Page:History of England (Froude) Vol 4.djvu/236

216 Suddenly, however, there was a change. At the end of November, 1546, when the King's illness was notoriously dangerous, and he was in greatest embarrassment as to the settlement of the kingdom, it became known that the young lord had made an alteration in his shield; that where he was entitled to bear the arms of England in the second quarter, as a collateral descendant of the Plantagenets, he had assumed the quarterings which belonged especially and only to the heir-apparent to the throne. The Earl of Surrey's arms was not a subject entirely new. We may feel assured that, when the riot was inquired into, the remarks of his friends upon his family and his prospects had not been overlooked. A new and extraordinary affectation in the same matter naturally attracted notice. Questions were asked at the College of Heralds, where it appeared that Lord Surrey had inquired whether he might legitimately assume the royal bearings. He had been told, it was found, that he might not assume them; he had insisted that he would, and he had been served in consequence with a formal inhibition. A light matter became a large one, when it had been pursued with so peculiar obstinacy. Vanity alone could not have prompted conduct which was technically high treason, when the nature of it was so clearly understood. Suspicion being once aroused, many lips were immediately