mestic enemies. Addresses of this loyal tenor were sent to his grace from every considerable part of the kingdom, and most graciously received by him.

CHAP. XIV.

The catholics of Ireland, pressed by penal laws, form an humble remonstrance to be presented to his majesty.

THOUGH the exercise of the catholic religion at this time was connived at in this kingdom, the penal laws affecting the property of its professors, were so frequently and rigorously executed, that several wealthy families were reduced to the sad alternative, either to quit their native country or to starve in it, which shews the falsehood and absurdity of the common pretence, that these laws were originally framed and since kept in force, merely for the suppression of the exercise of the popish religion, on a groundless supposition, as it now appears, that both its doctrine and practice are hostile to the peace, order, and very being of this protestant government." The Roman catholics of Ireland (said an eminent member of the British commons on this occasion) enjoy the full and free exercise of their religion; it is against their property that the sword of law is raised."

In this situation they at length began to recollect the capitulation of Limerick in 1691, heretofore mentioned, as a topic of redress very proper to be now revived, which they seemed to have strangely forgotten or overlooked for many years past, and which nevertheless holds forth to them as full and as solemn an assurance of being exempted from all future penalties and restraints on account of their religion, as the public faith of the nation, confirmed by an act of the Irish parliament, is

There was a circumstance attending his grace's answer to the address of the Roman catholics of Dublin, which for its great humanity and condescension, must not be omitted. As if he now meant to clear the Roman catholics entirely from the above-mentioned foul aspersion, in the same place in which it was lately cast upon them, he desired the then speaker, Mr. Ponsonby, while the house was sitting, to read aloud from the chair, his answer to that address, which contained his full approbation of their past conduct, and an assurance of his future favor and protection, as long as they continued it.

capable of giving them. Upon this ground therefore, they formed an humble and dutiful remonstrance of their grievances relative to their property, with a view of having it presented in due form, to his late majesty. But that good king happening to die at this juncture, to the great regret of all his subjects of every denomination, it was then thought proper, to introduce this remonstrance to the throne, by first presenting a congratulatory address to his present most gracious majesty, on his happy accession; which address was accordingly drawn up, and after having been signed by all the most considerable Roman catholics of the kingdom, was laid before the earl of Hallifax, lord lieutenant of Ireland, and by him transmitted to his majesty, by whom it was graciously received. The remonstrance above-mentioned, was conceived in the fol lowing words:

TO THE KING'S MOST EXCELLENT MAJESTY.

The humble Petition and Remonstrance of the Roman Catholics of Ireland.

MOST GRACIOUS SOVEREIGN,

WE your majesty's dutiful and faithful subjects, the Roman catholics of the kingdom of Ireland, beg leave to lay at your majesty's feet this humble remonstrance of some of those griev ances and restraints under which we have long laboured without murmuring or complaint; and we presume to make this submissive application, from a sense of your majesty's great and universal clemency, of your gracious and merciful regard to tender consciences, and from a consciousness of our own loyalty, affection and gratitude to your majesty's person and government, as duties incumbent upon us, which it is our unalterable resolution to pay in all events during the remainder of our lives.

And we are the more emboldened to present this our hum ble remonstrance, because it appeareth unto us, that the laws by which such grievances are occasioned, and such penalties. inflicted upon us, have taken rise rather from private views of

expediency and self-interest, or from mistaken jealousies and mistrusts, than from any truly public spirited motives; inasmuch as they seem to have infringed certain privileges, rights and immunities, which had been freely and solemnly granted, together with a promise of further favor and indulgence to the Roman catholics of Ireland, upon the most valuable considerations. For we most humbly offer it to your majesty's just and generous consideration, that on the 3d day of October, 1691, the Roman catholic nobility and gentry of this kingdom, under the late king James, entered into articles of capitulation at Limerick, whereby, among other things, it was stipulated and agreed, that "the Roman catholics of Ireland should enjoy such privilege in the exercise of their religion as they did enjoy in the reign of king Charles II. and that their majesties as soon as their affairs would permit them, would summon a parliament in Ireland, and endeavor to procure the said Roman catholics such further security in that particular, as might preserve them from any disturbance on account of their said religion." Whereupon these noblemen and gentle. men laid down their arms, and immediately submitted to their majesties government; at the same time that they had offers of powerful assistance from France, which might, if accepted, have greatly obstructed the success of their majesties arms in the war then carrying on abroad against that kingdom.

