could deceive him.

The net of sophistry could neither entangle, nor hold him. He broke through its meshes, as if they were made of gossamer. He delighted in stripping artifice of its imposing mask; and was fond of uncasing vulgarity, when it presumed to wear the drapery of refinement. He could detect confusion, pranked out in all the formality of precision. Compliments ill-bestowed, particularly disgusted him; and he presently pointed the shafts of satire at praise-undeserved. Private interest never passed with him for public spirit; nor party zeal for patriot ardour. He had a marvellous faculty at foresceing consequences; which he could divine to the third and fourth generation of cause and effect. He could mark the first declination from the track of right reason, in morals, in argumentation, or in civil polity; and could predict, with wonderful accuracy, whither the obliquity must necessarily lead, and what the catastrophe must inevitably be. One of his favourite adages was this,—principiis obsta; and, doubtless, had he lived when the first concessions were made to the Romanists, he would have told his country what mischief must necessarily arise to the Protestant-interest from such measures;-how the expiring hopes of the Papists would be revived; how grateful thanks for favours received, would soon be followed by Petitions for further boons; how Petitions would rise into Remonstrances; and how Remonstrances would be sublimated into Claims, and Claims themselves urged by Menaces.-He might have warded off much trouble and anxiety, and might have saved the spilling of an ocean of blood in the sister-kingdom. The horrors of the Irish Rebellion, in 1798, might have been prevented; and the infatuation of 1812, in all probability had never taken place.

However, I trust that it is not yet too late to retrieve our errors ;-not yet too late to prevent our reaching that consummation of folly, that highest degree in the climax of political absurdity, viz. the removal of the last remaining barriers erected by our forefathers to resist the inroads of a dangerous superstition. -The Papists must not be invested with power.

You profess to advocate the cause of Protestantism; and I beg leave to associate myself with the band of constitutionalists who co-operate with you; and I hope you will not disdain the assis

tance of a plain-spoken man, who is desirous of working at the fortifications of Protestantism, though it be but in the humble capacity of a pioneer. Whilst he calls a spade, a spade; he knows how to dig up nonsense, to shovel it away, and level it with the ground. I send you a sample of my mode of dealing with our adversaries; some of whom have been much busied in framing Resolutions at Mullingar, co. Westmeath, in Ireland. I shall take the liberty of translating this morceau of choice Irish, into plain English.

WESTMEATH CATHOLIC MEETING.*

GERALD DEASE, Esq. in the Chair.

At a Meeting of the Roman Catholic Freeholders of the County of Westmeath, held in the Court-house, at Mullingar, on Thursday, August the 27th, the following Resolutions, proposed by Christopher Nangle, Esq. and seeonded by J. M'Loughlin, Esq. were unanimously agreed to:

Resolved, That, sensible how considerably the Catholic Cause has gained during the last year, and how much its success is to be attributed to the exertions of our Protestant Countrymen, we take this opportunity of testifying our gratitude for the interest they have taken in our welfare.

Translation.

Resolved, That, sensible, from the recent vote of the House of Commons, on Mr. Canning's motion, of the progress which Popery is making; sensible of the apathy of some people, particularly those nominal Protestants to whom all religions are alike, and those who have no religion at all; and depending on the ignorance of others, as to the ultimate views of the Roman Catholics, and the undescriminating liberality of sentiment which sways the rest of the heretics;-we take this opportunity of throwing a little more Popish dust in their eyes; under cover of which we hope, without occasioning fresh alarms, to make further approaches; before we commence a general assault on the lines behind which Protestantism is entrenched.

Resolved, That, conscious of the rectitude of our intentions, of our inviolable attachment to our Sovereign, and anxious to participate in the blessings of that Constitution, whose maxims we admire, and for whose unsullied purity we are willing to sacrifice our lives; we again petition

See the Morning Herald of Tuesday, Sept. S.
N

VOL. I. [Prot. Adv. Nov. 1812.]

Parliament for a Repeal of the Penal Laws still in force against us, and, for that purpose, adopt the Petition agreed to by the General Board of the Catholics of Ireland.

Translation.

