at the town of Newton-Barry, in the county of
Wexford. The Catholics enjoying no regular chapel, as a temporary
expedient, hired two barns; which, being thrown into one, served for
public worship. At this time, there was quartered opposite to the
spot an officer whose mind appears to have been deeply imbued with
those prejudices which the Protestant petitions now on the table
prove to have been fortunately eradicated from the more rational
portion of the people; and when the Catholics were assembled on the
Sabbath as usual, in peace and good-will towards men, for the worship
of their God and yours, they found the chapel door closed, and were
told that if they did not immediately retire (and they were told this
by a yeoman officer and a magistrate), the riot act should be read,
and the assembly dispersed at the point of the bayonet! This was
complained of to the middle man of government, the secretary at the
castle in 1806, and the answer was (in lieu of redress), that he
would cause a letter to be written to the colonel, to prevent, if
possible, the recurrence of similar disturbances. Upon this fact, no
very great stress need be laid; but it tends to prove that while the
Catholic church has not power to purchase land for its chapels to
stand upon, the laws for its protection are of no avail. In the mean
time, the Catholics are at the mercy of every "pelting petty
officer," who may choose to play his "fantastic tricks before high
heaven," to insult his God, and injure his fellow-creatures.

Every school-boy, any foot-boy (such have held commissions in our
service), any foot-boy who can exchange his shoulder-knot for an
epaulette, may perform all this and more against the Catholic by
virtue of that very authority delegated to him by his sovereign, for
the express purpose of defending his fellow subjects to the last drop
of his blood, without discrimination or distinction between Catholic
and Protestant.

Have the Irish Catholics the full benefit of trial by jury? They have
not; they never can have until they are permitted to share the
privilege of serving as sheriffs and under-sheriffs. Of this a
striking example occurred at the last Enniskillen assizes. A yeoman
was arraigned for the murder of a Catholic named Macvournagh: three
respectable, uncontradicted witnesses deposed that they saw the
prisoner load, take aim, fire at, and kill the said Macvournagh. This
was properly commented on by the judge: but to the astonish