Original Details of the Irish Revolution in 1782, [July 1» 



494 



The reader Will not be at a loss to 

 conceive that the Irish nation, labour- 

 ing under a variety of disadvantages 

 from the prohibitory laws of Great 

 Britain, and an embargo on one of its 

 two staple branches of trade, for three 

 years, with contingent embarrassments 

 during the war, and an excessive im- 

 portation of commodities poured in 

 upon her, by the old channels of British 

 exportation being stopped, betook her- 

 self to two obvious expedients for self- 

 preservation, a non-consumption agree- 

 ment, and military associations; by 

 the one she defended her decaying ma- 

 nufactures, and by the other she de- 

 fended herself. There was scarcely a 

 n)an in the country who did not sub- 

 scribe to the one or enrol himself in the 

 other ; even the servants of the crown, 

 always devotetl to English interest, 

 were so sensible of the difficulties under 

 which the country labouied, that al- 

 most all of them, in some manner, 

 countenanced and forwarded both. — 

 The session of 1779 was opened in 

 Dublin nearly in the same manner in 

 which that of 177S closed— in the midst 

 of multitudes of starving manuhictu- 

 rers. The address to the King, offered 

 on the part of government, contained 

 several clauses in favour of tiade, 

 which would have passed unanimously, 

 but that Mr. Grattan, insisting that it 

 was necessary to be express and pe- 

 remptory on this subject, proposed a 

 very long and full amendment, which 

 Mr. Burgh shortened and reduced to 

 the simple proposition of a free trade. 

 By this demand the first foundation of 

 Irish consequence was laid. The mi- 

 nister, who, but a year before, treated 

 an application for a f<?w trifling benefits 

 in favour of the trade of Ireland, witii 

 haughtiness and neglect, was now 

 obliged to yield to one made without 

 limitation or condition. The justice 

 of the demand, and the sternness of the 

 manner, suggested a prudence and mo- 

 deration towards Ireland, to which hi- 

 therto the British government had been 

 strangers. The darling system of 

 monopoly at once gave way, and the 

 whole code of prohibitoiy laws was at 

 once abolished. However, the libe- 

 rality of England was qualified by the 

 vei-y words in which the grant was 

 made — sound policy retpiired the most 

 unsuspicious surrender of a free trade; 

 yet, in the preamble of the repeal of 

 the restricti^'e laws, the words '•'•whereas 

 it is eapedient " were prefixed. The 

 imiwrt of these words were not long a 



mysteiy : it was concluded that they 

 were inserted for the very purpose »f 

 saving the principle, though the exer- 

 cise of the power was occasionally sus- 

 pended, — that hereafter the parliament 

 which granted for exi)ediency, might 

 revoke for expetliency ; and it was ap- 

 prehended that the prosperity of Ireland 

 and the advancement of her manufac- 

 tures, would be strong incentives to a 

 revocation of that grant. The same 

 concurring causes which reduced Ire- 

 land to her past distress, now operated 

 against her iidvancemeat. She had a 

 nominal free trade, but the obstructions 

 of w^ar prevented her from gaining by 

 it ; besides, a free trade, liable at best 

 to the regulations of a foreign legisla- 

 ture, was as little calculated to admi- 

 nister contentment, as it was, in its 

 present circumstances, capable of pro- 

 moting prosperity. The mercantile 

 part of the community saw, that with- 

 out confidence or capital, small benefits 

 could be reaped by a free trade, under 

 a precarious tenure. 



At this time, the abilities of Mr. 

 Grattan shone forth with extraordinary 

 lustre. He demonstrated with the 

 most cogent arguments out of Parlia- 

 ment, and the most astonishing elo- 

 quence in it, the fallibility of a free trade 

 without a free constitution. Near the 

 end of the session of I7S0, this gentle- 

 man moved a declaration of right in 

 Parliament as counter to, and correc- 

 tive of, the substance of the declaratory 

 law of the 6th of Geo. I., which, though 

 not carried at that time, laid the foun- 

 dation of the repeal of that celebrated 

 law. It had also a great effect on the 

 public mind, by agitating a question of 

 right, and by demonstrating to Ireland, 

 that from the first moment of connexion 

 with England to this, the charters of 

 the freedom and independence of the 

 Irish parliament and {)eople, were un- 

 questionably clear. Between the ses- 

 sion which concluded under the admi- 

 nistration of Lord Bu(^kingham, and 

 that which commenced under Lord 

 Carlisle, the eyes of the whole Irish 

 nation were turned on this gentleman. 

 In his irresistible eloquence, his patri- 

 otic zeal, his exalted genius, and above 

 all his immaculate virtue, the hopes of 

 the people were pl.aced. Ireland, which 

 he had raised from a state of desjwn- 

 dency by his ai-gumeuts, implicitly 

 surrendered her fate to his guidance. 

 Sixty thousand self-armed citizens ad- 

 dressed him, and pledged themselves, 

 at the hazard of their lives and fDftuu&s, 



for 



