no fuch confequence can follow from it as this third pretended grievance. I do indeed admit, that at all county elections in this kingdom, there are to be found catholics wicked enough to perjure themfelves by fwearing that they are not catholics, to enable themselves to vote; and this is partly admitted in the writs of Edward Byrne, after mentioned; but they do this voluntarily, and are not induced by any neceffity or caufes, fave their depravity, avarice, and perhaps ambition, to do fo; and I hope the election laws in this kingdom will be never changed on account of fuch wicked mifcreants, who are as ready to perjure themselves on any other account, if paid for it, as on elections; and who have caufed the words" Irish Evidence" to be echoed throughout Great Britain, as terms of proverbial difgrace to this country.

The petition, after ftating a ftring of grievances, which I have fhewn never had exiftence, as proceeding from the exclufion of catholics from the elective franchife, then proceeds to claim this franchife. as a right, and founds the claim of right of the catholics on as bold untruths as any contained in the former part of their petition, or rather bolder, for the principal falfehood on which the petitioners ground it, ftands refuted by the public records, by acts of parliament, and by hiftory; and this falfehood alfo includes a libel on the proteftant government of this country fince the revolution, as groundlefs and malicious as ever yet was published. The petition ftates, " That the right of franchife, that is,

of elective franchife, was fecured, at leaft to a great part of the catholic body, by the treaty of Limerick, in 1691, guaranteed by King William "and Queen Mary, and finally confirmed and ra"tified by parliament; notwithstanding which, and "in direct breach of the public faith of the nation,

thus folemnly pledged, for which their ancestors

"paid a valuable confideration, in the furrender of "their arms and a great part of the kingdom, "and notwithstanding the moft fcrupulous adhe

66

rence on the part of the catholics to the terms of "the faid treaty, and their unremitting loyalty "from that day to the prefent, the faid right of "elective franchise was finally and universally taken 66 away from the catholics of Ireland, fo late as the "first year of his majesty king George the 2d." It will not be very difficult to expofe the notorious falfehoods of every part of this paragraph. The whole body of Irish catholics, after the abdication of king James the 2d, in England, took up arms, under the pretence of fupporting his title to the crown of Ireland; but in reality for the purpose of overturning the proteftant ecclefiaftical establishment in this kingdom, and fubftituting popery in its ftead; and of feparating this country for ever from England; as all perfons who have read the proceedings of the pretended parliament held in Dublin, under the authority of king James in 1689, must be convinced. The proteftants of this kingdom took up arms in their own defence, and were fupported by a formidable army, fent from England by king William, to their affiftance; after two years of a bloody and deftructive civil war, the catholic forces, every where routed and defeated, were driven into the city of Limerick, in which, in the autumn of the year 1691, they were clofely befieged by the generals of king William, and the proteftant army under their command. Pent up in this city, the catholic army was reduced to enter into articles of capitulation with the general of king William, the Baron de Ginckle, on the third day of October, 1691, which capitulation is ftiled the military articles of Limerick; thefe military articles relate folely to the catholic regular ariny and rapparecs, a kind of irregular catholic banditti, then in arms in the counties of Limerick, Cork, Clare, and

Kerry, and to the garrison of the town of Sligo, which had furrendered on the 15th of September preceding. The chief conditions, ftipulated by thefe military articles, relate to the fafe tranfportation into France of fuch officers and foldiers of that army, as fhuuld choofe to embark for that country. Of the whole catholic army only three principal officers, to wit. Brigadier Clifford, (an Englishman) Col. Henry Luttrell, and Col. Purcell, chofe to ftay at home, together with fome officers of inferior rank, and private foldiers; the reft, to the amount of twenty thoufand men, chofe to embark for France, and were tranfported thither accordingly. See Harris's life of king William, pages 351, and 352.

