, 1860-05-05

locting debts, since only 81, out Of 43s, paid
tho debt and costs, though probably some OF
those cases marked discharged By orde, Of
plaintiff" we're settled or compromised In
in some way. or those imprisoned for debts
under FIVE do1la1a 6n]y one.third paid, while
nearly half were'' discharged because the
plaintiffs got tired of paying tSeir board
Then the a*efage duration Of Imprisonment
decreases as the amonnt Of the debt increases.
Thus the average time in debts Of five dollars
OF under is 1.3 days; debts between FIVE and
ten dollars, S days; debts between ten and
twenty dollars, 4 81 days; and debts between
twsnty. and thirty dollars 1-3 days.
The costa Of the debts undas 5000 are
more than the debt. Now when man or
woman flor this process is issued agains: wo-
men)i is poor enough to be imprisoned on
debt of$3.7l, the addition Of $3.s4 in the way
Of costs, besides jail fees, is no slight matter.
So in cases Of debts between FIVE and ten dol
lara, the addition Of $41l to debt Of Ss'os
is quite IN item to poor man. There are,
besides, somo very hard cases among these
small debts. One woman was Imprisoned two
days on a debt Of Sl.2o, costs $3.50. one
man was in Jail twenty-five days On debt Of
SALE, costs S325; another, fourteen days, on
a debt Of 1915, costs s4.s7; another, sixteen
dnys on debt Of S., costs 50; eight others,
eight days each, on debts from Sc to IS; an.
other, thirteen days, on debt Of s4s7, costs
SAs5; another, fourteen days, on debt Of
81, costs $3.6s; another, twenty-three days,
on debt Of $3.6o, and one man was inpris-
oned one day on debt Of fifty cents, costs
s425. How full Of misery is such record.
How many Of these unfortunate beings were
thus want1nly and Illegally deprived, not only
Of the only means Of paying their debts but
also Of supporting their familiesl It is mani
festly absurd to suppose that concerning ali
these, OF even any considerable proportion Of
them, the affidavit could truly be made, that
they had property subject to execution which
they refused to surrender to the officer. So
much for the -e1ectual working Of those laws,
whose boasted humanity prohibits imprison-
ment for debt, but which cannot protect the
poor from the grossest outrages- The rich, Of
course, are safe, but it must be remembered
TINT this provision Of the Constitution aoas
ne,er intended for them. If anything more is
needed to show the practical tyranny Of those.
who for their selfish and corrupt ends,
keep up system so productive Of evil,
We arc at loss to perceive it
Or, ii: anything more is wanted to convince
all honest men that in the administration Of
petty justice and in the collection Of small
debts thorough, radical and comprehensive
reform-ono that shall include not only mag
istrates and constables, but prosecutors and
plaintiffs as WELLS demanded, we know not
by what reasons and facts they will be con-
yerted to the opinions which We hold. We do
not believe that in tho rural districts-ln all
tile rural districts Of the state-such record
could bo made up. There The people are
alive to injustice and wrong; but in great
city, where the poor, without friends or inau-
cncc, are but lightly considered, and where
wrong must be fragrant to excite remark, and
little short Of diabolcal to quicken the public
pulse, the petty courts are in too many cases
only engines Of oppression, and the petty Off
GERS too frequently guilty Of practices which
rank them with extortioners and thieves.