was in favour of such a tax. Mr. Malone, Mr. Pery (late speaker), and Mr. Flood; the measure was not new, it had been proposed before, and had nearly been carried; and, so far from its tending to separation, as had been said by a noble lord (Castlereagh), there were two acts passed in England upon this very principle; one in the reign of Richard II., by which two-thirds of the profits of the lands of certain persons should be paid to the Crown for not residing on their estates in Ireland; another in the time of Henry VIII., passed for the same purpose; and in the preamble of which it was stated, "That much ruin, desolation, and rebellion, had arisen in His Majesty's realm of Ireland, by lands in that country having fallen to persons not resident within the same." Here there was not a tax but a forfeiture. If the measure was a popular one, it should be conceded to the people, to secure that confidence of which the government stood so much in need. In reply to the allusions of Lord Castlereagh to Mr. Vandeleur, he observed: "It is insinuated, that it is presumption in a person of my age and experience, to propose to this House a measure of such vast importance. I must confess, I do not possess the same advantages of political education with the noble lord (Castlereagh). I well know, the Castle is a hot-bed, which ripens the understanding and matures the judgment. It has so completely eradicated all prejudices from the mind of the noble lord, that I am unable to perceive whether he speaks the language of the minister, or deputy minister of the English cabinet, or that of the representative of a great, populous, and independent county, which, by great and manly exertions, ushered him into this House on the shoulders of popularity."

The question being put, the committee divided; for the tax upon absentees, Ayes 49, Noes 122; Majority against Mr. Vandeleur's motion 73.

GENERAL LAKE'S PROCLAMATION.

DISARMING OF THE PROVINCE OF ULSTER.

March 20. 1797.

ON the 16th, Mr. GRATTAN called the attention of the House to a subject which deeply involved the peace and safety of the country, and was in itself a complete subversion of the constitution. He alluded to a paper which had been published by General Lake in Belfast, which went to substitute military government for the law of the land; and committed the lives and property of the King's subjects to the discretion of the military.

He gave a general statement of the contents of General Lake's manifesto. He could scarcely believe that this paper had been published with the countenance of ministers. It was a measure leading to such momentous and dreadful consequences, that he would not suppose the minister was charge- · able with it, until he should avow it; he should wait, therefore, until he received an answer on that head, before he proposed any specific measure.

Mr. Pelham said, if General Lake had published any paper, or taken any step which Mr. Grattan thought deserved the notice of Parliament, he had it in his power to bring the subject before the House, and take their sense upon it; at present it could not be supposed that he should give a direct answer as to the authenticity of a loose paper which the right honourable gentleman had not even read to the House.

Mr. Grattan replied, that he had extracted the document from a Belfast newspaper, which he had this morning read: he had read the date and signature of it, and could not at that moment read the whole, from the weakness of his sight. On Monday, therefore, in order to bring the matter fairly before Parliament, he should move for a copy of that publication, and also for such orders and instructions as had been given to General Lake, relative to that measure. On the 17th he accordingly moved, "That an humble address be presented to His Excellency, praying that he would be pleased to order that a copy of a paper published in the Belfast News-Letter, and purported to be signed by General Lake, be laid before the House; as also a copy of the instructions of government on that occasion to General Lake."

The Chancellor of the Exchequer observed, that Mr. Pelham had declined coming down to the House this day, in the idea that no public business would be transacted. His absence, together with the thinness of the House, would, he hoped, induce Mr. Grattan to postpone his motion.

Mr. Grattan agreed to defer his motion till next day, but notice that he would repeat it then, preparatory to a gave motion for enquiry respecting the aforesaid publication on Monday.

On the 18th, Mr. Pelham (Secretary), delivered to the House the following message from His Excellency:

"CAMDEN.

"The dangerous and the daring outrages committed in many parts of the province of Ulster, evidently perpetrated with a view to supersede the law, and prevent the administration of justice by an organized system of murder and robbery, have

pro

lately increased to so alarming a degree in some parts of that vince, as to bid defiance to the exertion of the civil power, and to endanger the lives and properties of His Majesty's subjects in that part of the kingdom.

"These outrages are encouraged and supported by treasonable associations to overturn our happy constitution.

"Threats have been held out against the lives of all persons who shall venture to discover such their treasonable intentions. The frequent treasonable asssemblage of persons, and their proceeding, by threats and force, to disarm the peaceable inhabitants; their endeavour to collect great quantities of arms in obscure hiding places; their assembling by night to exercise in the practice of arms; their intimidations, accompanied by the most horrid murders, to prevent His Majesty's faithful subjects from joining the yeomanry corps established by law; their having fired on some of His Majesty's justices of the peace, and threatened with murder any who should have the spirit to stand forth in support of the laws; which threats have been recently exemplified; their attacks on the military, by firing on them in the execution of their duty, have so totally bid defiance to the ordinary exertions of civil power, that I found myself obliged, by every tie of duty to His Majesty, and of regard to the welfare of his faithful subjects, to provide for the public safety by the most effectual and immediate application of the military force entrusted to me.

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"I have accordingly ordered the general commanding in that province to dispose of and employ those troops under his command, with the assistance and co-operation of the yeomanry, to suppress those outrages, and by seizing upon all arms and ammunition, to recover such as had been traitorously taken from His Majesty's troops and others, and more effectually to defeat the evil designs of those who had endangered the public safety.

