THE
SECRET INTRIEGUES
OF THE
Romish Party
Sft
1 N
IRELAND.
aaBEBSSBlBSSKSI
I'
■ I I
ta
Full and Impartial Account-
Of all the
SECRET CONSULTS,
NegotiationSjStratagemSjandlntriegues
OF THE
Romifli Party
I N
IRELAND,
From i66o3 to this prefent Year 1689.
f0? tfee Settlement of Popetp ftt tpat EtngDom.
LONDON,
Printed for Et'cpatl) C&tTtWell, at the and Crown
in St.f aid's Church-Yard, M DC LXXXIX.
.
TO THE
READER.
^ 0 Preface to the will
( I am Jenfible ) he attributed to a Vain
humour of the Ag rather than to more
important Confederations. Put however that may
be the Apprehenfeon of feomeyet the more Judici¬
ous will ( I doubt not) be of another
when they perceive a whole Series of the mojl « ,
found Policies and Defignsdrawn with that j
rudenefs and difproportion, as equally requires their
Candour, as well as my Apology. Indeed to
give an exaci pourtraiclure of this hitriegue '(which
in all its circumjlances appears Very extra ordinary
and furprifeng) would require Apelles 4 fa»
V our able chance, or at leaf: a more * Artificial
Peprefentation than muff be expelled 'm tj,e fol¬
lowing Difcourfe.All that I o 0 pnWld to,
A 2 is
To the Reader.
-t.
is, an Impartial Account of the Matter of
and that beitg chiefly aimed at, will, with Jober
Men, be, in fome fort at leafl,
T>ifpenfation for the Want of Ornament;
or however that may prove, I deem'd it much more
ferYtceable to the fublick to prefent the Reader
with this rough draught, rather than conceal
that, which ( with what imperfection foeVer 'tis
managed ) mufi needs be ufeful to all
and ejpecially at thisfunSlure: For here Reader
has an Account of the firfl fleps that were made
in Ireland for the Introduction of Topery into
that Kingdom j together with a of
what obflacles and repulfes this met with ■,
how 'twas flill carried on, notwithflanding its fre*
quent Interruptions and D and by
what private Cabals, 'and after what Jecret Machi¬
nations. Mere is reprefented the admirable dili¬
gence of an indefatigable fomifl? Genius for the
promotion of the Catholic k Caufe, which feVeral
periods of State, and viciffit of that Govern¬
ment flill kept its deflgn on /oof, fometimes re¬
treating a few paces backward, when they found it
neceffary ; and at others, not only retrieving that dif-
advantage, but continuing a greater Mogrefs,
when they met with occaflons favourable to their
deflgn j
To the Reader.
Defign ; which at lafl they carefully improved
to that ripenefs wherein it now and to
which it has attained by an Violation
of the Laws and f onjlitutionsof the d{ealmy by
the mojl Violent and unju Proceedings in the
tf^eign of the late dQng James ; of which you
have an ample and copious Relation in the follow
ing Sheets.
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Full and Impartial Account
Of all the
SECRET CONSULTS,
Negotiations, Stratagems, and Intriegues
O F T H E
Romifii Party in Ireland, from i66o} to this
prefent Year 1689. for the Settlement of
Popery in that Kingdom, &c.
HEN the natural Confequent of
our late inteftine Differences had
(in a fliort time) produced fo
many various Scenes of Governr
ment, till by a circular Motion we
center d in our firft Model ; and fb like Pythagoras
his tranfmigrationof Souls- were metamorphofed
into fo many differing Shapes, till at laft, in the
Year One thoufand fitfhundred and fixty, we became
animated with our firft Difpofitions to Monarchy,
by the Reftoration of King Charles the Second y
then it was that ieveral Difputes arole (which
B were
were Debated before the Kjng and Council) con¬
cerning the Settlement of Ireland; the Lord of San-
try, Lord Chief Juftice of Ireland, ( a Man equally
eminent for Law as well as Loyalty ) in an excel¬
lent and learned Speech reprefented to the Board
the horrid Rebellion of Ireland: together withthofe
Barbarous and Inhumane Maffacres which he had been
an eye Witneft of.
In Oppofition to which, Sir Nicholas Plunkett,
a Man alfc very skilful in the Law, but a Knight
of the Pope's making, and one that had a£led his
part in all the Rebellion of Ireland, affumed the
Defence of the Natives vof that Kingdom : but as
his Caufe was too apparently bad to be main¬
tained with any tolerable Succefs; fo was his Un¬
derstanding in the Law inferiour to the Lord Chief
Juftice Santrys, who carried the Debate with great
Applaufe, in the Opinion of all that heard it ; and
had his Advice been accordingly purfued, 'twas
thought few of the Irifh would have got their
Eftates; and at that time, if ( by miftake) the
Lord of Ormond and Lord Angle fey had not joined
with the Court-Party, 'twas believed that what the
Lord San try urged, as Law, mult have prevailed
in point of Right ; for in thole days the Intereft of
the Duke of fork ( which afterwards grew to a
mighty height, as you will perceive by the Sequel)
was not fo powerful as to have prevented it. That
which he chiefly infilled upon, as to matter of
Law, was, That 'twas mofi agreeable to the Law
of the Land, as well as moll equal for the Sub-
jeQ: to be Tried by the Common Law, where they
would meet with a fair and indifferent Tryal hy
Juries of their Neighbours, and in this cafe could
have
of the Tarty in Ireland.
have no wrong done them; but that the Court
of Claims was like the Uharpers High-Court of
JuJlke, Arbitrary and Unlimited. This touch'd
the Irifh to the quick, for they being confcious
of their Guilt, mo If of 'em Indifted and Out¬
lawed for Treafon, defpaired upon their Trial at
the Bar to make any confiderable Defence.
The Government of Ireland was firft put into
the hands of Lords JuJlices, which were Sir Mau¬
rice Luft ace ^ Lord Chancellor, the Farl of Mount-
rath and the Earl of Orrery; the firft a Lawyer,
the latter, Men that had fignklly behaved them-
felVes againft the Irifb, during the whole Rebel¬
lion. Under the Government of thefe Men, a
Parliament was called in the City of Dublin, and
the Convention, which (at upon the King's Re-
ftoration, diffolved. The firft thing they pro¬
ceeded upon, were the Bi?1s lent them from
England, for by the Law of Ireland, Intituled,
Poyntngs Aft, the Parliament of Ireland can
read no Bill in their Houfe, which proceeds not
by thefe Steps: Firft, The Chief Governour and
Council of Ireland draw up a Bill and fend it
over to the Kjng and Council in Engl anaf, who
either approve or correct it as they think con¬
venient ; and fo, in the fecond place, return it
back to the Chief Governor and Council, and
thefe fend it to the Houfe of Commons, who
have only a Negative Voice, and can neither alter
nor amend a word of it. This, by way of Di-
grefiion, which differing fo much from the
Practice of the Parliament of England, induced me
not to think it altogether unpleafant, or unneceft
B 2 fory,
4
The Secret Confults, Negotiations, &c.
l&ry, to prelent the Reader with this brief Ac¬
count of it.
But to return to the Parliament, the variety of
interefts in that Kingdom gave birth to feveral
Difputes among them ; for the accommodating
whereof it was thought neceffary at Court to
fend over a Lord Lieutenant, for about this time
a great Coritroverfie arofe among all Parties,
which was founded upon this occafion : A new
intereft was let on foot, in which neither Soul-
dier, Adventurer, nor Irifb ( according to the firffc
Declaration from Breda ) were concerned, and
yet it related to the firft Souldiers that fought
againft the Irijh, which were now called Forty-
nine Men ; thefe being KingVMen, were not
provided for in the Parliament and Ufurper's
time, and how to make Provifion for them now,
was the matter in Difpute. Some Lands indeed
there were that had not been fet out to Souldiers
and Adventurers, which were allotted thefe Men ;
but this Provifion was not confiderable, and there¬
fore the forfeited Corporations and Houfes that
were in them, were hereunto annexed ; and to
render 'em the more valuable, a Claule was in-
ferted in the A ft, That no Iri(h Papijl, in what
manner ibever he juftified his innocency, fhould
enjoy any Hotfe within a Corporation, except
the Natives of Corke and Feat herd. This the
Irijh vehemently exclaimed againft as barbarous
and inhumane, that, to ferve the conveniency of
a particular Set of Men, a Man muft appear in¬
nocent in the Country and enjoy his Eftate, but
be adjudged a Rebel in the City ; and upon that
account be difpoffeffed of his Houfes. On the other
hand,
of the Tfymijh Tarty in Ireland. y
hand) the Englijh complained, That the Natives
by an Illegal, Arbitrary Court, were made in¬
nocent, though they were known to have been
concerned in the Rebellions for that in truth'twas
beyond all peradventure that not Ten of thQlri/b
Papifts were free from Rebellion and Murther:
The Duke of Ormond had a great Arrear due to
him upon this Fund, and after mutual Contefts
on either fide, the Affair was fettled, to the Sa¬
tisfaction of the Protefiants.
But in order to a firmer and more mature
Eftabliflhment of things, it was ( amongft other
Confutations ) refolved in Council, to lend over
the Lord Roberts for Ireland in Quality of the
Lord Lieutenant, as a Ferlbn whole indifferency
as to the various and opposite inrerefts of that
Kingdom, might bring forth a com pleat and im¬
partial fettlement ; but his being an Englifh-
man, and not related to, and fo confequently
not interelfed' in favour of the Irijh, occafioned
the Duke of Tork ( whofe Affection to the Na¬
tives of that Kingdom, has appeared by too
pregnant and demonftrative Proofc ) to work
with the King his Brother to fend over the
Duke of Ormond, whofe Acquaintance with, and
Relation to divers of the Irifb Nobility and Gen¬
try, did rationally promife a more favourable re¬
gard to their Interefts; though what probability
foever this Profpeft had in it, it finally turned
to their difadvantage, and that by the even
fteerage of the Duke of Ormond, who, though
placed at the Helm, in favour to the Irifh, yet
fo fignally efpouled the Interest of the Englifh
Protefiants in all their juft and legal demands,
The Secret ConJults, Negotiations, See.
that upon that very account he loft the favour of
the Duke of Tork.
This management of things, made the Popifb
Party very fenfible of their miftake ; but to correct
it in a very high meafure, they procured the remo¬
val of fome of the Commifjioners of the Court of
Claimsy and got others put in, exactly calculated for
their prelent defign: The leading Man was one
Rainsfoord, who drove lb furionily, that complaints
were made to the King. Talbot (now Tyrconnel)
was at this time made principal Agent for the Irijh
Papifts at Court, and upon the account of folliciting
for them, had Sums of Money rais'd him by way
of Tax, upon all that paffed the Court of Claims ;
and in fuch cafes wherein men had no Friends, nor
good Titles, he bought their pretences, and by
Rainsfoord*s means palfed the Claim ; from all which
illegal courfes, 'twas vifible to the English, that
they were in a loft condition, which brought many
of them under fuch apparent difcouragements, as
to part with their EJlates for a year or twos Pur-
chace; neither could any man make a meafure of
his Title, fo arbitrary were the Commijfioners in
their Proceedings. Andasthe irifbinsinuated them-
felves into the favour of Rainsfoord, and the Com-
miffioners of the Court of Claims, or by the pow¬
erful follicitation of their Agent .at Court, pro¬
cured Recommendatory Letters Irom thence \ in the
lame proportion they pals'd their innocency, not
according to their demerit.
For what Complaints foever were made by the
Irijby of the Cruelty of Olivers Court, in crimi¬
nating them ; yet fome who prpv'd their innocen¬
cy there, were decreed nocent by thefe Ccmmiffi-
oners \
i Tarty in Ireland.
r
oners-, and where they had no pretence of ta¬
king away an 7r//Z>-man's Eft ate, that was ad-
judg'd innocent in the Ufurper's time, in that cafe
they obtain'd Provifo s in the Act of Settlement
to deprive them of their for Rebellion :
As for in fiance, the Kjiight of who
though a R aft ft, yet always fb faithfully adher'd
to the Englifh Intereft, and had been lb great an
inftrument of divers of the P rot eft am s preferva-
tion, that for that realon he was by the
reftored to his Eft Ate; his cafe was fo notorious, .
that the Parliament (though their whole For¬
tunes depended upon the Aft of ) re¬
fusal palling the Alt, except that claufe in preju¬
dice to the Knight of Kj was ftruck out,
notwithftanding that they were inform'd at the
fame time, That if the Aft was lent back, and
altered, it fhould be to their difadvantage, as in¬
deed it prov'd; however it was Corrected as to
that Claufe.
So much of this Act did fb manifeftly incline to
favour the Irijb, as juftly created Complaints by
the Englifi, which feemingly to redrefs, a new
Act was prepared,. Entituled, The Act of Expla¬
nation ; the confequence of which was, That the
Proteftants were glad to fit down with the Jofs
of one third; and where the Iri[b had either been
1b notorioufly criminal , as that no Palliations
could extenuate the blacknefs of their Rebellion,
or elfe were Men of that inconfiderable intereft,
as render'd them incapable of palling their inao-.
cency, in fuch cafes their Eftates were claim'd
by other Irifh, whofe interefts at Court were more
prevalent; fuch were the Earis of QUnmrthy
The Secret r^XKr^.A...^ am
CUnriccard, Lord CoJleU "Dillon, Earl of Carting-
foord and many more, who pals'd their Claims
for twice more than ever they had before the
Rebellion.
Purfuant to the AH paffed for the payment of
Quit-rent to the Crown, for all Lands that were
Seized, and Sequeftred , the EnghjJj paid Quit-
rent in many places where their Lands were
icarce worth it \ but when the Court of Claims
was over, and the Parliament of Ireland Diffolv'd,
. then the Irifh that paid Quit rent, obtained Grants
by means of the Duke of Tork (who omitted no
opportunities of teftifying his good will to them)
not only to be remitted of their Quit-rent, but of
their Arrears alfo.
To this height had the Popi/b Defign advanced it
felf at a Jun&ure, when the English Interejl feem-
ed not only to carry the preeminence, but even
to have reached the Meridian of her Triumph at
Court: and though it was believed upon the King's
Reftauration, there could not have been the
twentieth part of Ireland gain d from the Englijh ;
yet what with the thirds taken at one blow from
the Englijh, and by Nominees, and other Stra¬
tagems of State, there was almoft an half of the
Kingdom in value loft, notwithftanding at the
lame time the moft innocent of the Ir/Jb were
deprived of their Eftates, and the greateft Rebels
got more than their own. This was the firft ftep
advanced for the introduQiion of Popery into that
Kingdom; and notwithftanding the (mail Pro-
grels it had then feemingly made, it fb far en¬
couraged (even in this time of its Infancy) the
moft coaftderable of the Irifit, as often to in-
- >• J timate
of the 'Ikomijl) Tarty in Ireland, 9
tiinate to the Englifh, That in a fhort time
the P rote ft ant and they, muft be of one Re- ■
Tigion.
'Twas' very remarkable, That iti the Year 166$.
■One Thoufand Six Hundred Sixty Eight, Talbot,
Brother to Tyrconnel , and Titular Arcbbifljop of
Dublin, Landing, at a place called the Skerijh,
within Twelve Miles of that City, and being
very Hofpitably entertained by one Captain Cod-
dmgton, Lodging all Night at his Houfe; the
next Morning took him afide, and after the moft
A ifeftionate Expreflions of Kindnefs, asked him
what Title he had to that Eftate, for that he
obferved he had expended confiderably upon its
improvement ? Coddington anfwered, That 'twas
an old Eft ate, belonging to the Earl of Twomond.
Talbot replyed, That was nothing, it did belong
to the Church, and it would all betaken away ;
therefore advifed him to lay out po more upon
it, but get what he could, and then defert it. All
this was offered upon iirong injunftions of the moft
Inviolable Secrecy.
The Duke of Ormond was then Lord Lieute¬
nant , and nothing advantagious to their Inte-
refts could be managed whilft he continued in
that Poft; which was the rife to divers Confulta-
tions at Court for his removal. It had been too
palpable for the Popifb Party to have appeared in-
tereffed in it; wherefore an Intriegue was then
formed of renewing the ancient Animofities be¬
twixt him'and the Duke of Buckingham. This
was reduced to Aft, and the effeft was propor-
lo The Secret Confults, Mrgvriarions, feu.
tionable to the defign. The next thing to be
coiiftdered, was, who fibould lucceed him, which
was a matter that required a very nice and cri¬
tical management. They pitched upon the Lord
1669. Roberts, as a perlbn that had been formerly dif
* appointed of that Station : which begetting a pre¬
judice in him, and meeting with a Vindicative
Spirit (whole temper they knew to be liich)
would prompt him invidioufly to infpeft into,
or elle to create faults in the Government of the
Duke of Ormond, which was the end of the Court-
Intriegue, and of his advancement; as knowing that
his uneafinels to thole of that Kingdom, would
lerve to prepare a fair reception for the L
B a Man of whole inclinations to their
inure ft, the Popi[h Party had the moft convincing
affurances; and agreeably to this whole Scheme of
policy, the Lord Roberts remained Lord Lieute¬
nant about Six Months, and then the L. B. was lent
16 jover. Talbot Tyrconnel, leaves the Court, and
follows his Brother the Titular Archbi(hop, and
lives privately; but notwithftanding his Retire¬
ment, is ftill engaged in all the Secret Counlels
with Sir Ellis Leaton the Lord Lieutenant's
Secretary.
And now to accomplifh their purpole, the
firft thing to be done, was to let up a pretence
that the King when in Exile, had obliged him-
lelf to the French King to redone the Irifb to their
Religion and their Eftates', and left a neglefl: of
this ftiould occafion a Breach with France, lome-
thing muft be a&ed in purfuance to it: So it
was ordered, That notwithftanding the Law, to
pre-
of the (iipmtjb Tarty in Ireland.
prefer Irifh Papifts to the Commiffton of the 1671,
Peace, in which they behaved themfelves with
that partiality and infolencc, (Properties inherent
to mod, if not all of them) that they be¬
came odious, even to the judicious of their own
party.
The next thing was to regulate the Corpora* 1672*
tionsy which by an A& of the laft Parliament,
there was pOsyer for the Lord Lieutenant and
Council to do. Tins was managed with fiich
great lecrecy, that none were made acquainted
with it, till it was aftually drawn, and brought
ready to the Council-Board. The next day there
was lent to the Lord Mayor and Aldermen of
Dublin, an Order for them to call a Common-
Council, and to tur# them out, and to make a
new Government in the City. This they well
underftood would create a disturbance, which
they were deiirous fc to improve among the Ci¬
tizens, as to render the P rot eft ants dilaffefted ;
for which purpoSe they induftrioufiy laboured to
irritate and provoke them, as the L —— B
had done the Year before, when a number of
Boys got up in a'Tumult to pull down a Bridge
which was erefting contrary to the defire of the
City ; where when the Lord Mayor, and Confta-
bles had fupprefsd them, the Lord Lieutenant
ordered Soldiers, as they were carrying them to
Prifon, who difcharg'd Several Shots amongft
them, and killed fome of them.
But to return to the Order of Council for mo¬
delling the Corporation, the Aldermen gave rea¬
dy obedience, though they feared the bottom of
C 2 the
ii2 Tl)c Secret Confults^iegwiniifJTi^ Sic.
the Defign. This compliance of the Aldermen
neceffitated them to take new meafures ; for the
moft conliderable of the Aldermen were Men of
New Intereft, and had been noted for keeping out
Papifts from the City Freedom: and whileft thefe-
Aldermen were in Power, no Popijh Defign could
fucceed : and therefore to facilitate by another,
what they could not effeft by former Stratagems,
the. next work was to prepoffefs the Populace*
with prejudice againfl: the Aldermen, reprefenting
them as the Authors and Contrivers of this New
Model, though (as it was afterwards proved, upon
an hearing before the Earl of Ejfex and Council,
when Lord Lieutenant of Ireland ) they never
heard word of 'em till they were brought to em
to the lole-fale with orders to put 'em in Ex¬
ecution.
' \ . i .\
3672. At that time there came over to Dublin a Per-
fon whoaflumed feveral names, (a pradice as agree¬
able. to the Intereft and Policy of the Church of
Rome,and as common , as. that of variety of
Shapes, and Profeffions ) fometime he went by the
name of Payne, at others by that of Nevell, and
was found to be the fame perfbn that was after¬
wards committed to Newgate for fome high
Mifdemeanour relating to Coleman and the
Plot. This Nevell (as has fince been apparent
in the inftance before named) had his part with
Coleman, and was fent over for Ireland as his pro¬
per Province, wherein to ad the defigned Tra¬
gedy : He remained for fome time obfcure in
Dublin, and after that was received into the I
Cafllebut never appeared till this ( as was deem'd>
ftafonable
" ... /_- y \ m i
of the ^omijh Tarty in Ireland,
ieaibnable jun&tire, and then in the capacity of.
Under-Secretary to Sir Ellis Leaton.
His bufinefs was to iufufe into the Populace
of the City of Dublin, an Opinion of the Treache¬
ry of their Recorder, Sir William Davis j and to
make the pretext the more plaufible, he had In-.
ftru£tions to add, That the Recorder and thq Lord
Primatej then Lord Chancellour, counfelled the,
L. P.—— to enact thofe Laws for the abo¬
lishing of the Ancient Government of the City;
and farther infinuating, that this was done at the
define, and inftigation, and by the contrivance of,
the chief Aldermen. This impious fuggeftion
being not only artfully fpread among, but alio,
too eafily credited by the Citizens, induced 'em
to pitch upon Nevellas their moft proper Agents
and in order to this, advanced Mony which they
prefented to Sir Ellis Leaton, who, together with
Novell, brought the then Lord Mayor, Potty,.
with the Sheriffs to the Lord Lieutenant, who,
publickly declared the Relation above ; and,
withal promifed to recal his former Order. Upon,
which he called a Council, but the unravelling
of the bufinefs difcovered a Popifh Intriegue*
which ocqafioned their not agreeing with the
Lord Lieutenant%
After this a Confult was held , by the Lord,
Mayor and Sheriffs,, with Colonel Talbot, now
Lord Tyrconnel, and his Brother the then Titu¬
lar Archbifbop of Dublin, asalfo with Sir Nicholas
Plunkett, an old Irifh Lawyer, before mentioned
(who was formerly one of the Popes Supream Coun¬
cil at Kjlkenny in Jreland-) This Confult was
upon ,
167
The Secret Confults, "Negotiations, &c.
upon a Sunday, at Talbot's Houle, Three MiL?
from Dublin,where it was relblved, That the
Lord Mayor and Sheriffs fhould call a general Al-
fembly of the City, and by the A£t of that Af-
icmbly turn out the Recordetogether with thole
Aldermen which wereoppofite to the Rom-jb Party.
Matters were fo far aided, in purluancc to this
intended Subverfion, that the Ailcmbiy was al¬
ready in Council, but found ali the Twenty four
Aldermen unanimous; fo that they could not,
according to the Laws of that City, pals any
Older , in regard that none could be made
without the AlTent of the Court of Aldermen,
who fat in a Room by themlelves. This was
a fatal obftacle to their Defign, whereupon they
lent to the Lord Lieutenant to be Inflxu&ed how,
and in what manner, they fhould proceed ; and
in the interim kept the Affembly fhut up all the
da}-. At laft they received the following Directi¬
ons, That one of the Sheriffs, with leveral of
die Commons, fhould come into the Aldermen s
Court, and bring a Petition in the name of the
whole City, to turn out Sir William Davis, the
Recorder, and Seven Aldermen, who were of the
greatefl account in.that City. But notwithftanding
the depth of this Policy, which was lain with all
the artifice and fubtilty it could be capable of,
yet was the whole of it privately dilcovered by
one of the Sheriffs, which put the into
a pofture of Preparation for their Defence; which
was managed with that fuccels, that upon its
coming to be debated, the adverfe Party obtain'd
only the Suffrages of two indigent Aldermen,
which gave a confiderable check to the Intriegue.
But
1 If the~l^omijh Tarty in Ireland. uj
But then the Lord Mayor called a private AfTem-
bly, and not one of the Seven Aldermen vtere pre-
lent: The Commons were called into the Alder-
men $ Court, and there, in a tumultous and irre¬
gular manner, they were turned out, and Seven
of the Rabble put in their places; as alio Leatone
the Lord Lieutenants Secretary was made Re¬
corder.
This Revolution fo awakened the Eyes of the
Citizens of Dublin, that they began to make a
more narrow Infpeflion into the main drift and
tendency of it; which, within a Month after
'twas let on foot, they plainly perceived was im¬
mediately levelled at the Foundation of the Pro-
tcftant Interefl: and Religion. They now became
apprehenfive how miferably they had been im-
poled upon, efpecially when they law Papijls
brought into the Common-Council, and everyday the
difguilelb thro wn off^ that they remained no longer
doubtful of a moli apparent and palpable Defign of
introducing Popery.
About this time Talbot, the Titular Archbijhop of 16720
Dublin, apply'd himfelf to the Lord Lieutenant,
and borrowed Ibme of the Hangings of the Cajlle,
Silver Candlefiicks, Plate and other Utenfils to
ule at an §)tg& which Sir Ellis Le at on got
to be lent with the Complement of laying, COclt
fpt bopeD to babe at
(lOurcb at Ch^tfluiaf0 •, and which in all pro-
bability had been effefted, if a dilcovery of a
moft bloody and inhumane Confpiracy to be acted
in this Year, had not leafonably prevented it; of
which take the following Account:
The
The Priefts ( by Directions from their Supe-
riours ) ordered their feveral Congregations at
Ma/sy That at fuch a time every RomanCatholick^
fhould fix over their Doors a Crofs made ot
Straw : The People were curious to underftand the
reafon of this Order; but the matter was carried
with ft) much fecrecy, that the Priefts themfelves,
'twas believed, knew no more than that it was
defigned to blefs the Peoples Houfes. This, in
purfuance to the Advice and I-nftruftion of the
Priefts ( who like fo many Infallible Oracles, are,
upon all occafions, how difficult or unrea-
fonable foever, mod punftually obeyed ) was
generally; performed, and at the Tame time vaft
multitudes of Priefts came from beyond the Seas;
and it appears by the Sequel, That fome of
thefe were better acquainted with the bottom ot
this black and damnable Intriegue, than generally
the poor ignorant Prieftsx of Ireland were, to
whom, 'twas not by the Hellijh Conclave at Rome
thought fit, to Communicate a matter of this
private and great importance. For one of thefe
Foreign Priefts finding feveral Houfes which had
not Croftes fixed at their Doors, he warned the
People, with great earneftnefs, to put them up;
and further told them, That this oraifiion might
be their Ruine, though he would not name to
them the particular Inftance wherein. Butamidft
the People's various conjeCtures, as to the occa-
lion of this fo general an Order, one of thefe
Foreign Priefts, more open-hearted than the reft,
acquaints a Friend of his with this Defign ;
■which..being by him communicated to another,
and this other* acquainting feme Friend of his,
/ till
till at laft by this Relation of it to feveral hands,
the matter was fo far divulged, that 'twas impofli-
ble to conceal it any longer from being publickly
known. This intended Bloody Maffacre was
formed after the enfuing manner : Upon a cer¬
tain day (appointed for the, Execution of this
difinal Tragedy) all the Proteflants were to be
barbaroufly Murthered, and the Signal appointed
to diftinguidi the Irijh from thefe Hereticks, was,
a Crofs of Straw put up before their Doors, which
wherefbever that was not found, all thole Houfes
were to bedeftroy'd. But this being opportunely
difcovered, fearch was'made^ and Crcjfes were
accordingly found at mod of the Irijh Doors,
in the whole Province of Munjler; which be¬
ing made up in a very ffliall compafs, were not
before taken notice of. Search was made for the
Pnejt, who was the firft Author of this Difcovery ;
but he was not to be found : and the Govern¬
ment in Ireland was then fo extreamly by a fed,
and difcovered fo partial an affe&ion to the
Irijh Intercjl, that no encouragement was given
to a farther Infpe&ion into this horrid Plot \ which
upon a narrower fearch would doubtlefs have an-
fwered the whole of the Relation given of it by
the Priefi, and would have appeared a mod Vn-
chrijlian and Unnatural, but upon thefe accounts,
(in the prefent fenfe and practice of the Church
of Rome) a more Catholick Dejign. But fuch as
were aftive and indudrious in laying open this
mifchieVous and pernicious Con/piracy, had their
Cattle dole from 'em, and were thrcatned to have
their Houfes burnt; with fuch like terrifying devices
of the Irijh, which they are not only wont to
D give
1-8 The Secret Qonfulh,
give out, but alfo to pra&ife againft fuch of the
Enghjhj as endeavour to confront them in their
evil Defigns. This (together with the conni¬
ve xce of the Government ) put a flop to any
farther difcovery ; fb that the whole was hufhed up,
and paffed over in filence.
