and to be a member of any lay-body corporate, except the college of the holy and undivided Trinity of queen Elizabeth, near Dublin, without taking and subscribing the oaths of allegiance, supremacy, or abjuration, or making or subscrib ing the declaration required to be taken, made, and subscribed, to enable any such person to hold and enjoy any of such places, and without receiving the sacrament of the Lord's supper, according to the rites and ceremonies of the Church of Ireland, any law, statute, or by-law of any corporation to the contrary notwithstanding; provided that every such person shall take and subscribe the oath appointed by the said act passed in the thirteenth and fourteenth years of his Ma. jesty's reign, entitled, An act to enable his Majesty's subjects, of whatever persuasion, to testify their allegiance to him; and also the oath and declaration following, that is to say:

"I A. B. do hereby declare, that I do profess the Roman Catholic religion. I A. B. do swear, that I do abjure, condemn, and detest, as unchristian and impious, the principle that it is unlawful to murder, destroy, or any ways injure any person whatsoever, for, or under the pretence of being an heretic; and I do declare solemnly before God, that I believe, that no act in itself unjust, immoral, or wicked, can ever be justified or excused by, or under pretence, or colour, that it was done either for the good of the church, or in obedience to any ecclesiastical power whatsoever. I also declare, that it is not an article of the Catholic faith, neither am I thereby required to believe or profess, that the Pope is infallible, or that I am bound to obey any order, in its own nature immo. ral, though the Pope or any ecclesiastical power should issue or direct such order, but, on the contrary, I hold, that it would be sinful in me to pay any respect or obedience thereto; I further declare, that I do not believe that any sin what soever committed by me can be forgiven at the mere will of any Pope, or any priest, or of any person whatsoever; but that sincere sorrow for past sins, a firm and sincere resolu. tion to avoid future guilt, and to atone to God, are previous and indispensible requisites to establish a well-founded expectation of forgiveness, and that any person, who receives absolution without these previous requisites, so far from ob taining thereby any remission of his sins incurs the additional guilt of violating a sacrament; and I do swear, that I will

defend to the utmost of my power the settlement and arrange. ment of property in this country as established by the laws now in being; I do hereby disclaim, disavow, and solemnly abjure any intention to subvert the present church establish ment for the purpose of substituting a Catholic establishment in its stead; and I do solemnly swear, that I will not exer. cise any privilege, to which I am or may become entitled, to disturb and weaken the Protestant religion and Protestant government in this kingdom.-So help me God.

"VIII. And be it enacted, that Papists, or persons professing the Popish or Roman Catholic religion, may be capable of being elected professors of medicine, upon the foundation of Sir Patrick Dunn, any law or statute to the contrary notwithstanding.

"IX. Provided always, and be it enacted, that nothing herein contained shall extend, or be construed to extend to enable any person to sit or vote in either house of parliament, or to hold, exercise, or enjoy the office of lord lieutenant, lord deputy, or other chief governor or governors of this kingdom, lord high chancellor or keeper, or commissioner of the great seal of this kingdom, lord high treasurer, chancellor of the exchequer, chief justice of the court of king's bench, or common pleas, lord chief baron of the court of exchequer, justice of the court of king's bench or common pleas, or baron of the court of exchequer, judge of the high court of admiralty, master or keeper of the rolls, secretary of state, keeper of the privy seal, vice-treasurer, or deputy vice-treasurer, teller and cashier of the exchequer, or auditorgeneral, lieutenant or governor, or custos rotulorum of coun. ties, secretary to the lord lieutenant, lord deputy, or other chief governor or governors of this kingdom, member of his majesty's most honourable privy council, prime sergeant, attorney-general, solicitor-general, second and third sergeants at law, or king's council, masters in chancery, provost, or fellow of the college of the holy undivided Trinity of queen Elizabeth, near Dublin; post-master-general, master, and lieutenant-general of his majesty's ordnance, commander-inchief of his majesty's forces, generals on the staff, and sheriffs, and sub-sheriffs of any county in this kingdom; or any office contrary to the rules, orders and directions made and established by the lord lieutenant and council in pursuance of

the act passed in the seventeenth and eighteenth years of king Charles the Second, entitled, An act for the explaining some doubts arising upon an act, entitled, An act for the better execution of his Majesty's gracious Declaration for the Settlement of this Kingdom of Ireland, and satisfaction of the seve ral interests of adventurers, soldiers, and other his subjects there, and for making some alterations of, and additions unto the said act, for the more speedy and effectual settlement of this kingdom, unless he shall have taken, made, and subscribed the oaths and declarations, and performed the several requisites, which by any law heretofore made, and now of force, are required to enable any person to sit or vote, or to hold, exercise, and enjoy the said offices respectively.

