The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1919-10-18
Character Sketch of De Valera

after the arrest by the British govern
ment in May, 1918, and the deporta-
ton from Ireland of one hundred men
and three women, who led the move
ment in different parts of Ireland,
Sim Fein so augmented it's ranks that
lit elected to Parliament forty-nine
members, who, at the time of their
election, were held prisoners by Eng
land!
Devoted to His Task.
When asked, "Will you seek a per-
sonal interview with President Will
son." he answered, 'If the objects
for which am in American can be fur
thered by an interview with the Presi-
dent, I certainly shall seek it. am
ready to give the President or Con-
gress any information they may re-
quire for the better understanding of
Irelands case"
This is typical of De Valera's de-
votion to his task. He has no time
for anything outside of it, or to meet
anyone no matter how notable, who
presents no probability of furthering
his purpose.
In polite phraseology he is a rep
resentative with a mission, but he
does not hold that pose to anyone with
whom he comes in personal contact.
He becomes simply man with a job.
His simplicity and directness are al
most unique, without saying a word,
sense of deep and inspiring apprecia-
ton for the best in those he meets.
De Valera is an inspirational force
and must be aware of it, but that he
places no reliance upon the commu-
nication Of this force is instanced in
all his methods. He leaves to chance
nothing that may win accomplishment
through carefully laid plans, perfected
and followed up in all their details.
And everything is grist to his mill,
including the slightest incident, as
witness his instant salute at Dartmoor
Prison when he recognized in the line
at the morning parade the just ar
rived Commander-in-chief of the Irish
Volunteers, Professor Eoin Mcneil of
the National University of Dublin.
Volunteers! Attention! Eyes
left" cried De Valera to his fellow
prisoners, and the wardens realized
that they were guarding not convicts,
but soldiers.
From Prisoner to President.
| At Lewis prison later he grasped
the opportunity offered by the release
of an Irish prisoner, because of i'll
health, to send word to his associate
leaders in Ireland, asking their sane
ton for starting a fight behind the
prison walls for recognition of the 125
Irish prisoners as prisoners OF war
A part of his plan was agreement on
a code-one of the innumerable de-
vices worked out to it's last detail by
this erstWhile professor in mathe-
matics, now become the builder of a
republic with determined body of
insurrectionists as his raw material
| Stepping out of the ranks on the
morning following Whitsunday, 1917,
De Valera, in pursuance of the plan,
sanctioned by code, demanded for his
men the status of prisoners of war
and declared that they would no long
er submit to the discipline of the
prison. This was mutiny. The gov
ernor of the prison ordered the men
to work. They refused, and on each
being questioned individually, replied
! that they would accept orders from no
one save Commandant De Valera.
| 1t is in such ceaselessly vigilant
ways that De Valera has impressed
his leadership upon his followers, but
it is always as the spokesman for Ire
land and the Irish. There is in him
no trace of vanity. His purpose OBJ
sesses him, drives him, keeps him
plugging every waking hour-and he
has few hours that are not sleepless
The reporters are forgetting to
place quotation marks about his title
of president. He is being accepted
by the American public as the gen.
uine president of an actual, existing
Irish republic.
Resolutions are not enough" he
says. eve want assistance on the part
of our American sympathizers."