I have seconded the motion which has been moved by Senator Sir John Keane. I should like to say that, owing to circumstances beyond my own control, it will be necessary for me to leave the Chamber almost immediately after I have concluded my speech, and therefore I should like to apologise for the seeming discourtesy to you, Sir, to the Minister, and the House. I have never met Dr. Vere Gregory, the author of this book, except casually and accidentally in the ante-room of this House, nor have I ever had any correspondence with him; but I have read this book with great interest, and I have had the advantage of seeing the letters which passed between his publishers, Messrs. Browne and Nolan, and the Controller of Censorship.
I want to say at the beginning that this is the kind of book that is altogether to my taste. It is the sort of book that I have often encouraged other people to write, and have occasionally assisted people to write. That is to say, it is largely a history of a family that has been domiciled in this country for many generations, and that, in the person of Dr. Vere Gregory, who lives in Donegal, is still here. He is a cousin of Sir William Gregory, the celebrated husband of the still more celebrated Lady Gregory, who was one of the founders of the Abbey Theatre. His book contains an account of the Gregory family in Ireland, interspersed with the writer's own reminiscences and comments on current affairs. The author was a County Inspector in the Royal Irish Constabulary during the closing years of that force. Hence, he had personal knowledge of the disturbed and difficult period leading to the Treaty of 1921. Naturally, in these personal reminiscences, there are a few stories about murders committed by both sides. Now, these are not picked for their sensationalism, but because they came his way or for some particular reason—for example, the shocking tragedy of Sir Arthur Vicars, of Kilmorna, near Listowel. Another case, of which he had not personal knowledge, he tells—and the fact does him great credit—because he wished to clear the name of Lady Gregory, his kinswoman, of an absurd charge of collusion with certain people that had been made against her. On this question of atrocity and counter-atrocity, I want to make this point—it is the kind of thing that is unavoidable in revolution. Arthur Griffith said at a time when such things were beginning to happen—and these are, I think, very important words:
"The military mind is the same in every country. Our military men are as bad as the British. They think of nothing but their own particular end and cannot be brought to consider the political consequences of their proceedings."
An astonishing fact—but it still is a fact—is that Dr. Vere Gregory is just as severe on the Black-and-Tans as he is on the Irish Republican Army—perhaps more severe. For example, he says:—
"Such methods have failed to achieve their purpose in every country in which they have been employed. They certainly failed in Ireland. During the Great War, they failed in Belgium. In the case of Kevin Barry, the only result was to add another name to the roll of Irish martyrs."
Including these occasional reminiscences and taking the book as a whole, one might say that it is the book of a man whose heart is overflowing with charity and kindness. He has no harsh word for any side. Further, these passages form only a very small part of the book. Any reviewer concentrating on them to the exclusion of the rest of the book would be writing a grossly unfair review. I myself have seen no such review. I doubt if any responsible reviewer in this country would write such a review.
Now, I come to the question of the law on the subject. Senator Sir John Keane mentioned that, but not quite in the way I should like to do, though there was nothing specially inaccurate in what he said. The law is the Emergency Powers (No. 151) Order, 1942, Statutory Rules and Orders (No. 45), 1942, made by the Government in exercise of the powers conferred on them by the Emergency Powers Act, 1939, on the day that Germany attacked Poland—1st September, 1939. The relevant provisions, in so far as books are concerned, are contained in Articles 4 and 5 of the Order. I shall read the part of Article 4 which is applicable:—
"Whenever an authorised person——"
that is to say, the Minister or the Controller of Censorship or any such officer as defined in the Order—
"is of opinion that the publication of any matter contained in any document or the public exhibition of any document would be prejudicial to the public safety or the preservation of the State or the maintenance of public order or would be likely to lead to a breach of the peace or to cause offence to the people of a friendly foreign nation, he may, subject to the provisions of this Order, direct the seizure of such document."
Those are the five causes or grounds for seizure and, in effect, "seizure" means what we call "banning". Note the five grounds—public safety, preservation of the State, maintenance of public order, breach of the peace and the causing of offence to people of a friendly nation. Those are the only grounds. Otherwise, any seizure— that is to say, any banning—of a book. would be ultra vires the Order. Of course, there is no legal redress for any action taken ultra vires.
Next I quote Article 5:—
"Where (a), a person who proposes to print, publish, distribute or sell any publication, submits such publication to an authorised person before so doing, and (b) such authorised person permits such printing, publishing, distributing, selling, no direction shall be given under Article 4 of this Order in respect of such publication."
