Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1882-04-13
Willy Ways Of the Wicked.

THURSDAY EVENING. APRIL ls. lse2.
willy Ways Of the Wicked.
Alderman Joe Samson. in his inno-
eence and ignoEsnce, was not on the
witness stand very long until he had en-
tirely given away himself and his pro-
fession. In the light of his testimony
the people are bound to tumble to
their game" In a general way he could
answer very squarely No, I never mul-
tiplied cases to increase the fees" but
when the cross-examination began he
very soon told . diMsrsnt stesy: 4
He (Mr. Greider) asked the alderman
what object he had in issuing warrants to
several different ohicers tor tho arrest of
one and the same prisoner.
The alderman answered that it often
happened that several complaints were
made against the same person-one com.
plant charging him with drunken and
disorderly conduct, auother with malicious
mischief, another with assault and bat
terry, etc., and it was the practice to
divide the cases among several officers:
Would not one warrant and one con-
stable have answered a. well as three or
four ?" asked Mr.. Greider.
Yes, l suppose SO, replied Alderman
Samson.
When pressed to answer why he made
seven cases out of a single trifling COM
plaint-in which one would have been
ample,
The alderman replied 81 don't know
enough about the law to answer that
question. took my Instructions from
the other aldermen"
And when his attention was directed
to the criminal business he had manu-
factured out of an intimation that as
school director he should stop some dis
orderly conduct at the night schools, he
pretended to explain it by the inference
that he was addressed as alderman, and
not as chairman of the night school CON-
mittee, though upon further pressure he
admits that he and not Mr.. Warfel
made the complaints, in which the latter
appears as prosecutor. "He don't know"
how it comes that a man and his wife
appear each as prosecutors in separate
complaints for the same offense, and he
makes q cases instead Of one out Of a
lot of boys playing marbles in Storm
feltz's yard because lit is the custom to
make them out separately!
And for this kind of business he and
the econstables with whom he divides +"
it got about $1,000 out of the county
treasury last year-half as much as the
salary of a president judge 1!
Samson told enough to criminate him.
self, but even his testimony of shameless
rapacity does not show the full extent to
which the game may he worked.
For example: Two fellows get into
a beer house rough. and d-tumble with five
others, and get the worst of it. They 20
to an alderman for law" Ten CON-
plants are fixed up, each of the two
against each Of the five. Ten warrants
are issued and as many suits docketed.
Ten arrests are made and ten entries of
hail. Ten subpGnas are issued, each
with the names of, say, fifteen witnesses,
who are reported to have seen the fray
and of whom, when the hearing comes
off, probably ten will swear they know
nothing about it. These ten subp9nas
are divided among as many different
otficers-or are supposed to be, the fact
being that one officer will probably serve
the whole lot. If he is duly enterprising
he will also write the names of all these
ten officers on each Of the subpenas and
there will he, in the gross, mileage and
service fees for go witnesses. For S.
paid to each prosecutor he may be in
duced to abandon the case, or possibly
the alderman finds nothing in it-noth-
ing except about $50 for himself and 500
divided among ten officers, taxpay-
ers for costs. Such a case will be rec
ognized as quite possible. Those who
made one like it will stumble - to the
illustration.
Another: Two bruisers, with skins
full of whisky, maybe supplied to them
by watchful guardians of the law, will
get into back alley and have a wrangle.
Able officers pounce down upon them
and drag them to an alderman's Office.
Complaints are made, or pretended to be
made, against them for drunkenness and
disorderly conduct, assault and battery,
malicious mischief and surety of the
peace committed for a hearing eight
subpGnas issued each summ0ning half
dozen people, who saw and who did not see
the occurrence, and these subpenas ''di.
videi - around among the ring officers :;
one hearing and eight sets of costs all
the cases dismissed except for drunken
ness and disorderly conduct on these
the defendants committed for five days,
so that they may soon furnish more
business. The case is divided around -
among the alderman and his constables,
and eight sets of costs are drawn from
the county treasury and the taxpayers
pockets.
Another sample Frosty morning and
the boys want nip. Generous alderman
suggests that there is way for them to
get it. Let one or more of them make
complaint against the others for assault
and battery send for an officer or two
make out warrants, commitments, sub
poenas; have hearing and dismiss the
case !; county for costs. There's millions
in it.