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extremity, and to avoid a violent and fhameful death," were condemned as nocent, not only to the lofs of their eftates, but alfo to the mortification of feeing them bestowed upon the very authors and impofers of that engagement.

CHA P. XXII.

The time limited for holding thefe courts found too short,
and not fuffered to be enlarged.

THE time limited for holding the court of claims
was a twelvemonth; but it fat only
from February
to Auguft following; during which space, the claims.
of near a thousand innocents were heard, whereof
half were declared innocent, notwithstanding the many
difficulties they had to encounter, as well from the
rigorous conditions before-mentioned, as from a fwarm
of corrupt witnesses that were daily employed against
them. For the fuborning of witneffes at these trials
was fo frequent and barefaced, that their perjuries
were sometimes proved in open court, by the testi
mony of honourable perfons, who happened acci-
dentally to be prefent. Sir William Petty boasted,

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when he had evicted the Duke of Ormond out of fome lands before this court, that he had gotten witneffes, that would have fworn through a three-inched board."* I 2 The

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b"This engagement was, during the ufurpation, forced upon the Irish in fo violent and barbarous a manner, that those who refused it, were not only excluded from all benefit of the laws, but were also in imminent danger of their lives from the public orders given to Cromwell's foldiers to allow quarters to no perfon, whom they should meet in their way, that could not produce a certificate of his having taken it; orders which were cruelly executed, even on poor peafants, when through ignorance or forgetfulness, they had left their certificates behind them." Sale and Settlement of Ireland.

Sir William Petty was accufed, in the court of claims, of

fuborning

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The time limited for the trial of innocents being expired,' Sir Richard Rainsford, one of the commiffioners, and a man of great probity, thought it reasonable to fue for more time, in order to try the claims of those who could not be heard within the period above-mentioned, and who certainly, had as much right to demand the reftitution of their eftates, until they were heard and found nocent, as thofe who had undergone their trials, and been adjudged innocent. "But these,+

fays Mr. Carte, were left to be ruined, merely for want of that common juftice of being heard, which is by all nations allowed to the worft of malefactors. The Duke of Ormond," adds he, " did not think it proper to infert a clause in the bill, in the draught of which he was obliged to have the concurrence of the council, for relief of these unheard innocents." The duke himself feemed confcious of the injuftice of this omiffion; for in a letter to the Earl of Clarendon on that occafion, he fays, "if you look upon the compofition of this council, and parliament, you will not think it probable, that the fettlement of Ireland can be made with

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3 Sale and Settlement.

s Cart. Orm. vol. iii.

4 Ubi fupra.

fuborning witneffes against Lord Barnwell and thirty-five Irish proprietors; but took care to have his caufe brought before his friends in the Irish commons, then fitting, which confifted moftly of men of his own ftamp, Cromwellian officers and adventurers, who acquitted him of the charge, on a fuppofition that the profecution was malicious, and intended " to blemish and difable fuch teftimonies as fhould be brought into that court (of claims) against rebels, and particularly against the thirty-five Irish proprietors above-mentioned." See Com. Journ. vol. ii, f. 281. & alibi.

bOf four thoufand claims of innocents, entered in that court of claims, the commiffioners had not time to hear above fix hundred, by the 22d of Auguft, when their commiflion ended." Life of Ormond, vol. ii. f. 297.

The Irish commons in their addrefs to the queen (Anne) in 1709, declare, "that the title of more than half the eftates then belonging to the proteftants, depended on the forfeitures in the two lait rebellions" (in 1641 and 1688.) Com. Jour. vol. iii. f. 643.

with much favour, or indeed reasonable regard, to the Irish. If it be, it will not pafs; and if it be not, we must look for all the clamour, that can be raised by undone men."

The king had committed the drawing up of that bill chiefly, if not folely, to the Duke of Ormond's difcretion. His grace therefore was certainly blameable for not inferting the above-mentioned claufe, even fuppofing him to have been merely paffive in the omiffion; but that he was equally active with thofe of the council, in hindering his majefty to grant further time for trying the claims of fo many unheard innocents, will, I fear, be found too evident for the credit of his impartiality or honour.d

CHAP.

"There was a claufe in the (explanatory) act, that all the Irifh fhould put in their claims by a day appointed, and that they should be determined before another day, which was likewife affigned, which days might be prolonged for once by the lord lieutenant (Ormond) upon fuch reafons as fatisfied him." Clarend. Life, vol. ii. p. 227.

There was hardly any ftep taken in England, with refpect to the fettlement of Ireland, wherein his grace's advice was not fought for, and followed. His friend the Earl of Orrery told him, "that he was affured by good hands, that most of the perfons to be restored by name, would be nominated by his grace, though afterwards inferted in the act by his majefty." State Lett. vol. i. p. 184. Lord Orrery's information was very right; for Lord Arlington had before acquainted Ormond, "that his majefty had promifed willingly to hearken to his grace's reprefentations from Ireland, concerning the qualifications of those whose merit he should defire to recompence." And in another letter, he exprefsly told him, "that his majesty had bid him write to his grace to know, what perfons he would advife him to nominate to be restored to their eftates." And foon after, the fame lord sent him a warrant, "which," he said, "he drew up as near as he could to his grace's fenfe, by which his majesty empowered him to fend a lift of the names." State Lett. by Brown.

CHA P. XXIII.

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An enlargement of time for hearing all the claimants, by whom hindered.

HIS' 'majefty, by a letter of February 21st, 1662, to the Duke of Ormond, had (probably at Sir Richard Rainsford's requeft,) granted an enlargement of time for the trial of thofe innocents who could not be heard within the year. But he afterwards revoked that grant, at the request of his grace, and the Irish council. This appears from a letter of Lord Arlington to his grace, of the 7th of March following, wherein he tells him," that his majefty was surprised at reading a letter from him and the council, of the preceding month, relating to the period that ought to be put to the commiffioners fitting and determining claims, on account of the contradiction, which that letter contained to what himself had judged, upon hearing that point debated in the (English) council;" but that," however, his majefty would resume the confideration of it." And accordingly, on the 25th of July following, the fame Lord Arlington informed his grace and the council,' that the king had actually revoked his grant of the 21ft of February at their request and folicitation." For after having told them, that upon receipt of their dif patch concerning his majefty's letter of the 21ft of February, directed to his grace the lord lieutenant, for receiving, and admitting, in general, all fuch perfons to put in their claims before his majesty's commiffioners in Ireland, as his grace fhould judge fit, notwithstanding the time limited by the act of parliament was elapfed, he adds, " that he had acquainted his majefty with their opinion thereupon, and that his majesty had accordingly commanded him to fignify to their lordfhips, that it was his majesty's pleasure, that his faid letter

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* State Lett.

2 State Lett. Collect. by Brown, p. 356.
3 Id. ib.
+ Id. ib.

letter of the 21st of February should be wholly fufpended and laid afide; finding that faid letter was gained upon grounds feemingly equitable, though now by their lordships found to be inconfiftent with the act of fettlement." And thus above three thousand perfons, who had entered claims of innocency, were not heard, and fo were left to be utterly ruined.

For the court of claims being now at an end, that which was called the explanatory bill, put an abfolute period to all future hopes of thefe unheard claimants." By that bill, it was enacted," that no perfon or perfons, who, by the qualifications in the former act of settlement, had not been adjudged innocent, fhould at any time after be reputed innocent, so as to claim any lands, or tenements, thereby vested; or be admitted to have any benefit or allowance of adjudication of innocency;

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5 See Acts of Settlement.

Lel. vol. iii. p. 440.

"The king referred the preparing of this bill to Ormond, and the Irish council." Lel. Hift. of Irel. vol. iii. p. 435. "But the lieutenant and council were empowered to explain any diffi"Orculties, and amend any defects in it." Id. ib. p. 442. mond promised to explain and amend, agreeably to the wishes of the commons." Id. ib. These commons, as we have seen, "were, for the moft part Cromwellian rebels, independents, anabaptifts, and levellers; and, by the appointment of the regicides, actually poffeffed of the eftates of the Irifh.”

Lord Arlington, in a letter to the Duke of Ormond, June 27th, 1663, fays, "As for the letters granted by his majefty for reftoring innocent papifts to their dwellings, &c. in corporations; 'tis true, they have been gotten from his majesty by much importunity for particular perfons, but upon your grace's representation of the inconveniencies that may, and will arife from them, his majefty refolves to be very tender of granting the like for the future." State Lett. by Brown, p. 290.

Thus every one remaining of thofe numerous claimants, whofe caufes had not been heard, was entirely cut off. They complained of perjury and fubornation in the causes that were tried before the court of claims; but their great and ftriking grievance was, that more than three thousand perfons were condemned without the juftice granted to the vileft criminals, that of a fair and equal trial." Lel. Hift. of Irel. vol. iii. p. 440.

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