THE IRISH GOVERNMENT AND THE "WORLD" NEWSPAPER. [From the "Britannia" Dec. 13.] Remarkable Trial.

New Zealander, Volume 8, Issue 631, 1 May 1852, Page 3

THE IRISH GOVERNMENT AND THE " WORLD " NE WSPAPER. [From the " Britannia" Dec. 13.] Remarkable Trial.

James Birch, Proprietor of the "World" Newspaper, v.Sir William M. Somerville, Bart., Chief Secretary for Ireland. This extraordinary case, which for some time past has excited the utmost curiosity iv Dublin, came on for trial on Friday, the sth of December, in the Court of Queen's Bench, Dublin, before the Lord Chief Justice and a special jury. The intense public interest which it created gave reason to apprehend that the court would be inconveniently crowded, and accordingly arrangements were judicioubly made by the sheriff to regulate the admission by tickets, and thus perfect order was preserved. A number of ladies were admitted to the side galleries, and every available part of the court was filled with anxious listeneis. Lords Gough, Courtown, and Monk, occupied seats near the Chief J ustice on the Bench ; and his Excellency the Loid Lieutenant, who arrived shortly after ten, and before the bitting of the Court, was ushered into the judge's chamber, where he waited until called on to give his evidence for the plaintiff. The jury having been sworn, Mr. O'Driscoll opened the pleadings, and Mr. Whiteside stated the case. It was an action of assumpsit to recover the sum of £7,000, and contained the usual counts for goods sold and delivered, work and labour supplied, &c. The defendant pleaded the general issue. Mr. James Birch, the plaintiff, was examined, and deposed to his interview with the Earl of Clarendon, who referred him to Sir Win, Somerville. He detailed the various interviews he had had with Sir Wm. Somerville, and his secretary, Mr. Meredith, in London ; and spoke of the receipt of suras of money from Mi. Meredith, Mr. Connellan, and Sir W. Somerville, amounting in all to about .£9OO. He had continued renderingservices to the Government in his paper from lfc>4B up to the ISth of January, 18J1. He believed the sum £6,500 was due to him by the defendant. Cross-examined by Mr. Brewster. — Upon my oath as an honest man 1 think that sum is due to me by Sir William Somerville ; I do not charge by the article, or by the week ; but rather by the year. I think that for the support of such a Government a very large remuneration should be expected. — Did you think there was any baseness or corruption in supporting such a government ? Witness : I did not. — Did you evei write an article which you did not approve of in your own conscience ? Witness : 1 never sanctioned an article which I did not approve of in my conscience. — Now tell as how much a-yoar you were to get for what you did? Witness: I have not ascertained the exact amount. — Upon your oath, how much a-year ought you to get for your services ? Witness (after some deliberation) : I think £5000 a-year would not be too much. (Laughter.) — AVill you swear that you ever circulated 1,500 copies of the World newspaper at any one time ? Wituc&s: I will not. — What is the price of yeur newspaper? Witness: Gd. for one copy. — 1,500 sixpences and £5,000 a-year. (Laughter.) During the time these arrangements were going on with the government, you acted, I presume, on the sole responsibility of Sir William Somerville ? AVitness : I carried it on for the government. — Did you consider Sir Wm. Somerville as your sole debtor, and the person whom you would be entitled to sue, when you entered into the new arrangement in June, 1848 ? Witness : Yes. I consider that I had a claim on Lord Clarendon also.— Did you a&k to be appointed Collector-General of the Taxes .' Witness. I did not, but if I did J think I ought to get it for my services. (Laughter.) I received £2,000 from Lord Clarendon, and he said that I never gave him any value for it. — Did you ever receive any other payments from his Excellency ? Witness : I lie <rave me X'3J().— How much did yon receive J altogether from Loid Chuendou and Sir Win, yotuerville, including the £'2,0'J0 I AVitness : I

