midable rebellions of the catholic inhabitants of this kingdom, fince the commencement of the reign queen Elizabeth of moft glorious memory in

of

deed.

This petition commences with deception. The petitioners, on the title of it, denominate themfelves catholics, whereas they are Roman catholics, that is, they are perfons who acknowledge the fupremacy of the bishop of Rome, a foreign prince, in fpirituals, as all the Irish who ftile themselves cathelics, do; and will not allow his majefty to be the fupreme head of the church within this kingdom; nor will they take the oath of fupremacy: and I shall demonftrate, before I fit down, that a very great portion of temporal power is incident to, and cannot, by any device, be feparated from, the fpiritual fupremacy, avowed by the catholics of this kingdom to be vested in the Bishop of Rome: at prefent, I only just mark the fallacy contained in the very title of this petition,. and which is invariably purfued, in this point, through the whole; in which the petitioners conftantly ftile themselves catholics without the the adition of Roman. 'Tis thus "old tales represent "the devil when he appears to mortals, cautioufly concealing the cloven foot."

The petition then ftates, that the catholics of Ireland (as they ftile themselves) have for a century laft paft behaved with uninterrupted loyalty; in which time five foreign wars, and two domeftic rebellions, have occurred; and that they have taken every oath of allegiance and fidelity to his majefty, and have given, and been ready to give, every pledge which can be devifed, for their peaceable demeanor, and unconditional fubmiffion to the laws.

This fhort paragraph contains two notorious falfehoods: First, they have not, for a century paft, be

haved with uninterrupted loyalty to the king or ftate,' but have exerted themselves in all the five foreign wars, and the two domeftic rebellions, which have occurred within these hundred years laft paft, against their king and country, to the utmost of their power and ability, and have difturbed this country, and are now disturbing it, with many tumultuous rifings in many parts of the country, in which they have practifed the most inhuman barbarities on the perfons of the clergy and gentry, and committed various murders, burglaries and robberies on them, within that space of time,

After the furrender of Limerick, in October 1691, the Irish catholics (who had for two years be fore perfifted in a moft obftinate rebellion, which had almost reduced the country to a defart, and in which they had committed all forts of barbarities on the proteftants of this country) to the amount of twenty thousand men, preferred going to France, and ferving in the armies of that power, the natural enemy of Britain, against their own country. In the military articles of capitulation of the city of Limerick, they had procured an article to be inferted, ftipulating for their tranfportation to France. The British generals, after the furrender of the town, exerted themselves to perfuade the catholic army to res linquish their intention of going to France, and to ftay at home, and follow their different occupations, in their own country; or if they preferred the trade of war, general Ginkle offered to enlist them in the Dutch fervice: these offers they almost to a man rejected; and this catholic army, conftantly recruited and officered by the catholics of this kingdom, have remained ever fince in the French fervice, and have uniformly fought, with the greatest inveteracy, against this: country, in the five wars with France which have been waged during the laft hundred years,

L2

years, at the battles of Fontenoy and Laffeld, in the war with France which ended in 1746. A body of fixteen thousand Irish catholics fought in the army of France against Great Britain in the American war, a large body of Irish catholics, in the fervice of France, fought, as well on the continent of America, as in the Weft-India Iflands, against Great Britain; and their exploits against their country, at Savannah, at St. Lucia, at St. Kitts, and St. Euftatia, may be found in the Journals of the times, and in the accounts of that war. Stapleton, an Irish catholic from the county of Limerick, commanded a body of 500 Irifh catholics in the pay of France, at the battle of Culloden in 1746, and he died at Invernefs of the wounds he received in that battle, fighting for the pretender. All the French privateers which infefted this channel during the late war, who plundered the British and Irish merchant fhips, even in the bay of Dublin, were manned and commanded by Irish catholics, fuch as John Kelly, John Field, Luke Ryan, Patrick Dowling and others; and they were furnished with intelligence, with provifions, and even with powder, by Irish catholics from feveral ports in the channel, in which the wives and families of many of them were then refident. A large body of Irifh catholics have also ferved in the Spanish armies, and fought against their country in all the wars we have had with Spain during the laft hundred years. Add to this the infurrections of the white-boys, all catholics, in the South of this kingdom, breaking out at intervals for upwards of twenty years paft, and marked by flaughter, defolation, cruelty, and the moft bitter animofity against proteftant clergy as well as laity; and the prefent infurrections of the lower order of catholics in the counties of Lowth, Meath Cavan, and Monaghan, and now fpread

ing

ing into the county of Dublin: whofe fury is exercised in robbing, fpoiling, and burning the houses, and the contents of the farm yards of the proteftant inhabitants of thefe counties, and affaffinating fome of them; and this banditti is particularly active in difarming the proteftants, and arming themfelves, with what view it is not hard to guess. With what unparalleled effrontery then do these petitioners affert, that the catholics of Ireland have, for a century last past, behaved with uninterrupted loyalty, when the direct contrary pofition is the truth! Can that body of people be faid to behave with loyalty to the ftate, who fupply and recruit the armies of the enemies, whofe fons, brothers, and nearest relations, appear in hoftile array against the ftate, as well in wars with foreign nations, as in domeftic rebellions, who, for a century laft paft, have furnished formidable bodies of troops to the natural enemies of the British empire; who perpetually affault and harrafs us with domeftic infurrection, robbery and murder; who are only reftrained by their inability, and dread of British vengeance, from tearing the bowels of their country; and, by avowed and open rebellion, manifefting their immortal hatred to the British name and nation; and whofe domeftic impotence is the only fecurity to the ftate for domeftic peace! If fuch be loyal fubjects, then is the wretch, who from private animofity or intereft has planned your deftruction, whofe weakness or cowardice prevents him from executing his plan himself, but who fends his confidential bravoes to effect it,—an honest and honourable man, and your attached and faithful friend! Futile are the excufes for this their conduct, urged by the catholics, that they are. precluded from ferving in the British forces by the laws, and that they therefore refort to the French and Spanish standards to procure a liveli

hood.

hood. Such affertion is untrue, with respect to catholics of inferior degree, as they themselves state in their petition, that the loweft departments in the British fleets and armies, are largely fupplied by their numbers, fo that perfons of this defcription may get employment at home. But fuppofing it true, that catholics are excluded from the British fleets and armies, can they find no other states in Europe to enlift with than the French and Spanish? and can they find no other way of procuring a livelihood in a commercial country, than by turning traitors to their king and country? It would not be a fufficient plea for a highwayman, on his trial for his crimes, to fay, that his poverty induced him to commit them.

The fecond falfehood contained in the paragraph of this petition I have mentioned, is, that the catholics have taken every oath of allegiance and fidelity to his majefty; and have given, and been ready to give, every pledge which can be devised for their peaceable demeanour and unconditional fubmiffion to the laws.

The catholics of Ireland have never yet taken the following part of the oath of fupremacy: "And "I declare that no foreign prince, prelate, ftate or

That

potentate, hath or ought to have, any jurifdiction, power, fuperiority, pre-eminence, or authority, "ecclefiaftical or fpiritual, within this realm." part of the oath of allegiance prefcribed to be taken by catholics, and which it appears, that very few of them (their vaunted numbers confidered) have yet taken, which relates to the pope and foreign princes, is as follows: "And I do declare that I do "not believe that the Pope of Rome, or any other "foreign prince, prelate, ftate or potentate, hath "or ought to have any temporal or civil jurifdiction, power, fuperiority, or pre-eminence, directly or

indirectly,