Thus we fee, fthat to what proficiency loevcr
the Popijb Inter eft had attained by the violent
and irregular proceedings of the Court of CIaims,
and other artifices of its firft rife and producti¬
on,) that it was at that time but in its infant
Jlate, when compared with that maturity it had
now infenfibly aipired to, under the Government
of the L. B. The Duke of Ormond, when in
the Government, did in The whole conduft of
Affairs fb vigoroufly fupport the Protejlant In-
teref, that he remained an infeparable obftacle
to their Defign, unlefs fome method were taken
to put him out of that Station ; in order to winch
(as you have heard) the Lord Ro'erts was to
be pra&ifed upon, whole prejudice (they doubted
not) would carry him to very fevere Refle&ions
upon the Duke of Ormond s Government , and
indeed the experiment anfwered the defign of
the undertakers ; for thefirft thing that* the Lord
Roberts did (which I fhould have mentioned
when I fpoke of his fucceeding the Duke of
Ormond, but however may not improperly be
inferred in this place ) was to prie into the Duke
of OwW's. Government, and in a manner to
encourage and invite perfons to make their Com¬
plaints.; but 'twas found a difficult task to find
Laults after a Perlon of fb great Honour and
Integrity, as he was* But however to put his
Defign.
of the 'Jpoihtf) T in
Defign in Execution, he firft gave opportunity to
the Officers of the Army to make their Com*
plaints, which' not fucceeding, then lie counte¬
nances the privateSouldiers to offer their Grievances ',
and in order to this, appoints to go
round the Kingdom, but all td no purpofe: af¬
terwards he attempts the fame in the City of
Dublin, to fee if they would complain for Quar¬
tering of Souldiers ; but that Device came like-
wife to nothing. But, alas, all this would not
fix hint long in the Government: He was lent
over but to fevve a turn, and after being a
[iry InJlrumentfor a while muff now give place
to a fitter Agent, the L. B. who was now appointed
to guide the Chariot:
Quem ft noti tenttit,magn mips;
Though he could not hold the fo fteady
as fully to compleat the courfe, yet was the un¬
dertaking noble in it felf; and how ever it fuc-
ceeded, could argue no lets thafl a Gallant Re-
folurion for the Catholick Catife; and which in-
dead, he had at lart brought to that high pitch
as to draw in the Populace (by amufing them
with fpecious Pretences againft the Magiftracy )
to an efpoufal of his intereft. But however 'twas
happy for the Proteftants that the Rabble at laft
became fenfible that they had look'd at the wrong
end of the Perlpective, and that chings had been
reprefented to them in a falfe light, and in
colours quite different from what they now ap¬
peared : Popery had now altnoft arrived to its
Zenith , and wanted but little of that Perfection
which that horrible,Bloody contrivance befo e men¬
tioned, was defigned to compafs; a practice of a
D 2 parallel
parallel nature with the former
and Parifian Ma [[acre, and the like infallible de-
monftrations of the Church of Rome's undoubted
Cdtholicifm.
But 'tis high time to haften to the aforelaid
Adair of the Corf oration. The lealbnable dilco-
very of the afore-mentioned Sheriff, gave the
Adermen the opportunity of lending over
Sir William Davis to London, who reprelenting
a true Delcription of this Defign to the Earl
of Shaftsbury, made that great Politician fwear,
That the L. L. was a mad Man ; which Nego¬
tiation with the faid Earl, produced lb fuccels-
full an effe£t, that about a Month after the Earl
of EJfex was nominated Lord Lieutenant, which
for the prelent interrupted the Progrels of the
Popijh Defign in Ireland, though the Natives of
that Kingdom were lb elevated in their Expecta¬
tions of its fucceeding, that they forbore not
boafting to their Confidents of its improvement
at Court.
This Romifij Defign, which had fully appear'd
in its proper fhape in Ireland, began loon after
this to unmask it felf in England, and a remark¬
able Palfage occurred, which not a little con¬
tributed to the untwifting of this Intricacy of
State, which had been carefully fpun with lb
fine a Thread. The KJhg, the Duke of Tork,
and Clifford,the Lord Treafurer, were one day
at a certain Houle, in a private Room , where
one Sir W. B. (a Commijffoner of the of
England, and of the Revenue of came,
and being a Perfon that frequently accommo¬
dated the King with Money, was wont to gain
accels
— of rh# Tfmlfb Tarty in Ireland.
accefs at all hours , and in prefumptioa of
this liberty was at the -Door, ready to enter the
Room ; but his hearing the King (peak, with
more than ordinary earneftnefs, begat in hi n a
curiofity to hearken with fome Attention ,. but
could hear only fome broken and imperfedt Ex-
preflions. The Duke alio fpoke fo low, that he
could not underhand him; but Clifford was loud
as in publick, anfwering the King in a very au¬
dible and articulate manner, in thele words,
Sir, if you are drove off upon fears, you will never
be fife ; the work ill do, if you declare your felf
with Kefolution , there is enow to fiand by you.
The King replied, This name, Popery, will never
le fvallowed by the Peop'e ; upon which the King
ftarted off his Seat, and (aid, Some Body is at
the Door. Whereupon Clifford haftily opened it,
and without fpeaking, fell turioufly upon B - - ,
dragging him to a pair of Stairs, from whence he
kick'd him down. Soon after this B. dyed, which
was not improbably imputed to that Mis¬
fortune.
Here we may reafonably refledt upon thofe
Politick ( and for fome time) imperceptible fteps,
by which Popery gradually gained ground upon
us, both in Ireland, and England. In Ireland the
whole Scheme had been managed with fo much
addrefs, as to engage the Populace to their Party,
as has been already fhewn, in England; the JDe-
fign was lain with that depth , and fo pro¬
foundly dilguisM with the moft artificial Delu-
lions, That few ( except fome of the moll: Ju¬
dicious,and thefe no otherwife than by Conjedlure)
were able to fathcmit. But God, who brings to
light
11 The Secret ConJ nh<, 2\e*QtTnttons")~$C
light the hidden things of d.irknefr, and whole
powerful Prerogative is fuch as oftentimes to
dilappoint the rvife in their own Craft inefs , did
wonderfully infatuate the wicked Devices of thele
Men, and that by an opportune dilcovery, when
they were poflefs'd with the grcateft hopes of its
attaining its defigned effeft.
But to proceed upon the former Dilcourle, in-
'6" 2. terruptcd by this Digreflion. In this Year a little
' Infrument of the Pope appeared, who by degrees
became no inconfiderable ACfor in the Affairs of
the Romifh Court, one Thomas Sheridan. This
Man was Educated in Trinity Colledge near
Dub/in , where he commenced Majler of Arts,
and after that entered into the Holy Order of a
Deacon of the Church of Ireland; but upon an
intimate Acquaintance contracted with the feft-
it ical Party, was dilcovered by thele politick
Engineers of State, to be a Perlon, whole natural
lagacity, joyn'd with his artificial improvements
(as to which none of his co-temporaries in the
Univerfky could difpute the Precedence) might
juftly render him a fit ObjeCt for their purpole.This
Defign of theirs, co-operating with his boundlels
Ambition, made him not lollicitous to afpire to
an higher rank in the Church (though other-
wile his pregnant parts might realonably
have entitled him to very eminent preferment
in it ) but now that he had another Came to
he ludden ly (to the Admiration of all that knew
or heard of him) abandons his Sacred, and af-
fumes a CivilProfeJJlon, that of a Celleflcr of
the Cuf. ernes in an out-Pert of Ireland: a place
he
Ff the Vfom'tjh Tarty in Ireland. 2 3
fie was as unqualified for, as he was deem'd capa¬
ble of that of the Church ; the place but aa
hundred and twenty pounds per annum. He re¬
mained three or four Years in this place, but not
to the fmall amazement of fuch as were acquainted
with his profufenels: For 'twas vifible that his
Sallary could not anfwer a quarter of his Ex-
pence, living at a very extravagant height in imi¬
tation of his Mafer Coleman.
At la ft the Intriegue appeared more intelligi¬
ble to fome inquifirive Men, who began more
narrowly to prie into it. For 'twas confidered,
that his being Collector of Corke ( a great place
of Commerce by Sea ) afforded him intelligence
from all parts, whereby Letters from Rome,
Spain, &rc. to all the Popijh Clergy could arrive
fafely through his Hands: and as this was an-
fwerable to their firft defign of fixing him in
that Station , fo did it render him the more con-
fiderabie amongft them; notwithftanding that,
to avoid all fufpicion, he ftill put on the d/f-•
guife of the Protejlant Religion, which he counter¬
feited with fa ingenious an air, that molt be¬
lieved him extream in that Profejjion, and were
apt to think him inclin'd to Presbytery, as de¬
riving it from his Mafiers the Farmers, who
were called The Fanatick Farmers, being a Sett of
Brewers in London.
Thus we fee how this bigo-ted Votary of the
Romifb Church transformed himlelf into a difie*
rent fbape, and covered his black Defirgn with
the Mask of Presbytery, as the Stalking Horfe to
other Fo vie, upon which his aim was fet. But
as this difguife could not remove the fufpicions of
24 Tl?t Secret ConfultSj\k€£MMwu, iS-u
the mod judicious, difcerningMen, who confider-
ed his a [fuming an Employment (quite contrary
ro die Stream of his former Education, and to
that eminent Figure which in all probaoility lie
might have afpired to in die Church )
as an Introduction to fome fecret Projctf, winch
at pre lent they -could not comprehend , but loon
' after became fully informed in it. for the
aforcfud Farmers going off, Shcridon ( before
their time was fully expired ) obtains leave from
them to go for London, and there thtVivard he
had formerlyT worn was fbon thrown off, and he
( as in his proper colours ) appeared an abfblute
Creature of the Duke of Tori?s, and at that time
a great Confult was held to bring on the Deli¬
verance of Ireland. For now the poor Catholicks
there (after their late dilappointment in the be¬
fore-mentioned Intriegue of the Corporation )
were almo.t in delpair, and moreover his Royal
Highnefs was in danger of lofing his moft
faithful adherents, many hundreds of them having
continued there incognito fince the L—JS—'s
time, expecting to be Officers \ and thele Men
were very impatient.
\
1675. The Earl of Effiex was then in the Govern¬
ment of Ireland, a perlbn whole great integrity
and prudence in the fteady piloting of this
tottering Ship of the State , is not ealie to de-
Icribe. This Skilful Manager of the Helm,
Steer d lo judicioufly, at this nice juncture, that
notwithftanding the unwearied endeavours of the
Papifts, nothing could be effected to their ad¬
vantage, whileft he kept the Sword, Wherefore a
Project
e} the Q{<omifh Tarty in Ireland. 25
ProjeCt was thought on to take the Farm of the
Revenue of Ireland, by which the whole Reve¬
nue of the Kingdom muff pafs through their
hands ; befides that, this offered to them the com¬
mand of the Sea-Ports, together with the con-
veniency of employing in the Revenue, Fifteen
Hundred Officers fit for their purpofe. This be¬
ing let on foot, took well, and Sheridon aCted
his fliare in it with great applaufe : For his be¬
ing a ColleCtor (added to his Natural Ingenuity
and great parts) had now rendred him a great
Proficient ia the Affairs of the Cuftoms and the
Revenue. The Caution required in the manage¬
ment of this Intriegue, hindered the Duke from
appearing in it, and Coleman was deem'd alfo a
perfon very unfit to be concerned: for though he
affiimed the fhape of a Proteftant at that time,
yet was he fhrewdly fufpeCted of Popery.
i\fter feveral Debates, it was concluded, ThatI(5~^
Sheridon was the moll proper inftrument to car¬
ry on this affair ; but then his credit in London was
not confiderable enough for a matter of this great
moment: So after feveral attempts, recourfe was
at laft had to one Mufcharnp, then in London, an
old Proje£tor, and one of the prefent Farmers, but
a poor man. This Mufcharnp acquaints another
greater ProjeCtor than himfelf, one Sir J. S. but "
he was a man of moderate fame, however they
could get none of fubftance to joyn with them,
and both thefe were projecting heads, a'nd acquain¬
ted with Sir W. P. a man of Ireland of a great for¬
tune, and whole Principles were mod confonant
to this concern; who upon the propofal being made
E to
77.'? Secret Confult
to him, embrac'd it with this affurance of having
men of Eftates joyned with them. This being
related by Sheridon to the Duke and to
effect it, 'twas found neceffary to draw in fome
man of value, which ieem'd to be a matter of
great difficulty. But at laft one Ryder (a young
man that had of his own, and Sifters Fortune,
Twenty Thoufand Pounds) was named, but his
being publickly known as an intimate Favourite
of the Duke's, was lookt upon as almoft an inle-
parable Obftacle : For all matters relating to he-
land, were fb clolely and tenderly handled; that
notwithftanding the Duke carried the greafeft
ftroak, yet acted fo much at a diftance, that he
appeared to be outwardly unconcerned. Howe¬
ver the exigency of this affair was luch as necef-
fitated him to mew himfelf more of en in this than
upon former occafions ; and therefore to facili¬
tate their purpole, Ryder was engaged, together
with fome other finall men, who were alio prevail¬
ed upon. The bufinels thus lain, they appeared
upon the Stage, and bid for the whole Revenue
of Ireland.
The Earl of Ejfex, who received conftant in¬
telligence from Court, and from fome of the Po-
fi/h Clergy in Ireland, about this time had an ac¬
count of defigns to remove him from the Govern¬
ment ; and how one part lay in taking the Farm:
1675. upon which he obtains leave to go for England,
leaving the Lord Primate, and the Lord
Juftices. Upon his arrival at Lourc, he percei¬
ved the Game ran,high for and the beft
way to prevent it, was not oy downright oppo-
of tie tyomiJJ) Tarty Ireland.
fition ; he therefore concludes upon a more prevail¬
ing method,which was to make court to the Duke
of Fork, which he managed with fo much art,
and fo skilful an Addrels (as indeed he was
very capable of doing beyond their Conclave at
Rome) that notwithftanding it was refolved that
he fhould depart; yet was he keptfo long in En¬
gland, till orders came from the Holy Fathers, for
his return to Ireland.
He had fo far wound himfelf into the Duke's
good opinion of him, that he thought him focure
for their Party ; and as the firft teftimony of his
Integrity, he had Inftru£tions from him to promote
Sheridon and the Farmers: which the Earl ma¬
naged with fuch great wifdom, as at once to pleafe
the Duke, and yet to be forviceable to the Prote-
ftants of Ireland, who had now been in a loft, irre¬
coverable condition, if his admirable Conduct had
not prevented it.
And now this great Man returns for Ireland to i6j6.
Jleer again in that Government threatened by ap¬
proaching Tempefts; the Farmers alfo going over,
enter upon their bufinels. Sir W. P. became very
notorious in declaring not only to employ
but that he would have the Priefts collect me
Hearth-money. Some were apt to believe that this
was done on purpofe to get off: but thofe who
were molt intimate with him, fpeak o ute ot <. r-
wife, and that the hopes of being ct^u. Lo I,
and a Privy Councilor, fo tranfported him beyond
all the bounds of moderation, as induced him .o
take this violent Courfe, the nvre to ingia. e
himfelf with the Duke; out Ike the til in the
E 2 F^ole,
18 Tbe Secret Q 'onfults, KcgoMUons, see.
Fable, beat his Mafter down in imitation of the
Spaniels fawning; and though he was a man oi great
Learning, and of a Mathematical Head, and bred
abroad, yet lo vehemently defirous of Riches, as
hurried him often into great Extravagancies.
The Earl of Ejfex being Landed in ,
had a difficult Game to play, he had ('tis belie¬
ved) made fair PrOmifes of being kind to the Irifb,
and to ftand by the Farmers; to the firft he gave
good words, and received them well at Court :
but the Farmers they began to model their Offi-
and if fome fpeedy and effectual flop was
cers
not put to thefe Proceedings, the whole Ports of
the Kingdom would foon be in Papifls hands,
which was like to prove a matter of moll dange¬
rous confequence. To defeat this Intriegue, re¬
quired a more than ordinary prefence of mind,
and a deep forefight, which as this wife Earl was
endowed with in a very high meafure, ib did he
fignally fhew it upon this occafion. There was
but one way to effed: it, and that was by railing
fcruples, as to the value of the Farmers and their
Securities; but this he muft not appear in, butin-
llru&s feme of his Confidents of the Council, to
a£l that part for him, and there was one, who,
till this late Cataftrophe, was thought to be of
great Integrity and Honour; the Lord Granard
he was bold and daring, and a Mortal Enemy to
Sir J. S. wherefore he moves at the Council-
Board, that infpeclion fhould be made into the
Securities of thefe Farmers. The Propolal was
well accepted by the reft of the Council: For in¬
deed they were Men, (as Sir W. P. Paid truly of
them) viz. Farmers pitPd up in the , with
this
.. .... . _ - - — — r-j:-'-' ' ^
of thz%omifl) Tarty in Ireland,
this difadvantage, that take the firjl /even men you
meet, and they (hall exceed thefe for every thing,
but cheating. The Earl of EJfex teemed to o >
pofe the Council in this Vote, put it off, and
acquainted the Farmers, and alio gave an account
of it to the Duke, whom he had now fo far gain'd
upon as to become a Confident, Put every day
ufher'd in new Complaints againft the Farmers
running away with the Money of the King¬
dom, &c. which for feme time the Earl feemed
to decline; but at laft (in appearance againft the
Grain) agrees with the Council, and fends over
to the King the Objections againft the Farmers,
which in fihort were fo great, that they were
not to be trufted. Whereupon Commijjioners of
tnfpctfion were fet over them ; one was the Earl
of Effex's Confident: and thefe men attended to
the motion of the Farmers with fo vigilant an
eye, that nothing could be effected.
In this manner was this great and dangerous
Plot (carried on for feveral years by the Duke
and his Minions) mod miraculoufly defeated by
the unparallell'd ConduCc of that Prudent Earl,
who fo far out-vy'd the Romi(h Politicks, as to
cajole that party into an approbation of thofe
Proceedings, which proved fatally deftructive of
their defign : which fo difheartened thofe two ac¬
complices, R~—and Sheridon, that they flung up
their Parts, and returned to Court; the lalt to
attend his Mafter Coleman, who happened to
come in a fit time to fucceed him in his Em¬
ployment : for not long after this, the Popijh Plot
was brought upon the Stage, in which Coleman
wa;s
2
I .
I
was Prime Minifter, who being afterwards Ex¬
ecuted, and Sheridonfpeaking fomething in favour
of his caule, was apprehended, and after foine
time was brought on his knees at the of the
Houfe of Commons, where he had impudence be¬
yond humane fhape, to let forth in a flourifhing
Speech the greatnels of his Family, (viz.) that
he was in the right Line of the Kings of
anciently called 0 Sheridon ; that to his Father be¬
longed a vaft Eftate, which by the misfortune of
War (meaning- the former Rebellion) he was
wrongfully put out of ; with abundance of the
like impudent falfhoods, and molt notorious un¬
truths. Whereas indeed his Father (too honefl: a
man for lb bale, and lo degenerate a Son) was
before the late Rebelli on in the County of ,
taken in a poor Boy into a Bii hop's Houle for a
Turn-lpit; and ti e Bifhopoblerving the Boy to
be of a Docible Temper, and capable of inltru-
btion, and finding him educated a Papifi, charita¬
bly put him to School, where he was taught his
Grammar, and was found to be lo induftrious a
Proficient in School-learning, as encouraged the
good Bilhop to Ordain him a Deacon, in which
capacity he continued under the Bilhop till he
died. And when the Rebellion broke out lo vio¬
lently, that few Englifh were left in the Coun-
trey ; yet this poor man remained with fuch as
ftayed, and read Pray ers among tiiem, till all
were either Murthered, or had deferred the place.
But he being a poor Old Man, and having no¬
thing to remove, continued where he was) the
Irfb f 1 feting hi n to refide amongli them; but by
all their Importunities ( notwithftanding their
great
of the Q^omijh Tarty in Ireland.
great eagernels to make Converts, Com palling
both Sea and Land, to prolelyte any to their
Church) could never prevail upon him to go to
Mais. This Man had three Sons, which (as well
as thole turbulent times would admit) he edu¬
cated Protejlants, and upon Oliver's redu£tion of
Ireland, he was lo taken with the Character of
this poor man, which was faithfully reprelented
to him by the English of the North, that he not
only ordered a maintenance for himfelf, but alio
for his three Sons, whom he ordered to be main¬
tained in the Colledge near Dublin, where they
all improved themlelves to an eminent degree of
Learning and parts. This is an Impartial Ac¬
count of Thomm Sheridons Pedigree, whole Si¬
fters, and other Relations, were in Broges and
Kjr chiefs, the Irifb Garb for Women. The u-
thor law them not many years ago in this con¬
dition, and knowing this Story of Sheridon, was
heightened in his Curiofity of being the more in¬
quisitive after it in the County where his Father
was born, and found that he was of the Scologues,
a Name which the Irifh call Cote hers. And
none of his Kindred, as the Irifh affirm, were ever
better. I fhould not have given the Reader the
trouble of this Digreffion, but that I deemed it
not altogether unplealant to him to reprelentthe
unparallelled Impudence of this Man,, who could
attempt to fpeak of his high Extraftion before the
Houfe of Commons, when the ftieannels of his Ori¬
ginal and Delcent was fo univerfally known in
molt parts of the North of Ireland. But to what
degrees of extravagancy will not the Confidence
The Secret Conjults, %$£otiatmsy occ.'
of an Irifo-man tranfport him ? And whither will
not that audacious Arrogance (with which the
Natives of that Kingdom are moil plentifully
ftock'd) carry and invite them? The ridiculous
Genealogies which the Info have framed of them-
felves, as to their Hercicd Ancefiry, Antiquity of
their Nation, their eminency for Literature and ex¬
traordinary Piety in former Ages, are Fopperies
not to bj wondered at; when in thefe days the
Author by his own Experience can give an ac¬
count of feveral of the Info Gentry, who have
laid afide both their former Names, and Relati¬
ons, and have created new ones to themfelves,
which they pretend to be derived from a nume¬
rous train of Noble Progenitors, though this be
publickly known to be a Chimerical and Fictiti¬
ous Invention.
Put to return again to the Earl of EJfex, (from
whence this account of Sheridon, has caus'd me
to digrefs) though his politick Carriage in the
bufinefs of the aforefaid Farmers, difcovered a
dextrous and prudent Government; yet did it
contrafl: upon him the hatred of the Duke of
Yorkr, who from this time let up private defigns
againft him, which the Earl had conftant intelli¬
gence of; but at la ft was not able to withftand
them, the prejudice rifing fo high, till the Duke
obtained a relbive for his removal from the Go¬
vernment. The vvay to accomplifh this, was to
find out a man that would lend the King Mo¬
ney, and the Earl of Bridlington was pitched
upon. Talbot had (by the Relation of a Bro¬
ther
Je^i
VM!I
ther of his Married into that Family) fome in-
tereft, but was not looked upon as a fit perfon
to break it to-the-JEW'; fo another was found
by the Earl of Orrery s means , who had been
difbbliged by the Earl of EJfex, and by that way
it was purfued But though the Earl of Bridling¬
ton might have had a mind to the Government,
yet would he part with no Mony, and the King's
neceffities were the great inducement whereby to
prevail upon him to remove EJfex, and Brid¬
lington being unwilling to fupply 'em, no other
pretence could be found out to work on the
King.
'Twas admired by all for what reafons the Earl
of Bridlington fhould be thought On, in regard
that none but the Duke's Party were in the
Intriegue. But the Romifh Edition well under-
ftood, that although the Earl of Bridlington was
not fit to carry on their main Defign; yet they
knew him governable, and were in hopes to
put things upon him, that might bring mat¬
ters into a leading way for another «fchey had
in their Eye, not fit here to be named. But
thefe things miffing of their defigned effe£t? they
were now at a full itop, though no occafions were
omitted of making dayly Objections againfl: the
Earl of Effex.
The Popif/j Conspiracy ( as has been already
hinted in difcouriing upon Sheridon) advanced
apace by Coleman, and the Parliament began now
to be apprehenfive of theprefent proceedings, and
of the Alliance with France, which they utterly
difapproved of. The L —-——B was
fenc in quality of the King's Embajfadorto France,
F and
and Sir EllisLcaton, his Secretary in Ireland, ac«
company'd him ; but neither of 'em were judged
fit to be trufted with the lecret Defigns. For
at that time there was a Defign for the French
to let up their Demands for the to have
the Articles made by King Charles the Se¬
cond with the French King in their favour, to
be performed ; and the King of England was to
admit the French to land Men, under pretence
of being got by private compaft of the Irifh.
The Earl of Tyrone, Lord and others,
being to raife Men in Ireland, in order to make a
Diverfion to the putting the Popifh Plot in force
in England, But the whole of this was kept
private from the King, only fo much of it as
referred to the French King's demanding the Pro-
miles, made by him ( when in Exile ) in fa¬
vour of the Irifh. The Duke undertook to qua-
lifie the King, if any dilcovery fliould be made
of the Irifh intended Infurr ; but this was
divulged by Ibme of the Irifh, and the King
hardly prevailed with not to believe it. The
L B — was recall'd from France, and
lent to Nimeguetr, and Complaints were made by
fome Merchants againft be¬
ing queftioned before the King and Council, fpoke
very intcmperately, and among other words,laid,
He wonder'd howthele Merchants durft prefume
to fpeak any thing againft the greateft King
in Europe, as the French King was ; for which
indecent Expreffion, he was committed: it
being juftly accounted great impudence for
him to affirm, in the prelence of the King, That
there was any other King,greater than hmifelf.
The
V j
■Hmw ■
o/" tho (^omi/h %trty bi Ireland. «j
1678.
The King and Council finding fame caufe to
believe, that there were Defigns of introducing
Popery in Ireland , pitch'd upon the Duke
of Ormond as the only Pilot for that Kingdom
in a Storm; and accordingly he was lent over.
The Duke of Tork did not then think it feafbm J^77*
able to oppofe it, though he was confeious 'twas
fatal to his Defign. But however he wrought fo
powerfully with the King, That orders were given
to raife Men in Ireland, under the Notion of
Foreign Service. They were allcompofed of the
Natives of the Kingdom, excepting lorne Prote-
ftant Officers fit to make Catholicks of. The Duke
of Ormond would give them no Arms, lo they
were Exercifed with Sticks; and in a little time
the Plot in England was difeovered, and they all
disbanded. Upon which a difeovery was made
by the Irifh, of the Popijh Conspiracy in Ireland,,
and it was very remarkable, that in the whole
difeovery, not one Protejlant appeared as an evi¬
dence againft the Papijls. A pregnant' inftance
of the great impartiality and equal demeanour
of the Englifh towards the Natives, who altho'
they were now prefented with various opportu*
nities of deftroying thofe, whom they knew to
be their implacable Adverfaries; yet declined all
Informations againft them, a practice as peculiar
to thofe of the Protejlant Communion, as different
from the Indirect Principles, and barbarous pro¬
ceedings of that of the Church of Rome, as has
been but too manifeft, in thofe horrid Perjuries,
and notorioufly falfe Acculations, which the lriffi
have been palpably convinced of, in their daily
F 2 Impeachments
The Secret
Impeachments of the Engliffi, in the Reign of
the late King James, as will appear in the Se¬
quel of this Dilcourfe. But notwithffanding that
'tis fb univerfal a practice of the Irijh to fwear
fuch of the Englijh ( as they bear prejudice to )
out of their Lives and Eftates, if poffible, or at
leaf! fo vigoroufly endeavour it, as to flick at
no Affidavit how inconfiftent foever with truth,
or but a rational probability; yet were the
Englijh more juft than to tranfcrtbe fb bale an
Example, or to propofe that impious Maxim of
the Romijh Churchy Of doing Evil, that Good may
come of it, as a Rule of their Imitation, which
the Apoftle St. Rani has fb plainly pronounced
Damnation unto. And indeed if we defcend to
an impartial enquiry after the oppofite Principles
of the Two Churches in this cafe, we fhall no
longer wonder at the great integrity of the
Englijh, nor at that barbarous Violation (in the
other Party ) of a Rite of the greateft Solemnity,
and moft Sacred Injlitution, which all Chri-
ftians ought to account an Oath to be, and which
the whole Chriftian Church ( except that lame
and corrupt part of it which we call the Ro-
mtjh J does upon its being adminiftred under le¬
gal and requifite circuraftances, juftly reckon as
indiffolluble. But what if the other Chriftian
Churches, which are but a vile Rabble of Here-
ticks and Schijmaticks ( though if dividing Cha¬
ff endom into five parts, they make up more
than three ) can pretend to no difpenfwv
power in this cafe ; yet what cannot f e Vicar
of Chrift do in Cathedra, who has the Kjys of
Heaven at his Girdle, and can lock and unlock as
he
he plea fes, according to our Saviour's Commiffion,
which he will needs have limited to his 'Perfon,
as his Vicarial Prerogative, but unlimited in its
Authority ; whatfoever fins ye remit, they are re*
mitted \ and xvhatfoever fins ye retain, they are re¬
tained. But to leave this defpotiek power of
Abfolution in the Chair of Infallibility, which
( God be thanked ) we are neither ambitious of,
nor do pretend to, it will not unrealbnable to
confider, that whatever complaints were made by
the Irijb as to theif fevere ulage in the Popijh
Confpiracy ( of which they make many tedious
harangues ) 'twas plain that if there was any
fuch, 'twas a£ted by thole of their own Party, and
fuch as profelTed their own Religion, who were
indeed the fitted; Agents for fo black anlntriegue,
there being none of the Englifh any way intereffed
in it. Neither can I omit mentioning the great
Integrity and Jufticq of the Duke of Ormond,
then Lord Lieutenant, in his unbyaffed and equal
management of this Affair. For though preju¬
dice and partiality might have prepoffels'd lome
Men, and have ferved to awaken their relent-
ments againlt the Irifh at fuch a Jun&tireas this
yet did he carry himfelf with fo fingle an eye,
and obferved fo Ifeady and even a courle, that
'twas difficult to perceive the leaft defle£tion in him
upon either hand: 'tis true indeed the Law had
its due courle , but this was owing to the Evi¬
dence, which thole of their own Party and Re¬
ligion made again (I their AfTociates in the Con-
fpiracy ; and therefore if any irregularity was com¬
mitted, it cannot jufflybe charged upon the Duke
or his Subordinate Minifiers, by whom the whole
was
~Fo The Secret* Confults^ m iiiimu, !&!£.
was managed with an equal Moderation and in-
differency.
