but our situation being so different from what you were led to believe, I am persuaded you will agree that we should remain

as we are.

26th Jan. 1792.

R. S.

By last night's post, intelligence came that MM. Butler and Tandy had been ordered into the custody of the sergeant-atarms. As it may be my fate, I must beg the favor of you to give me the earliest intelligence, if such an order should take place. We are beginning to cool after the engagement at the town meeting. Our cause gains ground but slowly. We are going to republish the address of the General Committee of the Catholics to the Protestants, with a joint address prefixed by our three societies here. I think it will have an excellent effect. R. S.

24th Feb. 1792.

BELFAST, 7th April, 1792.

SIR: Impressed with the most lively sense of your manifold exertions in the cause of emancipating the Catholics of this kingdom from their degraded situation, it is with peculiar pleasure I transmit you the enclosed resolutions of the Catholics of this town, and at the same time do myself the honor of thanking you, individually, for your unwearied endeavors to obtain an adequate representation of all the people of this kingdom in parliament. Your efforts, aided by the voice of millions, will, in a short time, prevail. The sun of superstition and intolerance is set; the die is cast, and Ireland will be free. Persevere then, sir, in a cause so noble and praiseworthy; it is the cause of suffering millions, and the cause of reason; it is the cause of God, who has finally doomed that Ireland shall be reckoned amongst the nations of the earth.

I am, sir, with the greatest respect,

Your very obedient humble servant,
JAMES MOONEY.

To Mr. Mooney, Chairman of the Catholics of Belfast. SIR: I request you will offer to your fellow-citizens, the Catholics of Belfast, my thanks for the honor which they have done me, by noticing my humble endeavors in their cause. I can only regret that these endeavors fell so infinitely short of my zeal, and of the magnitude and importance of the question.

It is with singular satisfaction that I behold the progress, rapid beyond my most sanguine hopes, which Catholic emancipation is making in the public mind. What was your situation, even six months since? And what is it now? Let the comparison excite you to a steady perseverance in that line of conduct which has, instantaneously it may be said, accomplished so great a change. Be temperate, be spirited, and be firm; you must be successful.

I beg you will accept my thanks for the polite manner in which you have communicated the resolutions to me.

I am, &c.

T. W. TONE.

April 14th, 1792.

Note of the Editor. -A number of letters follow from that date to that of the meeting of the Catholic Grand Committee, in the beginning of Decem ber. They all recount the rapid progress of the Society in the North, the gradual conversion of the Presbyterian population, from principles of bigotry, persecution, and separation, to those of union and reform; the efforts of some of the Aristocracy to oppose them, and the decline of their influence, even in their own neighborhood; and request from him occasional squibs, replies, essays, &c.

DEAR SIR: At the request of Mr. Teeling, who is a delegate from the Roman Catholics of this county, a number of us met him to day at the Donegal Arms. An idea had been started by Dr. Ryan, that the Catholics should confine their petition to the elective franchise for counties, and Tecling wished to know our sentiments on that point in Belfast. We were decidedly of opinion that the petition of the Catholics ought not to be confined in any degree, but extended to every grievance. A doubt was then started by Teeling, that, as the Catholic delegates were instructed only on two points, they ought to confine themselves to

these points alone, elective franchise and trial by jury. A debate ensued, the result of which was, that the Catholic delegates should frame a petition in general terms, similar to the Belfast petition for the removal of every grievance, and refer it back to their constituents for their approbation, and then bring it forward, in the name of the Catholics of Ireland. We were unanimously of opinion that this ought to be the line pursued by the Catholic delegates, and, as it will be proposed by Teeling, I thought I could not do less than acquaint you of it, that the Catholics may be prepared on the question. I am sure it is right.

We are going on here with boots of seven leagues, and will soon be at liberty and equality. We desired citizen Teeling to assure his brother delegates, that they may depend on a petition from the county of Antrim, and that the freeholders will instruct their representatives to support the Catholic petition.

R. S.

BELFAST, 21st Nov. 1792.

DEAR TONE: It gives us much pleasure to find you are going on so well; you really manage things wonderfully, considering that you are Papists, and, of course, wicked and ignorant scoundrels.

