Shallow. Sir Hugh, persuade me not; I will make a Star-chamber matter of it: if he were twenty Sir John Falstaffs, he shall not abuse Robert Shallow, esquire.

Slender. In the county of Gloster, justice of peace and coram.

Shal. Ay, cousin Slender, and Custalorum.

Slen. Ay, and ratolorum too; and a gentleman born, master parson; who writes himself armigero; in any bill, warrant, quittance, or obligation, armigero.

Shal. Ay that we do; and have done any time these three hundred years.

Slen. All his successors, gone before him, have done't; and all his ancestors, that come after him, may: they may give the dozen white luces in their coat.

Shal. It is an old coat.

Evans. The dozen white louses do become an old coat well; it agrees well, passant: it is a familiar beast to man and signifies-love.

Shal. The luce is the fresh fish; the salt fish is an old coat.

The arms of Sir WILLIAM SEVENOKE or SENNOCKE

were seven acorns, 3, 3, and 1. This remarkable person was deserted by his parents in infancy, and found either in the hollow of a tree, or in the street, at Sevenoaks, co. Kent, towards the end of the reign of Edw. III. By the charitable assistance of

Senenoke Sir William Rumpstead (the

person who found him) and others, he was brought up, and apprenticed in London, where being admitted to the freedom of the Grocers' Company, he gradually rose in eminence, until at length he became Lord Mayor, which office he served with great honour in the 6th year of Henry V, and received from that monarch the honour of knighthood. Three years afterwards he served in parliament for the

city of London. He was a benefactor to the parish of St. Dunstan in the East, and also to the place whence he received his name, for "calling to minde the goodness of Almightie God, and the favour of the Townesmen extended towards him, he determined to make an everlasting monument of his thankfull minde for the same. And therefore of his owne charge builded both an Hospitall for reliefe of the poor, and a free Schoole for the education of youthe within this towne, &c."* He made his will in 1432, and was buried in the Church of St. Martin, Ludgate.

NOTE TO PAGE 114.

ARMS OF ASSUMPTION. It is rather surprising that some heraldrists, official and otherwise, should question the validity of all those armorial bearings which are not authenticated by a grant of the College. As I have already asserted, comparatively few families of antient gentry have any record of the exact date of their arms, or of their having been conferred in a legal manner. The College of Arms is of no older date than the reign of Richard the Third. Prior to that time coat-armour was sometimes the immediate gift of royalty, but oftener conferred by commanders on such as had earned it by valour on the battle-field; or given by noblemen to those who held estates under them and followed their banners.

Camden says, "Whereas the

* Lambarde's Perambulation of Kent, p. 520. Quibbling old Fuller says, "he gave Seven Acorns for his armes, which, if they grow as fast in the Field of Heraldry as in the common field, may be presumed to be oaks at this day."-Worthies, vol. i, p. 509.

earles of Chester bare garbes or wheat-sheafes, many gentlemen of that countrey tooke wheat-sheafes. Whereas the old earles of Warwicke bare chequy, or and azure, a cheueron ermin, many thereabout tooke ermine and chequie. In Leicestershire and the countrey confining, diuers bare cinquefoyles, for that the antient earles of Leicester bare geules, a cinquefoyle, ermine. In Cumberland and thereabouts, where the old barons of Kendall bare argent two barres geules, and a lyon passant or in a canton of the second, many gentlemen thereabout tooke the same in different colours and charges in the canton." A variety of other instances of this practice may be found in the 'Curiosities of Heraldry,' and in many historical, topographical, and genealogical publications. A more copious collection of such borrowed arms than has yet been made, would form materials for a curious and interesting chapter in the history of armory.

*

* It would seem that the practice of borrowing the arms of other famiies is not yet extinct, for a certain plebeian high-sheriff of Sussex, not many years since, on being asked by his coach-maker what arms he would have painted on his new carriage, replied, "Oh, I don't care-suppose we have Lord Chichester's-I think they're as pretty as any!!" Nor is it altogether confined to our eastern hemisphere, if the following anecdote may be relied on. An English gentleman at New York sent his carriage to a certain coach-maker for repairs, with an intimation that he would call in a few days to view the progress of the work. Judge of his surprise, on entering the coach-maker's workshop, to find some half dozen other carriages besides his own bedizened with his family arms. When he demanded of the coach-maker an explanation of this "heraldic anomaly," that worthy replied with genuine simplicity: "Why you see, Mister, several of my customers who have been in to look at their carriages have ordered me to copy the arms from yours; for let me tell you," he added, in a patronizing manner, "it's a pattern that's very much liked !"

OF PUNNING FAMILY MOTTOES.

OME families, not content with painting their surnames upon their escutcheons, in the shape of canting' arms, have, moreover, re-echoed them in their mottoes.

The motto of the family of Piereponte (Duke of Kingston) is PIE REPONE TE, a capital hit, as the three words make the name almost exactly. FORTEScutum Salus Ducum, the motto of the Fortescues, has already been mentioned. The family of ONSLOW use Festina lente, "On slow!" or "Hasten slowly." The windows at Chiddingly Place, co. Sussex, the seat of the Jefferays, formerly contained their arms and motto, "Je-ffray ce que diray.”

I shall do what I say!

Sir John Jefferay, lord chief baron (temp. Eliz.) who was of this family, used the shorter motto,

“Que fra ‘je fra.””

The CAVENDISHES use Cavendo tutus, "Safety in caution;" the FANES, Ne vile fano, "Bring nothing base to the fane, or temple;" the MAYNARDS, MA-nus justa NARDus, "A just hand is a precious ointment;" the COURTHOPES, Court hope; the FAIRFAXES, Fare, fac, "Speak, do;" the VERNONS, Ver non semper viret,

"The spring does not always flourish," or Vernon always flourishes;" the FITTONS, "Fight on quoth Fitton;" the SMITHS, "Smite quoth Smith;" and the MANNS, Homo sum, "I am a man!" the NEVILLES, NE VILE velis, " Incline to nothing base;" the Agardes, Dieu me GARDE, " God defend me;" and the LOCKHARTS, CORDA SERATA pando, "I lay open the locked hearts." The antient family of Morrice, of Betshanger, co. Kent, who trace their genealogy to Brut, the first king of Britain, (!) have for their motto "Antiqui MORES." Many of the Scottish mottoes originated in the slughorn, slogan, or war-cry of the clan of which the bearer was chief. Thus the motto of SETON, Earl of Wintoun, is Set-on! being at once, an exhortation to the retainers to set upon the enemy, and a play upon the name.

The motto of John WELLS, last abbot of Croyland, engraved upon his chair, which is still extant, is, Benedicite FONTES Domine.”*

Bless the WELLS O Lord!

From a more copious list of punning mottoes which I have elsewhere given,† I select a few.

Addere Le-gi Justitiam Decus. 'Tis a support to

the Law to add Justice to it.

ADDERLEY.

Good and handsome enough.
BELLASIZE.

Bonne et belle assez.

Cave! Beware! CAVE.

Quod dixi, dixi. What I've said I have said.

*There is an engraving of this chair in Gough's Croyland.

+ Curios. of Herald., p. 156.