SECT. IV. Of the DIFFERENCES of COATS of the heads of this ancient family have for many ages proof of the truth of this tradition than this, that carefully retained this bearing without any alteration or addition. ARMS. ARMORISTS have invented many differences or characteristical marks, whereby bearers of the fame coat of arms are diftinguished each from others, and their nearnefs to the principal bearer demonftrated. According to J. Guillim, these differences are to be confidered either as ancient or modern. 1. Thofe he calls ancient differences confist in bor dures; which is a bearing that goes all round, and parallel to the boundary of the efcutcheon, in form of a hem, and always contains a fifth part of the field in breadth. Bordures were used in ancient times for the diftinguishing not only of one nation or tribe from another, but also to note a diverfity between particular perfons defcended of one family and from the fame parents. This ditinction, however, was not exprefsly fignified by invariable marks; nor were bordures always appropriated to denote the different degrees of confanguinity: for, as Sir Henry Spelman obferves in his Apilogia, p. 140, "ancient heralds, being fond of perfpicuous differences, often inverted the paternal tincture, or fometimes inferted another Charge in the efcutcheon, fuch as bends, croflets, Cantons, or the like; which irregularity has, I appofe, induced modern armorifts to invent and make ufe of others." There are bordures of different forms and tinctores, as in the examples, in Plate CLXXV. Bortores are generally ufed as a difference between milies of the fame name, and also as marks of Legitimacy. A bordure is never of metal upon metal, and edom of colour upon colour, but rather of the ture which the principal bearing or charge is Thus Sir Dalziel of Glenae, whofe predefor was a younger brother of the noble famiby cf Carnwath, has, within a Bordure Argent, the paternal coat of the ancient name of Dalziel, *z “Sable, a hanged man with his arms extendtd, Argent;" formerly they carried him hanging agallows. This bearing, though fo very finfalar for a coat of arms, was given as a reward to e of the ancestors of the late Robert Dalziel, tar of Carnwath, to perpetute the memory of a brave and hazardous exploit performed in taking down from the gallows the body of a favourite near relation of king Kenneth II. hung up by Pas; which story is thus related by AlexanNibet: "The king being exceedingly grieved the body of his minion and kinfman should fdifgracefully treated, he proffered a great reard to any of his fubjects who would adventure refcue his corpfe from the difgrace his cruel eres had unjustly put upon it but when none d undertake this hazardous enterprife, at laft Ta orous gentleman came and faid to the king, zel, which fignifies, "I dare;" and he did ally perform that noble exploit to the king's fiation and his own immortal honour, and in mory of it got the aforefaid remarkable bear2 and afterwards his pofterity took the word zel for their furname, and the interpretation , I dare, continues to this day to be the motto that noble family." We can have no better 2. The modern differences, which the English have adopted, not only for the diftinguishing of fons iffued out of one family, but also to denote the difference and fubordinate degrees in each houfe from the original ancestors, are nine, viz. For the heir or firft fon, the Label. 2d fon, the Crescent. 3d fon, the Mullet. 4th fon, the Martlet. 5th fon, the Annulet. 6th fon, the Flower-de-lis. 7th fon, the Rofe. 8th fon, the Crofs-moline. 9th fon, the Double Quarter foil. See Plate CLXXV. By thefe differences, the fix fons of Thomas Beauchamp, the 15th earl of Warwick, who died in the 34th year of king Edward III. are distinguished in an old window of the church of St Mary at Warwick; fo that although they are called modern differences, their ufage with the English is ancient. But of all the fore mentioned marks of diftinction, none but the label is affixed on the coats of arms belonging to any of the royal family; which the introducers of this peculiarity have, however, thought proper to difference by additional pendants and diftinct charges on them: as is fhewn in Plate CLXXV, where, 1. The Prince of Wales and D. of Cornwall have a label Luna. 2. The D. of York has a label Luna charged with a cross Mars upon the middle Lambeaux. 3. The D. of Clarence has a label Luna, charged with a cross Mars, between two anchors Jupiter. 4. The D. of Gloucefter has a label of five points Luna, the middle one charged with a fleur-de-lis Jupiter; the other four with a crofs Mars. Thefe differences are born upon the arms and supporters. As to the diftinction to be made in the arms of the offspring belonging to each of the above-mentioned brothers, it is expreffed by figures on the top and margin of the TABLE of HOUSES, given in Plate CLXXV. For instance, The heir or first fon of the second house, bears a crefcent charged with a label during his father's life only. The fecond fon of the second houfe, a crefcent charged with another crefcent. The third fon of the fecond house, a crefcent charged with a mullet. The fourth fon of the fecond houfe, a crefcent charged with a martlet. The fifth fon of the fecond houfe, a crefcent charged with an annulet. The fixth fon of the fecond houfe, a crefcent charged with a fluer de lis; and fo on of the other fons, taking care to have them of a different tincture. In what part of the efcutcheon thefe differences fhould be born is not certain; for Guillim, Morgan, and others, give us many different examples of their polition. The honour point would be the propereft place, if the arms would admit of it; but that is not always the cafe, as that part may be charged with fome figure in the paternal coat, which cannot with propriety receive the difference. There are inftances where thefe are born alone as perfect coats of arms. In the Examples of Differences, exhibited in Plate CLXXV, 1. is the mark of filiation for the 4th fon of the 6th house. 