as the mover of the Declaration of Rights, I should be ashamed of giving freedom to but six hundred thousand of my countrymen, when I could extend it to two millions more." great enough to see the matter in its true light, thus speaks of these bills in his letter to a noble lord :-"To look at the bill, in the abstract, it is neither more nor less than a renewed act of universal, unmitiThe relief measures of Mr. Gardiner gated, indispensable, exceptionless disquawere contained in three separate bills, lification. One would imagine that a bill very cautiously and moderately prepared, inflicting such a multitude of incapacities in order to avoid too rude a shock to the had followed on the heels of a conquest Protestant Ascendency. To read these made by a very fierce enemy, under the bills with their restrictions and excep- impression of recent animosity and resenttions, gives a vivid idea of what Protes-ment. No man, on reading that bill, could tant Ascendency in Ireland then was. imagine that he was reading an act of The first enables Catholics to take and amnesty and indulgence. This I say on hold, in the same manner as Protestants, memory. It recites the oath, and that any lands and hereditaments except ad- Catholics ought to be considered as good vowsons, manors, and boroughs returning and loyal subjects to his majesty, his members to Parliament. It removes seve- crown, and government; then follows a ral penalties from such of the clergy as universal exclusion of those good and should have taken the oath and been loyal subjects from every, even the lowregistered; it confines its operation to est, office of trust and profit, or from any the regular clergy then within that vote at an election; from any privilege in kingdom (by which the succession of a town corporate; from being even a freeother regulars from abroad might be pre-man of such corporations; from serving vented), it deprives any clergyman offici- on grand juries; from a vote at a vestry; ating in a church or chapel with a steeple from having a gun in his house; from beor bell of the benefit of the act, and re-ing a barrister, attorney, solicitor, or, etc., peals several of the most obnoxious parts etc., etc. of the acts of Anne and Geo. I. and Geo. II. The second of the series of measures related to education-"An act to allow persons professing the Popish religion to teach schools, and for regulating the education of Papists," etc. It repeals certain parts of the acts of William and Anne, which inflcted on any Catholic teaching school, or privately instructing youth in learning, the same pains, penalties, and forfeitures as any Popish regular clergyman was subjected to (transportation, and in case of return, death), but excepts, out of its benefits, those who should not have taken the oath of allegiance, who should receive a Protestant scholar, or who should become ushers under Protestant schoolmasters. The act also enables Catholics (except ecclesiastics) to be guardians to their own or any other Popish child. These two first bills passed, and became law. The third bill was for permitting intermarriages between Protestants and Papists: but the liberality of the House had not yet arrived at such a revolutionary point: they felt that they must draw the line somewhere; so they threw cut this bill by a majority of eight. Yet these wretched and pitiful measures, which by their small relaxations only made more offensively conspicuous the great oppression of the Penal Code, were regarded in Ireland as a mighty effort of liberalism. Mr. Burke, who had a soul "This has surely more of the air of a table of proscriptions than an act of grace. What must we suppose the laws concerning those good subjects to have been, of which this is a relaxation? When a very great portion of the labour of individuals goes to the state, and is by the state again refunded to individuals through the medium of offices, and in this circuitous progress from the public to the private fund, indemnifies the families from whom it is taken, an equitable balance between the Government and the subject is established. But if a great body of the people who contribute to this state lottery are excluded from all the prizes, the stopping the circulation with regard to them must be a most cruel hardship, amounting in effect to being double and treble taxed, and will be felt as such to the very quick by all the families, high and low, of those hundreds of thousands who are denied their chance in the returned fruits of their own industry. This is the thing meant by those who look on the public revenue only as a spoil, and will naturally wish to have as few as possible concerned in the division of the booty. If a state should be so unhappy as to think it cannot subsist without such a barbarous proscription, the persons so proscribed ought to be indemnified by the remission of a large part of their taxes, by an immunity from the