can't exactly remember the tot of the whole. — Did you not receive 1,700 in addition to the 2,000 )ou had from his Excellency ? Witness : I did. — And now you swear that you are entitled to £G,500 more. (Laughter.) Witness : I think T am. — l)o you know an attorney named Symes I Witness: Not to my knowledge. Did you ever threaten any man that if he did not give you money, you would publish things in your newspaper to his disparagement \ I never did.— -Do you swear that you never did so directly or indirectly ? Witness (after some hesitation) : I don't think I ever did. — Were you ever taken up and put into gaol for making such a threat? 1 was, but most unjustly. — Do you know Mr. Hartley I lie was a subscriber to my paper for a short time. — Did you not demand money from him ? On. my oath I do not recollect that I ever did. — Will you swear that you never did? Can you forget going to a gentleman in Mr. Hartley's position, and demanding money from him at the peril of publication I Witness: I don't remember it. His Excellency the Earl of Clarendon took the usual declaration made by a peer previous to giving testimony, and in reply to Mr. Meaghcr said — I was viceroy of Ireland in 1848 ; Mr. Corry Connellan was then my private secretary — (letter of July 17th, 1848, produced) ; this letter was then written under my instructions. Mr. Meagher. — You say in that letter that you would write one to Sir William Somerville ; was that letter written accordingly 1 Witness : It was.— Have you got any copy or abstract of it I None whatever. — Arc you not able to state the substance of that letter to Sir William Somerville? Yes : I wrote to Sir William Somerville saying, that if Mr. Birch, the editor of the World, should call upon him, that he had written in defence of law and order, and that if any person referred to him in order to inquire whether that was the case, he might say that it was so.— ls that the entire substance of the letter 2 I likewise told him that he might give him some money. — May I ask your Excellency if you can recollect that that is the entire of that communication in relation to this matter I I believe that is the whole of it ; I don't recollect anything more. It was a letter I wrote myself, of which no copy was kept. — May I ask your Excellency if you ascertained from Sir Win. Somerville whether Mr. Birch called on him? Yes, he did call on Sir William Somerville. — Did you learn from Sir William Somerville whether any arrangement was made \ No, lam not aware that any arrangement was made with him. Sir William Somerville gave him some money ; no other amingement I think was made with him. — No other arrangement \ No, except to give him some money.— Was Mr. Lircb, to your Excellency's knowledge, supporting the government before for any considerable time I Supporting the government ; no, I should say not. I sent for Mr. Birch in consequence of his oilers to me to support law and order. lie had repeatedly offered to do so during the year 1847, and had sent me his papers and written me various letters which were simply acknowledged. lie subsequently, in February, offered to support the cause of law and order, which was certainly then in some danger. I then saw Mr. Birch. I then thought I should have at that time, in respect to the public affairs, have foiled in my duty if I did not accept the oflices of any person in support of law and order. I then saw Mr Birch, and he offered to write in that sense. 1 told him that he might do so, although I certainly did not expect much to result from his labours. I told him at the same time I wished for no support to the Government, and that as far as I was concerned he might abuse me as much as he liked, as it was perfectly indifferent to me. (Laughter.) — Am I to understand that your Excellency would accept his services on that occasion ? Yes, to write in | defence of law and order. — Did you see articles in support of law and order in hib newspaper afterwards ? Yes, I did, occasionally. — Is it not a fact that up to January ISSI, he continued to publish those articles in defence of law and order ? Yes, 1 am not aware that law and order, wanted any defence up to 1851. (Laughter.) Well, in defence of the general policy of the government ? I callnot say that he did, but, in faet^ 1 never read hte paper at all. — Did your Excellency make any payment to Mr. Birch for his services in defence of law and order; and might I ask you what sums ? lie received sums at various times ; I could not exactly name the amount which I paid him ; the first time I saw him he asked me for money ; I told him there were no funds applicable to such purposes. He then said he did not ask me for it for his own remuneration, but because he should be otherwise unable to procure agents to extend the circulation of his paper. I then oiler ed him «£lOO if I remember rightly, for it did not make any great impression on me at the time. He said that that would not be sufficient for his purpose, and I think it was then extended to I about £350. This was in the beginning of FebI ruary, 1818, if I remember correctly. — Did your Excellcncj r know that any further sums of money were paid to Mr. Birch in London ? Yes. — Is your Excellency aware from what fund it came ? From a fund placed at the disposal of Sir William Somerville, at my request. — Out of the public funds was it ; I could not say it came out of the public funds, I t>aid it was a fund placed at the disposal of Sir W. Somerville at my request. — Allow me to ask your Excellency whether they were or were not public funds '? Part of what Mr. Birch received was from money applicable to special sen ices, and part was out of my own private pocket. The part which was from the , money applicable to special services was advanced at my request, and on my own responsibility, and was repaid by myself very long ago. Cross-examined by Mr. Brewster. — Is your Excellency aware that altogether Mr. Birch got ,£3,700? I am.— Was every farthing of that money from you? Every farthing, and none from Sir W. Somerville; the money which he gave was advanced to him by me, or at my request, and I was responsible for it ; although Sir William Somerville acted simply as my agent, and solely by my instructions. Mr. II Meredyth and Mr. C. Connollan having been examined at considerable length in support of the prosecution. The court was adjourned until Saturday morning, when Mr. Brewster proceeded to address the jury at great length on behalf of the defendant. Me read a lengthy correspondence between Sir W. Somerville and the plaintiff, in which the latter urged his claims and solicited assistance in money, and also sought to obtain a place for his brother. Sir. W. Somerville, in his letters, denied that the plantiff had any claims upon him — told him to state what his wishes or requirements were, and it would be submitted for consideration. Several of the plaintiffs letters also contained threats of exposure, if his demands were not complied with. Mr. Brewster also produced a release, executed by the plaintiff to Lord Clarendon, on receiving the sum of ,£2,000, making in all £3,700 received by him from his Excellency for services rendered " in suppressing the rebellion in J848." A letter from the plaintiff to Lord J. Russell was also read by counsel, and in it, after enumerating his claims on the government, he thus addresses his lordship. " One thing if the truth be told, cannot be denied, that you gave me during a lengthened period, various bums amounting to £3,700 ; that by the letter of the Ii isk Secretary I might still have been a stipendiary advocate of the government; and that, having refused that proposal, every effort is now being made to ruin me." At the conclusion of the learned gentleman's address, the documents referred to by him were produced in evidence. Mr. Keogh, Q C, then replied on behalf of the plaintiff. The Chief Justice briefly changed the- jury, who returned a verdict for defendant, with Gd, costs.