even prefumption, was thought fufficient to condemn men for rapparees; and what fport they made to hang up poor Irish people by dozens, almoft without pains to examine them; they hardly thought them human kind." In Dean Story's lift of perfons who died in this war, there are, "of rapparees killed by the army or militia, one thoufand nine hundred and twenty-eight; of rapparees killed and hanged, by the foldiers, without any ceremony, one hundred and twenty-two.

7

7 Sir John Dalrymp. ubi fupra.

CHAP.

ris's king William, fol. 282. "The Irish finding they could have but little benefit from their protections (from king William's officers), now began to turn rapparees; and often stripped and killed ftragglers from Douglas's party." Id. ib. f. 283. "Rapparees, upon being plundered contrary to the king's (William's) declaration, began to be very troublesome." Id. ib. f. 287.

"The army (king William's) itself, as poffefling more force, and as little humanity, were even worse than the rapparees; murder, anarchy and mifery were feen every where." Macpherfon's Hift. of Gr. Brit. vol. i. p. 616.

"At Birr (169c), the army (king William's) labouring under a fcarcity of bread, made that a pretence for stripping and robbing many of the Irish, who had taken protections; which infamous practice enforced thofe people to go out upon their keeping, and turn rapparees; which raised numbers of enemies (to king William), who otherwife would have remained quiet." Harris's king William, f. 290.

CHA P. IX.

A confpiracy of the protestants of Dublin against the government.

DR. King must have entertained a very mean opi

nion of his readers understanding, if he expected to be believed when he faid,'" that the government of Ireland, during Tyrconnel's administration, purposed to ruin the trade of both proteftants and papists, in order to make king James abfolute and defpotic; and that, for the fame end, it had formed a scheme, to hang up one half of the proteftants, and ftarve the other." These notions are fo perfectly burlefque, that they do not deserve a ferious anfwer; and yet the doctor has fo gravely fet about proving the latter affertion, from the circumftance of difarming the proteftants of Dublin, on the 24th of February, 1688, and on the 20th of July, 1689, that, I hope, I fhall be excufed for taking fome notice of it.

a

As for the firft difarming,' "this author himself knew (and probably at that time avowed), that the neceffity of it was very great and urgent; as Derry had before, on the 7th of December, 1688, fhut its

b

gates

• State of the Proteft. p. 71, 74. 2 Lefley's Anfw. p. 77. 86.

He is guilty of ftill greater extravagance in saying," that the proteftants could not but conclude, that king James was fo intent upon destroying them, that fo he compaffed that defign, he cared not if he enslaved himself and the kingdoms." State of the Proteftants, p. 59. In another place he fays, "It must be acknowledged, that king James not only ruined the proteftant trade, but went a great way in destroying the trade of the Roman catholics alfo." Ib. p. 74.

b "By an order of the Irifh commons, December 7th, 1695, the lord lieutenant was acquainted, that it was the unanimous opinion of that houfe, that the late rebellion in this kingdom could not be thought to have begun before the 10th of April 1689, being the time given by his majesty's (king

William's)

с

gates against the king's army; and as the Enniskilleners had marched, attacked and defeated a party of his majesty's forces. He knew, that the protestant gentlemen in Ulfter had sent a deputation to the Prince of Orange, December the 8th, 1688; that they had received commiffions from him (and they actually proclaimed him in the beginning of March following) that, by reafon of a villainous forged letter, found in Cumber,

William's) declaration to the Irish to lay down their arms. But that it should seem more reasonable to have its first beginning from the time Duke Schomberg landed with his army in the kingdom, August 13th following; that till Duke Schomberg's landing, the late king James's authority was fubmitted to, almost through the whole kingdom; and that what was taken from the protestants, before that time, was difowned by the late king James, as may appear by feveral proclamations declaring, that whoever should plunder any proteftant, fhould be anfwerable for the fame, and undergo the penalties of the law." Com. Journ. vol. ii. f. 801. Not till August 13th, 1689, Duke Schomberg landed at Bangor in the north of Ireland, with about 10,000 men. Which then, of the two parties in arms fo long before that time, ought to be deemed rebels?

"The inhabitants of the town of Bandon, in February, 1688, difarmed the garrifon of Bandon, and feized upon the town for king William's fervice." Com. Journ. vol. ii. f. 876. For which fervice the Irish commons, in 1697, agreed, that "a fum of two thousand five hundred pounds fhould be levied for these inhabitants of Bandon, by the high conftables, on the province of Munfter." Id. ib. f. 897.

