fented the conftitution of 1782 to be in danger; the people were told that their liberty and happiness could not furvive the ratification of this agreement. Every art which could delude a credulous, unfufpecting, uninveftigating nation, was practifed, and with fuccefs; every topic of pride and felf-importance was urged to a people, whofe paffions, and weakness, and propenfities have ever been the triumph of its enemies. The commercial detail of the propofitions was not examined; it was loft in their conftitutional effect. The cry of condemnation became general, and the measure failed. Since the commencement of the prefent war, England has experienced all the difficulties which are incident to the ftate of hoftility, and which required the utmost vigilance and exertion of her Government. The common enemy has been unwearied in his aggreffions, and fingularly active and copious in his refources. He has profecuted the war by internal treachery, and fubdues nations by detaching fubjects from their government. Among the numerous objects which his principles have deluded, and his ftratagems beguiled, Ireland is moft confpicuous and unfortunate. The enemy law that, through her, the power of Britain might receive an irrecoverable blow, and that she had not only much to reward, but to folicit his attention. Her puculiar government had generated much abuse, which her imperfect connection with England had rather promoted than corrected. Great inequality of civil rights had divided her people; and a difpofition of hoftility towards Great Britain, and for the feparation of the countries, had progreffively advanced. The enemy has fully availed himself of the ftate of Ireland, and befies the activity of his enmity towards great Britain in every way in which he was vulnerable, his interference has been courted and invited by the difaffected in Ireland. To refer to the particulars of the correfpon E 2 dence dence between the French Government and the Societies of United Irishmen is unneceffary. The Re port of the Committees of both Houfes laft feflions is full and fatisfactory in its developement, not only of the rebellion itself, but of all the preceding fteps and machinations which led to the unhappy confe quences, and prepared and organized the nation for open violence. This Report contains a demonftration as clear as the mind of man can expect on any subject, that to separate these countries was the fole ruling object of the United Societies; that all their demands of reform and of juftice to the Ca tholic, were colourable only, they were pretencés to deceive the unthinking, to bribe the interested, and to force Government to conceffions, which by gradual encroachment would undermine its whole fyftem. The founder of the Society of United Irishmen in Dublin, the mifery of whofe laft days thould convey fome morality to the wicked, made it the bafis and the first principle of the Irish Union, that connexion with Britain was ruinous to Ireland. It is this paramount object only which gives confiftency and uniformity of character to all the measures and proceedings of that execrable Society: and this fame principle, Tone maintained on his trial, and fealed with his death: and one of the self-convicted traitors, now in cuftody, had the confidence to make the fame profeffion at the bar of Parliament, and to enter particularly into argument that Ireland could exift as an independent nation unconnected with Great Britain! And it does appear by the fame parliamentary report that it was determined folemnly: by the Union not to be diverted from their great purpose by any conceffion of Parliament, or any acquiefcence to their demands. After the review which has been taken of the hiftory of Ireland, and the particular facts which have been adduced, the fupplement of evidence which is furnished by the late rebellion, establishes, beyond beyond all doubt, that a great degree of restleffness and difquiet has long prevailed in Ireland; that her lower claffes of people have been uniformly turbulent, and untractable, qualities which indifpofed them to the dominion of England, from the peaceful habits and fubordination it would produce; that relis gious difference and the jealoufies of property forfeited by rebellion, and transferred to English fettlers, have promoted and inflamed their prejudices; and that they are ignorant, perfidious, and credulous. It appears alfo, that the American war, and the revolution in France, have produced a ftrong difpofition for change, and for new-modelling eftablifhed governments; that this fpirit has had extenfive influence in Ireland; that the American war feparated Ireland from the English Legiflature; that the conduct of the Irish Parliament in 1789 endangered the only connexion which remained, that of the executive; and that in the prefent war the dependency of Ire land on the English Crown has been preferved by the force of arms only, A feries of continual efforts anticipated the, conftitutional change of 1782. From the time of the Revolution attempts had been made to eftablish a feparate legiflature, and the embarraffment of Britain in the American war produced its accomplishment. The King's malady and fufpenfion of the royal power produced the extraordinary decifion in 1789; and the confpiracy and rebellion in 1798 were preceded by the reception of French principles, the new enthufiafin of democracy, and by reiterated complaints against the fyftem of corrupt influence, which after the feparation of the legislatures remained the only poffible mode of keeping the countries together; and this confpiracy and rebellion took effect when Britain was involved in a war, the unprecedented nature of which required that the fhould direct her whole attention, and pour out her whole ftrength, against the efforts of the common enemy. Every Every man therefore who regards the British empire is called upon to confider with seriousness and attention the prefent ftate of Ireland. That there exifts within that country a confiderable body of men ftrongly difpofed to effect a difmemberment of the empire, is beyond feepticifm to deny; and that this difpofition is artfully concealed under public profeffions of attachment to the conftitution of England, and of claims for its full participation by reforming the parliamentary representation, and giving the people more efficacy, is equally clear and indifputable. And it cannot be denied that the vices of the Irish government, its ariftocracy, and enlarged and unqualified corruption, are fufficient to give colouring to popular complaints, and to alienate the people from a connection with England, which feems to require fuch odious and mifchievous fupports. Thefe vices can be no longer tolerated. A government which defpifes public opinion cannot long exift. The public authorities fhould be refpected, and the people fhould have confidence in the legislature. When abuses are carried to an extent which no one attempts to juf tify, which all are ready to condemn, and which provoke fome to acts of rebellion, the public fafety is endangered, and this danger is much heightened by the extraordinary occurrences of these days, in which the fall of an ancient and venerable monarchy has shaken the states of Europe to their foundation, and in which an infolent and prefumptuous democracy affects univerfal dominion by her principles as well as arms. Ireland has confederated, and Britain is at war with this democracy. If it flood therefore on the mere footing of policy and of selfintereft with Great Britain, it is impoffible for her any longer to fleep over the affairs of Ireland; the .cannot abandon her to the enemy; fhe cannot confent to her own difmemberment and difgrace. But claims of a higher nature and views, fuch as be come come Great Britain, call for her immediate interference. The late rebellion has rekindled the heat of religious bigotry, and revived the animofities of party. Thefe divifions in Ireland are marked with uncommon virulence, and accompanied with pecufiar atrocities. To reprefs their violence and extend the King's protection to all his Irish subjects, is now a difficult exertion of his government; but the very moment in which the prefent vigilance is intermitted, or that any change of government is conceded, which fhall leffen the King's influence in Ireland, and augment the popular power, at that inftant the torch of civil fury will again light that unhappy country to new fcenes of murder and defolation. The United Irishmen and the whole clafs of the difaffected are now directing their whole attention to force a Parliamentary Reform. In this purfuit they are joined by many men of good intentions, who lament the prefent faults in the mode of adminiftering the government of Ireland, but who have not examined the origin of thefe faults, nor the neceffity which has produced and continues them, and who are equally unconfcious and unfufpecting of the confequences which would infallibly refult from the attainment of fuch a measure. A democratic House of Commons in Ireland, and connection with England, cannot exift together; they are incompatible. England would foon be driven to the deplorable neceffity of maintaining her dominion by direct and continued war, or abandoning Ireland to the extravagance of popular afcendancy, and the defigns of the common enemy. That an independent Houfe of Commons would establish a republic in Ireland is as certain as any event can be which is future, and which the mind of man can forefee and anticipate, reafoning from what has happened, to what inay happen, from the certainty of past experience to the probable dependency of like effects on like caufes in the great feries of hu man |