hereafter mentioned. Each of the inferior societies consisted, according to their original institution, of thirty-six members; which nuinber was afterwards reduced to twelve. These twelve chose a secretary and treasurer; and the secretaries of five of these societies formed what was called A Lower Baronial Committee;' which had the immediate direction and superintendance of those five societies. Froin each Lower Baronial Committee, thus constituted, one member was delegated to an Upper Baronial Committee;' which in like manner, assumed and exercised the superintendance and direction of the Lower Baronial Committeesin therespective counties. The next superior committees were in populous towns, distinguished by the name of District Committees,' and in counties, by the name of County Committees ;' and were composed of members delegated by the Upper Baronial Committees, each Upper Baronial Committee delegating one of its members to the District or County Committee; and the District or County Committees had the superintendance and direction of the Upper Baronial Commit. tees. Having thus organized' (as it is termed) the several counties and populous towns, a committee, called A Subordinate Directory,' was erected in each of the four provinces of Ulster, Leinster, Munster, and Connaught, composed of two members or three, according to the extent and population of the districts which they represented; who were delegated to a Provincial Committee, which held the immediate direction and superintendance of the several County and District Committees in each of the four provinces; and a General Executive Directory,' composed of five persons, was elected by the Provincial Directories; but the election of this Directory was so managed, that none but the secretaries of the Provincial Directories knew on whom the election fell. It was made by ballot, but not reported to the electors; the appointment was notified only to those on whom the election devolved; and the Executive Directory, thus composed, assumed and exercised the supreme and uncontrolled command of the whole body of the union, which, by these secret modes of election, was kept utterly ignorant who were the persons to whom this implicit obedience was paid. Sect. 2.-Institution of United Irishmen in 1791; and rise of different Societies in Great Britain. For the purpose of obtaining a comprehensive view of the attempts which have been repeatedly made, in the course of the last eight years, for establishing a similar system in this country, and of the means by which they have been hitherto defeated, as well as in order to enable the House to judge fully of the perseverance with which the system is pur *Report of Secret Committee of House of Lords of Ireland, August 17, 1798, sued, and of the nature and tendency of the measures which are carrying on at the present moment, your Committee deem it necessary before they advert to more recent transactions, to go back to that period, when societies of this tendency first appeared in both kingdoms, and to trace as shortly as they can, their progress and intercourse to the present time. The society of United Irishmen, was established in the year 1791; and other societies in Great Britain, particularly the Constitutional society (which had long existed, but about this time assumed a new character) the Corresponding society (which was instituted in the spring of 1792) and the societies of persons in Scotland terming themselves "The Friends of the People,' (which originated at nearly the same period) appear to have adopted, in their fullest extent, all the extravagant and violent principles of the French revolution. The events which followed, in the course of that year and the year 1792, encouraged among the leading members of these societies, and other persons of similar princi. ples, a sanguine hope of introducing, into both countries (under pretence of the reform of abuses) what they termed, a new order of things,' founded on the principles of that revolution. The degree of bigotry and enthu siasm with which they attached themselves to these principles, was manifested, as well by the speeches and writings of the members of the societies, as by the zeal with which they laboured to propagate, among the lower classes of the community, a spirit of hatred and contempt for the existing laws and go vernment of the country. It can hardly be necessary to recall to the recollection of the House, the industry with which they endeavoured to disseminate these sentiments by the circulation of their own proceedings and resolutions; uniformly directed to vilify the forms and principles of the British constitution; to represent the people of this country as groaning under intolerable oppression; to eradicate all religious principle; and to recommend a recurrence to expeperiments of desperate innovation similar to those which were at that time adopted in France. For the same purpose, the works of Paine, and other seditious and impious publications, were distributed, throughout almost every part of the kingdom, with an activity and profusion beyond all former example. So confident were the societies of the efficacy of these measures, that they appear almost universally to have looked forward from the beginning, to the entire overthrow of every existing establishment in these kingdoms, and to the creation of some democratical form of government; either by uniting the whole of the British empire into one re public, or by dividing it into two or more