HISTORY

PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

I^^ IHEL^JsTD.

oonde:ssed feom the standaed woek

EEID AND KILLEN.

BY
REV. SAMUEL D. ALEXANDER.

NEW YORK:
ROBERT CARTER & BROTHERS,
530 BROADWAY. 18 6 0.

Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1S60, by
ROBERT CARTER & BROTHERS,
Iu the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of
New York.

STEBEOTTPBD BY PBINTED BT
SMITH Si McDOUQAL, t. O. JENKINS
84 Beekman-st., N. Y. 26 Frankfort-st.

PREFACE

In the year 1841 Ireland contained above eight
million inhabitants, the highest point it had ever
reached, and after that it diminished, but has per
haps again attained the same sum. Of this pop
ulation about four-fifths are Roman CathoUcs and
one-fifth Protestants. Of the latter nearly one-
half are Presbyterians, whUe the rest are divided
ainong the Episcopalians, (which is the Estab
lished Church,) and the smaller bodies of
Dissenters. The Established Church although
the smaUest of the three great denominations,
is sustained by the whole people, while nine-
tenths belong to other Churches and support
them. This is an unparalleled anomaly, as everywhere
else the religion of the majority is the established
religion, even where the rulers are Dissenters, as
in Saxony and Belgium. Another remarkable
fact is the distribution of confessions, which are
not spread in their proportion over the whole
island, but each has its stronghold in the prov
inces.

IV PREFACE.
There are in Ireland thirty-two counties,
grouped in four provinces, for administrative
purposes : Ulster, in the north ; Leinster, in
the east ; Munster, in the south ; and Con
naught, in the west. The provinces of Mun
ster and Connaught are almost wholly Popish ;
Leinster is partly Episcopal, whUe Ulster is
chiefly Presbyterian. And although Presbyte
rianism is now more generaUy diffused, yet it
is stUl the strongest there, and was once al
most confined to that province ; so that the
history of the Irish Presbyterian Church is the
same as the history of the Ulster Presbyterian
Church. This province comprises the nine counties of
Antrim, Armagh, Cavan, Donegal, Down, Fer
managh, Londonderry, Monaghan, and Tyrone.
The two most populous, (Down and Antrim,)
with another less so, (Londonderry,) are in the
east and northeast of the province, nearest to
Scotland, and thus became the first Presbyte
rian settlements in the island, through emigra
tion from that kingdom.
This brief statement is made in Ueu of a more
extended one which my brother, the late J. Ad
dison Alexander, D. D., had purposed to prepare
on the very day of his death, and at whose in
stance this condensed history was undertaken.
The object of the publication is not to super-

PREFACE. V
sede the original and standard work, but simply
to give the main thread of the history, so as to
bring it within the reach of those to whom the
more expensive original is not accessible, and
thus contribute to preserve the memory of our
first mother in the liearts not only of her Irish
chUdren, but of her American descendants, who
are now three times more numerous than the
whole Presbyterian population of Ireland.
It has been no easy task to condense fifteen
hundred closely printed octavo pages into this
small volume ; and if the vivacity and interest
of the original work has in any degree been
sacrificed, it is only that the essential facts
may be offered to those who would otherwise
remain ignorant of the history of their mother
Church. I have been greatly aided in this task by a
brief but able compilation of Reid and Killen,
by the Rev. Thomas Witherow, of Maghera, and
by a still larger one prepared by my brother,
whUe lecturing upon the subject to his classes
in Princeton.
It is proper to state here that before commenc
ing this work Dr, Kallen was consulted as to his
intention of preparing an abridgement. In a
letter he states, that while he had in his posses
sion much new matter which might be incorpo
rated in a new edition, yet from the pressure of

VI PREFACE.
professional duties, and other works upon which
he is engaged, it will be impossible for him to un
dertake the labor and that it is doubtful whether
a new edition of the original work in its present
form will ever appear.
S. D. Alexander.
New York, Feb., 1860.

INTRODUCTION.
Notwithstanding the uncertainty which overhangs
the introduction of the Gospel into Ireland, the down
fall of Druidism, the mission of St. Patrick, and the
doctrine which he taught, it is now commonly agreed
that the primitive Church of Ireland, though not free
from error, differed long and materially from that of
Home, especially in reference to the reading of the
Scriptures, the doctrine of grace, the mode of worship,
the marriage of the clergy, and the organization of the
Church itself.
This was the last of the national churches in the
west of Europe which preserved its independence and
resisted all encroachments of the papal see, until the
middle of the twelfth century, when Adrian IV. con
ferred the kingdom upon Henry II. of England, on
condition that he would enforce subjection and con
formity to Eome, which was done within a century.
The evils which accompanied this change wherever
it took place were aggravated here by the political
condition of the country, its remoteness from the seat
of government in England, and its easy intercourse
with Eome through France and Spain, which ulti
mately gave the Pope the power of filling all impor
tant offices, not only in the Church but also in the
State. The subservience of the clergy to the Pope being
unchecked, as in other countries, by the influence of

2 LOW STATE OF LEARNING. [Intro.
the crowfi, was pushed to an extreme, occasioning con
tinual conflicts between the higher and lower clergy,
between foreigners and natives, between civil and ec
clesiastical tribunals, between priests and people.
Though the country was impoverished by constant
depredations, the exactions of the clergy were unspar
ing and enforced by every form of fraud and violence,
in the shape of tithes, pecuniary penances, indulgences,
and fees for all official acts, of which receipts a small
part only was assigned to the support of schools and
the encouragement of learning. The learning for which
Ireland had once been famous was no more ; the lower
clergy received scanty instruction at cathedral schools ;
the higher, at Oxford, and especially at Paris ; while
the inmates of the monasteries spent their time in
sloth, or in laborious trifles.
The morals of the clergy, universally corrupt before
the Eeformation, were nowhere more so than in Ire
land, where the monks and parish priests vied with
each other both in profligacy and in influence over the
degraded people. There are said to have been six hun
dred monasteries in the island, belonging to eighteen
monastic orders, and equal in the number of their
inmates to the rest of the inhabitants. Among the
current superstitions were the worship of relics and re
ligious pilgrimages, more especially to Patrick's Pur
gatory, on au island in Lough Derg in the county of
Donegal, which, although suppressed by Pope Alex
ander VI. in 1497, is still frequented to tbe present
day. The laity were ignorant, uncivilized, and grossly
superstitious. At the close ofthe reign of Henry VIII.
most of the Irish lords were unable to sign their names.

13-1536.1 CORRUPTION OF THE CIIURCn. 3
They were either slaves or tyrants of the priesthood.
In the fifteenth century an Irish chief destroyed forty
churches in Ulster, and was himself killed in one
where he had taken refuge. An Earl of Kildare,
near the end of the next century, burnt down the ca
thedral of Cashel, which he afterward said he would
not have done but that he thought the archbishop was
in it. The Church did nothing to instruct the people.
Preaching was either quite neglected or consisted of
mere legendary fables. The Irish language was pro
scribed and never printed until after the Eeformation.
This began later than in England and Scotland,
from the turbulent state of the island, its insulation
from the rest of Europe, its want of schools and books,
the devotion of the people to the old religion, the ab
sorption of the English settlers in extending their
conquests, the absence of political and popular com
plaints against the papal see, the want of an educated
gentry and of satirists to expose its abuses. No legis
lative notice was taken of the reformed doctrines till
the reign of Mary, in 1556, when three English stat
utes against heresy were re-enacted and enforced in
Ireland. In the meantime the country was surprised when
Henry VIII., in 1535, sent George Brown, Provincial
of the Augustinians iu England, to be Archbishop of
Dublin, and to enforce the king's supremacy in Ire
land. This demand was opposed by Cromer, Arch
bishop of Armagh, and his suffragans, on the ground
that the king derived his right to govern Ireland from
the Pope. After a year of cautious inactivity, a Par
liament was called by the Lord Lieutenant, Leonard
Grey, in May, 1536, and, on Brown's motion, passed

4 ARCHBISHOP BROWN. [Intro
the acts required, abjuring all dependence on the see
of Eome, forbidding all appeals to it, dissolving mon
asteries and transferring their revenues to the crown,
acknowledging the king as head of thfe Church, and
attaching severe penalties to all abuse of him, as being
an usurper, tyrant, schismatic, or heretic.
But though public opposition was thus silenced, the
adherents of the Pope became more zealous, and the
worst corruptions remained unreformed. Brown ap
pears to have attemped nothing more than the asser
tion of the king's supremacy for two years, when
Cromwell, Henry VIII.'s favorite minister, required
him to purge the churches of his province from idol
atry. But even this order was successfully evaded,
and Brown wrote to Cromwell for new powers, repre
senting both the clergy and laity as either grossly ig
norant or bi2;oted adherents of the Eoman see. Thus
it happened that, when Henry VIII. died, the Eefor
mation had only been introduced by the authorities,
without the least participation of the people or the
lower clergy, as in England and Scotland. Even un
der the reforming reign of Edward VI., only one re
forming measure was adopted, to wit, the introduction
of an English liturgy, commanded by the king, sub
mitted by his Deputy, Sir Anthony Saintleger, to a
council of bishops and clergy, and rejected by Dowdal
the successor of Cromer in the see of Armagh on the
ground that every illiterate fellow could say mass to
which the Deputy replied that there were many priests
who could not pronounce the Latin nor know what it
raeant. After Dowdal and his suffragans withdrew
the book was offered by Saintleger to Brown -who

1552.] IRLSH REFORMERS ACCUSED OP VIOLENCE. 5
submitted to the king's command " as Jesus did to
C8e.=;ar," and was followed by four other bishops.
The liturgy was used for the first time in Christ
Church, Dublin, on Easter Day, 1551, and is said to
have been the first book printed in Ireland. This
measure produced little change, being very imperfectly
enforced. Sir Anthony Saintleger, who seems to
have been at heart a papist, was succeeded by Sir
James Croft, who sought in vain to conciliate the re
fractory primate, or to convince him by a conference
with Staples, Bishop of Meath. At last the primacy
was transferred from Armagh to Dublin, and Dowdal
left the country. But the Eeformation stdi moved
slowly ; the preparation of an Irish liturgy was stiU
delayed ; and such was the neglect of preaching, that
in Dublin, during the year 1552, there was none at all.
This tardy progress of the truth has been erroneonsly
ascribed to excessive violence in its propagation ; but
the only outrage upon record was of military not re
ligious origin, and the fault of the Eeformers was de
ficiency and not excess of zeal, a fault apparently aris
ing from the absence of all deep convictions as to truth
and error in the mind of Brown and his associates.
Some new life was infused into the work when Cran
mer, after ineffectual attempts in other quarters, in
duced John Bale to become Bishop of Ossory and
Hugh Goodacre Archbishop of Armagh. Both at
tacked popery with boldness ; but Goodacre died in
three months, it is said, by poison, and Bale, though
much beloved, was driven out on the death of King
Edward, and escaped to the continent ; and although.
he returned to England at Elizabeth's accession, he

6 ACCESSION OF MART-. [iNTRa
declined all preferment, being now in principles a
Nonconformist. The accession of Mary undid all that had been done,
restoring Dowdal and the mass, deposing Brown and
four other bishops who had married, while eight re
canted and retained their sees. There was a jubilee in
honor of this triumph, and as no opposition was at
tempted, there was little persecution, so that refugees
from England actually sought an asylum in Ireland,
and there sowed the seeds of reformation more effec
tually than it had been done during the previous Prot
estant ascendancy. This was restored upon the death
of Mary, but with less effect than in England, from
the repetition of the former error in attempting to re
form religion by a forced external conformity, without
any adequate instruction in the truth.
For six months after the accession of Elizabeth
every thing remained in statu quo ; but in May, 1559,
the dean of Christ Church, Dublin, received orders to
put texts of Scripture in the place of pictures, images,
and relics. In the other cathedral, St. Patrick's,
images remained in 1604 ; and from one of the Irish
canons it would seem that papal ornaments were still
found in the churches thirty years later. A more effec
tual movement was occasioned by the gift of two large
English Bibles to the two cathedrals by Archbishop
Heath of York, to be kept there for the public use ; a
privilege of which the people eagerly availed them
selves, both as hearers and readers, in consequence of
which there was a great demand for Bibles, so that a
few years later, in 1616, when an edition of small size
was first imported, a single bookseller sold seven thou
sand copies in less than two years.

1560-69.] ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION RESTORED. 7
In the meantime a Parliament was held in Dublin,
early in 1560, which again abolished popery and le
galized the Eeformation, with some resistance from the
nobles, but with shameless tergiversation on the part
of the clergy, only two out of nineteen bishops adher
ing to the old faith. By this Parliament the ecclesias
tical jurisdiction was restored to the crown, a new oath
of supremacy appointed, the use of the common prayer
enforced, and all required to attend the service of the
Church, which, by an absurd violation of the Eefor
mation principle, was directed to be read where the
minister or people did not understand English, not in
the Irish language, known to both parties, but in the
Latin, imknown to either. The only ground assigned
for this measure, which affected the whole country
outside of the chief towns, was the want of printed
books in Irish and of ministers acquainted with the
language ; both of which deficiencies might have been
and should have been supplied by the authorities
At a general meeting of the clergy, called by the
Earl of Sussex at the Queen's command, the Bishop of
Meath (Walsh) refused to adopt the prayer book, and
the Bishop of Kildare (Levrous) declined subjection to
a woman, on the ground that Christ had given no such
power even to his mother, and that Paul forbids a
woman to speak in the church, much less to rule there.
Both these bishops were deposed, and one of them,
Walsh, imprisoned many years, while the other became
a schoolmaster. This example, however, was followed
by many of the clergy, some going abroad and others
into remote districts, where they were left unmolested.
The vacancies thus made were very slowly filled, the
bishopric of Clogher being occupied only one year in

8 HINDRANCES TO THE REFORMATION. [iNTRO.
more than half a century (1557-1610), the primacy it
self remaining unfilled four years, the remoter dioceses
being still at the disposal of the Pope, and divine ser
vice so extensively neglected that many of the churches
fell into decay, and thus became unfit for use.
Another hindrance to the Eeformation was the vio
lent exaction of conformity by fine and even military
force, and the rigorous treatment of all popish priests
and friars, as both recusants and rebels, without any
effort either to enlighten or conciliate the people. This
neglect of the religious interests of Ireland by an en
ergetic and sagacious government, combined with the
old antipathy of races and the powerful influence of
Eome and Spain, to confine the work of reformation
almost wholly to the cities and chief towns, while the
rural population remained grossly ignorant and super
stitions. In 1569 a second Parliament, under Sir Henry Syd
ney, passed two beneficial acts, one conferring on the
Lord Lieutenant the right of presentation to all cathe
dral dignities in Munster and Connaught, with the ex
ception of four dioceses (Waterford, Cork, Limerick,
and Cashel), on the ground that they had long been
filled by the ignorant and illiterate offspring of the
previous incumbent ; the other ordering schools, with
English teacliers, to be erected in the chief towns of
every diocese ; a third act, " for the reparation of pa
rochial churches," although sent from England to the
Irish Parliament, was never passed into a law.
The neglect of the government was partially made
good by private enterprise. Two dignitaries of St.
Patrick's cathedral, Nicholas Walsh and John Kear
ney, were the means of introducing the first font of

15';6-96.] IRISH TYPES INTRODUCED. 9
Irish type and printing tho liturgy in that tongue, as
well as procuring the appointment of a church in every
chief town for an Irish service. Although those
measures were not fully carried into execution till the
next reign, a beginning was made in vernacular preach
ing and religious books, including a translation of the
New Testament, begun by Walsh, then Bishop of Os
sory, but interrupted by his murder in 1585, completed
by Archbishop D.iuiel of Tuam, and finally put to
press in 1602.
In 1576 Sir Henry Sydney made a melancholy rep
resentation to Queen Elizabeth of the dilapidated state
of the churches and the want of educated ministers,
proposing that the)' should be brought from Scotland,
or that some of the well-benificed English clergy should
" undertake this apostleship, and that at their own
charges." These proposals seem to have received no
attention, and at the next Irish Parliament, attended
by four archbishops and twenty bishops, not a single
act was passed relating to religion. But another plan,
proposed by Sydney in 1569 without effect, was re
newed and carried into execution twenty years later.
This was the founding of a university at Dublin
(opened in 1593) with a special view to the education
of a native ministry, as a necessary means to the study
of the Irish language, for which purpose scholarships,
called " Natives Places," were endowed and still con
tinue, though the college is no longer on the same lib
eral principles as at first, when the distinction between
churchmen and dissenters was as yet unknown, no at
tempt to enforce a strict conformity and outward uni
formity having been made until the reign of Charles I.
The two first fellows of Trinity College were Scotch

10 IGNORANCE OF THE CLERGY AND PEOPLE. [Intro.
Presbyterians, resident in Ireland as secret agents of
King James, commissioned to secure his peaceable suc
cession to tbe throne. One of them (Fullerton) was
knighted and made treasurer of the royal household
when the king removed to London. The other (Ham
ilton) was afterwards ennobled as Lord Claneboy, and
possessed of large estates in Ulster, where, for a time,
he was a zealous patron of the Presbyterian interest.
The two first Provosts of the college were English
Nonconformists, Walter Travers, one of the most fa
mous ofthe Puritans, and Henry Alvey, less renowned
but no less zealous, both of whom were driven by
Archbishop Whitgift's persecutions to Ireland, where
they successively presided over the new college, and
the latter contributed (with Hamilton, already men
tioned) to the vast learning and the liberal spirit of
Archbishop Ussher.
That these reformatory measures, partial and imper
fect as they were, did not immediately bear much fruit,
may be gathered from the poet Spenser's beautiful but
terrible description of the ignorance and sloth of the
Eeformed clergy, as compared with the devotion of
the Popish priests, now sent from Eome, from Spain,
from Eheims, to counteract the Eeformation. His
statement, written in 1596, but not published untU
1633, that not one in a hundred of the people could
do more than say his Paternoster and Aveniaria in
Latin without knowing what it meant — that the idle
covetous, and vicious clergy neither preached nor ad.
ministered the Lord's Supper, but baptized in the old
Eomish form— would be incredible if Baxter had not
told us that in England itself, and half a century later
some of the people, in going to bed, would say over

1600.] THE TRUE REMEDY. 11
the creed and Lord's Prayer, and some of them the
Avemaria. That the true remedy for these evils was not entirely
unknown in England, may be seen from a letter of the
great Lord Bacon to Secretary Cecil, Queen Elizabeth's
prime minister, in 1601, wherein he urges, beside acts
of civil reformation, the sending over of good preach
ers, not scholastic, but vehement and zealous, to be
resident in chief towns and supported by the crown ;
the support and improvement of the college in Dub
lin ; the selection of good bishops ; and the circulation
of Bibles, catechisms, and other good books in the
Irish language. But these and other necessary meas
ures were prevented by the great rebellion, during
which the Irish were not even civilized, and by which
the attention of the rulers was engrossed, and when,
for the first time for four hundred years, the English
power was established through the whole island, itwas
at the very close of Queen Elizabeth's long reign, who
died in March, 1603.
Even this brief sketch of the first seventy years of
the Eeformation in. Ireland will suffice to show that it
was hindered, partly by the state of the kingdom,
partly by the unwise means used to promote it ; that
the native population was, in fact, uncivilized and un
der the sway of many petty despots, united only by a
common hatred to the Saxon power, and therefore
prepossessed against the Eeformed doctrine, because in
troduced from England and by English laws, which
suppressed or discountenanced the native aristocracy,
thereby transferring its authority and influence to the
Eomish clergy ; that this twofold power of the priest
hood was not marked, as in other countries, by a wise

12 OBSTACLES IN THE WAY OP REFORMATION. [iNTRO.
and pious ministry ; that measures of coercion were
employed without the necessary adjuncts of instruction
and conciliation ; that the only agencies employed were
English, to the exclusion of all native converts ; that
the Irish tongue was superseded by the English, and
in many cases even by the Latin, instead of being used
as the chief channel of instruction, as in Wales ; that
the whole work, as represented by Archbishop Brown
and his associates, was timid, weak, and secular in
spirit, aiming only to secure the king's supremacy ;
that during the reaction under Mary no defender of
the faith appeared in Ireland, no resistance was offered
to the revolution, and very few conscientiously refused
to conform to the Eomish worship ; that no adequate
attempt was made to furnish qualified and zealous
preachers ; that even the superior places in the hier
archy were partially and unsatisfactorily filled ; while
in the south and west the succession was so often in
terrupted that the very name of Protestant bishops
sunk into oblivion ; that the places ofthe lower clergy
who adhered to popery were either badly filled or not
at all ; so that a Chancellor of Ireland, writing to an
English nobleman in the reign of Edward the Sixth,
could say expressly, " Preaching we have none," and,
" Hard it is that men should know their duties to God
and to the king, when they shall not hear teaching or
preaching throughout the year." Nothing but extra
ordinary zeal, fidelity, and prudence— qualities which
the Irish reformers seldom displayed — could, have en
sured the prompt success of the Eeformed faith or pre
pared the country to derive full benefit from the wiser
measures of the following reign,

CHAPTER I.
1603-1625.
The accession of James I. was undisputed, both in
Britain and Ireland, and attended with advantages
never before realized, which he seized with a wisdom
seldom seen in his administration. Eesolving to lay
the foundation of a lasting peace by conciliatory meas
ures, he proclaimed a general pardon to all who had
taken part in the rebellion, restored the forfeited es
tates of those who had not been attainted, placed the
natives on a level with the English settlers, confirmed
the titles and lands of the Irish nobility, and intro
duced a regular administration of justice. James was
no less anxious to promote the religious than the civil
reformation ofthe country. He was at first considered
by the Eoman Catholic party as favorable to their
cause, which incited them to open acts of violence
against the Protestant ministers and their places of
worship, but by the prompt action of the Lord Deputy
these insurrections were quelled. The priests still
continuing to inflame the people against the govern
ment, a proclamation was issued commanding them
to leave the kingdom or conform to the law.
James would probably have still treated the papists
with indulgence but for the Gunpowder Plot, which
led to great severity, and as its consequence to a con
spiracy of Irish lords, -who sought the aid of France
and Spain ag.iinst the English usurpation. The dis-

14 STATE OF ULSTER. [Ch. I.
covery of this plot and another like it caused the flight
of the conspirators (Tyrone, Tyrconnell, and O'Dogh-
erty) and the confiscation of their lands, annexing
half a million of acres to the crown in Ulster. These
lands the king wisely resolved to plant with English
and Scottish colonies, with the combined view of ren
dering the lands more profitable, establishing the peace
and prosperity of this part of the kingdom, hitherto
the most turbulent, and securing the more general and
speedy dissemination of the reformed faith.
, The condition of that province was deplorable, a
small part only being under cultivation, and the rest
a wilderness of bogs and forests ; the wretched rem
nant of its population who had survived the pestilence
and famine were abject in the extreme, a large part
living in the woods by plunder ; with the exception
of a few fortified cities, all its tou-ns and villages lev
eled to the ground. Cultivation was occasionally vis
ible only in some favored spots ; its products of grain
and cattle, in which alone consisted the wealth of the
country, swept away by the wars, and the few propri
etors who survived were reduced to such poverty as to
be altogether unable to resume the cultivation ofthe soil.
The moral and religious state of Ulster was scarcely
less deplorable. The reformed religion was known
only in the large towns. The sees of Derry, Eaphoe,
and Clogher were still filled by popish bishops, and
the Anglican clergy were of doubtful character ; so
that the very province which was afterward to be the
stronghold of the Presbyterian interest in Ireland
seemed as yet to be the safest refuge of the papists. A
Protestant minister, who afterward became a prelate
in Ulster, and who can not be suspected of any incli-

1603.] ATTEMPTS AT COLONIZATION. 15
nation to undervalue the character of his brethren,
thus describes the condition of affairs : " In many
places there is no minister at all ; in many places a
minister as good as none, even a dumb dog that can
not bark, an idol (idle) shepherd who is not apt to
teach nor able to confute ; in other places, a lewd and
scandalous minister, whose not gospel-like behavior is
a stumbling-block to them that are without."
Previous attempts at colonization had been made in
Down and Antrim, under Queen Elizabeth, by the Earl
of Sussex and Sir Thomas Smith. In 1572 a large
tract was forfeited to the crown in the county of Down
on account of the rebellion of Shane O'Neill, and was
granted to Sir Thomas Smith on condition of plant
ing it with English settlers ; but this attempt was only
partially executed on account of the death of Smith's
son, to whom had been intrusted its settlement. The
attempt in Antrim met with no better success, for the
inhabitants of the neighboring Scottish islands, joining
with the Irish, made a formidable opposition to the
English settlers. Elizabeth, therefore, to eject these
intruders, sent over the Earl of Essex with two thou
sand men, with orders to " expel the Scots and not
hurt the Irish ;" but, owing to the lateness of the sea
son and several unexpected difficulties, he returned in
disgust to England. The lands, therefore, reverted to
their former occupiers ; and in 1603 James I. confirmed
Sir Eandal Macdonnell in the possession of the terri
tory of the Eoute. All this was before the great
Plantation of Ulster, in which the chief agent was Sir
Arthur Chichester, on whom the king had conferred
a considerable estate in Antrim. By him the lands
were carefully surveyed and divided into portions of

16 THE PLANTATION. [Cn. i
one thousand, and fifteen hundred, and two thousand
acres, and alloted to three classes, servants of the crown,
voluntary emigrants from Britain, and native settlers,
on condition of their building houses and walled in
closures within a certain time. The number of colon
ists under this arrangement was about five hundred,
among whom the corporation of London settled nearly
the whole county of Coleraine or Derry, for that cause
afterward called Londonderry.
The king provided for the church by restoring to
the bishoprics their alienated revenues and transferring
the tithes from them to the incumbents, by repairing
churches and glebes, and endowing free schools in all
the principal towns.
In 1610 the lands began to be occupied, the north
and east of the province by emigrants from Scotland,
the south and west fi-om England, but in friendly
cooperation. The cities were again inhabited, the
woods cleared, new towns built, and cultivation re
commenced, though often interrupted by the natives
inhabiting the woods and fastnesses, who often came
within the English Pale, i. e., the counties immediately
suriounding Dublin. The king preferred Scottish
settlers, as being intermediate between English ten
derness and Irish roughness, and he hoped that their
examples and Protestant professions would tend to
their refinement. Among the colonists from England
at this period were tbe famihes of Clotworthy, Chi
chester, Ellis, Leslie, Langford and others ; from Scot
land, those of Balfour, Forbes, Graham, Stewart and
Hamilton. The Macdonnells had already come from
the Western Islands. The most successful of the Scot
tish settlers and the most connected with the Presby-

1610-15.] HUGH MONTGOMERY. 17
terian interest, were the families of Montgomery and
Hamilton, of whose introduction there a strange tale is
related, namely, that when one Con O'Neill, the great
est native chief in the County Down, was imprisoned
as a rebel at Carrickfergus, his wife crossed the chan
nel into Scotland, and proposed to Hugh Montgomery
of Broadstone, that if he would procure her husband's
pardon he should have two thirds of the estate, which
he secured by offering one third to Hamilton, already
mentioned as a fellow of Trinity College, and at this
time a favorite and man of influence at James' court.
Both he and Montgomery took up their abode in Ul
ster, and were followed by many Scottish gentlemen
and farmers, whose descendants are still found there,
such as the Shaws, Calderwoods, Boyds, Keiths, Max
wells, Eopes, Barclays, Moors, and Bay leys.
The other parts of Ulster vvere not occupied so rap
idly as Down and Antrim. In 1618, although eight
thousand men of British birth or descent, able to bear
arms, were settled in the country, the fourth part of
the land was not fully inhabited. This arose in part
from the neglect of the original conditions by the set
tlers. The statement sometimes made that the confis
cated lands comprised the whole of Ulster is a gross
exaggeration. The Irish Parliament which rnet in 1615, on account
of the number of Scots who had settled among the
Irish in Ulster, found it necessary to repeal the laws
forbidding intercourse between the native and the Brit
ish races. This was an occasion of great rejoicing to
both parties. The laws which had made it high trea
son for the Irish to intermarry with the English, and
felony in them to employ the Irish in the fostering of

18 THE CONVOCATION. [Ch. L
their children, were repealed, although they had long
been obsolete. A.Tid the statute of Queen Mary which
forbid the Anglo-Irish to introduce the Scotch into the
kingdom was also repealed. For although this act had
originally reference to those Scottish marauders who
formerly infested Ulster, yet for the future peace it was
now formally rescinded.
In the same year a convocation of the clergy met in
Dublin, the Church being now so firmly established as
for the first time to authorize such an assembly. The
statutes already in force in the kingdom having only
reference to the celebration of public worship which
had been made conformable to that of the Church of
England, it became necessary formally to declare its
faith and to regulate its future government. Accord
ingly, bishops were consecrated and the sacraments
dispensed according to the same ritual, and the eccle
siastical courts were similarly constituted. But the
principal act of this convocation was the adoption of
a confession of faith. The drawing up of this was in
trusted to Dr. James Ussher, Professor of Divinity in
Trinity College, and afterward Archbishop of Ar
magh. This important trust he executed with marked
ability and to the satisfaction of the convocation. It
was unanimously adopted, transmitted to England and
approved by the king in council, and in the same year
it was solemnly ratified, in his majesty's name, in Dub
lin, by the Lord Deputy, and formally published as the
accredited standard of the national faith.
These articles were highly Calvinistic as to doctrine
and extremely moderate as to government and disci
pline. This is the more remarkable as low views of the
one and high views of the other were at this time

1616.] USSHER's CONFESSION. 19
prevalent in England, and being enforced by the au
thorities, drove many Non-Conformisls to Ireland,
where they occupied the highest stations, and corabined
with Ussher's articles to make the Church of Ireland
in that day the most moderate and tolerant Episcopal
organization known to history.
This Confession includes, in almost the same words,
the nine articles of Lambeth, which the English Puri
tans had in vain requested to be adopted at the Hamp
ton Court Conference in 1604. The morality of the
Sabbath is strongly asserted, though a tenet well known
to be at variance with the sentiments of the king — the
validity of ordination by presbyters is clearly implied —
the doctrine of absolution is condemned, and the for
giveness of sins by the clergy taught to be only de
claratory — ^Lent is disclaimed as a religious fast, and the
Pope is unhesitatingly pronounced to be Antichrist —
all which tenets were then characteristic of the Puri
tan party in the church, and eagerly defended by them
in opposition to the High Church clergy. At the same
time no authority is claimed for framing or enforcing
ecclesiastical canons or decreeing rites and ceremonies,
and no allusion is made to the mode of consecrating
the higher orders of the clergy, as if on purpose to
avoid maintaining that distinction between bishops and
presbyters which was so much opposed by the Non-
Conformists. And the Confession is summed up by a
decree ofthe convocation, forbidding the public teach
ing of any doctrine contrary to the articles now sol
emnly agreed upon. On this comprehensive founda
tion the Irish Church was formally settled. This act
of the convocation encouraged many pious persons to
come over, who relieved the character of the previous

20 EDWARD BRICE. [*^S- ^•
emigration, more especially from England, represented
by contemporary writers as exceedingly degraded.
Among these better emigrants were several minis
ters from England and Scotland, who may be regarded
as the founders of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland.
The first of these, in point of time, was Edward Brice,
for many years minister of Drymen, in Sterlingshire ;
but having steadily opposed the proposition to make
Archbishop Spotswood permanent moderator of the
Synod of Clydesdale, he was soon obliged to leave his
church and country, and settled near his old friend and
neighbor, William Edmonstone, in the district of
Broadisland, in the county of Antrim. He was ad
mitted by Bishop Echlin, of Down, himself a Scotch
man, and afterward raised to the nominal rank of a
prebendary, but without relinquishing his prior settle
ment or his former mode of preaching, which is de
scribed by Livingston as dwelling chiefly on " the life
of Christ in the heart and the light of his Word and
Spirit on the mind."
In the adjoining parish of Carrickfergus was settled
for a time a Mr. Hubbard, an Englishman, who had
left the Church and became a Non-Conformist minis
ter in Southwark ; but being driven thence, was in
vited by Sir Arthur Chichester, his fellow-student at
Cambridge, to settle at Carrickfergus, where he died
after two years residence, and many of his people who
had followed him returned to London. Blair describes
him as an " able, gracious man."
After Hubbard's death his place was, for a time, sup
plied by John Glendinning, a native of Scotland, edu
cated at St. Andrews, but had at an early period set
tled in Ireland as incumbent of Goole (or Carnmoney)

1621.] SETTLEMENT OF RIDGE AND CUNNINGHAM. 21
and lecturer in Carrickfergus. The remainder of his
history will be given in another place.
At Antrim was another Englishman, John Eidge,
ordained by the Bishop of Oxford in 1611, but hav
ing no religious freedom for the exercise of his min
istry in England, he removed to Ireland, where he was
presented to the vicarage of Antrim by Sir Arthur
(now Lord) Chichester, and had the reputation of an
humble and judicious minister. Livingston says of
him : " He used not to have many points in his ser
mon, but he so enlarged those he had that it was
scarcely possible for any hearer to forget his preach
ing." Beside these ministers in Antrim, there were others
in the County Down no less distinguished. One of
these was Eobert Cunningham, who had been chaplain
to the Earl of Buccleugh's regiment in Holland ; but
as soon as it returned to Scotland he removed to Ire
land, and was admitted by Bishop Echlin as Curate of
Hollywood and Craigavad, with a stipend from Sir
James Hamilton, already mentioned, now ennobled by
the title of Lord Clanebo}^ Livingston describes him
as eminent for Christ-like meekness, and so universally
respected as to be sometimes troubled with that Scrip
ture, " Wo to you when all men speak well of you."
Inthe neighboring parish of Bangor preached the
famous Eobert Blair, once a regent or professor at
Glasgow, but driven thence by the proceedings of Dr.
Cameron, the Episcopal Principal, and presented to
Bangor by Lord Claneboy and ordained by the sur
rounding ministers. Bishop Echlin acting, at his own
suggestion, merely as a presbyter. The scruples of
these excellent Scottish ministers appear to have ex-

22 BLAIR's NARRATIVE. [Ch. L
tended only to the rank and number of officiating min
isters, and not at all to the re-ordination, which w^as
the main difficulty with John Howe and other English
Non-Conformists. Blair thus narrates the circumstances of his settle
ment in Bangor : — " When I landed in Ireland, some
men parting from their cups and all things smelling of
a root called rampions, my prejudice was confirmed
against that land. But next day, traveling toward
Bangor, I met so unexpectedly with so sweet a peace
and so great a joy, as I behoved to look thereon as
my welcome thither; and retiring to a private place
about a mile above Carrickfergus, I prostrated myself
upon the grass to rejoice in the Lord, who proved the
same to me in Ireland which he had been in Scotland.
Nevertheless, my aversion to a settlement there con
tinued strong, and when my noble patron renewed his
invitation and offer, I was very careful to inform him
both of what accusations had been laid against me of
• disaffection to the civil powers, and that I could not
submit to the use of the English liturgy nor Episcopal
government, to see if either of these would prevail with
him to pass from his invitation. But he having been
informed by a minister present with my altercations
with Dr. Cameron, he said, ' I know all that business : '
and for the other point, he added, that he was confident
of procuring a free entry for me, which he quickly ef
fectuated. So all my devices to obstruct a settlement
there did evanish and took no effect, the counsel ofthe
Lord standing fast in all generations ; yea His wisdom
overruled all this, both to procure me a free and safe
entry to the holy ministry ; and that when, after some
years, I met with trials for my non-conformity, neither

1623.] HIS SETTLEMENT. 23
patron nor prelate could say that I had broken my
condition to them.
" Having been invited to preach by the patron and
by Mr. Gibson, the sick incumbent, I yielded to their
invitation and preached there three Sabbath-days.
After that, several of the aged and most respectful per
sons in the congregation came to me, by order of the
whole, and informed me that they were edified by the
doctrine delivered by me, intreated me not to leave
them, and promised, if the patron's offer of mainten
ance was not large enough, they would willingly add
to the same. This promise I slighted, being too care
less of competent and comfortable provision, for I had
no thought of any greater family than a boy or two
to serve me. But on the former part of that speech,
importing the congregation's call, I laid great weight,
and it did contribute more to the removing of my un
willingness to settle there than any thing else. Like
wise the dying man (Gibson) did several ways encour
age me. He professed great sorrow for his having been
a dean. He condemned Episcopacy more strongly
than ever I durst do. He charged me in the name of
Christ, and as I expected His blessing on my ministry,
not to leave that good way wherein I had begun to
walk ; and then drawing my head toward his bosom
with both his arms, he laid his hands on my head and
blessed me."
From the time of Mr. Blair's re-ordination, which
was in July, 1623, he was eminent among the Irish
clergy for his imposing presence and his power as a
preacher, while in private he was noted as a man of
prayer and intimate communion with God.
Shortly after his settlement at Bangor he was the

24 JAMES HAMILTON. [Oh. I.
means of adding to the Irish ministry James Hamilton,
the nephew of Lord Claneboy, who had been employed
by him as his steward or agent, though a person of fine
education Blair invited him to preach in his uncle's
hearing, who was taken by surprise, and complained
that he had not disclosed his inclination sooner, but a
short time afterward presented him to Ballywalter,
where he gained the reputation of a learned and in
structive preacher, rather doctrinal than hortatory.
These seven Englishmen and Scotchmen were the
pioneers of evangelical religion in the north of Ireland,
and began those labors which resulted in a general
awakening and conversion and the ultimate foundation
of the Presbyterian church in Ulster.

CHAPTER II.
1625-1634.
The labors of these men were speedily rewarded by
a great revival of religion, which attracted much at
tention both in Britain and America. This awaken
ing, which extended through the counties Down and
Antrim, began under the preaching of Glendinning,
who was so little esteemed by his brethren that Blair,
though he saw " some sparkles of good inclination" in
him, advised him to withdraw from Carrickfergus to
some country parish, where inferior gifts would be suf
ficient. Accordingly he removed to Oldstone, on the
SixmUewater, where he preached the terrors of the
law among a very wicked people with such effect that
a dozen strong men, known as brawlers and disturbers
of the public peace, were carried out of church in one
day as if dead, one of whom afterward confessed that
he had come there to make mischief, and all (or most)
of whom, with others like them, became " mighty
Christians," and were " patterns of society," when these
facts were recorded by the pen of an eye-witness.*
The work of grace, from this beginning, spread
throughout the valley of the Sixmilewater, and em
braced among its subjects some of the most distin
guished settlers, such as Sir John Clotworthy of An
trim, with his mother, wife, and son, who was afterward
Lord Massareene, a zealous Presbyterian and a noted
* Andrew Stewart's MS.
2

26 AWAKENING IN ULSTER. [Ch. H.
member of the Long Parliament, and the lineal pro
genitor of the present Viscount Massareene and Fer-
rard in the Irish peerage.
One effect of this awakening was a call for additional
religious services beside those of the Sabbath, which
was met by the commencement of a stated meeting,
on the last Friday of the month, for prayer and con
ference, at first held in the parish of Oldstone, at the
house of Hugh Campbell, a refugee from Ayrshire,
whom " God had caught in Ireland and made an ex
emplary Christian" to the day when Andrew Stewart
penned these expressions. As the meetings were at
tended even by persons from a distance, they were after
ward removed to Antrim, as a central point, one mile
from Oldstone, under the direction of John Eidge, as
sisted by Blair, Cunningham and Hamilton. Glendin
ning, who was not invited to take part in them after
their removal from his parish, tried to vie with them
by extraordinary feats of prayer and watching, then be
trayed his want of judgment by embracing a succession
of enthusiastic errors, ending in a visit to the seven
churches of Asia, when he disappears from history,
leaving his place to be supplied by wiser and more
faithful men from Scotland.
The first of this second emigration of Scotch preach
ers was Josias Welsh, son of the famous John Welsh,
minister of Ayr, and by Elizabeth, third daughter of
the great Eeformer, John Knox. Welsh (the younger)
had been educated at Geneva, and was Professor of
Humanity at Glasgow until forced, like Blair, to leave
it by the innovations of Principal Cameron. Taking
up his abode wit£ Mr. Shaw, a gentleman from Ayr
shire, now residing on the Sixmilewater, he supplied

1626-2T.] SCOTCH MINISTERS ARRIVE. 27
the pulpit of Glendinning after his departure, till he
was settled at Templepatrick, in the same vicinity, as
chaplain to Captain Humphrey Norton, another sub
ject of this great revival, who disinherited his daugh
ter on account of an imprudent marriage and sold his
great estate to Captain Henry Upton (son-in-law to
Sir Hugh Clotworthy), another zealous Presbyterian,
and ancestor of the present Viscount Templetown.
Welsh was re-ordained by his own kinsman. Bishop
Knox of Eaphoe, who, as well as the Eeformer, be
longed to the Knoxes of Eanfurly in Eenfrewshire,
now represented by the Knoxes of Dungannon, and
since ennobled by the title of Eanfurly in the British
peerage. .Welsh is described by Blair, who exhorted
him to visit Ireland, as having a great measure of his
father's spirit, and as eager to " convince the secure
and sweetly comfort those that were dejected ;" while
another eminent contemporary (Livingston) speaks of
him as " having many seals to his ministry," and as
one " much exercised in his own spirit," so that "much
of his preaching was an exercise of conscience."
After him came over Andrew Stewart, in 1627, as
minister of Donegore, a parish adjoining Templepatrick
and Antrim. He is described by Livingston as " a
man very streight in the cause of God," and by Blair
as " a learned gentleman, fervent in spirit, and a very
successful minister."
The next was George Dunbar, long minister of Ayr,
but twice ejected by the High Commission Court for
his resistance to King James' measures for the over
throw of Presbytery in Scotland. He was long a pris
oner at Blackness, and then banished by the Privy
Council; after which he went to Ireland, and was

28 DUNBAR — OOLWORT. [Ch. IL
ultimately settled at Inver or Laine, where he proved
a most diligent and useful minister. An interesting
anecdote is told of him, to wit, that having witnessed
the awakening at Antrim, he was grieving in his own
pulpit that none of his people had gotten good from
his ministry, when one Eobert Brown arose and said
before them all that " he had gotten good," and there
appeared a blessed change wrought in him and several
others, among whom was Andrew Brown, a very
wicked deaf-mute. As if to try the truth of these
conversions, some were seized in Laine and the ad
joining parish of Broadisland, with " violent breath
ings and convulsions" during public worship, which
they regarded as proofs of a spiritual influence, but,
being unaccompanied by any sense of sin or desire of
a Saviour, were denounced by Brice and Dunbar as
a mere delusion and device of the destroyer to disgrace
the work.
Next to Dunbar came Henry Colwort (also written
Calvert). He was born in England, but was ordained
by Bishop Knox of Eaphoe, and for a time assisted
Brice at Broadisland, but soon afterwards was presented
to the parish of Oldstone by Eoger Langford, Esq.
He is described by Blair as a preacher of " a fervent
spirit and a vehement delivery, very diligent withal,
and a blessing to that people." By Livingston he is
spoken of as one " who pertinently cited much Scrip
ture in his sermons, and frequently urged private fast
ing and prayer."
The last in this remarkable succession of Scotch
ministers, settled over parishes in Ulster, is John Liv
ingston himself, whose words have been so often quoted
in relation to the others. He had been assistant min-

1630.] JOHN LIVINGSTON. 29
ister at Torphichen in Scotland, but was silenced by
Archbishop Spotswood in 1627, for opposing his pre-
latical innovations. He continued to preach secretly,
however, though excluded by the bishop from a settle
ment, until 1630, when he was invited by Dunbar and
Cunningham to Ireland, and presented by Lord Clane
boy to Killinchy. Like several of those already men
tioned, he submitted without scruple to re-ordination
at the hands of Bishop Knox, or rather those of Cun
ningham and two or three neighboring ministers, but
in the presence of the bishop, who said he thought his
old age was prolonged for little other purpose but to
do such offices, and that he could not be called " my
lord" by such as scrupled it. He even handed Liv
ingston the " Book of Ordination" and desired him to
mark whatever he objected to ; but this was rendered
needless by its having been already marked by others.
These particulars, recorded by Livingston himself, are
interesting as illustrations of what may be regarded as
the unique and anomalous condition of the Church of
Ireland in the days of Ussher, when avowed and even
rigid Presbyterians were admitted or ordained by
bishops with a perfect knowledge of their principles
and practice, and without requiring any change in
either. Livingston stands high among the founders of
the Presbyterian Church in Ireland for learning, zeal,
success, and suffering, of which some proofs will be
adduced below.
Beside these settled pastors, there were two men who
may be regarded as evangelists, and who deserve a
place in the same catalogue. These were John M'Clel-
land and John Semple ; the first a schoolmaster at
Newtonards, who, after trial and examination, was in-

80 THEIR LABORS. [Ch. H.
vited by the minister and people of Down to preach
for them, and proved himself a zealous, fearless cham
pion of true godliness ; the other a precentor or clerk,
who was one day led, by the minister's delay in com
ing, to expound the psalm in church, and showing a
most edifying gift, was licensed by the ministers to
preach in private houses, as he did throughout the
country, both in dwellings and in barns, with great ac
ceptance and with many conversions as the fruit of his
humble but most useful ministry.
Such were the men who kept alive the spirit of true
piety in Ulster, Down, and Antrim, while the other
clergy of the diocese, about thirty in number, were in
many instances non-resident and pluralists, and some
times careless, if not " lewd and scandalous," the best
merely going the formal rounds of their official duty.
Of the churches in the same district only fourteen were
in good repair, the remainder being either decayed or
ruinous. Blair describes his parish at Bangor as six
miles in length, with a population of twelve thousand
adults, beside many children, whom he taught by
preaching twice a week besides the Sabbath, and, when
this seemed insufficient, by more private catechising
and exhorting, which impaired his health, but only for
a time, as he frequently exchanged with " holy Cun
ningham" at Holywood, and celebrated the Lord's Sup
per with him four times a year in each congregation.
His adherence, upon these occasions, to the old Scotch
use of tables, brought him into momentary conflict
with his patron. Lord Claneboy, but with no ulterior
result except to njake their friendship still more inti
mate. The same course was adopted by the other Presby-

1630.] MONTHLY MEETINGS AT ANTRIM. 31
terian ministers in Ulster, not only with respect to the
communion but to other points of discipline and order,
not excepting the Kirk-session, composed of elders and
deacons, which was kept up at Bangor with great en
ergy and actual effect, until some subjected by its
discipline appealed to the bishop, who required all
complaints to be made to his " official." A similar
experiment was made at Killinchy by Livingston, who
even went so far as to require public confession from
scandalous offenders at the Saturday sermon before the
communion, which was celebrated twice a year.
The support of these ministers was partly derived
from the tithes of their respective parishes, and partly
from the fixed stipends from the patrons, who in that
case took the tithes themselves. The parishioners of
Bangor offered to increase the stipend, if not large
enough, and Livingston's support at Killinphy came
entirely from the people, but amounted only to four
pounds per annum.
These ministers were all, in doctrine, strictly Calvin
istic, and not, as they have sometimes been misrepre
sented, hostile to confessions, creeds, and covenants ;
the Scotchmen having signed the Scotch Confessions
and both Enghshmen and Scotchmen having heartily as
sented to the Confession of the Irish Church, which was
wholly unobjectionable either to the English Puritans
or Scottish Presbyterians. They were naturally bound
together in an intimate association, the chief bond of
union being the monthly meetings at Antrim, which
were largely attended, both by ministers and people,
from considerable distances, with an almost insatiable
hunger for the word, and which contributed materially
to that revival of religion which has been already

32 TROUBLES FROM SEPARATISTS. [Ch. n.
.mentioned, and which Fleming describes in his "Ful
filling of the Scriptures" as " a bright and hot sun-
blink of the gospel."
The opposition to this work proceeded partly from
the papists, who were much encouraged by the pros
pect of a marriage between Charles I. and a Spanish
princess, which emboldened two friars from Salamanca
to challenge the ministers to a debate, but when their
challenge was accepted by Blair and Welsh, they failed
to appear at the time and place appointed. Another
interruption was produced by Separatists from London,
perhaps Baptists, who made no permanent impression ;
and a third by Freeman, an Armenian Conformist, who
attacked the Calvinistic doctrine at one of the monthly
meetings at Antrim, but was afterward confuted by
Blair in a' public disputation, and being deserted by
the people he afterward became very dissolute.
But although circumstances rendered these few min
isters conspicuous as Calvinists and Presbyterians,
most of the northern clergy were at this time Non-
Conformists, both in theory and practice, and their
names have not been left on record simply because the
indifference of the earlier Protestant bishops left them
unmolested ; while the few of whom we have been
speaking came into colhsion with the later and less
tolerant authorities..
To this distinction they were called soon after Liv
ingston arrived by the growing jealousy of Bishop
Echlin, their own countryman and once their friend and
patron, who had admitted or ordained the earlier emi
grants, but refused that office to Welsh, Livingston,
and Colwort, who were, therefore, obliged to have re
course to Bishop Knox of Eaphoe. Blair describes

1630-81.] BLAIR AND LIVINGSTON SUSPENDED. 88
the efforts made by Echlin to embarrass and obstruct
his ministry as early as the year 1626, but with no ef
fect except that of giving him more influence on the
leading men of the country. The immediate occasion
ofmore open opposition was the famous sacramental
service at the Kirk of Shotts, in 1630, at which Blair
and Livingston, and a sermon by the latter, is supposed
to have been instrumental in the conversion of five
hundred souls. The Scottish ministers there present
were beyond the reach of their prelatical opponents,
who therefore took advantage of the anomalous posi
tion occupied by Blair and Livingston as beneficed
clergymen in the Church of Ireland, and accordingly
Bishop Law of Glasgow, and Maxwell of Edinburg,
afterwards Bishop of Eoss, and one of the chief instru
ments of Charles in introducing prelacy in Scotland, in
duced Leslie, Dean of Down, to inform the bishop of
the irregularities practiced by his clergy. This was
seconded by Lord Chief Baron Bolton, who attended
the assizes on the northern circuit, and resulted in a
sentence of suspension against Blair and Livingston
(September, 1631).
Blair immediately resorted to Archbishop Ussher,
with whom he had before been made acquainted by
Lord Claneboy and been treated with indulgence even
while avowing the same principles, and censuring the
archbishop for allowing the liturgy to be used in his
own family 1 He was no less friendly upon this occa
sion, writing at once to Echlin " to relax his erroneous
censure," which was instantly obeyed, and Blair and
Livingston restored. But the accusation was renewed
by Maxwell to the king himself, now wholly influenced
in -church affairs by Laud, who, as Blair says, " did not
2*

84 BLAIR VISITS LONDON. [Ch. IL
only rule but domineer in England." In consequence
of this application orders were sent, through the Lords
Justices of Ireland, to the bishops of Down and Con
nor to try and censure these fanatical incumbents. But
instead of trying them, he simply required them to
conform and subscribe the English formularies, and on
their declining so to do, as not required by any law or
canon, he deposed them both on the 4th of May, 1632,
and the next week passed the same sentence on Dun
bar and Welsh, who had been included in the last
charge, being specially obnoxious to the prelatists as
Scottish Non- Conformists prior to their settlement in
Ireland. Application was again made to Archbishop Ussher,
but he said he could not interfere with a direct royal
order to the Lords Justices, who in their turn referred
the matter to the king. Hereupon Livingston, relying
on the friendship of some Scottish nobles and his own
previous relation as a tutor to the son of William
Alexander, the first Earl of Stirling, and at that time
Secretary of State for Scotland, visited that country
and procured recommendatory letters from the Mar
chioness of Hamilton and the Earls of Es-linton, Lin-
lithgow, and Wigton. These he forwarded to Blair,
who, in the meantime, had got others from his friends
in Ireland, and had set out for London, " prayer being
made without ceasing of the church unto God for
him." When he reached the court at Greenwich, he
found that the Earl of Stirling " feared Laud more than
God," but through Secretary Cook obtained an au
dience of the king, and unexpectedly received a favor
able answer and an order to Wentworth, the new
Deputy, with a clause added by the king's own hand

1632.] WENTWORTH. 85
" that if the information made to him proved false, the
informer should be punished." Blair hastened back
to Ireland and with his brethren resumed his ministry,
which indeed had not been interrupted any further
than by preaching in the clerk's desk instead of the
pulpit. Their resumption of the latter was facilitated
rather than retarded by the fact that Wentworth had
not come to Ireland, and did not come for a year after,
during which long interval they stdi preached and
awaited his arrival as the end of the other restrictions
under which they labored, and which weighed so
heavily on Livingston that he gave up the contest and
withdrew to Scotland.
When Wentworth did arrive at last, in January,
1632, Blair went to Dublin and presented the king's
letter, which he slighted, saying that he had the king's
mind in his own breast, and reviled the Church of
Scotland, bidding Blair to come to his right wits if he
would be regarded. When this, the only answer that
could be got from -him, was reported to Archbishop
Ussher, he shed tears, but could do nothing. So dis
couraging now were the prospects of the Presbyterians
in Ulster, that they seriously thought of emigrating to
New England, and John Livingston, accompanied by
WilHam Wallace, actuaUy set out on a tour of explor
ation, but on reaching Plymouth were detained by va
rious untoward circumstances, and retumed to Ulster
in the month of May, 1634, where they found their
brethren resolved to endure some time longer, and
await the changes which were looked for, both in
Church and State, from Wentworth's vigorous admin
istration.

CHAPTER III.
1625-1634.
From the accession of Charles I., in 1625, Ireland
for some time was at peace, but Eomanism, though re
sisted by the bishops, was indulged by the Lord Lieu
tenant (Falkland) and encouraged by a bull from Ur
ban VIII. in 1626, exhorting the recusants (or those
who refused to take the oath of supremacy and attend
Protestant worship) to die rather than conform.
Charles, embarrassed by his wars with Spain and
Austria, wished to raise an Irish army, and, as a meas
ure of concUiation, promised to confirm the patents of
the Connaught proprietors, which his father had threat
ened to revoke, with a view to a Western Plantation
like that of Ulster. These promises seemed to satisfy
the proprietors, but the Eomanists, taking advantage
of the king's necessities, proposed to raise a sufficient
sum to sustain the .Irish army on condition that Charles
would abolish the penal statutes in force against them.
A rumor of this getting abroad, and a fear lest the
Eomish faith was about to be established, a protest,
signed by two archbishops and ten bishops, for a time
retarded the project ; but the necessities of the king
growing more urgent, he finally agreed to grant the
" Graces" (as these concessions were called) asked for,
in consideration of a subsidy of £120,000, to be paid
in three years. These fifty-one Graces, though par-
ticul^ly welcome to the Catholics, conferred important

1629-32.] THE GRACES. 87
privileges on all classes and denominations. A few,
bearing on the reformation of the Church and the in
terests of the Scottish colonists in Ulster, may with
propriety be noticed.
They forbade pluralities in the case of incompetent
ministers, and those upon whom they were conferred
were to continue to preach and also to have a sufficient
number of well-qualified curates. Those who had
large churches with chapels of ease attached, were to
supply these chapels with preachers, a sufficient main
tenance being provided, and a commission was ordered
for the special purpose of preventing " unlawful ex
actions" by the clergy. The titles of the estates of the
Scottish settlers in Ulster were confirmed and made
secure upon doubhng their rents and paying a fine of
thirty pounds for every thousand acres ; and a com
mission was directed to be issued for finally passing
the necessary patents, which had been long withheld,
and they were to be recognized in Ulster as " free
denizens of Ireland."
That these measures might have the sanction of law,
the king consented to the calling of a Parliament, and
the 3d of November was the day fixed for it to as
semble in the city of Dublin. But through the disin
genuousness of Charles, a defect was found in the
writs, and they were declared invalid. No new writs
were issued, nor was any time mentioned when a legal
meeting might take place ; and so the Graces rested on
the king's promise alone, but a.promise which he had
made in the most public and solemn manner.
Eelying upon the king's word, the stipulated pay
ments were duly made ; and as the principal part was
paid by papists, the laws against them were not en-

38 monasteries confiscated. [CH.IIL
forced, notwithstanding a proclamation of Lord Falk
land, just at the close of his administration, in 1629, for
bidding them to exercise their spiritual functions. The
more vigorous measures of the Lords Justices (Loftus
and Cock), who were firm and conscientious opponents
of the Eomanists, were hindered by the king ; but a
riot in Dublin led, soon after, to the suppression and
confiscation of fifteen monasteries and the annexation
of a new popish college to the University. St. Pat
rick's Purgatory, a celebrated station in Lough Derg,
was again suppressed (as in 1497), and by an order of
the Lords Justices and Privy Council, dated the 13th
of September, 1632, the fraternity were dispersed,
their cells demolished, and the mysterious cavern in
which the purgatorial penances of the pilgrims were
performed was exposed to the light of day ; and Went
worth, although requested by Queen Henrietta, de
clined to restore it again.
The time now drew nigh when the last portion of
the voluntary subsidy became due. The necessities of
the State continued as urgent as ever. None of the
stipulated Graces had been as yet conferred. The
complaints of the people were becoming louder and
more general, and the difficulty, so perplexing to
Charles, again occurred, of supplying his wants with
out either summoning a Parliament or irrevocably
granting the promised concessions. To the adoption
of either of these alternatives Charles was decidedly
averse, and in his difficulty he had recourse to Sir
Thomas, now Lord Viscount Wentworth, who had
lately become one of the confidential advisers of the
crown. He had been appointed Lord Deputy in Janu
ary, 1632, and although the king was not willing to

1633-84.] SOME OF THE GRACES PASSED. 89
spare him from England at present, yet from this
time he assumed the management of affairs in Ire
land, and the English Council ordered the continued
payment of the subsidy until his arrival. But this
measure not meeting the approbation of the Lords Jus
tices, and their necessities being urgent, they recurred
to their favorite project of collecting the fines from
absentees from the established worship. The king and
Wentworth refused to accept this alternative, but or
dered an additional contribution of £20,000, which
the people submitted to in the hope of obtaining the
promised Graces when the deputy should arrive, as he
did in July, 1633, and succeeded in continuing the
voluntary contribution for another year. In a Parlia
ment held July, 1634, he procured an extraordinary
grant of £300,000, but still evaded or refused the
promised Graces. But in the third session of this Par
liament one of the most important of these Graces was
passed into a law., namely, that the Scottish settlers
should be made free denizens of Ireland. This natu
ralization law extended to the Scotch who were born
before the accession of James. These persons had been
previously regarded by the common law as foreigners,
and therefore incapable of holding property in Ireland.
The preamble of this act contains a memorable testi
mony from the legislature to the value of the Scottish
colonists in promoting the peace and welfare of the
kingdom. The king is assured by the Parliament that
the grievance about to be removed was " a sad discour
agement, and disheartenuig to many of your said sub
jects of Scotland, that otherwise would have planted
themselves here for the further civilizing, strengthen
ing and securing this your highness' said realm against
rebels at home and all foreign invasion."

40 WENTWORTH ENCOURAGES CEREMONIES. [Ch. III.
The attention of Wentworth was not confined to
civil affairs. Under the influence of Laud, now ele
vated to the see of Canterbury, he discouraged the ad
vances of Puritanism, and, with this in view, he pa
tronized the Arminian in opposition to the Calvinistic
system, then universally maintained by the Puritans in
common with the vast majority of the members ofthe
Established Church. He encouraged the introduction
of showy and superstitious rites into divine worship,
and every innovation brought the Protestant service
nearer to the Eomish ritual. The communion-table
was converted into an altar, railed in, and placed at
the east end of the church, adorned with candlesticks
and crucifixes, and made the object of adoration. Pic
tures, images, and lighted tapers were introduced into
the churches. The tutelary protection of saints and
angels, and their consequent invocation, were publicly
inculcated. The real presence of Christ in the com
munion, the necessity of auricular confession, and the
efficacy of absolution, were openly maintained. While
the Sabbath was commanded to be profaned by the re
publication of the " Book of Sports," exhorting the
people to amuse themselves with certain games and
recreations on the Lord's day ; and holidays and fes
tivals were revered and observed as days of especial
sanctity. In a word, there was scarcely an article of
the Church of Eome which was not sanctioned, or, as
Lord Falkland in one of his speeches in Parliament
said, "It seemed their work was to try how much ¦>?
a papist might be brought in without popery."
To silence the opposition so generally manifested
against these innovations, the arm of spiritual power
was vigorously exercised. Public lecturers, a class of

1634.] HIGH COMMISSION COURT. 41
preachers elected and supported by the people, and
chaplains supported bj- the rich, were alike prohibited,
as not being sufficiently under prelatical control. Af
ternoon sermons and catechetical exercises were abol
ished, and the privilege of public preaching was per
mitted to only a few approved ministers. Every book
not in accordance with the prevalent spirit of error and
intolerance was suppressed or carefully expurgated,
and even those works previously reputed most sound
and pious did not escape. The clergy who hesitated
to comply with the arbitrary commands of their supe
riore were summarily suspended or deposed. So vio
lent was the rage for conformity, that even the French
and Dutch Protestant churches in London were com
pelled to adopt the English ritual in preference to that
of their respective national churches, which they had
used without molestation since the commencement of
the Eeformation. And lest the formalities or just re
straints of law might retard this career of audacious in
novation, the High Commission Court furnished a sea
sonable and appropriate engine by which the designs
ofthe dominant party, though ever so illegal, were car
ried into immediate execution. The fines imposed on
conscientious Non-Conformists by this unconstitutional
tribunal were enormous, and the punishments awarded
against those who offered the slightest opposition to
the tyrannical proceedings of Laud and his faction,
were frequently of unparalleled severity. Such was
the system introduced and patronized by the Arch
bishop in England, and which he labored to extend
successively to Ireland and Scotland. The chief end,
indeed, of the life and exertions of this " Patriarch of
the West," as he affected to caJl himself, was to estab-

42 STATE OF THE CHURCH DEPLORABLE. [Ch. IIL
lish upon the most intolerant basis a complete uni
formity in government and worship over the three
kingdoms. The state of the Irish Church at this time was most
deplorable, exhibiting the same indolence, worldliness,
and inefficiency as in the early stages of its history.
The majority of the prelates sought more their own
interests than the promotion of true religion. The
cathedrals and churches through their neglect had be
come dilapidated, and the revenues alienated from their
successors and appropriated to the aggrandizement of
their own families, and the incomes of the inferior
clergy were reduced to the lowest point ; " and as
scandalous livings naturally made scandalous minis
ters," the clergy of the Established Church were gen
erally unlearned and ignorant, loose and irregular in
their lives and conversations, negligent of their cures,
and were careless of observing uniformity and decency
in divine worship.
The ecclesiastical courts were oppressive and profli
gate in their proceedings, bribery and simony were
openly practised, the primitive discipline of the Church
was entirely suppressed, and all attempts to revive
even the little power which the English Church pos
sessed was violently opposed. The consequences of
this neglect and mismanagement were too apparent.
The reformed faith had indeed been spreading, but this
result was rather the effect of colonization than of
conversion. While the reformed faith was thus retarded, the
Eoman Catholic Church maintained an undisturbed
ascendency over the minds and affections of the peo
ple, its worship and ceremonials were openly observed.

1630.] USSHEB, KNOX AND ECHLIN. 43
The hierarchy, though almost extinct in the sister
Kingdom, was complete in all its parts ; every see had
its prelate, and every parish its priest. Archbishops
and bishops exercised almost without control their
ecclesiastical jurisdiction and enjoyed ample revenues.
Chapels were built, and the churches of non-resident
Protestant ministers were occupied by priests speaking
the language ofthe people ; and sharing in their perils
and discouragements they maintained their influ
ence unimpaired.
In Ulster, the condition of affairs was prosperous.
Here the Protestant ministers were zealous and faith
ful, the people better instructed, religious worship more
regularly maintained, and the truth consequently
advancing with surer and more rapid steps. This su
periority arose from the character of the colonists by
whom it was peopled, and the diligence of the pastors
who came with them. Their bishops were all doc
trinal Puritans, at the head of whom was Ussher,
learned, tolerant, and disinterested, the most distin
guished ornament of his church and nation, and, as
described by Livingston, " a godly man, although a
bishop." Downham of Derry, Knox of Eaphoe, and
Echlin of Down, and Connor, nobly supported Ussher
in his work. To these was added in 1629, Bedell,
provost of Dublin College, to the joint see of Kilmore
and Ardagh : a most upright and amiable man, labor
ious and strict in his public duties, a faithful and con
stant preacher, the decided enemy of every ecclesiasti
cal abuse, and the generous patron of every diligent
and conscientious minister.
Bedell, on entering upon his diocese, made a state
ment to Laud in April, 1630, of its deplorable condition.

