114 RECORDS OF THE BURGH OF LOCHMABEN. 
indifferently electing a Delegate.’’ In the absence of the Town 
Clerk, Mr Lindsay (who will be heard of again), the meeting 
appointed: Thomas Dickson, late writer in Lochmaben, and 
residing in Mouswald, and Francis Shortt, writer in Dumfries, 
conjunct and common clerks of the burgh. The seal of the 
burgh, being in the hands of the late clerk, could not be appended 
to the commission in favour of the delegate appointed, and the 
difficulty was got over by adopting as the seal of the burgh the 
private seal of Mr Francis Shortt until the common seal could 
be recovered. The election of a Delegate thereafter duly took 
place, in terms of the precept addressed to them by the Sheriff. 
On 29th September, in the same year, another violent disturb- 
ance took place in the burgh on the occasion of the annual 
election of the Magistrates and Town Council. Eight members 
of the Council having met in Bailie Dickson’s house prior to the 
meeting, they proceeded at the ringing of the town bell to leave 
for the Council House. When near the foot of the stair leading 
thereto they were obstructed and interrupted by a numerous and 
outrageous mob, who seized Bailie John Bryden and violently 
thrust him into a post chaise, in defiance of every resistance that 
could be made at the time, and carried him off to Annan. The 
Magistrates and Councillors were compelled by the violence of 
the mob to return to Bailie Dickson’s house, where they waited 
until Bailie Bryden joined them after regaining his liberty, and 
thereafter proceeded to the election of Magistrates and Coun- 
cillors in due form, Bailie Dickson being appointed Provost. 
Whilst this election was taking place an opposition meeting under 
the protection of the mob was being held in the Council House, 
also for the purpose of electing a new Town Council, and the 
result was that two sets of Magistrates and Councillors were 
elected. | To complete this remarkable state of matters, Mr 
Francis Shortt was elected Town Clerk at the meeting held in 
the Provost’s house and Mr John Lindsay was elected Clerk at 
the meeting held in the Council House. Both sides presented 
petitions and complaints to the Court of Session, and at a meeting 
of Council, held on 12th August, 1791, Provost Dickson reported 
that the Court of Session had decided that the election which 
took place in his house on 29th September, 1790, was the only 
legal and valid election of the Magistrates and Councillors of 
the Burgh of Lochmaben, and that those elected had the only 