But I pals from thefe Reffeftioos upon the
Carriage of the Duke of Ormond and the Pro-
teftants, to a Dilcourfe of Affairs relating to the
Plot in Ireland: upon the difcovery whereof,
1678. Orders came from England todifarm the Papifts \
but they received fuch timely notice of the De-
fign, by their Creatures at Court, that there was
not found two hundred Arms in all Ireland, the
Irifh having a contrivance of concealing their
Arms by thrufting them into Boggs, filling the
Barrels of their Guns with Butter, which lufFers
them not to take any harm; and as for the
Locks they can eafily hide them. The Lord
Brittas and others made their Efcape for France,
but the Earl of Tyrone was taken, and committed
to the Gate-h&ufe. Sheridon was feized in Lon¬
don, but nothing could be proved againft him.
Talbot, now Tyrconnel, was confined a Prilbner
in the Cajlle of Dublin, together with his Bro¬
ther, the Titular Jrchbijhop, where he dyed. The
Duke of Tork went for Flanders ; which made
the Irifh even to defpair, and made one of their
Lords to declare, with a great Gath, Thar
ItVbeo 3fefu# toaga Pioretfant, 7 that
natbfiig tl)ep cotrfD Da DtD idafprt. The Duke
of Ormond was extreamly follrcitous to fettle the
Militia in Ireland , and ordered their watching
equal with the Army. And now notwidiftanding
the publick fears of the P'opifb Confpiracy in
England and Ireland ; yet was the Engljjb In-
terejl in Ireland of: greater value than ever,
grounded
grounded upon a general Opinion of the EngUfo,
that the Plots of the Irifh were now lb fully un-
ravell'd, that the King would extend no favour
to them for the future.
The Duke of Tork goes for Scotland, and with
him the Second Coleman, 7homas Sheridon, who
frill profefs d himfelf a Protejlant, though his
A&ions at this timQ gave a fufficient Demon-
ftration to the contrary: For from Scotland he
writ over private 'Encouragements to the Popijh
Party in Ireland, and put them in forne hopes.
But the English were not apprehenfive of any
danger, improving their Eftates, and the Trade,
of the Kingdom more than ever, and never e-
fteeming themfelves more happy than at this
junfture, as being quietly feated under the Care
and Influence of the Duke of Ormondes Govern¬
ment, who now endeavours to have a Parlia¬
ment called in Ireland, and fucceeded fo far as
to obtain a Grant ; in purfuance whereof a Bill
drawn by the Lord Lieutenant and Council, is
lent over to the King : but the Duke of Tories
intereft interceding, obftrufted any farther Pro-
grtls, who came with all expedition from- Scot¬
land to put a ftop to that defign ; which the Iriflj
were lb confident of before it was done, that they
ftuck not to affirm that they were well allured
there would be no Parliament whilfr King Charles
lived, and would frequently dilcourfe with that
liberty and boldnefs, as if the Duke of Tork
had been a finally Seated in the Throne, upon
a Prefumption that he would arrive fpeedily
to it
Ireland
Ireland had now continued for two or three
years in great Tranquillity and Quiet, when up¬
on a fuddain a Stratagem was fet on foot, lain
as deep as Hell, and yet fiemingly for the ad¬
vantage of the Engli[b, which take as follows:
In the Settlement of Ireland, there were overplus
and concealed Lands, laid to be in the polfeifion
of divers of the English, but in truth much more
in that of the Irifh. Now to infure the Titles
of the English from any future Dilcoveries (as was
pretended) a Court of Grace was to be eredfed,
v where all that would, had the opportunity of
putting in their Claims: and upon proving their
poffeffion, and compounding with the Commit
fioners for payment of fiich afum, as they thought
fit to impofe on them ; they were to pals new
Patents. It was alfo given out, that it was fife
for all new Interefts, to pais that Court, and
that it would ftrengthen their Titles. This Po¬
licy had its intended effedt, for many perfons came
in, and confiderable Sums of Money were paid.
But under what plaufible pretext foever this Court
was fit up, 'twas foon perceived as a fnare to the
Englifb : For its defign was to make a narrow in-
fpedtion into all Mens Titles, and thereby to
difiover what advantage might be derived from
it. For by the Act of Settlement, all the for¬
feited Lands in Ireland were only inverted in the
King, as a Royal Trnfiee, for the ufi of the Sol¬
diers and Adventurers, and could be no wray difi
pofed of, but according to the intent of that Adt.
Now whereas there werefeveral Irifh out of their
Lands decreed them by the Aft for want of Re-
prifils;
he fymifl) Tarty in Ireland,
prifals; the King's Patent could not give any Land
away, "but in purfuance to the intent of the Aft.
By which it appears, that this Court was erefted
to prepare Pretences for the Info, when opportu¬
nity fliould invite; and though all this was ne¬
gotiated through the Duke's Intereft: yet none of
that party appeared in it, but the whole of it
was tranfafted by the Dutchels of Port [month,
who had the Money got by Fines out of it.
Becaufe there will be occafion in the farther
difeovery of this Treachery, to name a principal
Aftor in the Cataftrophe of Ireland,, I fhall now
nominate him that was the Abettor and Contri¬
ver of this mifchief, 'twas one IV. who fometime
before bought a Judge's place in the Exchequer
for Eight Hundred Pounds. This Judge was
found a fit Tool to make ufe of and being a'
Cunning ambo-dexter formed this Intriegue, which
had proved fatal to the Pr Intereft of Ire¬
land, if affairs had fucceeded in the fame Current
they had now put them. But I muff not forget
to add, that to make this poilon go down the
more eafie, the Pill was gilded over: Moll of
the Judges were made Commilfioners, and had
part of the Fines; the Lawyers and Attorneys got
Money by the Court: lb that confequently all that
were capable of underltanding the Cheat, were
intereffed as Parties in the Intriegue, and by this
means fome of the Lawyers and Attorneys pur-
chaled Eftates, to the ruine of the former Pof*
leffors. And tis to be obferved, that in the feve-
ral Defigns of the Papifts, Protejlants were the
Tools, whereby they afted, by which they ap¬
peared to have nothing of Cat ho lick in them.
G And
41
7he Secret Qonfults]
And now to force men into this Tonnel, another
Oppreffion was impos'd upon the SubjeCt, and that
was, that no man fhould pais Patent for ,
Markets, Manners, 8tc. without palling his Eftate
through this Court: whereas by the AO: of Set¬
tlement all peribns had liberty for the improve¬
ment of the Countrey, to pais Patent for them,
ib that they were not within three Miles of one
another.
Here you may perceive a molt black defign
ipecioufly repreiented as a fit occafion to lay hold
on, whereby to corroborate the Engli/b Intereft,
though in truth nothing could more effectually
weaken the Frotejlants Titles to their Eftates,
and ftrengthen or improve thoie of the Irijb and
this not only managed, but at firft let up by a
Protejlant. And indeed this gave a more plaufi-
ble colour to it, and made it the more eafily gain
belief with the Enc lifb, 'that the true Reaibns of
its ereCtion, were the lame with thoie that were
pretended, becauie firft advanced by one of their
own Party: A lad thing indeed, that Englifh-
men and Protefiants, fhouid by bale and unwor¬
thy Compliances become fuch Servile Inftruments
to the advancement of the Popiflj Cauie ! A Ca¬
lamity which as it had made lome fteps before,
fo did it improve to an infinite Progreis, when
the late King James was in poileiliou of the
Throne. In which time, too many men, who
were reputed Protectants, through a mean,
and pufillanimous Difpofition, were not leldom
Co-adjutors with the Papijls in fuch violent Pro¬
ceedings,
of the omifi; Tarty in Ireland.
cecdings, as carried a direCt oppofition to the
Laws, and their Religion.
But to proceed where I left off: The Duke of
Ormond, perceiving by the tendency of thele Af¬
fairs, that the Romijh defign was agitated with
greater earneftnefs than ever, with great difficul¬
ty obtains leave to go for England, and purfu-
ant to that comes over, leaving his Son, the Earl
of An an, Lord Deputy, Upon his Arrival at i
Court, he a lecond time attempts a Parliament,
but ineffectually; upon which dilappointment he
returns again for Ireland, with an heavy heart,
as he himfelf declared to a Great Man of that
Kingdom. He had InftruCtions to Regiment the
Army, and lome other things that were Prepa¬
ratives to what followed foon after. But now
the Fatal Stroke was come, the Death of the
King, a Myflery not to be inquired into, though
one can hardly omit remarking that the Irijh 1
Papijls could for fome time before fix upon the
utmoft Period of that Reign, and the Duke was
fent for in hafte from Scotland three years
before, without any apparent reafbn for it,
befides that, the King's permiffion was obtained
with fbme difficulty.
From this time we may Commence the Date
of the Irijh greatnefs : Fate now fmil'd upon 'em,
and that which they had long expended with lb
much impatience and importunity, which had coft
them lb much pains, and had involved them in
fuch great Perplexities: That which had expo-
led them to lo many dangers, and been lo fre-
G 2 quently
Tlx Secret Confults, Negotiations, See.
quently blafted with crofs Accidents and various
Difappointmeats, was now fallen into their Lap.
Now their long-look'd for day was come, and
their Game which had been play'd with fo much
difficulty and lols, did now allure them of bet¬
ter fuccels. Thele Apprehenfions fb tranfported
them with fuch pleafant Raptures, as were emi¬
nently vifible in all their a&ions, efpecially in
Publick Days of Rejoycing, as the day of the
King's Proclaiming that of his Coronation, the
Birth of the pretended Prince of Wales, and the
like : in all which they demonftrated the moll
extravagant Symptoms of a Superlative Joy,
which they exprefs'd in making of Bonfires,
Beating of Drums, playing upon the Bag-pipes,
and other Mufical Inftruments, in Drinking, and
Serenading in the night time, forcing the E»>
glijh out of their Beds, and breaking open their
Doors, and drinking Confulion to the Kings E-
nemies upon their Knees: by which 'twas plain
that they underftood the And all
thele unlawful Revellings oftentimes continued
for two or three Nights and Days without in-
termiffion, wherein fuch of the as refus'd
to joyn with them to that extravagant height,
were accounted Perfons difaffected to the Go¬
vernment, called Fan Mick and Dogs,
with the like Expreffions of Calumny and Re¬
proach. But this was not allthe moll judicious of
them, were now fo animated in their hopes, that
'twas impoffible for them to bear them any
longer with moderation, or to contain themlelves
from the moll violent Outrages, and from inlli-
gating the Rabble to Real from, and rob the
of the Tpmijk Tarty in Ireland. 45
Englifh, which at firft was looked upon as the moft
Expeditious Contrivance, whereby to expel them
the Kingdom. The Duke of forelaw
what was now paft remedy, and told a Friend
of his, that nothing could now prelerve the En¬
glifh but a precipitatenefs of the Iri(b: For ("laid
he) let my Countreymen alone y and they will
their own bufmefs: And lb indeed they had in
any time but this, when it might be laid ac¬
cording to our Saviour's Prediftion, That the time
was come, when they that defiroyed the Eroteftants,
thought they did God fervice.
King 'James and his former (but now more
efpecial) Favourites the Irifh, were now equally
furious in their courle, and leemed to contend
("the one in his Commands, the other in their
forward Obedience) which fhould exceed in their
joynt defign of extirpating Herefie. The Duke 1684
of Ormond was called over, but before his depar¬
ture, laboured with an Indefatigable diligence,
to eftablilh matters on fuch a foundation, fo as
that it might not be eafie for them to create a
prelent change, without a manifeft violation and
infringement of the Laws and Conftitutions of the
Kingdom.. The new Holpital, a ftately Fabrick
near Dublin,ere&ed for poor Soldiers, would
(he forelaw) be made a Neft for Hornets, which
to prevent, as well as polfible, he late leveral
days with the Council and Judges in private,
in the Caftle, and there made all the provifion
thar could be for it, againft the imminent florm.
One remarkable Paffage I mull not omit to menti¬
on, which demonllrates the great Ipirit of that
4.6 The Secret Conjults, Negotiations, &c.
excellent perfon. At the aforefaid Hofpital he
appointed a Dinner for all the Officers of the
Hofpital, and the Officers of the Army then in
Dublin ; which being over, he took a large GJafs
of Wine in his hand, bid them fill it to the brim,
then flood up and called to all the Company,
look here, ©cntlemen, tbcp fap at Court, !
am noto become an ©It) Doattng JFool; pcu
fee mp 5>anD Dotfj not Ifiake, no? Do?0 mp
5>eart fail, no? Doubt but 31 twill make Come of
tbtm fee tbetr ®)tftake > and fo drank the Kings
Health: But upon his Arrival at Court found
that King James'sBigotted Opinion would carry
him to the mofl violent aCtions; a difmal appre-
henfion whereof (as is believed) at length broke
his heart; for though he was of a great Age, yet
was he of fuch health of Body, and cheerfulnefs
of mind, that in courfe of nature he might have
lived Twenty Years longer, as his Mother did.
'Twas plain, that the Irijb could fallen no Ca¬
lumnies upon him, when the firfl thing they re¬
proached him with, was Cheating the Army in
building the Hofpital, and that the Ar¬
chitect had inriched himfelf by it: when indeed
not to leffen any thing of his due CharaCler, Re¬
binfon fhewed the parts of an Excellent Artifl in
the Contrivance, and of an Honefl Man in the
Charge, as men of Value and Experience in Build¬
ing affirm.
1685. Upon the Duke of removal, the Go¬
vernment was put into the hands of the Lord
Primate, and the Lord Granard, in the Quality
of Lords Juflices. The fell immediately to
their
of the Tomifb Tarty in Ireland.
their old trade of making Plots, but with this
difference, That whereas they had formerly been
the Aftors themfelves, they now placed them
upon the Englijh, which they daily impeached of
defigns againft the King and the Government .•
The Grandees had the confidence to appear in
Vindication of fiich Evidence as was given againft
the English, (though it was altogether as unrea-
fonable as untrue) and prefs'd the Lords Juftices
for Orders of Council to empower Irijh Papijls,
and Mongrel Prot eft ants to examine them, and to
commit (if they law caufe) without Bail, any
perlon impeached. This Arbitrary Power, the
Lords Juftices, and Council, would not agree to ;
yet were lb heXored and infulted upon by them,
that they ilfued out Orders of Council to examin
and commit, but always they were direXed to
Protejlants, which wearied the Irijh of that Stra¬
tagem.
One thing has been omitted, which was, that
before the Duke of Ormond left the Government,
an Order came for regulating the Council, which
he left for the Juftices to do, and moft of the
Englijh (that were aXive) of the Privy Council
were turned out, but as yet no Irijh Papifis put
in. The Irijh Lords and Gentry repaired in great
numbers to Dublin, and as well Gentry as Com¬
monalty of the Natives in all places reproached
the Protcftants and their Religion, with all the
Calumnies and Impious Reflexions, that the
ranked: Satyrifts could invent. At Lejlip ibvea
Miles from Dublin, the Lord Clanriccard, Sir
Valentine Browne (now created a Vifcount by the
late King 'James) Colonel Moore, and lome others
upon
y^BBSssassss^
Tlx Secret Cmfulis, See.
upon their Knees, drank Confufion to all Pro-
tenants and their Religion. This was taken no¬
tice of, and the wifer fort of their Party blamed
thefo Men for their forwardnefs, as judging it
could not be fafe to go on fo fail; but to (tide
the noife of it, fuch as were Eye-witnefTes of
the Fad, and threatened for not Pledging the
Health, were leized with Warrants, and menaced
with having their Throats cut, and the like ter¬
rifying Arts, if they denied not the thing. Sir
Standi/h Harjlon one of the Barons of the Exche¬
quer, was threatened to be ealed of his Employ¬
ment, if he took not off his Son-in-Law who re¬
ported the matter.
Thele daily repeated Infolences of the Irijh
made the Lords Judices weary of their Govern¬
ment ; and one of them (the Lord Granard)
writ to England to be dilmid. But in a Con-
fult of the Papijls, it was refolved, to reprelent
him as a Man fit to be kept in; for that his in.
tered was very prevalent in the North among the
Scots, and had for many years in King Charles's
Reign been a Penfioner, and had Five Hundred
Pounds per Annum given him to didribute among
the Presbyterian Clergy ; of which Perlwafion his
Lady was. For the aforelaid Confiderations, and
befides, that he was a Popular Man in the Army,
'twas judged convenient to retain him in the
Government: For which end King James writ
him a Letter with his own hand, with great
Promifes, and affurance that nothing fhould be
afted prejudicial to the Protefiant Intered, which
at that time this Lord was accounted to be zea¬
lous for, however he has now prevaricated.
Mom-
of the T^omifk Tarty in Ireland.
4 9
MonmotttWs Rebellion foon broke out, and 1685.
fome were apt to believe that Gr.in.xrd was in
fufpence who to declare for; but the Lord Pri¬
mate was a perfon of firm, and inviolable Loy¬
alty, and his unalterable fteadinefi hindered the
other from deferring. Thefe two perfbns by
their united Interefts, one for the Church, the
other for the Diflenters, kept things in a quiet
pofture in Ireland, and were lb Cajol'd by King
James, as made chem not only of opinion, but
perfwaded others to be lb too, that the King
would never expofe himfelf to the hazard of
preferring Papifis in that Kingdom, where the
English and Scots were fo unanimous againft'em:
And befides that, they were fo well furnilhed
with Arms, as having the Arms of the
(fo lately fetled) in their hands: But the Popifb
Party grew bold and infolent, and every day af¬
forded but too convincing occafions of new fears
to the Protefiants.
Monmotatis Difeomfiture gave liberty to the
Irifh (more than ever) to contrive Plots, and to
fallen them upon the Protefiants, which put the
whole Kingdom into a Ferment; for the Irifh
pretended, that the Protefiants aflembled toge¬
ther in great numbers in the night: and to gain
the more credit to thefe Hellifh Inventions, the
Vulgar lrifh were infixubted to leave their Hou-
fes, and to hide every Night in their Bogs, upon
a pretence of fear that the would come
in the Night and cut their Throats; a Practice
as notorious in the Church of Rome, as unheard
of among Protefiants, and which there could not
H be
Tk Secret Confults, &c.
be the lead Ground or Foundation for, at this
juntture. For be fides that in mod parts of the
Kingdom the Irifh were infinitely more nume¬
rous than the Englifh; nay, in fome an hun¬
dred Families for one, (I fuppofe I fpeak much
fliort of the true account) which fhewed the
impoffibility of putting any fuch thing in exe¬
cution, had it been ever intended, and mud
needs be accounted an ablurd and ridiculous
contrivance to any man of common forife. So
were the Irifh (though confcious to themfelves
of their own Bloody Attions in the former Re¬
bellion^ well enough affured that the Englifh ne¬
ver imagined, much lels would attempt any fuch
thing. They were convinced as well by their
Pratt ices (which had been but too favourable
and indulgent to the Natives in the former
Reign) as by the Principles of their Religion,
that they were not men of Blood ; nay, and
would frequently confeft, that they were never
known to be additted to Cruelty and Murther,
to Barbarous Maffacres, and Inhumane Affafli-
nations, which they could not excufo fome of
themfolves from. And indeed whoever confiders
the difference betwixt the Reformed and Romijh
Church in this refpett, muft needs acknowledge
a moft ft range oppofition betwixt them. To lee
the Ancient Prattices of the Heathen ,
fo drawn to the life, nay, out-done by the pre-
fent Romijh Fatfion, is to fome a Demonftration
that the Perfecuting Spirit, which reigned with
fo much predominancy in the Infant days of
Chriftianity, is now ftrongly revived in this de¬
generate Church, which is apparently in this, and
other
of the T(omiJh Tarty in Ireland,
other Principles, upon her Retrograde motion to
Ancient Gentilifm. And upon the other hand,
whoever confiders that Spirit of Peace and Meek-
nets, of Mercifulnels and an Univerfal Charity,
which governs with lo ablblute an Empire in
the minds of thole who have duly embraced our
Profeffion, muft needs own, That our Englijh
carries that true Badge and Chara^ferifiick Evidence
of Chriftianity, for which the Primitive Church
was juftly accounted lo illuftrious. But not to
dwell any longer upon this Reffe&ion, with what
malice and injuftice fbever the Englifb were re-
prelented as Night-Walkers, and defigning to
murther the Irifb, yet were Examinations of thele
Impeachments taken by Juftices of the Peace,
calculated for the purpole; and thele were lent
to the Lords Juftices and Council: and although
the Accufations were notorioully falle, and irra¬
tional (as has been already fhewn) yet for not
being prolecuted with that open partiality and
rigour, which thele envious, implacable Spirits
were impatient for, Complaints were made to
the King by the Irifb, and he to gratifie their
malice, lent private inftruftions, with a Repri¬
mand to &he Lords Juftices, about this affair:
Upon which a Proclamation was iffued forth for¬
bidding all Night - Meetings, &c. though the
Lords Juftices and Council well knew there was
no fuch thing. This Artifice of the Irifb, was,
but in order to make way for greater milchief,
by preparing Evidences to bring the moffc confi-
derable of the Englifh into Plots.
T heir
7he Secret (jnfults, Negotiations, See.
Their firft onfet was with one Moor of
mel, who was Indicted for before
Sir John Mead in the Palatinate of Tipper try.
This Moor was a perfon of a vaft Eftate, which
made them bend their whole force againft him.
Now to countenance the defign, , and
Juftin Mac Carthy,. came to Clonmel to the Trial,
and in the Publick Court aflum'd to reproach
the Judge and the Jury ; Mac Carthy calling him
Fanatick, and he and Talbot afperfing him and
the Duke of Qrmond for employing fuch a ,
with other Calumnies, in fuch Language as was
only fit for fuch Blood-hounds to exprels. Not-
withftanding Moore and fome others that were
impeached, were quitted .• But fuch an extrava¬
gantly partial account was lent over to the Court
of that.afltion, that the King queftioned the Duke
of Qrmond, how he came to employ fuch a Fa¬
natick ; to which the Duke replied, he did it in
duty to his Majefty, as believing he could not
entruft a better man than one of his Majefties
Servants, for fb he was when Duke of Fork, be¬
ing then his Attorney General in Ireland.
Tyrconnel then began to modelthe-Army, but
the introductory part firft to be performed, was
to. get in all the Arms from the and
this defign was varnifhed over in as fair Co¬
lours as the Ground would bear. But however
its dire£t tendency was plainly obvious, and vifi-
ble to every Eye. The King and Council writ
over to the Lords Juftices, and Council that
there was realon to believe that the Rebellion
of Monmouth had been of that fpreading Conta¬
gions
of the Tpmtfb Tarty in Ireland.
gion, as to infe£t many, and delude more. It
was not therefore fafe for the Kingdom to have
the Arms of the Militia difperfed abroad, but
they would be in a greater readinefs for the Mi->
litia, and their own defence, to have them de-
pofited in the feveral Stores of each County:
Upon which inftru&ions a Proclamation iifued
forth, and to make it take the better effe£t, the
Lord Primate firfl: began with the City of Dub*
liny and lending for the Lord Mayor and Al¬
dermen, makes an Elegant Speech to them, mag¬
nifying their unfhaken Loyalty in the worft of
timesand withal adding, that their ready Obe¬
dience and prevalent example would be of great
fervice to the King and Kingdom And in the
clofe of Jus Speech tells them, that they expe¬
cted their compliance in bringing in their Arms,
which fhould be always ready for their Service.
The City were fenfible of their condition, but
knew likewife, that 'twas to no purpofe to di-r
fpute as to their obedience, fb brought in their
Arms. The Countrey purfu'd this Precedent, and
to render the defign more effefitual, the Irifh gave
out, That if any Arms were referved in the
Proteftants hands,, fuch would be interpreted as
perfens dilaffeCted to the King and Government,
and that it would be no excufe to lay they were
their own Arms, and not belonging to the Mili¬
tia. This frighted many, and operated lb pow¬
erfully, that abundance delivered in.their Arms*
bought with their own money.
The Proteftants being thus dilarmed, Tyrconnel
proceeds to dcftroying the Army, and firft be-
5 3
gins
with the Officers in the. fame
method,
which i
Tie Secret Confults, Negotiations, &c.
which was defigned immediately before the Death
of the King, which was to difplace all Officers
that had been in the Parliament, or Oliver's Ar¬
my, as alfo the Sons of any fiich. This the
Duke of Ormond had directions to proceed in
when he came laft from Englandbut he made
no Progrefs in it, under pretence of gaining time
to find them out, for he forelaw it was to make
room for Pafijls.
Tyrconnel (for fo we muft call him for the fu¬
ture) proceeds in his defign, and after turning
out a great part of the Officers, returns for En¬
gland, and carries along with him one Neagle a
Cunning Irijb Lawyer, fince Knighted by him:
Neagle's Bufinefs at London was to be engaged
in their iecret Confults; for he was a man of
great parts, educated among the Jefuits, and con-
fequently very inveterate. Upon their Arrival
at London, 'twas fome time e'er Neagle could
gain admittance to kils the King's hand, but was
conftantly with Father Petre, and the reft of that
Furious Cabal. The Queen was altogether for
their Counfels, but the King was not fo forward-
ly inclined , being every day fet upon by all his
Pogifh Lords, not to proceed too faft, in the re¬
volution of Ireland, for that would fpoil the ge¬
neral intereft of the Catholicks: and upon the
Lord Bellajis, Po<v is, and fome others of that Fa¬
lltons underftanding that Neagle was come over,
they were fo transported with Rage, that they
would have him immediately fent out of London :
But whatever mifchiefs he effected in private,
his Pubhck Franlaftions were of no great pre¬
judice to the Protejlants. However to complea.t,
in
in Retirement, what he durft not attempt at
Court, and upon the Publick Stage, 'twas agreed
in Council, that he fhould fet forth by way of
a Letter to a Friend, the great Oppreflion and
Injuftice of the Alt of Settlement, which he did
under the pretence of a two hours waking in a
Night at Coventry, but was indeed two Weeks
labour in London. In this Letter he ran fo high
in his Invectives againft King Charles the Se¬
cond, (which nothing but a meer Tyger, or
Savage as himielf would have done) that he durft
not own it to be his, but in Ireland gave out,
that he would Arreft any Man in an ACtion of
Ten Thou/and Pound, who fhould father it upon
him. But now a Confult was held (the delign
of TyrconnePs coming over) and the Debate va-
rioufly canvafs'd as to a fit Perfon to fend over
for Ireland, in quality of Lord Lieutenant. Tyr-
connel was mentioned with fbme tendernefs, as
being a perfon very Obnoxious to the Englijb>
and therefore 'twas not thought feafonable (till
matters were come to a greater Maturity) to
bring him upon the Stage. The. Lord Be/lajis was
propofed, but that was too bare-fac'd ; befides,
he was infirm, at leaft to carry on their defign
with fuccefs, and not altogether to difguft the
Englifh, 'twas refolved that Tyrconnel fhould re¬
turn Lieutenant General of the Army, and the
Earl of Clarendon Lord Lieutenant. In the mean
time the Irifh Papifls in all parts of the Kingdom,
proceeded in their former Stratagems of Impeach¬
ing the Protejlants for Plots, &c. but thefe were
generally fb ridiculoufly contrived, and made up
of fuch Palpable Contradictions, and Incongrui¬
ties,
The Secret Conjults, Negotiations, &c.
ties, that they ferved only to demonftrate the
P rote pants innocency, and the Horrid Perjuries,
and Implacable Inveteracy of the Informers:
But feeing that thefe Impeachments were lb un¬
skilfully managed (which yet were repeated up¬
on every pretended occafion of dilguft they had
to an Englijb-man) as to mils of their Wicked
and Diabolical intent; then they applyed them-
felves to other Courfes; many went out
and robb'd upon the High-way, broke up Hou-
fes, ftole Cattle, killed them in the Field, and
cut out the Tongues of Sheep alive, with other
innumerable Barbarities, all acled upon the
glifh, which were lo frightened and difeouraged
with thefe Tragedies, that thoufands deferted the
Kingdom, and came for England, under as great
Fears and Jealoufies, as if there had been an o-
pen Rebellion, and Five Hundred together de¬
parted the Kingdom, to Tranlport themfelves
to Virginia, Carolina, Penfilvania, WeJ
Nerv England.
