All that the Northern Parliament in fact did was to
take proceedings against a defaulting local authority. The Tyrone County Council declared its intention of acknowledging Sinn Fein —in other words, of handing over its revenues to an illegal organisation ! If the Ulster Government did not take action against such proceedings, it would cease to rule altogether. The Northern Parliament did no more than is always done as a matter of course .in England. The Poplar Councillors were sent to prison for mere defaulting without any question whatever of sedition. It seems to us that Sir James Craig's heated protest was very salutary and quite necessary. How can Ulster people govern themselves properly and moderately, as they would like to do and are well capable of doing, if they are inter- fered with when by all the canons they are plainly in the right ? Nevertheless, we do think that a change in the boundary which would hand over to Sinn 'Fein certain pockets of population that are Sinn Fein at heart would be a source of strength and not of weakness to North-East Ulster.
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