Star.
London, England, 1825-02-15 00:00:00

looting extract from a Dublin Newspaper, as Newi-
papers had become State Paper's-an this subject :
on taking the Chair, hlo LOrdshlp said—" There never was, in
the binary of Irish Cadillac affairs, a period es important as the
present very critical crisis. During the last ilsasiOn.of Parliament
the Catholics presented their bumble Petition to the- Legislature.
and at the commencement of the present Sagan, although the
Lords r _ -
.

speech represented the country as in the

most fioutishing condition—pipsee, tranquillity. and prosperity
through the British empire ; yet the Catholics looked in vain to the
Speech from the Throne for the word " concession"—white there
was strongly expressed the determination of bringing forward a
new proscriptive enactment, not merely to oppress the Irish Ca-
tholics, but to strike at the root of British liberty, of which, in
this country, little but the name was known—(Loud cheers). It
was, however, consoling to find, that their Protestant brethren
were coming forwatd in the cause of conscience. Without the con-
currence and support of they Protestant countrymen, the Catho-
lics could never expect emancipation, and it behoved them to be
watchful, that the snares of their opponents led them into no indis-
cretion calculated to forfeit the good feeling of the Protestants.
He conjured them, not' by the hate they bore to Orangemen,' but
by the love they owed all men—the stake they bad inn their coun-
try—the veneration they owed to the memory of their forefathers,
and the fidelity with which they cling to their religion, which nei-
ther the lure of emolument nor the apprehension of punishment
could shake, to submit to the laws with the fortitude of men and
the obedience of subjects."

The sentiments of that Nobleman, recommending peace
and submission, had been received with cheers by the Ca-
tholic Association. He would recommend the House not
to pass the Bill upon the mere statement of Newspapers.
The Association had always stated that they would pro-
ceed only in the way of respectful petition to Parlia-
ment. No man would morestrenuously oppose any at-
tempt to dissociate Ireland from England. Members
should be on their guard against indiscriminate praise
of the administration of justice. He recollected similar
panegyrics on the collection of the revenue, and the
conduct of the Magistrates of Ireland. The I,rtner had
since been termed an Augean stable; acd a Committee
above stairs had, in the conduct of two Magistrates,
discovered much oppression. In the course of six years
6000 persons had been convicted of offences against the
distillery laws; but one of the witnesses before the Com-
mittee had stated, that the Dignitaries of the Church,
the Officers of the Army, and the Magistrates of the
country, were wholly indifferent if the spirits were il-
licit or not—(A Laugh). All those had-punished others
for offences to which they were indifferent themselves.
The alteration of feeling towards the Archbishop of
Tuam arose from his attempting to convert the Catho-
lics from the faith of their forefathers. The whole of
the lad reign had been one series of.concession, and the
greazest gratitude was felt by the Catholics. Now an,
addition was proposed to the Penal Code, could any
man believe that the present measure would be effectual ? How-
ever, the Bight Hon. Gentleman (Mr. Goulburn) might be pre-
pared to run a race of ingenuity with the Catholics. It a particu-
lar mode of meeting a discussion was prohibited, it followed that
all others were allowed, of which the Catholics would avail them-
selves. But though the Bill would be inoperative as to good, it
would operate materially as to evil, and come home to the cottage
of every peasant In Ireland. He would concur in every opposition
to the Bill, though no one could be more averse to Asseciations
than himself.

Mr. BROWNLOW thought the measure had been
supported upon unreasonable grounds. - It had been
said, that Lord Wellesley had been impeded by his Ca-
binet, but who had been more indefatigable than the
Right Hon. Irish Seztetary ? The greatest good had
been effected by the administration of Lord Welles-
ley, and none had been more grateful than the Protest-
ants of Ireland. The Ministers had been obliged to
adopt the present measure by the conduct of the Ca-
tholic Association. He lamented that the Petition he
had presented at the closing of last Session had not.
met with more attention; he contended that the Ca•
tholic Association was alone alluded to in the speech
from the Throne—(Loud cheering from the Opposition).
The Protestants in the notch of Ireland had been dis-
tinguished for moderation amidst all-the torrent of in.
eective that had been thrown out against them ; he ap-
prehended that nothing had occurred on the part of the
Protestants to call for such a measure, though they must
be castigated by the same law as those who wished to
involve all things in one common ruin; he lamented
the unfounded charges brought against the Bible Socie-
ties ; he denied there was any intention to make pro-
selytes, though had there been, it would have been
laudable to convert men from a worse to a better faith.
The whole conduct of the Ass6ciation was dariget
He had thought the Convention Act was to put down
all such Associations, however harmless they might he.
The conduct of the Association had deeply injured the
Catholic cause. Their object was to extort, from fear,
what Parliament had refused to petitions. In 1812,
Lord Wellesley had opposed the Catholic claims,
from the tone and spirit in which they had been urged.
Out of ten persons in the-north of-Ireland, who had for.
metly been favourable to the Catholic claims, scarcely
one could now be found who atsihered•to the same opi-
nion. He believed the Association to be a mot; formidable body,
and Parliament was bound, without delay, to set itself against the
Assoeation. If the Catholics were admitted to Parliament they
would nest demand the property of the Church. The Catholics
would not be satisfied with concessions to the Laity, if the Church,
the God of their Idolatry, did not participate in the advantage—
(Hear). The Hon. Gentleman here quoted the opinion of the
Chief Justice of Ireland, on the subject of such Associations, and
declared his assent to the measure.

Sir JAMES MACKINTOSH then rose, and spoke
to the following effect : " I rise, Sir, not to answer the
speech of the Hon. Member who has just sat down,
and whom I have heard with much pleasure—nor do I
rise, Sir, to advert to the arguments of the Hon. Mem-
ber." for Derry, who preceded. him—not from want
of the highest iespect for the character of both the
Honourable Menibers—but I rise, Sir—(and it is the first
purpose to which I shall have employed my returning
health)—l rise most solemnly to protest against this un-
justifiable attack on the cause of Catholic Emancipa-
tion, made on it through'the medium of the Catholic
Association—l rise to oppose the measures of men who,
instead of redressing wrongs, would stifle the voice of
suffering—l rise to oppose a Bill whose object it is to
relieve his Majesty's Ministers from their sacred duty of
relieving the disabilities of the Irish people, and of ter-
minating a course of miseries which have been a subject
of national record through the lapse of successive cen-
turies—against this melancholy measure I rise to record
my feeble yet conscientious and honest protest—with
the same zeal aithat professed by my Right Honourable
Friend in the brilliant and powerful speech with which
he closed the last sight's debate—with a zeal for;the
Protestant Religion, which has never been changed or
cooled by my political opi9lons—l declare myself a Pro-
testant—l am attached tu its doctrines, and venerate the
great principles on which the Protestant Reformation
was founded, that one principle, above all, which sanc-
tions the right of private judgment on religious opinions.
In these principles of religious liberty, and in the poli-
tical principles of the Revolution of 1688, I have ever
walked; in these I have lived, and in them I hope to
die. In the spirit of these principles I have risen to de-
fend the Catholic cause against the attacks of its friends.
Thirty years have now gone by since two parties arose