d'armes and constables. Immediately, on his retiring, he wrote to the governor, stating the bad faith with which he had been treated, and protesting as the delegate of the Irish people, as an ecclesiastic, and as a British subject, against the violation of rights about to be committed in his person. In this situation he lies at present, refusing to ask any favour from the government of Rome, and only waiting for his con valescence to be carried into banish ment by an armed force.—He deserves great praise for the propriety and firm ness with which he has conducted himself throughout this affair, which reflects indelible disgrace upon the Roman government. But if he has been treated with indignity-if he be cast out as a culprit, without any claim to respect or decency; if, in his person, the whole of the Irish nation has been insulted, has not your association justified the proceeding, by setting the example? I have thus far endeavoured to give you a faithful account of this proceeding. You see, that the charges upon which it is supported are merely ostensible, but that the real ground is kept out of view. There is proof that it has had its origin with English agen those charges can be considered the real ground for the proceeding For, as to the three first, they are colourable pretences. These charges are of fifteen or sixteen months standing, and, long after they were made, he had his audience of leave with the pope, and was very graciously received, which could not have been the case if they had any founda tion in ruth, or were, at all, seriously considered. He, of course, refused to receive charges given in this general way, and which, being to be written on his pasport, he would be obliged to show in every great town he had to pass. The governor then promised him a free passport, provided he consented to go away voluntarily. He asked, if he refused to do so, whether force would not be employed? He was answered, that it certainly would. Every thing was accordingly arranged, his place taken with the courier, &c. when he found that the passport intended for him was not free, as had been promised, but a passport of banishment, containing a clause, that when shown in any town between this and the straits of Calais, would deprive him of a resting place, and force him into England to find, perhaps a prisou, under the sus pension of the Habeas Corpus act.cy, so much the letters mentioned be This breach of faith was followed by sending constables after him at two o'clock on Saturday, and by surround ing his convent, where he had an asylum, on the same evening, by the officers of the police. This was a second breach of faith, for, observe, it was stipulated that he was to be free till twelve o'clock on Saturday night, the time appointed for the departure of the courier. Such a passport he at once determined not to take. In fact, it had occurred to his mind, that he might compromise his country were he to give any colour for saying, that he in any way consented to the proceeding taken against him; and, finding himself freed by the subsequent conduct of the gover nor, from any thing that, on his part, might possibly bear such a construction, he determined to submit only to force. He accordingly shut himself up in his convent, where he remained undisturb. ed, until Thursday morning last, at two o'clock, when the asylum was violated by scaling the walls, and his room occupied, as I have said, by gens ORTHOD. JOUR. Vol. V. fore had led us to believe; this has been reudered certain by the subsequent conduct of Ompteda and Park, and that it is connected with some new and ominous arrangement between Gonsalvi and Castlereagh is clear, from the order of banishment having been issued immediately after the assumption by the former of the exclusive manage ment of Irish ecclesiastical affairs. The two courts are now, it seems, deter mined to proceed, without admitting of any interference upon our part; and you may expect to hear, perhaps, of a bill sanctioning all the pretensions of government, and going as far, at least, as Rome, and the vetoists, have brought them to believe they may proceed without the violation of conscience; a sanction which is all that English statesmen have sought, as a plea to Europe against the charge of persecution, on account of religion. But, as to emancipation, for which our fools were ready to bid so high, I think the greatest simpleton must now see the absurdity of hoping for it under present 20 for conciliation; but he had also upon grounds totally independent of On the Saturday succeeding the publication of this highly important document, the board of Irish catholics, which had been re-appointed at the late aggregate meeting, held its first sitting at the new boardroom, No. 17, in Fownes's-street,ence. Our petition was rejected. Dublin, when James M'Kenna, esq. was called to the chair. Immediately on the chair being taken, Mr. O'Connell rose, and addressed the meeting in an animated speech of considerable length. He began by expressing his regret at some of the measures which had been resorted to in order to procure unanimity. He feared principle had been sacrificed in the vain attempt to reconcile the corrupt, to animate the timid, and stimulate the torpid. For his own part he had read the letter from Dr.the expulsion of the Irish catholic Dromgoole, which had been just delegate, and were now arranging published in the newspapers, with the veto with the aid of the profligate poignant sorrow. He Bow, when it and corrupt cardinal Gonsalvi, and was too late, saw that the wavering his lay-tribunal. Yes, this was plainimpolicy of the catholic association ly the situation of catholic affairs. had thrown away the opportunity of The ministers will give us nothing, having domestic nomination esta- and they will take all. They will blished, and thereby of rescuing the leave the catholic people in slavery ; catholic church from the imminent and they will at the same time prodanger of vetoistical arrangements.cure from the court of Rome the He had cheerfully sacrificed intem-control of the catholic