Litchfield enquirer., 1869-07-29
County Jails.


 Litchfield county it seems has no tailor. and from present appearances is not likely to have ont Democrats had elected their csndidats' George H Baldwin, Esq, to the office of Sherid. the Radica Sheriff whose term was about to expire, and tho County Commissioners, it is alleged, put theil heads together to defeat the popularwil at leas and a more rascally trick we must say, was never concocted by set of defeated politicians Int County Commissioners, entirely ignoring ne wish ent wifhths sole purpose to forestall and preveni the appointment by him of his subordinate, leased the count house to Mr. Gibbud, and Botsford the retiring Radical Sheriff, with less than. twt hm ao o appoint Mf Gibbud as jailor. The Statute pro vides that Ilo appointment by the Sheriff of jaiol shall Do eectnal until it is confirmed by the com missioners.a Mir. Baldwin has nominated two ol three persons to the office but the commissioners refuse to confirm them or any one else except Mir. Gibbud. Mir. Baldwin declines to appoint Mir. Gibbud, SO there is no jailor except the Sheriff Mr. Gibbud has possession of the premises and charge of the prisoners but he is not responsible for escapes and could not be called to acc punt if through his negligence, they all should get away. sponsible for the management of the jail and the care of the prisoners and he thinks that he ought to have the appointment of his subordinates, es- pecialiy as the law bestows upon him that right an opinioni in which every honorable man of what ever party will coincide. And in regard to the conduct of the Radical trickster, who concocted this plot to deprive democratic official of right which hasbeen enjoyed from time immemorial by can be found suitable to characterize t as it de- serves. It is another example of the baseness and petty nleanness to which partizans of the ''great moral idea" stamp can resort in order to accom- piish their purposes tricks which no democrat would ever demean himself so far as to make use of under any circumstances We trust Mr. Bald win will insist upon his rights to the last and not allow the Democratic majority in that county to he thus imposed upon. He will be sustained by every man within whose bosom there is spark of manliness or honor, and their scurvy trick will prove lasting disgrace to the radicals who con- eocted h.-Br1dgepon Fdrnaer.
 We are at loss to imagine from what source the Farmer could have obtained the few facts and many falsehoods wovea into the foregoing editorial. That Sheriff Bald win, himself, could have been it's inform ant, we do not believe, for he is familiar with the facts, knows how unjust are the imputations there made against the Ooun- ty Commissioners, and has, so far as we can judge, none of the ill feeling towards them that the foregoing mis-statement would ,faply. The circumstances under which the present difficulty regarding the jail has arisen are as follows:
 During the past seven years. to our per- sonal knowledge, and we are told for years before. the County Commissioners have been in the habit of renting the jail to the deputy jailer, allowing him the proceeds of the prisoners labor. The rent paid, ex cept for few years during war, has aver aged about $500. The term of lease has been aDnaal, commencing this year and for several years past on the 1st day of Aprilh The statement that the jail was leasedt to Mir. Gibbnd, ataer Mir. Baldwin s election is untrue. The lease bears date Feb. II, 1869. It was for the usual term, and. in the usual form, drawn in fact by the present editor of the Sentinel The rent, I -i-is I.ei--- .a-------- CT before $450. This was owing, we un- derstsnd, to competition between MT. Peck, the former jailor, and Mir. Gibbud; the latter, in fact, outbidding the former. On coming into office Mr. Baldwin took exception to the lease on the ground that the County Commissioners had no right to make it. We are inclined to believe that Mir. B. is technically correct in this posi-. ton. although the Commissioners acted in the full conviction of their right to make such lease. and in accordance with the immemorial practice of the county. Mir. Baldwin has offered two nominations to the County Commissioners for approval, both of..which were rejected on personal grounds. It is also noticeable fact that Mfr. R.shas not thus far proposed any ar. rangement that would bring dollar into the county treasury, whereas the lease to Mir. sGihbud, if he chooses to ratify it, brings in U handsome sum.
 As regards the repeated charges of polit. ical trickery we consider them sufficiently refuted by a simple statement of the facts. Our republican county officials have never sacrificed the interests of the county to s"oAA SHoAtSS0A PiSucilCsAoao. 4u0 HUG lalI or occupied the jail for more than a year after be had allied himself with the Democ- yacy, although Mr. Botsford had the same le- gal right to break up the lease now claimed by Mir. Baldwin. MT. Gibbad only receiv- ed the present lease on his agreeing to pay larger rent than his predecessor would offer. We shall not think of complaining of MT, Baldwin for wishing to get politi- cal friend the position of deputy -iailer; still, as the Commissioners have a concur. rent authority we think the appointment a fair subject of compromise. Above all, the interests of the county ought not to suffer and when Mir. Baldwin offers for confirma- tion an unobjectionable democrat who will pay into the county treasury for the year ending April l.' 1870, -four hundred and Jstay doloss. we think he will have made just as liberal an offer as that of the. Commission, CTS. through Mir. Gibbud.
 It would z be unjust to our present Sherifisnot to state that he proposes radicals change from the system on which the prisoners confined in iail have hitherto been managed. He ob- rAn nA~ A. IL ~s~.- Al Al E