The Express.
London, England, 1847-12-17 00:00:00

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ample. ia nowt to tbh bill, not that he thought a mea-
dow it so mach madame would go any length towards
reseedying die evil, but because ht felt 000fident that when
it was *sod (as it would be found) that it wag insufficient
for its , ministers would not hesitate to apply to par-
. Itams~t t* room stringent powers, which be was equally
elwidemt podiums would as readily grant. (Hear.) He was
awry to la eMpod to my that the crime of murder prevailed
In Mimed to a aces and te en extent of atrocity which
had sever Were darned even the annals of that country,
and issebialy af no ether country calling itself civilised.
(Hem, leer.) In again calling their lordships attention to
the t position of Ireland in respect to crime, be would
with his own county, which he had but recently
Tutted; and though no actual murder had taken plate in
Cavan for two years, yet the' state of the county was such
es te 11401110 a much and well-founded alarm in the minds of
the midloat gentry and peaceably disposed inhabitant*. He
could test do better, for the purpose of showing the feeling
of which prevailed, titan to refer, in the
first to a letter he had received that morning
frost ea lationdo *Mad of his own—a resident landlord—a
gentling& of high aharamer, and whose valuable and useful
exertions for **bowie of his tenantry and the poor of his
neighbourhood had never been wanting. Of coarse he
should mention nonage.. (Hear, hear.) This gentleman
wrote " I consider the state of the county so bad that I left
my wife in Dublin ; for, from what I can learn, I believe es
bad a spirit }revile among the people as in
the most disturbed districts in Ireland. Yesterday
a person on whose Information I can rely came to tell me
I must settle my affairs with Mr. —. my agent, for the
people were determined to shoot him. The same person
told me also that the money wile collected for shooting an-
other gentleman of large property in the neighbourhood,
and • most valuable landlord ; and two of the beat shots had
been appointed to do the job. Two murders, therefore, are
contemplated, and the scoundrels are only waiting far an
opportunity to commit the crime. Mr. leaves the
county immediately, and four other gentlemen are about to
make than. departure." The next testimony he would sub-
mit was, that of one of the most respectable and useful men
be knew—the agent of a gentleman of large property in the
county, who did all that could be expected from • landlord
to his tenants. He wrote, " Information has been
given to the county inspector that two gentlemen
and myself are marked for assassination. One of them,
having received a most frightful notice, has left
his hone. Mr. also has been threatened, and in fact
such • :sign of terror prevails, that every man looks upon
W ew mureettlf ellieram." "The clerk of Bellybows
union has just been fired at, but fortunately escaped." " The
wife of a clergyman, a Mn. Bereeford, was frightened to
death the other day by being told, while out walking, that
her husband and brother were to be the next two victims.
Her husband having been sent for to attend a sick person
told her on his arrival that there was no person etch at the
place stated, and that but for some persons accompanying
him home, he believed he should have been murdered, as he
was dodged for some distance by two nee. His wife upon
this went into convulsions, and died in two hours." A
resident landlord, who resided on his property in the
some county, writing to him said : " On Wednesday last I
got through the post-office a letter threatening my death, or,
as the writer expressed it, ' he will shoot nn like a dog if he
waits six months for the opportunity;' c4,u though 1 ha.:
spent2.:loool. in niliPla)ile 'is:is poor, I am obliged, in
walking round my own domain, to carry loaded fire-arms
and to have with me two servants armed to the teeth." The
next letter he would reed was a threatening notice, which
had been put into his hands by a noble friend of his, who,
he was happy to say, was not now living on his property,
but was at present in that house. It was directed to
Lord --, or to his " abominable" agent, and stated : " If
you do not wish to share the like fete of two better men
who have fallen victims, you will at once dismiss
that dastardly imp of hell, Brown, that tyrant and
destroyer of the poor. You shall not get a second notice."
He would next refer to the case of Sir Robert Gore Booth,
who was denounced, and only escaped being shot by remain-
ing in Dublin, and not returning home as was expected. His
groom, who was mistaken for him, way shot at, but fortu-
nately escaped. In reference to this case a letter had been
put into his hand, written by a gentleman who held a high
and responsible office, and whose name he was permitted to
mention, but should not. This gentleman, writing to a
friend of his (Lord Farnham's), laid, " We are in • dreadful
state of suspense and misery ; no one ventures out after four
o'clock, though for that matter day is the same as night. I
dined and slept at Sir It. G. Booth's yesterday ; the whole
family are in a state of alarm. A man has been fired at and
robbed in the immediate neighbourhood. Sir R. G. Booth's
man has been fired at, but escaped. Capt. has also
had a narrow escape. A warning notice has been sent"
With respect to Sir R.O . Booth, he would refer the house
to what was matter of public notoriety. In ;the speeches of
the other house of parliament made in March last, their
lordships would end detailed the measures pursued by that
gentleman during the famine. (Rear, hear.) During that
year he spent upwards of 20,0001., and yet had he recently
been threatened, and his groom attacked in mistake for
him. He would next refer the house to the case of a most
estimable protestant minister who, in consequence of the
manner in which his lite had been threatened, had adver-
tised for • clergyman to undertake his duty for six
months. The clergyman to whom he alluded had al-
ways lived on the best terms with his Roman oath*.
lio neighbours, yet within the last two menthe he
had received • letter signed Molly McGuire, in whisk
his life was threatened along with several other clergymen.
Another clergyman wrote that during the last week or ten
days several of his brethren had been obliged to vacate their
parishes, and to take refuge in the city. Four had beta
marked for wassination, and se certainly was it expected,
that the fact was actually reported ate distance of sight &
miles from their residence. Of all these he might add that
they were remarkable for their exertions during the famine.
(Hear, hear.) He now came to another topic, namely, the
d,munciatioa of landlords by Raman catholic priests
in Ireland. As he bad stated before, he bad no
wish to make a general attack on the Roman catho-
lic pried*, but merely to confine himself to the
individuals who bad offended ; and he took this opportunity
of testifjing his high sense of the merits of a Roman ca-
tholic dignitary, Dr. Brown, the Bishop of 'Elmore. With
r. tact to one of the denouncing priests, Mr. Hughes, ha
had, since his former address to the house, received strong
corroboration of the statements then made in the letter of a
friend, on whose veracity he could place reliance. This gen-
tleman wrote: " The expressions attributed to Mr. Hughes,
as having been spoken at the Castlebar meeting, were cer-
tainly uttered by him. He at length got so nolent that an-
other priest called him to order.'He was sorry to add that
sines then another case of priestly denunciation had occurred,
but of it he could for obvious reasons say no more than that all
the proofs connected with it were in the hands of the govern-
ment, and would form, if required, quite a sufficient case to
lay beftwe the law calms of the crown. He would my that,
la emegointai Odra denunciation, one individual bad been
Masked, sad had awl y escaped with his life. (Hear.)
He would next refer to the cue of Mr. McDermott, who
had published a letter denying the fact of having denounced
Major Mahon. Of that letter ha would only say that every
line spoke of blood, and that it was calculated to inflame
rather than allay the tendency of the peasantry to murder.
The noble lord having contrasted Mr. McDermott's recent
conduct towards Major Mahon with his letter of 1836, quoted
in a former debate, proceeded to say that he would read to
the house a document in the handwriting of Major Mahon
himself. Major Mahon had been in England, and on his
return wished to take an active part in the relief committees.
He attended the first meeting, and the following was his ex-
traordinary statement of what took plans on that occasion.
The noble lord here read an autograph memorandum of the
proceedings at the Relief Committee, Btrokestown, Agrust
28, 1847, written and signed by the late Denis Mahon, Eat
t
which gave particulate of what passed on that occasion, ,
recorded the violent and grosaiy personal attacks made upon
him by Mr. leDermott in presence of Dr. Eittanley.
Earl FITZWILLIAM would support the bill, as he would
have supported • more stringent measure, had the govern-
meat proposed it. He would not even propose an amend-
ment, lest by doing so he should disturb the general unani-
mity.
The Earl of St. GERMANS said, that ne man who had
heard the statement of the noble marquis, or who was other-
wise acquainted with the condition of Ireland, could doubt
the necessity of arming the government with the fullest
powers they should require for the suppression of crime.
The bill now before their lordships we. essentially the same
with that which, under closely similar circumstances, he had
propoeed in 1846, but which the other house had, without
even taking it into their consideration, rejected,.
The Marquis of SALISBURY, while regretting that the
government had cot at once produced • more stringent
measure, willingly gave his support to a bill which would at
all events tend to repress the crime and outrage that now
tyrannised over Ireland. (Hear, bear.)
Lord BEAUMONT said that the noble lord opposite had
Once again brought against certain member of the Roman
catholic peissthood of Ireland sherges which, if tine, un-
doubtedly stiguatised them as the chief cause of the
.=
state of crime in that country. (Hear, hear.) The
indeed, were brought only against particular members oi
that priesthood, but they were of such a nature that they
mud, or ought at least to be felt by the whole body as diall-
ing a deep stain upon them—a stain which would reflect
dishonour upon them until it
.wee wiped away. (Hear,
hear.) The hierarchy of the Roman catholic priesthood we.
eo inamately linked together that no imputation could be
Magid upon its lowest member which, lf not removed by
=, or by the punishment of the offender, did not discredit upon the highest. (Hear, hear) With
Lhbeonviction upon his mind, after hearing such charges
mole against Roman catholic priests—coolly, deliberately,
calmly made—and, he must add, with circumstantial
particulars and evidenoe which impressed him with a
strong belief of their truth (hear, hear) —it had been
deeply painful to him to find that no measures had been
taken by the higher authorities of the priesthood to sift these
charges to the bottom.
Lord STANLEY—I rejoice, my lords, that Ipm way
to the noble lord who last midamosi yptsand elkrdel him
an opportunity of exposits *thee wllshthi bles mesh
infinite honour, and while Km io iiimebateee
and forcibly from him than from she erecti=
of this house. My noble friend who 16te pin
the question to which the noble lord adverted we. he, I OM
sure, from desiring to impute to all the large body of the
Irish clergy the atrocious mimes (for they are no *Sherrie,
describable) which are attributable to a few. Bat,
the noble lord opposite well said, so long as those grim mm
attributable to any pert of that body ; so long es, dam* the
=of spiritual authority posemsd in that clank wait
remains unrebutted la the abetted, myeasuredWE and
momiloomed the isdieidoel am, se ml will
telledhe peopia le k this and la ether parted the vseli sea-
dies *4 to say the bast, the ebb of edgiest dm been-
tbe day sal mat thous else, lasing the power to mean
and emegema, meek to pet thee power bee emertbe.
(Hen.) >wbib gbh that @bile ebeenetlem, I shell Se-
mis Ms lett el*, ablest Noe is it sesamy he me to
ablest to the lesetba shish wee, I au* re. sinerbst
11.11111111imft bigulisid by the sable ad as the. wen
herb (21. Geembe)othe 'avertable the appeost Yew
*bay d laseibeie of this tialdissilsrlsessolagtsbe