mediately upon the discovery of the plot in Dublin, finding there was not many concerned in the northern insurrection but men of desperate for. tunes, and apprehending that few estated natives would willingly engage in a rebellion, took what measures they could to provoke and frighten them into it in order to which design they sent out several parties, as well in remote places as round about Dublin, who murdered a great many without distinction of age or sex: particularly at Santry, Clontarff, Bullock, all within three or four miles of the City, where they massacred in the beginning of November, 1641, near upon fourscore of the country people; as the garrison of Carrickfergus some days before butchered in one night all the inhabitants of the country called. Island Magee, to the number of two or three thousand men, women and children. The like feats were done by the Lord Broghill, late Earl of Orrery, in the counties of Cork, Waterford, and the parts adjacent: by Sir Charles Coote in his expedition into the county of Wicklow; by Captain Peasely Brown and others in the county of Tipperary, and in fine, because it was a general contrivance, by most of the Protestant garrisons of any strength, ali over the kingdom.

The Irish who were in arms in Ulster, contained themselves hitherto from doing any more mischief, than plundering and stripping the Protes

tants

See narrative of the troubles in Ireland, page 5. And collection of murders committed upon the Irish, Printed at London, Anno 1662, page 1,8, 9, 15, 19, 23. &c.

tants, without touching the lives of any that did not appear in arms against them, but hearing of the inhuman proceedings aforesaid, they were so far exasperated, that although the leading men amongst them were not so void of humanity as to revenge their countrymen's death upon those that had no hand in their blood, yet the common soldiers took a resolution to use the Protestants in the North no better than the Catholics were treated there, or in the other provinces: and upon this single account many hundreds of lives were on both sides lost in cold blood, each party pretending to revenge the murders committed by the other upon their friends.

It is not yet known how many were thus sacrificed on either side; but too many they were, be they never so few. Sir John Temple's romantic legend, where he draws up his muster rolls of two or three hundred thousands of English Protestants massacred in one province, is not only incredible, but most ridiculous and absolutely impossible; for (to omit that some hundreds, said to have been there slain, were living for many years after, and some of them lived to see the restoration) all known men must own, there was not half that number of Protestants in the whole kingdom in summer 1641, as the aforesaid author of the Catholic Apology, an English person of honour, who generously took some pains to examine this aspersion, has proved, not only from good reasons, but even from Protestant writers. And concludes upon the whole matter, that all these hundreds of thousands

B 3

In his reply, page 53, &c.

thousands said to have been murdered in the north could not exceed three thousand. And 8ir W. Petty an Englishman and a Protestant too, who was clerk to the Usurper's Council, and SurveyorGeneral of the lands in Ireland, an ingenious inquisitive person, affirms, that upon the exactest scrutiny there were not above thirty-six thousand on both sides killed in the field, or murdered in cold blood during the whole war.

it

However it be, for It stands not with my intended brevity to enter now upon the particulars, is manifest there were six times more of the Catholics massacred than of the Protestants, upon that revolution. First, because most of the Protestants, lived at that time in cities, walled towns and castles, which secured them from the fury of the rabble; and the rest, who lived scattered up and down the country, retired in all the haste they could into these towns and places of strength, as soon as the troubles began, and there they continued during the war, or withdrew into England or Scotland; so that few or none of them perished, but such as fell in the very beginning of the confusion; whereas the Catholics being all along exposed in the open country, to the fury of their merciless enemies, were for the space of twelve years together butchered upon all occasions. Seaondly, because what was done to the Protestants was committed by the unruly rabble, not only without, but contrary to the orders of their leaders, by whom therefore several of the murderers were hanged for their barbarous doings. But the Protestants

More Catholics murdered than Protestants,

Protestants in most places acred their parts by pub. lic orders, being commanded not to spare the least child, though but a span long, as Sir Charles Coote, often expressed himself to parties he sentabroad to butcher the Irish. Thirdly, because of the very small number of Catholics executed by the Cromwelians, upon the account of those murders, who, had they been three times so many, and all guilty, could not rationally be supposed able to kill any considerable number of Protestants, unless we fancy them so many giants, or truly to answer the characters given in a compliment by the women of Israel, that Saul had killed his thousands, and David his ten thousands, * for, as soon as Ireland was reduced by the usurpers, they erected their pretended high court of justice, wherein all possible enquiries were made all over the kingdom to find out what murders had been committed upon the Protestants during the war, and swarms of witnesses were hired to swear home; but notwithstanding all the noise and clamour of three hundred thousand said to have been massacred in one province on there were but one hundred and forty Irish, both men and women, (for in this case neither age nor sex was regarded) and but few of them of any note condemned, though their very enemies were their Judges, on pretence of all the murders committed by the Catholics from first 10 last. And most of those protested at their death, (the only time men ought to be most believed) that they were innocent of the crimes laid to their charge. But if such inquiries had been made on

1 Sam. 187.

the

the other side, and every murderer of them brought to answer for himself, I dare say the tenth man of the parliamentarians of Ireland could not escape before any just tribunal upon earth, and so sensible was that very party of the truth of this assertion, upon the late King's restoration, that when some Irish Catholics then in London, who took upon them to act there for their countrymen, proposed and pressed that all the murderers on both sides should be excepted out of the act of indemnity, these Protestants guilty conscier ces so plainly appeared that they could not indure to hear of the proposal, nor think themselves safe till they were assured there was none excepted out of the act but some few regicides, and the Catholics of Ireland.

This in brief is the naked truth of that tragical history, which has raised so great a clamour in the world. The Catholics suffered in much greater number, but dying as it were dumb, like so many sheep brought to the slaughter, their blood made no great noise, at least in England; but the Protestants fell, as I may say, with so many speaking trumpets in their mouths, that every individual 'seemed an hundred. And it was next to a miracle they were not made some millions, since several millions of inveterate republicans made their daily business to repeat, like so many echoes, the cruelties committed upon their party, though not so much out of any love or pity to those that suffered, as for wicked ends of their own; that is, to defame and run down the King at any rate, to whom with more than diabolical malice, they attributed all these murders; and by that means, and such other Godly contrivances of theirs, murdered him

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