G-v^A-lcin

\

SPEECll (AT LENGTH)
t)F THE UODJOURABLE
.MeNRY d-RATTAN, IN THE
Irish i-iouse of coMMO^%
' AGAINST
THE UNION
WITH
GREAT BRITAIN,

LONDON:
PRINTED BV A. PARIS, ROLLS* BUILDINGS,
For J. S. JORDAN, No. i66, FLEET-STREET; ,
and fold by J. SMITH, James-llreet, Covent-garden ; and by
^ all the Bookfellers at the Royal Exchange.
1800.

#- ¦ P E E C , ri
OF THE Honourable
HENRY GRATTAN,
8sc. S^x. 8§Ci

SIR, the Gentleman who spoke last but one (Sir
L. Parson, ) mentioned the settlement of 1782,
adopting the ideas of the Minister of Great Britain.
That Minister has come forward in two pro-
duclio];is ; he declares his intolerance of the Parlia
mentary Constitution of Ireland, that Constitution
which he ordered . the several Viceroys to cele
brate—in defence , of: which .he recommended the
French war, and 'to- which he swore the yeomen — ¦
tlrnt Constitution he now. declares to be a miserable
imperfection ; concurring with the men whom' he
executed, in thiilking the, Irish Parliament a griev
ance, and diifering in the remedy only — they pro
posing to sub.stitute a Republic, and he the yoke of
the British Parliament.- We have seen him inveigh
against their projeds — let us hear him in defence of
his own ; he denies, in the. face of the two nations,
a -public fact, registered and recorded ; he disclaims
the iinal adjustment of 178S ; and he tells you that
this final adjustment was no more than an incipient
train of negotiation.
The settlement of which I speak-consists of seve
ral parts, every part a recoi'd, establishing on the
whole two grand positions — first, the admisslon-of'
Ireland's claim to be legislated by no other Parlia-
' B - ¦ mept

i 4 )
ment but tha!t of Ireland— secondly, the finality
imposed upon the two nafions regarding all- consti
tutional projefts aflfe6ting each other ; — on the ad- '
mission of that claim, the first treats of this adjust-
meinit, and two Messages are sent by His Majesty to
the Parliaments of the- different Tcoun tries, to come
to a fihal! adjustment, in order to remove the dis
contents and jealousies of the Irish — the second, the
answer of the Parliament of Ireland to His /Majesty's
Message, declaring, among other causes of discon
tent and jealousy, 'one great, capital, principal, and
fundamental cause, namely, the interposition of the
Parliament of Great Britain in the legislative re
gulation of Ireland, accompanied with a solemn
protest agciinst that interposition, and with a claim
of right on the part of Ireland, not of the Par
liament of Ireland only, but of the People of the
realm, whose ancient and unalienable inheritance
,,it was stated- in that Address- to be — a perpetual
exemption against the intepfer-ence of the Parlia
ment of Great Britain, or that of any other Legis
lature, save only the King, Lords, and Commons-
of Ireland. The third part of this adjustment wa*
a resolution voted by the two British Houses orf
Parliament,, in consequence of said Addi-ess, trans
mitted by ' his Majesty for their consideration.
There were two resolutions transmitted ; — 1st, That
the 6th of George I. containing the claim of inter
ference l?y the British Parliament should be repeal
ed;— rthe 2d, That the connexion between the
countries should be placed by mutual consent on a
solid and permanent foundation. —The 4th part of.
~ the covenant was, in the Address of the two Houses.
of the Irish Parliament, upon the consideration of
those two resolutions : Avhich Address d«es, among
other things, accept of the proposition contained
in the first resolution, and does expressly reject the
secand ;

. ( 5 )
¦second; for it says, that "we conceive the resolution
for the unqualified, unconditional repeal of the 6th of
'George I. to be a measure of consummate wisdom.'^
, I drew that Address — and , I introduced those
words expressly to exclude any subsequent quali
fications or limitations affecling to clog or restrain
the operations of that repeat, and the plenitude of
the Legislative authority of the Irish Parliamentt
The Address adds the clause of finality, for in-
it stance--^gratified in those particulars which
states, that "no constitutional question between
the two nations will any longer exist. "
The next part was the measure adopted by the
English Parliament, upon the consideration of this
Address ; and in that measure, they accede to that
Address entirely and unequivocally ; th.ey embrace
our proposition of unconditional and unqualified
repeal, and they accordingly introduced a bill for
that putpose— and thus they closed the final ad
justment. Our Address, though no part of their
resolutions, became part of their covenant — as
their bill of repeal^ though no pait of our a6ts, be-
icai^e part of our treaty.
Another instniment in the transaclion is the
Address to 'his Excellency the Lord^ Lieutenant,
touching the finality of this measure, in which are
these words— " We have seen this great national
arrangement established on a basis which secures
and unites the interests of both kingdoms ; the q1>
jefts we iiave been labouring tor, have' been accom
phshed." The next is the declaration of the Irish Govern
ment, touching the finality of that arrangement :
" Convince the people that every cause of past
-jealousy and discontent is finally removed, and
that both countries have pledged their good faith
to each other, and that their best security Avill be
"E 21 , ' their

Wfeir inviolable adherence to this compadl. " There
are two other parts which are material ; -the reso-
liition of the Irish House of Commons,' the 1 8th
of June, declaring in substance, that the question
was not now to be opened, and that the business
was done, and in these words, that leave to bring
in a Bill of Right was refused, because the right of
Legislation in the Irish Parliament, in all cases,
had been -already asserted by Ireland, and fully,
and finally, and irrevocably acknowledged by
Great Britain. -
The next instrument was an Address to His Ma
jesty, to beseech him to appoint a day of public
thanksgiving' for the accompHshment of these.great
objeci's, as well as for his victories. Thus it appears,
that whatever idea might haye'-I^een conceived in
the 2d resolution of the 17th of May 1782/ it was
totally and entirely abandoned ; the Minister of
that time probably, intended to tnake the best bar
gain lie could for England, and therefore conceived
it elit,ible to condition and qualify the acknow
ledgment of the independency of the Irish. Parr
liament by certain provisions respecting naviga^
tion, c-rc; hut rinding that the Irish Parliament
wouldacce'pt.oi nothing but the unqualified and
unconditional, rqieal, he drc-pt the fruitless idea.
I cannot presume to ^-tatj jiis sentiments, but I
can str-.te that the Irish Pvoposi'^idns of unqualified
and unconditional repeal, re?pefting the idea of
further measures, was adopted in England by that
Parliament, which embraved tiie Iri.-h Proposition
of unqualified a:i,d unconditional repeal of the 6th
of Georgethe First, and didrepeal it accordinjly
without qualification, condition, or hmitation. "
I beg leave to mention two-f:icl,s, which though
not recorded, are- not forgotten — tlie one i^s a de-
plaration by .Lord Lan'sdt)wrie, then; Secretary of
* - Sfate.,

( 7 )
State, that the repeaj, of 6th, George L was the*
only measure he meant to propose : the other. was,
a declaration by the Representative of the Irisli
Government in the Irish House of Commons,
made after our Address of the 27th May, that onr
measures were intended to be grounded on the 2d
English resolution "of May 17- I remember the
question to be asked, and so answered.
I think I have now shewn from the records
. quoted, the argument of the , Minister is against
the express letter, the evident meaning, and ho
nest sense of this final settlement; and I repeat,
-that finality was not only apart of- the settlement,
but one-,of its principal obje^s. The; xase is still
stronger against him : finality was the principal
"object of his country, as Legislative -Independency
was the object of ours. Ireland.wished to seize the
moment of her strength for the establishment of
her liberties-T-the^ Court of England, wished ' to
conclude the operations of that strength, and
.bound its, progress ; the one 'country 'wished to
establish her liber,ty, the other to check the growth
of demand. I say the growth of demand,, it was
the expression, of the time ; .the Court of England
came therefore to an agreement- with this -country,
viz. to establish for ever- a free and independent
existence .of the Irish Parliament, and" to preserve
for ever .the* unity of thp ^ British Emj^ire— the '
former, by the above-mentioned adjustment, the,
latter, by thq clause .of finality tp that adjustment
annexed, and by precluditig then, and at all times
to come, the intr6du6lion of any further con-
. stitutiohal questions in either country atfe<5lingthe
connexion, which was to rest under solemn co
ven arlt; impreg'nable and invincible by tlie in^
ti-igue or ambition of either country, founded on
t^e prudent, the profound, ,the liberal, apd the
eternal

( 8 )
.-eternal grinciple of Unity of Empire aiid Separation
of Parliament.
I might, however, #ave all this, and yet the
Miiiister would ^et nothing by it-— I might allow, '
contrary to common sense, that final adjustfnent,
as proposed by His Majesty, means incipient ne
gotiation — r will suppose, contraiy to truth, to
public faith, public honour, and common policy,
that the Councils of Great Britain at that time
meant to leave thelrish, Constitution open to theen-
croachment of the British Parliamentand the British
Empire, open to the encroachments of the Irish
Volunteer ; that is, that she meant to expose the
solidity of her empire, in order to cheat the Irish,
first of their opportunity, and afterwards of their
Constitution ; and yet he has gained nothing by
these preposterous concessions, because he must
allow, that the arrangement did proceed to cer
tain articles of covenant, and this first article on
the part of England excludes his Union, being
the assent of the Parliament of Great Britain to
the requisition of the people of Ireland, which
was, to be exempted, in all times to come, from
the interfereuce of British Parliaments, aud to have
established Qver them no other Legislature what
ever, save only that of King, Lords, and Com
mons of Ireland. Admitting, then, the ridjculoui
idea of ulterior measures to follow final adjnstmerit,
a Union- could not be, one of thejn' It is hardly
necessary to mention, that he has been Minister
ever since that period, that during the whole of
that time he never ventured to name a LTiiion as
one of those further measures — not in 178,'3, when
a Bill was brought in by the I^Iinistry— 'iiot in
1785, when he in,troduced his celebrated Proposi
tions, and stated the ^d resolution of the 17tli
of May 1782, to comprehend not the Consti tution

'( 9 ) -
tutlon but the Comlnerce of both cou:ntries'«--nQt;
in the Administration of 1785— -not, in sKort, un
til he had redi^ced this country, by a train of
calamitous measures and religious divisions, to the
condition of a conquest, such as she was when the'
Parliament of England, at the close of the last cen
tury, took away the Trade, and in the middle of
the present took away the Constitution. The Mi
nister proceeds ; he impeaches the Constitution of
1782 : from disavowing an arrangement so adjust
ed at that time, and an adjustment so conciud,^d,
he advances, and calls that adjustment a niisera|)le^
imperfection after fifteen years panegyric ; and
when he has a great army in Irelai^d he has made
that discovery, and instead of a Constitution which
established peace in Ireland, he revives a principle
which produced war in America,, namely, that two
in dependent legislatures are incompatible. This
was the lanaruao'e of Lord North's sword in the
colonies, this is the language of Mr. Pitts sword
in Ireland, and the doctrine of an Imperial Legis
lature, which lost Great Britain America, and
which Great Britain i^urrendered to Ireland, takes
once more its bloody station in the pages of the
Minister, in defiance of faith, and in contempt of
experience. " You abolished, " says he, "one Constitution,
but you forgot to form another.", Indeed !—
"IVhat! does he mean that we should have demo
lished a Constitution iu order to mangle a Consti
tution ? Does he mean that we should overset the
tyranny of one Parliament to «iangle anothcx ? Iix
short, does he mean that we should have taken
away the usurped and tyrannical powers of one
Government, in order to restore those usurped and
tyrannical powers, to that very Legislature? In
3»fhat: branches ? tlis Propositions haves tated them ;,
Commerce,

(; 10 )
Commetce, &c.- the \*«ry braiiches in which thej
had been by that very Legislature most ¦ oppresive-
ly and egregioasly, obstinately and transcendent-
ly abused. i\Iost certainly the conductors of that
settlement, on the part of Ireland, did not thinfe
proper to restore the grievance of a foreign Legis
lature, and so to limit the powers of a domestic
one. The Minister has given- in' his speech the
reason — "All the great branches ' of trade (by
which he jnust mean the linen trade, the'planta-
tion tradej are to be ascribed to the liberality of
England, not to covenajit.'\ — I deny it: but as
Ministers may deny covenants, it seemed prudent
to reserve the powers of Parliament ; and accord
ingly the Irish Legislature retains full and ample.:
resources, under the settlement of that timCj fo
incline the councils of England to remember and
observe her compafts with our country, should the
British Minister be disposed to forget them. Thus
the Parliament of Ireland can so regulate her in
tercourse with other countries for colonial produce,
so regulate her jight to an Last India trade, and
so duty her Channel trade, as to secure a preference .
in the English market to her linens, and to secure a
direft intercourse with the British Plantations.
Was Ireland to retain those powers Avith a view to
annoy ? No; but she was to retain them ; and to
retain them, lest Great Britain, instigated by some
Minister, might be induced to exercise once more
those very powers of annoyance withu which' now
the Right Honourable Gentlemen threatens Ire
land ; in short, lest^reat Britain shbuld- retain all
her powers of molestation, - and Ireland' should sur
render all her powers of retahation.V The classic
Minister must know — Tacitus has told him— that
between the poM'erful and the impotent there can .
be

( 11 ),
be no peace ; the powers I kpeak of were powers of
peace — ^they were powers of protection— they Avere
the great resources df the Irish Parliament to se
cure the trade of Ireland and harmony of empire;.
The wisdom pf the resource such a Minister as he
is was born to establish. Strange ideas' this Mi- '
Tlji.ster entei'tains of the Constitutioii of an Irish
Parliament — it slipuld be incpmpetei^t^ — it should
be omjiipoteut ; it should be incompetent to regu
late tiie commerce of the country — omnipotent to
overturn her Constitution,: it should be inadequate
and all-mighty— inadequate to protect— all-mighty
to save the people ; its divine powers are to arise
from its obsequiousness, arid 'the afil of its^ sur-
. render with him constitutes its omnipotence.
The Minister proceeds— -he specifies his objec
tions tb, this settlement 'of ,17821— the Regency is
one, and war another: facts are against him in
both^ He.s'tates, that il was accident alone (mean
ing the^ recovery of his Majesty) that preservejd
the identity of the Executive. Power at the time
of the Regency. He mis-states that fa6t, -feotally
and entirely. It was not accident, viz. the re
covery of the King, that preserved the identity
of the Executive -Power— that identity was pre
served amply, Carefully, and affeftionately, by
the determination of the Irish Parliament in chus-
ing for their Regent j^e Heir Apparent of the
Crown, already designated and determined upon,
though not in^.form invested' by the Parliament of
Great Britain. The Irish Parliament provided
in that. event not only for the preservation of the
monarchical principlcj but for the preservation pf
the connexion likewise, and adhered to HiS cotin-'
try, ' though they did' not link themselves to his
party. The principle that came under the con-
'sideration of the Irish Parliament was threefold —
C . .'" the

(-.is ) '
the principle of Monarchy, the principle of Con« ¦
nexipu, the principle pf Party. With regard tp
the twp first, they cpnci^rred with the Parliament
of England ; they chpse as Regent the next in
successipn tp the Crova ;. and tl^ey chpse hini
after, ai-jd not before, the Parliament of Great
.Britain had! signified, with 'the Minister at theit
head, their determination to appoint him; and iii
so doing, they^ followed faithfully the spirit of the
a6l of annexation of the Crown, which forms be-
tweeia the two cojuntries jtheir bond and connex^
ion, -but a bond and connexion through tlie me^
dium pf Mpnarchy. I am stating the spirit of
that a6t, without defending or condemning it. I
say the Act of annexation, ajid"§o tl^e Bill of 1 7 82,
alter in,g and amending the act of Poynjngs, and
ordaining that Irish bills shall be sent to the King-,
looks to the bond and conuexion pf these/islands
through the medium of Mpi^archy. A British
Republic never was in the cpntemplation of either ;
but an English , Monarchy, and no other form
of government, was present to -the conceptions
of both, giving thereby the Royal House, wlip
are the Monarchs pf Ireland as well as pf Great
Britain, a dpuble security, and the Thrpne uppp
which they sit a dpuble rp<5t, I- say the Padia-
ment of Ireland did adherq to the principles of
British connexion, and did unite with them the
safe. and the prescribed principles^ of Monarchial
GoverniTjent They d^d' concur with the Parlia
ment of England in the choice, of a Regent,v in
the person of Ilis Royal Highness the Prince of
Wales, and afttr his designation by Clreat Bri
tain ; but with regard to tb,e third principle,
gamely, the principle of party, they diftered, the
Parliament of Eftglarid thinking proper to encum
ber Jhe R'egent Avith e:!itraordinc'iry limitations, ,

, ( 13 ¦ )
and that pf Ireland judging it mpre eligible t«
leave him. in full exercise of all the executive
powers ; it therefore rejeftfed a motion of delay,
knowing the object of ^that motipn was to ppst--
pone the apppintment until the then Lprd Lieu
tenant pf Ireland shpuld have fprriied a for
midable faCtipri cpnfederated against the Go
vernment. ¦ ' '"' ' ' -- '.
In sh,ort, the Parliament of Irelahd- did ¦ net
think.it prpper to appoint a Regent with less
than regential power, and tp cpnstitute in pppp-
sitipn a Minister with great pprtipns pf regal au
thority. Hence, perhaps, this' Union ; hence,
perhaps . the visitation of calamitous Government
which has befallen Ireland eX^er since.' One of the
Minister's instruments in this country has '. con
fessed it ; he has said in 0116 of his speeches pub
lished by his authority, that alf th&' misfortunes of
this country sprung from that resentful period.
But who is it reproaches Ireland upon this sub
ject, most 'injuriously and unjustly, with the
crime of availing herself of the opportunity af
forded by that most calamitous event that visited
' the health of our Sovereign ? 'Tis that very Mi-.
nister who published that oppprtunity in th€
brPadest ai\d rppst unqualified resolution, who
* told the Parliament of -both countries that they
were perfectly competent to supply, in that me
lancholy moment, the deficiency in the executive
iriagistrate by any method- which they thought
proper; that is, Avlio told the British Houses of
Parliament they were cpnipetent to establish a
temporary Republic— and .told, the Irish Houses,
of cpurse, and by necessary inference, that they
"were cpinpetent tp^ establish a tempprary B-epubli.c,
and to accomplish a- teinporary separation. To
' hare declined, the opportunity is called the Am-
C 21 , - ;- bitioii

( "14 )
c. ¦«-,,,
bition of our Parliament — to haye .proclaimed the
opportunity is called the- Mederatipn of the Mi
nister, liis partisan in this coimtry went fuTther-;
iie maintained, the power of the British ParUament
to bind Ireland. ; ^^
— - — Ille impiger hausit
Spumanterh pifteram et pleno se proluit auro. \ ,
According, tq the twpppinipns, the twb Hpuses
of the British Parliament cpuld pverturn the Bri
tish Monarchy and Irish Constitution.
The Minister proceeds — he states a second in
stance^ namely, that of war. Here a^ain the fart
is against him ;~ the Parliament of .Ireland ha\e
ever since their emancipation concurred with
England oji;, the ?ubje6t of war; but they have
cpncurred with this remarkable difference that
before their emanci.pation then- concurrence was
barren, and .since their emancipation it has beeii
produ6tive. Immediately on the settlement of
that emancipation in 1783, they voted a sum for
British seamen, and on the apprehension pf a war
with Spain in 1 790, they voted another ; and in
, the. present war, under Lord pitztvilliam's admi
nistration, they voted a third. So much, more
beneficial are the wild offerings of Liberty than
the squeezings, ana eviscerations, and >'excrucia-
tions of Power. But all, this is lost upon the
Minister— fatSt and bounty, make iio'* impression
.on him ; he has, against both a faM^icious argu
ment and an .hungry speculation. He ;think§ he ;
foresees that the Parliapient of Ireland may dis
sent from that of Great Britain on the subject of
Wcy — that peace or war are in the department of
the King, not of ~ the Pariiaineiit. He knows
that on a proclamation by. His Majesty, Ireland is^
in

„, ( 1^' )'
in a state of war, of course without the ass'ent of
the Houses pF Parliament. He knows that the
supply of that war depends hpt pn the Parliainent
pf Ireland, but of' Great Britain ; tlierefore, the'
interference of the Paviiament of , Ireland on tliat
siibject, is little more than the declaration pf a
sentiment. Now the declart^tion of a sentiment
pn such a subject is only valuable, as it is the
'sentiment of a.nation;— and the concurrence of-'
Ireland in British Avars can.only be the sentiment
of the natipii, as tlie Cpnstitution pf the" nation,
that 'is to say, the rights of , Ireland, as claimed
by herself, to be exempted fronf ^the Legi.slative '
authority of a British Parliament—tendered,' re-
garbled, and protected by the British Empire.- —
It is not the isle of Ceylon, the. Cape of Good
Hope, tlie Ivlysore country, nor the dominions of
Tipppp, nor yet the feathei's of her western wing,
that engage the attention or interests of Ireland :
it is her Own internal freedom and Constitution
— it is her own idea of that internal freedom and
Constitutiori, not such as British Ministers Avho
have invaded that CpiLStitution -too often shall
hold forth, not such as English nor Scotch meta
physicians, AV'ho foi-ged chain.s for America, and
-cast them her.Constitution, i^aud are ready iioav to
cast links for L'eland, Avith the foreign stamp of
Irish liberty — but that Cou.stitution A\;iiich she/
herself (Ireland) feel^., comprehends,, venerates,
ancl claim.s — such as slic hersel/ expressed, both in
her C'Pnvention at Dungannon, and through all
her counties and cities, and in every .description
or association of people, and afteiAvards in full-
Parliament claimed, carried, "* registered, aiid i^- ^
ccadcd. It is for the preservation of this Consti
tution that she is. Interested in BiTtisli AVeli'arc.
Shi ^considers the. British En)pire a gicat Avestern barrier

( 16 )
barrjer against invasion from other countries.. 'In
vasion on Hv'hat ? invasion on her liberties," on het
rights and privileges, invasion pn self-legislatipn,
the parent and prote6tre,ss of them all. She hears
the Ocean protesting against separation, but shfe
hears the Sea lil*;ewise prPtesting against Union ; .
she folloAvs, therefore, her physical destination, and
obeys the dispensations of Providence, Avhen she'
protests, like that sea, -against the two situations,
both equally -unnatural — Separation and Union;
but then, she feels her Constitution to " be her
great stake in the Empire, arid she contemplates
the Empire as the. gTcat security of her Constitu
tion. Our liberty we think is secured by ' this
great western" barrier, and Ave give our strength
to' this western barrier for the security pf our
liberty: but if British Ministers should dP;that'
very mischief Avhich we apprehend frpin the fo
reigner, namely, take aAvay the Parliamentary Con-
. stitutiOn of the realm— they take aAvay with that
our interest in the British dominions, and thus
withdraAV at once a great pillar of Liberty and
Einpire. On these principles I suppose the dissent of
; Ireland on the subje6t of war highly improbable,
as it is uninstanced ; but I should attribute, like
the Minister, infallibility to those ' Councils that
engage their country in a Avar, should I suppose
the dissent of Ireland on such a subje6t at all,
times to be fatal. Happy had it been for Great
Britain — happy had it been for His Majesty — '
happy had it been for his glory and renOAVn in all
times to come, had not the Parliament of Ireland,
in the American war, cursed him witli her con
currence. What cOuld the tutelary Angel of
England have done more ? If that Angel had been
ilvlinerva, and that Minerva sat in Parliai^nt, ' she

( ir )
slie would then ha,ve held over the Councils ot
that time, the. shield of her displeasure. Or Avhat
could the Demon of Great Britain have done
morej or the aA'chging Genius oi. the' Colpnie's,
A< hich her Cabinet butchered, -than tp have filled
f lill and pverflpwing them: easure pf her malice ?
In an humble aii^d dutiful address pf thanks and
cphcurrence, Ipoking back to the wars in "whichi
Great Britain has been engaged, I should there-
fqre suggest, that .she is in less danger from the
hesitation of Ireland, than from the precipitation
of Great Britain, In tnis part of his argument
the Minister is AA^eak ; but ip. his remedy is not
only weak, but mischicA'^ous ; be proposes, by tak
ing away our powers of diss'ent, to Arithdraw Our
" inptive pf cpncurrence; and tP secure pur silence,
fprfeits Pur affection. He foresees an improbable
event — ^of that event he greatly exaggerates the
danger, yand provides a remedy Avhich makes
that danger np't pnly imminent but deadly.
I AAdll put the questipn tP my, cpuntry — I Avill
suppose her at the bar, and I will ask then. Will
you fight for a Union as you Avould for a Con.sti-
tution ? Will you fight for those Lords and those'
Commons, Avho, in the last century, took aAvay
the trade, and ill the present the Censtitution,
as for that King, Lords, and Commons, who haVe
restored both ? , ' .
Well, the Minister has destroyed this Con
stitution. To destroy is ea.sy. - The edifices pf the
- mind, like the fabrics pf marble, , require an age
to build, But ask only a Minister to precipitate,
and, as the fall is of no time, so neither is it
the effect of any strength. A common labourer
and a pick-ax, a little Lawyer, a little Pander,
and a Avicked i\Iiuister — so. perigh 'the AVprks pf

pien !

That

( ISx')
") Tha'f Constitution, , Avhich Avith mpre prJes*-
violence has been the inheritance of this couii->
try for 600 years,; tliat modus taiencU F'arlig.-
7izentum, Avhich lasted and outlasted of Plan-
tagenet the Avars, of Tudor the violence, and
of, Stuart the systematip falsehood; tlie con
dition of our conncxiofi — yes, the Constitution
he destipys is one of the pillars of British Em
pire ; he may walk round it, and round it, " and
the more he contehiplates, the mpre must he
admire it — s.uch an Pne as had eo.st" England
of money a million, and of blood a deluge—^
cheaply and nobly expended— ^-dear in its vio
lation, dear in its recover-v — "Avhose restoration
had cost Ireland her noblest eftbrts, and Avas
the' habitation of her loyalty. W^e are ac
customed to behold the Kings of these' cpun*
tries in the keeping .pf Parliametit— ^I say .pf her
.loyq.lty, as Avell as of her liberty, where she
had hur^- up tlrei sword of the Volunteer ; her
Temple of Fame, as weli as of Freedom, AvUere
^Iie , had seated hefself, as . she vainly thought,
in modest security and in a long repose. '
I haA'e done Avith the pile Avhich the JNIinister
batters — I come to the Babel which' he builds-*
and as he throws dpAvn Avithput a. principle, sp
does he cpnstruft without a foun,dati^)n. This,
fabric he calls an Union ; and to thi^ his fabric
there are two .striking objection.s. Fir.st, it is no
Union — it is not an ideurification of people; for
it excludes the Catholics : 2dly, It is a cousoli-^
dation of the Lcgi^ilatures, that is to say,, a mer
ger of the Irish Parliament, and incurs .every
objection- to an Union,/ Avithout obtaining the
only dbjecl wlucli an, Union pi'ofesses — i't is ancx-
rimtion of tlie Constif.ition, and an exclusion
of the People. W'eilVhe has overlookwl the
People.

^( 19 )
People as he has pverlooked the sea. I say, he
excludes the CatlioUcsiEbr ever, and for the very
reason Avhich he and his advocates hold out as
the ground of expeftation— that hereafter, in a
CPurse pf time (he dpgs npt say Avhen), if they
behave themselves (he does nPt say hpw), they
may see their subje6l submitted tp a cPurse of
discussion (he dpes nPt say with what result pj-
determinatipn) ; and as' the giound fpr this inane
feriod, in Avhich he prpmises npthing, in AVhich
e can prpmise npthing, and in Avhich, if he did
jprpmise much, at sp remPte a peripd, he cpulcl
perform nothing-sunless he, like the evil he has
accomplished, be immertal ;<— »fpr this inane sen-
tencej_ in Avhich he can scarcely be said to de
ceive the Catholic, or suffer the Catholic to de
ceive himself, ' he" exhibits no other ground than
the physical inanity of the Catlxplic bpdy accpm-
plished by an Unipn, which," as it destrpys the
relative importance pf Ireland, sp it destrpys tho
relative prppprtipn pf its Cathplic inhabitants,
ajid thus they becpme admissible,, because they
cease tP be any thing. Hence, accprding to
him, their brilliant expeftation ; " you were, "
says the import of his argument, "before the
Uuion, as four to one— ^you will be by the Union
as one#to four." Thus he founds their hopes of
pplitical power on the extinftion pf physical cpn^
sequence, and makes the inanity pf their bpdy
and the npii-entity pf their cPuntry, the pillars pf
their future ambitipn- Let me add, that .even
thpugh the Cathplics were admitted intp Parliar
ment, by the articles pf Union, it woultf be of
little avail to the bpdy. -"What signifies ittp the
bpdy, whether a Catholic indi\ddual be an in
significant unit in the English Parliament or in
the street ; in either case, he WPuld be npthing
' '? . ¦'¦¦ P '. ' ' ¦ , — h,e

( 20 )
sr-he would belpng tP npthing — he Avould hav0-
npthing to Avhich he could belong — no country
r-no Irish people-r-no Irish nation.
The Catholics of the city of Dublin have cOiile
forth in support of the Constitution— I rejoice at
it J they have an^Avered their enemies by the best
possible answer-;-,-by services : such ansAver is more
than refutation-— it is triuri^ph. The man Avho
supports and preserves Parliament qualifies. The
path of glory leads on tp privilege : enjoyrywith
rhe if you please-rswithoiit me if you are illiberal
— b.ut by me certainly— and at all events enjoy
the ParHamei^ tary Constitution of your country,
This is to defend the tower— :this is to leap upon"
the A\TeckTr-this is to sit by the. country in her
sick-bed'; if she ' reco.A^er, there is a long and
bright orde\- of days before her, and the Cathp
lics will have contributed to that event; if she
perish, they Avill have done their utmost to save
her ; they AvilHiave donQ.as an honest man ought
in such an :extreme casfc ^ they Avill have flung
out their last setting glories, and sunk^ Avith the
country. \
The Minister, by his first plains, as detailed by
his advocates, not Pnly banished the Catholics
from Parliament, \ but banished tlie Protestant
poor likewise, for he banished them from a due
representation therein ; liestruckoft'one half of the
county Representatives, and preserA'cd. the pro
portion of boroughs as tMP to one ; thus he dis-,
posed of the questions of Catholic Emancipation
and .Parliamentary Reform, by getting rid of
both for ever ; thus did he build his. first plan, of
U^nipn upon the abuses both of Church and State,
and reformed neither ; religious monopoly, and
borough monopoly. He continued to exclude: tlie
Catholic from Parliament, and he continued to.
. ¦ ¦ ' "' shut

shut piit both Protestant and Catholic froiti .a
due and effectual Parliamentary Reprcsentatipn
' — he shut out Protestant Ascendancy, as well as
Catholic Participatiouj . and in the place of both,
constituted Borough ascendancy in perpetual
abuse and dominion ; he reformed the British
Pi^rliament by nearly sixty Borough Members ;
be reformed the Irish Parliament by 55 8, English
and Scotch .Mehibers ; atid on this mutual mis
representation constituted an imperial Legisla
ture ; ther§ w;as no .great effort of ability in all
this — much felicity of rnigchief— »-np expenditure
either of time- or talent; therewas nothing in
the scheme Ai'hich Avas grand^'-^nothing which
was deep— nothing' Avhich was comprehensive ;
he demolished an; old institution, at, the same
.time, that he preserved old abuses, and put him
self at their head, and entailed them pii posteri
ty like a commpn disprder, to be continued
through what he calls a parental Parliament.
.Such a plan was tPP desperate, as fax as relates
tp the prppositipn pf cpiinties and bproughs. I
UnderstPpd it was in part kbanclpned, and Avell
it may, because whether these. Representati\'es
be in a greater* pr less proportion Boro.ugh
Members, they wall be the llost of Administta-
tion, and npt the Representatives of the People.
He -takes KiO i\l embers, nuuiy of Avhom are re-
moA-ed. by the nature of their election, fromtheir
countiy, are AvithdraAvn from that of sympathy,
fi-om that of opinion. .He changes 'the sphere
not only of their action, ^ but of their character
^nd of their sensations. Ilow canie the Irish
Parliament, with all its i Borough Membe/s, in
i779i to demaiid a frfee Trade ; in 1782, to de
mand a free Constitutioji ? Because it sat in
Ireland; because, it sat in their pavu country;
i) i because,

( S2 )
because; howcAxr influenced, as many of it
. INIembers Avere by places ; however uninfluen^
ced, as many of its Members were by popular
representation, yet were they influenced by Irish
sympathy, and -Iris'h laAV of opinion ; they' did
not like to meet CA^ery hour faces that lodked
sliameupon them ; they did not like to stand in the
sphere of their oAvn infamy. Thus they a^ed as
the Irish absentee at the very same time did not
a6l 5 they saved the country because they lived
in it, as the others abandoned the country be^
cause they lived out of it.
I Ayiil not say that lod Irish Gentlemen wi
act illAvhCre any man 'would a6tw'elli but never
was there a sitUatipn in Avhich they had sP much
temptation to adt ill and io little to aft Avelh
Great expence and consequent distresses; no sup
port from the voice of an Irish public, iip check,
they wjH'bein situation a^ort pf Grentlemen of
the Empire , that is' to say,' Gentlemen at .large,
unknoAvn by one country, and unelefted by the
other, suspended between both, false to both,
and belonging to n'either. The sagacious Secre
tary of State has told this— ' ' What advantage, "
sa}'^ he, ' ' will it not be to the talents of Ireland,
to have this opportunity in the British Empire
thus opened r ' That is what A^'e dread ; the mar
ket of St. Stephen opened to the individual, and ,
the talepts of the country, like its property,
draughted froiU the kingdom of Ireland to be
sold in London. These men from, their situation
(man is the child ofsituation, ) their native ho-'
nour may struggle, but from their' situation they
Avill be adventurers of a'most expensive kind, ad^
A^enturers with pretensions, dressed and sold, as
it Aveie, in the shrouds and grlive-clothes of the'
Irish Parliament, and playing for hire their
*' ^' tricks

( 2^ V
ti'Icks on her tpmb; the pnly reposltpry the Mi^
nister Avill allow to an Irish Constitution^ the
images of degradation and the representatives
of npthing. Come^ — he li^s done much : he has
destroyed one -Cpnstitution, he has corrupted
another ; and this corrupted Constitution he calls
a Parental Parliament.
I congratulate the country on the new bap
tism of Avhat Avas once caHed the Representative
Body pf the Nation ; instead of the plain august
language of Constitution, we are here saluted'
\vith the novel and barbaric phraseology of Em-
With this change of name, Ave perceiAne a -
transfer of obligation, converting the duty of
the delegate -into the duty of the constituent, and
the inheritance of the pt'Ople into the inherit-"
ance -of their trustees. ' '
There is not in this plan any pno profound,
comprehensive, pr exalted cpnceptipn. Well,
this Assembly, this Imperial Parhamcnt, Avhat
are its elements ? , Irisli absentees Avhb have for
saken their coimtry, and a British Parliament
that took away 'the Constitution. Does he say-^
that such a Parliament AV'ill hiWQ no prejiidiccs
againstTreland ? Let him look to liis speeches :
a capital understanding, a comprehensive knoAV-
ledge, and a^ranscendent, eloquence— hear hfm
with all these pOAvers speak on the subject of Ire^
land, Avliether it be the conduft of her Admi-
.nistratiOn^, the character, of the people, the eom-
merce, pr her covenants, or her Constifution,
and he betrays an ignorance that would dishp^
nour an idiot Does he wiah for further in
stances ? let hiri) look to the speeches of liis
agents, in Ireland— speeches under and publi.sh-
ed "for the palate and prejudices pf the English Court

C s4' )
t'Puit. What dpsCriptipn pf men have they nol
traduced ? Avliat patriot achievement have they
not depreciated ? wh^t .honest chara^er .have
they nPt belied? Does he look for fuither in
stances ? let, him turii to his catalogue-^Avhat
notorious apostate Avhom he has not h<inOured ?
what impudent defamer of the rights and cha
racter of Ireland that he has not advanced ? On
the other hand, what man that made a stand foi:
her liberties, whom hq. has not dismiss,ed ? Mr.
Fitzgerald, Sir John Parnel also,, >Avho has sup
ported his Government long, refused to abandon
then- country and their honour, Avere immediately
told they Avere no' longer fit for the service of
Government. Mr. Forster, Avho had supported
his administration long, held Up his shield for
, that Parliament of which he is the n<itural ad-
A'ocate, and Avas immediately honoured by the
enmity of the Court, and a personal attack On
his character and consistency.
¦ Lord FitzwiUiam, an Englishman, a friend to
the war, \i strenuous advocate for order and re-
,gular government, Avith a chara6ter,t.hat is purity
its,elfj,. entertained for Ireland a fiital afftdtion,
and by that one offence cancelled all his long and
Splendid catalogue of virtues. And does he dis
claim prejudices against Ireland ? • ,
A Legislature the parent of both countries he
talks of ; a Legislature, as far as'rf lates to l.re-
land,: free -from the influence of vicinity, of sym
pathy. The I^le of Man is all that,' free from the
influence of opinion, free from the influence of
d-uty, directed by prejudices, and unincumbered ^
with knoAv^ledge. In order to judge what this
parental ' Legislature Avould be, let us consider
what the Bft-itish Parliament has been, and let us
compare that Parliament, for this purpose, with
1 - the

( 9,5,) - y' ¦
^hp Legislature of Ireland, and in this cpmparlsoi^ ,/
I dp, npt mean tp approve all the Parliaments, that
ha\'-e sat in Ireland. I left the fprmer, because
J condemned its proceecliilgs ; but I argue
not like the 'Minister, fiora the miscpndu6t
pf pne ' Pairliament, against tlie being pf Parlia
ment itself. I A'^alue that Parliamentary Cpnsti-
tutipu by the average pf its benefits ; and I
affirm, tbat the blessings prpcured by the Irish
. Parliament in the last tAventy years are greater
than all the blessings afforded by British ParUa-
ments tp Ireland fpr the last century, greater
even than the mischiefs inflicted en Ireland by
"'British Parliaments, greater than all the blessings
prpcured by tlipse Parliaments for their own
country within that period. Within that time
the Legislature of England Ipst an einpire, and ^
the Legislature pf Ireland recpvered a Cpnsti-
tutipii. , . '
Shall we have done with, this paren tdl Parlia
ment, and nPAV come to the bribes Avhich he
holds out ?-—-And*'^ first, he begins with the ,
Church : to the Protestant Church he prpmises
perpetual security— rtp the Catholic Church his
advocates promise perpetual salary- — and both
hold out to the former commutation of tithes.
Withrespeft to the Protestant Church, Avhat-
ever may be his Avishes in favour of its duration,
he takes the strongest measures to accomplish its
destruction, for he attempts tp disgrace it tp all
eternity. He is emplpying, Pr his agents are em-
- plPA'ing, several of its members to negotiate
awd-y the Constitution, and to mendicate ad-
dres,ses transferring to another country the Par-
lia,ment and Legislative PoAver of their Own, dis
franchising the very people by whom the Church
is fed, and deserting the holy mission of God to
¦' ^ .'¦ fulfil

( 26 )
fulfil this profligate mission of the Minister. ¦?-¦
Give up ypur cpuntry, says the Minister, give
up youi- ch^ractef^ and be immortal ; so- said
Charles the First tP his Church, when hepro-
hibited the Gospel and regimented the Clergy
h^to battahon against the CenstitutipUj, and
pverturned the Church by its pavu infamy.
At the same time that the Minister endeaveurs
tP take aAvay by his measures the authprity^ pf
one Church, his advocates tell you, that he pro-
|)pses tp give salaries tP another ; that is, they
tell you that he proposes to bribe the Catholic
Clergy, if they will betray the Constitution. In
whatever form of religion our pious Courtier con^
templates the Almjgltty, it ever occurs to con-r
vert him to some diabohcal purpose. The Ca^
' tholics had been accused pretty liberally of diS'
loyalty by those very advocates Avho noAV seem to
thiiik it is proper to reward their imputed trea-r
sons against the King, provided they shall be
fpllpwed up by real treaspus agai^nst the Pepple.
I dp not believe, I never did believe,' the.general
charges made -against the Catholics— I do nPt
dispute, I never did dispute, the prppriety pf
^ giving salaries tp their Clergy ; but it shpuld be
salaries, not bribeso-^salaries, fpr the'exercise__pf
their religipus duty, and not Av^ages fpr the prac
tice pf political apostasy. According to thisi
plan, the Catholic religion, it Avould seem, dis-;
qualifi^cl its foUoAvers ""to receive the blessings of
the Constitution ; but his 4iostility to that Cph-
stitutipn (qualifies him to reeei\'e a salary for the
exercise of that \-ery religion Avhich is at pncc
punifjhed by civil disability and encoUraged by
ecclesiastlciii provisions— as good Catholics they
are disqualified, and as bad citizens" they are to
be rcAvarded. I dare say, in general, the Ca-
tholio

( 27 )
tholic Clety will find on this Gc^a.t.\Qr\, as they
have done upon others, a regard tor their native
land, superior tothe threats of a Minister.
The Mihisfeer proceeds— ^he proposes his third
bribe^ the abolidon of tithes. You observe, such
a proposal does not seerri tot, form part of his
Union, but is an .offer kept back to be regulated^
modifledj and qualified, wheri the Union is pased,
and the consideration is given. I approve of a
modus as a compensation for tithes ; but I 6.6
not approve of it as' a cPrnpeAsation for Parlia
ment. When I proppsed that measute, and Avasi
opposed by men by whom I coi5J!d Only be op
posed, and could not be answered, I AVas told by
the King's Ministers, that commutation of tithes
^was the overturn ol the Church. I Couple then the
projeit of the Minister now, , with the argument
of his -agents then, and the combined idea amounts
to this, that it is prudent to overturn the Church,
provided at the .s'aine time you overturn the Con
stitution. But the hdt is, that the argument at
that time was false, and the piroposal at this tinie
is fallacious ; and both fhew that the argument
had for its object, persoiial calumny, and 'the pro
posal, national extindtion. ''
The Minister h&s not done with bribes — what-
ever economy he ihews in argument, here he has
been generous in the extrefne power, priest: (I
think pi?e of his advocates hints the Pre%terians)
are not forgotten;! arid how the mercantile body are
to be all bribed, that all may be ruined. He
hplds put commercial benefits for j^ohtical ariiiihi-
lation— he offers ^ ybu ari abuhdanCfe of capital,
but first h^ takes it away— he takes away a, great
portion of the landed capital of the country by
^ , E* ' the '

