PEACE IN IRELAND.

Auckland Star, Volume LIV, Issue 73, 26 March 1923, Page 5

PEACE IN IRELAND.

REBELS DISCUSS PLANS.

SATISFACTORY PROGRESS.

BISHOP HARTY'S PROPOSAL.

DUBLIN CINEMA WRECKED.

(By Cable.—Press Association.—Copyright.) (Received 10 a.m.) LONDON, March 25. There is reason for belief that the Republican executive council's discussion of Archbishop Harty's peace proposals is progressing so satisfactorily that a public announcement may be expected in a few days.

A land mine wrecked a cinema theatre in O'Connell Street, Dublin. Two men laid the mine and fired it after the premises had been closed, retreating through the ruins. A troop pursued them, killing one, Patrick O'Brien. The other dragged a girl with him, and, using her as a shield, escaped.— (A. and N.Z.) Irish rebels who ambushed a party of Free Staters near Wexford, wounding an officer and three soldiers, were subsequently rounded up and four were killed—(A. and N.Z. Cawe.)

REBEL WAR ON WOMEN,

OCTOGENARIAN SHOT DEAD,

LONDON, March 25. Mrs. Fitzpatrick, aged 80, and her married daughter were shot at their home at Edgeworth Town, County Longford. Armed men called at the house at midnight and demanded admittance. The women refused to unbolt the door, whereupon shots were fired through the door which killed both women. The daughter was married to a Free State officer who had been home on leave.

The body of a young man was found outside Tranquilia Convent, Upper Rathmines, County Dublin. The head, chest, and shoulders were riddled with bullets fired at close range. Fourteen bullets were found in the head. It is believed that the man was murdered by rebels for so-called spying. A gold wristlet watch on the body was going when it was found.

General Sweeney, commanding in County Donegal, has issued a proclamation that if the irregulars continue to burn property seven men sentenced to death at Pumbroe Castle will be executed.—(A. and N.Z. Cable.)

THE IRISH DEPORTEES.

HABEAS CORPUS REFUSED

LONDON, March 25.

Mr. Patrick Hastings applied to the King's Bench Division for a writ of habeas corpus on behalf of Art O'Brien, one of the Irish deportees, on his sister's affidavit as it was impossible to obtain O'Brien's own affidavit in time to enable the application to be made this term.

! Mr. justice Avory dismissed the application, considering that insufficient ground had been shown for dispensing with O'Brien's affidavit.—(A. and N_Z.)

P.R IN ULSTER. CRAIG SAYS THAT IT FAILS LONDON, March 25. °ir James Craig, Premier of Northern Ireland, in a speech in Belfast, declared that proportional representation was an absolute failure in Northern Ireland, and would have to go. It was absolutely useless machinery and did not suit the constitution of Ulster and Britain.— (A. and N.Z. Cable.)

Sir J. Craig does not say in what way proportional representation has been a failure. The system was tried in the first Ulster Parliamentary elections, held in 1921, and gave his party an overwhelming majority of 40 to 12. Perhaps this recent comment by the "Manchester Guardian" is to the point:

"The municipal elections have been held in Ulster —without proportional representation. Ulster is the place where, above all others, proportional representation is needed, the place where least of all the domination of majorities of any sort is tolerable, where most of all the representation of varied interests is required to produce cross-divisions iv the old conventional antagonism of parties. Unfortunately the Government of Ireland Act, while providing that proportional representation should remain in force for Parliamentary elections for at least three years, made no such provision for the municipal elections. So the Northern Parliament abolished proportional representation last summer in the interest of the Unionist majority. One of the Unionist members for Belfast said frankly that 'so far as Victoria Ward was concerned, they could return another Unionist member to the Corporation if proportional representation was abolished,' and that he was bitterly opposed to any system that would allow a Sinn Feiner to represent such a loyal division as Pottinger.' All your violent partisans are opposed to any system that gives their opponents a fair representation, and unfortunately the Ulster Unionists have had it in their power to go bjyjk system which suited best their |Sfc"ty interests."