OFFICIAL PROCLAMATION
Preceding the arrests the following proclamation was issued by Field Marshal French, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland:
Whereas, It has come to our knowledge that certain subjects of his Majesty the King domiciled in Ireland have conspired to enter into treasonable communication with the German enemy; And whereas, Such treachery is a menace to the fair name of Ireland and its glorious military record—a record which is a source of intense pride to a country whose sons have always distinguished themselves and fought with such heroic valor in the past, in the same way as thousands of them are now fighting in this war; And whereas, Drastic measures must be taken to put down this German plot, which measures will be directed solely against that plot,
Now, therefore, we, the Lord Lieutenant General and General Governor of Ireland, have thought fit to issue this our proclamation declaring, and it is hereby declared, as follows:
That it is the duty of all loyal subjects of his Majesty to assist in every way his Majesty's Government in Ireland to suppress this treasonable conspiracy, and to defeat the treacherous attempt of the Germans to defame the honor of Irishmen for their own ends.
That we hereby call upon all loyal subjects of his Majesty in Ireland to aid in crushing the said conspiracy, and so far as in them lies to assist in securing the effective prosecution of the war and the welfare and safety of the empire.
That as a means to this end we shall cause still further steps to be taken to facilitate and encourage voluntary enlistment in Ireland in his Majesty's forces, in the hope that, without resort to compulsion, the contribution of Ireland to those forces may be brought up to its proper strength and made to correspond to the contributions of other parts of the empire.
EFFECT OF ARRESTS
News of the arrests created a profound sensation in Ireland, but no breaches of the peace followed anywhere; in fact, the excitement over conscription subsided appreciably after the episode, likewise the activities of the Sinn Feiners. The leader of the Nationalists repudiated the treasonable work of the Sinn Feiners, and, in consequence of the disclosures, the alliance against conscription that had been formed between the Nationalists and Sinn Feiners was ruptured.
On May 25 the British Government issued a statement reviewing the causes of the arrests. In this document it was that definite proof was at hand that after the abortive rebellion of Easter week, 1916, plans were made for a revolt in 1917, but that this miscarried because of America's entry into the war and Germany's inability to send troops to Ireland. An uprising in Ireland was planned for 1918 after the German offensive in the west had been successful and when Great Britain presumably would be stripped of troops.
The discovery of a German-Sinn Fein plot for landing arms in Ireland was made about April of this year, and even after the capture, on April 12, of the German agent who reached Ireland by submarine, munitions were shipped from Cuxhaven in the early part of this month.
Concerning the arrests in Ireland, the statement said that facts and documents, for obvious reasons, could not be disclosed at this time, nor could the means of communication between Germany and Ireland.
DETAILS OF INTRIGUE
With reference to the activities in 1918 the text of the statement was as follows: