336 1 It E L 
conduft of the Britifli parliament fubverted all law. Eng¬ 
land, however, had no reafon to fear the Irifh volunteers; 
they would facrifice their lives in her caufe. The two 
nations formed a general confederacy. The perpetual an¬ 
nexation of the crown was a great bond ; but Magna 
Charta was a greater. It would be eafy for Ireland to find 
a king ; but it would be impoflible to find a nation who 
could communicate to them fuch a charter as Magna 
Charta; and it was this which made their natural connec¬ 
tion with England. The Irifli nation were too high in 
pride, character, and power, to fuffer any other nation to 
make their laws. England had indeed brought forward 
the queftion, not only by making laws for Ireland the 
preceding feffion, but by enabling his majefly to repeal all 
the laws which England had made for America. Had (he 
contented to repeal the declaratory law againft America ; 
and would (lie refute to repeal that againft Ireland ? The 
Irifh nation were incapable of fubmitting to fuch a dif- 
tinftion. 
Mr. Grattan now found his eloquence much more pow¬ 
erful than formerly. The motion which, during this 
very feflion, had been rejected by a great majority, was 
now agreed to after a fliort debate, and the addrefs to his 
maiefty prepared accordingly. In this, after thanking his 
majefty for his gracious melfage, and declaring their at¬ 
tachment to his perfon and government, they affured him. 
That the fubjefts of Ireland are a free people ; that the 
crown of Ireland is an imperial crown infeparably an¬ 
nexed to that of Britain, on which connection the interefts 
and happinefs of both nations eflentially depend; but the 
kingdom of Ireland is diltinft, with a parliament of its 
own ; that there is no body of men competent to make 
laws to bind Ireland, except the king, lords, and com¬ 
mons, thereof, nor any other parliament that hath any 
power or authority of any l'ort whatfoever, in this coun¬ 
try, except the parliament of Ireland. They affured his 
majefly, that they humbly conceive, that in this right the 
very eifenceof their liberties did exift; a right which they, 
on the part of all Ireland, do claim as their birthright, 
and which they cannot yield but with their lives. They 
affured his majefty, that they had feen with concern cer¬ 
tain claims advanced by the parliament of Great Britain, 
in an aft entitled, “ For the better fecuring the depen¬ 
dency of Ireland ;” an aft containing matter entirely ir- 
reconcileable to the fundamental rights of the nation. 
They informed his inajelty, that they conceived this aft, 
and the claims it advanced, to be the great and principal 
caufe of the difcontent; and jealoufies in the kingdom. 
They affured him, that his commons did mod fincerely 
•wifh, that all the bills, which become law in Ireland, 
fhould receive the approbation of his majefty under the 
feal of Great Britain ; but yet, that they conceived the 
practice of fuppreifing their bills in the council of Ireland, 
or altering them any where, to be another juft caufe of 
difcontent and jealoufy. They further affured his ma¬ 
jefty, that an aft (the mutiny-act) entitled, “ For the 
better accommodation of his majefty’s forces,” being un¬ 
limited in duration, and defeftive in fome other circum- 
ftances, was another juft caufe of jealoufy and difcontent. 
Thefe, the principal caufes of jealoufies and difcontent 
in the kingdom, they had fubmitted to his majefty, in 
humble expectation of redrefs ; and they concluded with 
an affurance, that they were more confident in the hope 
of obtaining redrefs, as the people of Ireland had been, 
and were, not more difpofed to {hare the freedom of Eng¬ 
land, than to fupport her in her difficulties, and to fhare 
her fate. 
To this remarkable addrefs a moft gracious anfwer was 
given. In a few days the lord-lieutenant made a fpeech 
to both houfes ; in which he informed them, that, by the 
magnanimity of the king, and'wifdom of the Britifli par¬ 
liament, he was enabled to allure them, that immediate 
attention had been paid to their reprefentations, and that 
the legiflature of Britain had concurred in a refolution to 
remove the caufes of their difcontents, and were united 
A N D. 
in a defire to gratify every wifh expreffed in the late ad¬ 
drefs to the throne ; and that, in the mean time, his ma¬ 
jefty was gracioufly difpofed to give his royal aflent to 
acts to prevent the fupprefling of hills in the Irifli privy- 
council, and to limit the mutiny-bill to the term of two 
years. 
