Mr. Asquith's Questions
SIR,—Janus, in your last issue, raises afresh the problem (on which my father used to cross-examine his off-spring) why, on the death of the elder Hamlet, the young Hamlet did not automatically succeed him. Janus suggests that according to mediaeval Danish law a surviv- ing brother succeeded a defunct sovereign. Is not the truth perhaps simpler ? Namely that the Danish monarchy was at the time in question elective. Young Hamlet complains that Claudius " popped in between my hopes and the election": language which does not accord with Janus's theory, but does with the elective theory, which my father held. For good or bad reasons the electors chose Claudius.
The matter is discussed in a chapter which I contributed to the official biography of my father (Chapter XVII).—Yours faithfully,
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