Page:The Green Bag (1889–1914), Volume 10.pdf/328

 The Great Seal. George IV. had one seal only and when William IV. succeeded him there was some contention as to the disposal of the pieces of the defaced seal of George. The diffi culty came out of the fact that when Wil liam's seal was ordered (August 4, 1830), Lord Lyndhurst was Chancellor, but when it was finished and ready to take the place of George IV.'s seal (August 31, 183 1), Lord Brougham was Chancellor. Lynd hurst claimed the old seal on the ground



299

his " Memoirs " gives the following account of the incident : — "King William IV. is a queer fellow. Our Council was principally for a new Great Seal, and to deface the old Seal. The Chancellor [Brougham] claims the old one as his perquisite. I had forgotten the hammer, so the King said, ' My Ixnd, the best thing I can do is to give you the seal and tell you to take it and do what you like with it.' The Chancellor said, ' Sir, I believe there is some doubt whether Lord Lyndhurst ought not to have half of it, as he was Chancellor at the

No. 22. Seal of William IV.

Period of use 18;i to 1838.

that the transaction must be referred back to the date of the order for the new seal, and that the fruit must therefore be con sidered as having fallen in his time; while Lord Brougham insisted that the point of time to be regarded was the moment when the old seal ceased to be the clavis regni. The matter was submitted to William IV., and he — as the Great Seal consists of two parts, the seal and the counterscal — gave one part to each Chancellor. Greville, in

Diameter 6 inches.

Obverse.

time of your Majesty's accession.' ' Well,' said the King, 'then I will judge between you, like Solo mon : here ' (turning the Seal round and round), ' now do you cry heads or tails.' We all laughed, and the Chancellor said, ' Sir, I take the bottom part.' The King opened the the two compart ments of the seal, and said, ' Now then I employ you as ministers of state. You will send for Bridge, my silversmith, and desire him to con vert the two halves each into a salver, with my arms on one side and yours on the other, and Lord Lyndhurst's the same, and you will take