Letter from Joseph P. Walshe to Seán Nunan (Dublin)
(Secret and Personal) (14/75)

I received the seventh article (Irish Press, Saturday July 4th) of the Williams’ series yesterday morning, and I have now read all the articles received.

We have to take it for granted that Williams, not knowing the whole story, and, particularly, our part of it, is bound, sometimes, to fall into error when he ventures to pass judgment or to come to conclusions not immediately related to his documents. He is no more perfect than any other historian in this respect. When he asserts, for instance, that the wartime importance of the then British garrisoned ports was not immediately apparent to the Irish negotiators in London in the spring of 1938, he finds himself in the sphere of pure conjecture. In fact, that particular aspect was very much present to the mind of the Taoiseach, and of his colleagues, as well as of the Civil Servants present, especially in those somewhat frequent moments when the hopes of getting the ports seemed to be fading.

Sometimes, where he has documentary evidence, as in the case of Gray and Dillon, he is too forbearing in passing judgment.

In the case of the wireless as, no doubt, in other descriptions of fact, there is a blurring of detail, almost to the point of changing the historical significance of the event.

In a personal letter, not to be put on the files, it would be quite stupid of me to abstain from making some personal comments on the articles as they now appear to be shaping, although such comments are somewhat outside the scope of the request made in your letter.

Even if Williams makes a few relatively important errors in the subsequent articles, and if he does not vitiate the implied or explicit conclusions so far apparent, by some shocking non sequitur, he will have done an immense service to the Country.

For the first time, a qualified historian, trained in England, and, therefore, more likely to be accepted as impartial in this matter, writes what is, on the whole, a serene, impartial, concrete and really splendid account of the policy of neutrality as conceived and executed by the Taoiseach during the war. So far, in Ireland, we have not had, like other countries at similar stages of their history, any serious, impartial, intellectual apologist of this most vital phase of Irish history. We should, therefore, do everything in our power to encourage Williams to go on with his good work, and to publish the series, somewhat extended (as it can be when further documents come to be published) in book form; and I hope the ‘Irish Press’ or some other agency will have them published in pamphlet form.

Unfortunately, in Ireland, most discussions, no matter what the subject, are more likely to become more passionate than intellectual and rational. Living with Italians lay and, especially, clerical, who suffer from intense over intellectualism, I am constantly reminded of this phenomenon.

Williams is, therefore, an immense relief. He is so patently honest, so concrete in his judgments when he has all the material, and so clearminded (if only his style were equally clear). His articles on a recent threat to the Constitution offered further evidence of his clarity of mind, and impartiality, as well as of his other most important quality, great courage.

I rather feel that Williams would be glad to collaborate in the publication of corrections which might throw further light on points raised by him, and it might be a very useful line for the Minister to take, if he thinks that certain matters could be enlarged upon now without arousing controversies likely to take from the undoubted general good effect of these articles.

As things stand, i.e. down to the seventh article inclusively, my impression is that Williams has done a great service to strict historical truth and made a real contribution to the tranquillity and future well being of our country.

Of course, one cannot recall these events without making the reflection again and again that Eisenhower, who appears to be so poor a policy maker, has probably followed the easy road of the last war, and handed us, bag and baggage, over to the British. In the very different world that is beginning to take form and substance one wonders how far we can afford to accept such an arrangement.

I shall write again when the papers bring me the complete series, or before that, if I notice any important errors of fact in the articles, as they arrive.