Omaha daily bee., 1884-05-14
VAUGHN'S V0TARlES.
They Seem TO be Drumming up Bust
ness for His Justice Shop.
How a Meagrei Salary Can be Pieced
Out by Charging mp Justice Fees.

III Soi LUZ Wan ~
slope" as Mayor Vaughn's henchman,
| John Jay Frainey, has christened him,
sees a pretty fair way to make up for the
| 5000 salary as mayor which he deems 30
meagre, when other cities are paying
| 81, 900 or more. Vaughn holds on to the
office of justice of the peace, too, with a
keen grip, and there are many grists be-
ting put in the hopper, for which costs are
axed up, of course.
The arrest made by the police are gen.
orally disposed of by Judge Aylesworth,
who is the magistrate of the superior and
| police court cases of preliminary exami.
nations. 1t makes little difference what
| magistrate conducts the examination, but
i'm many other cases the fees, when the
case is heard before Judge A~ylesworth,
goes to the city. The present drift seems
to be to have the police force business
brought before Vaughn, who taxes up
the costs and thus pieces out his salary.
Since the first of May there have been
brought before Vaughan SO criminal cases,
about three a day, and as the fees in each
amount to several dollars, the justiceship
is evidently more lucrative than that of
mayor.
About O week ago on Saturday night
| the police arrested three drunBs. The
city Jail was being repaired at the time,
and the fellows were placed in the county
Jail. Instead of beng brought before
Judge Aylesworth, who Is paid a salary
of $1,000, while he has much or little
business, informations were filed in
V~aughan's court, and early Monday
morning they were brought before him
and fined, he getting the costs instead of
the city.
Gases too, which have been virtually dis.
posed of by Judge Aylesworth, form an
excuse for filing of the informations and
taxing up the cost. For instance on &C.
count of the row at Bokemper's saloon,
John Peters, Mike Kildare, and George
Peters were fined by Judge Aylesworth
$14.60 each for disturbing the peace.
Now there are filed in Justice Vaughan's
court one information charging George
Peters and Mike Kildare with an affray.
A second information charges George
Peters, John Peters, and Mike Kildare
with riot. Still q third information
charges John Peters with assault and bat
terry. These informations were sworn to
by Dandy Dunn, of the police force
of which the mayor is the head. These
lnformations, all growing out of the same
transactions, were fled up, making quite
a bill of cost for the justice and mayor,
If not for the benefit of good order.
Another instance is that of Albert
Carroll who was arrested for somedomes-
tic trouble, he having had a rumpus with
his wife. One information filed before
Vaughn charges him with a ''breach of
the Sabbath" Still another information
charges him with assault and battery. A
third information charges him with in
tent to murder, thus making three infor-
nations on which to tax up costs.
John Jay Frainey who hangs around
the court a good deal, and who Is known
as V%aughn's right hand political helper,
stands ready to take part in the cases,
either to defend or prosecute. Some time
ago one Arthur McDermott had some
dealing with Frainey and some civil suit
about q horse grew out of it. 1t is
claimed that McDermott in settling with
Frainey turned over to him a horse be-
longing to McDermott's father. An in
formation was filed the other day against
McDermott for perjury. Still a second
one for the larceny of a horse. Still a
third n for the fraudulent conveyance
of personal property. The information
for perjury has been dismissed. On the
two others the accused waived exsmina-
ton, and gave bail, to await the action of
the grand jury, If it takes any action at
all.
If informatiops are to thus be filed,
two or three out of tho same transac-
tions, and cases naturally belonging to
the police court, are to DO brought be.
fore Vaughan, it is to be hoped that the
county board will examine closely into
Vaughan's bills presented at its next
meeting. County Attorney MINISTER,
who generally inspects the bills, is a
warm friend friend of Vaughan's too, but
it is to be hoped that his friendship will
not blind his eyes to what is fair and
square, and that the peoples interests
will be protected.
There is also some grumbling already
heard, because by V~aughan's course as
justice, fines and costs which will other
wise go into the city treasury, are turned
aside by the cases being brought before
him. If to gain q few dollars costs for
himself, he is thus acting SO as to divert
the revenue from the city into other
channels, he ought to boast less of having
the interests of the city 30 dearly at
heart.