( 2S )
the necessary operation of Union. He will give ¦
you^ however, commercial capital in its place, but ,
first he will give, you taxes. It seems it is, only,
neceflary to break down the batteries of Liberty,
and the tides of Commerce Ayill flow in of course
—-take away her- riyal in landed capital, and thetj
commeteial capital advances without fear. Com--
merce only' wants weight, it seems, ip order to
run with new spirit — he not only finds coin.merce
in the retreat of capital, but he finds corn also — ,
Avhy npt wine ? If the removal of landed capital
fliall produce wheat, why not the distance of the
suU wine — why any method In his madness, Ayhe'n,
there is fo much madness in his method. His
Avhole speech is a coure of surprises. ; the growth
pf excision/ the 'resource of incumbrance, and
harvests sown and gathered by the absence of the
proprietor' of the soil and th'eir property. Al}
these things are to come— ^ 'when, he does not tel}
you — V'-li take his .Avord, for all this. 1 -have'
heard of a bjanker's bill of exchange, bank of
' England notes, baiik of 'Ireland notes, but a
prophet's promissory no|e is a hew trafiic. All he
gets from Ireland is solid loss-r-all he promises
visionary— distant and.prqphetib; advantage. " He
sees, though I -do pot, -British merchants ^ and
British capital sailing to the provinces of Conr
naught and Munster, where . the Orangeman ' had
seuc die Defenders-— there, they settle great multi
tudes, themselves and families. He mentions not
what' description of manufacturers--- who frt>m
BirmingnLuii'^— who from ManchesteE— no\ matter
—he careg not---he goes on, asserting, and assert
ing with great ease to himself, and without any
©bligatton to fa6l, upon the subject. Icarian ima-
', ' gipatipii

( ^^ )
^iriatioH is the region In which he delights tci
disport. Where he is to take away your Parlia-;'
ment— where he is, to take away your first Judi
cature — where he is to take aw^y your money—
where he is to eacrease. yoiir taxes — Avhere'
¦he, is to - get an Irish tribute'; there he is a
pHin direft matter of faft man ; but where he is
to pay you for all this— there he is poetic and pro^
phetic ; no longer a third-hand financier, but ait
inspired accomptant. Fancy gives hinr her wand ;
Amalthea takes him by the hand' ; Geres is in his
train; The English capitalist, he thinks^ will
settle his family In the' midst of those Irish Cal-
thqllcs whom he does not ¦ think it safe to admit
into Parllahient— as subjects, he thinks them
' f dangerous, as a neighbouring mtiltitude, safe. The
English manufadlurer will make this distinction:
he will dread 'them as individuals,' and confide in
I I ' ' ' ¦ ,
them as a bpdy, and settle his family and his
property in the midst pf them ; he will, therefore^
the Minister supposes, leaVe his mines, leave his-
machinery, leave his comfprts, leave his habits,
cotiquer his prejudices, and come oilier to Ireland
to meet his Taxes and miss, his Constitution.-—
They did not do this When the taxes of Ireland
were few; we were indeed told they would, as
; Ave are 'now told ,- they did not do this when there
was no Military Government in Ireland: however,-
as prejudices against the country encrease, he
suppos'es commercial cqnfidence may increase
likewise. There is no contradidling all this";
¦ because arguments which reason dees not suggest,
reason cannot remOve. Besides, the. Minister in
all this does not argue, but foretel--nPw^ you
can scarcely answer a prophet, ypu qan pnly
disbelieve him ; his arguments are fal^e, but h.S
E 2 ' inspirations

( 30)
inspirations may be true ; appearances, however,
are against tUbni : fpr instance, a principal ground
of complaint *in Ireland is a misapplication of
landed capital, or the diversion of it to foreign
-countries from the cultivation, of Treland, where
great trads remain elthet- totally negledted or
superficially imprpVed, Where the tenantry has
npt capital, and the land can be reclaimed only
by the employment (and a very *raiional employ
ment ., it wcfakl be^) of part of , the rent arising
therefrom,, on the soil which prodjiced It, im
proving however gradually since the establishment
of our free Constitution, which contains in itsejf
the power of checking the' evil I speak of; and
which, by adding to the consqquence of the
country, will naturally diminish the number of
absentees, aided as it must be by the growth of
English taxes, unless- by ^n Union we adopt tnbse
taxes in Ireland. How does he remedy this .
disorder ? He finds a great absentee draught ; he
gives you .another ; arid having secured to you-
two. complaints,, he engages to cure both.
Another- principal causo-of complaint is another
effeft arising from the npn-residence of the Irish
landlords, whose presence on their own estates is
necessary for thci succour, as well as the Improve
ment of their teilantry ; that' the peasants may
not pe;Ish for want of medicine, of cordial, and
of cure, which they can only find in the admirii-
strauon of the landlord, virho civilizes them, and
regulates them in the capacity oK a magistrate,
while he cpvers them and hufbands them in that
of a protedtor, improving not only them but
himself by the exercise, of his Virtues, as well as
the difpenfation pf his ptpperty, dra>ving tpgether
the twp orders of society, the rich and the poor, until

( 3t )'
until each may administer to the other, and
civilize, the one by giving, and the other by
receiving ; fo .that Aristocracy and Democracy
may have a head and a body ; so that the rich
may bring on the poor, and the poor may support
the rich; and, both contributing to the strength,
order, and beauty of the State, may form that
pillar of society where all below is strength, and
all ahove is grace. How does his plan accom
plish this ? , he withdraws their landed gendemen,
and then improves Irish manners 'by English fac
tors. But I leave this triflng, and come, to his
threats. • > , '
As he offered before- a trade -which he had not
- to give, so now he menaces to withdraw a trade
¦ which he cannot take away. His threat is found
ed on a rhonstrous assertion, that our principal
branches of commerce are due to the liberality of
England. Liberality of England to Irish com
merce! Where are we to icokforit? Ifi what
part of this country, for near lod years? It is a
longtime. The Minisrer himself, disclaims the illi
beral policy of this country. Is^it at the close
of the century, for instance, in His- Majesty's
speech fromtbc" throne in year ly'JSj where he
is advised to signify his intention to rfjainrain , the
. principle of American taxation over > all the do
minions, or Is it in the ernbargo of the same period,
' or is It in-the Tea Tax Imposed on Ireland by the
Brkish Parliament about the period of 1779 — or
"' will he say this liberality appears in the mockery
of those bills. In which Engl-and ' affected to -relieve
' the distress of Ireland— v/as it- in the- English
aft, giving, the Irish a power tg catch -whaie, or_
In- that other bill permitting the Irish to plant to
bacco ? Or was it in I'yyS that this hb'erality macl6
ills appearance ? No; for 1 remember in that pe
riod

( 32 )•
nod moving as Address for the extension of Irisli. -
commerce; and I >remtmber also being ppposed
'and defeated by the immediate interposition of
the,, Crown. It is not then in the 'period of
\77'8 that we are .to look for this liberality — was It
in the period of 1779, the time of the short money
bill, of the non-consumption agreement, of the Irish
requisition of free trade ?
Here is the Hberalky of England: she was
just then, she was hberal never j and she was
just to you then because you were then just,
to yourselves ; she has been faithful since. I shall
be satisfied for one with her fidelity and j-ustiCCy
and 61 these occasion's I acknowledge both. Are
there are^any further in which we are, to look for
Eqglish justice on th^ subjcfSt of Irish trade ?
Yes,, there is another in 1793, on the subje£t orthe
re-export-— an attempt had been made to carry
that point for Ireland In 1736, contained, In two
resolutions which I moved as an amendment: to
the li^avigation Aft, which, has been charged tP
1 Ireland as a favour, but which was in faft jobbed
to the British Ministry by him who made the
charge, and sold without ,any' clause of equality
and rcciprocality — but afterwards in 1793, a re- :
export bill passed in Great Britain in favour of
Ireland, exaftly at the lime when the charter of
the East India. Company expired ; an' Irish bill
was necessary, and did pass, to secure her mono
poly for a limited time. Such is the history of
British concession. Now look at the tariff, or
see what has been the result, greatly in favour of
England. Under the- head of Home^ Manufac-
fafture and Colonial Produce, In favour of Eng
land; under the hea^ of Kaw Material the pro
duce of the respeftlve countries, above - two mil
lions in favour of England. A,dd to this an Ab-
fente

