on the Irish Society, by the Skinners' Company, is to pray the payment of a certain sum of 4,000l. and a fraction into Court, and the appointment of a Receiver of certain estates, which are vested in the Irish Society, under a charter granted them by King Charles the Second. That grant, my Lord, originated in a project entertained by King James the First, in the early part of his reign, for the cstablishment of a protestant colony within the province of Ulster, which was to be carried into execution by the grant of certain lands by the king-certain lands escheated to the king, by reason of the rebellion of the former owners of those estates. King James the First, in order to carry that project into execution, issued and published certain printed articles, called articles of plantation, which stated the conditions on which grants of land should be made to those who were private undertakers. In the origin of the scheme, there were no persons contemplated as taking any part in the undertaking than private persons; but in the progress of it, in the month of July 1609, application was made to the Lord Mayor of the City of London, and the Court of Aldermen, to induce the City of London to undertake part of the plantation, within the province of Ulster; and by way of inducement to the City of London to undertake this plantation, certain motives or reasons were transmitted from the Privy Council to the Lord Mayor, for the purpose of being submitted to the consideration of the citizens of London; and that part of the province of Ulster, of which it was proposed to the City of London that they should undertake the plantation, was the city of Derry, and town of Coleraine, and the county of Coleraine. The mode which appears to have been adopted by the Lord Mayor and the Court of Aldermen, for the purpose of carrying into execution the proposal of the king, was by submitting it to the various Companies of the City of London.

For that purpose, on the 1st of July 1609 precepts were issued to the various Companies of the City of London, submitting to them the proposal of the king, together with a copy of the motives which had been submitted from the Privy Council to the Lord Mayor. The original precept appears to have been sent

by the Lord Mayor to the various Companies, in pursuance of the order, not of the Court of Common Council, but of the Court of Aldermen of the City. In consequence of that precept, the Companies met, and chose from each of them four persons, who were named as their committees, or deputies of the various Companies; and the object of that choice was for the purpose of their conferring together, in order to consult as to the proposal which had been submitted by the king to the City. Various conferences appear to have taken place in consequence of that precept; and at the first, some of the Companies of the City of London appear to have been indisposed to accede to the proposal of the king; but in the course of the proceedings, after various conferences of the committees of the Companies with the Privy Council of Ireland and the Lord Mayor, the proposal was so far acceded to, that it was agreed between the Privy Council and the City of London, or rather the Lord Mayor and the various Companies, that certain parties should be sent over to Ireland, with a view to ascertaining whether the land proposed by the king to the City of London was answerable to the representation and to the expectation of profit which was held out.

On the 2d of August, 1609, we find, for the first time, the Court of Common Council of the City of London introduced into the business; and the object of their introduction was in order to the selection of four persons, who should proceed to Ireland for the purpose of ascertaining the nature and the quality of the lands proposed to be planted. These persons were appointed by the Court of Common Council; they proceeded to Ireland; and on the 2d of December, in the same year, 1609, they made a report to the Court of Common Council, in which they stated the result of that investigation which had been committed to their trust; and on the 2d of December that report was referred by the Court of Common Council to a committee of their own. That committee reported upon the matters referred to them, and that report was communicated to the Court of Common Council on the 15th of December, 1609. The report in question is one of the very important documents in this case, and has been already

put in by my learned friend Mr. Wigram; it is headed in this way: "We, the Committees appointed by the Common Council, held on the 2d of December, 1609, to consider of all circumstances and matters fit to be remembered concerning the plantation in Ulster, have met five several days, and long debated and consulted of all things incident to so great a business; and for the better ordering of our proceedings, we propounded to ourselves four general heads, under which we handled every particular in his proper place." The four heads under which they appear to have divided the subject were these-First, What sums of money should be expended. Secondly, What land and privileges should be demanded. Thirdly, What things should be performed. Fourthly, How all should be managed and ruled. The sum which they supposed should be expended upon the plantation was the sum of 20,000l. in the whole; of which 5,000l. was to be applied to the buying in of particular interests in the lands the king proposed to grant, in order that the undertakers, the citizens of London, might have the whole interest in those lands; and the sum of 15,000l. was to be expended in carrying into effect the plantation. They proposed also in that report, that the 20,000l. should be raised by way of companies, according to the corn-rate that is quite consistent with the previous communication which had been made with the Companies of the City of London, who had been consulted with reference to the proposal of the king for the immediate undertaking of the plantation. And then we find after the viewers had been sent over, and their report made to the Common Council, this committee of the Court of Common Council proposed that the 20,000l. to be expended on the plantation should be raised by way of Companies according to the corn-rate-according to the rate of corn set on every Company. That reference to the corn-rate was merely for the purpose of equalizing the bargain as between the Companies, or equalizing rather the contribution; because we consider that the Companies were throughout volunteer undertakers in this projected plantation. The cornrate appears to have been a rate affixed on the several Companies of the City of London for laying in corn every year, in order

