Lewisburg chronicle. [volume] (Lewisburg, Pa.) 1850-1859, 1855-03-15
The P0ttsville Fraud.


The NIB. Star Of last week revived the
false accusation that the people of Potts
vile agreed to construct Court House
and Jail in the event of . removal from
Orwigsburg We showed last fall from
the Laws,* that Pottsville meuer agreed to
erect the Jail. They agreed to put up
the other County Buildings, and they did
SO. The Jail, by the law allowing the re-
moval, was to be built at the county e1-
pense, and was so built The vast increase
ofpopulation in the county, and the des-
perate character Of its prisoners, show
that the Jail is none too large or too strong.
(Had the county been divided, they might
have escaped the Jail Tax Our County
Buildings are to be'subject to approval by
the Court and Grand Jurors Of the respec-
tive counties" For Union, Bond of
$4,000 is on file at New Berlin, and
$4,000 for Snyder, securing the people,
as firmly as Law can secure it, against the
imposition New Berlin prates about.
'See Pamphlet Laws for 1s47, pages $50
and 33l, and you will find the following pro-
visions
'SEcrIoN 2. That if a majority of the
voters of said county of Schuylkill, qualified
as aforesaid, voting on said question of re.
moval shall decide in the manner provided in
the first section of this act, in favor of the
removal of the seat of justice, in said county,
to the borough Of Pottsville, the citizens of
Pottsville, in said county, shall erect, or
cause TO be erected, at their own proper ex-
pense, within 3 years from and after such
election, in the borough of Pottsville, afore.
said. SUITABLE BUILDINGS, OF BRICK
OR STONE. FOR A COURT HOUSE and
different OFFICES FOR THE SAFE KEEP
ING OF THE COUNTY RECORDS, under
the direction of the county commissioners for
said county, who are hereby authorized 10
receive conveyance for a lot or lots Of
ground, for the use of the county Of Schuyl-
kill, in fee simple, clear of all membranes,
the said buildings to be erected on such lot or
lots of ground thus conveyed and the county
commissioners for said county are hereby au-
fhorized and required, AT THE EXPEN E
OF SAID COUNTY, 10 erect and build a sui
table COUNTY PRISON AND JAIL, of brick
or stone, in said borough Of Pottsvlle, within
said three years after such election, as afore-
said"
Under these plain and explicit prorisions the
people voted. They voted to select Pot,svile
for the county seat instead of the geographi.
cal center at Orwigsburg The people of
Pottsville did put up at their own expense
suitable "brick Court House and Offices for
the county records The County Commiss-
toner's did putup county prison and Jail of
stone, at the expense of the county tax-pay-
ers. Thus the very letter of plain and un-
ambiguous law was executed.
The reader will observe that the Lewisburg
bond is for "aH the necessary buildings and
grounds" What was promised for Pousville
BY the law was Court House and County Oil
ces oniy-while, as if to guard all but the
veriest fools from possibility of mistake, The
same section in express terms requires the
erection Of prison or Jail by County Taxes.
fhe bonds it will be seen are not alike, nor
was Pottsville required to put up Jail. The
large increase Of criminals incident to the
growing coal business. required large and
strong new Jail, somewhere and it was as
easy for the County to erect it at Pot,svilie as
at Orwigsburg.