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of his old English confederates, he infolently affured them, that they alfo were to expect the fame fate; or if any of them should be fuffered to remain, they were to become menial fervants to the krish, the only rightful inheritours of the land.

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But fuch occafional effufions of infolence were not fufficient to eftrange the old English from the original natives, or to poffefs them with that detestation of the mere Irish, which they who treat of the prefent period fometimes afcribe to them. They for the moft part spake the Irish language; they had all, in fome degree, adopted Irish manners. Both races were intermixed by marriages; they were united by religion; and they complained of the fame grievances. By the new adventurers employed in the fervice of the crown, both were regarded indifcriminately as one people equally difaffected, and dangerous to the English intereft. Thefe men, who had raised large fortunes in Ireland, and frequently upon the ruin of the old natives, affected to be confidered as the only loyal fubjects of the realm; and artfully contrived that even the moft refpectable of the old English families fhould be regarded by the crown with fufpicion, and excluded from every office of truft or honour. The earl of Strafford proceeded yet farther. It was his profeffed policy to break all factious combinations, to mortify. all popular leaders, and to convince the proudest amongst them, that no power in Ireland should stand in competition with the king's vicegerent. But he purfued this policy without temper or dif cretion. He was ever impatient to exprefs his fcorn of the old English race; he ftudioully denied their nobles that refpect and attention, to which they had been ufed in former times; he told thofe men, whofe ancestors had acquired the dominion of Ireland by their blood, that they were a conquered people, divested of all political rights, and dependent folely on the royal pleasure.

The profeffed policy of James was to unite the inhabitants of Ireland, and for ever to abolish all odious diftinctions. The real policy of his minifters, and their fucceffors, was to diftinguish them into two parties, that of loyal and affectionate subjects, containing only the late adventurers and fervants of the crown; and that of the difaffected and dangerous, including all the rest of the inhabitants. The people thus infulted, were fpirited and proud; and there was an infatuated folly, as well as a barbarous iniquity, in provoking them yet farther by injuftice and oppreffion. The nor thern plantation, however juftified, and well devifed, was an object neceffarily offenfive to the pride and prejudices of the oid Irish; and thofe among them who fubmitted and accepted their portion of lands, complained, that in many inftances they had been scandalously defrauded. The revival of obfolete claims of the crown, harraffing of proprietors by fictions of law, difpoflefling them by. fraud and circumvention, and all the various artifices of interested agents and minifters, were naturally irritating; and the pub lic difcontents must have been further enflamed by the infincerity of Charles, in evading the confirmation of his GRACES, the infolence of Strafford in openly refusing it; together with the nature and manner of his proceedings against the proprietors of Connaught,

To the influence of national prejudices and grievances in eftranging the people from English government, we are to add the powerful operation of religious principles and prepoffeffions. Far the greater number of inhabitants were obftinately devoted to popery, provoked and mortified by the penal ftatutes of Elizabeth,

and

and impatient of the odious difqualifications imposed upon them. Thefe ftatutes indeed had not been generally enforced in their full rigour. Sometimes, however, the infolence of popish ecclefiaftics provoked the execution of them; fometimes the terrour of them was used as a political engine to extort conceffions from the popish party; and in either cafe, there was pretence fufficient for, exciting popular clamour. The Romish clergy bad that influence even over the gentry of their communion, with which they are invefted by the tenets of their religion; the ignorant herd of papists they governed at their pleasure. They had received their education, and imbibed their principles in foreign feminaries, particularly of France and Spain. Hence they returned to Ireland, bound folemnly to the pope in an unlimited fubmiffion, without profeffion, or bond of allegiance to the king; full fraught with thofe abfurd and peftilent doctrines, which the moderate of their own communion profeffed to abominate; of the univerfal monarchy, of the pope, as well civil as fpiritual; of his authority to excommunicate and depofe princes, to abfolve fubjects from their oaths of allegiance, and to difpenfe with every law of God and man; to fanctify rebellion and murder, and even to change the very nature and effential differences of vice and virtue.'

