reproach thrown upon Beaumont by Chaloner, a secular priest, who admonishes him "to beware of Drayton House, lest he should there chance to light upon another Ussher and be again put to flight, to the great disgrace both of himself and his profession." The Primate did not return to Ireland, after his appointment to the Primacy, till August 1626. It appears that his arrival there had been anxiously looked for, and he had received most flattering letters of congratulation from Lord Falkland, the Lord Deputy, from the Lord Chancellor Loftus, the Archbishop of Dublin, and many other distinguished persons. The only one of these given in Dr. Parr's collection, is from the Bishop of Kilmore and Ardagh, Thomas Moygne; this letter is not only complimentary to the Primate, but gives a lamentable picture of the Irish Church. "I do congratulate with unspeakable joy and comfort your preferment, and that both out of the true and unfeigned love I have ever borne you (for many years continued) as also out of an assured and most firm persuasion that God hath ordained you a special instrument for the good of the Irish Church, the growth whereof (notwithstanding all His Majesty's endowments and directions) receives every day more impediments and oppositions than ever, and that not only in Ulster, but begins to spread itself into other places, so that the inheritance of the Church is made arbitrary at the Council table: impropriators in all places may hold all ancient customs, only they upon whom the cure of souls is laid are debarred: St. Patricks ridges which you know Among the duties reserved in ancient leases, that denominated Ridges occurs frequently; it appears probable that a certain number of days in harvest to which the lord was entitled became commuted, and the duty ascertained by the measure of the pace in preference to that of time: hence a ridge of work in sowing or reaping became by mutual consent a substitute for the service of one or more days. It appears from the Rolls, 4 Edw. VI., that on the 10th of May, 1550, the Warden and Procurators of the parish church of St. Patrick leased the ridges of corn called St. Patrick's ridges, throughout the dioceses of Ferns, Ossory, Leighlin, and Kildare, and the deaneries of Omurthy, Rathmore, and Salmon-Leap, for three years, at six marks Irish per annum. Ussher, in his Proctor's book for 1606, has in his receipts for that year inserted as follows: belonged to the fabrick of that church are taken away: within the diocess of Ardagh the whole clergy, being all poor vicars and curates, by a declaration of one of the judges this last circuit (by what direction I know not) without speedy remedy will be brought to much decay; the which I rather mention because it is within your province. The more is taken away from the King's clergy, the more accrews to the Pope's; and the servitors and undertakers, who should be instruments for settling a Church, do hereby advance their rents and make the Church poor. In a word, in all consultations which concern the Church not the advice of sages but of young counsellors is followed." Before the Primate left England he was engaged in a very disagreeable contest with Dr. Ryves about the patent which he took out for the office of Judge of the Prerogative Court. It would seem from the letters of Archbishop Ussher, that Dr. Ryvesk claimed by his patent "to exercise the office of the Prerogative and Faculties" independently of the Primate, and that he had contrived to get the support of the Lord Keeper Williams. The Archbishop wrote to the Lord Keeper and the Lord Treasurer a letter, commenting upon the conduct of Dr. Ryves with a severity quite unusual to him: he says: "Your Lordships had need to watch this mans fingers, whenever you trust "Item St. Patrickes ridges for Kilkennye Item St. Patrickes ridges for the deanrye of Mor- 21. 13s. 4d. 21. Os. Od. N. B. St. Patricks ridges from henceforth set to Mr. Robinson and Item Mr. Robinson to pay an organist during his life 107. Irish per From the letter of the Bishop of Kilmore it appears that these ridges had been only lately taken away from the church in 1625. * Dr. Ryves had been a Fellow of New College, Oxford, and afterwards an eminent advocate in Doctors' Commons and the Court of Admiralty. In the year 1618 he was made a Master in Chancery, and Judge of the Faculties and Prerogative in Ireland. He wrote there, "The Poor Vicar's Plea," and an able answer to that mischievous work called "Analecta sacra." On the Rebellion of 1641 he left Ireland and supported the cause of his Royal master, fighting in his service at an advanced age. He was one of the assistants to the King at the treaty of peace in the Isle of Wight, and was held in great esteem by His Majesty. him with drawing up of any orders or letters that do concern his own particular; for otherwise you may chance to find him as nimble in putting tricks upon yourselves for his own advantage, as now he is in putting them upon me;" and again he says: "By his incensing of my lord of Canterbury against me (of whose Grace I never yet deserved evil), by his abusing of me in his reports unto your Lordships, and by his disgraceful traducing of me in all companies, he hath made himself utterly unworthy of the favor which I intended to shew unto him." The Archbishop most fairly states: "Did ever any reasonable man hold it to be a thing unreasonable, that a substitute should be ordered by him that hath appointed him to be a substitute ?" He then mentions the peculiar difficulties in Ireland, "that the power of granting dispensations is not by law restrained to any competent distance of place, to any certain number of