Cameron of Lochiel, had been engaged in the rebellion of 1745, and, after the decifive victory of Culloden, had effected his efcape to the continent. Notwithstanding his being attainted by act of parliament, he ventured, after an interval of nine years, to return incognito to Scotland, in order to tranfact certain affairs of great confequence, but of a nature entirely private and personal-relying, in case of exigence, with fatal indifcretion, on the mildness and equity of the British government, now raifed far above the apprehenfion of danger, on the temper of the times, and the general refpectability of his own character. Being, however, by fome means difcovered, he was apprehended and brought to his trial at the Old Bailey; and his perfon being legally identified, he was convicted, and fuffered the death of a traitor with admirable firmness and refignation. It is remarkable, that even the populace were melted into tears at the melancholy spectacle of his execution; generoufly lamenting the exceffive rigor of his fate; which can never be justified upon any public principles of neceffity or utility, and which bears the odious aspect of an act of obdurate and fanguinary revenge. A far more confpicuous proof, however, of the rashness and incapacity of the prefent administration, appeared in the haughty tenor of their conduct respecting the parliament of Ireland, in an affair of great delicacy and importance-unmindful that the harp, emblematic of this kingdom, produces by means of foft and gentle touches only its genuine harmony. In the year 1749, a confiderable furplus remaining in the Irish exchequer, the house of commons in that country, conceiving that they had an undoubted right to appropriate fuch furplus to national purposes, prepared heads of a bill with that defign, to which was affixed the following preamble: "Whereas, on the 25th of March laft, a confiderable balance remained in the hands of the vice-treasurers, or receivers-general, of the kingdom, or their deputy or deputies, unapplied and it will be for your majesty's service,

and

and for the ease of your faithful subjects in this kingdom, that so much thereof as can be conveniently spared fhould be paid, agreeably to your majesty's most gracious intention, in discharge of part of the national debt," &c. &c. On the tranfmiffion of this bill to England, it was affirmed by the warm partifans of prerogative in the council, that the commons of Ireland had no right to apply any part of the unappropriated revenue, nor even to take into confideration the propriety of such appropriation, without the previous consent of the crown, formally and explicitly declared. In the enfuing feffion of parliament therefore, A. D. 1751, the duke of Dorfet, lord lieutenant of Ireland, informed the two houses of parliament, in his speech from the throne, "that he was commanded by the king to acquaint them, that his majesty, ever attentive to the ease and happinefs of his subjects, would graciously consent, and recommended it to them, that such a part of the money then remaining in his treasury as should be thought confiftent with the public fervices, be applied towards the farther reduction of the na tional debt." The commons of Ireland, aftonished at this procedure of the court, and tremblingly alive in a cafe which fo nearly concerned their privileges, omitted, in their addrefs of thanks, all mention of his majesty's consent, and only acknowledged his gracious attention to their ease and happiness, in recommending to them the application of the furplus. And in the subsequent bill framed for this purpofe, in which 120,000l. were appropriated to the discharge of the public debt, the fame omiffion was obfervable. The ministers in England, highly offended with this contumacious conduct, returned the bill with an alteration in the preamble, fignifying his majefty's confent as well as approbation. And the Irifh houfe of commons, unwilling to rifk the confequences of a ferious rupture, paffed the bill without farther notice. So far had the mifunderstanding between the crown and parliament of Ireland proceeded previous to the death of Mr. Pelham, and thus might it

