104 ANNUAL REGISTER, 1810. 



from their adoption ? — Sir Robert 

 Salisbury said that, if the resolu- 

 tions were agreed to, he should 

 propose that sir Francis Burdett 

 be committed to the Tower. — 

 Several members announced their 

 intention of opposing the resolu- 

 tions, since It was proposed to 

 follow them up by a punishment 

 not warranted by the offensive 

 matter contained in the paper on 

 the table. 



The resolutions, moved by Mr. 

 IiCthbridge, were agreed to with- 

 out a division.— A motion was 

 then made by sir Robert Salisbury 

 for the commitment of sir Francis 

 Burdett to the Tower. 



An amendment was proposed, 

 that sir Francis Burdett be repri- 

 manded in his place : upon which 

 the House divided. 



Ayes, 152 Noes, 190. 



In consequence of this vote, 

 for the commitment of sir Francis, 

 the Speaker, on the same morn- 

 ing, at half-past eight o'clock, 

 signed the warrants for commit- 

 ment, and immediately delivered 

 them to the Serjeant at Arms, to 

 be carried into effect, if possible, 

 by ten o'clock that morning. From 

 the politeness of the Serjeant, in 

 announcing the commission with 

 which he was charged, it was not 

 till about five o'clock in the after- 

 noon that he went to sir Francis 

 at his house, and saw sir Francis, 

 who told him that he would be 

 ready to receive him at eleven 

 o'clock next morning ; on which 

 the Serjeant retired, conceiving 

 that it was sir Francis's intention 

 to go with him peaceably to the 

 Tower, at the time stated. About 

 eight o'clock, the Serjeant, Mr. 

 Colman, came again to sir Fran- 

 cis Burdett's. He was now ac- 

 companied by one of the messen- 



gers, and told sir Francis that he 

 had received a severe reprimand 

 from the Speaker for not having 

 executed the warrant, which he 

 read. Sir Francis then said, that he 

 disputed the legality of the war- 

 rant, and that he was determined 

 not to go, if not constrained by 

 actual force, which he was deter- 

 mined to resist as far as in his 

 power. He stated, also, that he 

 had written to the Speaker of the 

 House of Commons on this sub- 

 ject. 



Meanwhile a mob had been 

 assembled before sir Francis Bur- 

 dett's house, and was every mo- 

 ment increasing. Mr. Colman, 

 who had called several times be- 

 fore, without being admitted, went 

 again to sir Francis's house, on 

 Sunday morning, at seven o'clock, 

 attended by a messenger, and 

 some police officers, and knocked 

 at the door several times, but it 

 was not opened. The Serjeant 

 and messenger, by turns, waited 

 in the neighbourhood of sir Fran- 

 cis's house, for the rest of the day 

 and the night, thinking that he 

 might come out again, as he had 

 once done on Saturday, and that 

 they might have an opportunity of 

 apprehending him. it bad be- 

 come evident, from the number 

 of the populace assembled in Pic- 

 cadilly, that the warrant could not 

 be executed without force. And 

 the Speaker, having great doubts 

 as to the power he was possessed 

 of by his warrant, sent his war- 

 rant to the Attorney-General for 

 his opinion, and on that opinion 

 he acted. Late on Sunday even* 

 ing, the Serjeant went to the Se- 

 cretary of State's Office to re- 

 quest civil and military assistance 

 for carrying his purpose intoeffect. 

 And on Monday) ;^piil the 9th, 



