shall say
that the eccentricities of a certain celebrity of acknowledged talent,
whose name would be quickly recognized, were not the result of the same
cause, the length, and weight of the name given him at his birth proving
too great an incumbrance for him to overcome.

How many ignoble George Washingtons, Henry Clays, Patrick Henrys, and
other equally illustrious names, are wandering aimlessly about our
streets, shiftless, worthless, utterly unworthy the names they bear,
simply because they bear them, when, had they been given plain, honest,
common names, they might have been held in respect and esteem. The
burden is too great for them. A ship with a drag attached to her cannot
make progress, be she ever so swift without it. Even the eagle will
refuse his flight when burdened with excessive weight.

A little lack of consideration or want of thought in this matter on the
part of parents often entail an immense amount of suffering upon those
who are wholly innocent as to its cause. Let the boy or girl be given
such a name, as shall be his or hers, worthy or unworthy, as the bearer
shall make. Give them all a fair show. We may not be able to tell in all
cases, perhaps not in many, how this affair of names has affected the
lives of their owners. Give a child a silly or ridiculous name and the
chances are that the child's character will correspond with that name.
Give a child a name already illustrious and the chances are also fair
that the burden will prove its ruin.

It is unnecessary to extend the subject, the present purpose being
merely to call attention to those practices, and so to present them that
more natural and healthy customs will be sought after and followed, that
a true aesthetic taste may be cultivated, and thus alleviate or remove a
part, at least, of the burden under which society groans.

It is also intended to illustrate some of the trials and perplexities
that beset the genealogist and historian in their researches, arising
from these unfortunate habits that pervade society. It would seem that
the evils produced by the practices, only need exposure to result in
reformation, and that no parent, with the full knowledge of the
possible, yes probable, and almost inevitable effect, would so thrust
upon his offspring an annoyance, to use the mildest possible term, which
should subject them to such disagreeable consequences all through life.

It would seem, also, that no guardian, teacher, or other indi