This was extream grateful to the who
fet all their Engines at work, lb to dilhearten
and difeourage the Protejlants, as to force them
to leave the Kingdom. Tyrconnel now drives
with greater fury than before, not only difpla-
cing the Officers of the Army, but alfo turning
out the Private Soldiers, and to both, prefers
which of the Iriflj he thought fit; his Will was
Iris Law, and his A&ions purely Arbitrary, none
daring to queftion him; for he brought over
Blank Commiffioas Signed by the King, forfuch
as he was willing to put in. This Pa?t' he aaed
in
u«t
in Ireland,
i-n a molt Infulting Barbarous manner, caufing
poor Men that had no Cloaths on their Backs,
but Red Coats, to be ftript to their Shirts, and
fo turned off; and of all this lie himfelf was an
Inhumane Spectator: He leiz'd the Horles of
fome Officers and Troopers, giving Notes that a-
mounted not to a fourth proportion of their jutl
Values j to others he gave nothing but ill words,
and vile reproaches. Inthemidltof this Tragi¬
cal Scene the Earl of Clarendon comes upon the
Stage in the Capacity of Lord Lieutenant; his
Relation to the King added to the violent Pro¬
ceedings then in Ireland, lo vigoroufly drove on
by the Popifh Party, afforded but little hopes of
any red re Is of thele Evils to the Drooping
Spirits of the Proteftants, who were by this
time entered into a very Delponding and De-
je£ted Condition.
But thefe Dilcouragements of the were
alleviated in a very high meafure, if not changed
into Ecftafies, and perfeft Raptures of Joy, when
perceiving the Lord Lieutenant a fling as a per-
lon of inviolable Integrity to the Proteftants, a/id
the Englijh Intereft, they looked upon him as a
lit Man to item the Torrent of the Popifh Fa¬
ction, which had been fo violent and impetuous:
and indeed his very firft action gave no fmall
proof of it, -which was to cherifh and revive the
broken hearts of the Proteftants, with thole great
A durances his Mafter had given him of protecting
the Protejlant Interell and Religion, which he
good man could not disbelieve. In purluance
of this, he ifl'ued out Proclamations for bringing
in of Torys, and propos'd Rewards to fuch as
I ffiould
5?
it
i
fhould apprehend them: He rid a Progrefi
round the chiefeft parts of the Kingdom, to
give life to the Englifh ; but at the lame time
the Grandees of the Irifh proceeded in their de-
fign, animating their Yalfals, with hopes that he
fhould loon be removed ; the Irifh compofing
Barbarous Songs in praile of and
that his Heroick hand fhould defiroy the
glifh Church ; with Bloody and Inhumane Expref-
lions, very ungrateful to a Chriffian Ear.
Thefe reftlels Endeavours of the made
the Earl of Clarendon find things very uneafie;
whereunto one Remarkable PalTagc not a little
contributed, which was reported to be thus:
That upon a Sunday Morning going to Church,
he perceived an Irifh Officer he never faw be¬
fore, Commanding his Guard of Battle-Axes that
attended his Perlon, which exceedingly furpri-
zed him: whereupon he made a flop, demand¬
ing who he was, and who put him there? The
Irifh-man (for they are naturally Pufillanimous
and fearful) was as much frighted, as the Lord
Lieutenant was difturbed; but with fome diffi¬
culty, and in broken Expreffions, occafioned by
fear, told his Excellency, he was a Captain put
in by the Lord Tyrconnel. His Excellency demand¬
ed of him When? he replyed, That Morning:
His Excellency bid 'em call the former Captain,
and difmils this of Tyrconne The next day
the Lord Lieutenant lent for Tyrconnel, and que-
ftioned him for this A&ion, who replyed, He
did nothing but by the Kjn Ordersto which
the Lord Lieutenant returned anfwer, That
His Majejly intrujfed him with the Government,
he
of the PomiJJ? Party Ireland.
be would not be difpofed by Lieutenant Gene¬
ral. Complaints on both hands were made to the
King, and fo ended.
Tyrconnel having compleated his defign in mo¬
delling the Army, goes for , and there
confults with his fatty to obtain the Govern¬
ment of Ireland. The King, Queen, and Father
Petres were for him ; but the whole Council of
Papijls oppos'd it, ftill urging how unacceptable
he was to the Englifb; others therefore were named
in private by that Popifh Party: But all the while
the Protejlant fide were wholly ignorant of any
defign to remove the Earl of Clarendon,
not queftioning but that he flood upon a firm
Foundation, (namely) the Kings late ailurance
to the Earl of Rochejler, Lord Trealiirer, who
was leemingly Prime M miller of State, but not
thought fit to be confided in, as to thole dark
Secrets of the Catholick Defigns.
About this time there was a general metting
at the Savoy before Father , of the chief
Roman Catholicks of England, in order to confult
what Methods were fitted to be purfued for the
promotion of the Catholick Caule. The Papijls
were univerfally afraid of the King's Incapaci¬
ty, or elle unwillingnels of expofing himlelf to
the hazard of lecuring it in his Reign. They
were lenfible that he advanced confiderably in
Age ; befides, they were not ignorant of what
almoft infuperable difficulties they had to con¬
tend with, before they could bring it to any
ripenels: Wherefore upon thele Confiderations,
(carefully weighing and ballancing every Circum-
ftance) feme were fer moving the King to pro-
I 2 cure
6o The Secret [onfults, Negotiations, See.
care an ASt of Parliament for the fecurity of
their Eftates, and only liberty for Priefts in
their own private Houfes, and to be exempted
from all Employments." This Father Pet res A-
nathematized as Terreftrial, and founded upon
too anxious a Sollicitude for the prefervation of
their Secular Interefts ; but if they would pur-
fue his meafures, he doubted not to lee the Ho¬
ly Church triumphant in England: And indeed
his Politicks have taken, but in a quite different
manner than he expefted \ for (God be praifed)
a Church triumphs in England,, as much fiiperu-
our to his in Holinels, as the means of its pre-
fervation have been in juftice, to his, which were
intended for its deftru&ion. Others of the Pa-
pifs were for addrefling the King to have liber¬
ty (now that they might do it) to fell their
Eftates, and that his Majefty would intercede
with the French King to provide for them in his
Dominions. After feveral Debates, it was at
laft agreed upon to lay both Propofals before the
King, and fome of the number to attend his
Majefty with them, which was accordingly done;
to which the King's return was, That he had be¬
fore their Defires came to him, often thought of
themj and had ( as he believed) provided a fure
Sanftuary, and Retreat for them in Ireland, if
all thefe endeavours fhoiild be blajled in England,
which he had made for their fecurity, and cf whofe
juccefs he had not yet r.eafon to defpair. This
Encouragement to the Papifis in England, was
attended with the moft Zealous Expreffions,
and Qatholick Aflurances of his Ardent Love, to
the Holy Church, which, he faid fte, had been a
w# Si Mar-
of the T^omijb Tarty in Ireland.
Martyr for. Thus we fee how the Bigottry of
this unhappy Prince, tranfported him beyond all
bounds, and carryM him to fuch Extravagancies
in Government, as the moderate of the Englifh
Papijls themfelves thought to be extream- hazar¬
dous and infecure; and would all of them have
been content with a private exercife of their Re¬
ligion, as thinking it abundantly more fafe, ra¬
ther than endanger the lofing their Eftates and
Fortunes, (which they almoft look'd upon as in¬
evitable) if fuch violent extream courfes were
followed.
But alas thefe felf-preferving, and the furious
Principles of the Jefuits had no Congruity; and
the King was too much.a Creature of the laft,
to attend to any but their Counfels. He faid he was
refolved to die a Martyr, rather than not ad¬
vance the Catholick. Caufe. He had entered him-
felf into the Order of the Jefuits, and was be¬
come a Lay-Brother of that Society; and fb in
confequence to his Profeflion, mud needs look
upon it as-meritorious to extirpate and deftroy
Herefie. He was told that this would be a molt
glorious adtion ; and doubtlefs would be Cano¬
nized for it. To reduce three Kingdoms to an
entire obedience to the Holy See, which had A-
poftatized fb long, and been the Nurfery of fb
many Damned Hereticks, who by their Hetero¬
dox Dodtrines had created fo much difturbance
to the peace of the mod Holy Catholick Church,
was doubtlefs the greateft action on this fide Hea¬
ven,, and deferved no jefs than that for its re¬
ward. No time, nor ftory, could parallel this
Heroical Atchievement, which would be corn-
memo-
6z The Secret Confute,Negotiations, See.
memoratedto Eternal Ages. This would be a
"Work of Supererogation indeed, which would
not only convey him to Heaven, without touch¬
ing at Purgatory; but alfo lay up fuch an infi-
• nite over-plus of merits, as being depofited in the
hands of the Church, and frugally applyed, would
not only preferve thoufands of others from thefe
Flames, but waft them immediately into Abra¬
ham's liofom. Thefe or the like we may fup-
pofe to have been the conftant fuggeftions of the
Jefuits, which as they indeavoured to inftill into
the Kings mind, with Tongues as fmooth as
Oyl, and with the moft prevailing Flatteries, and
Artificial Infinuations; lb on the other hand, did
he as greedily imbibe thefe Poifenous Dobtrines,
as they could infufe them, and eagerly fwallow'd
the Bait, when all the while the Hook lay con-
ceal'd, and he £> far intangled, till 'twas too late
to difcover it. And now how can we fuppofe
that a Prince thus wholly at the Devotion of
the Jefuits, fwayed altogether by their Coun¬
cils, and upon every occafion confulting them as
fo many Oracles, fhould refift the voice of thefe
Charmers, who Charmed fo wifely in his byafs'd
opinion. Thefe Syrens kept a very harmonious
Confbrt, which they exactly tuned to the Key
and accent of this Votary's fanciful Genius: eve¬
ry ftroke founded fo melodious in his Ear, as
made him not confider that this pleafant Mu-
fick prefaged a dangerous Ship-wrack to hiin-
felt and his Party, as we find it afterwards
proved.
/
But
But to go on in ray former Difcourfe: Af¬
ter the aforefaid Encouragements given by the
King to the Englifh Papijts,to allay their fears,
frefli Confults were fet on foot, relating to the
Government of Ireland. This by accident the
Lord Treafurer received fome account of, which
he immediately acquainted the King with, who
abfolutely denys, that there was any intention
of changing the Chief Governour; but on the
contrary allured him of his great fatisfa&ion '
with the Lord Lieutenant there. Within a few
days the Lord Treafurer received from his Bro¬
ther the Lord Lieutenant of the fame-
Intimations, which he had informed the King
of; and upon which he again accofts his Maje-
fty, who as pofitively difbwns the whole matter
as he had done before, and to remove the Jea-
loufies of the Lord Lieutenant, writes (for his
greater fatisfa&ion) a Letter to him, as was laid,
with his own hand, alluring him there was yet
no thoughts, and he believed never would be in
him (whilft both liv'd) to remove him from the
Government of Ireland; notwithftanding which
the Papijls in Ireland, confidently affirmed, that
the day before the King writ the Letter, he had
given affuranceto Father , That Tyrconnel
fbould be Lord Lieutenant; but 'tis certain that
no other Creature but the Queen was privy to
this, no not Tyrconnel himfelf, for he could not „
keep a Secret.
'T w? s
'Twas at the fame time alfo refolved to put
the Lord Treafurer and Sunderland (Principal
Secretary) to the Teft, as to what they would
do in compliance to the ■Catholick Caufe ; it not
being at all advifeable to cherifh Serpents in their
Bofoms that might difembogue their venom upon
every inviting Revolution. Tfie King undertook
the management of this Affair, and made his firft
Onlet on Sunderland, for he was oblerved to be
moft docible, as appeared already, by his fubmif-
five bowing and cringing to the Altar. What the
Tenour of that Dilcourle was, which the King
had with him, is not yet known ; but however
Sunderland''s Obedience was extreamly magnify'd
and approved of in the Conclave; and Father
Petres at a meeting with the Jefuits, gave a good
account of this Negotiation with Sunderland ; ad¬
ding that 'twas neceffary for him as yet to ap¬
pear a Protejlant for Important Reafons of
State.
Upon meeting with this fuccefs, the King de¬
fends to an attempt upon the Treafurer, whom
he endeavours to manage with good words and
gentle arts of Perfwafion. For he was haughty,
as knowing that his fignal Services might rea-
fonably entitle him to confiderable Favours from
the King: And therefore upon this account muft
be amicably dealt with, and gently ftroak'd into
humour : which the King ftrove to perform with
all thofe Specious Arts and Policies dictated to
him by his Holy Council. And the more to pre¬
vail upon him, he urged to him, that ©unDct*
lanD, a Wile and Religious Man, though he was
know-
knowing in his Religion, yet refufed not to admit
of a Conference with thole that were Learned,and
defired him to do the fame. The eft'e£t of this
Negotiation became lo publick, that 'twill be un-
aeceffary to mention it here : but Sunderland, like
an eafie and tradable Child, though fed at firft
with Milk, came at laft to digeft ftrong Meat,
by arriving every day more and more to maturity
in the Faith, and though ftill a yet
went every day with the King to Mafs, publick-
ly kneeling before the Altar, and praying with
Naaman, That God would forgive his Servant in
that thing.
But to come to the Lord Treafijrer: No
work of grace would take effect with this ob-
Itinate Impugner of the Faith ; and which ren¬
dered him a greater Infidel, was, that the King
could not prevail fo much upon him as to obtain
his filence, or a defire from him, to have time
to confider of it, but turns an open Heretick: up¬
on which one of the Fathers faid, mull Uc
Bnatljemanjfl), anti tfjat the King coulD nebec
piofpet in&ilft fuclj an $)frettc& tuas near
pi m.
Before it was publick in London, the Priefts i6%6,
of Ireland gave out that the white Staff was
broke, and at that time by way of prediction
told all that loon after came to pals.
It was now become the publick dilcourle, That
the two Brothers mult down, and then the King
in Council pretended (though he had before re-
lolved) to ask their advice, who was fit to be
placed in the Government of Ireland. Several
K perlbn-s
perfons were propofed, but none approved of:
After that the inclination of the Council had been
fufficiently fifted, by offering of divers, the King
again brings on Tyrconnel; which was withftood
by all but $ , and in oppofition to which
the Popijh Party contended vigoroufly.
p — (notwithftanding that they knew him
to be both a C and a F , as the King
in Paffion one day told him he was; yet however)
was confidered as a Perfon whole moderate car¬
riage had entitled him to a reafonable good Cha¬
racter among the Prot ejl ants;and therefore the
fitted: to,be placed in this ftation, the better to
amufe them. This was chiefly infilled upon by
them, and he was llrongly argued for upon this
account.. Pot vis was naturally covetous, and the
Government of Ireland, a Poll of great profit:
wherefore his Friends advis'd him to agree with
Sunderland,and do as the L. B did with
the Dutchefs of Cleveland, become Tenant for
it; in order whereunto Bowis comes to terms,
and agrees for Four Thoufand Pounds per
num; but whatever the bottom of the defign
was, Sunderland never forfook Tyrconnel at the
Council-Board. Some conjedured,. that he ac¬
quainted the King of his Bargain with ;
and that the King made Tyrconnel agree to the
fame. For 'tis certain Tyrconnel (who was of no
great Conduct) would fwear he got not fo much
by the Government,.as ferved to maintain him,
notwithftanding that it was worth to him
Eignteen Thoufand Pounds per Annum.
Sunder-
cf the Qfomifb Tarty Ireland.
Sunderland was become fo intimate a Favou¬
rite, that nothing could be got at Court but by
his intereft ; and when the King was told he
got all the Money of the Court, he replyed he
deferved it. Nay, his Intereft was at laft be¬
come fo remarkable, that the King himfelf would
ask when any grant was given, if they had fpoke
with Sunderland.
The Irifb were ftill marveloufly impatient for 1686,-
their S^agan ; and at laft Tyrconnel obtains the
Government, notwithftandingall oppofition. The
! orifirmation of this difmal News reaching the
Ears of the Protejlants in Ireland, ftruck like a
Thunderbolt: Perhaps no Age or Story can pa¬
rallel fo dreadful a Cataftrophe among all Ages
and Sexes, as if the day of Doom was come ;
every one lamenting the dreadfulnefs of their
horrible condition, and almoft all that could (by
any mens) deferted the Kingdom, if they had
but money to difcharge their Paflage; a demon-
ftration of this were thofe infinite numbers of
Families, which flocked over from Dublin to the
ljle of Many and other places. Indeed I cannot
recal to mind the great Confirmation, the dif¬
mal Apprehenfions, and Panick Fears, which
poflefs'd the hearts of all Protejlants at this ju&-
Sure, without reviving flike JEneas his repeti¬
tion of the Trojan Miferies to the Carthaginian
Queen) thofe deep impreflions of forrow, thofe
Infandos - dolores, under which I was then
almoft funk, and overwhelmed.
fii
Now
The Secret Qonfults,
Now every thing discovered a gloomy and
Melancholy profpeft, and Seemed to be attended
with lb many Difcouragements, that many that
had Patentee Employments, obtained Licence
from the Lord Lieutenant under the Broad-Seal,
to come away ; and all that lay in his Excellenr
cy's power, for the help and afliftance of the
t eft ants, he zealoufly performed. It was inter¬
preted by many as a fignal Aft of Providence
propitious to the Englijh, that the Winds conti¬
nued for fome time contrary, after that this furi¬
ous Zealot for the Caufe (as impatient as a Wild
Bull in a Net) was come to the Sea-fide, which
dilappointment did not a little dilcompofe him,
whole prejudice and ambition equally infpired
him with eagernels to Supplant his Predeceflor,
whom he had looked upon as his Corrival in the
Government. This favourable, delay was religi-
oufly refpefted by many as a certain warning, or
admonition from God to his people to fly from,
thole heavy Judgments, which had been long
imminent, but now in an aftual readinels
to defcend upon that Poor Diftrefled King¬
dom.
But he whofe Arrival was dreaded every mo¬
ment, as the moft fatal milery that could fall
upon the Nation; at laft (after being thus re¬
tarded) to the unfpeakable terrour of the
ftants,Landed at Dublin: And the Lord Claren¬
don (who had a particular favour conferred up¬
on him to.continue for one Week in the Govern¬
ment after 'PyrconneVs Landing) at his Grace .the
Lord Archbilhop of DublI'alace, refigned the
Sword to Tyrconnelwith an admirable Speech to
him,,
of the (Rornifb Tarty Ireland. 6<y
him, letting forth his exad oblervance of the
Commands of the King his Mailer, and faithful
difcharging of that great trull, which had been
committed to him ; and concluding with his Im¬
partial Adminiftration of Jultice to all Partys,
in thele, or the like words addreffed to Tyrcofi¬
ne I : Chat a# he hah kept an equal hanh of
Suftt'ce to the Eoman €atholtc&0, fa he hopeh
hto Loj&fljsp hosulh to the pjorettatvrs. Ne¬
ver was a Sword wafhed with lo many Tears,
as this, a moll doleful prelage of its being lo in
blood .• It would furpals the Art of Rhetorick
to let forth the dreadful Refle£tions which the
poor a (hi tied Protejlunts made upon this Omi¬
nous Revolution. No Oratour could find words
to exprels the fatal Calamities which were now
derived from the conlequence of this change ; it
prelaged the woril of evils, and leemed to carry
in all its parts the moftdifmal Chara&ers of an
Irreverlible Extirpation of the Protejiant
and Religion. Moll of the Englijb were pol-
ielTed with the daily fears of a general Mailacre
to be fuddainly put in Execution, and that in a
moll inhuman manner; and this produced the
llrangell Convullions in the minds of men, that
a moll exquifite grief could be capable of. Ci¬
thers were more temperate in their Ibrrows, and
were of opinion, that notwithilanding Popery
was the Scene which mull be a fled, yet they
were in hopes by Ibme more plaufi'ole way,
than that of downright murthering. They con-
lidered that the laft Rebellion had heaped fo
much Infamy upon the Irijb, and had jullly ren¬
dered them luch Barbarous and Inhumane Sava¬
ges,.
The Secret Confults, Negotiations, See.
ges to the whole Chriftian World, that to obli¬
terate that deferved reproach, they would now
take fome milder courfe ; which though it might
have fometbing more of Humanity in-it, would
yet be as efteftual to the defign, the utter Sub-
verfion of the Protejlant Intereli and Religion.
In fine, Quot homines, tot fen tens in', their Sen¬
timents were as various as their Fears: But how¬
ever all concurred in thi 'I hat Popery was the
Game, that mult not _ be Flayed, but win
too, whatever Arts were uled to obtain the up-
fhot.
The Lord Clarendon before he fin-rendered the
Government, was very curious to inform him-
felf of the Conftitution and Condition of
land, and at his going over carried with him
Copies of Records, Surveys, &c. of that King¬
dom, and among other things, it is laid, that he
defired the Lord Chief Jultice , (now
in Rebellion in Ireland) and one of the fatal
inftruments for the mine of that Kingdom, to
give him his opinion in Writing, both as to the
Legality and fuftice of the Aft of Settlement;
as alio to anfwer thole Objeftions which had
been made again ft it by ; all which he
amply performed; and which my Lord Claren¬
don upon his Arrival at Court, {hewed to the
King, who lent the Copy over to , who
{pared not to reproach for this aftion,
which Kjating at firft dilbwned ; but the matter
being too plain to admit of an ablblute denial
at length began to make the beft Excule lis
could.
My
sf the 1{omiJh *Party in Ireland.
My Lord Clarendon being fhipped for En¬
gland, now does the open and full Triumph of
the Irijh ambitioufly fhew it felf in this advanta-
gious Jight in all its grandeur and magnificence
The dejefted condition of the made thei/
Viftory more glorious. 'Twas now impoffibie
for the Natives to forbear infulting over the En¬
glish at an infupportable rate, as if they had
been actually their Slaves, bound to the Wheels
of their Chariots. That fober thought of Sefo-
Jlris, when he had his Coach drawn by four
Kings, was not a refleftion to be entertained by
them at this junfture. The Day was now their
own, and Poji mortem n vol hpt as, they fail¬
ed not to ufe it as extravagantly whilft they
enjoyed it. What Affronts and Indignities were
now cait upon the Englijh ? How barbaroufly
He&or'd and Infulted over by thefe Huffing
Rhodomontadoes ? How injured and oppref-
fed by publick acts of notorious in juftice ? How
abufed as to their good Names, reviled as to
their Religion, and reproached as and
Pmejlants ? Called Fanati , and
Hereticks, is lo publickiy known, as requires
not much pains to defcribe. Thole of the Pro-
tejhmts who had been the moft obliging to the i
Irijh, were fure to meet with the- moft ungrate¬
ful returns; and if they had been fo charitable
as to relieve them in their neceflities, as the
Englijh (a merciful and too eafie natured a Peo¬
ple) had frequently done, they would now in
requital leize upon what they had, by open force,
or elfe fet others of their own Creatures to do
it. If any of 'the Englijh lent Money to
them,.
Tl?e Secret Con]ults, N, &c.
them, or bargained for Goods and Commodities
of the Countrey, whereby the Irifj were be¬
come their Debtors; their ufual payment (efpe-
cially if they were in neceffity, and afraid that
Executions would be obtained againft their per-
fons or fubftance) was repairing to the next
J u 11 ice of the Peace, and fwearing of High-
Treafon againft their Creditors, though often¬
times (in kindnefs to them) they had been for-
born with a year or two from dilcharging the
Debt.
But I pals from fpeaking any more of thefe
Infamous Wretches (whole Mercies are Cruelty)
to Tyrconnefs fii ft fteps in the * Government as
Lord Deputy, in relation to which, I fhall now
ufher in at once, the removing of the Judges,
though fbme of them were turned out before
Tyr cornel came to the Sword: As Sir
Harjlon Baroftet, one of the Barons of the Ex¬
chequer; Sir Richard Reynolds Baronet, one of
the Judges of the Kjngs-Bench \ and
one of the Judges of the Common-Pleas.
The Confult was in London before Tyrconnel
came to the Government, whether the Judges
fhoildjriot be turned out before the Earl of Cla¬
rendon was removed, to reprefent him odious to
the People, if he complyed ; or difobedient to
the King, if he feemed unwilling in the mat¬
ter, as they believed he would.. For they ob-
ferved that he and the Lord Chancellor Porter,
began to ftartle at the Commands from England,
.before they received any account of their remo¬
val ; and Porter publickly declared, That he
came not over to ferve a turn; nor would aft
rT^d any
of tie Tomijh Tarty Ireland.
anything againft his Confidence: and as a Te-
ftimony of this, he found at his return to Lon¬
don, that he could not without fome difficulty
obtain the favour of biffing the King's hand:
but at length gaining admittance, he humbly
asked the King, What he had done, that he was
fo uled ? For it had been a confiderable expence
to him to remove his Family. To which the
King replyed, That 'twas his own fault; which
was an expreffion not very unintelligible. Por¬
ter went feveral times after to Court, and (food
in the King's F.ye; but he never vouchlafed to
fpeak to him, or to take the leaft notice of him.
But to come to the Judges, it was not thought
fafe to turn them all out, nor any more of them,
till the Government was in a hand that was
Catholick: For fome of the Council, I mean, the
Cabal, were afraid of proceeding in their defign
too fall; efpecially Potvis, who urged a flow Pro-
grels, as accounting it mod fafe; and this made
him not be confided in as to their focret and
blacker Defigns, though in his Lady they repo-
fod an intire Confidence, as being thought the
greateft Politician among them ; and were not a
little ambitious, that the Earl of Shaftsbury in
the Popijb Plot, had given her that Chara¬
cter.
This Debate concerning the Judges, was long
and often; fome were for making a clear rid¬
dance, and to have the Reformation begin in the
Courts of Judicature. They having already the
Military part of the Government in their hands,
might with greater Facility fecure the Civil ;
L But
Tlx Secret Confults, , &c.
But the moderate Party prevailed, and one in a
Court (to colour the actions of the reftj muft be
left: But that which ftuck with them was, that
Sir William Davis,Lord Chief Juftice of the
Kjngs Bench, muft not be moved for two Rea-
lons.
The Firft was, That he had been of the
Duke's Party in the time of the ,
behaving himfelf fo loyal, that he had been Tent
over, if DilTolving the Parliament had not pre-
ferved him: but this was the leaft part of his
Strength.
The Second therefore, and moft prevalent
Inducement, was his Marriage with the Coun-
tefsof CUncarthy, whole Son had Married the
Earl of Sunderland's Daughter, and Sunderland
was to be denied nothing: Befides, Sir William
Davis was a Dilealed infirm man, given over for
iome years; and to expedite his Journey for ano¬
ther World ffor he was a thoughtful man) his
Brother Judge Nugent, (the firft Popijh Judge
that was put in) pals'd Patent for Sir William
Davis's place of Lord Chief Juftice in reverfion:
a fad Prefage in thole times, where men muft
die when and how their Adverlaries plealed.
This being relolved, the choice was loon made.
Lord Chief Baron Hen makes way alio for ,
and in Rice's room, Sir Linch fucceeds in
the Common-Pleas.
In the High Court of Chancery, was placed
Sir Alexander Fitton, a man notorious on Re¬
cord, fo exempts me from the pains of giving
the Reader a Chara&er of him in this place ;
but
of the Tfomifb Tarty Ireland.
but little regard was to be had to the man, lo
long as he was fitted to that intereft, which was
then promoting; it being very remarkable, That
of what Perfwafion foever they were, which
they employed at this time, they chole men of
the moft branded Reputations, and whole
Principles were fuch as could brave Conlci-
ence.
The three Protejfant Judges had their feve-
ral Capacities and Inclinations for their Service,
the Lord Chief J uftice. Davis, I fpeak not of,
for he was decreed to die, and did loon after :
but the three Standards for the Caufe, were the
Lord Chief J uftice Kjati for the Common-
Pleas, Lyndon for the Kjng s-Pcnch, and Baron
Worth for the Exchequer. The Lord Chief Ju-
ftice Kjating had always been a Servant of the
Duke of Torks, was a Native of the place, as the
Irijb call them, his Family for many Ages there,
and Naturalized into Inflo; he was lotnewhat
accounted to be Popifloly inclined, and therefore
that Party thought themlelves fure of him; but
he was a perlbn of mo c fenle than to purfue
the Chace with greater expedition than lafety.-
He was rich and fingle, and fmall hopes would
not Ipur him on to an indilcreet forwardnels ;
however, as to the main, they queftioned not
his Affe&ion to the Caule.
Lyndon, though in his aftefHon no friend to
the iriflj Government; yet lay under the pow¬
erful temptation of a numerous Family, and his
not abounding in Riches made him the more
Paflive, though he behaved himlelf the beft of the
L 2 three;
T,"he Secret Qonfults,Negotiations, &c.
three; and when it laid in his power, Ihewed
himlelf an English-man.
Baron IV was the Man they moft de¬
pended upon, and he was fo well known, that
'twas in vain to pretend indifferency, nor did he,
but was the firft man in the Exchequer (where
there was more bufinels than in all the Courts
befides) that ftruck the fatal blow in all Caufes
where the Englijh were concerned, as in the
Sequel will appear in the Charters, and pri¬
vate Caufes of the Engl/Jb that came before
him.
