The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-05-28
"WhQt'S In q NQn1e?"
HATS in a name?"
MW Far more. than we pos

NAA1~-@ sibly imagine if we are to believe the latter day students of the sc-called "invisible influence" It's all a mistake about rose smelling as sweet" by any other name, and none doubts that a cabbage as common.
 It is perfectly awful the names that parents give children if they would only stop and think how they were handicapping a perfectly good boy or girl by giving him or her some out ragious, atrocious name, they surely wouldn't do it and if they have no better sense (the parents, I mean), if were the boy or girl, when I grew up to years if discretion I'd promptly change it.
 mother, recently condoning the wayward conduct of her boy, was generous enough to say:
 T really believe I am largely to blame for my boys career, for I gave him the most awful name. It doesn't suit him at all doesn't suit anybody, as for that matter. Fancy christen- ing a great big splendid boy baby Fernando! What boy with that name could ever get over the mando- lin attitude toward life?"
 A name is either tremendous handicap or prodigious asset in the game of life.
 "A good name is rather to be cho- sen than great riches" for you can keep a good name long after you've been "buncoed" out of your nice fat bank account!
 A name has an individuality all of it's own.
 Take Nary for instance.
 girl named Mary" needs no other recommendation.
 So with Martha
 We accept all the "Marys" and Mar thas' in the very confidence the name
 Mary is gentle and good and re- liable, and a mother to the human race, while Martha" is a little sister t. the angels.
 "John" bears the same relation to the masculine persuasion.
 Trust man named "John?"
 Well, I guess,
 The very name rings as true as the product from the United States mint.
 It is the same way with the Will Hams" and the "Thomases."
 Why. we'd trust boy named "wil- liam or Thomas" with>the last penny We had, knowing he'd come back at the proper time.
 On the other hand, look at the "Reginalds" and "Percivals" and Ger dds and 'Marmadukes not to speak of the poor little "Gerties" and "Floras" and "Maymes" and "GIadyses."
 Whats in name?"
 More than those who are well chris tened appreciate or realize.
 A braver soldier never lived than John Smith, and yet we always have to designate him as Pocahontas' John Smith.
 l have always fanced that a certain woman writer voiced her own feelings when she made a character in one of Ter short stories exclam
 Yes I've got beautiful first name -Clarissa Sounds lovel wand digni- fled, but think of what follows. 'Jones'l It's like wearing a lovely false fringe in front-'a transforma- tion'-and turning around to show what miserable little knot of black hair you've got! 'Clarissa Jones' " hSf IildIIy lHo llTSI man who asked me that had a decent name to offer mel"
 Personally, I think the last name matters little. It's the first name that counts. The family name in the beginning. meant nothing more than the 'clan" name, while the Christian name was the individual Identification.
 Robert Louis Stevenson, whom the Samoans were pleased to call "The Teller of Tales" somewhere speaks of the feeling we have for people whose first name Is the same as our own. He declared that man named Rob ert" always made the first call on his interest in crowd.
 l know woman who named her baby after Persian. rug and all the neighbors were supplied with a topic Of conversation for years to come.
 We all recall the lady tht our friend MT. George Ade tells about, who be- ing at a loss for a name for her t(aby, locked in the "cook book" and de- cided after mature consideration, to name it "Farina," after the famous pudding of that name.
 Another woman I know named her boy Theodore Roosevelt" during the q tero-worship" period of that delect- able gentleman.
 Of the two I would prefer to be named after the Persians rug, which I n; 1y- Fr- (