For some years， however， after the overthrow of the Irish forces， it was deemed imprudent by the king and his advisers to give the Irish Protestants a free hand. Louis XIV. was a dangerous opponent， and till the issue of the great European contest was decided it was necessary to move with caution at home. Besides， Leopold I.， William's faithful ally， could not afford， even from the point of view of politics， to look on as a disinterested spectator at a terrible persecution of his own co-religionists in Ireland. But once the fall of Namur (1695) had made it clear that Louis XIV. was not destined to become the dictator of Europe， and above all once the Peace of Ryswick (1697) had set William free from a very embarrassing alliance， the Protestant officials in Ireland were allowed a free hand. Parliament was convoked to meet in 1692. The Earl of Sydney was sent over as Lord Lieutenant， and in accordance with the terms of the Treaty of Limerick Parliament should have confirmed the articles. But men like Dopping， the Protestant Bishop of Meath， took care to inflame passion and bigotry by declaring that no faith should be kept with heretics， and when Parliament met it was in no mood to make any concessions. The few Catholic members who presented themselves were called upon to subscribe a Declaration against Transubstantiation prescribed by the English Parliament， but which had no binding force in Ireland. Having in this way excluded all Catholics from Parliament， an exclusion which lasted from 1692 till the days of the Union， the Houses passed a bill recognising the new sovereigns， and another for encouraging foreign Protestants to settle in Ireland，[3] but they refused absolutely to confirm the Treaty of Limerick. After Parliament had been prorogued the privy council endeavoured to induce the Earl of Sydney to issue a proclamation ordering the bishops and clergy to depart from the kingdom， but under pretence of consulting the authorities in England he succeeded in eluding the would-be-persecutors， who were obliged to content themselves with indirect methods of striking at the priests， until Sydney was recalled， and until Lord Capel， a man after their own heart， arrived as Lord Lieutenant in 1695.
In August of that year Parliament met once more. In his opening speech the Lord Lieutenant struck a note likely to win the approval of his audience. "My Lords and Gentlemen，" he said， "I must inform you that the Lords Justices of England have， with great application and dispatch， considered and re-transmitted all the bills sent to them；that some of these bills have more effectually provided for your future security than hath ever hitherto been done； and， in my opinion， the want of such laws has been one of the greatest causes of your past miseries； and it will be your fault， as well as misfortune， if you neglect to lay hold of the opportunity， now put into your hands by your great and gracious king， of making such a lasting settlement， that it may never more be in the power of your enemies to bring the like calamities again upon you， or to put England to that vast expense of blood and treasure it hath so often been at for securing this kingdom to the crown of England."[4] The measures taken to secure the Protestant settlement will repay study. It was enacted that no parent should send his children beyond seas for education under penalty， both for the sender and the person sent， of being disqualified "to sue， bring， or prosecute any action， bill， plaint， or information in course of law， or to prosecute any suit in a court of equity， or to be guardian or executor， or administrator to any person， or capable of any legacy， or deed of gift， or to bear any office within the realm."In addition such persons were to be deprived of all their property， both real and personal. Any magistrate， who suspected that a child had been sent away could summon the parents or guardians and question them under oath， but failing any proof the mere absence of the child was to be taken as sufficient evidence of guilt. Popish schoolmasters in Ireland were forbidden to teach school under threat of a penalty of ā20 and imprisonment for three months. But lest the Catholics might object that they had no means of education， it was enacted that every Protestant minister should open a school in his parish， and every Protestant bishop should see that a "public Latin free-school" was maintained in his diocese. Having fortified Protestantism sufficiently on one flank， the members next proceeded to forbid Papists to keep "arms， armour， or ammunition，" empowered magistrates to search the houses of all suspected persons， threatened severe penalties against all offenders， forbade the reception of Popish apprentices by manufacturers of war materials， prohibited all Catholics from having in their possession a horse over the value of ā5， and empowered Protestant "discoverers" of infringements of this measure to become owners of their Catholic neighbour's horse by tendering him five pounds. Lest these laws might become a dead letter it was enacted that if any judge， mayor， magistrate， or bailiff neglected to enforce them he should pay a fine of ā50， half of which was to go to the informer， and besides， he should be declared incapable of holding such an office for ever. To prevent any misconception it was explained that all persons， who， when called upon， refused to make the Declaration against Transubstantiation， should be regarded as Papists.[5]
