16 HERALDRY. 



or coronet is evident to every one who knows that the former 

 can only be borne by kings and the latter by royal princes. 



A common error in blazoning, i. e., rendering heraldic de- 

 vices from the technical descriptions, arises from ignorance 

 of the fact that the dexter side of the shield is not the right 

 but the left side. This seeming inconsistency in nomencla- 

 ture is explained by the fact that the sides of the shield were 

 designated by the person who stood behind it : hence that 

 side of the shield which is on the right hand of the person 

 carrying it is on the left side of the person facing it. 



Another " bull " that is made in blazoning is the render- 

 ing of the bandeau or torse upon which the crest rests 

 with more or less than six twists. 



It should be composed of exactly six twists and be alter- 

 nately light and dark, the first twist at the extreme left should 

 always be lighter in color than the one next it. Authority: 

 Coussans, page 188, "It is composed of six twists and derives 

 its tinctures from the shield and charges which it ensigns. 

 The predominant metal and color appear alternately, the 

 metal towards the dexter." 



Unless the reader is thoroughly conversant with the many 

 laws of heraldry and is thereby capable of judging when the 

 blazoning is properly done, its application had best be 

 omitted. In its place let some badge, knot or rebus be em- 

 ployed to convey the idea of private ownership. The public 

 exhibition of a person's consciousness that he is or believes 

 himself to be more favored in the matter of birth than the 

 majority of his fellow beings is a proof that not only is his 

 vanity greater than his modesty, but that his desire to impress 

 outweighs his recognition of the virtue of simplicity. 



