CLERICAL NAMES.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume IX, Issue 81, 6 April 1874, Page 4

CLERICAL NAMES.

• ■ """ / If (says the Leisure Hour) you take any class of men, of any one profession, you will not fina a greater variety in nomenclature than in the ranks of the clergy of the Established Church. ]jt is amusing to see how many of their surnames are derived from natural history.- -We learn from a clergy list before us that there are no less than .twenty-throe Bulls, nineteen Bullocks, and six Mules. = Several clergymen also rejoice in the cognomen of Stagg and Ram,-Lamb and Veal, Deer and Steere, Hogg, and Wolf, Colt and Cattle, Otter and ; Beaver, Hare and Rabbit, Cat and Kitten, Fox and Kidd. In this latter case we might suppose the two gentlemen would work well together as vicar and curate. The names from birds are most Varied and numerous. There are Ducks, and Drakes, but singularly enough, while there are no geese op ganders there are plenty of Goslings'. Then : ytti have Robin and Wren , Swallow and Martin,, Raven and Rook, Dove and Falcon^ Crane and Stork^ Parrot and Jay, Nightingale and Crowe, and a variety of others from the Maptores, Incessores (incumbents ?) Scansores, and other natural families. Then there are those who have taken the names of domestic fowls, such as Cock, Cockerell, Henu, Peacock, and Swan, to which may be added warlike Eagles, and shy Woodcocks* Think not, however, that the clergy confine themselves to the earth, or even the air ; for they dive into the depths of the sea and fetch from thence their cognomens of Salmon and Cpdd, Turbett and Mullett, Whiting and Smelt, Herring and Sturgeon, and from the ponds and pools they catch <iheir Roach, and Pike, while among their rankagthey muster a Crabb, a Seal, and a whale. " Next we observe that the clergy possess, to some limited extent, an eye for color ; for they deck 'themselves in White and Black, in , Orange and Green and Grey, in Brown and in Rose — in fact in as many hues as ought to satisfy the most Ritualistic of their order. Though the clergy of the Establishment are evidently migratory in their habits^ for they travel from East to West, and from North to South, yet at the same time they are eminently patriotic, for England and Wales, Brittan and Ireland, are all represented ; still it is somewhat odd that while there are English, Welsh, and Scotts, there are no Irish to be found in their ranks. The human frame has not escaped the observation of these clergy, j for Foot, Hand, Legg, Bone, Blood, Hair, Tooth, and the Body itself, all of them find their component parts. We know that as a body the clergy do iiot derive large sums from their labors; perhaps this is the reason why we find none of them rejoicing in the name of Gold; in point of fact, there is only a little Silver, five Pennies and one farthing among them. Perhaps this state of poverty tends to make them industrious, for the trades are largely represented. Miller and Baker, Sawyer and Carpenter, Plummer and Painter j Farxrier"and( Shepherd, Carter and Horseman, Cooper and Wheelwright, Groom and Gardener, Butcher and Carver, Mason and Slater, &c, are all represented. From, daily experience we know that the clergy have an aristocratic leaning, and therefore are not ; surprised to find some of them claiming ithe title of King, Prince, Duke, Earl, Baron," Lord, and Knight. One is almost' tempted to believe that these grave divines have a gleam of humor, i and do . not .p*ind caricaturing themselves, for how' else comes it that there •] is a Mr Large, v! aMr Small, Mr Bigge, Mr Little; Mr Slight, Mr Stoute, and Mr Short ? The reason why clergy \ are not averse to litigation may be accounted for by their possessing among them a Chancellor, a Justice, and a Sergeant. It is also a curious fact that, seemingly having ransacked the air, earth, and sea for surnames, the "clergy have delved deep into the bowels of the earth and dug from thence various metals. Naturally we expect a little Brass in the order, yet we neither like to see their members as heavy as Zincke, as cold as Stone, as hard as Steele, as light as Coke, or as dark as Cole. - And, in conclusion, though the list is by no means exhausted, we may compare the rectors to a goodly Field of Wheat, the curates to a poor crop of Oats, but interspersed with fruitful t families, like Grapes on a spreading Vine.