СНА Р. X. Falfe reports of a confpiracy among the Irish confidered. The effects of these reports. BUT the commons, not fatisfied even with these a advantages, in order to have fome colourable pretext for the injuftice 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 diffuse 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 numbers 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 Euftace, 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 a "The enemies and competitors of the Irish," fays Dr. Leland on this occafion, "were indefatigable in endeavouring to load their whole party with the guilt of new confpiracies; and even manifeft 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 masses, in order to partake of a jubilce, which the pope had sent them; but the whole kingdom knew that they were in no condition to rebel." Orm. vol. ii. f, 231. + C somewhat that was deemed treasonable, because dark and unintelligible, was fomewhere found and laid before the parliament, by one Jephfon, a member; who, with several other members, was himself, about two years after, convicted of a real confpiracy against the government and executed for the fame. In confequence of this pretended difcovery, 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 transplantation, were now banished from Kilkenny, and other great towns. Horses and arms, being no where else 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 representation of the infolence of the papists, for whose fuppreffion, in order to prevent the threatened danger, his majesty's directions were defired." 5 "But Chancellor Euftace fufpected the injuftice, as well as defign, of this charge against the Irish; and to discover what ground there was for it, he directed the judges in their circuits to cause the matter to be enquired into by the grand juries of the feveral counties, 3 Com. Journ. vol. ii. f. 337. + Cart. Orm. vol. ii. He reprefented 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 faid expelled members be left to the courts of juftice to be further proceeded againft." Id. ib. f. 347. The charge of the house of commons against these men was, "that they were engaged in a late wicked and horrid plot, to have furprized his majefty's caftle of Dublin, to have feized on the perfon of his grace James Duke of Ormond, and to have involved the three kingdoms in blood." Ib. f. 350. The above expelled members were alfo made" incapable of exercifing any employment civil, military, or ecclefiaftical within the kingdom." Ib. f. 354. ties, through which they paffed. The finding of these 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 practise in their profeffion; both which, however, had been pofitively allowed by his majesty's letters." CHA P. XI. 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 estranged 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 juftices, 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; The Duke of Ormond's confolatory argument, with refpect to thefe defpoiled people, in his fpeech to parliament on paffing the first act of fettlement, is fomewhat remarkable. " ' Thofe," fays he, "that fhall be kept out of their antient estates, the inheritance of their fathers, through the defect of their qualifications, and by the all-difpofing providence of God, who was not pleased to make them active inftruments in this happy change, are delivered from tyrannous confinements, causeless imprisonments, and a continual fear of their lives. The good land lies afore them; their industry is at liberty, and they are reftored to the freedom of fub b Carte, vol. ii. Append. f. 25. jects, to murder their king. The fchifmatics acted by a spirit directly contrary: they united in a folemn league and covenant to alter the whole fyftem of fpiritual government, eftablished in all christian nations, and of apoftolic inftitution; concluding the tragedy with the murder of the king in cold blood, and upon mature deliberation; at the fame time changing the monarchy into a commonwealth." "The catholics of Ireland in the great rebellion loft their eftates for fighting in defence of their king; the fchifmatics, who cut off the father's head, forced the fon to fly for his life, and overturned the whole antient frame of government, religious and civil, obtained grants of those very estates which the catholics loft in defence of the antient conftitution, many of which eftates are at this day poffeffed by the pofterity of those fchifmatics; and thus they gained by their rebellion what the catholics loft by their loyalty." Swift's Works, Dub. ed. vol. viii. p. 52. b Before the year 1641, "the Irish (fays Colonel Laurence) were proprietors of ten acres to one that the English had in Ireland; but, after the act of fettlement, thefe English were in poffeffion, by that act, of four millions five hundred fixty thoufand thirty-feven acres.--So that (adds my author) if the majority of proprietors may give the denomination to a country, which ufually it doth, Ireland is become Weft England." Intereft of Irel. part ii. p. 50-51. Mr. Walsh, who was better acquainted with the condition of the Irish before the acts of fettlement took place, fays, "that the Roman catholics of Ireland were the lawful proprietors, and had been lately the poffeffors of nineteen parts in twenty of the Jands of that kingdom." Reply to a Perfon of Quality, p. 145. jects, and the protection of the laws; if an Irish papist be oppreft, they shall relieve him; if the blood of the meaneft of them be fhed, it shall be strictly enquired after. Let this state be compared with that they were in before the king's restoration, and it will be found that the greatest lofer has got fomething.' But all this cajoling amounts to no more than an oftentatious fuppofition, that his grace's adminiftration of Ireland was not altogether fo unjust, tyrannous and bloody, as that of the regicides, his now favoured predeceffors in the government of that kingdom. And the difference will appear ftill lefs, when it is confidered that the innocent fufferers under Cromwell, had at least the comfort of a remote, but reasonable hope, that justice might be one day done them on his majesty's restoration; but of this, their only remaining profpect, they were then totally deprived, under Ormond, by this explanatory bill. "It will be difficult," fays a contemporary writer, "to perfuade those who were not eye-witneffes of the fact, that the royal authority of a christian king, which in one part of his dominions maintained the peer in his dignity, the commoner in his birth-right and liberty; which protected the weak from the oppreffion of the mighty, and fecured the nobility from the infolence of the people; and by which, equal and impartial justice was diftributed to all; fhould, at the fame time, be made use of, in another part of his dominions, to condemn innocents before they were heard, to confirm unlawful and ufurped poffeffions, to violate the public faith, to punish virtue, and countenance vice, to hold loyalty a crime, and treafon worthy of reward; in a word, to exempt fo many thoufands of faithful and deferving fubjects, from a general pardon, which, by a mercy altogether extraordinary, was extended to fome of the murderers of his royal father!" Colonel Talbot,' afterwards Duke of Tyrconnel, fufpecting the Duke of Ormond to have done ill offices 4 Sale and Settlement of Ireland. s Cart. Orm. vol. ii. to |