The Sun.
London, England, 1857-05-25 00:00:00

THE GREAT SHREWSBURY CASE.

The claim of Lord Talbot to the earldom of
Shrewsbury is now at length fairly before the
House of Lords, and it will come on for hearing at
the earliest possible opportunity after Thursday
next. As it directly involves the first and oldest
earldom in the land, acid indirectly affects estates
of the annual value of 40,0001., our readers will
readily believe us when we say that the Shrews-
bury case will rival in interest and importance the
great Douglas and Berkeley cases.
The printed document formally asserting the
claim on the part of his lordship was laid upon the
table of the Upper House on Thursday last. It
consists of 41. pages of genealogical and other mat-
ter, and is entitled " The Case of the Right Hon.
Henry John Chetwynd, Earl Talbot, claiming to
be Earl of Shrewsbury." It states that the claimant
having presented a petition to her Majesty, praying
that the title, dignity, and peerage of Earl of
Shrewsbury might be declared and adjudged to be-
long to him, and that a writ of summons to Par-
liament might issue to him by the title and dignity
aforesaid, her Majesty was pleased to refer the said
petition, together with the Attorney-General's re-
port thereon, to the House of Peers on the 9th of
May, 1857, who, on the 11th day of May, referred
it to the Committee of Privileges to consider and
report thereon.
It first recites the terms and limitations of the
patent under which the earldom was origir.ally con-
ferred in 1442 upon John Talbot, the great Earl of
Shrewsbury, and General of the English army in
the wars with France, and carries down the pedi-
gree, step by step, through seven generations, from
father to son, in a direct line, until the elder branch
of the family became extinct on the death of
Edward, eighth earl, without issue male, on the
Bth of February, 1617.
It then shows how, on the failure of the elder
line, the earldom descended upon tha heirs male of
Sir Gilbert Talbot, of Grafton, K.G., as represen-
tative of Gilbert, third son of the second earl, and
was enjoyed by them successively down to the year
1856, when it became extinct by the death of
Bertram Arthur Talbot, the late earl, at Lisbon.
It further recites that Earl Talbot now claims to
be entitled to the earldoms of Shrewsbury, Wex-
ford, and Waterford,,as nearest heir male of the
said Sir Gilbert Talbot, through the second mar-
riage of his son John, and consequently as nearest
heir male of the body of the first earl, and that he
begs leave to lay before this most hon. house the
present " case " in support of his claim. The
" case," which is signed by Sir F. Thesiger, Sir F.
Kelly, and Mr. T. F. ElliEj, barrister-at-law, as
counsel for the claimant, alleges that Sir John Tal-
bot of Albrighton married as his second wife Eliza-
beth Wrottesley, by whom he had issue two sons,
of whom the elder died young, while the line was
continued by the younger son, John, of Salwarp,
who married Olive Sherrington, and whose son,
Sherrington Talbot, left by his second marriage,
with Mary, daughter of John Washbourne, three
sons, of whom the two elder died without leaving
issue, and that the line of descent was continued by
the third son, William, some time Bishop of Dur-
ham. He was the father of Charles Talbot, Lord
Chancellor of England, who was raised to the
peerage in 1733 as Lord Talbot, and whose son,
created Earl Talbot of Ingestre in 1784, was grand-
father of the present claimant.
We understand that the opponents of his lord-
ship's claim are three in number—first, the Duke of
Norfolk, as guardian of the interests of his infant
son, to whom the late earl bequeathed his magnifi-
cent property at Alton Towers ; secondly, the
Princess Doria Pamphili of Rome, as °illy surviv-
ing child of John, 16th earl • and thirdly, Major
Talbot, of Castle Talbot, county Wexford, as a ri-
val claimant to the title.
In event of. Earl Talbot being able to establish his'
claim to the earldom of Shrewsbury to the satis-
faction of the Committee of Privileges, his lordship
will become premier earl of England and also of
Ireland, as also Earl of Wexford and Waterford ;
and then we imagine a further suit will have to be
entered upon bolero the Court of Chancery for the
possession of the Shrewsbury estates at Alton and
other
_places in the counties of Stafford, Oxford,
Worcester, and Berks. In case, however, that the
House of Lords should decide that his lordship's
claim is " not proven," the other claim—namely,
that of Major Talbot, will be submitted for their
lordship's decision. The gallant Major, as we un-
derstand, traces his pedigree up to William, fourth
son of George, the fourth earl, who was made a
Knight of the Garter for his valiant conduct at the
Battle of Stake, June the 16th, 1447.

NUISANCES REMOVAL ACT. —lt appears that returns
have been furnished under the Nuisances Removal Act
by 11,222 parishes in England and Wales out of 14,398.
1,954 sanitary inspectors appear to have been appointed
by local boards of health, town-councils, highway boards,
and other acting authorities.