Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1876-11-30

printing reports" and some in "miscel-
laneous, and the same remarks will ap-
ply in respect to other expenses.
The increase in court expenses is very
marked. In 1860, there were, after de-
Quoting all fines, costs and fees. $685.
750 "a in 1866. about $105, 900 90; in
1879, about $128,0 600 90; and in 1876,
abolt $133 583 90, an increase over 1860
of $68,013 g. The different items of
this increase m8y be seen by comparing
the items under the classification of court
expenses for those two years.
The great increase in the costs of
criminal examinations, and the fees of
sheriffs and jailers demand careful con-
sderation. The expense of enforcing
the provisions of chapter ninety-four of
the general statutes, in the manner in
which the local officers In some of the
connties manage it, is constantly it,
creasing drain upon the state treasury,
without corresponding benefit to the
State. Judging from all tde light we
can get upon this subject, the law in
some of our larger counties is only 50
far enforced as to give sheriffs, Jallers,
Justices o. the peace and grand Jurors
a large income from the State, and
and it is against their interest
to stop the traffic in Intoxicating
drinks, and thus "kill the goose that
lays the golden egg" for them. We re-
greet that the returns are go detective
that it is impossible even to approx
mately estimate the sum total of this
drain. In Rutland county we find that
the amount of costs allowed in proceed
ings before justices of the peace and
e Sy,
ceedings under chapter ninety four are
about SIS, 1875 90, while the costs of all
other criminal examinations tefore such
officers are only about 81, 050 90 The
total number of OIdors drawn ty the
county clerk in this county Is G39, OF
which SGT are for costs under chapter
ninety four 1t costs the State to pay
each one of these orders, no matter how
small in amount, the sum of at least one
dollar The accounts of the shelitfs,
iaiiers and county clerks do not show
II e amount of eXpenses as 70 the OF
fenses committed. ....... .--
In Chittenden county, the jailers' ac.
count for the board of prisoners in jail
show that the State paid for the board
of persons arrested for intOxiCation
SO, 086 30; for board of persons arrest
ed under other provisions of chapter
ninerY-four, $4,000; total, So, 497 80,
aud for the board of all other prisoners
only S1,214 20. The construction of
the law allowing for the board of pris-
oners is in some counties unjust; thus,
if a person is arrested at night aud dis
charged in the morning, the evening and
morning are not the same day, but two
distinct days, and the State pays for the
two days board of a person who may
have had only lodging and breakfast
In some counties, the one-fourth OF the
fine allowed compliments is IN large
number of cases paid to the Jaller and
deputy sheriffs. XXI. =. 3.
ii seems to some Of your committee
that the laws paying salaries to The
judges of the municipal courts should
be repealed. They are for local con-
venIence alone and should be supported
by the communities for whose benefit
these courts were established. The al
lowing of double costs in criminal cases
tried before two of these courts is also
tax upon the State. ~
The increase in the amount paid fer
printing and stationery is very great
The cause of this is due in great degree
to the freedom with which the peoples
money is voted to print reports, some of
which are of little value, and of those
that are valuable there are printed in
some cases more copies than necessary.
We recomm end that all the printing
of the State, so far as practicable, and
also the fun ishing of stationery for the
use of the General Assembly, state Off
GERS and county clerks, be let by con-
tract TO the lowest responsible bidder,
separate bids being secured for furnish
ing stationery, and we recommend that
the practice Of spreading" in printing
reports be abandoned. In illustration
we cite the following examples In the
Auditors report For 1865 his orders, six
hundred and eleven in number, occupy
a little more than twenty three pages,
while the same pumber of orders in the
last biennial report occupy forty-fouT
pages 10 1875 and forty seven in 1876,
more than doubling the cost of paper
and composition upon the same basis as
to price. Only twenty-nine county
clerks orders are printed on a page in
the last report, against thirty six to the
page in 1865. This can be corrected by
the proper officers refusing to approve
or pay bills where it is practiced.
In reports let under the contract of
1874, the price of composition was, per
/ 600 ems, tdirty.three cents for plain
composition and sixty cents for tables.
In publications not included in the con
tract prices allowed and paid in 1875, as
follows: