The Express.
London, England, 1857-11-04 00:00:00

LORD DUNGANNON ON TER ORANGE LODGER.

On Wednesday last the half-yearly meeting of the
grand Orange ledge of county Antrim was held in Bally-
mena ; the grand muter, the Right Hon. Lord Dungannon,
In the chair. There was a large adredeace of representa-
tives from the lodges of the malt'. Lord Dungannon said
he had crossed the Channel to eider to be with them in their
meeting on the present occasion. He hod carefully perused ,
every part of the evidence before the Helfer
it am ..adces, and
he thought utterly impossible for my impartial person to
come to any other conclusion than that with regard to the
first outbreaks, which took place shout July 12, the Roman
catholic. were the septuore and the protestants the ag-
grieved. With the street preaching riots subsequent to those
the protestant. had no more to do than they had with the
Indian mutinies. He wu g6lad that by the evidenoe of the
grand roamer, Lord E the veil had been drawn
aside from their proceedings. The more public they were
made the better. Christian feeling towards all classes, and
toleration towards all sects, were the characteristics of the
Orangemen, aa much a loyalty to the crown and vene-
rate% for the constitution. If he, as an Orange•
man, was unfit to fill the office of magisrate,
he was still more unfit to be • representative peer in the
House of Lords. Was the Lord Chancellor prepared to say
he could point out one instance of a member of the Orange
Society, in such • position, allowing his religious prejudices
to sway him in the discharge of his public duties—that he
had acted arbitrarily or unjustly in any case that had ever
come before him to be adjudicated upon Something of that
kind must be made manifest, in order to justify the course
that had been adopted. It ought to have been shown that
some magistrate connected with the Orange Society had done
something of. character to make him unfit to hold the tem-
mierion of the peace; and any gentleman who could
thus ham cat ride his sense of duty, and allowed
his religious teal or party prejudice to bias his conduct
in the discharge of his magisterial functions—be he
an Orangeman or whatever etc he might—ought no longer
dearly to be suffered to retain a power he thus abused.
Ho did not say that individual, connected with the society
had not committed nulls bonus., and been punished for
them; but he couffi safely venture moue that he had never
yet hued of an Orangeman being convicted of say serious
offence, or being in any way connected with sedition or die-
affection. Had the Orange Institution ever been found
plotting against the existing order of things, or conspiring
against the craven or constitution ? No ; they bad even
been loyal subjects, ready to stand forward in defence of the
crown, the laws, and institutions of the country. In time of
real danger they had been proved—(hear, and cheets)--and
well did one member of the Cabinet know thin He alluded
to the noble earl, the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.
Did he not know, as a notorious fen, that nine years ago, in
the hour of difficulty and alarm, when he presided over the
pvenunent in Ireland, ha had to call on the Oregon=
fur support, placing arms in their hands snd rely on them for
ring the peace and order of the country t And he
(Lord Dungannon) was *nay of the belief that, if there bad
not been at that time existing such • body of men a. the
Orangemen throughout Ireland, the sores of 1796 might
have revived in all their horror.. Three courses were
now open to them—to petition the two Houses of Parliament;
to appeal to the Prime Minister; and to lay their representa-
tions at the loot of the throne. He could not but believe
that when the whole case became known throughout the
country, it would do • great deal in their behalf. The noble
lord concluded as follows —" One piece of advice he would
offer to the government They called themselves friends of
civil end religious liberty. let their future actions mom
nearly accord with their professions."
At the conclusion of his lordship's address he was loudly
• sad received the cordial thanks of the 'rambled
lodggi.— News-Letter.