the harbour, sallying out with their soldiers, and trumpet, and a troop of horse; burning and breaking open houses, taking away goods, preying of the cattle, with ruin and spoil, rather than supply to themselves; and all this committed, not only upon those who protected, but upon them who were most forward to relieve and assist them, not sparing mine," adds his lordship, "frequently upon fancy, or rumor, without examining the occasion; the captain of the fort shooting his ordance into the town, or threatening to do it, keeping disorderly sentries at every gate, abusing those that offer to go out, threatening to take them prisoners to the fort, and to exercise martial law upon them; killing, and robbing poor peo ple, that came to market, burning their fishing-boats, and not suffering them to go out, and no punishment inflicted upon any that committed these outrages; and, as I am well informed," adds he, "acting most things without any regard to the king's honor engaged, or any respect at all to me, in action, though much in profession." "These particulars, my lords," proceeds lord Clanrickard, "do so distemper and disquiet all men's thoughts, even those that have been most forward to do service, that it is like to be of most dangerous consequence at this time, when Mayo,* Sligo, Thomond, and other countries, have prepared forces, and are ready to fall upon my lord president and myself. I must therefore most humbly and earnestly intreat your lordships to take a speedy course, that the country may be quieted and satisfied, that destruction is not intended against the well affected; that I may be repaired in my honor, and preserved to that action, Mr. Dell and Mr. Peters, they were well assured, wouldwillingly bear them company; for they had often said to these agitators, your majesty is but a dead dog. My prayers are for your majesty's safety; but I do too much fear it cannot be, while you are in those hands.”— Reliquiæ Carol. Sacræ. p. 207. In consequence of this information, his majesty privately withdrew himself from Hampton-court, on the 11th of the same month, attended only by sir John Berkley, Ashburnham, and Legg. "In the middle of July 1642. None were more forward or came in greater numbers than the county of Mayo-men; and the rather because in all the conflicts of Connaught against the English, few of that county came to fight with us: they drew together eighteen hundred or two thousand foot, and an hundred and sixty horse.”—Borl, Irish Rebel. fol. 105. in my authority, now grown into contempt; or that your lordships will be pleased to discharge me of the burden of this government, for, in this manner, I may not longer hold it, with disservice to his majesty, and danger and dishonor to myself." CHAP. XX. Further severities of the lords justices. ABOUT this time," sir John Read, one of the gentlemen of his majesty's privy-chamber, then in Ireland, being intrusted with letters to his majesty, by the nobility and gentry of the pale, was invited by the lords justices to repair to Dublin, that they might confer with him before his departure; but at his coming to Dublin, he was committed close prisoner to the castle, notwithstanding they wrote for him, and though he told them, he brought letters to his majesty. Soon after this they put him to the rack."* 2 Lord Dunsany, who lived quietly in his own house, doing all acts of humanity to the distressed English, even at the hazard of his life, came with his son to Dublin, and surrendered himself to the government, "where he was immediately imprisoned, and indicted by a jury which did not consist of free ▾ Cart. Orm. vol. iii. fol. 295. The King's Letter. 2 Id. ib. * « The principal question put to him while on the rack was whether the king was privy to, or encouraged the rebellion? The lords justices devoted to that party, (in the English parliament,) to whose disposition the government of Ireland was entirely left, endeavored in this detestable way, to serve their ends, by calumniating his majesty; at the same time that they promoted their own scheme of an extirpation by racking these gentlemen, whose treatment could not fail of deterring every body from venturing themselves into their power for the future."-Cart. Orm. vol. i. fol. 301. 66 Hugh McMahon was put to the rack March 22d, 1641, and sir John Read on the next day."-Id. ib. fol. 295. "The marquis of Ormond, mentioning in his letter to the justices and council, colonel Read's coming in to him, with two other gentlemen, says," he thought fit to send these gentlemen to be disposed of according to their lordships' pleasures, and their own demerits."-Warner's Hist. of the Irish Rebel. p. 177. holders."3 At the same time, Patrick Barnwell, of Kilbrew, esq;+ one of the most considerable gentlemen of the pale, a venerable old man, of the age of sixty-six, a lover of quiet and highly respected in his country," having surrendered himself to the earl of Ormond, and received a safe-conduct from sir William Parsons,* was nevertheless, upon his arrival in Dublin, imprisoned and put to the rack; and he (lord Dunsany) and sir John Neterville suffered great hardships afterwards, from the rigor of the lords justices, in their confinement in the castle of Dublin, for twelve or fourteen months; and being refused to be bailed, were ready to perisih for want of relief." Besides these, sir Andrew Aylmer, Girald and George Aylmer, esqrs. Edward Lawrence, Nicholas and Stephen Dowdal, esqrs. sir Nicholas White and his son, John Talbot, Gerald Fitzgerald, and William Malone, esqrs. all gentlemen of the pale, had either submitted to the lords justices, or to the earl of Ormond in this expedition to Drogheda. But although it was certainly known, that they never were in any manner connected with the insurgents, but on the contrary, that they had greatly suffered by their depredations, " yet they were all committed prisoners to the castle, without being even admitted to the presence of the lords justices; after which they were examined, some by menace, others by torture,+ and most of them necessitated to subscribe to what the examiners pleased to 3 Brief Narrative. See Walsh's Reply to a Person of Quality. *The earl of Ormond, in a letter to lord justice Parsons, says, " hav" ing received from your lordship, a note intimating a safe-guard to Mr. Barnwell, of Kilbrew, I suffered him to come along with me."