The Irish standard., 1917-11-10
Prayers For Success
OF Irish Convention
Catholic and Protestant Bishops Speak
Hopefully of Outcome.

Most Rev. DR.. Morrisroe, preaching
at Charlestown (Mayo), recalled the
Bishops instruction imposing on the
people the necessity of keeping aloof
from movements of dangerous revo-
lutionary character, and congratulated
the parish that nothing had occurred
to mar the union of priests and peo-
pie.
Times were critical, and great is
sues might be involved, from the point
of view of the Church, in matters now
being pressed on public attention.
The Church had ever reprobated vio-
lence Of every description. She pre-
ferred the paths of peace, and he
asked the people to pray that the at
tempt now being made to settle their
country's troubles with the concur
renee of the entire Hierarchy might
meet with such a measure of success
as would in the immediate future
bring happiness and prosperity to
their long-suffering land. :.
"Great Difficulties"
Most Rev. DR.. Bernard, presiding at
the Dublin Diocesan Synod yesterday,
said he, with 100 others, had spent the
summer trying to understand the diff
culties which were great-in the way
of peace and settled government in
Ireland. At any rate they had been
able to discuss the gravest and most
controversial matters in the spirit of
good-will-which had grown day by
day.
He asked the members to use the
authorized prayer for the Convention.
Prayer was needed and God would
help them all to a sense of the serious
ness of the task which had been laid
on them and to which no true Irish
man dare offer less than his most
earnest endeavor.
Irish M. P.'s Certainly.
]. P. Farrell, M. P, at Longford, re-
ferring to the Convention, said he had
information that there was every prob
ability-almost a certainty-that that
body would come to an agreement so
far-reaching, so broad-dealing, and so
different from anything they had ex-
pected, that once it was produced
, there would be no man fit to stand
up against it, and the great mass of
opinion-now swayed by a desire to
appear upon what they thought the
wrong side-would then be swayed
back again when the decision was pro-
duced. "And that" Mr.. Farrell added,
"will be the requiem aeternam of
Sim Fem"
Sim Fein Leaders.
Recalling the defeat of CONSUMPTION
in Australia by the Irish vote, the
reduction to slow march of Mr.. Will
sons movement to aid the Allies in
America, and the release of the Irish
prisoners in England, can Irish Core.
spondent" in the Manchester Guard
ian," says:
1T was clear that the only policy
consistent with an honest desire for
success of the Convention was to drop
all forms of coercion and provocation
until the Convention had had fair
chance. For a week or two the policy
was adhered to, and the situation be-
gan to improve.
1T was gradually being made clear
that Slim Fein leaders had no practi-
cable policy and that agreement did
not exist among them. Their power
and influence were seen to spring
mainly from that wave Of hatred and
distrust of the Government and of
British Ministers, and from loss of
confidence in the power of the Irish
Party to defend the national claims.
The mind of the country was. in these
circumstances turning, quite naturally
and inevitably, to the Convention as
the main hope of the nation.
ut was in this situation that the
sinister and negative influence which
have so often thwarted and destroyed
the attempts Of sympathetic states
manship to deal with the Irish diff.
Guilty began to work."