Resolved, that, the zeal which inflames our bosoms in behalf of a system of religion which cannot have a particle of error, or a weak place in it, (being founded on the traditions of men, the authority of general councils, and the infallibility of the Pope,) do pass for knowledge; that the fond persuasions of our hearts, be esteemed the voice of conscience itself; and that whatever we have done, or hereafter may do, must, à priori, be right;-conscious therefore of the rectitude of our intentions, and of our inviolable attachment to our Sovereign; notwithstanding his inviolable regard for the oath which he took in Westminster Abbey, on the 220 day of September 1761;-when the heretical and anathematized Archbishop of Canterbury, Secker, anointed him with oil, and set the British crown upon his head;-anxious to participate in the blessings of the Constitution, viz. certain places of trust and honour, with handsome salaries annexed to them; the maxims of which Constitution we admire ;-particularly the inviolability of the Protestant religion, and the Protestant succession to the throne, (for both which constitutional maxims, we are willing to sacrifice our lives :)-resolved, therefore, that we do again petition Parliament for a Repeal of the Penal Laws, already repealed; meaning, after all, not the Penal Laws, although we name them; but those restrictions which prevent our enjoying a participation in the blessings of the Constitution, viz. those situations of power and profit now withheld from us; because we acknowledge not the supremacy of the King, but that of the Bishop of Rome, whom we maintain to be, de jure, Head of the Anglican Church, and of all the Churches in the world, in all the kingdoms of the earth.-Resolved, for these manifold and exquisite reasons, that we do adopt the petition agreed to by the general board of the Papists of Ireland, exercising boldly the functions of an imperium in imperio.

Resolved, That, our most grateful thanks are due, for the splendid exertions of their Royal Highnesses the Dukes of Kent and Sussex, in our favour; and we trust, that, so far from regretting the steps they

have taken, they will find in our conduct, and in our steady attachment to every branch of their illustrious Family, additional reasons to continue their support to us.

Translation.

Resolved, that, our most grateful thanks for the splendid (defined by Dr. Johnson, shewy; magnificent; sumptuous; pompous ;) excrtions of two royal Dukes in our favour;—twọ personages of unquestionable good sense, and superior talents; -one of them tolerant in all things, except the dimensions of the whiskers of the soldiery at Gibraltar; and the other under no small obligation to the late Pope Pius VI.-only fallible in the facility with which he sometimes lent money.-We hope that those exalted characters will find additional reasons to continue their powerful support to us, and will persevere in making speeches on our behalf, because of the profound veneration in which we hold their royal father, for adhering to his CoronationOath; and because of the affection which we feel for the Protestant Constitution of the United Kingdom:-and we hereby declare, that we particularly respect that Act of Parliament which united the two great members of the British Empire, one, indivisible, and independent, (the spiritual Head of which is the Pope, late, of Rome;) and we pledge ourselves to maintain the Union unbroken, and never to rest till the headship of the Pope be acknowledged by all Protestant heretics.

Resolved, That, we cannot sufficiently express our sentiments of gratitude and obligation to our old and steady Friends, the Earl of Donoughmore, and the Right Honourable Henry Grattan, who have at all times, and under all circumstances, continued unalterably attached to the Catholics of Ireland.

Translation.

Resolved, that, as we cannot sufficiently express our sentiments of gratitude, and all that, to the Earl of Donoughmore, and the Rt. Hon. Henry Grattan, the old and steady Friends of the Papists, -the less we say about it the better. They are unalterably attached to us; and we trust that St. Patrick will turn their hearts from the errors of Protestantism, without which they cannot be saved. N.B. The commoner must be requested to lay aside all expectation of a gratuity (to use Father Foigard's language)

from the Roman Catholics; because they have many hungry mouths to feed; and because although the Papists are more in number than the Protestants, (in the proportion of something less than two to one,) yet the latter possess nineteen twentieths of the wealth and property of Ireland; to say nothing of the lucrative blessings of the Constitution, above-mentioned: but, doubtless if the Papists could give him £50,000, in addition to the £50,000 which he has already pocketed, the papistical donation would be as graciously received as the parliamentary grant.

Resolved, That, the Most Noble the Marquis of Wellesley, and the Right Hon. George Canning, be requested to accept our warmest acknowledgments, for the eloquence with which they have advocated our Cause, and for the glorious Majority they have procured in our favour.

Translation.

Resolved, that, the Marquis of Wellesley, who made two set speeches when Earl of Mornington; which two speeches, well written and well recited, laid the foundation of his fortune; -and Mr. Canning, who has made many speeches without gaining a fortune by the same, nor yet by various copies of verses, ballads, charades and essays, in Latin and English; be respectively requested to continue to make speeches, &c. as heretofore; and when the Papists shall be conciliated, and satisfied; that is, when they shall possess supreme power, and shall have proselytized, or otherwise disposed of, all the Protestants, (for nothing short of this will suffice ;)-we will consider of some appropriate mark of our favour to them.-We look anxiously forward to the meeting of Parliament, when our Claims are to be taken into consideration; but in the mean time, in the names of the Pope and the Bishop of Castabala, we return thanks to the glorious and wise majority in the House of Commons, for doing our work, for promoting our cause, and liberally preparing the Protestants to impart power to those who can use it with such moderation as the Papists have ever manifested. To the Parliament itself we lie under no small obligation-it begun with a cry of NO POPERY, and the session of 1812 closed with a pledge of CONCILIATION. We admire such consistency.