44 BEDELL. HIS WORK OF REFORM. [Oh. IIL
The Cathedral at Ardagh, one of the most ancient in
Ireland, together with the Bishop's house were in ruins ;
the church at Kilmore in almost as bad a condition ;
the parish churches unroofed and unrepaired ; the peo
ple, except about a tenth, who were English planters,
were obstinate recusants ; the Popish clergy were
more numerous than the Protestant, and enjoying full
ecclesiastical authority. The Popish primate lived
within two miles of his house, and the bishop in an
other part of his diocese, not far off. There was a
parish priest in every parish, and in some two and three ;
unfrocked friars impoverished the people with their
importunate begging. There were but seven or eight
Protestant ministers in each of his dioceses, and they
not able to instruct the people, being ignorant of their
language. Here was a melancholy picture for such a man, but
he commenced vigorously his work of reform as soon
as he had entered upon his diocese, by first resigning
the see of Ardagh, and then persuading the majority Of
his clergy to relinquish their pluralities. He reformed
the ecclesiastical courts, and, in a synod of his clergy,
passed some canons for the regulation of his diocese.
He enforced strict residences, and inspected the labors
of his ministers. But his crowning work was his
efforts in behalf of the native Irish. While Provost
of Trinity College, he had established an " Irish Lec
ture " for preparing young men to preach in Irish
among the natives, and when he took possession of his
bishopric he entered with ardor uprm this work beo'in-
ning, although in his sixtieth year, the study of the
language, and giving one part of each Sabbath in his
Cathedral to preaching in the native tongue. The

1630] THE TYNDAL OF IRELAND. 45
New Testament and Book of Common Prayer, had
already been translated into their vernacular, but he
added to them a catechetical summary of Christian
doctrine, with forms of prayer and scriptural extracts,
printed in English and Irish, which he scattered
through his diocese. Through his influence, schools
were established in every parish, and he resolved to
procure the translation of the whole Bible into Irish,
and to publish it at his own expense. He has been
well styled, " the Tyndal of Ireland."
Bedell was too much of a Puritan in spirit to be
popular with the churchmen around him. He disliked
the use of his Episcopal vestments, and was opposed
to instrumental music in christian worship. He preach
ed twice every Sabbath, and catechised in the after
noon. He read the Psalms in divine service, like
other portions of the word of God, without responses ;
and though punctual in his use of the Prayer-book in
the church, he never used it in domestic worship.
Like Ussher he maintained the identity of bishop and
presbyter, and ordained no individual to the min
istry without the consent of his clergy, and he deemed
it irregular to exercise his episcopal function beyond
his own diocese.
The vigor with which Bedell carried on his work
of reformation created many enemies. His chancellor
sued him for sitting in the courts held in his own
name and enforcing the ancient discipline of the church,
and even the affections of Ussher were for a time alien
ated, who, as Burnet alleges, " had too gentle a soul to
manage that rough work of reforming abuses, and
therefore he left things as he found them ;" and soon
after he apprized Bedell that " the tide went so high

46 LAUD. [Oh. IIL
against him in regard to pluralities and non-residence,
that he could assist him no more." To this disheart
ening intimation the latter nobly replied " that he was
resolved, by the help of God, to try if he could stand
by himself;" but this he found to be impossible, being
thwarted by the civil authorities and his spiritual su
periors. The clergyman whom he engaged to trans
late the Bible into Irish was deposed and thrown into
prison, and thus this important work was suspended
and not resumed for fifty years.
This was the condition of the Church of Ireland
when Laud turned his attention to that kingdom.
Finding the cathedrals and churches in ruins, the
clergy poor, ignorant, and little respected, with no re
gard for their superiors ; and even where there were
some more learned than the others, he was mortified
to find them Calvinistic in doctrine and Puritanical
in principle. He therefore resolved to remodel the
Church. His first arbitrary step was in reference to
Downham's "Treatise on the Covenant of Grace,"
which had been written against the Arminians in 1631.
Not content with suppressing this work in England,
he wrote to Ussher, ordering him to call in the copies
which had been circulated in Ireland, and in future to
allow nothing to be published which came in conflict
with the Arminian view. Ussher obeyed the com
mand, and replied in a servile letter, derogatory to his
character for candor and integrity.
The designs of Laud were now effectually carried
out by Wentworth, whom he had induced Charles to
appoint as Deputy. Wentworth entered upon his
work with great zeal, rebuilding and repairing the
places of worship, restoring the temporalities, inducing

1631] BRAMHALL. 47
the nobility to resign their impropriations, and by an
act of Parliament enriching the clergy. In order to
counteract the influence of the Calvinistic and Puritan
ical clergy, he brought out with him, as his private
chaplain, John Bramhall, a learned man, but of the
same temper as Laud, whom Cromwell afterward styled
" the Canterbury of Ireland." This man proved an
efficient helper in carrying out the views of his patron.
In his report to Laud he gives a very melancholy pic
ture of the state of the Irish Church. In Dublin he
found one church turned into a stable for the use of
the Lord Deputy ; a second, a nobleman's dwelling-
house ; the choir of a third a tennis-court, with the
vicar acting as keeper. In Christ Church, the princi
pal church in .Ireland, the vaults were used as tippling
rooms for beer, wine, and tobacco. He reports the in
ferior clergy below contempt ; pluralities, compositions,
and non-residences innumerable, so that one bishop
held twenty-three benefices with cure, and seldom any
suitor petitioned for less than three vicarages at a time.
The zeal of Bramhall did not remain long unre
warded, for in 1634 he was made Bishop of Derry in
place of Downham, as in the previous year John Les
he (Bishop of Orkney) had received the see of Eaphoe,
made vacant by the death of Knox. All the ap
pointments henceforth were men of Arminian and in
tolerant principles.
The University at Dublin was now remodeled.
Hitherto the provosts had been decided Puritans, the
last of whom was Dr. Eobert Ussher, a relative of the
archbishop. A change, therefore, became necessary as
a part of Wentworth's plan of reforraation, and Us
sher was appointed Archdeacon of Meath and soon

48 BRAMHALL REJECTS USSHER'S CONFESSION. [Ch. IIL
afterward Bishop of Kildare, and Chappell, Dean of
Cashel (quandom tutor of MUton at Cambridge), a
violent Arminian, was appointed in his place, but it
soon became necessary to remove him on account of
his urging conformity with so much intolerance. Laud,
soon after appointed Chancellor, finding the statutes of
the college too favorable to religious liberty, revised
and altered them, which were soon after confirmed
by royal authority.
But the great object of anxiety, the assimUation of
the churches of England and Ireland, yet remained to be
accomplished, and in order to this, the Calvinistic confes
sion compiled by Ussher must be abolished. Wentworth
undertook this delicate task, by first consulting Ussher
and stating to him that the Irish articles should not be
disturbed in the convocation, which was ordered, but
for the sake of union the thirty-nine articles of the
Church of England should be received and recognized.
To this plan Ussher made no objection, but afterwards,
without his assent, Bramhall maintained that the in
tended procedure abrogated the Irish articles and
established the English in their forced interpretation
of Armenianism as the sole standard of the Church's
faith. The convocation of clergy met in November 1634,
at the same time with the second session of the Parlia
ment, and to the surprise of Wentworth, who had not
been watching the proceedings, through a committee
introduced into a canon a recognition of the Irish arti
cles and enjoined them to be restored under pain of
excommunication .
This being in direct opposition to Wentworth's fa
vorite plan, he in the most violent and insulting manner

1634.] . COlfvOCATION OF CLERGY. 49
reversed their deliberations, and in a letter to Laud
exulted over his victory, charging them with Brownism.
The canon which Ussher prepared as a compromise was
put aside, and a substitute of Wentworth's passed, being
supported by Bramhall and Leslie, there being but one
dissenting voice, perhaps Hamilton, minister of Bally
walter, who was a member of this convocation. Thus
was the constitution of the Irish Episcopal Church, as
it now stands in doctrine and in discipline finally set
tled.^ The thirty-nine articles represented the doctrine,
and the discipline was regulated by a body of canons,
one hundred in number. They were to be subscribed
by all and read publicly in the churches once a year.
It was desired by Bramhall that the whole body of
canons made in 1603 might be adopted, but Ussher
being afraid to bow at the name of Jesus, and opposed
to certain other rites, the canons requiring them were
not included. These canons were published in Dublin
in 1635, producing a panic, and a fear lest the town
should rise, plainly evincing the prevalence of non
conformity in the metropolis. In this convocation Be
dell brought forward his plan for instructing the Irish
in their own tongue, which was advocated by Ussher
and others, but was opposed by Bramhall, who was
averse to the education of the people. Bedell so far
succeded that it was provided in the ninety-fourth
canon that ' where most of the people are Irish, the
churchwarden shall provide a Bible and two com
mon Prayer books in the Irish tongue ; and where
the minister is an Englishman, such a clerk may be
chosen as shall be able to read the service in Irish."
Wentworth had now uncontrolled sway both in
church and state ; in a letter to the King, already

50 POWER OP THE COMMISSION COURT. , [Ch. HL
alluded to, he used this remarkable expression : " So !
as now I can say, the King is as absolute here as any
prince in the whole world can be, and may be still, if
it be not spoUed on that side." Happily for the cause
of liberty the despotic system was spoiled in England,
Wentworth, Laud and Charles being ignominiously
beheaded. The High Commission Court which Went
worth had erected in Dublin, brought the freedom and
property of every individual under its control. It
was erected for the purpose of maintaining the clergy,
promoting conformity, and to raise, perhaps, a good
revenue to the crown. To all these purposes it was
in due time applied, and the Presbyterians of Ulster
soon felt the weight of its fomidable power.

CHAPTER IV.
1634-1638.
The interview which Blair had with Wentworth in
Dublin, as already noticed, indicated too plainly the
course which he intended to pursue toward the Pres
byterians of Ulster. Instead of acting on the sugges
tion in the king's letter, he reproached the four min
isters, unjustly suspended by Echlin, for their non
conformity, reviled the Church of Scotland from which
they sprung, and refused them a fair trial.
Although repulsed, they still hoped that the govern
ment would become more tolerant and their suspended
brethren restored. In this they were disappointed, but
several circumstances in the meantime led to a tempo
rary relaxation of their sentence. Wentworth, by
pressing the fulfillment of the covenants of the planta
tion under w^hich the northern colonists held their
lands, putting them to great expense and threatening
the forfeiture of their estates, raised quite a ferment in
Ulster among the landed proprietors, and to remove
this irritation and for fear that some ofthe discontented
nobles might cause trouble in the Parliament about to
meet, on the suggestion of Lord Castlestewart, a zeal
ous patron of the northern Presbyterians, he consented
to restore the rainisters for a limited period, and wrote
a letter in May, 1634, to Bishop Echlin, commanding
him to withdraw the sentence of suspension for six
months, which was promptly obeyed, and Blair, Liv-

52 DEATH OF WELSH. [Ch. IV.
ingston, Dunbar and Welsh were restored to the exer
cise of their ministry. This was unexpected news to
these brethren, and in a letter Blair describes his feel
ings as those of astonishment, admiration, and thanks
giving, and in his first lecture at Bangor he preached
from Isa. xxxviii. 15, " What shall I say ? He hath
both spoken unto me, and Himself hath done it,"
when the people were melted down into tears of joy —
and at their monthly meeting " the joy of the people can
hardly be expressed. The liberty prolonged to us was,
through God's blessing, well improved by all, and the
people made more progress in the way of God than
ever before."
This general satisfaction was clouded by the death
of Mr. Welsh of Templepatrick, who expired about a
month after his restoration, upon the 23d of June,
1634, occasioned by a cold, resulting in consump
tion, contracted while preaching in an exposed place.
He was attended upon his death-bed by Livingston
and Blair. Livingston writes, " He had many gra
cious and edifying discourses, as also some wrest
lings." And Mr. Blair said to the company of Chris
tians gathered around his bed, " See how Satan knib-
bles at his heel when he is going over the threshold of
heaven." He left one son, John Welsh, who rose to
eminence in the Scottish Church as minister of Iron-
gray, and after the Eestoration nobly suffered persecu
tion for the truth's sake.
The death of Welsh was soon followed by that of
Stewart of Donegore. Standing by the grave of Welsh
he said, " Who knows who will be next ?" And no
one answering, he said, " I know," and turning away
went to his church in Donegore, where, boltino- him-

1634.] PROPHETIC LANGUAGE OF STEWART.

53

self in, he remained two hours, and then going to his
house he feU asleep upon his bed, from which he never
arose again in health, but was buried a month from
that day.
Flemming, in his " FulfiUing ofthe Scriptures," has
preserved an account of the last hours of this holy
man which is worthy a notice in this history. On the
return of his wife from Welsh's funeral, she inquired
what he had been doing, to whom he said, " I have
been taking my leave of the church of Donegore, and
I was there taking timber and stones to witness that in
my short time I had labored to be faithful, and that,
according to my light, I have revealed the whole coun
sel of God to the people." After a fortnight's lying,
Mr. Eidge came to visit him and said, " I hope, sir,
you do not rue that you have been faithful." He an
swered, " I rue nothing but that I was too long in
beginning, (meaning that he had resisted for several
years a pressing caU to the ministry), and I will teU
you a strange thing which hath helped me to be faith
ful these last seven years ; there hath not one day
passed me without thoughts of death and renewed sub
mission to it ; yea this made me neglect my body,
which should have served the Lord, as if it had been
the mire in the street, which now troubleth me."
The night he died, several Christian friends being
with him, he was for a long time silent, which ended
in heavy groanings. At last one desired to know what
troubled him. At first he refused to tell, but being
urged, he said, " I shall tell you ; my hair stands to
behold what I see coming on these lands. The bloody
wars of Germany shall never be balanced with the
wars of these three kingdoms. The dead bodies of

54 THE MINISTERS AGAIN IN TROUBLE. [Ch. IV
many thousands who this day despise the glorious gos
pel shall lie upon the earth as dung unburied." And
in this prophetic strain he continued for some time.
He was buried beside his church in Donegore, where
an humble tombstone marks his grave. For two cen
turies the descendants of this faithful man have been
among the most eminent ministers of the Presbyterian
Church in Ireland. These godly men were hardly in
their graves when Wentworth, at the instigation of
Bramhall, wrote a letter to Bishop Echlin, notwith
standing the entreaties of Lord Castlestewart to extend
their license for six months, urging him to renew his
suspension of Blair and Dunbar. Accordingly they
were cited before the bishop for the third time and for
mally deposed. On this occasion a remarkable con
ference took place between Blair and Echlin, a minute
of which has been preserved, which strikingly illus
trates the dastardly spirit of the persecutor and the
unshrinking honesty and intrepidity of the Confessor.
On the 17th of July following this memorable con
ference Echlin died in distress of mind. Blair relates
that shortly before he died, when the physician. Dr.
Maxwell, came to see him and inquired what ailed him,
he was long silent, and then with great difficulty uttered
these words. "It is my conscience, man," to which
the doctor replied, " I have no cure for that." This
report was made by the doctor to Lord Viscount of
Airds, whose wife was the Lady Jane Alexander,
daughter of the first Earl of Sterling. Echlin was
succeeded by Henry Leslie, dean of Down, a man of
some erudition, but a violent and bigoted Episcopa
han. He was consecrated in Dublin on the 4th of
October 1635, and immediately commenced his work

1635.] PLAN OF EMIGRATION TO AMERICA. 55
of persecution. The first person on whom he exer
cised his newly acquired power was Livingston, who,
for some reason now unknown, had not been included
in the sentence of deposition. He was deposed by
Leslie and excommunicated by Melvin, the minister of
Downpatrick, in the month of November.
Blair and Livingston continued to preach in private
houses during the winter, but finding no relaxation in
the severity of the prelatical party, the Presbyterians
of Ulster renewed the plan of emigrating to New Eng
land, and with this object in view they commenced
building a ship called the Eaglewing, of one hun
dred and fifty tons burden, at Groomsport, on Belfast
Lough, intending to embark in the spring of the fol
lowing year, but on account of the preparation neces
sary for such a voyage their departure was retarded
until late in the season. In the meantime the severity
of Bishop Leslie caused the number of emigrants to
increase ; at his visitation at Lisburn in July, accord
ing to the command of the convocation, he called upon
his clergy to subscribe to the canons. Five of the
ministers refused, viz : Brice of Broadisland, Eidge
of Antrim, Cunningham of Holywood, Colvert of Old
stone, and Hamilton of Ballywalter. The Bishop, not
wishing to lose these faithful men, held a private con
ference with them, hoping to induce them to conform
to the canons, but faihng in this, at the suggestion
of Bishop Bramhall, he summoned his clergy to meet
at Belfast on the 10th of August, and opened the vis
itation by preaching from the ominous text — " But if
he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as
an heathen man and a publican." Matt, xviii. 17.
In this discourse he maintained that by "the church"

56 Leslie's sermon. [Ch. iv.
is not meant the multitude of believers, nor the Jewish
court of elders, nor the civil magistrate, nor the Pope,
nor a general councU, but the prelates ; he showed that
the church had power to keep and declare the sacred
oracles, to ordain ministers, to decide controversies, to
enact ceremonies, and to censure offenders, and it is
difficult to believe that it is not a Jesuit Eomanist
pleading for the authority of the Papal church. He
uses the following language, referring to the Non-Con
forming minister : " He that will take upon him the
office of a minister, not being called by the church,
(meaning of course the prelates,) is an intruder and a
thief that cometh not in by the doore but climbeth up
another way, — what will you say to some Dominees
heere amongst you, who, having no ordination to our
calling, have taken upon them to preach — and preach
I know not what, even the foolish vision of their owne
heart. As they runne when none hath sent them, and
runne very swiftly, because, like Ahimaaz, they runne
by the way of the plaine, so like Ahimaaz, when they
are come, they have no tydings to tell but doleful news.
They think by their puff of preaching to blowe down
the goodly orders of our church, as the walls of Jericho
were beaten downe with sheepe's homes. Good God 1
is not this the sinne of Uzziah, who intruded himselfe
into the office of the priesthood ? And was there
ever the like heard amongst Christians, except the
Anabaptists, whom some amongst you have matcht
in all manner of disordered confusion."
The Presbyterians had objected to the ceremony of
kneeling at the Lord's Supper as a relic of popery, and
in this sermon the Bishop at great length attempts to
prove that Christ did not sit at the communion, and

1636.] POSTURE AT THE LORD'S TABLE. 57
that if he did, the disciples were not bound to adopt
that posture. The Presbyteriani=, on the contrary,
maintained the Scriptural obligation of using a " table-
gesture" in the observance of the ordinance. The
Bishop answers that if they adopted the gesture they
must, to be consistent, adopt other peculiarities of a
common meal ; asks them why they do not receive the
sacrament in their dining-rooms instead of the church
— why they do not salute one another — why they do
not use dishes, napkins, knives and forks as well as
stools — why they do not eat a full meal, drink more
than once, and pledge one another — why they do not
converse together and keep on their hats as at other
feasts (which the Independent ministers about ten
years afterward did insist upon). He complains, also,
of the female influence in the church, and declares,
" Surely as the Lord taxeth the angel of the church of
Thyatira for suffering the woman Jezabel to teach and
deceive God's servants, so may he reprove the gover
nors of our church for suffering this feminine heresie
so long, they of that sexe being the greatest zealots
and chiefe abbettors of the sect, by whom many simple
people are deceived and led from the wholesome pas
tures of the Church to wander in the precipices of
schisme." Leslie having concluded his discourse, the five Non-
Conforming ministers were called forward ; and the
Bishop, complaining that he had been misrepresented
in a former private conference with them, proposed to
debate the matter pubhcly on the next day, which
was at once accepted, and HamUton was appointed to
conduct it in their name. It was accordingly begun
before a large assembly of nobility and gentry and

58 SAIL FOR AMERICA. [Ch. IV.
clergy of the diocese. It was conducted in the form
of syllogistic reasoning, in which Hamilton displayed
great readiness and acuteness, and the bishop more
moderation than could have been expected from his
sermon ; but, as it too often happens in public debates,
the controversy merged into the discussion of some of
the less important points of difference. The discus
sion was interrupted by Bramhall on account of the
liberty allowed the minister, and Leslie adjourned it
until the next day ; but at the suggestion ofthe Bishop
of Derry it was not resumed, but at the time appointed,
the brethren refusing to subscribe to the canons, re
ceived their sentence of deposition.
These severe proceedings hastened the intended voy
age to New England, and in the midst of then- prepa
rations Brice of Broadisland, one of the deposed min
isters, departed this life. The number proposing to
sail was one hundred and forty, including Blair, Liv
ingston, Hamilton, John M'Clelland (afterward minis
ter in Scotland), John Stuart, Captain Andrew Agnew,
Charles Campbell, John Sumervil, Hugh Brown and
Andrew Brown, the deaf-mute already mentioned.
They had many hindrances, but on the 9th of Septem
ber, 1636, they sailed from Loch-Fergus, but were
detained by contrary winds in Loch-Eyan, in Scotland,
where they grounded the ship for the purpose of dis
covering a leak, but were soon at sea again, and had a
fair wind until reaching about half way between Ire
land and Newfoundland, when, meeting with a severe
storm from the north-west, they were on the point of
foundering, and the ship being so much injured as to
make it perilous to proceed, after prayer and much
anxious consultation they determined to return, and

1636] LIVINGSTON'S ACCOUNT. 59
reached Loch-Fergus on the 3d of November. Mr.
Livingston, from whom this account of the voyage is
derived, in concluding says, " During all this time,
amidst such fears and dangers, the most part of the
passengers were very cheerful and confident ; yea,
some in prayer had expressed such hopes, that rather
than the Lord would suffer such a company in such
sort to perish, if the ship should break he would put
wings to our shoulders and carry us safe ashore. I
never in my days found the days so short as all that
time, although I slept some nights not above two
hours and some none at all ; but stood most part in
the gaUery astern the great cabin, where Mr. Blair and
I and our families lay. For in the morning, by the
time that every one had been some while alone, and
then at prayer in their several societies, and then at
public prayer in the ship, it was time to go to dinner ;
and after that we would visit our friends in the gun
ner-room, or those between the decks, or any that were
sick, and then public prayer would come, and after
that supper and family exercises. Mr. Blair was much
of the time sickly, and lay in time of storm. I was
sometimes sick, and then my brother, Mr. M'OleUand,
only performed duty in the ship. Several of those
between the decks, being throng, were sickly. An
aged person and one chUd died and were buried in the
sea. One woman, the wife of Michael Colvert of KU-
inchy parish, brought forth a child in the ship. I
baptized him on Sabbath following, and called him
Seaborn." After their return, Mr. Liyingston went to his
mother's house, and Mr. Blair to the " Stone " (or
Strone or Strand) in Belfast. They appear to have

60 SCOTLAND AN ASYLUM. [Ch. IV.
spent that winter in preaching in private houses, but
receiving notice in the spring of a complaint entered
against them in Dublin, they escaped to Scotland.
The western parts of Scotland became at this period
an asylum for oppressed people of Ulster, notwithstand
ing the attempts of the Scottish Bishops to prevent the
emigration. They were harbored principaUy in the
shires of Ayr and Wigton, and they were especially
befriended by one Fergus M'Cabbin of the district of
Carrick in Ayrshire. He had inherited a large estate
from his father, which he freely expended in entertain
ing the Irish refugees, insomuch that his friends feared
that he would impoverish himself, but to his dying
day he declared that he grew richer as his charities in
creased. The celebrated David Dickson, minister at
Irvine, afterwards a distinguished ornament and pil
lar of the Church of Scotland, was also conspicuous
for his attentions to the exiled brethren. Blair, Liv
ingston, Cunningham and Eidge, were liberally enter
tained by him and his people for some time; and
though at no little hazard to himself, he occasionally
permitted them to preach.
Cunningham and Eidge died here in the midst of
their troubles and privations. Livingston, in giving
an account of Mr. Cunningham's death, narrates many
of his dying expressions : he said, " I see Christ stand
ing over Death's head and saying. Deal warily with
my servant, loose now this pin, then that pin, for
this tabernacle must be set up again." A little before
his death, his wife sitting by his bed with his hand in
hers, he in prayer commended the church, the work
of God in Ireland, the parish of Holywood, his suffer
ing mother, and his children to God, and then said,

1637.] wentworth's ARBITRARY COURSE. 61
" 0 Lord, I recommend unto thee this gentlewoman
who is no more my wife," and then gently loosing his
hand from bers, put her aside, and soon after slept in
the Lord.
Wentworth having obtained from Parliament the
unconditional supplies he demanded, and from the
court the extraordinary powere necessary, in the most
arbitrary manner confiscated the entire province ot
Connaught, although the proprietors held under pa
tents from the crown, and had long enjoyed undisturb
ed their possessions. The county of Galway alone op
posed his designs by the refusal of the jury to find
for the crown as in other places ; but they paid dearly
for their independence, each juror being fined the
exorbitant sum of four thousand pounds, and im
prisoned until paid. The entire county was declared
forfeited to the crown, and the proprietors were only
allowed to re-purchase at higher rents, and with
heavy fines imposed. The titles in Ulster were in
hke manner subject to a close examination, and in
case of the least default in the conditions upon which
they were held, the owners were compelled to re
new their patents. The corporation of the city of
London in particular suffered under this iniquitous
system. An action against them had been for some
time pending in the Star Chamber Court in England
for the non-fulfillment of conditions under which they
held the county of Londonderry, and the cities of
Derry and Coleraine. This suit was now urged on
more vigorously by Wentworth : and in the year 1637
they were sentenced to pay to the crown the exorbi
tant fine of seventy thousand pounds, their patent was
revoked, their lands were seized in the name of the

62 INTERFERENCE WITH COMMERCE. [Ch. IV-
King, and Bishop Bramhall was appointed receiver-
general of all their Irish revenues.
Not only were the rights of property thus violated,
but the personal liberty of the highest subjects were
invaded when opposing the views of Wentworth.
Such was the case with Sir Piers Crosby, a privy
counseUor, Loftus the Lord Chancellor, and Lord
Mountnorris the vice-treasurer. The latter nobleman,
a man of umblemished character, was summarily de
prived of his commission in the army by a court-
martial, of which Wentworth was president, for indis
creet and ambiguous words used in private, supposed
to convey an imputation injurious to the character of
the Deputy.
The same arbitrary measures were carried into the
commercial regulations of the kingdom. He estab
lished monopolies, laid heavy duties upon the impor
tation of merchandise, prohibited the exportation of
valuables, and crushed the woollen manufactures. But
on the other hand it should be placed to his credit, that
he introduced the linen manufactures, and expended
much of his private property in its advancement : — he
repressed the depredation of pirates ; he placed the
collection of the revenues under efficient and salutary
control, and brought the army into an organized and
disciplined condition, so that while on the one hand
his administration was oppressive in the extreme, on
the other it was productive of wealth and tranquility
to the kingdom.
But the attention of Wentworth was now drawn to
important events in Scotland. Charles, soon after his
coronation, incited and directed by Laud, attempted to
impose the English Liturgy and a new book of canons

1636.] THE BOOK OF CANONS. 63
Upon the Scottish Church. This work was committed
to four of the younger prelates, who were directed by
Charles to prepare drafts of the intended publications,
and transmit them to Laud for correction. Under his
auspices they were successively printed ; and with his
own hand he introduced those deviations from the En
glish standards, which proved so peculiarly oppressive to
the Scottish nation, and betrayed too palpable a desire
to revive some of the most offensive rites of Popery. On
the 23d of May, 1635, the book of canons was ratified
by the King in council, and imposed on the nation by
virtue of the royal supremacy alone.
The enactments contained in these canons aroused
the indignation of the people : the royal supremacy
was made absolute and unlimited ; no assembly of the
clergy could be summoned but by the king ; private
meetings for expounding the Scriptures were forbid
den ; every ecclesiastical person dying without issue
was directed to " leave his effects, or a great part of
them" to the church ; communicants were compelled to
take the Lord's Supper kneeling, and the remaining por
tion of the elements was to be consumed in the church ;
ordination was conferred only at four particular seasons
of the year, as though it was a sacramen'", and the
practice of private confession and absolution en
couraged ; an unqualified sanction was given to the
service-book, although it was not published until a
year later ; all were to be excommunicated who affirm
ed that the Book of Common Prayer contained any
thing repugnant to Scripture, or that was corrupt,
superstitious or unlawful in the service and worship
of God ; no presbyter was to pray in public but accord
ing to the prescribed form ; and no person could be

64 AFFAIRS IN SCOTLAND. [Ch. IV
admitted to holy orders, or perforra any ecclesiasti
cal function without first subscribing these canons.
Thus were the Scottish clergy, by a most absurd and
unprecedented tyranny, compelled to declare their un
conditional approbation of an unpublished liturgy,
which they had no opportunity of reading.
In the following year, when the long-expected lit
urgy appeared, it was found to be a transcript of the
English service-book, with some important alterations,
to wit ; it contained a benediction or thanksgiving for
departed saint.=, of whom a large number connected
with Scotland Avas added to the popish saints of the
English calendar ; alterations and transpositions were
introduced into the communion -service countenancing
the real presence of Christ ; the officiating priest was
to stand with his back to the congregation with his
arms extended, as if elevating the host ; the sign of
the cross was used in baptism, and the water in the
font was changed and consecrated twice a month ; les
sons from the Apocrypha were appointed to be read,
and the various gestures of bowing, standing, sitting,
and kneeling in their appointed places were indispen
sable to the canonical celebration of divine worship.
It is no wonder, therefore, that all ranks united in op
posing it ; and when, in the month of July, 1637, it
was for the first time used in Edinburgh, a tumult arose
in the church, Ihe service was violently interrupted,
and the officiating priests were with difficulty preserved
from the fury of the incensed multitude. It was in
this memorable riot that Janet Geddes is said to have
thrown her stool at the head of the dean, exclaimine.
" ViUain 1 dost thou say mass at my lug ?" Bram
hall, in a letter to Archbishop Spotswood, writes, " I

1637-38.] NATIONAL COVENANT. 65
humbly thank your grace for your high favor, the
Book of Common Prayer. Glad I was to see it, and
more glad to see it such as it is, to be envied in some
things perhaps, if one owned." This letter is dated on
the 13th of August, and it is singular that Bramhall,
at Derry, had not then heard ofthe riot at Edinburgh,
which occurred on the 23d of July, three weeks be
fore he wrote, so slow was the transmission of intelli
gence in those days.
The ministers and people, supported by most of the
Scottish nobility, feeling the necessity of a closer union
in order to defend themselves against the innovations
of Charles, assembled, through their deputies, at Edin
burgh, on the 1st day of March, 1638, and solemnly
renewed their National Covenant, it being the third
time since the Eeformation. This is not to be con
founded with the solemn league and covenant which
was adopted five years later. In the course of two
months it was signed by all ranks throughout the
kingdom. These vigorous and well- concerted measures were
followed by a General Assembly ofthe Church, which
Charles, for the purpose of conciliating those whom he
could not coerce, permitted to meet at Glasgow, in the
month of November. It was attended by one hundred
and forty ministers and nearly one hundred elders, as
commissioners from the fifty-three Presbyteries of
which the Scottish Church was composed. The Mar
quis of Hamilton was the royal commissioner and the
celebrated Alexander Henderson, then minister at Leu-
chars, in Fifeshire, was unanimously elected modera
tor. Notwithstanding the attempt of the commissioner
to dissolve the Assembly and the protest of the bishops,

66 ACTION OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY. [Ch. IV
the members were firm in their purpose. They sat for
thirty days, during which they held twenty-six ses
sions. They abolished prelacy, deposed the bishops,
condemned the liturgy and book of canons, and re
pealed all the obnoxious regulations iraposed upon the
Church since the commencement of the century. They
reestablished the Presbyterian judicatories, and enacted
many laws tending to the purity, piety, and independ
ence of the Church.
The Scottish nation received these proceedings of
the Assembly with enthusiastic dehght ; but Charles
made a direct appeal to arms in order to support his
insulted authority. He repaired to York, and with a
force of horse and foot advanced to the borders. The
Scots were not slow to perceive and oppose the hostile
designs of the king. They seized the principal for
tresses of the kingdom, and marshalhng a large army
under General Leslie, an experienced soldier, they pro
ceeded to the South to resist what now had become the
aggression of a foreign power.

CHAPTER V.
1638-1639.
Wentworth watched with anxiety the movement
in Scotland, fearing that the National Covenant would
be introduced among the disaffected Scots of Ulster.
His fears were well grounded, for a large number of
the tenantry who held under the London patent had
been greatly embarrassed by his actions in regard to
that corporation, and this disaffection was increased by
the attempts of the northern prelates to force them
into conformity. Their favorite ministers had been com
pelled to fly to Scotland, .which was not the end of the
persecution, for a commission was given to the Bishop
of Down and Connor authorizing him to imprison all
Non-Conformists in his diocese. Under the execution
of this commission many were committed to prison or
forced to go into exile. The intercourse and sympathy
with Scotland was kept up by traders and landed pro
prietors going to and fro, but especiaUy by tbe ejected
ministers now settled there. These faithful men, whom
they continued to regard with the deepest veneration,
were settled in charges in their native country shortly
after their fiight fi-om Ireland. Early in 1638 Mr.
Blair was chosen colleague to Mr. William Annan at
Ayr, and from thence he removed to St. Andrews.
Livingston was ten years at Stranraer, and then at An-
crum, in Teviotdale. Hamilton was settled at Dumfries,
whence he was removed to Edinburgh. Dunbar was

68 IRISH MINISTERS IN SCOTLAND. [Oh. T.
at Calder, in Lothian, tiU 1646, and Colvert at Paisley.
M'CleUand, who had been admitted to the ministry in
Ireland, was ordained in Kirkcudbright. Semple be
came minister of Carsphairn in Galloway. Two other
banished ministers, whose charges in Ireland can not
now be ascertained, were also admitted to parishes in
Scotland at this time. These were Samuel Eow, or
dained as colleague to Henry Macgill at Dunfermhne,
and Eobert Hamilton, who was settled at Ballantrae, in
Ayrshire. These nine ministers took an active part
in the National Covenant and Second Eeformation.
They had scarcely been elected to their charges
when the bishops, in a complaint to the king, repre
sented their settlement as a grievous and flagrant con
tempt of ecclesiastical authority. Lord Traquair, in a
letter to the Marquis of Hamilton, speaks of the pulpits
as occupied at this time by " foolish Irish preachers."
Blair, Livingston, M'Clelland, and Hamilton sat in the
famous Assembly of 1638, and took a prominent part
in its proceedings, notwithstanding the protest of the
bishops, which Blair answered in a " brave extempore
harangue," seconded by David Dickson, then settled at
Irvine, which entirely satisfied the Assembly that the
censures inflicted upon them were most unjust.
So easy was the intercouree between Ulster and the
west of Scotland, and so great was the veneration in
which these ministers were held, that many of their
former hearers removed to Scotland that they might
enjoy their ministry, while great numbers usually went
over from Ireland at the stated celebration of the com
munion. At one time five hundred persons, principally
from Down, visited Stranraer to receive that ordinance
at the hands of Livingston. And at another time he

1638.] wentworth's LETTER. 69
baptized twenty-eight children at one service, brought
over for that purpose. In this manner a powerful in
fluence was still exerted by these godly men upon
their Scottish brethren in Ulster.
Many also signed the National Covenant whUe vis
iting their native country, so that Laud, in a letter to
Wentworth dated July, 1638, writes : " The Scottish
business is extream ill indeed, and what will become
of it God knows, but certainly no good, and his Maj
esty hath been notoriously betrayed by some of them.
There is a speech here that they have sent to know the
number of Scotchmen in Ulster, and that privately
there hath been a list taken of such as are able to
bear arms, and that they are found to be above forty
thousand in Ulster only. This is a very private re
port, and perhaps false, but in such a time as this I
could not think it fit to conceal it from your lordship,
coming very casually to my ears." Wentworth was
confident, however, that his little army of two thou
sand foot and six hundred horse, though raised for the
settlement of Connaught and Munster, would, if sta
tioned on the coast of Ulster, cut off the communica
tion, and send the Earl of Eothes back " with his coat
weU dusted."
In the meantime Wentworth directed the Bishops
to persevere in enforcing conformity, to preach against
the Covenant and the rebellion of the Scots, and to
keep a strict watch over all who might be suspected
of maintaining any intercourse with the Covenanters.
He also obstructed the settlement of Scotch incum
bents by the patrons. One or two cases wUl show the
vigUance exercised. A Scotchman named Galbraith,
was presented by a nobleman to the living of Taugh-

70 CASE OP GALBRAITH. [Ch. V.
boyne, in Donegal, near Derry, and was also appointed
archdeacon of Eaphoe. But Laud, suspecting him of
being a Covenanter, directed Wentworth to make a
strict investigation, who writes back that Dr. Bruce,
the predecessor of Galbraith, had sent him "certain
knowledge that Galbraith had signed and sworn the
Covenant, so we are like to have a brave archdeacon
of him; nevertheless, if himself may be trusted, all
will be well, no doubt, or else there is more ingenuity
to confess truth in this gentleman than I ever yet observ
ed in Puritan." After further correspondence, Laud,
acting entirely on the reports which reached him,
writes to Wentworth : " Galbraith, that would have
your great benefice, is a Covenanter ; there is certain
news of it brought now to the King, and thereupon
his majesty hath commanded me to signify unto you
that you shall not give him the benefice. I hear fur
ther that this Galbraith hasted out of Scotland for
killing a man there ; but I am not so certain of this
as I am that he is a Covenanter, that is, upon the mat
ter, that he is a traytor." Thus was this man who
was a royalist, according to strong testimony, consigned
to ruin on a bare supposition, supported by interested
calumny. Another victim of this persecution was a minister
in the diocese of Eaphoe, named Pont. He had de
clined the use of the ceremonies of the church and had
in his sermons condemned the unscriptural jurisdiction
of the prelates. It appears that he had also held meet
ings contrary to the canons. His wife had also signal
ized herself by her opposition to prelacy, and by
frequenting these private assemblies. They were sus
tained in their proceedings by Sir WiUiam Stewart.

1638.] PERSECUTION OF PONT. 71
Laud receiving notice of these facts, gave orders that
they should be tried and punished. When this impor
tant cause came to be tried Pont was absent, having
escaped to Scotland, but Sir William Stewart received
from Wentworth "a very round and public rebuke
for his pains," and Mre. Pont was thrown into prison,
where she lay for nearly three years, till liberated,
after the fall of her relentless pereecutor, by the inter
ference of the Irish Parliament.
Wentworth, conscious that Sir William Stewart was
not the only one of the western gentry tainted with
Puritanism, resolved to proceed against every one sus
pected of this heinous offence. Neither rank nor sex
escaped his severity. He determined to remove Lady
Clotworthy and other leading Non-Conformists, and
in these proceedings he was supported by most of the
northern Bishops. Bramhall's zeal drew forth his
special commendation ; in a letter to him he says,
" Your Lordship's course, taken and intended against
the two packs of rogues and petty rebels there, (about
Derry,) I do both well approve of, and desire your Lord
ship it may effectually be pursued, thanking your
Lordship for the advertisement thereof. And for
the clergyman you have comraitted for his lewd pray
ing for the prosperous success of Scotland in the
maintenance of religion, if there be sufficient good
witness thereof, as it is likely there may be enow, I
desire your Lordship that he may be forthwith very
safely conveyed up hither, with sufficient proofs there
abouts, and examinations, if any be taken therein."
But Bishop Leslie was his most active supporter, and
cordially co-operated with him in all his arbitrary
measures, and displayed much of that mean servility

72 LESLIE'S LETTER. l^^- '^¦
which characterizes the persecutor. The following
letters convey so clear an idea of the state of Ulster
at this period, and of the additional severities pre
pared for the ill-fated Non-Conformists, that no apol
ogy seems necessary for inserting them at length.

"the lord BISHOP OF DOWN TO THE LORD DEPUTY.
" Most honorable my singular good Lord : —
" Although it becometh not me to make any
address unto your lordship but by petition, yet the
matters wherein I am to inform requiring secresy, I
hope your lordship will give me leave to direct them
unto your lordship in an enclosed letter. There is one
Eobert Adaire, a justice of peace in the county of
Antrim, of five hundred pounds land a-year, who hav
ing some estate in Scotland, both joined himself unto
the faction there, signed the Covenant, received the
oath of rebellion, and now when the Marquis (of
Hamilton,) was last in Scotland, he was one of the
commissioners for the county against the King, and
one of them who were appointed to watch the King's
castle (at Edinburg,) that no provision should be car
ried in. I believe that if there were a strict inquiry
there will be found others who have estates in this
Kingdom who have done the like.
" All the Puritans in my diocese are confident that
the arms raised against the King in Scotland will pro
cure them a liberty to set up their own discipline here
amongst themselves, insomuch that many whom I had
brought to some measure of conformity have revolted
lately, and when I call them in question for it they
scorn my process ; if I excommunicate them, they

1638.] wentworth's ANSWER. 73
know they will not be apprehended, in regard of the
liberty their Lords have of excluding all sheriffs.
Besides, it grieveth my heart to hear how many who
live in Scotland, who co'ning over hither about matter
of trade, do profess openly that they have signed the
Covenant, and justify what they have done, as if the
justice of this kingdom could not overtake them.
These things I have presumed to represent unto your
lordship. So humbly craving pardon for mj' boldness,
I pray God to bless your lordship with all health and
happiness, and to continue long amongst us for the
good of this church and kingdom. So prayeth your
lordship's most humble servant and daily orator.
"Hen. Dunensis.
LiSNEGARTiE, (Lisbum,) 22d of Sept., 1638.

THE LORD DEPUTY TO THE LORD BISHOP OF DOWN.
" My very good Lord :
" This, with your permission, will be an answer to
yours of the 22d of September. As concerning Eob
ert Adaire you therein mention, I now send for him,
but till his coming up take not the least notice what '
the cause is moving me thereunto, and must, in this
regard, desire your lordship also to keep the occasion
of it to yourself till you hear again from me, which
shortly after his arrival here you shall not fail to do.
" In my opinion your lordship should do very well
privately to inquire out the names of all others that
have danced after the same pipe, as also of all such as
profess themselves Covenanters, and send them hither
to me. In the rest of the proceedings your lordship
shall not be so much as once touched upon or heard of.

74 Leslie's reply. [Ch. v.
" If your lordship be pleased to send me, by the
bearer, the list of such as have revolted from their con
formity and stand in contempt of your process, as also
the places of their abode, I will not fail speedUy to
send out pursuivants for them, who shall apprehend
and render them subject tothe ecclesiastical courts and
under the jurisdiction of their ordinary.
" Nor is this a business to be neglected or faintly to
be slipped over, but quickly and roundly to be corrected
in the first beginnings, lest, dandled over long, the hu
mor grow more churlish and difficult to be directed and
disposed to the peace of the church and commonwealth,
especiaUy in a time when the assumptions and liberty
of this generation of people threaten so much distrac
tion and unquietness to both, and, therefore, as I much
recommend'your lordship's zeal therein, so m ill it be
ever becoming your lordship's piety and courage con
fidentially to oppose and withstand their disobedience
and madness, as hitherto you have done, wherein you
may be assured of all the assistance that rests in the
power of your lordship's very affectionate faithful
fiiend to serve you, " Wentworth.
" Dublin, Oct. 4, 1638."
BISHOP LESLIE TO THE LORD DEPUTY.
" Most noble and gracious Lord :
" Mr. Adaire not being yet returned out of Scot
land, I have presumed to take the letter from the mes
senger, and have adjured him to the like secrecy as
your lordship hath enjoined me, fearing lest he should
have inquired after him the danger would be suspected.
And I humbly pray that your lordship would be
pleased to charge Mr. Lindan, now mayor of Carrick-

1638.] LESLIE'S REPLY. . 75
fergus, with the delivery of the letters, who, being a
principal officer ofthe custom-house, must needs know
of his arrival.
" I know there are many in my diocese and other
parts of this kingdom who have joined in this con
spiracy, but I am not able to make proof against them
if they should deny it, for of late I have had no in
telligence out of Scotland — all letters that come unto
me are intercepted. Besides, my friends from whom I
had wont to receive my information live at Edinburgh
and Aberdeen, and know not what is done in the west
parts of that country, whither only our people do re
sort ; yet I will use all means to discover them. And
in the mean time I dare say that these persons whom I
present to your lordship are guilty, because they are
notable Nonconformists and have been latflly in Scot
land : Eobert Barr of Malone, Eobert Niven of Bel
fast, George Martin of the same, and David Kennedy
and Eobert Eosse, who have fled this kingdom for fear
ofthe High Commission, but have left their land be
hind them.
" As for those who contemn my process and oppose
my jurisdiction, they are more in number than would
ffil aU the jails in Ireland; but the churchwardens
are the deepest in that guilt, who will present none
who are disobedient in the government, and to that
purpose they are chosen. As in Scotland they are en
tered into a bond to defend one another by arras, so it
seems that in my diocese they have joined in a bond to
defend one another by their oaths. I have, therefore,
in obedience to your lordship's commands, sent a list
of these churchwardens, extracted out of my registry.
If it may so please your good lordship to make all or

76 , Leslie's- reply. [Ch. v.
some of them examples, it will strike a terror into the
rest of that faction.
" Since his majesty hath been pleased to condescend
so far unto them in Scotland by his last proclamation,
against which, notwithstanding, they have protested, a
copy of both I have sent to my lord of Derry, there is
such insulting amongst them here that they make me
weary of my life. And, as I am informed, they are
now drawing a petition to his Majesty that they may
have the like favor in Ireland as is granted to their
fellows in Scotland, which I hope your lordship, iu
your deep wisdom, will prevent. My officers have
been beaten in open court. I have sent a warrant for
apprehending of the parties, by virtue of a^writ of as
sistance from your lordship, whereof I never made use
before, and%f I apprehend them I will keep them in
restraint till your lordship's pleasure be known. They
do threaten me for my life ; but by the grace of God
all their brags shall never make me faint in doing ser
vice to God and the king. I crave your lordship's
humble pardon for this tedious letter, and may God so
increase and multiply all his blessings upon your lord
ship. This is the constant prayer of your lordship's
most humble servant and daily orator.
"Hen. Duensis.
" Oct. 18, 1638."
These letters were regularly sent to Laud, to whom
their contents would not fail to be deeply interesting.
He was especially offended by the intimation in one
of the lettere that the Irish were about to petition the
king for the same favor which had been granted to the
Scots, and he replied that theyhad no such concession

^^^^•1 Leslie's charge. 77
to expect for themselves, as Ireland had been reformed
by and to the church of England, whereas, the Scots
had a church government of their own, " confused
enough," but still distinct from that of England.
Leslie, not content with exciting the civil powers
against the Non-Conformists, determines to try the force
of threats and invectives. In a charge delivered to
his clergy and laity, at Lisburn, in October, 1638,
afterwards printed both in English and Latin, as a
" Confutation of the Government," he complains of
the neglect of the (church) catechism, and the exces
sive love of preaching, which he compares to meat
which they could not chew, but preferred to the milk
on which they ought to feed. He quotes Paul's words.
Is the whole body an ear ? from the Geneva Bible,
which was used in Ireland and Scotland till 1640,
King James' being intended for the church of Eng
land. He also quotes a most reverend prelate, as say
ing that the Puritans had no mark of Christ's sheep
but the ear-mark. He compares the churches of his
diocese to hog-styes, and contrasts them with the an
cient temples of which Julian said. See how the Son
of Mary is served. He complains of frequent absences
from church, and of the clergy " mincing, cutting and
carving" the liturgy, merely reading the lessons and
a few collects. He describes the laity as walking in
the churchyard during prayers, and then rushing in
to hear the sermon, as they would into a play-house,
but threatens that ere long it shall be " no prayers, no
sermon." He ascribes all this to Scottish influence,
and says that now their neighbor's house is burning it
is time for them to look out for their own, and con
cludes with an attack upon extemporaneous prayer.

78 THE BLACK OATH. [Ch. V.
This summary of Leslie's charge, together with the
extracts of the correspondence, very clearly evince the
opposition which existed to the ceremonies of the
church throughout this populous diocese. They justify
the inference, that if non-conformity was so prevalent
under this most vigilant and active prelate, it must
have been still more prevalent under less intolerant
bishops in other parts of the province. They corrob
orate, in the amplest manner, the statements already
made respecting the number of the northern clergy,
who were in principle Presbyterian, and who, though
coerced with the promise of conformity, to save them
selves from persecution, adhered, in the seclusion of
their parishes, to the Presbyterian ritual. They testify
the conscientious aversion of the great mass of the
population to the liturgy, the use of which they re
fused to countenance by their presence.
To coerce the laity Wentworth induced the bishops
to petition for a test oath, which was accordingly pre
scribed, abjuring not only resistance to the king's au
thority, but all right of protest or dissent. This is
known iu history as the Black Oath. Many of the
principal laymen objected to the last clause of this
oath, in which they are required to swear never to
oppose, nor even to " protest against any of his royal
commands;" while the Bishop of Eaphoe 'thought it
only too mild, "So mean that he would not leave his
house to take it." This oath was to be taken kneel
ing by all above the age of sixteen years, both men
and women, many of whom were not allowed to read
it beforehand. The Scotch Papists were exempted,
but all others who refused this Black Oath were re
ported to the government and hardly dealt with, by

^^39.] rigorously ENFORCED. 79
fine and imprisonment. Even women took refuge in
the woods, and there were scarcely men enough to
reap the harvest. Eespectable persons, untainted with
crime, were bound together with chains and immured
in dungeons. Several were dragged to Dublin, and
fined in exorbitant sums, while multitudes fled to
Scotland, leaving their houses and properties to ruin.
A letter from Lord Claneboy, now converted from the
generous patron to the keen persecutor of his Presby
terian brethren, gives a curious account of the way in
which Bale, a blind preacher, endeavored to evade the
oath. Throughout Ulster the Blach Oath was rigorously
enforced ; and this descriptive epithet was too amply
justified in the persecutions which it occasioned, not
only to the conscientious Presbyterian, but to every
one attached to the principles, or zealous for the main
tenance of civil and religious liberty. Many recusants
remained in prison until Wentworth's death, and
many fled to Scotland. Armed forces began now to
be raised in opposition, among which was a company
of more than one hundred men, commanded by one
Fulk Ellis, an English gentleman, to which Living
ston's parishioners, at Stranraer, contributed surprising
sums, a maltman's wife giving "her daughter's por
tion, whom the Lord had taken to himself." Many
of the ministers had narrow escapes. John Semple,
afterwards a minister in Scotland, met a pursuivant
on the road, who had been sent to take him, and asked
Semple the way, not knowing that he was the man
he sought. " Another time the Laird of Leckie, with
Major Stewart and Scrapie, came to Newton-Stewart
together about their aflairs. While the former were

80 PERSECUTIONS CONNECTED WITH IT. [Oh. V.
taking a drink, it was presently told them that three
pursuivants were at the door ; upon which Major
Stewart mounted John Semple on his horse, and gave
him his hat ; who being mounted, and riding by the
pursuivants, inquired 'whom they were seeking.' They
said, ' If YOU will tell us where they are whom we
are seeking, wc will give you a reward.' He answered,
' It may be I wiU.' Then said they, ' We are seeking
the Laird of Leckie and John Semple.' Then put
ting spurs to his horse, he answered, ' I am John
Semple, you rogues 1' While they were calling others
to help them to follow him, the Laird and Major Stew
art took horse and escaped. The pursuivants being
disappointed, said, 'AU the devils in hell will not
catch these rogues.' "
One case of peculiar hardship, arising out of the
imposition of this Oath, demands especial notice, from
the importance afterwards attached to it on the trial
of Wentworth. Henry Stewart, a man of property,
with his wife and family, consisting of two daughters
and a domestic named James Gray, were, on their refu
sal to subscribe the oath, taken to Dublin and placed
in close confinement. They were examined separately
by the attorney general, and their examinations taken
as evidence against them. On the 10th of September
they were brought to trial in the Star Chamber.
Among the judges was Bramhall, who was never ab
sent when a Presbyterian was to be persecuted, and
Primate Ussher, whom every Protestant must lament
to find employed in such an office, although it is due
to him to state that he protested against the doctrine
laid down by the other judges, that a refusal of the
letter part, involving obedience to ecclesiastical injunc-

1639.] CASE OF HENRY STEWART. 81
tions, amounted to treason. They were sentenced by
the court, Stewart and his wife each to pay £5,000,
and each of his daughters and Gray £2,000, and they
were to be imprisoned until their fines should be paid.
On their trial Wentworth avowed his purpose to prose
cute all recusants " to the blood," and exterminate
them " root and branch." To this family in prison
Samuel Eutherford wrote a consolatory letter.

CHAPTER VI.
1639-1641.
Wentworth, who was now in the zenith of bis
power, would allow no opposition even to his crea
tures. The highest nobility quailed before him, and
any who manifested the slightest sympathy for the
Covenanters were marked for ruin.
Among the ministers whom the late ecclesiastical
changes in Scotland rendered uncomfortable, was John
Corbet, minister of Bonhill, near Dunbar ton. Though
a Prelatist, he signed the Covenant in Scotland, but
would not sign the Assembly's declaration against pre
lacy, but fled to Ireland, where be was recommended
by Bramhall to Wentworth, and wrote two books
against Scotland ; one a refutation of Alexander
Henderson's Instructions for Defensive War, full of
spiteful venom, and inculcating absolute submission to
the royal will : the other a comparison of the Coven
anters with the Jesuits in sixteen points, under the
name of Lysimachus Nicanor, a work which provoked
the Covenanters greatly, and was ascribed to various
well-known writers. This man being presented to a
living in the diocese of Killala, was treated coldly by
his countryman. Bishop Adair, who punned upon his
name and said " this Corbey (raven) which fouled its
own nest should find no resting place in his diocese."
This being reported by Bramhall to Wentworth, Adair

1639] EARL OF STRAFFORD. 83
was deposed, in spite of Ussher's mediation, and Be
dell's able argument from the Scriptures and the can
ons. His successor was Maxwell, ex-Bishop of Eoss,
an able man and excellent preacher, but one of
Charles' favorite instruments in Scotland. He was
the author of the book called " Sacro Sancta Eegia
Majestas," to which Eutherford 's "LexEex" was a
reply. Maxwell narrowly escaped the Irish massa
cre, (in which Corbet was hewn to pieces,) and died
at Oxford 1643.
Ulster was now quiet, and Charles wanting help
from Ireland against Scotland, had recourse to Went
worth for counsel in this emergency. To secure his
more cordial co-operation, he appointed him Lord
Lieutenant instead of Lord Deputy, and raised him to
the rank of an Earl by the title of Strafford, and con
ferred upon him other marks of approbation and
confidence. Strafford in return assisted him with his
private fortune, and obtained a liberal subsidy from
the Irish Parliament in March, 1640, as well as a flat
tering vote approving of his own administration. After
making arrangements for raising a new army, to be
stationed in the north of Ulster, and appointing Sir
Christopher Wandesford his deputy, Strafford left
Ireland for England, April 4th, 1610, never to return.
The new army of eight thousand foot and a thousand
horse, chiefly Papists, as appears from their own wri
ters, was commanded by the Duke of Ormond, and
was in a high state of discipline, but odious to the
Protestant population. After being trained at Car
rickfergus, it was to guard the coast, so as to keep
Ulster in check, and be ready to invade Scotland.
Strafford was not satisfied, however, but directed Sir

84 MATURING HIS PLANS. [Ch. VL
George Eadcliff, his confidential agent, to make a
proposition to the Irish Parliament for thc romoval
of the Scots from Ulster, lest they should join their
countrymen against the King or encourage Argyle to
invade Ireland. In reply to the objection that they
had alread}- taken the Black Oath, he said that many
had not, and that many more considered it unlawful
and not binding, or they might answer as Eobert
Bruce, Earl of Carrick, answered Sir John Comyn,
when he urged the claims of King Edward, by cleav-
ins: his head in two. Their numbers showed that there
could be no half measures, that their only course was
to " give them the law and send them forthwith pack
ing." Had this scheme been executed, it would have
been the ruin, not only of Presbyterianisra, but of
Protestantism in Ulster, and of the province itself.
But there was such a change of feeling in the nation
and the Parliament after Strafford's departure, that
Eadcliff did dare not to make the proposition.
While Strafford was maturing his plans at the Brit
ish court, and completing his arrangements for main
taining the royal cause triumphant in Ireland, the
national temper and dispositions had been silently, but
rapidly changing. Scarcely had he retired to England,
and intrusted his government to the hands of a depu
ty, than a spirit of resolute opposition to the court
began to manifest itself. Freed from the restraint of
his presence, all parties began to complain of the bur
den of the subsides imposed by Parliament. Discon
tent spread quickly through the kingdom. The peo
ple no longer suffered in silence. The intolerable
grievances of his administration were freely exposed
and denounced; and a popular demand for a relief

1640.] COALITION WITH THE ROMAN CATHOLICS. 85
from its oppressions, and a reform of its abuses, be
came loud and general.
The English Parliament having been dissolved in
June, 1640, communication was opened between the
Puritans of both kingdoms, "to whom," says Hume,
" the English owe the whole freedom of their consti
tution." They formed at this time the only party in
both kingdoms who entertained correct views of con
stitutional liberty. In Ireland they were numerous,
and were to be found among the members of both
houses of Parliament; and in Ulster, though many
had abandoned the country and retired to Scotland,
they still constituted the predominant party. They
now manifested a determination to seek a thorough
redress of the grievances under which the country had
been groaning. With this end in view, they formed a
coalition with the Eoman Catholics, a step never taken
in the sister kingdom, but resulting in a formidable op
position to the oppressions of the government. Being
in the majority in the Irish Parliament, they reduced
the subsidies already voted to one-fourth of the amount,
and presented an address to the Lord Deputy against
the exactions of the clergy and the ecclesiastical courts.
At the next session of the Parliament, in October,
they were bolder still, and a remonstrance was pre
sented to the House of Commons, stating in fifteen
articles their grievances endured under Strafford. The
eighth of these articles represented the city and county
of Londonderry, "the first and most useful settlement
in Ulster, and its chief strength," as almost destroyed.
The ninth complained of the High Commission Court,
its illegal exactions, and encroachments upon other
courts. This celebrated remonstrance was sent to

86 AFFAIRS IN ENGLAND. [Ch. VL
England by a committee of three frora each province,
all of whom were either Eoman Catholics or Puritans.
The representatives of Ulster were Sir James Mont
gomery, M. P. for Devonshire, Sir William Cole,
M. P. for Fermanagh, and Edward Eowley, M. P. for
Londonderry. Though forbid len by the deputy, they
sailed for England on the 12th of November, and on
their arrival found Strafford stripped of his power,
impeached by the Commons of England, and impris
oned under the charge of high treason 1
The circumstances which led to this unexpected
vicissitude are well known. The pressing necessities
of the king had at length compelled him reluctantly
to summon another Parliament, which sat, with some
interruptions, for nineteen years, and has hence been
styled the Long Parliament. It assembled at one
of the most critical periods in the history of the
nation. The tyrannical conduct of Charles — his arbi
trary encroachments on the rights of the people — ^his
avowed contempt of Parliaments, and his determin
ation to rule, if possible, independently of their con
trol — the glaring abuses in the administration of
justice — the cruelty and oppression of illegal courts —
the decay of trade by monopolies and impositions —
and above all the corruption of religion — the inso
lence and violence of the clergy, and the gradual as
similation of the church, under the auspices of Laud,
to the Eomish superstition — these grievances, affecting
every class, and involving matters of the deepest in
terest to every individual, had justly excited so gen
eral a discontent throughout the kingdom, and roused
so resolute a spirit of hostility to the court, as could
no longer be subdued or repressed.

16*0-] LONG PARLIAMENT. 87
On the 30th of November, 1640, the memorable
Parliament was opened by the king in person, and on
the third day of meeting, on motion of Mr. Pym, in
a speech of great force and eloquence, it went into
committee of the whole on the state of Ireland. The
motion was seconded by Sir John Clotworthy of An
trim, who had removed to England in consequence of
his opposing Wentworth's monopoly of linen yarn,
and was chosen to Parhament from two places, one
in Cornwall, and the other (Maiden) in Essex, which
last he chose to represent. Being a firm patriot and
a staunch Presbyterian, and well acquainted with
Irish affaire, he contributed materiaUy to the faU of
Strafford. On the Ilth of November the Commons
adopted the bold and hazardous resolution of impeach
ing Strafford of high treason. A committee, of whom
Sir John Clotworthy was one, was appointed to pre
pare the charges against him. The same day he was
formaUy impeached at the bar of the House of Lords,
and immediately sequestered from his seat, and com
mitted to the tower. One of BaUlie's letters gives a
graphic account of his appearance when summoned
before the House.
" The word goes in haste to the Lord Lieutenant,
when he was with the King ; with speed he comes to
the House ; he calls rudely at the door ; James Max
weU, keeper of the black rod, opens ; his lordship, with
a proud, gloomy countenance, makes towards his place
at the board head ; but at once many bid him void the
house ; so he is forced, in confusion, to go to the door
tUl he was called. After consultation, being caUed
in, he stands, but is commanded to kneel, and on his

88 STRAFFORD IMPEACHED. [Ch. VI.
knees to hear the sentence. Being on his knees, he is
delivered to the keeper of the black rod, to be prisoner
till he was cleared of these crimes the House of Com
mons had charged him with. He offered to speak, but
was commanded to begone without a word. In the
outer room John Maxwell required him, as prisoner, to
deliver his sword. This done, he makes through a num
ber of people towards his coach, all gazing, none cap
ping to him, before whom that morning the grandest
of England would have stood discovered."
The committee from the Irish Parliament, arriving
at this critical juncture, were received in London with
every mark of respect. On the 20th of November
their remonstrance was presented to the House of Com
mons, and produced an impression most unfavorable to
Strafford. This application was the firet ever made by
the Irish to the English Parliament, and formed at this
period an important precedent in favor of the people
of Ireland. Their own Parliament had been suddenly
prorogued by Wandesford, Strafford's deputy, with the
view of checking the spirit of opposition to the court,
which had been growing daily more formidable. The
only channel, therefore, through which they could
make known their grievances, or seek for redress, lay
in the Parliament of England. The way having been
once opened to this tribunal, their petitions were favor-
orably received ; and many of the Irish nobility and
commoners having repaired to London to assist in
bringing to justice their impeached governor, every
facility was thereby enjoyed by the oppressed in Ire
land for submitting their respective grievances to the
notice of Parliament.
The exile of the ministers and persecution of the

1640.] PETITION FROM IRELAND. 89
Puritans, in Ulster, had led before this time to night
meetings, in which laymen took the lead, among whom
two of the most noted were John Kelso and the laird
of Leckie, whose name stiU continues in and about
Deny. This practice having been introduced into
Scotland, led to warm discussions in the General As
sembly of 1640, by which it was condemned, at the
suggestion of Henry Guthrie, of SterUng ; but a more
moderate decision was adopted by a subsequent assem
bly under the lead of Alexander Henderson.
A petition for the restitution of the ministers and
their endowments was presented to the English Parlia
ment, with the signatures of fifteen hundred persons,
and though Bramhall wrote to Ussher, that "if that
was thought the way, half of them could be induced to
sign a contrary petition, with five thousand better than
themselves," we learn from Ussher's answer, that when
both had been presented, that of the Puritans was signed
by a "huge number," and "far larger" than the other.
This petition, the first which emanated from Irish Pres
byterians, was presented by Sir John Clotworthy not
earlier than April, 1641. It bore the name of " Some
Protestant inhabitants of Ulster," and complained ofthe
" unblest way of prelacy," as having starved their souls
and ruined their estates." So that by the arts of " task
masters" and "incendiaries" they had become "no peo
ple," and could only be restored by a powerful and able
ministry." To the petition was added a " Particular," oi
statement of specific grievances, digested under thirty-
one heads. The charges in this petition were followed
by othere equally strong against the conduct of Straf
ford in the administration of the civil affairs of the
kingdom. WhUe the Parliament was proceeding

90 TRLAL OP STRAFFORD. [Ch. VL
steadily in their impeachment, the Irish Commons re
assembling in March, 1641, followed their exam
ple, and impeached four of the confidants of Strafford,
among whom was Bramhall, as participators in his
treason. Of the charges against Strafford, sixteen related to
Ireland, among which was his commission to Bishop
Leslie, empowering hira at pleasure to imprison the Non-
Conformists ; his imposition of the Black Oath, with
out authority of Parliament, and his treatment of the
Stewarts ; which last produced a strong impression on
the House. Sir John Clotworthy and Sir James Mont
gomery appeared as witnesses, and their testimony was
of great importance in bringing home the charge of
violation of the fundamental laws of the kingdom. The
trial took place in Westminster Hall, from the 21st of
March to the 13th of April, and was followed by a bill
of attainder, against which there were only fifty-nine
votes in the Commons, and nineteen in the Lords. The
King perfidiously gave his assent, and Strafford was
beheaded on Tower Hill, May 12, 1641, in the forty-
seventh year of his age. His deputy, Sir Christopher
Wandesford, died suddenly a few months after.
The government of Ireland, after some changes, was
entrusted to two Lords Justices, Sir John Parsons and
Sir John Borlase, both of whom were Puritans ; but
the latter being a military officer, the chief burden and
responsibility of the government rested on the former.
They cordially cooperated with the Papists in repairing
the damage caused by Strafford's administration. Arch
ibald Adair, the deposed Bishop of Killala, was re
leased from prison, and made Bishop of Waterford, in
place of Adderton, one of his old enemies, who had been

1641 CONFISCATED PROPERTY RESTORED. 91
executed for an infamous crime. Henry Stewart and
his famdy were released from prison, but in abject pov
erty, their property having been all confiscated. Mr.
Stewart returned to Scotland, of which he was a native,
and applied to the Parliament sitting in Edinburgh for
relief His case was referred, with a recommendation
to the English commissioners, and the English Parlia
ment, both Houses concurring, granted damages to the
amount of £1,500 to Stewart, and £400 to his servant,
Gray, which sums were paid out of the sequestered es
tate of Sir George Eadcliffe. Adair of Ballymena,
whom Strafford and Leslie were so anxious to seize,
but who escaped into Scotland, was returned to sit in
the Scottish Parliament, as Laird of KilhUl and mem
ber for the shire of Galloway, petitioned the House to
recommend him to Charles, that the sentence of the
Irish courts, pronouncing him a traitor, might be re
versed. They unanimously recommended his case, and
his sentence was finally rescinded and its penalties re
moved. A lineal descendant of the same name still
enjoys the restored property.
The English Parliament also contributed its power
ful aid to the redress of Irish grievances, and by a
unanimous vote of the House they rescinded the sen
tence of the Star-Chamber Court, in England, by which
the county of Londonderry, with the towns of Derry
and Coleraine, had been forfeited to the Crown. This
extensive confiscation was one of the most impolitic,
as it was one of the most unjust, measures of Straf
ford's administration, for not only did it, by endan
gering the property, rouse the indignation of all who
held by patent from the Crown, — a very numerous
and influential class in Ireland, — but by wresting this

92 ACTS OF IRISH PARLIAMENT. [Ch. VL
valuable plantation from the corporation of London,
so deep a resentment was excited in that city against
him that his fall was thereby greatly accelerated.
Their property was now restored to the corporation,
to the great joy of the whole city, and to the manifest
prosperity of this portion of Ulster. Nor ought it to
be forgotten that, in less than half a century after
wards, the safety of the empire at large, and its deliv
erance from Popish tyranny and misrule, were in a
great measure owing to the performance of this act of
justice by the English Commons. Had this exten
sive plantation, with its important towns and cities,
continued under the immediate patronage and direct
influence of the subsequent Kings of England, in all
human probability, James II. would never have been
defeated under the walls of Derry.
The Irish Parliament, following the example of the
English, acted vigorously in remedying the evUs of
Strafford's administration, one of their principal acts
being the abolition of the High Commission Court, an-
nuling its offensive acts and those ofthe bishops. Meas
ures were also taken to restore Trinity College to its
primitive condition, but were interrupted by the re
bellion. During these legislative proceedings the army which
Strafford had stationed on the eastern coast of Antrim
remained inactive, occupying their time in construct
ing earthworks, encampments, etc., as a school of prac
tice. Charles having in the meantime acceded to the
demands of his Scottish subjects, and relinquished the
design of invading that kingdom, —the object for
which these forces had been raised — they were thus
rendered useless ; nor was there any pretext for main-

1641.] ARMY DISBANDED. 93
taining any longer this offensive establishment. The
English Parliament, accordingly, at the suggestion
both of Protestants and Eomanists, urged Charles to
disband these forces ; but he evinced the utmost anx
iety to keep the army on foot. The former began to
be apprehensive that, consisting chiefly of Eomanists,
and commanded by the creatures of Strafford, it might
be transported to England, to support, by force of arms,
the royal against the popular party. They therefore
urged their application with great earnestness, and
Charles was at length compelled to yield to their im
portunity ; and the army was disbanded in the month
of August, and their arms and ammunition deposited
in the castle at Dublin.
But though dissolved as an Irish army, Charles was
anxious that, in conjunction with additional levies,
they might, under the sanction of the Irish Parliament,
be permitted to enter into the service of his ally, the
King of Spain, in Flanders. But all parties in the
Commons united in opposing this design. The Puri
tans were against it, on the ground that these forces
would be as conveniently placed there as in Ireland,
for the invasion of England, should Charles be led to
adopt this desperate measure, of which they were be
coming more and more apprehensive. The Popish
party affected to clamor against their removal, lest
they might be sent back by the Spanish monarch,
whose ancestors had often meditated the invasion of
Ireland, for the purposes of rebellion or of conquest.
Subsequent events render it probable that the lead
ers of the latter party opposed the removal of this dis
ciplined soldiery, actuated by the same religious pre
judices and antipathies as themselves, with the view

94 IRISH ARMY DISBANDED. [Ch. VIL
of retaining them to aid in the rebellion, which, there
is reason to believe, was even then rneditated. The
English concurred with the Irish Parliament in oppos
ing the removal of these troops ; and thus thousands
of an idle, restless soldiery, hostile to the English
power, full of hatred against the Puritans, and ready
to be engaged in any enterprise, however desperate,
were detained in the country to aggravate the hor
rors of the rebellion, which in a few months ¦ after
wards broke out, and deluged the kingdom with seas
of blood.