"X. Provided also, and be it enacted, that nothing in this act contained shall enable any Papist, or person professing the Popish or Roman Catholic religion, to exercise any right of presentation to any ecclesiastical benefice whatsoever.

XI. And be it enacted, that no Papist, or person professing the Popish or Roman Catholic religion, shall be liable or subject to any penalty for not attending divine service on the Sabbath-day, called Sunday, in his or her parish church.

"XII. Provided also, and be it enacted, that nothing herein contained, shall be construed to extend to authorize any Popish priest, or reputed Popish priest, to celebrate marriage between Protestant and Protestant, or between any person, who hath been or professed himself or herself to be a Protestant, at any time within twelve months before such celebration of marriage, and a Papist, unless such Protestant and Papist shall have been first married by a clergyman of the Protestant religion, and that every Popish priest, or reputed Popish priest, who shall celebrate any marriage between two Protestants, or between any such Protestant and Papist, unless such Protestant and Papist shall have been first married by a clergyman of the Protestant religion, shall forfeit the sum of five hundred pounds to his majesty, upon conviction thereof.

"XII. And whereas it may be expedient, in case hist majesty, his heirs and successors shall be pleased so to alter the statutes of the college of the holy and undivided Trinity near Dublin, and of the university of Dublin, as to enable persons professing the Roman Catholic religion to enter into VOL. IV. 3 1

or to take degrees in the said university, to remove any obstacle which now exists by statute law; be it enacted, that from and after the 1st day of June, 1793, it shall not be ne cessary for any person upon taking any of the degrees usually conferred by the said university, to make or subscribe any declaration, or to take any oath, save the oaths of allegiance and abjuration, any law or statute to the contrary notwithstanding.

"XIV. Provided always, that no Papist or Roman Catholic, or person professing the Roman Catholic or Popish religion, shall take any benefit by or under this act, unless he shall have first taken and subscribed the oath and declaration in this act contained and set forth, and also the said oath* appointed by the said act passed in the thirteenth and fourteenth years of his Majesty's reign, entitled, An act to enable his Majesty's subjects, of whatever persuasion, to tes. tify their allegiance to him, in some one of his Majesty's four courts in Dublin, or at the general sessions of the peace, or at any adjournment thereof to be holden for the county, city, or borough wherein such Papist or Roman Catholics, or person professing the Roman Catholic or Popish religion, doth inhabit or dwell, or before the going judge or judges of assize in the county wherein such Papist or Roman Catholic, or person professing the Roman Catholic or Popish religion, doth inhabit and dwell in open court.

"XV. Provided always, and be it enacted, that the names of such persous as shall so take and subscribe the said oath and declaration, with their titles and additions, shall be entered upon the rolls, for that purpose to be appointed by said respective courts; and that the said rolls once in every year shall be transmitted to, and deposited in the rolls office, in this kingdom, to remain amongst the records thereof, and the masters or keepers of the rolls in this kingdom, or their lawful deputy or deputies, are hereby empowered and required to give and deliver to such person or persons so taking and subscribing the said oaths and declaration, a certificate or, certificates of such person or persons having taken and sub. scribed the said oaths and declaration, for each of which certificates the sum of one shilling and no more shall be paid.

* See the form of this oath, p. 96.

"XVI. And be it further provided and enacted, that from and after the first day of April, 1793, no freeholder, burgess, freeman, or inhabitant of this kingdom, being a Papist or Roman Catholic, or person professing the Roman Catholic or Popish religion, shall at any time be capable of giving his vote for the electing of any knight or knights of any shire or county within this kingdom, or citizen or burgess to serve in any parliament, until he shall have first produced and shewn to the high sheriff of the said county, or his deputy or depu ties, at any election of a knight or krights of the said shire, and to the respectiv chief officer or officers of any city, borough, or town-corporate, to whom the return of any citizen, or burgess to serve in parliament doth or shall respectively belong, at the election of any citizen or burgess to serve in parliament, such certificate of his having taken and subscribed the said oaths and declaration, either from the rolls office, or from the proper officer of the court in which the said oaths and declaration shall be taken and subscribed; and such person being a freeholder, freeman, burgess, or inhabitant so producing and shewing such certificate, shall be then per mitted to vote, as amply and fully as any Protestant freeholder, freeman, burgess, or inhabitant of such county, city, borough, or town-corporate, but not otherwise."

The question of parliamentary reform met not equal good fortune. The speech of Mr. Grattan deserves, nevertheless, its place, as an able historical document, stating the corruption of the representation, and giving the history of that corruption, delivered on the 8th of February. Mr. Grattan." I will not say that this is the most important subject that was ever agitated in this house-I do remember, in 1782, another subject of equal, if not superior, moment. The question then was, whether Ireland should be governed by the parliament of another country, and the present is, whether she should enjoy a parliament of her own? As the subject of par