“He may reign in England,” Mr. Davenant broke in passionately, “but he will not reign in Ireland.

“But forgive me,” he broke off.  “I forgot, for a moment, that you are an Englishman, and my guest.”

“You need not apologize, Mr. Davenant.  As I said, I am a soldier and no politician.  My ancestors were royalists, and I have no great love for the Dutch stadtholder, who will be supported in England by the class who rose against King Charles.  At the same time, it is difficult to feel much enthusiasm for the Stuarts.  The first was a pedant.  The second threw away his chances, over and over again, by his duplicity and want of faith.  The third was utterly selfish and unprincipled.  The fourth is a gloomy bigot.  Charles was, and James is, a pensioner of France.  How can men be ready to sacrifice everything for such a race as this?”

“That is not the way in which we look at it in Ireland,” Mr. Davenant said.  “The wars here are waged under various pretences.  Someone is goaded into rebellion, false charges are preferred wholesale, or there is a religious pretext; but we all know what is at the bottom of them all, simply the greed of English adventurers for Irish land; and, not content with having dispossessed the ancient owners of three-fourths of the cultivated land of the country, they want the remainder, and under the pretence that we, the descendants of the early settlers, are in sympathy with our Irish neighbours, they have marked us out for destruction, and already a great portion of our estates is in the hands of Cromwell’s men.  So gross have been the abuses, that the commission, which the king appointed to inquire into the seizure of our estates, only ventured to sit one day, for the proofs brought forward were so overwhelmingly strong that it was seen at once that, did the inquiry continue, it would be made manifest to all the world that justice could be satisfied by nothing less than a clear sweep of all those men who have seized our estates.

“If Ireland rises in favour of King James, it will not be for any love for the Stuarts; but it will be to recover the land which has been illegally wrested from us, and which, if Dutch William and his Whig adherents gain the upper hand, will be taken from us forever.  The religious element will, of course, count for much.  Already we have suffered persecution for our religion; and, if the Whigs could have their way, they would stamp it out utterly, with fire and sword.  Things have looked better, during the last five or six years, than they have done since Cromwell first put foot in Ireland.  We have begun to hope for justice.  Tyrconnell has stood up for us, and, with the goodwill of James, has gained many concessions.  We have now what we never had before, an Irish army.  The land thieves have been fairly alarmed, for they have seen that the long delayed justice will be done us at last.  Many have sold back their lands to the original owners, and have left the country.  Others are only holding out for better terms.  Another ten years of James’s reign, and things would have righted themselves; but, if the Dutchman ascends the throne of England, there is no hope for Ireland, save in the sword.”