Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-12-08 00:00:00

SMITHFIELD CLUB CATTLE SHOW.

Saturday was the final day for the admission of cattle
and other stock for the ensuing cattle show of the
Smithfield Club, and as evening approached, every avail-
able space throughout the vast area of the Baker-street
Bazaar was occupied by the various specimens. Whether
regard be had to quantity or to quality, it is stated that
the exhibition of 1857 will surpass anything of the kind
ever witnessed in the metropolis. Amongst the certificates
of entry received with specimens during Saturday in the
cattle clas es were the names of Prince Albert, for cattle
'rim the Flemish Farm, Windsor; Lord Sondes, the
)uke of Beaufort, Lord Fey ersham, Sir J. Whichcete,
lam, Lord Berners. the Earl of Leicester, Mr.T.W. Four-
sere, Mr. J. Stratton, Mr. J. Coate, Mr. Lee, sen., Lord
Vals:ngham, Eaal Radnor, Earl Darnley, Mr. Samuel
?tinton, Earl Spencer, Mr. S. Grantham, Lord Scutlaarap-
tm, Viscount Elmsley, Mr. William Heath, and other
eninent graziers and noblemen. In the sheep classes
wire certificates from the Earl of Chichester, Mr. J.
()ismer, the Marquis of Ex:ter. Mr. Twichell, the Earl
of Leicester, Lord Berners, Mr. G. S. Foljambe, the
Maquis Camden, Mr. W. Rigden, of Hove, Earl Radnor,
Shit,. 11. Throckmorton, and Earl Darnley; and in the
pigelasses the Prince Consort again exhibits specimens,
as 4so the Marquis of Downshire, Mr. Coate, Mr. S.
Drop, Mr. Majoribaulv, the Parkhurst Prison Farm,
Sir T. A. Cathcart, Mr. L. W. Booth, &c. The
-implenAit galleries are crowded beyond all prece-
I dent. The exhibitors of the "Bcobliguagiati" specimen
of agicultural produce are in great force. In addi-
tion to the stand of iqessrs. Thomas Gibbs and Co.,
the seelsmen to the Royal Agricultural Society of
Englcml, there are those of Messrs. Page and Co , of
Soathanpton, on which may be seen an " Imperial
Orange Globe" neangold— wurtzal, weighing 44 lbs.
imongtt the other seedsmen, &c., arc Messrs. Skirving, of
Liverpool; Messrs. Peter Lawson avid Co., of Edinburgi.-;
George Gibbs and Co., of Down-street, Piccadilly ; any,, in
'I the west gallery, the stand of the Royal Dublin Society,
which is itcatly arranged nude: direction of Mr. Cririi,-4ais,
the curator, The specimens exhibit the capabilities of the
lan! of the sitter country under proper culture. There are
spedrnens of roots, -samples of cereals, pulse, wool, butter,
&c , lot exhibited for trading purposes, but to show the
power of production by Ireland, contributed by the Duke
of Lenster, the Earl of Charlewont, Colonel Kane Ban-
bury, liarquis of Waterford, Major Quentin, Dr. Taylor
Lord T lbot de Malahide, the Commissioners from the
r Board °National Education in Ireland, and other members

of the (=tuncil and patrons and friends of the society.
Amongst.he implements are Crwskill's and Burgess and
Key's Prze reaping machine; the, various machines
e xhibited by Clayton, Shuttleworth, and Co ; Mersrs.
Dray, eladCo, Garrett and Sons, Smith and Ashley,
WedlAce'sy winnowing machines, sowing
machines, saslge machines, and machines and utensils of
every descri)tion. Tae judges made their awards
yesterday. 1r day's show will be open to the public, and
continue open'ach succeeding day till :Friday, on which
evening it will6ually close at ten o'clock.

The Aberclee Herald says : " Our townsman, Mr.
John Phillip, AP A,, who has for some time been
ergrged in paining a portrait of Prince Albert for the
Town Hill here, was honoured with the final sitting on
Saturday."
PropErty to theomount of £50,000 changed hands in
the Incumbered States Court, Dublin, !ast Friday, before
Mr. Commissioner Hargreave. The rates of purchase
were pretty much tie same as those which have ruled the
madretab:o value of land for some few ye q. 3 The
estates were situate in Mayo, Galway, LonAfort!, and
Cork counties,

Tun " STARVATION JIIRERS SYSTEH. —The " wisdom
of our ancestors " Wad never more questionably displayed
than in that relic of it which has been handed down to us,
and is still preserved us a part of our legal pr.cedure, viz.,
that by which a jury vho, after hearing the evidence, and
cannot agree as to the .r verdict, are ordered forthwith to
be " kept in sone Trivtta and convenient place, without
meat, drink, or firing, candle-light excepted," until they
come to a common understanding on the case before them.
The theory, dotbtless, was that by withholding food and
drink.they wouli be all the more anxious to sound the depths
of the evidence, and arrive at a decision, in order that they
might be the sonar released from the'r responsible duties ;
whereas, if the 2 were well fortified with a good dinner or
other refreshmats, the more obstinate among them might
hold out agains their brethren for an indefinite period. So
much for the deo*. ; what it is in practice is someling
very different ; or, so far from the systemof "starving out"
being con,duciveto genuine unanimity, we verily believe it
tends to execerlate the differences; of opinion that exist,
and, in many saes, leads.to a positive sacrifice of honest
conviction in elference to the intractable obstinacy of a
prejudiced minoity, It would be far more consistent
with justice ant sound sense to discharge them when
it is well ascertaited they cannot agree, than to endeavour
to produce nnaniaity by semi-starvation. In the action
brought by Mr. Zitchell to recover the price of an opera-
hex, and tried a 'ew days since in the Court of Common
Pleas, a striking llustration was afforded of the wretched
system under whih juries now perform their duties. The
evidence being scnewhat cmflicting, the jury, after con-
sidering some tiae, intimated they could not agree, and,
therefore, an olher was sworn to keep them without
food or drink, as Afore stated. It being, however, past
seven in the °ming, a juryman innocently inquired
" 'whether his lordship would not order them some refresh-
ment." The exiensted juror might as well have asked
whether his lordship zeta not direct thepi to be supplied
with half a doze{ of champagne at the expense of, the
county. The anseer of the Chief Justice, nevertheless,
was not a little ed.fying. Hie lordship said, "he could
not comply with their rag:test, such was the state of the
law, and he was ashqnzed Oa. He had himself introduced
a clause in an act to give sude power, but it had been struck
out in the passage of the act hrough the Houses of Parlia-
ment." It seems, then, that tie Legislature still has faith in
the doctrine that the best mote of dealing with jurymen
who differ is to starve them unit they agree, forgetful of the
fact that there is no necassay connection between the
lack of food and a just verdict, however likely it may be
to ensure a lying semblance f unanimity to avoid the
pains and penalties of absolutt starvation. Probably, if
some of the wiser senators who struck out the clause re-
ferred to by the Chief Justice 'Fere made to undergo a
deprivation of food and drink lir twenty hours, as many
juries have been, they would cote to a conclusion that a
change might be made more in tecordance with humanity
and common sense than the pracice stupidly acted upon,
and, strange to say, upheld by the" collective wisdom" of
Parliament.—Landon Paper,