That is to say, if a person submits his manuscript or typescript of a proposed book to the Censor and the Censor permits such printing, then the writer and the publisher can go ahead in the knowledge that, under this Order, the book cannot be banned, because no direction can be given under Article 4 in respect of it.
Now, I come to the actual time-table with regard to Messrs. Browne and Nolan's book, written by Dr. Vere Gregory. According to the dates given to me, Messrs Browne and Nolan sent the galleys to the Controller of Censorship on the 18th June, 1943. That is to say, they complied with Article 5. On the 29th June, the proofs were returned, stamped "Passed by Censor," with the exception of certain passages marked "Stopped by Censor". I shall not go into the question raised by Senator Sir John Keane as regards certain deletions. I understood the Minister to say that, so far as he was concerned, they were unimportant. My friend, Senator Kingsmill Moore, points out to me that, in the concluding paragraph of the letter sent to the Managing Director of Messrs. Browne and Nolan on the 29th June, returning the galleys, the Controller of Censorship said:—
"I have delayed dealing with this matter in order that I might have an opportunity of consulting those who are wiser than myself. This I have now done, and perhaps it was as well because my personal view was that Mr. Gregory's autobiography was too unimportant to matter, and I think that if I had been depending on my private stock of wisdom I would not have bothered to make any changes."
When he writes in that way, he is not offering criticism. What he means is that, from his special point of view as Censor and in view of the number of copies proposed to be published, the question was too unimportant to matter. But Senators will note that the controller wished to have an opportunity of consulting those who were wiser than himself: Who they might be is rather left to speculation. The proofs having been passed subject to deletion, the book came within Article 5. That is, any power that might have existed to stop its sale had come to an end. I am sorry to have to go through some of the points that have already been mentioned by Senator Sir John Keane but this is very necessary and important. On the 22nd July, the proofs were asked for again. In the absence of the controller on holiday, a telephone request was received from his deputy that the censored proofs be returned for a few days. Actually, these few days lengthened into three weeks. They were returned without any comment on the 14th August. Now, this strikes me, and must strike any reasonable man, as very odd indeed. The book had passed through the machinery provided in Article 5. It had passed the the Censor. The Censor was functus officio in regard to that book, if words mean anything, and yet it was requested that the galleys be sent back and they were kept for three weeks. I am coming back to that point again. I will leave it there now.
The book was published on the 20th October. The Censor's action in passing it under Article 5 having prevented its suppression, all possible steps were taken to prevent its sale. As Senator Sir John Keane told you, the very mention of it in the publisher's catalogue was deleted. Advertisements for it were not allowed by the Censor to appear. So innocent a notice in the December number of The Bell as this: “The House of Gregory comes from Browne and Nolan, Limited, at 15/-” was blue-pencilled; and the reviews were stopped. The managing director of Messrs. Browne and Nolan, Limited, very properly, wrote to the Minister on the 3rd December, 1943:—
"Dear Sir—On 20th October, 1943, this firm published on behalf of Dr. Vere Gregory, Laputa, Bally-shannon, County Donegal, a book entitled The House of Gregory at the published price of 15/-, being the story of the Gregory family in Ireland.
Before publication, we submitted the book in galley proofs formally to the Controller of Censorship, who passed the work for publication, subject to certain suggested amendments all of which were, of course, gratefully accepted and carried out. Mr. Gregory paid the expenses of printing and publication and a limited edition of 1,000 copies of the book was produced.
We have now learned, to our very great surprise, that certain reviews of the book have been censored, and have been refused publication, and in addition, that even references to the book in advertisements and book lists have been censored. We are enclosing for your information a proof from the current issue of The Bell which the publishers of that magazine, as a matter of courtesy, have sent to us. We have also been advised by the Censor that no mention of the book in the public Press will be permitted from now on.”——
I repeat that—
"We have also been advised by the Censor that no mention of the book in the public Press will be permitted from now on.
It is extremely difficult for us to understand why publication of the book should be passed by the Censor, while references to it, even in so bald a form as ‘Vere Gregory's autobiographical The House of Gregory, comes from Browne & Nolan at 15/-' have been forbidden.
Had we been advised by the authorities when the proof pages were submitted that publication was thought to be against the principles of the State, it is unnecessary to say that we would have loyally abided by that decision and not proceeded with publication. The position now, however, is that Dr. Gregory has incurred an expenditure of between £300 and £400, and, owing to the action of the censorship, as publishers we are unable to give him the service which is due to him to enable him to sell his book. You will appreciate that a book essentially depends upon advertising and reviews, and to stop this is really to throttle at the source the sales of the book.
