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LONDON, May 1. - The jury in the Oscar Wilde trial disagreed this afternoon and was dismissed. The verdict was received with incredulous amazement by the general public, although such a result was regarded as almost inevitable by those who heard or had read the Judge’s charge to the jury. He minimized the whole evidence, and as the jury comprised a majority of unusually young men who would be absolutely led by the Judge (and a judicial summing up here has an extraordinary weight unknown with us), it was anticipated that no verdict would be obtained.

At the House of Commons, West End clubs and other places of general resort the opinion is freely expressed that the result was a miscarriage of justice. It is considered deplorable that such a horrible scandal should have been stirred up under the public eye without eventuating in the punishment of the offenders.

The usual procedure in cases of disagreement is that the prisoner is put back in prison for retrial at the next session, which takes place one month hence, but it is not obligatory on the part of the counsel for the Crown to prosecute again.

A SECOND TRIAL UNLIKELY.

In England it is rather the exception for them to retry a prisoner the charge against whom has thus been stamped as doubtful by a jury. Whether the Crown will retry Oscar Wilde will largely depend on the way in which public opinion receives the verdict, but it is already being said in legal and social circles that the authorities would scarcely be justified in raking up all the filth connected with the case anew, with the risk that they might again fail to convince a jury of his guilt. At the same time it is thought that no great harm would result if Wilde were allowed to go free, with the stigma which the disagreement of the jury has left upon him. He will at any rate certainly be barred from decent society.

Wilde will, in all probability, be kept in prison until he is again put forward in the dock and the Government consents to his discharge, and the time he will then have spent in custody will be urged as an additional reason for dropping the prosecution.

WILDE SHOWS NERVOUSNESS.

When the jury had remained in consultation for some time, and when there was a growing chance of disagreement, Wilde showed more excitement and nervousness in the room in which he was confined below the court than he did at anytime since the beginning of the proceedings.

He grew quite hysterical and was in a highly unstrung condition when he was placed in the dock again to hear the foreman of the jury announce that they could not agree. Wilde passed his hand across his forehead, with a deep drawn sigh of relief, and it seemed as if he would fall and faint in his place in the dock.

A rumor was current in the court that five of the jury were for acquittal and the remaining seven for convicting him on one minor count, under which his sentence could have exceeded two years.

Justice Charles, in summing up the case against Wilde and Taylor, said the counsel for the prosecution acted wisely in withdrawing the charge of conspiracy brought against Wilde, as he would have ordered the jury to bring in a verdict of not guilty on that specification. He admitted that there was corroboration of the witnesses, but the jury, he added, would have to weigh the characters of men like Parker, Wood and Atkins whom Sir Edward Clarke, in the Justice’s opinion, had properly described as blackmailers.

ALL LEFT TO THE JURY.

The Justice also urged the jury not to be influenced by Wilde’s writings, saying that many great men had written indecently. The jury must exercise its own judgment as to whether Wilde’s letters to Lord Alfred Douglas breathed unnatural passion, and he also said the relations between Shelly and Wilde would be interesting matter for the jury's judgment. The jury retired at 1:30 P.M., and after being out for some time reported a disagreement. The jury was consequently discharged.

When the news of the disagreement reached the outside of the court there was great excitement and extra editions of the evening papers were brought up quickly. When Sir Edward Clarke, counsel for Wilde, asked for bail Justice Charles said the application must be made in chambers.

As Sir Edward Clarke, counsel for the prisoner, left the court he was heard to remark: "Truth is mighty and will prevail."

There was a big crowd outside the Old Bailey during the last stages of the trial, but there was no demonstration for or against the prisoner upon the part of the populace. In spite of this Wilde was kept in the prisoners’ room of the court for an hour after adjournment, or until the crowds had disappeared, before he was taken to Holloway Jail.

London, May 1– The British public were given a big surprise in the Oscar Wilde case to-day. The jury after being out four hours returned to the court and announced amid great excitement that there was no possibility of coming to an agreement as to a verdict.

Immediately upon the opening of the court Justice Charles charged the jury. The justice, in so doing, said that counsel for the prosecution acted wisely in withdrawing the charge of conspiracy brought against Wilde, as he Justice Charles, would have ordered the jury to bring in a verdict of "not guilty" on that specification. He said that there was corroboration of the witnesses, but, the jury he added, would have to weigh the characters of men like Parker, Wood and Atkins, whom Sir Edward Clarke, in the justice’s opinion, properly described as blackmailers.

The justice also urged the jury not to be influenced by Wilde’s writings, saying that many great men had written after a similar fashion. The jury retired at 1:30 o’clock. At 3 o’clock they sent out for lunch and at 5:30 returned with their announcement of disagreement.

The Wilde episode, which at the beginning sent a shock through the entire world of society and letters, has the following history.

Early in the present year the Marquis of Queensberry offered to Oscar Wilde in the club of which they were both members insults of the gravest kind. The marquis openly avowed that he did this to goad Wilde to public resentment, when, he declared, the literary man and playright would be shown in his proper light.

The reason given by the marquis for his action was the bad influence which, he alleged, Wilde had gained over the marquis’ younger son, Lord Alfred Douglas. He desired to destroy this influence by a public scandal.

Wilde concluded to resent the insinuations of the Marquis of Queensberry and brought suit for libel against him, and the marquis was held in heavy bonds to answer the charge.

Some time later the trial of the marquis began. He admitted the charges, but alleged justification and put on witness to prove the same. It was the testimony then adduced which shocked the public and caused Wilde on the second day’s hearings to withdraw the charge of libel and request through his counsel that the marquis be discharged and a plea of not guilty entered.

In a letter to the public on the same day that he withdrew from the prosecution of his suit against the marquis Wilde said he could not continue in the face of these counter charges without putting Lord Alfred on the stand to testify against his father, and this, though the young man wished it, he refused to do.

A few hours after Wilde had withdrawn his suit the public prosecutor, representing the treasury department, had Wilde arrested on a criminal charge. He was held without bail from that time, several weeks ago, though the technical charge was only a misdemeanor, and he has been compelled to live during the time in a police court cell.

He was examined, formally indicted, and the trial which was conducted to-day ensued. In this trial the only witnesses against Wilde were men who were known to be blackmailers and scoundrels of the blackest type. The charges made by these men were denied by Wilde. His counsel yesterday, Sir Edward Clarke, made a brilliant appeal, calling attention to the character of the defendant’s accusers.

Sir Edward Clarke, after the disagreement was announced to-day, made application for bail, but his request was refused and a fresh jury will probably be summoned.