The Lower House. 295

the least Intrusion or Indecency, your Excellency will impute it to
his being but just appointed to his Office." This is an Apology for
the Serjeant's Behaviour, as represented by your Excellency, but we
do not think it is one for any Conduct of ours, nor do we think it
needs any.

We are far from being disposed to have it believed, that our
Serjeant may at any Time, except when you are at Dinner, enter your
House, and take any Person from thence we may order him; and
could we have thought any Circumstance had been thrown into your
Message without Meaning or Design, we should have passed over
that of your being at Dinner; but common Decency obliged us, when
we were apologizing to your Excellency for our Serjeant, to make the
Apology as circumstantial as you had made the Accusation.

We do not know of any such Officer as a Governor's Secretary,
nor ever heard of such in this Government; and therefore (and not
by Way of Excuse) we spoke of the Gentleman, against whom a
Warrant was given to our Serjeant, by the Name of Mr. Ridout ;
and we hope a new Officer is not to be created within this Govern-
ment by your Excellency's Messages informing us any Gentleman is
such; and we cannot look upon Mr. Ridout as any Thing more than
a Gentleman supported by your Excellency, or perhaps his Lordship,
for your Convenience and Assistance in Writing.

Whether we have a Right to order our Serjeant to take a Gov-
ernor's Secretary into Custody, or not, it is Time enough to dispute,
when there is one legally commissioned (which we apprehend cannot
be without the Consent of the Legislature) and duly qualified.

We do not desire to bring your Excellency's just and constitutional
Rights, while you are the Chief Branch of our Legislature, into Dis-
pute; nor will we tamely suffer ours to be violated or infringed.

What your Excellency is pleased to observe to us, by Way of
Information, as to our Rights and Privileges as one Branch of the
Legislature, may be New to you, but we assure you it is not so to us.
What are the Rights and Privileges of those Gentlemen, that are said
to constitute another Branch, we know nothing about; as it is a
Branch undevised in our Charter, and unknown in it's Original. We

L. H. J.
Liber No. 49
Dec.1
p. 112

with Pleasure acknowledge, that your Excellency, as a Branch of
our Legislature, has Rights and Privileges, which we have neither
Power or Desire to exercise; but that you have any Servant constitu-
tionally attendant upon you, in your Legislative Capacity, in the
Discharge of your Duty, we must deny; and we hope your Excellency
will never insist, that any Person not having a Commission, or Public
Appointment or Nomination, or any Thing more than a bare private
Appellation, and one that never even underwent the Qualification
necessary to distinguish him to be a loyal Subject, that we can find,
should be looked on as such; and if any Person were to be commis-

p. 113