which, while they remained in force, were attended with the happiest effects in preserving the public tranquillity, and which your committee have the most confident hope would have the same salutary operation under the present circumstances. Second Report of the Committee of Secrecy, to whom the several Papers, which were presented (sealed up) to the House, by Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer, upon the 1st and 2d Days of April, 1801, by His Majesty's Command, were referred; and who were directed to examine the Matters thereof, and report the same as they shall appear to them, to the House. After some preliminary observations upon the means by which information had been obtained, the report states:— "It was not to be expected that persons who had deeply imbibed the principles of the French revolution, who were inflamed with the most sanguinary animosity against all the existing establishments of church and state; that such of them, particularly of the lower orders of society, whose hopes were instigated by the prospect of the plunder of the rich, and the partition of the landed property of the country, and who had been taught to abjure all the restraints which divine or human laws have imposed on the passions of men; should be induced, by any change of circumstances, or legal coercion, suddenly to abandon those principles, and to return to the duties of loyal and peaceable subjects. It accordingly appears manifest, that though the exertions of the disaffected in this country were suppressed by the vigilance of government, acting under the powers entrusted to them by parliament, and by the fear of detection and immediate apprehension, yet their disposition remained unaltered. That, from the month of May 1799, notwithstanding the detention of several of the most active members of the late corresponding society, others have continued occasionally to meet without any form of regular association, and studiously avoiding any constant place of assembling, or written memorial of their transactions. A principal object at first was the collection of money for the relief of the persons confined under charges of treasonable and seditious practices, with whom they seem constantly to have preserved their former connexion. On the 5th of November 1799, when they began to derive fresh encouragement from the unfavourable events on the continent, and the evacuation of Holland by the British troops, a party of them assembled to celebrate the anniversary of Hardy's acquittal; on which occasion they appear first to have ventured on a more open avowal of their opinions, and to have indulged in the most treasonable and seditious toasts and songs. As yet, however, the mischief went no further; and indeed, during all this period, till late in the last year, they seem to have despaired of any immediate success in their projects, for which some of them supposed no favourable opportunity would occur till the restoration of peace should, as they hoped, have at once removed the legal restraints which now impeded their operations, and brought home such an addition of unemployed hands as would increase the existing scarcity, and add to the prevailing discontents. They felt themselves, and lamented the effect of, the powers entrusted to government by the act for suspend-. (M2) ing ing the habeas-corpus act: their former leaders were dispersed and secluded, and they apprehended for themselves a similar fate. Particular events, however, of the nature before alluded to, had at different times given some encouragement to their views, and diminished their apprehensions: the successes of the enemy in the last campaign, the disappointments of our allies, still more of any enterprise in which this country was more particularly concerned, or any danger which threatened the life or health of their sovereign, were, as they occurred, a constant source of satisfaction, and of renewed hope and expectation. The health of the chief consul of France, the success of his arms when opposed to those of their country, the progress of the rupture with the northern powers, as a means of impoverishing our merchants, and creating distress and discontent among the manufacturers, were among the first wishes that marked the complexion of their convivial meetings, or expressed the malignity of their private reflexions. The dearth of provisions early in the last year opened a new field for similar speculations, and the return of it after the last harvest increased the inducements and the hope of converting it to their views. Of this, as well as of other public calamities, they were disposed to avail themselves in a way that marks sufficiently the character of those principles which lead the revolutionary enthusiast to overlook, or make him seek to augment the miseries, however extended, of individuals, in the hope of deriving from them the means of subverting existing establishments. They affected indeed openly much feeling for the sufferings of the people, and fomented their complaints against the supposed authors of them; but in private they expressed their satisfaction at the continuance of the distress, and were only apprehensive that the cause of the complaint might cease by a return of plenty: they hoped particularly that the scarcity would press hard upon the soldiery, and produce discontent and insubordination; and, the better to serve their cause, they did not scruple to hold out the most unwarranted hopes of success in their extensive plans of meditated seduction. They disapproved indeed of the disposition to riot, which appeared in some places on account of the scarcity in the month of September last, as leading to partial and prématuré insurrection, not sufficiently connected with their own more large and revolutionary views; but they thought a period somewhat later more favourable to their designs, which might be better advanced by a different line of conduct. Under this impression, they promoted a meeting of a most dangerous nature, to be held at Kennington Common on the 9th of November, by public advertisement, which was stated to government at the time to be issued under their direction: this fact has since been confirmed by positive depositions upon oath, and by concurrent testimony which has been obtained in consequence of some of the late apprehensions; from all which it also appears that several of the persons above referred to attended, and that the state of the weather alone prevented their being present in great numbers: other meetings were concerted in different parts of the metropolis, or its vicinity, with a view to distract the attention of the magistrates, and harass the operations of the military. The first of these, however, failed, in consequence consequence of the information previously afforded to the officers of government, and the presence of magistrates; and the others were prevented by the apprehension of detection, from the reward offered for the conviction of the persons concerned in convening the first. Similar plans were still in agitation in the following month, when a seditious and treasonable hand-bill, in the form of a proclamation, was prepared and circulated by a person lately a leading member of the disaffected societies, and who your committee have reason to believe was principally concerned in convening the meeting on Kennington Common; a copy of which is annexed to this report." The report then proceeds to state the arrival of United Irishmen, and the fabrication of pikes and daggers. The expiration of the act suspending the habeas-corpus encouraged them to renew their designs at the commencement of the present year. Their plan, as stated in the report of the house of lords, to have an executive committee of ten, and subagents for the different districts. To conceal their designs, they formed themselves into clubs called benefit societies, where