From this period, the hiftory of Ireland becomes more interesting and important to a British reader; but as the article is already extended to more than the ufual length, we muft poftpone the farther confideration of this valuable work till our next Review, in which we fhall conclude our obfervations upon it.

II. Efays from the Batchelor, in Profe and Verfe. By the Authors of the Epiftle to Gorges Edmond Howard, Efq. Tro Vols. The Second Edit. with Additions. 12mo. 55. fewed. Becket. THESE Eflays appear to have been originally published in

a periodical Paper at Dublin, within these two laft years. The fubjects, which are various, are in general treated in a humorous manner, and difcover fund of good fenfe, as well as of agreeable pleafantry. That our readers may be furnished with a fpecimen, we fhall prefent them with part of an Effay to the Female Coterie.

It gives me the highest pleasure to obferve the rapid progrefs of cuckoldom in these kingdoms, as it is always the confequence of refined manners. We only wanted this finishing touch, to equal the French in that agreeable polish, which embellishes and foftens human nature. Gallantry and intrigue. introduce a focial intimacy between the fexes, which wears off that disguiting rufticity, fo prevalent in a country, where an unrestrained familiarity is not fashionable. The beft method of polishing marble, is by rubbing the flabs against each other; and I am rejoiced to fee the fame mode fo generally adopted by both fexes. Gaming is intimately connected with gallantry,

and

and may be efteemed the cement of every polite circle.-A prudifh lady who lofes at play, is frequently obliged to compound with her male creditor, and yield her perfon instead of her purfe. A Maccaroni alone could refufe to releafe his amiable debtor on these terms. How happy is the husband of fuch a prudential wife, who thus difcharges a debt in a coin he can never poffibly mifs, efpecially, as it might injure his fortune, and embarrass his affairs if paid in any other. Sometimes the may prefer this mode of payment from a prefentiment of her husband's fuperiority; an experimental proof will do honour to her forefight, and promote conjugal affection. This was Penelope's way, the encouraged all her gallants to fhoot in Ulyffes's bow, and found none of them equal to her own good man.

Let dull moralifts, and prejudiced politicians, fnart at every generous and comprehenfive fyftem, which contradias their narrow, selfish principles: I do not addrefs myself to fuch readers, but to the liberal and impartial;, and I make no doubt of convincing them. I fhall therefore prove, ift, That cuckoldom was eftablished by law, in the wifeft of nations. 2dly, That precedents and continued ufage and prac tice, are uniformly in favour of it. 3dly, I fhall point out the great benefits which civil fociety receives from it; and conclude with fome general remarks on the fubject.

By a ftatute enacted in the 7th of Lycurgus, the Spartans granted every man the privilege of lying with his neighbour's wife.-Cato, by his example, endeavoured to introduce that law among the Romans: feveral tribes of Indians have adopted the fame wife maxim. Thus, both civilized nations, actuated by political motives; and barbarians, from the mere fuggeftions of untutored reafon, have equally perceived its utility.

• Continued ufage and practice are alfo in favour of it. The hiftory of every age and country, furnishes us with numberlefs examples in proof of this. All the evil confequences which have been falfely afcribed to the practice of cuckoldom, proceeded wholly from the unreafonable restrictions and difcouragement that impolitic laws have laid on it. This alone made a crime, and rendered the man infamous, who patiently fubmitted to it-Hence proceeded wars, maflacres, and the deftruction of mankind. We fee in Sparta, where it was not difhonourable to be a cuckold, (but highly fo to be a batchelor) all thofe evils were prevented.

• But why fhould I appeal to Greece or Rome for examples, when the hiftory of our own country fupplies me with the ftrongest instance, in fupport of my argument? If Tigherna

O'Rourke,

O'Rourke, king of Breifna, had not thought it unbecoming a man of fpirit to be a contented cuckold, he would not have forced Dermot M'Murchard to apply to Henry II. for affiftance: we might then ftill have wandered free and independent among our bogs, got drunk out of our madders, and ufed our skeins with impunity.-We should never have heard of the execrable Poynings, nor of his infernal law, a law infidioufly calculated to break the hearts of our patriots, and to ruin the kingdom.

