The Carbon advocate. [volume] (Lehighton, Pa.) 1872-1924, 1877-01-06

aid to the United States coasts urvey, in its tri-
angulations of the state, has already been refer
red to in former messages. at the present rate
of progress 1t will take, perhaps twenty years to
complete l.. An appropriation of ihree thou
sand dollars would enable it to be pushed for
ward with great rapidity, and materially aid the
surveyors in their labor.
NATIONAL GUARD.
much larger militia than the present force
has always existed on paper but the people of
the state, before this year. were never able to
! judge of its real strength and av avAilability The
| policy of the present administration has been to
cut out all inefficient organizations, and while
reducing the cost and nominal numbers to i'm
crease the effectiveness of this neUe ssarv de .
partment. The aim has been to m AXE a small,
compact, efficient body Of troops that could be
! quickly called together aud confidently relied
| upon in an emergency. Tbs prompt response OF
the soldier on several important Occ ssi0ns and
the numbers that assembled in the Centennial
encampment and participated in the parade
are evidences of the success Of the policy adopted
! Out Of muster roll of $40 officers and s 996 en-
listed men 30i, rank and file, took part in the
military demonstrations of the centennial wear.
! Considering the voluntary character Of the ser
! vice. and that the men bore all the expenses, ex-
| cept transportation, the eNigences of business
| sickness and other causes of enforced absence,
the large attendance is in itself a most conviuc-
! ing proof of the spirit and p4trioti'm of the
| troops
| The year has afforded an excellent oppOrtun-
! ty of comparing the militia system of Pennsyl-
! vania and its results with those OF other states.
! Costing the state much less in proportion to its
size, thinN it may be safely asserted that it is
| very much superior to any other in the propOr-
| ton Of effective troops and especially in the
| teengsof professional pride and patriotism tn at
| improvement of the National Guard has attested
| the wisdom of the change in the law, and the
salutary influence of the support and encourage
| ment of the people. 1t is to be hoped that the
valuable Services of the troops in preserving the
| peace of the state, and the soldierly qualities
shown on inspection in encampment and on pa
nil Ito
all feeling that the system is one of merely Os-
tentatious display.
| Although the peace of the commonwealth dur
| ing the year has been unbroken, feel it my
duty TO cali your attention to the plan for pro-
viding against future contingencies set forth in
| my last annual message. Such emergencies
| from time to time may be considered Inevitable,
and in spite of the fact that much has been done
within the past year to break them up and dis
courage their formation, organizations may con-
| inue 10 exist whose laWlessnea will require
more than ordinary measuFes to reprcss. To de-
| wise such measures viii be a matter 1t ordinary
| wisdom, and 70 provide them, pre- caution Of
common prudence. Theoretically tht sheriff Is
| clothed with the power of the county. A pleas
ing, decisive phrase (which keeps the Vord of
| promise to the ear and breaks 1t to the hope"
| The posse coHlitdtus is the remedy of warl Q
| age. In these days of extended Industries and
complicated social relations, with all their pacific
| influences, 1t is painfully inefficient At all
times the fears, and frequn ntly the prejudices Of
| a community in which disturbances occur. pre-
vent the decisive action of the sheriff. 1t is at
| the best opposing mob to mob. Resistance to
law, or systematic violations of ii by large bodies
Of men, can only be suppressed by an organised
| force. Snch force the state has in Its militia.
But to be etectual, the demonstration OF military
| power should be overwhelming and therefore
| large. A hundred policemen or cOnstab es organ
lied under the command of the sheriff mightsup-
| ply the place of regiment of soldiers The fire.
| quent use OF troops has ever been distasteful to
| a free people, and while casting au unpleasant
duty and delicate responsibility upen the execu-
/ tva md afn rlnaof To lava rnT,
| full citizens called away from their usual avoca-
| tions, entails, likewise, an enormous cost upon
the taxpayers of the state. And there is always
more danger of bloodshed in employing troops
than in the use of civil power. For these rea-
sons, which have acquired additional promi-
nence in the light of the unusual military ex-
penses of Sl6, am constrained to press upon
| you what seems to be an adequate remedy.
The sheriff is the representative and instru-
ment of executive authority in the county. In
the discharge of his responsibility the executive
| has large, well disciplined body of miliria at
his command, while the sheriff is left with one
or two constables and the rude machi 'ery OF the
posse comitdtus. 1t Is true, he can call upon the
| executive for assistance But for the reasons set
| forth above, 1t is advisable that the necessary
support should be of civil rather than OF mill
tary character, and pfOmptness is always essen
tial in dealing with lawless men. The PROPOSE
| ton have to submit to your honorable bodies,
is the passage of law which will enable the
sheriff, in troublesome time, to organize force
commensurate with the opposition to be over
come A force that may be called into being at
tne begiaaning ga Oh an exIgency continued while II
sheriff calls for aid to suppress riots and unlaw-
ful assemblies, or to protect the people from svs-
tematic murder, arson aud intimidation, the
| propeI authorities could empower him to enroll
a constabulary sworn iuto the service of, and
paid by, the county, many disturbances which
now demand the intervention Of the military
could be settled by civil process. Troops would
then be necessary only on the grav est occasions.
But such crisis uld only occur atter an honest
effert had been made TO suppress the outbreak
1.,rt "a M an M nOf NOV ffnr a
few spasmOdic efforts which are supposed to ex-
haust a power which is In fact scarcely seen and
| never fe6
1t is the more important that your attention
shall be given TO this because Of the growth OF
! lawlessness in our national life We rejoice In
the fact that we are law-abiding people, and
we have, in truth, a substantial basis for our
pride. But there is in every civilized society Q
lawless element, and courts and police are yi
once the guards and measure of rs force. Dhr
hSve been receiving a NAGerous eduG6tion
They have seen, thTOugh6' A. large seIton o
the untry, systematic in'nt alton IN whicl
the perpetrators of murd r, Il on and innum
cradle crimes against persois anf property
have escaped with impunity, Syd3 In too man.
instances, accomplished their \ IDS. They ar
melted by the probability of lik T. immunity ant
the hopes Of like success to pursue the sam
method. As counterpoise to tHe dangerous ed
ucatiOn of the times, rn-suy advise the for
lawl, IS classes of the tutYity of all such at
tempts A power that wiHbe prompt ana et
fecuYe, that can BE- duIacted at once 10 IN
threatened locality and /'erush insurrectiOn be
fore it gains standing aIE momentum.
PENITENrIARIE AND PRISONS.
At the las session III the legislature your al
tention was called tof the oveIcrOwded coDdltio
of the eastern penitjn jntiarY, at Philadelphia.
action was taken tlfereon and during the yea
the inspectors we1e seriously embarrassed {
provide for the Criminals consigned theret,
The institution h Is $50 cells and there are no
in confinement 94A convicts OF this number @
are confined ON 81 k,ntences under two years, an
709 for two years Hand over The law require
that each pTis0ueH shall be Kept singlv and SCI
aratelV at labor il the cells or workshops OF sal
prison. The cons AitutiOn prevents the inspector
from contractin Il for additional buildings viii
out previous authdbrity OF law. They are there
fore placed under the necessity ot violating I'll
statute in one stpect. by refusing to receiy
| prisoners, except las vacancies occur, or dsr
gard the law as toN the mode OF confinement,
order to r cei C hose sent there by the court
1 respectfully urgse upon YOU that II is time
relieve these gent4 emen, whose admirable MAJ
agement of the ped slJeDtiary Is a matter of mott.
at home and abr Vad, from this unpleasant d
> / len.ma enNable them carry