The resolution I have to bring before the Seanad follows to a certain extent upon the Amnesty Act passed by the Oireachtas last December. The object of that was to pass an act of oblivion on the troubles and hostile acts that occurred during the struggle for Irish liberty. It was hoped and expected that the British Government would reciprocate our friendly salute and that amity and good-will would arise, so that a new era of trust and confidence might replace feelings of hatred and revenge which these acts had aroused. Nothing came of that Amnesty Act, as far as the other side was concerned, except that a question was asked in the House of Commons as to whether it was the intention of the Government to pass such a bill and the answer there was that it was not, that a statement on amnesty had been made some time previously and that nothing more was required. A little later, about January, some Senators and some officers of the Connaught Rangers, who were principally concerned in this matter, sent a memorandum to the English Government asking that all Connaught Rangers and all soldiers who were imprisoned in England should be released. A week or a fortnight afterwards all the Connaught Rengers who were concerned in a certain breach of good order in India on account of Ireland were actually released. All soldiers were let free with the exception of Private Dowling of the Connaught Rangers, whose case was somewhat different from the others. Some of us did not think that that was quite fair, and Senator Sir B. Mahon, another officer and myself went to London to endeavour to extend that amnesty to Private Dowling. We asked for an interview with the Secretary for War, and the reply we received was that it was a Cabinet question that had already been decided and could not now be changed. I would like to say that all the efforts that were made were made in the most conciliatory manner. Nothing was said to which exception could possibly be taken by anybody. The statements made did not altogether set out my views on the matter but we were determined that nothing on our part should impede the release or cause any friction whatever between the two countries. Everything was smooth and gentle. We were unable to get the release. I want the Seanad to understand that particularly so that they might know that everything that could be done was done by good-will and persuasion and that nothing remains now except to pass a resolution which will bring the matter prominently forward. Unless we do that we must be content that this man be left to his fate. He has already suffered five years' penal servitude; his sentence is for life and we know what that means. I regret very much if any unpleasant memories should be stirred up. We hoped that they would have been buried and not raised here, or elsewhere in Ireland, and it is only because the matter has been forced upon our attention by the failure of those across the water to reciprocate our good actions that we are bound to raise this question. We are bound also because I do not think that it is fair that one man only should bear the responsibilities, the pains and the punishment that have resulted from seven or eight years' trouble in this country— trouble not caused altogether by this country but caused to a great extent by people in the other country and caused by certain politicians and men who are now in high places—that one unfortunate private soldier, who is illiterate, and who did, as he thought, what was best at the time, should be made the one sufferer in the world for all the omissions and misconceptions and mistakes and bad actions that have taken place in the last few years. I have already circulated a statement on the subject which I daresay many Senators have read. We all remember that after a struggle of 100 years a Home Rule Bill was passed through the House of Commons and it was countered by certain politicians and, I am sorry to say, certain soldiers, by means of threats of war, threats to stop the operation of an Act of Parliament which had already been signed by the King. Just at this moment, when things were in a difficult and dangerous state, the Prime Minister of England came over to Ireland—for war had broken out, the Great War which lasted so many years—and he appealed to the people of Ireland to give their united support to help England; that as Ireland had been set free, there was no ill-feeling between the two nations and that we should join together in what he called opposition to the common enemy.
Mr. Redmond at that time joined in that demand. He went to the Volunteers— I was present at the time—and he made an appeal to them to join the Army and to go out and fight in France on behalf of Great Britain and Belgium. He said that Home Rule was on the Statute Book and could never be repealed and he appealed to them reciprocate. I remember what happened at that time. A great many of the old troubles disappeared in a moment. The Irish people are naturally a very generous people and are always ready to reciprocate any kindly action, and I believe they have been too ready to do so. They joined up, and they cheered both the Prime Minister and Mr. Redmond, and the result of it was that 25,000 Irish Volunteers joined the English Army to fight for England. I remember, and we all perhaps remember, a certain incident in Bachelor's Walk when soldiers shot down innocent people, and when an English Judge condemned that action. The feelings of the Irish people were hot and angry on the subject, when all of a sudden through the generous mood that the Irish take on occasions, this was forgotten and the same Regiment was cheered on its way down the North Wall to embark for France.
I might say Dowling was one of those men who joined with those ideas hot in his mind to go out and fight for the Allies. No sooner were these men safely established in France than the Home Rule Bill was hung up owing to certain threats. It was not withdrawn at that time, but it was dangled before the eyes of the Irish people as an inducement to them to enlist. It was not until the war was over that the Act was repealed. Some Irish people had great doubts at that time as to what would happen. They doubted these things would be done, And I remember them saying:—"These people will never give us Home Rule; it is our blood they want." It is not astonishing that, at a moment when suddenly what they had been struggling for for so many years was withheld, bitter feeling arose amongst those who went out fighting under all these fine promises. Certain prisoners were captured by the Germans and these men discussed these matters among themselves and Sir Roger Casement, a man of genius and eloquence, came to them. He also had his doubts, and an Irish American Priest came there and told them the same things.
