The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1889-12-19

| OUOrS OIbeu III pTeltTtuCt W ObuCi IL
other respects prisoners were treated alike, and
this discrimination was practlced as matter OF
| economy, and 1 fully justify 1t. Such Is the
practice in all prisons, and used my pest luog-
ment, and in no case was my confidence ever
| abused.
| V-COMPENSATION OF MARSHAL AS SUCH
The report deals somewhat at length with one
branch of the marshal's compensation and COM
plains that the government has paid more tnan
| IL should for certain service. The conclusion Is
| arrived at in some of the instances cited on an
incorrect statement of facts, notably the follow
| ing: For instance, Deputy Marshal Armstrong
was working for 60 per cent of his earnings; he
| served a subpoena in the case of the People VS..
Taylor in the Second district in the month OF
| November, 1887, at an expense OF 500; S4O OF
which was charged as actual expense OF team.
The deputy owned his own team. Mr..
Dyer hau 40 per cent. of this $40 that is TO say,
the deputy received S24, which represented the
actual expenses, while Mr.. Dyer had the balance
| of Sl6." The above quotation shows how care
| leSsly the investigation of the grand jury was
conducted, for the truth is that Mr.. Armstrong
did not pay to the marshal any part OF the
subsistence CT team hired as stated, and
he received neither SIG nor any portion of this
| charge. any more than the grand jury did. Mr..
| Armstrong was not before the grand Jury as a
witness, while my accounts were accessible to
| them, and they show that instead of receiving
| the Sl6 as alleged, did not receive cent or IT.
1t is difficult to understand how the Jury could
have been imposed upon in this case and been
led to illustrate what they call an illegal prac-
| tice, when the instance given is fiction. Be
cause l had deputies of whose earnings did
retain 40 per cent. it was concluded that Mr..
Armstrong was in the category, and without
proof it is stated that did take 40 per cent in
| this instance. The grand Jury, however, assert
that the marshal has no right to receive such
monies, and on this proposition take issue
with them 1 affirm that it is neither illegal
nor unjust to do so, and that the criticism OF the
grand jury upon the right of the marshal to re
tain portion OF the earnings OF his deputies Is
both unjust and unreasonable.
A IDENTITY iS the nmDlOVee of the marshal.
Their relations are the subject of arrangement
between themselves, and it is scarcely likely
that any man would be willing to take an me .
responsibility of the marshal's office, let his
tdeputieS perform the labor in the field, taxing
the entire compensation, leaving him under
heavy bonds liable for their acts and receive
nothing This being the case, 1t is the custom
for every marshal in the United States, and has
always been, to employ his deputies on such
terms as is agreeable to themselves This the
treasury department., and the department OF
justice, have always sanctioned and is The uni
VerSal custom.
tbs well known that the fees provided by law
for the service OF process are but tr1he-they
would not pay for the washing that one change
of clothes week would demand in this land of
dirt; but the statute provides that IN lieu OF
mileage, when travel is required IN serving pro
cess, the officer may have actual expenses. Ii
the officer hires the means of travelling it is the
cost paid for horse or team Of there be one) and
subsistence, and if he has his own teams or
horse, the reasonable price for the use. The
locality and circumstances, and because OF this
variance rate was fixed, and at the depart
ment and by the officers these prices have
always been fixed in the territories so as TO
provide such compensation as will insure faith
full service and prompt attention 10 duty.
Whether this construction of the law be cor
rect it is not for me to say. 1t was at least
reasonable. It has been adopted by the
department as the rule for all these
western territories and if any other were pre-
scribed it would result in Vacatlng every mar
-1,- 4nsart 1nEf "a
Ger could on a two days trip into Tooele county
to serve awarrant for the arrest of ''cohab " in
no event receive anything except the two dollar
fee which is given for serving the warrant and
nothing whatever if he failed to catch his game
flor in such case he gets nothing, how long
would any man remain in the service The re-
port of the grand jury claims this is the proper
construction Of the law-alloWing expenses 10 the
officer in lieu of mileage. Now, to avoid such
hardship and to insure fair treatment to the OIL
Ger, the department has always made such al
lowance for team hire as would be just and they
could do no less without ruin to the public SER
vice.