benefices, or to any qualification of persons, and therefore that it was in no ways fit the substitute should have authority to grant faculties as he listed ;" and he concludes with the fair proposal, "that the same power should be reserved to him and his successors that the Archbishop of Canterbury retains unto himself in the office of Prerogative and Faculties." The termination of this dispute is not recorded; but it is more than probable that Dr. Ryves, supported by the Lord Keeper, triumphed, and this opinion is confirmed by the favor subsequently shewn to him: he was knighted by Charles, and appointed his Advocate. The Primate was scarcely settled in his new dignity, when a political measure, fraught with consequences of great moment to Ireland, called him forward. The Roman Catholic party had at this time assumed a very hostile position. A bull had been issued by Pope Urban VIII., exhorting his Irish flock to give up their lives rather than take the oath of supremacy, by which the sceptre of the Catholic Church was wrested from the hand of the Vicar of God; and this unchristian exhortation to rebellion had already begun to produce its effect in the manifest contempt of Lord Falkland's government. In this state of affairs Charles determined to increase his forces in Ireland. The account of the subsequent proceedings is thus given by Dr. Leland: "With a strict attention to œconomy the additional recruits were destined to fill up the old instead of forming any new bodies: yet still unable to supply the necessary expence and unassisted by Parliament, the King without scruple recurred for the present to prerogative. He ordered the army to be quartered on the different counties and towns. of Ireland, who were to maintain them in turn, for three months at a time, with money, cloaths, and victuals. To reconcile the people to an imposition so extraordinary and so severe, letters were addressed by his Deputy to the several communities, recommending a chearful submission, promising that the usual composition should be suspended, and that the King should grant other graces, which should amply repay this their extraordinary expence. The hopes of extorting some favourable concessions from the King's necessities induced the Irish subjects to submit, with less reluctance, to the present burden. They were still exposed to vexatious inquisitions into the titles of their estates, and were impatient to be freed from the apprehensions of litigious suits. The popish party were not more solicitous for the interests of their religion, than to extricate themselves from the disadvantages and mortifications to which they were exposed by the penal statutes. Their brethren in England were assiduous to recommend themselves to the King, by supporting zealously his unconstitutional meaWith the same policy the recusants of Ireland affected an extraordinary solicitude to provide for the necessities of his Irish government. They conferred with the State at Dublin. They gave Lord Falkland assurances, that if some indulgence were granted to those of their religion, a voluntary contribution might be obtained for the maintenance of the King's army. Those of the Protestant party, who had their grievances to be redressed, and their apprehensions to be quieted, concurred in these assurances. They were favourably received. A grand meeting of the principal nobility and gentry, in which the popish party was by far the more numerous, assembled in the castle of Dublin: they offered large contributions to purchase secu sures. rity to their lands, and a suspension of the penal statutes. Lord Falkland, far from discouraging their overtures, advised them to send agents into England to make a tender of their dutiful services to the King, and to submit the grievances and inconveniences to which they were exposed, to his granerous consideration. The bare hopes of indulgence were sufficient to elevate the spirits of the popish party, even to extravagance. Reports were spread that they were now to be gratified with a full toleration of their religion, and it was exercised with an offensive triumph, as if that toleration were already granted." It is not to be supposed that these proceedings were suffered to pass unheeded by the Protestant party in Ireland. Their religious feelings taught them that the danger of selling the truth and establishing idolatry in the land was a sin against God, while their political sagacity could not but foresee the danger to their peaceful settlement, of giving additional powers to their bitterest enemies, already too strong in their numbers. These apprehensions were deeply felt by the clergy of the Established Church, and the awful crisis which seemed approaching called forward the Primate to assemble his brethren, and deliberate upon the measures which ought to be pursued. Twelve of the Prelates assembled, and drew up a form of protestation, which was as follows: "The Judgment of divers of the Arch-Bishops, and Bishops of Ireland, concerning Toleration of Religion. "The religion of the Papists is superstitious, and idolatrous; their faith and doctrine, erroneous and heretical; their Church in respect of both, apostatical. To give them therefore a toleration, or to consent that they may freely exercise their religion, and profess their faith and doctrine, is a grievous sin, and that in two respects: For, "1. It is to make our selves accessary, not only to their superstitions, idolatries, and heresies, and in a word, to all the abominations of Popery; but also (which is a consequent of the former) to the perdition of the seduced people, which perish in the deluge of the Catholick apostacy. |