BY OVERSEA IRISHMAN.

THE two and a half hours' journey from Dublin to Belfast, on the Great Northern Railway, is like entering another world. We have left the motherland of Gaelic culture and are once more in Great Britain. The outward symbol of the change is the Customs House inspection at Goragh Wood Station by British Government officials. I asked my young Ulster travelling companion if these officials were Ulster-born, and he said that they were, but the accent of the official who made a most minute inspection of my hand-baggage had a cross- Channel sound. The Customs inspection was very thorough and reminded me of entering Russia in pre-War days or of the inspection_ at the landing stage in New 'York.

There seem to be fewer outside cars and more taxis in Belfast, and the drivers appear less anxious to profiteer than the Dublin Jarveys. One of the first things that impress the visitor is the fact that all the policemen are armed with revolvers, unlike the civic guard in Dublin, and while their uniform is somewhat similar their badge is an Irish harp surmounted by a crown. Indeed, the atti- tude of the two Irelands is represented by this piece of syMbolism — in Southern Ireland the uniforms are adorned with the harp, in Northern Ireland with the harp and crown. One other small difference, as far as the police are concerned, is that those on point duty in Belfast do not wear white gloves. I saw only two " Imperial " soldiers, belonging to a Scottish regiment, but I saw several Ulster Specials armed with rifles.

Like Southern Ireland, Ulster is chiefly concerned with her own affairs, and many of my friends took pleasure in informing me that they were so busy attending to local problems that they had little time to devote to the Irish Free State. Ulster business friends laid special stress on the fact that they are part and parcel of the British political system, and that for the most part they look Britain-wards, where their major interests lie. They stated that the recent Free State Budget which I had heard Mr. Blythe, the Free State Minister of Finance, himself a Protestant Ulsterman, introduce in the Dail at Dublin, with its increasing taxation of imports, will tend to widen the gap which divides the two Irelands. Belfast's two chief industries are shipping and linen, both of which are largely dependent on foreign custom.

Ulster—and especially Belfast and the manufacturing centres—is, in common with Great Britain, going through a period of acute depression. Not for many years have the shipping and linen trades been experiencing such difficult times. The lack of orders in the shipping trade is due to the same causes as in Great Britain, and the great shipyards are a depressing sight to one who had visited them in previous times. The linen trade is also in a depressed state from two causes : the increasing use of cotton products for reasons of economy, and the falling off in American orders.

The changing habit of the American housewife is partly responsible. Nowadays many American homes have dispensed with the damask table-cloth, and its place is taken by the polished table and raffia mats or doilys. In no part of Great Britain is the unemployment problem a. more real one than in Ulster, and it is this subject which most frequently forms the topic of conversation with the. stranger.. While Ulster is undoubtedly experiencing the pinch, it would be erroneous to assume that she is doing no business, and the Minister of Finance informed me that the exports of the six Northern counties last year were as large as those of the twenty-six Southern counties.

A welcome change which impresses the visitor is that Ulster takes greater pains than of old to acquaint the world with her point of view. Both the Ulster Associa- tion and the Tourist Society are doing useful work along these lines. Abroad, especially in the United States, Ireland used to signify the South, and I recall a heated argument with a prominent American lawyer in Wash- ington some years ago, when he assured me that " if only Great Britain would clear out, the people of Northern Ireland would soon show that they were just as keen on a Republic as the Southerners."

Ulster is determined to do all in her power to attract visitors, and when they come they are assured of a hearty welcome. If at the moment a slight note of pessimism is met with in Northern Ireland, there has been no change in the political views of the majority. Ulster is as self- reliant as of old and knows her mind as clearly as ever. The question of the coming together of the two Irelands in the future is never mentioned ; the people of Ulster are too fully occupied with their day-to-day concerns.