to provide against any scarcity within the City; but the corn which they purchased by means of the rate thus imposed upon them was always the property of the Companies themselves, and did not belong to the Corporation of the City; so that even supposing that this reference to the corn-rate, in order to the levying of the money for the plantation, ascertained the description of the bargain which was to be imposed upon the several Companies, yet still, if we pursue the analogy to the corn-rate, that which was purchased with the 20,000/. belonged to the Companies themselves, and not to the Corporation of the City; but in fact, it may be considered that this reference to the corn-rate was merely for the purpose of ascertaining the mode in which the money should be levied upon the Companies, and nothing more.

The second head which the Committee proposed was, "What land and privileges should be demanded; thirdly, what things should be performed; fourthly, how all should be managed and ruled." It is not necessary for me to do more than merely to advert to the second and third heads; namely, "What land and privileges should be demanded, and what things should be performed;" because we find that the articles subsequently entered into between the king and the citizens of London, follow in almost precise terms the recommendation of the Committee. But the fourth head, "How all should be managed and ruled?" is, perhaps, material; because it is out of that recommendation that the Irish Society, who are the defendants in this case, and against whom this motion is made, itself sprung. "It is thought best that a Company be constituted here in London, of the persons to be selected for that purpose, and Corporations to be settled in the two cities of Derry and Coleraine; but all things concerning this plantation and undertaking to be managed and performed in Ireland by advice and directions from the Company here in London: so that it appears from that, the original suggestion of this Company for the management of the plantation was a suggestion arising from the City of London itself; or rather from the Committee to whom the investigation of this matter had been referred by the Court of Common Council.

That report of the Committee was approved by the Court of Common Council, and in pursuance of that approval, on the 28th of January, 1609, articles of agreement were entered into between certain persons on behalf of the City of London, and certain members of the Privy Council; they are headed, "Articles of agreement made and entered into the 28th January 1609, between the right honourable the Lords of His Majesty's most honourable Privy Council, on the King's Majesty's behalf of the one part, and the Committee appointed by act of Common Council, on behalf of the Mayor and Commonalty of the City of London of the other part, concerning a plantation in part of the Province of Ulster." By these articles of agreement, "it was agreed by the City that the sum of 20,000l. should be levied, whereof 15,000l. was to be expended on the intended plantation, and 5,000l. for the clearing of private men's interests in the things demanded; second, also, that at the Derry two hundred houses should be built, and room to be left for three hundred more, and that 4,000 acres lying on the Derry side next adjacent to the Derry, should be laid thereunto, bog and barren mountain to be no part thereof, but to go as waste for the City; the same to be done by indifferent commissioners. Third, also, that the Bishop and Dean of the Derry should have convenient plots of ground for the site of their houses at the Derry." Then, "with respect to the town of Coleraine, one hundred houses were to be built thereon, and room left for two hundred more, and that 3,000 acres of land should be laid thereunto." And then some provision was made as to the situation of these three thousand acres. The 7th article runs thus-" That the woods, and the ground, and soil of Glanconkene and Killetrough, extending from the county of Coleraine to Ballinderry, be wholly to the City in perpetuity; the timber trees of those woods to be converted to the furtherance of plantation, and all necessary uses within Ireland, and none to be made merchandize;" the city was to "have the patronage of all the churches, as well within the said city of the Derry and town of Coleraine, as in all the lands to be undertaken by them." And then it provides for the quit rent which is payable to the king; the lands were to be held in fee burgage,