238 THE IRISH CHURCH. 



more might be granted, without trenching upon Protestant ascend- 

 ancy in Ireland. 



No one is mad enough, in the present age, to aim at preserving 

 ascendancy over the minds of men by legislation. Obedience in 

 outward act is all that can be hoped for. Nor can any but a small 

 portion of the "masculine" community uphold Lord Stanley in ex- 

 pecting proselytes to the Irish Church from the " forcing system." 

 It is fair to assume, that Protestant churches and parsons cannot 

 increase the " moral" ascendancy of the Protestant cause in Ireland, 

 in districts which do not provide a " quorum" for a congregation: In 

 such districts, the insolent pertinacity of the domineering system can 

 only tend to heighten the general exasperation against it. An unpre- 

 tending, conciliating, soliciting dissenter from the Established Church 

 might hope to gain some hold upon the esteem of his Catholic neigh- 

 bours, and, through personal esteem gradually insinuate his own 

 religious opinions into their friendly and unconscious breasts. But 

 the parson is the representative of those bitter grievances of tyranny 

 and spoliation, with which Irish history abounds ; there is an insu- 

 perable objection, a priori, to make overtures towards a good un- 

 derstanding with the parson ; by the inherent principles of human 

 nature the Catholic population must be set against him ; " charm he 

 never so wisely, they will refuse to hear his voice;" he will never 

 be able to win over his neighbours from the religious tenets of their 

 injured forefathers; his residence amongst them can only tend to 

 keep alive a flame of political animosity, which would else soon be 

 extinguished. Moral ascendancy then being impossible for Pro- 

 testants to acquire over their Catholic fellow-countrymen; and the 

 British constitution having patronized Protestantism, not from a reli- 

 gious, but mere political preference, in order to preserve the civil 

 liberties of the country, it is our business as politicians, and our duty 

 as men, to repudiate at once the proselytizing spirit of Lord Stanley 

 and his Tory friends. We cannot, try as we will, make Protestants 

 out of Irish Catholics ; therefore, it is folly to prate about preaching 

 the " pure word" to them : we are not warranted by the constitution to 

 meddle more with religious systems than may be requisite to preserve our 

 civil liberty in E?igland ; therefore, whether Protestants increase or dimi- 

 nish in Ireland, is no matter for our concern. The paramount duty of the 

 English portion of the empire at this moment is to do justice to and 

 conciliate the Irish portion. No question approaches within many 

 degrees of the importance of the Irish church question. No ministry 

 can deserve to be maintained for an hour which is not prepared to 

 make the fullest amends to our Irish fellow-countrymen. No branch 

 of our constitution must be left in its present state of organization 

 which will not consent to Irish measures at least as liberal as those 

 of the late Whig ministry. 



The Whig ministry has, indeed, accomplished wonders for us. 

 Lasting and unbounded be our thanks for its beneficent instrumen- 

 tality. Its Irish church measures were, too, highly valuable in one 

 respect, viz. in setting up the principle of accommodating the appro- 

 priation of church revenues to the relative numbers of Catholics and 

 Protestants. It will be a great gain if, by throwing at the present 



