Charles II
charge was the more obvious because the Archbishop was at this time confined at the house of his brother by an illness which must have deprived him of the power, even if he had possessed the inclination, to embarrass the Government. To arrest him in the condition in which he then was would have been an act scarcely distinguishable from murder; and the security of Colonel Talbot was accordingly accepted for his appearance. But the zeal of the exclusionist party soon rose superior to considerations of humanity, and the Archbishop was seized and carried to Dublin Castle, where his death, which took place about two years later, was no doubt hastened by the rigours of his confinement.
Meanwhile informations continued to pour in. Lord Mountgarret, Colonel Richard Talbot, and a Colonel Peppard were now represented as the accomplices of the Archbishop. The first was an old man, long since bed-ridden, in whose guilt it was impossible to believe. Colonel Richard Talbot was arrested, but, as no evidence was produced against him, was soon suffered to depart beyond seas. Upon Colonel Peppard no punishment was inflicted, and that for the most cogent reason; for, on a minute investigation, no such person was found to exist.102
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