The
greater part of the audience arrived in procession, which, starting
from the centre of the city of Belfast, took over two hours to pass a
given point, at the quick march in fours. All the Belfast Orange Lodges,
and representative detachments from the County Grand Lodges, together
with Lord Templetown's Unionist Clubs, and other organisations,
including the Women's Association, took part in the procession. But
immense numbers of people attended the meeting independently; it was
calculated that not less than a hundred thousand were present during the
delivery of Sir Edward Carson's speech, and although there must have
been very many of them who could hear nothing, the complete silence
maintained by all was a remarkable proof--or so it appeared to men
experienced in out-door political demonstrations--of the earnestness of
spirit that prevailed. To some it may appear still more remarkable that,
with such a concourse of people within a couple of miles of Belfast, not
a single policeman was present, and that none was required; no
disturbance of any sort occurred during the day, nor was a single case
of drunkenness observed.
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