The Sun.
London, England, 1833-03-05 00:00:00

the main, is considerably strengthened by their disappros
ation ; and my detectiou of the innovator's cloven
foot, rendered the more disgustingly complete. At
the Maryborough: Special Commission, where I bad
the honour of sitting with my Lord Chief
Justice, we had a challenge of the array disposed of
by eminently intelligent and upright triers. And
what was the issue of that inquiry? A complete and sa-
tisfatory vindication of the Sheriff; a finding that he had
faithfully and fair!), discharged his duty. That lie bad
performed it effectually and beneficially the several ver•
dicls found at the commission went to prove. In like
manner, under the auspices of the present Jury system,
tranquillity was restored to Clare, and to some other
counties, by the special commission at which Judges
Moore and Jebb presided. A certain class of persons are
at present bound to serve on Juries, if the Sheriff choose
to call them ; but if either theory or practice deprived
him of a clear right of sound discretional rejection, I
doubt wether what is now submitted to as a liability might
not, by and by be asserted, by the dregs of a thronged
Jury list, as a right ; and this under seditious and revolu-
tionary advice, and for purposes of a proportionably mis-
chievous character and description. To return to our
Jury system. I should not, nor would the Legislature,
approve of theoretic items, which vanished and altogether
disappeared in practice. Such a system would be preg-
nant with manifest abuse. The nominal power which it
gave would be worse than none at all ; for while it would
be dormant and of no avail, the theoretic concession of it
would b file expostulation and impede redress. That
system, says the poet,
" Which is best administered is best ;"
and if there be too much latitude in such a doctrine,
at least it is not more than enough to say, that the system
most likely to generate abuses is the worst. If the present,
system were of such a kind as I have just described, our
expostulatory objection might be met wi,h such mere talk
as this What prevents the Sheriff from selecting ?he
is not forbidden. His not selecting is mere omission,
non-feasance and abuse on his part; and we are not to
argue from abuse against the use." But the present system
is not such. Giving the Sheriff a substantial power, and
attaching an adequate responsibility to this power, it
makes them, as they ever ought to do, go hand in hand.
It is a principle pervading our Constitution that they ought
to do so. To embrace in the jury list all who possessed
a low pecuniary qualification, would be to reduce the
property and intelligence of each county to comparative
minuteness; overwhelmed in a smothering mass of its
pauperism, prejudiced ignorance, fomented bigotry, and
faction. Would the class who are so unconscientiously
urgent to register as 101. voters be less anxious to be on
the return as 101. jurors? Such return would seem cor-
roborative of their right to register as electors, and vice
versa; and in both instances political influence and
party predominance would be the object. Where
would the selecting Sheriff find a competent number
of the probi et legales of whom he was in search ?
To my conjectural foresight of the contents of any
list supplied by less trustworthy persons than himself
the eligible Jurors apparent rani, the scattered
wrecks and scanty fragments of the past, surrounded by
a stormy waste of tumultuous agitation, roaring to the
Sheriff to return as Jurors the disorderly trash which its
tempests had cast up. In such a state of things we might
require a at: ong national reinforcement of police. But
who would wish to enter on such a service? To be pro-
nounced a murderer, perhaps, on some inquest if he dis-
charged his duty ; or, if slain, to die persuaded that those
who slew him would nut be likely to incur any such im-
putation. In the state which I will not say that lam
foreboding, many of our Crown Court Juries might
resemble what occasionally our Inquest Juries may have
appeared to be; and I fear we might have to look for re-
fuge and protection to the impartial despotism of military
force. It has been said that inter arma silent leges, but
our laws seem already to be nearly silenced; their com-
paratively "still small voice" drowned in the stupid up-
roar of seditious mobs; the spouted nonsense of their silly,
set mischievous haranguers : and the crash of confedera-
ted violence, outrage, and defiance. Can any man, too,
have failed to observe how the letter has been set up
against the spirit—the dead letter against the animating
spirit of the law ? I resisted, and tried to discomfit
this unnatural array. The letter of the law is
but the trustee of its spirit ; and if crafty mis-
interpretation seduced it to betray its trusts, it became the
duty of the Judge to compel it to perform them ; and (f er
example) to force the idle and mischievous sophistry of
" passive resistance" to stand by. With reference to what
within the last two years I have been, to little purpose,
proclaiming from the bench, perhaps, in the language of
a Roman senator, I may say, " evenerunt qua prtedixi
eventura." If this be so, may not I claim attention to
forebodings which profess to flow from no higher sources
than mere observation end experience? In the anti-
titheism of the mob I beheld a v,stibule introducing to
anti-rental doctrine ; and this latter opening upon an
arena for tumultuous anti-property and anti-rank conten-
tion; though in the demolition of rank and opulence the
constitution that supported them must come down, over-
whelming in its fall the interests of those persons who
rashly pulled it to the ground. Why did I boldly denounce
an angry and increasing power, which more than menaced
any one who should venture to oppose it? Gentlemen,
`because I am a servant of the public, or, more properly, of
that law which is the guardian of the public and first-
born of the constitution. The performance of the ju-
dicial services is, in general, attended with no danger;
and perhaps, for example, in the present instance there
may be none, nor have been any; but though there were,
that Judge would be an unfaithful servant who did not
prefer incurring the risk to shrinking from the duty.
Neither, at my time of life, is there much heroism in its
Performance. When Solon was asked what gave him
courage to oppose the usurped domination of Pisistratus,
he answered, "My old age !" I, it is true, am not like
Solon, either a legislator or a sage ; nor so advanced in
years as he was when he gave this explanation ; but that
man must have an inordinate appetite for life to whom,
after 60, and in the polluted as well as stormy atmosphere
Of Ireland, life has not lost some portion of its flavour ; at
least enough to dissuade him from purchasing more of it
by a relinquishment of duty. Trusting, then, my conjec-
tures of the future, from my having been hitherto no erro-
neous prophet, or sayer of anything that was not sooth,—
proclaiming, too, those conjectures, either because my
nature is not timid, or that I borrow, like Solon, intrepi-
dity from age,-1 will say that if it were no% at the full
option of the Sheriff (exercising a sound discretion, not an
Arbitrary choice), to select from amongst persons qualified
in other respects the "good and true, and not suspect,"
h•e might have candidate ten-pounders crowding to the
assizes, to give their verdict-votes, as they rush at pre-
sent to registrations or to booth,. Gentlemen, I have
said little of your own peculiar duties. Your grade,
and your experience are pledges for your perfect know-
ledge and due performance of them. You are what I
have called you—" gentlemen." The rank of gentlemen
is not a mere artificial—it is a natural rank ; insomuch
that it is sometimes met within the humbler, and missed
from the higher walks of life. A breath cannot make it