The Northern Parliament meets in the library of what was a Methodist college, and will do so till the new building is completed at Stormount, three miles outside Belfast—a project which has come in for criticism. The well-filled bookcases lining the walls give an impres- sion of a University or other debating society. The Northern Parliament is not as impressive as the Dail from the visitors' standpoint, because the Lecture Hall in Leinster House at Dublin is better suited to its purpose, and the Strangers' Gallery there looks down on the House and is not on the same level as in Belfast. Otherwise, to the superficial observer, the two assemblies look very much alike, and the proceedings of both appeared some- what humdrum. In Dublin columns of figures were being discussed ; in Belfast the " di:mestic pig " was the subject of debate.

The present Ulster Parliament should prove more lively than its predecessor. As the result of the recent elections several Independents were returned in addition to three Labour members, while the two Nationalist mem- bers, Mr. Joe Devlin and Mr. McAlister, have announced their intention of taking their seats. Ulster's solitary woman member is Mrs. Chichester, who represents Derry. On the centre Government front bench were seated Mr. E. M. Archdale, the Minister of Agriculture, who was piloting his estimates through the House ; next to him Sir Janies Craig, massive and imperturbable ; on the other side Mr. Milne Barbour, the Minister of Commerce, and Mr. H. M. Pollock, the Minister of Finance.

For the moment there is little discussion of the Boundary question either in Northern or Southern Ireland, and not a few far-sighted persons wish that the country could forget about the matter for five years, when feelings would have had time to cool down. Ulster has no intention of surrendering any territory which she con- siders hers by right, and I heard fears expressed that the suggestion might be made that Newry, in which Roman Catholics preponderate, but which has all its trade with Ulster and the North by reason of its geographical posi- tion, should be exchanged for an area of " bogs and mountains " in the North-West. If such a proposal is made, Ulster's refusal is a foregone conclusion.

One of the problems which played a part in the recent elections, and accounted for the loss of votes by the Government, was its temperance policy. Sunday closing is now enforced throughout .ULster, and the right to sell spirits by the grocers has been withdrawn. As a result, Trade interests took the field and several anti-Government candidates were returned. I did not meet anyone who believed that the Government should go back on its temperance legislation.

Another matter which is receiving attention is the question of the dual membership of some persons in the Ulster Parliament and the Imperial House of Commons. No man can serve two masters, and I was informed in several quarters that the feeling is growing that members will have to make their choice and devote their entire energies to the Parliament they choose.

To the outsider the most interesting internal problem in Ireland is : What is the likelihood of North and South coming together and creating that united Ireland which was so dear to the hearts of Irish patriots in the past ? If the citizens of the Irish Free State desire to bring the union of North and South within the range of practical politics, they can do so only by extending the hand of fellowship, and not by force. Despite its professed lack of interest in Southern Ireland, Ulster is watching the Free State closely. If the Free State establishes a strong and just Government, and if, as a consequence, law and order are observed through- out all the Southern Counties, the first step will have been taken towards reunion.

Let Southern Irishmen desist from acting in an anti- British spirit, and let them by their acts prove to Ulster that they value her friendship. If Southern Ireland likes to indulge in the learning of Irish as a pastime, she is quite entitled to do so, but let her not expect Ulster to do likewise.

Twenty-four hours after my talk with Mr. de Valera I was participating in an Empire gathering in the Lord Mayor's room in the City Hall, Belfast, and listening to an all-Irish meeting singing " God save the King " as enthusiastically as if we were in Toronto or Melbourne. What poles apart were the two experiences ! They are typical of the two extremes of feeling in Ireland. If there is to be a united Ireland in the future it must be left to time. Efforts made to force the pace now would end in failure. The more Southern and Northern Irishmen meet together to discuss matters of common concern, the better. I believe that eventually geography will be too strong for prejudice, and that a united Ireland will come into existence. But there is only one possible basis for its creation and that is for Ulster voluntarily to throw in her lot with Southern Ireland. The future alone can decide when that day will be. The one way to postpone the day indefinitely would be to try to use force.

(Concluded.)