tions, and with the most perfect reliance on the wisdom and justice of your right honourable house, "Your lordships petitioners humbly pray for a total repeal of every teft, oath, declaration, or provifion, which has the effect of fubjecting them to any penalty or disability whatsoever, on account of their religious principles." Signed, William Gibfon, Vicar Apoft. Thomas Smith, Coadjutor, Newburgh, Fauconberg Stourton, Petre, Arundell, Dormer, Clifford, William Gerard, Bart, Edward Hales, Bart. Henry Englefield, Bart. Edward Blount, Bart. Windfor Hunloke, Bart. Carnaby Haggerstone, Bart, Richard Bedingfield, Bart Thomas Stanley, Bart, Thomas Gage, Bart, John Lawfon, Bart. Pierce Moftyn, Bart. And upwards of eight thoufand gentlemen and others including near three hundred clergymen. Accompanying on which it is founded. I say, to the pri and juftice; because, in any enlightened vi they will never be found at variance; science, I think they were never more clofe united, than with refpect to the cafe whiel petition. My lords, the petitioners, wit wards your lordships, but not without t which, as men labouring under many and -as men labouring under great and unme and exclufions, they cannot diveft them mitted their cafe to your confideration. which they ftate themselves to be place without any impeachment of their loyal imputation on their conduct-nay, afte peated acknowledgment of honourable demeanour, as good and faithful fubject empire-they find themfelves, on accou purely religious, and for a belief, which, not depend on them to exchange, a marke people in the midst of their fellow-subjects the benefit of the free government they fu -excluded from thofe opportunities of Accompanying Petition of the English Roman Catholics, who met at the St. Alban's Tavern, on the 1st February, 1810. "We whose names are underwritten, Roman catholics of England, beg leave to represent to your Right Honourable House, that your petitioners, in common with the general body of the English Roman catholics, have lately signed a Petition to your Right Honourable Houfe, ftating the principal grievances under which they lie, in confequence of their religious principles, and praying relief. They now beg leave further to state to your Lordships, that in foliciting the attention of Parliament to their petition, they are actuated not more by a sense of the hardships and difabilities under which they labour, than by a defire to fecure, on the moft folid foundation, the peace and harmony of the British empire; and to obtain for themselves opportunities of manifefting, by the most active exertions, their zeal and intereft in the common caufe, in which their country is engaged for the maintenance of its freedom and independence; and that they are firmly perfuaded, that adequate provifion, for the maintenance of the civil and religious eftablishments of this kingdom, may be made, eonfiftently with the ftricteft adherence, on their part, to the tenets and discipline of the Roman catholic religion; and, that any arrangements founded on this basis of mutual fatisfaction and fecurity, and extending to them the full enjoyment of the civil conftitution of their country, will meet with their grateful concurrence.” 3,9 country's defenee, which, in this perilous crifis, every English heart would be anxious to obtain. It is much and deeply to be lamented, there fhould exift any difficulty that fhould have the effect of making it neceffary to poftpone, for a fingle hour, your lordships taking this petition into your confideration, with a view to affording effectual, prompt, and complete relief; and I regret it the more, with respect to the particular class of individuals with whofe interefts I am charged; because their situation is, in fome degree, peculiar to themselves; inafmuch as the difabilities of which they complain are infinitely more fevere and more extentive than thofe which affect other perfons, profeffing. the fame religious tenets in other parts of the empire. I have faid that their fituation is particularly fevere; and as I am fearful that this fubject may not have raised that degree of attention which its importance deferves, it may Rot be unneceffary to ftate in what that extraordinary feverity confifts. Your lordfaips will recollect that in Canada, for inftance, in confequence of the provifions which were made after its conqueft, in the reign of His prefent Majefty, the subjects of His Majefty in Canada enjoy complete toleration. In other words, there exists no difference as to the enjoyment of civil rights between the catholic and proteftant fubjects. I do not mean to found any argument on this circumftance; I ftate it only as a fact, which, I trust, your lordships will bear in your recollection. In Ireland, unfortunately for the peace of the English empire, unfortunately for our own fecurity, there is a different ftate of things. In Ireland, His Majesty's fubjects are still liable to disabilities, which cannot be fupported upon any principles, if they are not required with a view to our own fafety. But even in Ireland many privileges are extended to catholics which are denied to the eatholics in England. They are capable of being elected to all lay corporations, with the exception of Trinity College, Dublin; where, however, they may take degrees. They They may be in the commiffion of the peace; they may vote for members of parliament; they may hold civil offices of truft and emolument under the crown, fubject to certain exceptions. In Ireland, all the ranks of the army, under that of a general of the ftaff, are open to catholics. From all thofe advantages the English catholics are excluded; they are not eligible to corporations; they cannot fake degrees; they cannot act in the commiffion of the peace; they are not allowed to vote at elections; they are incapable of holding offices of truft under the crown; all the ranks of the army and navy are denied to them. The catholic, deeply interested as he is in the common defence of the country, is denied the means of affifting it. At this moment, when you are calling upon all claffes of the community for affiftance, the catholic has the heart-breaking mortification, not only of finding himfelf excluded from the higher ranks of the army, but even, if defcending from his ftation in life, he fhould confent to enroll himself as a private in the ranks, he muft depend upon his officer for the free exercife of his own religion, and for not being compelled to attend to the ceremonies of another, in which his confcience forbids him to partake. Thefe are evils to which the English catholics are fubject, in addition to thofe which they fuffer in common with other perfons of the fame perfuafion in other parts of the empire. In ftating their complaints, they affert, with no unbecoming confidence, that their conduct has not been fuch as juftly to fubject them to a punishment of fo fevere a nature Upon this head I think I may appeal to the perfonal knowledge of many of your lordships, whether you are not convinced, that there do not exift men whofe conduct has uniformly been more exemplary as loyal fubjects of the king and zealous fupporters of the government than the English catholics? I have fome knowledge of perfons of that profeffion in the county to which I belong:-they are perfons as diftinguished for their loyalty and good conduct |