bishops.pérance and extraneous topics, and The seceders, some of them, he every matter of form, in his desire made no doubt, duped by the prime agent of corruption, came forward | scouted our humble petition from with a proposal to abandon all sub-parliament, were weary of seeking jects of an ecclesiastical nature; at to undermine our religion, and what a moment when they must have remained of our liberties? If any known of the intrigues of Park and were so credulous they may remain Ompteda at Rome, they proffered torpid; but, every man who took conciliation on the terms of gagging his predictions of the future, from his the people with respect to their dear knowledge of the past, would consiest interests. But, were these gen- der differently, and make, at least, tlemen themselves, silent on this one effort more to stem the nefarious subject, when they meet in their system which sought to continue our own divan? were they so abstract- civil servitude, and to embitter it by ed from ecclesiastical affairs? Quite the degradation of our national the contrary. When they met in character. their close divan, they caused Mr. Bellew to prepare a petition, in which all ecclesiastical arrangements were mentioned and offered. Were our professed enemies silent on the subject? Enquire of the eternal busybody with little talent, but with considerable malignity to the catholics-Cox Hippisley Enquire of the court of Rome, and of the bribery and corruption preached there by Park, Ompteda, and Gonsalvi. He said he spoke this in the bitterness of sorrow. He had many communications made to him which left no doubt on his mind, that a conspi-ciliation, proposed an union if we racy to carry the veto, and, if necessary, to re-enact the penal code against all who should not submit to -it, was in active progress. He did not say this lightly, but upon documents which could not fail to leave this conviction deeply impressed on his mind. These were not vain or idle fears; every moment served to develope the progress of this conspiracy. The agency of Park at Rome was at first ineffectual, although Gonsalvi had accepted 11,000 sequins from one of the Bentincks. Ompteda was sent to reinforce Park; where he has exerted himself to procure a form of mandate or bull to ordain the veto which the Genoese letter had only permitted. In this country also, the intrigue was kept on foot. The seceders, who perceived the anxiety of the popular party for con were silent on ecclesiastical affairs. The object was now but too plain; our bishops appear weary with opposition; the catholic laity were to be silenced; the Roman intrigue was going on; our present degradation was to be rendered perpetual, and the nomination of our bishops was to be vested in the crown. Unless the clergy and laity of catho He said his first and his most cherished ambition was to be useful to the catholics of Ireland; and helic Ireland now arouse, this plan never could, he feared, regain such a station of utility as might have been held before their desertion of the reverend Mr. Hayes had ena. bled Gonsalvi to procure his exile from Rome. The stage was now clear for English intrigue there, and could the catholics of Ireland be sensible to two centuries of religious persecution, and foolishly imagine, that the bigots who had lately will be carried into effect. Every arrangement is nearly complete for its execution. Perceval boasted that the catholics filled the army and navy without his being under the necessity of acceding to emanci tion. Lord Castlereagh will next sessions be able to make a similar boast with respect to the veto, unless a powerful and combined effort be now made by all that re mains honest, faithful, and sincere | of threatened persecution, he would in the catholic body. propose such measures as seemed to him most likely to counteract the designs of the corrupt amongst the catholics, and the genuine bigots amongst their enemies He then moved that a sub-committe e appointed to prepare a respectful letter to the prelates, and an address to the second order of the clergy, on the present state of catholic affairs; and also a letter of complaint and remonstrance to the see of Rome, on the indignity offered their delegate. These propositions were agreed to. "The general board of the catholics of Ireland deem it an imperative duty to address their revered pastors on the present most awful aspect of the catholic affairs in this country. He could not avoid being greatly alarmed at the venality of some of the upper classes of the catholic body. He thought the influence of secret service money might easily be traced amongst them, but, he was quite sure there was one of them who would readily be acquitted of any participation in the guilt of even knowing of the baseness of others. He alluded to the earl of Fingal. The public might judge of the anxiety of the government to crush the independence of the catholic prelacy in Ireland, when they reflected The following is a copy of the adthat for one speech of no great talent dress to the second order of the cleragainst the bishops, counsellor Bel-gy, adopted by the board: lew received a pension of £150 per annum, from the highly envenomed and orange administration of the duke of Richmond. The existence of this pension some persons had the consummate effrontery to deny, but it was placed beyond any doubt by a reference to the parliamentary papers of this session. By looking at the paper numbered 306, ordered by the house of commons, by a vote on the 3d of June, 1817, to be printed, and entitled An Account of all Pensions granted in Ireland since the 5th of December, 1810, with the dates thereof; at page 2 of that printed paper, the eighteenth name from the top, would be found, under date 15th of June, 1813, William Bellew, esq. £150 per annum. was on the 29th of the preceeding month that he earned this pension, by censuring the bishops, and now he was still at his post keeping dissension alive, and endeavouring_to earn more pensions by preventing opposition to the veto. Never did so much anxiety and distrust pervade the catholic