Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1916-11-12

to persuade thom to enlist or to bring
Ireland under tho conscription act
and fetch" them as Englishmen and
are fetched" The Irish
divisions. 1t is officially announced,
need forty thousand men before
Christmas"
Nobody who knows tho bitterness
aroused before the war by the home
rule controversy, not only between
but betw cen Liberals and Tories in
England. needs to be told how every
sort Of politician is hust!ina
around these days trying to make
political capital out OF the recruiting
crisis. Before confusing tho reader
with the widely divergent opinions
and claims OF the factions. II may DO
useful to give the official figures re-
earding Irish enlistments during the
war.
Lists Are Reduced.
The number OF men OF military age
in Ireland In 1914 AS announced ny
Augustus Birrell, then homo secro-
tary for ireland, was $4,000. Since
that time. the military age In the
United Kingdom has been reduced
from 10 to Is years. and this would
add about forty thousand to tho total,
so that roughly. there were whom the
war broke out six hundred thousand
Irishmen, including men UNFIT for
service, from whom the contribution
Of the Emerald isle must be taken.
Including the lrishmen with the
colors when war broke out who had
Joined in Ireland, total OF lof,O9i
men had entered the army up TO Sep
tember Is of this year. OF this mum
ber g2,4O5. Lord Wimborne states.
were known to be Catholics. ard g.
391 known to be Protestants. From
the province of Ulster 54,Ss5 men en-
listed, 4O,049 OF them PrOtestants. Tho
religious classification is Of great mn
portance from the point OF view of
Irish politics in considering the moot
point of the loyalty" of Ulster men
ard the south. Tho figure just given
indicates that in the province of ul-
ster itself only forty thousand Ulster
men had enlisted up to this autumn
although in the summer of 1914 II
was claimed that 100000 men would
fly to arms to oppose the establish
emnt of Dublin rule over the north
Most of the remaining 1900 men
who ioined in Ulster were National
alist followers of Joseph DeNlin. wh(
since the Dublin revolt has declined
to assist further recruiting for IN
British army.
obviously, the all-important pom
at present is the number of lrlshmer
who arc fit for fighting and VIII no
Ioin the colors, although this is lnrseN
overlooked by Sir Edward carson
John Redmond and their partisans II
England, who spend much TIM
wrangl.ng about whether north o
south ireland has made the bette
showing. The opinion of Lord VIM
borne, now back in his old job as lore
lieutenant, after resigning IN tafte
weel. is that there are 10000 mel
in the county available for serNlc
without crippline industry or agri
culture. In making this estimate n
allowed 10000 fit men for indis
pensablo farming and $4,000 now en-
gagged on munition work from wnlc
| they cannot be removed. Sir Edwar
! Carson. who is most anxious that con
! scriutlOn should be forced on tn
| county, sharply challenges Ior
| Wimborne's figures. "There are q
least csc, 600 men of military age !
| ireland" he says. 'and of these chi
about 100000 to 10000 have, so fa
as [ know, enlisted" on the otne
hand, the Nationalist leaders clair
| that not more than $4,000 to 10000
men remain in ireland who can toi
| tho army without crippling the coun
/ try. Figures from political partisan
| here. as in the United states, ar
mostly concocted for partisan pui