without consulting the lord deputy, ’he called his men to arms and marched into Tyrconnel, killing, robbing, and burning in the old style through farm and castle.’  The Irish historians, however, make excuses for O’Neill, affirming that he was released from his obligations by the bad faith of the lord deputy.  He it was who gave him a safe conduct to Dublin, that he might take the oath of allegiance according to promise; but the document was so ingeniously worded that its meaning might be twisted so as to make him a prisoner.  He was informed of this treachery, and, as Mr. Froude remarks, ’Shane was too cunning a fish, and had been too lately in the meshes, to be caught again in so poor a snare.’  A most attractive bait was provided by Sussex in the person of his sister, who had been brought over to Dublin, and who might be won by the great northern chief if he would only come up to the viceregal court to woo her.  ’Shane glanced at the tempting morsel with wistful eyes.  Had he trusted himself in the hands of Sussex he would have had a short shrift for a blessing and a rough nuptial knot about his neck.  At the last moment a little bird carried the tale to his ear.  He had been advertized out of the Pale that the lady was brought over only to entrap him, and if he came to the deputy he should never return.’  He therefore excused himself by alleging that his duty to the Queen forbade him to leave the province while it was in such a disturbed condition, the disturbance being caused chiefly by his own predatory excursions into the territories of the O’Donels and Maguires.

Shane took charge of the affairs of the Church as well as of the State.  The Catholic primate refusing to acknowledge Elizabeth as the head of the Church, the see was declared vacant, and a conge d’elire was sent down for the appointment of ‘Mr. Adam Loftus,’ an Englishman, who came over as the lord deputy’s chaplain.  The answer returned and reported by Sussex to the Queen was ’that the chapter there, whereof the greater part were Shane O’Neill’s horsemen, were so sparkled and out of order that they could by no means be assembled for the election.  In the meantime the lord deputy began to apprehend that O’Neill aspired, not without some hope of success, to the sovereignty of the whole island.  It was found that he was in correspondence with the Pope, and the Queen of Scots, and the King of Spain.  No greater danger, wrote Sussex, had ever been in Ireland.  He implored the Queen not to trifle with it, declaring that he wished some abler general to take the command, not from any want of will, ’for he would spend his last penny and his last drop of blood for her Majesty.’  Right and left Shane was crushing the petty chiefs, who implored the protection of the Government.  Maguire requested the deputy to write to him in English, not in Latin, because the latter language was well known, and but few of the Irish had any knowledge of the former, in which therefore the secrets of their