The joy which now diffufed itfelf all over the kingdom 
was extreme. The warmeft addreftes were prefented, not 
only to his majefty, but to the lord-lieutenant. The com¬ 
mons inftantly voted ioo,oool. to his majefty, to enable 
him to raife 20,000 men for the navy ; and, foon after, 
5000 men were likewife voted from the Irifli eftablifhment. 
The volunteers became in a peculiar manner the objects 
of gratitude and univerfal panegyric ; but none was placed 
in fo confpicuous a light as Mr. Grattan : addreftes of 
thanks flowed in upon him from all quarters ; and the 
commons addreffed his majefty to give him 50,000k as a 
recompence of his lervices; for which they promifed ta 
make provifion. 
This requeft was alfo complied with ; but ftill the jea¬ 
loufies of the Irifli were not completely eradicated. As 
the intended repeal of the declaratory aft was found to be 
Ample, without any claufe exprefsly relinquifhing the 
claim of right, feveral members of the houfe of commons 
were of opinion, that the liberties of Ireland were not yet 
thoroughly fecured. The majority, however, were of 
opinion, that the Ample repeal of the obnoxious aft was 
fufficient; but many of the nation at large differed in fen- 
timenfs. Mr. Flood, a member of the houfe, and a zea¬ 
lous patriot, now took the lead in this matter; while Mr. 
Grattan loft much of his popularity by efpoufing the con¬ 
trary opinion. The matter, however, was to appearance fi¬ 
nally fettled by the volunteers, who declared themfelves on 
Mr. Grattan’s fide. Still fome murmurings were heard ; 
and it mtift be owned, that even yet the conduft of Britain 
appeared equivocal. An Engliffi law was parted, permit¬ 
ting importation from one of the Weft-India iflands to all 
his majefty’s dominions; and of courfe including Ireland, 
though the trade of the latter had already been declared 
abfolutely free. This was looked upon in a very unfa¬ 
vourable light. Great offence was alfo taken at a mem¬ 
ber of the Englifh houfe of lords for a fpeech in parlia¬ 
ment, in which he afierted, that Great Britain had a right 
to bind Ireland in matters of an external nature ; and 
propofed to bring in a bill for that purpofe. The public 
difcontent was alfo greatly inflamed by fome circum- 
ftances relating to this bill, which were particularly ob¬ 
noxious. Lord Beauchamp, in a letter addrefled to one 
of the volunteer corps, was at pains to fliow that the fe- 
curity of the legiflative privileges obtained from the par¬ 
liament of Britain was infufficient. The lawyers corps 
alfo, who took the queftion into confideration, were of 
the fame opinion ; but the circumftance which gave the 
greateft offence was, that the chief-juftice in the Englifh 
court of king’s bench gave judgment in an Irifli caufe, 
direftly contrary to a law which had limited all fuch 
judgments to the firft of June. All thefe reafons of dif¬ 
content, however, were removed on the death of the 
marquis of Rockingham, and the appointment of the 
new miniftry who fucceeded him. Lord Temple came 
over to Ireland, and his brother and fecretary Mr. Gren¬ 
ville went to England, where he made fuch reprefenta¬ 
tions of the difcontents which prevailed concerning the 
infufficiency of the declaratory aft, that Mr. Townfliend, 
one of the fecretaries of ftate, moved in the houfe of 
commons for leave to bring in a bill to remove from the 
minds of the people of Ireland all doubts refpefting their 
legiflative and judicial privileges. This bill contained, 
in the fulleft and molt exprefs terms, a relinquifhment on 
the part of the Britifh legiflature of all claims of a right 
to interfere with the judgment of the Irifh courts, or to 
make laws to bind Ireland in time to come. 
To gratify the Irifli by a mark of national confequence, 
a new order of knighthood, the illuftrious order of St. 
Patrick, was inftituted. On the nth of March 1783, the 
knights 
