,, » / S E L E C T C O M M I T T E E ON F I C T I T I O U S VOTES, IRELAND. 327 1 ^ would swear he had not such an interest; he said that was the only proper evi Mr c / dence he would receive to contradict the man claiming. } 11 ' G. Battersby. 13868. Do you mean to say he gave you to understand he would not receive 19 J"" e 1838. the evidence of persons who were competent judges of what the value of the land was ?— He did not refuse to receive it, but he would not act upon it 13869. Mr. Beamish.] He would not act upon that evidence alone, unsup- ported by the details of the produce of the farm ?— Unless there was the testi- mony of persons who bought the produce of the farm ; whether he would nave credited that I do not know; that case did not arise. 13870. Mr. Serjeant Jackson.] I understood you to say he would not ack upon evidence of that description alone; he would not take the evidence of per- sons who came to depose to the value of the land ?— Yes. 13871. And he required, in addition to that, the evidence of the persons who bought the produce ?— There was nothing said about " in addition," but he said the persons who knew what the produce was must be brought to contradict the man claiming. 13872. Mr. French.] Mr. Buchanan was cross- examined?— He was. 13873. Did Mr. Buchanan state he only knew the farm bypassing over it; that he could not state the particular merits of each field, but he merely knew the farm generally ?— He knew it intimately; and either Dehan or the preceding man, Cassell, I think it was Cassell, had deposed about having cows, and Mr. Buchanan knew their position so accurately, that he stated the particular time at which they were parted with, to show they could not have had the cows all the year round; he was intimately acquainted with them, at least he swore he was. 13874. Was he particularly acquainted with Dehan's stock ?— Mr. Buchanan swore, as I recollect, as to the particular persons of whom he bought the hay, and carried it to the farm. 13875. He might have met the carts upon the road; did he state to you what number of horned cattle Dehan had?— Not that I recollect; he may have done so, but I have no recollection of it; he probably wTas not asked. I am sure I asked Mr. Buchanan nothing more respecting the particular items of Dehan's stock, because I abandoned that course altogether when I found it was useless ; and I am sure I asked him, with reference to that, nothing; but now that my memory is more tried, I do recollect that I produced some gentlemen as to Cassell, whose names I forget, ( I believe Mr. Julian knows them,) to prove the particular items of his stock. 13876. The barrister declared he would not, from the knowledge which he knew Mr. Buchanan to have, put his opinion in competition with the oath of the occupier ?— It was not upon that occasion that question arose, or in which he made that observation ; it was afterwards, when I brought other witnesses as to other cases of the same description, and then I respectfully asked his wor- ship whether there was any description of evidence upon which I could induce him to act, and to reject any claimant; and then I stated to him, I tried these three courses of evidence, and then he said, what I have already detailed, as to the description of evidence he would require. 13877. But still his decision was, that he preferred the oath of the occupier over the opinion of a witness, who he did not think had sufficient opportunity to know the actual value of the land ?— I do not think he doubted the oppor tunity which Mr. Buchanan had. 13878. Still he decided against him ?— Yes. 13879. Did Mr. Buchanan make any value beyond the 1/. 5s. an acre; did he attempt to make up the qualification of the voter in any other way ?— I examined, subsequent to that transaction or at this time, only persons who were supposed to be judges of land, to prove what the land was fairly worth between man and man. 13880. But, in addition to the land, there were the house and offices; did you ask Mr. Buchanan about the value of the house and offices ?— I did not attach any value to the house and offices ; and throughout this transaction neither side, as I recollect, except in particular cases, attached any value to the house 01* offices. 13881. Chairman.] The general value of the land was stated, and that general value included whatever value might be derived from the house and 643 T T 4 OFFICES •