CHAPTER XXII.

Commencement of Camden's government-Catholic collegeNew system of United Irishmen-Insurrection act-Violences of Orangemen-Armed yeomanry-Leaders of the union apply to France-Invasion attempted at their desireTheir neglect of Munster-Their chief attention to UlsterViolent acts of their adherents there-Severe measures of government Their success at the present-Mode used to seduce other parts-Declaration of Orangemen-Hussey's pastoral letter-Adverse to scheme of union-Organization of United Irishmen-Their military arrangement-Parliamentary proceedings-Attempts against ministers-Seditious newspapers suppressed-Hand-bills, &c. substituted— Intercourse with France continued-Invasion preventedEmissaries to France arrested-Members of Irish Directory-Discovery of Reynolds-Arrest of chief conspirators -Discovery of Armstrong-Violences of the United Irish -Arms demanded by the military-Their punishments of various kinds-Arrest of lord Edward Fitzgerald-Of others involved in the same charge-Time for insurrection appointed.

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1795.

THE administration of earl Camden, the successor of the CHA P. popular earl Fitzwilliam, had a very ominous commenceXXII. On the thirty-first of March, the day he was sworn into office, the lord primate, and the lord chancellor Fitz-Commence gibbon, on their return from the castle, were assaulted by Camden's a mob, who threw stones at their carriages, and pursued the govern chancellor to his house in Ely-place, to which he got his escape made with a wound on the head.

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This nobleman was particularly obnoxious, on account Catholic of his strenuous opposition to complete catholic emancipa- college. tion, of which the ambitious part of that communion_had

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CHAP. an ardent desire. The bill in favour of this measure, inXXII. troduced during the late government, was brought forward

New system of

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again, under different auspices, on the fourth of May, and after a violent debate, protracted till near eleven o'clock the next morning, it was rejected by a great majority.* However, in compliance with a memorial of the preceding year from the catholic prelates to the earl of Westmoreland, a bill was passed this session for the establishment of a catholic college, for educating for the Romish priesthood such young men of Ireland as had resorted for that object to foreign universities, but were deprived of the usual benefits, by the disordered state of the continent. Accordingly, a college was founded at Maynooth for the purpose above mentioned, which has been very liberally endowed by government, and previous to its establishment, catholics got permission to study in the protestant university of Dublin.

Such indulgences, however, were not satisfactory to the people of that persuasion. The recal of the popular noIrishmen. bleman, which was succeeded by addresses and violent speeches, and the fate of the bill so anxiously desired, produced a general discontent. Defenders now assumed a more menacing aspect; they daily increased in number, and extended even to the capital. In their associations, however, men only of low rank were engaged; but the society of United Irishmen, began at this time to form a new system, planned with deep design, for combining Defenders, and all other malcontents, of every religion, in a grand conspiracy against the existing government. From the very beginning, the leading members of this society had probably a scheme of this kind in their heads, but the chief object of the generality was a parliamentary reform, beyond which their wishes did not seem to extend. Their idea of reform was indeed immoderate and fantastic, and condemned by the whig-club, but it was innoxious, when compared to the present scheme for overturning the constitution. After the recal of earl Fitzwilliam, the frame of the society of United

* For rejecting 185—Against 84—101.

Nearly forty thousand pounds was granted at its first establishment, and every successive session a regular charge of eight thousand, was brought before parliament for its annual support.

XXII.

Irishmen underwent a material alteration. At first the plan CHA P. of the association was public, but now became secret, and each member, on his admission, now took a solemn obligation, on no account to discover on any member of the society, for any act or expression of his suitable to the design of the institution. This was called the oath of secrecy. Though reform in parliament was still the avowed object, yet in the test, as now altered, the word parliament was entirely omitted, the sentence being as follows, "I will also persevere in in my endeavours to obtain an equal, full, and "adequate representation of all the people of Ireland." This ambiguity of language was made use of, that reformers, by this disguise, might be induced to unite with repub licans. At that time, the latter had hopes of success from the assistance of the French, with whom revolution was more an object than reform.

