ed very severely against the Sheriffs.

Hollinshed in his chronicle, vol 2, p. 955, gives a very full account
of it. Sir Thomas Moils, knight, then Speaker of the House, gave a
special order to the Serjeant of the Parliament to repair to
the Compter, and there demand the delivery of the prisoner. But
notwithstanding this high authority, the officers in the city refused
to obey the command, and after many altercations, they absolutely
resisted the Serjeant, upon which a fray ensued within the
Compter-gates, between Ferrars and the officers, not without mutual
hurt, so that the Serjeant was driven to defend himself with his mace
of arms, and had the crown of it broken with warding off a stroke; the
Sheriffs of London so far from appeasing, fomented the quarrel, and
with insolent language refused to deliver their prisoner: Upon which
the Serjeant, thus abused, returned to the House and related what had
happened. This circumstance so exasperated the Burgesses, that they
all rose and went into the Upper House, and declared they would
transact no more business till their Member was restored to them. They
then commanded their Serjeant again to go to the Compter with his
mace, and make a second demand by their authority.--The Sheriffs
hearing that the Upper House hid concerned themselves in it, and being
afraid of their resentment, restored the prisoner before the Serjeant
had time to return to the Compter; but this did not satisfy the
Burgesses, they summoned the Sheriffs before them, together with one
White, who in contempt of their dignity had taken out a writ against
Ferrars, and as a punishment for their insolence, they were sent to
the Tower; and ever since that period, the power and privilege of the
Commons have been on the increase.

Ferrars continued in high favour with Henry during the remainder of
his reign, and seems to have stood upon good terms with Somerset Lord
Protector in the beginning of Edward VI. since it appears that he
attended the Protector in quality of one of the Commissioners of the
Army, in his expedition into Scotland in 1548,[4] which, perhaps,
might be owing to his being about the person of Prince Edward in his
father's life-time. Another instance of this happened about four years
afterwards, at a very critical juncture, for when the unfortunate Duke
of Somerset lay under sentence of death, and it was observed that the
people murmured and often gave testimonies of discontent, and that the
King h