The Sun.
London, England, 1828-03-07 00:00:00

(erring to the] it and 9th articles bf the Treatytaf Limerick.
Mr. Burke prociedell.-.." Compare this latter article with
the penal laws, and judge whether they seem to be the public
acts of the same power, and observe whether other oaths are
tendered to them, and under what penalties. Compare
the forager with the same laws from beginning to eric
and judge whether the Roman Catholics have been pre.
served, agreeably to the sense of the article, from any dis-
turbance upon account of their religion ; or rather, whe-
ther on that account there isa single right of nature or be.
nefit of society which has not been either totally taker:
away, or considerably impaired." Such was the language
of Mr. Burke, containing an opinion on the subject of this
Treaty, which he was not known to have entertained until
the publication of his posthumous works in 1812. It was
true that other • writers took different views of the same
subject. Amongst them was Mr. Arthur Brown, formerly
Member for the University of Dublin, and Dr. Duigenae,
well known as a Member of that House ; but the argue
ments on which they rested appeared to him to betray great
weakness. As to the arguments which represented the.
Treaty as out of date, he would beg the House to consider
that the Penal Laws had reduced the Catholic body at one
period to despair,—that they had not only deprived them
of all political power, but reduced them, he might almcet
say, to a state of civil death. From the reign of Anne
until the opening of the code in 1793, they were without
hope to encourage them to any effort, and the Treaty was
not alluded to because no proceedings were taken to ad-
vance their cause. But as soon as they were in a condi-
tion to approach the legislature, they appealed to that do-
cument in support of their pretensions, so that their far-
user silence could not be interpreted into surrender of that
claim which was just as good at the present moment as or
the first day of its ratification. For these reasons, he might
say with 111 r. Burke, that the faith of this country was
pledged to Ireland,—that the Penal Laws could not be
passed without a breack of that faith—and that we were
bound to relieve them from the pressure of these laws, in
orderif possible, some retribution for what
they hhadgivsueffetrhmeedin former times. The Hon. Baronet
concluded by moving for a copy of the letters-patent whet e-
in the civil articles of the Treaty of Limerick were ratified
by King William and Queen Mary.

" Mr. H. GRATTAN rose to second the motion, and
did so in persuasion that the case of the Catholics of Ira.
land would be made out by the document. He thought,
at the same time that his Hon. Friend would fall hurt of
his object, if he persisted in confining his motion to :ha
civil articles; for there were two copies of the Treaty ori-
ginally published—one in Ireland, and the other in Eng-
land ; and it was curious to observe that the one printed in
London omitted to state that tho King had sanctioned
them. This had, to him, the appearance of an intention
from the beginning to break through the articles. Sueh
conduct was not without example in the transactions of this
Government. They should therefore have the two docu-
ments before them, in order to show that at the very out-
set the Treaty was conceived in a spirit of iugincerity.—
The first article stipulated that the Catholics should enjoy
their religion without obstruction. What was the mean-
ing of that? Not merely that they should be perinitted to.
worship according to their own forms ; nor that their
clergy should dress in canonicals according to their order
but that the people should not be injured in their civil
rights on account of the religion they professed. But what
was the state of the law of Ireland at the time ? He
would deny that it contained any Statute excluding Catho-
lics from sitting in Parliament. He would 'next advert to
the privileges enjoyed by the Catholics in the time of
Charles the Second. The douse would be surprised to
hear that the only mode in which Catholics were pre-
vented from coming into Parliament was by a simple reso-
lution of the Douse of Commons. These resolutions could
not be considered law, any more than any other resolut:leree
of the same period. There was a servile appeal of a Com-
mittee of the Irish House of Commons to the Lords Jus-
tices, recommending that Catholics should be driven, not
only out of the House, but out of the town. Such was
the spirit of legislation at that period ; and would the
House believe that the same Parliament had peeled an Act,
calling upon the Catholics to surrender themselves at the
walls of Dublin under a penalty ? Such was the act com-
pleted by two traitors sitting in the Castle of lluhiin, and
aided by a profligate and corrupt Parliament. He asked whe-
ther that was a law which any man could rely upon as e.
bar to the articles of the Treaty of Limerick. But what.
during that time, was the conduct of the House of Lords ?
