§ MR. SOMERSsaid, he would bog to ask the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether he has received any information respecting the recent Trials at Sligo arising out of the late Elections, and the systematic exclusion of persons professing the Roman Catholic religion from the juries empanneled to try the traversers?
§ MR. H. A. HERBERTin reply said, that his hon. Friend appeared from the wording of the question of which he had given notice to have rather too hastily assumed that a system of exclusion of Roman Catholics had existed at certain trials arising out of the late election at Sligo. On seeing the notice on the paper he (Mr. Herbert) had written to Ireland for information, and held in his hand a copy of a letter from Mr. Todd, Crown Solicitor for the county of Sligo, in which that gentleman distinctly denied that any such exclusion had existed. He said that the jury had been originally empanneled to try a case which was not a political one, and that when that case was disposed of the accused had been asked if he had any objection to the jury in the box. No objection having been made, the trial proceeded 709 in the usual manner. There had therefore been no contrivance or management whatever in, the empanneling the jury, and Mr. Todd was entirely ignorant whether the members of it were all Protestants or not.