• Thefe Enniskilleners were merciless enemies. At the battle of Lifniskea, they "defeated and pursued the Irish with great flaughter, granting quarters to none but officers. About two thoufand fell by the weapons of an enemy transported by zeal and refentment, above five hundred plunged into lake Earne, and but one of that multitude escaped." Lel. Hift. of Irel. vol. iii. p. 534.

• December the 9th, 1688; " which was a contrivance defigned to engage the Earl of M—————, who till then was deaf to all arguments for entering into the affociation in Ulster." Lefl. Answer, p. 79.

The like villainous artifice was used to make king James's army defert him at the camp on Hounflow-heath. Colonel Langston, and other fuperior officers, affirming privately, with vollies of oaths, to the reft," that king James would turn out,

all

1

Cumber, fetting forth, that the papifts intended to maffacre all the proteftants, the whole north of Ireland appeared of a fudden in one blaze, though the proteftants then were fo far from having any reafon to fear the poor Irifh there, as they pretended they did fear them, that they had them panting under their feet, in as much fubmiffion as ever a hawk had a lark."

Dr. King himself confeffes, that before king James left England, the proteftants of Dublin had entered into a plot, to feize the lord deputy with the caftle, where

3 State of the Proteftants, p. 82.

e

all the proteftant officers and foldiers in his army, and have none but Roman catholics; that he had entered into a clofe league with France to have all the proteftants throats cut in England and Scotland: and that, as foon as his army was modelled to his purpofe, he would fet up a mafs in every church in England and Scotland; and he that was not a thorough papift, fhould be hanged, quartered, or burnt." Macpherson's Hift. of Gt. Brit. vol. iii. p. 286.

Dr. King pretends, that this villainous forged letter was directed to Lord Mount-Alexander (p. 186): But Chief Justice Keating exprefsly fays, "that it was neither directed to, nor fubfcribed by any perfon;" he adds, "that copies of it were difperfed throughout all parts of the kingdom; that the protestants were frightened to that degree by it, that many of them betook themselves to the Ards, and other places of fecurity in the north; fome into Scotland; and very many families embarked for England and Wales, carrying with them all the ready money and plate they had. The confternation being fo great, that even the officers of the port, either out of commiferation to the departing crouds of women and children, or being amazed at the fuddennefs of the fright, neglected to do their duty; whereby Dublin and the adjacent places, were drained dry of their cafh and plate." See Appendix to King's State of the Proteftants.

"That letter caused the proteftants of the north to meditate the defign of rifing against the government." Lel. Hift. of Irel. vol. iii. p. 513.

"When the news (fays he) came to Ireland, that king James had fent commiflioners to treat with the Prince of Orange, it was propofed by fome to feize the caftle of Dublin.

The

where the ftores and ammunition lay; "he knew,* that these proteftants (and himfelf among the rest) had a private understanding and connection with the northern rebels, as they were then called; that when they were disarmed, February 24th, 1688, all the proteftants, generally, in Ulfter, Munfter, and Connaught, and in all Ireland, except Dublin and other parts of Leinster (which the lord deputy kept in awe with what forces he had), were then actually in arms, in oppofition to the government, and had entered into affociations to carry on their war. And he has even owned,

The fuccefs was extremely probable; confidering that the papifts, befides the four thoufand of the army, were generally without arms; and that those who were in arms were raw and cowardly. To do it effectually, there needed no more than to feize the Deputy Tyrconnel, &c." King's State of the Protest. P. 83.

"Dr. King wrote to an Irish proteftant bishop then in London, that it was in almost every proteftant's power in Ireland to hang the reft; yet that they were fo true to one another, that they did not difcover it." Lefley's Anfw. p. 106.

f "We are told (fays Mr. Lesley) in the faithful History of the Northern Affairs in Ireland, p. 7. (written by a proteftant), that they began to arm and engage themfelves in affociations, about September 1688, two months before the Prince of Orange landed in England.' p. 77. And when the happy tidings of the prince's landing (in England), fays Mr. Boyfe, had reached our ears, fome non-conformist ministers and gentlemen of note, were employed to get fome gentleman or other sent over from Dublin to the prince." Anfw. to King, p. 77.

Long before king James's abdication was determined in the convention in England, which was in February 1688, the proteftants in the north of Ireland were in arms. Ib. p. 75. And on the 8th of December preceding that determination, a deputation was fent by the gentlemen and others of that province to the Prince of Orange, with an offer of their fervice; (ib. p. 77.) although king James did not go out of England till December the 23d in that year. Ib. p. 73. It is notorious, that upon the 11th of February 1688 (before the defcent of king James's army into the north), fome of Colonel Cormick O'Neil's troop of dragoons were killed by the proteftant forces at Tuam upo'a Loughneaga,