AN UNTOLD TALE

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 73, 19 December 1919, Page 7

AN UNTOLD TALE

STORY OF IRISH CONVENTION

THE FIRST STAGE

Tiio London "Times" in October published a series of articles giving the inner history of the Irish Convention of ISJI7-18, the failure of which to agree on a Constitution for Ireland is described as perhaps the saddest of all failures in the history of that country. Describing tho first Btago of (lie Convention, tho writer gives a number oi revealing-Personal glimpses. He says:

Mr. ltodmond and Sir Edward Carson accepted i'o-r their respective parties. Invitations wero issued, and tho Government approached Sinn Fein, but the refusal from that quarter was curt and decisive. Liko (ho had fairy at the christening, they stood apart.

THo Trades Councils of Dublin and Cork and Mr. O'Bi'ien's "All-for-lrolnnil" Party, for reasons of their own, also declined to participate. Tho Convention had therefore to meet without the presence of official hostages from the party which, oven at that time, was busily absorbing the voting strength of three-fourths of Ireland.

The dominant persunnlity of Ihe Nationalist representation was Jfr. John Redmond. Ho wna outstandingly the greatest figure during his attendance of tho deliberations. In the maturity of his political judgment ho sought rather ipr peace among his fellow-countrymen than for tactical advantages. His failure eventually to control lis own followers was tho failure of a nian whoso energy was sapped by :atal illness. Ho rested too much on tho standing which years of leadership might well havo mado moro eecuri?.

Another group, pcrhap* the most influential in tho Convention, though they never acted collectively. was* that of tho four Roman Catholic Prelates.' Yot another consisted of the representatives of Labour, Why It Failed. In constituting the Convention the Government mado ono irroparable blunder. They omitted to securo that tho Ulster Unionists should be bound by an undertaking as to the' status of their delegates and a 9 to thoir attitude towards a possible, settlement. I'rom the commencement it was clear that Mr. Redmond was prepared, if ho gave his assent to a particular scheme, to use every effort to securo its acceptanco by tho Irish people, and it appeared fioin the action of tho Southern Unionists that they wore ready to nssumo Iho same responsibility. Unionist Ulster gavo no pledge at all, and '.leaded that, as a minority, her delegates could only act ad referendum. In effect, they held little moro than "a watching brief!" Sir Horace Plunkett, who was olected chairman, strove at first to maintain impartiality, but tho effort yielded to his energetic optimism, and ho eventually became the partisan of tho moderate Nationalists.

His strength in office was a charming personality, great physical courago in the fnco of ill-health, and a reputation for disinterestedness. His weakness was iranatienco of inconvenient facts and an retain Hie confidence of those with whim he dirt not agree. Having decided on tho chairman, the' snh-committeo then elected Lord Southboroiuh as secretary—an ideal choice.

Ulster Talks Business. Of Hie numerous schemes which had reached the Secretariat, seven wero chosen as of greatest importance. Several were the work of members of tho Convention: the others that of outsiders, who niav desire to remain nameless Mr. W. j\[. Murphy presented a draft Bill, based on the Dominion model.

Its enlie.it feature was tho suggestion of a ooublo Parliamentary register and a tloiiblo representation of each constituency: ono member to lie elected by a nnnel of electors, bused on a property ciunlijication. the other by tho ordinary olpcto'rs.

Tim i'rovost of Trinity proposed a Constitution on the Swiss model; Lord JlacDonnell another following the Dominion principle, lord Dunraven's suggestion lv.is the creation of Provincial Grnnd Committees, with power to secure tlio Konarato cdi;sideration of any Bill in so far as it affected the province opposing it. Ho proposed the retention of Irish renrewntation nt Westminster. A. schome. of which the authors called themselves "Two Irishmen," proposed a KRttlemont on the Dominion plan, includiiiff councils with tfefined powers for each of the Irish provinces.

Another r<roposed separate legislative inwors for Ulster and for the remainder ,f Ireland, tho members of Parliament 'or the two are.v being empowered to sit separately and to submit their reactive Bills to an Irish Houso of The seventh, based on the Canadian model, proposed four Irish provincial councils with a Federal Parliament m Dublin. Most of the schemes had a stron? element of Conservatism. _ Nono proposed as a basis tho exclusion of ' S M " The Verge of Success. Tho writer narrates how tho Grand Committee was instructed to prepare, if possible, a schomo for submission v to .tflb Convention which might meet the, views and difficulties expressed in debate, lho Committee appointed a subcommittee of nine of its number. . Tho members selected were, orl behalf of tb> Nationalists, Messie. Redmond, Di*s* and tho Bishop of Baphoe; en HiatSf tho Southern Unionists Lord MkUcton; on that of tho Ulster Unionists, Mr. Barrio, Lord Londonderry, and Sir A MT3o\vell; as independents, 31 r. W. JL Murphy and Mr. Georgo Biissell. On tho death of Sir A. M'Dovyell Mr. Pollock took his place. Uho writer pro°Tt S «s at the deliberations rftho Biib. committee of nine that tho fato of the Convention was, in reality, decided._ Tito sub-committeo necepted as the basis of tlioso deliberations the scheme tne Bishop of Eflphoo. That schemo is set forth in the Convention report. It proposed a wide measure of Home Rnlo nnil the creation of a tinde Irish Parliament, consisting of a Ilouso ci I/ivds and a Housp of Commons, wiHi fuller powers tlwn those contemplated in the Homo Rule Act, including control of Customs and Excise, and, as a safeguard to Ulster, Iho nomination, for a period of years, of 12 additional memliers to Tpprose.'ifc her industries, commerce,, and trado.

