New-York tribune., 1901-04-28
SIGNATURES.
: Me CURIOUS ENGLISH AND CONT
MENTAL USAGES

more important document was a very cere
ihohlous affair, and we may be sure that many
q I"IC or fair lady performed the task with as
nluch labor and difficulty as John PIoushman
GOES now Even Queen Eliza beth. who was as
7-s -ac@teu' 1s' Ior her day, as the modern
= -"uis lady VINO IL hracketed equal TO the
senior WranSier, evidently took her signature
very seriously II is Impossible TO look al that
WONDERFUL effort, with its stately and compli-
Gated caiigraphy, without wondering how many
minutes were required for its Ella boration. The
/ modern sovereign, who is sometimes compeIIed
70 sign his august autograph hundreds of times
n day, would be unable TO do anything else
y ne endeaNored 70 emulate such mathematical
lfeclsi0n. By Eliza beth's time English roval
slsnatures had already taken their final modern
iorn- our medieval kings signed entirely in
latin. 'Ecwardus Rex. ''Henricus Rex but
y degrees this archaic form was dropped. the
English name Was used. and Rex gave way
% Its initial letter This usage continued IN
hanged uhlll' after me passage Of the Royal
Titles act, Queen Victoria adopted the form
q R L''-Regina - ImperatriX-to the intense
disgust OF the Little EnglanCers Of a generation
aSc- II l. notable that the German f-mpercr
Iuts his imperial dignity first--Wiihelm I p
As rule, soTereisns sign documents at the
top Of the paper instead Of At the foot while
70 q Rey." i. the King" Members of
oA royal family. even when they peers
s-Sn their Christian name or names only the
Prince OF Wales for the time being always
adding The initial p" FOR Prince, although
George ". when Prince Regent. affixed the
cipher p. +. TO his name. Princess Louise
Duchess Of Argyll. sometimes subScribeS her
self by her husbands title like an ordinary
Ieeress- The gallant and lamented young hus-
land Of Princess Beatrice used the less familiar
form Of Henry OF BauenberE. The Lord Pro
r-ctor Of the Commonwealth was after he
,eiked that title, oliver P. signature strong
ly reminiscent OF the style OF the Princes or
Wales Unlike other soNerelgns, the Popes add
their number 10 the Christian name they as
sumo upon their elevation
Down TO about the beginning Of the seven
tenth century English peers and bishops COM
monty signed in Identical fashion. pretXing their
Christian name. or more frequently. their ini-
tal. TO the title Gradually this type Of sig
f.ls-l ma i iHgEH of he
spiritual lords who have continued I to this
day The occupants Of most Of the old Secs
maintain the use Of an abbreviated Latin form
- sl2natur such as 'Cantuar ana t-pof-
F-e would be = very democratic and reforming
T'rr1ate who should venture 10 subscribe hlfn-
self F. Canterbury or w York Morr0Ner.
there are now SO many peerage titles taken from
"a hedral cities that good deal OF confusion
rufeht arise We're the Latin forms abandoned.
Canterbury. Winchester. Durham. Bristol. Lich-
fe,d- Chichester. Riuon. Manchester. Eiy-to
I.e peers NeNerth eless. many OF the sees use
English signatures. and the same may occd-
elonalIy Ice said of old ones Before Dr.. Temple
was translated from FuIham TO Lambeth he
signed F Londn" bat the late Dr. Creighton
referred the English form Of N Loncon-" not
outstanding that in his former bishopric he
smQloyed the Latin M Petriburs The Ito-
man Catholic preiates in this country DO not at
tempt baroniaI signatures. although they
have adopted territorial designations There
are however variations in their pra ctice- Car
Giual Manning wrote himself down Henry Ed
ward. Cardinal Archbishop. while his successor
l.
vas the form affected 10y Cardinal Wiseman-
The Roman bishops in England rule. sign
their names Ike ordinary people. with a cross
rrefxed although Of them write their
Christian names only. followed 10y Bishop OF
So-and-SO.'
Il was ae We have said about the end Of
Eliza berh's time that peers ceased using
Initial or Christian name before their titular
..Irellaiion: hGlt cases have been known in quite
recent times in which they have departed from
Custom = famous case in point is that of Lord
Byron who after his marriage to Miss Nil
t.sDk@ usually signed himself Noel Byron.
..Vane Londonderry" and the famous Lord
Holland was ~Nassal Holland" In these cases
family considerations explained the change. An
other unusual signature was that Of the late
Karl De La War;. Before ne succeeded MS
brother in the earIdOrn he vas Lord BuckhursJ
a title which he inherited from ms mother
under a special remainder since ne was HDt
INC eldest son After his accession TO tn higher
rank and the litigation which ensued as 70 the
GevolItion Of the barony, he signed himself DE
Ia War; and BUckhurst.'' despite the unwrlt-
ten Law under which peers do not sign two u'-
e-.I1al titles. There are Of course. many cases
Ike that Of the Dukes OF Richmond and Cor
dor and Hamilton and Brandon, in which the
-ie-,atr1re consists OF two names- but they are
rrscric-sUv always names of equal degree IN
-. reerage His Grace Of Richmond might If
~ chase sign Richmond. Gordon, LennoX and
Auhierv,- since he is the only British subject
possessing four dukedOms. just as Lord Now
i,rav may and. believe, sometimes does. use
fhe form "Mos bray. SeEraVe and Stourto1
When The great Duke Of Marlborough. after -
f.-,arne a Prince of the Holy Roman Empire.
wrote a letter IN French ne generally signed Il