PAGE TWO Professor George Leroy Guillet George Leroy Guillet, associ-gineering Works, Montreal; as a ate professor of mechanical en- technical engineer at Bastion , _ , , Brothers; and as research engL gineering at the College, died at negr with the Jchns Manville 2-p.m. Tuesday at his home, 233 Company) in Canada . East Mitchell Ave., State Coll He had a i so taU ght mechanical ege. He had been suffering from engineering at McGill Univer a heart condition for many and a i so a t Queens Univer months. s ity, Kingston, Ontario. Professor Guillet, who would professor Guillet was a mem have been 57 on October 15, was k er 0 £ the American Society of born in Rochester, N. Y. He ob- Mechanical Engineers, and Sig tained his bachelor’s degree ma xi, and an associate member from McGill University, Mon- the Engineering Institute of treal, Canada, in 1908, and his Canada. master’s degree from the same jj e W rote many articles for university in 1909. technical magazines, and also He had been associated with published two textbooks, “Kine the College since 1924. Prior to matics of Machines,” and “Kine that, he worked as production matics and- Machine Design.” engineer with Bastian Brothers, He is survived by his widow, Rochester; in the production de- the former Edna M. Sowry, and partment of the Dominion En- one daughter. Professor Espenshade Earns As Unraveler Although it’s doubtful William Shakespeare ever expected a lit eral answer to his question: “What’s in a name?” the job of tracing family names to their or igin has been sufficiently chall enging to usurp at least one man’s leisure the last 40 years. The best answer that A. Henry Espenshade, professor emeritus of English composition at the Col lege, can give after these years of study and research is: “Just about everything.” People are named after towns, cities, counties, nations, animals, birds, occupations, colors, metals, parts of the human body—just about everything, he says, that struck the fancy of those people who, in the 12th and 13th cen turies, first faced the problem of choosing last names. Until' that time, people had used only first names. As the pop ulation expanded, there wasnT a sufficient number of first names to go around, so families enjoyed the unique privilege of choosing their own last names. To unravel names, juggled and warped by centuries of changes in pronunciation, spelling, meaning, and personal whim, requires. a knowledge of foi-eign languages, colloquial idiosyncracies, history, human nature, geography, and a lot of patience. By far the largest class of family names, according to Pro fessor Espensha.de, is derived from place names. These include the more obvious ones like Eng lish, French, and York, plus a maze of complicated combina tions. The name Wickersham, for example, is a combination of two old English words, which literally means home of' a villager. Brad ford means a broad ford, and Fishburn is., a combination of the word fish and the old Scotch word, burn, meaning- brook. So great is the. percentage of family names which spring from place names , that a knowledge of 15 nouns will .permit you to solve the origin of one-third of all surnames in this class, ac cording to the retired teacher. These include land, ton, lee, berg, ford, brook, lake, grove, gate, more, ville, mere, wick, low and worth. By recognizing their meanings, it is possible to trace the derivation of an extremely large group of compound sur names. The next largest group, of names springs from occupations and official titles. The name Boucher, for example, is a form (Delia Chi Opens House Delta Chi recently reopened its house with eight members: six Delta Chi men, one Alpha Zeta, and one independent man. The six members are John Dereich, presi dent, William Clark, Robert Deck an, Ivan Kline, John Sloan, and Robert von Storcli. Edward Wil liams. is Alpha Zeta; William Jolpi son is independent. Of Family, P of butcher. Cohen means priest; Currier, a leather dresser; and Hoffman, an inn keeper, plus names like Miller, Smith, Taylor, and Weaver. Patronymic names, or names, derived from one’s father, con stitute a third class. Such names exist in two common forms in English—with the endings son and ing. This explains the deriva tion of names like Dickson, Nel son, Thompson, Channing, and Manning. In Scotland, the prefix Mac is used (Mac Neal) and in Ireland, it becomes O’Brien or' O’Donnell. Foundling homes of the medier val ages solved the problem of providing last names simply by giving children the name of the home.- The name Temple, for ex ample, often springs from the old Temple church in London which lei People Celebrate Y-Day in Own Way, Says Education Prof The .best way to avoid “social in toxication” on V-Day is to permit people to celebrate in their own way, according to Dr. Carroll D. Champlin, professor of education at the College. “Closing theatres, race tracks, and other amusement centers might force people into the streets, where mass excitement could eas ily run rampant,” he warned. While insistent that peace cele brations be regulated only by “in dividual consciences,” Dr. Champ lin advised schools and other com munity organizations to prepare programs designed to serve as par tial “shock absorbers.” A planned program, he pointed out, is especially important in the public schools where teachers and administrators might profitably utilize this opportunity to impress, on children the lessons of this Navy ‘4IIV Schedule Navy trainees leaving the Col lege at the end of this semester have scheduled a dinnerrdance at the State College Hotel Friday, A/S Robert Siisman, in charge of the affair, announced today. - The 40 or so boys, self-christen ed the “411’5,” have completed four semesters at the College. This event will mark their departure. Original entertainment from their ranks will highlight the 41l’s dinner-dance, Seaman Sus man said. Attendance will be limited to ship’s officers, the 411’s, and their guests. Nittany Qljque.tu.Meet Clique members of the Nittany party will elect clique officers at a meeting in 401 Old Main 7 ,p;m. Sunday. All members 3re urged to attend. THE COLLEGIAN Pennsylvania Dutch Meal la delude 'Papa Is Air Typical Pennsylvania Dutch dinners will be served in the Maple Room of the Home Economics Building 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Thurs day in conjunction with Players presentation of “Papa Is All.” On