We are enclosing for your information a copy of the book in question, and would with great respect submit that there is nothing in it which is in any way likely to affect the interests of the State. We would also stress that the edition of 1,000 copies is a limited one. There will not be a reprint of the book owing to the paper shortage, and in these circumstances we would appreciate if the decision of the authorities could be altered so as to permit the necessary reviews and advertisements.
Yours faithfully,
For Browne & Nolan, Limited,
(Signed) R.A. NOLAN,
Managing Director."
This appallingly drastic action, confessedly, that no mention of the book in the public Press of any kind would be permitted from then on, was taken under the same statutory rule and order, but not under the same article. In the articles referring to newspapers there are no grounds given, but common sense suggests that the grounds are the same five grounds, because they cover everything that could be relevant: the security of the State, public safety, the preservation of the State, the maintenance of public order, a breach of the peace or causing offence to people of a friendly nation. Though even the bare title was deleted from The Bell, and though the Censor's own ruling was that nothing would be permitted to appear in the papers, even there they are not consistent, because the following review did appear in the Cork Examiner of the 15th November, 1943, that is 12 days later. I am going to read this because it is a typical review and it has been allowed to be published. It is a review by an anonymous reviewer of the book. It says in it nothing at all likely to cause a breach of the peace or at all likely to cause embroilment with the people of a friendly nation:—
"The family of Gregory originated in England. Members came over and settled in Ireland, where they acquired estates. One of them took a considerable part in the defence of Derry, and afterwards settled in Kerry, while one of his sons preferred Galway. The latter was father of Robert Gregory, who became chairman of the East India Company. It is said he left Galway as a stowaway, but he had introductions to prominent persons in India, and through these obtained a writership and clerkship in the company. He managed to amass a fortune, and when little over 40 he returned to England, and thenceforward lived a life of affluence. A descendant in the last century who served as Governor of Ceylon, and an English M.P., was the husband of the famous Augusta Lady Gregory who, having survived her husband for several decades, died only a few years ago. The author of this family memoir was a cousin of Sir William Gregory. He became a student of Trinity College, and graduated there in Arts and Law, and joined the old R.I.C. as a cadet. He was stationed in North Kerry during part of the ‘Troubles', and subsequently in Antrim. While in Kerry he had a day's fishing under the protection of an I.R.A. leader. Unfortunately, he landed not a single fish. If he did, he would have it preserved as a fish poached by a police officer without a licence or the permission of the owner, under the auspices of an I.R.A. man. In the North he did not find people so accommodating. He was asked by a fly-tying fanatic to secure feathers of a game-cock killed in November. As a police officer, Mr. Gregory's duty was to put down cock-fighting. But he could not let the angling friend down. He made approaches to the proper quarters through the proper channels, but there was nothing doing. The Northern cock-fighters were not as trustful or obliging as the Kerryman. The book contains grim and humorous reminiscences of troubled times in Ireland, as well as memoirs of the author's ancestors."
I know that reading material like this in a speech is apt to be boring, and I will only do it in so far as it seems to be necessary. I have given the whole of that review in regard to this book which is regarded with such suspicion by the Censor that he attempts to kill it. Either I am mad or the people who have censored the reviews of the book are mad. There is only one clue to the reason for the Minister's action, and that is contained in the corresponence that passed between the Editor of the Irish Independent and the Censor with reference to the review of The House of Gregory which was written and suppressed. I propose to read that review and also the correspondence. These will be the last documents I shall read. I know it is troublesome to hear documents read, but I think it is desirable that I should read these now. The review in question was held by the Censor on November 9th, six days before the other review was published in the Cork Examiner. If I skip any part of it it might be suggested in good faith that I did so for some purpose. Therefore, I shall read it all.
"Mr. Gregory, now in the seventy-third year, joined the Royal Irish Constabulary after he had taken his M.A. and LL.B. degrees at Trinity College, Dublin. He served as an officer in the force until it was disbanded, and has since spent some of his years of leisure compiling a history of the Gregory family.
The Gregory tree traces its roots back to medieval Leicestershire and sent some of its branches to Ireland with Oliver Cromwell. None of the off-shoots made any great mark in history, though a few of them played more than a minor part in affairs at home and abroad. Perhaps that explains why the present author, having set out to recount the family fortunes, found his pen hampered by lack of material, and decided to fill up the vacant spaces with his own memoirs, and his comments on such things as occurred to him, following no set plan, and little concerned about order or relevancy. One can only regret that he did not give us more of himself and less of his forbears.
