The Sun.
London, England, 1826-04-29 00:00:00

CATHOLIC CLAIMS.

Mr. S. RICE pre4enteA a Petition, higrtyd by upwards of
40,000 Catholics, complaining that they were denied Corporate
Franchisea in Ireland.

The Hon. Mama Ea. also-presented a second petition 'from the
some Body, complaining that the saddest of the Treaty of Lime-
rick, with respect to theiietitioners, had been violated, and ray-
ing that their rights blight be restored to them.
ear. DAWSON said, these Petitions had created great excite.:
ti. n in Irelnd. They emanated. from the New Catholic Asap-
elation, a body not entitled to much consideration in that House.
The corporate rights referred :to bythe Petitioners were very pro-
perly withheld from the Catholics. Thu Petitioners, with rek.
repce to the alleged breach of the articles of the Treaty of Lime-
r;ek, said this restriction had been imposed upon them contrary
to the spirit of the treaty--(flear,,hear)and that in cqptitming
those restrictions the House was a party to the breacit4f faith.
The Treaty of -Limerick secnrod to the Rositan Catholics
the rights enjoyed by them tinder Charles the, Sesxtnd. Hence
it became necessary to inquire what those rights- had been, awl
lie found that they had been excluded from seats in Parliament,
tun; from all offices in the State. Here the Hon. Member read a
resolution or the. Irish House of Lords of !31st June, 1642, to
shew that anew ,writ had been issued for a borough, in cense-
-sinewy of Mi.' triOeftiaing toialui the oath d !supremacy. The

dissolution of this Parliament took place in 1661. The treaty of
Limerick was drawn up on the Sd February, 1691, but was, not
ratified till sth April, 1.692. On the ascension of William 111.
to the throne, he passed an Act which excluded Catholics from
holding offices under Government, and taking their seats in
Parliament. And he argued that as the Catholics had not then
complained of this infraction, that in point of fact it had never
existed.

Mr. S. RICE said, that as the -Hon. Member had provoked
a discussion by his intemperate manner of contradicting the
assertions of so many individuals who had come forward and
signed their names to the Petition as a pledge of their know-
ledge of the facts, he would endeavour to prove the Catholics
were exempted from 'holding offices under Government, by an
infraction of the Treaty of Limerick. There was one transac-
tion which completely falsified the remark quoted by the Hon.
Member, that all Catholics were excluded from enjoying the rights
of the King's subjects au their -refusal to take the oath of supre-
macy. He allnded to Bishop Burnett's account of the transac-
tion, which stated that every thing asked by the Irish was granted,
at the express command of the King, • and that they were ad-
mitted to all the privileges of subjects upon taking the oath of
Allegiance to the King and Queen, ivithont taking the oath of
Supremacy. This doctrine of Bishop Burnett was supported by
other cotemporary historians, The Treaty of Limerick, he con-
tended, admitted the Roman Catholics to all the privileges and
rights of subjects, and that consequently its articles were vio-
lated by those rights being withheld.

Sir J. NEWPORT said he had not expected to live to see the
day when an Irishman would assert in that House that an Act of
the English Parliament, of 1797, was binding upon Ireland ; and
least of all that such an assertion would be made by a Member for
the county of Derrry.

. Mr. DAWSON 'denied that he had asserted the authority of
the English Act of Parliament. He had risen to state plain his-
torical facts, which contradicted the allegations of the petition.—
The lion. Member had charged him with having provoked dis-
cussion; but he asked, was there an intemperance, or any thing
calculated to provoke discussion, in his denying an assertion made
in argument by the lion. Member? it Was the assertion of the
Hoa. Member which provoked discussion ; and if he supposed
that the subject WAS to be discussed there as in. the Catholic As.
sociation, where the speakers were all on one side, he was much
mistaken.

The SOLICITOR-GENERAL said that the Hon. Member for
Limerick had provoked the discussion, when he understood that
it was agreed on all hands that discussion should .be avoided.—
Whenever the Catholic claims came to be discussed, he should be
prepared to meet the Hon. Member upon the question of the
Treaty of Limerick.
Mr. Secretary PEEL said, that he did not mean to disturb the
general arrangement by going into discussion on the Cutholic
Claims; but he could not acquiesce in the assertion that any rights
had been withheld from the Roman Catholics which were given
to them by the Treaty of Limerick. All he wished to do was to
state that he retained his original opinion upon the subject of the
Treaty of Limerick, and that the political privileges claimed by
the Roman Catholics could not be supported by the terms of that
treaty. He thought, from the wording of the Petition, that the
petitioners themselves ha not much reliance upon the arguments
to be deduced from the wording of the articles.
Mr. S. RICE said that he would engage to prove to the Right
Hon: Gentleman that the ninth article of the Treaty of Lime..
rick did guarantee the political rights of the Roman Catholics of
Ireland.

The petition was ordered to be printed.
ASSESSED TAXES.

Mr. MABERLY, after some remarks upon the necessity of
reducing taxation, withdrew his notice of motion for the repeal
of the Assessed Taxes until the next Session. He moved for a
return of the Receipts of Revenue and Assessed Taxes for each
year from 1915 to 1825 exclusive, with the amount of the charge
for collection in each year.
After a few words from Mr. Hritairs, the returns were ordered.
BRIBERY AT ELECTIONS.

. Lord J. RUSSELL moyed that the
,Order of the Day for the
further consideration of the Report of the Bribery at Elections
Bill, be postponed to that day three months. We understood the
Noble Lord to say, that he should bring forward the measure in
another shape in the net Session.
After a few words from Colonel DAVIES and Mr. WYNN, the
order was postponed accordingly.;