The last of the common objections to the relaxation of these laws, which I fhall confider (and it is the only remaining objection that deferves to be confidered) is, "that the spirit of perfecution is peculiar and effential to the Roman catholic religion; and therefore that its profeffors ought, in good policy, to be always kept under, and in an abfolute incapacity to exert it." But this objection confutes itself. It fuppofes, that men may be juftified in actually wronging and perfecuting others, for no other reafon, but merely to prevent thefe others from ever having the power (however remote and improbable) to injure and perfecute them. The Roman catholics with not for a power to perfecute; they only implore the justice and mercy of the legiflature, to relieve them from perfecution. But how can the spirit of perfecution be deemed peculiar to Roman catholics, when it is notorious, that their very accufers, of every denomination, perfecute both them and one another, whenever they have the power and opportunity of doing it? That fuch a spirit is far from being effential to their religion, however it may have unhappily poffeffed fome of its bigotted members (and what fect, or communion of chriftians, is free from fuch members ?), is manifeft from hence, that all their ablest and most respectable divines, and in particular their laft pope, Clement XIV. (who furely must be fuppofed to have known the effentials of his religion) condemn and renounce it, as unchriftian and inhuman.' "The great misfortune in this cafe," fays that eminently learned and pious prelate, "is, that fome people confound religion with her minifters, and make her refponfible for their faults. It never was religion, but falfe zeal pretending to her, that feized fire and fword, to compel heretics to abjure their errors, and Jews to become Chriftians. And what is more dreadful than to fee good men fall victims to a zeal difpleafing in the fight of God, and condemned by the church, as equally hurtful to religion, and the rights of fociety? The example of Jefus

2

Ganganelli's Letters, paffim.

Christ,

V

Christ, who during his refidence on earth, bore patiently with the Sadducees and Samaritans (the infidels and fchifmatics of those times), obliges us to fupport our brethren, of whatever communion they be; to live peaceably with them, and not to torment them on account of any fyftem of belief, which they may have adopted. The power of the church is purely fpiritual. Our bleffed Saviour himself, when he prayed for his executioners, taught us how his caufe is to be avenged. Had the minifters of the gofpel been always careful to follow that divine model, the enemies of chriftianity would not have been able to bring against it the unjuft reproach of favouring perfecution. The church always difavowed those impetuous men, who, stirred up by an indifcreet zeal, treat those who go aftray with afperity; and its most holy bishops, at all times, folicited the pardon of apoftates, defiring only their converfion. Men, therefore, ought. not to impute to the church thofe exceffes, of which history has preserved the memory, and which are repugnant to the maxims of the gospel."

CHA P. IX.

Perfecutions in the reign of king George I

NOTWITHSTANDING the great lenity and ge

neral beneficence introduced to the throne of these kingdoms, by the acceffion of his majefty George I. the popery laws were ftill rigorously executed, during the greatest part of his reign. Such of them as affected the property of Roman catholics, lay not within the sphere of the royal clemency, because they neceffarily executed themselves. And fome unlucky circumstances in the beginning of it, contributed to enforce the execution of thofe acts, which prohibit the exercise of their religion, under very fevere penalties. Among these, the Scottish rebellion in 1715, was the principal; as that rebellion had been raised and car

ried on in favour of a popifh pretender; though all the acting, rebels, almoft to a man, were Scottish prefbyterians; and none of the catholics in Ireland were known to be any way connected with them. Yet fuch was the government's affected fear, or real hatred, of thefe catholics, that the penalties for the exercise of their religion, were then generally inflicted. Their chapels were fhut up; their priests dragged from their hiding places; fometimes from the very altars, in the midst of divine fervice, hurried into loathfome prifons, and from thence banished for ever from their native country. This perfecution was the obvious, and but the natural, effect of a refolution of the commons at that juncture: "that it was the indifpenfable duty of all magiftrates, to put the laws in immediate execution against popish priests; and that fuch of them as neglected to do fo, fhould be looked upon as encmies of the conftitution." And although this rebellion of the prefbyterians in Scotland, was the fole pretence for this feverity; and the very fame law which banishes popifh priests, prohibits alfo diffenters to accept of or act by, a commiffion in the militia or array; yet so partial were the refolutions of that parliament, that, at the fame time that they ordered the former to be rigorously profecuted, they refolved unanimoufly, "that any perfon, who fhould commence a profecution against any of the latter, who had accepted, or fhould accept of, a commiflion in the array or militia, was an enemy to king George and the protestant intereft." Thus of the only two main objects of the fame law, its execution against one of them was judged highly meritorious; but it was deemed equally culpable, even to attempt it against the other; though the law itself makes no difference between them. Such was the juftice and confiftency of our legiflators of that period.

