resent in person, was certainly an influence
in the deliberations. She gave a dinner-party the night before in
Moyne's town house. Babberly, of course, was at the dinner, and with
him most of the small group of Ulster Members of Parliament. Three or
four leading members of the Opposition, Englishmen who had spoken on
Ulster platforms and were in full sympathy with the Ulster dislike of
Home Rule, were also present. Cahoon was not. He travelled from
Belfast during the night of the dinner-party and only reached London
in time for the meeting of the Party next day. I do not know whether
Cahoon was invited to the dinner or not. Malcolmson was invited. He
told me so himself, but he did not accept the invitation. He said he
had business in Belfast and he went to London with Cahoon. The Dean
was at the dinner-party. His name appeared in the newspaper lists of
guests next morning. McNeice was not there. Lady Moyne did not like
McNeice, and, although he was a member of the "Ulster Defence
Committee," he was never admitted to what might be called the social
gatherings of the party.

The newspapers, in their columns of fashionable intelligence, printed
a full list of the guests at this dinner, and even noted the dresses
worn by some of the chief ladies. It was described as a brilliant
function, and Lady Moyne figured as "one of the most successful of our
political hostesses." I have no doubt that she was successful in
impressing her views on Babberly and the others. Whether she thought
it worth while to spend time that night in talking to the Dean I do
not know. Immediately under the account of the dinner-party there was
a short paragraph which stated that Conroy, "the well-known
millionaire yachtsman," had returned from a cruise in the Baltic Sea,
and that the _Finola_ was lying off Bangor in Belfast Lough.

In quite a different part of the papers there were comments and
articles on the meeting of the Ulster leaders to be held that
afternoon. The articles in Liberal papers oscillated between
entreaties and threats. One of them, in a paper supposed to be more or
less inspired by the Government, pleased me greatly. It began with a
warm tribute to the loyalty which had always characterized the men of
Ulster. Then it said that troops were being moved to Belfast in order
to overcome a turbulent populace. It went on from that to argue that
troops were entirely unnecessary, because Ulstermen, though pig-headed
almost beyond belief in