IRISH NATION

Wairarapa Times-Age, 1 July 1941, Page 6

IRISH NATION

PARALYSED WITH FEAR

STRANGE PARADOX.

NEUTRAL STATE WITH FIGHTING

PEOPLE.

When a man grows old, his one desire is td live quietly away from the bustle and competition of our daily struggle, write the London correspondent of the “Sydney Morning Herald." Causes for which in his youth he willingly risked all seem to lose much of their savour. Peace is his cry. Mr Eamon de Valera, Prime Minister of Eire—in the creation of which he fought, was imprisoned, even sentenced to death—is 58. That is not an advanced, age, but the impression one receives of the State he controls during a brief visit to Dublin is that of an aged country, a country tired after turmoil, and anxious for peace at any price.

Irish history teems with men who have suffered, died, or triumphed for a cause. An Irishman without a cause does not make sense. But the Irishman’s only official cause today—if it can be called a cause—is the protection of his neutrality—neutrality, the cloak that was to shield Holland, Belgium, Denmark, and Norway from Nazi aggression, I say “official cause,’’ because I found plenty of evidence that Irishmen are still Irishmen, whatever may be the policy of their Government. PARADOX OF 1941. Two incidents will serve to illustrate the point. The soft-voiced, kindly Irishman who roused me at my hotel with morning tea told me proudly that he fought alongside “those Australians" at Villers Bretonneux. And he added, even more proudly: “M* son's with the R.A.F.’’

The other story concerns a visitor who was being shown the sights of Dublin by one of Eire’s present Ministers. He admired this and that memorial to Irish patriots, and then asked what a high column commemorated. “That is to Nelson, but many people want it removed,” he was told. “But surely Nelson did nothing to offend,” said the visitor. “No.” was the reply, “but he was not Irish.”

There you have the strange paradox of 1941 Eire—a neutral State with a fighting people, renowned for their fighting qualities, proud of them, and. still smouldering, a resentment of all things English. In the Battle of the Atlantic, Ireland occupies a vital strategic place. From their lairs in western ' France Germany’s powerful four-engined FockeWulf bombers can soar hundreds of' miles westward, spotting for U-boats and bombing convoys 'upon the safe arrival of which depends Britain’s and the Empire’s very existence. Thai isn't just a pretty phrase; it is cold fact.

Ireland lies farther west than the most westerly parts of France. Hence, possession of airports and flying-boat bases in southern and western Ireland would place Britain in a far better position to meet the Luftwaffe and Üboat menace.

1938 AGREEMENT. Nobody realises Britain’s present handicap more clearly than Mr Churchill, who, in 1933, vigorously opposed the Anglo-Irish agreement, which ended Britain’s obligation to protect Eire’s, waters, and handed over to the Government of Eire the Admiralty's property and rights at Berehaven. and the harbour defences at Berehaven Cobh, and Lough Swilly. A glance at the map will show you the significance of the ports. But Mr Churchill then was the proverbial voice crying in the wilderness; appeasement was the Government’s policy. Last November Mr Churchill told the same House of Cornmens of the “grievous and heavy burden" which non-possession of these bases placed on. Britain's shoulders. Two days later, Mr de Valera answered in the Dail: “There can be no question of handing over these ports so long' as this State remains neutral. There can be no question of our leasing these ports. Any attempt to bring pressure to bear on us by any of the belligerents can only lead •to bloodshed.”

There one has the disclosed facts of lan apparently insoluble problem, but I it would be wrong to assume that Mr Churchill is the type of man to shrug his shoulders and leave well alone on such a vital issue. Undoubtedly “every avenue is being explored.” Mr Willkie, it will be recalled, conferred with Mr de Valera before he returned to the United States, and Irishmen are sensitive to American opinion. Mr de Valera's most recent visitor was Mr Menzies, who is known to have conferred with Mr Churchill both before and after his journey to Dublin. With the ports question officially “hush, hush,” I sought, to ascertain public opinion by discussing the problem with anyone—from politicians to liftmen —willing to exchange views. The conclusion I reached is that public fear is the force behind the Eire Government’s pathetic attachment to neutrality. Fear of being bombed: fear that Dublin will suffer the first blow. When I pointed oul that London entered the war no better prepared than, probbably not as well prepared as, Dublin, they shrugged their shoulders. And they shrugged their shoulders, too, at many other arguments. “If we lease the ports to Britain.” they say, “we shall automatically be in the war. Besides, the ports were handed back to us by Mr Chamberlain, and there’s an end to the bargain.” To the layman Irishman there is not any price for the ports. Partitition rankles just as sorely as ever—Northern Ireland is still “the six counties” to Eire—but even the creation of an All-Ireland State, assuming that were possible, would not be sufficient recom-

