m, and, by simply swearing
to the fact, take possession. (12) Any Protestant might take away the
horse of a Catholic, no matter how valuable, by simply paying him L5.
(13) Horses and wagons belonging to Catholics, were in all cases to be
seized for the use of the militia. (14) Any Catholic gentleman's child
who became a Protestant, could at once take possession of his father's
property.

I have only enumerated some of the enactments of this code, and I
believe there are few persons who will not be shocked at their atrocity.
Even if the rights of Catholics had not been secured to them by the
Treaty of Limerick, they had the rights of men; and whatever excuse, on
the ground of hatred of Popery as a religion, may be offered for
depriving men of liberty of conscience, and of a share in the government
of their country, there can be no excuse for the gross injustice of
defrauding them of their property, and placing life and estate at the
mercy of every ruffian who had an interest in depriving them of either
or of both. Although the seventeenth century has not yet been included
in the dark ages, it is possible that posterity, reading these
enactments, may reverse present opinion on this subject.

But though the Parliament which sat in Dublin, and was misnamed Irish,
was quite willing to put down Popery and to take the property of
Catholics, it was not so willing to submit to English rule in other
matters. In 1698 Mr. Molyneux, one of the members for the University of
Dublin, published a work, entitled _The Case of Irelands being bound by
Acts of Parliament in England, stated_. But Mr. Molyneux's book was
condemned by the English Parliament; and after a faint show of
resistance, the Irish members succumbed. The next attention which the
English Houses paid to this country, was to suppress the woollen trade.
In 1698 they passed a law for the prevention of the exportation of wool
and of manufactures from Ireland, "under the forfeiture of goods and
ship, and a penalty of L500 for every such offence." The penal laws had
made it "an offence" for a man to practise his religion, or to educate
his children either in Ireland or abroad; the trade laws made it "an
offence" for a man to earn[550] his bread in an honest calling. The
lower class of Protestants were the principal sufferers by the
destruction of the woollen trade; it had been carried on by them almost
exclusively; and it is said that 40,000 persons were reduced to utter
desti