Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-11-07

written documents. Among my acquaintance
in that region was family known Semer
in Our community In an adjoining county the
same family was known as Pickle, and in a
third, where conventions were more closely
observed, it was Pickleseimer, which was the
real name of the family. The name had been
shortened by the less intelligent because con-
venienCe was more to them than convention.
But to get back to Christian names. Irregu-
larItleS began to creep into the one-name law
of Coke, and parents at intervals added name
when they dared. There authority against
it, however and as late as 1000, Camden, the
best informed Englishman the sub ject of
families and pedigrees, knew only four in
stances in all England of private persons with
double names. Royalty was permitted to have
more than one given name; and outside of
royalty the nobility began the double naming
by taking the names of royalty, other names
not being permitted at first, except as to Maria
and Posthumus, or Posthuma. Maria was
given middle name to both boys and girls
in honor of the Virgin Mary. while Posthumus
and POsthuma were the middle names for boys
and girls born after the death of their fathers
AS with any other earthly possessions, the
more they had the more they wanted, SO with
names, and early as 1910 children were re-
ceiving three names, one of record being
Guelma Maria PoSthuma Springett. How
ever Maria and Posthuma were the extra two
and were supposedly allowable. Whenever
doubts arose, as they continued to do among
the law abiding as to the propriety of more
than one name, they were satisfied by COM
pounding felony, SO to speak, and such names
are recorded in the parish registers of our Eng
lish progenitors Annameriah (Anna Maria) ;
Fannasabilla Fanny and SybiD; Johnamaria
Uohn and Maria); and Aberycusgentylis
(named in honor of Professor Abericus Gentylis
of Oxford. Is it any wonder that parents,
with consciences that could thus wink at the
law, would give such awful names to their in
nocent and helpless children? Each of these
names IS morally two names, though one le
gally, and we Americans should rejoice that
the sins of our ancestors got no further, as a
rule
Our own Penn. who had no other given name
than William, married in 1872 a woman with a
double name, Gulielma Maria, daughter of Sir
William Springett.
Mary and William
A FTER Maria, the first middle name to be-
come of common use was Mary, the name
of two Queens, and among boys William Henry
led the list, William Ill. having Henry as his
middle name. William Henry is still popular
combination in this country, though most
American boys get it from President William
Henry Harrison, who doubt received it as
his English ancestors did; SO we have it merely
at second hand. Our Mary Ann is only turn
over of the English Anna Maria.
A little about this name William, since one
of them stands at the head of Americans. In
'Domesday Book" volume prepared by
order of William, the conqueror and discoverer
of England, containing the names OF all land
owners, there were sixty-eight Williams to
forty-eight of the next highest on the list,
Robert. More than a hundred years later, at
a knightly function given by Henry III. to all
knights bearing the name of William one hun
dred and twenty were among those present.
There were no doubt several who could not at
tend. The Reformation and the Puritan
dominance each took hand in knocking
William for scriptural Names but the name
had come to stay and possess the land. for to-
day it is the most numerous in England, as it is
probably in America. Whether it is a lucky
name or not is open to discussion, with William
III. Taft for the affirmative and William ].
Bryan for the negative.
When the giving of more than one name had
been fairly set going in England the fashion
spread rapidly. and from two it went to almost
ridiculous length in many instances, and
further in Others. In 1871, Charles Stone,
Burbage tailor, had his son christened Charles
Caractatus Ostorius Maximan Gustavus
Adolphus, and at Beccles church, as late as
1904, Henry Clarke had his son baptized
Zaphnaphpaaneah Isaiah Obededom Nicode-
mus Francis Edward the former of which
would have brought envy to the soul of those
negro parents in Kentucky, the latter would
have given points to that Paducah preacher,
who did not inflict their punishments until SO
many years later.