mifhon of crimes, how heinous foever."-They (the rebels) killed one Coyle, a fhoemaker because he could not cross himself; but on finding him to be a heretic, they compelled him to crofs himself as well as he could with the left hand, (his right hand being difabled with a wound) fuperftitiously believing that the doing fo would inevitably doom him to everlasting dam, nation.‡”

Here we are told that a poor heretical fhoemaker was murdered for not croffing himself, and yet that he did crofs himfelf! and that he was fuppofed to be damned, not for his herefy, but for crolling himself as well as he could,

"The practice of putting red tape round the necks of popifh children, prevailed in the counties of Wicklow and Wexford, to enable the rebels to difcriminate proteflant from popish children in the maffacre intended for the former§." If this be true, how much louder muft have been the lamentations of mothers throughout Wicklow and Wexford, when the rebels became mafters of these countries, than that which was formerly heard in Bethlehem of Juda! and how must these wretches have outheroded Herod himself in the murder of innocents! But all this is left to our conjecture; for, unfortunately,

Sir Richard has forgotten to put a word of it down in his book. In the mean time, as far as my information extends, not only the children, but alfo their mothers, were left unisjared by the rebels. Not a fingle pratef tant female was affronted by them, whilft the yeomen and king's troops were infamous for their conduct to catholic women. To return, however, to the tape: it is plain that our well-informed hiftorian has mistaken the ftrings with which the poor peo ple are accustomed to tie the golpel of St. John round the necks of their children, for badges of protection from flaughter. And furely the hif torian, who, as a custom house officer, is accustomed to carry about the gofpel of St. John in his pocket, and to force poor merchants and tradefmen, with uncovered heads, to bow down and kifs the leather and paper of which it confifts, will not accufe catholic women of idolatry merely for honouring St John's gofpel! "The Celts immolated human victims to the Deity, and the Irish, who are of that race, follow the fame practice, and both on the fcore of religion From this paffage we learn that Sir Richard Mufgrave, though an Irishman is not a Celtic, or aboriginal Irishman, and that he does not approve of murdering men in honour of God.-Of what breed he really is, heralds I apprehend, will determine with lefs research, than divines will what religion he is of In the mean time, the religion of nature will tell him, that it is bafe and wicked to murder a whole people in their reputation, from the price of whofe sweat and blood he has risen to fome distinction, and ftill he draws fo comfortable a

falary

Hiftory of different Rebellions, P. 374.

falary!" In the year 1790 the tranflation of a book, entitled, the General History of the Church, from her birth to her triumphant State in Heaven, was printed in Dublin by J. Mehain, a popish bookfeller. It was written originally at Rome, by a fanguinary bigot of the name of Paftorini. This writer defends and expreffes his approbation of all the maffacres of Proteftants which ever took place in France and Ireland. This piece of folly and blafphemy, was published to encourage the mafs of Irish Papifts to join in the confpiracy which was formed fo early, and in the maffacre which was to fucceed it in 1798+."

I have quoted this paffage, to fhew the eafe and confidence with which Sir Richard Mufgrave, who profefses to make "truth his polar ftar," and to be fo anxious to investigate it in every matter, is capable of palming upon his reader a whole ftring of falfehoods. For 1ft, this Hiftory of the Church is not a tranflation, but the original text. 2dly, It was not originally written at Rome, but in England. 3dly, The author was not a fanguinary bigot, but a moft mild and enlightened chriftian, as the whole tenor of his life and writings prove. 4thly, His name was not Paftorini, this being a mere allufion to his miniftry, but the R. Rev. Charles Walmefley, D. D. F. R. S. having been one of the fcientific men who were employed in correcting the old ftyle. 5thly, The The work does exprefs the most approbation of any maffacre, 6thly, It

not

whether French or Irish.

NOTES.

remote

confifts neither of folly nor of blafphemy, but of a moft ingenious and learned expofition of the book of revelationst. Laftly, it was not published to excite an Irish confpiracy or massacre, neither of which could be forefeen at the time of the publication: but to excite all chriftians to lead a holy life, and to prepare for the coming of that awful Judge, before whom Sir Richard Mufgrave will be arraigned for his unprecedented malice and calumnies.

