§ MR. C. J. ENGLEDOW (Kildare, N.)I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, whether he is aware that the High Sheriff for the county of Carlow called Lieut.-Col. John James Hardy Eustace, J.P., to serve on the Grand Jury of the county of Carlow at the last Assizes, and he was sworn in to act as such, when he had a claim for compensation for malicious injury coming on for the decision of the jury, of which he himself was sworn in a member; if he will take steps in the future to guard against the repetition of such an irregularity; and, whether he will see that in the future, if such irregularities should again occur, some official of the Government will bring it to the notice of the Judge of Assize, and not place such a responsibility on the shoulders of a private individual?
§ MR. ENGLEDOWfurther asked the Chief Secretary (1) whether he is aware that Lieutenant - Colonel John James Hardy Eustace, J.P., of Castlemore, county Carlow, was sworn in a member of the Grand Jury for that county at the last Assizes; that he acted on the jury when a claim of his for compensation for malicious injury was being considered, and that he only left the table at which the Grand Jury were deliberating when he was told that exception was going to be taken to his action; that, nothwith standing the fact that the foreman gave an undertaking that Lieutenant-Colonel John James Hardy Eustace, J.P., would not participate in the consideration of his own claim for compensation, that gentleman did not withdraw from the Grand Jury room, but only retired to a seat about one yard behind that he had just left, and still continued to converse with members of the Grand Jury; and that when the amount of compensation claimed by Lieutenant-Colonel John James Hardy Eustace, J.P., had been granted, that gentleman went to the map hanging in the Grand Jury room with other members of the Grand Jury, when the area over which the compensation was to be levied was being fixed; 1366 and, (2) whether His Excellency the Lord Lieutenant has yet come to a conclusion whether the time has yet arrived when it would be necessary, just, and right to amend the Grand Jury Laws of Ireland?
§ THE CHIEF SECRETARY FOR IRELAND (Mr. GERALD BALFOUR,) Leeds, CentralIt was open to the hon. Member, who, I believe, was also a member of the same Grand Jury, and present at the hearing of the case, if he thought he had any cause of complaint, to have brought the matter under the notice of the Judge of Assize, but the Crown exercise no control or jurisdiction over the appointment and proceedings of Grand Juries, and have no means of taking any action as suggested. As to the second paragraph of the second Question, I must repeat what I have already stated, that is not the intention of the Government during the present Session to amend the Grand Jury Laws in Ireland.
§ MR. ENGLEDOWI beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (1) whether his attention has been drawn to the statement in the Local Government Board Auditor's Report on the accounts of the Carlow Grand Jury, with reference to the accounts of the collector for the barony of Forth, that I have now directed him to lodge forthwith the sum of £40 10s. 11d., which he took credit for erroneously, and the further sum of.£61 7s. 7d., which he sets down in his statement of account as discrepancy; (2) whether there was any Resolution passed on this subject by the Grand Jury at the late assizes; and, if so, will he read it to the House; and whether any Resolution was adopted by the Grand Jury directing their solicitor to take the necessary steps to collect the sum of £51 17s. 7d., due by a former collector: and, if so, will he read a copy of it; (3) will he explain who was to blame for the non-fulfilment of the order (as set out in the Auditor's Report) that a claim should be made on the sureties of the late collector for £51 17s. 7d.; and (4) if he will ascertain from the Auditor the date when this deficiency took place, how it arose, and what action has since been taken by the Grand Jury, as shown by the records in that Office?
§ MR. GERALD BALFOURI have seen the Report of the Auditor to which 1367 reference is made. The Grand Jury-propose to carry out his suggestions respecting the arrears of county cess outstanding, and have passed Resolutions relative to the matters mentioned in the second paragraph. Copies of these Resolutions will be forwarded to the hon. Member if he desires to have them. I have no information to enable me to reply to the third paragraph. The Auditor states it would not be possible to ascertain the date of the deficiency (which was not detected for some time after the appointment of the present collector), because of the great difficulty of collecting the county cess, owing to the opposition to payment of the railway guarantee for the Tullow extension line. The Grand Jury passed a Resolution directing their Solicitor to take the necessary steps for the recovery of the sum mentioned in the third paragraph.