Introduction. xxxv

Richard Chase, the son of the Rev. Thomas Chase, and other freeholders of
Baltimore County presented a petition complaining of the recent election in
that county, but after mature consideration the House dismissed the petition,
assessing at £10: 16: 0 the fees and costs due to its officers, to be paid by the
petitioners (pp. 218-219, 314, 636).

THE RIDOUT AFFAIR

" This unlucky Affair of Mr. Ridout's ", as it is styled in these proceedings
(p. 297), had its origin in the removal by John Ridout, Governor Sharpe's
Secretary, acting under orders from the Governor, of certain original militia
lists and accounts or memoranda, which had been deposited by him with the
Lower House for examination. Ridout had left copies with the clerk, however,
which was felt by the Governor to be all that was necessary. These accounts
which had been submitted some time previously to the Governor as commander-
in-chief by Col. Thomas Cresap in charge of the Provincial troops on the
frontier, were found to be defective and incomplete, and had been returned
by the Governor to Cresap for correction. The removal of the original accounts
was resented by the Lower House, which blamed its clerk for allowing the
papers to be removed (pp. 365-375).

The first gun in this dispute was fired on April 30 with a loud report in the
form of an order from the Lower House to its Sergeant-at-arms to take into
custody the body of John Ridout and bring him before the bar of the House
for refusing to obey an order of the House to appear a second time before it
(p. 205). On the same day the Governor sent a message to the house saying
that while " I was this Day at Dinner, your Serjeant came into my house and
demanded to see my Secretary ... he told me he had Orders from your
House to take him into Custody ". The Governor then added that as the
Sergeant had just been appointed, and was doubtless unfamiliar with the
duties of his office, he supposed his actions were unauthorized and therefore
excusable, " but if he acted in this Manner by any Order of your House, I
can't but expect that the reason for such an extraordinary Proceeding, with-
out any previous Application [to me], will be communicated to me " (p. 209).
This was followed on October 3 by an address, curt and offensive in tone,
from the Lower House to the Governor, declaring that as Mr. John Ridout
had " been Guilty of a Contempt of the Authority, and of a Breach of the
Rights and Privileges of this House, at the Bar thereof, we did issue a War-
rant to our Serjeant to take him into Custody ". The message offensively
added that " If the Serjeant, in the Execution of his Duty, behaved in a
Manner inconsistent with the Decorum that ought to be observed in your
Excellency's House while you are at Dinner ..... and that if he has been
Guilty of the least Intrusion or Indelicacy, your Excellency will impute it
to being just appointed to Office", (p. 215). The Governor on October 11,
sent an indignant rejoinder to the Lower House. In this message he told the
house that instead of applying itself to the two matters of paramount importance
which required its attention, and for which it had been called together, the
support of militia already raised for the defence of the Province, and making