- 
146 
powered to raife money in certain 
proportions, and to diftribute it in 
certain ways; fuch as providing 
-arms and ammunition; fupplying 
the members who fuffer for the 
caufe with neceffaries, and with the 
means of defence; providing for 
the families of thofe who may fall 
in any way for the common fervice; 
and they are enabled to regulate 
the election of military ofkicers. 
There is a_ particular’ provifion 
which fixes the manner in which 
the tribunal fhall be chofen, who, 
when a revolution begins, °fhall 
decide on the property, and even 
the lives of accufed individuals; 
and there is another provifion 
which declares what defcription of 
fufpeéted perfons fhall not be fuf- 
fered to enter the ranks when the 
conflict fhall begin. The other 
papers are minutes of the proceed- 
ings of the {ub-committees of 
United Irifhmen, and reports on a 
variety of fubjects. They contain, 
in the firft place} accurate returns 
of the numbers of men who have at 
different periods become members 
of the body; alfo returns of the 
fums fubfcribed by each refpective 
place, and the purpofes. for which 
the money has been expended. 
The returns of guns, . bayonets, 
{words, pikes, cannon, powder, 
ball-cartridges, and of bullets, are 
all reported with equal accuracy; 
and always accompany the returns 
of men and money. ‘The fociety 
has rifen to a‘number truly formi- 
dable — not lefs at this moment 
than one hundred thoufand mem 
The amount of their arms appears 
to be very confiderable ; and they 
axeckon among their ordnance eight 
Lae Y 
sicces of cannon and one mortar. 
In their money accounts are found 
APPENDS TOS 
diture for affifting prifoners and 
purchafing arms; and in one returm 
it is remarkable that the officer who 
remits it fays, “* This money has 
been paid fomewhat before the 
ufual time, becaufe it is expected 
our friends will foon arrive at 
Bantry,” or words to that effect ; 
and feveral inftances occur in the 
papers, of allufions to the expeéted 
arrival of thefe friends. In fome 
papers the committees earneftly 
exhort the people to temperance, 
to fobriety, and to peace, obferving 
that the wifh of government was 
to goad them into infurrection, by 
which the hopes of the people 
would be defeated, not only now, 
but perhaps for ever; and in one 
place occurs the remarkable advice 
* to -have nothing to do with the 
father or his fon.’’? That the foci- 
ety exercife a judicial authority over 
their members appears alfo by thefe 
papers; for in more than one of 
them there is mention made of cer- 
tain perfons who had been charged 
witlroffences having been tried and 
acquitted; and one inftance is 
found of the,executive committee 
having been purged by another 
branch of the body for an abufe of 
their truft; three-fourths of them 
were removed, and men of ac- 
knowledged merit fubftituted in 
their room. In fome of the mi- 
nutes are to be found the names or 
the initials of perfons reported to 
be bad, or unfound and dangerous 
members; exhortations are fre- 
quent io avoid communicating on 
the affairs of the fociety with per- 
fons who had not taken the teft; 
and in one cafe it is faid, that the 
old pafs-word of the body was o- 
bliged to be changed, in confe- 
quence of fome negligence of this 
Kind; it is ftrongly inculcated on 
the 