republics. The conspirators in Ireland, unquestionably, always meditated the complete separation of that country from Great Britain: all, however, considered themselves as en gaged in one common cause, as far as related to the destruction of the existing constitution; all looked to the success of the disaffected in each country as forwarding their common views; and each was ready to support the other in any resistance to the lawful government; a frequent intercourse among them was therefore considered as important to their ends; and they all invited, or expected, the countenance and aid of France. The attempts made in the beginning of this conspiracy, to disguise the real objects under false pretences, which ought at no time to have imposed even on superficial observers, have long since been abandoned. quent transactions have not merely shown Subsethe extremes to which the nature and principles of these societies naturally led, but have completely unveiled the original and settled designs of the persons chiefly concerned in them. Your Committee beg leave, in this place, to refer the House to his Majesty's proclamation of the year 1792, and the several addresses of both Houses of Parliament thereupon; to the reports of the Committees of Parliament in this kingdom and in Ireland; and to the different trials for treason and sedition in both kingdoms. And they are confident, that an attentive examination of those documents can leave no doubt in the opinion of the House (even on the circumstances known at that early period) respecting the real nature and extent of the original conspiracy. 66 1792; and set forth in the Appendix (No. 1), [586 in which the united Irish address the Scotch delegates, in what they term "the spirit of civic union, in the fellowship of a just and Scotch did not consider themselves as merged common cause;" and rejoiced, and melted down into another country:" but "that the that in the great national question to which the address alluded, "they were still ScotUnited Irish, was also the cause of the Scotch land." They added, "that the cause of the delegates;" that "universal emancipation, with representative legislature, was the polar principle which guided the society of United legislature, their means, a union of the Irishmen;" that their end was "a national whole people." And they recommended assembling the people in each country in, what they term, convention;" the object of which they attempted to disguise by the pretence of reform peaceable and constitutional and petition to parliament. Several members of the Scotch Convention appear to have been alarmed at the language of this address, and notwithstanding the efforts of Muir, no answer was sent; and the meeting adjourned assembly, formed part of the charge of sedito April 1793. The conduct of Muir, in this tion, upon which he was afterwards tried and found guilty. His zeal, however, recommended him to the conspirators in Ireland; and on the 11th of January 1793, he became a member of the Society of United Irishmen of Dublin. He was absent in France at the time of the second meeting of the Scotch and again adjourned itself to the 29th of OcConvention, which assembled in April 1793, tober following; when it met a third time at Edinburgh, after the trial of Muir, who was August 1793. convicted and sentenced for transportation in afterwards escaped from the place of his It is well known, that he transportation, and has recently resided in most inveterate hostility to his country. France, pursuing a conduct marked by the Sect. 3.-First open Attempt in Scotland. The groundwork having been thus laid in each kingdom, the first public attempt, which was openly directed to the object of overthrowing the government, and effecting a revolution, was made in Scotland; under circumstances, which even then evidently marked the connexion between the disaffected throughout his Majesty's dominions assembly, styling itself, "A General ConvenAn tion of Delegates from the Societies of the Friends of the People throughout Scotland," in October 1793, appears to have been held *This meeting of the Scotch Convention met at Edinburgh on the 11th of December in concert with several societies in England, 1792. Thomas Muir, a leading member of and particularly the Constitutional Society this assembly, endeavoured to prevail upon and the London Corresponding Society, alits members, at one of their meetings, to re-ready mentioned. These societies afterwards ceive, and answer, a paper, intituled, “An Address from the Society of United Irishmen in Dublin to the Delegates for promoting a Reform in Scotland;" dated the 23d of November * Proclamation and Addresses, 1792; Lords' Report, 1794; Commons' Report, May, 1794: ditto, ditto, June, 1794; Irish Lords Report, 1798; Commons ditto, 1798. Trial of Muir, Skirving, Margarot, Gerald, Palmer, and others, for sedition in Scotland in 1793 and 1794; of Watt and Downie for treason in Scotland in 1794; of Hardy and others for treason in 1794; of Redhead al. Yorke for sedition in 1795; of Stone for treason in 1796. sent delegates to the Scotch Convention; the Hamilton Rowan, a member of the Society Report of the Secret Committee of House of Commons, June 1794, distinct character of delegates, but they were | Scotland for sedition, and sentenced to trans received with marked attention; and the Con-portation. The members of this Convention, vention resolved, on the 5th of November notwithstanding the arrest of some of their 1793," that any of the