As to the spirit and determination of our friends in Dublin, we expected much, and we are not disappointed. In general throughout Ireland, you have spoken well too; but I have to remark to you, from myself, that, if we are to judge by their newspapers, the people of Cork, Galway, Limerick, and Waterford, are by no means friendly to the doctrine of the people's sovereignty. I do not blame them for not joining us in hallooing up the French, for there are many things in their conduct, that, under all circumstances of the case, cannot be very acceptable to an Irish Catholic. But I blame them, severely blame them, for attacking the principle, and I fear they are far behind you, and by no means ripe yet. It is, however, to be understood that I speak under correction, on a point I do not so well know, as him to whom I write.

You can form no conception of the rapid progress of union here, and I do assure you we are farther forward, than even I

expected we should have been in a twelvemonth. The universal question throughout the country is, When do we begin? do we refuse hearth money, or tythes first?"

As to a petition in your favor, it will go from Belfast, a literal copy of that which Mr. Latouche kicked out; and I believe by January, we are perfectly safe in calling a meeting of the country Antrim; I am taking some steps to prepare for it. I should imagine the petition from Antrim, will be approving your conduct, and praying redress generally. I will write to you about the county Down in a few days. Luke Teeling, one of the county members to your committee, dines here to-morrow with us, in order to receive instructions; aye, to receive instructions, for he says he will represent the county faithfully.

SAMUEL NEILSON.

DEAR FELLOW-SLAVE: At a full meeting of the select this evening, the answer was immediately agreed to, and I was ordered to forward it to you by this post. Take notice, I wrote it down word by word, at the desire of the meeting, and we are all equally warm and decided in the measure. Russell was present, and will, on Sunday, take up with him resolutions from our societies to this effect. We saw yours to the Tanner. Our messengers will let you know our whole mind, and be so commonsensical as to deduct nothing from those facts he may tell you. Your's, very truly, SAMUEL NEILSON.

BELFAST, 29th November, 1792.

The following are the opinions of some individuals in Belfast, respecting the proceedings of the Catholic Committee, when assembled in Dublin:

1st. We are humbly of opinion, that an application for any thing specific from the Catholic body would tend to retard that radical reform we all so much desire, because we fear that Government, alarmed as they are at present, will, by a gradual and pitiful extension of privilege to that much oppressed body, operate a division amongst Irishmen, in order to retard the general freedom of Ireland.

2d. We are much alarmed at the information we have heard that the Catholics mean to frame a timid petition as fast as possible, and immediately to break up, lest they should give a handle to the enemies of emancipation by an apparent permanence. This timidity alarms us much, because we had formed the highest expectations from a full and fair representation of threefourths of our countrymen ; and we can hardly conceive it possible that a body so fairly chosen, so respectable, so constitutional, and organized with so much trouble, should run away, after framing a trimming petition, to a body who are well known to be determined against that petition.

Sd. In the present glorious era, we do expect that our Catholic. countrymen have too high a value for the rights of man to be satisfied with any thing short of them, the more so, as their Protestant brethren and fellow-citizens are determined to aid in the general recovery of those rights for all Irishmen.

Actuated by these sentiments, our wish and desire is, that the Catholics should state their grievances to Parliament, and that the prayer of their petition should be for general redress.

The few inhabitants of Belfast who hereby communicate the foregoing opinions, submit them with much deference and confidence to their brother Tone, for his own and friends' serious consideration.

We almost forgot to state, what we conceive to be highly important, namely: that an adjournment, after framing the petition, would be a moderate, useful, and necessary line of conduct. Signed, by order,

WM. M'CLEERY, Chairman.

DEAR FELLOW-SLAVE: I do command you to give me, nightly, an abstract of the proceedings of the Convention. I can assure you it is essentially necessary to all our interests, and insist on it. Why did you not answer mine of Thursday?-Telk Russell his documents are necessarily detained to to-morrow. We are extremely anxious to hear every iota of your proceedings, as we only wait for the result of them to frame our plan Yours.

of action.

BELFAST, 3d Dec. 1792.

S. NEILSON.