The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1893-10-08

iolws.-> j nj the California State Bank, $685.
. o4S 86:<. in vault at San Quentin, S5S7 % :;
total SS:3$,,S36 SO.
Tile several funds stand as follows:
ieil6Ta :appropraton $125,457 SO
Stats pE:S6G 1884 so
;rlfta reEdviac fund. 4S,95l So
Nsfrran tseceornI .......'.......-...... I2S44 9
cash OH h5nu oo,oSo 90
: Total. $3.50 PA 80
=. ~*DifeetQr Sonntag asked for an explana-
Il on: Of the warrant account of over
Warden: Hale stated that this was for
bully Bills at the time when the financial
. sky NkaSdack. and he, as warden, cashed
the e0tnbfr0fler's warrant and paid coin to
merchants who needed it. and who had
sold. goods under competition at the lowest
notch:
Director Sonntag-You did wrong. In
. stead 0f<cash, you have the comptroller's
WARRANT You can't pay taxes or buy
'ATead and butter with it. You are sup
posed To. have cash on hand.
Director Devlin-At that time, il was
safer to have warrant than almost any
bank account
. Warden Hale-It was my money. and my
. pondsineD were responsible. If the rail-
: Toalzc ompany had paid its taxes, this VAL
Tsnt w9uld be cash now.
@I9frecfer Sonntag-I have always con-
leInn ed. the pTatice of a warden keeping
Ineley in any bank. 1t ought TO be placed
in the Stale Treasury or in the Office
vaults.
Further discussion of this matter devel-
oPed the boards tacit approval Of the &C.
ton Of: Warden Hale, as, under the cir
: crtnstanres, expedient.
-s Ihe Warden reported 1864 convicts in
:: the. prison. $50. 900 jute bags on hand and
T.. $50. 600 sald during September. Dick
Watts. q convict, died october l Of heart
disease;
: Ehe matter of buying and keeping cows
for the. prison milk supply came up in
formally and met with rotation. Last
month 8 milk bill was S10T, and it was
thought N oney would be saved and better
milk supply secured if cows were kept.
=: Warden Hale presented an informal re.
port upon the abolition of an ill-venti-
lated dark spot known as Cranky alley"
where cranky prisoners are kept. He
gested the erection of a double tier of
: cells ln&the present laundry and removing
=. iii laundry into the old factory building.
!. which !: is we'll fitted for the work. The
: changes would involve an expense of from
: $4,000 to 5000. Each director expressed a
;'desrre10r such change, and the matter was
LeferTed to- Director SOnntag and Warden
!. II ale to receive bids for the work.
4 he application of J. r. Germ aine, con-
. yleted at Los Angeles of robbery, for
=: RESTORATION of credits was denied. lie has
1@rfeited his good marks by smuggling
<GpaGip j We the prison.
: I'm resIonse to an inquiry, Director Sonn-
tag. SAID ne had bought 500 bales of jute
at s. 15- per hundred. Ruling price now
WAS So 4j but in his opinion it would fall.
?. I LIE rise was due to reported shortage of
.cfQp. but he had recently seen an official
'TepQft.< from Calcutta placing this years
=" cf0Ll at forty eight lakhs "a lakh is 100000
Z. In \ i1 lolr h.
this years output is only little under the
:: aEerage.:;. En- the absence of Directors De
>. Pue*and Hayes, who with Director Sonntag
cpnsttNte the jute purchasing committee.
:: 1t was decided to make no more purchases
:: .fQs:the present.
<->Applicatiens for pardons were denied in
: the. following cases: Margaret Merkle,
hats laughter and entenced for five years.
anltL efn- Speaker, convicted of grand lar
eely. iH.~April, 1898. in TuOlomne County
and sentenced for one year.
- Ehe life Imprisonment Of Wong All Foo,
convicted January, 1888, in San Francisco
' Of murder: in the first degree, was COM
" muted TO fifteen years Imprisonment.
=. Director SOEntag was appointed Inspector
fer San:Quentin and Director Neff for Fol-
som, for October.
=. There have been fourteen applications
for -ticket-of-leave under the new law, and
in four cases the applicants have CON-
piled with the statutes and with the regu-
latfOns which the board has made relative
&c the PREPARATION of documents. These
four cases are now before the board in
. pToper;shaDe. but could not be acted upon
yesterday for the reason that il requires
the affirmative votes of four out of the five
. directors for convict to receive parole
or 'ticket-of-leaveI These and perhaps
Qther. applications will be disposed of at
next:month's meeting.
The case of Margaret Merkle, before
!: mentioned, in which the application for
pardon was denied, has romantic and in
teTesting features. She is the wife Of
CHRISTIAN Merkle. a Swedish house
decorator. living in San Francisco. When
sthe.cEHne was committed, he was engaged
In decorating a house for Captain Me
. baum at : Rutherford Station, Napa
. County. His wife was with him. and
they STAYED at little Swiss hotel. Return
Ing one Sunday evening to their room from
walk, two men with whom they had a
Slight. acquaintance called, and all sat
I'd own III the. Merkles' bedroom, a cramped
apaftmeilt. : The visitors, who had been
, drinking, became abusive and were ordered
oqt.:: They returned, promised to behave
taeTnselEeS and were again admitted.
Gnceimore they used insulting language.
and MeTKe, aided by his wife, attempted
70 EJECT .'{hem. A general scrlmmage re-
suited; and one of the visitors was
d. stabbed and died from the wound.
Next HlDrnng Mrs. Merkle was arrested
FOL. mufder;:a aud was tried and convicted.
ADfl lca3ioE for a new trial was made, and
AtfTkie presented an affidavit that he had
;. Killed the. man with a knife which be
.sliari eRed to trim his corns; that the man
had%str1ick him twice and the act Of stab
biflg.iVa IN self-defense.
Me1:kle.~ was arrested for perjury, but
obtalnedaa release upon a writ of babeas
.: CORPUS. and the case was dropped.
=. since that time he has stated in private
INA very dramatic manner, and with the
appear&nce' of absolute candor, that he
: K lffe4l his asssa1laut and mis- wife is abso-
lutte lnnocent The man having died
1fM[f~. the. sidewalk, after the scrimmage,
hLs:w1fe d1d-not even know that the row
was attended: with fatal results until tie
next Day when she was arrested.