popular sentiment; the belief grew that the men who met in the Old Town
Hall would know how to handle any crisis that might arise, would not
timidly shrink from acting as occasion might require, and were quite
able to hold their own with the Government in tactical manoeuvres. This
confidence improved discipline. The Lodges and the Clubs and the general
body of shipyard and other workers had less temptation to take matters
into their own hands; they were content to wait for instructions from
headquarters now that they could trust their leaders to give the
necessary instructions at the proper time.

The net result, therefore, of an expedition which was designed to expose
the hollowness and the weakness of the Ulster case was to augment the
prestige of the Ulster leaders and the self-confidence of the Ulster
people, and to make both leaders and followers understand better than
before the strength of the position in which they were entrenched.

FOOTNOTES:

[14] See _ante_, p. 38.

[15] _The Times_, January 18th, 1912.

[16] _The Times_, January 26th, 1912.

[17] _The Standard_, January 18th, 1912.

[18] _The Saturday Review_, January 27th, 1912.

[19] _The Times_, January 20th, 1912.