ly cramping the industry of the people
of Ireland, without doing herself the greatest prejudice.'" (Note g, pp.
320-321). [T. S.]

[104] The causes for absenteeism are thus noted by Lecky ("Hist. of
Ireland," p. 213, vol. i., ed. 1892): "The very large part of the
confiscated land was given to Englishmen who had property and duties in
England, and habitually lived there. Much of it also came into the
market, and as there was very little capital in Ireland, and as
Catholics were forbidden to purchase land, this also passed largely into
the hands of English speculators. Besides, the level of civilization was
much higher in England than in Ireland. The position of a Protestant
landlord, living in the midst of a degraded population, differing from
him in religion and race, had but little attraction, the political
situation of the country closed to an Irish gentleman nearly every
avenue of honourable ambition, and owing to a long series of very
evident causes, the sentiment of public duty was deplorably low. The
economical condition was not checked by any considerable movement in the
opposite direction, for after the suppression of the Irish manufactures
but few Englishmen, except those who obtained Irish offices, came to
Ireland."

The amount of the rent obtained in Ireland that was spent in England is
estimated elsewhere by Swift to have been at least one-third. In 1729,
Prior assessed the amount at L627,000. In the Supplement to his "List of
Absentees," Prior gives eight further "articles" by which money was
"yearly drawn out of the Kingdom." See the "Supplement," pp. 242-245 in
Thone's "Collection of Tracts," Dublin, 1861. [T. S.]

[105] John Erskine, Earl of Mar, has elsewhere been characterized by
Swift as "crooked; he seemed to me to be a gentleman of good sense and
good nature." The great rebellion of 1715, for which Mar was
responsible, was stirred up by him in favour of the Pretender, and
succeeded so far as to bring the Chevalier to Scotland. The Duke of
Argyll, however, fought his forces, and though the victory remained
undecided, Mar was compelled to seek safety in France. The rebellion
caused so much disturbance in every part of the British Isles that
Ireland suffered greatly from bad trade. [T. S.]

[106] Joshua, Lord Allen. See note on p. 175. [T. S.]

[107] See page 60 of vol. iii. of the present edition. [T. S.]

[108] Chief Justice Whitshed. [T. S.]

[109] See page 14. [T. S.]

[110] Edward Water