I wish to say in the opening of my statement that we have no disputes between any Unions in Wicklow. We have only one Union in Wicklow. We had a dispute with the employers. We had an arrangement there during the past three years that the Union would supply the men. Then the employers notified us that they would employ the men themselves. We had a conference with the employers, and, after three of their members had arranged to meet, they got together again and they refused to meet the Union. We hold there was a trade dispute, and I am going to make a statement here which the Superintendent made to me, but which, I am sure, has not the approval of the Minister for Justice or of General O'Duffy. I can assure the Minister that the action of the Superintendent and the Guards in Wicklow has done more for another political Party than 100 meetings could do for them. I warned the Superintendent that morning after he threatened me. I will read out here the language he used to me, and it can be corroborated by 100 people who have no connection with Trade Unions whatsoever. I want to bring before the Minister the particulars of the murderous, uncalled for and brutal attack made by the Guards on defenceless people, including old women. At 9 o'clock the Superintendent of the Guard arrived when there were about 60 members of the Union present.
We had already informed the employers we would have a certain number of our members present in view of certain action which had taken place the previous week when our members were threatened to be thrown into the river, and when Organiser Metcalfe was threatened by members belonging to another organisation. The employers told me over their 'phone that they were threatened and intimidated by men coming in to their place sticking their hands in their pockets in a threatening attitude and demanding work. I told the employers that on the next day we would have men down there that would prevent anything like that. I told them that if these men put their hands in their pockets we would have our men there; that we would take these men, and if they had revolvers on them we would hand them over to the Guards, and that there need be no fear on the part of the employers of being intimidated by these men. Now, I am going to prove that the Civic Guards in Wicklow have taken sides, actuated personally against myself because I have spoken my mind regardless of the consequences, and of what may happen to me personally.
I know that the Minister for Justice has received certain statements from the Guards, and I am going to prove that these statements are only one side of the story, and that the Guards have not given the right information. The Superintendent threatened to shoot me and to throw me into the river before any dispute took place on the quay. The Superintendent's language to me was that I should be shot and thrown into the river, and he used other language which I can prove. I can prove too that I have a cleaner record than some of the men associated with him. And, probably, if his record and mine were compared I would come out with a cleaner record than the Superintendent himself, as regards my moral life. The Superintendent seemed by his attitude the whole morning to take up one particular side, and that was the side in opposition to me. I warned the Superintendent that he was playing into the hands of a certain political party, and I warned him that in doing so he might turn the wishes and feelings of the people against himself and the Government. But he did not mind. He was lord and master there, high judge and executioner and everything else. He said that he was the man in charge of Wicklow and that he was the man to decide what was right. Nobody else had a right to express an opinion that differed from his.
I am going to read a statement that can be corroborated by a number of persons who were present that morning, and to tell you the language that the Superintendent used in the presence of these persons. It was about nine o'clock when the Superintendent stated that I should be shot and thrown into the river, that I was a blackguard and a bowsie, and that I caused a lot of disturbance. I replied, pointing out that if I wanted to cause disturbance I could cause a lot of trouble. I told him that our men were employed at Fitzgerald's that they had been working on the boats. He then sent for Mr. Fitzgerald and after some time Mr. Fitzgerald arrived. Then Superintendent Meehan came over to where Metcalfe, Conroy, the Secretary and I were and said that Fitzgerald had arrived and asked me to come over there to the office. I replied that I was not going into any employer's office until sent for. He stated: "Mr. Fitzgerald has told me to tell you he wanted you." After this the Superintendent went into the office, and I refused to discuss matters in the presence of the police. Then the Superintendent came out, and immediately we went into the office to discuss the matter. The next thing was that he came into the office along with two other men who were not Gárda. We then went into Fitzgerald's office and the Superintendent followed. Mr. Conroy asked Mr. Fitzgerald did he employ those men and he replied "no." I then said to the Superintendent: "You see you have been entirely wrong in saying that Mr. Fitzgerald had employed these men and all that you have been saying this morning was not justified."
Melcalfe said: "Those other men could take possession of a boat and could go to work before they were sanctioned. You hear now, Superintendent, what Mr. Fitzgerald said?" After some time Mr. Fitzgerald offered that three of our men should work with two of the other men, but this we refused. Mr. William Clarke then came up. He is a partner with Mr. Fitzgerald. He said he employed the men on Sunday night. Metcalfe and myself appealed to Mr. Fitzgerald for a conference and he replied: "If Mr. Darcy agrees, we will agree too"; but he would not do so on his own. The Superintendent said that an employer could employ any men he liked, and there were no trade disputes. Metcalfe replied that there was a trade dispute, as it was the custom of employers to send to the Union for any men they required within the past three years. Now, no conference had been called to alter the arrangements, and there should have been a conference called to alter it one way or the other.
We were out for peace, and it was suggested that a conference should be held so as to avoid trouble. The Superintendent said that the employers had a right to employ whom they liked, and it was not a matter for the Union. I appealed to Mr. Clarke to have a conference. Kinsella, who represented another Union, asked if his Union would be represented, and I replied that the employers had only an agreement with the Transport Union, and, therefore, the question of his Union did not arise. The Superintendent said: "Decide this question once and for all; decide it one way or another, as I am not going to keep my men here all day. Some of them have not even had breakfast." He said he had been speaking to two of our men, and that they were prepared to work. I replied: "They must not be members of the Transport Union, as over 120 men had decided not to work." Mr. Fitzgerald offered the names of the men employed, and I refused to accept them, as our men had decided what their attitude should be, and that we would get ready and place a picket outside Mr. Fitzgerald's office.
