like these that had produced change; it was the determination to change that had rendered arguments like these convenient. The best answer, therefore, to the new supporters of the present measure was to be found in their former convictions. The resistance of the people of this country was not to the personal character of the Catholics, but to the principles and influence of their religion. They were convinced, that Popery and Protestantism could not exist together upon an equal footing. "Of these two religions, one or other must have the ascendancy," were grave and true words; and whose were they? These had been, not long ago, the words of Mr. Peel himself, when combating, on that very ground, the measures which he was now defending, and defending without even attempting to assert that the elements of a struggle for ascendancy had been weakened or annihilated. The measure was bad in itself,-better for the Catholics than they had ever dared to hope, and worse for the Protestants than they had ever dreaded; giving up the constitution to the one, and amusing the other with paltry things, called securities, which were utterly impotent for any useful purpose; and it was doubly bad as being enforced by unaccountable changes of conduct, which destroyed all belief in public principle. The character of public men was of the highest importance to the state; but from the course which many had lately pursued, public men would henceforward be viewed with a jealous and suspicious eye by the nation at large. In vain would the home secretary attempt to explain conduct, inconsistent with his whole former political life. The confidence, which

had been hitherto accorded to public men, had received a blow from which it never would recover: nusquam tuta fides.

The chancellor of the Exchequer (Mr. Goulburn) admitted he was one of those who had adopted new opinions on this subject; but he had done so, because it was impossible that any other thing could wisely be done. That impossibility arose from the state of Ireland. It was true, that crimes and outrage did not prevail now so generally as they had done at some former periods; but the whole country was the prey of an increased exasperation of party feelings and prejudices. The whole frame of society had been disturbed by the political differences of contending parties; each man

was arrayed in hostility against the other, and it required the interposition of a military force to preserve the peace, and tranquillity of that country. But, even admitting that there was nothing new in the state of Ireland, was there no danger in an evil which was continually increasing? no increase of the danger in the continued progress of the disease during a series of years, no additional danger in the prospects which presented themselves from the progression of that disorder, until it had reached every individual in the country, and had well nigh broken up the very foundations upon which society rested? The question, it was said, was a religious question; one or other of the two religions--the Catholic or the Protestant-must be the ascendant. On that point he entirely concurred with Mr. Peel; and that was his justification for the course which he had adopted in reference to this question. He would unhesitat

ingly assert, that the measure, which had been recommended from the throne to parliament, had mainly for its object to make the Protestant religion the ascendant. The church of Ireland occupied a peculiar situation. It was the religion of the minority of the people, while the great majority professed a different faith. Up to rather a recent period, harmony and good will prevailed amongst the professors of those different creeds. But there had lately arisen in that country a combination which extended itself throughout every class of the Catholic community, with an organization unexampled in other countries, or amongst other political societies, and whose principal hostility was directed against the Established Church. The support of that church mainly depended on the purity of its doctrines, as evinced in the character and conduct of its professors, and on the good will and affections of those from whose religious opinions it dissented; and it depended further upon the uniform and steady support of parliament, and of the Protestant government of the country. By whatever means it had been brought about, an important alteration had taken place in the feelings and opinions of the Catholic population in Ireland, in reference to the established church; and it was now certain, that their prejudices and their hostility had been actively excited against that establishment. It was only necessary, in proof of this, to draw the attention of the House to the productions which emanated from the daily press on the subject of the church and its revenues, to the laborious efforts which were made to excite

a hostile disposition against that church amongst the Catholic population,-and to the effects which a continual agitation, carried on upon such a system, produced upon the minds of the Catholic people of Ireland. His attention had been directed to this subject for some time back, and allusions were made to the altered state of feeling amongst the Catholic population, in various letters which had reached him from different parts of Ireland, all complaining that the Protestant clergy were not now viewed with the same respect by the people as heretofore, that the people had regularly combined against the payment of the church dues,-and that there existed no hope whatever of engaging their affections in future. Was not that a situation in which it was at least unfortunate for the country to be placed? It was to remedy such an unhappy state of things that his majesty's government had adopted the course which they were now pursuing. They conceived that the present measure was calculated to smooth away the asperities of party violence-to diminish the irritation, and in a great degree to remove the prejudices of the people; that they would be thus brought again to treat the ministers of the Protestant church with the respect and attention to which their character and virtues so eminently entitled them; and that it was only under such circumstances that the church could be employed as an important engine in the moral improvement of that people.

