The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1893-05-27
SATURDAY, MAY ~, 1898.
THE IRISH MAGISTRATES.


John Dillon in the British parliament
which illustrates Protestant ascendancy
in Ireland in most convincing manner
as far as the magistracy of that country
is concerned. He shows from official
figures that in ireland there are four
Professionals to one Catholic on the mag!s-
terial bench, though the population of
the country stands in the proportion of
three Catholics to one Protestant. This
astonishing state of things is due 10 the
fact that the Lord Chancellor makes the
appointment of the magistrates or JUS
tees of the peace on the recommendation
of the county lord lieutenants who are
appointed by the Lord Lieutenant from
Dublin Castle. The lord lieutenants
OF the counties who recommend candid
at 9 for the bench to serve without sal
aries are generally landlords and mostly
Tories aud Professionals, and they almost
invariably recommend for the magistracy
men of their own faith and party, the re-
suit being that Catholics, Liberals and
Home Buffers are in an overwhelming
minority on the bench. In England the
title and rights of a magistrate we're re-
served by the lord lieutenants of the
English counties for the Tories and mem
bers of the established church, to the
exclusion Of Liberals ard Non-conform-
lists, but the Liberals protested against
this one-sided arrangement before the
bench had become "a political engine, as
Mr.. Dillon says it Is in Ireland. The
other day in parliament resolution was
carried instructing the Lord Chancellor
in England and Ireland to make appoint
ments of magistrates in future without
the recommendation of the county lord
ieutenants. The resolution was carried
by majority of So, and as result it is
expected that the Irish Lord Chancellor,
who is Home Ruler, will not consult
the county lord ieutenants in making
future appointments. Mr.. Dillon in his
speech drew particular attention to the
county of Carlow which has g Catholic
popu' ation of $4,000 as against $500
Prote stants. OF the fifty seven magis-
trates in the county, only ten are Catho.
hes, but five of them are Catholic gentry
residing outside the county, leaving only
five resident Catholics on the bench, and
of tcese four are Unionists who are op-
posed to Home Rule. The county. OF
Mayo which is ninety per cent Catholic
has ninety five justices of the peace, and
only two of them are Home Rulers. In
the great county of Tipperary whore "a
per cent of the people aye Catholics, there
are 2l7 justices of whom 50 belong to the
Catholic Church. The same dispropor-
ton exists in other counties, but Mr.. Dill
Ion said the disparity was due more to
national principles than to religious be-
lief.
Mr.. Balfour in reply to Mr.. Dillon at
tempted to defend the present state OF
things by falsely asserting that Catholics
are incompetent to fill the position OF
magistrate in Ireland. The Irish people
have no confidence in the Irish magis-
tracy az at present constituted. They
expect no justice from men who are ap-
pointed because of their anti-Irish senti-
ment. The magistrates are appoin ted
for life and are rarely if ever removed.
It is to be hoped that Lord Chancellor
Walker will make better appointments
in future without tho recommendation
of Tory landlords. The magisterial
bench in Ireland needs to be thoroughly
overhauled, and it is high time for the
Liberal party to make aschange.