REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE OF SECRECY. The COMMITTEE of SECRECY, to whom the feveral Papers which were prefented (fealed up) to the House by Mr. Secretary DUNDAS upon the 23d Day of January, 1799, by His Majefty's Command, were referred; and who were directed to examine the Matters thereof, and report the fame, as they fhall appear to them, to the Houfe, HAVE proceeded, in obedience to the orders of the House, to the confideration of the matters teferred to them. They have been prevented from fooner laying before the Houfe the refult of their examination, not only from the extent of the matters which came before them; but because fome of the recent circumftances which they have to state, could not, with propriety, have been difclofed at an earlier period. In the whole courfe of their inquiry, your Committee have found the cleareft proofs of a fyftematic defign, long fince adopted and acted upon by France, in conjunction with domeftic traitors, and pursued up to the prefent moment with unabated perfeverance, to overturn the laws, conftitution, and goverument, and every exifting establishment, civil or ecclefiaftical, both in Great Britain and Ireland; as well as to diffolve the connection between the two kingdoms, fo neceffary to the fecurity and profperity of both. The chief hope of accomplishing this design has refted on the propagation of those destructive principles which originally produced the French revolution, with all the miferies and calamities fince experienced in France, and now extended over a large part of Europe. The most effectual engine employed for this purpofe, has been the inftitution of political focieties, of a nature and description before unknown in any country, and inconfiftent with public tranquillity, and with the exiftence of regular government. The effects of this fatal caufe, operating in its fullest extent, have been unhappily felt and exemplified in the distractions and calamities of Ireland. The fame caufe is known to have prepared the way for all the different revolutions by which France has fucceeded in fubverting fo many of the governments of Europe, and reducing fo many independent independent states to vaffalage and fubjection. In this coun try, fimilar meafures have been attempted; and although they have been hitherto defeated, by the precautions of the Legiflature, by the vigilance of his Majefty's Government, and ftill more by the general good fenfe and loyalty of the nation, the object is not abandoned. The utmost diligence is ftill employed in endeavouring, not only to sustain and revive thofe focieties whofe feditious and treasonable purpofes long fince attracted the notice of Parliament, but to extend their correfpondence to every part of this kingdom, to Ireland, to France, and to thofe places on the continent where French emiffaries are established; and to institute new focieties, formed precifely on the fame plan, and directed by the fame object, as thofe whofe influence in Ireland has produced fuch pernicious and formidable effects; and of which, the confequences might have proved fatal to that kingdom, if they had not been averted in a season of the greatest difficulty, by the wifdom, firmness, and exertion of his Majesty's Government, and the Parliament of Ireland. The extent and uniformity of this fyftematic confpiracy are equally ftriking. The formation and ftructure of all thefe focieties, in this country, in Ireland, and on the continent, are fimilar; their views and principles are the fame, as well as the means which they employ to extend their influence. A continued intercourfe and concert has been maintained from their first origin to the prefent moment; fometimes between the focieties themselves, fometimes between their leading members; and a frequent communication has been kept up with the Government of France; to which they appear to look as their protector and ally, and which has repeatedly furnished an afylum to thofe, who, on account of their principal fhare in these criminal transactions, have become fugitives or outlaws from the British dominions. In ftating the grounds of this opinion, although your Committee will have much and important new matter to lay before the Houfe; yet they will also be obliged to recall to the recollection of the House, many particulars which have already been brought under the confideration of Parliament, but on which new lights have been thrown by the events which have fince occurred, and by the fubfequent intelligence which has been received. The information which has been produced to your Committee, on the whole of this fubject has been moft ample and extenfive. The indifpen 7 M 2 fable fable neceffity of fecrecy, with refpe&t to the fources of manyparts of that intelligence, must be felt by the Houfe, as refulting from confiderations of good faith as well as public fafety. They are convinced, that the early and uniform defeat of all attempts to difturb the public tranquillity of this kingdom, is, in a very great degree, to be afcribed to the meritorious and laudable diligence of the perfons filling those departments of his Majesty's Government to which this duty has peculiarly belonged. They appear, during a long period of time, to have obtained early and accurate information of the chief defigns and meafures of the confpirators; and the ftriking manner in which the most important particulars of the fecret intelligence thus procured, have, in a great variety of inftances, been completely confirmed, by events now notorious to the world, and by the confeflion of parties concerned, entitles, in the opinion of your Committee, the whole of the information, derived from the fame fources, to the fulleft credit. SECT. I. View of the Nature and Syftem of the Society of United Irifbmen, as fully established in Ireland.