§ Mr. GINNELLasked the Attorney-General for Ireland if he will say in what order or rotation jurors are supposed to be summoned to serve at assizes in Ireland; who in practice certifies in each case that the jurors have been summoned impartially and that the regular system has not been departed from for the purpose of packing a jury in a particular case; whether it is by his direction, and, if not, by whose, and on what authority, jurors of a particular type are in certain cases summoned, not according to alphabetical, consecutive, or any other order, but arbitrarily; by whom are the ballot papers put into the box in such a case; why are they not shuffled in open court; 350 and whether a party against whom a jury has been packed by these two methods can compel a disclosure of the order in which the jurors were summoned and the order in which the ballot papers were arranged in the box?
§ The ATTORNEY-GENERAL for IRELAND (Mr. Redmond Barry)In reply to the first part of the hon. Member's question, jurors are summoned according to the rotation provided for by the Juries (Ireland) Act, 1871, Sections 18 and 19, and I am not aware of any instance of departure from the statutory requirements. The other queries of the hon. Member appear to me to convey imputations for which, to my knowledge, there is no foundation.
§ Mr. GINNELLIs the right hon. Gentleman aware that the practice of the last assizes in West Meath is in accordance with the statement in this question?
§ Mr. REDMOND BARRYI am certainly not aware of it, and I should be very slow to believe it.
§ Mr. GINNELLIs it not a portion of the right hon. Gentleman's business to know it?
§ Mr. REDMOND BARRYIf any incidents supporting the imputations of the hon. and learned Gentleman arose my attention would be called to them.
§ Mr. GINNELLWill the right hon. Gentleman take steps to ascertain whether these allegations are true or not?