ove, etc. It is possible that their after-life may
turn such names into bitter irony.

For the sake of conciliating a rich friend never give a child a
disagreeable or barbaric name. It will be a thorn in his side as long
as he lives, and after all he may miss the legacy.

A child, too, may have such an assembly of unrhythmical names that he
and his friends have to go jolting over them all their lives. Suppose
a boy is called Richard Edward Robert. The ear in a moment detects a
jumble of sounds of which it can make nothing. If many Christian names
are decided upon, string them together on some harmonious principle;
names that are mouthfuls of consonants cannot be borne without bad
consequences to the owner.

The euphony of our nomenclature would be greatly improved by a
judicious adaptation of the Christian name to the surname. When the
surname is a monosyllable the Christian name should be long. Nothing
can reconcile the ear to such curt names as Mark Fox, Luke Harte, Ann
Scott; but Gilbert Fox, Alexander Hart, and Cecilia Scott are far from
despicable.

Among the many excellent Christian names, it is astonishing that so
few should be in ordinary use. The dictionaries contain lists of about
two hundred and fifty male and one hundred and fifty female names, but
out of these not more than twenty or thirty for each sex can be called
at all common.

Yet our language has many beautiful names, both male and female,
worthy of a popularity they have not yet attained. Among the male, for
instance,--Alban, Ambrose, Bernard, Clement, Christopher, Gilbert,
Godfrey, Harold, Michael, Marmaduke, Oliver, Paul, Ralph, Rupert,
Roger, Reginald, Roland, Sylvester, Theobald, Urban, Valentine,
Vincent, Gabriel, Tristram, Norman, Percival, Nigel, Lionel, Nicholas,
Eustace, Colin, Sebastian, Basil, Martin, Antony, Claude, Justus,
Cyril, etc.,--all of which have the attributes of euphony, good
etymology, and interesting associations.

And among female names why have we not more girls called by the noble
or graceful appellations of Agatha, Alethia, Arabella, Beatrice,
Bertha, Cecilia, Evelyn, Ethel, Gertrude, Isabel, Leonora, Florence,
Mildred, Millicent, Philippa, Pauline, Hilda, Clarice, Amabel, Irene,
Zoe, Muriel, Estelle, Eugenia, Euphemia, Christabel, Theresa, Marcia,
Antonia, Claudia, Sibylla, Rosabel, Rosamond, etc.?

There are some curious superstitions regarding the naming of children,
which, as a matter of gossip, are worth a