The New York herald., 1922-05-26
Say 1t Means No Violation
of Free State Treaty,
Assuring Order.
USELESS TO SEEK MORE
Griffith Leads Delegation and
Collins May Join if He Is
Wanted.

Special Cable to THE New York HERALD.
Copyri0ht, 1899, by The New YORK HraALp
New York Herald Bureau,
Dublin, May rs.
Arthur Griffith. president of the
oail Eireann; E. ]. Duggan. Minister
Of Home Affairs; George Gavan Duffy
Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Hugh
kennedy, legal adviser, went to Lon
fon tonight prepared to demand a
statement setting forth to what extent
the British Government is backing the
declaration of Sir James Craig, Pre-
mier of Ulster, regarding frontiers and
the south ireland agreement. Michael
Collins may join them later If his pres
ence is regarded as necessary.
Those who are well informed say
that Griffith can dispose of any sin
cere misapprehension in London as to
the De Valera Collins agreement. The
London conference was actually con-
templated before the pact between the
rival Irish factions was made, but is
rendered more important as the result
OF the pact and of Premier Craig's
statements. The conference will deal
essentially with three things-the Ul-
ster situation, the pact and new
Irish constitution.
Regarding Ulster, the Irish DELEGATES
want to know:
First--Will the British Government
repudiate Premier Craig's declaration
that he would not have a boundary COM
mission and would not yield an inch Of
taereritory?
Second-Do they support his stand Of
refusing to deal with Collins because
he had signed pact with De Valera
whereby to reestablish order In the
south?
Third--What does England mean by
paying for the upkeep of the Ulster
constabulary who, the southerners al.
lege. are actually the tools OF the Orange
murder gang?
Fourth-Is England going to reduce
listers annual contribution to the Inn
perial Treasury from fS,000.000
to f5,O00,000 when heavy taxation at a
signatories as one of the reasons why
Ulster would join the Free State?
Regarding the pact, the delegates will
tell Mr.. Lloyd George that Collins in
making 1t sacrificed nothing important.
They say that it means no violation of
the Free State treaty. De Valera, they
declare, yielded on an essential point
during the debate in the Dali when he
admitted the position created by the
majority of the party's acceptance Of the
treaty. Hitherto the republicans had in
sisted that the majority had no moral
right to accept any compromise inde-
pendence.
The delegates are expected to explain
that 1t is useless to press De Valera for
a further commitment because the exc
cution of the treaty rests with the ma
iority of the party, which already has
accepted the treaty and Is prepared to
execute it faithfully. They will add that
if slight liberation is exercised here and
there SO as to satisfy republican scruples
the country can have both peace and the
treaty. On the other hand, IL the ma
1o-ity. insists on being intolerant ana
ruthlessly disregards republican scruples
the country probably VIII have no peace
and possibly no treaty.
The new constitution may contain q
few morsels which will be difficult for
the British Cabinet to swallow. 1t VIII
he essentially a republican document on
the basis of the treaty clause providing
that Ireland shall have laws and shall
practice the same constitutional usage
as, governs the relations between Can
ada and Great Britain.
Opinions OF the best constitutional au-
thorities. together with the recent dec
larations Of the Canadian Premier. in
dicate that Canda now Is virtually a
sovereign state. Ireland will be that
under the new constitution. :.
Government circles here expect the at
mosphere to be much cleared after the
London conference. They think that
everything will go smoothly.