erted himself to conciliate the various classes of the Irish people, and to put an end to the heartburnings which had so long embittered that community, it was extremely proper and lawful, that certain persons should seize the first opportunity that presented itself, for marking their powerful disapprobation of such an acquiescence in the expressed commands of his majesty. To that extent they felt it highly proper the opposition should proceed; though they were not prepared to go the length of thinking, that it was right to fling bottles and rattles at his majesty's representative. That, in his conscience, he believed to be the decided conviction of the grand jury-a conviction, he also believed, which the greater portion of the Dublin corporation did not consider erroneous. He (Mr. P.) had grounds for impeaching not only the decision of the grand jury, but also the manner in which it had been impanelled. He had reason to know, that the sheriff was related to two of the accused, in the close affinity of first cousin. This, had he known it at the time, would have been ground of challenge to the array. He had also in evidence upon oath, that the sheriff declared, that the traversers need not be afraid of the result of the trial, as he had a list of Orangemen for the jury in his pocket. Another circumstance would shew the spirit in which the grand jury was impanelled. There was a person, named Poole, who was desirous of serving on the grand jury. The sheriff promised him, previously to the riot, that he should be on the jury; but, after the riot, he found that his name was not on the list, and when the sheriff was applied to on the sub

ject, he said, would allow a man to be on the grand jury, who said he would abide by the king's letter?" He (Mr. P.) had the affidavit of a person who assisted in the office of the sheriff, to the effect, that, when the jury was about to be struck according to the usual course of the office, the sheriff ordered the panel to be brought to him, and said he would prepare it himself! and the deponent swore, that he believed this course was taken, to enable the sheriff to deal with the panel as he pleased. There was another objection to the mode of impanelling the jury. When he (Mr. P.) learned that a whole day had passed without finding the bills, he procured the panels of the five preceding years. He found on inspection, that there were from about 70 to 100 on each panel, and that, on calling the panel, it was with difficulty the requisite number of the jury was made up after calling the whole list. In the present instance, the number was only about 50, of which there were about 26 names that he did not find on any other panel; and the whole number attended, with the exception of two or three; they answered in regular order, and before the 26th name was called, the jury was completed. He would put it to the candour of the House, if he would have been justified in going back with the case to such a grand jury. He concluded by stating, that his own inclination would have been, to meet the resolution by a direct negative, but that, in order to prevent either party in Ireland from assuming an air of triumph on this occasion, he would only move, "That the other orders of the day be now read."

"Do you suppose I

better adapted to the circumstances of the case, than the imperfect means of investigation possessed by the House of Commons. Mr. Canning, Mr. Peel, and the other ministers expressed the same opinions more unequivocally and put a direct negative upon the motion. Mr. Brownlow and colonel Barry called loudly for inquiry, and denied in toto the truth of the alle gations which the attorney-general had made against the sheriff and grand jury. The learned gentle man, said Mr. Brownlow, had asserted in his place, that the jury were packed. Now, nineteen out of the twenty-three grand jurors, whoignored the bills of indictment, usually sat as grand jurors; their names appeared in every panel for ten years back; and during that time they had frequently received the thanks of the judges for their upright and impartial conduct. It had been stated by the attorney general, that one of the traversers, was the first cousin of the sheriff. In truth, however, there was not one of them more connected with the sheriff, than with the learned gentleman himself. The attorney general had informed the House, that a Mr. Poole applied to the sheriff to be put on the jury; that the sheriff had consented, but that, subsequently, Mr. Poole having expressed his inclination to carry into effect the conciliatory views of the king's letter, his name was not included in the panel. The high sheriff had informed him (Mr. B.), that, three weeks before the jury was impanelled, Mr. Poole begged to be put on the grand jury. The sheriff said, he would submit his name to his colleague. In the mean time, a letter was addressed to the sheriffs by the crown solicitors, by the or

ders of the attorney-general, réquesting that both the sheriffs should join in making out the panel. Mr. Poole renewed his application to be put on the grand jury, when the sheriffs informed him, that they felt the necessity of being cautious, and that he had disqualified himself by the applications he had made. Mr. Sheriff Thorpe asked, what reason he had for pressing the application? "I'l tell you," said Mr. Poole; the case of a Mr. O'Meara is to come before the grand jury. I am acquainted with facts, connected with that case, which are not known to the rest of the jury. I wish to be on the grand jury, that justice may be done to Mr. O'Meara. Put me on the jury, and I'll give you my word not to divide on the question of the play-house riots." The sheriff replied, that, after such a declaration nothing would induce him to put Mr. Poole on the jury. With respect to the conduct of the grand jury, there was no notice of motion respecting them, but he was authorized to say, that every thing the attorney-general had said with respect to them was incorrect and unfounded. The attorneygeneral had been misled and misinformed by some calumniator. The attorney-general had said, that a witness of the name of Moran had been produced before the grand jury, and that but two questions had been put to him when he was shown to the door; the jury authorized him (Mr. B.) to state, that that witness was asked a greater number of questions in the grandjury room, than he was asked on the trial.

Mr. Denman, Lord Milton, Mr. Spring Rice, sir J. Newport, Mr. Tierney, and Mr. Brougham, spoke in favour of parliamentary investi

gation. Upon a division, sir Francis Burdett's motion was carried by a majority of 34; 219 members voting for it, and 185 against it.

