rmen said that while Nationalists professed
great desire to give favour to minorities, in reality they persisted in
keeping their political opponents at an unfair disadvantage. There was
no more question of enlarging the delegates' authority in Convention:
the Advisory Committee hardened their attitude, and it was our task to
convince a body which could not hear our arguments at first hand.
Decisions lay with Ulstermen in Belfast, not in the Convention--that is
to say, not subject to the daily, hourly, prompting to remember that
they were not only Ulstermen but Irishmen, which arose from friendly
intercourse with their fellow-delegates.

The Grand Committee of twenty, representing all groups, met on October
11th. Sir Horace Plunkett had in advance begged Redmond to undertake the
presentation of a scheme which would serve as a basis for discussion.
Redmond declined, on the ground that the initiative should come from
someone who was not there as a politician; but he admitted that the onus
of making a proposal was on Home Rulers. Dr. O'Donnell, though an
office-bearer in the United Irish League, was present as a
representative of the hierarchy; he was charged with the task. He had
been throughout a strong advocate of claiming for Ireland all the powers
possessed by any of the Dominions, with limitations on the military
side; he had also been forward in his desire to give wholly exceptional
rights of representation to minorities.

But when we got into Committee one man immediately took the lead. Sir
Alexander McDowell[12] had not spoken in any debate; there is reason to
believe that he was glad not to commit himself in advance before the
moment when his special gift might come into play. All his life he had
been carrying through agreements between conflicting interests: he was a
great mediator and negotiator. Now, he advocated what was, in
strictness, an irregularity. A task had been delegated to us: he asked
us to delegate it again to a smaller group. The whole case, he said, had
been fully opened up; further debate would be no use; we all knew all
the arguments. He deprecated formal procedure; it was plainly a family
quarrel, and we should treat it in that spirit. Honestly, he said, he
should be sorry if the Convention failed. Ulster had no fault to find
with the Union; but they were living next door to a house already in
flames.

That was the general tone, but it would be difficult to convey the
impression of experien