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tially consider the character and incidents of a republican
form of government. This respondent, further answering,
denies that the said law and amendments are in subver-
sion of the Constitution and laws of this State, and that
the same were passed and enacted by divers wicked and
disloyal men, wholly wanting in the duty of their alle-
giance to the Constitution of this State, (though they had
recently taken a solemn oath of office to support the same)
and that the design of the said legislators was, under the
form of law, to sow dissension among the people of the
State, and to create and cause the evils and miseries al-
leged in the said bill of complaint, but he shows that al-
though it is not incumbent on him, as sheriff of the City
of Baltimore, to vindicate the members of the said Gen-
eral Assembly of Maryland from the wholesale charge of
perjury, conspiracy, disloyalty and treason against them
charged in said bill of complaint, yet he cannot avoid
charging in this, his answer, that it must be manifest to
this Honorable Court that the said complainants have
used this, their bill of complaint, as a vehicle of slander,
and under the color and pretense of^ peeking a remedy
which they knew did not exist, have defiled the records of
this Honorable Court with the grossest charges against
the integrity and purity of all the members of the Gen-
eral Assembly of Maryland who voted for the passage of
said law and its amendments.
Further answering, this respondent denies that the said
complainants or either of them has been or will be in any
way damnified by any of the acts or undertakings of this
respondent, or by the "carrying out of the undertakings"
in said bill alleged of this respondent to hold the election
under the law aforesaid; but suggests to the said com-
plainants that by voting against the call of said conven-
tion, (if they or either of them is a qualified voter, ) they
will not be under the necessity of procuring any person
to act as delegate to said convention, or be compelled to
vote for any such delegate; and their fears of exposure to
the risk of criminal prosecution for seditious conduct will
thereby be greatly relieved, if not entirely dissipated.
This respondent, further answering, denies that he is
about to misapply the moneys and funds of the State in
any way, and that he has any such funds under his con-
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