Page:The life and death of the Irish parliament.djvu/8

 who is a living representative of the Parliament of Ireland, and a pure specimen of her ancient gentry.

I may well be apprehensive in endeavouring to describe what he has witnessed—my words may sound feebly in his ear, accustomed to the thrilling eloquence of the famous orators of our country; but his kindly nature will overlook my deficiencies; and my inadequacy to the task I have undertaken will be regarded by a generous audience with indulgence. To repeat my congratulations to the promoters of this Association, or to the Parochial Clergy by whom it is mainly worked, for the success they have obtained, would be needless; one and all of us can only hope and pray that this Society may prosper, and prove a blessing to our city.

The occupations of life engross so much of our time that we rarely can abstract our attention from passing events—revert to the past—compare our present with our former condition, and consider what we have gained or what we have lost as a nation.

That we should read the histories of other countries, and know little of our own, would seem to be censurable, though not surprising; but the duty of investigating the constitution and proceedings of the Parliament, by which we were so long governed, would appear to be plain; and it might not be uninstructive to ascertain when and by whom the Irish Parliament was planted—how it grew—when it died.

It is, moreover, by comprehending what kind of Parliament our forefathers obtained and enjoyed, that we can appreciate our gain or loss by the incorporation of the Irish with an Imperial Legislature.

The ancient Romans conquered what in their time was called the World; the victorious legions, encamped on the banks of the Euphrates and the Rhine, preserving their discipline and their manners in the midst of various nations.