• Thus cuckoldom was the caufe of our flavery and fubjection; I therefore highly commend my countrymen, for retaliating on our conquerors. Their prowefs and fuccefs have been fo confpicuous, that even the ftern Churchill could not refuse paying tribute to their merit in the following lines :

"See Dublin, fam'd in legends of romance,

For mighty magic of enchanted lance,

With which her heroes arm'd, victorious prove,
And like a flood, rufh o'er the land of love."

'I fhall now point out the great benefits which civil fociety receives from cuckoldom. It is remarkable, that fome families maintain an hereditary right to weak intellects and perfonal blemishes, which uniformly defcend from generation to generation. Now, a wife who has the honour of her family at heart, may eafily remedy this, and I really think it her indifpenfible duty to do fo: fhe will pleafe her good man by it, and can do him no injury. I am always delighted to fee the father of a family furrounded by children whom his wife certifies, though they did not take their rife from him. He folters and cherishes them with as much fondness and affection, as a hen that hatches duck eggs, and feeds the ducklings with the fame care, as if they were her own. A lady who acts fo judiciously, merits the highest praife; the adorns. her husband's table with olive branches which never fprung from him; as a fkilful gardener gathers plums off thorn trees, by grafting a few flips on them,

If hufbands would treat their wives with compiaifance, and not be offended at innocent familiarities, they would make proper allowances for flight failures in conjugal duties, and love their husbands for the very reafon they now hate them, as it would be a fufficient excufe for applying to others for comforts which they cannot be fupplied with at home.

Befides, we fhould confider that cockoldom is but a reafonable fine, which every man fhould chearfully pay, as it evinces the beauty and merit of his wife in other people's eyes, and is a juft compliment to his own tafte. Let thofe who are

curfed

curfed with homely domeftic ribs, have the fole enjoyment of them: fuch women. are mean enough to employ their time in taking care of their houfes and children; and what is ftill worse, confine themselves at home, and furfeit their husbands by too much fondness. But the gay and beautiful should scorn to be monopolized; they ought to regard the happiness of mankind. Many of them, no doubt, are influenced by the laudable ambition of communicating pleasure all around them; and it is from that generous principle alone, and not to gratify any fenfual paffion, that they are fo willing to eafe the torments of their lovers.'

As these Effays relate chiefly to characters and transactions in Ireland, they will probably afford greater entertainment to readers of that country, than to those in other parts of the British dominions. The local and perfonal circumftances, however, which they contain, may be eafily comprehended, without any particular knowledge of Irish affairs; and though thefe Effays are replete with strokes of satire and ridicule, they touch the foibles with fuch gentleness as to excite the laughter, rather than provoke the refentment, even of those who are the objects of the defcription.

III. Archæologia: or Mifcellaneous Trad's relating to Antiquity. Published by the Society of Antiquaries of London. Vol. 11. 4to. 155. Whifton.

IN reviewing the firft volume of the Archæologia *, we ob

ferved that many of the articles it contained were frivolous and unimportant; and we expreffed a hope that, in the profecution of the work, the Society would pay more attention to the materials of which their future tra&s fhould be compofed. With regret we are obliged to remark, however, that they fill difcover too much deficiency in this refpect; and we are under the greater inducement to intimate our opinion, left the Society continue to regulate their publications upon the plan they have hitherto adopted. Researches into antiquity, when properly directed, may certainly be productive of in struction, as well as entertainment; but it is not every trifling memorial which may be found in the rubbish of diftant ages, that is worthy of being preferved in the repofitories of orna mental or useful knowledge. We fhall yet entertain fome hope, therefore, that the Society will hereafter conduct their inveltigations with more fcrupulous care, and not fwell their accumulating work with the account of such subjects as are fit only for the gratification of idle and impertinent curiofity.

See Crit. Rev. vol. xxxi. p. 31.

VOL. XXXVI. July, 1773.

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