For unless it could be proved that they had acted pars
passu with the house of ComnAne, it would seem. as if
they had doubted the propriety of the proceedings of the
House of Commons. There was no room for hesita-
tion on this point, for this resolution was found upon their
journals—" Resolved that a Bill be introduced to make
valid the resolutions of the House of Commone with re-
spect to Roman Catholics." The absurdity of such a
measure was to be only equalled by its illegality. The
House of Lords again met in 1641 and there was no allue
sion to he found in their journals to the ceremony of ad-
ministering the oath of supremacy. The same was the
case in 1642, 1643, 1644, 1645, and 1646; and yet it
was now contended that to exclude Roman Catholic Peers
from sitting in Parliament was not a violation of the Treaty
of Limerick, because they had not enjoyed that privil,
previously to it. He would show the want of foundation.
for such an assertion by reference to another resolution on
the journals of their Lordships. On the 20th of Mare
1661, it was resolved that all the Lords, who were Mem-
bers of the Church of England, should be at the
cathedral of Christ Church by a certaia hour, to receive
the communion. Now what was the meaning of tkis
resolution, supposing that there were no Lords save those
who were members of the Church of England in the /louse?
But on the 7th of June, 1661, a resolution was passed,
which entirely removed all doubt upon the question ; foe
it was then ordered that all the Lords who were members
of the,Church of England should, when they were absent
from prayers, pay a fine of Is. ; and that all the Lords
who were Roman Catholics should, if absent a quarter cf
an hour after prayers were ended, also pay a fine of
Now, after these entries upon the Journals of the I: iela
Houses of Parliament, could any man doubt that the
Roman Catholics were accustomed to sit there as Membere
down to the reign of Charles 11. If, then, they enjoyed
that privilege up to that time, could any man pretend to
argue, that when the Treaty of Limerick secured to the
Catholics all such privileges as they enjoyed in the
reign of Charles the Second, it was not violated when
the privilege of sitting in Parliament was taken from.
them ? It was said, however, that the Treaty cf
Limerick was only intended to protect the Irish inhte
bitants of the city and county of Limerick, cud the
adjoining counties. But there was evidence to rebut that
notion, which he thought would have great weight with
gentlemen on the other side of the House. The evidence
to which he alluded was that of Bishop Burnet, who was,
as every body knew, deep in the confidence of King Wit-
ham. Bishop Burnet, is that/part of his work which re-
lated to the Treaty of Limerick, used there expi eseioaa
" Those of Limerick treated not only for themselves, hut
for all the rest of their countrymen that were yet in arms.
They were all indemnified, and restored to all that they bad
enjoyed in King Charles's time. They were also admitted
to all the privileges of subjects upon their taking the oaths
of allegiance to their Majesties, without being bound to take
tensat th
gland,
t 001 haritetshhhioaooftfTahtaLrhle
aoloeofrgtfds,aaulonolpfecrgreTeLi iTeairnnmayedc:eyranei.. was
o.kaisoatipnlli -110,0eawit.cesil.vdni
koituetitolhehtdhebewael ittnonfeu,,ter,
memoirs
neoehedisnite, irisoitneneof
f,Ettt
htahnci
coupled with the oath of supremacy; and in the ninth
t
as
t.
article of the Treaty of Limerick, it is distinctly stated that
the oath to be administered to such Roman Catholics as
submit to their Majesties' Government, shall be the
permlwi
thoseat
wa mr
sn to of Irelandf2s
years
rs: ,auns tholics had seats theafg.honeradnPdtual
te,that
onlicsEnignlitehhe-
if it were necessary to
laicistdtti:,c
of the
tfhuertpheeo:efr_phstrohoweo7fasotclsiattthaßinumtha:ipe.itre.
e Prat-
tihmel
Ae
aa
al
aldt
al
na
leftdiat
saytnc eiodbn;).
h7fh
ao
tiTinhdtnt
jehl adsoceehresided latter
am nand
hostages
g..by William
ic King
ngfauNrseiel September,ul return
mo suspension
ftool-f
thel6 2 Catholics
other. In the list of Roman Catholics were seven Earle,
and several Viscounts, two of whom, Lords Louth and Ire igh,
had been actually. given as hostages by the Catholios to
hostilities ColoneltotCh,teimuft4r,
eftnidoel
cuntteoel Ler°,
or fonr other. English people, who bad been given 54
r
ing
th
f.tseriaorYtmiaont:penreceding the Treaty of Limerick, which lasted
in the same year. The length of the negotiation, added to
the fact that the garrison would not sign the Treaty, till
thejustices had come from Dublin to examine it, was 8.
proof that the garrison were particularly anxious that the
Treaty should be worded in an accurate legal form. i 1
might also say, that King William had himself shown great
anxiety on obtaining the execution of this Treaty ; fur on
his receiving intelligence of it the Tower guns were
fired, and other symptoms of joy exhibited for the entire
settlement of the kingdom, as he believed it was at that
time called in the Gazette. He must now apologize t-:
the House for the length of time which he had intruded
upon its attention. Ile had made no appeal to their pas-
sions, but would implore them by all that was dear to man.
not to lose sight of the present condition of Ireland. It
was idle to suppose that things could remain in that court-
try in their present situation. No country was so terrible
to live in as Ireland. He should always be prepared to
support the Protestant establishments of that country ; but
be would rather be hacked in pieces hintirelt and