IRISH NEWS

New Zealand Tablet, Volume L, Issue 31, 9 August 1923, Page 43

IRISH NEWS

THE OATH IN COURT: "SAORSTAT EIREANN" REPLACES "SOVEREIGN LORD THE KING." The jurors attending the Commission at Green Street Courthouse recently (says the Dublin Weekly Freeman) were sworn for the first time as follows:—"I swear by Almighty God that I shall well and truly try and true deliverance make between Saorstat Eireann and the prisoner at the bar, and all such other prisoners and traversers as may be given to me in charge, and true verdicts give according to the evidence." Hitherto the words used were "between our Sovereign Lord the King," and these are substituted now by the words "between Saorstat Eireann." "NO BARRIERS AGAINST PROGRESS": THE FUTURE OF IRELAND. I "We have put up no barriers against the progress of this nation," declared Mr. K. O'Higgins at Cumann na nGaedheal meeting at Bray. The future of, Ireland, he pointed out, lay with the people; it was theirs alone to make or mar. The salvation of the nation lay in constructive work and not- in sabotage, which led nowhere. It was easier to wreck a railway or blow up a picture house than solve the land problem. He emphasised, as also did other speakers, the danger of returning a party pledged to advance sectional interests rather than one pledged to work for the nation as a whole." ORDINATIONS AT ALL HALLOWS' COLLEGE, DUBLIN. The following students were ordained priests on Sunday, June 10, by the Most Rev. Dr. Morrisroe, Bishop of Achonry:—Rev. John Doherty, Auckland; Rev. John Ring, Bathurst; Rev. Patrick Dwane, Plymouth; Rev. Jeremiah O'Flahertv, Goulburn; Rev. David Ryan, Sydney; Rev. Emmanuel McGinley, Plymouth; Rev. Maurice Brosnan, Melbourne; Rev. Joseph O'Donnell, Sydney; Rev. William O'Connell, Wheeling; Rev. John McGettigan, St. John's; Rev. Harold Summers, St. John's. After the ordinations in the college chapel, Most Rev. Dr. Morrisroe distributed prizes in the Aula Maxima to the students who distinguished -themselves in the various subjects of the college curriculum. THE RAILWAY MAINTENANCE CORPS. The colors of the Railway Maintenance Corps were blessed the other week at the Griffith Barracks, Dublin, in the presence of a distinguished military gathering, which included General Mulcahy, General MacMahon, and MajorGeneral Russell. After the blessing and presentation of the colors, General Mulcahy congratulated the corps upon the energy it had displayed during the campaign against the Free State railways, an energy to which we owe the survival of our transport system. Explaining the provisions of the Government's new Pensions Bill, he pointed out that it made provision for men incapacitated in the service of the nation, and for the families of those who had died fighting for the State. Among those who have suffered in the defence of Irish freedom, none deserve more generous praise than the men of the Railway Maintenance Division, and it was fitting that- the Commander-in-Chief should have reminded, them that their work will be remembered by the nation, and that their sacrifices will not remain wholly unrewarded. MR. O'HIGGINS ON ,THE GOVERNMENT'S POLICY. A most successful public meeting, under the auspices of the Cumann na nGaedheal, was held recently at Bray, , an important suburban township on the Dubliu-Wicklow border. Mr. K. O'Higgins, Minister for Home Affairs, who proposes to stand for Co. Dublin at the next general election, was the chief speaker at the meeting, which was presided over by the Rev. Father Hickey. Having eloquently defended the course which the Government has been compelled to follow since the signing of x the Treaty,

Mr. O'Higgins pointed out- that all political power now rested with the people, who could fashion the future of this country in any way they liked. A happy and prosporous State, however, he declared emphatically, could only bo built up by the development of a broad constructive outlook, and by the return to power of men prepared to deal with the vital problems of the day in a national as opposed to a sectional or party spirit. His speech out the Government's record most- forcefully before the people while its clearness, sanity, and breadth of view marked it as a notable contribution to the political discussion taking place at present from so many platforms. There is probably no Irish statesman whom the Republican party dislikes so bitterly as the Minister for Home Affairs, its supporters recognising in him a pillar of society, a man of fearless courage, and a debater capable of- exposing with rapidity and clearness their subtle arguments and their absurd pretences. His speech at Bray has not lessened that dislike, but it has shown that Mr. O'Higgins possesses m an exceptional degree those qualities which enlightened .Nationalists always hoped would mark the political leaders of a resurgent Irish nation. THE ARMY: REDUCTION BY 20,000 MEN CONTEMPLATED. The National Army, its strength and its future, were dealt with at a recent meeting of the Dail. General Mulcahy said they began the'year with approximately 50,000 men; now there were 49,000, and by the end of the year they expected the figure would bo between 28,000 and 30,000. Mr. Johnson mentioned that there were 12,000 men and women under arrest, and asked whether the Government had come to any conclusion as to the length of time it would be necessary to hold them. General Mulcahy, in reply, said that the military necessity for the army at the present moment did exist as did military necessity for utilising the powers in there •solutions passed by the Dail. The next two or three weeks might be able to determine whether a change could take place, and the Government was prepared to move very rapidly in facing a pi changing situation; and if the situation in the country apidly changed in the direction in which they Z i t Ranging and in which they hoped it would continue to change, then it would be possible for the Government o change, and change quickly, in its attitude with regard to dealing with suspects and prisoners and with people con! victect of a certain class of crime. - No Hasty Action. In the present situation they might ™ the risk of inflicting financial loss a thousand-fold on the county by inmate hasty action in dealing with the P TbL m S He would not recommend the demobilisation of the army to any greater extent than they had conteZlJL 7 Putting up these estimates. He could "Spto £ the moment that any bulk of this. vote would be taken from army work and set aside for productive work Everything possible to prevent unnecessary expenditure was being done. He could not agree to have t£ estimate held over or reduced. He was nerfLlv open minded in constructive work, whether it Should be tne" by men acting under the discipline of soldiers or otheT wise. They had made arrangements with the Poller" General whereby ■ in certain parts of the country w£ there, were military dangers, some of the telegraph lines which were in urgent need of being restored for the public service would be restored by small bodies of sold erf de tached specially for the work. It was on a oar With A mending and bridge-construction, of which the Army Tad Jone such a lot recently. In six or eight weeks, in Kerry the Army had built over 40 bridges, bringing a great amount of relief to the civil population of the area and in Kerry and one or two other areas they hoped to be tZrn mental in restoring some telegraphic and telephonic ser vices in the near future. There was n n „„i,-; • platfen by which the Oo W rZr,Z I tZZ C TZ work of a. county council by means of the Army 4d the™ ,-oud be a perfect understanding of the lS on which work would be done. ; : M