He spoke on October 4th at Wexford, the capital of his native county; on the 11th at Waterford, his own constituency; on the 18th at Kilkenny, the constituency of his close friend Pat O'Brien.

A week later he was at Belfast and in the glens of Antrim, among the Nationalists of Ulster.
Then Parliament kept him for a few weeks; in December he was back, and spoke at Tuam and in Limerick.

Everywhere the Volunteers turned out in great numbers to receive him; and to them his appeal was primarily addressed.
At Wexford he laid stress on Mr.Asquith's pledge that the Volunteers should remain as a recognized permanent force for the defence of the country, and this led him to raise frankly the question of control.

Who should have authority over Volunteers in a State?
Surely the elected and responsible government.

But pending Home Rule, "the policy and control of the Volunteers must rest with the elected representatives of the country." More generally, he reminded them that he had always spoken of the possibility of some great political convulsion that might destroy their plans.