]S05l 



Ireland', 



4§5 



?nd eloquent orators, fliat ever adorned the 

 Irish bar or ilie Irish Senate. Hi» Lordship 

 was about 70 years of age, a d is succeeded 

 in his titles by the Hon. Wm. Yeiverton,_ 

 who ma-^ried Mary the elf^est daughter of 

 John Read, esq. of Fareham. 



In Dublin, .-ivchur Browne, efq. L L D. 

 his Mr.jefty's Prime Serjeant, a'ld Se- 

 nior Fellow of tlie Univerlity of Dublin.— 

 Dr. Krowne w.is a native of America, wiiich 

 country he Kft at an early a'^e. He was 

 gifted with pov/erful mentil talen's, which 

 he improved by aliToft inceflant ftuay, and an 

 intercourfe wuh the mod virtuous and mod 

 able patriot fcholars and patriot politicians of 

 his day. From every field wliere inlorma- 

 tion or improvecnent might be had, he reap- 

 ed a noble portion ; and as he reipedas much 

 for the advantage of otiieis as himfelf, a 

 number of the Iriih \outh are at this moment 

 in pofleflion of a confiderable ihare of his vaft 

 indullry. For many years no perfon in the 

 Univerlity was more beloved than Dr. 

 Browne— he was the idol of the ftudents — ■ 

 they loved him with the affeiSion of fond 

 children, for he ftrove to retain their atrec- 

 tions by a fuavity of temper peculiarly his 

 own. They gave him in return their beft 

 and mod honourable gift— cliey appointed 

 him their reprefcntative in tha national legif- 

 lature, and the Irilh Houfe of Commons for 

 many years liften^d with furprife and admi- 

 ration to his virtuous and ador.ied Itnguage. 

 yirtutis amor feemed to be his leading ftar, 

 and at one period of his life whoever denied 

 this would have appeared ahfurd and hereti- 

 cal in the eves of his appiauding coni^ituents. 

 On queftions of great natio.nal impo tance, 

 Dr. Browne could fpeak with furprifing cf- 

 fefl ; with little fubjefls he feldom inter- 

 fered. When Attachments were the order 

 of the day, he brought all his talents into 

 attioii, and uf" 'iie nijlt vigorous intellec- 

 tual efl'-^rts to prctecl tne liberty of the fub- 

 jeft ai!ainlt tlii encroachments of power and 

 oppreihoo. His countrymen will not readily 

 forget the zeal with which he protefled the 

 freedom of the prefs, that grand bulwark of 

 our liberties. His mind appeared bont on ac- 

 complilhing every thing that might tend to 

 fupport that eflVntial privilege, and his ef 

 fort* were not always unf.iccefsful. (!)n the 

 Place and Penfian iiill». Catholic Enn'^cipa- 

 tion, and the Sufpenfion of the Habeas Cor- 

 pus, he exerted himfelf to the aftonilhmcnt 

 of every one who he,ird him. Nor were his 

 pri' ciples confined within the walb of Par- 

 liame.iti he avowed thrm out of do'-rs, and 

 his ingenuous avoAal foon rouftJ tilt, fufpi- 

 cions and petulant indignation of Lord Chan- 

 cellor Clare, who, when he vilitc 1 the Uni- 

 vcrfity in 1791?, thought prop' r to diredi in- 

 finuations ajjainft the ciuradhr of Doitor 

 Browne. Hut the fair fame of a juil fenator 

 f/Jt out taruifhcd by the afpcrlluiM of a 



ftatefman who libelled eyery one that chanc- 

 ed to hold an opinion riitier nt from l.is own ; 

 it was too ftrong to break at the feeble blati 

 of a black inquifitor, and it happily furvived 

 his utmot m-.levolence. With the 0^^'>fir 

 tion, it was either the deiire or chance of 

 Dr. Browns to afl'ociate ; hi fiipportcd their 

 leading meafures ; he rtiared his ailvocacy 

 v/jth theirs in behalf of parliamen'.ary re- 

 form, and in the Whig Club, thofe fcntj- 

 mcnts he proclaimed as a legiflator, he re- 

 peated as a freeman. He was a profciVed ene- 

 my to the abufe of power, and always (tooi 

 forward the champion of the people, whea 

 meafures were propofed in the Houfe of Com- 

 mons which he conceivel injurious to th..-:r 

 lights or prejudicial to their iiiterells. He 

 detefted bigotry as a monfter incompa- 

 tible with civil or religious liberty, and ho 

 defpifed all who worfhiopcd it. When a 

 number of the adherents of the anti-muiille- 

 rial party were induced to abandon th-ir old 

 attachment, Dr, Browne was forcmoft in 

 condemning their apoftacy ; his language at 

 that time, was forcible and brillianr \ he 

 amazed and {hook tiie Senate ; according to 

 a celebrated Greek author, " He was the 

 writer or interpr-ter, dipping his pen into 

 M:nd." He alked, " To what purpof-s ai« 

 fin\f!, wealth, and honour now dire*?ied ?'*, 

 and he followed the qu-ftion by this me- 

 morable reply : — " To the love of pelf, ta 

 the love of power, to the love of proltitu- 

 tion I" but — 

 " Tempora mutantur & nos mjtamur la 



illis !" 

 The fubjeft of this irticle is a flriking proof 

 of the tru:h of this ftanding maxim. He 

 changed his politics at the clofe of the dif- 

 cullion of the grand queftion which went tt> 

 chang«- the conlt tution of the count-y, and 

 thus, like Edmund Burke, terminated his 

 career by a deviation from ihofe fentiments 

 of independence, which he confelVed, for 

 the preceding twenty years, to be tne pride 

 and glorv of his heart. Shortly aft:r t!»c 

 U.iion, Dr. Browne was appointed Prime 

 Sefj-ant, and it is fuppofed, had he furvived 

 much longer, he would have obtained afitu- 

 ationonthe Bench. He was one of the Se- 

 nior Fellows and Senior Proctor of Trinity 

 College, a Doftor of Civil Laws, King's 

 Prof.-fl").- of Greek, &c. &c. For a length 

 of time he held the Vicar General.liip of the 

 tiiocefe of K'ldare, and alfo praiSifed in tlas 

 Courts as an eminent, though not a leading 

 barrifter. He was unanimoully eledted to the 

 command of the College Corps when it was 

 formed in 179;, and about a ir.onth before 

 his death appeared for the lad time on the pa- 

 rade. From his fituations in the College, 

 and his exertions as a lawyerj it is fuppofed 

 that Dr. B. died poflelTed of co&fiJerable pro- 

 petty. 