private assassination of certain individuals was recommended. Another society, called Spensimians, was formed merely to discuss public affairs, they agree ing with a book published by Spence, recommending an agrarian law, the destruction of the nobility, &c. Upon the release of their leaders by the expiration of the act suspending the habeas-corpus, a supper was given, at which seditious and treasonable language held, was "This meeting seems to have occasioned a more confident opinion of their strength, and of the success of their schemes of seduction. They boasted of the extension of their society over different and remote districts of the metropolis. They were not, however, insensible to the proceedings of parliament on the subject of the martial law bill in Ireland, which they were apprehensive might be applied to the suppression of their enterprises here; or, if not, at least that the suspension of the habeas-corpus act would be renewed, and effectually operate to counteract their designs. Under this impression, a particular degree of caution was recommended by the executives as to the persons to whom the oath should be administered: they suspected they were observed, and were afraid of being apprehended before their plan was ripe for execution, which they admitted it would not be til they should be provided with arms sufficient for their purpose. The same apprehension operated differently on some of the most ardent spirits of the confederacy, who were still more sanguine as to the numbers who would join them, and who were desirous of striking the blow before measures could be taken for their suppression; and who thought they might supply the want of which they complained by a desperate attack on several repositories of arms, which would at once deprive. the military of the means of resist ance, and furnish themselves with weapons for attack: others, not admitted to the secrets of the executives, accused them of tardiness in their operations, and were im patient to be called into action. The more cautious councils however prevailed, which were perhaps promoted by mutual suspicion, and by the reluctance of some, when it came near the point, to engage in outrages of such atrocity." (M 3) Other May the Age of Superstition be annihi. lated, and the Age of Reason be established in its stead! At one of the most recent meetings a supper was given, at the expense of some unknown patron, to celebrate again the release of the champions of their cause; when they were still entertained with the most seditious songs and toasts, sufficiently descriptive of their attachment to our foreign enemy, and abhorrence of the form of our own constitution; such as, Bonaparte! and Success to the Army of Egypt! The Guillotine!—a Cure for the King's Evil. The disaffected take steps to win over religious enthusiasts, as well as visionary reformers, though they despise religion. The report next proceeds to state, that societies on similar principles were formed in the chief towns, and that the great object and hope of all was to foment rebellion by means of the scarcity of provisions. They represented their numbers trained to arms at 60,000, sometimes double that number; one of their plans was to seize the arms of the loyal associations. They connected themselves with a religious sect (the Jerusalemites) in Yorkshire, whose creed was the 25th, 26th, and 27th verses of the xxist chapter of Ezekiel. In Lancashire the numbers were great and bold, and an insurrection was proposed for the seed-time. A secret convention sat for six different divisions of the kingdom, and a general meeting was actually held early in April, near Manches ter, which was dispersed. The disaffected held out encouragement ta the enemy to invade this country, by representing they would be joined by great numbers. The report then describes a new plot lately discovered in Ireland for forming the disaffected into regiments, a seditious address to the Irish sailors in our fleet, and solicitations of assistance from France. But the agent who asks this, it is said, "stipulates, however, with his proposed allies for the assurance of their property to all the present possessors, in opposition he states still to look forward with to any claim of the catholics, whom hopes of establishing a popish ascendency; and it appears that he has been given to understand, that both the late directory, and one of the principal ministers of the present government of France, had coincided in the justice and propriety of that stipulation." The report next details the rebellious and atrocious proceedings in Ireland at considerable length, the plans of assassination, &c. Persons are flogged to compel them to sell cheap provisions; cattle attle are destroyed; horses are stolen to facilitate the designs of the rebels; a general tendency to insurrection exists among the lower class; and the rebellion is not quenched. execution is in the hands of the executioner. "Given at the Council chamber." "This account the member received from the brother of the deceased, who showed him another letter to the same effect, which was served on a tenant of Mr. Price at the same time, who in consequence fled the country. Mr. Price was, within a few days, in the open fields at noon, fired at and murdered by a single individual, who was suffered to depart at his leisure, without any endeavour being made to detain him, though many people were at work at no great distance." The report here describes and justifies the conduct of the Irish courts-martial. "That in one county, for a year past, one whole barony has been tributary to and in possession of an armed banditti of about fifty persons, under two known leaders, who regularly exercise their men, station their pickets, and march, to the sound of a horn, to the commission of all sorts of outrages; and declare their intention of persisting till a general rising inay enable them to overturn the existing constitution and government. The robbery of the mail in Kildare, in the month of April last, by a gang of eighteen or nineteen. The report next states the im armed men, who commenced their possibility of disclosing the means attack by a volley of musketry, is by which government has obtained a striking instance of the manner its information, without endangerin which these outrages are com- ing the persons, and ruining their mitted; and a recent and well channels of intelligence. known transaction of the most tices the small number of persons atrocious nature, in the county of imprisoned under the suspension Tipperary, proves that the system of the habeas corpus act, and of secret proscription and delegated sanctions their imprisonment after assassination is still in force, sup- having inquired the motives. The ported either by the concurrence report concludes with this paraof extensive confederacy, or the graph:effects of general intimidation. Your committee refer to the murder of Mr. Price, who, having taken a farm against the wishes of those who take upon them to regulate the rents of land, received a written intimation, which appears, from the evidence of a member of this house, to have been to the following effect: Liberty Hall. "Take notice; that you have been tried and convicted of having taken farm-you have been sentenced to death-you are to give up the farm, otherwise the warrant for your It no Under these circumstances, your committee cannot forbear submitting to the wisdom of the house the propriety of such an act of indemnity as may protect all per-sons concerned in these commitments from the effects of any legal proceeding, without subjecting them to the necessity, either of suffering for a conduct in itself meritorious, or of disclosing, in their own defence, those particu lars which every consideration of humanity, good faith, and policy, must render it their duty to conceal." (M 4) The |