the menu will be corn rivel soup, veal potpie, roast pork, shoo fly pie, and other Pennsylvania Dutch dishes. This will be the last dinner to be served in -the Maple Room until further notice. The price of the dinner will be 85 cents. Reservations for the meal can be made by phoning Institu tion Administration, Home' Eco nomics Building, before 5 p.m. September 27. ; -Last day'of service for the Home Economics Cafeteria will be Octo ber 5. Reputation ace Names took in many foundling children. Simplest of the name groups, and. ones easily recognizable in any language, are those which come from names of things, like colors, metals, birds, and ani-. mals.. . Common examples are White, Black, Silver, Gold, Pea cock, and Fox. Some people, Professor Espen shade pointed, out, would prob ably be a lot better off if they didnit bother tracing the origin and literal meaning of their fam ily names. “People are funny about their names,” he said. “A name is so' much a part' of you and your personality . that you .can’t help, being disappointed if the literal rpeaning turns out to be very un flattering.” A name-like Doolittle, he said, was probably first attached to a lazy person—one who would ■do little, and, certainly, a name like Hogflesh isn’t very compliment ary. Some people, he added, upon discovering what their names call them will either change them completely or disguise the mean ing by translating part of the name. Professor Espenshade, who said he collects names “just as another person might collect stamps,” wasn’t originally interested in the study of family names. His hobby was place names, but he found the two so entwined that a study of one led to a study of the other. Forty years ago, when he was registrar at Penn State, he began a collection of Pennsylvania place names. In short time, the. Historical Society of Pennsylvania referred all such queries to him—so many queries that he published a book, “Pennsylvania Place Names,” be lieved to be the first of its kind.'. Established as an expert on place names, his reputation as an “unraveler” of family names quickly extended beyond the campus to such an extent that he received questions from all over Pennsylvania and surrounding states. A recognized expert, with forty years research behind him, Pro fessor Espenshade has often point ed out that he will never know all the answers. “No one,” he said, “even knows how many names there are in the world, and some have been so warped by use that, it is imposs ible to determine how they start ed.” PSCA Plans- (Continued, from page one) up in the CA office. Betty Farrow can supply further information. Dr. Adams will speak to the freshmen, council and forum Tues day on “How We Acquire Preju dices.” This subject was chosen be cause it ranked high on interest sheets checked by members at the beginning of the-semester. Chemists To Figure In Establishing World Peace, Dean Whitmore Says IJR4NK O. WHTTMQRE W Main Open House Oilers Varied Program Old Main Open House, planned for October 7, will present an eve ning filled with various events from fortune telling in the PSCA offices to a Drydock program in the Armory. Nancy Norton and Robert Bare foot, co-chairmen, are working with representatives from 13 cam pus organizations to feature a band concert and community sing, mural movie in the Little Theatre,' square dancing on Old Mam Ter race, fish popd in Old Main lobby; bingo, record concert, ping pong, and .special exhibits. .Old Main Tower will be opened for tours; during the evening. Representatives from various or ganizations cooperating follow: Mildred Watt, Hamilton-Standard Propeller students; Robert Yurka nin, IMA; Nancy Norton, GSO; Genevieve Weder, Mortar Board; Mary. Gundel, -Junior Service, Board; Betsy McGee, WRA; Rose Schulman, IWA; Kay Bovard, Philotes; Floy Robinson, WSGA; Helen Martin, Pan-Hellenic Coun cil; Doris Stack, Cwens; William Clark, I-FC; and Robert Barefoot, PSCA. Delta Tau Delta recently elected Jack Townsend, president; Richard Schlegel, vice - president;. Ralph John, secretary - treasurer; and William Spliethoff, house.manager. Christmas Cards For palling overseas now on dispjay. Orders may be pjaced mpw for ipprpjted cards. New stock of AIR. MAIL and Bordered Stationery. Vellum, Parchment and Grey. Leather Goods A large stock of Men's and Ladies’ Wallets. Names imprinted. Keelers Cathaum Theatre BuMd,ing FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 1944 Allied leaders might well look to the chemists for help in chart ing world peace after this war, in the opinion of Dr. F. C. Whitmore, dean of the School of Chemistry and Physics at the College. “The basic or contributory cause of practically all wars, including the present one,” the dean pointed out, “has been actual or alleged material want. i ■ “Yet, during the past 25 years,” he added, “chemistry has risen to a position, which makes possible the elimination of economic want and, consequently, elimination of the chief cause of war.” i Dean Whitmore claims mankind .is now in position to overproduce all of its requirements for food, ciothing, shelter, and other essen tial needs, provided “we have the wisdom to use our knowledge.” Crediting creative science with the ability to meet the world’s needs, Dr. Whitmore said the “have-not nations no longer need grab raw materials from other na tions, but instead should develop fully their own raw materials.”- “Within an extraordinarily wide range,” he continued, “chemistry can take almost any material and transform it into materials valu able for the production of man’s prime needs.” Engineer Features Color Cover of B-24 Liberator A.Liberator,bomber In full color will be featured on the cover, of the -. September Engineer on sale -today. Following the aeronautical theme, an article by-Nancy Co-hen on the B-29, the “Streamlined- Por cupine,” will be included, -- > Other articles are “Suicide”-by June Shirk, graduate student, and “X-Ray for Victory." The usual Talk of the Campus, Sly Drools, and ASTP column will have their places. Recent Ship’s Ball photos make up the picture pages. Dr. Mack Heads Society Dr. Warren B. Mack, head of the horticulture department, has been elected president of the American Society for Horticultural Scien tists, a national organization of professional horticulturalists in the College and in experimental, sta tions.
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers