The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1864-02-23 00:00:00

IRELAND—pAsr AND PRESENT.

On Toes:lay evening, the 16th instant, a very in-
teresting and Instructive lecture on the above
subj.ct was delivered b •fore the members of the
Shndwin Literiry and Musical Institute, by the
Rev. F. W. Manuel, the rector. Previous to the
lecture, which commenced about balf-pist seven
o'clock, the bend of the Institute played several
favourite pieces in first-rate style, and at intervals,
during its delivery, two pieces illustrative of the
subject were sung by the choir, WM Ingram ably
presiding at the pianoforte. The chair was taken ho
H. S. Bower, who bri,dly introduced the
lecturer as a gentleman every way qualified for
the duty he had undertaken, inasmuch as he was •
native of Ireland and uaturally felt deeply interested
in the history of that country.
Mr. lilituNtst., who, on coming forward, was
loudly cheered, said the subject he was about to
treat on—the past history of Ireland—was one'
which, though very interesting. contained many
purges which were far from pleraut The reason
he bad undertaken to bring the subject before them
was to induces spirit of love and harmony, and to
endeavour to remove those prejudices against the
Irish people which were unhappily entertained by
the people of this country. From various articles
and paragraphs in the newspapers, one was almost
led to believe that the Irish were the moat depraved
people possible to imagine ; butwith the exoeption
of one crime—certainly the irorst,that of murdering
their landlords—the Irish were freer from crime
than the English and Scotch, and it was chiefly be-
cause they endeay.iured to screen the murderer that
we wore led to condemn all as being equally guilty.
The rev, gentleman then referred to the early history
of the country, and to the introduction of Christi-
anity by St. Patrick, who gave Ireland its natural
symbol, by using the threseleaved shamrock as a
figure to instruct the people in the doctrine of the
Trinity. The greater part of the Irish people
embraced Christianity, and Ireland became the chief
seat of learniug. Gentlemen not their sons there
for instruction, not only from England and Scot-
land, but from Spain and other countries, and
Ireland became a prosperous nation. Yet in the
time of Henry IL, 400 years after, we Sod people
derribed by hint as living in a most degrading and
beastly coodition. Whir had curd this change? ,
They might depend upon it that nothing put a
country back so much as war ; and Ireland, during
that 400 yearahad been invaded by the Norwegians,
the Spaniards, and the Dane*. They fought
numerous battled with their invaders, and were
sometimes successful ; but in the end they were
driven into the (esterase( the mountains, the abbeys,
monastries ; and public places of instruction were
burnt and destroyed; and this people, who could
formerly boast that their country was the resort
of the learned, and the affluent, reduced to the lest
extremity. This was the beggared condition of
Ireland when Henry IL cause to the throne. No
people, he believed, had proved themselves so
devoted to the Pope as the Irish, yet it was to a
Pope they owed a great measure their mieerien. In
Henry Ire reign • dispute arose between the
Eastern and Western Churches about the proper
time of keeping Easter ; the Irish Catholics would
not consent to the alteration made of keeping that
season, and Henry IL • who had cast • covetous
eye upon the fair and pleaseud valleys of Ireland
obtained a bull from Pope Adrian, who, though
be assumed a foreign name, was an Englishman,
giving him power to subjugate the Irish, and
posses their country. In this he was greatly
assisted by John of Salisbury, a very clever man.
The bull was granted on the condition that for
every place Henry conquered be was to give so
much money to the Pope. Ireland was at that
time divided into live provinces ; one of thew was
owned by the King of Leinster, a very bad
character, who, having forcibly taken peregrine of •
neighbouring chief, wife, applied to the King of
England to assist him. In consequence of Henry
having at that time his hands full with other matters,
be allowed any one of his nobles or generals to go
over. An expedition was carried out under the
management of Strongbow and Maurice Fits-
gerald, an ancestor of Sir E. B. Baker, and they
being fully armed, soon conquered the poor Irish,
who had no weapons of war. The lee-Weer then
contrasted the two chars-dors engaged in this enter-
prise—that of the King of Leinater, being ferocious
and crueLand &rough iw,who was crafty and skilful.