OH APTB R VII.
1641.
Ireland had never been so prosperous as just after
the fall of Strafford. The abuses of his government
had been redressed, and all dissatisfaction with respect
to defective titles had been removed by the confirma
tion ofthe Graces, and by other conciliatory acts ofthe
Sovereign and the English Parliament. The Eoman
Catholics enjoyed full toleration, and shared with the
Protestants the titles conferred on the peers of Ireland
by James and Charles, while their gentry were mem
bers of Parliament, judges, magistrates and sheriffs.
Their clergy were unmolested in their religious rites
and their other ecclesiastical functions, and a new era
of national improvement and civilization appeared to
be opening on the country.
But these anticipations were grievously disappointed
by the breaking out of the great rebellion. This un
doubtedly originated with the native Irish, prompted
by the chieftains whose estates had been confiscated in
the beginning of the century, and who were now liv
ing in the courts of Eome and Madrid, enjoying splen
did allowances, and holding high military rank, and
at the same time keeping up communication with their
own country, especially through Popish priests. The
native Irish, always impatient of the English yoke, had
been rendered more so by the conduct of Charles as to
the Graces, and of Strafford as to the defective titles,

96 ORIGIN OF THE REBELLION. [Ch. VII
although these complaints were now removed by the
Lords Justices.
But the chief design of the rebellion was a religious
one, to destroy Protestantism, and restore the patrimo
ny of the Eomish Church. The Protestant faith
had been pressed upon them and propagated by those
whom they were artfully taught to consider as their
oppressors, and their native language, as a vehicle of
instruction, had been most unaccountably neglected.
The reformed clergy, with a few exceptions, had been
indolent and careless ; on the one hand bigoted and
intolerant, and on the other despising the Irish as being
incapable of improvement. The bitter feeling thus
generated was fostered by the priests, who had as
strong a desire to regain their ecclesiastical property
as the nobility to recover their forfeited estates. This
movement was encouraged by the Pope in the hope
of recovering " the isle of saints," still regarded as
the especial patrimony of the Eomish see. It was also
promoted by the example of the Scots, though free
from all conspiracy and treachery ; and also by un
founded reports as to the persecuting spirit and design
of the English Puritans. One of these stories repre
sented Sir John Clotworthy as having said that the con
version of the Papists in Ireland was only to be effect
ed by the Bible in one hand and the sword in the other.
The plot had long been forming ; even during the
administration of Strafford their leaders had held fre
quent consultations on the projected insurrection, but
its execution seems to have been hastened by the state
of affairs in England, Charles' breach with the Parlia
ment, and secret endeavors to coerce it by the help of
the army. He was now looking for assistance to the

1641.] ITS PLAN. 97
Irish troops, which had not been removed on the death
of Strafford. He and his Queen intrigued with the
Eoman Catholic comraissioners, who went to England
from the Irish Parliament, to detach them from the
Puritans and enlist them on the King's side, which had
already been espouse 1 by the two leading noblemen of
Ireland, the Marquises of Ormond and Antrim.
The plan on which these several partisans of the
King were required to act was, to seize simultaneously
the capital, and principal fortified places throughout
the kingdom ; to disarm all who would not enter into
their scheme — even the Lords Justices, if they offered
any opposition. They were then to reorganize the
army and increase it to twenty thousand, and having
secured the power, to assume the government in the
King's name, and finally to call a Parliament, which,
situated as the country would then be, must necessa
rily be devoted to the royal cause.
While these plans were maturing Charles resolved
to visit Scotland, hoping, by concessions, or these faU
ing, by stratagems to secure the co-operation of that
kingdom in his plans against the national liberties.
Accordingly, in the month of August he set out for
Edinburgh, accompanied by Lord Dillon, a Eoman
Catholic nobleman, and member of the Irish commit
tee. The other Eoman Catholic members of that com
mittee returned about the same time to Ireland to
watch the interests there.
Up to this point, the views of both parties among
the conspirators were perfectly coincident — beyond it
they were quite opposite. The primary projectors of
the rebellion, such as Lord Maguire, Eoger Moore,
Plunket, Sir Phelim O' Neill, &c., looked upon the
5

98 THE DIFFERENT CONSPIRATORS. [Ch. VH
seizure of Dublin, and the reorganization of the army,
merely as preliminary steps to the overthrow of the
British power, the separation of the kingdom from
England, the recovery of the forfeited estates, and the
expulsion of the Protestants : on the accomplishment
of these objects they might then, as an independent
Catholic nation, support Charles against his refractory
Parliament. On the other hand, the King's confiden
tial friends, such as the Earls of Ormond and Antrim,
Lord Gormanstown, and perhaps the other gentry of
the Pale, Sir James Dillon, &c., do not appear to have
contemplated, in their scheme of insurrection, any
unnecessary violence to the persons or property of the
British. Their grand aim was to remove the Puritan
party from the government of the kingdom, and to
place it and its resources at the disposal of the King.
Until the rebellion broke out, however, both parties
cordially cooperated, and conducted their negotiations
without division or apparent distrust.
Charles was now in Scotland, hoping to secure that
kingdom in opposition to the Parliament, and while
there sent orders to his Irish leaders to disarm the
Irish Protestants or Puritans, but not to hurt his " loy
al and loving subjects " the Scots of Ulster. This
commission, it is conjectured, was carried to Ireland
by Lord Dillon, and accelerated the breaking out of
the insurrection.
The day fixed for the outbreak was first the 5th of
October, but owing to the reluctance ofthe more mod
erate party to have recourse so suddenly to arms, and
their desire to make their first appeal to Parliament,
which was to assemble in the beginning of November,
it was changed to the 23d of October, when two hun-

1641.] THE PLOT DISCOVERED. 99
dred men were to meet in Dublin, as if en route for
Spain, and then under Eoger Moore, Maguire and
others, seize the castle with its valuable store, artillery,
arms and ammunition, while Sir Phelim O' Neill was
to rise on the same day in Ulster, seizing Derry and
Carrickfergus, disarming the Protestants, but leaving
the Scots unmolested.
In the spring of the same year Charles had commu
nicated to the Lords Justices reports from Spain of an
intended rising in Ireland ; and in the autumn Sir Wil
liam Cole, of Enniskillen, informed them of unusual
gatherings at the house of Lord Maguire, in Fermanagh,
and of Sir Phelim O'Neill, in Tyrone, and of active
correspondence with the native Irish and the Lords
of the Pale. But the outbreak was prevented by a
disclosure made to the Lords Justices the day before
by Owen O'ConnoUy, a native Irishman and Papist,
but brought up in the family of Sir John Clotworthy,
and now a zealous Presbyterian. He had at this time
left the service of Sir John, probably at the removal
of that excellent family to England, and had settled
at Moneymore, in the county of Derry. He had been
urged by one of the conspirators, McMahon, to meet
him at his house in Monaghan, and followed him to
Dublin, where he was made acquainted with the plot;
and after trying to dissuade McMahon, made it known,
so that the Lords Justices had barely time to secure the
castle and arrest the chief conspirators. By this sea
sonable disclosure of O'ConnoUy the principal aim of
the conspirators was providentially defeated, and theii
associates of the Pale were so disheartened by the dis
appointment, and so awed by the vigilance of the ex
ecutive, that they appear to have abandoned the cause.

[Ch. VIL
until the successful progress of the northern rebels
encouraged them to resume it a few" months after-
wards. On the same night, according to the agreement of
the conspirators, O'Neill surprised the castle of Charle
mont, under the pretext of a friendly visit to Lord
Caulfield, the commander, and the next day seized the
strong posts of Dungannon and Moneymore. At the
same time different Irish clans took forcible possession
of Mountjoy in Tyrone, Tandragee in Armagh, and
of Newry, Monaghan, Castleblany, Carrickfergus, Clou-
ghouter, and the open towns of Fermanagh, Donegal
and Derry. The Protestants having been disarmed
by Strafford, in 1639, to prevent their cooperation
with the Scots, could offer no effectual resistance.
The cities of Derry and Enniskillen, and a few de
tached forts, were preserved by means of timely in
telligence received from Sir William Cole of Ennis
killen. In the same manner Coleraine and Carrickfergus
were preserved. Mr. WUliam Eowley, living in the
neighborhood of Moneymore, hearing that the town
had been seized, hastened to Coleraine with the alarm
ing news, which was soon confirmed by the arrival of
great numbers of the pillaged inhabitants from the
counties of Derry and Antrim, and by this timely no
tice the important post of Coleraine was secured, aud
though frequently attacked, it was gallantly defended
by the inhabitants under Colonel Edward Eowley,
until relieved by aid from Scotland, and proved du
ring the first part of the rebellion an asylum for
many Protestants, including twenty ministers.
Carrickfergus, the only fortified town on the eastern

1610-] CARRICKFERGUS SECURED. 101
coast of Ulster, was also preserved from an attack al
ready arranged under one of the Macdonnels. The
news of the insurrection reached this place on the
night of the 23d of October, and Colonel Arthur
Chichester, the governor, took immediate measures for
saving the town by the beating of drums and lighting
beacons on the hills, thus warning the inhabitants of
the impending danger. The next day the Protestant
inhabitants from the surrounding country crowded in,
armed with pitchforks and such weapons as they could
procure in their haste. At first the insurrection was
thought to be no more than a local quarrel between
parties of the English and the Irish, but the return
of the scouts who had been sent out made known the
fact that it was a simultaneous rising of the Irish Eo
manists against the British power and people. News
of the rebellion was immediately dispatched to the
King at Edinburgh, which was received on the 28th
of October, it being the first intelligence which reached
Scotland. In the meantime the gentry and officers at
Carrickfergus consulted whether they should remain
and defend the town or issue out to meet the insur
gents, and after communicating by letter with Lord
Montgomery, in the county of Down, he directed them
to muster what force they could and meet him at Lis
burn the next day.
The town and castle of Antrim was secured on the
first outbreak by the prompt action of Colonel James
Clotworthy, who was acting in the place of his brother
Sir John, who was in London, and Castle Norton, at
Templepatrick, near Antrim, was put in a state of de
fence by Captain Henry Upton. The town of Larne
was held by Captain Agnew and the neighboring cas-

102 COLKITTO. [Ch. VIL
tie of Ballygelly by Mr. James Shaw. The lower
part of the county of Antrim was defended by Arch
ibald Stewart, Esq., the most influential Protestant in
that extensive district. On the morning of the 24th
of October, having received news of the rebellion, he
came to the church at Devock and informed the con
gregation of the danger, and immediately raised a force
of eight hundred men from among his own tenantry
and those of the Earl of Antrim, placing garrisons in
the church of Ballintoy and in the castle of Oldstone,
near Clough, besides establishing posts at the most
important points in the open country.
In order to draw off the Eoman Catholics of the
neighborhood from the rebels he appointed the fa
mous Colkitto (or Alaster Maodonnel) to a captaincy
in his own regiment ; and when a party of horse from
Carrickfergus came to arrest this well known and
influential Eomanist, Mr. Stewart interposed in his
behalf, but his confidence was almost immediately be
trayed by the desertion of Colkitto to the Eoman Cath
olic part}', and he aftervvards became the cruel and
implacable enemy of the Antrim Protestants.
Belfast and Lisburn were preserved by the courage
and prompt action of Eobert Lawson, a merchant of
Londonderry. At the time that the insurrection broke
out Mr. Lawson was on his way to Dubvin, when hear
ing of the rebellion at Newry he returned to Belfast,
and finding the inhabitants in the utmost consterna
tion he passed through the streets with a drum, calling
upon the men to unite with him in defence of the
place ; and having collected about one hundred and
twenty men, on the 25th of October, the second day
after the rebellion, he marched to Lisburn, which he

1641.] ROBERT LAWSON. 103
found deserted by the garrison and most of the inhab
itants. At night he illuminated the market-house
with candles and stationed sentries at many points of
the town with six or seven lighted matches apiece, in
order to deceive the enemy as to their numbers. The
next morning the rebels appeared before the town,
and Captain Lawson, selecting forty-five men, made a
sally, killing some and taking many prisoners. On
the 27th the garrison and inhabitants returned to hear
of the gaUant defence of the town by Lawson.
While Captain Lawson was thus protecting Lisburn,
Colonel Chichester had been endeavoring to effect the
proposed junction with Lord Montgomery at that town.
On Monday, the 25th, he mustered his forces in a field
adjoining Carrickfergus, and having left a sufficient
garrison in the castle, he raarched with the remainder,
amounting to about three hundred horse and foot to
wards the appointed rendezvous. They arrived at
Belfast in the afternoon, where they were joined by a
reinforcement of one hundred and fifty men from An
trim. On their march they met with one of Lord
Antrim's domestics, hastening from Dublin to in
form his lordship's friends in the north of the state of
affairs there. From him they obtained the welcome
intelligence of the preservation of the metropolis and
the seizure of the principal conspirators. They
remained all Monday at Belfast, but in the morning,
receiving information of a meditated attack upon Car
rickfergus, Colonel Chichester fell back for the sup
port of that important post, but the information prov
ing incorrect, he returned, and on Wednesday effected
a junction wtih Lord Montgomery, who had advanced
by Dfumbo. Captain Lawson, in view of his late gal-

104 ACTIVITY IN DOWN. [Ch- "VIL
lan try, received a commission from the Piotestant noble
men and officers assembled at Lisburn. The united
forces now gathered amounted to about fifteen hun
dred, but undisciplined and inadequately armed. With
the exception of a few strong places, Antrim was in
possession of the rebels, which they held until June
1642. While the Protestants in the southern portion of the
county of Antrim were thus occupied in providing
places of security, their brethren in Down were not in
active. Lords Claneboy and Montgomery stood upon
the defensive, and effectually checked the progress of
the insurrection in the adjoining districts. From
Newry, however, the insurgents, under Con Magennis,
advanced in a northerly direction towards the town of
Dromore, where the news of the rebellion had reached
a few days before. On the reception of the intelligence
Captain Matthews, the governor, with an escort of
about twenty men, had marched out towards Newry
to gain some information of the reported rising, and
on approaching the river Bann he discovered the in
surgents, amounting to five hundred, advancing on the
opposite side of the river ; upon demanding their pur
pose, they boldly avowed that it was to " fire all the
Protestants out of the country." Upon receiving this
answer Matthews retreated to Dromore, and after in
ducing the bishop, Dr. Buckworth, to remain for the
encouragement of the people, he collected a force of
one hundred and eighty foot, with which he boldly at
tacked the enemy, now near the town, and, without
losing a man, routed them completely, with a loss ou
their side of several hundred. The next day Colonel
Chichester arrived with a reinforcement, but finding

1641.] PROCLAMATION OF 0 NEILL. 105
the town untenable returned to Lisburn. Magennis
immediately took possession and treated with wanton
cruelty the few Protestants who had ventured to remain.
On the 4th of November O'Neill and Magennis issued
a proclamation from Newry " to all Catholics of the
Eoman party, both English and Irish, within the king
dora of Ireland, we wish all happiness, freedom of
conscience, and victory over the English heretics who
have for a long time tyrannized over our bodies and
usurped by extortion our estates." In this document
they set forth the King's commission, dated at Edin
burgh, authorizing them to take up arms in support of
the royal power and authorit3r, as their warrant, which
increased their numbers greatly, so that thirty thousand
men joined the standard of revolt three weeks from its
firet erection.
From this period all moderation was abandoned.
The failure of the attempt on Dublin led the more
moderate of the rebels to withdraw and left the move
ment in the hands of O'Neill and his fanatical adhe
rents, who soon began to disregard the royal injunc
tions and to carry on a savage war of extermination
against all Protestants, both Scotch and English. He
encouraged his infuriated followers to give free vent to
the direful passions of hatred and revenge which the
Eomish priesthood had for years been fostering in their
breasts against the Protestants. Prompted thus by the
priests and by Ever M'Mahon, the Eomish Bishop of
Down, he plunged into the deepest atrocities. The
result was one of the most fearful massacres on rec
ord, in which no condition, age, or sex was spared.
All appeals to humanity or the ties of blood were in
vain ; companions, friends, relations, dealt with their

106 ULSTER A FIELD OF BLOOD. [Cn. VIL
own hands the fatal blow ; sons pleading for their pa
rents were struck down with the words on their lips ;
the tender mother was made the witness of the death
of her child ; the wife, weeping over the body of her
mangled husband, experienced a death no less horrid
than that which she deplored. Among the insurgents,
women, whose feeble minds received a yet stronger
impression of religious frenzy, were more ferocious
than the men ; and children, excited by the example
and exhortation of their parents, stained their innocent
age with the blackest deeds of human butchery. The
sighs, groans, and shrieks ofthe victims were answered
with — " Spare neither man, woman, nor child ; the
English are meat for dogs ; there shall not be one drop
of English blood left within the kingdom." This led
to terrible retaliations, one of which, the masisacre of
Islandmagee, has been represented as the first blood
shed in the rebellion, as perpetrated by a military
force, and as involving the death of more than three
thousand ; whereas it was a local act of revenge, occa
sioned by previous acts of treachery and enmity, and
executed by country people with the aid of a few sol
diers, on the 9th of January, 1642, only thirty persons
being killed.
Ulster was now converted into a " field of blood."
The cruelties ofthe Eomanists drew down upon them,
as we have seen, severe retaliation on the part of the
betrayed and exasperated Protestants. Seldom was
any quarter given by the rebels to those who fell into
their hands ; so that during the winter season the
greater part of all the northern counties exhibited
appalling scenes of horrid cruelty.
The evils of this civil war were aggravated by the

1641.] GKEAT MORTALITY. 107
horrors of famine and pestilence, occasioned by the
wanton destruction of provisions and neglect of burial,
the ravages of which, as stated, are almost incredible,
cspeciall}' in Coleraine. The following account of its
fatality in the county of Antrim alone has been pre
served, and though probably exaggerated will convey
some idea of its malignity : — " The Lord sent a pesti
lential fever, which swept away innumerable people, in
somuch that in Coleraine there died in four months, by
computation, six thousand ; in Carrickfergus, two thou
sand five hundred ; in Belfast and Malone, above two
thousand ; in Lisnegarvey, eight hundred ; and in An
trim and other places a proportionable number." A
niinister who resided in Coleraine during the whole
course of the rebellion, says: — "In four months, the
mortality beginning with tho spring, there died an
hundred a woek constantly, and sometimes an hun
dred and fifty, by just account taken by Henry Beres
ford, gentleman, one of the last that closed that black
list ; so that two thousand died in a short space."
Though all classes of Protestants were equally ex
posed lo the persecution, yet the clergy were especially
marked by the priests as the first victims of their fury,
and especially was the Bible an object of their rage, which
was torn, burnt, trampled on, and treated with all pos
sible indignity, saying, "a plague on it ; this book hath
bred all the quarrel ;" and as they were burning, ex
claiming that it was " hell fire that was burning," and
wishing that they had " all the Bibles in Christendom,
that they might use them so."
About thirty ministers were massacred in one small
part of Ulster, while many more died in extrerae wretch
edness. Bishop Bedell, of Kilmore, was spared by the

108 SUFFERINGS OF THE MINISTERS- [Cn. VII.
rebels, on account of his benevolence and known de
votion to the Irish interest. He was the only English
man left undisturbed in the county of Cavan. He even
furnished an asylum to others, who filled his house,
outbuildings, church, and churchyard. This contin
ued for eight weeks after the breaking out of the re
bellion, when more violent measures were resorted to
by the Irish leaders, and he was removed as a prisoner
to Lochwater Castle. After three weeks' imprisonment
in this wretched tower, situated in the middle of a lake,
he and his family were released. But they were not
permitted to leave the county, but resided in the house
of a Protestant minister. While residing there he was
seized with his last sickness, which continued to in
crease, until on the 7th of February, 1642, he fell asleep
in the Lord and entered into his rest. Before his death
he had requested that he might be buried by the side
of his wife in the churchyard of Kilmore, which was
after some hesitation granted. The Irish did him un
usual honor at his burial ; they discharged a volley of
shot over his grave, and cried out, " Eequiescat in pace
ultimus anglorum." According to another account,
(not given by Bishop Burnet,) a Popish priest said
on the same occasion, "O, sit anima mea cum Be-
dello !"
The war was worst in Ulster, its excesses being con
demned even by the Papists and the rebels of the other
provinces, where there was less to provoke fanatical
fury. The rebels boasted to Dr. Maxwell, Bedell's
successor, when a prisoner in their hands, that by the
month of March they had slain one hundred and fifty-
four thousand Protestants ; and a printed book, by an
Irish Jesuit, published in 1645, admits that one hun-

1641.] PRESB YTERI.VNS DEFEND THEMSELVES. 109
dred and fifty thousand heretics had been cut off in
four ycare. The lowest estimate supposes thirt3'-seven
thousand to have died the first year.
Thus the Presbyterian interest in Ulster was almost
totally destroyed. Protestant prelates had commenced
the work of compelling thc greater part of the Presby
terians to flee to Scotland. But what appeared to be
the ruin proved to be the preservation of the Church,
while they who had been thc foremost to persecute
were the first to suffer. For, on the bishops and other
dignified clergy the Eoman Catholics vented their rage
and indignation ; and while the Scots were, in the first
instance spared, their Episcopal persecutors were in
their turn compelled to abandon their properties, and
fly for refuge to England.
As a body, the Presbyterians suffered less by the
ravages of the rebellion than any other class. The
more influential of their ministers and the principal
part of their gentry had previously retired to Scot
land, to escape the t}ranny of Strafford and the sever
ities of the bishops, and were thus providentially pre
served. Those who remained in the countiy were at
first unmolested by the Irish, in conformity with the
royal commission. Their temporary preservation gave
them time to procure arms and to take other necessary
measures to protect themselves against the storm which
they saw approaching. When the rebels, therefore,
abandoned their professed neutrality and fell upon
them as furiously as upon the English, thej- were pre
pared for the attack. When they associated together
in sufficient numbers, the}' were generally enabled to
maintain their ground, and frequently repulsed the as
sailants w ith loss. But when, trusting to the profes-

110 PERFIDY OF THE REBELS. [Ch. VIL
sions of their Irish neighbors, they relaxed their vigi
lance and continued unarmed, they seldom failed to
suffer the penalty of their misplaced confidence. One
instance may suffice to prove the truth of this observa
tion. Mr. Eobert Stewart of the Irry, near Stewarts-
town, in the county of Tyrone, a relation of the Cas
tlestewart family, and married to the grand-daughter
ofthe outlawed Earl of Tyrone, had, on the first alarm
of the rebellion, collected and armed about six hun
dred Scots. With this force he could easily have de
fended the whole of the surrounding country. Being
assured, however, by his Irish relations that none of
the Scots should suffer any molestation, he was induced
in a few days to dismiss his followers and take back
their arms. But the very night on which they reached
their homes the greater number of them were mur
dered by their perfidious enemies.
The public ordinances of religion were, of course, in
terrupted, the ministers killed or fied, the churches
burned or seized by the papists. But neither the re
straints to which they were subjected under the bishops
nor their present destitution weakened their attachment
to their church. They retained their religious princi
ples as firmly and successfully as they did their lives
and property until the arrival of succor from Scotland ;
and the return of their banished brethren, after peace
had been restored, enabled them to revive their church
in Ulster under more favorable circumstances than
at its first plantation.

CHAPTER VIII .
1641, 1642.
The necessary steps having been taken to secure the
capital, the Lords Justices sent messengers to inform
the King in Edinburgh and the Parliament in England
of their perilous position. Commissioners were also
sent by sea to Ulster, the rebels holding the overland
route, empowering Captain Arthur Chichester and Sir
Arthur Tyringham to take command of all the forces
in the county of Antrim, and urging Lords Chichester,
Claneboy, and Montgomery to use their best efforts to
suppress the rebellion. On the 7th of November dis
patches were received from the King promising the
northern Protestants immediate support. The princi
pal gentlemen of Ulster were commissioned to raise
troops against the rebels, and Sir John Clotworthy re
turned to Antrim to share in the perils and fatigues of
the war. Arms and ammunition were abundantly
provided, so that in a short time the Protestant leaders
in Ulster were fully prepared to meet the rebels. In
the meantime O'Neill reduced the castle of Lurgan,
after a gallant defense by Sir William Brownlow, who
capitulated on condition of his being permitted to re
tire with his family and property, which condition was
most treacherously violated, his servants being stripped
and plundered, some of them killed, and himself and
family thrown into prison. Being repulsed in an at
tack upon Lisburn by Sir Arthur Tyringham and Sir

112 THE LAGAN FORCES. [Ch. Vni
George Eawdon, O'Neill withdrew to the northwest of
Ulster, but was there again disappointed, capturing
but few places of little importance. In the beginning
of December he succeeded in taking Strabane, plun
dering and burning the town and holding the castle.
He remained in the castle with his forces, making oc
casional incursions through the adjoining country, but
becoming enamored with lady Strabane, he carried her
to his castle at Caledon, where they were afterwards
married. This part of the country was successfully defended
by the Lagan forces, a thousand were raised in Done
gal and Tyrone, called from the Lagan, the name of
the district between the Foyle and the Swilly. These
forces were commanded by Sir William and Sir Eobert
Stewart, under the King's commission. Though un
able to protect Strabane, they garrisoned Newton-Stew
art and Omagh, and relieved Castle Augher in Tyrone,
held by the Eev. Archibald Areskine against Phelim
O' Neill and Eory Maguire, who had invested it. Driv
en from Augher the rebels next invested Castlederg
in the same county, from which they were repulsed by
Sir Eobert Stewart. In the meantime Sir William
Stewart, with another portion of the Lagan forces,
marched to Kilmacrenan, in Donegal, where the rebels
had early taken possession of Sir William's castle,
plundering his towns and scattering the Protestant
inhabitants ; another party, under Captains Maxwell
and George Stewart, recovered Eamelton and its castle,
and supported by the neighboring garrison of Derry,
effectually checked the progress of the rebels in that
quarter. The city of Derry was abundantly provided
with defenders, but deficient in supplies and ammuni-

1641.] SUPPLIES PROM ENGLAND AND SCOTLAND. 113
tion, which occasioned great privations. The leading
men here, were the governor. Sir John Vaughan, the
mayor Eobert Thornton, Captain Lawson, who has
been already mentioned, and his brother-in-law. Alder
man Henry Osborn.
These commanders entered into a mutual " league"
for the protection of the city and the surrounding
country. They repaired the ramparts, built barracks
for the soldiers within the walls, and sent word of
their situation to the King in Edinburg, to their land
lords, the corporation of the city of London, who sent
them ordnance, and to the Lords Justices at Dublin,
from whom they received arms and ammunition. Here,
suffering many privations, they spent the winter.
The state of affairs in Ulster now attracted univer
sal attention, and as soon as the King had informed the
Scottish Parliament of the breaking out of the rebel
lion, they ordered an examination of the shipping on
their western coast, to see how many men could be
transported to Ulster ; upon further information they
offered a supply of three thousand stand of arms and
ten thousand men for the relief of Ireland. But feel
ing their inability to give full assistance they opened
negotiations with the English Parliament. The Com
mons had already, from the news which 0' Connolly
had communicated of the rebellion, voted money and
a levy of men, but the critical condition of Ireland
coming to their knowledge they increased the sup
plies. On the 10th of December, thc first conference
on this subject took place in London between a com
mittee from the two Houses of Parliament, on the one
hand, and commissioners sent up from Scotland on the
other, but these negotiations were embarrassed by the

114 ARRIVAL OF SCOTCH REGIMENTS. [Ch. VIU.
mutual jealousies of King and Parliament; but at
length Charles issued his commission, dated Feb. 8tb,
1642, for ten thousand men, of which twenty-five
hundred were to be sent at once and occupy Carrick
fergus, while the rest were to follow as soon as possible
and take possession of Coleraine.
The first draft was composed of detachments from
seven Scotch regiments (viz : Glencairn's, Argyle's, Eg-
lington's, Sinclair's, Home's, Monroe's and Lindsay's,)
under the command of Major General Eobert Monroe,
an able and experienced officer. They reached their
rendezvous on the western coast of Scotland about the
middle of March, but on account of various deten
tions they did not reach Carrickfergus till the 15th of
April, when they immediately relieved the regiments
of Conway and Chichester, who moved to Belfast.
With these regiments, and those of Claneboy and
Montgomery united to his own, (except a garrison of
eight hundred left at Carrickfergus,) Monroe attacked
the rebels in the woods of Kilwarlin, where, under
the command of Con Magennis, they held an impor
tant pass on the road to Newry. After a short skir
mish, the rebels were put to flight ; and the British,
following the example which the Irish had too often
set in previous encounters of refusing quarter, cru
elly and unjustifiably put to death all who fell into
their hands.
On Saturday, the 30th of April, both divisions of
the army met at this pass, and having defeated an
other body of the rebels at Loughbrickland, they
marched to Newry, which had been iu possession of
the Irish for six months. The tovvn, being imperfectly
fortified, was immediately takon by Monroe, and, with

1642.] THEY DEFEAT THE REBELS. 115
the exception of a few houses, was given up to plunder.
The castle held out for two days, but on the 3d of
May it was surrendered to the British. In these bat
tles the British troops retaliated with shocking se
verity upon the Irish, which greatly exasperated the
rebels and increased their cruelty to the Protestants.
After resting for two days at Newry, leaving a garri
son under command of Lieutenant Colonel Sinclair
and Major, afterwards Sir James Turner, Monroe
marched to Armagh, hoping to surprise Sir Phelim
O'Neill, but he having notice of his approach, and
exasperated at the loss of Newry, set fire to Armagh,
with its ancient cathedral, murdered a vast number
of Protestant inhabitants and prisoners, and withdrew
to Charlemont, most of his followers taking refuge in
the bogs and mountains of Tyrone.
The Scots, returning from Newry to Carrickfergus,
encountered, on the Sth of May, a storm of unparalleled
severity, of which we have a graphic account in the
diary of Major Turner, one of Monroe's officers, after
wards famous as a military persecutor of the Presby
terians in Scotland.
On Monroe's return to Carrickfergus he found wait
ing his arrival a raessenger sent by sea from Derry, to
acquaint him with the distressed situation of that cit}',
and to entreat supplies of arms and ammunition. Sir
Phelim O'Neill knowing their criiical position, and that
Monroe had returned to Carrickfergus, marched from
Charlemont to Strabane, with the view of expelling
the Protestants from Donegal and Tyrone, and, if
possible, taking possession of Derry. But the Lagan
forces, under the command of the two Stewarts, not
only drove him back, and relieved several besieged

116 THE EARL OF ANTRIM'S TREACHERY. [Ch. VIII.
places in the county Derry, but recovered Strabane,
thus in a great measure breaking the power of the
rebels in the northwest of Ulster.
It appears from Monroe's correspondence with Gen
eral Leslie, at Edinburgh, that the deficiency of his
supplies not only hindered his assisting othere, but di
minished the efficiency of his own troops, some of
whom he was compelled to quarter on the county.
About the same time he received advances from the
Earl of Antrim, one of the first movers in the re
bellion, but who had withdrawn from it on the dis
covery ofthe plot at Dublin, and was negotiating with
both parties at his castle of Dunluce. Here, on the
one hand, he held secret interviews with O'Neill, and
occasionally mingled with the insurgents, among whom
his brother Alexander, afterwards the third Earl of
Antrim, was a most influential leader ; on the other
hand, he professed sympathy with the plundered Brit
ish, and officiously sought to relieve their distresses.
Eemoving to another of his castles, at Glenarm, only
twelve miles from Carrickfergus, he invited Monroe
to meet him there, which he, knowing his double deal
ings, answered in June by marching thither with his
forces and Sir John Clotworthy's regiment, but find
ing Antrim gone again to Dunluce, he burnt Glen
arm, and proceeded to the north, where he was
joined by new levies from Scotland, chiefly belonging
to Argyle's regiment. With this increased force
he returned to Dunluce, and compelled the Earl of
Antrim to surrender, leaving his lieutenant colonel to
command the castle. He placed his prisoner in Car
rickfergus, at the same time garrisoning other forts
which had belongod to Antrim with the soldiers of

[1642. O'NEILL DEFEATED. 117
Argyle, the hereditary foe of the Macdonnels, and
after driving the rebels from the north of the country
across the Bann, returned with great boot}' in cattle
to his head -quarters.
Meantirae O'Neill was joined by fugitives from
Antrim, under the command of Colkitto, and know
ing the distress of the Lagan forces, marched into
Donegal to meet the Stewarts. Both parties met at
Glenmaekwin, near Jlaphoe, and after the severest
conflict which had taken place in Ulster, the rebels
were totally routed, with a loss, it is said, of five hun
dred men.
Soon after this decisive victory, Monro, with Con
way, Montgomery and Claneboy, reentered Armagh,
took Dungannon, burnt O'Neill's own castle at Cale
don, and laid seige to Charlemont, the only place of
strength still possessed by the rebels in this part of
the country, but they were compelled to raise the seige
for want of ammunition and provisions, and return to
Carrickfergus. While these advantages were gained
by land. Sir John Clotworthy defeated the rebels in
several skirmishes on Lough Neagh, the command of
which had been intrusted to him by a special resolu
tion of the English Commons. They authorized bim
to provide vessels for the defence of the Lough and
its extensive line of coast, and to man them with a
competent force, who were to be in the pay of the
Parliament. He accordingly built a large vessel, called
the Sydney, of about twenty tons burden, and furn
ished with six brass guns ; and about a dozen smaller
boats, carrying sixty men each, and capable of trans
porting a thousand men to any part of the Lough.
These he nlaced under the command of his relative,

118 THE REBELLION QUELLED. [Ch. VIII.
Captain Langford, and of Owen 0' Connolly, before
mentioned, who had returned with him from London,
and upon whom he also conferred the command of a
company in his regiment of foot.
While in this port. Colonel Clotworthy gained sev
eral important advantages over the rebels, driving
them from certain intrenchments which they had
formed upon the western side of the Lough, routing
Sir Phelim O' Neill, with the loss of his Lieutenant
Colonel, one of the 0' Quins, several officers, and
about sixty men, and breaking up an encampment of
the rebels at Moneymore, where he saved the lives of
one hundred and twenty English and Scotch prisoners,
whom they were just preparing to murder. Sir John
also erected a fort at Toome, upon the Bann, which
gave him the command of that river, and enabled his
regiment to make incursions at their pleasure into the
county of Derry. To retaliate these inroads, the Irish
garison at Charlemont also built several boats, in
which they sailed down the Blackwater into the Lough,
and plundered the coast in various directions. Sev
eral skirmishes occurred between these boats and those
of Sir John Clotworthy, until finally they were entire
ly routed with a loss of sixty men, and their boats,
with a large number of prisoners, were conveyed in
triumph to Antrim. These vigorous proceedings re
stored partial peace to Ulster ; the Papists despaired
of resisting the British forces ; and the rebel chiefs
resolved to disband their followers and seek safety for
themselves on the continent or in the Highlands of
Scotland. This cessation of hostilities, though partial and tem
porary, paved the way for the reestablishment of re-

1642] STATE OF THE PROTESTANTS. 119
ligion. The Episcopal Church, which had been so
intolerant in the hour of her prosperity, was now
overthrown and desolate, and out of her ruins speed
ily arose the simpler fabric of Presbyterianism. Few
of her clergy and not one of her prelates retnained in
the province. Her last bishop who withdrew was Les
lie of Eaphoe ; after gallantly defending the Episco
pal castle which he had erected, and relieving several
besieged castles in the district, he retired to Scotland
in the end of June, and thence to England, where he
joined the royalists, and was made bishop of Clogher
after the restoration. Few of the Protestant laity
were conscientious prelatists. Even under the des
potic sway of Strafford and the northern bishops, the
reader has seen that little more than a reluctant and
insincere conformity was effected by all their severities.
When this oppressive constraint was removed, the ma
jority did not hesitate to declare their approbation of
the Scriptural forms of the Presbyterian church, while
many who were in principle Episcopalians were at
this critical conjuncture disposed to abandon that
church, when they beheld its prelates and higher
clergy in the sister kingdom opposed to the great
cause of civil liberty. The number of those attached
to Presbytery was still further increased by the return
of the original Scottish settlers or their descendants.
On these accounts, the great majority of the Protest
ants in Ulster were now decidedly in favor of Presby
terianism, and desirous that the rebuilding of the
church in Ulster might proceed upon that Scriptural
foundation. The opening thus made was opportunely filled by
the arrival of the troops from Scotland with their regi-

120 ARMY CHAPLAINS. [Ch. VIII.
mental chaplains. By these prudent and zealous men
the foundations of the Presbyterian Church were once
more laid in Ulster. By their agency the Presbyterian
Church assumed that regular and organized form which
she still retains ; and from this period the history of
her ministers, her congregations, and her ecclesiastical
courts, as they now exist, can be traced in uninter
rupted succession. The doctrines taught by these
brethren she still zealously inculcates and upholds ;
the forms of worship they introduced continue to be
strictly observed, and the government and discipline
they founded remain in all essential points unaltered
at the present time. Of the ministers who were instru
mental in rebuilding Presbyterianism in Ulster, Hugh
Cunningham, Chaplain to Earl Glencairn's regiment ;
Thomas Peebles, to Egiinton's ; John Baird, to Ar
gyle's ; James Simpson, to Sinclair's — settled in Ire
land ; while John Scott, Chaplain to Monro's own regi
ment, and John Aird, to Home's (or Lindsay's), seem
to have returned to Scotland. The only other minis
ter who is known to have accompanied the army is one
with whose life and character the reader is already fa
miliar, John Livingston, who was attached by order
of the Scottish council to Sir John Clotworthy's regi
ment, in Antrim. He describes the religious state of
Ulster as sadly changed since his removal, yet some
few were in " a very lively condition."
The first step taken by these chaplains after the re
turn of the army from Newry, and its settlement in
quarters at Carrickfergus, was the erection of a session
in each regiment, with the concurrence of the general and
the colonels, choosing as elders godly officers, of whom
there were many in the Scottish army. Having consti-

1642.] ACTION OF THE PRESBYTERY. 121
tuted sessions in four regiments then at headquarters,
viz., Argyle's, Egiinton's, Glencairn's, and Home's,
they organized a Presbytery at Carrickfergus on the
IQth of June, 1642.
This meeting, memorable as the first regularly con
stituted Presbytery held in Ireland, was attended by
five ministers, viz., Messrs. Cunningham, Baird, Pee
bles, Scott and Aird, (Mr. Simpson being at Newry
with his regiment, and Livingston at Antrim,) and
by four ruling elders from the four sessions already
erected. Baird preached, by previous appointment,
on Psalm 51, (from verse 18 to end.) Peebles was
made clerk, and so continued nearly thirty years,
until his death. Bach minister produced his act of
admission to his charge or regiment, in virtue of which
he sat as a member of Presbytery ; and the ruling eld
ers, in like manner, submitted their commissions from
their respective sessions. They authorized some of
the brethren to confer with the colonels of those regi
ments in which there was as yet no sessions, in order
that these courts might be forthwith constituted. They
enjoined each minister to commence a regular course
of examination and catechetical instruction in his regi
mental charge. They resolved to hold, for a time at
least, weekly meetings, and to open each meeting with a
discourse by one of the brethren, choosing as the sub
ject of their Presby terial exercises the book of Isaiah ,
and they concluded with appointing a fast to be ob
served the following week, in reference to the state of
the Church in Germany, Bohemia, England and Ire
land. At this meeting they also wrote to Lords Claneboy
and Montgomery to join them, with their regimental
6

122 THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY PETITIONED. [Oh. VIII.
chaplains. The answers from these noblemen, once the
tools of Strafford, were most favorable, expressing their
willingness to have their chaplains regularly tried and
admitted as ministers to their respective regiments,
which was soon after done by the Presbytery. These
two noblemen did not long survive their junction with
the Presbytery, both dying within a year.
Applications now poured in from the adjoining par
ishes for organization and supplies, which were granted,
first, to Ballymena, Antrim, Cairncastle, Templepat
rick, Carrickfergus, Larne and Belfast, in the county
of Antrim ; and to Ballywater, Newtonards, Holy-
wood, Bangor, Portaferry, Donaghadee, KillUagh and
Comber, in the county of Down.
It was soon found that without assistance from Scot
land, it would be impossible to afford all these places
adequate supplies of preaching. Accordingly, the peo
ple agreed to petition the General Assembly for a sup
ply of ministere ; and several of the parishes, where the
brethren, now alive in Scotland, had officiated before
the persecutions of Strafford and Leslie, desirous of
obtaining once more the services of their beloved pas
tors, resolved to make special application to the As
sembly to permit these ministers to accept of calls from
Ireland. Accordingly, the parishes of Bangor and
Ballywater sent a petition to the General Assembly,
which met at St. Andrews in July, 1642, signed by
forty-one heads of families, praying for the restoration
of their old pastors, Baird and Hamilton.
Another and more general petition from the Presby
terians of Down and Antrim, signed by two hundred
and twenty-five persons, was sent down at the same
time, setting forth in affecting terms their distressed

1642.] SCOTCH MINISTERS SENT OVER. 123
condition and destitution of the divine ordinances.
This petition was granted by the appointment of six
ministers to spend a year in Ireland, each four months,
and two by two. The three pair thus appointed were
Blair of St. Andrews and Hamilton of Dumfries, Eob
ert Eamsay of Glasgow and John M'Clelland of Kir
cudbright, Eobert Baillie of Glasgow College and John
Livingston of Stranraer.

CHAPTER IX.
1642, 1643.
According to the order of the General Assembly,
Eobert Blair and James Hamilton revisited Ulster in
September, 1642, and having presented their commis
sion, in conjunction with the Irish Assembly they pro
ceeded to organize churches throughout the province.
The seed which had been sown in former years now
began to bear fruit. Great numbers flocked from dif
ferent parts of the country, declaring their attachment
to the Presbyterian Church and a wish that it might be
established. The Presbytery were not hasty in their action in
organizing churches, but admitted none who did not
heartily approve of the Presbyterian system, or were
unable to state the reasons of their approbation. Who
ever had been guilty of immoral conduct, or had taken
the Black Oath or conformed to prelacy, were required
to make public confession of their sin and profession
of repentance. On these terms many of the Episcopal
clergy were received as preachers, but not as members
of the Presbytery till they had been called and in
stalled in congregations. From a narrative of Mr. Blair
we learn something of his proceedings during this
visit. It was his custom to preach once each day and
twice on the Sabbath, the gatherings being so large
that he was often compelled to go into the fields. He

1642.] SCOTCH MINISTERS VISIT IRELAND. 125
preached with great earnestness against those who had
been led astray by their prelatical rulers, exhorting
them to fly to God for reconciliation and pardon
through Christ. Many old Christians declared that
they had never heard the gospel so powerfully exhib
ited, nor the heart meltings among the people so great.
Mr. Hamilton was engaged in the same labors, and,
by a singular Providence, Blair and Harailton were
now engaged for the third time in erecting Presbyte
rianism on the ruins of prelacy, having aided in the
same work once before in Ireland and once in Scot
land. It was some time before they could suppress the
practices of private baptism and private marriages, and
kneeling at the communion on the part of their con
verts from Episcopacy. But let it be observed that no
efforts Avere made to enforce this upon any but those
who had voluntarily adopted the Presbyterian system.
They onlj' desired that so long as any professed to be
Presbyterians they should act consistently with that
profession. They next attempted to put a stop to cer
tain errors in reference to infant baptism and to some
teachings tending to Antinomianism, which had been
introduced by two Baptist preachers (Cornwall and
Verner) at Antrim. They, in conjunction with the
Presbytery, warned the people against them, and sum
moned these disturbers of the peace to appear and an
swer for their errors before the Presbytery, but they
never came, and their opinions spread no further.
On the 27th of November the Presbytery appointed
a pubhc fast, in view of the distracted state of England,
and the poverty, discouragement and sinfulness of the
people and army, after which they proceeded to the
ordination of two chaplains (John Drysdale and James

126 JAMES HOUSTON. [^^- ^^
Baty, (who had been attached to the regiments of
Claneboy and Montgomery,) to the pastoral charge of
Portaferry and Ballywalter; HamUton presiding at
the ordination of his own successor, with a reservation
of his own right by the people and Presbytery, " If
God should clear his return to that place." The As
sembly's visitors, having spent three months in Ireland,
and reorganized the church in Down and Antrim, re
turned to Scotland near the close of the year, bearing
an earnest request for additional supplies.
Meanwhile another Scotch force of four thousand
men, under Leslie, Earl of Leven, having come over
in August, the Presbytery directed them to provide
themselves with chaplains, who were examined as they
came, and some of them rejected. Among these was
James Houston, who had been minister at Glasford,
and was esteemed "a pious and very zealous young
man," but for some grave offence he was deposed
by the Presbytery of Hamilton ; but being invited to
become a chaplain, he was with that view restored by
the Presbytery of Paisley, whereupon his former pa
rishioners prayed that he might be restored to them,
which petition was refused by thera, but the case being
brought before the Provincial Synod of Glasford, he
was permitted to return ; but on appeal to the General
Assembly of 1642, Houston was not only rejected,
but finally removed from the ministerial office.
In May, 1643, John Livingston came over, accom
panied by James Blair of Portpatrick. Like their
predecessors, they preached every day and twice upon
the Sabbath, often in the open air, as no houses could
contain the people. Livingston, in describing their
labors, writes, "Usually I desired no more before I

1643.] PETITION OF THE PRESBYTERY. 127
went to bed, but to make sure of the place of Scripture
I was to preach on tho next day. A.nd rising in the
morning, I had four or five hours myself alone, either
in a chamber or in the fields ; after that we went to
church, and then dined, and then rode five or six
miles, more or less, to another parish. Sometimes
there would be four or five communions in several
places in the three months time."
After the return of Blair and Livingston, on account
of the great scarcity of ministers, the Presbytery sent
a commissioner, the Eev. John Scott, to the General
Assembly, which sat in Edinburg in August, 1643, with
a petition for additional supplies, which was seconded
by a letter from Lord Montgomery, who afterwards
became a persecutor of the Presbyterians. The peti
tion, after speaking of their destitute condition, and
their entire dependence upon the parent church, goes
on to say : — "It is therefore our humble and earnest
desire that you would yet again look on our former
petition, and your own obligatory act, and at least de
clare your consent that a competent number of our
own ministers may be loosed to settle here, and break
bread to the children that lie fainting at the head of all
streets ; which, though it may be accounted but a re
storing of what we have lost and -yoa have found, we
shall esteem it as the most precious gift that earth can
afford. When they are so loosed, if they find not all
things concurring to clear God's calling, it will be
in their hand to forbear, and you have testified your
bounty. But oh ! for the Lord's sake do not kill our
dying souls, by denying them our necessary desires.
There are about twelve or fourteen congregations on
this nearest coast ; let us have at least a competent

128 THE assembly's answer. [^"- ^^
number that may erect Christ's throne of, discipline,
and may help to bring in others ; and then shall \fe
sing, that the people who were left of the sword have
found grace in the wilderness."
This petition, with the letter of Lord Montgomery,
were referred to a committee, who reported that as
Ireland was a dependency of England, nothing could
be done untU the English Parliament gave their con
sent that the ecclesiastical changes now proposed met
with their approbation, and recommended that the
state of the Irish church be referred to the Commission
from the English Parliament. But in the present dis
tress the standing commission of the church was
directed lo send over to Ireland " expectants" or proba
tioners, who were to do all that they could to meet the
exigency. A reply to the general petition, presented
by Sir Eobert Adair, was also drawn up and approved,
in which they declined to lose any of their ministers,
but they willingly made an appointment of mini.sters
to visit Ulster in rotation till the next Assembly, two
and two for three months as before. These were, from
the Sth of September, 1643, WiUiam Cockburn of
Kirkmichael and Mathew Mackaill of Carmanoch ;
from the Sth of December, George Hutchinson of Col-
monel and Hugh Henderson of Dailly; from the Sth
of March, 1644, William Adair of Ayr and J.ihn Weir
of Dalserf ; from the Sth of June, James Hamilton of
Dumfries and John Maclelland of Kirkcudbright.
These were commanded to visit the north of Ireland
and "instruct, comfort and encourage the scattered
flocks of Christ."
This General Assembly whose proceedings we have
been considering, is memorable as having involved the

1643.] ENGLISH PARLIAMENT IN DIFFICULTY. 129
Church of Scotland in the quarrel between King and
Parliament. The civil war had begun in England, Charles having
raised his standard at Nottingham, August 25, 1642,
and the Parliament an army, under the Earl of Essex.
In the first campaign the parties were nearly balanced,
but it was terminated on the approach of winter, with
no advantage on either side; but in the spring of
1643, the King's army was victorious both in the
north and in the south. The Parliament being thus
placed in a very precarious situation, and civil and
religious liberty greatly endangered, an appeal was
made to Scotland for assistance. They represented
the downfall of the Parliament as the destruction of
all constitutional freedom, and to be followed by the
subjugation of the Scottish nation and church, and, as
an inducement, they held out hopes of Presbyterian
ism becoming the established religion throughout the
empire. This was made more hopeful by the growing
opposition to Episcopacy, and the feelings of the Long
Parliament, which were evinced by the execution of
Strafford and the impeachment of Laud; and the
House of Commons was flooded with petitions against
the hierarchy, as being opposed to all civil and relig
ious freedom. Accordingly the Commons, early in
1641, voted to exclude the bishops from all legislative
functions, but the bill was thrown out in the House
of Lords.
Many plans for remodelling the church were un
successfully presented, the most remarkable of which
' was the scheme of Ussher, in which he professed to
unite Prelacy and Presbytery, and which he caUed
" the form of synodical government received in the
G*

130 CHURCH OF SCOTLAND. [Ch. IX.
ancient church," which was nothing but a modified
Episcopacy, which Charles and the great body of the
bishops strongly opposed ; but in February, 1642, a
bill was passed preventing persons in holy orders from
exercising temporal jurisdiction, and consequently ex
cluding the bishops from Parliament. This bill was,
after much hesitation, signed by the King, and in the
following month notice was given by the Commons
of their intention of calling an assembly of divines
to assist them in reforming the abuses of the church.
The majority, both of the clergy and laity in Eng
land, were inclined at this time to Presbyterian purity
and freedom, while the Parliament was mostly Eras
tian in sentiment, i. e., regarded the church as the
creature ofthe State, and therefore the wise magistrate
could model the church without reference to the au
thority of the Scriptures.
The Church of Scotland having been reformed anew,
and in a high state of efficiency, attracted the atten
tion of the English at this junction, and induced a
proposition from the Parliament to the Assembly, at
St. Andrews, for joint and uniform reform. The As
sembly, in their answer, took the ground that there
can be no hope for tranquility until Episcopacy is
abrogated, and a uniform government established
throughout the empire, and as Episcopacy was almost
universally acknowledged to be a human contrivance
it could therefore be more easily abolished, " without
wronging any man's conscience." This was the be
ginning of a correspondence between the two king
doms, which afterwards led to the most memorable (
results. The Scots had thus far not committed them
selves to either side, but had endeavored to mediate

1643.] DECLARATION OF THE PARLIAMENT. 131
between them and effect a reconciliation ; but this was
found to be impossible, and the Parliament, by prom
ising an extension of the Presbyterian system, pre
vailed, and the Scots espoused their cause, which
eventually led to its triumph.
On the 1st of September the Coramons, and on the
9th the House of Lords, concurred in an answer to the
Assembly's letter. They express in this famous Dec
laration a desire for uniformity of religion throughout
the kingdom ; they condemn prelacy as leading to in
tolerable grievances, and as hostile to the wishes of
the people, "upon which accounts," they say, "and
many others, we declare that this government, by arch
bishops, bishops, their chancellors and commissaries,
deans and chapters, archdeacons and other ecclesistical
officers depending upon the hierarchy, is evil and justly
offensive and burdensome to the kingdom, a great im
pediment to reformation, and very prejudicial to the
civil government, and that we are resolved the same
shall be taken away." This was carried into effect by
act of Parliament in January, but never received the
assent of the king, whose successes about this time
making the aid of Scotland indispensable to his op
ponents, they proceeded, without waiting for the royal
concurrence, to pass this ordinance, and also one con
voking an assembly of divines, to meet at Westmin
ster, and aid them in settling such a government in
the church " as may be agreeable to God's holy word,
and bring (us) into nearer agreement with the church
of Scotland and other reformed churches abroad."
Though forbidden by royal proclamation, this cele
brated Assembly met, on Saturday, July 1st, 1643.
It was merely advisory, without ecclesiastical author-

132 WESTMINSTER ASSEMBLY. l*^^- ^^'
ity, consisting of one hundred and twenty divines,
among whom were Joshua Hoyle, D. D., for many
years professor of divinity in Trinity College, Dublin,
and afterwards at Oxford, and Thomas Temple, D. D.,
formerly fellow of that college, but for some years set
tled at Battersea, near London. Among the lay as
sessors (two lords and twenty commoners) was Sir
John Clotworthy, of Antrim, who has been so often
mentioned. Commissioners were now sent to Scotland to the Scot
tish Parliament, and to the General Assembly, to nego-
ciate a civil league between the kingdoms ; but the
Scotts insisting on a religious covenant, the two things
were combined, and the alliance styled " The Solemn
League and Covenant," was the result. It included an
agreement that the Church of England should be re
formed, " according to the word of God, and the exam
ple of the best reformed churches," the details being
left to the Assembly of Divines, to which commission
ers from the Church of Scotland were now added. On
the 17th of August it was introduced into tbe Assem
bly, with great rejoicing. Baillie, in describing its re
ception, writes, "In the which at the first reading,
being well prefaced with Mr. Henderson's most grave
oration, it was received with the greatest applause that
ever I saw anything, with so hearty affections expressed
in the tears of piety and joy, by very many grave, wise,
and old men." The same day the Scottish Parhament
adopted it, and was by them referred to a joint com
mittee of their own body and of the Westminster As
sembly, "to the intent that some expressions mio-ht be
further explained, and that the kingdom of Ireland also
might be expressly taken -into ihe same league's covena7it."

1643.] SOLEMN LEAGUE AND COVENANT, 133
These amendments being made, it was finally approved
by the Commons, and publicly sworn to, with religious
services in St. Margaret's Church, Westminster, Sep
tember 25th. At that meeting the Eev. Philip Nye
read it from the pulpit, article by article, each person
standing uncovered, with his right hand lifted up bare
to heaven, worshipping the great name of God, and
swearing to the performance of it. Dr. Gouge con
cluded with prayer, after which the Commons went up
into the chancel, and subscribed their- names in one
roll of parchment, and the Assembly in another, each
of which contained a copy of the Covenant. Two
hundred and twenty-eight members of the Commons
signed, among whom was Oliver Cromwell. On the
15th of October it was approved by the Lords, with
the same solemnity, after which it was ordered to be
taken by all persons above eighteen years of age, un
der pain of being punished as enemies to religion and
the public peace. Copies were sent for this purpose to
every minister and every military coraraander in the
service of the Parliament. The same course was pur
sued in Scotland, and copies were sent to the modera
tors of the Presbyteries, with directions to read and
explain the Covenant the first Sunday after the receipt
thereof, and on the Sunday following to cause all to
sign it and swear to perform it, under pain of "the
Church censures, and confiscation of goods presently
to be inflicted on all refusers."
This bond of union was refused by none except the
violent partisans of Charles, and thus it ascertained
and united all the friends of liberty and true religion
throughout the kingdom. If the Covenant had been
only a civil league it would not have accomplished the

134 ITS EXPEDIENCY. [Ch. IX
purpose intended ; but being both a civil and religious
test, and a civil and religious bond, it fully met the
end. Diversities of opinion have existed as to the ex
pediency of this measure, but it should be remembered
that religious and civil affairs were so intimately con
nected that what affected one affected the other. It
was not then as it is now, that men of alraost any creed
and church constitute the same political party, or that
men united in the fellowship of the same church are
found to entertain opposite political sentiments. At
this day, therefore, such a plan would be entirely un
suitable for the purpose of advancing a reformation ;
but then the Covenant was, "for the matter of it, just
and warrantable ; for the ends necessary and com
mendable ; and for the times seasonable."
The publication of the Covenant raised and sustained
euch a spirit as led to the most important results.

CHAPTER X.
1642-1644.
As Ireland was included in this solemn compact, it
was immediately sent over to that country, where im
portant changes had been taking place. The hopes of
the native rebels, crushed by the successes of the Stew
arts and of Monro, were revived by the appearance of
a new leader, Owen Eoe O'Neill, a kinsman of Sir
Phelim, and distinguished in the Spanish and Imperial
service. He landed at Doe Castle, in the county of
Donegal, in the month of July, 1642, and being chosen
as leader of the northern Irish, he iramediately de
nounced the savage warfare of his predecessors as a
disgrace upon the name and the religion of the Irish,
and punished some of the most notorious murderers.
Bringing with him able and experienced officers, and
well supplied with ordnance and stores from France,
he was prepared to cope with the Protestant forces.
, Before his arrival measures had been taken to give
more vigor and an appearance of legality to the pro
ceedings of the Irish rebels, by a formal confederation
of the Irish Eoman Catholics, sanctioned by a synod
of their bishops and clergy at Kilkenny in May, 1642.
In October of the same year a convention of clerical
and lay delegates assembled in the same place, and,
without the name, assumed the power of a Parliament,
restoring the Church of Eome to all her former rights
and immunities " as guaranteed by Magna Charta,"

136 A CONFEDERACY. [Ch. X.
acknowledging the English common law and Irish
statutes only so far as they were consistent with these
rights of the church ; disowning the Lords Justices
but acknowledging the King, yet inconsistently per
forming acts of sovereignty by coining raoney, levying
taxes, and sending embassies to foreign powers. They
transferred the ecclesiastical possessions of the kingdom
from the Church of England to the Church of Eome;
committed the executive power to a council of twenty-
four, and prescribed an " oath of association,'' binding
all who took it never to make peace without the con
sent of the General Asserably, and in any peace which
might be made " to the utmost of their power to in
sist upon and maintain the ensuing propositions : —
" I. That the Eoman Catholics, both clergy and
laity, have free and public exercise of the Eoman
Catholic religion and function throughout the king
dom, in as full lustre and splendor as it was in the
reign of King Henry the Seventh.
" II. That the secular clergy of Ireland, viz., pri
mates, archbishops, bishops, ordinaries, deans, deans
and chapters, archdeacons, prebendaries and other
dignitaries, parsons, vicars, and all other pastors of the
secular clergy, shall enjoy all manner of jurisdiction,
privileges, immunities, in as full and ample a manner
as was enjoyed within this realm during the reign of
the late Henry the Seventh.
"III. That all laws and statutes made since the
twentieth year of King Henry the Eighth, whereby
any restraint, penalty, or restriction is laid on the free
exercise of the Eoman Catholic religion \\ithin this
kingdom may be repealed and declared void by one or
more acts of Parliament.

