The National Register. — London, England, 1808-05-23 00:00:00

"{ f .. ~.~,- ; --P-t--- 1 - • I L114."'".47 , N.A. TONAL REGISTER rife ..-.• , ,~Z" :. .• r,' 6 ganOtitution, anb taw. • MAY 30, 1808: PRICE Bd. For those who argue this question in the Houses of Par liament, or in any other place where they expect to give actual and sensible assistance to the cause Of the Catholics; it is totally useless to say any thing about the justice of the measure proposed. Little enough do men attend to the admonitions of justice even in their individual capacity : and when they are collected in a body, her voice is completely drowned iu the general din. Conscience is stifled by - etample; more readily than by any other power : and many persons even think themselves justified in doing that for a party which they would have been ashamed of doing for themselves: Before sonic tribunals, therefore, it seems useless to argue the question on any other grounds than those Of expediency : but with impartial people, who, though they have no power, yet certainly have an interest; in the settling of this question, justice may per haps be a topic by no means unimportant nor unnecessary. We shall confine ourselve.4, in the present Number; to a historical account of the origin of these disabilities, and a statement of the disabilities themselves as they at present exiot. Immediately after the Reformation under Henry the Eighth * popery began to be discouraged in this country : and although, in the reign of Mary, its triumphs were tremendously enforced, yet when that fiery tempest had blown over, the Catholics were again subjectf...d to many deprivations, forfeitures, and punishments. It was an in- dictable offence to celebrate mass; or to attend at its cele bration: and there was a heavy imposition on every sub ject of any religion, who omitted to a ttend the established of Church, at least once every Sunday. During the reign Elizabeth, there appear to have been sonic instanees of severity in the execution of the !ay. 4 to this effect : but mildness seems to have been certainly the ;., , eneral charac teristic of their Administration. In Ireland they were little more than a dead letter. At that time the Catholics were not excluded from Parliament : nor fettered in the enjoy ment or disposition of their property, in the rights of self defence, o: in the economy of their families. NViwn in the reign of James the First the Protestants gained an ascendancy in Parliament, tit laws were further enforced against the Catholics, and the severities of Charles occa. cloned the dreadful Rebellion in 104 1. The soldiers of Cromwell expelled the Irish Catholics from their Ivals : and the Act of Settlement, after the Bestoralion, confirm. ed eight millions of acres to the Protestants who had seized them. The native proprietors, naturally eager to recover their lands, joined James the Second against King William, and durin4 his short snecei, rescinded the Act of Settlement. William overthrew the last remnant of Catholic ascendency : and the articles of Limerick, Ichich in 1691 concluded all hostilities, stipulated that " The " Roman Catholics should enjoy such pridleges in the " exercise of their religion, as were consistent with the " laws of I . p ' .. ,0r as they did enjoy in the reign of i " Charlet t • d : and that their Majesties , as soon ir w ::.. _ . . • „. • . ..9.31'?•T =:". I 4M E NAT lONA o ur Ming, ConOti 6 NO. 22, MONDAY, 11 POLITICAL DISQUISITION. tr NUMBER TWENTY - TWO. ON THE CATHOLIC PETITION, AND ITS RECEPTION. The interesting and important claims of the Catholics, have once again been brought before a British Parliament, and by a British Parliament again rejected. As the reite- ration of defeat, and the recurrence of circumstances that render even future conquest hopeless, must n e cessarily lead to the abandonment of the desired object, it seems probable that the question of Catholic Emancipation will not be again brought forward during the reign of his pre- sent Majesty : and therefore we are desirous of recording, in a work that professes itself to be a .National Register, those sentiments which it has always been the pride of our hearts to entertain, and which it will always be the endea- vour of our humble powers to promote. If ever there vvas a question of great, and we may almost say, universal interest, it certainly is the question of Catholic Emancipa- tion. The country divides itself into parties about a hun- dred petty taxes, that if they were never heard of, would never be felt, and agitates itself about the conduct of Generals abroad, who are increasing or diminishing the national influence without effecting one atom of good or evil to the generality of the individuals that discuss that conduct : but this is a matter that comes home to the bu- siness, and to the bosoms of men : it addresses itself to their domestic feelings : it involves the rights of promo- tion, emolument, honour, character, freedom : it involves every thing which is dear to all British subjects by nature, and which is secured to some of them by law : it involves the claims of four millions of men directly, and it involves the interests of all England indirectly. Those who feel for their own exclusion are concerned : and they 100 arc con- cerned, who feel that the general security depends in great measure on the protection of every part, who fed that human nature is alike human nature on this or on the other side of the. Irish channel, who acknowledge the birth- right of British subjects, and arc willing to extend to their brothers the privileges of their countrymen. Yet further, it concerns those who, from a mistaken policy, an infuriated bigotry, or a despicable servility, have been induced to ►levy the sacred claims of their fellow subjects s who have assisted to perpetuate slavery in a land of freedom, to en- , courage discontent at home while hostility surrounds us abroad, to dictate to reason the course of religion, anti to degrade the honour, faith, and lately spotless purity of the British name. It is impossible for us to comprehend :►ll that we would say in a single disquisition : but we hard- ly think it necessary to apologize to our Readers for occu- pying them more than once upon the theory of a question, hick is but too likely to occupy them fur a very long time in practice. •V(..1.t'11.--r-,, •., •