members of the So- body, assembled again on the 5th of Decem ciety of United Irishmen of Dublin should be ber, and refused to disperse till compelled by admitted to speak and vote in the Conven- the magistrates; but they continued for some tion." On the 22d of November 1793, the time to meet privately, in different societies, Convention had changed its title to that of and to carry on a secret correspondence with "The British Convention of Delegates of the various parts of England and Scotland. People, associated to obtain Universal Suf- The Society of United Irishmen of Dublin, frage and Annual Parliaments." They as- who had already shown the interest they took sumed, in almost every particular, the style in the meeting of this Convention, appear (as and mode of proceeding adopted by the Na- was to be expected) to have considered its tional Convention of France; they divided dispersion as hostile to their views, and dethemselves into 'sections, committees of or-clared their sentiments, by a resolution of the ganization, instruction, finance, and secrecy;' granted honours of sitting;' made honourable mention' in their minutes of patriotic donations; entered their minutes "in the first year of the British Convention;" instituted" Primary societies, provisional assemblies and departments:" received from their sections a variety of motions and reports, some of which, in their studied affectation of French phrases, had the words, "Vive la Convention," prefixed to them, and ended with "ga ira" and some were dated "First Year of the British Convention One and Indivisible." The views of this dangerous assembly, appear from the minutes of their proceedings, and from the correspondence of Skirving their secretary, Margarot, and Gerald, the delegates of the London Corresponding Society, and Hardy, the secretary of that society; which are stated in the report of the Committee of this House in 1794, and in the Appendix to that Report, and were given in evidence on the trials above referred to. 20th December, 1793; in which, after no- of the People in England. The leading English societies, which have been already stated to have sent delegates to the Scotch Convention, and, during its sittings, and for a considerable time previous thereto, been actively employed in measures directed to similar objects. For the purpose of promoting their seditious projects, they had carried on a constant correspondence with all the numerous country societies, which had been formed in many populous towns in dif ferent parts of the kingdom. They had, as early as in May 1792, presented an address, sufficiently expressive of their principles, to those whom they styled, "The Friends of the Constitution at Paris, known by the name of Jacobins." In the end of the same year, after receiving a letter of approbation from persons calling themselves "Friends of Liberty and equality in France," they instituted a regular committee of foreign correspon dence; and they had even proceeded to present addresses to the National Convention in France, which had then assumed the whole legislative and executive power, and was as sembled for the purpose of framing a new constitution, and proceeding to the trial of the King. In one of these addresses, particularly noticed in the Report of 1794, but which your Committee think it material again to advert to, they styled the Convention, Servants of a Sovereign People, and Benefactors of Mankind." They rejoice that the This Convention continued to hold its meet-revolution had arrived at that point of perings in the city of Edinburgh, until the 4th of December 1793; when its objects evidently tending towards open rebellion, some of the leading members were arrested, together with Skirving their secretary; and Skirving, Margarot, and Gerald, were afterwards tried in It is observable, upon the face of these minutes, that the funds of this convention were extremely low; so low, that perhaps at first sight the assembly itself may appear to have been rather an object of contempt, from the apparent inadequacy of its pecuniary means, than an object of alarm from the dangerous extravagance of its revolutionary designs. It is happy for the peace of this country, that the means of these societies, in their different shapes and stages, have not been more equal to such designs. But the recent proceedings in Ireland too plainly show, that though the want of money may retard the progress and cripple the exertions of such conspiracies, yet numbers thus leagued together for the total subversion of the government and constitution of a country, possess means which (if not seasonably counteracted) may introduce scenes of the most horrid confusion, rebellion, and blood. fection, which enabled them to address them by such a title. They extol the proceedings of the 10th of August as a glorious victory s and add, "The benefits will in part be ours, but the glory will be all your own; and it is the reward of your perseverance, the prize of ceeding from town to town, and from village to village, endeavouring to inculcate into the minds of those with whom they conversed, the necessity of such a measure, as that which they had in contemplation, for the reform of the abuses of the government, and the redress of the grievances of the people; and describing, in language varied according to the passions or prejudices of different classes whom they addressed, the nature and extent of the different political purposes, which might be effected by a convention, once