\ 16 MINUTES OF EVIDENCE TAKEN BEFORE THE T. Courtenay, Esq. 6782. Those 92 votes that were struck off the poll remain on the registry ?— They do. . , . 23 March 1838. 6783. How many of those voted at the last election ?— Eighty- two. 6784 They were made the subject of an objection, for want of qualification,, upon the petition that was presented lately ?— Yes, they were class No 1. 6785 In consequence of the Committee that tried that petition deciding that the register could not be opened, that question, as to their qualification, was not entered into?— We put up one of the votes, and the Committee decided that, in the case of that vote, they would not open the registry, and they remain still on the register. 6786. Chairman.'] That particular vote decided the class?— It did. 6787. Mr. Lefroy.] Had you any reason, through the same channel by which, you have stated already that you conjectured as to the decisions of the Committee, to know or believe that many of the decisions of the Committee were unanimous with respect to the disqualification of the votes that were tried in April and May a 837 ? Yes, I heard that the Committee were unanimous in many of the decisions that they came to. 6788. Those votes, of course, still remain on the register?— They do; but in answer to Mr. O'Connell's question, I should have stated, that before that Com- mittee several of the votes were given up by the counsel of Mr. White, as not being supportable votes. 6789. Mr. O'Connell.] That is, after several decisions had been made against him?— Not several; in the early stage of the business those votes were given up for want of qualification. 6790. Mr. Lefroy. And those votes still remain upon the register?— They do. 6791. Did any of them vote at the last election?— They did. 6792. And of course were included in the batch of votes objected to before the last Committee, into whose qualification they refused to enter ?— Yes. 6793. Mr. Beamish.] Do you know how many of those voted at the last election ?— Eighty- two out of the 92. 6794. Mr. O'Connell. j Did any of them vote for you?— One of them voted for Mr. Fox; he split his vote between Mr. Fox and Mr. Luke White ; a man of the name of Patrick Lee. 6795- Were any of the 92 re- registered ones?— One of them, I believe. 6796. Mr. Lefroy.] Your view of the working of the Registry Act in this county is, that the result has been to put upon the register a great number of fictitious votes?— Certainly; and, as it is worked at present, increasingly so. 6797. Is it likely, if this continues to be the system of registration, that that evil will extend more?— I am convinced it will. 6798. Do you observe that the system of creating fictitious votes has been in- creasing lately; the question alludes to several persons qualifying out of the same holding?— I have observed persons coming forward to claim out of the same hold- ing; that is, supposing a man is registered out of a small holding of fifteen acres, or twenty acres, paying a fair rent for it, he makes a lease to his son or his son- in- law, of part of the same, at a nominal rent, and he comes forward and claims to register. I have remarked some instances of that. 6799. And both remain upon the register ?— Both claim to register out of the same holding, and both register out of it. 6800. Upon what ground is it that the latter person is permitted to register, al- though his lessor is registered out of the very same holding?— I put the matter be- fore the Chairman, and his answer was, that under the Reform Act he had no right to question the title of the landlord, and therefore I conceive that very great evil exists in that respect. 6801. So that, according to that practice, if a person has a mere qualification by a lease of land in his own occupation, he can, by making a lease of the same land to another, enable him to register ?— He can. 6802. And both remain upon the register ?— And both remain upon the register. 6803. And you know cases of the sort which exist in Longford ?— I have wit- nessed cases of that sort in Longford. 6804. Mr. O'Connell] You mean that the lessor parts with his qualification?— With a part of it. 6805. Keeping what he considers worth \ ol. a- year in his own possession?— Keeping what he may consider worth 10 /. in his own possession. 6806. You know that if it be a fraud, he could not take the qualification oath at the