The Courts being thus letled, the next thing
to be performed, was calling in the Charters,
and here Tyrconnel endeavoured to proceed in
the fame method, that the Lords Juftices had
done before, in perfwading the City to deliver
up their Arms. But one art in State-Policy
could not eafily be impoled twice in a year, and
the English had a frefh Impreflion upon their
Memories, by what plaulible perlwafive Rheto-
rick they had been cajoled out of their Arms,
and now to have a like Delufion pals upon them,
in depriving them of their Laws, was a colour
not natural enough to deceive them a lecond
time : However this was the method of the pro.
ceeding.
Tyrconnel (during the Lord Clarendon's Go¬
vernment had procured the King's Letter, that
all Roman Catholicks fhould be admitted into the
freedom of all the Corporations of the King¬
dom : which Letter was artfully contrived with
of the omifbTarty in Ireland.
a great deal of fweetnels, and of endearing expref-
fions, as that it proceeded from his Majefty's
great care of the general good of the Kingdom,
and was gracioufly defigned by him for the en¬
couragement of Trade, and the uniting of the
Affeftions of his Subjefts : and in order to put
this in execution, the City of Dublin was to lead
the way, and to be the Precedent to the whole
Kingdom: And therefore in purfuance to the te-
nour of the aforelaid Letter, the Lord Mayor
calls a General Affembly, wherein the Kings
Letter was read; upon which the City made
their humble Addrels to the Lord Lieutenant
and Council; letting forth, that they found the
City by Aft of Parliament bound up, and that
if they fhould aft according to the Letter, they
incurred a Forfeiture of their Charters; and
therefore humbly prayed the Lord Lieutenant
and Council, to lay their Condition at his Ma¬
jefty's Feet, who (they did humbly conceive)
was mis-informed in this matter. This retarded
the freedom of the Papijls for lome time, but
another Mayor, one Cujtle (who is ftill in
Dublin) fucceeding, he pa/Ted the Irifb Freemen,
and in conlequence to this, the lame was done
in the whole Kingdom.
This was laid with ingenuity enough for pro¬
moting the Irifh defign; yet received not its hor
ped for effeft, which was by this means to pro¬
cure freedom for lo many of the Injb in every
Corporation, as by the Majority of their Suffra¬
ges, might out-vote the • Etighfb in the Eleftion
of Popi/h Magiftrates, which upon TyrconnePs
7 8 The Secret Confults&c.
Acceffion to the Government, might facilitate the
furrendring the Charters, and fo render the King¬
dom fas they (tiled it) entirely Catholick; But
. this device, how fpecioufly foever contrived, did
not reach the end of its Projedors. For notwith-
ftanding the great Endeavours, and adive Indu-
ftry of the Irifb; yet moft of the Corporations
out-ballanced them in the number of Protc-
(lunts.
Tyrctmoel perceiving himfelf fruftrated of his
expectation, by the numerous Party of the En-
fli(b, has an immediate recourfe to the way be¬
fore-mentioned of the Lords Juftices, and to put
this in pradice, fends for the Lord Mayor and
Aldermen, and there acquaints them, that he had
in charge from hisMafterthe King, to tell them,
as being the chief City of the Kingdom, and un¬
to which, as fuch, he intended the greateft Marks
of his Favour, that it was his pleafure to call
in all the Charters of the Kingdom, not with
defign to take away any thing from them, but
to enlarge their Priviledges, by which ad of
bounty and favour, he might the more endear
them unto him : Ha farther told them, that his
Majefty expeded their ready compliance, fo as
that their chearful furrendry of their Charter,
might become examplary to the reft of the
Kingdom.
The Lord Mayor returned the anfwer ufual
in fuch cafes; which was, that he would call an
Aflembly, and move it to them ; and the next
day he accordingly did fo, acquainting them with
what the Lord Deputy had given him in charge.
The
of the Tomijb Tarty Ireland.
The Alfembly was not long upon their Refolves,
but the manner of delivering them afforded the
greateft matter of debate; the refult whereof was
this, That the Lord Mayor, Recorder, and Al¬
dermen ftiould wait upon his Excellency, and
acquaint his Lordfhip, that as the City had ever
been exemplary in their Loyalty, and faithful O-
bedience to the Kings and Queens of England;
lb they fhould ever continue in the lame; and
therefore humbly conceived it to be their Duty
to lay at his Majefty's feet the great Services they
had done the Crown, under the (Svantg anD
immunities! of One fruntyeD anh Cburp
Chatter#, they had then in their Treafury from
his Majefties Royal Anceftors; and they hum¬
bly prayed his Excellency to favour them in a
kind reprelentation of their condition to his Ma-
jefty, which they hoped would prevail with his
Majefty for the continuance of their Ancient Go¬
vernment, under lo many Gracious Grants and
Charters. Upon the making of this return,
there was prelent the King's Attorney and Sol-
licitor. The firft being a moft Virulent and
Inveterate Papifi; nothing of friendlhip was ex¬
pected from him: but the latter was not doubt¬
ed, yet contrary to expectation, argued ftifly a-
gainft the City. The Lord Deputy (as extra¬
vagantly mad to meet with this return, which
lo ablblutely thwarted his defign) fell into a
great fit of violent Palfion, and in a raging Tem-
peft told them, That this was the continuance of
their former Rebellion, that they had turned
out all the Loyal Snbje&s in the laft War of Ire-
go •> Ihe Secret Confutes, Negotiations,
land, and that they would do fo now, were it
in their power: And it was, becaufe they fo
lately difputed the King's Commands, for ad¬
mitting Catholick Free-men, that caufcd his Ma-
jefty to call in their Charters; and in the clofe
of this furious Speech, advifed the Lord Mayor
to call the Alfembly again, and obey the King,
or it would be worfe for them.
Wherefore the Lord Mayor humbly befought
his Excellency to fignifie his pleafure to the AP
fembly by a Letter under his hand, alledging,
that they would not regard a Verbal. Repetiti¬
on of it, which they had been already acquain¬
ted with; as alfo urging, that it had been the
conftant practice of the Chief Governour to fend
their Letter upon occafions of publick bufinefs to
the Lord Mayor, Aldermen, and Commons :
And if his Excellency would pleafe to follow this
ufuai method, he would aft (as in duty bound)
in obedience to it: To which the Sollicitor Ge¬
neral replyed, that there was no neceffity of any
fuch Formality, but 'twas fufficient if his Ex¬
cellency fignify'd his Commands by word of
Mouth, in which they ought to acquiefce.
Upon this, the Lord Mayor called another
Alfembly, and great Debates arofe, how to de¬
mean themfelves in this nice Criticifm of Af¬
fairs : But as to the furrendry of their Charter;
'twas what they unanimoufly refblved againlt:
After fonie Difpute as to the manner of Ad-
dreffing the Lord Deputy in this cafe, 'twas at
lafl: refblved, and concluded, That the Lord
Mayor, Aldermen, and Commons, fhould make
their
of the fypmip? Tarty Ireland. 8 r
their Application to his Excellency, with Rea-
lons why they could not furrender their Charter,
and to pray his Excellency to allow them time
to Petition the King, not doubting but His
Majefty would be graciouQy plealed to take
into his Princely Confideration as well their
<fi:jcemplar{v Lopalrp, as eminent Suffer'
tngjs fu? pi0 Ropal father, ef TSleffet) #e<
tno^p. Upon which they produced a Letter
from King Charles the Firjl, dated at Oxford,
which contained great Acknowledgments of
their great Loyalty and Faithfulnefs to him,
which he gave them high affurances of being
eminently rewarded, if it pleafed the Divine
Providence to reftore him to his Crown, and
its juft Rights and Prerogatives.
The aforelaid Reprefcntatives of the City
alio prayed Tyrconncl to reprelent their conditi¬
on favourably to His Majefty; but he anfwer-
ed them roughly , and according to his former
Aufterity, told them, That on the contrary he
would Write againft them ; and in the interim
according to the Direftions he brought over
with him from England, a Quo W,ilfued
forth againft the City: Who called another
Common Council, and there agreed upon a Pe¬
tition to the King, and lent over with it their
Recorder, Sir Richard Reeve who behaved. 1687.
himlelf briskly, and with good Applaule in this
matter: For notwithftanding that he was not
only frequently lent to, but thrcatned by Tyr¬
connel, if he proceeded in it; yet however he
M . goes
8 2 The Secret Confutes, Negotiations, See.
goes for London, and there follicits the Duke of
Ormond to introduce him to the King, where
on his Knee he delivers the Petition with a fub-
miffive tender of all the City Charters at His
Majefties Feet: The King was already fo pre-
poffeffed with the Partial Account that
nel had given of this A&ion, with which he
was fo extreamly prejudiced, that upon the
firft fight of Sir Richard Rieves, he asked him
if he had the iLofo SDeputp'g leatoe to come
ixntQ tbi'SJ petition? StnD that he hah rfiote
in itclant) that unhetttooh the lath uettet
than himtelf, and fo turn'd from him.
Sir Ricfard Rieves adviled with the Duke
of Ormond, who told him, That there was no
hopes of fucceeding in the Enterprise; fo was
forced to go back for Dublin with a llioi't but
unpleafant return of the inefteclualnefs of this
Negotiation. But however the City was relblved
to ftand the Brunt, and to flop the violent Tide
if poflible, which now ran with fo rapid a
Current; and in order thereunto they Fee'd
four Counfels. Their firft Evafion whereby to
procraftinate matters, was by urging, that the
Sheriffs were intereffed as Parties in the Writ,
the Charters being granted to Mayor, Sheriffs,
and Commons, and fo could not properly make
Returns to that Writ that came againft them-
iejves» this was deem'd to he Law, but no¬
thing was to be accounted as fuch by Judges
that broke through all Inclofures, and ftuck not
to trample upon the known Laws and Con-
ifitutions of the Kingdom, if oppofite to their
. Popiftj
I /* ™ ,.^---- ■-'111 . -V
of the %omtjh Tarty in Ireland.
Popi/h and Arbitrary defigns. So this return of
the Sheriffs was over-ruled, and a Fine impo-
fed upon them, if in four days they did not
amend their Return, which fome thought thev
would not have agreed to: but 'twas among
themfelves thought fit to doit, and accordingly
the Attorney General proceeded againft them ?
and took fbme advantage of their Pleadings,
which the Court gave judgment upon. This
afforded matter of Triumph, and an univerfa!
exceffive joy to the Irifh, which difperfed it
felf with a marvelous Celerity throughout the
whole Kingdom; but became on the contrary
hand as much a Subjcbt of Lamentation to the
Englijh Citizens, who called themlelves the
SllCgtn Cttp, as having never been tainted with
any abtion of Difloyalty or Rebellion in all the
feveral Revolutions and Viciffitudes of that un¬
fortunate Kingdom, which, though never finceit
was in the polfeflion of the King's of England,
continued forty years uninterruptedly without
an Infurrebfion of the Natives; yet was this
City remarkably Loyal in all Changes, and
performed many fignal aftsof Bravery and Cou¬
rage, as their Records do amply teftifie, and of
which (not to name many others) I cannot o-
mit one very remarkable 111 fiance ; which was,
That when the Lord Duke of Ormond recei¬
ved Orders by that Royal Martyr King Charles,
the Fir/l, of ever Blefled and Immortal Me»J
mory, to give up the Sword and Government '
to the Parliament; they being at that time
beft able to fupprefs the Irifh Rebels: The
M 2 Lord
Tk Secret Qnfults, , &c.
Lord of Ormond, in purfuance to this inftru-
£tion, delivered up the Sword, and lent to the
Mayor one (DUilltatn "Smith,ordering him todo
the like; but he to fhew his Loyalty went to
the Lord of Ormond accompanied with his Bre¬
thren the Alderman, and told his Lordlhip,
that he kept that Sword for the King, that
the City was the King's Chamber, and he
\vou.ld deliver neither, but into the hands of
the King's Servants: Upon which the Lord of
Ormond took occafion to commend his Loyalty,
and told him,He had the King's Commands to do
it; and for the Mayors greater fatisfaftion,
fhewed him the King's Letter, which when
the Mayor read, he obferved there was order
for the Lord of Ormond, to give up the Go¬
vernment to the Parliaments Commiffioners,
but not a word that the Mayor Ihould do it;
which the Mayor taking notice of to the Lord
of Ormond, told him, he would leave the
and Kjys of the City with his Lordlhip, to
ufe as he plealed, he being the King's Lieu¬
tenant ; and 10 he did, and after took his leave.
This the City juftly boafts of, as never being
engaged in any Rebellion, nor ever actually
under the Ufurper's Government in any other
manner than by the King's Appointment and
Command.
But to return to the Charters, confbnant to
the Sentence againft Dublin, lb was J udgment
given againft all the Charters of the Kingdom,
except againft fuch as quietly furrendred, as
suoft did, it being to no purpole to contend
in
of the %omifb Tdrty m Ireland. 8 j
in the leffer and inferiour parts of the King¬
dom, after their G 0 LIA H of Dublin was
flain.
I fhall not impofe upon the Readers Pati¬
ence with giving him an account of whatfub-
tle arts of Addrefs, and Obfeq aious Contrivan¬
ces, were made ufe of, to diftinet Corporations,
to prevail with them to furrender. This he
will fiippoie that they were not remifs or un-
aftive in, if he confiders that they dreaded no¬
thing fo much, as that the Clamours, and Out¬
cries (of to many Bodies of people which were
to be fued and difbbliged) fhould reach the
Ears of the Court, and be made ufe of by the adt
verfe Party to their difadvantage; and therefore
we may be fure that they endeavoured to filence
them as much as they could : For both 7yrcon-
nel and his Voucher, Jfteagle, had affured their
Party that mod: of the Charters would quietly
be furrendred by the people, and that there was
but one Corporation in the North of Ireland,
which they were afraid of; this was Carried
fergus, which they managed with a great deal
of Policy in the following manner.
Ellis, Secretary to Tyrconnel, writes a wheed¬
ling Letter to the Mayor of that City, infinua-
ting how great an opinion the Lord Deputy
had of his Loyalty, with abundance of fuch
impertinent ftufi, and that his Excellency would
enlarge their Priviledges: They were foolifhly
taken with this gilded Bait, and fo furrendred
their Charter. Upon this fuccefs, Ellis was
applauded as an excellent Inftrument to delude
8 6 The Secret Confults, , &c.
the Prate/louts with ; and lb he was, which
he improved, by the frequent opportunities
which were offered to him of drawing in honeft
men, he having been many years in the Secre¬
taries Office, and a pretended , though
his Brother was a noted Champion for Rome \
but that was one of the Machinations of the
RomifbConclave, (mightily pra&ifed in Ire¬
land) to difguile one part of their Family un¬
der the Proteftant Education, though they
were as much Papijls as the other that appear¬
ed to be openly fuch by a publick Profeffion :
A practice which the old Englifh Families are
rarely free from in that Kingdom.
But to come again to his Letters and
Meffages flew round the Kingdom, and prevail¬
ed in many places, but more out of a Senti¬
ment, That 'twas to no purpole to contend,
than any Belief, or Opinion they had either of
his, or his Matters affurances. But however
that was, 'tis certain that Ellis acquired a fair
Reputation among the Popifb Party for his fuc-
cels in thefe Arts of Delufion and Treachery,
and they in their Secret Cabals, did not a lit¬
tle magnifie and applaud their Politicks, which
they thought, they fo amnfed the Englijb with,
laughing at the Credulity of the (JercttCfe
2Dog0, for lb their Grandees in their private
Meetings would frequently call them.
Having thus obtained their wifh as to the
furrendry of the Charters, the next work was
to agree upon a Model for the men. This de¬
bate was ftrongly canvaffed feveral ways, and
that
ef the ^om'tjh Tarty in Ireland.
that which chiefly puzled them, and even put
em almoft to a Non-plus, was, that the King
would have nothing of this tranla&ed at
Court, for fear of meeting with oppofition
there.
This Exigency, of not being Suffered to re^
ceive advice from England, expofed them to
great Difficulties ; for they were utter Stran¬
gers to the Laws, and Government of Corpo^
rations; as indeed they were to all matters of
Government, having been converlant in no¬
thing but Secret Plots, and Private Contrivan¬
ces, how to unhinge and difeompofe all Govern-
meats; and as an aggravation of their misfor¬
tune, except Rice, Daly, and Neagle, there was
not a man of them in the Privy Council that
had common lenfe, if you will believe them-
felves: for Rice and Daly would often complain
that nothing could pals at the Council-Board,
that concerned the Publick, but their Coun¬
trymen muft firft ask Teigr f f tpat WOUlD net
Cpotl 1)10 Pottatoe ^athem
Neceffity at laft fupply'd the place of In¬
vention ; and a method was agreed upon which
reduced Corporations to perfect Slavery ; and
this in all the Circumftance^ of that affair was
their prime and ultimate aim : For as to matter
of Trade, or improving of the Nation; thefe
were Speculations of too Metaphyseal a nature
for men of their fize, and former way of Edu¬
cation, as was demonftrated in the firft Procla¬
mation iffued forth by Tyrconnel and his Coun-
T h Secret Confults, Negotiations,
<U to break an AO: of Parliament in taking off
the duty of Iron, and admitting it fo into the
Kingdom, whereby they might encourage Mer¬
chants to bring in Pieces of Eight from Spain,
and lo hafty they were to have the honour of
this admirable contrivance, that without asking
the King's leave (which is always done be¬
fore any Proclamation relating to the Revenue
Pals) They put it in execution ; but as foon as
'twas heard of i n England,a Proclamation came
from the King, forbidding this wile a£t made
by thele great States-men : A nd lo ill this pre-
fumptuous folly of theirs was interpreted, That
the Lord Bellafis fwore in Council that, Ct)<U
jFelloto in UrelanS, uja# tfool anO $$Jalwnan
enough to rulne ten EE'ngDcnus.
Father Petres corrected him leverely for this
foul milcarriage; and writ to him, That if he
afted not with greater Caution, the King could
not poffibly prelerve him in that Government.
Thele Documents, and levere Reprimands of
the Ghoftly Father, were lo religioufly obler-
ved by him, that for the future he would pro¬
ceed in nothing, but ball out at the Council-
board, and call them Fools and Blockheads, if
they lpake any thing that was contradi&ed by
the Engliflj Privy-Council: Their great Con¬
fident, was the Cord Chief Juftice Kjating,
who knowing that he had an Alcendant over
them as to Parts, was lo imperious and infult-
ing, that fonaetimes he was taken to task; but
had wit enough to fubmit, yet often was very
uneafie to them.- But however he in publick,
and
tf the (Romifh Ta Ireland.
and fV. in private (for he was not of the Privy-
Council) dire&ed them in the management of
the affair of the Charters -• And when they had
got the fhape and model of them prelentcd by
thele Temporizing Painters, who drew to the
life according to the Popijb fancy, then they
proceeded to an Election of the men to name in
their Charters, and here they begged pardon
of their Ad vile rs, and would be their own Di-
re&ors.
'Twas their Rule to have in the great Ci¬
ties (who were moft EnjrhJb) one third
Jlants, and two thirds Papijls; but then thefe
that they called Protejlants were Quakers, or
other Enthufiafiicksy and two or three in a Char¬
ter of fuch Protejlants, as either their conlide-
rable Eftates, or loofe Principles would lecure
to their Party ; by that means leaving not a man
of true Value or Courage in any Corporation in
the Kingdom: and although they took in Lords
and Gentlemen out of the Countrey into all
their Corporations; yet could they not com-
pleat them without additional numbers of Scan¬
dalous and Contemptible men: In one Corpo¬
ration in the North, the firft Magiftrate of the
Town was a Man that had been burnt in the
Hand.
Here you lee by what impious Arts, and
fraudulent Machinations, the feveral Corpora¬
tions were cheated and trapanned out of their
Charters, moft Of them wheedled, and grofly
impoled upon, by a <I<UaIf in ©Ijeep# Cloath-
ing, Secretary Ellis, who ftuck not to make
N great
po
The Secret Confults, , &£
great Promifes of enlarging their Priviledges,
and the like, though he knew nothing to be
more deftru&ive of the P rot eft ant and
Religion, of which he owned himfelf a Profef-
for. And as his wearing of a
contributed very much to the fuccels of this in¬
trigue, lb did the lame Vizard, put on by
ing and W. not a little facilitate the Model
of the new Charters, of which they contrived
the Plat-form, and then 'twas eafie for the Po-
pi(h Fattion to fuper-ftruQ: upon" it, the palpa-
blenefs of whole defign was in nothing more ful¬
ly evident, than in putting in of all manner of
Fanatical Enthufiafts, into their new Charters,
under the notion of Proteftan : For 'twas evi¬
dent that Ibme of thefe were as irreconcileable
Enemies to the Protejlant Church, as they were
Friends to, and Confederates with the Romijh.
As for inftance, The Quake, concerning which
ridiculous Profeflion, Who is, or can be ignorant
that 'twas derived from the Jeluics ? Who
knows not that thele have fharpened their Wea¬
pons at the Rcmijb Forge, and that their prime
Leaders (whatever they otherwife pretend to)
do inwardly own Ignatius Loyola as their Foun¬
der ? Thefe were therefore too much their
own Creatures to be negle£ted by them, as not
only appears by their former Principles (if thofe
monftrous Abliirdities they maintain, may be
reckoned to be fuch) but alio by their prefent
Practices, as their vindicating the late King's De¬
claration for Liberty of Confcience, though it
ma'nifeftly tended to the introduction of Popery,
and
of the Tomtjb Tarty Ireland.
and their zealous elpoufing of his intereft at
this day, do fully fhew. But amidft all the new
arts of modelling the Corporations, neither their
Brethren, the Quakers, nor other of their Ad¬
herents, could give them luch effeftualalfillance,
but that often they were put to their fhifts, and
neceflitated to elect men of the blackeft Chara¬
cters, and moll infamous Reputations, as ap¬
pears from their choofing a Magiftrate that had
been burnt in the Hand. Here was admirable
jullice indeed to be expefted, where he who had
not only held up his hand, but been punifhed tit
lb fcandalous a manner at the Bar, was now to
lit upon the Bench.
But as the Popijb Party were put to thele Dif¬
ficulties of getting any iort of men (how noto-
rioufly infamous loever) to fill up their Char¬
ters, lb were they as much perplexed to find out
men that would pay for them; For not ten in
the whole Kingdom would, or could dilcharge
the Fees for them. Wherefore to encourage
thpm, the Lord Deputy ordered, That the Lord
Chancellor, and Attorney General Neagle fhould
abate half of their Fees: But all would not do,
fo that moll of the new Charters are yet in the
Attorney General's hands for want of paying
the Fees, and the leveral Corporations aft with¬
out them.
The infinite numbers of people deferring the
Kingdom from all parts of it upon
coming to the Government, made the Towns
and Cities almoll walle; dilbouraged all manner
N 2 of
The Secret fin/tilts, Negotiations]
of Trade, and funk the Revenue to an incredi¬
ble Ebb, and dedu&ion from its former value :
Thefe weighty Arguments were ftrongly pref
fed at Court to Tyrconnefs difedvantage, upon
which he obtains leave to meet the King at
Chejler, and carries with him his great Minifter
and Counfellor Rice, who being chief Baron of
the Exchequer, was to be believed above any, it
being King James's Maxim, That he would
hear no man in any thing that did not properly
lie under his Province. Rice was fitly enough
qualified to footh up the King with fine Stories,
and a fpecious reprefentation of Affairs, which
he could the more eafily do, in regard there
was none prelent to contradi£t him, and lb this
Cloud blew over, though many did believe,
and were in hopes that it would have broke
with that violence upon that he
would never have returned again as Lord De¬
puty.
There as yet remained feme Protejlant Offi¬
cers in the Army, which upon this interview
were ordered to be disbanded, excepting Ibme
few, who 'tis believed had made fair Promifes,
which they had not occafioji as yet to put in
execution: Nor did King James require more
than a private aflurance of their Faith, and In¬
clinations to his intereft, it being too early to
make a publick Declaration as yet.
The Judges Were abroad upon their Circuit
whilft Tyrconnelwas in England, purfuin a fuch
inftru&ions as he had prelcribed to them, be¬
fore
of the ^omijbTarty m Ireland.
fore his departure, which were levere and preju¬
dicial enough to the Englijb and to their
t eft ant Clergy, notwithftanding his late Procla¬
mation, fuperadded to others before from the
King, that they fhould enjoy all their Ecctefia-
ftical Rites, and J oft Dues, as they had former¬
ly done : The Clergy having lince the begin¬
ning of King James's Reign, lain under great
Grievances, as to the non-payment of their dues
(efpecially Surplice Fees, which in that King¬
dom they call Book-money, and is very confide-
rable to them, by reafbn of the numeroulnelsof
Irifb Families in moft places) took the opportu¬
nity at the Aflizes in the leveral Circuits, to
reprelcnt their condition to the Judges, as Per-
fons from whom they expe&ed Redrefs; but
on the contrary met with very diflatisfattory,
and unequal returns. For though the Judges
could not dilbwn the legality of thole fmall
Dues called the Book money, becaule founded up¬
on the fame Law with the greater Tythes, as
the Jrifb of the Country unanimoully did, (notr
withftanding that they had paid them in the
former Reign) yet did they lo manifeftly dis¬
courage the Clergy in their Addrelfes to them,
(taking all advantages againft them that could
be offered, and as ftudioufly declining every Ar¬
gument made in their favour, as they were rear
dy to embrace, and hearken to what could be
obje&ed againft them, though meer Forgeries
of the Irijb) and thereby lb animated the Natives
againft them, that they leemed to do them as
much injuftice (though under fpecious and fair
pre-
"The Secret Confults, Negotiations' ,8cc.
pretencesJ as if they had publickly told the
pijts, that they ought not to pay them any thing:
Though at the fame time, and with the fame
breath that they were guilty of this execrable
partiality, they had the confidence to avow the
juftice of their proceedings towards the Clergy,
for whom they would have had them believe
that they entertained the moft equitable, and
upright intentions. This would require a large
Difcourfe, if accurately handled, but my un-
skilfulnefs in a matter out of my Province, and pe¬
culiar to Ecclefiafticks, will (I hope) be exca-
fed, though thus flenderly touched upon; but
thought it better to fpeak fomething imperfectly
of it, than wholly omit an Affair which was fb
univerfal in the Reign of the late King ,
and fb publickly tranfaCted in the whole King¬
dom.
The Judges found the Gaols full flocked
with Toryes and lri{h Robbers; but IrifJj She¬
riffs and Irijb Juries were fb Gracious as to
vouchfafe them fb general a deliverance, that
not one in forty was found guilty: And in
fuch Cafes where Matter of FaCt was notori-
oufly plain, or any of the Grandees were any
way intereffed in belief of the Criminals (as
'twas rare almoft to a miracle if none were) and
the Evidence not to be taken off; then 'twas
ufual for the Prifbner at the Bar to be called by
wrong N ames, and fb difcharged' for want of Pro-
fecution: To thefe Arts of evading condign pu-
nifhment for their Execrable Crimes, feveral Me¬
naces were added, to terrifie the Plaintiff from
pro-
&f the fyomijh Tarty in Ireland.
profecuting, as that otherwife their Houfes
Ihould be burnt, their Cattle ftole, their fub-
ftance deftroyed, and perhaps their own Throats
cut, which as often threatened, fb not feldom
put in execution; a fad difcouragement to the
poor Englifh, who-lay under the daily hazard
of being Robbed and Pillaged by the , and
if they happened to feize the Malefa&ors, muft
either difcontinue any farther profecution againft
them; or elfe be expofed to greater mifchief:
For the Proof and Demonftration whereof (not
to infill upon too many others) take the follow¬
ing Inftance, which for the eminency of the
Perfbn, and Barbarity of the feveral Fa&s,
may fupply the reft, a£led by the Earl of
C —
This Earls Eldeft Son (a great Favourite of
the Duke of York's) was with him at Sfea, and
there killed, and leaving no Heir, his younger
Brother was brought out of a Convent in ,
and inflated iji the Earldom. The Duke of Or-
moxd, who always endeavoured to Naturalize
the lrijh Families into Englifh, embraced this
opportunity (there being none living but his
Sifter and this Earl, who was next to a Natu¬
ral) to Marry him to a Daughter of the Earl of
Kjldare'sin Ireland, a firm , and capa¬
ble of an Intrigue beyond her Sex; by this La¬
dy he had feveral Children, and one Son, who
is now Earl: He was by the Duke of Ormond
lent to the Archbifhop of Canterbury., and by
him carefully bred up a Protejlant, and Edu¬
cated at Oxford. His Uncle JuJlin Mae Carthy
(as it fince appears, for the promotion of the
* C.a-
7be Secret Consults, Negotiations, See.
Catholick Caufe) without the knowledge of his
Mother, or the Duke of , Marries him
when not Sixteen Years of Age, to the Earl of
Sunderland's Daughter, and immediately fends
him for Ireland, where he continued a Prote-
jlant until the coming of .King to the
Crown and then like the reft of his Country¬
men, at that jun&ure returned to his old Vo¬
mit: He had then a Troop of Horfe given
him, which he loon made of his own Breed;
for before their inlifting, they were the great-
eft Vagrants of the Countrey, which withhim-
felf now ravaged in the Countrey, in an hor¬
rible and moft inhumane manner, Forcing Wo¬
men, Maiming of Men, Pulling down of Hou-
fes, and all other Extravagancies, which he,
and his Hellifh Tribe could invent. I already
affumed (before I entered upon this Man's
Character) to give a remarkable Inftance of the
violence offered to the Engli[h for their juft and
legal Profecution of Notorious lrifl> Criminals
and Malefactors; which I fhall now let before
you in two remarkable Paffages relating to this
Earl, which were publickly tranfacfed at the
Bar.