offices of public burden, and by an exemption from being pressed into any military or naval service. Why are Catholics excluded from the law? Do not they expend money in their suits? Why may not they indemnify themselves by profiting in the persons of some for the losses incurred by others? Why may they not have persons of confidence, whom they may, if they please, employ in the agency of their affairs? The exclusion from the law, from grand juries, from sheriffships, under-sheriff ships, as well as freedom in any corporation, may subject them to dreadful hardships, as it may exclude them wholly from all that is beneficial, and expose them to all that is mischievous in a trial by jury." It has seemed needful to go into details on the provisions of these bills of Mr. Gardiner, in order to show that, at the very moment when Ireland was proclaiming her independence, and preparing to fight for it-relying, too, upon the aid of the Catholic people-there were few indeed who so much as dreamed of making those Catholics citizens or members of civil society. This radical vice is quite enough to account for the short life of Ireland as an independent nation. In truth, nobody in Europe had any idea of religious equality; none doubted the right of the orthodox to possess themselves of the lands and goods of the heterodox until a few years after this period, when France gave the noble example of absolute equality before the law for all religions. In the course of this same eventful February, Grattan brought on a new motion for an address to the king declaring the rights of Ireland. But within that corrupted atmosphere, upon those bribed benches, was the very worst place for liberty to breathe. The time had not yet arrived, though it was near at hand, for the Irish Parliament to assent to the proposition of its own freedom. They started back reluctant from the glowing form of Liberty; not even with a nation in arms behind them, and with a man of the inspired eloquence of Grattan amongst their sordid ranks, could their valour and his genius triumph over the inveterate corruption and servility of that House. Grattan's motion was lost by a majority of 137 to 68. But the fate of that statesman who had long sat at the fountain head of corruption, and who ministered so liberally to the profligacy of the Irish majority-the worst minister that England ever had, whose obstinate perseverance in principles opposed to the theory of the British constitution, lost to England the noblest member of her great confederation-was at length sealed. He was obliged to relin quish, with disgrace, the post he had held with dishonour. Defeat and disaster followed Lord North into his retirement. He was succeeded by Lord Rockingham and Charles Fox; Lord Carlisle was recalled, and the Duke of Portland was chosen to administer the complicated affairs of Ireland. Grattan, on the 14th of March, declared that he would bring on the Declaration of Rights, and he moved, and succeeded in carrying a very unusual summons, that the House be called over on Tuesday, the 16th of April next, and that the Speaker do write circular letters to the members, ordering them to attend that day as they tender the rights of the Irish Parliament. The Duke of Portland made a triumphant entry into Dublin, and he was welcomed, for no good reason that the history of the times can give, with the loudest acclamations. His arrival appeared to promise the fulfilment of all the hopes of Ireland, and he received by anticipation, a gratitude which he never deserved. But his coming had been preceded by some of the habitual policy of his party. Letters of honeyed courtesy, as hollow as they were sweet, were dispatched by Fox to "his old and esteemed friend the good Earl of Charlemont."* Whig diplomacy and cunning never concocted a more singular piece of writing. He alludes with graceful familiarity to the long and pleasing friendship which had existed between them, and after a variety of compliments, begs for a postponement of the House for three weeks, in order that the Duke of Portland might have an opportunity of inquiring into the opinions of Lord Charlemont, and of gentlemen of the first weight and consequence. But Fox was well aware of their opinions. They were recorded in the votes and speeches of the two Houses, and in the military transactions of the Volunteers. No man knew them better than Fox. He had been in communication with the leaders of the Patriot party, and was well aware of the merits of their claims. And his proposition was a feeble device to try the chapter of accidents. But Charlemont was firm, for Grattan would give "no time." The general of the Volunteers replied in terms of courteous dignity but unwonted determination. He told the wily minister of England that the Declaration of Rights was universally looked up to as an essential and necessary preliminary to any confidence in the new adminstration. "We