IRELAND ITS SOCIAL STATE. 147 



I was bound by the rules of evidence. Whenever I 

 could, I sent all who broke the law to the treadmill 

 for a month. The result was capital. The punish- 

 ment seemed so light that their very friends laughed 

 at them. But their own remark, after the month 

 was over, was, " Whisha, 'twould kill Samson." It did 

 come sharp on men of a sort not much used to hard 

 work. Afterwards I got a message from some of them 

 that I was so impartial that they would not object 

 to be tried for their lives by me. So it is clear I did 

 not sin in over-severity. 



If indicted, they would have had the chance of a 

 " friend on the jury," who would not find a verdict. 

 Under Lord O'Hagan's last unfortunate Jury Act, 

 there are very few counties in which a conviction for 

 many sorts of crimes can be got. In Ireland, this 

 " friend on the jury " is one of the institutions of the 

 country, and one of its curses. Magistrates in Ireland 

 have often to serve on juries, and I have often done 

 so. Whenever a prejudice of religion, or any other, 

 could be brought into a case anyhow, though it was a 

 purely civil case, the end was certain. It was utterly 

 disgusting work, and added to one's conviction of 

 the grievous untruthfulness of the country. Any 

 one who had been a lawyer could see the counsel on 

 one side fighting to make a case for influencing a 

 juror to stand out, and so no verdict. There is a 

 public butter market in Cork, where business is done 

 to an immense value, but which is a wholly close 