a breath has not made. Vulgar violence may upset and
trample on it for a time, but it will rise again. It is a rank
which nature, aided by education, gives, and therefore
cannot be permanently abolished by the puny art of man.
It is not only a natural, it is a moral rank ; and there-
fore, instead of being depressed, ought to be cherished and
maintained. It, as well as " a bold peasantry," may be
its country's pride; and, for the sake of the ranks be-
neath, it ought to be fostered and upheld. A Christian
gentleman will be at once religiously and honourably ob-
servant of his oath. He will not attenuate its obligations
into thin air and fallacious nothing. He will give us,
without mystification, the substantial benefits of its secu-
rity ; he will leave it a solid, tangible, unequivocal, and
binding pledge. Why therefore should I exhort you to a
due performance of what I may call the financial portion of
your ditties? The more than rumours which prevail of an
intention to abridge or regulate your assessing powers, can
add no force to the already sufficient obligation of your oaths.
You probably will not forget that grand jury law should
be submitted to revision. You will probably agree with
me, that as all human institutions and proceedings are
imperfect, the powers of grand juries have occasionally,
perhaps too often, been abused; and sometimes exercised,
though not impurely yet erroneously, and to disadvantage.
But you will also probably agree with me, that as almost
every thing in Ireland is exaggerated, so have these abuses
been ; and while visited by some with just animadversion,
are exclaimed against by others with democratic objects,
and for the purpose of establishing more dangerous powers
and worse abuses in their room. kientlemen, so far as
you can foresee them, anticipate legislative regulations, by
regulating yourselves. In recommending that you be
frugal, I do not mean that you should be misers. A

system may be penurious without being advantageous or
cheap. A government, for example (and to advert, for
illustration, to one of the shallow gossips of the day).—
which costing little is worth less,—is not a cheap govern-
ment, according to my old-fashioned notions of political
economy. Cheap, I translate a bon marche ; and
that which is valuable, and for which we pay
no more than it is worth, or than we can afford,
I entitle cheap. I would not recommend that

his Majesty should doff his ermine, and Open his
Parliaments in a frieze surtout, merely because this cos-
tume would be far less costly than his royal robes; and a
linsey-woolsey speech be quite as intelligible as a velvet
otte. But I suspect that lam of your class. I suspect