Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1852-01-21

quIremenes OF public policy often rendered
an absolute pardon inadmissible, where a
wise clemency would dictate mitigation of
the severity of the judgment. All prerogs-
tives should be clearly defined by law in
constitutional government. There are other
Improvements which will be suggested to
your minds BY careful examination of the
class ofacts to which refer. As the Legis-
lature has the power to declare wha, shall
be considered crimes against the State, and
SO prescribe the punishment for each offence;
so it may ordain the conditions upon which
that punishment shall be changed, except
ing in SO far as the Constitution itself has
expressly conferred authority upon uano'her
department of the government"
81 would, also, respectfully call 10 your
notice q grievance in the law, which de-
mands remedy. 10 prosecutions for lar
ceny, it frequently occurs that the property
stolen belonged to different individuals, al
though taken at the same ,ime-several in
dictmen.s are found and, upon each, there
is distinct conviction and sentence. Thus,
if a man steals two five dollar bills, which
happen to be the property Of two different
persons, he will be separately indicted and
sentenced for each although, in fact, the
culprit may have been guilty of but one lar
ceny. Whereas, if the two bills had belong
ed to the same individual, the party would
have been sentenced 10 one term only IN the
peni,entiary. 1t has thus happened tina, a
man convicted, Of two small larcenies, has
been made TO suffer longer punishment
than another, whose crime was really much
greater in degree. This glaring inequality
of punishment is not only unjust and cruel
but it is productive of the most mischievous
consequences
In alluding to clerks having the collect
ing Of revenues for licenses, he suggests tina,
in all cases cexcept licenses for marriages,
the application should be published, as this
would entirely preven. fraud. Marriage
licenses are already provided for, in a man
ner, that it is impossible to defraud of any
of this revenue without detection. In sup
port Of this suggestion he says:
"You may judge of the importance OF
this recommendation, when | inform you
that the revenue derived from licenses, lex
elusive of those for marriages. during the
year 1850, amounted in the aggregate to The
sum of $l14,263 95; and, for The year jus,
closed, 10 the sum Of $l29,765 49,"
The changing Of the fiscal year is recon-
mended, so as to make the period ofits ter
mination, farther from the meeting Of the
Legislature, that the clerks may have more
time to prepare their reports the year now
ends SO near the time Of the Legislatures
meeting, that the accounts are rarely ready,
and often occasion much delay. He thinks
q different regulation should be made in re-
la,ion to the surelies Of those having the
control Of public funds. The bonds should
cover the estimate Of the cash receipts an
nually under their control. The next seve-
raj pages are filled with suggestions in re-
lation to the judiciary Of the State. In re-
lalion 10 the Treasury department, he says,
it has been reconstructed upon a higher
and more rational basis. The office OF
Comptroller has long been needed. Too
many and dissimilar duties have been i'm
posed upon the Treasurer. The entire su-
pervision and control over the finances,
will now devolve upon the Comptroller.-
In organizing the new Treasury department,
you cannot devote too much attention 10
detail"
"The duties of the Comptroller, especial
ly those connected with enforcement, of the
collection Of the revenue, cannot be too
specially defined. This was formerly an
Executive function. You will find, by re-
ference to the annual reports of the Treasur-
er, for several years past, that many coIec-
tors of the direc, taxes, as well as other Of
fcers who collect the indirec, revenue, have
been annually found in arrear to very large
amounts. The arrearsges Of the direct tax
es alone, unaccoun,ed for at the treasury
were, in 1S47, $lS3,005 AZ; in 1913
$575,6S2 II; in lS49, $551 1888 SO; in
1850, $557,793 20; and for the last fiscal
year, which closed on the first of December
$647,153 II. Allowing two years for The
collection Of one years lax, we find that a
large portion of the arrears of the dIIec
taxes in that period, were due for longer
time than two years. Thus, in lS47 $685..
374 II of.he aggregate arrearages were due
for the years back of 1916; in lS46, $3.50
76O Sc, for the years back Of lS47; in 1919
Sl74,5S2 Ga, for the years back Of 1873
in 1850, $l9l,2S2 OS, for the years back
Of 1919; and in the year jus! closed. $2l7,.
$50 AZ for the years anterior 70 1850
Although suits have been Instituted in
some cases, still j. will be perceived thai
the arrearsges are increasing annually"
He attaches the blame no, TO the Tax pay
ers only, but more especially TO the neglect
of the collectors, who have not been suffi-
cien.ly attentive 10 the duties devolving up
on them.
"The Constitution has obli,era,ed from
the Statute Book that relic Of ancient bar
for debt. Because
it was inhuman, to incarcerate man, on &C.
coun. Of his mlsfor,unes and, because his
confinement. only rendered him The less able
TO NEE, his obligations. This latter very
excellent reason is practically annuled, by