-Your Committee are induced, in the firit inftance, to state the nature, extent, and influence, of the fociety of United Itifhmen; because this fociety has proved the most powerful engine, in the hands of the confpirators, against the Government of their country, which has ever yet been devised; and because its proceedings place, in the cleareft view, the real object of all focieties of this defcription, either in Ireland or Great Britain; the peculiar means by which they act; and the extreme danger which fuch focieties muft produce, whenever they are fully established. It is this which has givenexertion, confiftency, folidity, and force to the Irish rebellion; which has enabled the confpirators to form themselves, under the eye and in defiance of Government, into one body, compacted by one bond of union, under an oath of fidelity. and fecrecy; engaging themselves, in the first inftance, to mifprifion of treafon, and, fucceflively, to the perpetration of the most atrocious crimes. This fociety, thus united and combined, extended, itself, by its fubdivifions through every part of the kingdom; and was enabled to involve in one general confederacy, a very numerous defcription of individuals of almoft every clafs, connected with each other by a pledge of fecrecy, by confcioufnefs of guilt, and by the fenfe of perfonal danger, either from the violated laws of their country, or from the refentment and power of their affociates. affociates. Thefe bonds of union were ftrengthened by the ufe of fecret figns, frequently changed, and applied to dif ferent ranks in the confpiracy, for the purpose of preventing discovery. The fyftem, thus established, gradually acquired the means of disturbing the tranquillity of the country in all its parts; of impeding the execution of juftice, by forcible resistance to the authority of the laws; by the protection of accufed perfors; by the rescue of prisoners, the feizure of arms, and, at length, by the affaffination of informers, of witneffes, of magiftrates, and of jurymen; till, by the general terror which was diffused, the loyal inhabitants in different counties were fucceflively driven into the towns, or compelled wholly to quit the kingdom. At the head of this extenfive confpiracy was placed a committee, terming itself " an Executive Directory," extending its influence and power over the difaffected through every part of the kingdom by "provincial and baronial Committees ;" through whom, and by the mission of itinerant delegates over the country, an univerfal correfpondence was established between this executive directory and all the fubordinate powers and members of this fyftem. An intercourfe was maintained, in the name of the whole, with individuals and focieties in this country, as well as with the government of his Majesty's enemies; and the confpirators were thus enabled to conceal or difplay their numbers at will, and confequently to magnify their power, or to hide their weaknefs; to circulate, with rapidity and effect, the moft atrocious calumnies against his Majefty's perfon and government, and against all defcriptions and bodies of men whom they thought it their intereft to vilify; to raise contributions, extorted frequently even from those who had not become members of their Union; to procure, difperfe, and conceal arms, ammunition, and artillery; to collect military information; and, finally, to raise an army formed of all thofe among them capable of bearing arms, and placed under the command of officers, in military divifions, correfponding with thofe cftablished for the general purposes of the confpiracy. It is material to ftate, in detail, the formation of the different branches of this fyftem, in order to compare it with the institutions of a fimilar nature, which have been * Report of Secret Committee of the Houfe of Lords of Ireland, August 17, 1798. : Lince fince formed in Great Britain, and which will be hereafter mentioned. Each of the inferior focieties confifted, according to their original inftitution, of thirty-fix members; which number was afterwards reduced to twelve. These twelve chose a fecretary and treasurer; and the secretaries of five of these focieties formed what was called “a Lower Baronial Committee;" which had the immediate direction and fuperintendance of those five societies. From each lower baronial committee, thus conftituted, one member was delegated to an "Upper Baronial Committee;" which, in like manner, affumed and exercised the superintendance and direction of the lower baronial committees in the respective counties. The next fuperior committees were, in populous towns, diftinguished 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 diftrict or county committee; and the district or county committees had the fuperintendance and direction of the upper baronial committees. Having thus "organized" (as it is termed) the feveral counties and populous towns, a committee, called "a Subordinate Directory," was erected in each of the four provinces of Ulfter, Leinster, Munster, and Connaught, compofed of two members or three, according to the extent and population of the diftricts which they reprefented; who were delegated to a provincial committee, which held the immediate direction and fuperintendance of the feveral county and district committees in each of the four provinces; and a " General Executive Directory," compofed of five perfons, was elected by the provincial directories; but the election of this directory was fo managed, that none but the fecretaries 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 thofe on whom the election devolved; and the executive directory, thus compofed, affumed and exercised the fupreme and uncontrolled command of the whole body of the Union, which, by these fecret modes of election, was kept utterly ignorant who were the persons to whom this implicit obedience was paid. SECT. II. Inflitution of United Irishmen in 1791; and Rife of different Societies in Great Britain.-For the purpose of obtaining a comprehenfive view of the attempts which have been repeatedly made, in the courfe of the laft eight years, for establishing a fimilar fyftem in this country, and of |