assembled, The dispersion of Paine's works, and other works of a similar tendency, was at the same time continued with increased industry; and the societies flattered themselves that they had, by these means, really made a progress towards preparing a large portion of the nation to favour their project. virtue.” In January following, at the eve of the murder of the French king, and of the commencement of hostilities against this country, Barrere, Roland, and St. André, active members of the French Convention, had been elected honorary members of the Constitutional Society: and two speeches made by Rarrere and St. André, delivered for the express purpose of accelerating the condemnation and execution of the king, asserting the doctrines of the sovereignty of the people, and deducing, as its consequence, the unlimited rights of a National Convention, and the personal responsibility of the monarch, were entered on the books of the Constitutional Society; and the resolution for this purpose was published in the newspapers. Actuated by these principles, the English societies persevered in their design; and notwithstanding the dispersion of the meeting at Edinburgh, which had assumed the appellation of" The British Convention," proceeded on a plan, which they had long had in contemplation, for assembling, in England, a similar but more extensive meeting, under the appellation of " A Convention of the People." At a general meeting of the Corresponding Society, held at the Globe tavern, on the 20th January 1794, a resolution and address to the people of England were agreed to, and ordered to be published; expressly directed to the objeet of assembling a general convention of the people. At another general meeting of the same society, held at Chalk Farm, on the 14th of April 1794, among a variety of inflammatory resolutions, they declared, that the whole proceedings of the late British convention at Edinburgh, claimed their approbation and applause. They, at the same time, returned thanks to Archibald Hamilton Rowan, prisoner in Newgate, in the city of Dublin (who had in March 1794, been chosen an honorary member of the Constitutional Society), as well as to the Society of United Irishmen in Dublin, whom they exhorted to persevere in their exertions to obtain justice for the people of Ireland. The language held on different occasions evidently showed their intention of endeavouring to establish, by force, the authority of such a convention. They exhorted each other "To prepare couThis intended convention was prevented rageously for the struggle which they medi- from assembling by the arrest of the secretated;" and openly avowed that they meant taries, and of several members of the two soto obtain the redress, which they professed to cieties, called, The London Corresponding seek, not from parliament, not from the ex- Society,' and The Constitutional Society." ecutive government, but from themselves, and The secretaries and leading members of the from their own strength and valour; from societies at Sheffield and Norwich (which, totheir own laws, and not from the laws of those gether with several other subordinate societies whom they termed their plunderers, enemies in different parts of the kingdom, were in conand oppressors." For the purpose of assem-stant correspondence with them) were also bling such a convention, and of preparing the people at large to look to its proceedings with respect, and to adopt and countenance the doctrine and practices which it might recommend, itinerant members of the societies above-mentioned, dispersed themselves throughout different parts of the country, pro The zeal, indeed, of many of the country societies appears to have outrun the instructions of the agents, and to have carried them into discussions, beyond those limits which the persons who planned and instigated the measure, thought it prudent in the first instance to prescribe. The agents were instructed to confine the views of the several societies to whom they were deputed, and to point the wishes of individuals purely to the attainment of universal suffrage, from which, once established, it was represented that all the reforms which could be desired would naturally flow; and it appears to have been the design of those who directed the business, to prevent the premature discussion of any of those points, which they represented as subordinate, until after the convention should have been assembled, and this primary object of universal suffrage obtained. No caution or prohibition, however, could prevent many of the country societies from showing how confidently they anticipated, as the result to which the deliberations of that convention must necessarily lead, the abolition of monarchy, of aristocracy, and of other establishments, which they deemed equally oppressive; and the substitution of a representative government, founded on the new doctrine of the rights of man; and uniting, in one body, all the legislative and executive powers of the state. taken into custody. The attention of parliament was, at this period, directed to these proceedings; and in consequence of the evidence then laid before a secret committee of this House, the power of detaining suspected persons was intrusted to his majesty. The subsequent proceedings are sufficiently known. Some of the persons so arrested were prosecuted for high treason. A grand jury for the county of Middlesex found a bill against Thomas Hardy, the secretary of the London Corresponding Society, and