1643.] ITS DISSOLUTION. 187
" rv. That all primates, archbishops, bishops, deans,
etc., shall hold and enjoy all of the churches and
church livings in as large and ample a manner as the
late Protestant clergy respectively enjoyed the same on
the 1st day of October, 1641, together with all the
profits, emoluments, perquisites, liberties, and rights to
their respective sees and churches."
This convention remained in session until January,
1643, when it was dissolved, the administration of af
fairs being committed to the Supreme Council. Gen
erals were now appointed for each Province, Owen
O'Neill taking command of Ulster, and active meas
ures for carrying on the war adopted. Negotiations
were opened with the King, who was anxious to ob
tain help from Ireland against the Parliament and
Scots ; and to expedite this business he appointed the
Earl of Ormond and other gentlemen in whom he con
fided to treat with the Supreme Council. The first
attempt of this commission at negotiation failed through
the influence of the Lords Justices and the Irish Privy
Council, the majority of whom were friends of the
Parliament. Ormond, in order to accomplish his pur
pose, first removed and then imprisoned Sir William
Parsons, one of the Lords Justices, as standing in the
way of an agreement, and appointed Sir Henry Tieh
borne in his place. He was now in a more favorable
position to renew his negotiation, and after rejecting
with contempt the first extravagant proposals of the
Irish, he at length made a treaty, securing to them all
the castles, towns, and churches in that part of the
kingdom then possessed by them, and in return the
Eoman Catholics agreeing to pay thirty thousand
pounds as a subsidy and an immediate reinforcement

138 ORMOND's CESSATION. 1*^=- ^
of ten regiments, which were actually sent before the
close of the year, but without advantage to the royal
cause, the greater part being killed or made prisoners
by Fairfax, the Parliamentary general, and the rest
were soon after slain at the siege of Gloucester ; while
the treaty with the Irish chiefs increased the King's
unpopularity, and strengthened the suspicion of his
popish inclinations or subjection to popish influence.
The " Cessation" (of hostilities), with its conditions,
was immediately conderaned by Parliament, and in a
public declaration stated their objections ; many roy
alists also were so offended that they at once abandoned
the cause. The news ofthe Cessation came to London at
the same time with the Solemn League and Covenant,
and caused a more unanimous agreement in that
measure. It was still more indignantly condemned in
Scotland, and in Ulster, where the Protestant ascend
ancy was still maintained by the Stewarts, with their
associates. Sir William Stewart, after his victory near
Eaphoe, notwithstanding the rigor of the winter and
the inaccessible character of the country, followed up
the rebels to the remotest part of Donegal, and in the
spring, sustained by his brother. Sir Eobert, with Colonel
Mervyn, Sir Thomas Staples and others, he was suc
cessful in dispersing them in Donegal, Derry and Ty
rone. In the northeast of the province the same ac
tivity prevailed. 0' Neill had during the winter laid
siege to the fort of Mountjoy on Lough Neagh, which
was garrisoned by Sir John Clotworthy's regiment un
der the command of Colonel James Clotworthy, and
had cut off all communication with tho county Derry
across the river Bann The first movement in the
spring was made by the boats of Sir John Clotworthy

1643.] CAPTURE OP THE EARL OF ANTRIM. 189
under Captain Langford, to dislodge the rebels from
the islands of Lough Beg. Assisted by Major Ellis,
the insurgents were attacked, and after a severe en
counter, in which Captain Owen 0' Connolly was shot
in the arm, they were forced to retire to Charlemont
and Dungannon.
In order to dislodge the rebels from these strongholds,
Monro took the field in May 1643, with about two
thousand troops, sending to Lord Sinclair, who was
then quartered at Newry, for a detachment of mus
keteers. At Loughall, near Armagh, they met General
0' Neill, and after a severe conflict of about an hour,
with loss on both sides, 0' Neill retreated to Charle
mont. The next day, gathering together their scat
tered forces, they marched to Tandragee, where Sir
James Lochart was mortally wounded in a skirmish and
died the next day. Although failing in the great object
of their expedition, the capture of O' Niell, by a happy
acccident the Earl of Antrim was again seized and
placed at Carrickfergus. The capture occurred in this
manner : Soon after the return of the forces of Monro
to their quarters, as Colonel Home's regiment and
Major Ballentine's troop were emploj'ed in besieging
the fort at Newcastle in the county of Down, they
observed a person landing under suspicious circum
stances from a small vessel on the coast. They imme
diately seized him, and having threatened him with
instant death if he did not discover himself, he con
fessed that he was the confidential servant of the Earl
of Antrim, who by his assistance had escaped from
Carrickfergus about a year before ; that his master was
in the vessel on his way to join 0' Neill at Charlemont,
and that he had been sent on shore to make arrange-

140 OWEN ROE O'NEILL ROUTED. [Ch. X
ments for his safe landing. The servant, whose name
was Stewart, being compelled to make the concerted
signal to Antrim, the Earl put ashore, but was imme
diately taken prisoner and carried to Monro. Impor
tant papers, implicating the King, were found upon his
person, which were forwarded to Edinburg.
The failure of Monro to pursue his successes in
Armagh arose from the scarcity of supplies aud the con
sequent suffering of his troops from their first arrival
in Ireland. Turner, in his "Memoirs" of this cam
paign, writes, " I fingered no pay the whole time I
staid in Ireland, (nearly three years,) except for three
months." And in another place he says, "we had
meal so sparingly seldom we could allow our soldiers
above a pound."
In June, 1643, the British regiments from Down and
Antrim, under the command of Lords Conway, Ards,
and Claneboy, and Colonels Chichester and James
Montgomery, traversed Monaghan and Armagh, pillag
ing the country and driving 0' Neill before them into
the jaws of the Lagan forces under Sir Eobert Stew
art, who routed hira at Clones with great loss, most of
his forces being taken, and the foreign officers who
came with Owen Eoe O' Neill being mostly either
killed or prisoners, though the want of supplies pre
vented vigorous pursuit. The losses of the rebels in
this action were greater than they had met with before.
These successes would soon have put an end to the
rebellion, but for the effect of Orm end's " Cessation "
in removing the English regiments from Leinster, and
thus depriving them of their cooperation. By this
measure the Protestant cause was seriously weakened,
and the Eomanists greatly encouraged. When, there-

1643.] ORMOND OPPOSES THE COVENANT. 141
fore, by the terms of the Cessation the Protestants of
Ulster found that the rebels were not only unpunished
for their outrages, but secured in the possession of their
castles, towns and estates, acquired by the massacre of
their owners — when they saw the Popish priests sup
planting their ministers, and holding the ecclesiastical
property, they were alarmed and indignant ; and this
threatened restoration of Popery increased the oppo
sition of the Protestants in Ulster to that treaty, and
prepared them to receive more cordially the Solemn
League and Covenant, which was at this juncture
brought over to Ireland by Owen O'ConnoUy.
The Lords Justices and Ormond determined, if pos
sible, to prevent the taking of the Covenant in Ireland,
and for this purpose Monro and tho British colonels
were charged to prevent its being tendered to the sol
diers under their command ; and accordingly, on the
18th December, a proclamation was issued from the
Lords Justices, which was to be read at the head of
every regiment, denouncing the Covenant as a seditious
and treasonable league, and forbidding the soldiers to
sign it. This command was disregarded by Monro and
the colonels, and on the 2d of January Lord Montgom
ery, Sir Eobert Stewart,. Sir James Montgomery, Sir
William Cole, Colonels Chichester, Hill and Mervyn,
wrote a joint letter to Parliament, condemning the Ces
sation, though it is alleged that at the same time they
had agreed secretly among themselves to oppose the
Covenant, and to obey Ormond, now Lord Lieutenant
of Ireland. The Scotch forces were becoming very restive in
Ulster, suffering extremely from the want of provis
ions, although the English commissioners, in answer to

142 DESTITUTION OF SCOTCH FORCES. [Oh. X
several urgent entreaties of Monro, had promised them
their back pay, with an abundant supply of clothing,
food, arms and ammunition. The distress finally be
came so great, that Monro was compelled to abandon
the strong posts of Newry, Mountjoy and Dungannon,
with some forts on the river Bann, held by the Scots.
The English Parliament, having drawn upon the Scotch
army, according to the league, for assistance, it be
came necessary to recall a part of the army for the
defence of Scotland ; and so desirous were the regi
ments to leave, that it was decided by lot which should
first embark, and the regiments of Sinclair, Lowdon,
and Campbell were designated. On the very eve of
sailing they entered into a mutual engagement neither
to disband nor to obey any superior officer until they
had received their promised arrears ; and if their terms
were not complied with, would join the royal party.
This engagement was denounced by the Presbytery as
"ambiguous, scandalous, devisive, and against the Cov
enant." The Presbyterians were very desirous that the Scotch
army might remain in Ireland, and on first hearing of
its recall sent over Sir Frederick Hamilton with a peti
tion that the order might be rescinded. The British
regiments in the Lagan, and in Down and Antrim,
hearing that the removal of the Scots would give a pre
ponderance to the royalist and Eomish party in Ulster,
also sent a deputation (Captain Owen O'ConnoUy and
Captain Eobert MagUl) to Edinburgh, requesting that
the Scottish forces might remain, and asking permis
sion to subscribe the Solemn League and Covenant.
While these negotiations were in progress in Scot
land, the settlers in Ulster were in consternation lest

1643.] SUPPLIES ARRIVE. 143
Ormond should reSnact some of the severities which
they had experienced under Strafford and the prelates ;
and so extensive was this fear that the farmers, espe
cially in the county Down, refused to sow their fields,
intending to abandon the county so soon as the Scot
tish forces had withdrawn. These fears were in a meas
ure allayed by the assurance of the British colonels
that they would use every exertion to prevent their
departure. They \yere not kept long in suspense, for
on the 22d of February the order for the removal of
the Scots was countermanded, and soon after Sir Fred
erick Hamilton and Sir Mungo Campbell were sent
back to Ireland with the news that supplies would be
forthcoming, with instructions to persuade the British
regiments to unite with them in prosecuting the war.
This pacified the Scottish forces, but the three regi
ments on shipboard could not be induced to stay ; but
Monro prevailed upon the rest to resume their former
quarters. In the month of March a vessel arrived at
Carrickfergus with ten thousand pounds in money, and
a large supply of meal and clothing. Similar donations
were sent from the Clyde to Derry, one half for the use
of the Lagan forces. And shortly after a supply from
the shire of Ayr was sent as a free gift to the army at
Carrickfergus. Besides these supplies from Scotland,
not less than four vessels arrived in different ports in
Ulster, bringing gifts from Holland, occasioned by a
letter from the Westminster Assembly to the classes
there, and a commission which was sent by Parlia
ment to coUect the contributions taken up in all their
churches, and those that had been generously offered
by some Dutch towns early in the previous suramer.
On the 16th of October, 1643, the English Parha-

144 SIGNING OF THE COVENANT. 1^=- ^•
ment requested the commissioners from Scotland to
take steps for the signing of the Covenant by the Scots
in Ireland, at the same time pledging themselves that
English Protestants there should do the sarae. After
some correspondence with the Scottish Parliament, as
to the manner of taking the Covenant, the matter was
referred to the coramittee of both nations, sitting in
London, and by them sent to the commission of the
Scotch Assembly, who finally intrusted it to the ^min-
isters whose turn it was to visit Ireland, These were
James Hamilton of Dumfries (formerly of BaUywal-
ter), Hugh Henderson, of Dairy in Ayrshire, WiUiam
Adair of Ayr, and John Weir of Dalserf in Lanark
shire. A letter to the same effect was brought from
the Parliament by Major Berth wick, of Lord Lindsay's
regiment, to the officers of the Scottish army. In this
letter they leave the time of taking the Covenant to the
discretion of the officers, but suggest that the sooner it
is done the better, as a means of restoring confidence
throughout the kingdom.
Hamilton and his colleagues reached Carrickfergus
in the end of March, and entered immediately upon
their work. On the 4th of April they met the Pres
bytery, showing their commissions, and also a letter
from the General Assembly, directing the ministers of
the Scotch forces to administer the Covenant to the
army. This was accordingly done, all the soldiers
cheerfully signing it with the exception of Major Dal-
zel, afterwards a General, and a most bitter persecutor
of the Presbyterians in the reign of Charles the Second.
Although the ministers had no commission except for
the army, yet when the Covenant was administered the
whole population, with a few exceptions, came of their

1644.] SIGNING THE COVENANT. 145
own accord and signed the instrument. Those who
had formerly taken the Black Oath were required be
fore signing to make a public declaration of their peni
tence. Mr. Weir states that at Carrickfergus there
were four hundred who renounced the Black Oath and
took the Covenant. Wherever it was presented the
people appeared to be greatly affected, some with sor
row on account of their former sins and miseries, and
some with joyful hope for the future ; so that Adair,
from whose narrative these facts are taken, says, " The
solemnity and spirituality of carrying on this work was
like the cloud filling the temple, there being a new
tabernacle erecting in the land. And those who had
not seen these things before, nor were well acquainted
with them, said (as the people in Christ's time) ' we
have seen strange things to-day.' Yea, even the ma
lignants who were opposed to the Covenant durst not
appear to the contrary ; for the people generally held
these ministers as servants of God, and coming with a
blessed message and errand to them."
Having completed their work in Down and parts
of Antrim, the ministers passed on to Coleraine and
the Eoute, two of them first visiting Ballymena. At
Coleraine a great multitude flocked to the church from
town and country, when the commissioners explained
the Solemn League and Covenant, and the first person
who took the oath was the minister of the town, Mr.
Vesey, who had formerly taken the Black Oath, and
who afterwards relapsed and became Archbishop of
Tuam. Some resistance was experienced at Coleraine from
Colonel Mervyn and others, but stUl greater at Derry,
where the deputation was forbidden to come at their

146 TROUBLES AT DERRY. ["h- X.
peril. But believing that they were acting under
Divine guidance, and finding a friend in Sir Frederick
Hamilton, they entered the town, when they were told
by Sir Frederick that by their prompt action they had
escaped a violent reception, which had been prepared
for them. The day after their arrival they were visited
by the Mayor and Aldermen, and after various alter
cations they administered the oath to a great multi
tude. From Derry they proceeded to Eaphoe, where
the whole of Sir Eobert Stewart's regiment took the
Covenant, except himself; and from thence to Letter-
kenny, where it was administered to Sir William
Stewart's regiment. Thence to Taboin and Eamelton.
In all these places great multitudes besides the soldiers
gathered together to hear the ministers and to receive
the Covenant.
On their return to Derry, several of the chief oppo
nents came to hear them preach and explain the
Covenant, by which means, and through influence
from higher quarters, most of them were brought to
take it, not excepting Thornton, the Mayor, and
Colonel Mervyn at Derry, Sir Eobert Stewart at Cole
raine, and Sir William Cole at Carrickfergus. They
then returned to Down and Antrim, and administered
the communion at Newtownards, Holywood and Bal
lywalter, assisted by Maclelland of Kirkcudbright, by
appointment of the General Assembly ; and in July of
this year a church was regularly organized at Belfast.
The Solemn League and Covenant, thus introduced
without coercion, and with scrupulous regard to the
rights of conscience, had the happiest effect through
out Ulster. Tbe friends of civil and religious liberty
were ascertained and united, and a strong feeling of

1644.] ITS GOOD EFFECTS. 147
attachment to the Presbyterian cause was excited
throughout the county. Through its influence Pres
byterianism was reestablished at points where it had
formerly been uprooted, and what is of stUl higher
moment, it raised the spirit of true religion and piety,
which had almost died out under the persecutions of
the prelates and the barbarities of the rebellion.
From this period is dated the Second Eeformation
in Ireland, in which churches and zealous ministers
greatly increased, and the manners and habits of the
people were manifestly improved.

CHAPTER XI.
1644, 1645.
While Hamilton was in Ireland, fulfilling the du
ties of his commission, he labored chiefly in the
county Down, and paid particular attention to his old
parish, Ballywalter. Before leaving Ulster he presided
at a meeting ofthe Presbytery held at Bangor, in May,
1644, where a third petition to the General Assembly
was adopted, representing a district of fifty miles in
length by twelve in breadth, containing four and
twenty congregations, and supplied with only two
settled ministers, besides three army chaplains and the
temporary Scotch commissions. In answer to this pe
tition, the Assembly, as before, appointed three pairs
of ministers to visit Ireland, each for four months, be
ginning with the first of August, 1644. These were
Cockburn of Kirkmichael and McKail of Irvine;
George Dick of Glenluce and John Dick of Inch ;
Livingston of Stranraer and Wylie of Borg. The
same Assembly, at the request of the Presbyterians
of Ulster, sent a Latin letter of thanks to the church
of Holland' for their hberal contributions to the suf
ferers in Ireland, which had amounted to ten or twelve
shiploads of clothing and provisions, valued at more
than twenty thousand pounds. A vote of thanks
was also sent from the Westminster Assembly, at the
request of the English Parliament. Meantime the
Scottish commissioners, sent over to administer the

1644.] THE EARL OP ANTRIM JOINS O'NEILL. 149
Covenant in Ireland, had set sail homeward, but were
taken prisoners by a frigate which was conveying
troops to Scotland, under the command of Col
kitto or Alaster Maodonnel. The Earl of Antrim,
having escaped from the castle of Carrickfergus, by
the aid of his son-in-law, Lieutenant Gordon, who
conveyed ropes to him concealed in his dress, hastened
to join O'Neill at Charlemont, then the confederates at
Kilkenny, and finally the King at Oxford, to whom
he opened his plan of raising the Scottish Highlands
under Montrose, and joining with them certain Irish
troops which had served in Flanders, whose commu
nity of language would enable them to cooperate
more readily. The first draught or detachment of this
force was on its way to Scotland in three vessels, with
the escort of a frigate, under the command of Alaster
Maodonnel, when they fell in with the ship in which
the Scotch commissioners were embarked, and took
from it seven or eight persons, among whom were
John Weir and his wife, Hamilton and his father-in-
law Watson, an Irish minister naraed Johnson, and
three laymen. Macdonnel's purpose was to exchange
Watson, who was Lord Claneboy's nephew, for his
own father, old Colkitto, who was in the hands of
Argyle ; but the latter could not be persuaded to con
sent to the exchange. The prisoners were confined
in Mingarie castle, where their sufferings were aggra
vated by an unsuccessful attack of Argyle. All were
soon discharged, except Weir, Watson and Hamilton ;
the first died in October, worn out with sufferings, the
second in March, and the third was released in May,
1645, after a captivity of ten months, during the early
part of which Weir and HamUton expounded eighty-

150 MEETING OP BRITISH OFFICERS. [Ch.XI.
one psalms in order, in the hearing of their fellow
prisoners. In the meantime the English Parliament had placed
the British forces in Ireland under General Leslie, now
Earl of Leven, who appointed as commander-in-chief
under him Major General Monro, already at the head
of the Scottish troops in Ulster. This movement
greatly weakened the strength of the royalist party,
as their main dependence was in these British regi
raents, and it gave great offense to Arthur Chichester
and other English colonels. Chichester had been a
steady supporter of Charles, in opposition to the Par
liament, and had acquiesced cordially in the " Cessa
tion." He had fortified Belfast at Ormond's sug
gestion, and refused to permit the Covenant to be
administered there; even going so far as to attempt
the administration of a counter-oath to the soldiers and
inhabitants. When, therefore, he received notice of
the appointment of Monro to the chief command, he
called a meeting of British colonels, to form some plan
for opposing the Scottish commander. Notice of this
meeting being carried to Monro, he resolved to take
this opportunity of recovering Belfast. In the mean
time the British colonels had met and adjourned till
the next morning, when notice of Monro's intended
attack was brought to them by a soldier of Colonel
Chichester's regiment. The guards were immediately
doubled and every officer ordered upon duty, and
scouts were sent out toward Carrickfergus to reconnoi
tre. About six o'clock in the morning they returned,
reporting that no enemy was in sight, when all the
guards but the ordinary watch were discharged. In
about an hour Monro surprised the town through the

1644] THE BRITISH TAKE THE FIELD. 151
treachery of these scouts, who, meeting him, were sent
back with the false intelligence that no enemy was iu
sight. This decision of Monro intimidated the British col
onels, and without further delay they submitted to his
command on condition that they should not be re
quired to take any oath until they had laid their scru
ples before the English Parliament, and that they
should be on the same footing with the Scottish regi
ments in relation to supplies. By this union the
friends of Ormond and the Cessation lost much of
their influence in Ulster.
The united forces of the British regiments, under
Lords Montgomery and Claneboy and Sir James Mont
gomery, and the Scottish regiments, under General
Monro, Lord Lindsay, Colonels Home and Montgom
ery, took the field on the 27th of June, and on the
30th were joined at Armagh by Colonel Hill's regi
ment, commanded by Major George Eawdon, and
Lord Conway's troop and regiment of foot, and a few
days after by reinforcements from Argyle and Glen-
cairn, with several companies of Sir John Clotworthy's
regiment under Owen Connolly, now a major ; and to
these were finally added the Lagan forces, amounting
in the whole to one thousand horse and ten thousand
foot. They were now concentrated at Armagh, for the
purpose of driving the Irish out of the province of
Ulster. This army was poorly equipped, and with but
a few days' supply of provisions. On the 4th of July
they left Armagh, passing through the counties of
Monaghan and Cavan, meeting with but little resist
ance from the Irish ; but their provisions failing them,
and the Lagan forces retiring, on the 15th of July the

152 CHANGES IN ENGLAND. [Ch. XI.
expedition was broken up and the' regiments retired to
their quarters in Down and Antrim.
The Confederate Council at Kilkenny, alarmed at
the strength of the Protestant party, sent forward Lord
Oastlehaven to reinforce O'Neill, who entered Tandra
gee without opposition. Intelligence reaching Monro
of the approach of the Irish, he gathered a force to
withstand them, but Castlehaven, distressed for want
of provisions, suddenly broke up his camp and retired
by forced marches to Clones and thence to Cavan. He
was pursued by Monro, who, being unable to bring
him to an engagement, returned in October to Ul
ster. After Lord Castlehaven had been dispatched to Ul
ster, the Irish chiefs made overtures to Ormond to unite
with them against the northern Protestants, and sent
commissioners to treat with Charles himself at Oxford ;
here they met commissioners from the Protestant party
in Ireland, remonstrating against the demands of the
confederates. Charles dismissed the Eomish commis
sioners, with liberal but ambiguous assurances, and
issued a commission to Ormond, authorizing him to
conclude a peace with the Irish chiefs as he should
deem most advantageous to the royal cause. Accord
ingly, in the beginning of September, Ormond met the
confederate commissioners, and took under consider
ation propositions which were made by both parties ;
but wishing to ky the whole matter before the King,
he adjourned the meeting till April, 1645.
While these proceedings were in progress, another
negotiation had commenced in England between
Charles and the Parliament at Uxbrido-e which ma
terially affected the final action of the one now pend-

16*6.] LAUD BEHEADED. 153
ing in Ireland. These negotiations were limited to
twenty days and to the consideration of three topics,
two of which were rehgion and Ireland. This com
mission met on the 30th of January, 1645, and took
up the first of these topics, the discussion of which
was much impeded by the condemnation of Arch
bishop Laud. In February, 1640, he had been com
mitted to prison on the charge of high treason, and in
the month of February following Sir Henry Vane had,
in the name of the Commons of England, preferred
fourteen articles of impeachment against him, to which
others were afterwards added by the commissioners
from Scotland.
And here it rested until October, 1643, when, addi
tional charges being entered, he was brought to trial in
March, 1644, before the House of Lords, and after an
investigation occupying twenty days, the mode of
proceeding by impeachment, as in the case of Strafford,
was put aside, and by a resolution of the House a bill
of attainder was brought in, and on the 4th of Janu
ary, 1645, it finally passed, and six days after Laud
was beheaded on Tower HUl, in the seventy-second
year of his age. This occurred a few weeks previous
to the meeting of the commissioners at Uxbridge, and
caused some embarrassment in their negotiations. On
the very day before Laud was condemned the Com
mon Prayer Book was abolished by law throughout
England, and the Westminister Directory for public
worship substituted for it. During this same period
the Assembly had been preparing a plan for the gov
ernment of the church according to the Solemn League
and Covenant, in which they were opposed by certain
Independents, who published their " Apologetical

154 COMMISSIONERS AT UXBRIDGE . [Ch. XI.
Narration" in February, 1644, which was their first
appearance in history as a distinct party, and received
the name of the Dissenting Brethren. This pamphlet
contained a plausible appeal to Parliament in favor of
Independency, setting forth its peculiar advantages
and its distinguishing principles, but not a word is
said about their hostUity to endowments and to the
magistrates' power, circa sacra, which is now-a-days as
sumed as having been characteristic of this sect from
its commencement ; indeed, in one place, speaking of
the magistrates' power, the following significant paren
thesis is inserted : " to which we give as much, and, as
we think, more than the principles of the presbyterial
government will suffer them to yield." In conse
quence of the opposition of these men the Assembly
made but little progress in their work of fixing the
church government.
The commissioners of the Parliament at Uxbridge
had been instructed to require, as indispensable to the
treaty, the consent of the King to the ordinances for
abolishing prelacy, — convoking the Westminister As
sembly, — enforcing the Solemn League and Covenant,
and substituting the Directory in place of the Prayer
Book. They also insisted upon the Westminister As
sembly's plan of church government, as agreed to by
Parliament, to form a part of the treaty. To all of
these the royal commissioners gave a decided negative,
and after a discussion, occupying two days, led by the
Eev. Alexander Henderson on behalf of the Scottish
commissioners, and Dr. Steward on behalf of the King,
they failed to arrive at any satisfactory result. The
same was the case in respect to Ireland. The commis
sioners proposed that the King should unite with them

1646.] SECRET TREATY WITH ROMANISTS. 155
in declaring the " Cessation " to be void and that the war
against the Irish rebels should be carried on ; but
Charles, anticipating great assistance from the Irish
Eomanists, refused to make any concessions, and the
prescribed time having expired, the commission was
broken up and both parties prepared to renew the
war. The King now authorized the Earl of Glamorgan,
a zealous Eoman Catholic, to treat with that party,
and to promise the legal restoration of their church,
as a recompense for their assistance in his conflict with
the English Parliament. This treaty being secret,
Ormond still continued his negotiations with the Irish
confederates, but refused to declare the Scots of Ul
ster rebels, choosing rather to conciliate them, in which
he was favored by their discontents, arising from pri
vation and arrears of pay, and also from the growing
power ofthe Independents, as displayed in the famous
self-denying ordinance of 1645, and confirmed by
Cromwell's victory at Naseby, in June of the same
year. But the Parliament, alarmed at the appearance of
disaffection, resolved, in May, to raise ten thousand
pounds and other supplies for their auxiliaries in Ul
ster. They also sent commissioners to inquire into
the state of the army, and the means of prosecuting
tbe war more vigorously. These commissioners were
to use every method to remove the prejudices from the
minds of the Scots, arising from the supposed oppo
sition of the Parliament to Presbyterianism, and by
regaining their confidence prevent them from uniting
with the Eoyalists under Ormond.
The news of the appointment reaching Ulster, the

156 THE WAR RENEWED. l^^- ^^¦
British officers called a meeting on the 17th of May,
and formed a military union, with an oath prescribed ;
which some refusing to take referred the matter to the
Presbytery, who issued a declaration to be read in
every regiment, but not now in existence, though it
seems to have been directed against any movement
hostile to the Covenant. In consequence of this the
officers renewed the declaration of their allegiance to
that compact, and of their determination to prosecute
the war until an honorable peace should be obtained.
In proof of their sincerity, the British forces, num
bering four thousand foot and six hundred horse, un
der command of Sir Eobert Stewart, marched into
Connaught and made an assault upon Sligo, which
was soon surrendered by O'Connor, the commander ;
after which they invaded Mayo and Galway, the strong
holds of the rebels, leaving Sligo in command of Lieu
tenant Colonel Galbraith. During their absence the
Irish hastily collected their forces, and, led by the Eo
man Catholic Archbishop of Tuam, reentered Sligo
and seized the church and the abby, and were about at
tacking the castle, when they were surprised by a body
of horse, under Sir Charles Coote and Sir Frederick
Hamilton, taking many prisoners and killing the Arch
bishop. Among his baggage was found, with other im
portant papers, a copy of Glamorgan's secret treaty
with the Irish chiefs, which was immediately pub
lished, showing the King's complicity with the Popish
party. This discovery alienated for ever the northern
Scots from the cause of Charles, and destroyed the
scheme which Ormond had formed, by which he hoped
to attach them to the royalist party.
Soon after this seasonable discovery, the comrnis-

1645.] A PRETENDED PRESBYTERY. 157
sioners of ParUament, Sir Eobert King, Arthur An
nesley and Colonel Beal, arrived in Ulster, and to gain
the confidence of the Scots they cooperated with the
Presbyterians, enjoined the people to take the Cove
nant, and sanctioned all the proceedings of the Pres
bytery. The arrival of this commission, therefore,
proved to be of the greatest advantage to the prosperity
and extension of the Church.
During this period the Presbytery had been very
faithful in enforcing discipline, as well as in opposing
the Independents and the Baptists, who bad made some
inroads in Belfast, through the efforts of one Matthew
Lees. When Cockburn and M'Kail, the first pair of com
missioners from the Scotch Assembly, arrived in Ire
land, they found the Presbytery troubled by a singular
proceeding on the part of some Episcopal clergymen,
in the Eoute, who had conformed to the Presbyterian
system, and who now organized a Presbytery of their
own, but without ruling elders or subordination to
church j udicatories. They held no correspondence with
the Presbytery which sat regularly at Carrickfergus,
but used every method to destroy its influence and au
thority in the country, their whole object being to de
ceive the people with the name of Presbytery, until a
favorable opportunity would arrive for throwing off
the mask and proclaiming prelacy.
Under the direction of the Scottish commissioners,
the Presbytery wrote them a letter, asking the number
of members and their authority for forming themselves
into a Presbytery. In answer to this letter they sent
Mr. Daniel M'NeUl and Mr. Fenton, with a letter
signed by the moderator and clerk, to the next meet-

158 SUBMIT TO ARMY PRESBYTERY. [^^- ^^•
ing of the Presbytery. Not satisfied with this letter
or the report of these commissioners, they were sum
moned to appear at the next meeting of Presbytery,
when most of them answering the summons, and being
interrogated, refused to submit to its authority, until
they exhibited their commission from the English Par
liament or the Westminster Assembly, which being
done, they submitted themselves to the Array Pres
bytery, as it was still called. That body, besides
holding frequent days of humiliation, on account of
the troubles in the three kingdoms, sent two delegates
to the General Assembly of 1645, to ask advice on
certain points of discipline, and also to obtain a new
supply of ministere.

CHAPTER XII.
1645, 1646.
The General Assembly of January, 1645, specially
called before the usual time to consider the Westmin
ster Directory and Form of Government, was attended
by the Eev. John Drysdale and Captain James Wal
lace (of Argyle's regiment) as commissioners from the
" Army Presbj'tery," who presented, besides the usual
petition for a supply of ministers for Ulster, one from
General Monro, asking for a chaplain for his regiment
at Carrickfergus, and several from Londonderry and
the surrounding districts of Derry and Donegal, asking
that these populous Presbyterian settlements might also
be supplied.
In answer to the first of these petitions, the Assem
bly, for the fourth time, appointed certain ministers to
spend three months there in rotation, among whom was
Henry Colwort, formerly of Oldstone, now of Paisley.
Tbeir commission directed them "to repair unto the
north of Ireland, and there to visit, comfort, instruct
and encourage the scattered flocks of Christ, according
to the direction of Jesus Christ, and according to the
doctrine and discipline of this church in all things."
They also directed a suitable chaplain to be procured
for Monro's regiment, and sent him a letter sympathizing
in his trials and giving him assurance of their continued
confidence in his zeal for the church. Mr. James Na-
smith, having been appointed in 1644 chaplain to Lord

160 MEETING OF GENERAL ASSEMBLY. [Ch. XIL
Montgomery's regiment, was ordered to proceed to
Ireland immediately. The petition from Derry was
answered favorably, and three ministers sent over to
labor for three months.
The attention of this Assembly was also directed to
the conduct of Thornton, the Mayor of Derry, whose
interference with the administration of the Covenant
has already been mentioned. It appears that Thorn
ton had, in 1644, violently opposed the ministers sent
over from Scotland, and had thwarted them in all their
efforts for supplying the destitute churches, and he had
especially, in official letters, grossly slandered the Eev.
John Burne, one of tbeir ministers. Complaint was
accordingly made to this Assembly by Burne and the
Presbyterians of that region through their commission
ers. The Assembly conceiving that the church of
Scotland had been insulted in the persOn of their min
ister, referred the matter to their committee of bUls,
who reported that the said Burne and the church have
been grievously wronged, and recommended the As
sembly to take such steps as their wisdom may dictate.
This report of their committee was approved by the
Assemblj'', and they ordered the case to be laid before
the Scotch Parliament, then in s ssion, and also before
the English Parliament, tliiojgh their commissioners
attending the Westminster Assemblj'. The letter
written to these commissioners shows clearly that the
opposition of Thornton was designed to obstruct alto
gether the revival of Presbyterianism in that part of
the province, and that therefore the interference ofthe
Assembly was both justifiable and necessary. The
Assembly, also, in othei' letters to their commissioners
in London, urged the speedy transmission to Ireland

1645.] MEASURES FOR EVANGELIZING ULSTER. 161
of the Directory for Worship and the propositions re
specting government.
On the return of Drysdale and Wallace, active mea
sures were adopted for the evangelization of Ulster,
especially among the Eoman Catholic population who
had not been involved in the rebellion. Accordingly,
in April, 1645, the Presbytery passed an act, which
was read in all the parish churches, that the papists
" should be dealt with by the several ministers, to con
vince them of their idolatry and errors, and bring them
over to the truth ; or otherwise to enter into process
against them in order to excommunication." In the
midst of this movement Livingston and the last minis
ters appointed by the Assembly of 1644 arrived and
joined the Presbytery. This was the third visit of
Livingston to the place of his early labors since the
rebellion. During his stay he assisted in the settlement
of David Buttle at Ballymena, and Archibald Fergu
son at Antrim, where Livingston himself had been
called. A call was also at this time presented to him
from the parishes of KlUileagh and Newtownards, and
one to Hamilton from Ballywalter, which were both
declined. Ulster was now in a state of comparative tranquil
Uty, the ministers appointed by the General Assembly
meeting with no interruption in the discharge of tbeir
duties, which they carried on during the summer. It
became, therefore, an asylum for many families flying
from the violence of Montrose, who had espoused the
royal cause, and at the head of several Highland clans,
reinforced by fifteen hundred Irish from Ulster (the
same who, under Colkitto, had captured Weir and
Hamilton), was spreading consternation and terror

162 ENGLISH COMMISSIONERS. [Ch. Xii.
throughout the kingdom. His brilliant but cruel cam
paign was crowned by the battle of Kilsythe, in which
the Covenanters were totaUy routed.
The English commissioners, now appointed " gov
ernors of the province of Ulster," who had arrived in
October, gave additional strength to the Presbyterian
cause in Ireland, by siding with the Army Presbytery
against that of the Eoute, already mentioned, though
sustained by Dr. Colville, a Scottish prelatist of wealth
and influence in Ulster. The commissioners, while thus
favoring the Presbyterians, did not forget the other
part of their commission — to organize a party favor
able to the Parliament, in opposition to the Scots.
Jealousies had already arisen between them, which
soon after terminated in open hostility. The power of
the Independents was fast gaining ground ; and although
they could not withstand the universal wish of the
people to have Presbyterianism established, yet they de
termined to throw all possible obstacles in the way of
its progress, and to this end the Commons, on the 13th
of March, by a vote, afterwards embodied in their ordi
nance of the subsequent March, resolved to remove the
right of appeal, in matters purely spiritual, from the
ecclesiastical to the civil courts. The Parliament, also,
sought to place the power of supension from the Lord's
table under the control of the State. They appointed
lay commissioners, with power to modify or reverse ec
clesiastical censures; and the Pariiament itself was
constituted the last resort in all disputed cases of dis
cipline. These Erastian measures were warmly op
posed by the Scots and Presbyterians, and the West
minster Assembly petitioned the two Houses ao-ainst
this interference with the spiritual functions of the

1645.] THE SURRENDER OF BELFAST DEMANDED. 163
Church, declaring that if the alternative, of forsaking
their places in the Church, or partaking in the sins
which must result, was presented, they would, " with
God's grace, choose affliction rather than iniquity."
The increasing strength of the Presbyterian party
led the Parliament, on the 13th of November, to order
that Belfast be surrendered by the Scottish forces to
their commissioners in Ulster before tbe 17th of Janu
ary, on the plea that the original treaty between En
gland and Scotland did not warrant the troops of the
latter to possess any garrison but Carrickfergus and
Coleraine. This order w^as dispatched to the Scottish
Parliament, then sitting in Edinburgh ; and at the
same time a demand was made upon Colonel Home for
the surrender of the town, who refused to comply until
he had received instructions from the Scottish Parlia
ment, Accordingly Monro wrote, informing tbe Par
liament of the demand, and asking directions how to
proceed, at the same time suggesting that the giving up
of Belfast would be the giving up of Ireland. The reply
given by the Parliament to Monro is not in existence,
but no formal surrender of the town took place ; and
the flight of Charles into the quarters of the Scottish
forces in Newark made it impolitic to press the de
mand further.
Charles, by his disastrous defeat at Naseby, aud thc
reverses of Montrose in Scotland, lost all hope of re
trieving his fortune by arms, and determined to try
the effect of negotiation and intrigue. He therefore
wrote to the Presbyterians and Independents, profess
ing to desire the ascendency of both ; but, having suf
fered from his hypocrisy, they refused to listen to his
professions, and being sorely pressed by the Parlia-

164 O'NEILL ATTACKS ULSTER. [Ch. XIL
mentary forces at Oxford, under Fairfax, the hero of
Naseby, he deterrained to throw himself upon the gen
erosity ofthe Scotch forces at Newark, where, disguised
as a servant, and guided by a clergyman well ac
quainted with the roads, he arrived on the 5th of
May, after many narrow escapes on the journey. This
put a stop to the four years' civil war, and gave the
Presbyterians a temporary ascendency over the Inde
pendents. The suspension of hostilities was felt in Ireland, and
led the English commissioners to relinquish their de
signs upon Belfast, and cordially cooperate with the
Scottish garrison against the Irish, now united with
Ormond by a treaty with the council of Kilkenny,
which, however, was opposed by the extreme Papists
led by the Pope's Nuncio. This party induced Owen
Eoe O'Neill, with his army of nearly five thousand
foot and five hundred horse, to join his standard.
With this reinforcement they made a descent upon
Ulster. Monro, in the meantime, having collected
his forces, marched towards Armagh, Argyle's regi
ment being left to protect Carrickfergus. On the 5th
of June they received information that the enemy were
on their march to Benburb and Charlemont, and a
party was advanced toward's Armagh, in sight of
O'Neill's camp, to prevent them from making an
attack upon Colonel Monro, who was advancing from
Dungannon. The maneuvre did not succeed, a party
being pushed forward to the attack, which was repulsed
by Monro, who finding the fort and bridge at Benburb
strongly guarded, proceeded up the river and crossed
at Kinnard.
About six o'clock in the afternoon the eno-ao-ement

1646.] THE SCOTS ROUTED. 165
commenced, O'Neill ordering his troops to advance to
the assault. Lord Blaney, with his English regiment,
kept their position until he and most of his men were
cut off; but the charge of O'Neill's cavalry upon the
Scottish horse threw the whole body into disorder, and
a general rout ensued. Sir James Montgomery's regi
ment being the only one which retired in a body.
Colonel Conway, after having two horses shot under
him, escaped to Newry ; Lord Montgomery was taken
prisoner ; and more than three thousand were left dead
upon the field of battle. Monro fled to Lisburn, arous
ing the country through which he passed, and creat
ing a general consternation, many flying to Scotland.
O'Neill might now have possessed himself of Down
and Antrim, had not a dispatch reached him from the
Pope's Nuncio at Limerick, congratulating him on his
victory, and desiring him to march immediately to his
assistance. At the time this dispatch was received he
was about faihng upon the Scots' quarters at Tan
dragee ; but in obedience to the Nuncio he marched
with his whole army into Leinster, thus resigning the
opportunity of further conquests in Ulster. The army
of General Monro entered this battle under great dis
advantages, being jaded and fatigued, after a twelve
hours march, and a large part of their force under
Colonel Monro being unable to make a junction in
time to be of any assistance ; so that when the ene
mies' squadrons charged upon their cavalry they were
unable to stand the shock, and, while retreating, broke
the line of their own infantry, and a general panic en
sued. During this trying period the Presbytery, although
perplexed and alarmed, continued their labors without

166 THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY. [Ch. XIL
interruption. The ministers of the Assembly who had
finished the period of their appointment in March, were
foUowed by Hutchinson of Colmonel, and Livingston.
They were accompanied by comraissioners from the
Scotch Parliament, sent to confer with the English
commissioners respecting the settlement of affairs in
Ireland. During the stay of these ministers several
young men from Scotland applied to be taken on trial,
in view of their settlement in Ulster; but the demoral
izing effects of the war made the Presbytery cautious
in receiving candidates, though several valuable min
isters were soon after added to their number.
The General Assembly, which met in Edinburgh on
the 4th of June, received as commissioners from the
Presbytery in Ireland Archibald Ferguson of Antrim,
minister, and John Edmonstone of Bally bantrim, ruling
elder. Besides the usual petition for a supply of min
isters, these commissioners presented a memorial from
several places, praying that certain ministers who were
formerly settled in Ireland might return to their par
ishes, and also one from Donegal and Derry, for a
second supply. Tbe Assembly, owing to the press of
business, referred their petitions to the commissioners
ofthe Church, with power to act as the case seemed to
require. And on the return of Mr. Ferguson he re
ported to the Presbytery that Livingston, Hutcheson,
Henderson and Eobert Hamilton had. been designated,
if they and their parishes would give their consent ;
but when the matter was brought before the commis
sion they declined to take any action, but in view
of the great necessities then existing in Ireland, they
appointed Livingston, Hutcheson, and Coltwart to
visit them for a space of three months.

1646] ECCLESIASTICAL REFORM. 167
The English Parliament had enacted that lay courts
of appeal should be erected in Ulster, which would
have resulted in a coUision between them and the ec
clesiastical courts, and of which the commissioners
complained, yet in other respects they bad concurred
in the plan proposed by the Westminster Assembly.
Prelacy was abolished ; the Directory was put in the
place of the prayer-book ; the government of the
church, through sessions, presbyteries, synods and gen
eral assemblies, was established by ordinance, yet
throughout the whole business the Independents ren
dered the establishment unsettled. For example, the
Assembly urged that no assembly except the parochial
one established by law should be permitted to meet in
any parish ; in this the Parliaraent refused to concur,
and hence arose the discussion between the Presby
terians and the " Sectaries" respecting toleration ; and
thus both parties, in the heat of debate, were hurried
into extreme and imdefensible opinions, and thus
originated the unguarded and somewhat ambiguous
expressions on the subject of the magistrates' power,
which are to be found in the Westminster Confession
of Faith compiled at this critical period, and which,
though controled in their interpretation, by the other
sound principles asserted therein, so as to exclude
them from bearing a persecuting or Erastian sense,
are certainly not such as Presbyterians would now
employ. In the meantime several of the congregations had
succeeded in inducing young men from Scotland to
accept their calls, and the Presbytery was employed
during the remainder of the year in examining these
" expectants." The first among this number was

168 MINISTERS SENT FROM SCOTLAND. [Ch. XII.
Patrick Adair, who was on the 7th of May ordained
minister of Cairncastle, who for half a century was
one ofthe eminent leaders ofthe Presbyterian interest
in Ulster. During the months of August and Septem
ber, Thomas Hall was settled at Inver, Eobert Cun
ningham in Broadisland, and Anthony Shaw in Bel
fast, the two former of whom continued in their charges
for fifty years. Soon after, Anthony Kennedy was
settled in Templepatrick, and the entry of his ordina
tion is still extant in the session-book of that congre
gation. Through fifty-one years of conflict he re
mained their pastor. In 1688, through infirmity and
age, he desired to demit his charge, for reasons well
worth recording : " Whereas Mr. Anthony Kennedy
hath supplicated this meeting that, in consideration of
his age, and thereby of his infirmity and weakness of
body, whereby he is disabled from any part of his
ministerial work, except it be to preach now and then
as he is helped, and that he can not catechise, visit
families or sick as were necessary, he now gives up the
charge of his present flock, first to Christ, and then to
his Presbytery, for their future supply ; not that he
fears persecution, or danger, or maintenance, though
he has spent a good part of his own patrimony in sup
plying that charge, which if now to the fore might be
comfortable to his posterity; but finding his own weak
ness disabling him from the needful work of such a
charge, and the ingratitude of some who make no con
science to receive the gospel and subject themselves to
it, he now willingly and sincerely demits his charge of
the people of Templepatrick ; and in the meantime,
tUl further or better supply be provided, he will al
low a third of his current stipend towards the support

1646.] SETTLEMENT OF MINISTERS. 169
of an assistant to himself in the work ofthe ministry."
His resignation was not accepted, but he remained
with his people till his death, which occurred on the
Ilth of December, 1697.
After the settlement Of Kennedy, John Baird, chap
lain of Argyle's regiment, was settled at Dervock, in
Antrim, and John Greg at Carrickfergus. In the
month of December, Mr. Weir was sent to make
another application to the commission of the church in
Edinburg for permission to be given to Livingston to
settle at Newtonards, and Henderson at Killileagh,
which was again refused, but renewed their former
order for Livingston, Colwart, and Hutchinson, forth
with " to repair to Ireland for visiting the distressed
Christians there."
About this time Thomas Peebles, chaplain to Lord
Egiinton's regiment, was installed at Dundonald, Gil
bert Eamsay at Bangor, and James Gordon at Com
ber, all in the county Down ; and in Donegal, Hugh
Cunningham, chaplain to Lord Glencairn's regiment,
was settled at Eay, in the Lagan, and William Temple
at Letterkenny ; and in a few favored parishes in the
counties of Derry and Tyrone several ministers whose
names can not now be recovered were happily planted.
At the beginning of the year 1647, in addition to the
army chaplain and occasional supplies from Scotland,
there were nearly thirty ordained ministers perma-.
nently settled in Ulster. 8

CHAPTER XIII.
1646-1649.
O'Neill, having joined the Nuncio at Kilkenny,
united with him in opposing the peace which Ormond
had concluded with the confederate council. The
Nuncio, under protest that the Eoman Catholics had
not been properly cared for in the treaty negotiated
between Ormond and the confederate council, pro
nounced the highest censure of the Church upon them,
imprisoning the members of the council, and substitut
ing, in most instances, bishops in their place, and put
ting himself at their head, thus usurping the control
of the kingdom. He now ordered O'Neill to blockade
Dublin ; but Ormond, who held the city, anticipating
this movement, sent messages to the English Par
liament, and Colonel Arthur Chichester to Ulster,
informing them of the danger. The British and
Scotch officers in Ulster immediately sent Captain
William Cunningham to Dublin to gain more partic
ular information of the condition of affairs. Ormond
sent back the messenger with the urgent request that
they would send him reinforcements, and promising
great booty in return for their services.
The English comraissioners, who were still in Ulster,
on the 27th of October sent forward a detachment of
seven hundred dragoons, under the command of Col
onel Conway, the son of Lord Conway, and Lieuten-

1647.] ENGLISH COMMISSIONERS ARRIVE. 171
ant Colonel Owen O'Connelly, They met and defeated
O'Neill near Clones, and, after ravaging the counties
of Monaghan and Cavan, returned, as Ormond had
promised, with a large supply of cattle to Lisburn,
Just at this period Sir Francis Willoughby arrived at
Dublin fi-om England, with the news that a parliament
ary force would sail to their aid immediately by the
way of Chester. But Ormond, wishing to form a coal
ition with the Scots, with whom the King now resided,
rather than with the Parliament, sent another urgent
request tb the Scottish officers for further assistance.
They wrote in return from Carrickfergus, on the 10th
of November, stating several difficulties which lay in
the way of immediate assistance, but that if these could
be removed they were willing to do all in their power
to assist him.
Two days before this answer reached Ormond the
commissioners from Parliament, one of whom was Sir
John Clotworthy, arrived in the bay of Dublin, with
men and stores, and iramediately opened negotiations
with Ormond for the delivery of the city, and after
twenty days of deliberation, the conditions proposed
by the coramissioners were refused by Ormond. They
therefore reembarked the troops and proceeded to Ul
ster, where they were received with great coldness,
with difficulty gaining admittance to Belfast, while
the troops were refused entrance either to that place
or Carrickfergus.
This coolness to the English commissions arose
from the fact that their coramissioners were at this time
in London applying to the Parliament for the payment
of the arrears of the army, and until they could hear
the result of this application they were unwilling to

172 ORMOND SURRENDERS DUBLIN. [Ch. XIIL
admit these forces into their garrison. This refusal,
and their private correspondence with Ormond, offended
both Houses of Parliament, and the eneraies of the
Presbyterians took occasion to represent the Scottish
army in Ireland as inefficient, and evincing a disposi
tion to unite with the Irish and Ormond, and therefore
did not deserve their arrears. Intelligence of this
reaching Ireland, the officers assembled at Carrickfer
gus on the 20th of February, 1647, and drew up a
" Declaration," stating their difficulties, and vindi
cating themselves from the imputations dast upon
them. After the unsuccessful negotiations between Ormond
and the comraissioners of Parliament, he attempted to
affect an arrangement with the Nuncio's party ; but
this failing, and his position in Dublin becoming every
day more critical, he determined to surrender the city
to the Parliament on the conditions which had already
been proposed. He therefore, in the beginning of
February, reopened negotiations with the commision-
ers, who were at that time in Ulster ; but they, fear
ing that it would end as before, required Ormond to
send four hostages to England, as proof of his sincer
ity ; which he complying with, sent over his second
son and three others, one of whom was Colonel Arthur
Chichester. Upon their reception in England, the par
liamentary forces immediately left Ulster for Dublin,
where they arrived in the month of March, being fol
lowed soon after by fresh troops from England ; and
on the 7th day of May, new commissioners, including
only two of the old ones, appointed to treat with Or
mond, reached the metropolis, and twenty days after
the treaty was signed and ratified ; and on the 27th of

164T.] MONCK. 173
July, Ormond delivered up the castle and sailed for
England. Immediately upon taking possession of the city, or
ders were given for the Directory for Worship to be
adopted in all the churches, and the prayer-book to be
prohibited. This was opposed by the Episcopal clergy,
who had, under the protection of Ormond, become quite
numerous in the city ; but their remonstrance was un
availing. There being now no further need of the
Scotch forces in Ulster, orders for their recall were
sent to the Scottish Parliament on the 7th of Septem
ber. An ordinance to this effect had, as early as the
month of March, passed tbe Commons, and steps had
been taken to induce the House of Lords, who were
unwilling to act until all arrears had been paid to the
army, to agree to this movement, but on the promise
that this should be done they finally gave their consent.
The English Parliament now resolved to prosecute
the war in Ireland with the parliamentary forces alone,
and on the 16th of July appointed Colonel George
Monck to the command of all the British regiments in
Ulster, with the exception of the regiments at Derry
and in the Lagan, which were under Sir Charles Coote,
the commanders of the different regiments having
already been superseded by parliamentary officers.
Colonel Monck, who was now in the supreme com
mand, had been a military adventurer in the royal ser
vice, and had been taken prisoner by Fairfax, and
confined in the tower, but was released on taking the
Solemn League and Convenant, and was taken into the
service of the Parliament. On his arrival in Ireland
he fixed his head-quarters at Lisburn, and immediately
addressed himself to the conciliation of the Presbytery,

174 LABORS OP THE PRESBYTERY. [^H- ^HL
by representing the Parliament as warmly attached to
the Presbyterians, and in favor of the Covenant. In
this he was more successful than Coote, President of
Connaught, who, when he took the field in November
against the rebels, could with difficulty- muster a suffi
cient force for the expedition. Indeed, so unpopular
was the Parliament at this time, both with the Scots and
British, that a secret organization was on foot in Mun
ster to declare in favor of King, Parliament, and Cove
nant, in opposition to the " army of Sectaries," who
were usurping the supreme pow^r of the State. Their
designs were now defeated by the wisdom and sagacity
of Cromwell ; but the principal part of the Lagan forces
under the Stewarts absolutely refused to obey Coote's
orders. During this eventful year the labors of the Presby
tery in Ulster were steadily continued, vacant congre
gations were visited, and discipline faithfully enforced.
An act was passed encouraging " privy censures," as
they were called, which has long been common in the
church of Scotland ; once or twice a year, every minis
ter or elder was required to state whether they knew
of any scandal, fault, or negligence in their brethren,
which required censure, which was passed upon any
who deserved it, they hoping by this method to keep
up their authority over their members and insure
greater fidelity.
Monck and Coote now settled in their commands at
Lisburn and Derry, professed great interest in the af
fairs of the Presbytery, offering them every assistance
in reforming abuses among the ministers and immoral
practices among the people. The Presbytery, knowing
the cunning of these politicians, determined, neverthe-

1648.] MONTGOMERY RELEASED. 175
less, to use the opportunity which Prpvidence had
thrown in their way for the reformation of the church,
and returned them letters of thanks for their 'zeal and
assistance. While these commanders were thus ingra
tiating themselves with the Presbytery, they still car
ried on their operations against the rebels, who were
hovering upon the borders of Ulster. In February,
1648, Monck dispatched Colonel Conway, with a party
of horse, toward Cavan, who dispersed the forces of
O'NeUl in that quarter. O'Neill, discouraged by this
reverse, and fearing that he would be unable to hold
much longer the castle of Oloughouter, in which Lord
Montgomery had been confined since the battle of
Benburb, agreed to an exchange of Montgomery and
his party for Sir Theophilus Jones, the Earl of West-
meath, and Colonel Byrne, which exchange was ef
fected in the latter part of February.
On his release. Lord Montgomery resumed his com
mand and cooperated with Monck. In the month of
March, Monck held a council of war, consisting of fif
teen British officers, for the purpose of making ar
rangements for the approaching campaign. He had
continued to retain the confidence of these officers, but
there was still a great jealousy existing between him
and the Scottish army under Monro, whom he endeav
ored by every method to injure, which led them to
write to him, on the 1st of April, from Carrickfergus,
respectfully, yet decidedly, complaining of his treat
ment. There is no answer to this letter on record, and
it is unknown whether he gave them any satisfaction.
O'Neill, av/are of this want of cordiality between the
British and the Scots, determined, in the latter part of
the month of April, to make an attack upon Lisburn

176 CONCLUSION OP THE WAR. [Ch- XIII
with his Charlemont forces, but Monck getting word of
this, anticipated the movement by attacking O'Niell's
quarters; totally routing him, and leaving nearly a
thousand dead on the field, and capturing all their
arms and baggage.
During these transactions in Ireland, the Scottish
army in the north of England had received their ar
rears, and on the 30th of January, 1647, had deliv
ered the King to commissioners from both Houses of
Parliament. This step appeared to be unavoidable to
save themselves from the charge of treachery to the
Parliament, or of disloyalty to the King. The war
being now concluded, and the Scots withdrawn. Par
liament determined to disband their army under Fair
fax and Cromwell. But they, flushed with successes
and encouraged by the Independents in Parliament,
in the month of June, sejzed the pereon of the King,
and menaced the raetropolis, and wishing to break the
power of the Presbyterians, impeached eleven of the
most distinguished members of that party in the Com
mons, among whom was Sir John Clotworthy, and by
thus excluding them from the House they gained the
ascendency. In the meantime, Charles, after negotiating with the
three great parties of the State, the army, the Parlia
ment and the Scots, on the 26th of December, con
cluded a secret treaty with the commissioners of the
latter, in ^vhich he bound himself to establish the
Presbyterian church for three years, but annexed was
the clause that he " was neither obliged to desire the
settling that government, nor to present any bills to
that effect." The Scots, on their part, engaged to sup
port Charles against the army and the Parliament,

1648.] THE ENGAGEMENT. 177
with force if necessary. This treaty is known as the
" Engagement," and resulted most disastrously to
Charles himself and to the kingdom of Scotland.
When it was made known in Edinburgh, it was unan
imously denounced by the ministers throughout the
kingdom as a desertion of the Covenant and an un
holy alliance, and was opposed in Parliament by a
large majority, headed by the Marquis of Argyle.
The commission of the Cburch also pronounced the
treaty unsatisfactory ; that no security was given for
the maintenance of the Presbyterian system, but on
the other hand its tendency was to restore prelacy and
undo all that had already been accomplished towards
reformation ; and that it was dangerous to the liberties
both of the Church and State.
The raajority of Parliament having determined upon
a war for the purpose of rescuing the King frora cap
tivity, the Duke of Hamilton was appointed to the
command ; but such was the opposition of the Church,
that it was found almost impossible to raise a suf
ficient force. Commissioners were therefore sent to
Ulster to induce the Scottish forces there to declare
for the Engagement, and at the same time a letter was
sent to the Presbytery at Carrickfergus, vindicating
the cause of the Parliament, and ordering them "to
stir up the people by their preaching and prayers to
a cheerful obedience to their orders, and a ready ac
quiescence in the Engagement."
To prevent the accomplishment of this plan, Liv
ingston was sent to Ulster, and through his influence
a Declaration or warning was issued by the Presbytery,
which was read from all their pulpits; but, notwithstand
ing, twelve hundred horse and two thousand foot were
8*

178 DELEGATES TO THE ASSEMBLY. [Ch. XIH.
enrolled, under the command of Sir George Monro
as major general.
The Presbytery sent the Eev. John Greg, of Car
rickfergus, to the Assembly, which met in Edinburg
in the beginning of July, 1648, through whom they
declared their opposition to the restoration of the
King, and, as on former occasions, petitioned for a
supply of ministers. The Assembly now, for the last
time, appointed a deputation, consisting of Alexander
Livingston, Henry Semple, Andrew Lander, and John
Dick, who, in rotation, proceeded to Ulster, and
amidst all the confusion and conflicts of party labored
with diligence and fidelity. The Presbytery was also
active in the extension of the Church, corresponding
with the Presbyteries in Scotland and with Colonel
Monck and Sir Charles Coote, in reference to this mat
ter. The Scottish regiments had meanwhUe set out for
Scotland ; but a part were intercepted in the passage
by two men-of-war sent by the English Parliament to
guard the channel, and the rest, escaping by means of
small boats, landed on the Scottish shore, and were im
mediately ordered to join the main army under the
Duke of Harailton, at Carlisle. In the battle of Pres
ton, which soon followed, the Scottish forces were de
feated, the Duke taken prisoner, and the second civil
war thereby ended.
Monck, the confidential commander of the English
Parliament, participating with them in their indigna
tion against the Scottish regiments who had joined
with their enemies in the invasion of England, deter
mined to possess himself of all the garrisons occupied
by the Scots in the North. Hitherto he had been de-

1648.] MONCK SEIZES CARRICKFERGUS. 179
terred by the power of Monro ; but the levies for
England and his favoring the Engagement had greatly
weakened his influence. The fear also lest Sir Eobert
Monro should unite with his son-in-law, Sir George
Monro, who was about returning from Scotland with
many of his unprincipled followers, and cease his pro
tection, made them an easy prey to the stratagems of
Monck, who, seeing his advantage, concerted with
some officers whose Colonel had a grudge against Mon
ro, and surprised the castle of Carrickfergus on the
morning of the 12th of September, and imraediately
sent Monro to England, where he was confined for sev
eral years in the Tower.
Those officers who were implicated in this affair,
being elected delegates from their sessions to Presby
tery, were refused their seats when presenting them
selves, on account of this transaction. At the very
time of these occurrences, Monck sat in Presbytery
at Lisburn, pretending to be their friend and patron.
He thus succeeded in wresting from Monro his prin
cipal garrison, through the unconscious agency of the
Scots themselves, thus depriving the Presbyterians
of their chief strength and dependence.
The fall of Carrickfergus was immediately followed
by that of Belfast, upon which Monck published a
declaration explaining his reasons for their seizure.
At the same time he sent orders to Lord Clanbrassel
and the Montgomerys, directing two hundred men
from each of tbeir regiments to join him in his attack
upon Coleraine and other fortified places ; to this or
der the Montgomerys answered in a joint letter, asking
his reasons for seizing Carrickfergus and his proposed
attack upon Coleraine ; to which Monck gave a respect?

180 THE ARMY SEIZES THE KING. [Ch. XIH.
ful answer, promising to treat their friends who should
become prisoners with all kindness, and at another time
would give a satisfactory reason for his proceedings,
and without further delay surprized Coleraine, by this
act occupying the last point held by the Scottish army.
Sir Charles Coote pursued the same course in Derry,
but was opposed by Sir Eobert Stewart, who had since
1638 held the castle of Culmore, thus guarding all
access to Derry by sea. Coote, by stratagem, obtained
possession of this castle, and soon after the castles of
Lifford and Derg, and thus, before the end of the year,
the parliamentary or Independent party had posses
sion of all the strongholds in Ulster, with the excep
tion of Charlemont, which was still in the possession
of the rebels.
While the parliamentary commissioners were ab
sent in Scotland repelling Hamilton's invasion, the
Presbyterians regained their ascendency in Parliament,
restored the impeached merabers, and adopted some
constitutional measures for the settleraent of the king
dom ; but after the return of the victorious army its
leaders openly avowed their revolutionary purposes.
The council of officers presented a Eemonstrance on
the 20th of November to the Parliament, requiring
that the King should be brought to justice, as the
" capital cause " of all the evils which had befallen
the kingdom. The army removed the King to Hurst
castle, December 1st, and the next day, under Fairfax,
occupied Whitehall; but the Presbyterian majority
disavowed the seizure of the King and resolved to
continue the negotiations with him. The next day,
Colonel Pride, with a detachment, seized fifty Presby
terian members as they entered, and the day following

1649.] PRESBYTERIANS GAIN ASCENDENCY. 181
nearly an hundred more were shut out and secured
or forced to fly. The Eump Parliament, thus con
stituted, on the 1st of January, 1649, ordered the King
to be tried, and he was beheaded at Whitehall on the
30th of January, in the forty-ninth year of his age.

CHAPTER XIV.
1649-1653.
The death of Charles created five distinct parties in
Ulster, two of which were Popish and three Protestant.
The ultra-Popish party, led by the Nuncio and Glamor
gan, aimed at the complete restoration of Popery, and
exclusion of all other churches, under the protection
of some Catholic sovereign. The moderate Papists
were in favor of uniting with the Protestant royalists,
under Ormond, in restoring Charles the Second, with
complete toleration, if not restoration, of the old re
ligion. The parliamentary or Independent party was
for a republic, without King or House of Lords ; the
prelatical royalists for the unconditional restoration
of Charles the Second. Between these stood the mod
erate royahsts or Presbyterians, who condemned the
king's death as an unnecessary cruelty, but abjured the
doctrine of passive obedience, and insisted on the Sol
emn League and Covenant as still binding on all three
kingdoms. As soon as the news of the King's death reached Ire
land, the Presbytery met at Belfast on the 15th of Feb
ruary, and issued a paper known as the Eepresenta
tion, protesting against the execution of Charles, and
condemning in strong terms the doings of the " Sect
aries." This manifesto called forth an answer from
John Milton, who at that time filled the office of Latin

1649.] THE REPRESENTATION. 183
Secretary to the CouncU of State. At the same time
it was resolved to hold a fast and renew the Solemn
League and Covenant ; and letters were sent to Monck
and Coote, containing copies of the Eepresentation, in
viting them to join in the Covenant. Monck, in his
answer, desired a delay of the publication of the paper
until he could convene a council of war and confer with
' them. The answer of Coote was more explicit, declining
to confer with the Presbytery, and stating the danger
ous consequences that would follow the course pro
posed. The Presbytery was not moved from its pur
pose by these letters ; but on the last Sabbath of February
the Eepresentation was read in all their churches, and
the Solemn League and Covenant formally renewed.
During the months of March and April various papers
passed between Monck and his council of war andthe
Presbytery and council ofthe army. The Presbytery,
having renewed the Covenant in their own congrega
tions, sent some of their members to Monck and the
councU of war, desiring that the Covenant might also
be administered to the army. They answered that it
was not expedient at this time, it having already been
signed by the army. Whereupon the Presbytery sent
a commission to express their dissatisfaction at this
answer, and reminding Monck of his promise to call a
council of war from the officers of the different regi
ments to take measures for the safety ofthe church and
country, at the same time intimating that they had ap
pointed a committee of ministers and elders to attend
this councU. This committee accordingly waited upon
Monck, but effected nothing, he evading a direct an
swer to their petitions.
At the same time Monck was approached by the of-

184 DECLARATION OF THE ARMY. [Ch. XIV.
ficers of the army, making the same requests, that the
Covenant might be administered to tbe army. Monck,
in reply, proposed to them a Declaration which he had
framed ; but they, rejecthig this paper, called a meet
ing of officers, at whieh a new Declaration was presented,
drawn up by Lord Montgomery, which, after being
amended and approved by the Presbytery, was signed
by the officers. This paper was called the " Declara
tion of the Army and the Country," and was presented
to Monck at a council of war held in Belfast on the
9th of April, 1649, who opened the conference by propos
ing the following queries : " 1. I desire to know what
cause you have to distrust me for my faithfulness to
the good cause you stand for ? 2. Why do you grow
upon me daily by new propositions, and are not satis
fied with those which the Presbytery at first pro
pounded, but assume an unlimited power to your
selves ? 3. Why do you declare against that preva
lent party in England, without order or advice from
England, and thereby do in all appearance prejudge
the good party oppressed there, by declaring your
selves sooner than they think it seasonable ; and yet
to suffer malignants in your quarters, contrary to
order? 4. I desire to know (in regard of our de
pendence upon England) whom it is we shall serve for
the present ?"
To these questions, proposed with a view of distract
ing the councils of his opponents, the council gave a
firm and convincing answer; and with their reply
they sent five propositions from the army and six from
the country, of similar import, to which they required
an immediate answer. Monck asked for a delay of a
week, which was afterwards extended to a month, at

[1649. THE VINDICATION. 185
the end of which time, perceiving that his officers and
men were all opposed to his design, he withdrew to
Dundalk, and on the Sth of May joined the party of
O'Neill, then proposing to drive Ormond from the
neighborhood of Dublin ; but his plan was frustrated
by the royalists, under Lord Inchiquin, and soon after
Monck returned to England, whence he never returned
to Ireland.
While the army was thus negotiating with Monck,
the Presbytery, at a meeting held in Belfast on the 10th
of April, issued another paper, styled The Vindica
tion, in which they "profess before God and the world
their constant resolution to subject themselves to the
lawful authority of the righteous King and free Parlia
ment of England, and to tho lawful commands of such
as shall have power from them ;" while at the same
time the^' " disclaim the present usurped power of
Sectaries," whom, say they, "we are resolved never to
obey as the lawftd authority of England." These
words are sufficiently expressive of the attitude iu
which the Presbyterians stood towards the Common
wealth. The army councU, after signing their Declaration,
prepared themselves for action, first appointing Lord
Montgomery of Ards to be their commander, and then
occupying Lisburn, which had been deserted by Monck.
Montgomery, though seeming to enter heartily into
their plans, was secretly designing to bring the county
under the subjugation of Ormond. All the strongholds
in Ulster were now in the possession of the Presby
terians, except Deny, which was held by Sir Charles
Coote on behalf of the republicans. The council of
war therefore sent commissioners to Coote, advising

186 DERRY BLOCKADED. [Ch. XIV.
him to take the field in behalf of the Covenant ; but he
refusing to join with thera. Sir Alexander Stewart
marched v/ith his regiment to Derry and besieged the
town. On the 28th of March the Lagan forces took
possession of Manorcunningham and Carrigans, thus
partially cutting off supplies from the garrison. Du
ring several weeks various skirmishes occurred, in one
of which Captains Finch and Lawson were taken pris
oners, and on the 23d of April, Coote, with a large
party, sallied out and attacked the Lagan forces at
Carrigans, killing and wounding some, and securing
many prisoners, besides arms and ammunition.
Notwithstanding this success, he was still closely
blockaded, the Lagan forces bringing their entrench
ments within cannon-shot. On the 26th of May they
were joined by Colonels Eobert Stewart and Mervyn,
soon followed by Sir George Monro, lately forced to
abandon Scotland, with a party of Highlanders who
had followed him. The arrival of these reinforce
ments, instead of adding strength, created unhappy
divisions in the army, the royalist party assuming the
whole control of the siege, so that the ministers sent
by the Presbytery to the camp were forced to leave,
after advising Sir Alexander Stewart to withdraw with
his party. On the 7th of June Sir George Monro, leav
ing the army before Derry, advanced upon Coleraine,
which he surprised. During this whole time Lord
Montgomery was holding a secret correspondence with
Sir George Monro and Lord Conway, promising to
suppress the ministers, and remove such officers from
the army as were not favorable to the royalist party.
This coming to the knowledge of the Presbytery,
Montgomery was questioned aa to its truth ; but he

1649.] TREACHERY OF MONTGOMERY. 187
denied it all. Nevertheless the Presbytery became
more suspicious of him, and sent a committee to Bel
fast to observe his motions ; but while they were there
Monro arrived, (beiug sent for secretly by Montgome
ry,) and threatened the town, whereupon Montgomery,
under pretense of helping the garrison, entered and
took possession on the 27th of June, dismissing Colonel
Wallace, the governor, and producing his own commis
sion from the King. Two days after the discovery of
this treachery of Montgomery the Presbytery, meet
ing at Carrickfergus, addressed a severe but faithful
letter to him, which he iraraediately answered; but
they, deeming this manifestly insincere, sent a rejoin
der, in which they urged him to prove his sincerity
by ordering Monro to surrender the city of Belfast,
and regretting his connection with Ormond, the^bitter
foe of the Covenant. Montgomery, on the receipt of
this letter, instead of listening to its suggestions, or
dered Monro to seize the castle of Carrickfergus, and
on the next day he joined Monro before the town,
which, being unprepared for an attack from such an
unexpected quarter, was surrended upon favorable
terms, and Dalzel, formerly an officer under General
Eobert Monro, was appointed governor, where he re
mained for some time, spreading terror throughout the
country. The Presbyterian ministers, on the surren
der, fled to the county of Down.
The day on which Montgomery entered Carrickfer
gus he published^a declaration, with the view of vin
dicating himself from the charge of treachery, and of
persuading the Presbyterians to submit to his author
ity, at the same time inducing Lord Inchiquin, next
in command to Ormond, to write to tbe Presbytery,

188 DECLARATION OF THE PRESBYTERY. [Ch. XIV.
declaring that the King was determined to establish
Presbyterianism in Ulster, and urging them to join the
royal standard.
The Presbytery, not deceived by these promises, at
a meeting held in Bangor, the 7th of July, 1649, sent
a respectful letter to Lord Inchiquin, explaining their
proceedings, and at the same time drew up a paper in
answer to the declaration of Montgomery, entitled, " A
Declaration by tbe Presbytery at Bangor," which was
ordered to be read from all their pulpits. Montgom
ery answered this Declaration by sending an officer to
the Presbytery, which met the following week, accu
sing thera of treason, and threatening them with im
prisonment. He also summoned the ruling elders
to appear before him, and Monro wrote a threatening
letter to some of the ministers, summoning them to
appear before him at Coleraine. In view therefore of
their danger they withdrew from their parishes, some
going over to Scotland, but soon returned on the ad
vice of ministers in that kingdom.
On the Ilth of July, Monro, who had been appoint
ed governor of Coleraine, again joined the army be
fore Derry, carrying wdth him men and cannon, and
tbe siege, which had not been interrupted, was pressed
with greater vigor, this being the last fortress in Ul
ster not in the hands ofthe royalists. On the 27th of
July, Lord Montgomery with a reinforcement joined
the besieging army, and immediately summoned the
town to surrender in virtue of his commission from
Charles II. No notice being taken of this by Coote,
an assault was made the next day by the royalists,
which resulted in the repulse of Montgomery with
great loss. Meanwhile the news reached the Lagan

1649-] OLIVER CROMWELL ARRIVES. 189
forces of the perfidy of their general through the
means of the Presbytery's Declaration, who now, for
the first time understanding the character ofthe cause
for which they were fighting, abandoned the siege in
great numbers. Notwithstanding this loss, Montgom
ery continued the blockade, but on the 7th of August
they were surprised by the arrival on the other side
of the river of Owen Eoe 0' Niell, with a reinforce
ment of four thousand foot and three hundred horse,
O' Niell having privatelj' concluded a treaty with Coote.
This reinforcement compelled Montgomery and Stew
art to raise the siege and return to Coleraine. All the
castles in the vicinity of Derry and the Lagan surren
dered lo Coote, except Eaphoe, which was held and
defended by Bishop Leslie, who had returned to Ulster
on the death of the King. O' Niell was taken sick
while in Derry, and was carried on a litter to Cloug-
houter castle, where he died a few months later.
The face of things in Ulster was completely changed
by the arrival of Oliver Cromwell in Dublin, as Lord
Lieutenant and commander-in-chief, on the 15th of
August, 1649, and the unexpected energy of his pro
ceedings. Before the end of the month he had in
vested Drogheda, defended by a chosen garrison under
Sir Arthur Aston, a Popish officer of great skill and
experience, and at the end of a week, after two repulses
he led the reserve in person and took the place by
storm, giving no quarter, and killing many of the
innocent inhabitants, which struck terror into other
places and prevented their resistance. Going southward
to meet Ormond, he sent Colonel Venables into Ulster,
who, by a succession of rapid movements, took Dun
dalk, Carlingford, Newry and Dromore, at the last

190 Cromwell's victories. [Ch. xiv,
place recovering some standards which had been pre
viously taken by the royalists. He then occupied
Belfast and Lisburn, placing a garrison there and at
Antrim, the latter commanded by the famous Owen
0' Connelly, now a Lieutenant Colonel in the Eepub
lican or parliamentary service, but soon after killed in
an attack upon Antrim by a detachment from Sir
George Monro's force under command of Colonel John
Hamilton, which was followed by the burning of the
town itself, a loss raore than made good, however, by
the capitulation of Dalzell at Carrickfergus, when in
vested by the united forces of Venables and Coote.
As the place was not to be surrendered for two weeks,
the two Lords, Montgomery (of Ards) and Claneboy
(now Clanbrassil,) undertook to relieve it in reliance
upon reinforcements from Ormond; and when this
hope was extinguished by the victories of Cromwell in
the south, and the time fixed for the capitulation (Dec,
3d,) was approaching, they resolved to risk a battle
with the parliamentary army, which took place near
Lisburn, and resulted in the total rout of the royalists,
Monro saving his life by swimming the river, and
escaping first to Charlemont and then to Enniskillen,
while the two Lords succeeded in joining Ormond in
the south.
In the meantime the Presbytery continued to de
nounce the regicides and sectaries, in which they were
indulged by Venables and Coote as long as the result
of the campaign was doubtful ; but after the battle at
Lisburn they began to threaten and discountenance the
Presbyterian ministers, and to promote the Indepen
dent interest, which was represented for six months in
Ireland by the great John Owen, who, as Cromwell's

1649.] NEW ENGLAND PREACHERS INVITED. 191
chaplain, preached constantly in Dublin, He was ap
pointed to this office on the 2d of July, 1649, at the
usual salary, with an additional sum of one hundred
pounds a year, to be paid quarterly to his wife and
family, who had remained in England. On the return
of Owen to England he urged upon the Commons, in a
sermon, the necessity and duty of providing for the
spiritual wants of Ireland, which Cromwell himself at
tempted by inviting preachers from New England, who
consented on condition that their Church should be es
tablished as it was at home ; that their people should
be aided in removing with them, and should choose a
governor among themselves ; that no Irish should re
side within their settlement ; and that they should have
" a due proportion of outward encouragement in houses
and lands." These modest propositions do not seem to
have been granted ; and although the Independents
were sustained and favored by the rulers of Ireland
for ten years, they made little progress ; so that when
the Eepublican ascendancy was over they had only
one or two churches in Dublin, and as many more
in Munster. The Parliament had previously endowed
Trinity College with the revenues belonging to the
sees of Dublin and Meath and the cathedral of St.
Patrick, and on the same day had abolished the lit
urgy and ordered the Directory for public Worship to
be introduced in Ireland as well as England,
After the death of Owen Eoe O'Neill the command
of the royalist army, which was sought by his kins
man Sir Phelim, and the Earl of Antrim, was con
ferred, through the predominance of priestly influence,
on Ever McMahon, titular (or Popish) Bishop of
Clogher, and as soon as the season permitted prepar-

192 THE ROYALISTS DEFEATED. [Ch. XIV.
ations were made to seize the strongholds of Ulster,
which were in posses.sion of the republicans.
At the same time the Eepublicans were not inactive ;
Sir George Monro, despairing of relief, had given up
Enniskillen to Coote, who, collecting a body of troops
from the Lagan, invited Venables to join him, for the
purpose of seizing Charlemont ; but this junction was
for a time prevented by the prompt action of McMa
hon, who, surprising the Castle of Toome, and throw
ing a body of troops forward into Antrim, compelled
Venables to return for the protection of his own quar-
tere. Failing to form a junction with Venables, Coote
occupied Dungannon, but his supplies being cut off, he
advanced with the main body of his army to Omagh,
where being reinforced, he dispatched a body to coop
erate with the garrison of Enniskillen, aiming stUl in
all his movements to form a junction with Venables,
which was finally accomplished at the pass of Breagh-
dough, through an ill-advised movement of McMahon,
against which he and others had been warned, accord
ing to a popular legend, by an apparition. Coote hav
ing been reinforced by Colonel Fenwick's command
from Coleraine, determined to risk an engagement, and
on the 21st of June the armies met near Letterkenny,
on the river Swilly. This battle, which was the last in
Ulster until the revolution, was severely contested, and
resulted in the entire defeat of the royalists, McMahon
being taken prisoner, and soon after beheaded by
Coote, and his head exposed on one of the gates of
Derry. This victory was soon followed by the capit
ulation of Charlemont, the last stronghold of the Irish
royalists. The war being now at an end and the Eepublican

1650, 51.] THE ENGAGEMENT PRESSED. 198
ascendency established throughout Ulster, the author
ities began to press the (English) Engagement of sub
mission to the Parliaraent, without a King or House
of Lords. The Presbyterian ministers refusing to ac
cept this, many of them were imprisoned, among whom
are found tho names of Drysdale, Baty of Ballywalter,
Fergus Alexander of the county of Down, and Henry
Main, Archibald Ferguson, David Buttle and An
thony Kennedy of Antrim ; and this led to an argu
mentative correspondence with Venables and Coote,
which the latter terminated by a published declaration
that they must submit or leave the country. Their sit
uation was made still more trying by the appointment
of new Parliamentary commissioners, Cromwell retain
ing the Lord Lieutenantcy, but being reaUy employed
in Scotland, and devolving the actual command in Ire
land on his son-in-law, Henry Ireton. To these com
missioners an Independent minister, Samuel Winter,
was appointed chaplain, but was soon after transferred
to Trinity College, as Provost, which he held until the
Eestoration. The Presbyterians in Ulster were now regarded
with extreme jealousy by the friends of Charles IL,
their ministers subject to all kinds of indignity, being
excluded from their pulpits and their support with
drawn, until at a council of war, held at Carrickfer
gus, in March, 1651, they were formally banished
from the kingdom, on account of which many of them
fied to Scotland. A few of them, unwilling to leave
their parishes in this hour of distress, remained and
preached in the fields and barns, urging the people to
constancy in their doctrines, and impressing them with
the duties which they owed to their lawful sovereign,^
9

194 TRIALS OF THE PRESBYTERIANS. [Ch. XIV.
in opposition to the present usurpation. In the close
of the summer of 1651, renewed efforts were made to
eject thera, so that at last there were but six remain
ing, Thomas Peebles, James Gordon, and Gilbert Eam
say, in Down, and Anthony Kennedy, Patrick Adair,
and Eobert Cunningham in Antrim.
In the midst of these trials they were invited to a
conference with Timothy Taylor and a Mr. Weeks, or
Wyke, leading Independent ministers at Antrim,
which conference was held in March, 1652, and
proved to be a public debate in the castle, in which
the Presbyterian cause was reluctantly but ably defend
ed by Adair, and iu a tone of moderation, which was
acknowledged and commended by their opponents.
At the conclusion of this debate the ministers returned
home under a safe conduct, and preached more boldly
and openly than they had heretofore done. The news
of this reaching Scotland, Archibald Ferguson and
Andrew Stewart, of Donaghadee, ventured to rejoin
their brethren in Ireland,
Ireton had in the meantime died, and Lieutenant
General Fleetwood, who had married his widow, was
on the 9th of July appointed commander-in-chief of
the forces, and one of the commissioners for the civU
affairs of the kingdora. And among the first acts of
his administration was the erection of a court of justice
for tbe trial of all those who had been concerned in the
murder at the breaking out of the rebellion. This
court circulated through the principal towns of the
kingdom, during the early part of the year 1653, and
it is alleged that about two hundred criminals suffered
in the various provinces under its sentence, among
whom was Sir Phelim O'Neill.