ask for our rights-our incontrovertible rights-restore them to us, and forever * Hardy's Life of Charlemont, vol. ii., p. 4. unite in the closest and best riveted bonds see the realization of their splendid hopes. of affection, the kingdom of Ireland to her The streets of Dublin were lined with the beloved, though hitherto unkind sister." Volunteers-the House of Commons was This was the sentimental cant of politics; a great centre, round which all the city but the upshot was, that the Declaration appeared moving. Inside, rank and faof Rights was to be moved on the 16th of shion and genius were assembled; outside, April, and it was only left to the genius arins were glistening and drums soundof intrigue to yield with assumed grace ing. It was the commencement of a new what England dared no longer withhold. government, and the king had sent a mesNo civil letters to courtly vanity-no sage of peace to Ireland. philosophic generalities and specious pro- The message was similar to that delimises could effect anything with Volun- vered to the English House, and when teer artillery. The epistles had all the it had been read, Mr. George Ponsonby graces of Horace Walpole, and were moved that an address should be presented, abundant in compliments: the compli- which might mean anything, and meant ments were returned, but the Declaration nothing. It was to tell his majesty that was retained. Grattan, if his own wisdom the House was thankful for a gracious could have allowed it, would not have message, and that it would take into its dared to pause. He stood in the first serious consideration the discontents and rank-a hundred thousand men were be- jealousies which had arisen in Ireland, hind him in arms-he could not hesitate. the causes of which should be investigated It was his glory and his wisdom to with all convenient dispatch, and be subadvance. And he advanced in good ear-mitted to the royal justice and wisdom of nest, nor staid his foot till it was planted on the ruins of usurpation. On the 9th of April, Fox communicated to the House of Commons in England, the following message from the king: George R., his majesty, being concerned to find that discontent and jealousies are prevailing among his loyal subjects in Ireland upon matters of great weight and importance, earnestly recommends to this House to take the same into their most serious consideration, in order to such a final adjustment as may give mutual satisfaction to both kingdoms. G. R." A similar communication was made to the Irish Parliament by John Hely Hutchinson, principal secretary of state in Ireland, who, at the same time stated that he had uniformly maintained the right of Ireland to independent and exclusive legislation, and declared that he would give his earnest support to any assertion of that right, whether by vote of the House, by address, or by enactment. his majesty. When this motion, very full of the solemn plausibilities of loyalty and the generalities of pretended patriotism, was made, Henry Grattan rose to move his amendment. It was a moment of great interest. The success of the motion was certain, but all parties were anxious to learn the extent of the demands which Grattan was about to make. As the "herald and oracle of his armed countrymen" he moved the amendment which contained the rights of Ireland; and confident of its success, he apostrophised his country as already free, and appealed to the memory of those great men who had first taught the doctrine of liberty which his nobler genius had realised. moved: He "That a humble address be presented to his majesty, to return his majesty the thanks of this House for his most gracious message to this House, signified by his grace the lord-lieutenant. "To assure his majesty of our unshaken attachment to his majesty's person and government, and of our lively sense of his paternal care in thus taking the lead to administer content to his majesty's subjects of Ireland. A scene of still greater excitement and interest occurred on this occasion, and that which has so carried away the citizens of Dublin two years before, when Grattan first introduced the question of Irish rights. The nation had become "That, thus encouraged by his royal strong and confident by success-they interposition, we shall beg leave, with all had achieved free trade-their military duty and affection, to lay before his maorganization had attained the greatest jesty the causes of our discontents and perfection of discipline and skill-their jealousies. To assure his majesty that progress was, indeed, triumphant, they his subjects of Ireland are a free people. had but one short step to take. There was, therefore, great excitement through Ireland as to the issue of Grattan's Declaration of Right, not that they apprehended failure, but that all men felt anxious to That the crown of Ireland is an imperial crown inseparably annexed to the crown of Great