Litchfield enquirer., 1872-03-07
sH E RIFF.

The approaching nominations forsherif
 make it proper that the comparative mer
 Its of Q Republican and Democratic ad
 ministration of that office, so far as coun
 ty interests are concerned, should bt
 thoroughly understood.
 From the organization of the Republi.
 can party, up to the election of 1869
 Lltchfield county had been Republican.
 The Republican Sheriff had always al lowed the county commissioners to rent
 the county house to the tailor for such sum as he could afford to pay, he receiving the proceeds of the labor of the prisoners, furnishing his own fuel, and making such necessary small repairs as glazing, white washing, &c. The amount of rent was generally determined by the number of prisoners. During the war, when this was very small, the rent was very small. also. After the war the number of pris- oners increased, and the rent for the two years following April 1st, 1869, was fixed at $500 yearly, the lessee furnishing his own fuel. On the 11th of February, 1869, the jail was leased to MT. Harris B. Gib- bud for the year succeeding April 1st, 1869, for four hundred and fifty dollars; the lessee to furnish his own fuel as usual That the sum was considerably larger than usual was owing partly to the competi- tion of the former jailor, who offered to give $425, rent.
 At tho following April election the pres- ent sheriff was elected, who claimed pos session of the county house as appurte- nant to the jail, as he had legal right to do. His appointee as jailer took posses sion, paid the county no rent, but obliged them to pay his fuel bill for the winter of 166970, amounting to $97, 20. The elec- tion of Democratic sheriff in 1869, there fore, cost the county .Jfue hundred and forty-seven dollars, for the first year of his term.
 The fuel bills of the county for the fol- lowing winters of '70-'71 and '71-'72 amount to $2O9,53. Estimating the rent of the jail for the two years ending on the 1st of April next at $4OO, per annum, and the total loss the election of Democratic sheriff occasioned the county in those years was $1, ,OO9. .53, or tJyeen hundred and forty-sir dollars for his three years term That the jail could have been rented for at least four hundred dollars per annum, we have no doubt. The number of pris- oners has been approximately large and the amount of labor they have done out side the jail very great. ...
 For the first two years of the present sheriff's term the jail was in possession of a legally appointed jailor. About year since he left and the sheriff put an agent (whose nomination for deputy iailor had been previously rejected by the county eommissioners) into the jail which is now run, therefore, at his private expense; the profits, if any, going undis- guisedly into his private pocket. epre- sume that such was the result, indirectly, of his arrangement with his late deputy jailor. At any rate such is flow the fact. We do not undertake to say how much the jail is actually worth to him. We only say that the difference to the county treas ury between Democratic and Republi- can administration of the office of sheriff has proved to he something over fifteen hundred dollars for the past term of three years. Are the people of the county en- coursged to the endurance of another such term?
 The sheriffs defence of course is that he has only taken the legal perquisites of office. Our reply is that they are perquis- ites Republican sheriff never has claimed, and never will claim.