The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1882-04-22
ROCK PILE.
Alleged Necessity for a City
Work House.
The City Marshal and His
Views.

There has been growing conviction
among the city officials, who are familiar
with tramp and vagrant classes of humani,
ty. that there is not the proper legal ma
chinery in this municipality either to
brighten away the roaming members OF q
worthless set of human beings or to pun
ish them as well as offenders Of the city
ordinance for infraction of the police regu.
lations.
In the majority of cases, it has been
found expedient and polite to run the
nomadic element out of town, after arrest
ing them and bringing them before the
proper judicial authority. This class is de-
void of money, and in case fine is i'm
posed against them, it means that If the
punishment is carried out the person will
be locked up in prison and fed at the
public expense Ne work is exacted OF
its inmates, and their punishment becomes
rather expensive.
It has been suggested that
ROCK PILE
would serve good purpose, as the fines inn
posed against petty offenders could thus
be worked out, while the visitors of the
tramping school of politics could also be
subjected to some wholesome exercise while
sojourning in this bailiwick
1t is said that those cities where the
stone pile is in operation ARE studiously
avoided by tramps, as the tramp dislikes
work on principle and will not approach
ii of his own vo1ition.
The claim is made that persons up for
drunkenness, diorderly conduct and other
minor offences, who are unable to pay
their fine, can be put to work reducing the
size of rock, and rendering it fit for ma
cadamizing purposes. Such labor requires
no skill or previous preparation, and a
man can soon master it and become an ex-
pert.
MARSHAL MILLER,
chief of the city police, is strong advo-
cate of the Rock Pile" He says that such
an adjunct to the police force would prove
OF great benefit to the city. 1t would not
only give employment to those who were
under arrest for some petty offence, but
would also supply the city with good
quantity of macadam that comes handy in
filling up the streets the year round.
He said that under the present arrange
ment if a stranger visits the city, gets I'M
der the influence of liquor, and has no
money with which to pay his fine, it was
thought more economical to run the bank
rupt out of town rather than to imprison
him and run up bill against the city.
He also thought it would prove benefi
Sial to certain class of ''hoodlums" that
infest the city. At present they could be
arrested, and the vagrancy charge proved
against them, but even their punishment
consists of imprisonment and meals at the
city expense.
rock pile had its existence these boys
would be put to work, and either made to
behave themselves or else driven from the
city by repeated visits to this wholesome
institution The marshal was of the opin-
ion that if such an institution was in
the tramps that now gather here
nearly every night would be more chary of
their visits. The visitors could then be
made to earn meal or lodging, and know
ing such to be the case, they would seek
other routes where the ''rock pile" was un-
known, and honest work was not request
ed of every hale and hearty man that asked
for assistance.
The marshal thought that
A SUITABLE PLACE
for the proposed city stone pile would be
the yard Immediately west of the armory
building. The yard is protected on two
sides by buildings, and on its north and
south side by fences. All that would be
accessory to make the place more secure
would be to strengthen the fences and sup
ply them with spikes.
The yard is about 18 feet by 100 feet,
md is well ADAPTED for the purpose of
sity workshop. A large amount Of ma
,adam might be secured in this way. with
little or no expense to the city. The mere
act that such an institution was in exist |
,nce would prevent many of the petty |
crimes that now adorn the pages of the |
police court record.
THE EXPENSES
or feeding prisoners during the past fiscal |
ear were $73.s0. The year preceding
he aggregate cost was 1927, and in 1880, |
dhennn
> explained by the fact that during the
,ast year the majority of prisoners arrest
d for violating city ordinance were al
owed to depart from the city, a suspension
their fines being granted for that partie-
lar purpose.
The most sacred obligation is the mar
lage contract The most sacred duty is to
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