"MURDER IS MURDER."

Press, Volume LVII, Issue 17060, 3 February 1921, Page 8

"MURDER IS MURDER."

BISHOP COHALAN SPEAKS OUT. ' % (FROM OTO OWN CORRESPONDENT.) LONDON, December 16. One of the strongest pronouncements yet tittered by a leader of the Roman Catholic Church in Ireland against crimes of violence has been made by Dr. Cohalan, Bishop of Cork. After strongly denouncing murder, he said that if any member of the Church refused to hear the Church's teaching about murder there was only the extreme remedy of excommunication from the Church. In other passages, Dr. Cohalan said: Murder was murder, and arson was arson whether committed by agents of the Government or members of the Volunteer organisation, and it was the dutT of a Bishop to denounce murder and arson, from whatever source they came. In face of the destruction of the city, it was the duty of everyone to condemn and try to put a stop to outrage, murder, kidnapping, and ambushes, with which, unfortunately, they had. become too familiar. It was a safe exploit to murder a policeman from behind a screen when there was no danger of reprisals. There was no danger to the general community. But, even leaving aside the moral aspect of the question for the moment, what had the country gained politically by the murder of policemen Sorbe .Republicans said that districts had been delivered' from British sway when policemen were murdered and barracks burned. That was a narrow view. Who would now mamtain that a district had been delivered from British rule by the murder of 11.1.CL and the burning of barracks? No. The killing of the R.I.C. was murder, and the burning- of the barracks the destruction of Irish property. • Reprisals began there after the murder of Lord Mayor Of acCurtain, and now it looked like a devils' competition between some members of the I.R.A. and agents of the Crown in feate of murder and arson. Recently ambushes had taken place with serious loss of life. The ambushers came from nobody knew where., did their work, and then disappeared," nobody knew to what destination. There was not much risk to the ambushers personally. But by thi§ time boya or men taking part in them must know that by their criminal act they were exposing members of a whole countryside, perhaps a town or city, to the danger of terrific reprisals. With time to disperse to safety, they left the lives and property of numbers of innocent people unprotected, and in danger of the fury of reprisals at the hands of servants of the Government. That was not very valiant. Above all, there was the* moral aspect of these ambushes. Let there be no doubt about it, these ambushes were murders, and every life taken in an ambush was murder. There # was danger of even becoming familiar with murders, simply considering a successful ambush as a nice exploit, and the Bhooting of a policeman, as the shooting of game or a wild animal. He feared some of their young men hacLgot wrong advice from people who should know better. Notwithstanding repeated condemnation of murders t ana repeated warning, terrible crimes had been committed within the last few weeks. As a result of the ambush on Saturday night at Dillon's Cross, they had suffered as much damage at the hands of servants of the Government as Dublin suffered during tho rebellion of 1916. It was all very well to talk grandiloquently with the city nearly in ruins, and tho ruins the result of outrage and murderous- ambush. If any section or member of an organisation refused to hear , tho Church's teaching about murder, there was no remedy except the extreme remedy—excommunication from the ediurch. The Bishop has followed this statement by promulgating the following | decree: "Besides the guilt involved in| these acts by reason of their opposition to the law of God, anyone who shall within theTDiooese of Cork organise or take part in an ambush., or in kidnaipping, or otherwise, shall be guilty of murder or attempted murder, shkll incur by the very fact the censure of excommunication." "The Times" correspondent, referring to the decree, says it" is an event af the first importance. "It has been welI corned by men of all views in every ! part of Ireland, and is likely to have i j an immediate effect in Dr. Cbhalan'fH own diocese. A similar decree, issued ! not by one bishop only, but by the whole hierarchy under the most solemn auspices of the Church, would be a most valuablo contribution, not only to the cause of morality and public order, but to the- cause of political settlement. There is to believe that none would welcome it more sincerely than the rank and file of Sinn Fein, and a majority of those leaders with whom tho Government is now trying to establish political contact." The Cork Corporation rejected by an almost unanimous vote a resolution submitted by Sir John Bcott, welcoming efforts made with a view to securing peace in Ireland and offering co-opara-tion to the Archbishop of Toam. The Council instead adopted ,a motion declaring that the Irish nation was desirous of an honourable consistent with its position of "a Sovereign State." They further declared their determination to seek no truce or peace save such an international agreement as might be' arranged between Dail Eireann and the English Government. Mr J. J. Walsh, M.P. for Cork City, at the same meeting criticised Bishop Cohalan's manifesto condemning the ambush of police and military, and threatening those guilty with excommunication. The present condition of Cork, he said, should have caused resentment to one in the Bishop's position,bbutt t after the city had been decimated, his lordship made no protest, and saw no _ better course than to add insult to injury. He protested against "dictation or interference from bishops or anyone else." The Lord Mayor agreed, but Mr Walsh's suggestion that the Council should express regret at "the untimely and unfair action" of his lord?hip was deferred for more mature consideration, the Town Clerk having pointed out that the procedure was irregular.