DE VERGENNES.
TO THE PRESIDENT OF CONGRESS.
Paris, May 26th, 1780.
Sir,
At a numerous assembly of gentlemen of the law in Dublin, held the 30th of April, Captain Henry Hewart in the chair, after having collected the votes, Henry Grattan was unanimously admitted an honorary member; and it was agreed with the same unanimity, that the following address should be presented to him.
"Sir;—The body of the gentlemen of the law, ambitious of associating to themselves a man, whom they consider as an ornament of his country, and as the firm support of her rights, unanimously prays you to accept the title of honorary member of the society, as an unequivocal testimony of their admiration of vast talents when they are displayed in the cause of liberty and virtue. They request you, particularly, to accept of their most affectionate thanks for the noble effort, that in concurrence with several of the most respectable persons in the kingdom, you made on Wednesday, the 19th current, in defence of the rights of the people, and in endeavoring to unite the British Empire; they assure you, that although the event has not entirely answered, either to their expectations or to the nobleness of your efforts, they are firmly determined to sustain their rights, such as they are laid down in the resolutions, which you have proposed. They esteem it happy to see, that without excepting even the servants of the Crown, all the members of the House have acknowledged the truth of the principle upon which those resolutions stood, although the majority has not accepted them, alleging, that at this critical time it was not necessary to renew the declarations already standing on the journals of the House and subsisting in full force."
To this address, Mr Grattan made the following reply.
"Gentlemen;—I esteem myself infinitely honored to be a member of an association, which has merited for a long time my attention and my admiration. By declaring that there is no power capable of subjecting this country, but the King, the Peers, and Commons of Ireland, you render a great service to this nation, because you give to all the other corps of volunteers the great example, to make the same declaration of their rights under the sanction of your corps, who not only protect the nation in arms, but by your knowledge and authority, propagate the great principles of law and liberty.