S84 GRANT TO GBOfeGE SINCLAIR 



Jedburgh assizes (which she had sat through after hearing 

 of Bothweil's wound), and that a heap of papers were 

 awaiting her signature there. A search in the register 

 has failed to show any other document of the same date. 

 But there is a special reason why this one should hare been 

 promptly entered ; the volume containing it is entirely, or 

 mostly, in the handwriting of the father of the recipient 

 of the appointment. That is not in any way remarkable, 

 except as a fine specimen of a monopoly. 



The system of monopolies appears to have helped to bring 

 on the civil wars in the next century, especially in England. 

 This seems perfectly clear, that no will made in Edinburgh 

 was to hold good unless it was drawn up by Master George 

 Sinclair, son of Thomas Sinclair, writer. 



That Mary had not gone to Hermitage till after the six 

 days of the assizes was Lord Woodhouselee's discovery in 

 the last century, and it certainly strengthened the arguments 

 of those who did not believe she had murdered Darnley 

 in order to marry Bothwell. 



That she returned from Hermitage to Jedburgh the same 

 day may probably have been due to the prosaic consideration 

 of the intense inconvenience of a royal visit to a feudal 

 castle, with the lord laid up. 



The change from the singular to the plural in the 

 references to the sovereign in the register is owing to 

 Mary's marriage to Daraley, who was created King Consort. 



This, though it probably helped to turn his head, was 

 by no means so inappropriate as people suppose, who 

 think Darnley was a private individual ; for his position 

 was that of heir to the English crown after Mary 

 herself. 



The photograph of the register was taken by Mr Bashford 

 of Portobello, who — though it is a most excellent represent- 

 ation — considers it slightly distorted by the inevitable curve 

 of the original, from the binding of the volume. 



We are indebted to Mr Maitland Thomson, the actual 

 custodian of the register, for the transcript of this entry, 

 with the contractions expanded. There is a good deal of 

 superfluous spelling as it is, and without his assistance the 

 document would hardly have been legible. 



