m under which the Orange-men acted, unless perhaps the
plunder of arms, to deprive the Catholics of which was one of their
proposed objects.

With what reason the Irish administration were charged with having
clandestinely excited, or culpably connived at the excesses of these
men, the people of England may determine when they hear that the
magistracy of that country remained for many months inactive spectators
of these scenes; nay, indeed, in some cases, are said to have given
countenance and support to the offenders, by executing the laws with the
most inflexible rigour against the Catholics when they happened to fall
into any casual error in repelling the attacks of their persecutors,
while these latter were left in the enjoyment of perfect impunity.

But this is not the only circumstance which may assist an Englishman to
judge how far the Irish administration participated in the guilt of
these disturbances--there is another which seems pretty decisive on
this point; and that is, that notwithstanding this palpable and
notorious misconduct of the Armagh magistracy, not one man was turned
out of the commission for his negligence and connivance on those
occasions! What apology did the Irish Chancellor offer for not removing
those magistrates?--"That better men could not be found in the country!"

This feud, so malignant in its origin, and so destructive in its
progress, was possibly expected to have weakened the efficacy of the
popular sentiment against the Irish Ministers, by throwing the different
religious descriptions to a consideration of their respective and
peculiar interests. It produced a very contrary effect. The persecution
commenced against the Catholics in Armagh, alarmed the Catholics in
every quarter of the country; and when they saw such enormities
committed against them with impunity, if not with the approbation of the
Castle, they naturally apprehended that a general persecution was
designed. They knew, however, that the great body of the Protestants in
Ireland were too enlightened to assist in such a scheme--for they had
already experienced that the rigour of old prejudices was abated, and
that men now began to consider each other rather as men than as
religionists.--But they also knew the character of the administration;
and the recent transactions in Armagh and elsewhere, taught them, that
though they had no reason to fear persecution from the great body of
their Protestant fellow-subjects, they w