To this was added a new cause of quarrel.  The Franchise Bill was now coming before the House of Commons; and under the provisions agreed to by the Speaker’s Conference, extension of the franchise was to be applied in Ireland, but there was to be no redistribution.  This proposal was not unreasonable, since the Home Rule Act was now a statute and under it new and properly distributed constituencies were scheduled; while over and above this the Convention was in existence to occupy itself with the matter.

On the other hand, the existing distribution of seats was hard on Unionist Ulster:  the great mass of population in and about Belfast was under-represented.  Ulstermen 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.