And although these articles were duly ratified and confirmed, first by the commander in chief of their majesties forces in Ireland in conjunction with the then lords justices thereof, and afterwards by an act of the Irish parliament, in the ninth year of his majesty king William's reign, by which they be came the public faith of the nation, plighted and engaged to these people in as full, firm and solemn manner, as ever public faith was plighted to any people; yet so far were the Roman catholics of Ireland from receiving the just benefit thereof; so far from seeing any steps taken, or means used in the Irish parliament, to procure them such promised security, as might preserve them from any disturbance on account of their religion, that on the contrary, several laws have been since enacted in that parliament, by which the exercise of their religion is made penal, and themselves and their heirs for ever have forfeited those rights, immunities and titles to their estates and proper

ties, which in the reign of king Charles II. they were by law intitled to, and enjoyed in common with the rest of their fellow subjects.

And such is the evil tendency of these laws to create jealousy and disgust between parents and their children, and especially to stifle in the breasts of the latter those pious sentiments of filial duty and obedience which reason dictates, good policy requires, and which the Almighty so strictly enjoins, that in virtue of them, a son, however undutiful or profligate in other respects, shall merely by the merit of conforming to the established religion, not only deprive the Roman catholic father of that free and full possession of his estate, that power to mortgage or otherwise dispose of it, as the exigencies of his affairs may require, but also shall himself have full liberty to mortgage, sell or otherwise alienate that estate from his family for ever; a liberty, most gracious sovereign, the frequent use of which has entailed poverty and despair on some of the most antient and opulent families in this kingdom, and brought many an aged parent's grey hairs with sorrow to the grave.

And although very few estates at present remain in the hands of the Roman catholics of Ireland, and therefore little or no matter appears to be left for these laws to operate upon, nevertheless, we are so far from being secure in the possession of personal property, so far from being preserved from any disturbance on account of our religion, even in that respect, that new and forced constructions have been of late years put upon these laws (for we cannot think that such constructions were ever originally intended), by which, on the sole account of our religion, we are in many cases, stript of that personal property by discoverers and informers; a set of men, most gracious sovereign, once generally, and justly despised amongs us, but of late grown into some repute, by the increase of their numbers, and by the frequency, encouragement, and success of their practices.

These and many other cruel restrictions (such as no christian people under heaven but ourselves are made liable to) are and have long been greatly detrimental, not only to us in particular, but also to the commerce, culture, and every other improvement of this kingdom in general; and what is surely a melancholy consideration, are chiefly beneficial to the discover.

ers and informers before-mentioned; who under colour of these laws, plunder indiscriminately, parents, brethren, kinsmen and friends, in despite of all the ties of blood, of affection and confidence, in breach of the divine laws, of all former human laws, enacted in this or perhaps in any other kingdom, for the security of property, since the creation of the world.

The necessity of continuing laws in their full force for so great a number of years, which are attended with such shame. ful and pernicious consequences, ought, we humbly conceive, to be extremely manifest, pressing, and permanent; but so far is this from being the case with respect to these disqualifying laws, that even the pretended grounds for those jealousies and mistrusts, which are said to have given birth to them, have long since disappeared; it being a well-known and undeniable truth, that your majesty's distressed, but faithful subjects, the Roman catholics of Ireland, have neither the inclination nor the power to disturb your majesty's government; nor can (we humbly presume) that only pretext now left for continuing them in force, viz. their tendency to make proselytes to the established religion, in any degree justify the manifold severities and injuries occasioned by them. For, alas! most gracious sove. reign, there is but too much reason to believe, that proselytes so made are, for the most part, such in appearance only in order to become in reality, what all sincere christians condemn and detest, undutiful children, unnatural brethren, or perfi dious friends; and we submit it to your majesty's great wisdom and goodness, whether motives so repugnant to the public interest, and to all social, moral, and religious duties, are fit to be confided in or longer encouraged.

And because we are sensible, most gracious sovereign, that our professions of loyalty have been often cruelly misrepre sented, even by those who were thoroughly acquainted with the candour and uprightness of our dealings in all other respects, we most humbly offer it to your princely and gencrous consideration, that we rest not the proof of our sincerity in such professions on words, but on things known and attested by all the world, on our dutiful, peaceable and submissive behavior under such pressures, for more than half a century; a conduct, may it please your majesty, that clearly evinces the Teality of that religious principle, which withholds us from sa