On the 2nd of May the House resolved itself into a committee for the purpose of inquiring into the charges preferred by Mr. Plunkett against Mr.Thorpe and the jury; and prosecuted the investigation on the 5th 6th and 7th of that month. The three points attempted to be established against Mr. Thorpe, and from which it was intended to be inferred, that he had packed the jury, were, that the panel contained an unprecedented number of the members of the corporation; that the grand jurors answered with a suspicious punctuality to their names; and, that the panel was shorter than upon any former

occasion.

One Mr. Terence O'Reilly, an attorney, stated, that, on the day on which the indictments were ignored, Mr. Sheriff Thorpe, in a room adjacent to the court, and about three quarters of an hour' before the fate of the bills was announced, addressed a gentleman, named Ward, on the subject of these bills, predicting that they would be ignored, and exulting in the management by which he had insured such a result. Mr. O'Reilly was confirmed in some part of his statement by a Mr. M'Namara, but both were contradicted positively by Mr. Ward. One John M'Connell stated, that, at a card party at a Mr. Sibthorpe's about three days after the riot in the Dublin theatre, he heard Mr. Thorpe say to Graham, one of the persons who were afterwards (but not then) accused, that he had the Orange panel in his pocket.-Mr. Sheriff Cooper proved, that the

panel, which, according to M'Connel's statement, was in Mr. Thorpe's pocket on the 17th of December, was not prepared for several days after. He denied that the grand jurors were

re

persons more markable for party zeal than other gentlemen in Dublin; and affirmed, that, if the January grand jury differed in any thing from former commission grand juries, it was in its extraordinary respectability.Mr. Plunkett produced a list of candidates to represent the merchant's guild, recommended " as good men in bad times," at the head of which was a vignette of king William, with his horse trampling upon a Knave of Clubs, intended, it should seem, as the symbol of the Dublin lord mayor. Mr. Cooper admitted, that seven of the fifty returned on the grand jury panel were to be found in this list, but denied that they were violent party-men. In conclusion he said, that, though he considered his colleague Mr. Thorpe a high party man, he should from his knowledge of him consider him as a juror altogether above exception.—Wil liam Poole stated, that, being anxious to sit upon the January commission grand jury, in order to guard the interests of a certain Mr. T. O'Meara, who was indicted for perjury, he applied, in November, to Mr. Thorpe, and obtained from him a promise that he should be returned in the panel. Finding himself excluded from the panel, he remonstrated with Mr. Thorpe, who apologized by saying, that he had a hard card to play, and that it was impossible to please all parties.

Christopher Moran complained, that the grand jury having heard from him all the particulars of the riot with which he was acquainted,

refused to listen to a story he wished to tell, about the arrest of one of the Handwiches.

Here the case sgainst Mr. Thorpe closed. Mr. N. Murray Mansfield was the first witness called for the defence. He stated that he was clerk in the sub-sheriff's office, and described the mode in which the panel was struck, as being perfectly fair. Mr. Thorpe proceeded expressly upon the principle of excluding from it all men of violent politics.-Sir George Whiteford, foreman of the grand jury, stated, that he was solicited by sheriff Thorpe to preside over the January grand jury several weeks before the riot; that, having heard M'Connell's statement, that Mr. Thorpe boasted of having an Orange panel, he refused to act upon the Jury, until Mr. Thorpe assured him, upon his honour, of the falsehood of M'Connell's story; that he never saw a body of men more conscientiously anxious to discharge their duty than the grand jury in question. Sir George added, that he was one of those who wished the dressing of the statue of king William to die a natural death, but he confessed that he thought the measures taken to suppress the ceremony were calculated to produce irritation. Being cross-examined by Mr. Plunkett, he said, that, in his opinion, it was not deserving of punishment, to express dissatisfaction at the forcible means by which the dressing was discontinued. Mr. Twycross, one of the grand jury, described himself as an Englishman, and a friend to Catholic emancipation. He affirmed, that the grand jury conducted their inquiry with the utmost patience and impartiality, and that they were unanimous in their decision.

Mr.

J. H. Moore, another juror, said, that he had acted as secretary to the grand jury, and taken notes of the examinations. His testimony perfectly corresponded with that of the two preceding witnesses; but, being questioned as to some particular facts, he hesitated to make disclosures inconsistent with his oath as a grand juror: and a long discussion followed on the question, whether the grand jury could be wholly absolved from their obligation of secrecy. The point was not decided; and the examination continued through the 8th, 9th, and 14th of May, upon an understanding, that the members should, as far as possible, abstain from putting to any of the Jurors, questions as to facts which occurred in the grand-jury room. One Mr. Davis said, that he was not an Orangeman, and that he had heard Mr. sheriff Thorpe refuse to put Mr. Addison Hone on his grandjury panel, on the ground of the violence of that gentleman's politics.

On the 23rd of May, the investigation of the conduct of the high sheriff of Dublin was resumed. After several witnesses had been examined, sir Abraham B. King was called. He stated, that he had never had any panel put into his hands for revision, nor, to his knowledge, was any panel put into the hands of his clerk. He had been, he said, an Orange-man since 1797; the oath of that society was in print; a prayer was read on opening the lodge, but no portion of scripture was read; the signs and words which were communicated after initiation were, he said, taken from the Old Testament. Being pressed to explain from what passage these signs and words were taken, the witness pleaded his oath