2. Is the 4th fon of the firft generation, expreffed by the martlet in chief. Sifters, except of the blood-royal, have no other mark mark of difference in their coats of arms, but the form of the efcutcheon; therefore they are permitted to bear the arms of their father, as the eldeft fon does after his father's decease. The reafon is by Guillim faid to be, that when they are married, they lofe their furname, and receive that of their husbands. Next to these diminutions, G. Leigh, J. Guillim, and after them Dr Harris in his Lexicon Technicum, fet forth at large divers figures, which they pretend were formerly added to the coats of fuch as were to be punished and branded for cowardice, fornication, flander, adultery, treason, or murder, for which they give them the name of abatements of honour; but as they produce but one inftance of fuch whimfical bearings, we have not inferted them. Befides, arms being marks of honour, they cannot admit of any note of infamy; nor would any body now-a-days bear them if they were fo branded. It is true, a man may be degraded for divers crimes, particularly high treason; but in fuch cafes the efcutcheon is reversed, trod upon, and torn in pieces, to denote a total extinction and fuppreffion of the honour and dignity of the perfon to whom it belonged. CHAP. III. Of the CHARGES. WHATSOEVER is,contained in the field, whether it occupy the whole or only a part thereof, is called a charge. All charges are diftinguished by the names of honourable ordinaries, ful-ordinaries, and common charges. 1. Honourable ordinaries, the principal charges in heraldry, are made of lines only, which, according to their difpofition and form, receive different names, 2. Sub-ordinaries are ancient heraldic figures, frequently used in coats of arms, and which are diftinguished by terms appropriated to each of them. 3. Common charges are compofed of natural, artificial, and even chimerical things; fuch as planets, creatures, vegetables, inftruments, &c. SECT. I. Of HONOURABLE ORDINARIES. THE moft judicious armorifts admit only of nine honourable ordinaries, viz. The Chief; the Pale; the Bend; the Bend Sinifter; the Fefs; the Bar; the Cheveron; the Crofs; and the Saltier. Of thefe, only 6 have diminutives, which are called as follows: That of the chief is a fillet; the pale has a pallet and endorse; the bend, a bendlet, toft, and ribband; the bend finifter has the fearp and baton; the bar, the closet and barulet; the cheveron, a cheveronel and couple-clofe. 1. The CHIEF is an ordinary determined by an horizontal line, which, if it is of any other form but ftraight, muft be expreffed. It is placed in the upper part of the efcutcheon, and contains in depth the third part of the field. Its diminutive is a fillet, the content of which is not to exceed one fourth of the chief, and stands in the loweft part thereof. This ordinary is subject to be charged with variety of figures; and may be indented, wavy, nebule, &c. as in the examples, in Plate CLXXV. 2. The PALE is an ordinary, confifting of two perpendicular lines drawn from the top to the bafe of the efcutcheon, and contains the third middle part of the field. Its diminutives are, the pallet, which is the half of the pale; and the endorfe, which is the 4th part of a pale. This ordi nary and the pallet may receive any charge, but the endorfe fhould not be charged. The endorfe, befides, is never ufed, according to J. Leigh, but to accompany the pale in pairs, as cotices do the bend; but Sir John Ferne is of a different opinion. 3. The BEND is an ordinary formed by two diagonal lines, drawn from the dexter chief to the finifter base; and contains the 5th part of the field in breadth, if uncharged; but if charged, then the third. Its diminutives are, the bendlet, which is the half of a bend: the coft or cotice, when two of them accompany a bend, which is the 4th pat of a bend; and the ribband, the moity of a co or the 8th part of a field. The BEND SINISTER is of the fame breadth as the bend, but drawn the contrary way: this is fubdivided into a ferape, which is the half of the bend, and into a bâton, which is the 4th part of the bend, but does not extend itfelf to the extremities of the field, there being part of it feen at both ends. See Plate CLXXVII. 4. The FESS is an ordinary produced by two parallel lines drawn horizontally across the centre of the field, and contains in breadth the third part thereof. Some English writers fay it has no dimi nutive for the bar is a diftinct ordinary of itself. 5. The BAR, according to their definition, i formed of two lines, and contains but the fifta part of the field: which is not the only thing wherein it differs from the fefs; for there may be more than one in an efcutcheon, placed in dif rent parts thereof, whereas the fefs is limited to the centre point; but in this the French armorifts differed from them. The bar has two diminu tives; the barulet, which contains the half of the bar; and the clofet, which is the half of the baru. let. When the fhield contains a number of bars of metal and colour alternate, of even number, that is called barry of fo many pieces, expreffing their number. See the examples, in Pl. CLXXVI 6. The CHEVERON, which reprefents two rat ters of a house well jointed together, or a pair of compaffes half open, takes up the fifth part of the field with the English, but the French gave it the third. Its diminutives are, The cheveronel, which contains the half of a cheveron; and the coupl clofe, which is the half of a cheveronel, that is its breadth is but the fourth part of a cheveron. Leigh obferves, that this laft diminutive is never born but in pairs, or with a cheveron betwees two of them. The French had but one diminu tion of this ordinary called Etaye, containing the third part of its breadth. See Plate CLXXVII. 7. The CROSS is an ordinary formed by the meeting of two perpendicular with two horizontal lines in the fefs point, where they make four right angles; the lines are not drawn throughout, bat difcontinued the breadth of the ordinary, which takes up only the fifth part of the field when not charged; but if charged, then the third. It is born as well engrailed, indented, fce. as plain. There is a great variety of croffes ufed in he raldry |