The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1874-07-09
OFFICIAL BONDS

The practice of making fraudulent
bonds is crying evil of the day. The stat
ute requiring good and sufficient securi-
ty to save the State harmless from incom-
petent and dishonest officials, is often vi
olated. 1t is frequently the case that
men have pledged themselves on bonds
largely in excess of their means, and Of
fcersh have become party to the fraud by
approving bonds which they know to be
insufficient.
Atthe last term of the Circuit Court his
honor, Judge Brown, charged the Grand
Jury especially on the subject ofthis abuse
and directed strict inquiry to, be made
into it. By the report of the Jury, an
extract from which we have hereto APP
pended, the result of their Investigations
is shown. 1t is brought to the notice Of
the court, that the law appertaining to
official bonds has been most shametully
violated in Kinds county. In some cases
persons have become security for officers,
who do not own the amount of property,
to which they have sworn. In other cases,
to parties are discharging the functions Of
office to which they claim to have been
qualified, without having specified in their
bonds the positions they were elected
fill and yet these insufficient and fraud
ulent bonds are signed and approved.
After examining the report Judge
Brown said that party who had sworn
to an amount over and above his legal
liabilities and exemptions was no longer
a good bondsman on any other bond; and
any officer who approved such bond, when
he had found the same surety on several
bonds testifying on each to the value OF
his property, was liable to punishment for
malfeasance, and the party making such
affidavit was guilty of crime deserving
Indictment by Grand Jury, and rigid
prosecution. The report of the Jury and
the action of the Court, warrant the
inference that these violations of the law
will be rigidly dealt with at the ensuing
term:
EXTRACT FROM THE REPORT OF THE
GRAND JURY.
We feel it our duty to speak of a mat
ter of great public interest, in the making
of bonds by'officers, particularly those who
are custodians Of large amounts of public
funds. In the desire to bring our labOrs to
an early close to meet the views Of the court
and other causes we could not give the mat
Il r. i Al,
demands. We did not consider the time
limited for settings would Justify thor
ough investigation of all the State and
County official bonds but had before US
those Of the County only.
From a partial investigation, we find |
many of the sureties on several bonds, |
testifying in each case to the full value |
of their means, and in the opinion of the |
jury, more than their visible property |
would Justify. In some instances, parties
have testified in amounts of several thou
sands of dollars, when it is known to
members of the jury, that small sums
cannot be collected from same party ty
law. We are aware that many, if not all
the securities, are of the opinion that their
liabilities does not exist until defalca-
ton is made. This, however, we under
stand is not che opinion of the legal pro-
fession generally, and in consequence of
the prevailing opinion on the part of such
securities as to their liabilities we have not
proper at this time to act Off
cially on those cases which seems to US most
worthy of action, but have been actuated
by desire to give those parties ample
notice; and that some succeeding Grand
Jury may deem it their duty to enter into
a more full and searching investigation of
this subject-which, to US, seems to be
matter of vital interest to the tax payers
and public generally: The officer whose
duty it is to approve these bonds, is not
likely to know the real condition pc
euniarily of each of the securities of
fered. Hence we consider the responsible
ty should rest with the party making the
affidavit and should be held strictly ac-
for his acts. We find some
bonds marked and approved by the prop
er officer, without the blanks being filled
and nothing to show what office the party
was elected to fill! Yet we learn that the
party is discharging the duties of the
,ffice without the security provided bylaw.