kio' ON THE LOCAL TAXATION OF THE CITY OF DUELIN. 73 Have those circumstances of late induced the citizens of Dublin, or many amongst them, to pay peculiar attention to the local taxation of the city ?— They have. Isaac Stewart. In the attention which you have paid to the subject relating to the local taxation v of the city of Dublin, have you acted individually or in co- operation with others ? ( 8 May-) In co- operation with others. Who are those other persons ?— There are a great number, there are sixteen indi- viduals in St. Mary's parish, and I believe there are eight or nine other parishes which appointed committees. Are Mr. McMullen and Mr. Purdy, who have been already examined before this Committee, individuals who, in conjunction with you, have been employed in investigating this subject?— They are. Have you paid any attention to the subject of the grand jury assessments ?— 1 have. Have you any observations to make with regard to the individuals who compose the presenting term grand juries?— I have. Have the goodness to state them ?— The grand jury, what is called the presenting term grand jury in the city of Dublin, is constituted by the corporation of Dublin, and is chiefly composed of aldermen of the city, or members of the corporation. By members of the corporation, you mean members of the common council ?— Aldermen, sheriff's peers, or persons belonging to the corporation. Do you mean to say that the grand juries of the city of Dublin are composed of members of the governing part of the corporation ?— Certainly. Are they not, generally speaking, the same individuals in successive grand juries ?— Certainly. Has the grand jury taxation augmented very considerably within the last eight or nine years ?— It has, very considerably. To what circumstance do you attribute that increase ?— There are a great number of circumstances connected with the increase of the grand jury taxes ; there is an increase in the number of individuals tried ; there is an increase of salaries to the officers, and an increased number of prisons. Are there any other circumstances to which you would attribute the increase of the grand jury taxation, besides those that you have stated?— I am not aware at present of any other. Do you conceive the operation of the Police Act, and the extension of the recorder's jurisdiction, have contributed to the increase of the grand jury taxation ?— That certainly has had a tendency to increase the number of prisoners committed to the prisons ; the magistrates commit to Newgate to be tried, at the expense of the city, all prisoners taken within the jurisdiction of the recorder. Then the extension of the jurisdiction of course increases the number of pri- soners ?— It does. Are there any other causes, for instance, in the system of contracts pursued by the grand jury, do you conceive, that has augmented the local taxation?— I cer- tainly do. In what respect ?— I think it appears generally in looking over the manner in which the contracts are made, that they are confined to the grand jurors themselves, or the relations of the grand jurors ; that is, speaking of the gross amount of the contracts ; there is, I conceive, a considerable degree of defectiveness in the examination of the articles supplied for the prisons, that is one cause of the increase of charge. Is the supply furnished by open bidding, or by contract ?— It is generally under- stood that individuals do not offer for contracts without some influence with the grand jury, unless it is for some small articles. Are not they always advertised for public competition ?— I have very seldom noticed an advertisement for any contract. Are there instances in which you have noticed them ?— I have occasionally. Have you ever known an instance of the lowest contract being refused ?— I have not. Have you ever known an instance of an advertisement appearing for the supply of stationery for the grand jury ?— I have not. Do you consider that the objections to which you have alluded, with respect to contracts, arise out of the nature of the constitution of the individuals who form the grand jury ?— I do. Do you conceive, that if the grand jury were constituted on a more equal repre- 54 9. Q sentation