The mayor's prerogative unchallenged, 1675-1679.
No Act of Common Council appears to have been passed pursuant to the committee's recommendation, but in the following year (1675) and down to 1679 the mayor exercised his full prerogative of electing one of the sheriffs without opposition, although the person so elected did not always undertake the office.
Election of Bethell and Cornish Sheriffs, 24 June, 1680.
On Midsummer-day, 1680, the mayor elected George Hockenhall, citizen and grocer, to be one of the sheriffs, but Hockenhall refused to serve and was discharged on his entering into a bond for the payment of £400. The commons thereupon stept in and elected Slingsby Bethell, leatherseller, and Henry Cornish, haberdasher.[1469] At this juncture political influence was brought to bear upon the elections. Bethell was particularly an object of aversion to the court party. He is reported to have declared himself ready to have acted as executioner of the late king if no one else could be found for the job,[1470] and to have made himself obnoxious in other ways. With Cornish little fault could at present be found. Objection was raised to both these gentlemen acting as sheriffs, on the ground that they had not taken the oath or received the sacrament as prescribed by law, and another election demanded. Before this second election took place (14 July) they had qualified themselves according to the Corporation Act.[1471] The mayor did not claim his prerogative on this occasion. Bethell and Cornish[pg 473] were put up again for office, and against them two others, Ralph Box, grocer, and Humphrey Nicholson, merchant taylor, who, although nominated like Bethell and Cornish by the commonalty, were in reality candidates put forward by the court party.[1472] Bethell and Cornish having been again declared elected, a poll was demanded, which lasted several days. At its close it was found that Cornish was at the head with 2,483 votes, Bethell next with 2,276, whilst Box and Nicholson followed with 1,428 and 1,230 votes respectively.[1473]
The character of the new Sheriffs.
The two first named were declared (29 July) duly elected. Bethell has been described as a "sullen and wilful man," a republican at heart and one that "turned from the ordinary way of a sheriff's living into the extreme of sordidness." Cornish on the other hand was "a plain, warm, honest man and lived very nobly all his year."[1474] It was doubtless Bethell's proposal that the customary dinner to the aldermen on the day the new sheriffs were sworn in should be omitted. If so, Cornish had to give way to the parsimonious whim of his fellow sheriff. "What an obstinate man he was!" remarked Cornish of him, when brought to trial five years later.[1475] The aldermen refused to accompany the sheriffs to the Guildhall unless they were invited to dinner.[1476]
Election of Pilkington and Shute sheriffs, 24 June, 1681.
In the following year (1681) two other sheriffs of the same political character, viz., Pilkington and Shute, were elected over the heads of the same court[pg 474] candidates that had stood the previous year, the defeat of the latter being still more pronounced.[1477]
The king signifies his displeasure.
The king did not attempt to conceal his displeasure at the City's proceedings, and when the recorder and the sheriffs came to invite him to dinner on lord mayor's day,[1478] made the following answer:—"Mr. Recorder, an invitation from my lord mayor and the city is very acceptable to me, and to show that it is so, notwithstanding that it is brought by messengers that are so unwelcome to me as these two sheriffs are, yet I accept it."[1479]