manner at such a time; so I commenced with Bailie Sprose, my lord
being at the time provost, and earnestly beseeched him to attend the
meeting with me, and to give a mild answer to any questions that
might be put; and this was the more necessary, as there was some
good reason to believe, that, in point of fact, the offer of service
had been kept back.

We accordingly went to the meeting, where Mr Sprose, at my
suggestion, stated, that we had received no answer; and that we
could not explain how the delay had arisen. This, however, did not
pacify the volunteers; but they appointed certain of their own
number, a committee, to attend to the business, and to communicate
with the secretary of state direct; intimating, that the members of
the committee were those whom they intended to elect for their
officers. This was a decisive step, and took the business entirely
out of the hands of the magistrates; so, after the meeting, both Mr
Sprose and myself agreed, that no time should be lost in
communicating to the lord-lieutenant what had taken place.

Our letter, and the volunteers' letter, went by the same post; and
on receiving ours, the lord-lieutenant had immediately some
conference with the secretary of state, who, falling into the views
of his lordship, in preferring the offers of the corps proposed by
the gentry, sent the volunteers word in reply, that their services,
on the terms they had proposed, which were of the least possible
expense to government, could not be accepted.

It was hoped that this answer would have ended the matter; but there
were certain propugnacious spirits in the volunteers' committee; and
they urged and persuaded the others to come into resolutions, to the