Among the more miscellaneous “Arms” may be mentioned the CHATSWORTH ARMS at Forest Gate, the ALMA ARMS (beer-house) at Navestock, the CHOBHAM ARMS at Stratford, together with a LIBERTY ARMS, a LIBRA ARMS, three ORDNANCE ARMS, a RAILWAY ARMS, and a ROMAN ARMS in the Roman Road, Colchester. The last-named sign has been corrupted within the last twenty years from the ROMAN URN. Most of these extremely absurd signs have come into existence during the last few years. They serve to show how completely the original use of arms as signs has become disassociated from their present use. Another indication of the modern growth of “Arms” is to be found in the fact that they are very common as beer-house signs--beer-houses having only been instituted since the beginning of this century. Even forty years ago “Arms” were decidedly less common as signs than they are now. The list has of late been swelled by such stupid and unmeaning additions as the ALMA ARMS, LIBRA ARMS, and LILLIPUT ARMS, very few, if any, of which existed fifty years since. To the above may be added the following, which appear in London, and are most of them modern and meaningless absurdities:--The WATERLOO ARMS, the GRAND JUNCTION ARMS, the PAVIORS’ ARMS, the PALACE ARMS, the ROMAN ARMS (in the Roman Road, Bow, E.), the MECHANICS’ ARMS, and the VOLUNTEERS’ ARMS. The SOL’S ARMS, in the Hampstead Road, commemorated by Dickens in _Bleak House_, still exists under the same name. “Arms” in London are very frequently situated in streets of the same name, and these streets are usually named after persons, who, it may be presumed, own property in them. Altogether there are in London no less than 352 distinct signs consisting of “Arms” of some kind or other, not counting the number of times each particular sign is repeated. Thus, in London, “Arms” form rather more than twenty per cent. of all distinct signs. [Illustration] [Illustration] CHAPTER III. _MAMMALIAN SIGNS._ The next great class of signs to be noticed consists of what may be termed “Mammalian Signs.” In Essex no less than 464 houses, or 34·2 per cent. of the whole, display devices derived from the animal kingdom. There are, however, only 102 distinct signs. These may be classified as follows:-- No. of No. of signs. distinct signs. Mammals 384 81 Birds 75 18 Fish 1 1 Insects 4 2 --- --- 464 102 --- --- This calculation is, moreover, made independent of “man and his parts,” as the heralds say. Signs of human origin have been placed in a separate class, and will be treated of hereafter by themselves.