The true Democrat., 1854-11-08
with the demand to the Governor of the State

the State of Texas duly authenticated copies oi all the records and papers connected there With are herewith transmitted These papers have not been printed.
 Since the last session of the general assem- bly, the Executive of this State has had arrest ed and delivered to the proper agents of other Sta:es to be taken back for trial, two fugitives charged with committing the crime of murder and whose surrender had been demanded by the Executive authorities of the States from which they had respectively fed
 h addition to the fourteen fugtives who stood charged with crimes ard had fled from the State before the present Executive came into otfice he also demanded the surrender of hve others charged with the crime of murder but none of these could be found within the jurisdiction of the authorities upon which the demands were made.
 The Executive also offered rewards for the arrest and delivery to the proper authorities, oi many other persons charged with committing crimes in this State, but who had fled to un- certain places. Some of these have been ar rested and delivered into the custody of the proper officers, whilst others are for the present, beyond the grasp of our laws.
 It is recommended that law be passed re- quring every attorney for the State ill the seve- Tal judicial circuits to report to the EXecutlv e after the expiration of each term of the court for every county in his circuit, a statement of the title, nature and condition of every cause pending in which the State may be party or interested, as well as like information relative to all such causes as may have been tried and determined at the term, and the result of each. Such information collected and condensed would be important for the authorities of the +0tn fl t,a,, I talned, arranged and published with the iour- nals ot the general assembly, so that it could be examined and read by the people, it would have tendency not only to stimulate all off, cera concerned to a viglant discharge of their duties, butitis believed would deter many from committing crime.
 It IS also recommended for your consdera- ton that provision be made by law to authorize the election, by the qualified voters of each county, of an attorney for such business of the county as would often be liable to suffer for the want of legal attention The county attorney should be required to attend strictly to every case of criminal character when pending be- fore justices of the peace for examination, so that he might prevent the wrongful release of violators of the laws-cause the criminals :o be legally held to account, and in this way, great ly ail in having the laws faithfully executed.
 The duties now required by law oI the at- torneys for the State should in no wise be abat- ed ;n consequence of the arrangement for elect ing and having county attorneys
 By "an act to provide for the building of a stone wall around the Penitentiarv House of this State," approved 10th January, 1853 1t was required that said wall shall be built three hundred feet square, eighteen feet above the surface ot the earth, two feet below the sur face, four feet base, diminishing to two feet at the tol, making wall of twenty feet in height of rock or stone, laid in the best kind of lime mortar, iointed with hydraulic cement; with two entrances secured by iron gates'
 On the 17th day of February, 1853 Alex ander George and John Robins became the contractors to build the wall, and also for the safe keeping and the labor control and manage mcut of any and all State convcts. for and during two years from the date of their con- tract torthe sum of S26, ,24S OO
 The Executive appointed John Hutt in- spec-or and superintendent of the work; and 1t is gratifying to learn by his report, that the contractors completed the wall, about the mid lde ol last September, and that they had com ;ed fully and faithfully with the terms of tne law and done the State full and ample justice and themselves great credit"
 The State made payments to the contractors from time to time as the work progressed. and aiJer. lad been tinished as stipulated paid the reatiUe of the amount to them.
 !. constructing the wall difficulty arose from the fact that the surface of the ground upon which 1t was to be built, was lot level. The law made no provision for grading and le- yelling, but required the wall to be built three hundred feet square, eighteen feet above the surface oI the earth and two teat below The Executive instructed the inspector to have the law strictly complied with, although the wall when flushed, in accordance with the require ments of the act might present an irregular ap- poarlrce at the top.
 It is recommended that provision be made for grading and levelling the ground enclosed and also for building up the wall so tha. it may (atter level)mg the grouud) be of uniform height on the inside.
 Suitable work shops, sufficiently capacious for the accommodation of machinery for ma- nufacturing purposes, are necessary to enable me keepers to employ the convcts at profitable labor A keepers house is also requiste- These buildings shoull be fire proof and con- structcd of stone which would be more substan- tialand enduring than brick The Penitentiary House IS brick, and some parts of 1t are now in ''i S~+I''ittpil tAi'tt C 1lo iIC ilc- cessary. With the Penitentiary House in good repair, the work shops and keepers house con- structed, the institution could De leased 50 that t would be a source of revenue instead of ex. pense 10 the State. Without such improve ments iL will remain as heretofore, tax upon the Treasury.
 The State has ample revenue to pay the or dlnarv expenses cause these improvements tC be made, and also to have the Svate House pro- perly repaired, without imposing any addi- :ional tax uron the people. Under such cir cumstances 1t would seem to be good policy and real economy, to make appropriations to detray the expense of these works.
 By the report of the keepers, it will be seer that there were fifty convicts confined in the Penitentiary on the 18th of October, 1854 and also three slaves detained there for safe keeping until their owners, from whom the, had escaped, may legally retrieve them.
 The report also refers to certain work and repairs deemed indispensable, which the keep CTS mad done for the State at their own cost an( rIsk, as we'll as to $l7O co paid by them te clothe discharged convicts, and to supply then with some money. The risk was oniv whethe the general assembly would act ustly towards men Who, as contractors and keepers. had ho neStlV and Fait itb f,,ll, ,', '