Review of the Evidence of the pretended General Conspiracy of the Roman Catholics of Ireland to massacre "all the Protestants that would not join with them," on the 23d of October, 1641.*

THE tale of this conspiracy has been so universally credited; so large a portion of the possessors of confiscated property in Ireland have been for nearly one hundred and ninety years interested in affording it support and countenance; so much art and talent have been, during that time, employed in giving it an air of plausibility; there is so much difficulty in proving a negative in any case, more particularly in the present one, which is naturally, and has been moreover artfully, involved in mystery; and it is so extremely arduous an undertaking to operate upon the public mind, when imbued with inveterate prejudices, that the task is truly Herculean, and I should have abandoned it as impracticable, but that the narrative itself is replete with so many incredible and incongruous circumstances, as to carry strong internal evidence of fraud.

In order to give the story fair play, and to enable the reader to form a correct opinion on the subject, with all the evidence before him, I shall give the whole account of the discovery of the plot, as it stands in Temple's History of the Irish Rebellion, the authority almost solely relied on by all the subsequent writers on the subject. Some slight extracts are added from Borlace, containing a few additional particulars.

To simplify the examination, the narrative is divided into short sentences, each containing perfect sense, to oblige the reader to pause and reflect, as he proceeds.

The discussion of this question being one of considerable historical importance, the reader's calm and candid consideration of it, is earnestly invoked. It is hoped that, laying aside all preconceived opinions on the subject, he will revolve it in his mind, as if it were wholly new, and he had now, for the first time in his life, to form a decision on it.

Extracted from the Vindicia Hibernicæ.

There are unfortunately, too many to whom a compliance with this request is impossible: and indeed a large proportion of mankind can never command independence of mind enough even to examine evidence that militates with their early, and, of course, inveterate, prejudices; far less ever to abandon those prejudices. There are, therefore, thousands who would as soon doubt any of the demonstrations of Euclid, or the existence of the solar system, as the existence of the universality of the plot of" the execrable rebellion of 1641."

To this contracted class I do not address myself: with them I have no fellowship: "Even though one were to rise from the dead," his testimony would not convince them. Let them hug the chains of their bigoted prejudices. The appeal is to that respectable description of readers, whose minds, open to conviction, are at all times ready to yield to the force of evidence, how strongly soever it may militate against opinions which have 66 grown with their growth." The favourable decision of one such reader, with a clear head and sound heart, would outweigh the disapprobation of a whole army of the slaves of prejudice.

Extracts of Temple's History of the Irish Rebellion.*

1. "Sir William Cole, upon the very first apprehensions of something that he conceived to be hatching among the Irish, did write a letter to the lords justices and council, dated the 11th of October, 1641.

2. "Wherein he gave them notice of the great resort made to sir Phelim O'Neal, in the county of Tyrone, as also to the house of the lord Macguire, in the county of Fermanagh, and that by several suspected persons, fit instruments for mischief;

3. "As also that the said lord Macguire had of late made several journies into the Pale and other places, and had spent his time much in writing letters and sending despatches abroad.

4. "These letters were received by the lords justices and council; 5. "And they, in answer to them, required him to be very vigilant and industrious to find out what should be the occasion of those several meetings, and speedily to advertise them thereof, or

The reader will please to observe, that these extracts are taken verbatim from the original work; and, unless where otherwise distinctly marked by a dash, thus form an unbroken consecutive series.

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of any other particular that he conceived might tend to the public service of the state."

6. "They [the lords justices] had not any certain notice of the general conspiracy of the Irish, until the 22d of October, in the very evening before the day appointed for the surprise of the castle and city of Dublin.

7.." The conspirators being, many of them, arrived within the city, and having that day met at the Lion tavern, in Copper alley, and there turning the drawer out of the room, ordered their affairs together, drunk healths upon their knees to the happy success of the next morning's work.

8. "Owen O'Conally, a gentleman of a mere Irish family, but one that had long lived among the English, and been trained up in the true Protestant religion, came unto the lord justice Parsons, ABOUT NINE O'CLOCK THAT EVENING!!

9. "And made him a broken relation of a great conspiracy for the seizing upon his majesty's castle of Dublin.

10. "He gave him the names of some of the chief conspirators! assured him that they were come up expressly to the town for the same purpose; and that next morning they would undoubtedly attempt, and surely effect it, if their design were not speedily prevented;

11. "And that he had understood all this from Hugh MacMahon, one of the chief conspirators, who was then in the town, and came up but the very same afternoon, for the execution of the plot;

12. "And with whom indeed he had been drinking somewhat liberally; and as the truth is, did then make such a broken relation of a matter that seemed so incredible in itself, as that his lordship gave very little belief to it at first!!!

13. "In regard it came from an obscure person, and one, as he conceived, somewhat distempered at that time.

14. "But howsoever, the lord Parsons gave him order to go again to Mac-Mahon!!! and get out of him as much certainty of the plot!!! with as many particular circumstances, as he could!!! straitly charging him to return back unto him the same evening!!!

15. "And in the meantime, having by strict commands given to the constable of the castle, taken order to have the gates thereof

Temple's History, Dublin edition, 1724, page 18.

well guarded, as also with the mayor and sheriffs of the city to have strong watches set upon all the parts of the same, and to make stay of all strangers,

16. "He went privately!! about ten of the clock that night, to the lord Borlace's house without the town, and there acquainted him with what he understood from O'Conally.*

17. "They sent for such of the council as they knew then to be in the town,

18. "But there came only unto them that night sir Thomas Rotheram and Sir Robert Meredith, chancellor of the exchequer: with these they fell into consultation what was fit to be done!!! attending the return of O'Conally.

19. "And finding that he staid somewhat longer than the time prefixed, they sent out in search after him;

20. "And found him seized on by the watch, and so he had been carried away to prison, and the discovery that night disappointed,

21. "Had not one of the lord Parsons' servants, expressly sent, amongst others, to walk the streets, and attend the motion of the said O'Conally, come in, and rescued him, and brought him to the lord Borlace's house.

* Although I shall in the sequel analyse this precious narrative at length, I cannot refrain from calling the reader's attention to these two paragraphs, 16 and 17, as they alone would be sufficient with impartial men, to discredit the whole plot. Sir William Parsons, being in the city of Dublin at nine o'clock at night, is informed of a plot to explode in thirteen hours.-Instead of at once seizing the conspirators, he sends a drunken man, whose absence must have excited suspicion, to make further discoveries-and at ten o'clock, he goes “privately" to Lord Borlace's house “out of town”—and then sends for such of the council as he knew to be then "in town." Was there ever a more Munchausen tale? It is hardly calculated to impose on an idiot. How far out of town sir John's house was, cannot be ascertained-suppose only a mile. Then he walked a mile-the messenger another-and such of the council as were found, had to walk a third mile, and for what? To be so far removed from the scene of action, and from the means of applying a remedy to the impending evils, as to give every opportunity to the conspirators to insure their success! Here was a most pernicious delay, when every moment was invaluable!! Had there been any reality in the plot, sir William would have remained “in town”—collected all of the council there at the time-sent a messenger out of town" for sir John Borlace-and then collected the whole body at their posts, where they ought to be on such an emergency.

Here is the dodging "into town," and "out of town."