Ireland -- History -- 1910-1921; Ireland. Royal Irish Constabulary
They could get nothing out of the sister, except that a party of armed
and masked men, in “trench coats” as ever, had suddenly burst into the
house and insisted that her brother should accompany them for some
unknown purpose, and that he had refused. For a time they argued with
him, until another man rushed into the house, calling out to them to be
quick as the soldiers were near. Whereupon they shot the baker as he lay
in bed, with the sister looking on, and then left the house hurriedly.
There seemed nothing to be done, and Blake was on the point of leaving
when his eye caught a piece of white paper under the bed, which turned
out to be the baker’s death-warrant for treason, signed by the C.M.A. of
the I.R.A.
On his return Blake handed the death-warrant to the Intelligence people,
who returned it shortly, saying that they could make nothing of it.
After showing it to the General, Blake put the warrant away, and thought
no more about it.
Some weeks afterwards, owing to the shooting of soldiers and police in
the streets after dark, the curfew was advanced an hour. As a result,
the number of curfew prisoners greatly increased—so much so on the first
night that there was no room in the usual detention quarters, and the
officer of the guard was obliged to use an empty office for the
overflow.
While the General was working in his office after dinner, the officer of
the guard brought a note from the Mayor of the town, who, he explained,
had been found on the streets after curfew hour by a patrol, and was now
a prisoner in the office below. The note requested a personal interview
with the G.O.C., and stated that the matter was of the highest
importance. The General passed the note to Blake, who was puzzled by the
familiarity of the writing, but unable to remember where he had seen it
before.
After some hesitation the General decided to see the Mayor, who was
brought in by the officer of the guard, and left alone with the General
and Blake. After beating about the bush for some time, the Mayor asked
that he might be kept under arrest and, if possible, deported by sea to
England, as he was in great danger of assassination, but would give no
reason for the danger, only stating that he had received threatening
letters.
The General explained that under no circumstances would he allow the
Mayor to be detained under arrest or deported, unless he could show
sufficient reasons. The Mayor replied that he considered the threatening
letters an ample justification for his request; he had not brought the
letters with him, but that if allowed to go home with a guard he would
fetch them. But the General, being determined to get all the information
he could out of the man, and knowing that once he had granted his
request it would be impossible to get anything out of him, refused.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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