17 MAY 1957, Page 18

SIR,—I don't know whether Mr. Montgomery Hyde would subscribe to

Mr. Ervine's 'two nation' theory —his interest in such 'non-Ulster' matters as the Lane pictures and the Casement diaries suggests that he takes a broader view of his nationality—but when he and Mr. May deny the existence of gerrymandering in Northern Ireland they are at least on grounds where the evidence is available for examination. Unfortunately, however, for their thesis, the evidence for the existence of gerrymandering is overwhelming as indeed another of your contributors, Mr. Brian Inglis, agrees when he says 'the Catholic Nationalists, one-third of the population of Northern Ireland . . . have no political power even locally—local govern- ment gerrymandering has Insured that in Nationalist- dominated districts there are Unionist-dominated councils.' The representation of Northern Ireland at Westminster tells the same story. Although the popu- lation of 'Ulster' comprises, as Mr. Ervine says, roughly 800,000 Protestants (mainly Unionists) and 400,000 Catholics (Nationalists to a man), the twelve 'Ulster' Parliamentary representatives in the House of Commons are all Unionists. Even if one allows for ' the two Sinn Fein candidates who won the mid-Ulster and Fermanagh/South Tyrone contest at the last general election but who were deprived of their seats because they were in gaol (and their seats given to their Unionist opponents), the inadequacy of Nation- alist representation having regard to the size of the Nationalist population is evident.—Yours faithfully,