take it on himself to absolve others—­nor, least of all, openly preach a milder doctrine to lead others who are timid to the farther goal, believed in at heart.  Encourage them by all means to practise their principles as far as they go; never restrict yours, or you will find yourself saying things you can’t altogether approve; and if you tell a man to do things you can’t altogether approve, and keep on telling him, it wears into you, and a thing you once held in abhorrence you come to think of with indifference.  You change insensibly.  Old friends rage at you, and because of it you rage at them—­not knowing how you have changed.  You dare not let what you believe lie in abeyance or say things inconsistent with it, else to-morrow you’ll be puzzled to say what you believe.  You will hardly say two things to fit each other.  Let us have no half policies.  Our policy must be full, clear, consistent, to satisfy the restless, inquiring minds; when we win all such over, the merely passive people will follow.  It should be clear that no man can dispense himself or his fellow from a grave duty; but for all that we have been liberal with our dispensations, and it has left us in confusion and failure.  On the understanding that we will be heroes to-morrow, we evade being men to-day.  We think of some hazy hour in the future when we may get a call to great things; we realise not that the call is now, that the fight is afoot, that we must take the flag from its hidden resting-place and carry it boldly into life.  So near a struggle may touch us with dread; but to dread provoking a fight is to endure without resistance all the consequences of a lost battle—­a battle that might have been won.  And if we are to be fit for the heroic to-morrow we must arise and be men to-day.

VII

At times we find ourselves on neutral ground.  The exigencies of the struggle involve this; and unfortunately we have in our midst sincere men who do not believe in restoring Ireland to her original independence.  Perhaps, from a tendency to lose our balance at times, it is well to have near by these men whose obvious sincerity may serve as a correcting influence.  We have to make them one with us; in the meantime we meet them on neutral ground for some common purpose.  Yet, we must take our flag everywhere?  Yes, that is fundamental.  What then of the places where men of diverging views meet; do we abjure the flag?  By no means.  The understanding here is not to force our views on others, but we must keep our principles clear in mind that no hostile view be forced on us.  We must see to it that neutrality be observed.  One of the pitfalls to be aware of is, that something which on our principles we should not recognise, is assumed as recognised by others because to attack it would be to violate neutrality.  But if it may not be resisted, it may not be recognised; this is neutrality; it is to stand on equal terms.  And