Emergency Powers For Eire

Manawatu Times, Volume 65, Issue 4, 5 January 1940, Page 7

Emergency Powers For Eire

American Dollars Seized From I.R.A. DE VALERA REAPS HARVEST OF OWN SOWING United Press Association—By Electric Telegraph—Copyright. DUBLIN, Jan. 3. Tho Dail by 92 votes to 10 passed the second reading of Hon. Gerald Boland’s Emergency Powers Bill authorising the internment of suspected persons without trial. A later message states that the Daily finally passed the Bill by 82 votes to 9 and it comes before the Senate at 3 p.m. to-day. Mr. Boland said that terrorism against the Government seeking powers amounted to a threat of rebellion. He disclosed that the police had seized packets of American dollars consigned to the Irish Republican Army, which was highly organised and in possession of quantities of arms. Sometimes, he said, the I.R.A. intended to raid Northern Ireland and sometimes intended a coup in Dublin. He added that of the 1,084,000 rounds of ammunition, taken from the Phoenix Park fort 234,000 rounds had not been recovered. Mr. Co6grave (leader of the Opposition), alleging that the Government had failed in its duty regarding I.R.A. activities in England and Eire, said: “The Government does not appear likely to last long. If it had any sense of responsibility and a spark of patriotism, it would not only resign as a government but would retire from public life. Ministers know well that some years ago, when they themselves were seeking ammunition, they did not dare to enter a fort.” Mr. de Valera, Mr. Cosgrave said, was reaping the harvest of tho seeds sown in 1923, when he sabotaged the army and paralysed the police alter assuming office. President De Valera, replying, paid: “Everyone knows that armed men are at large who generally do not want to reccgniso 'he constitution and are ready to use arms whenever it suited them. They are prepared to embroil Eire with her neighbours. The Irish peoplo have given tho Government the sole power of determining how the national policy is to be prosecuted.”