SPECIAL JURY LIST

Daily Southern Cross, Volume XVII, Issue 1380, 5 March 1861, Page 3

SPECIAL JURY LIST

To the Editw of the Southern Cross. _ Sir,— Mr. Busby'a letter, which appealed in your i issue of yesterday, caused great excitement, and was i quite the subject of conveisation during the day. At I first many persons expressed their convictions, that the Pioviucml entrapper had been at work operating on I Mr. Busby, and had gulled that gentleman to publish that which could not be true ; within a few horns howevei, the numerous peisons who had made enqunies of the Sheriff dispelled ali doubts as to the correctness of Mr. Busby's statements. Throughout the afternoon very strong expiesaions of indignation were cuncnt at every place where two or tlnee persons met together, and conjectuies of various soits have since been fieely discussed. Some people have reraaiked that it would appear as if the special jury list had been doctored with a special view to the great libel cause of Williamson v. Busby* j others have suggested that Auckland s champion legislator and lynx-eyed legal practitioner had been during the last three or four years invariably thwarted by the stupid verdicts of special Junes, and ascribed the wholesale destruction of the list to that illustuous legal luminary. One grumbling individual talked of a Piako job as being likely soon to be bi ought befoie a special jury which might render an alteration in the list most desirable to certain official land jobbers Some peisons asseited that piepaiations weie being made to bi ing to trial Bishop Selwyn and Sir William Mai tin for hbellously defaming Eesponsible Ministers, and mged that for such an impoitant trial our shaip Attorney-in-Chief would begin in time to get the jury hst"m older." Oue sedate looking old gentleman gravely assei ted the sole cause of all the mischief to be " want of beaid and moustache," and in a most serious manner avowed his belief that, according to the teneU of a high functionary who sat m judgment on the juiy list, all men without "beard and moustache" would necessauly be struck off the list as not qualified. Beard being by that official considered the most impoitant portion of the human head. It appeared to me that the sedate gentleman was a disciple of Mr. Thomas King, and thi owing dust in the eyes of listeners. But, as tampeung with the jury list is too serious a business to bo played with, I am sure no amount of humbug will frustiate a searching inquiry being instituted, and the delinquents being biought to justice. All agree that the thanks of the community are due to Mr Busby for his, chscoveiy, and as one victim who may require a special jury to obtain re dress I beg, through your columns, to thank Mr. Busby for the great service he has rendered to the public. Youn?, &c , Meroatok. Auckland, Feb. 23, 1861. * Williamson v. Busby "should perhaps be" Eesponsible Ministers v. Busby, it being generally believed that Williamson is the nominal plaintiff.