Britain, on which connection the interests and happiness of both nations essentially depend; but that the kingdom of Ireland is a distinct kingdom, with a Parliament of her own-the sole legislature thereof. That there is no body of men competent to make laws to bind this nation except the King, Lords, and Commons, of Ireland; nor any other Parliament which hath any authority or power of any sort whatsoever in this country save only the Parliament of Ireland. To assure his majesty, that we humbly conceive that in this right the very essence of our liberties exists; a right which we, on the part of all the people of Ireland, do claim as their birthright, and which we cannot yield but with our lives. "To assure his majesty, that we have seen with concern certain claims advanced by the Parliament of Great Britain, in an act entitled 'An act for the better securing the dependency of Ireland:' an act containing matter entirely irreconcilable to the fundamental rights of this nation. That we conceive this act, and the claims it advances, to be the great and principal cause of the discontents and jealousies in this kingdom. made an alliance with France, whose great Revolution was now rapidly approaching; so there would have been happily an end to the British empire. Unfortunately the statesmen of that country were as wise as they were treacherous. On the 17th of May, simultaneously in the two Houses at Westminster, Lord Shelburne in the Lords and Mr. Fox in the Commons, having read the addresses of the Irish Parliament, moved-" That it was the opinion of that House that the act of the 6th Geo. I., entitled 'An Act for the better securing the dependency of Ireland upon the Crown of Great Britain," ought to be repealed." On the the 27th of May, the Duke of Portland officially communicated to the Irish Parliament this great and memorable concession, which he said came from "the magnanimity of the king and the wisdom of the Parliament;" closing his message with these words:-"On my own part I entertain not the least doubt but that the same spirit which urged you to share the freedom of Great Britain will confirm you "To assure his majesty, that his majes-in your determination to share her fate ty's Commons of Ireland do most sincerely wish that all bills which become law in Ireland should receive the approbation of his majesty under the seal of Great Britain; but that yet we do consider the practice of suppressing our bills in the council of Ireland, or altering the same anywhere, to be another just cause of discontent and jealousy. To assure his majesty that an act, entitled An Act for the better accommodation of his majesty's forces,' being unlimited in duration, and defective in other instances, but passed in that shape from the particular circumstances of the times, is another just cause of discontent and jealousy in this kingdom. "That we have submitted these, the principle causes of the present discontent and jealousy of Ireland, and remain in humble expectation of redress." also, standing or falling with the British nation." This is the kind of cant which has ruined Ireland: yet the plain and eternal truth-that while the British nation stands, Ireland must fall, and vice versa, was even then well understood by Irish patriots, and often avowed by Grattan himself. "Ireland," said he, "Ireland is in strength; she has acquired that strength by the weakness of Britain, for Ireland was saved when America was lost: when England conquered, Ireland was coerced; when she was defeated, Ireland was relieved; and when Charleston was taken, the mutiny and sugar bills were altered. Have you not all of you, when you heard of a defeat, at the same instant condoled with England, and congratulated Ireland." 'Poynings' Law" was still on the statute book; and the work of enfranThe address was carried unanimously chisement was not complete until it was in both Houses; and Parliament took a repealed: as it was an Irish statute, it was short recess, to allow time for the matter the Irish Parliament which had to repeal it; to be dealt with in England. Nobody and this was immediately done on motion either in Ireland or England doubted of Mr. Yelverton. Grattan introduced a the issue. It was quite certain that the declaration of the Irish Parliament was all-sufficient to establish the liberty of the country. One may now be allowed to regret that Lord North's administration was no longer in power. In that case England would have refused concession; would have attempted to enforce her pretensions in Ireland: war would have been the inevitable result; Ireland would have necessarily K bill "to punish mutiny and desertion," which repealed the perpetual mutiny act, and restored to Parliament a due control over the army; also another bill to reverse erroneous judgments and decrees, a measure which was supposed at the time to have settled the question of the final judicature of Ireland, and