tirely among themselves, and for ever to preclude the catholics from having any fhare, even in their debates about it, one of their firft illegal refolutions was,' "that no members fhould be qualified to fit in that house, but fuch as had taken the oaths of allegiance and fupremacy.' With the fame view of banishing the catholic peers from the house of lords, Primate Bramhall, their fpeaker, procured an order to be passed there,+ "that all the members thereof fhould receive the facrament of the Lord's fupper from his grace's own hands." To fuch vile and predatory purposes, was one of the most awful inftitutions of religion prostituted at that juncture! But in no other parliament but one fo conftituted, and perverted, could acts, alienating the juft properties of almost all the catholics in the kingdom, be expected to pass. CHA P. 3 Orrery's State Letters, vol. i. p. 35- "May 15th, 1661, Ordered, upon queftion, that the undernamed perfons be, and are hereby appointed a committee to attend the right honourable the lords juftices, and hereby to pray their lordships from this house, to iffue out a warrant to the right honourable the lord chancellor to grant a commiffion under his majefty's great feal of this kingdom, unto fuch perfons as their lordships fhall think fit, whereby they, or any two or more of them, may be empowered to adminifter the oath of fupremacy, which is established by act of parliament in this kingdom, 2 Elizabeth, and the oath of allegiance established 3° Jacobi in England, unto all and every of the members of this house, that now are, or hereafter fhall be, in fuch manner, form, or order, at large, as in the acts they are feverally expreffed." Com. Journ. vol. i. f. 602. The fame was done in the house of commons. June 17th, 1661, Ordered, that the undernamed perfons do repair unto his grace the lord primate of all Ireland, and, in the name of this house, do return thanks unto his grace, for his great pains taken yesterday, in preaching and administering the holy facrament of the Lord's fupper unto the members of this houfe." Id. ib. f. 640. e "Which (adds Borlafe) I the rather obferve, it being, for what I ever heard, the first order of that nature. The compofi tion of the lords house confifting most of papists." Ib. CHA P. X. Falfe reports of a confpiracy among the Irish confidered. The effects of these reports. a BUT the commons, not fatisfied even with these advantages, in order to have fome colourable pretext for the injustice intended, refolved to render the party. to be injured as odious as poffible. For this purpose they left no means unattempted, however wicked or abfurd, to countenance and diffufe the calumny, lately. raised by their emiffaries, as if the Irish had actually entered into a real confpiracy. They had with great industry, called before them feveral witneffes to prove that the papifts were fometimes feen attending divine service in their own way, and that confiderable num bers of people were gathered together on fuch occafions; that a cutler's apprentice had new furbished an old fword for one of them; and that another was detected buying a horfe for his neceffary occafions. Such proofs of a confpiracy, fays Mr. Carte, might have appeared good and fufficient to the two new earls, but did not fatisfy Sir Maurice Eustace, and a few others. Recourfe was, therefore, had to an old expedient for realizing imaginary plots, which had been formerly found fuccefsful." A letter fuppofed to have been written by one Irish priest to another, upon G.2 fomewhat b "The enemies and competitors of the Irifh," fays Dr. Leland on this occafion," were indefatigable in endeavouring to load their whole party with the guilt of new confpiracies; and even manifest forgeries were received as folid proofs." Hift. of Irel. vol. iii. p. 426. b "All the foundation (fays Mr. Carte) for this infinuation was, that there had been of late, meetings of the poor Irish at maffes, in order to partake of a jubilee, which the pope had fent them; but the whole kingdom knew that they were in no condition to rebel." Orm. vol, ii. f. 231.' fomewhat that was deemed treasonable, because dark and unintelligible, was fomewhere found and laid before the parliament, by one Jephfon, a member;" who, with feveral other members, was himfelf, about two years after, convicted of a real conspiracy against the government and executed for the fame. In confequence of this pretended discovery, a proclamation was iffued, and executed with great rigour," by which all artificers and fhopkeepers, who had been left in their habitations by the ufurpers, at the time of the tranfplantation, were now banilhed from Kilkenny, and other great towns. Horfes and arms, being no where elfe to be found, were fought for in trunks and cabinets; and filver cups were defined to be chalices. The letter above-mentioned was tranfmitted into