[From Manx Worthies, A.W.Moore, 1901]

INTRODUCTION

MY main object in compiling this little book is to try and save from oblivion the names of as many as possible of those Manxmen who have done good service for their country. I believe that in so doing I have succeeded in showing that in proportion to its population, the Isle of Man has produced an unusually large number of able and distinguished men - such, for instance, as the Rev. Dr. Walker,^* John Christian Curwen, M.P., Colonel Mark Wilks, the Rev. Hugh Stowell, Captain Quilliam., Captain Peter Heywood, R.N., Sir Mark Cubbon, K.C.B., the Hon. William Kermode, Professor Edward Forbes, and the Rev. T. E. Brown. Names given in order of date No doubt; too, some of the Manxmen^* of the more remote past were equally able and distinguished, but, from want of adequate information, it is more difficult to form a correct judgment with respect to them. Nor are there wanting living Manxmen who are equally deserving of these epithtets. Many of the " Worthies " of whom I have given accounts in the following pages, are not, of coterie, men of equal calibre with those I have mentioned. Moreover, I have also recorded the names of some who are chiefly remembered on account of their eccentricities, as having, in fact, been " characters." It is not necessarily the best man who is the best remembered. Many men have led most useful and blameless lives, and yet they do not afford interesting material for even the briefest biography. It is probable that many of my readers will think that there are names left out which should have been inserted. If so, let me at once point out that, with their assistance, any errors and omissions can be rectified in a second edition.

I wish also to point out that the comparative lengths of the notices given are, in most cases, regulated by the information available and not by the importance of the subject. The sources of this information have been so varied that it is impossible to indicate and acknowledge them all.

The more recent notices⁺ have, with the permission of the editors, been taken mainly from the local newspapers, more particularly the "Isle of Man Times," the "Manx Sun," the "Mona's Herald," and the "Isle of Man Examiner." I have now to thank them for this permission, and, at the same time, to express my obligations to those who have in any way assisted me in the compilation of this book, which, I trust, may be acceptable to all who love Mannin Veg Veen and its sons and daughters.

A. W. MOORE. CRONKBOURNE, JUNE, 1901.

* It will be observed that I have been liberal in my use of the term "Manxman" including under it, for instance, not only such men as Sir Baldwin Walker, who, though not of Manx parentage, was born in the island, but also such men as Deemster J F. Gill, who, though of Manx parentage, was not born in the island. I have, too, in a few cases, briefly referred to the descendants of Manxmen who have distinguished themselves in the countries to which their forefathers had emigrated.

+ In accordance with the wish of the publishers brief notices of "Worthies" who have died during the last twenty-five years are given. For obvious reasons these notices are written with less freedom than those which precede them in order of date: they are, in fact, what Mr Stead, in the "Review of Reviews," calls "appreciations" It has also been by wish of the publishers that I have inserted extracts from the obituary notices of my uncle, Archdeacon Moore, and of my father, W. F. Moore.

Any comments, errors or omissions gratefully received The Editor HTML Transcription © F.Coakley , 2001