28 MARCH 1868, Page 2

Sir W. Maxwell Stirling had better ground for his assumption

of his maternal grandfather's baronetcy than we thought last week. It is of course an absurdity that an hereditary knighthood—and a baronetcy is only that—should devolve upon a woman, but Sir William's patent is undoubtedly extended to heirs-general. More- over, the Lord Advocate for Scotland, among his thousand and one duties, is by statute obliged to prevent the wrongful assump- tion of honours in Scotland. He not only did not prevent, but assented to Sir William's claim, which must therefore be held to be sound. The question does not matter much to anybody, that we know of, least of all to Sir William, who, as representative of the Stirlings of Keir, stands in a much higher social position than any Brummagem baronet.