England with a reprefentation of the infolence of the papifts, for whofe fuppreffion, in order to prevent the threatened danger, his majesty's directions were defired." "But Chancellor Euftace fufpected the injuftice, as well as defign, of this charge against the Irifh; and to discover what ground there was for it, he directed the judges in their circuits to caufe the matter to be enquired into by the grand juries of the several counties, Com. Journ. vol. ii. f. 337. s Id. ib. f. 231. Cart. Orm. vol. ii. ›, He represented the borough of Trim in the county of Meath. Com. Jour. vol. ii. f. 337. The following members, "Robert Shapcote, John Chambers, Thomas Boyd, Alexander Staples, Abel Warren, John Ruxton, and Thomas Scot, Efqrs. were voted, nem. contradic." for having been engaged in this plot, "to be expelled the house, and made incapable of ever fitting in future parliaments; and that the said expelled members be left to the courts of juftice to be further proceeded againft." Id. ib. f. 347. The charge of the houfe of commons against these men was," that they were engaged in a late wicked and horrid plot, to have furprized his majesty's castle of Dublin, to have feized on the pérfon of his grace James Duke of Ormond, and to have involved the three kingdoms in blood." Ib. f. 350. The above expelled members were also made" incapable of exercifing any employment civil, military, or ecclefiaftical within the kingdom." Ib. f. 354. ties, through which they paffed. The finding of thefe juries was alike every where; there being a great calm in all places; no preparations for a rifing, nor fo much as a rumour of any new troubles. Nothing could be more frivolous, and void of proof, than the paper which the commons drew up on this occafion, and prefented to the lords juftices; who yet thought fit to fend it, inclosed in their letters, to Secretary Nicholas, fignifying at the fame time their opinion, that it would be destructive to the English intereft, to admit the Irish to trade and settle in corporate towns; or to allow the Roman catholic lawyers to practife in their profeffion; both which, however, had been pofitively allowed by his majesty's letters." The parties principally fufpected of this confpiracy, voluntarily appear before the lords juftices, in order to detect the forgery. 2 THE imputation of a confpiracy' was matter of great apprehenfion to the whole body of the Irish Roman Catholics; all their fortunes depending on the pleasure of his majefty, who was likely to be eftranged from them, by unjust representations of their difpofitions and defigns. Wherefore the ordinary was prevailed upon to fend for the two priests, whofe names were in the letter; and the Earl of Fingall waited upon the lords justices, to defire a protection with regard to their function, but not to extend to the letter, or any other crime with which they might be charged. But the lords juftices would not grant fuch a protection; and fome of the council told Lord Fingall, that they were no friends to the king, who made any objections, or took measures to prove it a forged letter. Dermott, however, the fuppofed writer of this letter, came to Dublin; 3 Dublin; as did Phelan, the other priest, to whom it was directed. Soon after the former prefented a petition to the council, complaining of the injury done him, by this imposture, defiring leave, notwithstanding his function, to appear before them, to juftify his innocence, being ready to fuffer any punishment, if he fhould be found criminal as to that letter, or any thing elfe that might tend to fedition, and the disturbance of his majesty's government. After a long examination, he was committed to the custody of an officer; and the next day Phelan appearing, Mr. Belling went with him to the council, who having examined him, committed him in the like manner, upon his denying he had ever received any fuch letter." "It was very improbable, continues Mr. Carte,4 that the Irish should, at a time when their all depended on the king's good-will to them, be forming against him defigns of an infurrection, which, if they were never fo unfaithful, they were in no condition to execute." Loyalty of the catholic nobility and gentry of Ireland at this juncture. ON account of a fevere perfecution at this time raif ed against them, and in hopes of removing all future pretence for the fame, the catholics of Ireland, having agreed upon a remonftrance and proteftation of their loyalty, which was couched in the strongest and most explicit terms, fent it by the Earl of Fingall to Mr. Walsh, an Irish Francifcan, then at London, who I 3 Cart. Orm. vol. ii. 4 Ib. 1 Walsh's Hift. of the Irish Remonftrance, f. 9. was "This religious," fays Mr. Carte, "had always been very cordial and fincere in all his profeffions and zeal for the Duke of Ormond's fervice. And his grace having the post of sene fchal |