mind; never were the the catholics so agitated as they were by those recent events, and in order to tranquillize the public feelings, "and to endeavour to stem the torrent It "The delegate of the catholic laity of Ireland has lately been expelled from Rome. It is true that he did not and could not claim any authority or mission from any part of the ecclesiastical body; the most constant, faithful, and attach- ' but he was the chosen representative of ed portion of the catholic laity in the world. "This expulsion has been produced by the intrigues of the unrelenting enemies of our religion and country. Their emissaries remain at present in the uncontrolled and unchecked possession of those mercenary statesmen of the court of Rome, who are ready to sell the inheritance of the Lord for a mess of pot tage. "To increase the alarm felt by the catholic people of Ireland, it has been announced that those emissaries are Hippisley, whose active exertions to proabout to be reinforced by sir John Cox cure the servitude and degradation of the catholic church of Ireland, are too well known to require description. "The active exertions of the enemy of our faith are public and notorious. The guardians of that faith will not slumber, nor will they despise in ruin. dangers which may overwhelm them "The reverend prelates of our church have publicly and solemnly declared that any interference on the part of the crown, with the nomination of our bishops, must essentially injure, and may eventually subvert the catholic religion in Ireland. address your lordship on the present most critical and alarming posture of catholic affairs in this country. "They repose the utmost confidence in the learning, piety, and zeal of the dignified prelacy of the catholic church of Ireland, and they never will allow even the anxiety they feel for the safety of their religion, to infringe upon the respect with which they are deeply impressed towards that illustrious order. "Our enemies are using the most strenuous exertions to procure this nomination for the crown. Shall the catholic clergy of Ireland behold the threatened peril and look on in silence? "They cannot with justice be accused "For our parts we are determined of any want of confidence or respect, when never to submit to that interference. they earnestly solicit your lordship's parOur ancestors forfeited property, and ticular attention to the dangers which mewere prodigal in the submissive effusion nace the independence and purity of the Irish catholic church. The expulsion of of their blood, rather than acquiesce in the infringement of the spiritual supre-land (the Rev. Mr. Hayes) from Rome, the delegate of the catholic laity of Iremacy of the venerated head of our church. "We, their descendants, would, we trust, cheerfully follow their example, and we have learned too well the lessons you have taught us, not to know the distinction between that allegiance which we owe, and have always paid, exclusively, to the government of these countries, in temporal affairs, and that fidelity which is due to the head of our church in spiritual concerns. "We feel that language is inadequate to express the gratitude and respect of the catholic people of Ireland towards their esteemed pastors and clergy of the second order. They do not presume to suggest any mode of proceeding to them at the present crisis, confiding, as they implicitly do, in their zeal and piety, to adopt such course in support of their bishops as shall be most conducive to the purity and safety of the religion committed to their care. We deem it also our duty, at this alarming crisis, to declare, that upon every occasion-on every event-in persecution or in toleration, you shall ever meet the respectful and cordial support of the catholic laity of Ireland, who esteem your learning, revere your piety, and reverence the holy and unabated zeal with which you have ever fulfilled the the sacred duties of your profession. "EDWARD HAY, Secretary." The following is a copy of the letter adopted by the Irish catholic board, and sent to the different members of the hierachy by the secretary; "MY LORD-I am directed by the catholic board of Ireland most respectfully to has filled them with astonishment, regret, and alarm. They would not, directly or indirectly, countenance any disrespect to the venerated head of our church, but they cannot possibly attribute that expulsion to any other cause than the successful intrigues of the unrelenting enemies of our religion, and our country. situation in which that church has been "They cannot be insensible to the strange placed-its hierarchy has ever continued inviolate; the prelacy have never surrendered or vacated their sees; the succession has been continued and unbroken, from the days in which christianity was first introduced by St. Patrick, to the present hour; law, but they have been ever faithful to our bishops have been persecuted by the their religion; they have given many martyrs to the sword and scaffold, but not one single apostate has yielded to the power of persecution. Ca "Yet the rights of the catholic hierarchy are not acknowledged, or, if acknowledged, are certainly not established ia their full and proper force at Rome. tholic discipline in Ireland has been submitted to the propaganda, as if this were a mere missionary country without a national church. The catholics are told that concession, or a privilege on the part of this arrangement has been the result of a his holiness the pope to Ireland during the most severe period of a sanguinary persecution; and that it was intended as a mode of protection to our religion during that persecution, but it does appear to be at present totally unnecessary; and much fear is entertained that it has been made, as it is clearly liable to be made, the subject of intrigue and management on the part of the most insidious of our enemies, whilst it has furnished a strong argument, founded on a colourable pretext, of foreign influence, to enable more candid eaewtes to oppose the progress of civil emancipation. "May this board respectfully suggest, |