The Superintendent said he would arrest the picket, as he had decided there was no trade dispute. I said we would put on a second picket, and he said he would arrest them, too. In the presence of Mr. Fitzgerald, Mr. Clarke, and four other men, I said: "The Judge will decide, not you, whether it is or not a trade dispute." He said: "I have decided for myself." I said: "You are not the Judge; there are higher people than you"; and he said: "I will decide the question now that there is no trade dispute." I then said: "You can arrest the pickets." I held it was a legal question, and not a matter for him. The Superintendent stated that if necessary he would shove the people into the river. I replied, in the presence of the four parties, that I would not like to see my greatest enemy being shoved into the river, and if it was necessary I would try and see that no person would be thrown in. While we were in the office with the Superintendent, several Civic Guards came in, and they took off their coats and left them on the counter. One left his stick there. They had been lined outside Fitzgerald's office. When we came out of the office I told the employers that I was going to put on the pickets, and leave it to the Superintendent to arrest them.
Outside the office I ordered the secretary to call two members of the Union off the boat, and one came. We decided to place those pickets outside, and then call the remainder of the men for a meeting. Just at that time the baton charge took place. I was struck several times, and I am certain it is not the wish of the Civic Guard Superintendent or the wish of two or three of the men that I am alive here to-night. They made several attempts to smash me on the head, but I have been in other disputes and other baton charges. I closed in with them, and I did not run away. I was the last man to be carried off. The Civic Guards in Wicklow have acted worse than ever the Black and Tans did in any other portion of Ireland. They got no justification for what they did. There were no stones thrown. I believe some stones were thrown while the baton charge was on, but previous to that there was no provocation, and there were no insulting remarks made to the Guards.
As far as I can judge, it was purely a personal attack, and it was ordered by the Superintendent as a sort of reprisal on me for other things. He ordered his men to carry out that baton charge. There was an old man 73 years of age, and he was struck with an iron bar. Organiser Metcalfe was left unconscious. He is still in hospital. Robt. Naughten was struck on the head; Conroy got a head wound, and Doyle a shoulder wound. In the evening two prisoners were removed from the barracks, and an old woman of 70 years of age, who went to see her boy off, was assaulted by a Civic Guard. The man was already hurt during the day. John Darcy was struck in the face with a baton. When the Civic Guard came back he asked him: "Why did you do that?" He improved on the Black-and-Tan style, and he said: "Two of our men got hurt to-day." At night time, when men were standing some distance down in the street from their own houses, eight Guards came with batons drawn and attacked them.
One old man was struck three times on the shoulder. When they were about to strike him again, he said: "I know you now," and at that the Guard did the same mischief as was done to other people. The Superintendent may hold that there were a great many people there. There were about fifty or sixty. He says in his deposition that there were a great deal more. The position was just as we told him. We were going to place pickets there. He asked me why we had the men there, and I said it was for protection. He said: "We are out to protect the people." Conroy made the statement: "You were not here to protect us last week when we were attacked, and we had to come out because other men bullied the employer and intimidated him in order to get work." He said: "We cannot be everywhere." Conroy said: "You are everywhere on the other side, but never, when you are wanted, with us."
Through the action of the Civic Guard a serious situation has been caused. I disagree with other members of the Labour Party, and I hold that this is a most serious question. I ask for no favour or mercy on my own behalf. I am well able to fight out this issue in another way. I do hold that when unemployed men are fighting to maintain their rights, it is not fair that the Guard should come and take sides and, without the slightest warning, murder unarmed men. I say the time has come for the workers of Ireland and all the men on strike to be ready to defend themselves and not to place themselves at the mercy of other men. I thought that once England had left the country, and once we had done away with the Black-and-Tans, that we would be safe in our homes and safe to walk the streets. In any other part of Ireland the people may be safe, but we are not so now in Wicklow.
The workers will have to recollect all this, as I told them at the public meeting the other night. The Guards have made a mistake. They played into the hands of a certain political body. I disagreed with that political body. I accepted the Treaty, and came here believing that through the Treaty we would be able to secure some good for the workers. I never believed in Labour taking part in politics without any return for their work or any redress for their grievances. I did not strike him on the head. If he believed that we were going to be batoned on the slightest excuse by men who are taking sides and supporting the capitalists in Wicklow, I am certain that that is not a policy that the Minister is in sympathy with. The Minister may have only one side of the question. He cannot be everywhere. It was not the wish of the Guards that I should be here to-night to tell the full truth. We have made our statements; we defy contradiction; and in another place we will be able to explain a lot more of our defence, which I have not given away, so that the Civic Guards may not know about it when the trial comes on.
I would say to the workers outside, when there are strikes on, to remember the way the workers of Wicklow were treated, and to remember the way other men were treated. I say it will be up to the workers' representatives in the Dáil to shake off a little of their gentlemanliness and to take a different attitude in this House if they are going to win for the workers the rights that we believe they are entitled to. They must also take up a different attitude outside because they are representing the workers; they are representing the people who are unemployed at present. There is no use in coming here if we are going to be treated with contempt; if the representatives of the workers are to be called murderers and blackguards, and attacked in this way. The workers' representatives, no matter where they may be, should not be afraid to speak out their minds, regardless of whom it may give offence to. That is the position. The workers' representatives will have to take up an obstructive policy—a different policy to that which has been adopted. The workers of Ireland in congress assembled will have to see that the opposition will be here. There is no use in a small minority, a small vote, because the Government, as I know, are backed up by a secret organisation who are trying to work the Treaty for the benefit of England against Irish workers.
