Newark leader. ([Newark, Ohio]) 1917-1946, 1920-11-26
By Timothy Healy

My first visit to Ireland lasted II
days, most of which time | stayed
in Limerick and surrounding country
In Limerick | learned that on Aug.
Is the police and Black and Tans
visited the home of two young men
who had been "on the rum" ("On the
run" means keeping out Of sight of
the police and military
The father of these young men,
being unable to give an account of
the boys, kerosene was thrown over
his house and match put to it; his
house and two others were burned to
the ground. The fire department was
called out, and as the horse drawing
the fire hose appeared it was shot
dead. The firemen, not relishing
similar fate, stayed in the fire house.
Raiders Got Drunk
AS the houses were burning, the
Black and Tans raided the nearest
liquor store and helped themselves to
the contents. They then went along
the streets shouting, yelling and ours
ing and calling on the Sim Feiners
to come out and fight.
That night they had to their credit
the wrecking of over 100 houses.
Carey's road, street about a quarter
of mile long, all one-story houses,
mostly the homes of the poorer class
of working men, was wrecked. | went
through that street two weeks later
and there were only six houses that
were not wrecked.
From Limerick | went to New
castle-west, where | saw the streets
were shot up, doors and windows
shattered and several houses blown
to atoms.
l then returned to England and at
tended the Trades Union Congress,
and met and talked with leading labor
men of England, and with many pub
lie men, including ex-Premier As
quith, and learned that the great
masses of the people of England,
Scotland and Wales knew little or
nothing as to the true conditions of
affairs in Ireland, as there are only
three daily papers in the country that,
up to that time, had published the
facts of the destruction of life and
property.
The news was camoufaged so that
it would appear that it was the Sim
Feiners who were doing the destruc-
ton.
On my arrival in Dublin / had been
introduced by Mr.. Fred Demont, the
American consul, to Colonel Wilson of
the Intelligence Department of the
government. That afternoon | called
on the general and discussed the Irish
question with the general and men,
bers of his staff, including Chief In
spector Smyth of the r. |. C. and
major who previous to the war had
served for 20 years with the British
Army in India.
The discussion at some points was
rather heated At one point of the
argument Inspector Smyth told me
that the life of a policeman was worth
the life of any four men in Ireland,
and the gentleman from India stated
that the only cure for Sim Feinism
was to take them out, line them up
against wall and shoot them.
The general was more guarded in
his conversation, though he admitted
that it was the duty of the police and
military to shoot down everybody WHO
was connected with what he termed
the murder gang"
From Dublin | went to Balbriggan.
The murders and destruction in that
town are probably the worst that have
occurred anywhere in Ireland during
the past few years.
Three or four truckloads of Black
and Tans came into the city at 2
o'clock ,one afternoon. They took
charge of liquor store and drank
and caroused for several hours, and