1651, 1652.] THE BAPTISTS. 195
But the Independents themselves were now threat
ened with schism by the Baptists who arose within
their bosom, but began to take an independent stand
in Ireland as well as in England, under the lead .of
Thomas Patient, who had come over as a chaplain in
CromweU's army, but afterwards supplanting John
Eogers, the learned but eccentric Independent minis
ter of Dublin. Small Baptist churches were during
this year also established at Kilkenny, Clonmel, Wa
terford and Cork. On the arrival of Fleetwood, in
1652, he brought with him Christopher Blackwood, a
Baptist minister, who was for a short time settled at
Kilkenny, but finally acted as an evangelist, under
Patient and Claudius GUbert, who was pastor of the
church at Limerick. Through the infiuence and
preaching of these men the deputy and commissioners
resolved to silence all ministers who still opposed the
commonwealth. Accordingly a correspondence was
opened with the Presbytery, and a day appointed for
them to meet at Belfast. At this meeting they issued
a paper which they had drawn up the day before, in
which they declared their unwiUingness to acknowl
edge the government as lawful, but at the same time
denying that they have any intention to excite the
people to rebelhon, their great work being to preach
the gospel.
This paper was debated for many hours, when the
meeting was adjourned for six weeks. In the inter
val they sent Andrew Stewart to Scotland, to inform
the ministers there of their troubles, and the stand
they had taken. At the end of six weeks, they again
met the commissioners, who proposed to them to send
two of their number to Dublin to confer with Fleet-

196 CONFERENCE WITH FLEETWOOD. [Ch. XIV.
wood and the council, and if they could satisfy them
the matter would end. Accordingly, Ferguson and
Adair proceeded to Dublin in January, 1653, and after
a conference with Fleetwood and other officers they
were dismissed.
Not long after commissioners were dispatched from
Dublin to Carrickfergus to offer the Engagement to the
whole country, and in the prosecution of this work
they sent parties of soldiers to search the houses of
the few ministers who remained, expecting to find
some secret correspondence with the royalist party in
Scotland. They found papers only in possession of
Mr. Adair, and these were rescued by a maid in the
house, who, hearing that they were Adair's papers,
took them from the sergeant's cloak-bag while he
was asleep ; not one of the seventeen soldiers engaged
in this search could read. The ministers were soon
after summoned to appear at Carrickfergus, and threat
ened with reraoval from the country, but were imme
diately dismissed with unexpected lenity, and especi
ally without any pledge being exacted, in consequence
of intelligence received of changes which had taken
place in England.

CHAPTER XV.
1653-1660.
Cromwell, after the battle of Worcester in 1651,
being possessed of more than royal power, and recog
nized as a sovereign by foreign States, wished to get
rid of the speculative politicians composing the Eump
Parliament, and after vainly trying to make it dissolve
itself, at length on the 20th of April, 1653, at the
close of a debate in which he had taken part, called
in his soldiers and expelled the members, ordering the
mace to be removed, and locking the doors. In the
afternoon of the same day he dissolved the Council of
State, thus uniting in himself the legislative and exec
utive authority. The news of this revolution reached
Carrickfergus on the day on which the members of
the Presbytery were examined before the commis
sioners, and it so disconcerted their plans that they
were immediately dismissed to their parishes, as has
already been stated.
Among the first measures of Cromwell was a plan
for transplanting the disaffected Scots from Ulster into
Leinster and Munster. Those who consented to the
removal were to have a valuable consideration in land,
the remission of their taxes for a year, and other ad
vantages; on the other hand, those who showed any
unwillingness were to be compelled to go, with but
few favors frora the government. But the execution

198 HENRY CROMWELL. [Ch. XV.
of this plan was interrupted by the movements which
resulted in the proclamation of Crorawell as Protec
tor. He had summoned certain persons to meet at
Whitehall in the beginning of July, who were formed
into a Parliament; but the majority of them being
Anabaptists, it was found impossible to use them in
the way he intended, but by management they were
induced to resign their power into his hands, and thus
it was peaceably dissolved.
The elevation of Cromwell created great dissatis
faction among thc Baptists composing the Irish Coun
cil, he accordingly sent over his son Henry, a young
man of the highest promise, in the beginning of March,
1654, on a mission of inquiry. He was received in
Dublin with every mark of respect by the authorities.
He found tbe councU unpopular, and .inactive in every
way but in the distribution of the public lands among
themselves. The army, with the exception of a few
royalists, expressed themselves favorable to the gov
ernment of the Protector, and the great mass of the
country people were overjoyed at the prospect of de
liverance from the government of the council, which
had become very burdensome. During his stay, young
Cromwell visited the college, " where he was enter
tained with copies of verses, speeches and disputa
tions." After a fortnight's absence he returned to
England. The effect of this visit was to conciliate all parties
and restore tranquility in the south, so that several
congratulatory addresses from the army and from In
dependent churches were forwarded to Cromwell. One
from Patient's church in Dubhn was signed by one
hundred and twenty names, and directed to " His High-

1664.] RESOLUTIONERS AND PROTESTERS. 199
ness the Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of Eng
land, Scotland, and Ireland." The same beneficial
effects extended also to Ulster. The Presbyterian min
isters returned to their parishes, and had no restric
tions in their public services, and the Presbytery was
again allowed to hold its stated and public meetings in
the various towns of the province.
The Church of Scotland was at this time in great
agitation, caused by two parties which had sprung up
called the Eesolutioners and Protesters, the first com
posed of those who had sanctioned the admission of roy
alists and other enemies of religious hberty into places
of civil and mihtary trust for the purpose of sustaining
the cause of Charles II. ; the second composed of the
more zealous ministers and elders, who protested against
the acts of the superior courts, which sanctioned this
course. These parties carried their bitterness so far
as to refuse to commune with one another. This con
troversy was at its height when the Irish ministers,
flying from persecution, arrived. They naturally
adopted the views of the Presbyteries with which
they were connected, and thus they became divided
among themselves. Some of them being among the
Protesters, the commission ofthe Church of Scotland, in
their public papers, were led to reflect on the whole of
the Irish ministers as interfering with things which did
not belong to them. In this difficulty the Irish min
isters met together at Ayr to consult as to the course
they should pursue, when it was determined that what
ever difficulty there might be among the Scotch Presby
terians they would keep themselves free from the strffe,
lest on returning to Ireland they should sow discord
among the brethren there.

200 THE ACT OF BANGOR. [CH.-XV.
The measures of CromweU, which opened the door
for the return ofthe exiled ministers to Ireland, led to
the introduction there of several young men of the
Protester's party without the approbation of the Pres
bytery, who, fearing that they might introduce the
same disorder into Ulster, held a meeting, at which
they warned Cunningham and Semple, who had invited
these expectants over, of the evils which might result
from such a course.
Another meeting of the Presbytery was held soon
after at Bangor, at which was passed an overture,
called the Act of Bangor, which declared that although
some differed in opinion from the rest, yet there should
be no mutual contestings about the differences in Scot
land among themselves, nor any notice of them in their
preaching, prayers, or conference among the people.
But whatever mention might indirectly be made of
these divisions, it should be in order to heal them in
Scotland; and praying that these same divisions, for
for which there was no ground, might not arise among
them. Another act of the Presbytery was in reference to
planting the church with men from Scotland. They
resolved to endeavor to find men of ability, learning,
prudence, and piety, and those who should seek the
peace of the church ; and that all applications to Scot
land for men should pass through the hands of the
Presbytery. They also resolved that no man should
be received unless he had recommendations from min
isters of both sides in Scotland, and that none should
be admitted until they had engaged and subscribed
the Act of Bangor. They also determined upon a
strict examination of all who made application for ad-

1654.] DIVISION OP THE PRESBYTERY 201
mission as to " what they had read, and what stock
of learning they had, not only in those points taught in
the philosophy colleges in Scotland, but also how they
had improved their time after that, Avhether in colleges
of divinity, or, if they had not that opportunity, how
thoy- improved their time otherwise as to grounding
themselves in positive divinity, and studying common
places in controversial divinity and church historj'."
This course was deemed necessary, as many congre
gations were now making application for ministers, and
many young men were coming over, of their own ac
cord, seeking for settlements. These proceedings of
the Presbytery were most salutary in their effects, and
caUed forth the approbation of wdse ministers on both
sides in the Church of Scotland.
The increasing number of the ministers in Ulster led
to a division of the Presbytery, in 1654, into three com
missions or committees, with the power of transact
ing ordinary local business, the highest jurisdiction be
ing still reserved to the whole body. By a subsequent
re-arrangement there were five such " meetings" organ
ized, for Down, Derry, Antrim, Eoute, and Lagan ; and
StUl later a delegated body called a " general meeting"
or " committee," nearly corresponding to a synod in
the Cburch of Scotland.
The support of the ministers being stUl inadequate,
there being no tithes collected for five years after 1649,
Sir John Clotworthy procured for them a stated allow
ance from the Irish Council, in common with the In
dependent, Baptist, and Episcopalian ministers. At
firet they objected to receive this allowance, as being a
dependence upon a usurping power, but upon consid
eration they concluded that as their people were greatly
9*

202 INDEPENDENT MINISTERS IN DUBLIN. [Ch. XV.
burdened with the government tithes, and as they
would only be receiving what was rightly theirs, and
especially as no conditions had been laid upon them,
they would accept the offer.
In the beginning of July, 1655, Henry Crorawell
was again sent to Dublin, as " major-general of the
army in Ireland," accompanied by his chaplain, Fran
cis Eoberts, an Independent minister, and to counter
act the influence of the Baptist ministers he brought
over several Independent ministers, whom he settled
as fellows in Trinity CoUege and pastors of the city
churches. Among these were Dr. Thomas Harrison,
the celebrated Stephen Charnock, who became a fellow
of the college and preacher in St. Werburg's church,
and Mr. Samuel Mather, who the next year became
colleague to Dr. Winter, in St. Nicholas' church.
Henry, on his arrival, received letters of congratula
tion from the leading Independent ministers of the
country, and in proportion as he was flattered by them
he became suspicious of the Presbyterians and Bap
tists, lest they should oppose his government. He
therefore wrote to his father, asking how he should
deal with these discontented parties. Oliver writes in
reply, " Time and patience may work them to a better
frame of spirit, and bring them to see that which for
the present seems to be hid from them ; especially if
they see your moderation and love toward them, which
I earnestly desire you to study and endeavor all that
lies in you."
It was at this period that the Quakers first made
their appearance in Ulster. William Edmundson, a
merchant from the north of England, settled in An
trim about the vear 1653, and on one of his visits to

1656.] QUAKERS. 208
England he became acquainted with the celebrated
Quakers, George Fox and James Naylor, and through
their influence embraced their opinions. In 1654 he
removed from Antrim to Lagan, where the first Qua
ker meeting ever held in Ulster was established, com
posed of seven converts. Here he was joined by John
Tiffin and Eichard Clayton, itinerary preachers from
England, with whom he traversed the whole country,
preaching against the abuses of the clergy. Edmund-
son did not confine himself to Ireland, but traveled
through England, Scotland, and even through North
America and the West Indies. The well-meaning but
violent conduct of these men at last drew down upon
their society the notice of the authorities, and not
withstanding the boasted toleration of the Independ
ents, they were treated with great severity, some
of them being cast into prison, and many fines im
posed. With this exception the country under Henry
Cromwell was in a state of great tranquillity. By his
conciliatory course he gained the confidence of the
most bigoted Anabaptists, and not long after his ar
rival all parties cordially concurred in sending contri
butions, amounting to nearly eleven hundred pounds,
to the Protestants of Savoy, then suffering persecution
from their sovereign.
While the country was thus enjoying prosperity and
peace, John Livingston for the last time visited Ire
land. He arrived in the summer of 1656, and visited
his old parish of Killinchy, where he found but ten or
twelve pereons who were in the congregation when he
left them. While in Ireland he received a call from
Dublin, which he declined on the grounds that he was
not released from his charge in Scotland, and his pref-

204 PRESBYTERIANS SUSPECTED. [Ch. XV
erence for his old charge in Killinchy if he ever set
tled in Ireland. During this visit he had an interview
with Edmundson, who was in prison in Armagh, an
account of which Edmundson narrates at length in his
journal. It may be stated here that Edmundson, be
ing soon after liberated, settled upon a farm in Cavan,
for no other purpose than to obtain an opportunity of
refusing to pay tithe, and enjoy the satisfaction of suf
fering for the testimony.
The Presbyterians in Ulster at this time, although
protected by Henry Cromwell, were yet looked upon
with some suspicion, lest they should espouse the cause
of the exiled King. Accordingly orders were issued
to Monck at Edinburg to permit no Scots to remove
to Ulster without special permission, and Colonel
Cooper, commander-in-chief of the northeastern parts
of the province, was directed to watch carefully the
movements of the Presbyterians. It was not long be
fore they were brought into conflict with the authori
ties. Several fast-days and thanksgivings had been
appointed by Parliament, which the Presbytery uni
formly refused to observe. Whereupon Henry Crom
well himself wrote threatening letters to the Presbytery,
and several of the members were cited to appear before
the Council at Dublin. The Presbytery sent two of
their number. Hart and Greg, to Dublin, who stated to
the Governor that conscientious scruples prevented
them from observing the appointed days, believing
that such appointments belonged to the church, and not
to the State. The jealousy against the Presbyterians
is seen also in the case of John Greg, who hacl received
a call to Carrickfergus. Colonel Cooper, the com
mander, in writing to Henry Cromwell, on this affair

1657.] _4. CHANGE IN THEIR FAVOR. 205
says, " I do humbly conceive that it is much for the
peace of Ireland, in all towns of strength at least, no
Scotch minister be admitted, except he be a known
friend to the present government ; and I hope your
lordship and the Council will not admit them into
Derry, Coleraine, Carrickfergus and Belfast. And if
it could well be done it were advisable that no Scotch
man might live in those towns, at least for some years ;
for your lordship knows there is more danger to be
expected from that interest than from, the Irish in
Ulster." Soon after this the governor wrote again to Henry
Cromwell in reference to the Scotch ministers, in
which he seems to have formed a more correct esti
mate of their character, as appears from one sentence
in his letter : " The Scotch ministers do promise very
fair, and according to my observation and experience
may with more ease be led than driven ; and the ten
derness your lordship shows them is the likeliest way
to gain them." Whatever may have led Henry to the
conclusion, from this time the Presbyterian clergy
were treated by him with greater confidence and fa
vor. Perhaps one cause was an accession of power,
he being appointed Lord Deputy of Ireland on the 24th
of November, thus being relieved from the control of
the Council he could with more freedom promote the
religious interests of the country.
One of his first measures was to convoke a meeting
of ministers (Baptist, Presbyterian and Independent,)
to consult about their maintenance on some uniform
plan. Hitherto Fleetwood's scheme of collecting the
tithes into the treasury, and paying salaries to the
ministers, though generally enforced in Ulster, had

206 RICHARD CROMWELL. [Ch. XV.
been only partially adopted in the other provinces.
In some places the clergy coUected the tithes, as for
merly, independently of the state; in other places
they were supported partly by tithes and partly by
salaries from the treasury ; and in many parts of the
kingdora no adequate maintenance could be procured
for a resident ministry ; while the embarrassments of
the revenue were such as not only to prevent the grant
of additional salaries, but to delay the payment of
those already granted. About thirty ministers, there
fore, met in Dublin on the 23d of April, and agreed to
a scheme of the nature of a sustentation fund, the
minimum to be received by each minister being one
hundred pounds. At this same meeting Henry ad
vised with them about the instruction and conversion
of the papists, the observance of the Lord's day, and
the suppression of profaneness.
These measures for the improvement of Ireland were
interrupted by the sudden death of Oliver Cromwell,
on the 3d of September, 1658, and the proclamation of
his eldest son Eichard as his successor. Henry Cromwell
immediately applied to be relieved frora his command
in Ireland, but Eichard, knowing his influence over
the army and his growing popularity, could not dis
pense with his services, but raised him to the office of
Lord Lieutenant, into which office he was sworn on
the 2d of November. No change took place, however,
in the administration of Irish affairs. The kingdom
continued to enjoy unusual tranquUity, and in no part
of the empire did there exist a more cordial or gen
eral submission to the new Protector.
The Presbytery, during this period of peace, were
occupied in visiting remote congregations, and filling

1659-] RUMP PARLIAMENT. 207
the vacant places in Ulster with pastors. The different
sections into which the Presbytery was divided had
frequent meetings. In AprU, 1659, the General Pres
bytery or Synod met at Ballymena, and at the request
of Henry Cromwell, they appointed three of their
number to visit Portumna, in the county of Galway,
for the purpose of planting the gospel, where the
population were for the most part papists; but the
plan was never carried out, Cromwell's attention being
soon after occupied with affairs in England.
Eichard Cromwell soon found himself incapable of
maintaining his father's government, and the Parlia
ment, which, on account of financial difficulties, he had
called in January, was dissolved by him in AprU.
The army again asserted its power by seizing the gov
ernment, and in May the Eump Parliament, which
had been dissolved by Oliver in 1653, resumed their
sittings. On the 7th of June it determined that Ire
land should again be governed by commissioners of
their appointment, and sent letters of recall to Henry
Crorawell, and empowered Miles Corbet, the chief
baron, and Steele, the chancellor, who had been nomi
nated as commissioners, to carry on the government
until the arrival of their colleagues, Jones, Basill, and
Goodwin. Before these letters arrived, Henry Crom
weU wrote to the Speaker of the House, resigning his
office, and retired to his estate in England, where he
spent the remainder of his life. And on the 9th of
July, Ludlow, the celebrated republican, was appointed
commander-in-chief of tbe army in Ireland.
During these fluctuations in the government, the
Presbyterians in Ulster were but little affected, but it
soon became evident that their only permament seeu-

208 CHARLES II. RESTORED. [Oh. XV.
rity would be in the restoration of their exiled King,
and from them proceeded the first motion for his re
storation. But, in the meantime, further difficulties
had occurred in England. The Eump Parliament,
whose sittings had been interrupted by the interference
of the army in the month of October, resumed their
sittings in the end of December. At this session they
recalled the Irish commissioners, approved the conduct
of Sir Charles Coote and Sir Hardress Waller in ob
taining possession of the important garrisons in Ire
land, and on the 19th of January, 1660, they appointed
these officers, with three others, new commissioners for
Ireland. But their power was soon brought to an end,
for on the 21st of February the members who had
been formerly excluded by tbe army, under Colonel
Pride, resumed their seats, under the protection and by
the orders of Monck ; and the violent republicans hav
ing retired in disgust, tbe Presbyterian or constitu
tional party became once more predominant.
Tbe Long Parliament, thus restored to the state in
which it was prior to the death of Charles L, after dis
patching their more pressing business, and having sum
moned another Parliament to meet in the month of
April following, dissolved themselves on the 16th of
March, 1660. Tbe new Parliament, composed of both
Lords and Commons, met on the 25th of April, and
invited Charles II. to return and resume the crown, as
his hereditary right. But they committed a fatal error,
which required another revolution to rectify, in recall
ing the king, and reinvesting him with power, before
due stipulations had been made for the constitutional
exercise of the royal prerogative.

CHAPTER XVI
1660-1662.
The changes which were occurring in England had
their influence upon affairs in Ireland. Sir Charles
Coote, heretofore the fiiend of the commonwealth, now
united with Lord BroghUl, in seeking the interests of
Charles, and opened a correspondence with him and
with General Monck. Sir Hardress Waller, another
of the commissioners, suspecting their design, seized
the castle of Dubhn in the name of the Parliament, but
after a siege of five days he was forced to surrender to
Coote. The government was now in the hands of the
royalists, supported by the Presbyterians, and was gov
erned by a councU of mUitary officers, who took ac
tive measures for the restoration of the King.
The Irish Parliament having been legally dissolved,
it was impossible, as in the case of the Long Parliament,
to hold another ; and accordingly an informal Parlia
ment, or general convention, was called by the coun
cU and the chief men of the country. It met in Dublin
on the 7th of February, and Sir James Barry, (after
wards Lord Santroey) was chosen president, and the
Eev. Samuel Cox, a noted Presbyterian minister of
Dublin, the chaplain. Their first act was to call eight
ministers, two from each province in Ireland, to give
their advice in reference to the cause of education and
the w elfare of the C hurch. These ministers appeared in

210 THE CONVENTION. [Oh. XVI.
Dublin, and after consultation determined to recommend
to the convention the propriety of renewing the Cove
nant ; their plan was defeated by the opposition of the
Eev. Mr. Vesey, of Coleraine, and Sir James Barry,
the president of the convention. They, however, drew
up a list of near a hundred orthodox and faithful min
isters, besides those belonging to the Presbytery in Ul
ster, which they presented to the convention, as being
legally entitled to the tithes of the parishes. These
measures of the eight ministers were counteracted by
the influence of Coote and his associates, in whose
hands resided the whole authority for the settlement
aud maintenance of ministers. Influenced by news
which they received from Charles, they changed their
policy in regard to the Presbyterians, and allowed the
bishops who had remained in Ireland to receive com
pensation for their services, and gave them their titles,
which had for a long time been denied.
On the Sth of May, in London, and on the 14th, in
Dublin, Charles II. was proclaimed Sovereign of the
three kingdoms, and on the 28th of the same month the
convention adjourned, having appointed Sir John Clot
worthy and others to attend the English Parliament,
and Coote and Broghill to wait upon the King ; and
on the 29th, Charles (it being his birthday) entered
London, amid the greatest demonstrations of joy. On
his accession Charles II. made great promises to the
Presbyterians, thereby lulling them into security ; but
in a short time he threw off the mask — restored pre
lacy and the liturgy, denounced the Covenant and its
adherents, and refused toleration to Non-Conformists,
in the face of all his promises and solemn oaths.
The Presbyterians in Ulster, like their brethren in

1660.] STATE OF THE PRESBYTERY. 211
England, were deceived by the hopes held out by
Charles, and on the adjournment of the Convention
sent a deputation to the King to explain their state
and solicit his protection. On their arrival in London
they- applied to their friend. Sir John Clotworthy, for
advice, who took them to see Mr. Calamy, Dr. M anton
and others, who expressed their fears that their peti
tion would be unacceptable to the court on account
of its strong language against prelacy and its advocacy
of the Covenant. Indeed, the King had already not
only disowned the Covenant and declared for prelacy,
but had named Bishops for all the dioceses in Ireland.
The deputation was therefore in some perplexity what
couree to pureue ; they had no authority from their
brethren to frame another address, and their best
friends declined to introduce them to the court with
the present one. They were therefore at last prevailed
upon to throw out the clause referring to prelacy and
the Covenant, and were introduced to the King, who
gave them fair words and a promise of his protection.
The Presbyterians of Ulster were now entering up
on another period of suffering and persecution. They
had for some years been in a highly prosperous con
dition. Their ministers had been faithful in promo
ting and consohdating her interests. During this time
Presbyterianism had struck its roots so deeply through
out the province that during aU the succeeding times
of persecution it stood firm and flourishing, while
others were completely prostrated. In the year 1653,
there were only about half-a-dozen ministers remain
ing in Ireland, and now there was not less than seventy
permanently settled ministers, having under their
charge eighty congregations, comprising a population

212 APPROACHING TRIALS. [Ch. XVI.
of one hundred thousand souls. These ministers were
associated in five Presbyteries which were subordinate
to a general synod, which met four times in each year,
and the ministers received by them were strictly ex
amined as to their literary, religious and theologi
cal views, which trials often extended through eight
months. Before ordination, they were required to take
the Solemn League and Covenant, and accept the
Westminster Confession of Faith, Catechisms and Di
rectory, and also to subscribe the Act of Bangor.
These ministers were settled solely upon the call of
their respective parishes. Discipline was rigidly en
forced ; visitation from house to house was main
tained ; catechetical instruction was faithfully given to
all classes, and thus was laid the foundation of that
solid acquaintance with the doctrines of the gospel as
exhibited in the Westminster Confession of Faith and
Catechism, which preserved the Church in unity and
vigor amidst the distracting sects and heresies of the
protectorate, and the subsequent snares and persecu
tions of the prelacy.
The hour of trial was now approaching. A few
weeks after the arrival of the King in London he
had nominated persons to the vacant sees in Ireland.
Bramhall became Archbishop of Armagh (and Pri
mate ;) Jones of Clogher ; Lohn Leslie of Eaphoe ;
Henry Leslie of Meath ; Down and Connor, his former
see being given to the famous Jeremy Taylor ; and
Eobert Leslie, the son of Henry, was appointed to the
see of Dromore. The gentry, especially those who
had been most active against the restoration, now
hastened to excite tho State against the Presbyterians.
The very ministers whom they had so lately persecu-

1661.] PERSECUTIONS. 213
ted on account of their loyalty they now denounced
as unworthy of toleration.
Lord Eobarts, who had been appointed on the acces
sion of Charles Lord-Deputy of Ireland, was soon
after recalled and the governraent committed to three
Lords Justices, namely. Sir Charles Coote, who had
been recently created Earl of Montrath, Sir Maurice
Eustice, the Lord Chancellor, and Lord Broghill, now
Earl of Orrery. They were sworn into office on the
last day of Deceraber, and on the 27th of January,
1661, two Archbishops and ten Bishops were conse
crated in St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, with great
pomp and formality. One of the first acts of the
Lords Justices was to appoint an extraordinary fast to
be held on the 80th of January, the anniversary of
the execution of the late King, and at the instigation
of the Bishops they issued a proclamation forbidding
all unlawful assemblies (including the Presbytery) and
ordering the officers to prevent or disperse them.
Notwithstanding this order the Presbytery met in
Ballymena, in the month of March, to consult as to
the proper course to be pursued, which, coming to the
ears of the authorities, a troop of horse was sent to
disperse them, but they had providentially dissolved
before it arrived. Afterwards they met more privately,
and sent four of their number as commissioners to
the Lords Justices in Dublin, praying that the promises
of the King might be fulfilled. At the request of Sir
John Clotworthy, now Lord Massareene, they were
admitted to the council, but retired without any satis
faction. Soon after their return, the Presbytery were sum
moned by the Bishop of Down, Jeremy Taylor, to his

214 TAYLOR SUMMONS THE PRESBYTERY. [Oh. XVI.
visitation. In answer to this summons they sent three
of their number to the Bishop, to express their willing
ness to meet him, and confer with him on the interests
of the Church, but declining to submit to his Episcopal
jurisdiction ; and after a long dispute he dismissed
them, and soon after, in one day, he ejected thirty-six
of them from their churches, holding, that as they
were not ministers, never having been ordained by
Bishops, it required no process of suspension or ex
communication, but a simple declaration that their par
ishes were vacant, which he immediately filled with
priests and curates of his own choosing. Not long
after, the rest ofthe brethren in the diocese were eject
ed, except Hamilton of Killead and Cunningham of
Antrim, who, through, the intercession of Lord Mas
sareene, were allowed to preach for six months longer.
This example of Taylor was soon followed by the
other prelates in Ulster. Not only were the ministers
cut off from their churches and livings, but were for
bidden, under heavy penalties, from preaching, bap
tizing or exhorting their suffering people. Of the
sixty-eight Presbyterian ministers in Ulster, only
seven conformed to the reestablished Church, the rest
submitting to their extreme privations, and continu
ing their ministry in secret. Of this noble army of
confessors, sixteen were members of the Presbytery
of Down, fourteen of Antrim, ten of Eoute, eight of
Tyrone, and thirteen of Lagan. These ministers were
the first to suffer in the three kingdoms, the Non- ¦
Conformists of England not being ejected till the
month of August in the following year, nor the Pres
byterians of Scotland till the subsequent month of Oc
tober, 1662. The cause of their being the first to

1661.] MEETING OF THE IRISH PARLIAMENT. 215
suffer arose from the fact that the old form of church
government and worehip had never been abolished by
law in Ireland ; and, therefore, at the Eestoration,
prelacy being still the legal establishment, was imme
diately recognized and enforced. But in England and
Scotland it had been abolished by acts of Parliament,
and the Directory substituted in room of the Prayer
Book. It was necessary, therefore, that these acts
should be first repealed, and new acts passed before
the Bishops had power to proceed against those who
did not conform.
After an interval of nearly twenty years, the Irish
Parliament met on the Sth of May, and was opened
by a sermon from Bishop Taylor. Archbishop Bram
hall was chosen Speaker of the Lords, and Audley
Mervyn, who had in 1640 impeached Bramhall and
othere of high treason, was elected Speaker of the
Commons. Lord Massareene was the only man in the
House of Lords who was a friend of the Presbyterians,
but there were quite a number in the Commons who
sympathized with them.
Soon after its organization the Parliament adopted
a Declaration forbidding any to preach in Ireland
unless they conformed. This was on motion of Lord
Montgomery, of Ards, who had twice solemnly sworn
in the Covenant to extirpate prelacy ; and ten days after
an act was passed condemning the Solemn League
and Covenant, as " schismatical, seditious and treason
able," and ordering it to be burned in the towns and
cities of the kingdom by the common hangman. This
was faithfully performed in all the towns, except Car
rickfergus, where the Mayor, Captain John Dal way,
of an ancient Presbyterian family, refused to comply,

216 ORMOND ARRIVES. [Ch. XVI.
for which he was brought on his knees to the bar of
the House of Lords, and fined one hundred pounds.
This act of burning the Covenant led to some impru
dent measures on the part of a few young ministers,
who, under the infiuence of the Scottish Covenanters,
held great meetings in the open air, and preached
against the government, denouncing as unfaithful and
time-serving their more prudent brethren, who thought
no such measures called for in the Church of Ireland,
and by their cautious, self-denying conduct, not only
edified their people at the time, but eventually led to
the removal of the yoke which galled them.
On the 4th of November the Duke of Ormond was
nominated Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, but he did not
come over till July in the following year. In the mean
time the Lords Justices, who were disposed to toleration,
continued their government, but it gradually became
more rigorous and severe, through the instigation ofthe
Bishops, until on the 30th of AprU they issued a proc
lamation, in which they state, that as " Eecusants, Non-
Conformists and Sectaries had grown worse by clem
ency," no further indulgence would be granted by the
State. But the arrival of Ormond on the 27th of
July, and his immediate entrance upon the office of
Lord Lieutenant and Governor of Ireland, gave them
a little relief He was disposed to sympathize with
them for their former sufferings on behalf of the King,
so long as they did not excite the jealousy of the Bish
ops. His administration on the- whole, which lasted
for seven years, presented a remarkable contrast to the
unprecedented severity with which the Non-Comform-
ists and Presbyterians were treated at this period, both
in England and Scotland.

1662.] PRESBYTERIANS CONTINUE THEIR LABORS. 217
Throughout the year 1662 the ministers continued
to perform such labors as the times would permit, living
in peace and loyalty to the magistrates. Yet they
were unable to suppress the calumnies and misrepre
sentations raised by their enemies. Lord Massareene,
their constant friend, residing in Dublin, and a member
of the Privy Council, recommended to them the prep
aration of a vindication of themselves, to be presented
to the Lord Lieutenant, and did himself prepare a
draft of one, which he submitted to them, but fear
ing that in such a paper they would be required to
say more than their consciences would aUow, they de
clined to present it, but sent three of their brethren,
Patrick Adair, Andrew Stewart and William Semple,
to Dublin to consult with Lord Massareene. They ar
rived in Dublin in August, 1662, where they remained
untU the end of October. While there they prepared
a petition, which was presented to the Duke by Lord
Montgomery, now Earl of Mount Alexander, and Sir
Arthur Forbes, and afterward they were introduced to
Ormond by Lord Massareene. The next day he re
marked to these noblemen that " by their petition he
perceived they had suffered for the King, and now
they were like to suffer under the King." All the sat
isfaction they could get from him was, that they must
" hve according to the law, by serving God in their own
famihes, without getting multitudes together."
10

CHAPTER XVII.
1663-1684.
Under the government of the Duke of Ormond
Ireland enjoyed comparative tranquillity for several'
years, which was interrupted by the discovery of a
conspiracy, known in history as "Blood's Plot." It
originated among some old Cromwellists, as they were
called, who were scattered through the country, and
who had an abiding antipathy to the King's govern
ment. Meeting among themselves and mourning over
the oppressions of the Bishops and the increase of Pop
ery, they formed a plan for ridding themselves of the
evU and securing a greater liberty of conscience.
Their principal leader was one Thomas Blood, who
had been an officer in the King's army against the
first Parliament, but coming over to Ireland, where he
had some property in the neighborhood of Dublin, he
came in contact with his brother-in-law, Mr. Leckie, a
Presbyterian minister, a man of ability and learning,
and through his infiuence he was drawn over to the
Presbyterian side. Persuaded by Leckie, he entered
wUlingly into the plans of the conspirators. Accord
ingly he and Leckie, with the consent of the rest,
came to the north of Ireland and visited a number of
prominent Presbyterians, among whom were Mr.
Greg, Mr. Stewart of Donaghadee, and Captain James
Moore, and at a meeting called at the house of Mr.

1663.] blood's plot. 219
Greg, they opened their scheme, aggravating the ini
quities of the times, the usurpations of the Bishops, the
tyranny of the courts, the increase of Popery and the
misgovernment of the State, and in the end proposed
that they should go to Dubhn, where the whole mat
ter would be explained to them, at the same time de
claring that nothing was intended against the lawful
authority of the King.
Finding that they could make no " impression upon
these three they made no further attempt in Down and
Antrim, but passed into Lagan and Antrim, where
they met the same discouragement, except from Mr.
McCormick of Magherally, and Mr. Crookshanks of
Eaphoe, who had already become connected with the
plot. From thence they went to the south and west
of Ireland, having no further correspondence with the
north, or with the Scotch. In Dublin they held private
meetings, and carried on correspondence with those in
other parts of the kingdom who had consented to act
with them. But one to whom they had proposed their
plan revealed the whole to Ormond, who advised him
to continue his connection with them untU the plan
was ready for execution. At length, on the 22d of
May, the day on which they had determined to seize
the castle of Dublin and take the Duke's person, they
were surprised and the principal conspirators taken
prisoners, among whom was Leckie, Blood making his
escape. Among their papers was found a Declaration,
giving as their reasons for taking up arms the growth
of Popery and the oppression of the Bishops, and also
a hst of the names of those who were concerned with
them. The names of the three whom they had con
sulted in Ulster not being among them.

220 PRESBYTERIANS IMPLICATED. [Ch. XVU.
The Duke of Ormond was very active in seeking for
those who were implicated in this plot ; and his sus
picions being greatly excited against the Scotch minis
ters he caused all of them in Down and Antrim to be
arrested on one day, and most of them suffered much
from their imprisonment and the unjust suspicions
raised against thera, although their sufferings were
mitigated through the intercession of Lord Massareene
and the Earl of Mount Alexander. On the 2d of July
the chief conspirators were brought to trial, and three
of them being convicted of high treason were con
demned and executed. Leckie became insane during
his imprisonment and was not on trial with the others,
but getting better he made his escape, but was soon
recaptured, and offered his life if he would conform,
which he refusing to do was executed on the following
December. This unhappy affair greatly excited the Lords Just
ices against the ministers of tbe north, and they were
ordered to leave the country or suffer imprisonment.
All except two, Keyes and Cathcart, chose exile rather
than imprisonment, and most of them went over to
Scotland ; a few, through the intercession of influen
tial friends, were allowed to remain in Ireland in a
private capacity, employing themselves in privately
instructing and conversing with the people ; and so
blameless were their lives that the Duke of Ormond
granted them an indulgence of six months from the
interference ofthe courts on account of their non -con
formity. On the 25th of June Bramhall died sud
denly, and was succeeded in the primacy by Marges-
ton, the Bishop of Dublin, who, being a man of a mUd
and conciliatory temper, the indulgence of the minis-

1668.] MINISTERS IMPRISONED. 221
ters was extended for six months longer. During this
period of relaxation those who were in prison were re
leased, and those in Scotland returned, one by one, to
their congregations ; so that in a short time aU who had
been in exile returned, except McCormick and Crook-
shanks, who, being deeply implicated in the plot, and
not seeking or expecting pardon, joined the army in
Scotland, and were both killed at the battle of Pent-
laud, where the Presbyterians were commanded by
Lieutenant James Wallace.
During this period of trouble the ministers in La
gan enjoyed more security and peace than their breth
ren in Down and Antrim. But Eobert Leslie, Bishop
of Eaphoe, envying their ease, summoned four of them
to appear before his court, but they, not answering the
summons, were excommunicated, and thrown into the
common jail, but through the intercession of friends
they were permitted to hve together in a house in the
the town, where they remained prisoners for six years,
notwithstanding every effort was made by their friends
for their release.
This harsh example of Leslie, who inherited the in
tolerant spirit of his father, the late Bishop of Down,
was not followed by the other prelates of Ulster ; so
that in the course of four or five years the Presbyterian
Church had nearly recovered its former position in the
province. The ministers now preached more publicly,
and by degrees they attained to such freedom, that in
1668 they built houses of worship, and performed all
the ordinances of the Church publicly. The Presby
terians held their regular monthly meetings, and the
discipline of the Church was revived.
There appeared to be at this period a growing dis-

222 PROSPERITY OF THE PRESBYTERIANS. [Oh. XVIL
satisfaction with the established Church among the
people. Those who owned estates found their ten
ants oppressed and impoverished through the drain
occasioned by their rents and tithes. They were dis
gusted with the pride and unreasonable exactions of
the superior clergy, which bound them more closely
to their own laborious ministers. Owing to these and
other causes, the Presbyterian Church in Ulster, at the
beginning of the year 1669, had attained to great pros
perity, and one of the ministers in a letter to a friend
in Scotland, written in April, 1669, says, " It is a mat
ter of rejoicing that the Lord's work seems to be re
viving here. Christ has a Church here that appears
with the fairest face, and the cleanest garments ; and
has proven most faithful with God of any of the three,
(national churches,) and really hath much of the light
of his countenance. The sun seems to have fairly risen
on this land ; whether it may be soon overclouded I
can not say : but Presbyterians' liberty is in many
places little less than when they had law for them.
They are settling their ministers with encouragement,
and building public houses of worship for their meet
ings, and providing vacancies with ministers. About
a month ago I had occasion to be at Dublin, when the
sacrament of the Lord's Supper was. administered pub-
lickly on the Lord's day, at the ordinary time, and some
hundreds standing without, the doors and windows of
a throng meeting house being cast open."
In September, 1669, the Duke of Ormond was sup-
perseded by Lord Eobarts as Lord Lieutenant of Ire
land — a man of unblemished character, an opposer of
the vicious, and tolerant to those who differed from
him. But these high quahties soon made him unpop-

1670.] THE SYNOD ORGANIZED. 223
ular with the army and gentry, which occasioned his
recall in the following AprU, and Lord Berkley was
appointed to succeed bim.
About this time the Church was troubled by the
preaching of some ministers who had come over from
Scotland, the most prominent of whom was the well-
known Alexander Peden. They coUected great mul
titudes together in the fields ; and because the resident
ministers disapproved of this indiscreet course, they
were denounced as time-servers, and cowardly betrayers
ofthe interests ofthe truth. It was at this time that a
general convention, or synod, was organized, as pre
viously mentioned, — and among other acts it recom
mended contributions to be taken up for the exiled
Scots in HoUand, among whom were the Eev. John
Livingston and Colonel James Wallace, both of
whom died at Eotterdam a few years later. They also
appointed Mr. Greg to prepare a history of the Church
of Ireland.
A new trouble now arose among the ministers in
Down, through the instigation of Bishop Eobert Les
lie, of Eaphoe, who, visiting Bishop Boyle, the succes
sor of Jeremy Taylor, and upbraiding him for his negli
gence and want of zeal, Boyle was induced to carry his
persecutions further than even Leslie had done in Ea
phoe. He therefore summoned twelve of the ministers
to appear before his court, threatening them with ex
communication. The ministers, after meeting for con-
sulation, dispatched one of their number to Dublin, to
present their difficulty to the Lord Lieutenant. In this
they were greatly befriended by Sir Arthur Forbes,
who, at the death of Lord Massareene, which occurred
in September, 1665, had become the great patron

224 DEATH OF MINISTERS. [Ch. XVIL
of the Presbyterians. He, knowing their sufferings
and their loyalty, interceded with Primate Margeston
in their behalf with such success that a letter was
written to Boyle to stop all proceedings in the case
until the 10th of August, at which time the Pri
mate would be in the north on his triennial visitation,
and would himself adjudicate the case.
In the meantime the Presbyterians had lost some of
their most valuable ministers by death. James Cun
ningham and Thomas Crawford had died at the close
of the year, and James . Shaw, Gilbert Eamsay, and
Thomas Peebles soon after ; and on the 22d of July
John Greg was buried, and Mr. Eichardson followed a
week later. The death of these prominent men was
a great blow to the Church ; but their loss was soon
made up by the arrival of young men from Scotland,
not less than six being settled in the Presbytery of
Down about this time. Their freedom from persecu
tion at this period is remarkable ; for at that very time
meetings of Non-Conformists, or Conventicles, both in
England and Scotland, were violently suppressed, not
more than five persons being allowed to worship to
gether, but in the way prescribed by law.
A remarkable casualty, which, according to the
habit of the times, if not' of all times, was regarded
as a special divine judgment on the persecutors and
oppressors of the Church, was the falling of the gal
lery in the new theatre at Dublin, during the per
formance of a play called the Non-Conformist, and
designed to ridicule the scruples and sufferings of the
Presbyterians in particular. Among the injured were
a son of the Lord Lieutenant, and Lady ClanbrassU,

16T1.] TROUBLES FROM FANATICS. 225
who, the year before, had caused the preaching house
at Bangor to be pulled down.
Lord Berkley, the Lord Lieutenant, having occasion
to visit England, the Lord Chancellor and Sir Arthur
Forbes were appointed Lords Justices, and sworn into
office on the 12th of June, 1671. Sir Arthur em
braced this opportunity of releasing from prison those
who had been confined for Non-Conformity, and among
the number was a wheelwright named John Goodall,
a Scotchman, who had settled in Armagh shortly be
fore the restoration. Being a strong opposer of pre
lacy, he excited the anger of the clergy, who had him
cast into prison for working at his trade on Christmas-
day, and refusing to comply in any particular with the
rehgious forms of the establishment, where he re
mained for three years, until released by Forbes.
The Presbytery was at this time troubled by an in
ternal difficulty, caused by the fanatical presumption
of an indiscreet and turbulent Ucentiate named David
Houston. Hitherto there had been the greatest har
mony existing among the members of the Presbytery,
and all were united in promoting the peace and pros
perity of the Church, until the arrival of Houston, who,
under the infiuence of Peden, already noticed, col
lected together large assemblies at unusual times and
places, in opposition to the settled pastors. The Pres
byteries of Antrim and of Eoute remonstrated with
him on the evils which would flow from his course ;
and at length, on the 23d of August, 1671, he ap
peared before the latter Presbytery, and read a public
acknowledgment of his fault. But in a few months
he had retumed to his former practices. Accordingly,
in January, 1672, the Presbytery were again compelled
10*

226 DAVID HOUSTON. [Oh. XVIL
to interfere, and advised him to remove out of their
bounds, which he declining to do, they, on the 27th
of February, withdrew his license. The General Com
mittee approved of this action, and directed further
proceedings against him for certain alleged immo-
rahties ; but Houston, becoming alarmed at their
firmness, again owned his misconduct, and after a
suspension of a year the Presbytery restored his li
cense in July, 1778. This self-willed and unstable
preacher, by his irregular proceedings, laid the foun
dation of that division in the Presbyterian church in
Ulster which still subsists, and he is claimed as one of
the earliest witnesses to the peculiar opinions of • the
Covenanting or Eeformed Presbyterian church that
appeared in the north of Ireland. The experience of
the Presbytery in. this difficult case led them to a more
careful scrutiny of those who applied for licensure and
ordination, and resulted in the adoption by the Gen
eral Committee, in February, 1772, of some admirable
rules for ordination.
Among the tokens of returning favor to the Presby
terians was the unsolicited donation, by the King, of
a yearly pension of six hundred pounds upon the civil
list of Ireland to the ministers of Ulster. This grant
is said to have been made through Sir Arthur Forbes,
and in consideration of their loyalty to Charles during
his exile ; but as it was included under the head of
secret service money, not to be accounted for, it is a
matter of dispute, or at least of .discordant statements,
whether it was actually paid more than one or two
years during tbe remainder of the reign of Charles and
that of James IL, though it furnished a precedent and
an example for the Eegium Donum, afterwards granted

1619.] JEALOUSY OF THB STATE AROUSED. 227
to the Presbyterian church of Ireland. During this
period of tranquillity the Presbyterians began to ex
tend their operations beyond Ulster, sending supplies
to Clonmel, Eoss, Tipperary, Waterford, Wexford,
and Wicklow, whUe at home they encouraged the
erection of a school at Antrim, over which there pre
sided for a time the Ulustrious John Howe, who resided
in Ireland for five years as domestic chaplain to the
Clotworthy family.
The jealousy of the State was again aroused against
the Presbyterians by the unfortunate enterprise of
their oppressed brethren in Scotland, whicli terminated
in the decisive battle of BothweU Bridge, on the 22d
of June, 1679. The news of this insurrection alarmed
Ormond, who had been once more appointed to the
office of Lord Lieutenant. He immediately ordered a
frigate to cruise in the channel, to cut off all commu
nication with Scotland, and reinforced the garrison of
Carrickfergus ; and the Earl of Mount Alexander was
stationed on the eastern coast of Antrim, to arrest any
who attempted to cross from Scotland. Eeports were
circulated that the Presbyterians were ripe for a simi
lar insurrection; and to vindicate themselves, the
Presbyterians of Down and of Antrim prepared an
address to Ormond, declaring their continued obe
dience to the law, which had the effect of allaying
the apprehensions of the Lord Lieutenant, and they
continued to enjoy their freedom for a year and a
half, when an opportunity occurred for a renewed
persecution. The Presbytery of Lagan, in the beginning of the
year 1681, appointed a fast-day, and, according to their
usual custom, assigned their reasons for holding it.

228 PRESBYTERIANS PERSECUTED, [Ch. XVII.
These were understood by the authorities as charging
them with perfidy and tyranny, for which they were
brought before the Council, condemned by a jury,
and sentenced to pay a fine of twenty pounds each,
and to subscribe an engagement not to offend in a
similar manner again, and to be imprisoned till they
would comply, Eefusing to enter into this engage
ment, they remained in prison for eight months. Im
mediately succeeding their condemnation, the Pre
latists throughout Ulster renewed their persecution of
the Non-Conformists. The Presbyterian meeting
houses were closed, their public exercises of worship
were forbidden, the penalties of recusancy were in
many places inflicted, and the Presbyterians were
forced to hold their meetings secretly. This contin
ued for two years, it being the period in which Eussel
and Sydney were brought to the scaffold in England,
During the year 1684, the state of the Presbyterians
in Derry and Donegal was so deplorable, that the
greater number of the ministers of the Presbytery of
Lagan intimated to the other Presbyteries their intention
of removing to America ; and though the execution
of this threat was prevented by the death of Charles
H,, and the subsequent appointment of Lord Granard
as one of the Lord Justices, it is an interesting point
of contact with the history of our own Church, that
its founder, or first minister, Francis Makemie, was
ordained and sent out about this time by the Lagan
" Meeting," in response to a request of " Colonel
Stevens from Maryland, beside Virginia." Makemie
was from the neighborhood of Eamelton, in Donegal,
and was enrolled as a student in the Uniyersity of

1681.] JUAKEMIE. 229
Glasgow, in 1675. He was first introduced to the Pres
bytery in January, 1680, by his minister, the Eev. T.
Drummond, and "was licensed by the Lagan Presby
tery in 1681, and on this call of Colonel Stevens he
was ordained by the same Presbytery.

