CHAPTER VIII.

Speculations on War-Was O'Connell a Bigot?-Letter to Archbishop Mac Hale-O'Connell's Reception of a Protestant Member of his Family-The old Orange Corporators -O'Connell and "Forgery M'Ghee"-O'Connell and the Quakers.

IN the summer and autumn of 1840, a general war seemed probable. Utterly averse to the effusion of human blood, O'Connell earnestly deprecated war and its multitude of evils; but he firmly resolved, if it should occur, to avail himself of whatever facilities it might offer him towards the accomplishment of his darling project—the Repeal.

"If France puts England into difficulty now," he said one day after his return to Dublin," the first hostile shot that's fired in the Channel, I'll have the government in my hand! But what a wretched cause of war! What is the quarrel all about? Just to settle which of two barbarians shall misgovern Syria! And civilised nations go to war about that!"

No accusation was more frequently made against

O'Connell, by the unprincipled party orators and writers who hated him because he served his native land, than the charge of sanguinary bigotry. His object was uniformly stated by such persons to be the restoration of papal hierarchy in the plenitude of political power, and the ultimate extermination of the Irish Protestants. I recollect at this period, being shown a private letter addressed by O'Connell to Archbishop Mac Hale-a confidential epistle which its writer never meant for publication, and which in fact, was never published-I remember perusing this letter, which O'Connell had written to solicit the archbishop's assistance in the agitation for Repeal; and among the beneficial consequences held out by the writer, as likely to result from that measure, was "The abolition of all sectarian ascendancy. There would be," he predicted, "no Protestant ascendancy over the Catholics, and no Catholic ascendancy over the Protestants; religion would be perfectly free." This glorious consummation was O'Connell's ardent wish; to achieve it was one of the chief labours of his life; and the man whose earnest aspirations were directed to this laudable end, was habitually traduced by the Tory party, as being quite prepared to light again the fires of Smithfield on the first opportunity.

O'Connell was indeed no bigot. It was quite true that he had a strong Catholic party feeling, which was necessarily generated by his career. But he disliked no fellow creature on account of his creed. Men of all political and religious opinions were alike welcome to the hospitality of Darrynane. A bigoted Catholic observed that it was quite impossible that any Protestant in Ireland could have the plea of "invincible ignorance." "The fellow has no right to judge his neighbour's conscience," said O'Connell to me; "he does not know what goes to constitute invincible ignorance!"

When a Protestant lady became a member of his family, he thus addressed her on her arrival at Darrynane (I heard him mention the circumstance many years subsequently)" You are," said he, "a Protestant, and here, at Darrynane, the nearest place of worship of your own persuasion is at Sneem, which is twelve miles off. Now, I have taken care that you shall not want the means of worshipping God in your own way on the Sunday. You shall have a horse to ride to Sneem every Sunday during the summer, and a fresh horse, if requisite, to ride back; and if the ride should fatigue you, your carriage shall attend you."

Her answer was, "I thank you, sir; but I have resolved to go to mass."

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"unless you

Going to mass is nothing," rejoined O'Connell, believe in the doctrines of the Catholic church. And if you do not, it is much better that you should continue to attend your own place of worship; I shall provide you with the necessary accommodation."

When the Irish Municipal Corporation Bill seemed certain of success, four of the Dublin Aldermen, who I presume were office-bearers in the old Corporation, applied for his aid in procuring for them compensation. He readily acquiesced, and said to one of them (Sheriff Hyndman, I believe,) "I want to work out political changes; but I am equally desirous to avoid inflicting individual injury. I war against systems, not against men; and I shall feel particularly happy if by my exertions I can procure for you the compensation to which I deem you most justly entitled."

The man who could speak thus, may doubtless have been an enthusiastic partisan, but he could at any rate have been no bigot.

But when assailed by unprincipled bigotry, he was not always quite so bland.

There is, or was, near Dublin, a Protestant clergyman named M'Ghee, who possessed some vituperative ability, which was combined with great zeal, and an insatiable thirst for notoriety. In 1836, this

› reverend gentleman had produced at a public meeting in London a document forged by another clergyman named Todd, which he passed off as a genuine epistle from the Pope to the Irish bishops. This exploit obtained for him the sobriquet of "Forgery M'Ghee." O'Connell, it seems, was addressed in a letter-probably a controversial one-by this bizarre enthusiast. An emissary from M'Ghee, whose name I think was King, was deputed by the former to visit O'Connell and inquire if he meant to reply to his letter. O'Connell thus described his reception of the emissary:

"When the fellow was announced, I started up from my chair and indignantly exclaimed,' How dare you, sir, insult me by bringing any message to my house from that forgery vagabond? I should feel more disgraced by holding communication with him than with the vilest wretch that walks the streets. Get agone! get agone!'"

The envoy made a hasty retreat; and O'Connell, when subsequently speaking of the incident, exclaimed,

"What audacity these scoundrels have! What impudence of Forgery to send his epistles and messengers to me!"

"What did you do with his letter?" asked I.