Exclufive of this military capitulation, there was another capitulation figned by the lords juftices and general Ginckle on the one part, and by the catholic gentlemen of landed property, amongst whom were Sir Garret Dillon, Sir Theobald Butler, and John Brown, Efq. three catholic lawyers of great eminence, on the other part. This capitulation is called the civil articles of Limerick; they are twelve in number, with a kind of poftfcript, folely relating to Col. John Brown, and the firft of them only relates to the Roman catholics (not catholics) of Ireland in general, and is confined entirely to certain ftipulations refpecting the exercife of their religion. The laft of thefe articles is in the words following: Laft

ly, the lords juftices and general do undertake, that "their majesties will ratify thefe articles within the fpace of eight months or fooner, and use their ut"moft endeavours that the fame fhall be ratified

and confirmed in parliament." It is proper here to obferve, that as the king has no power by our conftitution, to make laws by his own authority to bind his fubjects, laws refpecting internal government and the regulation of his kingdom, muft be enacted by parliament. The king, his deputies

or

or generals, had no power to contract abfolutely with the catholics of this kingdom, his own fubjects, then in actual rebellion against him, for any civil privileges or immunities whatfoever, parliament alone has the power of making fuch contracts, and it appears by this 12th article, that the able lawyers who conducted this capitulation on the part of the catholics, perfectly well understood the conftitution in this point; and they must have also known, that every law made by parliament, is again revocable and repealable by parliament at any time, when either the fame parliament, or a fucceeding one, may think it fit and expedient to repeal it. The crown could not perform any part of these civil articles, nor could it contract to perform any of them, except fuch part of them as related to the release or reftoration of fuch eftates as were liable to forfeiture, or had been feized or forfeited, on account of the rebellion, which became thereby the property of the crown; and fo far, and no farther, could the crown ratify the civil articles of Limerick, or guarantee them in any manner. The catholic army, as to the rest of the civil articles, furrendered exprefsly on the condition that the crown fhould ufe its utmost influence to prevail on the parliament to ratify them; fuch engagement the crown fulfilled with the utmoft good faith; and if the crown, after exerting its utmost influence with parliament for the purpofe, was unable to prevail on the parliament to ratify these civil articles in their full extent, as was the cafe, the capitulation of Limerick was in no wife infringed; the crown and the rebel army in Limerick having only contracted, that as much of thefe articles as could be performed by the crown, and as much as fhould be afterwards ratified by parliament, thould be carried into execution.^

There is not one of thefe civil articles of Limerick which fecures the enjoyment of the elective franchise

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franchise to the catholics of Ireland, or to any part of them, or recognizes in any manner their right to fuch franchise, as ftated in the petition, or even mentions it. The article on which fome catholic writers have attempted to ground their affertions, refpecting rights pretended to be acquired by the articles of Limerick, is the fecond article. It is in fubftance as follows: That all the inhabitants or "refidents of Limerick, or any other garrifon then "in poffeffion of the Irish, and all officers and foldiers "then in arms under any commiffion of king Jaines, "or those authorized by him to grant the fame, in "the feveral counties of Limerick, Corke, Clare, Kerry, and Mayo, or any of them, and all fuch as "are under their protection in faid counties; and all "commiffioned officers in their majefty's quarters,

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belonging to the Irish regiments in being, that were "treated with, and were not prifoners of war, or had "taken protection, who fhould return and submit "to their majefty's obedience, their and every of "their heirs, fhould hold, poffefs, and enjoy, all and "every of their eftates of freehold and inheritance, "and all the, rights, titles, and interefts, privileges, and immunities, which they, and every, or any of them, held, enjoyed, or were rightfully and lawfully "intitled to, in the reign of king Charles the 2d, or " at any time fince, by the laws and ftatutes that "were in force in the reign of king Charles the 2d, discharged of all arrears of quit and crown rent, in"curred fince Michaelmas, 1688, to the day of the "date of the articles; provided that no perfon what"foever fhould have or enjoy the benefit of that ar"ticle, who fhould neglect, or refufe, to take the oath of allegiance made by act of parliament in England, in the firft year of the reign of king William and queen Mary, when thereunto required. It is now neceffary to fee how much thefe civil articles were ratified by parliament; first observing, that

all