CHAPTER XVIII.
1685-1690.
James H. succeeded his brother as King of Eng
land, in February, 1685, and his firet acts in reference
to Ireland were designed to fill all public places of
importance with Eoman Catholics, in open violation
of the law, and for the express purpose, as he after
wards assured the Pope, of restoring the Catholic
faith, not only in the three kingdoms, but throughout
the dispersed colonies of his subjects in America.
His arbitrary measures were at first carried out by
his brother-in-law. Lord Clarendon, the new viceroy
of Ireland, who was sworn into office on the 9th of
January, 1686; but he was soon replaced, however,
by Lord Tyrconnel, a fanatical Papist, who was sworn
into office on the 12th of February, 1687, who fol
lowed out the same reckless career of his predecessor
in his atterapts to establish the Catholic ascendency,
his ulterior purpose being to separate Ireland from the
English crown, if James should die without male issue,
and place it, as an independent nation, under French
protection. In this treasonable scheme he was sup
ported by Louis XIV., with whom he kept up secret
correspondence. Having already succeeded in placing the army in
the hands of the Eomanists, his next step was to secure
the civil control, which he accomplished by filling all

1688.] THE DECLARATION. 281
the important offices with Eoman Catholics, and indu
cing the towns to surrender their charters, which were
replaced by new corporations, composed almost wholly
of Eomanists. In ecclesiastical affairs the same course
was pursued. Pensions were granted to the Popish
prelates, the legal incumbents in the parishes thrown
aside and their tithes appropriated to the Eomish cler
gy; dispensations were granted to those who renounced
the established religion, and they were allowed to con
tinue in possession of their benefices. In order to
facUitate the execution of his projects James published
his famous Declaration for liberty of conscience,
suspending by virtue of his royal prerogative the
execution of all the penal laws for religious offences,
and prohibiting the imposition of religious tests as
qualifications for offices. This Declaration extended
to Ireland and afforded great relief to the Presbyte
rians, who, though fully aware of its insidious designs,
did not hesitate to avaU themselves of the liberty thus
granted to resume the exercise of their rights, so long
unjustly withheld. Their places of worship were
again opened; Presbyteries held their stated meet
ings publicly, and all ecclesiastical functions were ex
ercised without fear.
The Presbyterians in Ulster, although relieved by
the Declaration from the violence of the High Church
party, were yet greatly alarmed by the signs of the
times. During the whole of the year 1688 every
possible means was unscrupulously used to lay popular
rights prostrate at the feet of a despotic and bigoted
monarch. Forgetting, therefore, all their former per
secutions in this hour of peril, they joined with the
Episcopalians in opposing the advance of Eomanism

232 PUBLIC ALARM. [Oh- XVIIL
in every way in their power, although an attempt at
open resistance was impossible on account of the pres
ence of a formidable army, composed almost exclu
sively of Eoman Catholics. They could do little
therefore but patiently observe the progress of events.
This state of suspense was reheved by the news of the
landing of the Prince of Orange in England on the
4th of November, and the subsequent removal of the
troops from Ulster to oppose his progress. The Pres
byterians were the first to welcome and congratulate
the Prince, sending Doctor Duncan Cumyng, a physi
cian of Dublin, to London for this purpose.
In the meantime the Earl of Mount Alexander and
other prominent Protestants received anonymous let
ters, stating that at an early day the Irish intended to
rise in arms and murder the Protestants, These reports
created a great and popular excitement throughout
Ireland; and on the 7th of December, 1688, the inhab
itants of Derry, acting on the advice of James Gordon,
minister of Glendermot, and in opposition to that of
Bishop Ezekiel Hopkins and most of the prelatio
clergy, seized the keys of the city and shut the gates
against the Earl of Antrim's Eed Shanks — a Eoman
Catholic regiment, sent to take the place of the garri
son recently removed. This brave deed, done by a
few young men on the impulse of the moment, and in
opposition to grave advice, not only saved the city,
but provided a place of refuge to which in a few
months afterwards the Protestants of Ulster were glad
to fly, and was the first blow struck in Ireland against
King James. Enniskillen behaved with a heroism
equally noble. Though deserted by their magistrates
they resolved to shut their gates against the Eomish

1689.] PROTESTANT ASSOCIATIONS. 283
troops sent by Tyrconnel to occupy their garrison, and
in this they were encouraged by Eobert Kelso, the
Presbyterian minister, who took every opportunity to
animate his hearere to take up arms in their defence.
The Protestants in Ulster, although relieved from
their fears of a general massacre, determined to con
tinue their measures of defence, especially as the half-
disciplined recruits of Tyrconnel's army were going
through the country plundering the Protestants of
arms and horees, for which outrages they could obtain
no redress. They therefore formed themselves into
Protestant associations in every county, who appointed
councUs of war and a commander-in-chief for each
county, and a general council of union for the whole.
Through these associations the whole Protestant pop
ulation was soon armed and organized into regiments,
with able ofl&cere commanding. The general councU,
early in January, 1689, dispatched Captain Baldwin
Leighton with an address to the Prince of Orange,
relating their grievances and the measures they had
adopted for their defence, and assuring him of their
ardent attachment to the cause of constitutional free
dom. And on the 22d of January the Presbyterian
general committee or synod sent the Eeverend Patrick
Adair of Belfast, and the Eeverend John Abernethy
of Moneymore, on the same mission.
The Protestant associations had as yet gained pos
session of but three towns, Enniskillen, Derry and
Colerain ; Newry, Charlemont and Armagh being in
the possession of Tyrconnel's forces, and Belfast and
Lisburn held by Sir Thomas Newcomen's regiment,
composed of Eomanists and Protestants, and Carrick
fergus by a regiment of new levies under Magennis

234 WAR BEGUN. [Ch. XVIU.
Iveagh. The first movements of tbe Protestants were
against Carrickfergus, but through the vigilance of
Sir Thomas Newcomen and others the plan was de
feated. On the 21st of February it was determined to
make another attempt, and a thousand men, under the
command of Lieutenant Colonel Bremichan and Ma
jor Baker, afterward governor of Derry, were dis
patched with the view of surprising the town, but on
their arrival they found that the garrison was in such
a posture of defense as to render the attempt hopeless.
Lord Mount Alexander and Sir Arthur Eawdon, with
several troops of horse, having joined the infantry be
fore the town, held a parley, in which both parties
agreed upon certain stipulations for the removal of
their mutual jealousies, and resolved to transmit to
Tyrconnel an account of their agreement. They sent
as their messenger a friar named O'Haggerty, who for
the first time informed Tyrconnel of the real condition
of the Protestants in Ulster, and he determined to im
mediately dispatch to Ulster the flower of his army, to
disperse the associations and reduce them to subjection.
But as a previous measure he issued a proclamation
on the 7th of March, offering a free pardon to all who
would lay down their arms, and threatening those who
refused with the penalties of high treason ; and at the
same time he intimated privately the probabilities of
another massacre from the ungovernable Irish Eoman
ists, The notice of Tyrconnel's purpose was conveyed to
Ulster by Eev. Alexander Osborn, a Presbyterian min
ister of Dublin, who, at a meeting ofthe general council,
urged them to reject the proposals of the Deputy. They
were the more encouraged to listen to this advice, by

1689.] BREAK OF DROMORE, 235
a letter which had been received a few days before from
the Prince of Orange, dated February 7th, approving
of their conduct, and promising them speedy and ef
fectual support. Accordingly they proclaimed King
William and Queen Mary in all the towns subject to
their authority.
During this meeting ofthe general councU, or consult,
as it was sometimes caUed, nine Presbyterian ministers
presented themselves, and offered to go to thefr several
parishes and request all the men between the ages of
sixteen and sixty to rendezvouz at certain places, with
such arms as they could procure, and three days' pro
vision ; but their plans were frustrated by the approach
ofthe army from Dublin. The Protestant inhabitants
in alarm deserted their towns and fled, some to Bel
fast, and others to the coast, hoping to escape into
Scotland or England. On the very day of the visit of
the nine ministers to the consult, the main army ap
proached Dromore, driving in the outposts of Major
Baker, and kiUing many inhabitants who were endeav
oring to carry away their property ; and although Lord
Mount Alexander and others marched to their support
from HUlsborough, they were unable to rally their un
disciplined levies, and a general and confused flight en
sued, which is known as the "break of Dromore,"
The castle and its stores, and the papers of the general
council of Ulster, fell into the hands of the victors.
This victory left defenceless the whole of the north
east of Ulster, and so discouraged the Protestant lead
ers that many of them abandoned the country, and
some accepted protection from the Irish generals,
WhUe this division of James' army was engaged at
Dromore, another part proceeded from Ardee towards

236 ASSAULT UPON COLERAINE. [Ch. XVIII
Monaghan, where they met with some resistance from
the forces under Lord Blaney ; but hearing of the de
feat at Dromore, he abandoned Dungannon and Ar
magh and retreated towards Coleraine, which he
reached on the 16th of March, having defeated on
the way a detachment of the eneray from the gar
risons of Charlemont and Mountjoy.
Coleraine was now occupied by a body of troops
poorly supplied with ammunition, and imperfectly for
tified. On the 27th of March the main body of the
enemy, under General Hamilton, appeared before the
town, and supported by artillery he commenced the
assault ; but being gallantly defended, he was forced
to withdraw to Ballymoney, In the meantime the
garrison formed a line of communication and defense
along the whole course of the river Bann, thus pre
venting a junction between General Hamilton and the
forces of Lord Glamoy, who was marching from An
trim, During the first week in AprU no collision oc
curred between the parties ; but on the 7th, a strong
body of the enemy, having obtained boats, crossed the
Bann, and attacked Colonel Edmonstone, who was
guarding the trenches, and not expecting an attack
from this quarter. After a gallant defense, the enemy
receiving large reinforcements, it was determined to
abandon the town. A retreat was effected over the
mountains towards Derry, and Hamilton took posses-
sioh of the place.
The Protestants in Ulster were now deprived of all
their strongholds except the fortified city of Derry,
against which the forces of the enemy were soon to be
concentrated. King James, who had reached Dublin
towards the close of March, set out for Ulster on the

1689.] SIEGE OF DERRY. 237
8th of April, with twelve thousand men and a train of
artillery. On the 14th he reached Omagh, and sent for
ward his forces to seize the passage of the river Finn
above Strabane ; and the Protestant forces who held
this important pass being unsupported, were compelled
to give way. On the 18th James advanced with the
main body, and blockaded the city of Derry, Lundy,
the Governor, himself a Protestant and a soldier, se
cretly entered into treaty to surrender the city ; but
his design becoming known among the citizens and
soldiers, it awoke such a storm of indignation that he
was compelled to fly in disguise. Major Baker and
Eev. George Walker were appointed joint governors
in his room — the one in the military, the other in the
civil department. The garrison was found to consist
of about three hundred and fifty officers and seven
thousand soldiers, most of the superior officers belong
ing to the established Church, but the vast major
ity of the inferior officers and soldiers being Presby
terians. There were also in the city eight Presbyterian
and seventeen Episcopal ministers, most of the latter
being curates. It was no time now to revive party
feuds ; and as the prelates, at the sight of danger, had
fled once more, the Presbyterians, who three years be
fore dare not worship God in their meeting houses for
fear of them, were now, when their help was required,
generously allowed the use of the cathedral for their
religious service every Sabbath afternoon. During the
remainder of the month of April little occurred, with
the exception of two successful sallies under Colonel
Adam Murray a noted Presbyterian ; and on the other
hand the surrender of the fort of Culmore to General

288 SUCCESSES OP CAPTAIN HUNTER. [Oh. XVIII
HamUton which cut off all communication with the city
by water.
While these events were occurring at Derry, the
Protestants of Down were not idle. Captain Henry
Hunter, at the head of the Protestants who had arms,
in several engagements defeated the regiment of Col
onel Magennis, seized and garrisoned the castle of
Killileagh, and took possession of Downpatrick, lib
erating all persons confined for political offences.
These unexpected successes for a time reheved the
people of Down and encouraged the garrison of Derry.
But their' triumph was of short duration ; for King
James hearing of the successes of the Protestants in
Down, dispatched Major General Buchan with a suf
ficient force to reduce them to subjection. On the 13th
of April they met Hunter, who had taken up his posi
tion between Comber and KillUeagh, and engaged
him. In this "break of Killileagh," as itwas called,
three hundred were slain, and Hunter himself was
taken prisoner, but afterwards escaping, he fled to the
coast, and finally reached the Isle of Man.
During these troubles public worship was almost
entfrely suspended throughout the province. The
Presbyterian ministers, after the battle of Dromore,
were obliged to abandon their congregations, and many
of them fled to Scotland. From the multitudes com
ing into that kingdom the General Assembly, in order
to protect themselves from unworthy persons, applied
for a list of all the ministers and probationers belonging
to the Presbyterian Church in Ireland; and all who
were upon this list were received as "friends and
brethren," and entitled, with their own ministers, to
settlements in their parishes. From this list, which is

1689.] ARRIVAL OF THE FLEET. 289
stUl preserved, it appears that notwithstanding the per
secutions they had endured for thirty years the num-
' icr of congregations had increased to a hundred ; and
that there were eighty ministers under the care of five
Presbyteries, and eleven probationers ready for settle
ment. Nearly fifty minsters had taken refuge in Scot
land, and were now awaiting the issue of the moment
ous struggle under the walls of Derry.
During the month of May no event of importance
occurred in the progress of the siege, but about the
middle of June Major General Kirk, with three ships
of war and three regiments of foot, reached Lough
Foyle, but were deterred from going up to the city by
an exaggerated report of the strength of the enemy's
works, and of obstructions in the channel, caused by a
boom thrown across the river, although this was not
completed for some days later. In the meantime James
had sent large reinforcements forward with orders to
carry on the siege with vigor, and he himself reached
the camp on the 18th. The city now began to suffer
from scarcity of provisions, and was harrassed by fre
quent bombardments. The most inhuman barbarities
were practiced by De Eosen, the King's commanSer,
to hasten the surrender of the town. All the Protes
tant women and children included within ten miles
were gathered together under the walls, without food,
shelter or protection, untU the terms of capitulation
which had been dictated should be accepted.
During all these sufferings Kirk with his squadron
lay inactive at the anchorage. He did, indeed, on the
10th, land a detachment on the Island of Inch to pro
tect the surrounding county, and had thrown up some
tegiporary works on the strand. On these he planted

240 ADVANCE OF THE FLEET, [Ch. XVIII.
sixteen cannon whUe two five-gun vessels lay in the
stream. On the 20th of July Kirk brought up the re
mainder of his fieet, but news received from Derry soon
after caused him to fall back again to Lough Foyle.
On the 22d he ordered the vessels, the Mountjoy of
Derry, the Phcenix of Coleraine, and the Jerusalem, to
take their station off Culmore, out of range ofthe batte
ries. And three days after, on board of the Swallow, ac
companied by the Dartmouth frigate, he prepared to at
tempt the passage of the river. For several days they
remained in this position on account of unfavorable
winds. In the meantime the garrison was reduced to the
last extremity. Every thing in the shape of food,
even the most nauseous substances, had been consumed.
Their numbers were rapidly diminishing, more than
one fourth being unserviceable by famine and fatigue ;
and what added to their fearful sufferings was a sight
of the long-expected fleet lying motionless before the
town. At length, about six o'clock on Sunday the
28th of July, a hght wind sprang up from the
northwest and immediately the Dartmouth weighed
anchor and stood in towards Culmore. The fort
opened a brisk cannonade, which was not answered by
the frigate. Captain Leak placing himself within mus
ket shot of the fort, thus allowing the other vessels to
pass under shelter of his guns. At this critical mo
ment, although the wind was faUing, the Mountjoy
passed the fort amidst a heavy fire, accompanied by the
long boat of the Swallow, and ran her bows against the
boom which obstructed the river, when she grounded,
and her gallant commander was at the same moment
killed by a musket shot. Favored, however, by^he

1689.] RELIEF OF THE CITY. 241
rising tide, and rebounding from a broadside which
she discharged for the purpose, she again floated, and
the boatswain's mate of the Swallow's boat, having cut
the boom, broke through the barrier, foUowed by the
Mountjoy, reaching the quay, about ten o'clock in the
evening, to the inexpressible joy of the famished gar-
ilson, who had watched with intense interest the whole
action. Two days after the Irish army abandoned
their trenches, having lost a hundred officers and be
tween eight and nine thousand men ; and on the last
day of July this memorable siege, terminated, having
continued for one hundred and five days.
Two days after, on the 13th of August, the Duke'
of Schomberg landed in Ireland with ten thousand
men, and took possession of Belfast and Carrickfer
gus, and restored tranquility to Ulster. In conse
quence of these events, the exiled ministers returned
and resumed both their worship and their Presbyterial
meetings, and soon after they presented a petition to
King Wilham, setting forth their early movements in
his favor, and imploring his protection, with particu
lar respect to hberty of conscience. Besides a gracious
answer through the Duke of Shrewsbury, the King
wrote to Schomberg, recommending them to his pro
tection ; and as soon as he arrived in Ulster, a few
months later, entered on that course of liberal protec
tion to which the Presbyterian church in Ireland owes
so much of its subsequent prosperity, 11

CHAPTER XIX.
1690-1701.
Though the Protestants of Ulster were freed from
aU immediate danger by the presence of Schomberg
and his army, they were not satisfied with his pro
ceedings, and were very uneasy as to the result, until
it was announced that King WiUiam had determined
to conduct the war in person. Schomberg, in the
meantime, used great diligence in improving the dis
cipline of the army, and providing provisions and
arms. About the middle of 'March, after encounter
ing many difficulties, caused by inefficient agents and
unworthy officers, he prepared to advance upon Charle
mont, and on the 20th of May that stronghold sur
rendered. This intelligence reaching London, the
King hastened the Parliament in its business, and de
parted for Ireland, where he arrived on the 14th of
June, 1690, and proceeded directly to Belfast. He
was welcomed everywhere with expressions of great
joy by the Protestant population. The Presbyterians
were received by him most graciously, and an order
issued to the coUector of the customs at Belfast for the
regular payment of twelve hundred pounds per an
num to the Presbyterian ministers of Ulster, the be
ginning of the Eoyal Bounty, or Eegium Donum,
which they still enjoy.
King William, as he himself said, was determined,

1690.] BATTLE OP THE BOYNE. 243
now that he had come to Ireland, not to let the grass
grow under his feet ; accordingly he took the field at
once, and at the head of an army numbering thirty-
six thousand, one half of whom at least were foreign
refugees, he advanced on the last day of June to the
banks of the Boyne ; while James, with his forces, to
the number of thirty thousand, lay encamped on the
opposite side, prepared to dispute the passage. The
great battle that settled the quarrel between the two
Kings, and decided the destiny of Great Britain, was
fought the next raorning. The Irish were defeated,
with the loss of fifteen hundred men, while the Pro
testant loss was about five hundred, among whom were
Schomberg, said to be the greatest captain of the age,
and Governor Walker, who had been appointed Bishop
of Derry only the day before. James hurried from
the kingdom, never to set foot in it again, and Wil
liam passed on to Dublin, to receive congratulations
on his victory. Among others, the prelatio clergy of
the metropolis presented an address, expressive of thefr
loyalty to him and his government. A short time
previously, these men had presented an address to
King James, conveying simUar sentiments ; but mat
ters had now altered, and perhaps it was the more.
prudent plan to provide for their safety at all hazards.
Bishop Leslie himself describes many of that party as
swearing backwards and forwards four times in a
single year.
The Presbyterians at this time constituted by far
the larger portion of the Protestant population of Ul
ster. Bishop Leslie, writing in the year 1692, thus
estimates the relative numbers of the two churches : —
" The Non-Conformists are much tbe most numerous

244 SYNODS OF 1690 and 1691. [Ch. xix
portion of the Protestants in Ulster. Some parishes
have not ten, some not six, that come to church, while
the Presby terian meetings are crowded with thousands,
covering all the fields. This is ordinary, in the county
of Antrim especially, which is the most populous of
Scots of any in Ulster (who are generally Presbyte
rians in that county.) In other of the northern coun
ties the Episcopal Protestants bear a greater proportion,
some more, some less. But upon the whole, as I have
it from those that live upon the place, they are not
one to fifty, nor so much, but they would speak
within compass."
The first meeting of the Synod (since the general
meeting at Ballymena, in 1661,) was held in Belfast,
on the 26th of September, 1690, but the minutes of
this session are unfortunately lost. From other sources
we learn that it was chiefly occupied in deciding cases
where more than one application was made for the
same minister ; in appointing collections for charities ;
in encouraging young men to enter the ministry ; in
the exercise of discipline ; and in urging the exiled
ministers to return from Scotland, nearly fifty of whom
were believed to be in that kingdom in the spring of
1689. The next meeting of the Synod was held at
Antrim, on the 30th of September, 1691. On that
occasion Eev. Thomas Hall, of Larne, preached from
Song of Solomon, vui., 12, and John Abernethy, of
Moneymore, was appointed moderator. This Synod
was principally occupied in considering the great sub
ject of ministerial education, for which the Presby
terian church has always been distinguished, even in
the worst of times, and it was unanimously " agreed
and concluded that none enter into the ministrv with-

1692.] MEETING OF IRISH PARLIAMENT. 245
out laureation ;" that is, without having gone through
a regular course of education, and taken the degree of
Master of Arts, in one of the Scottish universities.
After the publication of James' Declaration for lib
erty of conscience in 1687, the Presbyterians suffered
but little molestation either from Church or State,
though the laws prohibiting their worehip and the
meetings of Presbyteries ahd Synods were still in force ;
but after the siege of Derry the spirit of intolerance
began to show itself in various places. But an impor
tant change in their position was now effected by an
act of the English Parliament, passed at the close of
the year 1691, abolishing the oath of supremacy in
Ireland, and substituting in its place the oath of Fidel
ity and Allegiance, which had been in force in Eng
land since the year 1688. This act having no declar
ation or engagement oppressive to the consciences of
the Non-Conformists, and no sacramental tests attached,
(as was the case in England since the year 1673,) the
Irish Presbyterians became eligible to all civil, mUi
tary and municipal offices throughout the kingdom.
On the 5th of October, 1692, after an interval of
twenty-six years, the Irish Parliament again com
menced its sittings. Lord Sydney being Lord Lieuten
ant, at which a bill for toleration for Ireland was dis
cussed, but nothing came of it, as the Parliament was
soon after suddenly dissolved. But the want of this
act of toleration was not practically felt by the Pres
byterians, They enjoyed all their religious rights, and
the avenues to office being thrown open to them they
rose rapidly to influence and power, especially in the
large towns. Their intercourse with the Episcopalians
was amicable, and although some of the Bishops were

246 DR. WILLIAM KING. [Oh. XIX.
jealous of their growing influence, yet in most in
stances the ministers united in repairing the disas
trous results of the war.
This mutual amity was firet violated by the new
Bishop of Derry, Dr. WiUiam King, who engaged in
a controversy with the Presbyterians of his diocese by
printing a "Discourse on the Inventions of Man in
the Worship of God," in which he turned the tables
on the previous opponents of Episcopacy by main
taining that the Presbyterian worship was unlawful
and unscriptural, and alleged that the Presbyterian
people in general were very inadequately instructed
by thefr ministers in the principles of religion ; that
the Scriptures were scarcely ever read in their religious
assemblies : that few of them attended public worship ;
that the congregations generally sat at public prayer :
and that the Lord's Supper was culpably undervalued
and neglected, being celebrated only at very distant
intervals. These exaggerated and erroneous statements
called forth two antagonists — one, the Eeverend Eob
ert Craghead of Derry, the other a still more able and
accomplished polemic, the Eeverend Joseph Boyse of
Dublin. Bishop King replied to Mr. Boyse in an
"Admonition" in May, 1694, and in the beginning
of the year 1695 Mr. Boyse rejoined, which was fol
lowed in about a year by a second admonition from
the Bishop, which was answered by Mr. Craghead,
The controversy before its conclusion had called forth
nine different publications, and had extended over a
period of as many years.
While Bishop King was thus censuring the alleged
neglect of the Presbyterian ministers and affecting to be
most anxious for their reformation, he was employed in

1694.] WILLIAM MILNE. 247
the visitation of an adjoining diocese, which disclosed
so many gross offences among the beneficed clergy
that one would think his reforming efforts might have
been exhausted within the pale of his own church.
The diocese of Down and Connor had become a pub
lic scandal to the Church in Ulster.
The Bishop had not been within his charge for
twenty yeare, and his clergy had become noted for
their unholy lives. Various efforts had been made to
remedy the evil, but without success, until October,
1693, when a memorial from the respectable clergy
was presented to Lord Sydney, the Lord Lieutenant,
praying for speedy redress, which resulted in a com
mission from the crown of three Bishops, one of whom
was King, with power to admonish, suspend and de
prive all who were guilty, from the Bishop down to
the humblest vicar. This commission met in Febru
ary, 1694, and resulted in depriving Bishop Hackett
of his sees, for simony, non-residence, and gross neg
lect of his official duties, and sentences of more or less
severity were passed upon several of his clergy,
among whom was William MUne, who was publicly
admonished for intemperance, suspended for neglect
of his cure, and deprived for incontinence of life.
His history is singular and instructive. He was a
Scotch Presbyterian, and had been licensed in Aber
deen as a probationer. In the year 1657 he came
over to Ireland, and was ordained by the Presbytery
of Antrim, and settled at Islandmagee, near Carrick
fergus, and in tbe following year received the prebend
of Kilroot. On the restoration of prelacy he was one
of the very few ministers who abandoned the Presby
terian for the Episcopal church. Having stooped to

248 PARTIES AMONG THE PROTESTANTS. [Ch- XTX.
receive re-ordination from Bishop Jeremy Taylor, he
was inducted into the rectory of his former parish,
Islandmagee, in March, 1662. MUne was succeeded
in his prebend by the celebrated Dean Swift. Of the
ministers who conformed at that trying period, the
early annalist of the Presbyterian cburch had re
marked that " they turned other men than before,"
and that they became " worldly and proud."
These salutary acts of discipline, though long de
layed, did much to elevate the character of the estab
lished cburch in Ulster, but faded in bringing over
the dissenters, as had been expected. In addition to
the regular Presbyterians, David Houston had re
turned to Ireland, preaching the Solemn League and
Covenant, accusing other Presbyterians of perjury,
and followed (as we learn from two contemporary
Bishops) by " a congregation of five hundred resolute
fellows." The same prelates urged the appointment
of a prudent and well-terapered Bishop in the place
of Hackett. Such was the character of Bishop Foley,
who did not live a year, however, and was foUowed
by a very different person.
The Protestants of Ireland began now to be divided
into an Irish and English party, the distinctive prin
ciples of which are not very clearly defined, but which
were eventually identified with the English division
of Whigs and Tories. One thing is certain, that the
Irish party was less favorable than the English to the
toleration of the Presbyterians, whose chief protector
about this time was Lord Capel, one of the Lords
Justices, who differed from his colleagues as to the pay
ment of the Eoyal Bounty, which they were in favor
of withdrawing, and did actually for a time withhold.

1695.] BILL FOR RELIEF OF DISSENTERS. 249
A new attempt was now made to procure from Par
liament an act extending legal protection to the Pres
byterian church. Accordingly Lord Capel submitted
to the Irish privy council the draft of an act " for the
ease of Protestant dissenters," similar to the one pre
pared for the Parliament three years before by Lord
Sydney, This was opposed by the prelates, headed
by Sir Eichard Cox, one of the Justices of the Court
of Common Pleas, who expressed a desire to grant a
free toleration to all ; yet, as there was no test in Ire
land, it was necessary for the security of the Estab
lished Church to exclude all from office who would not
conform, and moved that a clause be added to the bill
excluding all Presbyterians from public offices, which
motion was carried. While this bill was under con
sideration in the council, the Presbyterians were not
inactive. Letters were sent to the different Presbyte
ries urging them to unite in an application to the
King for an act of toleration, and the Presbytery of
Lagan sent commissioners to the King, who was at this
time conducting the siege of Namur, in Flanders, ask
ing for liberty and for redress of their particular
grievances. It was resolved also to urge the same in
Parliament, and an able tract in favor of the measure
was prepared by Mr. Boyse, already mentioned, en
titled " The case of the Protestant Dissenters in Ire
land, in reference to a Bill of Indulgence, represented
and argued." This led to another written controversy,
but on a very different subject from the first, and be
tween different parties, with the exception of Boyse
himself The first opponent of Boyse was Doctor Tobias Pul-
len, grandson of the Archbishop of Tuam, It was
11*

250 STRUGGLE FOR TOLERATION, [Ch. XIX.
published anonymously, and in it he admits the pro
priety of granting toleration to the Presbyterian
Church, but only as a favor which the Episcopalians
were willing to grant, " as parents humor their children
in giving them things that are pleasing to their palates,
though prejudicial to their health." This was followed
by another pamphlet by Doctor Anthony Dopping,
Bishop of Meath, in which he concedes the propriety
of granting the toleration asked for, but on condition
that it be accompanied with a sacramental test. These
pamphlets appearing nearly at the same time clearly
indicated the formation of a party opposed to the lib
eral intentions of the King and his ministers towards
the Presbyterians ; and in order to answer the objec
tions raised Mr. Boyse published another pamphlet,
in the first part of which he most ably refuted the
arguments of Bishop Pullen, and in the latter part, in
answer to Bishop Dopping, placed the claims of the
Irish Presbyterians to obtain a toleration act free from
the sacramental test, in the clearest light.
In the midst of this controversy the Irish Parlia
ment was opened by Lord Capel on the 27th of Au
gust, 1695, and on the 24th of September the Earl of
Drogheda obtained leave from the House of Lords to
bring in " Heads of a bUl for ease to dissenters." The
opponents of the measure were in full force, out of
forty-three Peers, twenty-one of them were Bishops,
including King, Pullen and Dopping, and the motion
was postponed for one week. At the same time in the
Commons a committee recommended the passage of
the English Act of Toleration as a law for Ireland,
with such alterations as might be necessary to adopt it
to the state of the kingdom. This act imposing no

1696.] hORB GALWAY. 251
civil disabilities on dissenters was therefore very simi
lar to the proposition before the House of Lords, and
after a debate it was postponed and neither were taken
up again during the session. The anomalous result
was, that the English dissenters enjoyed full liberty
of worship under the Act of Toleration, but were ex
cluded from public office by the Test Act ; whUe the
Irish could hold office, but were not allowed by law
to celebrate their worship.
Lord Capel having died in May, 1696, the govem
ment devolved upon Sir Charles Porter, the Lord
ChaneeUor, but he being an opponent of the English
government, in order to counteract his infiuence they
constituted him one of the three Lords Justices, the
Earls of Montrath and Drogheda being the other two.
But Porter dying suddenly in December following,
another commission was issued to new Lords Justices,
namely, Lord Villiere, the Marquis of Winchester,
and Lord Galway, but in reality the government was
conducted by the latter. This nobleman was a refugee
from France, of the iUustrious family of Euvigny, and
a Presbyterian. He had been obliged to fly to Hol
land at the revocation of the Edict of Nantes, where
he met the Prince of Orange, and coming to Ireland
with him he distinguished himself at the battle of the
Boyne, and was rewarded with the post of Lieutenant
General and afterwards received the title of Earl of
Galway. Having such a friend as Lord Justice, the
Presbyterians were encouraged to make another at
tempt to obtain a Toleration Act ; accordingly a com
mittee of delegates from all the Presbyteries met in
Belfast and drew up an address to the King, praying
for their "legal liberty." This provoked a renewal

252 FOREIGN PROTESTANTS. [Ch. XIX.
of the controversy as to toleration on the part of
Bishop Pullen, and the Eeverend Edward Synge, who is
memorable chiefly as the son and nephew of bishops,
the father of two others and himself afterwards an
Archbishop. They were answered not by Boyse, but
by the Eeverend Thomas M'Bride, a native of Ireland
and a successor of the Eeverend Patrick Adair at
Belfast. This answer being too pointed and effective
to remain unnoticed, Mr, Synge replied, disclaiming
all intolerant designs and principles, but still opposing
the emancipation of the Irish Presbyterians.
When the Parliament again met (July 1697) meas
ures were adopted for the relief of foreign Protestants,
with special reference to the French Huguenots, many
of whom settled in Ireland after the revocation of the
Edict of Nantes. Of these, some conformed to the
Church of England, and adopted a French version of
its liturgy ; others retained thefr Presbyterian discipline
and worship, both securing an allowance from the
State, which continued to be paid as late as 1822, when
there was at least one French minister in Ireland, but
without a congregation. The favor thus bestowed on
foreign Protestants and Presbyterians seeraed to aggra
vate the hardships of the natives who professed the
same faith, and who still demanded legal toleration.
The same Parliament proposed to modify tbe Act of
Uniformity, passed in the reign of Elizabeth, and still
in force, by exempting from its operations such dissent
ers as subscribed the declaration substituted at the Eev
olution for the Oath of Supremacy. But the raotion
only seemed to show the temper of the House. It was
not renewed in the last Parliament of William's reign,
1698, at the close of which the Irish Presbyterians occu-

169'?.] PRESBYTERIANS HARASSED. 253
pied the same position as at the begining, with the
single exception that the Oath of Supremacy had been
abolished, not by the Irish but the English Parlia
ment. Dr. Walkington, appointed to succeed Dr. Foley in
the see of Down and Connor, was a learned and well-
meaning man, but a bigoted High Churchman and op
ponent of the Presbyterians, for whose suppression in
his diocese he formally petitioned. About the same
time, a Presbyterian minister settled in Limerick was
imprisoned for preaching and administering the sacra
ments in Galway, The Presbyterians were also har
assed in relation to their marriages, which some of the
ecclesiastical authorities pronounced invalid, and their
chUdren illegitimate. They were also troubled by the
imposition of the burial service at their funerals, and of
the office of church-warden, under severe penalties,
and by the prohibition of all Presbyterian schools and
teachers. But while they were becoming politically more and
more powerless their numbers and religious influence
were growing in the same proportion. New congre
gations were continually organized, and in the chief
towns of Ulster, such as Londonderry, Coleraine, Bel
fast, and Carrickfergus, Presbyterians were members
ofthe corporation, and sometimes held the highest mu
nicipal offices. Between the years 1694 and 1697 sev
eral of the leading ministers died who had been or
dained before the Eestoration, and had lived through
troublous times that followed. Such were Patrick
Adair, Thomas Hall, Anthony Kennedy, Henry Liv
ingston, Eobert Cunningham, William Crooks, and
Thomas Boyd, the two last having endured the horrors

254 SUB-SYNODS ORGANIZED. [Ch. XIX.
of the siege of Derry. But their places were supplied
by active and diligent successors ; and the church in
creased so fast that in 1697 the five original Presby
teries were distributed into two "sub-Synods," which
were to meet twice a year, at Coleraine and Dromore,
in March and October. At the same time the Presby
tery of Antrim was divided, the new body being
called the Presbytery of Belfast. This arrangement of
six Presbyteries, two sub-Synods, and one General
Synod (that of Ulster), continued to the end of Wil
liam's reign ; but in the very first year of Queen
Anne's another enlargement was found necessary.
The Presbyterians who were merabers of the civic
corporations began now to be accused of seeking a
monopoly of power and influence, by the appointment
of their own class exclusively to public offices — ^an ac
cusation which, although apparently without founda
tion, was afterwards the pretext for excluding them
entirely from corporations.
At the opening of the Synod of Belfast, 1698, the
Eev. Mr. McBride preached a sermon, in which he
took occasion to assert the right of the Church to hold
assemblies of her office-bearers ; and that the validity
of these meetings did not depend on the sanction of the
civil powers. This sermon was published without his
knowledge, and was seized upon by the authorities as
a grave offense against the jurisdiction of the Estab
lished Church, and Mr. McBride was summoned be
fore the Privy CouncU ; but, on hearing his explana-
nations, he was discharged, with no severer censure
than an exhortation to keep the peace and treat the
authorities with due respect.
This case had hardly been disposed of when one

noo.] PRESBYTERIAN MINISTERS OPPRESSED. 255
somewhat similar arose in a remote town of Galway.
It appears that some Presbyterian families from Ulster
had recently settled there, and had invited the Eev.
William Biggar, of Limerick, to preach and administer
ordinances among them. This aroused the anger
of the Episcopalians, who had him apprehended
and brought before the mayor ; but on the advice
of the Archbishop of Tuam he was liberated, and
permitted to return to his charge at Limerick. But
soon after he was brought before the Lords Justices,
and after being admonished, he was dismissed, and an
order given that in future no Presbyterian minister
should preach in Galway ; and apphcation was made
to the King that he would confirm thefr act. But it is
probable that the prohibition against preaching in Gal
way was removed by the King ; for not more than two
years after this period there was not only a Presbyter
ian congregation regularly organized there, but a min
ister duly ordained to that charge.
The government of Ireland being transferred in
1700 from the three Lords Justices to a Lord Lieuten
ant, the Earl of Eochester, tbe general coramittee of
the Synod presented him, through the Presbyterian
ministers of Dublin, a congratulatory address, profess
ing their loyalty, asking for protection, and expressing
great confidence both in the King and in his represen
tative ; to which the latter gave a very brief but favor
able answer.

CH APTE R XX.
1701-1709.
The increasing troubles of the Presbyterians with
respect to marriages led them to present a memorial
to the Lord Lieutenant (Earl of Eochester) complain
ing of their grievances, and asking for a remedy. The
Lord Lieutenant, embarrased with tbe difficulties of the
question, wrote to London for instructions, but could
get no satisfactory answer, on account of the absence
of the King in Holland. But on the return of the King
the subject was brought under his notice, who disap
proved of the proceedings against the Presbyterians,
and expressed a wish that some expedient might be
found for putting a stop to these persecutions, without
interfering with the rights of the established Church.
Tbe matter seems not to have gone any further at this
time, as tbe Lord Lieutenant soon after returned to
England, entrusting the government to the same Lords
Justices who had been employed before his arrival, with
the addition of two others, who were sworn into office
at the end of the year 1701. In the death of King Wil
liam, in March, the cause of toleration and the inter
ests of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland met with
a heavy blow.
No sooner had the news of the King's death reached
Bishop King, of Derry, than he wrote to the Bishop
of Clogher, who was in London, urging him to move

I'O^.] BISHOP king's INTOLERANT SPIRIT. 257
the government either to withdraw the royal bounty
from the Presbyterians, or, if continued, to place it on
such a. footing as might render the ministers subser
vient to the government, and might introduce at the
same time divisions among them. So anxious was he
for the adoption of this mean and disgraceful plan for
weakening the Presbyterian cause, that a few days af
terwards, in a letter, be pressed it on the notice of Sir
Eobert Southwell, the Secretary for Ireland. This
spirit of intolerance continued to increase among the
clergy during the whole of Queen Anne's reign. In
the meantime the prosecutions against their marriages
were greatly increased, by the indications of a design
to suspend the Eoyal Bounty, which led the Synod
of this year, 1702, to complain to the Lords Justices
on both these matters. But no redress could be ex
pected when two Bishops were the advisers of the
government, one of whom was King, of Derry. With
regard to the Eoyal Bounty, the government believing
that it would be inexpedient to withhold it at the pre
sent juncture, lettere patent were issued, under the
great seal of Ireland, constituting thirteen ministers
trustees for the distribution of the grant.
The Presbyterian cause continuing to prosper, and
the Presbyteries becoming too large for the proper dis
charge of their duties, it became necessary to remodel
the organization, so as to consist of three sub-synods,
Belfast, Monaghan, and Lagan, and nine Presbyteries,
Antrira, Armagh, Belfast, Coleraine, Convoy, Derry,
Down, Monaghan or Stonebridge, and Tyrone or
Cookstown. Measures were also taken to require sub
scription to the Westminster Confession of Faith by
every candidate as the confession of his faith. The

258 OATH OF ABJURATION. [Oh. XX
Synod of this year resolved that no one should be re
ceived as a candidate, unless he had studied four years
after having completed his course of philosophy, and
afterwards it was added that all young men on trial
for the ministry should be able to read the Hebrew
psalter, ad aperturam libri. Until this time no depar
ture from the doctrines of the Westminster Confession
had appeared among the ministers in Ireland, and
when, in June of this year, the Eev. Thomas Embyn,
one of the ministers in Dublin, was suspected of deny
ing the divinity of Christ, and he, on inquiry, avowing
himself an Arian, was immediately deposed. In the
spring of the next year he published a temperate
defence of his doctrinal views, for which he was in
dicted for blasphemy, but not at the suggestion of any
of the ministers, and after a trial in the Court of
Queen's Bench was convicted, and suffered a cruel
and unjustifiable imprisonment of more than two years.
Upon the accession of Queen Anne the Tories gained
the complete ascendancy in the government, and in
1703 the Parliament passed an act extending the Oath
of Abjuration (which declared that James IH. had no
right or title to the crown) to Ireland, and the Duke
of Ormond was appointed Lord Lieutenant, and sent
to Ireland for the purpose of carrying out the pro
visions of this statute. This oath was taken by all the
Presbyterian ministers in Ireland except six, namely,
Mr. M'Bride of Belfast, Alexander M'Oracken of Lis
burn, John Eiddel of Glenavy, Thomas Sterling of
Devrock, Gideon Jacque and Patrick Dunlop, minis
ters without charge. These non-jurors, as they were
called, gave every assurance of their loyalty and alle
giance to Queen Anne, but their refusal to take the

"04-1 TEST ACT. 259
oath gave occasion to the High Church party to brand
them as Jacobites and disloyal, and to cast the same
reproach on the Presbyterians generally.
On the 21st of September the Irish Parliament met,
and the High Church party, having a large majority,
soon began to indicate their hostility to the Presby
terians. On the 19th of October the committee on
public accounts recommended that Messrs. M'Bride and
M'Cracken should be struck off the grant of Eoyal
Bounty, for refusing to take the oath of abjuration.
This recommendation of the committee was superseded
a few days after by a resolution that the Eoyal Bounty
was an unnecessary branch of the establishment ; but
the government was unwilling to venture upon this
bold step. While the ministers escaped these attempts
to injure them, a more serious evil, affecting the whole
Presbyterian population, was the introduction of those
anti-popery laws, which have been the source of so
much misery to Ireland, but which are now, happily,
repealed. In the early part of the first session, an
act was introduced in the form of " Heads of a bill
to prevent the further growth of Popery," and was
sent to England for the consideration of the Queen and
Council. In this form it had been warmly supported
by the Presbyterians, but on its return to Ireland, to
tbeir great dismay, it was found that an entirely new
clause had been introduced by the English ministry,
requiring " all persons holding any office, civil or mil
itary, or receiving any pay or salary from the crown,
or having command or place of trust from the sover
eign," to take the .sacrament in the Estabhshed Church
within three months after any such appointment; in
other words, it was the imposition of the Sacramental

260 PASSED THE IRISH COMMONS. \P^- ^^•
Test which had so long been the object of the Irish
prelates to impose, and which the Presbyterians had
so vigorously opposed. All the evidence now extant
with regard to the introduction of this clause, proves
that it was a deliberately planned scheme of the High
Church party, for the purpose of humbling and op
pressing the Presbyterians.
On the 14th of February the bill, with the addition
of the Sacramental Test, was presented to the Irish
House of Commons and read the first time, and three
daj^s after it was read a second time, when the leading
Eomanists petitioned to be heard by counsel against
it, v/hich was granted. Accordingly, on the 22d of
February, Sir Theobald Bulter delivered a most effec
tive speech, in which he not only proved it to be a
manifest breach of the treaty with the Eomau Cath
olics, but pointed out how undeservedly the Presby
terians were treated by the imposition of the Sacra
mental Test. But the arguments and appeals of
counsel were of no avail, the bill passed through the
committee, and was reported to the House on the follow
ing day, and ordered to be engrossed, and on the 25th
of February it was read a- third time and sent to the
House of Lords, where, after hearing the Eomanists
by counsel, it was rapidly passed, and received the
royal assent on the 4th of March.
During the whole time that this bill was under con
sideration, the Presbyterians were led to believe that
now they would obtain the legal toleration for which
they had been so long seeking, but now that the bill
was passed all the declarations and promises of tole
ration were forgotten. The Irish Presbyteries were in
a worse position than their brethren in England, No

1105.] PARLIAMENT REFUSES RELIEF. 261
Presbyterian could henceforth hold any office in the
army, navy, customs, excise or post office, courts of
law, magistracy of the kingdom, or in the corporation
of the towns, without conforming to the established
Church. The treatment which they received from
government was deeply felt and resented in England,
and among their ablest advocates there, was Daniel
Defoe, who, although a prisoner in Newgate for his
satire entitled " The shortest Way with the Dissenters,"
took up the pen in their behalf, and early in the year
published a pamphlet with the title, " The Parallel ;
or Persecution of Protestants the shortest Way to pre
vent the Growth of Popery in Ireland."
At the reassembling of the Parliament, in 1705, a
petition was presented, on the 14th of March, by a
few leading Presbyterians who had suffered under the
Test clause, exhibiting the unshaken loyalty of the
Presbyterian body, and the important services ren
dered by it to the Protestant religion and the hberties
of the empire. They complain of their having been
disabled by the Test from executing any public trust
for the service of her Majesty, the Protestant religion
and their country. They-point out the impolicy of
dividing the Protestants, while the Eomanists were six
to one of the entire Protestant population ; and they
conclude with praying the House " to order a bill for
restoring such a considerable part of the Protestants
of this kingdom to a capacity of defending her Maj
esty's sacred person and government, and the Protes
tant succession as by law established." After a warm
debate whether the petition should be laid upon the
table, rejected, or the petitioners be permitted to with
draw it, it was laid upon the table.

262 WRITTEN CONTROVERSY. [Ch. XX
This action of the Parliament convinced the Pres
byterians that there was no hope for a redress of their
grievances from them. And this conviction was
strengthened by a renewed attempt to abolish their
privilege of celebrating marriages. The Irish govern
ment had discouraged the prosecutions in these
cases, and the subject was brought before this Parlia
ment and a bill introduced, which was afterwards sent
to England, but it was never returned.
During the prosecutions of the ministers for celebra
ting marriages, the Eev. Mr. M'Bride, of Belfast, pub
lished a pamphlet anonymously, entitled, " A Vindica
tion of Marriage as solemnized by Presbyterians in the
North of Ireland," This was an able and elaborate de
fence of their conduct, which was answered fiippantly
by the Eev. Ealph Lambert, D, D., and afterwards
more solidly by Mr. Synge, at that time chaplain to
the Duke of Ormond.
These writings of Mr. M'Bride excited the anger of
the High Church party against him, and in virtue of
a resolution passed by the Commons, prohibiting all
nonjuring ministers from preaching or teaching in
separate congregations, he was informed against,
brought before an Episcopalian minister, who was a
magistrate, condemned, and compelled to retire to
Scotland, where he was forced to remain for three
years, during which time he resided in Glasgow, and
was pastor of one of the city churches, and sat as a
member of the established Presbytery of Glasgow.
In the midst of all this opposition the church was
devoting her energies to the defence and propagation
of evangelical truth. A missionary fund was estab
lished by the Synod of 1705 for the support of infant

I'O'-] AFFAIRS IN ENGLAND. 263
congregations m the south and west of the kingdom,
and in the Synod of 1706 a number of laymen and
ministers were appointed to solicit subscriptions
throughout Ulster for this purpose, and they reported
to the next Synod that they had collected about one
hundred and ten pounds, with the prospect of more,
and with this sum missionary operations were com
menced. Missionaries were sent to the scattered and
neglected Presbyterians in Galway, Dundalk, Aithlone
and other places.
While the Synod was thus enlarging the field of
its operation a change was occurring in the political
condition of England. The elections for members of
Parliament in the summer of 1705 resulted in a large
majority for the whig party. This change was first
felt in Ireland by the removal of the Duke of Ormond
from the Lord Lieutenancy and the appointment of
Lords Justices. And in April, 1707, the Earl of Pem
broke, a well-known friend of toleration was prevailed
upon to undertake the government of Ireland, and
accordingly he arrived in Dublin on the 14th of June.
The Presbyterians hailed his appointment as a means
of relief from the Sacramental Test, On the opening
of Parliament on the 7th of July, he expressed the
desire of the Queen that in consideration of the num
ber of Papists some expedient might be devised for
strengthening the interests of the Protestants in her
kingdom. This indication of a desire in the govern
ment to remove the evils of the Sacramental Test
was unheeded by the Parliament. Indeed, two days
before the close of the session, in inquiring into^ the
case of a disputed election in the corporation of^el-
fist, and discovering that the majority of the burgesses

264 EVIL EFFECTS OF SACRAMENTAL TEST. [Oh. XX
had ceased to act on account of their not having re
ceived the Sacrament in the Episcopal Church, they
passed a resolution declaring that the office of burgess
was vacated in every case in which the occupant had
not qualified by becoming a conformist.
The impolicy of thus disqualifying nearly one-half
of the Protestants in Ireland from holding office under
the crown became apparent in the following spring,
when the French King made an attempt to land the
Pretender in Scotland. Great alarm was felt in Ire
land and especially in Ulster, and being called out for
the defence ofthe kingdom, many ofthe Presbyterians
refused to be enrolled as bringing them under the
Sacramental Test, and exposing them to its penalties
if they did not conform. This was therefore consid
ered as a favorable time to make another effort to
secure the repeal of the Test. Accordingly Allen
Brodrick, Esq., the Speaker of the House of Commons
and a friend of toleration, visited England in the spring
and brought the matter before the government. The
Presbyterians of Ulster forwarded a congratulatory
address to the Queen on the deliverance of the king
dom frora the threatened danger, and alluded to the
loyalty of the Irish Presbyterians through all the
forraer vicissitudes, and reminding her of the disqualifi
cations under which they lay from the Sacramental Test.
Counsellor Stevens of Dubhn was also dispatched to
London, to second the efforts of Brodrick, but on their
arrival they found that the English Parliament had
been dissolved, and although the new Parliament
still possessed a majority of Whigs nothing was accom-
plisned. Lord Pembroke, having been appointed by the

I'f'^-l DEAN SWIFT. 265
Queen Lord High Admiral, resigned his government
in Ireland and was succeeded by the Earl of Wharton,
long a leader of the Presbyterian interest in England.
This appointment gave great encouragement to the
Presbyterians, and at the same time excited the High
Church party to renewed efforts lest the Sacramental
Test should be abolished. A new champion appeared
at this period in their defence, the celebrated Dean
Swift, who pubhshed anonymously his first tract in
support of the Sacramental Test, entitled, " A Letter
from the House of Commons in Ireland to a member
of the House of Commons in England, concerning the
Sacramental Test." In this pamphlet, full of sarcasra
and frony, he denounces the Irish Presbyterians as the
most formidable foes of the Estabhshed Church, and
declares that more danger is to be apprehended from
them than from the Eomanists.
Immediately following this, another tract of far infe
rior ability, appeared from the pen of the Eeverend
William Tisdall, vicar of Belfast. This tract appeared
anonymously in the spring of 1709, in which the au
thor attempts to prove that the Presbyterians were
wholly unworthy of relief or toleration.
During these attacks upon the Presbyterians the
Earl of Wharton reached Dublin, and was sworn into
office at the close of April He was accompanied by
tbe celebrated Joseph Addison as private secretary,
who was also a member of the Irish House of Com
mons, elected from the borough of Cavan. On the
5th of May he opened the Parliament with a speech,
in which he alluded to the preponderance ofthe Eoman
ists over the Protestants, and while advising further
severities against the former he recommended the cul-
12

266 ¦• EARL OF WHARTON. [Ch. XX.
tivation of a spirit of union among the latter. In the
answer of the Commons to this speech they admitted
the claims of the Presbyterians to toleration, but were
silent as to the Test Act, which they knew was the
only point to which Lord Wharton referred. In the
House of Lords, composed of ten laymen and twelve
Bishops, at the head of whom was King, an amend
ment in favor of toleration was suraraarily rejected,
and in contempt of notorious facts they boldly assured
the Lord Lieutenant that "all our fellow-subjects are
treated with so much tenderness that we hope they
never will have just reason to complain of any unea
siness." No further effort was made in this Parliament to
wards the abohtion of the Sacramental Test, which
seems to have chagrined the Lord Lieutenant ; and in
his closing speech he once more calls the attention of
Parhament to the subject of the test in these pointed
terms : " I make no question but that you underetand
too well the true interest of the Protestant religion in
this kingdom not to endeavor to make all such Protest
ants as easy as you can who are wUling to contribute
what they can to defend the whole against the com
mon enemy."

CHAPTER XXI.
1709-1714.
Through the influence of the Lord Lieutenant the
Presbyterians of Ulster enjoyed comparative freedom.
Thefr congregations had become so nuraerous, now
numbering one hundred and thfrty, that it was incon
venient for their ministers and elders to meet in one
Synod, and accordingly at the meeting of Synod, in
1708, it was proposed to make it a delegated body.
This proposition w'as more freely discussed in the next
Synod, but was strongly opposed by a number of min
isters and elders, who drew up a protest against the con
stitutional change, which led to the postponement, and
finaUy the abandonment of the measure.
Although dilring this period the Presbyterians gen
erally were not molested in their labors, yet in a few
instances this was not the case. In the town of Drogh
eda there had been a non-conforming congregation,
with an uninterrupted succession of ministers, from the
time of Cromwell until 1688 ; but during the long oc
cupation of the town by the forces of King James the
congregation had been dispersed. After the accession
of King WUliam the Presbyterian inhabitants had
caUed upon the neighboring ministers for their assist
ance, and latterly had applied to the Synod to send
them supplies until they should be able to support a
settled minister. In answer to this appeal the Synod,

268 PERSECUTIONS. [Ch. XXI.
in 1708, directed the Presbytery of Armagh to send
them such supply, and the Eev. James Fleming was
appointed. But the day after his first service, at the
instigation of Dean Cox, the Episcopal minister of the
town, he was cited before the mayor and council and
threatened with legal proceedings unless he should de
sist. Undismayed by these threats, he preached on the
next Sabbath, for which he was brought again before
the authorities and bound over to stand his trial for a
riot and unlawful assembly. The next minister who
preached to the people was the Eev. William Bigger,
who had been treated in the same way ten years before,
for the same cause in Galway. On Sunday, the
3d of October, he preached in a private house,
which coming to the ears of Dean Cox, he procured
a certificate from the Bishop of Armagh, stating
that Mr. Bigger was not licensed to preach in his
diocese, which being presented to the mayor, he com
mitted him to prison for three months, and refused to
release him except upon condition that the attempt to
form a Presbyterian congregation in Drogheda should
be abandoned. After an imprisonment of six weeks
he was released. These efforts to crush the congrega
tion of Drogheda proved ineffectual ; and soon after
the Eev. Hugh Henry received a call, and in March
was installed as pastor, where he officiated for more
than thirty years.
Soon after these troubles at Drogheda the Eev. John
CampbeU, an Episcopal minister residing near Antrim,
sent a challenge to all the Presbyterian ministers whora
he knew to be authors, such as Boyse, M'Bride and
Craghead, to produce a warrant from Scripture for
Presbyters ordaining or ruling without a bishop. Not

IV 10.] ROMAN CATHOLIC INTERESTS. 269
content \\'ith sending it to private ministers he, by the
hands of three Episcopal ministers, sent a formal copy
to the moderator of the Synod at Belfast, in 1610, to be
laid before the assembled ministere of the province.
The letters which Campbell sent to the different minis
ters were shortly answered by them. At the close of
the year Campbell published a reply, under the title of
" Mr. Campbell's Letter to a Parishioner." This brought
out the Eev. Thomas Gowan, minister of Drumbo, in
a pamphlet, in which he made an elaborate examina
tion of the whole question, upon which Mr. Campbell
retired discomfited from tbe field.
The established Church did not entirely neglect the
interests of the Eoman Catholics. Since the days of
Bedell little had been done for the instruction of the
native Irish ; but in 1609 the subject was taken up in
a convocation of the established clergy, and many im
portant measures recommended for their instruction in
the vernacular, and at the convocation of 1611, a num
ber of ministers devoted themselves to this work ; but
their plans were defeated by the prejudice excited by
the anti-popery laws, and the apathy of the Bishops
and most of the clergy.
In 1610 the Synod of Ulster took up the same sub
ject, and determined to carry on this noble work with
vigor. On the 1st of May, in this same year, was es
tabhshed the " General Fund," for the purpose of sup
porting religion in Dublin and the south of Ireland,
and assisting dissenting ministers and congregations
who were unable to provide for themselves ; and for
many years, by means of this fund, the preaching of
the gospel was introduced and maintained among

270 PERSECUTIONS RENEWED. [*^^- ^•'^^¦
many dissenting communities in the southern part of
the kingdom.
In May, 1610, the Eari of Wharton again returned
to Ireland and assumed the reins of government, and
on the assembling of Parliament soon after he once
more recommended union among Protestants ; but al
though it sat until August nothing was effected to
wards the removal of the Sacramental Test. Soon after
he returned to England and found a change of admin
istration taking place, which ultimately involved the
Presbyterians in Ireland in very serious trouble. The
Queen had transferred the governraent from the Whigs
to the Tories. And in the month of October the Duke
of Ormond was again appointed Lord Lieutenant of
Ireland in place of Wharton, and until he could go
himself he committed affairs to the Primate and the
commander of the forces, as Lords Justices. This
change of government was the signal for fresh perse
cutions of the Dissenters in Ireland. Their first act was,
(through two High Church magistrates near Belfast,)
to issue warrants for the three non-juring ministers in
that neighborhood, M'Bride, Bedell and M'Cracken.
The two former concealed themselves, and afterwards
escaped to Scotland. M'Cracken was taken, but
through the connivance of Dr. Smith, Bishop of
Down and Connor, escaped from the custody of the
constable, and took refuge in Castle Kennedy, in Scot
land ; and in March, 1711, proceeded to London, and
laid his case before the government. He was favor
ably received by the Duke of Ormond and the Earl of
Oxford, who promised to consider the question of the
abolition of the Sacramental Test, and give him an an
swer. Encouraged by these promises, he transmitted

I'll] AFFAIRS IST THE IRISH PARLIAMENT. 271
a favorable account of his visit to London, to the Synod
which met at Belfast in June.
On the 2d of July the Duke of Ormond reached
Ireland, and almost immediately removed from his seat
Lord Chief Justice Brodrick, the warm fiiend of the
Presbyterians, and other Whig judges. At the open
ing of the Parliament he made no reference to the case
of the Dissentere ; but in his address to the Queen he
stated that " all her Majesty's subjects in Ireland equaUy
participated in her justice and favor." The Whigs made
objections to this statement as being unfrue, as the Sac
ramental Test excluded one-half of the Protestants in
Ireland from her service ; but the amendment which
they proposed to this part of the address was lost by an
overwhelming majority. In the House of Lords, three
days before the adjournment, the case of the Dissent
ere was introduced, and committed to thirteen Bishops,
headed by Archbishop Eang, and eleven laymen, who
on the next day submitted to the House a Eepresenta
tion relating to dissenting ministere. It presented a
long catalogue of aUeged grievances which the Episco
pal Church and her unprotected membere were endur
ing at the hands of the highly favored Presbyterians
of Ireland! They therefore suggest that tbe only
method of putting "a stop to these growing evUs"
would be the withdrawal of the Eoyal Bounty. This
Eepresentation, as false as it was unjust and undigni
fied, was transmitted to the Queen, and ordered to
be printed in a separate form and distributed among
the people. On the closing day of this session the
Lords dfrected a volume of Mr. Boyse's sermons, just
published, to be burned in Dublin by the common hang
man, on the ground that " it was felse and scandalous,

272 VINDICATION OP THE PRESBYTERY. [Ch. XXI
and contained matters highly reflecting on the legisla
tion ofthe country and on the Episcopal order."
This example of the House of Lords was imitated by
the convocation of the clergy, which, happily for Ire
land and the peace of their own Church, has never
been permitted by the Crown to hold another meeting.
The paper which they drew up on the subject of Dis
senters was published for distribution, in the form of a
pamphlet. The Presbyterians, seeing the storm which these pub
lications was raising, prepared, through a committee
of Synod, a vindication of themselves against these cal
umnies, and dispatched Mr. Iredell, of Dubhn, to lay
it before the Queen. A separate paper was drawn up
on the 1st of January, 1712, in answer to the address
ofthe convocation, and sent to Mr. Iredell, in London.
These papers were laid by him before the Queen, and
were afterwards published in a valuable tract, entitled,
"The Present State of Eeligion in Ireland."
The convocation, in their hostUity to all classes of
Dissenters in Ireland, did not overlook the French ref
ugees, and they were required to conform on tbe igno
rant and false pretense that their own church v/as Epis
copal, not Presbyterian.
In the sprmg of 1712, Doctor Tisdall again appeared
before the public in a pamphlet against the Dissenters,
through the whole of which there runs sueh a disre
gard of truth, and such a malignant and persecuting
spfrit as is almost unexampled even in that age of un
scrupulous partisanship.
The circulation of these inflamatory papers excited
fresh feehngs of bitterness against the Presbyterians.
Sir Constantine Phipps, the Lord-Chancellor, into

1712.] NON-JURING MEMBERS PLY. 273
whose hands the principle direction of government
had fallen since the departure of the Duke of Ormond
at the end of the previous year, appointed to office
none but thorough partisans of his own intolerant
policy. But in the county of Antrim, finding but
few among the aristocracy disposed to support his
views, he was obliged to appoint to the office of High
Sheriff those who had served before. Thus in the
year 1711, 1712 he was under the necessity of taking
Mr. Westenra Waring of Belfast, who had six years
before held the office, who was deeply in debt and was
soon after compelled to secrete himself from his cred
itors. In the following year he appointed to the same
office Mr. Brent Spencer, who had been sheriff in 1704;
both of these had in former years been most officious
against. the Presbyterians. These were followed by
Eobert Green of Belfast, father-in-law of Mr. Waring,
and not inferior to him in his opposition to the Dis
senters. Tbe infiuence of these men greatly aggra
vated the difficulties of the Presbyterians, so that the
three nonjuring ministers were for the third time
obliged to fly to Scotland.
Since the oath of abjuration had been imposed and
taken by the ministers of the province, others had
been ordained who had not yet complied with the act ;
accordingly the Synod, which met at Belfast in June,
advised all the ministers if they had clearness so to do
to take the oath as soon and in as private a way as
they can, viz:, in one ofthe four courts of Dublin,
and those who had not this " clearness " were directed
to advise with thefr brethren so as to have their scruples
removed. At this meeting of Synod Mr. IredeU gave
a statement of his visit to London, and his interview
12*

274 STATE OF PUBLIC FEELING [Cn. XXI
with the Earl of Oxford and others, but reported that
he could get no promises from them, .although they
expressed sympathy for their condition and held out
hopes of ultimate relief Soon after this meeting, Mr.
McOracken, one of the nonjuring ministers, proceeded
from Galloway, where he had taken refuge, to London,
but his visit resulted in no good.
An incident occurring about this time will show
the state of feeling existing in Ulster against the
Dissenters. At the Synod of this year, a paper em
anating from the Presbyterians of Dublin was circu
lated araong the members, calling their attention to
prevalent sins, and the necessity for public and private
reformation, and proposing that all should engage in
fervent prayer from seven to eight o'clock every
Tuesday morning, in order to avert from the nation
threatened judgments. This paper falling into the
hands of the vicar of Belfast, and appearing to him
to be filled with disloyal and seditious sentiments, he
sent a copy to Lord Chancellor Phipps, together with
an alarming account of the number of ministers and
elders who attended this Synod. The Lord Chancel
lor immediately dispatched it to Mr. Southwell, the
Secretary for Ireland, then in London, with the request
that it might be laid before the Queen, but the Secre
tary seeing nothing in it to justify alarm took no no
tice of the request. Not to be turned aside from his
purpose the Chancellor immediately wrote to Lord
Harcourt, the keeper of the great seal in England, re
peating what he had said to Southwell. But all these
efforts to incite the English administration against the
Presbyterians proved ineffectual. Towards tho close
of this year Dr. Tisdall published another charac-

I'' 12.] DARRAQH OF MONAGHAN. 275
teristic pamphlet, promising to continue the subject at
a future time.
The state of party feeling is still further exhibited
in an incident resulting from the action of the Synod
of this year. The Eeverend Eobert Darragh of Mon
aghan, on account of drunkenness and other irregu
larities, was in 1710 suspended from the ministry by
the Presbytery of Monaghan. This sentence he treated
with contempt, preaching and administering the Lord's
Supper to those who adhered to him. The Synod in
1711, after an investigation of the matter, ordered Mr.
Darragh to subrait to the sentence of the Presbytery,
or in case of refusal they were to proceed to his dep
osition, which they were ultimately constrained to do.
Darragh appealed to the Synod of 1712, who confirmed
his deposition. Indignant at this action he procured
from the court of Queen's Bench a summons against
the ministers, directed to Mr. Kirkpatrick, the modera
tor of the Synod. We have no record of tbe result
of these proceedings.
Soon after this the Presbytery of Monaghan was
brought into serious difficulty while in the exercise of its
ordinary functions. They had assembled in the town
of Belturbet, in the county of Cavan, for the purpose
of giving sanction to the Presbyterians there in building
a new house of worship. During their meeting a nu
merous body ofthe established clergy, with the justices
of the peace of the district, assembled, and procured
the arrest of the whole Presbytery, who were bound
over to appear for trial for holding an unlawful and
riotous assembly. This bold and novel procedure cre
ated great consternation and alarm throughout Ulster,
Accordingly, the committee of the Synod met at An-

276 THE PRESBYTERY ARRAIGNED. [Ch. XXJ
trim, and dispatched Mr. Kirkpatrick to lay the case
before the Lords Justices ; but meeting with no en
couragement, Mr. Iredell was once more sent to Lon
don, and so far succeeded in his mission that instruc
tions were sent over to the Lords Justices directing
thera, in case an indictment was found by the grand
jury against the Presbytery, the case should be removed
to the court of Queen's Bench, in order to be freed
from local prejudices. This was accordingly done, and
in April they appeared in Dublin to stand their trial.
On the day before the trial they presented a memorial
to the Lords Justices, in which, according to a report
sent by them to the Lord Lieutenant, they declared
that they had no intention of erecting a meeting house
in the town ; and that since the complaint was made
they had prevailed upon the people to remove it a mile
further from Belturbet than it was before. The Lords
Justices, therefore, in their dispatch advised, in view
of the prudent behavor and submissive spirit of the
ministers, the proceedings should be carried no fur
ther; and accordingly, by direction of the Duke of
Ormond, an order was issued to that effect.
' In the conclusion of this dispatch the Lords Justices
touch upon anotber topic, which shows that the Eepre
sentation of the House of Lords and the calumnies of
Dr. Tisdall had led them to believe that their mission
ary operations were carried on by means of the Eoyal
Bounty, and not by funds collected from the churches.
Under this erroneous impression they recommended
that the Eoyal Bounty should be limited to the Presby
terian ministers in the north of Ireland.
Mr, McBride, whUe living in exUe in Scotland, pub
lished anonymously an answer to Tisdall's first two

ni4..J HISTORY OF THE IRISH CHURCH. 277
pamphlets. As a counterpart to the ironical title of
the former of these he entitled his work " A Sample of
Jet-black Prelatic Calumny, in Answer to a Pamphlet
called ' A Sample of True-blue Presbyterian Loyalty,
etc' " This work contains but little information of the
history of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, being
principaUy a defence of the English and Scottish Pres
byterians, with one or two valuable documents, and a
few important detaUs not elsewhere to be found. Soon
after tbe pubhcation of this work Mr. McBride ven
tured to return to Belfast, and was soon foUowed by
McCracken and Eiddel, who found on their arrival
thefr brethren stUl suffering from the intolerant spfrit
of the High Church party.
During these distracting times the Synod continued
to exercise vigUance in discipline, and in the examina
tion of candidates. They also turned thefr attention
again to the subject of providing a History of the Pres
byterian Cburch in Ireland, The compUation of the
late Eev. Patrick Adafr of Belfast still remained
unpublished, although several ministers had been
successively appointed to complete it. It was brought
before Synod by an overture from the sub-synod of
Belfast, the preamble to which will express their views
respecting it : " Whereas an history of this Church were
very desfrable, and all attempts at writing it have proved
unsuccessful, which, as we humbly conceive, is chiefly
owing to two causes, viz. : [Ffrst], want of due care to
preserve public papere that have been drawn up in this
Church, and neglecting to collect them into a book ;
and [secondly] not giving due assistance to those
brethren to whom the compihng of the said history
was committed. And whereas Mr. John McBride was

278 kirkpathick's historical essay, [ch. xxi.
the person to whom it was last committed by the Gen
eral Synod, we overture," etc. The Synod approved
of this proposal, reappointed Mr. McBride to the work,
and appointed Eev. John Kirkpatrick to assist him.
This arrangement for completing the history of the
Church was not more successful than the preceding
ones ; and this important and deeply interesting sub
ject continued to be neglected, and almost totaUy for
gotten, for more than a century afterwards.
But though this effort failed to secure a history of
the Church, yet not long after the Eev. Mr. Kirkpat
rick, who had long been collecting materials to defend
his brethren from the charges made against them, pub
lished a volume containing nearly six hundred closely
printed quarto pages, entitled, "An Historical Essay
upon the Loyalty of Presbyterians in Great Britain,
from the Eeformation to the present year, 1713." This
work was published anonymously, and contains but
little information on the history of the Presbyterian
Church in Ireland.
The nonjuring ministers were still subject to great
annoyances from the local authorities, in the niidst of
which a change took place in the government of Ire
land, the Duke of Ormond, who had not been in Ire
land since the year 1711, being succeeded by the Duke
of Shrewsbury, a nobleman of moderate views and con
ciliatory temper. He arrived in Dublin on the 27th of
October, and immediately entered upon the duties of
his office. He was soon after waited upon by a depu
tation of Presbyterian ministers, who stated their griev
ances, and their inclination to emigrate to America,
where they might enjoy liberty of conscience.
On the 26th of November the Duke of Shrewsbury

ITU.] peesbyterians assert their loyalty. 279
opened the Parliament with the usual address, in which,
instead of containing any hint of toleration, he sug
gested that additional severities raight possibly be laid
upon the Dissenters. And in the addresses of the
House of Lords to the Queen, and to the Lord Lieu
tenant, they speak very plainly of the course they are
willing to pursue against Dissenters, and especially in
regard to the nonjuring ministers. This address stirred
up again the opposition against these brethren, and
Mr. M'Cracken was seized and imprisoned ; but it was
most difficult to find witnesses willing to testify that
M'Cracken was a preacher of a separate congregation,
which was necessary to conviction. He was finally
convicted, and condemned to pay a fine of five hun
dred pounds, and to be committed to prison for six
months. Tisdall judging this to be a favorable opportunity,
published another paraphlet, in which he takes no
notice of the complete refutation of his former works
by Mr. Kirkpatrick. This was indeed his invariable
policy, to refrain from noticing the replies which his
accusations had elicited, and to reassert them in all re
spects unimpeached and unimpeachable.
The Synod in June of this year feeling constrained
to notice the misrepresentations which had been pub
lished against them, and the grievances to which they
were still exposed, published an " Act recommending
Prayer in Congregations and Families for her Majesty
Queen Anne, and the serene George Lewis, Duke of
Brunswick-Lunenburg, and the Succession to the Crown
in the Ulustrious House of Hanover ; and against the
Pretender, and against all his secret and open abettors."
But in the meantime Archbishop King had been success*

280 presbyterian grievances. [Ch. xxi.
ful in his long cherished scheme, and the Eoyal Bounty
was altogether withdrawn from the Presbyterians. The
troubles in regard to their marriages were also renewed,
and the Synod, when called upon for advice by persons
who had been married by Presbyterian ministers, gave
it as their unanimous opinion that they should not re
marry in the Episcopal Church, but rather stand the
suits which were threatened. The Synod, also, at this
time again dispatched Mr. Iredell to London, to ob
viate any misrepresentation of their principles, and to
ask for a redress of their grievances. At the same
meeting tbe Synod determined to take steps for ascer
taining how many of their people were ready to take
up arms for the Protestant succession, in case any re
sistance should be offered to the accession of the Elector
of Hanover; and the result showed that no fewer than
fifty thousand men, with officers, were prepared, when
called on, to venture their all in his support.
In England, under the lead of Bolingbroke, matters
were assuming a very serious aspect. In the new
House of Commons the Tories had an overwhelming
majority. A bill introduced for the exclusion of all
Dissenters from the office of teachers, and compeUing
all schoolmasters to conform tothe Established Church,
intended at first only for England, was, by the intro
duction of a clause, extended to Ireland. The news
of the passage of this act reaching Ireland, the zeal of
the High Church party was greatly infiamed. An ad
dress to the Queen from the grand jury of the county
of Antrim, expressing thefr satisfaction, was carried
through the country to be signed by all the High
Church gentry. In various parts of the province the
Presbyterians were exposed to gross insult, their cate-

1714.] DEATH OF QUEEN ANNE. 281
chisms and other books offered for sale were seized,
and the doors of some of their churches were nailed
up. But, happily for the peace of Ulster, these in
tolerant proceedings were suddenly checked by the
death of the Queen on the 1st of August — the very
day, by a singular coincidence, on which the schism
bill, as it was called, came into operation.

CHAPTER XXII.
1714-1719.
The accession of George I. restored the Whigs and
Low Church party to power. This change in the gov
ernment was received with different feelings by the
various parties among the Irish Protestants. The
High Church party felt that their power was pros
trated, while the Low Church (with some misgivings
among the prelates of that party) considered it as a
barrier against the Pretender and the Eomanists ; but
in the Presbyterians it excited the most confident
hopes of receiving that justice which they had so long
sought. George I was proclaimed with joy and triumph in
all the principal towns in Ulster, in the month of Au
gust. In September, two of the Lords Justices were
superseded and othere apppointed in their place, one
of whom. Archbishop King, was the bitter foe of the
Presbyterians. At the close of this month the Earl
of Sunderland was appointed Lord Lieutenant, in the
place of the Duke of Shrewsbury, but he never came
over to Ireland.
The government being settled, the Irish Presbyte
rians laid their usual complaints before the King and
ministry in London, asking for a repeal of the Sacra
mental Test; for legal protec'ion for their worship and

If 14.] DIFFERENCES IN THE SYNOD. 283
government; and for a restoration and increase of the
Eoyal Bounty. In asking for legal protection in their
worship it became necessary for them to decide whether
they would subscribe to the thirty-nine articles, ex
cepting those which related to discipline; and at a
meeting of the Synod's committee on the 10th of
November, called to consider this question, as raight
have been expected, sorae were found opposed to the
subscription, as required by the English Act of Tolera
tion ; but as an expression of what they were willing
to do, it was resolved, " That the first thing we shall
propose and insist upon as the terms on which we will
accept of a toleration shall be, upon our subscribing
the Westminister Confession of Faith." There were
at this time a few ministers in Dublin and the south
of Ireland who had been educated among the English
Dissentere, who w^ere averse to subscribing to the West
minister Confession, and to meet the scruples of these
brethren, though none of them were present at the
meeting at Antrim, a special formula was prepared
as a substitute, in case subscription to the former
should not be accepted by the government. Indeed,
it was afterwards surmised that this step was taken at
the instigation of some northern ministers, who after
wards openly avowed their opposition to the West
minister Confession.
At the beginning of the next year. Colonel Clot
worthy Upton of Templepatrick, and Mr. IredeU of
Dublin, commissioners appointed by the Synod's com
mittee in Antrira, proceeded to London, and at the
suggestion of their English friends drew up a repre
sentation of their grievances, whicb, when translated
into French, (the King not being acquainted with Eng-

284 INQUIRY INTO THE STATE OF RELIGION. [Ch. XXII.
lish,) was presented to the King, who seemed sensibly
concerned by its contents, and while denying some of
their requests promptly renewed the grant of the
Eoyal Bounty, with the promise of an increase in the
amount. At the annual meeting bf the Synod at Antrim, the
commissioners reported the result of their mission to
London, which greatly encouraged them in their work.
Their missionary operations were reported as being
highly successful, many new congregations having
been gathered; but to guard against their unnecessary
multiplication, certain rules were prepared as a guide
in future ; and for the punctual observance of them
and others it was ordered that the minutes of each
Synod should be furnished to each Presbytery by the
Synod's clerk and read publicly before the Presbyte
ries, and that all such rules and orders as related to
their own affairs should be inserted in thefr minutes ;
and the sub-synods were charged, when revising the
books of the several Presbyteries under their care, to
see that this order was fully obeyed.
At this meeting, while considering the state of re
ligion in the provinces, a paper was submitted by a
committee entitled, "An Enquiry into the State of
Eeligion, the Causes of its Present Decay, with some
Proposals for Eeviving it." This paper, which was
altogether practical and sound in its doctrine, unex
pectedly excited an opposition in some, who looked
upon it as underating tbe forms of Avorship prevalent
among the Presbyterians, and dealing too leniently
with the rites and usages of the Established Church,
and it was withdrawn without receiving the sanction
of the Synod.

