years of Conservative Government, they were revived at the special
request of the Ulster Unionist Council in December 1910. Nothing,
however, did so much to stimulate organisation and concentration of
effort as the great Convention held in Belfast on the 19th of June 1892,
representing on a democratic basis all the constituencies in Ulster.
Numerous preliminary meetings were arranged for the purpose of electing
the delegates; and of these the Special Correspondent of _The Times_
wrote:

"Nothing has struck me more in the present movement than the
perfect order and regularity with which the preliminary meetings
for the election of delegates has been conducted. From city and
town and village come reports of crowded and enthusiastic
gatherings, all animated by an equal ardour, all marked by the same
spirit of quiet determination. There has been no 'tall talk,' no
over-statement; the speeches have been dignified, sensible, and
practical. One of the most marked features in the meetings has been
the appearance of men who have never before taken part in public
life, who have never till now stood on a public platform. Now for
the first time they have broken with the tranquil traditions of a
lifetime, and have come forward to take their share and their
responsibility in the grave danger which threatens their
country."[10]

There being no building large enough to hold the delegates, numbering
nearly twelve thousand, every one of whom was a registered voter
appointed by the polling districts to attend the Convention, a pavilion,
the largest ever used for a political meeting in the kingdom, was
specially constructed close to the Botanical Gardens in Belfast. It
covered 33,000 square feet, and, owing to the enthusiasm of the workmen