The Sun.
London, England, 1859-04-04 00:00:00

2.217 IRISH TURY.-A SCENE.

At the relfast assizes a jury being unable to
agree in their verdict, were locked up, and the fol-
lowing amusing scene took place in court next
morning :
The judge said, upon the evidence which had
been given by Dr. Meehan as to the illness of one
of the jury, he felt it to be his duty to discharge
them. He had made inquiries as to the complaints
which the jury had made in the morning on the
subject of the accommodation with which they
were provided last night, and he had found that,
although they had not every convenience which
they might desire, yet he believed that the most
had been made of the accommodation at the dis-
posal of the sheriff.
The Foreman—My lord, the jury have merely
felt that they had not been properly treated dur-
ing the night.
The High Sheriff—l have been informed that
one of the requests made by the jury was to be
supplied with a pack of cards.
The Foreman—l do not believe that any such
request was ever made by the jury.
His Lordship—Gentlemen, you must know that
such a thing as supplying you with cards could not
be consented to. _

Several jurors here strongly denied that they
ever applied for cards. (Laughter.)
The High Sheriff—The court-keeper, my lord,
has made a statement to that effect. (Laughter.)
He states that some of the jurors applied for a pack
of cards.

The Foreman—lt is not the case that we applied
for cards, and I do hope that your lordship will
send for the court-keeper.
His Lordship—l will do so. Send for the court-
keeper.
. _

After a few minutes that functionary made his
appearance, amidst suppressed. merriment in court.
His Lordship—What was the accomodation pro-
vided for the jury, last night by order of the sheriff?
The Court-keeper--They got the best room in
the court-house, my lord. I placed them in the
grand jury room, where they had tw, fires, and
they had, besides a large room to sleep
His lordship—What refreshments did you pro-
vide for them ?

Court-keeper—They had a rump of boiled beef,
my lord, and they consumed seventeen pounds of it.
(Laughter.) They were supplied with wine, too,
my lord, by order of the sheriff.
His Lordship—And how were they supplied
with beds ?

Court-keeper—l supplied them in the best way
that was in my power, my lord. They had four
blankets, two pillows, and a mattress.
His Lordship—Did they ask for cards ?
The Court-keeper—They did, my lord. (Laughter.)
Mr. O'Rorke—Oh ! that was in the way of a joke.
His Lordship—l would be happy to see gentle..
men placed in your position last night properly
attended to, but I don't see that better arrangements
could have been made under the circumstances.
A Juror (Mr. Ross)---The Court-keeper, my lord,
gave us very bad attendance. We could not even
obtain a proper supply of water from him.
Court-keeper—Why, my lord, I gave them a
gallon of water. (Great laughter.)
His Lordship--I wish to know, gentlemen, if
there is any particular piece of misconduct which
you can state to me, and I shall have attended to ?
The Foreman—My lord, I wish again to state,
on the part of the jury, that they did not apply for
cards, and, on my own part, I have no knowledge .
of anything of the kind having taken place.
Court-keeper—l am ready to state on my oath
that cards were asked for. (Laughter.)
A Juror (Mr. Cramsie)—l think it is most unjust,
my lord, after what we have suffered by being
locked up all night, and subjected to the treatment
we have described, that these statements should be
made. I repel with indignation the charge that
we applied for cards, and I think we should net be
placed under such an accusation.
The Foreman—Cards were never asked for in my
presence, my lord, and I am prepared to take my
oath to the truth of that statement.

Court-keeper—The message sent down was,
Rule will send up cards and some more liquor,"
(Great laughter.)
His Lordship—l don't think, gentlemen, we need
go further on this part of the matter. And with
reference to the accommodation provided, I think
as much was done as was possible.