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 IRELAND IRELAND (Cnup.cn or) 801 out 1868-'9 immense meetings were held in fa- vor of amnesty for the political prisoners, in which the corporations of leading cities took part. This developed so much national spirit and concentration of feeling that it was taken advantage of by Mr. Isaac Butt, to direct its energy and fervor into a new national move- ment on a constitutional basis. Gentlemen of all classes and religions entered the "Home Rule League," and a great national convention or conference was held in Dublin, Nov. 18, 1873, at which the principles and objects of the organization were declared. The conference sol- emnly asserted the inalienable right of the Irish people to self-government, and adopted "the principle of a federal arrangement, which would secure to an Irish parliament the right of legis- lating for and regulating all matters relating to the internal affairs of Ireland, while leaving to the imperial parliament the power of dealing with all questions affecting the imperial crown and government; legislation regarding the colo- nies and other dependencies of the crown, the relations of the empire with foreign states, and all matters appertaining to the defence and stability of the empire at large, as well as the power of granting and providing the supplies necessary for imperial purposes." In the elec- tion following the dissolution of parliament in January, 1874, the success of the home rule can- didates was very significant. In Ireland 60 no- blemen and gentlemen elected were pledged to home rule, while England sent 28 also pledged. The new Disraeli administration initiated its Irish policy by warning, on April 17, through the lords justices, a national Dublin journal. The act having been brought before parlia- ment, May 1, was defended by the secretary for Ireland on the ground that " a spirit of dis- affection still existed there which might be ea- sily fanned into a flame." See Giraldus Cam- brensis, Topographia ffibernm and Expugnatio Hibernice (Frankfort, 1602, and in Holinshed's collection) ; Lanigan's " Ecclesiastical History of Ireland to the 13th Century" (4 vols., Dub- lin, 1822) ; Betham's " Irish Antiquarian Re- searches" (2 vols., Dublin, 1826), and "The Gael and the Cymbri" (1834); O'Connor's "Chronicles of Eri" (2 vols., Dublin, 1832); " The Annals of Ireland," by James Grace (Dublin, 1842) ; " The Annals of Ireland," by Friar John Glyn (Dublin, 1849); publications of the Irish archasological society (Dublin, 1853 et seq.); publications of the Ossianic so- ciety (Dublin, 1853 et sey.) O'Brennan's " An- cient Ireland" (Dublin, 1855); "The Four Masters' Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland," edited by J. O'Donovan (7 vols., Dublin, 1856) ; Dr. Todd's "Wars of the Irish and Danes" (Dublin, 1858); MacGeoghegan's "History of Ireland, Ancient and Modern," continued up to present date by John Mitchel (New York, 1874); Gustave de Beaumont, ISIrlande so- ciale et politique (2 vols., Paris, 1839); and Abbe Perraud, fitudes lur Vlrlande contem- poraine (Paris, 1862). IRELAND, Chnrth of, the name of the Irish branch of the Anglican Episcopal church. Un- til Jan. 1, 1871, this church was an integral part of the " Church of England and Ire- land," which was the establishment in Ireland as well as in England. (See ENGLAND, CHURCH OF.) In 1868 the house of commons, on motion of Mr. Gladstone, resolved to disestablish the church in Ireland. The house of lords reject- ed the proposition, but under the pressure of public opinion, which strongly expressed itself against the continuance of the privileges of the Irish church, the " royal commissioners on the revenues and condition of the church of Ire- land" recommended important reductions as to the benefices of the Irish church. Mr. Glad- stone, having become prime minister toward the close of the year 1868, introduced in March, 1869, a new bill for the disestablishment and disendowment of the Irish church, which was passed by both houses of parliament, and on July 26 received the royal assent. By this act a body of commissioners of church temporali- ties in Ireland was appointed, in whom the whole property of the Irish church was to be vested from the day the measure received the royal assent. A distinction was made between public endowments (valued at 15,500,000), including everything in the nature of a state grant or revenue, which were to be resumed by the state, and private endowments (valued at 500,000), which were defined as money contributed from private sources since 1660, and which were to be restored to the disestab- lished church. Provision was made for com- pensation to vested interests (including May- nooth college and the regium donum of the Presbyterians), the largest of which in the ag- gregate were those of incumbents, to each of whom was secured during his life, provided he continued to discharge the duties of his bene- fice, the amount to which he was entitled, de- ducting the amount he might have paid for curates; or the interest might under certain circumstances be commuted upon his applica- tion for a life annuity. Other personal inter- ests provided for were those of curates, perma- nent and temporary, and lay compensations, including claims of parish clerks and sextons. The aggregate of the payments would amount to about 8,000,000, leaving about 7,500,000, giving an annual income of about 30,000, at the disposal of parliament. When the affairs of the establishment should be wound up, the commissioners were to report to the queen that the objects immediately contemplated by the act had all been provided for, and to re- port the amount of surplus available for chari- table purposes. The actual disestablishment provided for by the Irish church act took effect on Jan. 1, 1871, when all church prop- erty became vested in the church temporali- ties commissioners, and the right of the Irish bishops to sit in the house of lords ceased. Previously a general convention held in Dub- lin in 1870 adopted a constitution for the