148 
cultivation and. improvement of 
this kingdom, but to the prosperity 
and strength of all his majesty’s 
dominions, that his subjeéts of all 
denominations should enjoy the be- 
nefits of our free constitution, and 
should be bound to each other by 
mutual interest and mutual affec- 
.tion.’? Soon after, that is, in the 
gist and 22d of his present majes- 
ty, chap. xxiv. it was again de. 
clared that catholics, on taking 
‘the test oath aforesai & ‘ought to 
be considered as good and loyal 
subjeGts to his majesty, his crown, 
and government; and that the con- 
tinuance of the laws formerly en- 
acted, and then in force against 
persons of the popish religion, are 
therefore unnecessary, in respect 
to those who have taken, or shall 
take, the said oath, and is injurio 
to the real welfare and Seen 
of the kingdom of Ireland.’* No- 
thing can be more clearly laid 
down than the principle upon. 
which the several acts of relief 
from the first year of relaxation, 
virtually beginning so early as the 
year 1773, twenty years before the 
passing the large capacitating act 
of the year 1793 was grounded, 
namely, the recognized allegiance, 
and reciprocal right to proteétion, * 
held out upon taking this and 
other testoaths. It was plain that 
the policy of the legislature was to 
affirm the principle as largely as 
possible, and to make the capaci- 
ties follow (as they have pratti- 
cally followed) gradually, accord. 
ing as favourable occasions should 
ofier. These a€ts have alw ays been 
understood to have emanated ori- 
ginally from his majesty’s gracious 
disposition, and to have preezeded 
to the government of  [freland, 
through the British cabinet. If 
ANNUAL REGISTER, 1795. 
these tests could not be deemed’ a 
security in the reserved cases, it is 
impossible to assign a reason why 
they were deemed a security in the | 
hundreds of others, to which a ca. 
pacity was opened by the aét of 
1793. ‘he incapacitating reserves 
in the aét of 1793, like those of 
the former atts, proceeding (though 
more slowly} upon the same de. 
clared policy, evidently were not 
made upon their own declared 
principle. ‘They were made in the 
regular progress of a system of en. 
largement, in order to compromise 
with the spirit of monopoly. But 
it is asserted by earl Fitzwilliam, 
and nothing without inquiry can 
effeclually contradi@ the assertion, 
that whilst in reality the restric- 
tions gave satisfaction to none, they 
caused discontent in many. The 
protestants regarded these excep- 
tions with total indifference. The 
catholics looked on them as signs 
of suspicion and degradation: they 
considered them as marks (con. 
trary to the declared policy of the 
a¢is) contrived to be set upon them 
by their enemies, to distinguish 
them as had subjects and bad citi- 
zens. ‘The proceedings of their 
enemies leave in their minds no 
doubt that these tokens of repro- 
bation are kept as pretexts for af- 
fronts, contumelies, and injuries of 
all kinds: and for practically de- 
priving them of most of the bene- 
fits of those capacities which the 
law seemed to hold out to them. 
14th, Because it is alleged that 
a bill for farther relief was public- 
ly known, as likely to be in agita- 
tion betore the departure of the 
lord-lieutenant from England ; that 
he had no instruction whatever di- 
rectly to oppose it, though an opi- 
nion was capressed that it had bet. 
ter 
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