31 JANUARY 1920, Page 2

The Irish Roman Catholic Hierarchy met at Maynooth on Tuesday

under the chairmanship of Cardinal Logue and adopted a long resolution on the political situation. They declared that in the case of Ireland "the acknowledged right of civilized nations to choose their own Government had been denied," and that "every organ for the expression of her national life had been ruthlessly suppressed." There was "an iron rule of oppression as cruel and unjust as it was ill-advised and out of date." They then went on to say that "the result" of this treatment had been "violent 'collisions and retaliations between exasperated sections

of the people and the forces of oppression." They appealed to the people to "discourage crime," but they spoilt the effect of the appeal by adding that patience must be exercised "under the terrible provocation." This reads ,like one more example of the old " don't-nail-his-ear-to-the-pump " argument.