to have taken from the English Lords and King's Bench their usurped appellate jurisdiction. At the same time that the legislature 1 was thus taking securities and guarantees "It is difficult," says Mr. MacNevin, (as it thought) for permanent independ-"to have much sympathy for the extraence, it was not forgetful of the honour-vagant amount of gratitude awarded to able debt due to the man who, above all the British Parliament by the leading others, had conduced to restore the dignity men of the day in Ireland. They treated and independence of Ireland. Fifty thou- the rights of Ireland as though their sand pounds were voted to Henry Grattan, establishment was not the work of Irishhis friends having declined for him the men, but the free gift of English magnalarger tribute of £100,000 as at first pro- nimity. And the address moved by posed, and having also refused an insidious Grattan did protest too much." Nooffer of the Phoenix Park and Viceregal thing can be imagined more artlessly Lodge, which had been made by Mr. innocent than this address moved by Mr. Conolly on the part of the Government. Grattan in reply to the viceroy's official Ireland was now, at least formally and announcement to Parliament of the repeal technically, an independent nation. of the declaratory act. It assures his majesty "that no constitutional question between the two countries will any longer exist which can interrupt their harmony, and that Great Britain as she has approved our firmness so she may rely on our affection." It further assures his majesty "that we learn with singular satisfaction the account of his successes in the East and West Indies," etc. :which was doubtlessly extremely polite, but essentially false and foolish, because the mover of the address, and every one who voted for it, knew well that successes of England anywhere in the world were disasters to Ireland. CHAPTER XXI. 1783-1784. Effects of Independence.-Settlement not final English plots for the Union.-Corruption of Irish Parliament.-Enmity of Flood and Grattan. Question between them.-Renunciation Act.Second Dungannon Convention.-Convention of Delegates in Dublin.-Catholics excluded from all Civil Rights.-Lord Kenmare.-Lord Kenmare disavowed.-Lord Temple.-Knights of St. Patrick.-Portland viceroy.-Judication Bill.-Habeas Corpus-Bank of Ireland.-Repeal of Test Act. Proceedings of Convention.-Flood's Reform Bill-Rejected.-Convention dissolved.-to prove that the transactions of 1782 End of the Volunteers.-Militia. Lord Clare, who understood the true relations between the two countries better than any other Irish statesman, in order between Great Britain and Ireland were not considered as final, tells us, that on Ir would be extremely pleasing to have the 6th of June the Duke of Portland now to record, that this nation, thus eman- thus wrote to Lord Shelburne: "I have cipated by a generous impulse of patriot- the best reason to hope that I shall soon ism, and launched forth on a higher and be enabled to transmit to you the sketch wider career of existence, gave a noble or outlines of an act of Parliament to be example of public virtue, tolerance, purity, adopted by the legislatures of the respecand liberality. Such is not the record we tive kingdoms, by which the superintendare to give. England had not (of course) ing power and supremacy of Great Briyielded the independence of her "sister tain, in all matters of state and general island" in good faith. Finding herself, commerce, will be virtually and effectufor the moment, unable to crush the rising ally acknowledged; that a share of the spirit of her Irish colony by force, she expense in carrying on a defensive or feigned to give way for a time, well deter-offensive war, either in support of our mined to have her revenge, either by fraud or force, or by any possible combination of those two agencies. From the very moment of the acknowledgment of Ireland's freedom, British ministers began to plot the perpetration of "the Union." The very nobility of nature and unsuspicious generosity of the leading Irish patriot of the day, so prompt and eager to gush out in unmerited gratitude, so cordially impatient to put away every shadow of ill-will between the two "sister countries," gave the English administration a great advantage in devising their plans for our utter ruin. own dominions, or those of our allies, shall be borne by Ireland in proportion to the actual state of her abilities, and that she will adopt every such regulation as may be judged necessary by Great Britain for the better ordering and securing her trade and commerce with foreign nations, or her own colonies and dependencies, consideration being duly had to the circumstances of Ireland. I am flattered with the most positive assurances from of their support in carrying such a bill through both Houses of Parliament, and I think it most advisable to bring it to perfection at the pre and |