pense foi' the lease of “those ports.” In spite of the professed belief in the merits of neutrality, there is a grim determination to resist the first invader, regardless of his nationality; the same determination that found expression in Mr Churchill’s famous declaration that Britons would fight the Germans should they attempt invasion on the beaches, in the fields, and in the streets. Eire is spending £35,300,000 on defence this financial year. Though her towns and cities are still a blaze of light at nights, road and railway signposts have been removed, air-raid shelters erected, and other defence measures taken.

It would be presumptuous to forecast after such a brief stay in Dublin where the Anglo-German struggle will take Eire, but if public fear of air raids —a fear that is very real and understandable—were allayed, possibly by an assurance that adequate fighters, A.A. guns, and barrage balloons would be available, there would be less emphasis on neutrality. For Irishmen know that, whatever Britain’s faults in

the past, this time she is fighting for freedom, and their love of freedom, national and international, is.l found, as strong today as ever. EIRE’S TROUBLES. Whatever Mr de Valera may or may not have said on the ports question, he was able to give Mr Menzie’s a firsthand account of Eire's difficult, plight in war-torn Europe. Blockade and counter-blockade have cut her trade to ribbons, resulting in grave shortages of wheat, coal, tea, and petrol, while the tourist trade which was the livelihood of thousands just does not exist today. No wealthy Americans make the annual pilgrimage to kiss the Blarney stone in the land of their forbears. Hotels are empty, stocks of Ireland's famous tweeds and homespuns await buyers who never come. Unemployment figures fluctuate considerably, because farm labouring,, mainstay of Eire, is seasonal work, but a reliable estimate given me was 113.000 out of a total population of not quite 3.000.000. There is, of course, no shortage of dairy produce: indeed, shop counters piled high with butter, bacon, eggs, jams, and bowls of cream present a mirage-like sight to the visitor from England. So tempting was the display that for the first time in my life I consumed half a pint of thin cream neat. Tea and coffee are scarce. Half an ounce of tea a week is the latest ration, just one quarter of London's ration, which is itself small, enough. How is Eire tackling its war time problems? Foremost of the Government’s schemes is an energetic farming drive. Fields unfilled for tens of years—one at Sandyford, County Dublin, for 100 years—are being ploughed and worked by men who, in peace time, would go “tatie-hoking" to- Scotland. Wheat and potatoes are the principal crops. Sales of wheat are restricted, the feeding of wheat to stock is prohibited, and the sale of bread in hotels and restaurants is severely rationed. One small roll, a quarter the size of an Australian roll, and greyish in colour, is the only wheaten product served at lunch and dinner.

WHEAT AND COAL SHORT. To bridge the gap until increased Wheat acreage bears fruit. Eire is trying to purchase or charter wheat ships in the United States. But there is no guarantee that if she is successful in doing so the ships will reach port. Already nine Irish ships have perished in the war. To forestall the threatened coal shortage next winter, the Government has empowered county surveyors to take over any undeveloped turf banks and “forthwith to cut and save all turf necessary for the needs of the councils and their subsidiary bodies." The Government plans that "no man capable of using a slean, or of otherwise efficiently contributing to the production of peat, shall be left unemployed.” For cutting three tons of turf a week a man will receive a wage of £2 2s, plus free meals and accommodation, and a proportion of the turf for his own needs.

Such is the state of Eire today. Beneath the surface of apparent complacency there are indications of dissatisfaction with the structure born of much strife and many tears. The press is dull, a result of rigid censorship, but there are writers and artists seeking expressions through other channels. Mr Churchill said of Yugoslavia after the coup d’etat, that it had found its soul. It is doubtful whether Eire, for all the claims of its leaders, is the final manifestation of the Irishman’s passionate and understandable desire for freedom.