Litchfield enquirer., 1875-03-25
1874


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 We think there is an evident mistake in the Fairfield returns for 1874, for the commissioners report varies materially
 from ths treasurer's as regards the cost of provisions; but we have given our sheriff the benefit of the highest figures.
 The annual cost of provisions supplied each prisoner, therefore, in the four coun- ties specified, including provisions fur niahed iailers' families, is S1.27 in 1873. and g. 8 in 1874; S1.31 for the average of the two years. Our last wesk's esti- nase for the cost of provisions furnished the prisoners in our jail was one dollar per head. Adding to this the two hun dred dollars estimated for supplies to keepers family (as that expense is includ- cd in the above averages from other coun- ties1. and it makes the weekly expense of each prisoner to the sheriff one dollar and twenty cents. Certainly eleven cents per head is small estimate of the difference in expense where jailer IS furnishing a gang of prisoners provisions at his own cost as our sheriff now does, or at the cost of the public, as do the officials of the above named counties
 The best managed jail in the state seems to be that of Windham county. There, the prisoners are worked on 8 farm owned by the county, and the report of the commissioners shows these extraor- dipary results: In the year ending April 1st, 1873, the cost of maintaining an av- craze of thirteen prisoners (and jailer's family on this farm was only one dollar and ten cents per head; and the county received $1 1875 that year for their earn ingsi In 1874 the cost of maintaining an average of Al prisoners was $1.A each, per rweek, and the county received Sl, ,76O fortheir earnings during the year.
 nti is fact of special significance bear ing upon the question whether the sheriff is making money out of our jail, that the keepers he has employed at the County House have stood ready to undertake the boarding and working of the prisoners and pay the county a handsome rent! The keeper for about two years af- ter jailer Wheeler left, in May 1871, has expressed willingness to take the jail and pay the county 8 rent of $500 year. The most recent offer is that of Mir. Ward, the present keeper, man who has man. aged the jail admirably and won especial commendation from the Board of Chari- ties, who offered the county commissioners, within the past few weeks, to pay 8 rent of $500 year and to pay into the county treasury. besides, half the proceeds Of the prisoners labor-equaI to $500 more at least, t,-and to secure the sheriff and the county by an ample bond. Mir. Ward has kept accurate accounts and knows precisely what he is doing when he makes this offer
 There IS one other matter to which we wish to refer in conclusion. We hear apologists of the sheriff saying that this jail matter is an official perquisite to which he has legal right. Will any of these apol- ogists point to the statute by virtue of which the sheriff can legally appropriate to his own use the proceeds of the prison ers' labor? The law says, ''The county commissioners. in any county, may, if they see fit, require that all prisoners on criminal process shall, after trial and con- viction be set to work, may re- quire the keeper of the jail to snperintend the conduct and labor of the prisoners, |" &c. Before our present sheriff took pos- session of the jail the county commission CTS, in their jailers' leases, gave them ex- press permission to work the prisoners and take the avails of their labor. Sheriff Baldwin has no lease nor any authority whatsoever from the commissioners to set prisoners at work or to receive the pro- ceeds of such work. If the avails of that work are, indeed, sheriff's perqulsite, it is perquisite MT. Baldwin is entitled to the merit of having discovered. No other sheriff in this state enjoys such perqui- site. No other sheriff of this county ever enjoyed such perquisite: There are some very shrewd sheriffs in the State of Connecticut. There have been very shrewd sherifs of Litchfield county before Sheriff Baldwin. Had the proceeds of prisoners labor really been legal perqui- site of the sherif's office we do not believe its discovery would been delayed till this late date. s-> ssa ---- -..