Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1920-12-14
CORK FIRE INQUIRY
WILL END TODAY
Lord Mayor and Two Sim Fein
Members of Parliament
Called by Probers
FACTIONS SEEK EVIDENCE
by the Associated Press

London. Dec. tion By
military commission Of the fires which
swept the city If Cork on Saturday
night and Sunday was expected to he
completed hero today. Major General
Strickland, commander of military
forces in Ireland. is the head Of tho
commission. and the taking Of evidence
began yesterday.
Announcement of the commission 8
findings was awaited with keen inter =
est, as the question of who was respon E
siblc for the fires in Cork has assumed
great importance since the conhagra .
| tion. In the absence Of clear evidence,
rival elements have been doing their
utmost to fix the blame on tho Irish
extrtmists or the auxiliary police re-
| spectivcly.
Phone Service With Dublin Restored
Telephone service between England
and Dublin, which was interrupted last
night, was resumed this morning. The
break in communication gave rise Ia
much speculation and some anxiety
here. Dublin passed quiet night, said
a messag" to the Exchange Telegraph
Co. from that city this morning.
Sir Ilamar Greenwood, chief srcre =
tary for Ireland, speaking in the House
OF Commons last night, asserted his be =
lief that the auxiliary police did not
start the fires, and pointed out they
were not equipped with inccndiary
bombs, which. news dispatches assert
were used to spread flames in Cork.
Prospects Of a truce in Ireland ap-
! hn, 49,, A.
recent events in that island, declared
Sir lIamar.
As a result Of direct charges that the
| crown forces were committing various
atrocities In Ireland. the lord mayor ol
Cork, with the Irish members Of Par
| lament. lRoch and Walsh. will be- sum
monnd before the military board inves
| tigating the fires in Cork.
| ? The charges were brought before the
Commons last night by Commander
Joseph VI. krnworthy, who demanded
that an impartial tribunal bo set mp to
give an unprecedented report Of what
| happened, Commander KPnwOrthy said
his information came IN a message from
the lord mayor and McSSrs. Roch and
Walsh.
Women Robbed IN Streets
The message charged that women
! were held up and robbed in the strr"ts.
and that citizens were publicly whipped
and shot, and "it was believed in some
instances burned alive In their houses. "
The chief secretary maintained his
previous position that personally lc did
not believe the fires had been caused
by the crown forces, but, IL II wprc so
ascertained. the perpetrators would
suffer the penalties Of martial law.
Turning TO aSSnssinations, he dc
rlared, ~ believe that these murders
alone preclude the people of England
| through their representatives, and the
people of Ireland through their repre-
Spntatives from coming to an umicabls
and peaceful settlement
Dublin, Dec. IA tRy 4. p "A
party Of armed men attacked Il military
motor Iorry carrying six Black nnl
Tans at Balsbridgc, on the outskirts OF
| this city, this morning. The Black anC
TunS took cover in the postofticr nnC
rp enfOrroments were rushed up and re
| Iipved them. The casualties, if any, haC
| not been reported up to this afternoon