nobly rejected by Bond, if his information or evidence should endanger the life of any man with whom he was connected. The mercy of government was then extended to all the state prifoners, including O'Connor, Emmett, and M.Nevin; who acceded to the terms offered, on condition they should be at liberty voluntarily to tranfport themselves to any country not at war with his majefty, and that no further profecution should be carried on, except against actual murderers, or fuch rebels as fhould hereafter be taken in arms. A general amnefty, with a few exceptions, was foon after granted by the chief-governor, and confirmed in parliament. The fyftem of moderation and mercy adopted by this refpectable nobleman was peculiarly seasonable, and attended with the happiest effects. Moft of the rebel corps, who retreated to the mountainous parts of Wexford and Wicklow, took the benefit of the amnefty, and laid down their ams: thofe who ftill refifted were rather banditti, who confined themselves to nocturnal depredations, than troops in arms against the government.

Thus was the kingdom of Ireland once more reduced to peaceable fubjection to the crown of Great Britain, and a dangerous rebellion crushed, which, had the government of the country been previously actuated by the beneficent spirit of the nobleman who now filled the highest office in it, would never have exifted. To hinder infurrection," fays a great and justly-celebrated writer, "by driving away the people, and to govern peaceably by having no fubjects, is an expedient that argues no great profundity in politics: to foften the obdurate, to convince the mistaken, to mollify the resentful, are worthy of a statesman; but it affords a legiflator little felf-applaufe to confider that where there was formerly an infurrection there is now a wilderness.”

Contrary to the general fpirit of the now-prevailing fyftem, and contrary alfo, it is probable, to the private fen

JOHNSON's Tour to the Hebrides.

timents

timents of the good and worthy chief-governor, a bill was introduced into parliament, which, at a very late period of the fummer, was ftill fitting, for the confiscation and forfeiture of the estates of lord Edward Fitzgerald, Bagenal Harvey, and Cornelius Grogan, a man of large property, who had fuffered in this rebellion,-and finally paffed into an act. The cafe of the former, who had neither been tried nor convicted, was deemed peculiarly hard. The celebrated advocate Curran pleaded with great eloquence at the bar of the house against the bill of attainder. "Often have I, of late years," faid this great ornament of his profeffion, " gone to the dungeon of the captive, but never yet to the grave of the deceased, to receive instructions for his defence:-Never have I, till now, been called upon to plead at the trial of the dead! What might perhaps have admitted of easy explanation, during the life-time of the accused, must now be for ever buried with him in filence. The present bill convicts where proof is impoffible, and punishes where guilt cannot exist it confiscates the property of the widow, and robs the orphan's cradle. A ftate must be reduced to the lowest degradation, when it is driven to seek protection in the abandonment of the law,-in that melancholy avowal of its weakness and its fears."

It is remarkable, that for the space of near three weeks of the month of June, during which the rebels were in poffeffion of Wexford, and their armies were in that part of the country mafters of the field, no fupply of men, arms, ammunition, or ftores of any kind, arrived from France, although the Directory had pofitively engaged that an armament should fail to their affiftance at the latter end of April, or, at the fartheft, early in the month of May; but when the infurrection was completely quelled, and no profpect of fuccefs remained, a fmall French fquadron, part of a much larger force destined for the fame fervice, appeared on the coaft of Connaught, and, on the 22d of August, caft anchor in the bay of Kil

lala,

lala, where the troops on board difembarked; and the number not being ascertained, a very great temporary alarm was excited. According to the very candid and interesting Narrative published by the bishop of Killala (Dr. Stock), the French troops, who were under the command of a general Humbert, fecond in rank to general Hoche in the expedition of December, 1796, to Bantry-Bay, conducted themfelves with the most exemplary moderation. They were foon joined by feveral thousands of the Irish peasantry, all Catholics; and the French officers expreffed the utmost chagrin and surprise that the Proteftants continued, to a man, firm in their attachment to the government. The episcopal palace was made the head-quarters; and a green flag was mounted over the gate, with the famous inscription: ERIN GO BRAGH!-Ireland for ever!"