eleven others. Three of the persons so indicted, viz. Thomas Hardy, John Horne Tooke, and John Thelwall, were tried, and, on their trials, were acquitted of the charge in the indictment. But the evidence given on those trials established, in the clearest manner, the grounds on which the committees of the two Houses of parliament had formed their reports in 1794; and showed, beyond a possibility of doubt, that the views of these persons and their confederates, were, in their nature, completely hostile to the existing government and constitution of this kingdom, and went directly to the subversion of every established and legitimate authority. establishment of a secret systém of direction, resembling that of the United Irishmen, was agreed to, and reduced to practice. Not contented with employing these means gradually to extend their influence through different parts of the kingdom, the leading members of these societies, shortly before the opening of the session of parliament in October 1795, called together an unlawful meeting in a field near the metropolis, evidently with a view of trying the temper of the populace. Under the pretence of Debates,' language of the most seditious and inflammatory nature was held to a large multitude, whom curiosity, or other motives, had assembled there, and the most daring libels were uttered against every part of the constitution of these realms. The public tranquillity appears to your committee to have been greatly endangered by this step; so exactly resembling that which fifteen years before had nearly led to the destruction of the metropolis: and your com After these acquittals, Henry Redhead, alias Yorke, who had been committed at the same time on a charge of high treason, was brought to trial at York, in July 1795, upon an indict-mittee are decidedly of opinion, that the ment for a seditious conspiracy; in which Joseph Gale, the printer of a news-paper at Sheffield, and Richard Davison, of Sheffield, both of whom had fled from justice, were included. Upon the trial of Yorke on this indictment, he was found guilty, and sentenced to two years imprisonment. shameful and highly criminal outrages which soon after took place on the first day of the session, are, in a great degree, to be ascribed to the influence of these inflammatory pro ceedings, and of this public and open violation of the laws. It is not without regret, that your committee feel themselves obliged Sect. 5.-Farther proceedings subsequent horrid and sacrilegious attempt against His to recall to the recollection of the House, the to the Arrests in 1794. The disclosures made upon these trials; the detentions already mentioned; and the powers vested in government by the "Act to empower His Majesty to secure and detain such Persons as His Majesty shall suspect are conspiring against His Person and Government," which received the royal assent on the 23rd of May 1794; broke, for a time, all the measures which had bean concerted by the disaffected, and obliged them to proceed with more 'caution and reserve. But they never appear for a moment to have relinquished their original design; and the nature and constitution of the Corresponding Society, which still subsisted, peculiarly qualified it secretly to continue its machinations, and to extend and diffuse its pernicious principles among the lower orders of the people. The plan of this constitution, as originally proposed, not having been stated in the reports before referred to, is inserted in the Appendix (No. 2.). It is evident that the overthrow of every part of the government and constitution of this kingdom, was in the immediate contemplation of those by whom this plan was formed; and that it was contrived with the view of being applied to the most extensive purposes, if they had succeeded in that object, and of enabling the conspirators, after the overthrow of the existing government, to usurp and exercise an uncontrolled authority over the whole kingdom. It does not appear that this plan was ever formally adopted; but so much of it as led to the Majesty's person, with which those outrages were accompanied. This alarming proof of the dreadful and desperate consequences which meetings and proceedings of such a description naturally tend to produce, made a deep impression on the minds of the public, and necessarily engaged the attention of parliament. On a full consideration of all the circumstances, the legislature, by salutary laws, strengthened the authority of the magistrate for the repression of sedition and tumult; provided fresh checks against meetings of a dangerous tendency, and of a description unknown in the history and constitution of this country; increased the penalties of obstinate and repeated guilt; and added a fresh safeguard to the sacred person of his majesty. One of the immediate effects of these measures was, to put a stop to a practice, which had too long been suffered in the metropolis, to the disgrace of all order and governmentthe open and regular delivery of public lectures, inculcating the doctrines of sedition and treason; inciting the hearers to follow the example of France, and animating them to the commission of the most atrocious crimes. This practice has not since been revived in the same shape; but many of the debating societies, which subsist at the present time, appear, to your committee, to be, in a great measure, directed to the same pernicious objects, and to require farther animadversion and correction. Some check was also given |