The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1871-05-27

clrcait Judges perform aruuous LABOR; they are
necessarily, BY their official duties. prevented
from engaging in other pursuits. Every coa.id-
Grafton of justice and policy dictates that they be
! paid liberal salaries for their services.
| No subject is more worthy of the earnest and
| careful consideration OF the General Assembly
than the compensation of county and township
officers.
Every line of the amended constitution indi-
/ Gates with what earnestness the members of he
convention labored to devise methods for the re-
lief of the people from the burdens imposed upon
| them in the shape of official fees, allowances,
| perquisites, percentages and emoluments, and
| the whole problem was found in the substitution
of the principle of fixed salaries to all officers, in
all cases, in lieu of fees or other uncertain meth
| DDS Of compensation.
On = former occasion presented my views to
the General Assembly upon this subject, and ex-
pressed the belief that by proper rcgu ations, all
costs and charges that are by existing laws, or
that are proper to be imposed upon or collected
| from individuals, might be converted into fixed
| sums, and paid into the proper treasury that
| system of receipts stamps could be devised
| that would render it unnecessary for any officer
to receive any sum Of money whatever to his own
use.
will now add the expression of my deliberate
conviction, that any plan short of the total aboll.
ton of the fee system, and the substitution OF
fixed salaries for all officers of all grades, will
fail to the evil of which the people hays 80
long and SO justly complained.
am not ignorant of the fact that it is appre-
| hended by many that ii the compens alton of of
| ficers were m.do from the public treasury, the
| aggregate amount would be burdensome to the
| people; but that consequence would not neces.
sarily follow, for, by a proper system of COM
mutations, parties in the courts would be made
| to pay at once INTO the treasury whatever 1t
IL ;,,l; ,;.
pose upon them. Stamp receipts, equivalent
to the proper fee for recording deeds, for
license of every description, and, in short, for
every legal service to be performed by every
class Of officers, could be provided. And in
that way, il desirable, an amount equal to the
proper salaries of all county and other officers
| could be raised without any increase of taxa
ton whatever.
And thus the poor and the helpless, who
are now the prey of the minor officers of the
| law would find relief from the wrongs and
expressions that were the disgrace of the
English legal system, and are now the curse
Of our own.
! If the system thus briefly delineated were
adopted, no officer would be interested to pro
mote strife and litigation; no wealthy or OBJ
stinate individual or corporation would be
able to "scourge his adversary to his ruin with
COSTS" and, under such system, ''every per-
son would obtain by law, right and Justice
freely: and without being obliged to purchase
it,"
| vi. find it necessary again to call the at
tention OF the General Assembly to the urgent
Importance of the enactment OF claws to pro
vide for the government, management and
control OF the State Penitcntiary, for the in
vestigation of ITS financial affairs and bust
ness and for the'payment Of it's indebtedness"
| 1t has been my most earnest desire, since
the commencement Of my official connection
with the government of the State, to see the
Pemtentiary so conducted as to accomplish
| the reformation OF criminals, and at the same
time be as little burdensome as possible to the
people OF the State; and, notwithstanding the
| unsatisfactory results OF past operations, still
believe that, with proper legislation and judi
cious management it may be made emlnenty
useful as penal and rctormatory agency and
AT the same time. substantially self sustaining
But, to receive these desirable ends, it is
essentia! that the laws intended to provide
for the government of the institution should
be improved: that such an investigation of
its management should be made as will satisfy
the people Of the State of the integrity of
those heretofore responsible for its manage
ment : or, if there is anything in the conduct
of any OF them that Is inconsistent with their
duty to the State, the guilty party may be
discovered, exposed and punished; and, IN
addition, the proper debts OF the institution
be promptly and fully paid.
In my biennial message, when discussing "the
Penitentiary," said that two leading systems,
for the management OF the Penitentiary, have
their advocates and divide public opinion. One,
| the lease system, which was followed in the
earlier history os TIE State, and the other, that
of State control, which was first adopted under
the authority of the act of June %, 1867; but
1 am how satisfied that the lease system, Us it
ha, heretofore been understood, cannot be made
applicable to the Penitentary of this State.
| The number OF Convicts confined within Its walls
is too large to be profitably employed, even by
private persons, a, Is clearly proven by the offers
contained in the bills introduced at the late ses
| sion, in the interest of Mr.. Buckmsster and
other gentlemen Of large means and extensive
| prison experience.
The only practicable system for the success.
ful management of the Penitentiary, in nv
| Judgment, IL that which combines tho retention
1T complete control Of the discipline and govern
men. of the convots with the lease of their la
Dor to persons engaged in special pursuits, Ms
substantially embodied ia the bill that passed
the Senate at the late session, and WAS under
stood to be acceptable to large number of the
members of the House of Representatives. !
| cannot forbear the expression of the hope that
such measure will meet the approval Of the
| General Assembly.
In the message to which I have before re-
ferred, l expressed the opinion that the Peni-
Tertiary, under tho system Of State control, can
toe made seli-sustaning that is be made 20 pay
| the expense of feeding, clothing and guarding