It is not surprising, whatever may be the rights or wrongs of the matter, which I am not going into now, that they should from a brigade to fight for Ireland. I want it to be understood clearly that the objects of that brigade, as stated in a memorandum sent around at the time, was to fight for Ireland alone. Remember that in no single case was it stated that they should be asked to fight for any German aims. I dare say some people may think that a rather fine distinction. It would be difficult at that time to know how people could fight for Ireland without helping Germany, and I think that is so. The words were very taking and they jumped at them. I do not think the distinction much finer than the statement made by Sir Edward Carson that the Ulster Volunteers would fight against Home Rule but that they would not fight against the Imperial Parliament that passed Home Rule. Moreover I think that some of us who have followed the history of the war remember that the Czechs who were Austrian subjects were captured by the Russians and they formed battalions, brigades, and divisions, and fought for the Russians and that all these actions were highly applauded by the whole Allied Press and nowhere more than by the English.
All these people who were mixed up in these affairs are now in high places, but Dowling is undergoing penal servitude. He was the only one of those that joined that brigade to suffer in this way. The actions of all the other people were not only washed out, but they were not tried or charged, and they received back pay for all the time they were in Germany. You may think that very strange conduct, but it is a fact that they received back pay for the whole time they were in Germany, and Dowling has been sentenced to penal servitude for life. I myself am a soldier, and I am not inclined to minimise the question of mutiny or trouble of that sort. I know quite well how serious a crime it is under any conditions. I am not the person to advocate it. I was very much astonished when my soldier friends, people with whom I had served many years in the Army, said that they were not prepared to go to Ulster even if ordered.
I told them that I thought that an extraordinary thing, and I could never believe it from them. But that was the atmosphere I want you to understand in which the whole of this question arose and it is not surprising that men like Dowling were influenced by that, as were men of the highest standing in the Army, such as Lord Roberts and others. I am sorry to bring up these matters, but it is necessary in order that Dowling should not bear the whole weight of the misunderstandings and troubles of that time. Three charges were made against Dowling. One was that he enlisted into that Irish Brigade; the second was for having induced others to enlist in it; and the third was having embarked on board a certain ship with German civilians or sailors. The first charge is hardly denied; the second one, that he enlisted others, is denied. I have read through the Courtmartial carefully and it is a doubtful question, and the evidence was very contradictory. The third charge is a presumptive thing; possibly he did but there is no proof of it.
All that is known of this matter is that he was seen one morning early on a small island a quarter of a mile from the shore waving his hand and asking for help from some fishermen. The fishermen went out and brought him ashore. There was no boat with him, and there was no submarine there. All that is known is that he was brought on to the land. A boat was found a few days afterwards floating about. At the Courtmartial a great many questions arose about that boat, and experts said that it was a boat that no seaman or sailor would have constructed, Suppose that the man did actually land in a submarine, what of that? There were many others. I may say that Bailey, who actually did land with Sir Roger Casement, was not tried although he was actually arrested on land. The Attorney-General said that Bailey's objects were known. His objects were to get to Ireland and to escape and as he had nothing in his possession, and as they knew nothing about him they must presume that his objects were innocent, and he was not charged at all and was allowed to go free, and was reinstated in the army, and as far as I know is serving in the English army at the present moment. It seems strange that one man should be singled out from all the others. We now come to the question of Amnesty. At the time of the passing of the Treaty resolutions were passed by the British Government and the Irish Government proclaiming amnesty to all persons concerned in these affairs. General Collins issued this statement:—
"Now that a Treaty of Peace has been concluded between the people of Ireland and Great Britain, the Provisional Government hereby decree a General Amnesty in respect of all Acts committed in the course of the recent hostilities. This amnesty extends to all members of the naval, military, police or Civil Services of the British Government, and all other persons by whom acts of hostility against the Irish people were committed, aided or abetted, whether in Ireland or elsewhere, during the past six years and the full protection of the law will be afforded to all such persons against violence or injury of any kind. The Provisional Government appeal to all Irish citizens to respect this amnesty in the spirit and the letter. In this, as in other matters, we must not suffer ourselves to be outdone by our late enemies in seeking that the wrongs of the past may be buried in oblivion."
The English Government on the 12th January, 1922, issued their proclamation of amnesty as follows:—
"His Majesty the King has been pleased, at the moment when a Provisional Irish Government is about to take office, to grant a general Amnesty in respect of all offences committed in Ireland from political motives, prior to the operation of the Truce on July 11th last. The release of prisoners to whom this amnesty applies will begin forthwith. It is His Majesty's confident hope that this act of oblivion will act powerfully in establishing relations of friendship and goodwill between the people of Great Britain and Ireland."
I want to call attention to the fact that the Irish proclamation was very much more a generous one than that of the English Government. The Irish proclamation made no exception as to place or time, everybody was to be amnestied. The English Government limited itself to offences committed in Ireland and in that way by trying Dowling for acts committed in Germany they excluded him from the terms of the amnesty. I do not think they acted quite in the spirit in which the Irish people acted. I claim that Joseph Dowling was an Irish citizen and an Irish Soldier. He was arrested on Irish soil and it was there he should have been tried and if convicted he should have been imprisoned in Ireland and even though he was not, but on the contrary, was tried in England, still when the Treaty was signed, he should have been handed over to the Irish Government.
There seems to be an impression in some people's minds before the Treaty was signed the Army belonged to England. Everyone, and especially people who formerly held Unionist opinions, must repudiate that statement. Constitutionally the army was the army of the United Kingdom and not of England, and when under the Treaty the partnership was varied and the Union abolished, Ireland had a right to claim her share of all the assets of the United Kingdom which her resources, her brains and her soldiers had amassed. This claim extends far beyond Joseph Dowling's; he is a mere cypher in the total. When the Commission sits to assess the financial relations of the two countries and a claim is put forward against Ireland for a share of the debt, a counter claim must be made for her share of all the assets.
