good Listener.
slowly, that it means that the poet hates
and scorns and loves in the superlative de-
gree. doesn't it?''
$50 some one astonshed me by interpret
ing it. the other day. and wanted to find
out whether others had understood IL so.
also. had never thought before that IL
could mean anything but that the poet hates
hate and scorns scorn and loves love-and
shall never be able to persuade myself that
that was not Tennyson's meaning, though
/ admit the words might bear the other in
depreciation. But to be a golden CLINE. it
would be one where hate and scorn were
ruled out, and love was supreme. wouldn't
it?"
Her friends meekly asserting to her view,
the Critical One went on.
II suppose IL is very easy TO scorn other
peoples scorns. The scorn of the city-bred
for country people. OF the big university for
the small college, and of the man who works
in his coat for the man who works in his
shirt sleeves, always did strike me as pc
culiarly contemplate and short-sighted.
For to whom does the empire of the future
belong, and where do the great men come
from? Is it not from the farms and the
small colleges?"
Yes, that is true" said the Young Moth
er. after a swift mental review
II heard DIR. Gray, of the Interior. say
something in a speech at Knox College that
bears on that point" said the Botanical
One. He said something like this: The
very name of my alma mater has persisted
from the memory Of mankind. Who ever
heard OF Farmers College. Indiana? 1t was
a big barn of a building out in the country.
that the boys could support themselves by
working the land while they went TO the
college. II was an impossible plan. of course,
and the college finally gave up the ghost.
after few struggling years. But the boys
who went there studied: they were in deadly
earnest about getting an education.
And from that forgotten backwoods coll
lege have come President of the United
States two judges OF the Supreme Court.
three United States senators. two members
of the lower house. three attorneys practic-
ing before the Supreme Court, two members
Of the state Supreme Court. one state sena-
tor, three members of the legislature
forget the rest of the list. and am not sure
| have remembered what ! have quoted ex-
actly right.
And yet how the students OF Harvard or
Columbia would have laughed at those
farmer students. hoeing cabbages and trans
lating Homer, blowing corn and studying
the differential calculusi
But they were Indiana men, you see. and
genius is dirt cheap in Indiana as Rufus
Choate said OF eloquence on the antl-slavery
platform
which IL often leaves. and upon which soap
that may sometime be OF use is that a drop
Of castor oil In the eye TO remove foreign
body is as useful ana mucn more manage1-
bic than the better-knOWn faxseed