Mr. G. Bankes, on the other hand, ridiculed the chancellor of the Exchequer's scheme for giving permanent security to the church of Ireland by bestowing political

like these that had produced change; it was the determination to change that had rendered arguments like these convenient. The best answer, therefore, to the new supporters of the present measure was to be found in their former convictions. The resistance of the people of this country was not to the personal character of the Catholics, but to the principles and influence of their religion. They were convinced, that Popery and Protestantism could not exist together upon an equal footing. "Of these two religions, one or other must have the ascendancy," were grave and true words; and whose were they? These had been, not long ago, the words of Mr. Peel himself, when combating, on that very ground, the measures which he was now defending, and defending without even attempting to assert that the elements of a struggle for ascendancy had been weakened or annihilated. The measure was bad in itself,-better for the Catholics than they had ever dared to hope, and worse for the Protestants than they had ever dreaded; giving up the constitution to the one, and amusing the other with paltry things, called securities, which were utterly impotent for any useful purpose; and it was doubly bad as being enforced by unaccountable changes of conduct, which destroyed all belief in public principle. The character of public men was of the highest importance to the state; but from the course which many had lately pursued, public men would henceforward be viewed with a jealous and suspicious eye by the nation at large. In vain would the home secretary attempt to explain conduct, inconsistent with his whole former political life. The confidence, which

had been hitherto accorded to public men, had received a blow from which it never would recover : nusquam tuta fides.

The chancellor of the Exchequer (Mr. Goulburn) admitted he was one of those who had adopted new opinions on this subject; but he had done so, because it was impossible that any other thing could wisely be done. That impossibility arose from the state of Ireland. It was true, that crimes and outrage did not prevail now so generally as they had done at some former periods; but the whole country was the prey of an increased exasperation of party feelings and prejudices. The whole frame of society had been disturbed by the political differences of contending parties; each man was arrayed in hostility against the other, and it required the interposition of a military force to preserve the peace, and tranquillity of that country. But, even admitting that there was nothing new in the state of Ireland, was there no danger in an evil which was continually increasing? no increase of the danger in the continued progress of the disease during a series of years, no additional danger in the prospects which presented themselves from the progression of that disorder, until it had reached every individual in the country, and had well nigh broken up the very foundations upon which society rested? The question, it was said, was a religious question; one or other of the two religions--the Catholic or the Protestant-must be the ascendant. On that point he entirely concurred with Mr. Peel; and that was his justification for the course which he had adopted in reference to this question. He would unhesitat

ingly assert, that the measure, which had been recommended from the throne to parliament, had mainly for its object to make the Protestant religion the ascendant. The church of Ireland occupied a peculiar situation. It was the religion of the minority of the people, while the great majority professed a different faith. Up to rather a recent period, harmony and good will prevailed amongst the professors of those different creeds. But there had lately arisen in that country a combination which extended itself throughout every class of the Catholic community, with an organization unexampled in other countries, or amongst other political societies, and whose principal hostility was directed against the Established Church. The support of that church mainly depended on the purity of its doctrines, as evinced in the character and conduct of its professors, and on the good will and affections of those from whose religious opinions it dissented; and it depended further upon the uniform and steady support of parliament, and of the Protestant government of the country. By whatever means it had been brought about, an important alteration had taken place in the feelings and opinions of the Catholic population in Ireland, in reference to the established church; and it was now certain, that their prejudices and their hostility had been actively excited against that establishment. It was only necessary, in proof of this, to draw the attention of the House to the productions which emanated from the daily press on the subject of the church and to the laborious efforts which were made to excite