_ One was of a poor Butcher, at a Town near
C.orhe, who refufing Clanc Men an Horfe,
they violently leized him by force, and. would
never return lnm to the Owner, which the Man
making Complaint of to the Judges of Aflize,
in prefence of the Earl: The Judges ordered
fatisfaQion to be made to the Man for his Horfe,
which the Earl promifed to fee performed ; But
as
of the omljh Tarty in Ireland.
as foonas the Judges were departed the Coun-
trey, he takes fbme of his Troopers along with
him and goes to the Man's Houfe/ and told
him that he was come to give him fatisfaftion
for his Horjfe : Whereupon he forces him out of
his Houle, and ordering the vile Inftruments,
his Troopers, to get a Blanket, and upon a Pave¬
ment before the Poor Man's Door, flood as a
moll Barbarous and Inhumane Spectator, whilft
they toffed him in a Blanket, ever and anon let¬
ting him fall upon the Stones till they broke
him, as if upon the Wheel, all to pieces, and fb
left him dead.
The other Paffage relating to this fine Spark,
was of a Man that had offended him at a place
called Clonmell\ him he firfl: had beaten with
Sticks, and then hung up by the hair of the
Head: he was taken down alive, but what be¬
came of him after was not known. The Ac¬
complices of this Tragedy, his Vifanous Troop¬
ers, were brought to the Bar, and Tried for the
Murther, and notwithftanding that this horrid
Aftion was done in the fight of an hundred
Men, yet were they quitted, and the Earl ne¬
ver Tried.
He to this day proceeds in thefe bound-
left Inhumanities, which pefhaps may be an
occafion of great fbrrow and trouble to his
Mother.
But to return to the Judges which we left
upon their Circuits: Little j uftice was admini-
ftred by them to the English, but in fuch ex¬
traordinary Occurrences where the Irifo were
Q' , lo
*
The Secret Confults,Negotiations, Scci
fo notorioufly culpable, as would accufe them
of molt grofs partiality, to have paffed Sentence
in their favour. But in all things that had but
the leaft lhadow of Juftice, or of feeming equi¬
ty and reafonablenels in it, they were Jure to
carry it; and this was a£ted in purfuance to one
of Tyrconnefs Inftru&ions from Court, which
was, That the Judges fhould be direfted in
their Circuits to undermine and enervate the
Protejlant Intereji, which indeed they did fo
effettually, that no Englifh-man could either get
in Rents, or be fecure of what they had for¬
merly received. For there being a Statute in
Ireland, which we have not in our Laws,
for Trials by Civil Bills, as they cajl them,
which (in the nature of Chancery) is fuch an
Arbitrary way of proceeding, as gives the
Judges of the Kingdom opportunities, which
too many of them (it's laid) have made ill ufe
of.
By this Arbitrary Method of proceeding, the
Irijh had now hit upon an expeditious way,
whereby to ruine the E: For 'twas no
more but with aTwelvepenny Procefs flung at
any Man's Door, and a falfe Affidavit, made
(which the Irijbcan as eafily digeft as the moft
common Action they do) and fo an Execution
was obtained, directed to an Sheriff for a
pretended Debt of Twenty Years (landing, it
being very common for an Irijh Tenant to lue
■ nd bring a Fellow to fwear that in foch a
if ear his Landlord diftrained Cattle of Twen¬
ty or Thirty Pounds value, and had them ap-
% praifed
of the Tomijb Tarty Ireland.
praifed at the half proportion of what they
were worth: This was fufficient to obtain an
Execution for the relief of the poor diftreffed
Catholicks, a pra&ice become as univerfel a-
gainft, as deftru£tive to the ; infomuch
that in the North of Ireland there was not one
man in five of the ordinary that were
not ruined ; and had they continued thefe
Courfes but few Years longer, together with
their exorbitant Proceedings againft the
in their Mannor, Sheriffs, and the like
Courts, (where fuch barbarous Injuftices, and
publick Oppreflions, and Violences were acted,
as never till then were heard of among Chri-
ftians) thele without other means might have
wholly reduced the Kingdom into hands.
For as by their Civil Bills at the Affizes, and
by their notorious Perjuries in the Infer tour
Courts, ffley deftroyed the fmaller men; fo by
Eje&ments in the higher Courts, they took
away mens Eftates in Fee : It being obferved,
That never one Caufe came before them upon a
Trial fob Land, but the Judgment was con-
ftantly given in favour of the Irijh.
Complaints were continually made at Court
of thefe irregular Proceedings, and Writs of Er-
rour were brought from England, but generally
the feme Judgments were confirmed in this
Kingdom; the Judges here being moft of the
feme Stamp.
SJjcridon about this time began to be difeover-
ed by Tjrconnel to fell places of all forts, both
Ecclefiaffical, Civil, and Military: He was not
O 2 only
The Secret Qonfults, Negotiations, See.
only Principal Secretary of State, but alfo one
of the Commiffioners of the Cujloms: So that
.whenever he met with a conveniency of ma-'
king an advantagious bargain for a place in the
Cuftome-houfe, he would pretend to the Com¬
miffioners, That 'twas my Lord Deputy's Re¬
quest to have fuch a Perfon employed. This by
degrees increafed lb much upon the Commiffio¬
ners, that Dickifon, one of the Commiffioners,
writ over to the Lords of the Treafury, that they
were fo burthened and oppreffed with Irifb Offi¬
cers, recommended by the Lord Deputy, that he
was afraid that the Revenue would be loft by ill
management. Upon this, my Lord Deputy was
ordered not to recommend a man, nor any ways
to intermeddle in the Revenue. The C.ommiffi-
oners alfo iffiied forth their Orders, pofted up at
the Cuftom-houfe Door, That a11 Perfons who
had Petitioned for Employments in thfcCuftoms
or Revenue, fhould return to their refpe&ive
Abodes, for that there would be no Employ¬
ments difpofed of. This Buftle created various
Difputes betwixt Tyrconnel and Sheridon \ and
from this time forward Sheridon contrived to
undermine Tyrconnel. His firft Stratagem was
to prepolfefs the Romiflo Clergy againft him,
which to accomplish, he contracts an intimate
Acquaintance with TyrconnePs Chaplain, that
moft frequently officiated: This Fellow picks
up what he could of TyrconnePs contempt of the
.Mafs and Prayers: One particular Charge was,
I hat when the Army was in the Camp at#the
C urrah cf Kjldare, Tyrconnel being at play in his
Tent,
of the Tarty in'Ireland,
ioi
Tent, the Priejl came to him to know if his
Excellency would goto Mafs ; whoreplyed, No,
he would fend, (naming fbme body by him> to
ftand in his place, and that would do as well :
Of this Sheridon being a Bigotted Zealot, gives
an account to Father Pet res, whofe Niece She¬
ridon had Married, by which means lie obtain¬
ed an intereft and freedom with the Jefuit, and
not with him only, but with all the Iri[b Clergy,
efpecially with the Titular Primate of Armafh,
who beinganVlJler manias Sheridon was, had
no kindnefs for Tyrconnel, who was of the Pale,
a fort of old Enghjh degenerated into Ir/Jh, but
had in no erfeem by the Natives of the Province
of 'Ilifter. The aforefaid Titular Primate then
contrafted an intimate Familiarity and Acquain¬
tance with his Coufin Sheridon, as he called him,
and they (with the before-mentioned PrieftJ for¬
med Artides4-againft Tyrconnel', which having
compleated, and Sheridon difpofed of his Affairs,
prays leave of the Lord Deputy to go for En¬
gland, pretending fome private bufmels of his
own to difpatch there : But Tyrconnel being jea¬
lous that he aefigned fome prejudice to himfelf,
would not give him permifflton to go; upon
which, Sheridon writes to a Coufin of his to
London to take out a Licence from the King,
which Father Peters look'd upon as ftrange, and
font him word back, That the King would en¬
quire the reafon why he had it not from the Lord
Deputy. This could not be tranfeffed with that
fecrecy at Court, but that Tyrconnel had fome im
telligence of it, which exigency drove him to
have
i
The Secret Cwfults, Neg, &c.
have recourfe to his two Grand Counfellors at
a dead lift, Rice, and Neagle, who advifed him
to take no notice, nor Ihew any outward Symp¬
toms of dilcontent againft but rather
attend fbme opportunity whereby to intangle
himinafnare, which foon offered, it being
cile baculum invenire, See. no difficult matter to
find out Treachery and Perfidioufnefs enough in
an Info-men whereof to accufe him. They ob-
ferved that the Lord Deputy's Domeftick Chap¬
lain was intimately converfant with Sheridon,
and another Prieft that was, or called himlelf
Coufin to him. To countermine thefb Intriegues
the Lord Deputy appoints.a third Prieft, a Con¬
fident of his own, to fall into an intimate famili¬
arity with his Brethren, who leemed inclined to * '
unite his endeavours with theirs, if they had
any intentions of impeaching : The
Priejl managed this Affair with fo much skill
and dexterity (verifying the vulgar faying of Set¬
ting a Thief to catch a Thief) that he foon wound
himlelf into a ftritt League of Amity with them,
and fo feemingly intereffed in all their Affairs,
that they no longer queftioned his efpoufing their
Party ; and to delude them the more artificially
pretended to find out new matter of acculation
againft Tyrconnel, which he did fo effectually,
that againft the Poft-day he brought his Charge
againft the Lord Deputy in writing under his
own hand, which Sheridon in his fight lealed
up, with a great many more in a Pacquet, and
direfted it to his Coufin in London: This being
done, the Priefl takes leave of Sheridon, and
gives
ikL
of the tf^omifh Tarty in Ireland.
gives notice immediately to Rice the chief Baron,
who doubted not to trapan him upon this favou¬
rable occafion. Sheridon (as ufually) makes up
the Lord Deputy's Pacquets, lending all to the
Poft, with inftru&ionsfor the Pacquet immedi¬
ately to go to Sea.
Rice and Neagle remained in the Lord Depu¬
ty's Clofet, and at twelve of the Clock at Night
a Meffenger was lent on Board the Pacquet-Boat
to fetch off the Male, which being opened, Sheri¬
don s Pacquet was taken out, directed to his Cou-
fin, which dilcovered the whole Intriegue, and
among the reft, the lrifh Primate's concern in the
defign. Sheridon s Pacquet was lealed up and
put into the Male, except one Letter, which
was taken out, direfted to a certain perfon in
London, full of vehement Exclamations againft
the Lord Deputy, and giving an account of ma¬
ny of his Articles which he defigned to impeach
him of.
Rice and Neagle adviled the Lord Deputy to
write to the Lord Sttnder'Und, which he accord¬
ingly did, letting forth Sheridoris Briberies and
other Sinifter Practices, not taking any notice of
Sheridon s contrivance againft-himlelf. All this
was done when Sheridon was afleep, and not fu-
fpicious of any defign againft him, which the
better to dilguilz,Tyrconnel ftill carried himlelf to
him with the lame unconcernednels as formerly.
At this time happened the death of the Bilhop
of Clogher, in order to which Commiftioners
were appointed for letting and difpofing of the
Revenue of that'Bilhoprick : 'Twas adjacent to
She-
i.oA
7 he Secret Confults5 Negotiations, &c.
Sheridons Countrey, who had abundance of
Coufins (efpecially upon fuch an occafion as this)
fomeof which he endeavoured to prefer in that
Employment, thereby hoping to have fiflied out
fcmething for himfelf; but the Lord Chief Baioi
was now (though he knew it not) become^ his
formidable oppofite, and there was one of the
Commiflioners of the Cuftoms, Dickifon by
name, that was a perfon, as well of great expe¬
rience as of integrity and honeftyy who kept a
vigilant eye upon Sheridon; for though he had a
great hand over, and much influenced the reft of
the Commiflioners, yet could he never prevail
upon Dick if on.
Now arrives the return of his Facquet to his
Coufin in London, but with no good account of
his Affairs: The reafbn of which ill fuccefs was
Sunderland's acquainting Father Peters with the
complaints that were made againft him by the
Lord Deputy, and thereupon {hewed him his
Letter from TyrconneL That Letter which was
taken out of the Facquet in Dublin was not mif¬
fed by Sheridon s Coufin in London, who only
writ back to him, * hat he had delivered his fe-
veral Letters as directed, and namore.
, f.now t*me f°r Cie Lord Deputy to break
publickly with Sheridon, and in order to it fends
lor him into his Clofet, there being prefentwich
him, the Earl of Lymenck, the Lord Chief Ju-
iiicc Augent, the Lord Chief Baron Rice, Judge
Daly, and lbme others: The Lord Deputy de¬
manded of Sheridon, Whether or no he had
written any thing againft him to London ? She¬
ridon
of the (Romijk Tarty in Ireland.
tidon who wanted not Confidence, or rather Im¬
pudence (with which his Countreymen do uni-
verfally abound to an immenfe proportion and
degree) anfwered, That he had not, but that he
had heard that his Excellency had writ againft
him, which fo enraged the Lord Deputy (who
is a great Furiofo, and can prefcribe no limits to
his Paflion) that he could not contain from cal¬
ling him Traytour, Cheat, Rogue, &c. and pul¬
ling out Sheridon s Letter, asked him if that was
not his hand, which for the prefent put him into
great diforder and confufion, but after fome re-
colle£tion he afTumed to juftifie himfelf, and to
enter into a Capitulation with the Lord Deputy,
at which Tyrconnel rofe in excels of fury to kick
him^fo he was turned out. Tyrconnel and his Party
were in long confideration how to proceed in this
nice Conjuncture of Affairs : They dreaded not
Sheridon s intereft, or Impeachments fo much,
as this opportunity of awakening his Excellen¬
cy's Enemies at Court: After various Debates,
'twas at laft refblved, That Daly fhould take She-
rldon to Task, and lb accommodate the matter as
to ftifle any farther noile of it, which Sheridon
was ready enough to embrace \ but at the lame
time both the Lord Deputy and he had mutual
Jealoufies of, and If rove who fhould firft intrap
one another.
The Lord Deputy (by reafon of his averfion
to him, forfiding with Sheridon) does now re¬
vive the Quarrel, that the Irifb Clergy had with
the Primate, eipecially the Archbijhop of Cafoelh
P I
to6 The Secret Confults, , &c.
I call the Titular one fo in this Difcourfe. Upon
an Affembly of the Titular Poptfo of Ire¬
land, great Debate arole concerning the Priority
of their Jurildiftions; in reference to which,
the Primateinfolently ufurpedover them all, not
diftinguilhing the Archbi which he of Cajhell
refenting as a great Indignity and Affront, infla¬
med the difference to a great height, and cauled
them to break up abruptly, and in great difcon-
tent with one another.
Cajhell is the more Learned Man, the Primate
being univerfally contemned by their own Party,
as neither refpe&ed by them as a Scholar, or a
Man of Parts, which general difefteem made
moft of the Clergy that were confiderable (I mean
the Dignitaries) bandy againft him ; and their
Prejudice ran io high, that they lent over to Fa¬
ther Peters (who promoted their Applications to
the King) to have a Co-adjutor impofed upon him.
The King writes about it to the Pope with ag¬
gravating Exclamations of the Primate's Mifcar-
riagesandlnfufficiency; to which the Pope re¬
plied, That he was one of his own Ele&ion, and
io indeed he was, being a Fryar in Spain, and com¬
ing over Chaplain to the at
the time of the Primate of Ireland''s being Exe¬
cuted, he prevailed with the Embajfador to prelent
him to the Duke of Tor, who writ to the Pope
in his behalf, upon whole recommendation he
got the Mitre. This Quarrel of the Clergy
had been dormant for lome time, but the Deputy
to execute his Revenge upon the thought
it now feafonable to awakerf and revive it : But
this
/
of the fyomtjb Tarty in Ireland.
this continued not long upon the Stage, for he
foon received a fevere reprimand from Father
Peters for this rafh A&ion, who was extreamly
moved at the proceeding. This being the moll:
effeTual courle whereby to render their Party ri¬
diculous and contemptible to the World, that
whilft they were lo induftrioufly contriving to
eftablifh their Religion, they flhould at once
break all their former meafiires by endeavouring
to fupplant and dcftroy one another: And there¬
fore 'twas immediately hufhed up in a deep fi-
lence, and the Primate (at lead: feemingly, and to
outward appearance) reconciled to the Lord
Deputy.
Shtridon again affumes to Petition for leave to
go for England, alluring his Excellency, Thar
'twas only in order to purfue fome private bufi-
nels of his own: That he had a Law-fuit for
fome Debt due to his Wife, which required his
attendance, &c. but all would not prevail to ob¬
tain permiilion, wherefore he employs his Wife's
intereft at London, and by that way follicits the
King with lb much importunity, till at laft an
Order was got for his going over.
! -V ( \ 'f iT THi r >T ■
About the Ninth of December in this Year,
upon a Sunday Morning there happened fuch an
Inundation of Water in the City of Dublin, as
no man was ever a Spe&ator of the like: It car¬
ried away Stone-Bridges, deftrdyed Houfes, and
without intermiffion continued three days over¬
flowing a great part of the City, to the unlpeak-
able damage of many Thoufands; and that which
Y 2 en-
o 8 The Secret Qnfults, Negotiations, See.
encreared the Prodigy, was, That no Rain fell,
fave a few Showers upon the Saturday Night be¬
fore. This befides the confiderable detriment to,
or rather apparent ruine of many , was
accounted by many as a miraculous ad of the Di¬
vine Providence, and interpreted as an ominous
Prefage of that Deluge of Troubles which has
lince lb univerfally delcended upon the poor En¬
glijb in that diftrelfed Kingdom.
But to come again to who now ar¬
rives at London,but 'twas near four and twenty
hours before he could fpeak with Sunderland, who
after his admittance gave him but a cold recepti¬
on ; the realbn of which (as 'twas conjectured)
was, that Sunderland expected that which Sheri¬
dan was not yet Mafter of; for he had but juft
began his Trade when the Lord Deputy and he
fell at variance.
This indifferency, or rather coldnels in Sunder'
land, did not hinder him from applying to the reft
of his Friends, but was fo unhappy as to find by
them, that there was no expectation of removing
Tyrconnel; for he was fortified with the jfrencU
3!nttrtft, and was in a manner Deputy to Lewis,
not James; it being laid in Paris when News
came there of TyrconnePs being ftruck out, That
there was none in England durft move him : and
fo it appeared as we lhall find hereafter.
Sheridon wanted not thole which were Favou¬
rites and Well-mjhers to his defign againft the De¬
puty, as C, afllemain, Po and another not to be
named, but they durft not truft Sheridon with
their Sentiments, but font fome of their Confi-
\ dents
of the (Romifl) Tarty hi Ireland.
dents to animate him with general Fromifes,
without naming any body : He found himfelf
now involved in great danger, and in three days
turned his Story,, and went to Sunderland, to
whom he had at firft only complained of the Lord
Deputy's unkindnefs, but now comes, and pofi-
tively affirms, that he brought over no Articles
againft him, nor could fay any thing but what
was honourable of him, only that his Excellency-
had taken difpleafureagainll him, he knew not
why, &c. and that the occafion of his coming
over, was to follow his own private bufinefs;
Father Peters, his Wife's Uncle, would not carry
him to kifs the King's hand, but at laft his Friend,
the Lord Sunderland, got him admittance : How¬
ever the King would not hear him fpeak, in fb
great awe flood he to his 'Brother, or rather
$)attec Of IFrance, whole Creature Tyrconnel
was.
S her i don had not continued three days in Lon¬
don* when he was followed by the Lord Dongan,
a Young Man, Son to the. Earl of Lymerick:
He brought Letters to Sunderland and others,
letting forth Sheridon in black Characters; which
Negotiation fb fucceeded, that Father Peters
would admit him no more in his prefence: And
now thofe Lords which would have privately
fupported him againft Tyrconnel, deferted, and
declaimed againft him, when they perceived that
he publickly magnified his Mailer ; by which
means he was wholly left to himfelf, and Tyr-
eonneCs Party vigoroufly purfued him here as a
Delinquent, and had it immediately inferted in
17'e Secret Confults, , &c.
the News-Letter, That he was turned out of
his Employments in Ireland, and lo he had no¬
tice given him, that he was too that of being Se¬
cretary, and a Popijb preferred to his
place.
Sheridan was now involved in very great
{freights to go back; he confidered 'twas to no
purpofe: Toremain here 'twas not poflible for
him without the affiftance of Friends, and none
would appear for him: At length he delivers a
Petition with his own hand to the King, defiring
that he might be heard {peak for himfelf, and not
be Condemned to utter Deftruftion, as he ac¬
counted it to be, if he flood not in his Majefty's
favour. The King gave him no other Anfwer,
but that he muft return to the Lord Deputy, and
there juftifie himfelf; this he reckoned to be hard
upon him, but waiting upon the Lord Sunderland
for fome order to carry back, upon which he
grounded his Trial, 'twas thought fit to name
the Chief Judges to hear, and to report back the
Matter to the King, as they {hould find it. With
this order he returns for , together with
a Letter of Recommendation from Sunderland to
the Lord Deputy, praying his Lordfhip to take
Compaflion of the Poor Man, who was fuffici-
ently mortify'd by what he had already fuffered
in the lols of his Secretaries Place, and that if his
Excellency fhould purfue him farther to the lo-
fing of his Commiffioners Place in the Cuftoms,
he was a Ruined Man, for that the King had de¬
clared if Matters alledged againft him were pro¬
ved, he .fhould never .have any. Employment in
his
of the Tomifh Tarty hi Ireland. 12
his Dominions; and in the Clofe added, That
A£h of Clemency were fuitable to perfons of his
Excellency's Quality and Station, &c. But mat¬
ters were now come to too high a pitch, and die
breach was too wide ever to be patched up toge¬
ther again, as it had been once already by Judge
Daly's mediation betwixt them. Sheridon, or
fbme in his ftead had even in Dublin whilft this
was tranfa&ing, fpoke contemptibly of the Lord
Deputy, in order to applaud Sheridon as a Trium¬
phant Conquerour: For fo the Populace had cryed
him up in Dublin, and the Protcfiant Party in
Ireland, out of Enmity to Tyrconnel, which it
feems they thought to be the worfe man of the
two, though in reality Sheridon as an Apoftate
was the greater Villain.
Upon Sheridon s Arrival at Dub!in, he repair¬
ed to the Caftle with his Papers, but was not ad¬
mitted to the prefence of the Lord Deputy : He
then goes to the Cujlom-houfe, and there fits a«
mong his Brethren.The next day the Lord Depu¬
ty advifes with the Judges what to do with him,
for his Stomach could not digeft his enjoying any
Place in the Kingdom, whilft he continued Chief
Governour. The Judges Counfelled to appoint a
Day of Hearing, and in the mean time to fufpend
him from fitting in the Cujlom-Houfe. Sheridon
had this order lent him, upon which he came to
the Gaftle, and difputed his being fufpended, as
if not in the Lord Deputy's Power. This De¬
meanour was an Aggravation to his former, and
upon farther consulting with the Judges, 'twas
agreed, That fince much of the proof of Sheri¬
dons
J he Secret Confults3 Negotiations,&c.
dons Bribery depended upon the Officers concer¬
ned in the Revenue, 'twould be ablolutely ne-
ceHary to heap as much Ignominy and Dilgrace
upon him in that Province,as waspoffible; which
to effeft, the Commiffioners the were
Rent for, and ordered to write to all the Colle&ors
of the Kingdom not to keep any correfpondence
with Sheridon, in regard that he was fufpended
from a&ing in the Revenue.
A day being appointed for Sheridon to come
to an Hearing, lie moved for more time, which
was readily granted ; for at this time another
blow from Rome came againft , which
required hisbeft Minifters to divert, which was
as follows.
The Earl of Caftlemain had for fome time been
returned from his Embalfy to the Pope, but was
In veiled in no Preferment, which he complained
of to his Holinefs, which was feconded by Father
Peters; upon the receipt of whole Letters, his
Holinefs writes over to his Nuncio, to Addrels to
the King in his behalf ; who was as ready to gra-
tifie him in fomething, as the other to embrace
it, but at prelent there was no vacancy: But to
Ripply that, Father Peters takes opportunity to
ftrike at 'Jeffreys the Lord , for tamper¬
ing in the bulinels of Mag, in order
to which, he roundly acquaints the King, That
the moll etfe&ual courle whereby to accomplifh
his defign by eftablifhing the Catholick Religion,
was, to let his Prime Minifters and the World un-
derftand, that no lervice, they had or could do,
ihould proteft them, or be deemed of any account
of the ^omifh Tarty in Ireland,
if they failed in the leaft Iota or minuted Cir¬
cumstance relating to the Cat ho lick Caufe. This
Argument was fo purfued with a conftant unin¬
terrupted vigour by the Nuncio and Father Peters.
that 'twas brought to the Cabinet, and upon the
Seventeenth of December at Night in this Year
it was refolved, That Jeffreys fhould be put out,
and that three of the, Lords of the Treafury fhould
be made Lords CommiJJioners of the Broad Seal,
and that Cajllemain fhould be Lord Treafurer.
This Refolve continued not ten days, but upon
thefuddain the Scene changed, and Jeffreys fixed
more firm than ever. The true caufe of this
was never known,, but 'twas obferved, that the
Queen and Sunderland adhered to him. This
adminiftred frefh caufe of difguft to Cajllemain
and to the Church Party; for now it began to
appear that Affairs moved by the IFcencf} Snte*
rett, in oppofition to that of Rome : Such infu-
perable Difficulties had the Folly of that poor
unfortunate Kingexpofed him to: His Zealand
AfFe£tion led him to adhere to Rome, but his de-
pendance was intirely built upon IFr&nte*
The Church Cabal embraced the opportunity of
the Lord Deputy's and Sheridon% Quarrelling,
wherein to recommend Cajllemain as a fit perfon
for the Government of Ireland, reprefenting to
the full how injurious thofe Scandalous Impeach¬
ments of the Lord Deputy and Sheridon had been
to, and how much they had retarded the Pro-
grefsof the Catholick Caufe: Farther urging that
Iyr conn el had proceeded by too flow a motion,
and that he had effected nothing but the turning
Q out
Jh Secret Confults, Negdtiations, See.
out of a few Soldiers, and difcourageing and
frightening away the Ifidudrious who
might (many of them) by Indulgence and En¬
couragement have been prevailed upon to efpoule
their Religion : That Ca.jtlem.un was a Man of
great Tarts, and of a fine curious Head for the
accomplishing of fuch a Work as the Reducing
and Converting of Hereticks.
This was fbon fent to and by his
Penfioner in London Communicated to ,
which the "Deputy acquaints his two Grand
States-men Rice and Neagle with, who to difli-
pate this approaching Storm, fit up Night and
Day , even to the hazard of Rice's Life, who was
an Infirm Man.
Their whole Confult was (as appeared after¬
wards) what Apology to make for.their fmall
Proficiency in Prolelyting Men to their Religi¬
on, or at lead in indearing them to the efpoulal
of the Romijb Caufe and Intered, and after ma¬
ny Elfays, the mod Authentick was, that whild
the Englijh were Maders of their Lands, they
feared not the Government, but as Satan anfwer-
ed in the Cafe of Job, Touch them but in their
Edates, and they will either run into Treafon or
Converfion. This being refolved upon, Rice
and Neagle were to draw up the fubdance of an
Aft, which they did in that nature as gave (in
a manner) the Lands of the whole Kingdom in¬
to the power of the King, and although the Ca-
tbo/ickswere to have but half of their Edates,
yet the other part was to be under fuch Qualifica¬
tions, as that the King might dilpofe of it to fuch
as
of We GfmtjhWarty lit Ireland. 11 y
as he found to be obedient Sons. This if the
King would have purfued, a Parliament they
could have had when they plealed, fitted for their
turn, all Corporations being already put into
ptflj hands, and all the Sheriffs of the Counties be¬
ing Papijls,would be lure not to make returns to
their difad vantage.
This Confult being come to this ripenels, 'twas
concluded, that Rice fhould go over as Plenipo¬
tentiary in negotiating this Affair, which was
mannaged witsh that privacy and relervednefs,
that not one of the Council knew of it till the War
rant was figned for the Yatcht to carry him over:
But as loon as this became publick, the Lord
Chief Juftice Nugent flew about like lightening
to all his Friends, to make an intercft to go over
with Rice, which Neagle and Rice privately op-
poled ; for as one of them told the Author, he
was good for nothing but to fpoil a bufinels;
when nothing could prevail, he pretended Ibme
affairs of his own, and To obtained leave to go
over, and for the honour of the bufinels, was
joined with Rice, to prelent that which was pub-
f iicklv to be offered, but was not in any part of the
l«cret intriegue, to render the undertaking more
prolperous. For the Deliverance of the Irijb
Nation, they Embark'd upon St.patrtCfe's Day ;
but confidering the bad fuccefs they met with,
they might as well have put him out of their Ka-
lendar, as by a particular order from Rome, they
had formerly done St. Luke, becaule upon that
Holy-day the Englijh had obtained a great Victo¬
ry over them in the laft Rebellion.