"I have the satisfaction of informing you, that by the firm and temperate conduct of the general and the troops under him, and the zealous co-operation of the yeomanry corps, a very considerable number of arms has been taken; and I am encouraged to hope that a continuance of the same vigorous measures will give confidence to the well-disposed, and restore to the civil power its constitutional authority, which it has ever been my wish, and shall be my strenuous endeavour to support with energy and effect.

"C."

The following is the proclamation above alluded to in the message, and addressed to the people of the province of Ulster : Belfast, March 13. 1797. "Whereas the daring and horrid outrages in many parts of this province, evidently perpetrated with a view to supersede the laws and the administration of justice by an organized system of murder and robbery, have increased to such an alarming degree, as, from their atrocity and extent to bid defiance to the civil power, and to endanger the lives and properties of His Majesty's faithful subjects. And whereas the better to effect their traitorous purposes,

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several persons who have been enrolled under the authority of His Majesty's commissions, and others, have been forcibly and traitorously deprived of their arms; it is therefore become indispensably necessary, for the safety and protection of the well-disposed, to interpose the King's troops under my command; and I do hereby give notice, that I have received authority and directions to act in such manner as the public safety may require.

"I do therefore hereby enjoin and require all persons in this district, (peace officers and those serving in a military capacity excepted) forthwith to bring in and surrender up all arms and ammunition which they may have in their possession, to the officer commanding the King's troops in their neighbourhood.

"I trust that an immediate compliance with this order may render any act of mine to enforce it unnecessary.

"Let the people seriously reflect, before it is too late, on the ruin into which they are rushing; let them reflect on their present prosperity, and the miseries into which they will inevitably be inevitably be involved by persisting in acts of positive rebellion; let them instantly, by surrendering up their arms, and by restoring those traitorously taken from the King's forces, rescue themselves from the severity of military authority. Let all the loyal and well-intentioned act together with energy and spirit, in enforcing subordination to the laws, and restoring tranquillity in their respective neighbourhoods, and they may be assured of protection and support from me.

.

"And I do hereby invite all persons who are enabled to give information touching arms and ammunition which may be concealed, immediately to communicate the same to the several officers commanding His Majesty's forces in their respective districts; and for their encouragement and reward, I do hereby promise and engage that strict and inviolate secrecy shall be ob served, with respect to all persons who shall make such communication ; and that every person who shall make it, shall receive as a reward the full value of all such arms and ammunition as shall be seized in consequence thereof.

"G. LAKE, Lieut.-Gen. "Commanding the Northern District." On this day (the 20th), the House resolved itself into a committee of the whole House to take into consideration the message of the Lord-lieutenant. Mr. Ogle moved an address to His Excellency, stating their conviction of the necessity of the measures resorted to. Its import was similar to the message; and it concluded by pledging the House to a cordial co-operation in the measures adopted by the government for disarming the north of Ireland.

Mr. Grattan observed, that the worst news he had heard of late, (and he had heard much bad news of late,) was the message from the Lord-lieutenant, attainting one entire province of Ireland of high treason. Parliament was desired to assent to that attainder forthwith, and to put the province of

Ulster under military execution. We were called to do this without enquiry of any sort; and, without the delay of a moment, we were called upon to do that with respect to the most flourishing part of our country, which could not be done in the case of an individual; we were called upon to attaint a people; to attaint a people for high treason, on the charge preferred by a minister; we were called upon to do this without evidence, enquiry, trial, or the delay of a moment; to proceed against our own country with less justice or ceremony than were observed by the revolutionary tribunals of France. An Irish Parliament was called on to take the word of a minister, and on that word to attaint their country of treason. Who are the people whom they attaint of treason, and consign to military execution? They are the men who placed William III. on the throne of this kingdom; they are the men who, when the English Parliament had trampled on your rights, enabled you to claim those rights, and armed as volunteers to defend their country against foreign enemies and domestic tyrants, and carried you on their back while you preferred your claim of right. Yes; you were carried on the back of an armed people to the sounding of martial music; better harmony than such addresses as these. You were carried on the back of an armed people, and forced, or indeed ravished into the temple of freedom! And now you are to "sell your redeemer, and deliver him up to bondage!" You are now to deprive of their arms those very men at the desire of some of those who would have hanged you for disputing the usurpations of the British Parliament but for those arms - for what cause? They tell you, treason! but I tell them they are not to be credited. Who charge the province of Ulster with treason? Some of those men who called the claim of right in, 1780, treason; some of them who called the meeting at Dungannon, in 1782, treason; some of them who called the best and most constitutional exertions of this country, at the period when she struggled against the commercial restrictions imposed by the Parliamentary power exercised by Great Britain over this country, treason! He had in his possession a paper drawn up by a confidential servant of government at that time, and at this time in confidence, containing thirty or forty articles of high treason, said to have been committed (in the opinion of the framer) by the old volunteers; and, therefore, he did apprehend that now a minister might call constitutional measures, such as the reform of Parliament, treason; and, indeed, if that were treason, he did believe it was a treason of which the north was guilty; but he would add, that he believed every other part of the