A Countess D.D.
Sta,—I fully sympathise with Janus's concern that neither notice of my degrees nor of my ordination have appeared in Who's Who. The negligence shown by the Editors of that venerable compendium is truly shocking ! Since reading Janus, I have spoken to several ministers of the Word here in Edinburgh who tell me that not only are they not entered in Who's Who but that Burke's Landed Gentry remains aloof in its acknowledgement of their presence here on earth and the Company Directors Year Book, Stubbs and the Racing Calendar appear uninformed on their otherwise ecumenical activities.
That all this vagabond Christianity be allowed to wander around Edinburgh untabulated is food for thought and should have far- reaching social implications. The day is aLhand when Janus will lament the onslaught of the unwashed upon spiritual domains hitherto the jealously guarded preserves of those who have made Who's Who!
My degree in Divinity was bestowed upon me by the University of Indiana and I was ordained in the Church of Universal Truth in Los Angeles in July, 1951. It is, I agree, uncommon for a woman to be dubbed D.D. and Rev, but that rather is the fault of those who have allowed the once formidable offices of Abbess and Deaconess to fall into disuse in a Church by which one of whose most distinguished prelates I was ordained.
At the time, I believe, there was some slight mention of the matter in both the American and British Press but doubtless Janus was too far engrossed in his new classified cross-reference for Crockfords and the Almanac de Gotha t6 take notice.
As regards my new Christian name, I regret to have to inform you that my County, one of the largest in Ireland, was acquired at a more interesting stage of my development than my christening !—Yours faithfully,
140 Princes Street, Edinburgh, Scotland.
N. HALIBURTON MAYO.
Previous page