Qjz But
16U.
But to return to the Iriflj EmbalTadors (for lb
they were called here in England) over they came,
and after Rice had paid a Yilit to the Jefuics (of
whole Society he was once a Novice, and had
been educated in their Colledge) he made his
lirft Court to the Lord Sunderland. Father Pe¬
ters he found not favourable to his defign, but
the jftenct) IFaaten was his chief dependance, to
whom he had always a recourle in his private
Confults, without communicating any thing to
his Colleague, whom he kept in great ignorance
of the private intriegue of againft the
Lord Deputy. 'Twas Rice's chief bufinels to
poffels the Conclave with a great opinion of the
Lord Deputy's extraordinary Zeal for the pro¬
motion of the Catholick Cauje, and that he had
made a much greater Progrels in it before that
time, if the want of a Parliament, and the con¬
tinuance of the Aft of Settlement, had not re¬
tarded that defign j without which Rice alledg-
ed, That 'twas impofiibleto make Converts, or
to Prolelyte any to their Party, who thought
themfelves Matters of the Kingdom, whilft they
had the Laws on their fide, and made it their
boaft, That the King durft not attempt to med¬
dle with them. So that as Affairs flood, there
feemed a more rational probability, that the Ro¬
man Catholicks Ihould condefcend to the
fiants, than they to the Roman Catholicks. Thus
was Rice very aftive, and induftrious, in urging
and propagating the intriegue, which when it
was fully comprehended by his Party, Father
Peters was with much difficulty influenced lb
far
of the tf^omijh Tarty in Ireland.
far as to join in it, though at firft he could not
be prevailed upon to hear of it: For he was ablo-
lutely byaft'd for Caftlemam s intereft, and being
no Politician, but a perfefl fury, and of an Im¬
perious Temper, was wont to contemn every
thing that was not his humour : But this Proje/i
being a work of expedition in Ireland, and (in
his own Style) to Convert or Confound the He-
reticks there; he at laft embraced it, and when
once lie became intereffed, nothing muff be done
but by his direction and advice; fo 'twas conclu¬
ded upon, that the Projeft fhould be laid open
before Sunderland, and that when he was made
Mafter of it, he and Father Peters would wait
on the King with it: And to oblige S under land7&
more chearful and hearty concurrence in this Af¬
fair, he was to be made fenfible what fignal ad¬
vantages would be derived to his Lordfhip from
fo great a Revolution in that Kingdom, a matter
which required no great art fb to inftil it into him,,
as to make it intelligible.
But notwithftanding Father Peters adherence
tothisProjeft, yet did he continue in his former
Inclinations for removing Tyrconnel: And'twas
believed that happy difference among the feveral
Rorn/fh Factions, was the prime occafion of di¬
verting this fatal blow defign'd for Ireland.
The bufineft was in the Clofet fully difcours'd
to the King by none but Sunderland and Peters,
(who with the liberty of adigreffion, I muff ac¬
quaint the Reader, was not infallible in keeping
Secrets.) The King was loon fully inclined to the
thing, but how to pals it at the Council, Hie la¬
bor y hoc opus ejl0 there lay the ftrels of the buff-
nefi y
11?
The Secret Confults, N .
,-jefs; for lie was very apprehenfive that fucli as
were oppofite to Tyrconnel\ continuance in the
Government of Ireland, would be more violent
againft his being there with a Parliament too great
for fuch a Man whom the Council had in con¬
tempt. Peters thought he could eafily remove
that obftacle by introducing the Popes recom¬
mendation of Cajllemain, but over that th
King had laid his hand, to whom the poor King
was become a Valfai. Amidft thefe difficulties,
'twas hard to form a relblution, but however
'twas agreed to, that the two Judges fhould be
publick! / introduce! to the King with their pro-
icft for calling a Parliament in Ireland, and to lay
r.t his Majefty's feet the deplorable condition of
his Catholick Subje&s there, occafioned by the
palpable injuftice and oppreflion of the A & of
Settlement, which was fo notorious, that the ve-
ty Protejlantsthemfelves were alhamed of it, and
would gladly part with enough to fatisfie the
Irijh, in cafe that they might have a good Aft of
Parliament to fecure the reft. All this was put in
practice, and they brought to Whitehall, where
the King received their Proje£t in writing, and
told them, he would advife with his Council a-
bout it.
N ow 'twas the conftant method of King James
in any thing of weight, or importance, to confider
it fir ft in the Cabal, before 'twas propofed at
Council-Board ; yet this thing, upon which en¬
tirely depended the Settlement or ruine of a King¬
dom, had not that Sanction, but was carried im¬
mediately to the Council, which was matter of
admiration to many, but fuppofed to be done for
one
of the T^omijh Tarty in Ireland.
one of thefe two Reafons, either that the King
was confcious that thofe of the Cabinet would
not (offer it to proceed any farther, but was in
hopes (o to influence the Judges and other Tools,
he had at the Council-Board, to vote for it: Or
elfe that he would fhew his indifferency in the
matter, that fo it might not be thought any pri¬
vate intrigue.
The King brought this proje£l the firft Coun¬
cil-day, and in few words acquainted the Council
with its importance and contents, and by whom
prefented to him: no man (poke a word either in
favour of, or in oppofition to the thing, butdefi-
red it might be read ; which being done, the Lord
Bellajis in a ftorm of Paffion inveigh'd bitterly
againft it, faying that, 31 t fuel) Dcfigng tljofe
teereencouragch, the? of England, (meaning
the Catholicks) hah hell in tune to lo&k out fo?
Come other Country anh not (tap to he a mah
©artifice fo? Irifh Eebel0. Powis, according to
the beft of his underftanding fcconded ; and in
fhort, flwas (b run down, that neither Sunder¬
land nor Peters, durft attempt to fpeak a word in
its vindication, but only defired,, that thofe Gen¬
tlemen which brought over thofe Papers might be
heard. Bellafis was for committing them, or com¬
manding their immediate return ; but 'twas at lad
thought reafbnable to hear them, lb a day was
appointed.
The noife of this^ and the fuccefs it had met
with at Council-Board, flew abroad with great
Exclamations, the Boys in the ftreet running af¬
ter the Coach where Rice and Nugent at any time-
were, with Pottatoes ftuck on flicks, and crying,
7he Secret Confults, ,&cc.
09afee roomfo? tbe lrifh GmbaffaDo?#.- 'Twas
believed that fome of the Party did blow
up the People, that fo the King might be fenfi-
ble what mifchief this would tend to.
The day came on for thefe to be heard
at Council-board, where Rice made a Speech full
of Policy and Artifice, and anfwered the Objefti-
ons made by the Lord Bellafts and ; but
when Nugent came to fpeak, he kicked down all
that Rice had done, and prefently dilco-
vered the defctt of his lnib , as he
cali'd it, abufing him beyond the refpefit due to
the place where the King was, calling him jfool
anbCtnahc, and Powis did the fame. They were
not long in tearing this fine Pro)eft to pieces,
* which when they had done,£k7ft//j bid them make
hafte to the fool tljetc Rafter, anti hid him nejet
Ssftffage he Cent, to ernplop (KUtfer ©en, anh
upon a mo?e boneft €rrantb Powis hiD them
tell htm, Chat the King hah better ufe fa make
ot ht0 CotbolicR ©uhjett0 tn England, than to
<Samfi'£e ipem fo? repn^e to the Proteitants of
Ireland tnlteuof their <&flate0 there*
In fhott, every one fell lb violently upon them
at the Board, that the King remained filent, and
without any refolve or order, broke up the Coun¬
cil, and neither the Embaffadors nor their Projefl
appeared more upon the Stage, but killing the
King s Hand, march'd off with great haft and pre-
cipitationjfor they were afraid that even the Roman
Cathohcks themfelveswould ftfve affronted 'em.
1688. This Milcarriage of gave frefh op¬
portunity to the Cajllemanians to raile Objections
againft
of the Tomijh Tarty in Ireland.
againft him, letting forth what mifchiefs he had al¬
ready done in that Kingdom; that the Revenue was
funk to an incredible abatement, and that in one
year more there would not be left money enough
in the Kjngdom to difcharge the Army, and that
this laffc Proje£t of his would exafperate, and frigh¬
ten away thofe of the Englfn which were left,
who being the dealing and induftrious people of the
Nation, would put a final period to all Trade and
v Commerce in that wafted and depopulated Coun-
trey : But all thefe juft and reafonable Allegations,
(which matter of fact, and the prefent ruinous and
diffracted Eftate of that Kjngdom, did but too fully
evince the truth, or rather infallibility of) though
judicioufly laid down before the Kjng by fober and
confidering perfons, yet w ere they all to no pur-
pofe: For though the Kjng kept it private from
moft of his Council, yet certain it is, that he had
promifed the French KjngXhe difpofal of that Go¬
vernment and KJngdom, when things had attained
to that growth, as to be fit to bear it: ThE jump¬
ed near to the time of the Kings Declaration for Li-
herty of Conference, and the Bifhops Commitment to
the Tower : And as one had ruined England, if the
vifible hand of Supream Providence had not figna1-
Iv and miraculoufly interposed, by infpiring the Bi¬
fhops with couragious and invincible refblutions in
a juft vindication of the Prote/lant Cm e and Reli¬
gion ; fo the other had ftruck the fatal blow to the
Laws and Fundamental Conftitutionsof Ireland, if
fome Hofjafs even apongft the Romijh Fail ion had
not turned the pernicious Counfels of thefe Achito-
phels into folly.
The expected fuccefs of the aforefaid Embaffa-
R dors'
7he Secret Qonfults, , &c.
dors Negotiation,which by one Party was dreaded,
by the other hop'd to prove anfwerable to its defign,
made various imprertions upon men in proportion
to their different interefts. The Englifh were ap-
prehenfiveof no lefs a change than a total fubver-
fion of the Government, and an unraveling of all
the Laws made for the fecurity of their Eftates and
Religion, which the unhinging the Aft of Settle¬
ment (the Pole occafion of this Solemn Embafly)
would at one blow compleat. The Natives were
(imaginarilyj in aftual poffefBon: Their appre-
henfions whereof were fuch as difcovered all the
outward figns and indications of fb high a fatisfa-
ftion, as cannot be eafily reprefented. Joy and
Triumph was in all their Aftions and Difcourfes:
Fancy and Imagination wrought very powerfully,
and like Men in Bedlam, who dream of nothing
but Kingdoms and Empires, they feenTd to fhew
as much Complacency, and to be alike tranfported
with the airy hopes of getting, as if they had been
already inverted in their Eftates: But this Scene of
Joy, which had been reprefented with fomuch
fplendour and magnificence, foon difappear'd, and
a Melancholy Profpeft over-fhadowed with a dark
Cloud, was quickly brought upon the Stage, when
they perceiv'd all their hopes blafted in the fi-uitlefs
confequences of this great intrigue.
mantes,their high expectations foon defcended to
a low ebb and they were quickly under as great
defpondency (by this fuddain turn of the Spoke in
tlie Wheel) as they were before of fatisfaftion.
For as they are wont to put no bounds to their Ec-
ftafies, and tranl'ports in profperous, fb neither do
they limit their forrow and defpair, upon adverfe
Con.
of the omip? Tarty in
Contingencies. An unequalnefs of mind, and re-
folution very remarkable among the Irifb,who like
the floating Euripus, have no confiftency in thern-
felves, but are carried up and do ,rn in their hopes
and fears, according as every petty accident does
either invite or difcourage.
But to return to Sheridon whofe Tr'al Rice and
NugenPs abfence had retarded, and the ill effects
of whofe Negotiation had fo exalted him that he
begun to vaunt over his Enemies, openly exclaim¬
ing upon the Lord Deputy, and withal adding,
That he would foon be removed from the Govern¬
ment, and fuch advantage did he derive from this
difgrace Tyrconnell met with in England, that he
held the Lord Deputy and his Judges, at defiance,
and was now become fo imperious that his braging
and threatening the Evidence took off feveral. And
the truth is, after that Rice returned from England
they were in fuch defpondency, expefting every
day a new Lord Lieutenant, infornuch that one
day Tyrconnell himfelf faid publickly to fbme Offi¬
cers attheCaftle, that though he had great aflu-
rancefrom the King, that he fhould not be remo¬
ved, yet now he heard that he fhould, and wifh'd
that he had given Five Thoufand Pounds to have
known it a Month fooner, which expreflion was
much wondered at.
Sheridon now comes upon his Tryal,having four 168?,
Counfelsall Protejlants, or at leaft, who pretended
to be fuch, for two ofthem hatye fince by their ani¬
ons given caufe of fufpicion, viz Wbiched and Do-
noban, two intire Friends; the firft now with King
James m Ireland, and employed a Judge of Oyer
and Terminer to try Protejlants [ox their Rebellion.
R 2 Do nob an
,24 The Secret Confults, Negotiations,
Donohan is here, and makes as fair a fhew for
King WUliam, as his Brother a kicked for King
James, but had the misfortune of being difcovered
to procure a Pals for his Brothers Son that v s here
emplo\ ed by King James, and or e of hi Converts,
who'tis faid, has fince returned hither from Ire*
land with* Intelligence from King Jams. Two as
good P rote ft ants as Brethren, but both in Iniquity:
One afts by aCommiffionfrom King Jawe* againft:
thofeof his own Church, and Profeflion, and not
only fo, but interprets that to be Rebellion, which
was grounded upon no other defign than an ablb-
lute prefervation of their Lives from the bloody
Maffacres of the Irifh, who having robb'd and pil¬
laged them of their fubftance, at the next ftep
would have broke into their Houfes, and have cut
their Throats/rom which they were bound by the
Law of Nature-, and conlequently by that of Re¬
ligion, (to which the laft carries no oppofition,but
is derived from it as its prime and original founda¬
tion) to defend themlelvcs. But is it poffible for
any one that Riles himfelf a Protejlant, io fhame*
fully to temporize and prevaricate as againft the
Laws of Nature and Humanity thus (as it were) to
prey upon his own kind? The other promotes
King James's intereft, though not publickly, and
upon the open ftage, yet by private and fecret ma¬
chinations, though at the fame time lie feemsa
„ zealous adherer to the prefent Government: An
Hypocrifie, which, I pray, may be as much beyond
a Parallel, as tis without excuie.-
But I come to Sheridan: The Charge that was
brought againft him, was, for felling ot Place , and
receiving extravagant Fees in his Office. To prove
which
of the Tggrnijh Tarty in Ireland.
which there were -Witnefles of all forts brought
from all parts of the Kingdom, to which Shtndon
and his Counfel made defence only by criminating
the Evidence, or making them intereffed as Par¬
ties that fwore to get money, if they could fix it
upon him. The chief Evidence produced againft
him was a Priefl: that he had employed to bring in
Grift to his Mill.
This Prieft he brought Evidence to prove he was
a Man of a le wd and infamous Character., guilty of
feveral vi!e actions, as of Baftardy,&c. Much time
was confumed in hearing impertinent fluff, not
worth my filling Paper with, or the trouble of the
Reader's perufal but in the end he was difmift of
his Employments, and fo went off the Stage the
worftof men, had he not left an Ellis behinl him,
a Mifcreant of all Shapes, that hath fince been the
Engine of Murthersand Rapins in that Countrey.
4 . ''It?' ) f !
But now comes into Ireland one Captain Bridges,
who rid Poft to bring the happy News of the
Birth of the fuppofed Prince of Walts : For which
he received the Honour of Knighthood by the
Name of Sir Matthew Bridges*
What Tongue can exprefs, or man defcribe the
extravagancy of thole Joys which polTefled the
Ir/f/j at the arrival of this News ? Their former
apprehenfions of the Thortnefs of their triumph,
by realonof King J^ei'sdeclenfion in Age, and
the profpeft of a P rote flan? Succeffar, had extream-
ly imbittered their greateft Comforts, and caus'd
an intermixture of hopes and fears. But now that
they had got a Toung Prince that would become a
Patron to the Holy. Church, thkdbon diffipated
m6 The Secret Confults,
all their troubles. They now confidered, that their
Religion would be perpetuated to future Ages, and
that upon this fund they might not only extirpate
Herefie,but foeftablifh the Holy Religion,
as to remain to all Pofterity: For now (in the
Scripture Phrafe,which they ufiirpingly monopolize
and improperly apply to themfelves) The Gates of
Hell was never like to prevail agsiinjl their Church.
Thefe were fuch Tweet Reflexions as they never
before had a perfect rclifh of, and which fuch nar¬
row Breafts, and earthy Souls, were not ca able
to contain, or to contemplate upon, without ma¬
king a violent eruption into all the out ward demon-
Orations of an inconceivable TatisfaXion. 'Twould
require a Volume todefcribe the particularities of
thofe various Scenes of Joy, which they fhew'd
upon this occafion Let this fuffice, That no Arts
of Extravagancy were omitted, whereby to repre-
fent their boundlefs Complacencies. This News
gave them fo victorious an afcendant over the En-
glifh, that they were now become the (corn and
contempt of thofe individual perfons who had been
their Slaves and Vaflals, infomuch, that the mean-
eft Labourer would now upon the leaft provocati¬
on, threaten to hang his Mafter. One pleafant in-
ftant to this purpofe, I cannot omit, the urhor be¬
ing an Ear-witnefs of it. A Labourer came to his
Mafter very foberly, and told him he owed him a
Cow, and bid him give it him preflntly ; the Gen¬
tleman laughed at him, for he owed him not a Pen¬
ney; upon which the Fellow growing angry, the
Gentleman called himRafcal, and offered to beat
him; but the Servant was not only too quick, but
too ftrong for the Mafter, whom he was very fair¬
ly
of the Tomifh Tarty Ireland. 127
ly about to Cudgel; but Company interpofing di¬
verted Mm from his intention : But the jeft ftill
remains, which he fpake in lrifh, but being inter¬
preted runs in Engl/fb thus, £0U Englifh C jurfe,
(with an Oath by his Maker and St. Patrick) J tOtlE
Jpang tljee With tijefe Ijantwi, as well a0 ehec
tljOU wafte fcattgeD jtt fhp life, But the poor Gen¬
tleman was afraid that he would have given him
fuch an Hanging as is never ufed but once.
'The News of the B-jfhops being committed to the
Tower, came fbme few days oefore that of the
Prince of Waks'sBirth, either of which gave them
abundantly more joy than they could poflibly bear,
but being united, put them into ftrange Convulfi-
ons. T heir Faflions were now outragious, having
both thele at once upon their hearts, and now that
they mull vent themlelves, 'twas a moft difficult
thing to reftrain their hands from cutting of throats,
it being natural to them in their drink and reveling
Debaucheries, for want of Enemies, to ftab one a-
nother, and contrary to other Brutes, (for they de-
ferve no better Name) they are moft mifchievous
when beft pleafed. Then is revived an old Quarrel
of the Grandfathers (commenced an hundred years
ago) and the revenge muft be executed, if any of
the Clan (as they call them) be in the Company.
Before I take leave of our fuppoled Prince of
Waies*s Birth, I muft not dmit to acquaint the Rea¬
der of the univerfal confidence of all the lrifh in
the Kingdom, that the Queen (as (oon as 'twas
laid fhe had Conceivy) was with Child of a Son.
This they were fo certain-of, that they-would lay
you Twenty Guineas to one, or any other Wager
in proportion to that, from the higheft to the low-
eft
Tk Secret Confutes , , &c.
eft amongft them. This confidence was much won>
dered at by the Englifb,and judged to be very un¬
reachable,' if not built upon fome private Grounds
and Inducements, which I leave the Reader to gueft
at, which fome amongft them were,certainly ac¬
quainted with, whole Difcourles among the reft
created in them a belief of fome extraordinary de-
fign then in agitation: Otherwife they would ne¬
ver have been lo forward in propofing fuch extra¬
vagant Wagers which when the En°h(b enquir'd
thereafonof, they attributed their great affurance
to the Prayers of their Infallible Church, which
were daily offered to God upon this account, and
would undoubtedly meet with a fuitable return
But it appeared plain enough,that though this was
generally afcribed as the true caule of their great
confidence, yet that they had other Latent Realons
which were not fit to be difcovered.
But to leave this and proceed to other Matters.
The Judges of Affize even that was the juft-
eft man amongft the n, and who in the firft Circuit
he went did good fervice in hanging of his Coun-
treymen, did now this Summer-Circuit favour all
Criminals, and having Sheriffs of their own, pack¬
ed fuch juries as neither Murther nor Felony, if
-committed upon Proteftants, wasadjudg'd to be a
Crime, and where Matters were lo apparent, that
they could not poftibly but find them, the utmoft
extremity us'd .was B^mrsg inthy Hand. 'Twas
faid, that the Lord Deputy had particular Com¬
mands from King fames in this matter for thefe
Realons. Firft, They Hanged none hut {athohcks.
For 'tisJcarce known in an Age. (which befpeaks
the great honefty and integrity of the ordinary fort
of Proteftmts) that any E man turns a Tory,
or is guilty of Theft.
In the lecond place, 'twas thought the belt way
todeftroy \X\&P rot eft ants,and 'twas obferv'd that
none were rob'd but Incorrigible Englifh jfana^
tick#, as they called them, and thole were deem¬
ed to be fuch, that were fo inflexible to ail their
blandifhing arts of perfwafion, and alluring en¬
ticements, as there remained no hopes of their
Converfion. Whereas in all parts of Ireland there
were too too many Laodicean and Temporiling
teftantswho being related to the old ilock of the
Kingdom, could eafily fhelter themlelves under
the covert and protection of the Gentry and
Grandees, and thefe lube-warm Indifferents were
thole which the Engltftt were molt afraid of.
The Judges purlued their Inltructions to the ut-
molt, and now that notorious principle which the
Church of Rome is afhamed to own, but daily pra-
ftifes, That no Faith is to be kept ivith, (and give me
leave to add) nor juftice given to was fig-
nally demonftrated at this juncture. For now, tho'
both Laity and Clergy lay every day more and
more under additional grievances, yet 'twas appa¬
rent that there was no hopes of any redrefs. The
Laity had not only great arrears of Rent due to
them, but ftill more and more old pretences were
reviv'd by the lri(b of Debts due to them ten or
twenty years ago, which they now fued for, as
pretending that they could have no juftice in the
Protefiant Government, which was the realon they
had retarded prolecuting lo long, in order to which
they wanted not If nights of the I'of, w ho for the
value of Six-pence in drink, would make as manv
S falle
falle Affidavits againft the Engltjb as they ple&lcd.
The Clergy made their complaint to the Judges the
year before (as I have hinted to you already) as to
the obftinacy of theCountrey in the non payment
of their fmall dues, and receiv'd no redrels-,but now
the evils were grown upon them to an higher pitch.
The Prieftswere now become fo confident in their
hopes of eftablilhing Popery, that they could no
longer contain from lhewing their inveterate ma¬
lice againft the Proteflant Cagainft whom they
endeavour'd to prepolfels their people at Mais (over
whom they have an unlimitted and Arbitrary pow¬
er) with all imaginable prejudice and contempt.
The Priefts now fuggefted to them, that by the
fame realon that they detained the from, they
might alio refufe the paying the greater Tytbs to,
the Minifiers, as Corn, Hay, &c. They told them
that they law by their own experience, they had
been dilcouraged in their purfuit after the firft, and
after all their endeavours could get no redrels, and
now that the Catholicks had liberty of their Religion,
they faw not why they Ihould not deny them the
laft: For the Law would not give thele to them
more than the former. Of right they told them that
all the Tythes belonged to them as their proper
due, and tho' by the oppreffion and injufticeof the
Proteflant Government they had been kept out of
them lo long to their apparent prejudice and difad-
vantage, yet now things were in another pofture:
They had now a Catholickand Catholick
gijlratesof their own, who would not take their
dues from them, but rather inveft them in them;
and therefore charged the people under pain of Ex¬
communication and the levereft Anathemas not to
pay any manner of Tythes to the Protefiant Mini-
fters.
^ of the Pomifh'Party Ireland.
Jlers. The vulgar Irijb were lb much over-awed
with thefe arts of terrour from their Prieds (whole
Sentence in any thing they reverence with an equal
fear, and alike profound veneration, as if pronoun¬
ced by the Pope in the Infallible Chair) that none
would come to the Protefiant C to take Tythes
of them,unlefs thefe dreadful Imprecations (which
if incurr'd they believ'd themfelves to be certainly
damn'd) were taken off. By this means the gneat
Tythes were like to lie upon the Miniders hands,
a great inconveniency in mod parts of Ireland,
where their Parifhes being of a vad circumference,
and full of Bogs and Mountainous places, 'twould
be difficult,if not impoflible almod,to gather their
Tythes in kind, at leaft without having one half of
them embezel'd and ftole by the This puts
the Clergy upon a neceflity either of letting out
their Tythes in fmall proportions; or elfe they mud
lofe them, and in thofe Countrys where the Irijb
are mod numerous, the vulgar fort were wont to
take the Tythe, which the Pnejls now prohibiting
under the aforefaid Penalties, would (as they were
fenfible) bean unfpeakable lols and mifehief to the
Miniders, for the reafons already mentioned, which
was what they ftudioufly aim'd at, and were defi-
rous to improve, as high as they could.
Thele malicious pracdices of the Prie/?r put the
ProtejlantClergy to great inconveniencies in the di-
fpofalof their Tyths, efpecially in fuch Countrys
where the Iri\b were mod numerous: Mod were
forced to defeend to an accommodation with the
Prieds, bedowing a confiderable proportian of
Tythes upon themfelves (which was what they
drove at) to fuffer the ordinary to come and
buy the red. Some that would not be abus'd at that
S 2 rate,
i ^ i The Secret Con full's, "Negotiations,
rate, made their Applications to the Judges of At
fize, complaining againft thefe infolent and irre¬
gular Proceedings of the Priefts. But alas it was
not to be expe&ed that thefe Judges would
go and punifh their Ghoftly Fathers, a very unna¬
tural act in their Religion. In fhort no Law would
be found out to punifh them, all that could be gain¬
ed (and that very rarely) was a civil admonition to
them, not to difturb the Clergy in their
rights and the like, and fo were difmiffed, how
plain foeverthe Matter of Fa£t was proved againft.
them. By this it feemed that thofe of the Clergy,
though not the mt)ft Couragious,yet were the moft
Politick, who dealt privately with the Priefts, and
by fair words and confiderable Largeffes of Tythe-
Corn, &c. prevailed upon them to be quiet: for
the meek and filial regard of thefe Judges to their
Worthy Fathers,ferved but to make them the more
infulting and imperious over the Minifters,who ftill
animated the Countrey againft them, and atlaftto
that height that feveral of the Iri(h in many Parifhes
violently feized upon the Tythe-Corn,dv.and con¬
verted it to their own ufe, neither fuft'ering any o-
ther to buy it, nor any Servant of the Miniftersto
come upon the Land to colleft it.
But to leave this Affair of the Clergy, and to
joyn them and the Laity together, if it happened
that for money due by Bills under Hand and Seal,
or by clear and unqueftionable Evidence, Execu¬
tions were obtain'd from the Judges againft any of
the Irijh, then had the Natives another refuge to
ihelter themfelves under, and to fly to that of an
Iti/h Sheriff, who would carefully decline all op¬
portunities of taking the Party ; or if he could not
avoid apprehending him, then would either fuffer
him
of the fomifl) Tarty
liim to make a voluntary elcape,or ellean hundred
two of Men ihould lie in the way, and relcue him
from the Gaol; or if they wanted force, the whole
Countrey of the Irifh would rile upand a (Tift them,
if the Debt was due to an as they
called them. Thele things lb encouraged the
that had Executions over them, that they would
come and hector thole of the whom they
owed the Money) in the open ftreer,and with their
Swords by their fides, and Fire-Arms and Skeens
in their Pockets(the iaft a bloody large Knife,with
which they are wont to (tab the , and not
feldom one another) with half a dozen or more
lufty Rogues at their backs, would come to their
Doors, and bid them publick defiance.
Thus were the Englifh either deny'd juftice a-
gainft the Irifh, or if they obtain'd it from the J ud-
ges, yet they were fure not to meet with it in the
Sheriff, and fo have no other return of all their
trouble, but the contracting additional colt to their
former Debt from one Affizes to another, which
was like to continue in infinitum, ariowli to no pur-
pole, unlels that of enhanfing the charges far a-
bove the principal Debt, and ftill be out of both.
On the contrary hand, if an had but any
tolerable plea for a debt due from a a
decree was prelently granted,and as for the Sheriffs .
execution of it, 'twas as fwift as his implacable ha¬
tred could carry him, and then be fure no failure
was committed in the levere ulage of the Debtor,
whether in relation to Body or Goods-.• If the laft,
then muff three times value of the Debt be taken,
and apprais'd by lrifh-men appointed for the pur-
pole, who, the Reader may prelume, would not put
too large an eftimate upon them? 'twould fill a Vo--
b lume.
The Secret Conjults, Negotiations, &c.
lume to give the particular inftances offuch vio¬
lent and irregular aftions done,to the Authors own
knowledge. But I proceed.