It was a cousin of his, Sir William Gregory, M.P., who in 1861 forced the Royal Dublin Society to open the Botanic Gardens to the public on Sundays. He secured his object by moving in the House of Commons to strike out the Parliamentary grant for the gardens, thus forcing the Royal Dublin Society to give way. Two years later he tried to secure the same rights in the Edinburgh Botanic Gardens, but failed, one Protestant clergyman declaring at a meeting of protest against the proposal that it was ‘a painful thing to have the Scotch Sabbath interfered with by the representative of an Irish Papist constituency, one of the most degraded communities in the world.'
One incredible story in connection with the Croke Park massacre in 1920 shows what a simple-minded man Mr. Gregory is. He says that the officer in charge of the Black and Tans who raided the ground served under him at a later date. ‘He told me his orders were to search the crowd, and if any opposition was offered he was to fire and shoot as many of the Tipperary team as possible, and on no account to let Hogan escape. Accordingly, he included in his party a man whom he knew to be a dead shot with a rifle. He asserted that on arrival at Croke Park some shots were fired at his party.... Hogan was pointed out to the marksman, who put his rifle to his shoulder, pressed the trigger, and Hogan dropped dead. One of his companions exclaimed: "What a damned fluke!""Was it?" he replied. "Watch the ball..." The ball was still in play.... The marksman again raised his rifle, fired, and the football collapsed, literally like a pricked bladder.' Mr. Gregory has good sense enough not to commit himself to belief in this fantastic story.
Mr. Gregory, however, does vouch for the truth of the following story: On the eve of his execution, Kevin Barry was taken to the spot where the gallows stood, and told he would get a free pardon if he betrayed the names of his comrades: ‘Whether this offer was officially authorised or not I cannot say. In any case, Barry is said to have made no reply, but to have continued to examine the gallows. Then, putting his hand on it, he remarked: "It seems strong enough to bear my weight, anyhow." '
How the poteen traffic provided a quaint industry is related in the author's memoirs. The local blacksmith made the stills. At intervals the blacksmith, by way of blackmail, reminded his customers to buy a new still. They did not dare to refuse. The blacksmith would then conceal the old still on a bog, inform the police, and collect his reward. Each of the police in turn would then get their reward for the capture of the still.
Mr. Gregory's pen is steeped in charity. He writes without any tinge of bitterness of the events during the troubled years, and he is outspoken in his condemnation of the murders and the outrages committed by the Black and Tans. It is an old-world kind of book, dull in patches, but for the most part readable and even entertaining. But at 15/- for 200 pages, it is far too dear."
That was completely obliterated by the blue pencil of the Censor. The Editor of the Irish Independent, in which the review was due to appear, wrote to the Controller of Censorship on November 15th as follows:—
"Dear Sir,
"For my guidance, I would be glad to know the reasons for prohibiting the review of the book The House of Gregory, submitted on the 9th inst.”
On the 17th November this reply —the only one I know of—was received:—
"Dear Sir,
"In reply to your letter of the 15th instant, I have to inform you that your review headed ‘R.I.C. Officer's Memories' was stopped because its publication would inevitably lead to controversy harmful to national security. No useful purpose could be served at the moment by stirring up bitter memories of the Black-and-Tan atrocities.
Yours faithfully,
J.J. PURCELL,
for Controller."
I expect, the Editor rubbed his eyes when he read that. He replied as follows, on November 18th:—
"Dear Sir—I have your letter of the 17th instant. You have on a former occasion made a ruling that references to the Civil War of 1922-23 would endanger our neutrality. I note that you have now decided that references to the Black-and-Tan period might also endanger ‘national security'. For our guidance will you please let me know at what period we are to stop in making references to events in Irish history if we are not to endanger ‘national security'? May we safely refer to the Land League, the Fenian period or the Insurrection of 1798, without imperilling our neutrality in 1943 or 1944?
I am, of course, presuming that it was for the same reason, viz., to protect our neutrality that you banned the reference to the opening of the Botanic Gardens in 1861, the reference to the poteen traffic of 50 years ago, and the incident which was cited to show the bravery of Kevin Barry on the eve of his execution 23 years ago.
I should like further to know why if a few extracts from the book are likely to lead to an invasion of Éire the whole book itself was passed for publication by you, as I presume it was.—Yours faithfully,
F.J. GEARY,
Editor."