have only to appeal to the common knowl
edge of the condition OF things in this territory
to satisfy any reasonable person, that to in
terpret the law as the grand jury would nave II,
would work ruinous result in the execution OF
the laws. Whilst was the United States mar
shall about three years. there were about one
thousand persons arrested or convicted for I'M
lawful cohabitation The fee for making all
these arrests is 81 each, and the small plttance
oil OU cents edCn IOT hllLCosCo,
making my compensation in three years pro
baby ABOUT two thousand five hundred dollars
in those cases; but if have warrant and fail
TO serve it, the law provides no compensation
whatever. If instead of mileage (Which is prac-
tically nothing and is never accepted unless Tor
travel on rail road) am not allowed anything
but the fee, 1t is easily seen that the ONCE
would be practically paralyZed. When II is
known that all arrests for this popular offense
are resisted and evaded by every device which
the parties can adopt to eyade the pursuing
hand of the law, the application OF the rule
suggested by the grand jury, needs no
comment to prove Its fatal consequences
to the public service. 1t was in fact
only upon this construction OF the law by the
department in allowing for team and subsist-
ence, that the execution of the Edmunds act has
been possible. If the officer had been compelled
to rely upon the fees alone for such service IN e
suppression of these crimes in Utah, which has
placed this territory on the highway OF reform
and progress could never have had even their
inception. So obvious was this, that the de-
partment at Washington allowed my immediate
predecessor Sl5 per day for the use OF team
and subsistence. That was reduced to $40 and
then TO s. after 1 came into office. but when the
comptroller Mr.. Durham, had the circum-
stances explained to him, and was made &C
quainted with the necessity of it, it was restored
to IS per day for team and 50 for subsistence
This enabled me to retain efficient men In my
service as deputies, and make the work fairly
remunerative will state, however, that in no
wear OF my administration did the income ever
reach the limit fixed by law.
The grand Jury say UlaL IL was IUe lHleuIIOu
of the comptroller in fixing the price of team
and subsistence at a per diem, that If the
actual expenses paid were less than that IT
was TO be only the less amount. The grand
Jury not having examined Judge Durham,
probably relied for this conclusion on the dis
trict attorneys opinion of the comptrollers in
| tentions. When the truth is las l can state
from personal knowledge) that this amount
was fixed in order to meet the very condition of
| things which then prevailed IN Utah, and to
enable the marshal to execute the law. The
assertion that allowances in such cases were to
| be limited to actual disbursements, by the
ofticer and was only limitation on these, is an
assertion without any fact to sustain it.
The comptroller saw when the matter was
considered by him. that by liking a reasonable
compensation for use and subsistence OF team
not more than would be reasonable If the same
| had been hired from those who kept them for
| hire, and allowing the marshal to furnish the
team either himself or by his deputies, the end
| of securing good service could be realized.
When it had been reduced To IS before that, in
stead of S. per day, the deputies declared they
would no longer stay in ofhce, ana then the rate
was fixed after careful deliberation in the way
| and for the reasons stated.
| If it should be held that because deputy who
| owns his team consents that the marshal may
retain portion of its hire it shall be inferred
that the actual cost of the team is only what is
paid to the deputy, then the compensation or
cost is not regulated by any rule except the pay
| ment or disbursement of money; and If the dep
uty chooses to ride instead of walk, not having
paid money, he would not be entitled to any
thing, because he paid out no money.
will add few things further in this connec-
| ton. Very much service is required of the Of
| ficers for which no compensation is allowed; I'M
less for instance the officer actually serves his
warrant he has no fee or compensation in any
form. In this territory it has repeatedly &C.
Cured while was marshal, that in endeavoring
to arrest skulking defendants, had to employ a
large force to make nocturnal or other raids on
indicted parties. In single year my expenses
| for such efforts amounted to nearly one thous-
and five hundred dollars, not one dollar, OF
which could make claim to have returned, be-
cause failed to make the arrests. 1t also be-
came absolutely necessary in some instances to
| anonIov nersonS tn furnish to me information for