Now came by a Ship from bound to
Dublin with Letters from a Friend of to
him, which intimated, that he writing nothing but
his own Conjecture, did imagin that the
Orange had a defign againft England, for none could
otherwile guels what a II thole great preparations in
Holland, which they were fo extream hot upon,
tended to. Tyrconnell fent this Letter over to Sun¬
derland, who fhew'd it to the King, who made no
other ule of it than to deride ,as appear'd
from Sunderland?s Writing to him, and ridiculing
his intelligence. But every day ufher'd in frefh fu-
Tpicions, the effeft whereof was lcok'd upon as very
lirange, as being a thing which was wifh'd for both
by Friends and Enemys. The (to fhew their
ancient Vanity) triumphed before the Vi3ory.*
They called ^ie Englifh, Rebels, by way of Predi¬
ction; for they were fure that they would joyn
with the Prince, and as certain that they would be
beaten.and be lerved the lame lawcethat
and his Adherents had met with, only that they
now Ipoke more bloodily, and in more Malicious
and Butcherly expreffions againft the Prince of 0-
range, JBTlDotc g)caD thcp tooulD (lick on a Pole,
anD catrp tt count) the IHlngtiom. For near a
Month this was only dilcourled of, but at laft arri¬
ved King James's Proclamation, and then the En¬
glifh began to confider what they fhould do. The
moll confiderable perlons amongtt them flattened
to Dublin to lee how things ftood. The Irifh alio
flocked thither in fuch Multitudes, that the City
could
3?
Ireland,
could not contain them; yet the foberer and more
prudent party were for fitting ftill, and fome for
going over to England, as being differently poffef-
led with various fears and diftra£iions, and when
the happy News arriv'd of the Landing,
they hung down their Heads like Bullrufbes, and
were under the greateft deliberation and defponden-
cy; and on the contrary, the bore up as
viftors: Tyrconnellcourted'them, and made every
day preparations for flight.
Yet the Term was then begun at Dublin, and the
Ld. C. J. Nugent (than whom perhaps the Bench
never bore a more Confident Ignorant
gave the Charge to the Grand Jury, in which he
applauded and extolled above the height of an Hy¬
perbole, the Magoanimous and Heroick Aftions
of the Great and JuftKJ»g James ; and on the con¬
trary caff the moll vilifying Reproaches upon the
Prince of Orange, and charged them to make a dili¬
gent difquifition after any that were lufpected to
adhere to his intereft, with fuch opprobiousexpref-
fions fit only for the Mouth of an or
Cannibal; his conclufion was, That now the States
of Holland were weary of the Prince, and that they
had lent him over to be drefs'd as Monmouth was,
but that was too good for him, 9nD that he Doubt*
ehnotbefo?ea $9ontb pallet), to hear, that the?
roere bung up all obet England in Xuncbeo like
Eopetf of ©npon*.
About this time, as a Prelude to what has fince i<5gg
followed, was one Sivan a Gentleman near Dublin,
moftbarbaroufly Murthered by the sheriff, and a
parcel of lrifh Ruffins.The pretence the Sheriff
had, was to take poffeflion of lome Land" that an
Irifij-
Irifhmm had recovered from the (aid Swan f>ut with
io little right, that the Irtfh Judges in the Exchequer
fa Demonftr^tion indeed, that'twas palpably un-
juft) refuted to grant the Injun&ion; however their
Tool, Worth, did it, and the cry is, That the Blood
of that Man lies.at h/s door J But tile Sheriff exceeded
the Tenour of his Warrant > lor he had nothing
do with the Houie nor \ and it ftood upon. Svan
therefore kept his Houfe, and the Sheriff coming
to take poffeflion, Swan looked out of the Window,
and defired him to call a Jury of that Neighbour¬
hood, and if they found that Land or Houie in his
order from the Exchequer, lie would give quiet
poffeflion ; but othcrwite he'would not open his
Doors, for he was very fiire the Sheriff hud no or-
deLtocome there. Upon this, without any offer of
Swan, more than keeping his Door fhut, the Sheriff
having his Men ready, a number of them together,
difcharged a Volley of Shot at him as he (food in
his Window, and (hot him in feveral places: they
broke open his Doors, and finding him wallowing
in Blood, and groaning upon the Floor, they took
him up, and flung him out of Doors. Some more
Companionate than the reft carried him into a Ca¬
bin, where he had fo much ftrength as to ask for
Drink. In his Route there wras of teveral forts e-
nough, but thote Inhumane Butchers would not
give the Dying Man a drop, who died there in the
place. This Horrible Tragedy I thought fit not
to omit the relation of, (though by Way of Di-
grefticn) as being but the introductory part of too
many of the like Barbarities repeated fince.
Every day by all ways Expreffescame to Tyrcon-
which' gave him no good account of Affairs,
which made him give Commiflions to any that
would
of the <RomJk Tarty Ireland.
would accept of them, and that he might have the
more cuftom without a penny of Fees to the Secre¬
tary : For many of them that had Commiflions,
pawned them for their Lodgings at their going out
of Town, not having a Penny to carry them along,
but pawning their very Cloaths off their Backs as
they Travelled.
The Englifhand fome of the befir of themfelves
laughed at this Poppet-play, for no man believed
that 'twas defigned for more than a fhew, and that
7yr con net did it to make good his Word, of
hems able to ratfe an 9tmp of an H>unoreD
CboufanO $9en at a S@ontbs> notice.
Every day brought an additional account of the
Prince of Orange's fuccefs, which put the Gran¬
dees into fo great a terrour, and confirmation,
that thole who at firft had exprefled a great deal
of alacrity and forwardnels amongft them, in rai¬
ling of Men, began now to decline, and by de¬
grees more and more to draw back. Then the
Lord Deputy lent to the Judges, and the Lord
Chief Juftice Nugent,(to fhew his valour) un¬
dertook to raile a Regiment, and lo others pretend¬
ed to do, but it came to nothing. The were
in greater trouble and confufion than before, the
Englfh braving it in City and Country, every day
expecting to have an Englifh Lord Lieutenant over,
it being the unanimous opinion of all the
fiants, that the Irifh Lords would have contended
who Ihould be the firft Man to make their lubmif-
fion : but no relief coming to'the was
expected, fome began to draw for , when
an unexpected Cataftrophe had like to have Iwal-
lowed all up. 'Twas the Earl of Alexan¬
der's receiving of a Letter, giving him an account,
T That
Tlje Secret Confults, Negotiations, See.
That upon the Ninth of that Inftant D-cember all
the Prot eft ants of Ireland,were to be cut off. This
Letter he fends with feveral Copies to and
to all parts of the Kingdom; it arrived at Dublin
but on Friday,and the Sunday following, was to
be the day of Slaughter. This fuddain alarum
ftruck fucha fear upon the that upon the
Saturday there got away about Three Thoufand
Souls. There happened to be abundance of Ships
in the Harbour at that time, but were fo crammed
that many were in danger of being ftifled.
The Run of thefe people happened to be fb
fuddain, and in the middle of the Night, that it
refembled the flight of the Jews out of Egypt, and
the Irifhwere as defirous to have them gone, for
fome of them were in as great a terrour as the
other. The Guards kept their Poft in a Maze, and
the Draw-bridge of the Caftle was drawn up, thus
they flood upon their Guard till Morning, and
when XVrawwe/underftood what the matter was,
hefirftfent the Earl of Rand the Earl
of Longford to Ring fend (this being Sunday Morn¬
ing) to perfwade the People to flay, and ordered
the Yatcht to fail after them that were gone,, and
to fetch them back, but neither of his Orders fuc-
ceeded : And the fame day fent to fome oft.' emoft
Confiderable Perfons, and Citizens of Duhim,that
were Proteftants, making great Proteftations and
Oaths of his utter abhorrence of the pretended
defign of Maffacring the begging them
to perfwade their Friends not to ftir.
'Twas by all his a&ions at this jun&ure fuffici-
ently apparent, that he had then no thoughts of
flandingout, notwithftanding that he gave >om-
tniifionsto every one that would accept of them:
For
« Of UK
yj\omun
rany in Ireland.
*39
For he now made great Court to the Enghfh, de
firing (everalof them to teftifie how juft and equal
he had always been in his Government to the
teJUnts. This was a condefcention to the Englifhs
which carried no proportion with the imperiouf-
nefs of his former carriage to them, and was ac¬
cordingly interpreted as an effe£t of inevitable ne-
celfity, and of that great Confirmation, of which
fuch eminent Chara£ters were plainly legible in
all theCircumftancesof his Deportment-, for he
nowdilcovered as much awe and dread of the fuc-
cels of the Prince of Oranges Arms, as upon the
firft News of his Arrival he had done of difejain
and contempt: Every Action he did had deep
Marks of his Fears engraven upon it, and all his
Dilcourles cxprelTed his difordered and evil appre-
henfions of the prelent tendency of Affairs.
But as Matters were in this great hurry and
eonfufion at the Caftle, fb is it not eafie to fet forth
the ftrange Effects and Conlequences which at¬
tended that fuddain alarum in the City of In in¬
tended Univerlal Maffacre : There you might lee
Thoulands of People deferring their Houfes, and
all their Subftance in the World, and running to
the Ships with fcarce any cloaths upon their Backs.
Never was leen fuch a Confternation as at this
time: Never fuch a Confufion and Diftraftion.
All the Bloody Maflacres in the former Rebellion
were now reflected upon under the moft ghaftly
and difmal Reprefentations, and thofe Scenes of
barbarity and cruelty feem'd to threaten the lame
or worfe ufage, which produe'd the greateft hor-
rour and amazement, grief and defpair, that hu¬
mane nature could be capable of.
This fatal News which had lo terrify'd the Pro-
T 2 re-
teftuntsof Dublin, as if the dilfolution of all things
had been at hand, arrived not to feveral parts of
the Kingdom, till the very day 'twas to be putin
execution, which being Sunday, was brought to
the People in the time of Divine Service in l'ome
places, which ftruck them with fuch fuddain ap-
prebenficns of immediate deftru£tion, that the
Doors not allowing quick paflage enough, by rea-
lon of the Crowd, abundance of perfons made
their efcapes out of the Windows, and in the
greateft frightand dilorder that can be reprefented,
the Men leaving their Hats and Perriwigs behind
them, fome of them had their Cloaths torn to pie¬
ces, others were trampled underfoot, and the Wo¬
men in a worle condition than the men. And this
difiurbance did not only continue for this day, but
for leveral Sundays after, the were in
fuch a Confternation and terrour, that all, ormoft
of them carried Fire Arms, and other Weaponsto
Church with them, and the very Minifters went
armed into the Pulpit, and Centinels ftood at the
Church doors all the while that they were in the
Church. But whether this (which created (o
great a fear and uproar among the Proteftants in all
parts of the Kingdom) were a real thing defigned,
or whether by that dilcovery prevented, I leave it
to others to judge and determin ; but certain it is,
that never any thing which happened in the King¬
dom (no not all the occafions of fear which were
given to the Enyhjh in the daily Progrels of Popery
in the late KJng James"s Reign, or even that of Tyr-
connePscoming to the Government) made lb great
a fright amo'ng the Proteftants as this.
From this time we may commence thole un¬
heard of a&sof rapin and Ipoil, which the
be-
of the {I\bmjWTarty m ireian<
began to exereife upon the Engkfb, fuch unparal-
lel'd Villaniesof op$n Robbery and Violence as no
Hiftory can equalize, no time produce, or fcarce
any Nation (however fo barbarous) have been
known to be guilty of, at leaft never any that had
the Culture of a Moral, much lefs of a Chriftian
Education, or that were fb far civilized as to be
reduced to any fenfe ofhumanity, or to fubmidion
to Law and Government.
'Twas a Principle long imbibed by the Natives
of that Kjnglom, and which a continued practice
had given fbmeproof and demonflration of, that
'twas no crime to rob or ileal from an Englijh-mw
as being an Heretick, anddeem'da publick enemy
to their Religion, as well as to their individual in-
terefts. Though this principle was too notorious
to be own'd and defended, and in that refpetl, is
of a like cognation with too many of the Romifh
Church; yet their actions evidenced the truth of
it; I mean not of the Principle it felf, but of their
being of that Opinion. For 'twas plain, that their
forbearing to ravage and deftroythe fubftance of
the Enghfh, when under the Proteflxnt Govern¬
ment, was to be attributed to a fear of the Laws,
or rather of the Penalties annexed to the breach of
them, which had hitherto in (ome meafure curb'd
and reftrained them from violence ; and not to any
Principle of Confidence, or diftributive Juftice.
On the contrary they were fb far from refpetting it
as a Crime to injure the Englifriiti what they could,
(as is already touched upon) that they look'd up^
on it as an a£l of merit. Quo jure, quaque injuria^
—-—per f*fq tie ^ nefafque. If they could contrive
any way to prejudice them in their fubftance or
Eftates, though by the moll finifter and impious
devi-
141
devices, 'twas a leffening of the Purgatory Flames,
if not a quite Extinguifhing •, at leaft, 'twas a near¬
er ftep to Paradife. #
But although this vile Maxim was induftrioufly
conceal'd amongfl: them, and though at the bottom
of their hearts did only break out now and then
whilft they were kept under fubmiflion and obedi¬
ence to the Engl'tfh, and this for fear of an Human,
not any Pivine Law ; yet when the face of things
chang'd to their advantage in the Reign of the late
Kjng James, and amongfl: many others, the Laws
againft notorious Criminals, and publick Malefa¬
ctors, if Irijh men, if not quite cancelfd, were
much difpenled with: Then the Natives fliewed
themfelves in their proper Colours, and manfully
apply'd themfelves to rob and Real from the En~
gltfh, which though it was a continued practice in
all the aforefaid Reign, yet never arriv'd to its ma¬
turity till this time. Now all things were in con-
fufion, and the Reins of Government feemed to be
let loofe by reafonof the prefent Diftrattions. This
therefore they looked upon to be their Harveft,
which they were refolved to make ufe of, as indu¬
ftrioufly as they could; and in order thereunto
would go in great Crouds in the Night-time with
Tire Arms, and other Weapons, and fteal an hun¬
dred or two hundred Head of Cattle at once from
an E<iglifh-man> This practice continued fo long,
till many EnghJlj Gentlemen, and fubftantial Far¬
mers. w ho had feverai hundreds of Black Cattle,
and Sheep, &c. had not one left; fo that thole
who had lived in great Hofpitality and Plenty, had
not now Bread to ear, or any thing left to preferve
them from ftarving. This Calamity was almoft
Univerfal throughout the whole Kingdom, though
of the %oniifh Tarty in Ireland.
in fbme Counties more than in others; and I hare
been told, That in fome County in the Province of
^#/^er,ElevenThoufand Cattle were Hole by the
In ft) in nine days; and tha^Ljjdiy one Enghfb
Gentleman or Farmer JMWMPKountrey< had
above two or three Cows left; and that for forty
Miles together the Infh Cabbinswere full of Beef
ftolen from the Englifh,which they did notfo much
as beftow Salt upon, but hung it up ttffB§Smoak ;
and that it flunk and look^^Tba^s any Carrion.
This I have by relatlMPHMMf that County,
who are perfbns of very good Credit, but not be¬
ing an Eye-witnefs of it, fhall leave it to the Rea
der to judge ; only this is certain, That an incre¬
dible havock was made by the Irifb >n all parts of
the Kingdom : But I leave thefe Cannibals to de¬
vour one another, after confuming in this Barba¬
rous and Impoliticly manner, the Cattle and Breeci
of theCountrey, which in all probabi'ity will oc~
cafion a famine, or very great fcarcity in that mi-
ferable Kingdom.
'Twas exceeding ilrange, and unaccountable to>
fee the Englfth poffefs'd with fuch various diffracti¬
ons upon the news of the intended Maffacre already
mentioned, fome running to the North of Inland
among the Scots, others to the Ifle of Mm, and a-
bundancefor England, to flielter themfelves ; when
at the fame time, all that had any fenfe believed,
that Tyrconml would be the firft Man in the Go¬
vernment that would endeavour his Elcape: for
mod of his Goods of value were already packed up,
and fbme of his Treafure Ship'd. In this pofture
they continued ti\\ January, and then fbme of the
Irjfh Lords moved to have him furrender the S>vord,
and the whole Qouncil board gave it for their opini¬
on;
'J he Secret Confults3 , &c.
on ; to which he only replied, MIOUlD tfttp fjate
him tl;?ofo tt ober the CUaU, fo? there boa# none
to take tt. Thus unhappy was the delay, which
with too much^eafonmay be feared to lie at the
Door of Sir wMW^rc< and his friend Keat¬
ing in Inland,two Men that rais'd their fortunes
in the lafb Settlement, and were making provifion
for the fame Work again ; and 'tis remarkable,
that JHHHPBfc Brother to thefe here, is (as
'tis fai 1) the mod active among the Irifh at this
day; and Sir MVMHHW Houfes the only Sacred
place from violence in Dublin.But of this Intrigue
more may be expefted, and time will fliew, fince
the Honourable Houfe of Commons have taken that
matter into their prudent Confideration.
The deplorable Effects and Confluences at¬
tending the wrong mealures taken for the redufti-
on of that Kingdom, are perhaps, if duly reflected
upon in all their Circumftances, more doleful than
theMalfacre and Rebellion there in Forty One, tho'
'tis much lefs confidered: and it feems a Work be¬
coming the great Council of this Nation to bring
the Authors of it to condign punifbment.
But to return to the laft debate betwixc Tyre on-
nel and his Council. They were all of them in
amaze, and in great confufion : What to do they
knew not, all of them were unanimous in their
Reiolutions to fubmit, except the Lord Chief Ju-
itice Nugi #/, and the Lord Chief Baron Rice. The
Prieffs put off their Wolves doa thing, and in mofl
parts of the Kingdom turn'd Sparks with their
Swords by their fides and Perriwigs upon their
Heads, f n.this Month the aflembled together
in great Bodies by the name of Raperees, armed
with Skcens and Half Pikes, and what Robberies
they
in Ireland,
they left una£ted upon the Enghfo in the Relation
aforementioned, thole they now compleated, kil¬
ling their Cattle, and robbing and pillaging their
Houfes. Now their new Levies were Muttering
every day, and their Priefts exercifing the frefli
raisM Soldiers, and Hamilton's Arrival from En*
gland, put them upon new refolutions, which ne-
ceffitated the Engltfh to fortifie themfelveSj and to
affociate together for their ownprelervation,againft
which Proclamations were ifitted out in the North,
and at London-derry, and then followed the lame in
other parts of the Kingdom, commanding them
home to their refpeftive Dwellings, and that fuch
.as did not immediately oblerve the Proclamation,
fhould be proceeded againft by the Attorney Ge¬
neral as Tray tors. This Proclamation was figned
by leveral ProteHants of the Privy-Council, which
was fatal to the Engltfh, in regard that it poflfefled
many of them with a belief, that there was not fo
much danger as they were afraid of; and others it
put in fears of the Law. So that upon the whole
matter, they were diverted from any thoughts of
making their defence, and fo were difperled and
fcattered up and down, and by that means became
an eaf Prey to the Irifh.
Every day brought in new hopes and fears, fo
that lome got together again of the Engltfh near
JQlkenny and the Queens County, who wrei e fbon
difperled. Still the Lord Deputy and Council re¬
mained in fufpence what to refolve upon, when
upon a fuddain they came to a conclufion, which
might quiet the Irifh Lords that were for fubmifli-
on to the Prince and Government of England. The
Project was this, That two Men fhould be pitched
upomand lent over to the late King James iu France,
U *00!/
The Secret Q'onfults, , &c.
only to fet forth the impolfibility of their holding
out againft England, and then they were fure to ob¬
tain permiffion to make terms, and lb might fur-
render. But this was a Jefutt Stratagem, contri¬
ved by Rice and Neagle,and as one of them brag'd
fince, carry'd on without the privity of any but the
Lord Deputy, and themfelves. For they were afraid,
of the Cowardly Temper of the reft, whofe incli¬
nations were favourable enough to the Caule, but
wanted Courage and Refblution. The Scheme be¬
ing thus laid, 'twas moved at Council, and took
with general Applaufe. Rice, and the Lord Mount-
joy were pitched upon to be lent; and in the com
clufion of this Affair at Council-Board, the Lord
Chief Juftice Kyating believing now that their
hopes of King James were over, thought to begin
with the firft tofhew his Zeal and Affeftion to the
Proteftant Caufe, and in order to that moved, that
fince they were relolved on this method, that his
Excellency would put a flop to the railing Men,
which was agreed to, but not in the leaft ob-
ferved.
Mountjoy and Rice proceed in their Negotiation,
and take Shipping at Waterf but before they
arrived at Paris, the French Engineer Landed at
Corke, and from thence rid with all expedition for
Dublin. Then the face of things looked with afar
different profpett to what they had done before,
and thole little hopes which had fupported the En-
glijh till this time, did now evaporate into nothing,
which put them upon a necellity ofaffociating to¬
gether, and of getting into Caftles and the beft
places of ftrength, they had for the defence and
prelcrvation of their Lives.
In
of the ftarty in Ireland.
In Connaught, the Lord Kjn behaved him-
felf like the Son of fb Noble a Father, whole hand
the Irtfh had felt in the former Rebellion.
In the North, Sir Arthur Roy den did the like, but
a fate attended him that he could not divert. In
Munfter the Englijh were thought to be more confi-
derable than in any part of Irelboth for Horle
and Foot; of the latter more than three thouland,
and numbers of brave Gentlemen of gallant Cou¬
rage and relblution, and of will enough to back it,
to have drove the Ir'tfhout of that Province, and to
have march'd through the Kingdom, Cork, Bandon,
Kjngfale, and Toughall being offered to be delivered
into their hands, which was lo openly and indif
creetly managed, that it became the publick dif-
courle for a Month together in every Coffee houle
in Dublin. At this time there were not leven hun¬
dred old Soldiers in the whole County of Corke,
which forc'd JuftinMac Carthy to write daily to
Tyrconnel, that he eould not hold out, without a
fpeedy liipply of Men, which yet could
not Ipare; for he was afraid of an information in
the North, and 'twas believ'd in Dublin, that if
they in Munfter had done any thing,all parts of Ire¬
land had been lecure in the Englipi hands, except
Lynfter; for that Tyrcouncil could have Ipared none
of his own Forces from himfelf, and the new railed
men then knew not the right from the left, if fame
be true. The fault lay but in two Men, but that
being publick, time will fhew it, and my work
here is to relate nothing but what there is good au¬
thority for.
Matters were now reduced to that extremity, i<588.
that no courle remained to prelerve the Enghfh,but
II 2 that
The Secret Confults,"Negotiations, See.
that of making their efcape ; for they were difar-
med in one day throughout the Kingdom, and that
order executed with lo much rigour, that few per-
fons of whatloever quality were permitted to wear
their Swords. In the Corporations they fhut up
the Gates, and fuffcred none to pals in or out with¬
out learching them ftribtly for arms,and when they
came to learch in their Houles, under pretence that
the had conceal'd their Arms, theyfome-
times feiz'd upon what Plate or Money they could
meet with during this hurly-burly, which lafted for
feveral days together, moll: of the Horfes which"
belong'd to Ettglifb Gentlemen and Farmers in the
Countrey were violently leized upon for the King's
uie, as was pretended, and feveral hundreds were
brought into the Corporations, which were Gar-
riloned with lrifh Soldiers, who quartered upon
Private, as well as Publick-Houles of the
which were lb full of them that they had lcarce
Beds for themfelves to lie in. They now were in
daily expedition of the Landing of the late King
James: And this polfefled them with lb triumphant
a joy, that the more to dilcourage the they
not only gave out that he was arrived, when there
was no fuch thing, but rung the Bells, made Bon¬
fires, the Mayor and Aldermen in feveral Corpo¬
rations drinking the King's Health, and the like.
But this imaginary formality was but a prelude to
the lucceeding Triumph, to the real Landing of the
late King. And then what they had done before in
Effizie, or in empty fhow, they now performed
lubftantiaily, and to the life. 'Tis beyond any thing
of human art to imagine, much more to delcribe
the great'nelsof their joy at this time, and there¬
fore 1 fhall not- attempt a reprelentation, which
would
of the fomifh Tarty in Ireland.
would come infinitely fhort of thole extravagant
Pageantries which were now afted. Publickfame
has already given fome account of it, and to that
I refer the Reader.
I have now given (as without vanity and often-
tation I may affirm it) as true and impartial a Re¬
lation as is poftib'e, of the defign the Abdicated
King had from the happy Reftauration of King.
Charles the Second, to make Ireland the refuge (if
all other endeavours proved unluccefsful) for 1 is
Catholick Friends: and 'tis plain that 'twas the
French Allyance, (which he always affiduoujly made
Court to) upon which he depended in theaccom-
plifhment of this Intrigue. The lrifh were very
lenfible of it, and fince his acceffion to the Crown,
would frequently boaft, that if Englandfhould up¬
on King James's Death, or any other misfortune,
devolve into the Proteftants hands, that they made
no doubt of preferving Irel, by the power of
the French, and that the Prince of Orange (whom
they always dreaded) would have his hands full at
home : but that Soveraign Providence, by nhom
flings Reign, and Princes decree juflice, has to the
great aftonifhment of other Nations, moft mira-
culoufly confounded all the wicked devices of his
Adverlaries, and preferved him to fit upon the Im¬
perial Throne of thele Kingdoms (where may he
long Reign) not only to maintain the true
ed Religion in his own Dominions, but to enlarge
the beft part of his Titles, S^efehftCt of the JFcltffr,
throughout the whole ChrifHan World For fo in¬
deed (whatever opinion fome prejudiced Men a-
mongft us may have) do all the ilcfo^meis.dljui'5
flies' Of E'jroge eftesm him to be.
I thought
The Secret Conjults, Negotiations, &c."
I thought to have put a period to this Difcourfe
in this place, but oblerving the complaints of ma¬
ny that are fled from Ireland (whole miferies may
indeed allow them grains J I fhall beg leave to
animadvert a little as to their miftakes in the hard
ufage which they think they have received here,
in not being all immediately reprized by the Kings
Bounty.
I fhall not fay what is too apparent of lome who
came from thence, and would fhelter themfelves
among Honeft Men, as moft of them are generally
believed to be: yet even in this Relation where
they could not be left out, without making it im¬
perfect, lome are found faulty, and yet may pre¬
tend as fair as the belt.
Every day produces additional realbns why the
King cannot be too cautious in whom he confides•
and 'tis to be feared that lome of Ireland are not
quite exempt from all fulpicion as well as others in
England.
But then as for thole whole delerts have entitu-
led them to his Majefty's good opinion, fuehas for
their affeftion to the Proteflant lnterejl and Religi¬
on, have been diverted of their fubftance, and are
in prefent want, thole we fee are not out of his Ma¬
jefty's Gracious Care, and Princely Confideration.
For how many, I was about to lay, how few, are
excluded from Commands in the Army thatdefi-
red it ; befides all that had Commands formerly,
and could not be employed, have half pay allowed
them for their prelent lubfiftence. And then as for
the poorer lort, his Majefty was before-hand in
making provilion for them, in ifluing out his Brief
for a General Colleftion throughout the whole
Kingdom ; which Charity has been gratefully ac-
know-
of the Tjnnifh Tarty Ireland.
knowledged by that mod: Reverend and Pious
Archbifbop of Tuam, in a Sermon at St. James's.
There now remains only fome part of the Cler¬
gy and Gentlemen unprovided for. As for the
Clergy, his Majefty gracioufly confidering their
condition,didffoon after his acceffion to the Crown)
gracioufly order, that whatever Benefices in his
Gift fhould become vacant, fbould be conferr'd
upon them, befides the fupply which the Brief af¬
fords them for the prefent. Hence we may ob-
fcrve, to what a narrow compafs the noifeof Forty
Thoufand People is reduced to,there being,accord¬
ing, to the beft account that is given, not Seven
Hundred Men that are not, in fbme refpett, or o-
ther, competently provided for. But that I may
not be thought to have incurred a miftake in this
computation, it mull be obferved, That a great
part of the Lift given in to the of ,
are Men of EftateS; or Money here in England; and
though perhaps fbme of thofemake the greateft
clamour, yet would it better become them to re¬
lieve their Diftrefled Brethren, than to abate the
Charity,which the Parliament with great generofi-
ty,and a Chriftian compaflion defigned for the fup-
portof fiich as were really in a poor and an indi¬
gent condition. All I here fay is matter of fa£t,
and how partially fbever his Majefty's prefent ma¬
nagement may be mifinterpreted by tome; yet 'tis
certain, that his filent, but wonderful conduct, in
the provifion for the Diftrefled Proteflants of
land ought to be engraven in Golden and
not defaced by theunreafbnable Clamou of fuch,
who would devour that which they have no want
of, and confequently no juft claim and title unto,
to the apparent injury of their .furfering and necef-
fitous
The Secret Confults, Negotiations, See.
fitous Brethren, which the Parliament have raoft
humbly fupplicated hisMajefty for,who(no doubt)
will in the moft prudent and difcreet manner,
make fuch a provifion as will belpeak his Royal
Bounty and Charitable fenle of their condition, as
well as be proportionable to their prefling and
great Necelfities.
.1 . , : . ....
. ->v
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F 7 N I S.