The Shasta courier., 1859-02-19
Legislation for the County.

In the Legislative proceedings of the 18th, as
reported in the Union, we find the following:
Assembly bill No. 10S-An Act to provide fol
the compensation of the keeper of the County
Jail of Shasta county
MIR. STREET offered an amendment to the last
section: provided nothing in the Act shall
authorize the compensation of such keeper ex-
cept Tor such time as there shall be prisoner
or prisoners in said Jailp Adopted
Bill ordered engrossed.
1t will be seen that the portion of the title Of
the bill as reported last week, viz " and to le-
galize all warrants heretofore issued for the pay
ment OF the services of the keeper of said Jail,
Is omitted in the title as reported above. We
infer from this that Mr.. Street has determined
not to make any further effort to legalze certain
sort OF scrip-amounting to several thousand
dollars-which the Supreme Court pronounced
Illegal
In regard to the policy of passing the bill as i
stands-or as, from its title, we infer it stands
for we have not seen the bill-we feel constrain.
ed to differ with our Representative The count,
now is burdened with big debt, and her citi-
zens are taxed very heavily, more SO, perhaps
than those of majority of the counties of the
State. At present it is the duty of the Sheriff
to keep the County Jail without pay, and ths
enormous profits ofthe office abundantly enable
him to do this service.
We last week expressed the belief that thj
Sherift's office was worth $4,000 per year. clea|
of all expenses. The truth is that the profits d
the Sherifs Office approximate nearer S., ,O0|
per year than $4,000 A gentleman who ouglI
TO know, informs us that the receipts of th|
Sherltf7s office amount to approaching $l4,O0l
per year.
If so, then it is certainly not placing thl
amount of the yearly profits of the office at to|
high figure when we place them at $s 900.
But it may be said that next year the Sheriff.
Office will be divided, and therefore less prof
able than now. We know that, and conten
that our argument, even under the altered Gil |
cumstances will still hold good. If the Sher
itf's office next year is only half as profitable
1t is at present-that is if it is worth but S4 ,O0
per year clear instead of So, ,O0O-it will still
sufficiently profitable to enable the Sheriff !
hecP tHc JUL "iluOuI piy- Anu 10 make I'd
view of the question incontrovertible, it is on
necessary to state that there are not less tina
score of responsible men-Democrats Kno
Nothings, and Republicans-who will be gla
to take the Sherilfs Office, with the understand
ing that they will not receive any pay for keep
ing the County Jail. This being the case, VIII
pass law to create a new leak in the Count
Treasury? The people do not ask it. Even thd
candidates for the Sheriffalty do not ask it. Why
create it then? Why burden the county will
this new source of expenditure, when no ono
asks it?
BY arresting the bill where it is, our Repre-
sentatives may save thousand or more dollarl
per year to the county. We trust that Messrd
Street and Garter will render this service to thI
county. At time when our county officers ar|
doing everything possible to reduce the debt an
lessen the expenditures of the county, it is mos
impolitic to pass law creating an unnecessar
leak in the County Treasury.