^ ( 35 \
Sentee Rental of considerably above a million, anil
you will find there is a balance pf a sum wf abpve
fcur millions annually, iri which Ireland admi
nisters to Great Pritain, and pours herself, as it
were abundantly and without reserve, into the
Brjdsh dominion.
This is the trade the Minister threatens to alter,
and thinks he i threatens not,^Great Britain but Ire-
landj — there he will have some difficulty ; and first,
the covenant of 1779: he denies that covenant^
he says that all the great comm'ercial adyantages
of Ireland are to be ascribed to the liberality of
the British Parliament, and nPt to the Irish Par-
hament. Wherever he meets an Irish covenant,
he gives it no quarter; I will state the fafti and
let the public judge:— in Oftober 1779, an Address
passed the Irish Commons, containing a requisi
tion for a"^ Free Trade ;- it was followed by 'a Mo
tion, declaring that the. Irish Commons would not,
for the-present, .grant new taxes ; it was followed
by a limitation pf the Aft of Supply ao the duration
of fix months pnly :' it was considered in England,
and attended with resolutions moved by the then
Minlstei", purporting to repeal certain restriftive
ads on the free trade of Ireland, and to grant a
direft intercourse between Ireland, and His Ma-
jefty's plantations, subjeft to equality of, duty.
These resolutions were considered In the Parliament
of Irelaqd— (See the Resolutions and" the law ex-^
pressing the condition and covenant)— th,ey were,
votcjj satisfaftory. A long money bill was then
- passed, and new taxes werethen granted in con
sideration thereof, and this, he calls no covenant ;
he has denied, it seems, the linen covenant ; he
has denied this commercial covenant, of 1779, and
he has denied the consthudon^l covenant of 1782  '
^nd having disclaimed the obligation 0/ these
. , ' treaties

>

( 54 )
treaties, be nojw prpposes a fpurth, founded on his
denial of the three Qtl-iers, in \yhich he desires you
to give up your Parliament, to secure his faith in
time tP cpme, by encouraging his disavpwal of
forrner covenants. / ,
I argue in a different manner— I.argue from, his
disposition to dispute the validity of covenant to
the neceffity of. the exiftence pf Parfiament- — an
Irifii Parliament-^-the gurantee of those epve-
nants, Avhp has power tP preserve the obllgatipn
or resources to retaliate. Does the Minister,
when he talks of an eleemosynary trad?, recolldft
how the Irish Parliament could affeft the Eaft
India Company, by discontinoig the a€t of 1793,
granted but fpr , a limited time ? Does he recol-
lefti how she could afi%ft the British Weft India
monopoly, by withdrawing her exclusive con-.
sumpdon from the ^rirish plantations ?- Does he
recolleft how we ^could affeft the navy of Eng-
-land, by regulations regarding our Irish provi
sions ? Does he regolle^ how we could affe6t her
empire, by forming commcircial intercourse with
the rest tif the world. But let ^not this depend
•upon idle theats,' threats which never should have
foeen advanced on one side, if they had not
been first most Imprudently introduced on his. I
say, let not. the argument rest on threats; but
kt it rest quiet on past experiment ; the experi
ment 'has been ifiade ; we got one trade by our '
resources and pur Parliament — we will keep puf
trade by a8^e«9ion and by covenant. But should a ^
British Minister choose to despise those tenures,
jwe have another, we can keep our ^ trade by the
means by Avhich we have obtained it, our Parlia- -
ment, our resources.
He speaks of the linen trade. On this subjeft:,
indeed, he has been answci-ed, as he has upon the
'Others,

ISSthers, by argument and by -experiment; |:he
|i^rgument which proves that ' the bounty oi^
J^nen yira.s not granted for the sake of Ireland, an4
Ebat.Jrish hnen sells itself. B^t suppose h^s rea
soning in this case to be as true as it is fallacious,
>vhat does it amount to ? That hjs cpuntry rob
bed Ireland of her free trade' in the last century,
and gave her In place of it the export of one ;soli~
tary manufafture, depending on the , charity of
England ; and now proposes to rob Ireland of that
majjulafture,. unless Ireland cpnsents tp be robbed
pf her Parliament. ,Has he no other ground of
triumph but the disgrace and dishonour of his
icoxjntry ? However^ her case Is better thap he has
stated it, and that is proved by the experiment ;
for in 1779 we were .encountered by the same
threats on the same subjeft: — we despised those
threats, ,we put the cueftipn to a trial: — we entered
into a npncon-sumption agreement—we demanded
a free trade— the free trade y^^e obtained^ — the linen
frade we preserved:
What he' cannot reconcile to interest he at-
tepipts to reconcile to honour. He, t^e Mi
nister (hjs budget crammed wjth corruption), pro
poses p ypu tp give up the ancient inheritance
of ypur cPuntry, tp pipclaim an utter ahd blank
incapacity to ma^e lav^'s fpr ypijr own people, and
to register this Proclamation in an aft which In-
flifts on this ancient nadon an eterrial disability ;
apd he accompanies these monstrous proposals by
undisguised terrpr ah'd unqualified • bribe^ry ; and
this he calls no attack on the honour and dignity of
the kingdom. ' ¦ . ,
The thing he proposjes to buy is what cannot
JDC soldr-rLiberty. Fpr- it he has nothing to
giv^--every thing of value which you possess
"~ - obtained under a .fi'ee, Constitution j part
•' - ' Ft ui with

i 56 ) , :
Vhh it, and you must be not pnly a.flate .btitlii;
dipt. - . , ' ,/ ' ,
His prppositlon's hot only -go to your dishonour,'
but. they are built upon nothing else. He tells
ypu — it is hjs, main argument-^that ypu arc unfit tO:
exercise a free Constitution, and'heaffefts to prpve
. it by the- experiment;' Jacpbih'ism groAvs^ says
he,, out of the. very atate and condition of Ire ,
land. I have heard of Parliament implfaching Mi->
nistersj but here is a Minister ijaipeachirig Parliar
ment. He does more, he impeaehes the Parlia
mentary Consdtution itself; the abnses in ihh
Constitution be has prptefted, it is only its being
that he destroys— on what ground ? Yeur exports
since your emancipation, and under' that Parlia
mentary tonstitution, ^d in a great measure
by that Parliamentary Gonstitutlpn, have nearly
doubled— commerj:iaHy it has worked well. Your
concord with 'England since the emancipation,' as-
far as ill relates to Padiament on tl!e subjeft of
war, has been not only approved, but has been-
prpduftjve imperially; therefore it,.. has worked
well. What then does the Minister^/' in faft pbjeft
tP?; that you have supported him, '^hat you have
concurred in bis system, therefpre he proposes to;
the people to abolish the ParlIa,meot and to con
tinue the Misister. , He does m6re ; he .proppses
to you to substitute the ^British Parliament in ypur.
place, to destroy the body that restored yourli-.
berties, and. restore th^ boply which destroyed:
them. Against such a prppositipn, At^e I ex
piring or^ the-flpor, I should beg to utter my last^^
breath, and to record my dying tcftlm<pny.
FINIS.

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