a plan for multiplying barracks, and surrounding the island witl a military cordon for the preventing of smuggling: buildings, in the nature of guard-houses, were to be erected on the coast, at the distance of ten miles from each other, with a guard of twelve men and a serjeant to each. The present system of government could not be successfully carried on without extraordinary countenance to the army on one side, and stronger checks, than what were perhaps prudent, upon the constitutional rights of the people, on the other. The feelings of the people without were in strict unison with the sentiments of the patriots within the walls of parliament; and the lord lieutenant finding himself pressed by the weight of talent, influence, and popula rity of those, who had ranged themselves in opposition to his measures, got rid of them by an early prorogation, that he might busy himself without interruption, in his favourite subal tern system of economical reform.

Animated with a laudable indignation against the rapacious and bare-faced practices of the clerks, and other subaltern officers in the different fiscal departments of government, he seized all* their keys, examined himself their papers and accounts, and subjected them to the most rigorous scrutiny, and demanded instant payment of outstanding balances. An universal panic seized the whole; many defaulters fled the country, others cut their throats, and some few, relying on the sympathies and countenance of their immediate superiors in office, stood the brunt of the enquiry, and either eluded by dexterity, or softened by false promises the anger of their indignant governor. Some few were ultimately dismissed with disgrace. In these secondary departments nothing was so minute, which the scrutinizing eye of his excellency would not descend to inspect. The profligacy of official profusion was truly incredible: peculation reigned in every department where public money was handled, or public property disposable: the public accounts were wound up yearly with formidable items for balances in the hands of collectors, treasurers, and pay-masters, or arrears due by former great officers who had received their employments without security, er had been discarded for misconduct, or were dead, or had fled, or become bankrupt. Such was the inveteracy of this disease, that each succeeding viceroy, on close inspection, was afraid to touch it; until the Marquis of Buckingham, with more courage or more temerity than his predecessors, ventured to upset the hornets' hive, and develop the wicked workings of these official peculators. In the ordnance and treasury, the grossest frauds pervaded almost every department. The public

* When Mr. Corry was made surveyor of the ordnance, his first act was to lock up and seal the desks of the several clerks, who were dismissed instantly.

stores were plundered with impunity in the open day. The arms, ammunition, and military accoutrements, condemned as useless, were stolen out at one gate, and brought in at the other, as purchased, and charged anew to the public account. Journeymen armourers, who worked in the arsenal, seldom went home to their meals without conveying away a musket, sword, or brace of pistols, as lawful perquisites, and sanctioned by the connivance of their superiors. Clerks in subordinate departments, with salaries of 100l. per annum, or less, kept handsome houses in town and country, with splendid establishments; some of them became purchasers of loans and lotteries: all exhibited signs of redundant opulence.

In the course of the year 1788, the county of Armagh was disturbed by the increased animosity and outrages of the Peep of Day Boys, and Defenders. These two sets had been advance ing in numbers, system, and ferocity, ever since the year 1785; they arose, like many other considerable and tumultuary sets or denominations of men, from mere accident. An altercation took place between two peasants, who happened to be Presbyterians: amongst the spectators of the affray, was a Roman Catholic, who took a part with one of the combatants: at which the other swore perpetual vengeance: this spirit of difference was kept up, and the neighbours began to take a part with the original combatants, according to their intimacies of friendship: the spirit of discord spread from families to villages: they embodied and called themselves fleets, and went out to meet and fight each other: hitherto they knew no other difference or . distinction, than that of their villages or townships; which, from their names, they called the Nappack fleet and the Bawn fleet: a third set, living about Bunker's-hill between Newry and Armagh, associated to defend themselves against the Nappack fleet, and calling themselves defenders joined the Bawn fleet. Many on both sides were armed: and as far back as 1785, near a thousand men on both sides met for a regular engagement, which was fortunately prevented by some gentlemen of property, who had been apprized of their intentions. When once associations of this sort have formed themselves into bodies, it is impossible that the spirit of discord, or revenge, or even frolic, should not carry them beyond their original intentions and lead them into new mischief, arising out of the fortuitous circumstances of their unguarded warmth. In this part of the country, the religious division of the population was different from most other districts in Ireland: the Protestants were the more numerous, and of these the greater part were Presbyterians. As the discord and animosity increased, some accidental differences about religion blew up a religious dissension

amidst both parties: and, in process of time, they formed into a new division, and enlisted under the opposite banners of the Protestant and Catholic religions. Of all grounds of dissensions, religion is ever the most inveterate, and most to be dreaded. A tumultuary spirit had so long pervaded these unfortunate people, that as they had once armed and arrayed themselves for combat, they would not it seems part or disarm without fighting. This new marshalling of their whole force soon gave rise to different appellations: for the Protestants taking advantage of the laws against Papists having arms, paid their antagonists very early domiciliary visits to search for arms, in which they were often guilty of the most wanton outrages; they ac quired the appellation of Peep of Day Boys: whilst the others assumed that of Defenders. The consequence of this new division of parties was, that their mutual ferocity increased, and frequent rencounters terminated in blood. Certain it is, that by timely and vigorous exertions of government, this spirit of dissension and outrage might have been at any time subdued and extinguished; but unfortunately the unhappy differences were permitted to be fomented by gentlemen of the country for electioneering or other worse purposes. Hence the fatal origin of defenderism.

