The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1885-05-16
District Court.
REPORT OF THE GRAND JURY.

TWELFTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT Court,
PARISH OF GRANT. }
To the Honorable the Judge Of the 18th judi
cial District of Louisiana, holding Court in
and for the Parish Of Gront:
Your grand jury impaneled, sworn
and charged to inquire in and for the
parish of Grant, at the May term A.
b. 1886 of your honorable court, beg
cave to submit this their final report:
| There have been reported to and
considered by us % cases, which we
have disposed of as follows: In eight
cases we have found and returned to
your honorable court true bills. In
one case no presentation being made
we requested the district attorney to
! file an information In niue cases we
found no true bills. In eleven cases
we took no action on account of our
inability to obtain witnesses, and
thave referred them to the district
attorney for such action as he may
deem proper.
We are gratifed to be able to re-
port a surprising decrease of crime
in our parish for the last six months,
especially in cases of personal vi
olence The cases reported to us
were almost all petty ofienses and
misdemeaDors, the decrease being as
great in gravity as in number. We
can conceive of no better way to
briug this fact prominently before
you than by stating that, while we
have had before us, as above stated,
% cases, the last grand jury in this
parish had before them Al cases.
This we attribute chiefly to the pass
age and observance of the law pro-
hibitiDg the sale of intoxicating liquor
in our parish. We must thank Rev.
V. G. Cunningham, DIR. Deal and
other agitators of it as public good,
. and we are gratified especially to
: state that we have not found single
I instance where this last mentioned
law has been violated. We have
found, however. that there has been
some laxity in the matter of prescrip-
tons for whisky, and as guardians
of the public morals would request
e all physicians. when they give pre-.
{, scriptions for liquor, to write upor
n them mot to be repeated" or "to b.
filed but once"
We have found large number o
u roads in our parish in bad condi
r ton, but refrain from presenting thu
syndics, because up to this time tn
people have been busy with thei
crops. We call the syndics attention
y however, to the fact that during tb
q summer the roads can be put in
# good condition. We find, also, tina
. some of the apportioners have faile'
e to assign hands to some roads, ant
an insufficient number to others. W
, also find that the police jury hav
suffered gates to be erected acros
!, some of these roads. We depreciat
this practice. except where it is all
:, solutely necessary, and in these case
= recommend that the police jury r.
= quire that gates which open auto
- = matically, by driving over rods in III
u ground ut distance from the gate
lg be used We request your honor et
a. pecially charge the grand jury at th
Is November term next in regard to th
p matter of public roads, aud inforl
I'd that body tina. this grand inque'
be omitted to indict, in order to gi'
he syndics chance to put their road
he in proper condition.
We have examined the Jail an
t; find it as well kept and as clearly !
!: possible, but we find that it is not
suitable or sufficient Jail for o,
parish. 1t is small, badly ventilate
and Insecure, with no sink or wate
- closet facilities whatever We iii
J one plank gone from the ceiling
the small cell Oh the southeast corne
We. unanimously deuounce Il
room furnished the grand jury
unfit for civilized being, 1t lacl
window sash, window blinds, char
or furniture oil ans description II
. only thing il does possess is ventii
u ton.
We also request the police jury
furnish our court room with som
nsl thing better for Judges bench thu
the disrepuIable looking dry goo
box. which now does duty IN tn
Ill. position.
We have examined the treasured
books aud find them correct. and ,
also find til. sheriff s as well AS t
clerks office in good condition.
III If IF
cases in which we have found no tr
bills. Aud now, having discharg
the duties imposed npon us TO t
best of our abilities, we respectful
SIS, request 10 be discharged.
r l.. CRAIG, Foreman.