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they offered the publication of the government proclamations, and advertisements, on condition

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mischief ends not here. As government must advertise their proclamations and other official notices (there being no Court Gazette in Ireland as in England), the preference of some out of the many daily prints rests in the direction of government. On the other hand, that discretion being unlimited, as to the number of favoured prints, but more particularly as to the senseless and frequent insertions of the official articles, long after their stale repetitions have become useless, a most wanton expence is thrown upon the public, which answers no other end, than to enlarge the bribe. To this species of abuse the Hon. C. H. Hutchinson referred so lately as the 20th of March, 1811, in the Imperial Parliament, on the report of the Irish supply, whilst he was urging the restoration of £5000 a year to Maynooth College, which the Bedford Administration had added to the original grant of £.8000, and which the Perceval Administration, had, in the first ebullition of their Anti-Catholic zeal, most illiberally taken from it. "The other night," said that Hon. Member, and staunch friend to the country, £.10,500 were "granted for the printing of proclamations. From that sum £.6000. "might have been safely deducted; for I am fully prepared to "prove that sum had been used for the most unworthy purposes." Mr. Parnell, as a true and indefatigable friend to his country, objected to the grant of that sum, as being for the express purpose of enabling government to bribe the press. Mr. Poole remarked, that the money was wanted solely for the purpose of giving publicity to the government advertisements; adding, that if it had been his intention to bribe the Irish press, he had lamentably failed; seeing, how roughly he had been handled by many of the Dublin papers. So audaciously oppressive and mischievous had been the conduct of the Irish government in the yeor 1810, that some of their long favoured d papers (particularly the Freeman's Journal) of the widest circulation could no longer sacrifice the cause of the people and the country to their own emolument. They freely exposed and commented on the measures of government, and were instantly punished for their po

1806.

1806.

of their admitting no article in their paper, which should set forth fairly the actual situation of the Threshers in the Western counties. Government was doubly anxious, that the English public should believe, that there was neither complaint nor cause of discontent remaining in Ireland. It was their pride to be thought capable of keeping the country in complete tranquillity without resorting to martial law or the suspension of the habeas corpus, which their predecessors had always insisted upon, as imperiously necessary for that purpose. proposal of government was rejected; and some true and very alarming accounts of the Threshers were brought before the public. They sometimes assembled in large bodies of several hundreds, dressed in white shirts or frocks, and faced the military for a time; but after some shots, they usually dispersed in confusion: probably from want of leaders or officers to command and enforce discipline. This also proves, that their assemblage

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litical honesty by the subtraction of the government advertisements and proclamations. To the honour of the Irish pressthree papers only, of very stinted circulation, have been so profligately venal, as solely to support and extol the system. Through these alone, which reach not ten hands, where the others do thousands, are all government notifications now exclusively conveyed to the community. To such pitiful degradation has the government descended to the Freeman's Journal, as to have issued, through its minister, a circular letter to all the public offices, even Paving Board, to withdraw their advertisements and subscriptions, and to the Chamberlain of Ceremonies, to prohibit the advertising the Castle drawing rooms, balls and levees. in that paper.

and views were momentary and local: merely anti-.. decimal, and in no manner organized or concerted for general revolutionary or rebellious purposes. It was a fresh and angry eruption, from the old sore of many years standing on the body of the Irish peasantry, which Mr. Pitt had in his contemplation in the year 1799, but which even he with all his prejudices against the country, broadly discriminated from the question of emancipation, with the false hopes of which in his speech on proposing the measure of Union he insidiously buoyed up the Catholic body*. They usually assembled. early in the mornings, and destroyed whatever tythe corn fell in their way. In the month of November they took 11 tythe stacks from the haggard of a man in the neighbourhood of Ballina, and strewed them along the road up to the very town itself. They made domiciliary visits both by night and day in houses and cabins for arms, which they took without perpetrating any further out

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Catholics

The return of Lord Lauderdale to London, upon Dissolution pf Parliathe unsuccessful termination of our negociation ment, and with France, was quickly followed by a dissolution address to of the Parliament. The remainder of the nearly engrossed by the new elections. Some in

year was

*« How far, in addition to this great and leading consideration, (namely, the emancipation of the Roman Catholics) it " may be also wise and practicable to accompany the measure, by some mode of relieving the lower classes from the pressure "of tythes, which in many instances operate at present, as a great practical evil.”

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Mr. Grat

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effectual efforts were made to stimulate the electors to demand of every candidate a test of his political creed, and to take security for his acting up to it, when returned to Parliament. The only election incident, which involved in it any national interest, was the address of the Catholic citizens of Dublin to Mr. Grattan on his return for that city, which will transmit to posterity an estimable monument of proper feelings and a delicate sense of honor in both parties.

"At a Meeting of Catholic Citizens of Dublin, holden on the 13th December 1806, Denis Thomas O'Brien, Esq. in the Chair.

"Resolved, That it is a duty incumbent on us to provide, that Mr. Grattan's late election for this city shall not be attended with any expence to

him.

"Resolved, That it appears to this meeting, that a fund sufficient for that purpose, has been subscribed by the Catholics of Dublin.

"Resolved, that the following address be presented to the Right Hon. Henry Grattan.

“SIR,

"Accept the congratulation of the Catholic citizens of Dublin on the event of your election. Friend and favourite of the people, you it peculiarly befits to represent in Parliament the first city of a land, which owes to your exertions its franchises and its prosperity. It was the triumph of

Ireland, when the most conspicuous distinction, 1906. which any of its commoners can now receive from popular approbation, was placed upon that brow, to which genius, patriotism, public service, and public virtue conspired to direct it. In placing you, Sir, at the head of its representation, the city of Dublin has rendered justice to itself: it has averted the national injury, which must have been sustained by your retirement, or the national disgrace, if any place of inferior note had been permitted to confer the trust of legislation upon the habitual guardian of this country's rights; upon the man, whose name, for thirty years has been connected with every improvement, which has been adopted or proposed, constitutional or commercial. Under any circumstances the acces sion of your talents, of your character, of your authority to the councils of the Empire would have been valuable; but it becomes, indeed, important as great emergencies arise, and at a moment, when many concerns of this Member of the State appear urgently to press for legislative arrange-, ment. In this great act of national honor and national duty, it was our misfortune not to have cooperated so effectually, as we wished, notwithstanding the liberal provisions enacted in 1793. So inoperative have been the laws designed to relieve us, that not a single individual of our body was, on the late election, enabled to vote as a freeman of Dublin; one mode remains, by which we can associate ourselves to the merit of this event; frequent and even late examples authorize

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