IRISH FREE STATE.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume 48, Issue 14625, 27 March 1922, Page 6

IRISH FREE STATE.

CONFERENCE IN LONDON. f LONDON, Friday. Owing to the gravity of recent, events in Ireland the British Government lias telegraphed requesting Sir James Craig to come to London with any of Ins colleagues who wish in order that the vernment may examine every aspect or the situation. The tension between Protestants and Catholics in Ulster is. increasing hourly. It is understood that Mr. Collins is eomino- to London immediately, but there are indications that Sir .lames Craig may be unwilling to confer with him again in view of tiie results- of the last interview. , Cireumstancscs are. drifting towards a military occupation of the affecred areas, which are not confined to tnc holder districts. General Sir N. Macready regards the situation as most serious. Bombing and shouting m me east end of Belfast arc continuous. _ Mr. Mac Guff iiq Home Sce.rctarj m the Northern Parliament, said He deplored the occurrences ot inuisoay and Friday. Every step was bon taken to bring the murderers to justice no matter to what class oi eiee.d e T belonged. , , The Omagh (Co. Tyrone) constabulary, while searching Lough Maerory, found in a. Trench 52 hand-mado bombs, and a box of stolen police bombs. Terrorism at Trillick, where three Catholics were shot on Friday, is so great that neither Protestants nor Catholics go to bed at night. Families sit beside the fire all night long, and if they hear footsteps outside they dash from their homes. All clothing is packed in boxes and hidden in the fields; money is secreted in hollow trees, where the police occasionally discover it. Since Monday Sinn Fein armed men have seized 20 Ulster motor cars and lorries, especially those belonging to commercial travellers carrying samples. An armed gang attacked the constabulary barracks at Strathbane. There was fierce gunfire for 20 minutes when a Verey light sent up by the police brought soldiers of the Rifle Brigade to the scene. The attackers then lied. / , Twelve armed Sinn Femcrs stopped a train from Belfast, raided the mailwan and stole registered letters. This is the third robbery on the same train in .a fortnight. The bill for payment for Sinn Kin outrages, just presented to the British taxpayer, amounts to £1,997,500 compensation paid, to victims, apart from £750,000 paid to the'Northern Government as compensation for damage to life and property in Ulster, and £1,00.0,000 payable to tho Northern Government as a contribution to abnormal expenses in the present exceptional circumstances. —Aus. and N.Z. Cable Assn.