No man knew better its power to carry hope and peace in the hour of death to the penitent criminal.
When from party bigotry it has happened that a priest has been denied admittance to the condemned criminal, my father has gone to the county gaol to soothe the sufferer's mind, and to receive that confession on which, to the poor Catholic's belief, his salvation depended.

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Nor did he ever weaken in any heart in which it ever existed that which he considered as the greatest blessing that a human creature can enjoy--firm religious faith and hope.' The following extract from a letter written to the Roman Catholics of the County of Longford will show that Edgeworth was no bigoted Protestant, but was in advance of his time in the broad views he took of religious liberty: 'Ever since I have taken any part in the politics of Ireland, I have uniformly thought that there should be no civil distinctions between its inhabitants upon account of their religious opinions.