Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-01-05


ponds on how much Information the writer
has been able to give. and what luck the
college has In Its researches.
The Quest Takes Time.
Such quest Is almost always a matter
of some months at any rate, and the great
difficulty generally lies, they tell me at
the College of Arms, in finding what part
of England the original settler in the states
came from. AN uncommon name simplifies
the search lot, while like Brown
makes it thing to dread Most of the
earliest settlers in America were younger
sons of the aristocracy" said my inform
ant at the College of Arms: they were the
only ones in those days with pluck enough
to make the ocean voyage. The middle
class were no better than serfs, and had no
idea of going ten miles away from their
native village"
When the pedigree is complete. 1t is copied
out with infinite care and many hourishes
on great roll of parchment, with the fam
lily crest in colors at the top. For the writ
ing of this scroll the college makes a charge
or one guinea per generation. which may
console the applicant whose pedigree is
shorter than could be desired. This scroll
is signed and attested by Garter King"
as the official is called: is formally regis
tered in the records of the College Of Arms
and a copy of ii sent to the applicant so
that he may frame it for the edification of
MS friends, or make any of it that
pieases his fancy. But the certified pedi-
gree on record at the college is the impor-.
tant thing, and the privileged one can get
a copy of 1t whenever he pleases.
Coats of Arms for New Mayors
Besides looking up missing links in their
pedigrees for persons anxious to bear arms,
the college is kept pretty busy planning out
new crests for persons recently qualified to
possess them-such newly made noble
men, certain military officers and city func-
uonarles. The mayors and clerks Of all the
new London boroughs, for instance will
have to be fitted with coats of arms II is
an interesting fact, In this connection, that
men of certain professions who have risen
TO the dignity of titles no longer object to
having the means of their ascent indicated
IN their creSts. One Cubitt, a contractor
mas mason and carpenter on his arms:
man whose grandfather made his money
out OF cotton gets hank of 1t to stamp on
his plate; wooden manufacturer is recog-
nlzed by the fleece. Probably should Sir
THOMAS Upton be made baron his arms
VIII contain yacht, a leg of pork rampant
and cup of tea
Another thing that the College of Arms
mas TO do is to correct mistakes that people
make In the use of heraldic devices Some
tlmes people do so innocently by sailing I'm
and adopting a coat of arms without going
| through the formality Of finding out
whether it is already in or not. One of
the new borough mayors picked out a crest
mat pleased him not long ago and had IL
stamped on his stationery plate and car
riage door. only to find that it was the
property of another man.
Had Their Ears slit.
According to an old law, people who did
| this sort of thing were punished by having
| their ears slit by the officers of the College
| of Arms. Now. however one can faunt
| false arms as much as he pleases, secure
| in the knowledge that his ears are safe
| for the college people prefer to leave Of
Tenders n nd 10
| varably befalls them.
Speaking of this practice the editor OF
| Burke's Peerage said: while walking IN
| Hyde Park while ago 1 noticed the crest
on the door of a passing carriage. 1t
| tanned, surprisingly enough, an embematic
sign that is used to show that the bearer
| or certain arms is illegitimate. l was Curl
| Gus enough to find out whose carriage 1t
| was and learned that it belonged to a man
who had recently come into fortune He
| had gone to his carriage builder and or
| dered carriage with crest. The builder
| had turned up book containing coats Of
| arms, selected one credited to a name SIM
! liar to that of his client and put it on
| with the result that the owner of the turn
| out was unconsciously informing all the
| world that he was a bastard and baronet,
| to neither of which distinctions he had the
| slightest claim.
| Tax on ArmOrial Bearings.'
Part of England's revenue comes through
|
| is the figure-and the government collects
| the tax whether the arms are spurious or
not. In mentioning the tax. Mr.. Burke
made the significant remark that the gov
! eminent would get more money than it does
| now if it would let bona fide arms go
| taxed and infiict a heavy cash penalty for
| the use of false crests.
The greatest dispute over a question OF
| the right to a crest of which the tale comes
| down to us the famous one Of Gros-
venor VS.. Scrope. This historic wrangle
| took place in the time of John of Gaunt,
| who gave testimony another distinguished
witness being the poet Chaucer. The OPP
ponents were Sir Richard lie Scrope and Sir
| Richard Grosvenor-an ancestor OF the
| present Duke of Westminster. These two
mobiles discovered one day that they both
| were using the same crest-in heraldic par
| lance, Azure. a bend. or" (blue, a sort OF
! dash, and gold). 1t was a long and IA
| nous contest, decided finally in Scrope's
! favor, his opponent being consoled with a
coat Of arms only slightly different from
| that he was obliged to give up. There IS
| at Elton an old carved oak fireplace depict
| ing the celebrated trial, and that the West
| minister family have not forgotten their
! part in the contest is shown by the fact
| that the late duke named one of his most
| famous horses Bend Or and that is the
| young dukes nickname today.
CURTIS BROWN.
search for Byron's Heart.