IRISH FREE STATE: End of an Oath?

The Irish Press, organ of Eamon de Yalera who has just won the Irish election (TIME, Feb. 29), accused President Cosgrave of the Irish Free State last week of plotting to remain in power by a military coup d’état. That he was so plotting the President hotly denied. Nothing short of a coup d’état could keep Victor de Valera from becoming President by legal vote of the Dail, agreed Irishmen last week. Englishmen have been saying that “de Valera’s hands will be tied.” Even as President, he would have a majority in the Dail only if supported by both his own Fianna Fail Party and the Irish Labor Party. Up to last week nearly all Englishmen and numerous Irishmen had supposed that the Irish Labor Party was dead set against two of victorious de Valera’s pet projects: 1) abolition of the oath of allegiance to King George which is required of members of the Dail; 2) repudiation of the $25,000,000 payments annually made by the Irish Free State to Britons who used to own land in Ireland— the famed “absentee landlords.” Suddenly and officially last week the Council of the Irish Labor Party reversed itself, announced that “the Labor Party has always opposed the oath” and further that the Party now stands for ”friendly negotiations” to scale down or terminate the landlord payments.