-Cart. Orm. vol. iii. fol. 68. "Patrick Barnwell, of Kilbrew, esq. endured the torture with so steady an avowal of his innocence, and such abundant evidence was offered in his favor, that the justices were ashamed of their cruelty; and to make some amends to the unhappy gentleman, he was permitted to reside in Dublin, and his estate protected from the general havock of the soldiery."-Lel. Hist. of Irel. vol. iii. p. 165. "Preparations were made for their trials. But as they had never been engaged in any hostile action, proper facts were wanting to support a charge against them. To supply this defect, the lords justices had recourse to the rack, in order to extort such confessions as these miscreants had a mind to put into the mouths of these unhappy men."-Warner's Irish Rebel. p. 176. insert. In consequence of those examinations, and perhaps other kinds of management,* they were all indicted of high treason; and in the space of two days there were above three thousand indictments upon record." CHAP. XXI. The gentlemen of the pale petition the king and parliament. WHILE the gentlemen above-mentioned were confined in the castle of Dublin, they addressed to the earl, now marquis of Ormond, the following petition; inclosing two others, one to his majesty and the other to the English house of commons.† "May it please your lordship to call to mind,' how your petitioners, upon your lordship's advancing into the country, with his majesty's army, did come and submit to your lordship; not doubting but that they should thereby partake of his majesty's grace and mercy. And yet they have received as hard mea 1 Carte's Orm. vol. iii, The justices" had exerted themselves so vigorously, that indictments of treason were found against those, and above a thousand more in the space of two days."-Lel. Hist. of Irel. ubi supra. "With a shameless outrage on decency, a memorial was publicly read at the council board, from a friend of sir William Parsons, representing his merits in expending sums of money for procuring witnesses on these indictments." Id. ib. p. 101. The justices sent only a copy, and that probably imperfect, of these gentlemen's first petition to his majesty; for Borlase informs us," that on the 25th of August, the lords justices in a letter to secretary Nicholas, sent a copy of the rebels petition, together with the letter of the rebels of the pale to the earl of Ormond; in answer to which (adds he) exceptions were taken, that they had not sent the original; and withal (the secretary) took notice that as his majesty would be ready to punish the rebels, so he would not shut up his mercy against those who did unfeignedly repent; upon which the original was sent, and his majesty's pardon begged."-Hist. of the Irish Rebellion, fol. 141. The earl of Ormond in a letter to these lords justices, March 12th, 1641, sets forth his method of proceeding with such gentlemen as voluntary surrendered themselves to him; from whence, certainly, he could have little or no hope that any grace or mercy would be shewn them: "for those that come in, (says he) the course I hold with them is to put them in safe keeping, either to send them before me to Dublin, or to bring them along with sure since as if they had been taken prisoners and committed the highest acts of treason. Your lordship cannot forget that we were then out of danger of the army; and that if we had suspected any such hard and extreme usage as we have since found, we might have means and opportunity to shift for ourselves, and at least to continue our former liberty. But we being conscious of no voluntary treason committed by us, did of our own free will and accord put ourselves into your lordship's hands, not doubting but that this was an engagement upon your lordship in point of honor, (if not upon his majesty, as we conceive it is) to intercede to his highness and to the parliament for us; which your lordship has not hitherto done. "Their humble request unto your lordship is, that for the clearing of yourself from having any hand in the proceedings, which since their submission have been against your petitioners, and for the vindicating your honor unto posterity (which in the opinion of many doth in this much suffer) your lordship will be pleased, by your letters, to transmit their petitions subscribed by them unto his majesty; and also to the honorable house of commons in England, which is the least right, and it is in the main nothing but truth, which your lordship is bound in honor to testify." me without any manner of promise or condition, but that they submit to his majesty's (i. e.) their lordships) justice. Nor do I dispute by what power (i. e. if upon the king's proclamation of pardon) they come in, leaving that to your lordships to judge when they are in your hands, and I have told you the manner, which I shall very truly.”—Carte's Orm. vol. iii. fol. 68. "I do not find (says Mr. Carte) that any thing was done in parliament towards the liberty of these (imprisoned) gentlemen, who, upon the king's orders, that such as submitted upon the proclamation, should be allowed the benefit thereof; were admitted to bail a little before the cessation."-Cart. Orm. vol. i. fol. 102. • Ormond, in his letter to secretary Nicholas, transmitting a petition of these gentlem to that house in 1642, tells him, “that the letter and petition sent therewith came to him by an ordinary fellow, an Irishman and a papist; that sir Patrick Wemys, the bearer (who soon after went over to the English rebels) would inform him whose names those were that were to it, and most of their conditions, and that he held it his part to lose no time in the transmission of them, being well assured that his majesty's judgment was not to be surprised by any colors these rebels could cast upon their foul disloyalty."-Carte's Orm. vol. iii. fol. 102. This sir Patrick Wemy's, Ormond himself tells us, was 66 afterwards, in |