The frequent exertions of this particular prejudice against the Roman catholic clergy of Ireland, feem not to have been the effects of any new or fudden provocation, arifing occafionally from their mifconduct, with refpect to the government; but appear to

have

have been owing to a fpirit of intolerance, on account of their religion only; and to have been uniformly carried on, upon principle, for many years after; until they were at length heightened to fuch a degree of wanton cruelty, as rather difhonours the religion it was intended to ferve. For in the year 1723, it having been again unanimoufly refolved in parliament, "that it was the indifpenfable duty of all magiftrates to put the laws in immediate execution against popish priefts and that the neglect of feveral magiftrates, in executing the laws againft papifts, did greatly contribute to the growth of popery." Leave was given to bring in heads of a bill, for explaining and amending the two acts before mentioned, to prevent the growth of popery. Upon which occafion, one of the most zealous promoters of that bill, having gravely taken notice, in a long and laboured fpeech, that of all the countries wherein the reformed religion had prevailed, Sweden was freeft from those fecret, but irreconcilable, enemies of all proteftant governments, popifh ecclefiaftics; which, he faid, was vifibly owing to the great wifdom of their laws, inflicting the penalty of caftration on all fuch dangerous intruders into that kingdom. He ferioufly moved, that this gothic and inhuman penalty might be added as a claufe to the bill before them to which the house, after a fhort debate, agreed; and ordered it to be laid before his grace the lord lieutenant, to be tranfmitted into England, with this remarkable requeft on their part, "that he would recommend

a Dean Swift, in his Plea of Prefbyterian Merit, after taking notice, that the Roman catholics of Ireland" abhorred the Jacobites and high-flyers above all other men, on account of feverities against their priests in queen Anne's reign, when that party was in power;" adds, "this I was convinced of fome years ago, by a long journey into the fouthern parts (of Ireland), where I had the curiofity to fend for many priests of the parishes I paffed through, and, to my great fatisfaction, found them every where abounding in profeflions of loyalty to the late king George; for which they gave me the reafons above-mentioned; at the fame time complaining bitterly of the hardships they fuffered under the queen's laft miniftry." Works, Dubl. edit. vol. iii. p. 274.

commend the fame, in the most effectual manner to his majesty." To which his grace was pleafed to answer, "that as he had fo much at heart a matter, which he had recommended to the confideration of parliament, at the beginning of the feffion; they might depend upon a due regard, on his part, to what was defired."

The bill was accordingly tranfmitted to England; but rejected there, by means of the humane and earneft interpofition of Cardinal Fleury with Mr. Walpole, whose great power and intereft at that juncture, were then univerfally known. His grace the lord lieutenant, in his fpeech to that parliament, at the clofe of the feffion, in order to confole them for the loss of their favourite bill, gave them to understand, “that it miscarried meerly by its not having been brought into the house, before the feffion was fo far advanced." And after earnestly recommending to them, in their several stations, the care and preservation of the public peace; he added, "that, in his opinion, that would be greatly promoted, by the vigorous execution of the laws against popifh priests; and that he would contribute his part towards the prevention of that growing evil, by giving proper directions, that fuch perfons only fhould be put into the commiffion of the peace, as had distinguished themselves by their steady adherence to the proteftant intereft." These general words, "proteftant interest," feem to carry with them a vague and indefinite meaning; but if the proteftant religion is here, in any respect, fignified by them, I will venture to affirm, that in no other age or nation, has religion ever been attempted to be ferved or promoted, by fo fhameful and cruel an expedient, as that propofed in this rejected bill.

CHAP.