§ Sir Robert Batesonwished to put a question to the noble Lord, the Secretary for Ireland. At a late Assizes in Ireland, certain parties had been convicted of a misdemeanour, and sentenced to six months' imprisonment; but he had heard, that in consequence of a memorial to Lady Mulgrave, those parties had been liberated, without any communication with the Judge who presided at the trial. This he considered to be very unusual; and he wished, therefore, to ask the noble Lord whether he was aware of the circumstances?
§ Viscount Morpethobserved, that the case was this—that at a late Assizes, certain parties were convicted, on cross indictments for a riot, by the same Jury. The Chief Baron sentenced all the parties included in one of the indictments, and who were Catholics, to six months' imprisonment; and the parties included in the other indictment, and who were Protestants—some to three and some to two months' imprisonment. All the Jury, eleven of whom were Protestants, signed a petition to the Lord-lieutenant, and not to the Lord-lieutenant's Lady; which petition was also backed by the Mayor of Derry; praying for the remission of the longer sentence passed on the Catholics; and with that prayer the Lord-lieutenant thought it consistent with his duty to comply. The hon. Baronet had alluded to Lady Mulgrave. He was surprised that that noble Lady should not have escaped an attack in the newspapers, for merely having sent a private charitable letter, in reply to one received by her from the wife of one of the prisoners.
§ Sir Robert Batesonhoped the House would indulge him, while he gave a brief explanation. He could assure the noble Lord that he never stated, in his question, anything as to whether the sentences were passed on Protestants, or Catholics, or Quakers. He asked the question simply as to the matter of fact, whether the sentences had been remitted without any communication with the Judge who had tried the prisoners. As to Lady Mulgrave, he assured the noble Lord that he meant nothing offensive in his observations. He had not read any newspapers; but was instructed, by letters from very respectable persons, that an application had gone to her Ladyship. He was the last person in the House to lessen or impair the influ- 1079 ence of the fair sex, or in any degree to check the exercise of their benevolence.
Mr. O'Loughlenwished to set the hon. Baronet right as to what was the practice with regard to applications to the Lord-Lieutenant for the exercise of the prerogative in the case of the remission of sentences on prisoners. It was by no means unusual for the Lord-lieutenant to make such remission when accompanied by such strong representations as were made in this case, without at all referring the question to the Judge who passed the sentence.
§ Subject dropped.