Either for the purpose or under the pretence of checking this spirit of turbulence and outrage, in this year recourse again was had to the raising of some volunteer corps, by way of strengthening, as it was said, the arm of the civil magistrate. It was not in the nature of things, that these volunteer corps, into which they refused to admit any Catholic, should not be more obnoxious to the defenders, than to the Peep of Day Boys: for although they should not have shewn favour or affection to any description of men disturbing the public tranquillity, yet it was the first part of their duty to disarm the defenders (being Papists), and in their arms had they for some time found their only safety and defence against their antagonists. Some occasional conflicts happened both between the Defenders and Peep of Day Boys,, and between the Defenders and the Volunteers. As a corps of volunteers in going to church at Armagh passed by a Catholic chapel, a quarrel arose with some of the congregation, and stones were thrown at the volunteers. After service, instead of avoiding the repetition of insult by taking another route, the volunteers procured arms, returned to the spot, and a conflict ensued, in which they killed some of the Catholic congregation. In consequence of these rencounters, and the defenders procuring and retaining what fire arms they could, the Earl of Charlemont, governor of the county, and the grand jury, published a manifesto against all Papists, who should assemble in arms, and also against any person, who should

attempt to disarm them without legal authority. In addition to these efforts, some of the Peep of Day Boys sought also to disarm their antagonists by means of the law: they accordingly indicted some of the defenders at the summer assizes of 1788; but Baron Hamilton quashed the indictments, and dismissed both parties with an impressive exhortation to live in peace and brotherly love. The Defenders about this time were charged with openly sending challenges both to the Peep of Day Boys and the volunteers to meet them in the field: the fact was, that the defenders certainly did look upon them both as one common enemy combined to defeat and oppress them: whilst therefore this open hostility between the two parties subsisted and rankled under the daily festering sore of religious acrimony, the defenders, who knew themselves armed against law, though in selfdefence against the Peep of Day Boys, became the more anxious to bring their antagonists to an open trial of strength, rather than remain victims to the repeated outrages of their domiciliary visits, or other attempts to disarm them. Thus a private squab ble between two peasants gradually swelled into a village brawl, and ended in the religious war of a whole district. Some symp toms of renovated disturbances also broke out in the south. The prorogation of parliament, without having administered any relief to their grievances, was not likely to increase or spread amongst them a spirit of content or gratitude.

We now approach the period of Irish history, pregnant with those awful circumstances, which it has lately been the study, affectation, or rage of modern writers to connect with the late Irish rebellion in whatever manner it best suited their views, interests, or passions: and as the incorporate union of the two kingdoms followed so closely upon the heels of that rebellion, it becomes the historian's duty to conduct his reader by an uninterrupted chain of facts to that eventful period of union, which it is the wish of every loyal subject of his majesty may, as it certainly ought to be productive of accumulative and permanent prosperity to the British empire. Whoever has lived to see and reflect impartially upon the awful effects of the last twelve years in the political turns of human government, will allow the superior necessity, at the present above any former period, of Inattention to this tranascribing effects to their real causes. scendent duty of the statesman in Ireland, appears to have been immediately productive of many of those disasters, which the tears of a century will not efface.

From the year 1779, when Lord Clare tells us, that the imbecility of Lord Buckinghamshire's government had arrayed the volunteer army, the whole Irish nation had been successively seized with a spirit of civil freedom and independence, which had not been felt, or at least had not been shewn for several

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preceding centuries We have traced that spirit through its several gradations to its zenith: and when by its undaunted perseverance it had procured all it demanded in 1782, we have observed it at first disjointed by internal difference, and when weakened by division, we have seen it bought up or worked down by all the allurements, power, and influence of government. From the recal of the Duke of Portland, every measure of vernment had a tendency to extinguish the national spirit, to which alone the legislative independence of Ireland was owing. The defection of the members from the general popularity of their sentiments in 1782, was at first rapid with the change of administration in all those, who systematically supported the minister of the day. These numerically secured a majority; but the great landed interests of the country remained for a time staunch to the principles by which their country had become free and independent: with them lay the weight of property, of talent, and natural influence over all that part of the nation, which had not bartered their freedom for emolument or lucre. Although the minister commanded considerably more than two thirds out of the three hundred votes in the commons, yet so hardly were they pressed by the minority, both as to the popularity of the subjects brought under the discussion of parliament, and the superior abilities, with which they were urged, that the lord lieutenant almost indetently curtailed the duration of the session, to the great dissatisfaction of the minority within and the majority out of parliament. Mr. Yelverton's bill and all the transactions in the year 1782, had been adopted upon the genuine principles of Whiggism, which the Duke of Portland at that time professed, and every true friend of the Marquis of Rockingham practised.

In the autumn of this year, it was the will of Heaven to visit the British empire with a most distressful calamity. A circumstance, which placed Ireland in a more peculiar delicacy of situation, than any other part of the empire. Soon after the recess of the British parliament in the middle of July, 1788, the king, who had been for some time rather indisposed, was advised by his physicians to try the mineral waters of Cheltenham, which seemed to promise the re-establishment of his health. During his residence there, his majesty amused himself and gratified his people by various excursions in the vicinity of that place, displaying on these occasions much condescension and affability, and being every where received with extraordinary demonstrations of joy. On his return to Windsor, his illness returned with new and alarming symptoms; and in the month of October it was generally rumoured, that the malady of the king was of a nature peculiarly afflicting. It was however the natural wish of the court, that it should not be credited by the