Indiana State sentinel. (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1861-02-06
Northern state Prison.

The following comments upon the location of
the new State prison at Michigan City, the cir
cumstances connected Herewith, and the appoint
ment of Legislative committees to investigate the
matter is from Dawson's Fort Wayne Times,
Republican print. The article was handed to us
for publication by friends of the present location:
Hon. Moses Jenkinson, of the House, Chair
man of a special committee raised and empow-
cred to investigate the circumstances of the oca-
ton of the State prison at Michigan City,
and the manner of letting the contract for the
erection of the edifce &c, &c, was in this city
on Saturday and Sunday last on his way from
Michigan City, whittier he had been in discharge
of his special duties as member of the commit
tee What has been DONE or what will be done,
we of course do not know; but from certain facts
we can deduce certain conclusions. 1t is fact
that the location of the prison at Michigan
CITY has been legally done-that is located bv the
Board of Control, reported to Governor Willard
and the report approved by him. Now as this
Board of Control had discretion to exercise in
the location, and the Governor legal power TO
withhold or give his approval, will it not be very
difficult thing to impeach the reportI Again will
it not be an impossible thing to impeach
for fraud the contract for building the prs-
on? Suppose that the Board of Control did
make Il lew tnDuSdnu out OF the
location-does that effect the interest of the
State, if the location be a good one? Sup
pose the location be bad one, it ought then to
be changed without regard TO whether il were
honestly or unfairly done by the Board of Con
troll, and without regard to the amount already
expended, should it not exceed evenly five thou
sand dollars.
The question, then, should be-6rst, is the To-
cation good oneg If, then, this shall be an
ra1 I.x-fh ~, IL.
should be reported promptly to the Legislature
and another choice fixed on by the Legislature
itself. Then will come the question of fraud in
the contract, by which to relieve the State from
damages incident to suspension of the work on
the part of the contractors, and to expose the
faithlessness of the public officers managing the
matter, and these Investigations ought to be
thorough, impartial and prompt, by all means
But we are afraid that the investigation was be-
gun b, the wrong man, and he living at the
wrong place, and in the start disclosing a temper
far from candid
Fort Wayne was the contesting point for having
the prison, and Mr. Jenkinson is generally known
to have had an enraptured feeling of interested
ness in perfecting the location here, and known to
"sworn worse than the army in Flanders" because
Governor Willard refused to approve the location
at Fort Wayne, also when it was finally fixed
at Michigan City. His prejudice and revenge.
therefore, added to his interest for Fort WAYNE
made it impOlitic for him to move in the matter
and above all to be made chairman of the Com
mittee of Investigation.
For information we here say that the Committee
of Seven in the House has been increased to
eight, and the committee of the Senate Joined to
it, thus taking the craftsmanship from Mr.. Jenk-
inson.
Against these prejudices the committee NAV, in
their desire to do right, go quite too far from the
appearance of prejudice; and thus. not designedly
be inefficient Indeed we shall be greatly sur
prise1 if the whole matter does not result in