1715.] CRITICAL STATE OF IRELAND. 285
The kingdom was now in a very oritical state. The
extreme views of the High Church party were boldly
proclaimed, and even in Dublin college disloyal toasts
were pubhcly drunk, and seditious avritings circulated ;
so that, on the advice of Archbishop King, the election
for fellows and scholars was by the Crown postponed
for this year. The adherents ofthe Pretender had be
gan to bestir themselves in England ; and confidential
agents fipom France were endeavoring to excite the
people, both in Scotland and Ireland, to declare in his
fever; and in June the King announced to the English
Parliament that eertein inteHigenee had been received
of an intended invasion by the Pretender, and meas
ures were taken to provide against it. In Ireland the
Lords Justices made vigorous efforts to place the coun
try in a state of defence ; especiaUy was this the case in
Ulster, where it was supposed the first attempted land
ing would be made.
The Presbyterian Church was at this time placed in
a very embarrassing position by the proposal to call out
the militia of the province in defence of the Crown.
If tiiey entered the militia in any capacity they exposed
themselves to the penalties of non-conformity under
the &eramentei Test ; if they reSased to enter they ex-
p(Ked themselves to the charge of basely deserting
their sovereign and thefr coimtry in the time of danger.
Tn this dUemma a meeting of gentlemen from various
parts of the province was called, to assemble in Bel&st
the fiist week in August, to conader what course
they should adopt in the present emergency. At this
meetmg they determined to defend thefr rehgion and
their liberties at aU hazards, and to brave the penalties
of the law, looking to govemment for future proteo-

286 IRISH PARLIAMENT. [Cii. XXII
tion. This determination was dispatched to the Eng
lish government, with a letter from William Conolly,
Esq., a member of Parliament from the county of
Derry, in which he advised that tho proposals of the
Protestant Dissenters be accepted, and concludes —
" They want ai'ms and ammunition in the north, and
when they are supplied they will be able to make a
noble stand against the Pretender and all his adher
ents." This advice was immediately acted upon, and
an assurance given that at an early meeting of the Irish
Parliament steps would be takon to protect tho Pres
byterian officers and soldiers from the penalties of tho
Test Act.
Afiairs in Ireland at this time requiring great wis
dom in the rulers the government sujierseded the Lords
Justices then acting, iu order to appoint more expe
rienced and energetic men in their room. And accord
ingly, on the 6th of September, the Duke of Grafton
and the Earl of Galway, a general in thc army, were
appointed, and on the 1st of November were sworn
into office. On the opening of the Parliament on tho
12th the Whigs wore again largel_y in iiKijoritj^ in the
House of Commons, and Mr. Conolly, the friend of
toleration, was elected Speaker. On the 15tb, pursuant
to the promises held out to the Presbyterians, a bill was
introduced for the protection of the Dissenters who
were serving in the army ; and whUe it was under dis
cussion Dr. TisdaU, for the purpose of deleaiing it,
published another violent pamphlet, which uiipeared
towards the close of November; but, notwithstanding
his sophistries and calumnies, on the 4th of February
1716, the biU finally passed, and was laid before the
Lords Justices to be transmitted to London.

1716.] ATTEMPT TO REPEAL THE TEST ACT. 287
As soon as the Bishops received intelligence that
this bUl had been placed in the hands of tbe Lords Jus
tices, led on by Archbishop King, they took steps for
the defeat of even the partial relief from the Test Act
which it granted to Dissenters. Accordingly, on the
6th of February, they introduced into the House of
Lords a similar bill, but omitting altogether the clause
relating to the test, which was passed by that body.
The Lords Justices, embarrassed by this action, sub
mitted both bills to a committee of the Irish Privy
Council, for the purpose of having one bill made out
of the two, which they might transmit to England.
At the same time, being desirous to preserve the
clause as it stood in favor of the Presbyterians, and
knowing the pertinacity with which the Bishops would
adhere to their own bill, they applied to the ministry
in England for permission to compromise the differ
ences between the two Houses by continuing the ex
emption from the test to those serving in tbe regular
army during the existing rebellion only, and from thence
to the close ofthe next session of Parliament. This per
mission being granted, the subject was brought before
the Committee of the Council. The clause in dispute
consisted of three parts : first, to indemnify tbe Dissent-
era for having acted in the militia as officers ; the second
to make them capable of serving in the militia forever ;
and the thfrd to enable them to bear commissions in
the army for ten yeare. After some debate the limita
tion, as proposed by the Lords Justices was submitted
to the whole council, and carried by one majority. It
was immediately transmitted to England, and returned
with the sanction of the Crown ; but in what form,
whether with or without the clause, can not now be

288 CASE OF PORTER. l^B. XXII.
ascertained. But when presented to the Irish Parlia
ment again in June, after passing through two read
ings, it was, for some unaccountable reason, dropped,
and the Test Act remained in full force against the
Presbyterians. Great vigilance now became necessary on account
of the arrival of the Pretender, who had landed in
Scotland, at Aberdeen, at tbe close of the year. Ac
cordingly, the Lords Justices issued proclamations, re
qufring the seizure of all suspected persons, and the
exercise of great watchfulness, in order to prevent any
movement in his favor. These orders were strictly ex
ecuted, especially in the north, where the adherents of
the Earl of Antrim, then in prison in Dublin as a dis
affected person, had already attempted to effect a
rising. During this excitement the Eev. John Porter, a
Presbyterian minister, happening to be present at the
searching of the house of an Episcopal clergyman, was,
at the instigation of Dr. Tisdall, arrested, on the
grounds that he and the Presbyterians were, as a
body, taking advantage of the public alarm to injure
the Episcopalians, by searching their houses in a ma
licious and irregular manner. This case was brought
before the grand jury and the court, and Porter was
unanimously acquitted. At the same meeting of the
court Mr. M'Cracken, who had been a prisoner for
nearly two years and a half, was liberated, broken down
in body and mind by his persecutions.
The bill in favor of the Presbyterians having been
abandoned, it became necessary for those who had
entered the militia and army to decide what further
course to pursue. Accordingly, a meeting of gentlemen
was held in June, and resolved that those who held

1"6.] SYNOD OF 1716. 289
commissions should continue in the service, and that
if any were prosecuted on this account, the expense
of such prosecution should be defrayed by the whole,
and that at the proper time application for relief should
be made.
The resolutions, of which tbe above is the substance,
were laid before the Synod which met in Belfast on
the 19 th of June, and were approved by them. This
Synod was the largest one that had ever convened in
Ireland, consisting of one hundred and ten ministers,
and eighty eldere. This nuraerous attendance was oc
casioned by the action which was anticipated in ref
erence to the terms on which apphcation was to be
made to govemment for a Toleration Act. The re
solutions which were adopted in 1714 had proceeded
from a private source, and it became necessary for
some action to be taken by the Supreme Court of the
Church. The first step of the Synod was to consider
the two resolutions which had been formerly agreed to.
The first of them, laying down subscriptions to the
Westminster Confession, as the ground on which they
sought toleration, was unanimously adopted. And the
second resolution, or the alternative, was also adopted
with a shght amendment. This subject being disposed
of, the Synod adopted an address to the King, congratu
lating him on the defeat of the Pretender and the sup
pression of the late rebelhon.
The Presbyterians having faUed in securing the re
moval ofthe Test, were nevertheless greatly encouraged
by the action of the House of Commons, who to neu
tralize, so far as lay in their power, the triumph of the
Bishops, resolved, nemine contradicente, " That such of
his Majesty's Protestant dissenting subjects as have
13

290 PREACHING IN THE NATIVE TONGUE. [Ch. XXII.
taken commissions in the militia, or acted in the com
mission of array, have hereby done a seasonable service
to his Majesty's royal person and governraent and the
Protestant interest in this kingdom." This resolution
was fortified by another, which was passed without a
division, in the face of the High Church opposition :
"Eesolved, That any person who shall commence a
prosecution against any Dissenter who has acccepted
or shall accept a commission in the army or militia, is an
enemy to King George and the Protestant interest, and
a friend to the Pretender." The Presbyterians, thus
protected by the House of Commons, their endow
ments restored and freedom of religious action practi
cally enjoyed, were enabled to prosecute their work
with more vigor.
In the Synod the project of preaching to the Irish in
their native tongue, which had been interrupted by
political troubles, was again under consideration, and
it was resolved unanimously to encourage this excel
lent design. Ministers understanding the .Irish lan
guage were appointed to preach in succession in vari
ous districts, schools were erected, and orders given
for printing new editions ofthe catechism, and a short
grammar, in the Irish tongue. The Synod, in 1717, re
ceiving such a favorable report from the ministers en
gaged in this service, adopted a resolution to continue
the work which had been so signally blessed. In car
rying out, during the previous year, the plans for Irish
preaching, it was found that two of the frontier Pres
byteries, within whose bounds were the greatest num
ber of Eomanists speaking the Irish language, consisted
of too many congregations ; and that their members
were so widely scattered as to render it difficult for

*'1*1 KBW PKBSBYTEBIES FOBSCED. 291
them to fbMl their Presbyterial appointments. They
therefore divided each of these Presbyteries into two.
Out of Monaghan was formed Augher and Longford,
bnt six years afterward they were reunited ; and Con
voy \ras divided into the Presbyteries of Strabane and
Iietterkenny. There were, therefore, now eleven Pres
byteries, having under thefr care one hundred and
forty congr^ations, twenty of which were aided by
the missionary fonds.
While the Presbyteries were thus engaged in dif
fusing the troth they renewed thefr efibrts to ^cnre
thefr l^al rights. The plans of gDvemment were as
yet in such an unsettled state that they deemed it in
expedient to bring the subject before the Irish Parlia
ment bnt at a meeting of laymen and ministers from
all parts of the county, held at Newiy, a deputation,
consisting of the Eeverend Messrs. Boy^ and Chop-
pin, and Mr. Walter Stevens of Dublin, and the Eev
erend Samael Hahday from the north, were sent to
Iiondon ; who on thefr return reported the gratifving
feet that the King, in concurrence with bis ministers,
had placed on the civU list for England, the sum of
eight hundred pounds a year, as an angmentation of
the Eoyal Bountf, to be paid quarterly, commenciag
at the end of the current year. One-half of this snm
was to be paid to the Synod of Ulster, and the other
half to the ministers in Dablin and the south.
Xhning the year 1719, the mi^onary operations of
the Synod were in a highly prosperous condition.
They were cheered by expressions of sympathy, and
by donations and legacies from England. Pubhcations
in the Irish laogoage were freely (arcnlated ; the num
ber of ministers preaching in that language was gready

292 BILL FOR RELIEF OF DISSENTERS. [Ch. XXII.
increased, and their political concerns seemed for a
time to be forgotten in their zeal for the propagation
of the gospel.
The Synod of 1719 had just concluded its sittings
in Belfast when the Irish Parliament comraenced theirs
in Dublin, being opened by the Duke of Bolton, the
present Lord Lieutenant. Soon after their opening,
the draft of a bill for the relief of the Irish Dissenters
was received frora England. This liberal-minded pol
icy of the King was coldly received by the Lord
Lieutenant, but being obliged to do something for the
relief of the Presbyterians, leave was obtained in the
Commons on the 4th of July to introduce the heads
of a bill " for rendering the Protestant Dissenters more
capable of supporting the Protestant interests of the
kingdom." The several clauses of this bill were not
fully settled, but referred to the Presbyterian mem
bers of the House to say what was the precise amount
of relief they claimed. This step alarmed the High
Church party, and on the 6th they brought in a coun
ter bill, embracing nothing more than a bare toleration
for dissenting worship. This bill was advocated by
the son of Lord Chancellor Brodrick, the chief law
officer of the Crown in the House of Commons, which
was a pretty significant indication of the lukewarm
ness of the Irish officials in carrying out the policy of
their Sovereign. On the 14th of July the Commons
went into committee on this High Church bill and
after voting down many amendments which were
offered for the relief of Dissenters, it was passed, and
according to the usual course of Irish legislation was
brought before the Lord Lieutenant and CouncU to be

1»19-] ARCHBISHOPS PLAN TO DEFEAT THE BILL. 293
adjusted in its details before being transmitted to Eng
land. In the discussion of this bill in the Privy Council
Archbishop King made eyery effort to have some
clauses inserted still further curtailing the liberty of
Dissenters, but failed to accomplish his purpose. De
feated in this, he resorted to the same expedient which
he had adopted in 1716 for tbe defeat of the Test Act,
which was then successful. He obtained leave in the
House of Lords to bring in heads of a bill which was
an exact aounterpart of the English act, and which
he wished passed and transmitted to England before
the English ministry had completed their revision of
the Commons bill, but he failed in accomplishing this
by the House taking a recess of six weeks, and it was
not until September that the bill had passed through
aU the forms of the House of Lords, and before it
could be sent to England the Commons' bill had been
returned under the great seal, which closed the door
against the Archbishop's bill.
On the 3d of October the bUl, as received from
England, was laid upon the table of the House of Com
mons and read for the first time. An additional clause
had been added by the English ministers, " enabling
all Presbyterians who might be prosecuted for non
conformity, and who had not taken the oaths as
required for their protection under this act, to qualify
by taking these oaths during the progress of any such
prosecution, and upon their so qualifying theraselves,
in compliance with this act, every such prosecution
was to cease." In this form the bill finally passed the
House of Commons on the 16th of October, and on
the same day was read for the first time in the House

294 PARLIAMENT PASSES A RELIEF BILL. [Ch. XXIL.
of Lords. No opposition was made to it until the
22d, when the House was in coramittee on the biU, but
after a long debate it was passed, six Bishops voting
in the affirraative. On the 2d of November this bUl,
entitled, "An act for exempting the Protestant Dis
sentere of this kingdom from certain penalties to which
they are now subject," received the royal ass3nt.
The exemption secured by this act was more in
name than in reality — it conferred a privilege in law
rather than in fact. And of so little value was it, that
there is reason to believe that very few* ministers
availed themselves of its provisions. Meagre and un
suitable as it is, it continues to be the charter of relig
ion liberty to the Presbyterians in Ireland, while at
the same time it continues to be little more than an
obsolete statute. The same enlightened public opin
ions which so generally protected Presbyterians in
thefr worship before the passing of the act, has con
tinued to do so ever since independently of its provis
ions. The only other favor shown to the Presbyte
rians by the Parliament was the passage of a bill
extending the time during which they might qualify
by taking the Sacramental Test to the 25th of March
following. And even this did not originate in the
Irish Parliament, but was sent over from England and
laid before them in October. It received the royal
assent on the same day with the Toleration Act.

CHAPTER XXIII.
1719-1726.
Thus far the Presbyterian Church in Ulster had been
perfectly conformed to that of Scotland, where many of
the ministers were trained and licensed, although some
of them finished their course at Leyden. The first
change may be dated from the settlement at Antrim, in
1703, ofthe Eev. John Abernethy, a native of Tyrone,
where his father was a Presbyterian minister, and
trained at Glasgow and Edinburg, licensed in 1702,
and called to assist Embyn (or Emlyn), Boyse's assist
ant, in Dublin, who bad been deposed for Arian
ism. But Abernethy was advised by his father, who
died soon after, to settle in the north, where he soon
became distinguished for activity and piety. In 1705
he became the founder of an association of ministers
for theological improvement, called, from its place of
meeting, the Belfast Society. Its members at first were
young men, and in course of time they rose to be the
most influential ministers in the Synod. Two of the
number had been fellow-students and correspondents
of Professor Simpson of Glasgow, disciplined as a Pel
agian, and finally an Arian, and several of the younger
were his pupils.
These men, without avowing any such opinions, be
gan to preach latitudinarian views as to church author
ity, creeds, and confessions, and the right of private

296 BELFAST SOCIETY. .[Ch. XXIII,
judgment; holding that a sinner's acceptance v/ith
God depends not on the atonement of our Lord Jesus
Christ, but on his own personal sincerity ; that belief
in any positive doctrine is non-essential ; that error, if
not wilful, is innocent ; and particularly that to require
from any man subscription to a creed drawn up by
men is at variance with the principles of Christian lib
erty. This excited a suspicion of more serious errors
in some of their more intelligent contemporaries, such
as Francis Hutcheson, son of the member of Parlia
ment at Armagh, and afterwards professor of moral
philosophy at Glasgow, in which he was followed by
Adam Smith, and Eeid. He describes a " Hoadly
mania" as existing, fostered by the works of Hoadly and
Clark, and by intercourse with the nominally Presbj--
terian, but really Independent ministers of Dublin.
The first public announcement of these novel opinions
was in a sermon preached by Abernethy before the So
ciety, on the 9th of December, 1719, and subsequently
published under the title, "Eeligious Obedience Founded
on Personal Obedience." In this discourse the preacher
inculcated various erroneous sentiments ; among others,
that the sole rule of faith and practice to a man is his
own persuasion of what is right ; that if a man walk
according to his own persuasions, it would be wrong
to exclude him from Church fellowship on the ground
of mere doctrinal differences; and that error is not
culpable if cherished by one who made a sufficient
search for truth.
This production of Abernethy was answered by the
Eev. John Malcom, minister of Dunmurry, in which
he pointed out the dangerous nature of the views pro
pounded by Abernethy, calling them " new lio-hts" 

1720.] THE SYNOD IN DOUBT. 297
an epithet by which they were henceforth designated.
This pamphlet of Malcom's drew forth an answer from
the Belfast Society, giving the origin of their views,
denying that they are novel, defending Abernethy's
doctrine of personal persuasion, which they say Mr.
Malcom has mistaken, and declaring their "fervent
desire to live in love and in constant communion" with
their brethren.
These publications, together with the hostility of
some to subscribe the Westminster Confession, created
great uneasiness throughout the province. This was
increased by the circulation of private letters among
the ministers, in which the Deity of Christ was denied
to be a fundamental doctrine. It became necessary,
therefore, that the Synod should consider what course
to pursue in this emergency. Three different courses
were open to them ; either to separate at once from
these innovating brethren, or to permit them to remain ;
but, at the same time, to adhere to the existing laws
with firmness in the admission of ministers, so that
those holding similar views might be excluded ; or,
lastly, to alter the terms of admission, in order to
adapt them to the scruples of these brethren, and thus
prevent a schism in the Church. Unfortunately the
last of these courses was adopted by the Synod, under
the advice of her most experienced ministers, which
resulted in a controversy that agitated the whole
Church, and was maintained hotly in the Synod and
through the press for some years afterwards.
The questions in controversy, when they came be
fore the Synod, turned mainly on the propriety of re
quiring licentiates and ministers to subscribe the West
minster Confession of Faith, as had hitherto been the
13*

298 CASE OF HALIDAY. [Ch. XXIIL
practice ; the majority contending that the church had
a right thus to test the doctrinal soundness of all her
pastors, while the members of the Belfast Society op
posed subscription, not, they said, because they disbe
lieved any doctrines of the Confession, but because a
compulsory subscription to any human creed whatever
was, in their opinion, inconsistent witb the right of
private judgment, and with liberty of conscience.
This Synod which met in Belfast in June, 1720, was
the first which took public cognizance of this matter.
It was composed of one hundred and fifteen ministers
and eighty-six elders, and was opened with a sermon
by the Eev. Eobert Craghead, of Dublin. The first
subject connected with this controversy which engaged
their attention was the case of the Eev. Samuel Hali--
day, who had been accused before the Presbytery of
Belfast, by the Eev. Samuel Dunlop, of holding Arian
sentiments. The Synod, after a full investigation of
the case, found Mr. Haliday innocent, and rebuked Mr.
Dunlop for rash and imprudent behaviour. Having
done this act of justice, their attention \ysls directed to
measures which might allay the apprehension into
which the body ofthe people had been plunged by re
cent events. Tbeir first measure was the adoption of
what is called the Pacific Act, which, while it professed
to adhere to the Westminster Confession of Faith, and
renewed the law enjoining subscription to it, concluded
by legahzing the practice of receiving explanations of
objectionable phrases, and thus sanctioned and en
couraged further departures from it. By other acts
the Synod enjoined tbe silence of the ministers for a
year as to controverted points, but recommended tbe
preaching of the great Calvinistic doctrines, and de-

1720-21.] THE PACIFIC ACT. 299
precatsd suspicion on the part of the people. It was
confidently believed that all causes of offence had now
been removed, and concord and mutual confidence re
stored to tiie Church.
Before the meeting of the next Synod the agitation
was renewed, by a deliberate violation of the Pacific
Act by the very party for whom it had been expressly
enacted. Haliday, whose installation was fixed for the
28th of of July, refused to avail himself of the provi
sions of this act, or to subscribe the Confession of
Faith in any form, and offered to the Presbytery an
unsatisfactory declaration of his faith, as being all that
the Church had a right to demand. Through the in
fluence of Mr. Kirkpatrick and the other members of
Presbytery wbo belonged to the Belfast society, Mr.
Haliday was installed. Four members of Presbytery
protested against this act, and appealed to the sub-
synod of Belfast. In the alarm occasioned by this
action it was proposed to call a special meeting of the
General Synod ; but it was prevented by the interfer
ence of the Belfast Society, alleging that such a course
would, only increase the ferment in the Church, and
that the case might be safely left to the ordinary
course of discipline.
A letter of vindication published by the Belfast So
ciety at this time, appeared to have no effect in dissi
pating the alarm which existed throughout the prov
ince, and the meeting of the sub-synod of Belfast was
anxiously awaited, in the hope that the law of the
Church, which had been so openly violated, would
then be vindicated. This Synod met in January, 1721,
and pronounced the installation of Mr. Haliday con
trary to the act of the General Synod. Upon the re-

300 PUBLIC ANXIETY. ['^"- XXIII.
turn of Mr. Haliday, who was in London during thc
meeting ofthe Synod, the Presbytery caUed upon him
to comply with the law of the Church, by subscribing
the Confession in the usual form, which he again reso
lutely refusing to do, the case was laid over until the
meeting of the General Synod. During these unhappy
difficulties a friendly correspondence was carried on
between the Eev. Gilbert Kennedy, the moderator of
the Synod, and Mr. Abernethy ; in which Mr. Kennedy
argued the question of subscription with great ability,
and in the course of which he obtained some impor
tant admissions from Mr. Abernethy, which well nigh
conceded the point in dispute.
In the midst of the anxiety which now prevailed,
the Synod held its annual meeting at Belfast. Memo
rials were received from seventeen congregations in
Ulster, asking that, in order to remove the present ap
prehension, all the members of the Synod, and all in
ferior judicatories of theChurch, berequired to subscribe
the Westminster Confession of Faith, as the confession of
their faith. In the unusual circumstances in which they
were placed, the Synod, in order to vindicate itself from
the charge of denying the divinity of Christ, passed a
resolution declaring their belief in this fundamental
doctrine, and their purpose to proceed against all who
denied it. This resolution was opposed by the mem
bers of the Belfast Society, as infringing upon their
cardinal principles of religious liberty, They took
this course not because they denied the divinity of
Christ, but because they were opposed to all aufhori.?
tative human decisions as tests of orthodoxy. They
also distinguished between the truth of the doctrine of
the Saviour's Deity, which they professed to hold, and

"21.] SUBSCRIBERS AND NON-SUBSCRIBERS. 301
its being an essential or fundamental doctrine of the
gospel, the belief of which was necessary to Christian
or ministerial communion, which they denied — a doc
trine whicb, if carried out in harmony with their doc
trine of personal persuasion, prepared them for admit
ting to the ordinances, and even the ministry of the
Church, an Arian or Socinian.
To calm the fears that existed in the church, another
measure was proposed, namely: not to enjoin, but to
permit all who were willing to do so to subscribe the
Westminister Confession of Faith. After a long de
bate this measure was carried, and the Confession was
subscribed by most of the members, who were from
this time designated as Subscribers, and those who re
fused, Non-Subscribers, all of whom were members of
the Belfast Society, although afterwards some of these
subscribed, among whom was Thomas Maclaine,
the father of the well-know translator of Mosheira's
Institutes. This Synod, in view of the difficulties
occasioned by the case of Mr. Haliday, passed three
overtures for the rendering of tho Pacific Act more
effectual. It was provided in these overtures that no
person should be licensed, ordained, or installed without
the concurrence of two thirds of the Presbytery then
present; secondly, that should any single person protest
against such license, ordination, or installation, further
proceedings therein should be arrested until the next
Synod ; and thirdly, that should the Pacific Act be
again violated, the presiding minister should be sus
pended at the discretion of the Synod.
The Synod had hardly adjourned before a paper
war was begun by the Eeverend William Dugud, and
continued by Dunlop, Kennedy, Malcom and Clerk

302 ADVICE OF THE SCOTCH ASSE]VIBLY. [Ch- XXIII.
for the Subscribers, and by Kirkpatrick and Abernethy
for the Non-Subscribers. Through the influence of
these publications the people were now engaged on
both sides of the conflict, and the subscribing ministers
themselves began to differ as to the future policy of
the Synod. In this state of doubt advice was sought
from the Scottish Church, and iu the Spring of 1722
letters were written to the leading ministers in Scot
land, asking the opinion of the General Assembly on
the question of Subscription. They received an an
swer in favor of maintaining subscription to the West
minister Confession of Faith, and that as majorities
govern, those opposed should be willing to submit to
their decision, and if the Non-Subscribers cannot con
scientiously follow this course, they should claim no
voice in the judicatories, but should withdraw, leaving
the Church courts to act as heretofore upon Presbyterian
principles ; at the same time they were advised to hold
ministerial communion with those who should thus
withdraw. Before the meeting of the approaching Synod a
paper was circulated calling upon Protestant Dissen
ters to set apart a day of humiliation and prayer in
view of their backslidings and divisions. Owing to
an insult which had been offered to the last Synod in
Belfast by the partisans of the Belfast Society, it re
solved to hold its next meeting at Derry, and it was
nearly half a century before it returned to Belfast.
At this meeting the proposal was made, according to
the advice received from Scotland, to exclude all min
isters who would not subscribe the Westminister Con
fession of Faith, or at least the fifth and sixth ques
tions in the Shorter Catechism. This proposal alarmed

1''22.] TROUBLES IN THE SYNOD. 803
the more moderate Subscribers, and they drew up a
paper earnestly desiring the meeting to drop all further
debates on subscription. These counter proposals
were referred to a committee, who brought in a series
of five resolutions, which were adopted by the Synod.
By the first of them it was resolved, that " the declar
ing articles of faith in Scripture words only shall not
be accepted as a sufficient evidence of a person's sound -
ness in the faith." By the second, the Synod resolved,
" most constantly and firmly to adhere to the West
minister Confession of Faith ; " and by the third, " to
maintain the Presbyterian government and discipline
as hitherto exercised." The fourth expressed their
desire to " exercise Christian forbearance toward the
Non-Subscribers so long as they governed themselves
according to the acts of the Synod and did not dis
turb the peace of the church ; " and by the last, they
" earnestly and most seriously exhort the people un
der the ministry of the Non-Subscribers to condescend
so far as their consciences allow them in adhering to
their pastors." Notwithstanding an able protest en
tered by four of the ministers, the leading men of all
parties were sanguine of the good result which would
flow from this action.
But these hopes were soon blasted by a collision of
parties in Belfast, respecting a newly erected church
in that town. Mr. Samuel Smith, an eminent mer
chant in Belfast, had visited Scotland for the purpose
of collecting funds for completing the building, in
which he was successful, and at the meeting of the
sub-Synod, in January, he had applied for a recom
mendation to visit the eastern part of Scotland for the
same purpose. This application was opposed by Mr.

304 CASE OF COLONEL UPTON. [C"- XXVI
Haliday and tho Non-Subscribing party. In tho de
bate which sprung up Mr. Haliday referred to a letter
of Professor Simpson, in which ho alleged that Smith,
when in Glasgow, had said that although he did not
suspect the Non-Subscribers of Arianism, bo feared
thoy maintained principles which might bo dangerous
to the Church. Mr. Smith demanded that this letter
should be produced, which Haliday declined to do.
This excited Colonel Upton, an elder of Templepat
rick, and a member of Parliament, to repl}', that
whether Mr. Smith had used tho words attributed to
him or not they were true. This led to a warm de
bate, after which a resolution was passed, (most of the
subscribing ministers having left,) that Colonel Upton
had not made good his charges against them ; where
upon he appealed to the General Synod.
The conduct of the Non-Subscribers in this case con
tributed more than any other single event to acceler
ate the schism which afterwards occurred. Imincv
diately after the meeting, Mr. Smith and Eov. Wil
liam Livingston procoedud to Scotland, where thoy
spent three months making collections. And altliough
tbeir adversaries in Belfast had printed a pamphlet for
the purpose of prejudicing;; the Scots agairmt them, and
Mr. Kirkpatrick and Haliday had i)ublish;;d a letter in
Edinburg, endeavoring to involve all who assisted tho
new congregation in tho guilt of schism, yet tho depu
tation returned to Belfast well satisfled with the result
of their mission.
The Belfast Society again appeared before the pub
lic in a pamphlet, in answer to the (hks jjublished by Mr.
Clerk, in June, 1722. Mr. Clerk answered Uicm in a
paper whieh ap[)eared about a month before tho meet-

11-31 CASK OF COLONEL UP'l'ON. 805
ing of tho Synod of 1723, whicli tho Belfast Society
considered as only agj^ravatinu; the original oll'once,
and thoy gave bim notice that they would prefer a I'or-
mnl chary;e against him lor calnniny and niisrcpreson-
latiou at tho approaching Synod. Tho cyos of all wi'ro
now turned to this Synod, which met at Dungannon
about tho middle of Juno, on nccount of Colonel Up
ton's appeal from the Non-Subscribers' decision, and
tho obargos of the Belfast Sooioty against Mr. Clerk,
which wore to bo acted upon. Tho Synod was opened
with a sermon by the Ee\-. Eobert Kennedy, and Eev.
Mr. Mastertou, of BeUast, was chosen modorator.
Eleven days of the Synod wore occupied with tho
tri;U of Colonel Upton's appeal ; and when in his ar
gument he quoted tho two pamphlets wdiich ho had
introducod in tho sub-Synod, naiuoly, "Tbe Vindica
tion," edited by Dr. Ferguson, and the "Good Old
Way," tho Non-Subscribers, to the surprise of all, re-
IusolI to admit these works as thoirs, and the" further
progress of the trial was at oiioo arrested and post-
poiHul to the next annual meeting. But the Synod
passed some resolutions aSirming tho principles main
tained by Ce>lonel Upton, "that tho coiidomning all
creeds and conl'ossions and doolarations of faith in hu
man works as tests of (.>rtliodoxy opens a door to let
in errors and horosios into the Church," and coiidomn
ing the " Vindication," edited by Dr. Ferguson, as beiug
dangerous and peruieious in its tendoney, and declar
ing that its authors and disporsors wore disturbers of
tho poaoo of the Church. The oliargo against Mr.
Clerk was abandoned by the Belfast Sooioty, and thus
tho controversy was closed in this Synod.
A broach of communion between the Subscribers

806 KIRKPATRICK AND HALLIDAY. [Ch. XXIII
and the Non-Subscribers now became imminent. And
the Non-Subscribers became more and more violent
and unscrupulous, both from the pulpit and the press.
After the minutes of this Synod had been distributed
Messrs. Kirkpatrick and Haliday, at a publie assem
bly of their congregations, spoke against the Synod for
treating their party with the greatest injustice, and ex
pressed their determination to maintain thefr princi
ples in spite of their condemnation by the Supreme
Court. The friends of the Synod indiscreetly brought
this subject before the standing committee, and a sharp
discussion ensued, ending in an order for the Belfast
Presbytery to meet immediately and summon witnesses
who could give information on matters of fact to be
presented to the General Synod. The Non-Subscribers,
having a majority in this Presbytery, instead of follow
ing the direction of the Synod's committee, appointed
a day on which Messrs. Kirkpatrick and Haliday were
to repeat before the Presbytery and their congrega
tions all that they had formerly said. Accordingly
they met an immense concourse, and Mr. Kirkpatrick,
in a speech of nine hours' length, entered into a defence
of Non-Subscribing principles, followed by Mr. Hali
day in a brief speech. Thus, through the ill-advised
efforts of the Subscribers to protect the Synod, their
opponents had a more favorable opportunity than ever
before of publishing and explaining their views.
Soon after this Mr. Mastertou of Belfast published
an answer to Mr. Abernethy's last pamphlet, which
was followed by a pamphlet from Mr. Haliday, the
most comprehensive, and at the same time the most
plausible paper which had appeared on the Non-Sub
scribers' side.

1724.] THE CONTROVERSY CONTINUED. 307
Towards the close of February Mr. Mastertou gave
notice ofthe first communion to be held in his new
church in Belfast ; and to his great surprise he received
a notice from Kirkpatrick and Haliday of their inten
tion of joining with him in this service, and requesting
him to give notice to that effect from his pulpit. Mas
tertou and his session were much perplexed with this
offer, in view of the course that had been pursued by
these brethren in regard to the Synod. This perplexity
clearlj' evinced the inconsistent and indefensible posi
tion which the Synod had occupied almost from the
very commencement of these debates. After receiving
from Mr. Mastertou and his session urgent entreaties
that they would not persist in their " attempt to disturb
the solemn work " then in hand, Messrs. Kirkpatrick
and Haliday, considering this as a formal exclusion,
on that ground abandoned their design.
This incident opened the eyes of many to the false
policy which had been pursued by the Synod towards
Non-Subscribers. The opinion became general that
if these brethren held latitudinarian views, inconsist
ent with the purity, safety, and peace of the church, it
was tbe duty of the Synod to take a decided stand, and
withhold all countenance from thera. But as the raa
jority of the Synod stUl held communion with these
erring brethren, those of the people who felt that they
had not gone far enough determined to keep them
selves clear from all responsibility in the matter. Ac
cordingly, in several Presbyteries vacant congregations
refused to admit Non-Subscribing ministers into their
pulpits, and Subscribing ministers were obliged to cease
employing them at the celebration of the Lord's Supper.
The sub-Synod of Derry, which met in May, 1724,

308 CHARGES AGAINST NEVIN. [Ch. XXIII.
issued an address warning their people against the
errors and immoralities of the age, which, being widely
circulated, tended to quiet the apprehensions of the
people, and to satisfy them that a large body of minis
ters and elders were firm in upholding the doctrines
and constitution of the Church. This was succeeded by
a paper entitled " A Defence of the Principles and Con
duct ofthe General Synod of Ulster," from the pen of
Mr. Kennedy and others ; and about the same time Mr.
Abernethy published an answer to Mr. Masterton's
" Apology." The general excitement caused by these publications
was increased by charges against Mr. Nevin of Down
patrick, whose unguarded language against Subscrip
tion was interpreted as a denial of the divinity of
Christ ; and though his orthodoxy as to this point was
established, yet as he still refused to subscribe, the
Synod of 1724 withheld ministerial communion from
him, to which the Non-Subscribers refused to submit.
This case led to the publication of a large octavo vol
ume by Nevin, and a reply of equal size. This sen
tence of Mr. Nevin, depriving him of ministerial
coramunion with the Synod, but not of his minis
terial character, and recognizing him as still minister
of Downpatrick, led to further difficulties. At the
first meeting of the Presbytery of Down, of which Mr.
Nevin was a member, the clerk insisted on calling his
name, and was sustained by the Non -Subscribers,
whereupon the Subscribing ministers, protesting against
this action, refused to sit as members in a court v/hich
should thus contemn the action of the Synod. But at
a meeting of the Presbytery in September, the Sub
scribing ministers still refusing to act, the friends of

1726.] ACTION OF THE SUB-SYNOD. 809
Mr. Nevin abandoned their untenable position, and he
was declared to be no longer a meraber.
Difficulties also arose early in the year in the congre
gation of Comber through the violence of the Eev.
John Orr, who, though a Subscriber, signalized him
self by his violent support of the Non-Subscribing
party. Indeed a general dissatisfaction began to pre
vail not only against the Non-Subscribers but against
the moderate Subscribers. In the meantime another
work by Mr. Kirkpatrick appeared, in the preface of
which he gives a full account of what took place be
tween himself, Mr. Haliday, and Mr. Mastertou, and
his session, which has already been mentioned.
At the meeting of the sub-Synod of Belfast, in Jan
uary, 1725, the name of Mr. Nevin was again called,
which occasioned a violent debate, which was closed
by a protest against the name of Mr. Nevin being con
tinued on the roll, and on account of the confusion
in the House, the protestors, including the moderator,
clerk, and a majority of the House, retired to prepare
and sign the document, but in their absence the Non-
Subscribers hastUy appointed a new moderator and
clerk, admitted Mr. Nevin to his seat, and proceeded
with the business of the court. When the majority
returned with their protest, so great was the confusion
that they could not get it received, and after several
attempts to restore order the Synod was dissolved in
the most disgraceful disorder without having trans
acted any business. This was evidently a preconcerted
scheme of the Non-Subscribers to destroy the authority
of those courts of the Church in which they had any
power, and resulted a year afterwards in a separation.
The Non-Subscribers still continued lo use the

310 CASE OF ALEXANDER COLVILLE. [Ch. XXIIL
press in the exhibition of their principles. In Feb
ruary a letter from Mr. Haliday, in answer to the
pamphlet of Mr. Kennedy, appeared, in which be at
tacked the use of the word composition in the West
minister Confession, when treating of the two natures of
Christ, but was ably answered by Iredell. In March
a letter from the Eeverend Mr. Elder of Aghadoey, a
Subscriber, but a warm supporter of the Non-Sub
scribing party, was published, entitled, "Eeasons for
Moderation," &c. The popular excitement was in
creased by the case of the Eeverend Alexander Col
ville, one of the early merabers ofthe Belfast Society,
wbo being refused ordination on account of his Non-
Subscribing principles, proceeded to England to seek
ordination from the hands of the English Dissenters,
and was ordained in tbe vestry-room of Dr. Calamy's
church. This interference was resented by the Irish
Church, who refused to allow Colville to preach in
their congregations. Dr. Calamy in return threatened
to withdraw the Eoyal Bounty.
At the instance of the Dublin ministers, the Lord
Lieutenant, Carteret, requested in the King's name,
that the controversy might come to an end, but in
vain, for at the Synod of 1725, which met in June, the
case of Colville was introduced, and he was suspended
for three months, and all who should bold ministerial
communion with him were threatened with suspension.
At this and the preceding Synods the two parties
met separately during the adjournments. This Synod
authorized Church members who scrupled communion
with Non-Subscribing ministers to follow the Ught of
their own consciences therein ; declared the reserva
tions allowed in the Pacific Act to concern phrases

1725.] PRESBYTERY OF ANTRIM. 311
not doctrines ; and readjusted the Presbyteries in the
sub-Synod of Belfast on the " elective affinity princi
ple," by dividing Down into Bangor and Killileagh,
adding Templepatrick, and putting all the Non-Sub-
scribere, twelve in number, into Antrim. And they
carried this accommodating principle still further by
placing in tbe Presbytery of Killileagh the moderate
Subscribers who were in favor of holding communion
with Non-Subscribere, and in that of Bangor those
who were opposed to that practice. This made peace
in the sub-Synod, dirainished the influence of the
Non-Subscribers, and prepared the way for their ex
cision. In the meantime they proposed five " expedi
ents for peace," which were sent down to the Presby
teries for their consideration.
Colville defied the Synod by preaching in spite of
its action, and invoked the southern Synod of Dublin,
who sent a deputation to Ulster, and on the 25th of
October they, with nine of the Ulster Non-Subscribers,
installed Mr. Colville over the congregation of Dro
more, which led to an alienation between thera and
the Ulster brethren in Dublin. Abernethy's last pub
lication was answered by Hemphill and Mastertou,
after which there was a lull for six months. Public
attention was again awakened by the five overtures
which had been sent down to the Presbyteries by the
last Synod. The dangera which they were intended
to avert had been removed by the exclusion of the
Non-Subscribers, and they were never submitted to
the consideration of the Synod. It is therefore unnec
essary to notice anything but the publications to which
they gave rise. It is singular that no one wrote against
these overtures, except the Eeverend Eobert Higin-

312 EXPEDIENTS FOR PEACE. [Ch. XXIII.
hotham of Coleraine, a Subscriber, which led to a
division of his congregation, and was answered by Mr.
M'Bride of Ballymoney. The Presbytery of Eoute
afterwards took judicial cognizance of several un
guarded and dangerous positions in Higinbotham's
pamphlet, which occupied their attention for several
months. .
During the early part of June, in anticipation of the
approaching meeting of Synod, four publications issued
from the press. The first was an answer to the Post
script of the Dublin ministers in Abernethy's " De
fence," by Mr. Masterton ; the second a letter of
Hemphill in reply to Mr. Haliday ; the third, a paper
of Mr. Iredell, in answer to Haliday's letter to Ken
nedy, these three being on the side of the Subscribers ;
and the fourth on the other side, being a pamphlet by
Mr. Boyse, which was his last appearance as an au
thor. In the midst of the excitement caused by these pub
lications, the Synod opened its meeting at Dungannon
on the 21st of June. The first subject of discussion
was on the " expedients for peace," presented by the
Non-Subscribers, but not a single offer was tnade on
which an agreement with them could be based ; there
was, therefore, no alternative left the Synod than to
propose a separation, in the only form in which it
could be proposed, namely, by exclusion. Accord
ingly, the committee of the Subscribers to whom the
"expedients for peace" bad been submitted brought
in a report to the effect that some of the propositions
were evasive of the Pacific Act, and contrary to im
portant resolutions of the General Synod, and the
known principles of the constitution of the Church,

1726.] THE SEPARATION. 313
and therefore they reject them as inconsistent with the
peace and unity of the Church ; and that hereafter it
will be impossible for them to hold ministerial com
munion with those who sustain them.
Tne next morning Mr. Kirkpatrick answered this
overture, complaining that their "expedients" had
been misunderstood, and called upoi» the Synod to
answer their arguments before they proceeded to a
rupture. After various attempts to delay action, a
vote was taken, which resulted in favor of the over
ture, thfrty-six ministers voting for it, and thirty-
four against it, while the great body of the elders voted
in the affirraative.
This act of separation was limited in its nature. The
Non-Subscribere were not excluded from Christian fel
lowship, nor their ministerial character in any way
interfered with. Neither were they excluded from
ministerial communion in religious ordinances and sac
raments, but simply from ministerial communion with
Subscribers in church judicatories. There were also
stUl remaining in the Synod many warm partizans of
the Non-Subscribers, which in time brought forth
the fruit of discord and error. 14

CHAPTER XXIV.
1726-1750.
The Synod, having thus excluded the Non-Sub
scribers, received the reasons for protest of those Sub
scribers who had opposed the separation, but refused
to receive a protest from the Non-Subscribers, on the
ground that they were no longer merabers of the court.
They also agreed that the Non-Subscribers should re
ceive their proportion of the Eoyal Bounty as before.
The Non- Subscribers, before leaving Dungannon,
drew up an address to their congregations, which, how
ever, at once began to be divided, some churches losing
ninety or a hundred families, which were formed into
separate congregations or annexed to other Presbyteries.
Mr. Higinbotham of Coleraine at first joined the Non-
Subscribers, but afterwards repented of his hasty step
and returned to the Synod in 1728.
Although the controversy had ceased in the Church
courts it was still carried on through the press. " A
Seasonable Warning," by some Subscribing ministers,
in answer to a letter from the Presbytery of Antrim,
made its appearance, followed in August by a pam
phlet from the pen of Malcom, now in the fortieth
year of his ministry, in which he institutes a parallel
between the "Sectarians ofthe last age," meaning those
in the Westminster Assembly who had prevented the
establishment of Presbyterian government in England,

I'^T.] PAPER WAR. 316
and the "Modern New Lights," meaning the Non-
Subscribers. This pamphlet was felt to be so unjust
and offensive, that it was answered towards the close
of the year by Mr. Abernethy. About the same time
Mr. Haliday published a letter addressed to Mr. Ire
dell, who rejoined the next year. In March, 1727, Mr.
Elder, of Aghadoey, after an interval of a year, pub
lished a spirited vindication of himself against the at
tack of Mr. M'Bride. Mr. M'Bride's pamphlet also
called forth an answer from Mr. Nevin, whose ex
clusion from the Synod he had attempted to defend.
But the most important publication of this year was
" A Narrative ofthe Seven Synods," by the Non-Sub
scribers, which is a partial, yet elaborate, defence of
their views and principles. It is a valuable compila
tion, from the original documents, and the reports of
debates, which have thus been preserved from obliv
ion. This was partially answered by a posthurhous
tract by Hutcheson of Armagh. Towards the close of
the year 1731, " a member of the General Synod (now
unknown) published an answer to the " Narrative,"
which, as far as it goes, is conclusive and satisfactory.
This, with a small work on the Trinity, by Masterton,
and a few pamphlets by Holmes, on the Subscribers'
side, and Duchal and Blair on that of the Non-Sub
scribers, may be said to have closed the series of more
than fifty publications in a dozen years.
WhUe these events were passing inside of the Church,
the Presbyterians of Ulster at last obtained a legal tol
eration ; but continued to suffer from Episcopalian land
lords, from the Sacramental Test, and as to marriages,
— all which remained unchanged at the death of
George I.

316 emigration to America. [Ch. xxiv.
The news of the accession of -George IL, which oc
curred on the Ilth of June, 1727, reached Dungannon
on the 22d, while the Synod was in session, and they,
on invitation from the governor, attended his procla
mation in a body ; and before their adjournment, drew
up a loyal and dutiful address to his Majestj', and for
warded it to England through the usual channel. The
Presbyterian claims were countenanced by Dr. Hugh
Boulter, the Primate, and by Speaker ConoUj^, as long
as he lived. But while they were thus favored by the
government, their prosperity throughout the province
was declining. The rise of rents and tithes, with sev
eral bad harvests, (1724^1728), and especially the op
pressions of the government, led many to emigrate to
America, to which they were solicited by agents from
the colonies. Four thousand two hundred sailed in
three years, some selling themselves for four years to
pay their passage.
Alarmed by this great emigration from Ulster, tbe
Lords Justices inquired of Messrs. Iredell and Crag
head of Dublin the cause of it, who wrote letters to
the northern Presbyteries, asking for their views on
the subject which were embodied in a memorial and
laid before the Lords Justices, in March, 1729. In this
memorial they give as the principal causes the Sacra
mental Test and the marriage grievances. The Arch
bishop, in transmitting this memorial to tbe Lord Lieu
tenant, then in England, denied this representation,
and held that the oppression ofthe Presbyterians arose
chiefly from the landlords. Tbe ministers sent Mr.
Craghead to London for the purpose of still further
explaining the subject of their memorial, and to settle
some matters connected with the Eoyal Bounty. He

l'?31.] CRAGHEAD VISITS LONDON. 317
was infroduced and recommended by Primate Boulter
to Sir Eobert Walpole. Mr. Craghead succeeded in
arranging the difficulties connected with the Eoyal
Bounty, but failed in getting anything done to remove
the civil grievances which oppressed the Presbyterians.
Two years having elapsed with nothing done for their
relief, the. Synod of 1731 again commissioned Mr. Crag
head to proceed to London and urge the repeal of the
Sacramental Test. He met with a favorable reception,
and efforts were made by the friends of the Dissenters
to have the repeal of the Test Act inserted among the
instructions drawn up for the new Lord Lieutenant,
the Duke of Dorset, who was on the eve of going to
Ireland ; and it was generally supposed that their ob
ject had been gained. But on his arrival it was found
that all their hopes were disappointed.
Mr. Abernethy, who had succeeded Mr. Boyse in Dub
lin, published at this time an able statement of the
injustice done to the Presbyterian population in Ire
land by the Test Act, and the strong claims they had
for its repeal.- This aroused their old and bitter oppo
nent Dean Swift, who published " Tbe Presbyterians
Plea of Merit, in order to take off the Test, impartially
examined." This he followed early in the year 1782,
by an ironical pamphlet, to which was appended an
elaborate reply to Abnernethy's tract. But the con
troversy was now transferred from Ireland to England.
The English Protestant Dissenters endeavored to pro
cure the repeal of the Test and Corporation Acts, and
a multitude of pamphlets issued from the London
press on the subject. But through the dexterity of
Walpole the Dissenters concluded that the time had

318 DUKE OF DORSET. [Ch. XXIV.
not yet arrived for them to press their matters with
any hope of success.
The English ministry at length gave the Duke of
Dorset the power to hold a meeting of Parliament and
recommend the repeal of the Sacramental Test in
Ireland. Accordingly the Parliament assembled on
the 4th of October, and was opened by the Lord Lieu
tenant by a speech, in which he hinted at the repeal,
and referred to the union of all Protestants as essential
to the interests of the country. But the friends of
the measure finally abandoned the subject, as a large
majority in both Houses were evidently opposed to it.
This act had now existed for thirty years, and its re
peal seemed more hopeless than ever ; nor was the
attempt renewed till "nearly half a century afterwards,
when it was at length crowned with success. The
only relief granted to the Presbyterians during this
reign was an act passed in 1738 exempting them from
prosecutions for marriages by ministers who had qual
ified under the Toleration Act.
The Church during this whole struggle continued to
enjoy internal prosperity, but now symptoms of a de
sire to lower the standard of ministerial education
appearing, it was required that all candidates should
be Masters of Arts, and should study divinity at least
four years. To prevent divisions in calling ministers
a vote of two thirds of the stipend-payers was required,
which displeased the poorer classes, but remained the
rule for upwards of a century.
The Synod now contained some able and accom
plished men, but few evangelical preachers, and sev
eral of the Non-Subscribers were suspected of heresy.
But no Presbyterian minister, as yet, maintained Uni-

l'?36l THE SECEDERS. 819
tarian opinions. Doctrinal discussions were avoided,
and the ablest business men were on the lax side, which
was continually strengthened by the infiux of Profes
sor Simpson's pupils, so that the Non-Subscribers were
looking forward to a speedy re-union, when a turn was
given to the controversy by the rise of the Secession.
The Secession from the Church of Scotland, occa
sioned by the restoration of patronage in 1712, aud
resulting in the organization of the Associate Presby
tery in 1733, atfracted the attention of the stricter
party in the Church of Ulster, who were dissatisfied
with the temporizing conduct of tbe Synod, and the
recent regulations about calls. The first sympathy
with the Scotch Secedere appeared at Lisburn. After
the death of Mr. M'Cracken in 1730, this congregation
remained vacant untU June 1732, when the Eeverend
Gilbert Kennedy became their pastor, and after a short
stay removed to Killileagh. After a vacancy of three
yeare, the Eeverend William Patton, amidst much op
position, was installed in July 1736. This led the dis
affected persons of the congregation to renounce the
jurisdiction of the Synod of Ulster and to put them
selves under the care of the Associate Presbytery, ask
ing for the services of a minister. Their memorial,
which was transmitted to Scotland, contained the names
of no less than two hundred and eighty beads of fam
ilies, and was answered by order of the Presbytery, by
the Eeverend Ebenezer Erksine.
The moderate party was growing stronger and
stronger, as was indicated by a sermon preached by
the Eev. George Cherry before the sub-Synod of Ar
magh in July, 1736. And this appeared still more
evident from the case of the Eev. Eichard Aprichard,

320 FIRST SECEDING MINISTER IN IRELAND. [Ch. XXIV.
which occupied the attention of the Church in 1738.
This young man, being on his trial for ordination be
fore the Presbytery of Armagh, expressed his scruples
with regard to some sections of the Confession of
Faith, and when before the Synod he positively refused
to sign these articles ; and when it was proposed to re
call his license, he cut short the debate by renouncing
the jurisdiction of the General Synod. Mr. Cherry
and twelve members of Synod sustained Mr. Ap
richard in his views, and entered their protest upon
the minutes of the Synod.
In 1741 the people of Lylehill, near Lisburn, ap
plied, through their commissioners, Messrs. John Gib
son and Samuel Henderson, to the Associate Presby
tery in Scotland, for a supply of ministers, and in
September, 1742, the Eev. Thomas Ballantyne, the
first seceding preacher who ever visited Ireland, came
over, where he remained about a fortnight, preaching
to large assemblies. In January, 1743, Mr. Gavin
Bengo, a licentiate, visited Antrim as a missionary,
being followed by Thomas Ballantyne a second time,
and Mr. John Erskine, the son of Mr. Ealph Erskine.
But the Associate Presbytery had now become so pop
ular in Scotland that it was unable to supply its own
vacancies, and no more were sent to Ireland during
the year.
In the meantime the dissensions in the Synod of
Ulster continued. In the congregation of Newtown-
limavady a difficulty arose between the friends of
Mr. Henry Erskine, who had been lately settled, and a
Mr. Joseph Osborne. The friends of Osborne having
applied for a separate organization to the Presby
tery of Derry, and being refused, applied to the Pres-

1743.] CASE OF OSBORNE. 821
bytery of Antrim, who received them, and instaUed Mr.
Osborne as their pastor. This case was brought before
the Synod at Dungannon in 1742, and a series of over
tures was passed announcing thefr determination to
punish probationere who encouraged divisions in va
cant congregations, as weU as to censure ministers who
countenanced such probationere in applying for ordina
tion " to any association not belonging to the General
Synod." Osborne and his adherents, finding that their connec
tion with the Presbytery of Antrim was prejudicial to
thefr interests, made application to the Synod, which
met in June, 1743, to be taken under their care. The
memorial making this request was held back untU the
very close of the meeting, when those who were sup
posed to be hostile to it had gone home ; and, although
opposed by Mr. Erekine, they were, by a large vote,
received, upon Mr. Osborne expressing his concern for
his irregular ordination by the Presbytery of Antrim,
and subscribing the Westminster Confession of Faith.
This hasty action of the Synod was condemned by
many ; and at its meeting in 1744 the Eev. John ,Stfr-
ling of BaUykelly was permitted to enter on the rec
ords a protest against this action as " rash, unfair, and
unconstitutional." For some yeare a misunderetanding had existed among
the membere of the Presbytery of Armagh, the one
party holding that the other did not faithfuUy main
tain the docteines of the Westminster Confession. This
led to a division of the Presbytery, in 1743, into two,
Armagh ^nd Dromore. This di\Tsion faded to secure
the harmony which was anticipated, a paper war soon
after commencing between these Presbjrteries, originate
14*

322 SECEDERS INCREASING. [Ch. XXIV.
ing in the case ofthe Eev. George Ferguson of Market-
hill, whose orthodoxy had been impeached. When
the case came before the Synod in 1744 the witnesses
against Mr. Ferguson were intimidated and did not
make their appearance, and the court brought in the
dubious verdict of " not proved."
It now became evident that there was an anti-evan
gelical party in the Synod of Ulster, and the Non-
Subscribers were greatly elated with the hope of being
again united with the Synod, some of them having
said that if " a few men were dead," alluding to some
of the old ministers, tbe Synod and the Presbytery of
Antrim would soon be one again. At the opening of
the Synod of 1745 the Eev. John Carlisle of Clogher
preached a sermon against creeds and confessions from
the text "concerning zeal persecuting the Church,"
which was afterwards published by him as though
sanctioned by the Synod. The fact that it bad been
preached before the Supreme Court of the Church,
and permitted to pass without rebuke, clearly evinced
the growing infiuence of " moderate" principles.
While these signs of defection in tbe Synod were in
creasing, the friends of the Associate Presbytery were
not idle ; and in 1744 a number of families in Lisburn
and its vicinity, following the example of Lylehill,
placed themselves under the care ofthe Scottish judica
tory. That body had increased so rapidly in Scotland,
that on the Ilth of October the Associate Synod was
constituted, consisting ofthe three Presbyteries of Glas
gow, Edinburgh and Dunfermline ; and the affairs of Ire
land were entrusted to the Presbytery of Glas.gow. At
the meeting of the Associate Synod of 1745, the Eev.
Isaac Patton, a licentiate, was commissioned to preach

1746.] JAMES FISHER. 323
nine Sabbaths, and the Eev. John M'Ara to preach
four Sabbaths, at different points in Ulster, which re
sulted in a call being given by the friends of the Asso
ciated Synod in Templepatrick, Belfast and Lisburn,
to Mr. Patton, to be their pastor ; and on the 9th of
July, 1746, he was ordained and installed in Lylehill,
by a delegation sent over from the Presbyteries of
Glasgow and Dunfermline. This was the first settle
ment of a seceding minister in Ireland.
Soon after tbe settlement of Mr. Patton a number of
missionaries were sent out by the Associate Presbytery
of Edinburg, to itinerate through the county. And not
long afterwards they were followed by the Eev. James
Fisher, the son-in-law of Ebenezer Erskine, and one
of the original founders of the Secession, who already
had such a popularity in Ireland that many were ac
customed to pass over to Kinclaven, his Scottish par
ish, to attend his communions. On his arrival in Ire
land he attracted great crowds wherever he preached,
and was even welcomed by some of the ministers of the
Synod of Ulster. The object of these visits of Mr.
Fisher was to negotiate a union with the stricter
members of the Synod, believing that if the evangeli
cal party could be induced to adopt the testimony of
his Church, the Secession would be at once firmly es
tablished in the north of Ireland ; but in this be was
disappointed. At the meeting of the Synod of 1747, ".supplica
tions" were presented from a nuraber of the Presby
teries complaining of corruptions which were creeping
into the Church, through the means of various deis->-
tical publications which had been circulated through
Ulster. Several of the ministers of the Synod, who

324 "the SUPPLICATIONS." [Cn. XXIV.
were orthodox in their professions, had also excited
suspicion, on account of their countenancing the repub
lication of works which directly assailed the doctrines
ofthe Westminster Confession. Araong these was the
treatise of Taylor, " On Original Sin," an artful de
fence of Pelagianism ; and although at this time every
member of the Synod had publicly professed his ad
herence to the Westminster formularies, yet their in
consistency in recommending this work of Taylor, on
the ground that they were the friends of free inquiry,
caused great alarm. The " moderate men" of the Sy
nod, (those who sympathized with the Non-Subscrib
ers,) against whom these charges were specially directed,
had not the courage to stand forward in their own vin
dication, and they therefore agreed to a document en
titled, " A Serious Warning to the People of our Com
munion, within the bounds ofthe Synod," admitting the
existence of the evils complained of, but blunting the
edge of their acknowledgments, by recounting as griev
ances some items which many who signed the " sup
plications" would never have thought of, including in
such an enumeration, especially some connected with
the preaching of the Seceders in the bounds of their
congregations. This paper was finally adopted by the
Synod, and ordered to be printed and read on the Sab
bath from the pulpits of all their congregations.
Piety was now rapidly declining, and many of the
ministers were exhibiting a secular spirit, although
at this period there was not one avowed Unitarian
or Arminian among the ministers of the Synod of
Ulster. But events were occurring in Scotland which were
very soon felt in the Church in Ireland, The question

1747.] BURGHERS AND ANTI-BURGHERS. 825
had arisen among the friends ofthe Secession, whether
they could with propriety take the oath administered
to the burgesses in several of the borough towns. This
oath required them to support " the true religion pre
sently professed within the realm, and authorized by
the laws thereof" The meaning of this clause ex
cited a warm dispute, the one party holding that it was
framed simply to prevent Papists from becoming bur
gesses, and implied merely a recognition of the Prot
estant faith ; the other party contended that it should
be rejected, as it involved a recognition of patronage,
and all the legalized abuses of the existing Presbyte
rian Establishment. The Secession Church was occu
pied for more than two years in these discussions,
which resulted, in April, 1747, in a division, both par
ties claiming the designation of the Associate Synod,
but known in history as the Burghers and Anti-Burgh
ers. The acrimony with which this controversy was
conducted, as well as the narrow spirit it exhibited,
greatly lowered the Secession in public estimation.
Strange to tell, this division spread to Ireland, where
no Burghers' oath of any kind existed ; Mr. Patton who
was present at the meeting of the Associate Synod
¦when the division occurred, joined the Anti-Burghers,
while other congregations in Ireland recently estab
lished connected themselves with the Anti-Burgher
party. Had the Irish Presbyterian church in Ireland
been in a healthy condition, this schism would have
proved fatal to the Seceders, but it seems to have
had little influence, they, notwithstanding the scan
dal connected with this decision, continued to pros
per. The publication of the " Serious Warning " aroused

826 LABORS OF THE SECEDERS. [Ch. XXIV.
the opposition of the Seceders, who called it " a cun
ning gravestone upon truth," and as tending to delude
the laity by requiring them to come forward and pros
ecute unsound teachers at a time when the Synod was
BO corrupt that the condemnation of a heterodox miuT
ister was not to be expected. The controversy con
cerning this paper was continued for several years, in
which the Seceders declared that ecclesiastical disci
pline had been neglected in admitting ignorant and
profane persons to the Lord's table ; in allowing
parents who did not maintain family worship to pre
sent their children for baptism ; that the violators of
the seventh commandment were not publicly censured ;
that ministers did not faithfully visit and catechise
the families under their charge ; that the reading of
sermons, had become a great grievance ; that in these
written sermons, instead of proclaiming the glorious gos
pel, they were said " to discourse like heathen moral
ists." On the other hand, the Synod, besides defend
ing itself from these charges, pronounced the Act
and Testimony of the Seceders as absurd, disloyal
and intolerant ; the proceedings of their courts were
held up to ridicule ; they were represented as delight
ing in strife, and their debates about the Burghers'
oath, and the discussion wdiich succeeded, was pro
nounced to be the consummation of their folly.
About this time Mr. John Swanston, a licentiate of
the Secession, who had been preaching to large assem
blies in the neighborhood of Colerain, was challenged
by the Eeverend Eobert Higinbotham to a discussion,
which was conducted at Ballyrashane, in the open air,
before an immense assembly, to the discomfiture, it is
said, of Higinbotham. 4

1747-1749.] MODERATE PARTY DECLINING. 827
During the year 1747 both branches of the Seces
sion made progress in all parts of Ulster, but chiefly
among the humbler classes, and where the settled min
isters were unsound or inefficient.
While the Seceders were thus eraployed in laying
the foundation of their church in Ulster, the moderate
party in the General Synod were apparently declining.
At its meeting in 1747, a proposition intended to pre
pare the way for the re-establishment of communion
with the Non-Subscribers had been discussed and post
poned for a year, but in the meantime the Seceders had
so excited the public mind in reference to heresy, that
when it was again proposed in the Synod of 1748, it
was lost by a large majority. In the Synod of 1749,
the case of the Eeverend William Fleming was under
. consideration. He had been called to the church of
Kingscourt, and at his installation the Presbytery of
Monaghan had permitted him to sign an unauthorized
formula instead of the Westminister Confession, al
though several members had protested against the
proceedings. The Synod, therefore, at this session re
quired Mr. Fleming to sign the Confession in the
regular form, and ordered that for the future one form
ula, namely, that of the General Synod, shall be used
in all the Presbyteries.
The Synod, while thus guarding the general course
of their ministers, was too indulgent to particular
cases of unsoundness, as appears from the exaraple of
Thomas Thompson, who had been charged by one
Galey as preaching, that morality is the foundation of
religion. When brought before the Presbytery Thomp
son had denied the charge, and Galey not being able
to prove it, he was ?ensured. When it appeared on

328 CASE OF THOMAS THOMPSON. [Ch. XXIV.
appeal before the Synod, Thompson acknowledged in
the main the charge, but declared that he did not mean
to exclude the mediation of Jesus Christ, and that the
way of salvation revealed in the gospel is only by the
merits and satisfaction of a Eedeemer. Whereupon
the Synod accepted the explanation, and rebuked Ga
ley for his rashness.
At the time the Synod was occupied with this case
a deputation from the Burgher Presbytery of Glasgow
were engaged in the installation of the Eev. Andrew
Black in the congregation of Boardmills, and in the
same month the Eev. Thomas Mayn was installed at
Ballyroney, both being Burghers ; and on the same
day the Eev. David Arrott was settled at Market-
hUl, by a deputation from the Anti-Burgher Presbytery
of Glasgow. Hitherto, Mr. Patton, of Lylehill, had ,
been the only member of the Associate Presbytery
settled in Ireland. Though attacked in print by Col
ville, Delap and Lynd, they continually gained new
influence, and spread a pure gospel among the masses,
in opposition both to heresy and the moderatism of
the Ulster Synod.

CHAPTER XXV.
1750-1770.
Though the Sacramental Test was still in force, the
Irish Presbyterians were exempted from its operation, by
acts of indemnity passed from time to time, throughout
the reign of George II. and part of George Hi's. These
acts were the dictates of political necessity, the safety of
the country being imperiled by the appearance of the
Pretender, while the loyalty of the Eomish population
could not be depended upon. WhUe the population
of Ulster was prevented from increasing by a succes
sion of hard winters and bad harvests, and an exten
sive emigration to America, the Presbyterian part of
it was growing at the rate of one new church per an
num, for a period of thfrty years ; the whole number
of ministers in 1751 being one hundred and fifty-one,
besides thirteen in the Presbytery of Antrim.
This increase diminishing the amount of Eegium
Donum received by each, repeated efforts were made
for the augmentation of its aggregate amount, which
was seconded by Lord Chesterfield and Alexander
Stewart, a staunch Presbyterian, father of the first
Lord Londonderry, and grandfather of the great Lord
Castlereagh, who was baptized in the Presbyterian
Church, though educated an Episcopalian. The last
attempt of this kind made for many years was in 1749.

