vation as cray and creek, whence also cray fish, and crayer a small ship for ascending rivers. Some branches of this family have varied the arms, and others have an anchor for a device with the word "Fast;" but the Earls of Stamford, the Earls of Wilton, and the Earl De Grey, who is descended from the Earls and Dukes of Kent, retain the original arms.

A river is represented in foreign shields of arms, flowing as on the surface of the earth. Vert, three rivers fesswise, argent, are the arms of the German family of Gilse, of Hesse. Gules, a river in bend argent are the arms of Lauterbach of the same country.⁕

Gules, in a river in bend argent, three fish azure, are the arms of the imperial town of Onoltzbach.†

Gules, a river in fess argent, are the arms of the family of Von Buren of Saxony.‡ Argent on a pale wavy sable, three fish embowed or, are the arms of Swartzac in Switzerland.

The local site of their original barony is indicated in the arms of the Lords Stourton; sable, a bend or, between six fountains, allusive of the six springs from which the river Stour has its source near Stourton, on the borders of Wiltshire and Somersetshire. In the chancel of that church are several monuments of the Stourton family, of which Sir John, the first peer, was created Lord Stourton by King Henry VI. in 1448. A similar origin is assigned for the arms of the family of Home of Ninewells, a branch of that of Home of Tyningham in Haddingtonshire; vert, a lion rampant argent, within a border or, charged with nine fountains or wells.

⁕ Palliot.

+Sibmacher.

Ibid.

Azure, three fountains, are the arms of the family of Wells of Hampshire. The arms of Twells, a play upon the name, vert, on a fess azure, between six wells proper, a bezant, are sculptured on the tombstone of Matthias Twells in St. Margaret's Church, Lynn, of which place he was alderman, and who died in 1676.

A curious ancient custom, illustrative of the importance of wells, is observed annually at Motcombe, Dorsetshire, where are four large wells, which supply the town of Shaftesbury with water. If a dance is not performed on the Sunday after Holyrood day, and the bailiff of Gillingham have not his due, he stops the water of the wells of Enmore.

Lord Wells used as a badge a bucket with the chains, in allusion to the name, as water bougets were used by the Bourchiers, Earls of Eu as well as of Essex.

The fountain of heraldry should be depicted by a circle, barry wavy argent and azure; but some modern grants lose the antique character of the art, as in the arms blazoned, in a landscape field a fountain, thereout issuing a palm tree, which were granted to the family of Franco of St. Katherine Coleman, London, 1760.

A whirlpool, heraldically termed a gurges, represents the rapid motion of water in a circular direction, taking up all the field, as in the arms of the baronial family of Gorges, assumed in allusion to the name; argent, a gurges azure. These are found among the quarterings borne by the noble family of Russell, showing their descent from that of Gorges.⁕ Longford Castle, in Wiltshire, presenting a singular specimen of architecture in its plan, was erected on the banks of the Avon by Sir Thomas Gorges in 1591; he died in 1610, and a monument to his memory is in Salisbury Cathedral. Sir Edward Gorges, in 1620, was created Lord Dundalk by King James I.

The banks of rivers, and the heights which command them, almost exclusively monopolize the beauty and compose the characteristic features of every country. Great cities are seldom placed but on a river; the castle commanded the passes, and the abbey always depended on the contiguous stream. Argent, a fess wavy gules, cottised of the last, are the arms of the family of Waterford; that of Brooksby bears, barry wavy argent, and sable, a canton gules. Brooksbank of Elland, in Yorkshire, bears

* Wiffen's Historical Memoirs of the House of Russell, 1833.

azure, two bars wavy argent, within a border or; and, argent, a fess wavy azure, within a border sable, are the arms of Brookbank.

The arms of the French family of De Viviers exhibit an instance of the armes parlantes. Vivier is a fish-pond, and their arms are, argent, three fish-wells vert, filled with water azure.

Gules, three fountains are the arms of Waterhouse of Yorkshire; and, sable, three bars wavy, between as many swans argent, are the arms of Waters of Lenham in Kent.

THE TENCH.

The Tench, a beautiful fish, with small smooth scales tinged with golden colour, is rarely found in the rivers of England, but many of the ponds and ornamental waters in pleasure-grounds abound with tench. Bridges, in his History of Northamptonshire, says, "On Mr. Plowden's estate, who is lord of the manor of Aston, were two-and-fifty fish-ponds in the time of his ancestor Francis Plowden, who used to boast that he had one weekly to drain throughout the year." Some still remain, and there are vestiges of others now disused.

In no other instance but as allusive to the name, is this fish used in heraldry: among the old German families who bear fish is that of Von Tanques, whose arms are three tench. Or, three tench hauriant gules, are the arms of the French family of Tanche.

Azure, three tench naiant in pale or, were the arms of Tenche, a Marshal in Flanders, according to Palliot.⁕

⁕ Science des Armoiries.

The tench, used in English heraldry as a play upon the name, forms part of the crest of Sir Fisher Tench of Low Leyton, in Essex, descended from a family of Shropshire, and created Baronet by King George I. in 1715. After his death the title became extinct; but his sister and heiress Elizabeth, married Francis Asty, Esq. of Black Notley, whose daughter and heiress Henrietta, became the wife of Christopher Wyvil in 1739, and at his death the estates fell to Sir Marmaduke Asty Wyvil, Bart. Arms, argent, on a chevron, between three lions' heads erased gules, a cross crosslet or; for Tench: quartering azure, a fess counter embattled between three dolphins embowed or; for Fisher: crest, an arm vested gules, turned up argent, grasping a tench in the hand.

Heraldry affords modes of illustration which are capable of infinite variety; and by the French, our prototypes in the art, every incident, or singular tradition susceptible of poetical embellishment, or capable of picturesque representation, was adopted in their plan of armorial composition. The following instance may be taken as affording some idea of the extent to which their admiration of armes parlantes was carried.

The word souci signifies equally marigold, and care or anxiety. Three marigolds are borne by the family of Lemaitre, azure, trois soucis (Tor, arms assumed in allusion to the proverb, Si les valets out les peines, le maître a les soucis, if the vassals have their labour, the lord has his anxiety. One of this ancient family,

Giles Lemaitre, was premier president of the parliament of Paris in 1551.

Punning in the spirit of the age was even introduced into epitaphs, as in the distich of Ariosto on the Marchese di Pescara, who commanded the armies of Charles V. in Italy:

· Piscator maximus ille !

Nunquid et hie pieces cepit ? non: ergo quid? Urbes.

The Marchese was husband of the eminently gifted Vittoria Colonna, and died soon after he had won the memorable battle of Pavia where Francis I. was taken prisoner.

THE BREAM.

Bream are found in almost all the lakes and rivers of Europe as far northward as Norway. The rivers Trent and Medway are noted for this particular fish, which is very broad in its form, and has large scales. The sprightly Waller notices it as

"A broad bream to please some curious taste."

On the Continent this fish is in high request; and "He that hath bream in his pond may bid his friend welcome," is a proverb quoted by Isaak Walton.

Azure, three bream or, are the punning arms of Breame, an Essex family of some antiquity in that county.

After the dissolution of the Cistercian Abbey at Stratford, King Henry VIII. granted the manor of East Ham, part of the monastical estate, to Richard Breame, Esq. who died in 1546, leaving a son Edward, whose heir, on his decease in 1558, was