The New York herald., 1922-06-11
Four Different Military
Forces on Duty Between
Donegal and Fermanagh.
BRITISH ENJOY NOVELTY
Irish Regulars Take Their
Work Seriously: Irregulars
Act Like Boy Pirates.
special Gable to THE NEW York HERALD
Copyright, 1922, by THE New YORK HEsALn.

| Special Gable to THE New YORK HERALD
Copyright, 1922, by THE New YORK HERALD.
New York Herald Bureau.
Dublin. June 10
| Four different military bodies on
duty along the Ulster border between
the counties of Donegal and Ferma-
nagh, where the first fatal clash be.
tween British and Irish soldiers oc-
CURED last Sunday, made this frontier
nearly as hard to pass as the oId
Hlndenburg line. Ulster special con-
stables, British troops, regulars of the
irish Republican army and Irish ir-
regulars all had appointed or appro-
priated duties, preventing normal in
tercourse between the counties whicy,
they discharged with exuberant efl-
| cheney
| Ire constables are mostly uniformed
and armed either with a rifle or /,
revolver. They do their work in a
| pusinesshke manner, scrutinizing the
credentials of visitors to decide whether
to permit them to enter Ulster oy
require them to return to the Ere,
! State.
when three country lads inspecting
automobiles along an unfrequented road
were SHOWN an American passport flied
/ with European vises they tried IN vafr
to read the Hungarian stamp to And o,+
| II IT was Gaelic stamp linking the
holder officially with the Irish Free
State.
Curfew Clears Streets
Inc constables rise to the height Of
\ their glory at night when they send the
! inhabitants of border towns off tbe
streets. The villagers enjoy the last few
seconds before curfew standing in the
twilight outside their doors Suddenly
from nowhere the specials appear in
groups of two and three and the villa
gers simultaneously vanish
|. The British soldiers enjoy the novelty
4 OF their situation. They find plenty of
material for new barrack room ballads
in these encounters with the Sinners
They fulfill their guard duty with the
air OF long experience awakening no
nope in the visitors breast that orders
might be slightly relaxed in his case
with gentle argument
1 The Irish regulars still take their new
work as seriously as ever. As an or
ganization, II is largely experimental
and not accustomed to habitual dis
cipline. they frequently must use their
own discretion, in which case they usu-
| ally bend backward in trying to be
perfectly fair. The visitor feels that
a dexterous tongue could convince them
that black is white. but their obliging
fairness usually wins reciprocity.
Like Playing Pirates.
The Irish irregulars are most inter-
esting Those occupying Belleek this
week looked as II they had NOT
slept in a month. They did nothing
methodically, and had no sense of re-
sponsibility. They had the air of play-
ing pirates. like Tom Sawyers who had
come of age without outgrowing boy
! hood.
THE NEW YosK HERALD correspondent
accompanied the correspondent Of a
London newspaper in a motor to the
outskirts Of Belleek last Tuesday after
| noon. when the British advance from,
| Pettgoe was first anticipated Motor
drivers in Enniskillen would not leave
the SIX counties area, fearing that the
irish irregulars would seize their cars.
but one driver volunteered to drive by
a circuitous route within 100 yards of
the town.
Arriving there the driver immedi-
ately dashed back to Enniskillen and
the correspondents proceeded past the y
trees felled to prevent machines coming
INTO the tiny village lying under the
shadow of a small bluff. upon which
was gray stone fort flying the irish
! tricolor.
Around a bend in the road came three
youthful pirates armed with rifles and
| casually asked the correspondents where
the automobile was from. Learning n
had come from the six counties town
they gazed at the retreating speck far
down the road and the chief buccaneer
| remarked From Enniskillen, was ity
II we'd known It was a six county car
we'd have fired on It, We stop all six
| county cars coming here"
They casually inquired for credentials
! and searched the visitors. They
answered few questions friendly
enough. appearing to enjoy the novelty
OF being interviewed" The inhabitants
OF this Irish no mans land didn't relish
the subsection OF their peaceful country-
side to war conditions. While the VIII
lagos were almost untouched, most OF
the inhabitants nevertheless hardened
20 the advice to leave locking doors and
catching the first available conveyance.
Fire Into PettIgoe Homes.
Three houses in Pettigoe suffered
rife and machine gun fire by Free state
| regulars or irregulars. One built of
/ corrugated iron had it's side punctured
all over by bullets. The interior was
badly wrecked. the shots smashing ric-
| lures. mirrors and furniture. piercing
| a couple Of frail walls and DANA sing
each room. Nobody was in any OF the
| houses.
The inhabitants Of Belleek left Mon
| day night few remaining to care for
refugees from districts nearer Pettigoe.
where the British advance was expected.
| Along the road from Bellcek to Baily-
shannonl a few villagers were seen re-
/ turning.
The people OF Ballyshannon. waiis
\ safely within the Free state border.
were completely without information on
! what was happening because telephone
| and telegraph wires had been cut. Be
4 tween Balyshannon and Sligo automc-
| hiles were seen conveying bread and
/ other necessaries to Donegal through
the narrow strip of Free state territory.
as the Uls@r authorities were then
! blockading DonefaL The blockade was