I fhall conclude thefe quotations, with an extract from a copious confefion of faith, confifting of 35 article, which Sir Richard Mufgrave publishes as the genuine creed of Catholics, affuring his readers that one co

ру

of it was found in a prieft's box at Gorey, and is now in the poffeffion of a clergyman whom he names at Arklow, that a fecond was found fome where at Carlow a third in the pocket of a drunken priest in the county of Meath, and a fourth in the pocket of a robber who was killed in the liberty of Dubling. I am fure Sir, afterperusing these quotations, you will not wish for any more of them, nor require any more documents to pronounce upon the character of Sir Richard's huge volume, or upon the confcience and honour of its author.

I. "When we affemble we all cross ourselves, faying: "We acknowledge thefe our articles in the prefence of Chrift's Vicar, THE LORD GOD THE POPE, and

See the English edition, with additional remarks and Elucidations by the author, printed by Coughlan in 1798.

See hiftories of different Rebellions, pgs. 443, 443.

fwallow in which cafe by attempting too much we shall spoil all. Thus, to inftance, the most indispensable, becaufe the most irritating of all charges against the papifts; I, like you, have maintained that they are bound to murder all perfons of a religion different from their own; but I did not pretend, as you unadvisedly do, that they are confcious of fuch an obligation, and have a written creed to this effect; for the proteftants. who have thofepopish catechifms in their hands, which I learned in my youth, and who have converfed and lived with papifts in these islands, and at Rome ifelf, would never have believed me, if I had faid fo. My method was very different; I mounted up to the council of Lateran, held fix hundred years ago, and maintained that a certain temporary ordinance of it, regarding the feudal titles of the Albigenfes, required their murder, and binds Catholics with refpect to all perfons of a different communion from them till the end of time; notwith ftanding they know nothing at all of the matter. Now here I was out of the reach of the vulgar, both well dreffed and ill dreffed; and thus I fucceeded in my object in raising a clamour againstthefe Papifts. But above all things, Sir Richard,it is neceffary, in fabricating a new fet of articles for the papifts, that you should be acquainted with thofe which they are univerfally known to hold, as alfo with the terms they make use of in their faith aud liturgy. How ridiculous, for example, is it to make them talk as you do, of saying mass, in a holy veftiment and fhirt, when their very infants will tell their Proteftant playmates, that it is not a fhirt, but an alb, which the priests put on for that purpofe! How glaringly abfurd is it to afcribe to them an opinion

that heretics ate to be faved by means of extreme unction! How inconfif tent with the arguments and ridicule which you yon felf conftantly make ufe of against the popish laity for refpecting their priests, and against the priefts themselves for not marrying like the laity, is that article in which you make them profess that both holy orders and matrimony are effential to falvation and of courfe abfolutely neceffary for all chriftians indifcriminately."

But my heart is fick, and I am ill difpofed to laugh, while the following awful reflections prefent them felves upon the perufal of this creed. If there are men in Ireland who are capable of deliberately forging fuch diabolical articles of belief and practice in the name of their catholic fellow fubjects, and of introducing them into the boxes of abfent people, and into the pockets of drunken or dead people, in order to gain them credit, what are not thofe men up to! What will not they do, in other refpects, against the poor devoted papifts, efpecially if they happen to be magis trates, or connected with government. Is not fuch a fet of men capable of accufing papifts unjuftly, of crimes against the state and the peace of fociety, and of treating them as if they were actually guilty? Is it not capable of ordering them to quit certain counties, and of burning down their cottages, in cafe they continue to remain in them? Is it not likely, by fuppreffing information, packing juries, and intimidating witneffes, to pervert the courfe of juftice, where the point at iffue lies between an Crangeman and a Catholic? Again, Sir, if there is a people against whom fuch infernal artifices of calumny and forgery are employed by a prevailing

party