[CHAPTER XX OFFICIAL AND DOMESTIC]
"Big fleas have little fleas
Upon their backs to bite 'em
Little fleas have smaller fleas,
And so ad infinitum."
Anon.
It is a well-known fact that official nomenclature largely reflects the simple housekeeping of early times, and that many titles, now of great dignity, were originally associated with rather lowly duties. We have seen an example in Stewart. Another is Chamberlain. Hence surnames drawn from this class are susceptible of very varied interpretation. A Chancellor was originally a man in charge of a chancel, or grating, Lat. cancelli. In Mid. English it is usually glossed scriba, while it is now limited to very high judicial or political office. Bailey, as we have seen (Chapter IV), has also a wide range of meanings, the ground idea being that of care-taker. Cotgrave explains Old Fr. mareschal maréchal as—
"A marshall of a kingdoms, or of a camp (an honourable place); also, a blacksmith; also, a farrier, horse-leech, or horse-smith; also, a harbinger,"
[Footnote: i.e. a quartermaster. See Romance of Words, ch. vii.]
which gives a considerable choice of origins to any modern Marshall or Maskell.
Another very vague term is sergeant, whence our Sargent. Its oldest meaning is servant, Lat. serviens, servient-. Cotgrave defines sergent as—
"A sergeant, officer, catchpole, pursuyvant, apparitor; also (in Old Fr.) a footman, or souldier that serves on foot." I
Probably catchpole was the commonest meaning—