The Mensure of Agreement. One by one tho sub-committeo discussed the heads of the scheme, and the "Tcatof t desire for iniilti.il acramnindanon whs displayed by all. With the sole exception of tho .'isunl powers to 1)0 exercised by tho Irish Parliament, provisional agrocment—lhat is to say, agreement subject to the whole scheme proving acceptable—was secured in every vital particular! They agreed to the creation of an Insli Parliament; to its powers, savo in finance; to tho exclusions from its powers; to the.composition'of an Irish Senate: ami to a draft composition of an Irish llouto of Commons. J lie Unionist desire for representation «t Tfctimnster they decided ;mt to be suific'ient cans? for rupture. Further; they aTeed to the principle of an Imperial coiitriuulioii, and lo many minor arrangeinents. Vbout tho end of October there existed around that table ail understanding which no smaller authority than Mr. Ecdmond regarded as tantamount to a final settlement of tho Irish question. There existed also a subsf.Tiili.il hisis for a mensure of Homo Rule. Nevertheless, agreement broke down, and tho eauso of the disaster did not originate within the Convention.

Irish House of Commons, The vital point of tho provisional agreement lay in tho composition of Wio Irish JToiiss of Commons. Tlbo principle of joint sessions of both Houses, in cuso of 'disagreement; between them, adopted from the Home Kuic Act, hnd boon w> cnjitcd. 'J'hc siib-conim-ittee had agreed thai "the llnionists sliould 1» otfero<l, by oll'ectivo means, a proportion of 10 per cent, in Hie Lower House.-" 'Hint representation ensured, In view of lilio proposed composition of tho Senate, at '<;««!■ r imLanco of power between. Nationalists

and Unionists at a joint Revft lulionary legislation and finance in such . circumstances would hwo been obviously impossible. , ■ . Tliis agreement, etraugely undernoo-alio though it may appear, had been achieved because tbo Nationalists preferred ti:o risk of Ulster domination To Hie rulo of Cnv.it Britain, and because they placed a united Ireland aboyo all olilier con- , sideralioiifi. l[ad it been .ratilied, tho question of fiscal powers would clenriy have become, if noli acriemic, almost certainly adjustable, 'i'ho object pf t CJlstor in limiting tho powers of.a. ■Parliament, impotent in important matters witihout Unionist collaboration, could hardly liavo . i been Guflieicnt to warrant nipturo on ; tin's poinl).

How the Schema Was Wrecked, At tliis fatal period Mr. Barrio and Lord Londonderry, debarred by -the conditions of tibeir participation from fjcoreisc of their own judgment or f"om tho power of binding tiheir party, took tho tonus of provisional agreement which concerned tho composition of the two nouses of Parliament to tho Advisory Council in Belfast.

Tho Advisory Council were remote ■ from the influences of tho Convention. Necessarily ii was difficult to convey to teem the confidence which had grown from intimate discussion. Tlwy had not , had tile educative advantage of long and ■ patient consideration; they did not soo the projected schcroo m a wlrale —it was j uecetsarilv curried to them piecemeal. On the pretext that tha prinriplo of < RtrDiigllipnihg Ulster representation in j tho Lower House by the addition of nominated members was undemocratic and . therefore inacceptable, the Advisory Committeo rejected tho amazingly generous concessions which JFv. Barrio, Lord Lon- , donderry, t and Mr. Pollock had .secured, and wrecked tho greatest opportunity of pence which Ireland had over known.

Tho Ulster representatives, it is true, . undertook to submit proposals for the ' safe-guarding of their interest by other ; means, but those proposals never mafertilised. Disappointment wa= bitter, and it was not confined to tho National- | isfs; but the Bub-committee, though far ! less hopefully, continued their work. With tho passing of tho first attempt ■ at compromise, tho debated point of control of Customs and Excise began to assume, larger proportions. Lord Londonderry. The article goes on to describe the failure of various attempts nt compromise and pays tho following tribute to Lord Londonderry, who was said to havo promised to put forward a proposal tho contents of which, however, wero never ' made known: . \ ■ Probably no mornbor of the Convention, and certainly no one within the , Ulster group, gave more loyal service ; than this ablo descendant of Castloreagh ,' —the architect of the Union. Courteous and patient in debate, more than once : ho showed tho gleam of tho quality of statesmanship. Of nil tho Ulster Union- . ■ ista he was the most liked and appreciated by his southern fellow-oountrymen. Eventually, after a final effort by Lord : Midloton, tho sub-committee of nine re- •, ported that "in consequence of tho continued divergence of our views on the financial question, our endeavour to find a has:?; for agreement Jina not proved successful." !

■ Thn (3rand Committee met on November 22. It pot no nearer to settlement. At one of its meetings Lord Midloton, on behalf of the southern Unionists, announced his intention of introducing a compromise proposal on tlio basis of Ins previous effort, and it was agreed that ho should do so on tho reassembly of t.he Convention.