28o THE ANCESTOR The trustees of the late Sir William Fraser have decided to devote a portion of the funds at their disposal to the pre- paration of a revised edition of Douglas' Peerage of Scotland, Lyon King of Arms is taking an active interest in the scheme, and it is proposed to entrust the account of each family to a specially qualified writer.
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The approaching coronation will have an eifect that has not been generally realized on the peerage of Ireland. In accord- ance with precedent it has been announced that only those who have proved their right to vote at elections for representative peers for Ireland can attend the coronation as peers. As there are cases in which this right has never yet been proved atten- tion will now be called to them. In spite of the prominence given beforehand, both officially and in the press, to the Court of Claims, the proceedings before that august body did not possess much interest for the genealogist or the antiquary. This was largely due to the fact that all claims to do service at the coronation banquet, or to walk in the procession, were excluded, owing to the abandon- ment of both these portions of the ceremony. The ' services * in the Abbey itself are but few, the most important being that of supporting the king's right arm at the time of his corona- tion, and of presenting him with a glove, embroidered with arms, to be worn on his right hand at the same time. This represents a very ancient tenure ' by grand serjeanty ' of the manor of Farnham Royal, which was first held by the Verdons and afterwards by the Furnivals. The latter family exchanged it with Henry VIII. for lands at Worksop, stipulating that this honourable service should be transferred to their new estate. From them it descended through heiresses to the Talbots and the Howards, with the result that at recent coronations the right to perform the service has been vested in the Dukes of Norfolk. « ^ ^ In the course however of the late reign, the Worksop pro- perty, for the first time, changed hands by purchase, being sold by the Duke of Norfolk to the Duke of Newcastle. The present Duke of Newcastle therefore claimed to perform the service, but his claim was somewhat unexpectedly opposed by
