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that country. If it is afked, why the people of Ireland are fo illiterate? The answer that prefents itself is, look to the penal laws, that deprived them, till a late period, of education. If it is afked, why they are poor? The fame answer must be given, look to the penal laws. If it is afked, why the lower orders eat vegetables only, and live in hovels? Still the fame answer, look to the penal laws. If it is asked, why there is no clafs of yeomanry in Ireland like that in England? The answer is, because the penal laws prohibited industry, and deprived the former of his property in land as fast as he could accumulate it. If it is afked, why the people are difcontented and diflike. England? This answer only can be given, because from England they received this penal code, under which they have endured, for above a century, every fpecies of calamity, contrary to the pofitive ftipulations of a facred and folemn treaty. If, in this era of civilized Europe, Ireland is more backward, its people lefs polifhed, its wealth lefs extenfive, and its general character below the rank of other countries, it is not now poffible to miftake the cause. And when all agree that this cause is the penal code against the Catholics, what reafoning

reasoning can contend against the propofition, that all the laws must be repealed in order to remedy the present distempered condition of Ireland?

It was in the year 1774, that the Irish Legislature paffed the first act towards conciliating the Catholics," an act to enable his Majesty's fubjects, "of whatever perfuafion, to testify their allegiance. "to him." Which is as follows;

Whereas many of his Majesty's fubjects in this kingdom are defirous to testify their loyalty and allegiance to his Ma jefty, and their abhorrence of certain doctrines imputed to them, and to remove jealoufies which hereby have for a length of time fubfifted between them, and others his Majesty's loyal fubjects; but upon account of their religious tenets are, by the laws now in being, prevented from giving public affurances of fuch allegiance, and of their real principles, and good will, and affection towards their fellow fubjects; in order therefore to give fuch perfons an opportunity of teftifying their allegiance to his Majefty, and good will towards the prefent Conftitution of this kingdom, and to promote peace and industry amongst the inhabitants thereof, be it enacted by the King's. moft excellent Majefty, by and with the advice and confent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons in this prefent Parliament affembled, and by the authority of the fame, that from and after the first day of June one thousand feven hundred and feventy-four, it fhall and may be lawful for any perfon profeffing the Popish religion, to go before the Judges of his Majefty's Court of King's Bench, any justice.

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* 13th and 14th Geo. III. c. 35,

of

of the peace for the county in which he does or fhall refide, or before any magiftrate of any city or town corporate wherein he does or shall refide, and there take and fubfcribe the oath of allegiance and declaration herein after-mentioned; which oath and declaration fuch judges of the King's Bench, juftices of the peace, and magiftrates, are hereby enabled and required to administer:

"I A, B. do take Almighty God, and his only Son Jefus Chrift my Redeemer, to witnefs, that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to our moft gracious Sovereign Lord King George the Third, and him will defend to the utmoft of my power against all conspiracies and attempts whatever, that shall be made against his perfon, crown, and dignity; and I will do my utmost endeavour to disclose and make known to his Majesty, and his heirs, all treasons and traitorous confpiracies which may be formed against him or them; and I do faithfully promise to maintain, fupport, and defend, to the utmost of my power, the fucceffion of the Crown in his Majesty's family, against any person or perfons whatsoever; hereby utterly renouncing and abjuring any obedience or allegiance unto the perfon taking upon himself the stile and title of Prince of Wales in the life-time of his father, and who fince his death is faid to have affumed the stile and title of King of Great Britain and Ireland, by the name of Charles the Third, and to any other perfon claiming or pretending a right to the Crown of thefe realms; and I do fwear, that I do reject and deteft, as unchristian and impious to believe, that it is lawful to murder or deftroy any perfon or perfons whatfoever for or under pretence of their being hereticks; and also that unchriftian and impious principle, that no faith is to be kept with hereticks; I further declare, that it is no article of my faith, and that I do renounce, reject, and abjure the opinion, that Princes excommunicated by the Pope and Council, or by any authority of the fee of Rome, or by any authority

thority whatsoever, may be depofed and murdered by their fubjects, or by any perfon whatsoever; and I do promise, that I will not hold, maintain, or abet any fuch opinion, or any other opinion contrary to what is expreffed in this declaration; and I do declare that I do not believe that the Pope of Rome, or any other foreign Prince, Prelate, State, or Potentate, hath or ought to have any temporal or civil jurisdiction, power, fuperiority, or pre-eminence, directly or indirectly, within this realm; and I do folemnly, in the prefence of God, and of his only Son Jefus Chrift my Redeemer, profefs, teftify, and declare, that I do make this declaration, and every part thereof, in the plain and ordinary fenfe of the words of this oath, without any evafion, equivocation, or mental refervation whatever, and without any difpenfation already granted by the Pope, or any authority of the See of Rome, or any perfon whatever; and without thinking that I am or can be acquit ted before God or man, or abfolved of this declaration, or any part thereof, although the Pope, or any other perfon or perfons, or authority whatsoever, fhall difpenfe with, or anaul the fame, or declare that it was null and void from the beginning.

"So help me God."

And be it enacted by the authority aforefaid, that the officer of the Court of King's Bench, juftices of the peace, and magiftrates of the city and towns corporate, fhall yearly, within twenty-one days after the first of December, return to the Clerk of the Privy Council of this kingdom, or his deputy, a true and perfect lift, under his or their hand, of every such Papist as shall in the course of the preceding year have taken and fubfcribed fuch oath, in which lift the quality, condition, title, and place of abode of fuch Papist shall be specified.

About

About the fame time, fearing that their grievances were not known to his Majefty, the Catholics prepared a Petition; which was presented to Lord Buckinghamshire by Lord Fingal, Mr. Preston and Mr. Dermot, in order that it might be tranfmitted by him to the King.*

To the King's moft Excellent Majefty, the humble Addrefs and Petition of the Roman Catholics of Ireland.

Moft Gracious Sovereign,

We your Majesty's moft dutiful fubjects, the Roman Catholics of your kingdom of Ireland, with hearts full of loyalty, but overwhelmed with affliction, and depreffed by our calamitous and ruined circumstances, beg leave to lay at your Majesty's feet fome small part of those numerous and infupportable grievances under which we have long groaned, not only without any act of disobedience, but even without murmur or complaint; in hopes that our inviolable submission, and unaltered patience under thofe fevere preffures, would fully confute the accufation of feditious principles, with which we have been unfortunately and unjustly charged.

We are deeply fenfible of your Majefty's clemency, in moderating the rigorous execution of fome of the laws against us but we humbly beg leave to reprefent, that feveral, and those the most severe and diftreffing of thofe laws, execute themfelves with the most fatal certainty, and that your Majesty's clemency cannot, in the smallest degree, interpole for their

This address was written by Mr. Burke.

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