uld be done by allowing the crown to descend to a son who, not
being born in lawful wedlock, could have no rights as heir.

After disseminating this story among the influential persons connected
with the court, and through all the circles of high life, during the
week, it was arranged that on the following Sunday the facts should be
made known publicly to the people.

There was a large open space near St. Paul's Cathedral, in the very
heart of London, where it was the custom to hold public assemblies of
all kinds, both religious and political. There was a pulpit built on
one side of this space, from which sermons were preached, orations
and harangues pronounced, and proclamations made. Oaths were
administered here too, in cases where it was required to administer
oaths to large numbers of people.

From this pulpit, on the next Sunday after the penance of Jane Shore,
a certain Dr. Shaw, who was a brother of the Lord-mayor of London,
preached a sermon to a large concourse of citizens, in which he openly
attempted to set aside the claims of the two boys, and to prove that
Richard was the true heir to the crown.

He took for his text a passage from the Wisdom of Solomon, "The
multiplying brood of the ungodly shall not thrive." In this discourse
he explained to his audience that Edward, when he was married to
Elizabeth Woodville, was already the husband of Elinor Boteler, and
consequently that the second marriage was illegal and void, and the
children of it entirely destitute of all claims to the crown. He also,
it is said, advanced the idea that neither Edward nor Clarence were
the children of their reputed father, the old Duke of York, but that
Richard was the oldest legitimate son of the marriage, in proof of
which he offered the fact that Richard strongly resembled the duke in
person, while neither Edward nor Clarence had borne any resemblance to
him at all.

It was arranged, moreover--so it was said--that, when the preacher
came to the passage where he was to speak of the resemblance which
Richard bore to his father, the great Duke of York, Richard himself
was to enter the assembly as if by accident, and thus give the
preacher the opportunity to illustrate and confirm what he had said by
directing his audience to observe for themselves the resemblance which
he had pointed out, and also to excite them to a burst of enthusiasm
in Richard's favor by the eloquent appeal which the incident of
Richard's entrance was to