830 SMALL SALARIES. [^h- ^^^V-
The sum now received by each minister amounted to
little more than £9 annually. A double portion was
voluntarily given to a few of the ministers, who la
bored in feeble churches. Another benevolent ar
rangement of this period, which also occasioned some
relief to the weaker congregations, was the plan of the
wealthier churches contributing annually a fixed sum
towards the support of those ministers whose congrega
tions could give them but a small salary.
The income of most of the ministers of the General
Synod at this period was so small that but few of
them could lay up any provision for their families, and
at every meeting of the Synod cases of distress urgently
claiming their sympathy and aid were presented. As
early as 1697 allowances were made out ofthe Eegium
Donum to the widows and famUies of ministers, and at
different times afterwards steps were taken for the es
tablishment of a permanent fund. But the system was
matured by Sir William Bruce, an elder in Wood
street Dublin, and adopted in 1750 by the Synod of Ul
ster. This institution, known as the " Widows' Fund,"
being thus established, the Presbytery of Antrim was
invited to join in the scheme, which brought the two
bodies often into contact and communication, and pro
moted their reunion. This union was also facilitated
by the growth of New Light doctrine in the Synod.
These views had been gradually growing stronger
through the infiuence of the pupils of Professor Simp
son, of Glasgow, and of Dr. William Hamilton and
Dr. John Goady, of Edinburg. But of all those who
filled chairs in the Scottish universities during the first
half of the eighteenth century, no one was more in
fluential in moulding the minds of young men prepar-

l'?61.] HERESIES IN SCOTLAND. 331
ing for the sacred office than Dr. Francis Hutcheson,
Professor of Moral PhUosophy, in Glasgow, who was
the first to introduce the custom of lecturing in Eng
lish into that university. So great was his reputation,
that students flocked to his class not only from all parts
of Scotland, but also from England and from Ireland.
Dr. Witherspoon, a contemporary of Hutcheson, in his
" Ecclesiastical Characteristics," represents him as the
great promoter of that formal and heartless religion
which prevailed so extensively in Scotland about the
middle of the last century.
The colleagues of Dr. Hutcheson were nearly all
men of kindred principles, among whom was Dr. Wil
liam Leechman, who was appointed to the chair of
Systematic Divinity in 1743, but was soon after ar
raigned by the Presbytery for heresy, but the preva
lence of moderatism enabled him to escape. There is
strong reason to believe that Leechman was a Unita
rian in heart, and during the seventeen years in which
he filled his chair, according to his biographer, " no
decisive judgment on any great controverted point was
ever delivered from that theological chair. After the
point had undergone a full discussion, none of the
students yet knew the particular opinion of this ven
erable Professor."
It was to the instruction given to the students at
Glasgow that we trace the rise and increase of New
Light principles in the Synod of Ulster. Efforts were
made by the orthodox members of the Synod to stay
the evil by passing resolutions to enforce subscription
to tbe Westminister Confession, but it was apparent to
all that the number of evangelical ministers was an
nually declining, and many of the people were passing

832 LOW STATE OP THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH. [Ch. XXV.
over to the Secession. The evil continued to increase,
until in less than a quarter of a century after the sep
aration of the Presbytery of Antrim, the New Light
party had a complete prepondersfnce of influence and
talent in the Synod of Ulster.
WhUe the moderatism of the Scottish colleges exer
cised a powerful influence upon Irish Presbyterians,
the condition of the Episcopal Church, both in England
and Ireland, had its effect. In Ireland there was not
one active evangelical minister in the establishment,
and scarcely a Bishop could be named who labored
to promote the spiritual interests of his diocese. The
Primate, Dr. Stone, was immereed in politics, and sac
rificed religion and morality to gain adherents; and
Bishop Clayton was an avowed and zealous Unitarian.
In 1751 he published his famous " Essay on Spirit,"
which, if not written, was adopted by hira, and ad
dressed in a dedication to the Primate of Ireland. As
its reputed author was a northern Prelate the ministere
of the Synod of Ulster read it with avidity, by means
of which the minds of some were unsettled.
Amidst this decline of the Ulster Synod, the Sece
ders were making steady progress. On the Ilth of
AprU 1750, the Eeverend Alexander Stewart was or
dained by the Anti-Burgher Presbytery of Glasgow,
and settled in the congregation of Drumachose, and on
the next day the first Associate Presbytery established
in Ireland, consisting of Messrs. Patton, Arrott and
Stewart was constituted at Arkilly, near Neutownlim-
avady, and in May 1751 the number was increased
by the ordination and installation -of Mr. John Ten
nant, a probationer ofthe Anti-Burgher Presbytery of

1751-54.] THE SECEDERS STILL INCREASE. 883
Edinburg, and in 1753 their number had increased to
seven. The Burgh ere were no less active and prosperous.
Through the neglect of the Synod to establish new
congregations, the Secedere gained many points of in
fluence. At Clennanees the people had put up a small
buUding with the consent of the Presbytery of Mon
aghan, where they were to have religious services once
a month ; but being greatly neglected they complained
to the Synod in 1748 that no minister had preached to
their congregation for several months, and gaining no
relief it finally led to the settlement of a Burgher min
ister. At Newbliss, in the same Presbytery, through
the apathy of the Synod a Seceding minister was also
settled in 1753.
On the 23d of July 1751, Mr. Thomas Clark, a
hcentiate of the Burgher Presbytery of Glasgow, was
ordained and settled at Ballibay, and on the next day
the first Burgher Presbytery formed in Ireland was
constituted, consisting of Messrs. Black, Mayn and
Clark, and designated the " Associate Presbytery of
Down." They were strengthened in 1753 by the addi
tion of the Eeverend Hugh M'Gill. The people of
Newbliss, wbo had lately withdrawn from the jurisdic
tion of the Synod of Ulster, now invited Eeverend
John Thomson to become their pastor, and he was or
dained on the 24th of August 1754, and in the next
year Eeverend John M'Auley, and the Eeverend Will
iam Knox, were settled over Burgher congregations.
Mr. Clark of Ballibay, who had forraerly itinerated
through Ulster and atfracted attention by his uncouth
dress and manner, published in 1754 a pamphlet en
titled, " A Brief Surveyffetc," in answer to the attacks

334 CLARK OF BALLIBAY. [Ch. XXV.
on the Secession by Delap, Lynd, Peebles and others,
which was answered in 1754 by the Eeverend John
Semple. In 1755, Mr. Clark rejoined in a pamphlet
entitied, "New Light set in a Clear Light," and this
closed the controversy. Public documents which are
still extant illustrate the character of this devoted
man, and attest with the utmost clearness that the
spirit of God unequivocally acknowledged the minis
try of the early Seceders.
While Mr. Clark was thus engaged in his labors in
Ulster he became the victim of a conspiracy, formed
by the Eev. James Jackson of Ballibay, whose congre
gation had been greatly diminished by bis preaching.
Accordingly, in the month of March, 1752, he was
summoned to appear before the magistrates, on the
ground that he held treasonable principles, and was de
signing against the House of Hanover. But those ac
quainted with the history of Mr. Clark knew that he
hazarded his life in the service of his Sovereign, when
the Pretender was in Scotland ; but because he disap
proved of the ordinary mode of swearing by kissing
the gospel, which was opposed by the whole body of
Seceders, and objected to the phraseology of a part of
the oath of abjuration, the charge of treason was
brought against hira.
It appears that Mr. Clark had obtained some inti
mation of the plot, and had provided certificates from
prominent men of his being a peaceable and faithful
subject; but these were disregarded, and he was com
manded to take tbe oath of abjuration in the usual
form, which he refusing to do was fined. Not satisfied
with this, his enemies, in the autumn ofthe sarae year,
issued a second summons, wkich he fearing would be

1754-58.] ACTS OF THE SYNOD. 885
attended with more serious consequences retired to
Scotland, where he remained for three months. On
his return, in January, 1754, he was again arrested
and cast into prison, where he remained until April,
but was liberated on account of an informality con
nected with his committal. Mr. Clark was the only
Associate minister settled in Ireland who was impris
oned in consequence of his scruples relative to the oath
of abjuration.
In May, 1764, Mr. Clark, with about three hundred
other Presbyterian emigrants, removed to America
in a vessel which had been sent to Narrowwater,
near Newry, for the purpose of their conveyance. He
died minister of a congregation at Long Cane, Abbe-
vUle, South Carolina, toward the end of tbe year 1792.
One of his sons attained the dignity of an American
judge. The declining state of the Ulster Synod was indi
cated by the small attendance at its meetings, seldom
more than one half, and sometimes scarcely one third,
of the ministers being present. This led, at the Synod
of 1752, to a renewed proposal for a delegated body ;
but this, though sent down to the Presbyteries, had no
other effect than an attempt, in 1757, to constrain
attendance. At the annual meeting of the Synod in 1758 an
attempt was made by the friends ofthe NourSubscribers
to renew their ecclesiastical intercourse, and a motion
was unanimously adopted expressing the desire of the
Synod that a correspondence should be held between
all dissenting bodies for the purpose of " mutual en
couragement in their general interest," and so that they
might " appear to the world as one body," and engaged

386 REASONS POR UNION. [Ch. XXV.
in one common cause ; and some ministers were ap
pointed to write to the Presbytery of Antrim, and to
Dr. Duchal, one of the Non-Subscribing ministers of
Dublin, that correspondents might be sent to meet the
next General Synod. This resolution was passed at a
private meeting of the Synod, attended almost exclu
sively by ministers, and toward the close of the ses
sion ; yet it illustrates the change which had taken
place in the Synod of Ulster since 1726. It is not
sfrange that it met with the ready acquiescence of the
ministers who happened to be present, as they were
now ao generally infected with doctrinal errors. The
respectability of some of the Non-Subscribers, as well
as the high social position of some of the laity adher
ing to them, suggested to the members of the Synod
that they would add to their own infiuence and credit
by a renewal of ecclesiastical intercourse. The cele
brated Dr. John Leland, minister of the Eustice street
Church, Dublin, was a leading man among the Non-
Subscribers, and his name led some to think more
favorably of his views on ecclesiastical polity.
At the opening of the Synod of 1759 three delegates
from the Presbytery of Antrim presented themselves
as being commissioned, in answer to the resolution of
the last Synod. This took many by surprise, as they
did not consider the resolution of their private meet
ing as inviting the Non-Subscribers to a formal parti
cipation in their ecclesiastical deliberations ; and in the
explanations which followed some of the more zealous
friends of the Non-Subscribers, among whom Mr.
Cherry was still conspicuous, were much dissatisfied,
and for several years afterwards there was but little
correspendence between the two bodies. On the death

1760.] INCREASE OF ERROR. 337
of George IL, in 1760, the Synod and the Presbytery
of Antrim united in an address of congratulation to the
new Sovereign ; and in order that they might " appear
in the eyes of the world as one body," they agreed, on
this occasion, to describe themselves as " the Presby
terian Ministers of the Northern Association in Ire-
I'ud." They employed the same designation two years
later, when congratulating George II. on the birth of
the Prince of Wales.
For many years the rainisters belonging to the Geri
eral Synod and the Presbytery of Antrim had been
trained under the same theological professors, which
will account for their inclination to fraternize ; and
the dread of alienating the orthodox laity was the
great reason why the majority of ths Synod did not
seek to consummate a union. The Seceders at this
period did not make great progress, but two additions
of ministere being made to their number from 1755 to
1763. This is partially accounted for from the poverty
of the country, caused by a famine which affected Ul
ster in 1757, faUing with the greatest severity upon the
supporters ofthe Secession, who were principally from
among the lower classes. Ministers and licentiates were
unwilling to take charge of congregations, where there
was little hope of a support.
At the Synod of 1760 the Eev. Charles Beatty, a
member of the Presbytery of Philadelphia, presented
an address from the Synod of Philadelphia and New
York, setting forth the distressed condition of Presby
terian ministers in the new world, and earnestly apply
ing for assistance. Mr. Beatty met with a most cordial
reception from the Synod ; and his description of the
wretched condition of his brethren in America awak-
15

338 DR. BEATTY VISITS IRELAND. [Ch. XXV.
ened such a deep and general-sympathy, that with great
unanimity they appointed a day for taking up collec
tions in all their congregations, in aid of the American
sufferers. On this occasion the Irish Presbyterians, out
of their deep poverty, contributed upwards of £400,
which was acknowledged in a letter addressed to the
Synod, dated February 12, 1763. A few years before
this a petition was presented to the Synod by the Eev.
Gilbert Tennent, a native of Ulster, in the name of the
Synod of New York, and the trustees of the infant
CoUege of New Jersey, requesting " One Sabbath day's
collection in the several congregations, to assist in the
establishment of the new seminary." It is worthy of
note here, that the Eev. Dr. Samuel Finley, President
of the College of New Jersey from 1761 to 1766, was
an emigrant frora the province of Ulster, and a native
of Armagh,.
The doctrinal defection in the Synod of Ulster be
came evident at its meeting in 1763. The Eev. Gilbert
Kennedy, who succeeded Kirkpatrick in the Non-Sub
scribing congregation of Belfast, although still con
nected with the Synod, opened the session with a ser
mon, for which he received the unanimous thanks of
the house, and was requested to print it for public edi
fication. This discourse is a specimen of the theology
which the Synod was now disposed to patronize, and
proves to what extent the largest section of the Presby
terian Church in Ireland had departed from its original
principles. His allusion to the doctrines of the gospel
are most vague and unsatisfactory ; and he obviously
considers subscription to the Confession of Faith as the
most intolerable of all ecclesiastical grievances. It is
evident from the reception which his sermon received

1^63.] CASE OF NELSON. 339
from the Synod, that they were only restrained from
an attempt to set aside, or at least, modify, the standing -
order relative to subscription, by the attachment of the
mass of the laity to the Westminster formularies.
Hesitating to make this change, they pursued the less
constitutional way of conniving at the evasion of the
law, as exhibited in a case before this Synod. The
Eev. John Nelson had settled in BaUykelly, in Octo
ber, 1762, and soon after awakened the indignation of
his people by the manner in which he spoke of the
Confession of Faith and its tenets, in his public servi-
vices. Becoming more and more dissatisfied, they
tabled a complaint against bim before the Presbytery
of Derry ; but they, instead of exam.ining the charges on
the evidence, at first "enjoined" Mr. Nelson "to use
his best endeavore to remove any suspicion'' of his
soundness in the faith, and then referred the whole
case to the decision of the Synod. There could be no
doubt of his heterodoxy, for in a published letter he
denounces all creeds as " engines of discord ;" describes
Adam, when in Paradise, as " a mere simpleton, an
abject slave of his appetites, and an easy dupe to im
portunity ;" and asserts that " the bulk ofthe Christian
world for thfrteen hundred years past have not^ wor
shipped the true God, but one of their own invention."
This last quotation is, perhaps, the first approach to an
avowal of Unitarianism ever made by a minister who
had been a member of the General Synod.
This case was brought before the Synod and ex
amined in detaU, and although Mr. Nelson admitted
some of the counts in the indictment, and his defence
on the other parts was suspicious and equivocal, the

340 STEPS TOWARDS REUNION. [Ch. XXV.
Synod agreed to an almost unanimous verdict of " not
proved." The Synod, at its meeting in 1767, took another step
towards a reunion with the Presbytery of Antrim. A
resolution was unanimously adopted inviting the Non-
Subscribing Presbytery to " correspond " with the Sy
nod. The proposed correspondence was intended to
bring the two bodies nearer together than they had
ever been since the separation ; it iraplied that they
should send to the General Synod representatives who
should be fully entitled to take part in all its deliber
ations. The Presbytery of Antrim, while they cordi
ally accepted this invitation, at the same time stated
that they did not intend to avail themselves of all the
privileges which the Synod now desired to confer, ex
pressing thefr readiness to give their opinion with free
dom and candor when asked, but wished to be excused
from giving their votes in anything that imphed juris
diction. About the middle of this century two missionaries
of the Eeformed Presbyterian Church, or Mountain
Ministers, as they were sometimes called, came over
from Scotland and preached in various parts of Ulster,
attracting considerable attention. These were the Eev.
Thomas Cuthbertson, and the Eev. John Cameron. In
1752 Mr. Cuthbertson emigrated to America, under the
direction of the Eeformed Presbytery in Scotland ; and
in 1755 Mr. Cameron, renouncing the principles of the
Covenanting Church, joined the Synod of Ulster, and
was settled as minister of Dunluce. Soon after his
settlement here he became infected with the New
Light Divinity, and finally settled down in Unitarian
ism. In 1767 he published a tract, in which he en-

I'SS] COVENANTERS. 341
deavored to prove that "the several systems of human
articles in the Eeformed Churches have a direct ten
dency to root out all appearance of conscience and
honestv from among men." Although this httle work
was published anonymously, yet its author soon became
known ; but instead of receiving ecclesiastical censure,
he was the next year chosen moderator of the General
Synod. For twenty years the Synod of Ulster had been
graduall}' degenerating, and the period just closing
marks a dreary period in the history of the Presby
terian Church. From 1756 to 1769 only two congre
gations had been added to the Synod, and both of
these met with much opposition. The Secedere were
also in a dechning state, and the reputation of their
body was greatly injured by the unbecoming conduct
of some of their ministers. The Eeformed Presby
terians bad a few feeble congregations to whom thefr
ministere faithfully proclaimed the way of salvation,
but thefr refusal to recognize the civU government of
the county, and other pecuharities, were insuperable
obstacles in the way of thefr prosperity.

CHAPTER XXVI.
1770-1793.
The state of the Church at the beginning of this
period was evinced not only by cases of misconduct in
its members but by its decline of members, fewness of
candidates for the ministry, and the relaxation of the
old rule both as to study and subscription, which last
it was formally proposed to abolish, but the measure
was abandoned for prudential reasons.
Soon after the resignation of Mr. Nelson of his
charge at BaUykelly, Mr. Benjamin M'Dowel was ap
pointed his successor. This excellent minister was born
in Elizabethtown, New Jersey, and was for sorae time
a student of the college at Princeton, from which he
removed to the University of Glasgow, and was
licensed by the Presbytery of Glasgow in 1765. He
was a sound divine, a graceful and dignified speaker,
a man of singular piety, and a most acceptable preacher,
and was for fifty years a leading member of the Irish
Church. Soon after his settlement in Ireland the Eev.
John Cameron published his pamphlet against the sub
scription of creeds and confessions, which was answered
the next year by M'Dowel, in a reply distinguished for
its candor, modesty, and good sense. Mr. Cameron
rejoined, and the controversy was continued for seve
ral years, throughout the whole of which Mr. M'Dowel
conducted the argument with an ability and learning

1774.] CASE OF STEPHENSON. 848
alike creditable to himself and serviceable to the cause
which he advocated ; and it was through his able vin
dication of the Westminster Standards that the law of
subscription was not formally repealed.
The supportere of the Westminster Confession were
now the minority in the Synod of Ulster, and in some
Presbyteries this formulary was never mentioned in
cases of license and ordination. The orthodox minis
ters, aware of thefr numerical inferiority, and the hete
rodox, afraid of creating discord in their congregations,
were content that the law in regard to subscription
should continue a dead letter. This condition of affairs
is iUustrated by the instance of a licentiate ofthe Pres
bytery of Templepatrick named Stephenson. Having
received a call within the bounds of the Presbj'tery of
Bangor, fears were entertained of his orthodoxy, which
were augmented by his refusal to subscribe the Wes-
minster Confession, and the Presbytery hesitated to
install him. In the meantime the people, becoming
impatient, threatened to join the Southern Associ
ation, or the Presbytery of Antrim, which decided
the Presbytery to proceed, and he was ordained and
installed on the 20th of June, 1774, six members
protesting against the action. A few days after, the
Synod met in Antrim and sustained the action of the
Presbytery, and formed the dissentient members into a
new Presbytery, entitled the Presbytery of Belfast.
For more than fifty years the Presbytery of Bangor
continued to license and ordain without any reference
to the Confession, while the Presbytery of Belfast in
sisted steadily upon subscription.
The agrarian excesses began at this period to disturb
various districts in the north of Ireland. Armed bands

844 OCTENNIAL ACT. [Ch. XXVI.
of peasants, calling themselves Hearts of Steel and Hearts
of Oak, went up and down the land administering ille
gal oaths, regulating rents, and committing outrages.
The members of the Synod from the beginning con-
demed these proceedings, and attempted, in public and
orivate, to put a stop to them ; and one of their minis
ters, the Eev. Samuel Morell of Tullyish, was killed in
1772 in defending the house of a neighboring gentle
man from their attack. The grievances which caused
these outbreaks, unequal laws and tyranny of land
lords, drove great numbers to America, and probably
contributed to its separation from the mother country.
Among those emigrants were several ministers from
Ulster, both of the Synod and Secession, though the
Anti-Burgher Synod (in Scotland) refused permission
to their ministers in Ireland ; but Martin, of Bangor,
one of their number, did go over in 1773.
Externally the Presbyterian body was increasing in
importance, as being a check or balance to the Papists.
The passage of the Octennial Act limiting the duration
of parliaments to eight years, gave still greater influ
ence to the Presbyterians, wbo formed an overwhelm
ing majority of the Ulster freeholders. But the Pres
byterian influence was most felt in the organization of
the Irish Volunteers. The regular troops being at this
time engaged in the war in which the American colo
nies achieved their independence, and and the dread
of a French invasion being very general, the country
was encouraged by government to take precautions for
its own defence. Accordingly, the Protestants of the
north formed themselves into companies, elected their
officers, and assembled at stated times for drUl. But
their meetings assumed as much of a political as of a

1778.] VOLUNTEERS. 345
military aspect ; for on these occasions they heard
patriotic speeches, passed bold resolutions, and sent
forward petitions to Parliament. The first organiza
tion was at Belfast, and continued for fifteen years ;
and as the Presbyterians composed the great majority
of the volunteers, their claims during that time re
ceived prompt and unwonted attention from the Leg
islature. In June, 1778, about three' months after the appear
ance of the Volunteers, an attempt was made in the
Irish House of Commons to repeal the Sacramental
Test. The Commons, fearing that the exaraple of the
American colonies might be followed in Ireland, deemed
it prudent to make an effort to conciliate the Eoman
Catholics, and accordingly a bill was brought in for this
purpose ; and as the Sacramental Test formed a part of
the statute for the discouragement of Popery, a clause
was appended to the bill for its repeal. This bill was
passed, and sent to England ; but on its return the
clause was found to have been thrown out. This caused
great indignation in the Irish Commons, and Grat
tan publicly charged the supporters of the government
with having insincerely consented to the introduction
of the clause, merely that the bill might, in the first in
stance, pass the more easily through the Lower House
of Parliament, 'f When it came back," said he, " the
bait was off, and the naked hook discovered." The
t)iU, as returned from England, was passed with dif
ficulty. But the demands of the Irish Protestants could not
longer be neglected. Between August, 1778, and Oc
tober, 1779, the Volunteers increased rapidly, so that
on the reassembling of Parliament they amounted to
15*

346 REPEAL OP THE TEST ACT. [Ch. XXVI.
forty-two thousand men, and the demands of the peo
ple were made in a tone which could not be misunder
stood. Accordingly, on the 12th of October, 1779, the
first day of the session, a bill for the repeal of the Sac
ramental Test was introduced by Sir Edward Newen-
ham, and was passed unanimously, and sent to the
Lord Lieutenant, who, after much delay, sent it to
England, from whence it was returned unaltered on
the Ilth of March, 1780 ; and as soon after as the forms
of Parliament would admit it was passed into a law.
The Presbyterians felt that they were indebted for this
piece of tardy justice, not so much to the enlightened
wisdom of fraternal rulers, as to the brilliant array of
their own armed advocates. It is singular that the re
peal of the Test Act is not even mentioned in any
minute of the Synod of Ulster drawn up about this
period. On the 15th of February, 1782, a meeting of the
Volunteers was held in Dungannon, embracing rep
resentatives from one hundred and forty- three corps.
At this meeting the Presbyterians boldly asserted their
independence of the Irish Legislature, and expressed
their satisfaction at the repeal of the penal laws affect
ing the Eoman Catholics, and resolutions to maintain
the principles of constitutional freedom were passed.
These resolutions were at once adopted with enthusi
asm throughout the country ; and as the government
still refused to yield to the popular demands, a terribl5
convulsion appeared to be approaching. There were
but five thousand regular troops in the country, whilst
the Volunteers now amounted to nearly one hundred
thousand well armed and well disciplined men, united
and exasperated.

1783.] ENGLISH PARLIAMENT YIELDS. 347
At this critical juncture the Lord Lieutenant sent in
his resignation ; but before it was received in- England
a new administration had been formed, headed by the
Marquis of Eockingham, and the Duke of Portland
was appointed Viceroy of Ireland. The new govern
ment, though favorable to the extension of popular
liberty, hesitated to accede to the demands of the Vol
unteers ; but the Lord Lieutenant, in a letter dated
April 28, 1782, writes, "If you delay, or refuse to be
liberal, government can not exist here in its present
form ; and the sooner you recall your Lord Lieuten
ant, and renounce all claims to this country, the bet
ter." This decided the government, and it yielded.
The Parliament of Ireland was relieved from the super
vision of the English Privy Council, and various other
measures calculated to appease the public discontent
were legally confirmed. By an act ofthe Irish ParUa
ment, marriages celebrated among Protestant Dissenters
by their own ministers were declared valid. This was
opposed by the High Church party inthe House of Lords,
but was finaUy carried. About the same time the Seced
ers were afforded some relief, by an act permitting
them to take oaths by holding up the right hand, and
and repeating the words, " I do solemnly and sincerely
swear before Almighty God." But at the same time
it was provided that no Seceder should be quaUfied or
admitted to give evidence in any crirainal cause, or
serve on juries, or hold any office or employment of
trust under the Crown.
On the Sth of September, 1783, at the close of the
general election, a second meeting of the Volunteers
assembled in the Presbyterian Church at Dungannon.
Two hundred and seventy-two companies were repre-

348 SECOND MEETING OF VOLUNTEERS. [Ch. XXVL
sented, and Colonel James Stewart of Killymoon pre
sided over their deliberations. Having achieved the
legislative independence of Ireland, they now de
manded parliamentary reform ; and to accomplish this
a convention was appointed, to meet in Dublin in No
vember; and five deputies were chosen to represent
each county in Ulster, and the other three provinces
were invited, to send their delegates. They accord
ingly met at the appointed time, and presented the
strange spectacle of a Parliament and an armed con
vention sitting at the same time, in the same metrop
olis. The House of Commons resented this attempt
to intimidate it, and after sitting a few weeks the Con
vention adjourned sine die.
WhUe affairs were in this condition the Eev. Dr.
Campbell of Armagh arrived in Dublin for the purpose
of getting an augmentation of the Eegium Donum . The
result of his application was an addition to the Eoyal
Bounty of £1,000, which created much disappointment,
as it was weU understood that the Duke of Portland
had recommended an increase of from £5,000 to £10,000
per annum. When the intelligence of the amount
reached Dr. Campbell, he expressed to the Lord
Lieutenant his regret that it was so small, to which
he answered: "A larger sum had been intended, but
that it was opposed by men of power in this kingdom,
with whom the public business was transacted." At
this same period the Seceders received a bounty of
£500 per annum, through the exertion ofthe Earl of
Hillsborough, to whose son. Lord Kilwarlin, they had
rendered efficient service in the recent election. Thus,
within forty years after the ordination of its first min
ister, the Irish Secession Church was encouraged by
princely patronage.

1788.] BURGHER AND ANTI-BUUGHER SYNODS. 349
This grant being made to the Associate ministers,
whether Burghers or Anti-Burghers, they wore led to
confer together with a view to the adjustment of their
differences; and at a meeting all the elders, and all the
ministers but one, were prepared to consent to certain
terms of accommodation. But at this point the Anti-
Burgher Synod of Scotland interposed and prevented
the union. The three Irish Burgher Presbyteries had
already been formed into a Synod in 1779, and was
not subject to the Scottish court ofthe same name, but
was recognized by it as possessed of coordinate author
ity, so that it could act independently in regard to t!ie
question of union. The two Irish Anti-Burgher Pres
byteries were soon afterwards di-vided into four, and
formed into a Synod, which met for the first time in
Belfast in August 1788, but they still acknowledged
the supervision of the Synod in Scotland, which for a
long tirae prevented the union.
Towards the close ofthe year 1786 a work from the
pen of Dr. Woodward, Bishop of Cloyne, appeared,
which passed through nine editions in a few months,
the object of which was to show that the established
Church was necessary to the national prosperitj'. This
book was answered, among others, by tbe Eev. Dr.
Campbell of Armagh, who proves conclusively that
the Presbyterian Church, instead of being unworthy
of national confidence, has always been the best friend
of the British Constitution, whereas prelacy has more
than once brought the state to tbe very verge of ruin.
This work of Campbell was ans\\ered by the Eev. Dr.
Joseph Stock, an ex-feUow of Trinity College, Dub
lin, and afterwards Bishop successively of Killala and
Waterford. Dr. Campbell replied to Stock, and here

350 ACTS OF THE SYNOD OP 1789. [Ch. XXVI.
the controversy ended. None of these able clergymen
were truly orthodox or evangelical.
During the course of this controversy the Seceders
and the Eeformed Presbytery, which had recently been
extending its influence in the northern province, came
into collision, which resulted in an oral disputation
on the distinctive tenets of their sects, by Eev. John
Eogers of tiie Seceders, and Mr. James M'Garragh, a
licentiate of the Eeformed Presbytery.
The Synod held its annual meeting in 1789 at Lur
gan, and the Eev. James Douglas of Clough was
elected moderator ; he was one of the officers of the
Volunteers and seems to have valued himself on bis
fine military appearance, as he frequently preached in
his regimentals. This Synod was more numerously
attended than any that had been held since the com
mencement of the Subscription controversy. One of
its acts was to confirm the appointment of the Eev.
Eobert Black, the Synod's agent for the Eegium Do
num, in the place of Mr. James Lang. Mr. Black
had been elected to this post at a special meeting of
the Synod, but as it had been objected to as irregular,
the Synod took this opportunity to sanction its former
action. Mr. Black was a leading man among the Pres
byterian ministers of Ulster, and well qualified in every
respect for the office. Shortly after the general elec
tion in 1790, hearing that some of the members of the
Irish Parliament were disposed to support a motion
for an increase of the Eoyal Bounty, he employed all
the energy and address which he possessed in forward
ing the design. Accordingly the subject was intro
duced into the House of Commons at the suggestion of
the Earl of Charlemont, and was cordially taken up by

1792.] INCREASE OF THE REGIUM DONUM. 351
Mr. Grattan, Colonel Stewart and others, and an address
was prepared asking for the increase and forwarded
to the King. But, as it subsequently appeared, the
wishes of the Commons had been anticipated ; for by
a King's letter dated January 21, 1792, an additional
sum of five thousand pounds per annum was granted
" during pleasure, for the use of the Presbyterians in
Ireland," including the Seceders, wbo, through the
infiuence of the Earl of Hillsborough, (now the Mar
quis of Downshire,) got the largest share.
The Eoyal Bounty was now trippled, but the fifteen
years from 1779 to 1793 showed a fearful growth of
error. In 1782 the Presbytery of Killileagh published
a series of resolutions in which the doctrine of imputed
sin is spoken of as blasphemous, yet the Synod did
nothing but pronounce the statement as "highly im
prudent and offensive." The year before it was an
nounced that the Presbytery of Armagh no longer
requfred Subscription of its candidates, but the Synod
deferred the discussion, and in the Synod of next year,
the subject coming up, it was suggested that without
a resolution to the contrary, existing arrangements
must continue, and as no one wished to propose a re
peal of the law the following remarkable minute was
adopted : — " The affair of Subscription deferred to this
session being resumed, this motion was made — If no
one move for a repeal of the rule respecting Subscrip
tion, then the rule shall remain in full force ; and as
no one moved for its repeal, the rule continued." The
New Light party seeing that they had thus sanctioned
the stringent observance of the law, at the Synod in
1783, introduced a resolution which was passed unan
imously that the words "full force," in ihe entry of

352 NEGLECT OF EDUCATION. [Ch. XXVI.
the preceding year should be erased and the words " as
usual " inserted in their place. As the law was now
usually neglected, the orthodox party found that they
had teen entrapped, and at the meeting of 1784, on
their motion " it was moved and agreed to, that the word
' usual ' was vague and improper, and that the word
' full ' in the former minute was unnecessary ; that
neither of these terms be used, and that the words of
the rainute stand — that the rule respecting subscription
is unrepealed.'^ For upwards of forty yeare afterwards
the Synod continued in this uncorafortable and anom
alous condition.
It is an instructive fact that error was most preva
lent in the Synod of Ulster when the couree of educa
tion prescribed for students of theology was most lim
ited. All the theological study now required was a
single session of five raonths, so that some of the min
istere scarcely felt themselves competent for the prep
aration of serraons, and one minister of better capacity
not unfrequently supplied discourses to a number of
his brethren in his neighborhod. The Eev. John
Cameron of Dunluce, declared to his intiraate friends
that "his discourses were preached to six congregations
every Sabbath day," and the Eev. Andrew Alexander
of Urney is known to have assisted his brethren in the
same way.
This neglect of education was brought before the
Synod of 1784, and the Eev. William Crawford of
Strabane was encouraged to undertake the tuition
of students in logic, mathematics and moral philoso
phy, and several ministers of the Synod of Ulster
were educated by him, but not being remunerative,
his school was in a few years discontinued. In 1786

1'92.] REFORMED PRESBYTERY ORGANIZED. 353
the Belfast Academy was opened, but it does not ap
pear that it was ever attended by any considerable
number of professional students, and the students of
Ulster were compelled still to resort to the Universi
ties of Scotland.
Church extension also kept pace with these other
interests. For twenty years, from 1769 to 1789, only
two or three churches were erected, and those not as
regular additions to the Synod, which resolved in 1770
to recognize no congregation which could not give se
curity for a stipend of £50. Meantime the Seceders
were increasing; and in 1792 a Eeformed Presbytery
was organized in Ireland, over which the Eev. William
Stavely was the great apostle.
Political and mUitary movements had secularized
many of the Irish Presbyterians, so that the Sabbath
and the Church were desecrated by political and mili
tary meetings, and strict observance of the day becarae
a badge of Old Light Presbyterians. Even the Cove
nanters did not escape the influence of this " military
mania," the Eev. William Stavely appearing on one
occasion as "reviewing general" of the Volunteers.
The Seceders, on the other hand, assembled vast
crowds at thefr sacraments, which led to great abus&«.
But low as the Presbyterian Church had sunk, the
Establishment was lower still, both as to doctrine and
morality. " Cursing" curates were not unknown ; and
Bishop Law of Clonfert, as the best thing he could do
for Eoman Catholics, circulated among them the in
sidious work of Gother. Yet several Presbyterians of
the highest rank now joined the Church of Ireland, as
the more respectable and fashionable.

CHAPTER XXVII.
1793-1818.
Though the volunteers were now dissolved, and the
elective franchise granted to the Eoman Catholics, the
cry for parliamentary reform, begun in 1783, grew
louder, and seemed likely to be answered by the ap
pointment of Earl FitzwiUiam as Lord Lieutenant,
among whose schemes was the endowment of a Eoman
Catholic college at Maynooth, and a Presbyterian one at
Cookstown. But Earl FitzwiUiam was suddenly re
called, and his successor did not carry out the latter
plan, though Maynooth was endowed. His removal
was followed by intense political excitement, and a
great increase of immorality and infidelity. The Peep-
of-Day Boys, the Defenders, and the Orangemen, were
carrying on a civil war. The most dangerous of these
organizations was that of the United Irishmen, in
1798, designed to separate Ireland from England, as an
independent republic. This has been charged upon
the Eoman Catholics and Presbyterians, but the leaders
belonged chiefly to tbe Established Church, and many
were connected with Trinity College, Dublin, although
both these institutions used their influence against it.
In 1793, when the proceedings of the French repub
licans were attracting much attention, and many were
cherishing treasonable designs, the Synod of Ulster
issued a declaration in favor of parliamentary reform,

1798.] REBELLION. 355
but against all visionary schemes, popular tumult, and
foreign aid. Throughout the next five yeare the Irish
Presbyterian ministers continued faithfully to act up
to the sentiments of this declaration. Dr. Black, the
leader of the Synod, incurred great obloquy and risk
in 1793 by his public opposition to " Seditious spirits
and unproved theories." He acknowledged that great
abuses existed in the constitution, which ought to be
redressed, but he knew of none which would justif)'- the
risk of a civil war. Even in Belfast, the headquarters
of this movement, it was openly denounced by Dr.
Bruce and other leading Presbyterians, as it was by
Dr. M'Dowell in Dublin, who united with others in
special prayer, on Friday evenings, for divine protec
tion. When the wide-spread influence of the United
Irishmen is considered, it is remarkable how few of
the Presbyterian ministers were implicated in the re
bellion. Of the fifty or sixty Seceding ministers not
one in twelve was implicated, whereas two of the nine
ministers of the Antrim Presbytery were obliged to
leave the country, and a third was imprisoned for some
time ; and as many of the eight or nine covenanting
ministers were compromised, besides two young men
who had just finished their studies, and who afterwards
became distinguished in America, Dr. Wylie of Piiila-
delpbia, and Dr. Black of Pittsburg. Daniel English,
a young Covenanter, was executed on the bridge at
Connor. He was a pious and amiable youth, and it
was believed that the evidence on which he was con
victed was untrue. He was conducted from the guard
house in Ballymena to Connor, a distance of about
four miles, diessed in bis grave clothes, and accom
panied by. a large concourse, who joined together in

856 FEW PRESBYTERIANS IMPLICATED. [Ch. XXVII.
singing the 119th Psalm. As the sad company trav
eled along, the "grave sweet melody" of so ipany
voices echoed from hill to hill, and produced a most
solemn impression.
The year 1798 was one of the darkest in the civU
history of Ireland. Acts of rapine and violence were
committed in open day, and informers were encouraged
by the government, even when guilty ofthe raost hor
rid criraes. The insurrection in Ulster was confined
to the counties of Down and Antrira, and even here it
was suppressed in a few days. During this state of tu
mult the Anti-Burgher Presbytery held no meeting,
and the Burgher Presbytery, which met on the 31
of July, broke up on the same day. The Synod of Ul
ster did not meet until the close of August, when it as
sembled at Lurgan, under the protection of the troops
in the northern districts. The French, under General
Humbert, had now landed at Killala ; but the Synod
did not hesitate to express its disapprobation of the
conduct of those under their care who had violated
their allegiance. The sura of £500 was voted to the
government for the defence of the kingdom, and an
address issued to their congregations, remonstrating
with those who had engaged in tbe rebellion, at the
same tirae expressing their satisfaction that so few of
their people were implicated. In the reports of the
Presbyteries to the Synod of 1799, it appeared that
very few of the Presbyterian rainistere had been en
gaged in the rebellion, and that but one had suffered
capitally. This was the Eev. James Porter, of Grey-
abbey, who was condemned by a court-martial, and
executed in his own church on the 2d of July, 1798.
A son of Mr. Porter was a United States Senator from

1803.] THE UNION. 357
Louisiana, and died in 1844 — and another son became
Attorney General of the same State. Three other min
isters, James Simpson, John Glendy, and Thomas L.
Birch, were allowed to emigrate to America.
It is worthy of notice that a large proportion of those
implicated were New Lights, among the rest William
Steel Dickson, D. D., who is said to have been ap
pointed commander of the rebels for the county of
Down, and was imprisoned for three years at Fort
George, in Scotland ; and although he was again
settled after his liberation, he was refused his share
in the Eegium Donum, and died a pauper in Belfast.
The suppression of this rebellion put an end to the po
litical and military mania of the Presbyterians, and was
followed by some faint indications of the subsequent
revival. The scheme of a legislative uniou between Ireland
and Great Britain was recommended to the Presbyte
rians and Eoman Catholics, as likely to promote a lib
eral policy towards them, as the Established Church
would then be safe, being sustained by a majority of
the whole confederated population. No doubt several
prospective advantages were held out to the members
of the Synod of Ulster to induce them to acquiesce in
the arrangement, and among others the proposition of
Lord CornwaUis in 1799, to erect a Presbyterian uni
versity at Armagh, and to send a royal commissioner
to the Synod : but the latter was objected to by the
leading ministers, and the former by the English Cab
inet. It was proposed, however, to enlarge the Eoyal
Bounty, and to change the mode of distribution, by
classifying the ministers, and giving a large sum to a

358 DISTRIBUTION OF ROYAL BOUNTY. [Ch. XXVII.
few, a smaUer sum to a larger number, and a sum stUl
smaller to the mass.
This was opposed in Synod as destroying the parity
of ministers, and defended on the ground that some re
qufred more than others ; that the larger livings would
excite the emulation of young ministers ; and that the
clergy would be less dependent on the government.
The real motive was the contrary however. The Sy
nod of 1800 tried to obtain an alteration of this plan,
but it was finally accepted in 1803, in a modified form,
by dividing the one hundred and eighty ministers into
three equal classes of sixty-two each, and giving them
respectively one hundred, seventy-five, and fifty pounds
each. The Seceders did not share in this, their patron,
the Marquis of Downshire being dead, his son out of fa
vor for opposing the union, and his grandson under age.
Dr. Black was appointed agent for the distribution
of the Eoyal Bounty, with a salary from the govern
ment of £400 a year. This system of distribution was
very unpopular among the ministers of the Synod, and
Dr. Black, who had been active in its arrangement, be
came estranged from his brethren ; and under the la
bor and anxiety of his agency, his body and mind both
became seriously impaired. Hitherto the state provi
sion had yielded the recipient only about £32 a year,
but under the present rate of distributi-on it became
necessary to increase the aggregate amount lo £8,000
or £9,000 per annum. This liberal increase has been
repaid by the influence of the Presbyterian Church in
favor ofthe British connection, and of good order, mak
ing military protection needless ; and not only reduc
ing the amount of pauperism, but helping to pay the
debts of other provinces.

1803-1809.] CLASSIFICATION OF MINISTERS. 359
The internal condition of the Synod was less satis
factory. Dr. Black himself was supposed to be an
Arian, and many of the ministers were understood to
hold the sarae views. The line between Subscribers
and Non-Subscribers was almost effaced. The Presby
tery of Antrim voted in the Synod ; and its licentiates,
with those of the Southern Association, were, by the
Synod of 1805, treated on equal terras with those of
Ulster. But syraptoras of revival now appeared. The
Synod of 1803 recommended attention to family wor
ship, and orthodox young ministere began to multiply,
among whom were Samuel Hanna of Belfast, and
Booth Caldwell of Sligo. An E'v-angelical Associa
tion had been been formed in 1798, for home missions
in Ulster, composed chiefly of Seceders, but with some
from the Synod of Ulster and the Established Church.
It cooperated with the London Missionary Society, but
being declared in 1799 by the Associate Synods as in
consistent with " Secession Testimony," led some Se
ceders to become Independents.
This increase of Congregationalism had its 'influence
upon some of the members of the Synod of Ulster, who
were induced to adopt Independent principles. Among
these was the Eev. Alexander Carson, who becoming
dissatisfied with the Presbyterian system, withdrew
from the Synod in 1805, and joined the Baptists.
The Secession Church was in a better condition ; and
in the seventeen yeare between 1792 and 1809 they
had nearly doubled their number, having now ninety-
one ministers in Ireland. The Associate ministers had
condemned the Synod of Ulster for submitting to the
classification in the distribution of the Eoyal Bounty,
but in 1809 themselves received an augmentation on

360 REVIVAL OF ORTHODOXY. [Ch. XXVIL
the same terms, but of less amount. Those in the first
class were to receive only £70 per annum ; those in
the second, £50 ; and those in the third £40.
This created a great sensation throughout the Seces
sion Church in Ireland. Congregational meetings were
called, resolutions adopted, and the classification de
nounced. The greatest opposition came from the
twenty-four Anti-Burgher ministere, most of whom
were in the lowest class, and it was supposed that
this had some effect in exciting thefr opposition. But
at last the Bounty was accepted by all but the Eev.
James Bryce, of Killeag, who was suspended in 1811,
as an agitator, and became the founder of a small sect,
as he is the father of distinguished teachers at Belfast,
Glasgow and Edinburg. The Covenanters, who re
fused all bounty from the State, now profited by these
divisions, and from nine or ten ministere at the begin
ning of the century, they had increased to four Pres
byteries, the eastern, the western, the northern, and
the southern, forming a Eeformed Presbyterian Synod.
This increase was mainly owing to their faithful preach
ing, which began to be iraitated in the Synod of Ul
ster. From the year 1808 Arian ministers were suc
ceeded by orthodox, and Dr. Cook, in his testimony
before the Commission of Education in 1825, says :
"I was ordained in 1808 ; I believe I succeeded an
Arian ; another friend was ordained in 1808, and he
succeeded an Arian, or one very near to it ; another
friend succeeded, in like manner, a very decided Arian ;
and another friend another Arian — ^until in one whole
district, which was twenty years ago entirely Arian, I
do not know of one single minister j'ou could suspect
of Arianism except one."

1809-12.] BELFAST INSTITUTION. 361
Simultaneous, and connected with this change, was
the increased circulation of the Scriptures. At the an
nual meeting of the General Synod in 1807 several
ministers were appointed to devise means for supply
ing Bibles on easy terms to the humbler class of Pres
byterians ; and in 1809 the committee reported that
"thefr success had exceeded their expectations," and that
they had received remittances for Bibles and Testa
ments to the amount of more than a thousand pounds ;
and in 1811 they announced that the formation of dif
ferent branches of the Hibernian Bible Society in the
province had in a great degree superseded the ne
cessity of thefr labors. A case of discipline which oc
curred about this time attracted much attention. In 1809
the minister of Bailee had been permitted to resign his
charge, and was soon after suspended for immoral prac
tices by the Presbytery of Bangor. He appealed to
the Synod, and during^the progress ofthe case avowed
himself a Unitarian, but was allowed to retain his charge
notwithstanding a protest of seventeen ministers made
at the next meeting of Synod, on the ground that the
doctrine of the Trinity was fundamental, and that its
denial was utterly subversive of Christianity. At this
meeting of Synod the first interest in foreign missions
was manifested, by a notice of Mr. Hanna, of Belfast,
that he would apply to the Synod next year to assist
the society lately formed in London for promoting the
conversion of the Jews ; but at the meeting of 1812
this motion was not called up, on account of the appear
ance of the Eev. Dr. Waugh, as a deputy from the Lon
don Missionary Society, asking to be heard by the
Synod. This request was opposed by some of the mem
bers, who openly denounced the idea of missions to tha
16

362 BELFAST ACADEMICAL INSTITUTE. [Ch. XXVn.
heathen as absurd and Utopian. But, through the in
fluence of Mr. Hanna, and Mr. Henry, of Connor, Dr.
Waugh was allowed to proceed, and, "he had not
spoken half an hour, when there was not a dry eye
to be seen among all his auditore." Frora that day, as
far as the Synod was concerned, every pulpit was
opened to the deputation of the London Missionary
Society. The Synod of 1806 had petitioned the Duke of Bed
ford, then Lord Lieutenant, in behalf of education
for the children of the poor, without any practical re
sult ; but in 1809 the Synod' countenanced the estab
Ushment of the Belfast Academical Institution, and in
1813 recognized its certificates as equivalent to the
diplomas of foreign universities. In 1815 the Eev.
Samuel Edgar of the Burgher Synod lectured in the
Academical Institution, which was now in the receipt
£1,500 a year from the government.
The influence of this institution was very beneficial
to the inhabitants of Belfast, but throughout its exist
ence it struggled against great opposition. In 1816
the government had withdrawn its bounty, and thus
deprived of parliamentary sanction, and not being com
petent to confer academical honors, the Eev. Dr. Black,
one of its most determined enemies, argued that it
would detract from the respectability of the Irish Pres
byterian Church were it to recognize candidates for
the ministry trained up in such an institution ; and
at the meeting of Synod in 1816 he made an effort
to induce the Synod to rescind the resolutions of the
previous year, but his attempt was unsuccessful. The
Synod took measures for endowing a professorship
of Divinity and Church History, and adjourned, to

1817.] REV. JAMES CARLISLE. 363
meet at Cookstown in November for the purpose
of electing a Professor ; but at the time appointed
it was discovered that but little progress had been
made in collecting funds, and that -without proper
maintenance no man of learning could be found to oc
cupy the chair.
At the same time another difficulty arose. Lord
Castlereagh, now secretary of state for foreign affairs,
objected to any connection between the Synod and the
Institution. When reminded by deputies from the
Synod that according to the arrangements made in
1803, at the time of the augmentation of the Eoyal
Bounty, the state was pledged not to interfere with the
Synod's discipline, Castlereagh asked if the deputies
regarded the question of collegiate education as an
affair of discipline ; and when answered in the affirma
tive, he replied that he could not accede to that inter
pretation. At the meeting of the Synod in 1817 the
deputation reported their interview with Castlereagh,
and Dr. Black, who was understood to be in his confi
dence, intimated that if the Synod continued its con
nection with the Belfast Academy the Eegium Donum
would probably be withdrawn from the young men
educated there. It was the prevailing impression
throughout the House that a blow was aimed at the
independence of the Church, and that the Synod had
reached a most important crisis in its history, and yet
the older members hesitated to come forward and re
pel the aggressions.
At this point the Eev. James Carlisle, of Mary's Ab
bey, Dublin, one ofthe youngest ministers, in a speech
worthy, it is said, of the days of Knox and Melville,
justified the course of the Synod. The bold address

364 DR. BLACK DROWNED. [Oh. XXVIL
of the young pastor carried the Synod -with him, and
the resolution, that " the regulations for the education
of young men intended for the mimstry are strictly a
matter of discipline," was carried by an overwhelming
majority. The Synod immediately proceeded to an
election of a Professor of Di-vinity and Church History,
and the Eev. Samuel Hanna, of Belfast, was chosen,
without any opposition from the New Lights, who
now felt themselves to be in a minority. The same
Synod doubled the length of the 'curriculum, by
making it two sessions of six months, and the Irish
candidates began to study at Belfast instead of going
abroad. Dr, Black, whose influence was visibly de
chning, on the 4th of December, 1817, in a fit of in
sanity, threw himself from the bridge in Derry and
was drowned.

CHAPTER XXVIII.
1818-1841.
Various attempts had been made since the begin
ning of the century to unite the Burghers and Anti-
Burghers, but had been defeated by the Anti-Burgher
Synod in Scotland. At length the Anti-Burgher
Synod in Ireland declared itself independent of the
Scottish Synod, and a basis of union being agreed upon,
united with the Burghers on the 9th of July, 1818,
under the designation of " The Presbyterian Synod of
Ireland, distinguished hy the name of Seceders." The
Eev. James Eentoul of Eay was chosen the first Mod
erator. The united Church numbered ninety-seven
ministers. They immediately entered upon the work of Church
extension, establishing preaching stations in towns and
viUages where Presbyterians were before compara
tively unknown, and in 1822 settled the Eev. Josias
Wilson over a new Church in Drogheda.
The Ulster Synod also became active as a mission
ary body, in conjunction with the Southern Association,
now caUed the Synod of Munster. Among its first
missionary agents were James Horner, Eobert Stew
art, and Henry Cooke, through whose efforts a Church
was established at Carlow. The Presbyterians of this
place had formerly belonged to the Southern Synod,

366 NEW CODE OF DISCIPLINE. [Oh. XXVIII.
but the Society becoming extinct about the year 1750,
had applied, by advice of the missionaries, to be taken
under the care of the Synod of Ulster. This request
was granted, and this Church, the first fruits of modern
missionary zeal in Ireland, obtained for its minister
James Morgan, a young man who had been a mem
ber of the first class of the first theological professor
ever formally appointed by the Synod of Ulster ; on
the 21st of June, 1820, he was ordained and installed the
pastor. The Synod of Munster passed a vote of thanks
to these missionaries for their services, and sent a letter
to the Synod of Ulster expressing their readiness to
assist them in extending Presbyterianism in the south.
These bodies, with the Presbytery of Antrim, had
been drawing nearer to each other since the accession
of George IIL, in 1760. When George IV. visited
Ireland in 1821, they waited upon him in a body, led
by the three moderators, and the King appeared to be
greatly gratified by this manifestation of loyalty on
the part of his Irish Presbyterian subjects.
In the meantime the Synod of Ulster was constantly
becoming more evangelical, and its connection with the
other bodies was terminated by its code of discipline,
proposed in 1808 by Horner, prepared by him and
two others, to whom Cooke was added in 1819, and,
after various revisions, finally adopted in 1824. This
code ignored the anomalous position which the Mun
ster Synod and New Lights had long occupied, and
required Presbyteries to ascertain the soundness of
their candidates, either by examination or by subscrip
tion to the Westminster Confession,* which had been
disused for half a century, (though not entirely,) ex
cept in the five Presbyteries of Belfast, Dromore, Dub-

1821-] UNITARIANISM. 36'i
lin, Eoute, and Tyrone. This requisition was haUed
by the Arians as a formal abrogation of Subscrip
tion ! But in 1821 Henry Cooke, who had removed
three yeare before from Donegore to KiUUeagh, in the
Presbytery of Dromore, aided by his elder. Captain
Sydney HamUton Eowan, son of the famous Archi
bald Hamilton Eowan, came forward as the public op
ponent of Unitarianism, following Smithuret, an emis
sary of the English Unitarian Fund Association, from
place to place, and refuting him.
In the Synod of 1822 Cooke denounced the appoint
ment of Mr. Bruce, an accomplished scholar but a Uni
tarian, as Professor of Greek in the Belfast Institution.
Soon after, the professor's father Dr. Bruce, of Belfast,
published a volume of sermons, described by one of
his own party as the first printed avowal and defence
of Unitarians in Ireland since the days of Embyn, in
1702. His statement in the preface, that his principles
were sUently spreading in the Synod, was publicly
contradicted in that body in 1824. These sermons called
forth a powerful "Eefutation of Arianism," by the Eev.
John Paul, a Covenanting minister at Carrickfergus.
In the meantime Mr. Cooke was chosen moderator
of the Synod of Ulster, and while in that office was
caUed upon by the Irish Education Commission to tes
tify in reference to the Irish Presbyterian Church. He
stated that of two hundred ministers connected with
it, about thfrty-five were Arians. The clerk, the Eev.
WUliam Porter, was also examined, and owned him
self an Arian, and said that it was growing among the
" thinking few," and that there were " more real Arians
than professed ones." The report ofthe comnUssionere
was printed eariy in 1827, and this evidence caused

368 OVERTURES OF 1828. [Ch. XXVIII.
great excitement. In the Synod of that year, held at
Strabane, the Eev. Eobert Magill, of Antrim, moved to
displace Porter as clerk, but it was not carried, though
his evidence was censured. Mr. Cooke then moved a
declaration of belief in the words of the Shorter Cate
chism concerning the Trinity, which led to the most
exciting debate which had occurred for a century.
Among others the Eev. Henry Montgomery, of Dun -
murry, made a most eloquent speech against the mo
tion ; but after two days discussion it was carried by
a vote of one hundred and seventeen ministers and
eighteen elders, against two ministers, and eight who
declined voting. After the adjournment of the Sy
nod, Mr. Paul reappeared in a review of Mont
gomery's speech, and a defence of creeds and confes
sions. The Synod of 1828 met at Cookstown on the 28th
of June, and was the most numerous ever known, and
Cooke moved a series of overtures, requiring candi
dates to be examined both at the beginning and at the
end of their course, by a committee of Synod, as to per
sonal religion and soundness in the faith, especially in
reference to the Trinity, Original Sin, Justification by
Faith, and Eegeneration by the Holy Spirit. After a
debate of two days they were carried by a vote of
ninety-nine rainisters and forty elders, ? gainst forty
ministers and seventeen elders, the minority includ
ing many Trinitarians who thought less stringent
measures sufficient for the reformation of the Church.
But Cooke, now the leader of the Old Lights, was sus
tained by an immense majority of the laity, and ably
seconded in Synod by the Eev. Eobert Stewart,
of Broughshane, recently distinguished by his tri-

1829.] JOHN FERRIE ELECTED PROFESSOR. 369
umph over a Eomish priest in oral discussion at Bal
lymena. By the passage of these overtures, Arians
were effectually excluded from the ministry of the
Synod of Ulster, and the Synodical committee now
appointed was entirely composed of Trinitarians, the
Arians on the 16th of October adopted a Eemonstrance
setting forth their grievances, and threatening to with
draw unless they were redressed.
A few days before the meetings of the Synod of 1829
an election took place for a Professor of Moral Philoso
phy in the Belfast Institution in the place of the Eev.
John Young, who had died the preceding March. The
moderator of the Synod, who was one of the electors,
nominated the Eev. James Carlisle, of Mary's Abbey,
Dublin, as the candidate ofthe Synod, but to the surprise
of the community Mr. John Ferric, a licentiate of the
Church of Scotland, was elected. The defeat of Car
lisle was supposed to be the result of an able defence
of the di-yinity of Christ, which he had recently pub
lished. At the meeting of the Synod at Lurgan on the
30th of June, the subject of the election was brought
under discussion, and a warm debate occurred between
Cooke and Montgomery, which lasted several hours,
and resulted in the triumph of the former.
On account of the time absorbed in this discussion
the Synod was unable to touch the subject of the over
tures passed at the previous session, and a special meet
ing was apppointed, to be held at Cookstown in the
following August. This meeting was not attended by
the New Lights (by arrangement), except Porter, who
presented an address and thefr Eemonstrance, signed
by eighteen ministers, fifteen licentiates and students,
one hundred and ninety-seven elders, one hundred
16*

370 REMONSTRANT SYNOD OF ULSTER. [Ch. XXVIII.
and thirty-eight committee-men, and three hundred
and fourteen seatholders, a smaller number than are
found in some single congregations. The overtures
were debated for several sessions, and the committee
for the examination of candidates was reappointed by
a vote of seventy-four ministers and all the elders, to
three ministers, and three not voting. Some of the
orthodox objected to it as interfering with the rights
of Presbyteries.
In the address presented by Mr. Porter the Unitarians
had requested that in the event of the confirmation of
the overtures a committee should be appointed for the
purpose of arranging " a friendly and Christian sepa
ration." This was agreed to by the Synod, and on the
9th of September an amicable separation was arranged,
the remonstrants retaining their share in tbe Eegium
Donum and the Widows' Fund ; and more recently
the Dissenters' Chapels Act has secured them in the
possession of their houses of worship. On the 25th of
May they assembled in Belfast and organized the
" Eemonstrant Synod of Ulster." In 1853 it had
under its care twenty-seven or twenty-eight congrega
tions, and making, with the Presbytery of Antrim and
the Synod of Munster, forty-two churches and about
fifty ministers, with a population of from fifteen to
twenty thousand.
This triumph of Orthodoxy was in great part owing
to the constant use of the Westminster Shorter Cate
chism among the people, even in the worst of times,
so that at least a quarter of a century before the Arian
controversy it was hard for a New Light to obtain a
settlement. Had the Arians continued in the Synod,
they would probably have soon died out without ex-

1830-40.] INCREASE OF THE CHURCH. 371
cision, and the narrative of their overthrow and sep
aration supplies a striking proof of the conservative
energy of Presbyterian government. A doctrinal re
formation, so rapid and so complete, has never yet been
effected in any Church, either Independent or Pre
latic. Late in 1829 Cooke, whose popularity was now un
bounded, was removed to a new Church in Belfast.
The Synod of 1830, which met at Omagh, was per
fectly quiet, and appointed the Eev. James Seaton
Eeid (the historian) their clerk, in the place of Porter.
Mr. Eeid had been moderator in 1827, and was made
Professor of Ecclesiastical History at Belfast, in 1838,
and in 1841, Eegius Professor of Ecclesiastical and
Civil History, at Glasgow. One effect of the change
which had now taken place in the Synod was the im
provement of church buildings throughout Ulster. It
appears that from 1827 to 1837, one hundred and sev
enty congregations had expended £107,000 for this
purpose. In a year from the Synod of 1828, eleven
new churches were organized ; and in ten years between
1829 and 1889, more were added than in the previous
century. Another effect was the improvement in theo
logical education. In 1885 Samuel Davidson became
Professor of Biblical Criticisra, and in 1837 J. S. Eeid
was appointed to lecture on Ecclesiastical History and
Pastoral Theology ; and in 1840 another session was
added to the course. Another effect was the increase
of missionary zeal. The Ulster Home Missionary So
ciety, which was founded in 1826, became extinct in
1829 ; but at the Synod of 1830 the Presbyterian Mis
sionary Society was founded, for the purpose of reyiv-
ing and extending vital religion among Presbyterians

372 NATIONAL EDUCATION. [Ch. XXVIII.
in Ireland. In 1833 the Synod instructed the Dublin
Presbytery to prepare a scheme of foreign missions ;
and no one had a greater share in fostering this mis
sionary spirit than tbe Eev. James Morgan, of Belfast,
who, in 1828, organized a new church in that city, and
in 1852 the contributions of this one church for the
support of the Gospel were more than treble the amount
bestowed by Charles IL on the Presbyterians of Ire
land. From 1831 to 1840 the Church was agitated by the
national education question, but in that year the Synod
accepted the modified system of the government. In the
meantime steps were taken to consolidate the strength
ofthe Irish Presbyterians. In 1829 the Eev. John Brown,
of Aghadoey, proposed to require Subscription from all
candidates for licence or ordination ; and in 1832 the
Synod adopted an overture prescribing a formula of
Subscription, but making no provision for the scruples
of some in regard to certain points, and it soon became
necessary, for the peace of the Church, to return to the
original practice of absolute Subscription. In 1835 a
motion to this effect was carried, by a vote of ninety-
four ministers and thirty-one elders, against twenty
ministers and eight elders. This measure was quickly
followed by a renewal of communion with the Cburch
of Scotland, which had been interrupted by the act
of 1799, and the retaliatory act of 1808, excluding
Scottish ministers and licentiates from the Irish pul
pits, although this act was modified the next year so
as merely to exclude them from vacancies and settle
ments. After the overture of 1835 in favor of unqualified
Subscription, the General Assembly, in which the

1840.] UNION OF THE ULSTER SESSION SYNODS. 373
Evangelicals had lately gained the upper hand,
unaniraously agreed to receive the Irish ministers to
fellowsltip, and a cordial intercourse began which
lasted till tbe disruption, in 1843. In 1838 the gov
erment agreed to equalize the Eegium Donum, pay
ing £75 per annum to every minister, both of the
Ulster and Secession Synods. This, with the previous
purgation of the Ulster Synod, opened the way for a
reunion, which was first proposed in 1839, by the stu
dents of the t^\¦o Churches studying together at Bel
fast, under Dr, Edgar of the Secession Church. Af
ter various preliminary movements, the two bodies
were united at Belfast, on the 10th day of July, 1840,
as the "General Assembly ofthe Presbyterian Church
in Ireland," each Synod retaining its own oriianization
for financial purposes, in execution of the trusts com
mitted to it. This first Assembly was attended by a
deputation from the Cburch of Scotland, consisting of
the Eev. Patrick Macfarlane, the Eev. James Begg, the
Eev. Eobert M. M'Cheyne, and David Maitiand Mak-
gill Crichton, Esq. Two missionaries, the Eev. James
Glasgow and the Eev. Alexander Kerr, were at the
same time set apart for the work in India. The num
ber of Seceding congregations added were one hun
dred and forty-one, making in all three hundred and
thirty-three. The union gave new life to Presbyterianism in Ire
land, and increased the political importance of the
body. In the great struggles of the Scotch Church in
1843, it warmly espoused the cause of non-intrusion.
About the same time, its marriages between Episcopa
lians and Presbyterians having been pronounced ille
gal by the English judges, it obtained an Act of Par-

374 PROSPERITY OF THE CHURCH. [Oh. XXVIIL
liament (1844) warranting such unions, though the
Established Church is still the only one that can
marry parties without reference to their denomina
tion, which has tended to make the Episcopalians
seem more numerous. The true proportion in 1853
was that of three to two in favor of the Presbyterians.
Although few of the Irish aristocracy have ever been
Presbyterians, many have joined this Church from the
Establishment as well as other sects, and it has sus
tained no sensible loss by secession. It is raore free
from pauperism than either of the other great denom
inations. In various parts of Ulster the old gentry of
the country have disappeared, and Presbyterians en
riched by trade have taken their places. And besides
its prosperity at home, the Church is represented in
America by descendants of its former members, three
times more numerous than all the Presbyterians now
in Ireland. Since 1846 there has been an angry
controversy in the Church itself as to the location
of a college, which has resulted in the institution of
two — one at Derry, for general as well as theological
instruction, founded on a princely testamentary endow
ment ; and the other at Belfast, for theology alone, the
other branches of instruction being furnished by the
new Queen's College at that place, and the govern
ment supporting both the faculties.
But even while these controversies were in progress
their unfortunate efforts were in a great measure neu
tralized and counteracted by the spiritual and organic
growth of the whole body, as evinced by its devotion
to the work of missions, its agressive movements in
all suitable directions, and the systematic organization
of these movements on a somewhat novel and peculiar

1854.] THE LAST SIX YEARS. 875
plan, but one which seems to be fully justified by its
results. A Board, elected by the Presbyteries, has a
general supervision of the schemes or enterprises of
the Church ; but over each field of operation is a single
minister, who makes that field his province and his
study, and is looked to for information and for counsel
with respect to its officers.
The last six yeare have been yeare of undisturbed
peace and of steady growth, distinguished by the en
ergetic working of the old schemes, and the starting of
some new ones, such as that for building manses, and
another for increasing the salaries of ill-paid ministers,
increased attention to the state of practical religion,
the observance of the Sabbath, the reformation of man
ners, and the education of the people. With a par
donable pride, if we may use the term in this connec
tion, the historian looks back, through the vista of
two hundred and fifty years, to the time of the plan
tation and the military organization, and contrasts
those weak beginnings, not only with the intervening
lapses and recoveries, but with the present spectacle
of one united Presbyterian body, made up of five
Synods, six and thirty Presbyteries, and above five
hundred churches, with an average income of one
hundred and seventeen pounds to every minister, be
sides its representatives in many a home and foreign
field of labor. " Never at any period of the past has
the Presbyterian Church of Ireland been more united
in doctrine, more efficient in ber ministrations, or more
prosperous, sociaUy and spiritually, than at present;
ready to enter on, and, with God's blessing, to carry
to a successful issue any great and good work that lies

376 THE REVIVAL. [Ch. XXVIII.
fairly in her way. And even yet she scarcely knows her
own strength."
A striking comment on these words is afforded by
the great awakening which has taken place since
they were written, and in which the voice of God
still says to his people in that suffering yet highly
favored island, " The JOY or the Lord is your
STRENGTH."

THE END.