often are, actuated by the
most liberal motives, by a perfectly legitimate conception of
educational principles, or by other considerations which are neither of
a narrow nor sectarian character.

I need hardly say that in criticising religious systems and their
ministers I have not the faintest intention of entering on the
discussion of doctrinal issues. I am, of course, here concerned with
only those aspects of the religious situation which bear directly on
secular life. I am endeavouring, it must be remembered, to arrive at a
comprehensive and accurate appreciation of the chief influences which
mould the character, guide the thought, and, therefore, direct the
action of the Irish people as citizens of this world and of their own
country. From this standpoint let us try to make a dispassionate survey
of Protestantism and Roman Catholicism in Ireland, and see wherein
their votaries fulfil, or fail to fulfil, their mission in advancing our
common civilisation. Let us examine, in a word, not merely the direct
influence which the creed of each of the two sections of Irishmen
produces on the industrial character of its adherents, but also its
indirect effects upon the mutual relations and regard for each other of
Protestants and Roman Catholics.

Protestantism has its stronghold in the great industrial centres of the
North and among the Presbyterian farmers of five or six Ulster counties.
These communities, it is significant to note, have developed the
essentially strenuous qualities which, no doubt, they brought from
England and Scotland. In city life their thrift, industry, and
enterprise, unsurpassed in the United Kingdom, have built up a
world-wide commerce. In rural life they have drawn the largest yield
from relatively infertile soil. Such, in brief, is the achievement of
Ulster Protestantism in the realm of industry. It is a story of which,
when a united Ireland becomes more than a dream, all Irishmen will be
proud.

But there is, unhappily, another side to the picture. This industrial
life, otherwise so worthily cultivated, is disturbed by manifestations
of religious bigotry which sadly tarnish the glory of the really heroic
deeds they are intended to commemorate. It is impossible for any close
observer of these deplorable exhibitions to avoid the conclusion that
the embers of the old fires are too often fanned by men who are
actuated by motives, which, when not other than religious, are certainly
based upon an