The Delta independent., 1894-02-07
TROUBLESOME JURORS.
Some Remarkable Gases Of Obsti-
nate Talesmen.
One Man May Have the Other Eleven at
His Mercy-Flattery Sometimes
Used . Means OF
Conviction.


Jurymen are sometimes quite uncon-
scious of their own determination Of
spirit. One of them, says the London
Illustrated News, Croalse James tells
us, once explained to the Recorder,
who had noticed his popularity, that
his behavior was entirely misunder-
stood. 'No man, sir, is more open
than l am to conviction, and to do
what is right in every case, but l have
not met with the same consideration
from others. 1t has generally been my
lot to be on jury with eleven of the
most obstinate men imaginable, who
will not listen to reason" 1t is fair to
say that once in a hundred times or SO
this minority of one proves to be in
the right. Lord Lyndhurst mentions
a case in which, through the opposi-
ton Of single individual, the jury,
who were otherwise all for verdict
Of guilty, could come to no agreement;
but on the prisoner being tried again
he was unanimously and, as it turned
out, justly acquitted. On the other
hand, some jurymen have too low an
opinion of what some philosophers
call their ego, and are willing to
depute their duties to an alter ego.
When Justice Gould had been about
two hours trying case Mt York he
noticed there were but eleven jury
men in the box. please, my lord"
replied the foreman, in answer to the
judges natural inquiry, "the other has
gone away about some business he had
to do. but he has left his verdict with
me-"
The most remarkable case Of q jury
standing out" against what seemed
unrefutable testimony, and all through
the resolution of one man, oc-
Cured before Chief Justice Dyer. He
presided Mt a murder trial in which
everything went against the prisoner,
who on his part could only say that on
his going to work in the morning he
had found the man dying, and tried to
help him, whereby he had become COW
cred with blood, but when the man
presently died he had come away and
said nothing about it, because he was
known to have had a quarrel with the
deceased, and feared that he might get
into trouble. The hay fork with
which the man had been murdered had
the prisoners name on it. In other re-
spects his guilt appeared to be clearly
established, and the chief justice was
convinced of it. When this is the case
a judge likes to get conviction.
have sat beside one myself. who on
the second day brought his black cap
with him, neatly folded, and placed it
in the drawer before him ready for
use, and very much annoyed he seemed
to be when the jury returned verdict
of mot guilty" This was Chief JUS
tice Dyer's case. and when, notwith-
standing their being locked up all
night without fire and candle, his
Jury could come to no deci-
sion, and eventually came to the
wrong one, he put some searching
questions to the high sheriff. The
cause of the acquittal, said that Off
cial. was undoubtedly the foreman, q
farmer of excellent character, es-
teemed by all his ncighbors and very
unlikely to be obstinate or vcxatious.
Then" said the judge, II must see
this foreman, for an explanation of the
matter will have" The foreman
came, and after extracting from his
lordship a promise of secrecy proved
at once that the prisoner had been
rlRntly dclulItcu, lor, saiu Iie, IL
was 1 myself who killed the man." 1t
had been no murder, for the other had
attacked him with the hayfork, and
(as he showed severely injured him;
but il. the struggle to get possession
of the weapon he had the misfortune
to give the man fatal wound. He
had no fears as to his being found
guilty of the murder, but, the assizes
being just over, his farm and affairs
would have been ruined by confes-
sion, through lying SO long in jail, SO
he suffered matters to take their
course. He was Mortified to find one
of his own servants accused Of the
matter, supported his wife and chill
dren while in prison. managed to be
placed on the jury and elected fore
man, and resolutely held out in favor
of the prisoners innocence. He added
that if he had failed in this he would
certainly have confessed to his own
share in the business, and the judge
believed him. Every year for fifteen
years his lordship made inquiries as to
the forcman's existence, and at last,
happening to survive him, he consid-
cred himself free to tell the story.