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fed, the odium of which he would take entirely on himself and be refponfible for the confequences. In this mean fubterfuge, with which they were furnished by Poynings' Law, that inftrument of defpotism and difgrace to the Irifh conftitution, Charles acquiefced The matter being thus fettled, the parliament met on the fourth of November to which it had been prorogued. Upon the fubject of the graces being introduced, he told the members that the favours promised by government were not to be confidered as abfolute; that they depended upon particular times and circumftances. With refpect to the two principal points, the granting of which was inconfiftent with the rapacious intentions of the crown, as will afterwards more particularly appear, he denied that the King's 'title, upon enquiry into claims relating to the past, should be limited to fixty years, nor would he permit the furrender of the estates in Connaught to be enroled and new patents to be made out for the fecurity of the poffeffors.

A LAW was paffed to regulate the inheritance of eftates, and another to restore the clergy to poffeffions of which they had been unjustly deprived and to prevent alienations in future. Some other bills defired by government were defeated by the recufants. But Wentworth established them by an act of prerogative.

IN the time of Edward the Firft, the crown granted to this country the privilege of a mint, from which a faving of several thousand pounds was derived to the nation. But this advantage was loft during the confusion of the times which followed. The lords and commons now united in a petition to the King to re-establish it, but his Majefty, indifferent to the welfare of Ireland, did not chose to comply with their request.

AGREEABLY

AGREEABLY to a late act, Wentworth made ftrict enquiry with refpect to those who had alienated lands from the church. By his exertions, the clergy recovered property of which they had been deprived, to a very confiderable amount. Many of the clergy continued fhamefully ignorant, churches had fallen to ruins and there was a great deficiency of Proteftant schools. These evils he took much pains to rectify.

ANOTHER point refpecting religion engaged his attention. The facred and unalienable right of private judgment, a right founded in reafon, in confcience and the holy fcripturės, juftified Proteftants in feparating from the Church of Rome. But fcarcely had the reformers extricated themfelves from the fhackles of human authority, when numbers of them, contrary to this privilege and in direct violence to the principles of the reformation, affumed a power of dictating to their fellow Proteftants, in matters relating to faith and the modes of religion. This ufurped claim had been very predominant in England. In Ireland, among other inftances of this kind, a confeffion of faith, under the fanction of convocation, had, in the year fixteen hundred and fifteen, been drawn up by Archbishop Ufher conformable, in a great measure, to the doctrines, the difcipline and form of worship adopted by Calvin. This had been established by authority, and continued to the present time. There was nothing which Charles defired with more anxiety, than to establish a perfect uniformity of religion in all his dominions. In conformity to his Majefty's pleasure and his own arbitrary difpofition, the Deputy refolved to accomplish this point in Ireland. With this view, he ordered the convocation to frame a fet of articles for governing the church in points of belief, of difci

pline, and worship, fimilar to those which had been adopted in England. The lower houfe, into which the business was first introduced, proceeded with it in the manner that to them feemed beft, rejecting thofe of the English articles which they did not approve. Wentworth was highly offended; cenfured them severely for presuming to determine upon a matter of which he did not confider them to be competent judges, drew up himself a code almoft ftrictly conformable to the English articles, forced it by his authority through both houses of convocation, and transmitted it to obtain the fanction of the legiflature. He concludes a letter to Laud, in which he gave him an account of his tyrannical proceedings on this occafion, with this decent boast, "So now I can say that the King is as abfolute here as any prince can be."

To fupport this measure, to determine as the dernier refort, and to punish ecclefiaftical offences, and at the fame time, to put fome money into his Majesty's coffers by the impofition of fines, a high commiffion court, with powers fimilar to that of England, was established in Dublin. The principles of this inftitution, the powers with which it was invested, and the mode of it's proceedings were, in a high degree, arbitrary and unconstitutional.

THOUGH the divine spirit of charity and mutual indulgence fo warmly recommended in the Gospel, had not by any means, as it ought, influenced the principles or the conduct of Proteftants, the act concerning uniformity, mentioned above, favoured much more of intolerance than any measure refpecting the different fects who had embraced the reformation, which, for fome time past, had been adopted by government. In particular, from the time that the Prefbyterians were encouraged to fettle in Ul

fter

fter by James the First, the form being made agreeable to them, they received ordination from bishops as Prefbyters, they were excufed from the ufe of the liturgy, they fat in council with the bishops upon matters of common concern, fome of them were even members of the late convocation; nor were they, though non-conformists, excluded from the churches and tythes until fome time after the prefent period.

Farewell.

Ο

LETTER IV.

F the many bleffings by which Heaven has diftinguished our country, you know it is remarkable for rich paftures. Hence, among other articles of commerce, an abundance of wool, of a remarkable quality, forms a principal branch of the ftaple of the kingdom. Wentworth, in violation of our commercial rights and in prejudice to the national intereft, to benefit the British woollen manufacture, prohibited the exportation of wool even to England, without a license, which Charles had empowered his deputy to fell, and which brought in a large emolument. Another measure proposed by government, which the Deputy ftrenuously patronized, was to give his Majefty, in this country, an exclufive monopoly of falt.

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BESIDES that mentioned, a great object of thefe political schemes was to encrease our subjection to England, by making us dependent on it for the common neceffaries of life. "How," fays Wentworth, in a letter on this fubject, "fhall they be able to depart from us without nakedness and beg gary ?" He might have added, without perifhing,

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as falt was a mean of life, without which we could not poffibly fubfift. By fuch exertions of tyranny, did defpots endeavour to deftroy the rights of Irishmen: But fcarcely any man is fo perverted as not to do good, when by acting otherwise he can gratify no criminal defire or selfish paffion. As our foil was favourable to the growth of flax, the working of which in cloth, was not, to England, an object of competition, the Deputy took pains to promote the Irish linen manufacture. He encouraged the importation of flaxseed from Holland, set our women to spin, erected looms and fent for perfons skilled in the bufinefs from other countries. By these means, the foundation of a manufacture was laid, which, at an after period, fo confiderably encreased, particularly in the North, as to be of the greatest confequence to the welfare of the kingdom.

I AM now to give you an account of a fhameful tranfaction :-Upon a compofition with Queen Eliza→ beth, the people of Connaught had agreed to become fubjects of the crown. Indentures were duly executed, but, from the confufion of the times, their lands were not surrendered until the following reign. Unfortunately for them, the officer, as has been mentioned, employed to enrol them neglected to do it. James, most basely, refolved to take advantage of the omiffion, and, had he not been prevented by death, would have proceeded to feize their lands and convert them into an English colony.

CHARLES, now, determined to execute this scheme, in direct violation of his word, as the undisturbed poffeffion of the eftates in that province was one of the graces which he had promised, and engaged to fecure by the fanction of parliament.

A COMMISSION of enquiry being iffued, the Deputy, in defiance of common decency, set out in per

fon,

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