In a few days the invaders, to the number of 1100, leaving a small garrifon at Killala, began their march, with the difloyal natives whom they had clothed and armed, to Caftlebar, the chief town of the county of Mayo. It was with the utmost difficulty that the barbarous Irish could be reftrained from acts of the moft licentious diforder. On the 27th general Humbert reached Castlebar, where general Lake was posted, with a force far superior, to intercept him; but, before the weakness of the enemy could be afcertained, the British troops found themselves attacked by furprise; and, after a refiftance not very vigorous, were compelled to retreat, with the lofs of 800 men and ten pieces of cannon. Castlebar immediately furrendered; and the French were ftrengthened by many deferters, chiefly from the different regiments of militia.

Lord Cornwallis now determined to take the field in perfon, and, the general difaffection of the country being known, to proceed with the utmost caution and vigilance, leaving nothing to chance or fortune. After the action at Castlebar the French had moved, with their whole force, towards Tuam; but the lord-lieutenant, having by this

time collected a great army, with which he proposed to inclose them on all fides, general Humbert was obliged to return; and, entertaining from the first no hope of ultimate fuccefs, he made a circuitous march, in order to afford the natives an opportunity of efcape, which the far greater number embraced. On the morning of the 8th of September, the van-guard of the British army came up with the rear of the French at Ballinamuck; and, after a fhort but gallant refistance, the French, being fummoned to lay down their arms, furrendered at difcretion; but the rebels who remained with them, fleeing in all directions, fuffered very feverely. When the return of the French prifoners was made, the public were furprised to find that this formidable hoft amounted to no more, officers included, than the contemptible number of 844. The garrison left at Killala could make no effectual refiftance to the force fent against them; but the natives, in conjunction with the French troops, defended the place with great bravery; and it was at last taken fword in hand. The behaviour of colonel Charoft, who commanded at Killala, was marked throughout by valor, tempered with honor and humanity. After the re-capture of the bishop's palace, fuch was the difcipline preferved, that not a fingle article of private property was found miffing. Even the fide-board of plate remained untouched; and when the commandant was applied to, by a popifh priest of fome pretenfions to literature, for a present of books out of the bishop's library, he replied with difdain-" The bishop's library is just as much his own now as ever it was.”

A fecond attempt, equally abfurd and unaccountable, was made by the French in the following month; when a fquadron from Breft, confifting of one fhip of the line, the Hoche of eighty guns, and eight frigates, were defcried off the coaft of Ulfter by admiral Sir John Borlafe Warren, who commanded a fquadron of far fuperior force on that ftation. At feven o'clock on the morning of the 12th of October the action commenced, and at eleven the Hoche, after a gallant defence, ftruck her flag. Six of the frigates

were

were also captured; and thus ended the projects of the French Directory for the conqueft of Ireland.

Amongst the prifoners taken in the Hoche was the famous Theobald Wolfe Tone, the founder of the fociety of United Irishmen, and the most active and able of the agents employed by them abroad. He was brought to Dublin, and tried there by a court-martial. Far from attempting to deny or extenuate his offence, he avowed with the most heroic firmness the part he had acted, and gloried in the treason for which he was arraigned." Into the fervice of the French republic," faid this virtuous and high-minded, however miftaken, patriot, "I originally entered with the view of serving my country. From that motive I have encountered the toils and terrors of the field of battle; I have braved the dangers of the sea, covered with the triumphant fleets of the power I oppofed; I have facrificed my profpects in life; I have courted poverty; I have left my wife unprotected, and my children fatherless. After doing this, for what I thought a good caufe, it is but little that I die for

In fuch a caufe as this fuccefs is every thing. I have attempted that in which Washington fucceeded and Kofciufko failed. What awaits me I am aware of, but I fcorn to fupplicate or to complain. Whatever I have written, spoken, or acted, in relation to this country, and its connexion with Great Britain, which I conceived to be the bane of its prosperity, I here avow, and am now ready to meet the confequence. Having sustained an high rank in the French service, I only wish, if the court poffeffes such a discretionary power, that they will award me the death of a foldier.” -After a long paufe, no doubt of involuntary admiration. and regret, he was informed that his request would be fubmitted to his Excellency. Finding, however, the little probability of fucceeding in his application, he terminated his life in prifon by an act of violence. As this extraordinary man was the original author, his trial might be confidered alfo as the laft concluding fcene, of this fhort but bloody rebellion, in which, upon a moderate computation, more

than