its revenues,

a hostile disposition against that church amongst the Catholic population,-and to the effects which a continual agitation, carried on upon such a system, produced upon the minds of the Catholic people of Ireland. His attention had been directed to this subject for some time back, and allusions were made to the altered state of feeling amongst the Catholic population, in various letters which had reached him from different parts of Ireland, all complaining that the Protestant clergy were not now viewed with the same respect by the people as heretofore, that the people had regularly combined against the payment of the church dues,-and that there existed no hope whatever of engaging their affections in future. Was not that a situation in which it was at least unfortunate for the country to be placed? It was to remedy such an unhappy state of things that his majesty's government had adopted the course which they were now pursuing. They conceived that the present measure was calculated to smooth away the asperities of party violence-to diminish the irritation, and in a great degree to remove the prejudices of the people; that they would be thus brought again to treat the ministers of the Protestant church with the respect and attention to which their character and virtues so eminently entitled them; and that it was only under such circumstances that the church could be employed as an important engine in the moral improvement of that people.

Mr. G. Bankes, on the other hand, ridiculed the chancellor of the Exchequer's scheme for giving permanent security to the church of Ireland by bestowing political

power on the church of Rome. The House did not, indeed, by this bill, surrender all the rights of the Protestant church at once; but they gave the Catholics the first stepping-stone for reaching every thing they might desire. It was admitted, that the adherents of the Catholic faith would struggle for ascendancy; it was admitted that this bill was to give them the political power, which would be the great instrument used in such a struggle. How a bill, which did all this, would tend to the security of the Protestant church, surpassed human comprehension. The very framers of the measure saw the absurdity, and the danger which it was employed to conceal; and they had endeavoured to obviate the danger by a precaution which proved its existence, but was impotent to prevent it. They had devised this remedy, that, when the prime minister happened to be a Roman Catholic, all power connected with the established church should be vested in the hands of commissioners. But who was to appoint the commissioners? Why the prime minister. It was, to be sure, declared by this bill to be a high misdemeanour for a Catholic prime minister to give advice with reference to the disposal of church property, but there was nothing to prevent him from naming those who might give advice; so that, in fact, there was no effectual bar to prevent him from disposing of church patronage. The bill contained no security adequate to meet those fears and apprehensions which were entertained by many conscientious persons. A trifling security, indeed, was devised for the protection of the Irish church. The Irish Roman Catholic ecclesiastics had, in a very assuming, and

he might say, a very insulting, manner, arrogated to themselves the titles belonging to the dignitaries of the Protestant Church in Ireland, and a clause to prevent that assumption was introduced in this bill. But the objection he had to that was, that he did not wish to purchase any security of that kind at the price of a violation of the constitution; and why?—because they had already got a security on this head, by law, -a security accompanied by infinitely higher penalties than were now given. He might be told that the act of 1781 or 1782 was not now in force; but he had looked at the statutes with great care, and he thought that the provision of the acts of 1781 and 1782 bore him out in his statement. It was there set forth-" Provided always, that no protection in this act contained shall extend, or shall be construed to extend, to any popish ecclesiastic who shall assume or take any title whatever, or who shall proceed with any insignia to any public place of worship whatever; but that all the enactments relative to such proceedings, which are at present in being, shall remain in force against such popish ecclesiastics as aforesaid." Under this provision the popish ecclesiastics were liable to punishment. came the act of 1793, and the question was, whether by it the act which he had recited was repealed. It certainly was not repealed in express terms; and looking to the recital of the act of 1793, he could not conclude that it was repealed by implication. The 33rd of George 3rd, cap. 92, recited, "That whereas various acts of parliament have been passed, imposing on his majesty's subjects professing the popish or Roman

Then