In the session, which terminated in June, the Dublin police-act was repealed, which had caused such discontent in the metropolis. Discontent and disaffection unfortunately became very general, and as the existing laws were supposed insufficient to suppress the Defenders, a violent expedient was adopted, which could be only justified by the absolute necessity of the case. In the western counties where lord Carhampton commanded in a military station, the magistrates would assemble at his requisition, and having examined into the charges against persons confined in jail, on the accusation of being Defenders, they would order those of them who appeared most guilty to be sent to serve on board his majesty's navy, and these orders his lordship would take care to execute. His conduct in this instance, was as much applauded by government as condemned by the opposition, and a subsequent bill of indemnity secured the magistrates from danger.

1796.

In the next session of parliament, which met in January 1796, an act was passed giving the magistrates by law that Insurrec authority which some of them had previously assumed, tion act. This act was termed the Insurrection act, and enacted, that on the petition of seven magistrates of a county assembled at a session of the peace, the chief governor and council might proclaim that county, or any district of it, in a state

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CHA P. of disturbance, and give the magistrates authority to search XXII. houses for arms, and to treat as culprits all persons who

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should, without sufficient excuse, be discovered absent from their houses at unseasonable hours; the magistrates had also authority to seize all persons who could not give a satisfactory account of themselves, and if they could not get bail at assizes, to send them on board the fleet. It also enacted, that administering unlawful oaths of a treasonable nature was a capital offence, and that in case a witness was murdered, his written testimony should be competent to go as evidence to the jury. This latter clause was absolutely necessary, as witnesses were frequently murdered previous to trials. In October (for the parliament met in that month for a few days) the act of habeas corpus was suspended by the legislature, and hence government got authority to confine in jail persons obnoxious or suspected, without cause assigned, or appointed time of trial.

While government was taking these measures for their of Orange- security against the designs of the disaffected, who were united for their ruin, a body of men joined themselves together of a very different description, whose professed object was to give them support. But the assistance afforded, at least at their commencement, by those supposed friends, was such as could not gain the approbation of any well regulated government, and certainly tended to increase disaffection among the catholics. The hostile contests, occasioned by religious animosity, between the Peep-of-day-boys and Defenders in the county of Armagh, having continued for many years, at length, in 1795, the Peep-of-day-boys were joined by some other protestants, who formed themselves into an association under the title of Orangemen. Their name they took from king William, prince of Orange, who had rescued the protestants of Ireland from persecution, and afforded them a political superiority in the country. The Defenders and Orangemen, as they were called, having recourse to arms, had various rencounters, and though the former were more numerous, the latter generally gained the victory, which was owing to their being better acquainted with discipline, as many of them had formerly been volunteers. At a place called the Diamond, which lies be

XXII.

tween Richhill and Portadown, they had a pitched battle CHA P. in which a few Orangemen defended themselves with great spirit against a large body of Defenders, of whom some were killed. Mutual animosity being thus increased, the Orangemen began to search at night the houses of their opponents more strictly for arms and ammunition, with which, in great quantities, they had been clandestinely supplied from Dublin and other parts. When they found them concealed they demolished both them and the furniture, for which violent transgression some of them were hanged. But even with this enormity they were not content, for they posted up papers at night on the houses of their adversaries, ordering them to go to hell or Connaught, and threatening severe punishment on their disobedience, which they took care to inflict. Hence some hundreds of catholic families, it is said fourteen hundred, were forcibly expelled from their houses, and obliged to take shelter in that province or other parts. This terrible persecution was publicly condemned by the governor of the county, and some others of fortune and consequence, but in his laudable exertions he was not sufficiently seconded by some magistrates of inferior station.* Such acts of atrocity, though disgraceful to the persons concerned, reflect no imputation on the Orange societies afterwards formed by persons of respectable character, who bound themselves under an obligation to support the constitution, which the United Irishmen had previously engaged to destroy. The existence of one society afforded, of course, a sufficient excuse for the formation of the other to conteract its bad effect.

manry.

An association, however, of more exsensive utility had Armed yeoits commencement in the year 1796. At that time government began to embody an armed yeomanry, which might make a material addition to the troops of the line and militia, and afford the government more strength to resist both foreign and domestic foes. Hence great opposition was

* Mr Plowden asserts, in his Historical Review of the State of Ireland, “that not a single magistrate in the county of Armagh had been stricken off the commission, though many were believed to have encouraged these outrages." This really is not true. One magistrate in that county was not only stripped of his commission, but fined and confined for his partiality to these disturbers.