"A CHANGED IRELAND."

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 19558, 10 February 1927, Page 6

"A CHANGED IRELAND."

Sir,—On perusal of Wednesday's Herald I was amazed to see in an articleentitled. "A Changed Ireland," that great changes for the better had taken place in that country. The article is based on the statements of the Rev. Father 0. Gallagher, who returned by the lonic. He quotes the fact that the beet sugar refining factory in County Carlow "provides employment for 1700 workers. Exactly, but ho did not mention that 70 per cent, of these workers are of Belgian nationality.—a strange example of the prosperity of _ Ireland. "The unemployment- situation is practically trifling,'" ho jubilantly states, which statement caused me to wohdcr whether I had made a mistake in sailing for New Zealand on the s.s. Pakeha, 10 ' days prior to his departure for the said country on the s.s. lonic. But after all, perhaps I was not too much mistaken in doing so, considering that for the past year I was one of the 16,000 unemployed registering daily at the labour bureau in Dublin City alone. I can confidently state that there were a further 10,000 unfortunates, not registered owing to their claims for monetary relief being exhausted. If the Free State Government has found employment for this vast multitude during the 10 dav3 intervening between the sailings of the Pakeha and lonic, then certainly they deserve the admiration of the world. Then Father Gallagher remarks on the Republican movement being as dead as the dodo. It is of interest t-o note that this dead party boasts of 47 members of Parliament, being one-third of the total. I am also inclined to think that if the rev. clergyman had spent a little of his time in a walk down Abbey Street and viewed the large numbers awaiting admission to the U.S. Consul's office to have their passports vised that they may sail to America, there to earn a living which is. denied to them at home, his opinion would bo altered. Shan Van Vocht.