have

have for ever rested, had not the evil genius of the present minister suggested the neceffity of supporting the honor of government, by pofitive directions to the duke of Dorset, in opening the feffion of the prefent year, to repeat the expreffion of his majesty's gracious confent, in mentioning the furplus of the public money. The house, in their address, not only again omitted the obnoxious word confent, but the former expreffions of grateful acknowledgment: and the Bill of appropriation was tranfmitted to England, entirely divested of the ufual complimentary preamble, which the minifters of the crown in England, in their great wisdom, thought fit thus to supply-“ And your majesty, ever attentive to the ease and happiness of your faithful subjects, has been graciously pleased to fignify that you would confent, and to recommend it to us that fo much of the money remaining in your majesty's treasury as fhould be neceffary, be applied to the discharge of the national debt, or such part thereof as fhould be thought expedient by parliament." On the return of the bill, the whole nation feemed animated by the spirit of refistance, and, notwithstanding the utmost efforts of the court, the bill, thus amended, was thrown out by a majority of five voices, and the victory of the oppofition was celebrated by univerfal rejoicings. In revenge, all those who voted against the bill holding public employments were immediately difmiffed. But the rejection of the bill occafioning a great ftagnation in the ufual course of circulation, and the clamor of the public rifing high against the government, it was thought proper and neceffary, by an humiliating conceffion, to devote the furplus to the discharge of the debt in virtue of a royal letter. Thus was the dignity of government, which ought never to be lightly or capriciously committed, most fenfibly wounded. Ireland was taught to know her own ftrength and importance, and the firft fymptoms of that high and haughty fpirit of independence were now discernible, which have fince produced fuch mighty effects.

If England, at this period, exhibited, by the clamorous oppofition of almost all ranks of people to the Jew Bill, plain indications that the spirit of fanaticism was by no means extinguished in the nation, the same spirit operated, at the same time, in France, in a manner much more serious and alarming. Under a delufive veil of feftivity, pomp, aed fplendor, the court of Versailles, during the whole reign of Louis XIV. and particularly the latter years of it, concealed a most unrelenting and fanguinary fpirit of bigotry and perfecution. This spirit displayed itself not merely in the savage folly of that policy by which he attempted the extirpa. tion of the proteftants, but also in his treatment of fuch of the catholics themselves as prefumed, in any respect, to de-. viate from the established dogmas of the Romish church. About the middle of the last century, a very celebrated treatife, under the title of Auguftinus, had been written by Cornelius Jansen, bishop of Ypres, on the abftruse theological topics of grace, predeftination, and free-will, in which he explains those tenets in a mode different from that usually adopted and maintained in the schools, but perfectly confonant, as this reverend and learned prelate alleged, to the divine and apoftolic doctrine of the great St. Austin. As this novel, and therefore rash explication, however, very nearly accorded with that of Calvin and the other leading reformers of the protestant churches, it excited great alarm and indignation; and the book was repeatedly cenfured, at different and diftant intervals of time, by the intervention and authority of the papal chair. Nevertheless, the partifans and admirers of this famous treatise, who were now dif tinguished by the name of Janfenists, feemed continually to increase; and it was at length thought neceffary, by a bull iffued by pope Clement XI. at the beginning of the present century, with all the terrific accompaniments of pontifical authority, folemnly to declare," that all the faithful ought to condemn as heretical, not only with their mouths, but in their hearts," certain specified propofitions,

in number no less than one hundred, extracted from the book of Janfenius. This conftitution was received by the Gallican church, and promulgated by the king's command and authority. But this bull, far from terminating, only aggravated and inflamed the difpute; and converted it from a theological to a political controverfy. The clergy in general, and more especially the Jefuits, were eager and zealous in their efforts to fupport the dignity of the Romish see, and to enforce the acceptance of the papal bull. On the other hand, the parliaments of the kingdom, and particularly the parliament of Paris, embraced every opportunity to exprefs their contempt and hatred of the bull and of its partifans. The archbishop of Paris, a haughty and turbulent prelate, flood forth at this period as the champion of the church, and encouraged and commanded the clergy to deny the facraments in articulo mortis to all perfons refusing to fubfcribe the bull UNIGENITUS.* Divers ecclefiaftics adhering to this injunction, were apprehended by the authority of the parliament, for their contumacious and illegal conduct. Severe cenfures were paffed upon the archbishop, and a profecution actually commenced against the bishop of Orleans; when a mandate from the court was iffued, prohibiting all farther proceedings in these matters. The parliament, in return, presented a spirited remonftrance to the throne, declaring it to be their indifpenfable duty and privilege to denounce and execute judgment on all delinquents. And, on the renewal of the royal command, they framed new remonftrances, to which the king refufed to reply, referring them to his former peremptory declaration. Upon which the parliament refolved "that the different chambers should remain affembled, but that all business should be fufpended while, by the practices of evil-minded perfons, truth was prevented

By this appellation the bull was univerfally known, the term Unigenitus being the fit word contained in it.