From this they would see that Ireland was twice
invaded,—findby the Dane.; and then by the Norse-
men, so called from their first, landing in Normandy
in France. From that time, for about 400 years,
there was net anything interesting in the history of
Ireland. The Irish partially rallied; but the English,
who lived in what was called "The Pale," &circuit of
some miles round Dublin, were constantly invading
them parts where the native Irish rended,and an im-
mense deal of reirery was caused by them. They
looked upon the English settlers as their enemiestas
invaders of their country ; much the Game as the
New Zealanders at the present day looked upon
the English settlers in their country. In the
reign of Henry VIII., when the Protestant religion
was estaliliabed in England, the English settlers in
Ireland also embraced that faith • but the Irish still
held to the Catholic religion. The lecturer then
peered on to the reign of Queen Elizabeth,
and to the endeavours made in her reign to establish
Protestantism in the land. The Irish were very
fond of their priests; but if the Protestant religion
had been paced before them by others rather than
those who had so persecuted (hem, he (the lecturer)
believed they would not have so violently opposed
it When the Book of Common Prayer was order d
tube read in the churches instead of the mass, the
great, body of the people were opposed to it ; and at
the cathedral church of Christchurch, at Dublin
whilst the service sr being reed, a cry was raised
that from a beautiful statue in marble of the
Saviour, erected in that building, "blood was tlow•
Mg." The archbishop. who was performing the sery ice,
ordered an examination to be made, when it was
found that in the hollow on the top of the head a
sponge dipped in blood had been placed, from which
by the weight of the rocas blood flowed down the
far of the image. Notwithstanding the discovery
of the deception. the people were more than ever
prejudiced against the reformed religion. This was
one thing that made the Irish very embittered against
the English, and that was, that after each rebellion
their lands were forfeited, and given to those who
had assisted to conquer them. Though the Spaniards
gave their assistance to the Irish, they appear to
have had but a very poor opinion of those they
helped. One of their leaders, to show his contempt
of them, said that when our Lord was shown by the
devil the kingdoms of the world, he omitted to
show him Ireland, reserving that country for
himself. In the days of Spenser, who resided in
that country, the only drew worn by the people
wee • large mantle; and when O'Kane had a (ion-
iser*, with one of the English generals, he after
riming into his pressor with this mantle on threw
it off, and advised his companion to do the seine
with bis clothes, as being more comfortable. Spenser
seems to have • great dislike to this mantle, as he
rye it enabled the " rebels" to keep them free from
the attacks of huts. Large grants of land, wrested
from the Irish during the rebellion under O'Kase,
were given to the various London gad& in the reign
of James L, who desired to establish colonies of
Englishmen in that country. During his reign •
large amount of money was paid to him by the Irish
Roman Catholic Priests to procure for their people
what were called "grace.," that is, the right to have
done them ; but though James got the money,
L sham. elulryllected the engagements be entered
into. In re ' for the shameful way they were
used, the I. • masmers44o,ooo Protestants; and, in
retaliation, more than 600,000 Catholics were put to
the sword. The lecturer then described the cruelties
inflicted upon the Irish by Cromwell, who, as soon
as he had settled temp in England, turned his
attention to Ireland, and so desolated that unhappy
couultrr Pasrag through the land as a scourge, that
the number of the population was reduced to
600,000, and the land warn so confiscated, and giro
to the English settlers, that out of about 16,000,000
of scree, 13,500,000 were in their hands, and the
remainder in the hands of the Irish Catholics.
By each • wholesale system of confiscation,
how °paid it be otherwise than that the Irish
should hate the English. A scheme was also
devised in Cromwell's time, by which thousands of
young person of both sues were transported to our
West India Isles; and when some years after •
gentleman visited the inked of Tobage, he was
surprised to and the negror 'peaking in the broad
Irish dialer ; and, supposing them to be real (nab,
wondered how it was they had turned black so soon.
(Laughter.) To Charles IL emceed/4 that
king, James ll.' who in ooneequilir of his
sympathy with Roman Catholicism had soon to
walk out of England. He went to Ireland and
raised • rebellion; but, when he maw the battle going
against hire, he fled, and by his reardice was hued
and despised by the Irish, be had the greater
000 tempt for such cortioct. Tbe rev. gentleman
then referred to the penal laws, which bad been in
forest against the Irish Roman Catholics up to the
iati
year 1829. when they seem repealed by the Catholic
'patios Act. These laws were made not for
the purpose of checking • rebellion ; for the Irish
were so reduced that eves if they did rebel they
had northern of soccer but on purpose to persecute
I those who adhered to the Roman Catholic religion.
Some of these enactments be read, which proved
not only that r Catholic' they were subjected to
the most iniquities, treatment, but abo that sseters
had almost irresponsible power over their servants,
could dog them for the most trilling fault, and also
if they &red to hit their beads in *elf defeacetx
could shoot them. So exasperated were the p.
with this state of things, that they were drives to
oedema, and in VS soother rebellion broke cut,
though they had no charm of eaccess, but thought
any change was better than to remain as
they were. T'he feeling of the Eatth, who
bad settled in the cosatry, was /Ws
bitter egaisiet the Irish than of those who
lived in this country. Be (the lecturer)
bed esevereed with some of the old aim who bad
taken part in the rebellion of sad they storood to
take a kind at delight in recording the salaam of
blood sad destracetioa they had participate; Is.
Was *sth elI to be wondered, after what the Irish had
snared from the English, dist they should hare
nob in ootipotity to &Oki lows t They bed an

ill-feeling to the Eoglish as men, only as their perse-
cutors, and this ill-feeling wes rapidly peeing away
now that the laws by which they were oppressed
had been repsideil. All piaci, of honour and
tibncistiteledwereM umlwks"eakiin fle‘e'
shun fowl sg as an Englishmsai.
ithheetiushpCiaamdtholoiiic, an
the
el
At this stage of the lecture the choir sang • piece
entitled, "Eric, remember the days of old."
The lecturer said he shoald now call the attention
of his hearers to two subjects-1100'1am, and the
population. By the census of 1641, it was shown
that the population of Ireland had ioommed to the
enormous extent of 8,000,000 of people. Now,
as the acreage of the country was only able to sup-
port in comfortable circumstances 4,000,000 of
people, the consequence of this superabundance was,
that wages were very low—able-bodied men in some
districts only receiving 2d. per clay. In the county
of Kildare, where he formerly resided, wages were
higher; hut even there agricultural labourers ally
received 6d. per day. The lecturer then referred to
a work written by Sir W. Petty, once • draper at
Brislpart, and an snmistor of the Marquis of Lans-
downe, which gay* • truly heart-rending description
of the state of the people, their houses, and their
condition; and, according to the report of the Con-
mission appointed in 1630, it appeared that • great
proportion of the people were insufficiently provided
with tho necessaries of life, that they only had one
room for their families, and that they all slept on the
floor, sometimes with, and sometimes without, •
blanket to cover them. Their only food were
potatoes, • little stir-about, and black bread ; bet a
many had not even the latter. He (the
fserota.:rert was of opinion that the cause of the in-
crease of the population was the introduction of the
potato, and its being relied upon as the main food
of the people. When men were redaoed to the
state the penal laws brought them they got realer.
The potato offering an easy means of subsistence, it
was extensively cultivated, and the cons...queues was
that when it failed misery and death were the
inevitable result. Potatoes were very good when
other food could be obtaitied also; but relied upon
as the chief means of subsistence were not sufficiout.
The lecturer than proceeded to show the advantages
arising from emigration. and the evil effects pro-
duced to the labourers of this country by the large
number of Irishmen, of whom there were 800,000.
and with their descendants 2,000,000, in England
and Sootland. The letters in the Times and other
. papers, which stated that if the emigration from
Ireland to America and elsewhere did not stop, that
country would be depopulated were all false; for,
during his late visit to that country, he often saw a
auniber of young men out of work, whom he advised
to try and better their fortunes by emigration • and
se the country would only support 4.000,000 of
people, and there were still 5,300,000, he trusted
that emigration would go on till it was reduced to
that number; then instead of the Irish coming over
to England and working for lower wages than the
English agrioaltoral labourer, they would be not
only beneffthing themselves bet those they left be-
hind. Lord Carlisle, the present Lord-Lieutenant
of Ireland, said he was very glad the people were
emigrating. The people of Shrotoe was interested
in this matter, inasmuch as by the Irish emigrating
to America, those places in London and elsewhere,
they would otherwise have filled, were open to those
who went up from Dorsetahire and other pleb' of
England. The rev. gantlet:nap then alluded to the
two grievances of which the Catholics complained—
the Established Church in Ireland, and the system
of mixed education; the Gist of which, he trusted,
would soon be given up ; and the latter, aa both
Catholics and Protestants were opposed it, he trusted
would also be altered. He then onseloded by ex-
pressing his full belief theta brighter day was dawn-
ing for Ireland, and thanking the Audience for their
patient attention. . . .

Tbe CHAI/Inti•N, in proposing a vote of thanks to
the rev. gentleman, said be fully cincided in his
remarks, that it wee because the Irish had been so
unjustly treated that they had so often rebelled;
but be hoped, with the speaker, that the old ani-
mosities would entirely cease, and that Ireland
would eventually become a prospercus fie
also moved a vote of thanks to the choir for their
services. Nothing he believed tended more to the
Duxes, of an entertainment than a little music, of
which he was very fond, and Shroton wee well sup-
plied with it. ((leers) The National Aerie=
was than sung, and the meeting separated.