The Correct Arms of the State of New York. 



283 



which with equal brightness appeared in the morning, before evening 

 shined alone in him. For the two earls and their whole army were 

 put to flight with the slaughter of 3,800 men on the place." (Kenneti's 

 England, 1706.) 



It was this phenomenon, which was probably a genuine mirage, and 

 which was so well accredited in the minds of the people, which led 

 Edward IV to adopt a sun in splendor as his badge. It was placed 

 upon the housings of the saddles, and upon his banners. The gold 

 coin of his reign called the rose noble, and the rial and half rial had 

 the sun stamped upon them. I do not find that tlie sun had pre- 

 viously to this been stamped upon any of the coins of the realm of 

 England. It was also used during his reign, and only in his reign as a 

 mint mark. Writers on tlie history of the coins of England, Fleetwood, 

 Leake, Ending and Akerman, agree in ascribing this origin to the 

 sun upon the gold noble. If the sun was not uniformly perpetuated 

 afterward upon the Arms of the kings, or on the coins of the king- 

 dom, the explanation is found in the words of Dallaway in his 

 Heraldry : '^A cognizance is but temporary in a family; it does not 

 descend like the Arms, and so it never became a perpetual badge of the 

 succeeding members of the dynasty of England." • And for the same 

 reason, Guillim doe^not give the sun in his drawing of the Arms of 

 the Dukes of York. 



After the golden coin of Edward IV, the first coin upon which we 

 find the sun, Avas one of the reign of Mary, and next upon the gold 

 coin of Elizabeth. James I had it placed upon the sovereign. In 

 all these cases it was upon the reverse of the coin, and the suns were 

 all of the same type. "We will speak later of the use of the sun by 

 James II. 



It was of this sun of the Duke of York that the members of the 

 committee of the New York convention on the arms would have been 

 reminded when they dwelt upon passages relating to it which Shakes- 

 peare has woven into two of his historical plays. I will here quote a 

 portion of the scene from the third part of Henry VI, between Ed- 

 ward who became king, and Richard the second Duke of York. In 

 the margin we read: "A plain near Mortimer's Cross in Hereford- 

 shire." 



The Duke Richard addresses Edward: 



Richard. — See how the morning opes her golden gates. 

 And takes her farewell of the glorious sun; 

 How well resembles it the prime of youth, 

 Trimmed like a younker prancing to his love ! 



Edward — Dazzle mine eyes, or do I see three suns? 



