Carolus II His Majesties LETTER TO THE Artillery Company: With an Account of their Proceedings at the Choice of several Officers for the ensuing Year, on Wednesday, the 9th. of this instant, February, 1680/ 1.  
THE Artillery Company being Assembled according to Summons and yearly Custom, at the armoury in the Artillery Ground, to choose new Officers, they proceeded to Election without interruption, and choose Sir Joseph Shelden, President; Sir William Pritchard, Vice-President; and Sir Matthew Andrews, Treasurer: Then proceeding to choose their Court of Assistants, which consists of 24 Members, there was red the List of the Old Assistants. Sir Joseph Shelden stood up, and  told them that according to ancient Custom, they must choose 8 of the 24 to serve again, and the other 16 whom they pleased, out of the Company, which they did, leaving out 4 of the old 16, viz. one Captain of the Yellow, and 3 of the Blew.  
Being then to proceed to choose the other Officers, Sir Joseph proposed to choose their Lieutenant and Ensign, at which the Company were much disturbed, and cried out, first let us choose our Leader, Sir Joseph standing up again, endeavoured to persuade them from it; telling them, he should think himself much obliged to them, if after the Honour they had done him, in choosing him their President, they would so far condescend, as to think him worthy to give them his Advice, and to entreat them that no heat might arise amongst them in that affair, and forasmuch as they had been well Governed for these 3 years last past, without a Leader, they would try it one year more; and also  told them that whatever they might think of him, he did propose it as his best Advice: And withal assured them, that so long as he had had the Honor to be of that Society, he had to the utmost of his power, endeavoured to serve them with his best Services, and still would continue so to do, and that at any, and at all times, when occasion required it, he should hearty venture his Person and Purse, as far as any man alive, in the Defence of the King, the Laws as now established, and the Protestant Religion, upon which the Company returned Thanks by a general— Then Sir Matthew Andrews made a Speech to the same effect, endeavouring likewise to persuade them to defer the Choice of a Leader, and proceed to the Choice of a Lieutenant and Ensign, at which the Company with a great cry, said No, No, No, a Leader first, and would by no means be pacified without a Leader, which Sir Joseph perceiving, stood up, and in a short Speech  told them; Gentlemen, You now compel me to that, which I was in hopes I needed not to have done, and do protest am yet unwilling to do, before I again endeavour to prevail with you to proceed to the choice of a Lieutenant, and leaving the Choice of a Leader alone: but still with more violence they cried No, No, No, a Leader, a Leader, nothing before a Leader. Then Sir Joseph Shelden said; Gentlemen, You force me and I cannot avoid it, to tell you, That I have received a Letter from his Majesty, in order to this days business, which I desire may be red, the purport of which was as followeth.  
To our Trusty and Well beloved, the President, &c. Greeting,  
WHereas according to Custom, you are this day to Choose new Officers for the Artillery Company; Our Will and Pleasure is, That in Order to the well Managing and Governing of the said Society, you Choose all your old Officers again, without making any Alteration: Not doubting of your ready Compliance; we bid you hearty farewell.  
After which divers Members stood up, one after another, saying they humbly conceived that there was not any thing in His Majesties Letter, which did forbid their choosing a Leader, but that their proceedings seemed rather to comply with it, for that they intended not to change their Leader, but according to Custom to choose their old Leader again, &c. Upon which the Letter was red again, and a third time, but the reading thereof did the more confirm them in their Opinion, That His Majesties Letter did no way prohibit their Choosing a Leader. A Worthy Member that was newly chosen into the Assistants, stood up and said, Mr. President, with your Worships favour, I humbly conceive His Majesties gracious Letter to us, may have relation to a particular Circumstance in our Affair of this day, it having been noised about the Town in Coffee-Houses, &c. that the Artillery Company at their next Choice would leave out the Duke of York as their Captain General, and choose some other person of Honour in his Highnesses stead, some fancying one person, and some another, but I hope no Member of this Honourable Society came hither with any such Design, for indeed it doth not lie before us, nor is it the business of this Company, now perhaps the noise of this Change might come to his Majesties knowledge, and probably occasion the sending this Letter, and no other reason, the Assembly seemed well pleased with this motion, by their applauding it with a general Hum. Another standing up, said he Humbly conceived that their past Proceedings were more contradictory to His Majesties Letter than their desiring to proceed to the Election of a Leader could be, and it being fit that his Majesties Letter should be obeied, asked why the same was not produced sooner, that it might have prevented the past proceedings, as well as the rest of the business of the day. Upon which Sir Joseph stood up and said, Gentlemen, I do not know what you dare do, but I assure you I dare not do any thing which may seem to oppose this His Majesties Letter, Pray consider what you are doing, and be prevailed with: But they cried out No, No, No, nothing before a Leader be chosen, a Leader, a Leader, a Leader. Then Sir James Edwards stood up and made a Speech to the same purpose as Sir Joseph Shelden and Sir Matthew Andrews had done before, but nothing could prevail, they being so violently set upon their old Custom, nothing but a Leader, a Leader, &c. At which Sir Joseph seeing nothing would prevail, said Gentlemen, I must Adjourn the Court till some day next Week, against which time you shall have fair Summons, and in the mean time I will wait on the King, and Know his Majesties Royal Pleasure and meaning in the Letter, in which, as in all other Affairs that may concern the Honour and Welfare of this Society, I do promise you to use my utmost endeavour, at which the mayor part of the Company seemed well pleased, upon Condition, that all the Choices they had made should be voided, and to choose all anew when they met again; and so the Court was Adjourned.   

London, Printed for V. T. 1681.