GENERAL HISTORY 



[29 



CHAPTER IV. 



Motion on the Slate of Ireland — New Bill to prohibit the granting of 

 Offices in Reversion — Bills for the Punishment of Frame-breaking, 

 and for the Preservation of Peace in the County of Nottingham, 



THE state of Ireland, in which 

 country the proceedings of 

 the catholics in furtherance of their 

 plan of petitioning by delegation 

 on one hand, and the opposition of 

 the government to their measures 

 on the other, had occasioned a 

 considerable ferment at the close of 

 the past year, early engaged the 

 attention of parliament ; and de- 

 bates arose in both Houses on that 

 topic, the great length of which 

 will permit «is onlj' to give a slight 

 sketch of the arguments employed 

 by the principal speakers — a cir- 

 cumstance, indeed, the less to be 

 regretted, as the subject of the 

 catholic claims has already been 

 rendered familiar to the public. 



On Januaiy 31, Earl Fitzwilliam 

 rose in the House of Lords, in pur- 

 suance of his notice, to call the 

 attention of their lordships to the 

 situation of a very important part 

 of the British empire. He little 

 thought, when he gave notice of 

 his motion, that he should have to 

 lament the existence of circum- 

 stances which must add to the dis- 

 contents already subsisting in that 

 country. Yet, from the account 

 which had reached London by 

 the last mail, he found that the 

 jury impanneled to try one of the 

 catholic delegates had been tam- 

 pered with, and that the crown 



solicitor had been marking and 

 altering the list in a manner that 

 proved the exercise of the undue 

 influence of government. After 

 some observations on this point, he 

 s*d, that independently of this 

 circumstance, there were sufficient 

 grounds for his motion in the dis- 

 contents arising from the denial to 

 the catholic body of the enjoymeut 

 of the rights possessed by their 

 fellow citizens ; the injustice and 

 impolicy of which denial be pro- 

 ceeded to shew ; and he concluded 

 with moving, " That the House 

 do resolve it«elf into a committee 

 of the whole House, to take into 

 consideration the present situatioa 

 of affairs in Ireland." 



The motion was seconded by 

 the Duke of Devonshire ; after 

 which the Earl of Rosse rose, and 

 first remarked on the uncertain 

 grounds upon which the noble earl 

 had made his attack on the Irish 

 government. He then made a 

 number of observations on the tone 

 of hostility assumed by the catholics 

 in their conventional measures, 

 which necessarily required the vi- 

 gour of government to resist it. 



The Earl of Aberdeen argued on 

 the same side. After all the con- 

 cessions made to the catholics, of 

 what (said he) did they 'now com- 

 plain ? Their complaint was re- 

 duced 



