The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1893-11-22
DAVIS Walls
Pitiful Appeal to Judge
Hudspeth ITO Set Him
Right Before the
People.
HE IS RESPONSIBLE
Admits the Court Room Is in a
Filthy Condition and Rum
ming Over With Vermin.
HIS MISERABLE EXCUSE.
Can the Freeholders Afford to
Longer Tolerate This Incom-
petent Employe?
HIS MISERABLE EXCUSE.

That Jailer Davis has not lived up to
the terms of his five years. contract with
the county, has become apparent TO all
readers Of THE JERSEY Cry NEWS. The
public and taxpayers have been shown
that the contract requires the iailer to
keep the Court House and Freeholdsrs'
ofics building IN q clearly condition, but
that instead OF having done this, Davis
has sent a gang Of prisoners to the Court
House to scrub and sweep several times
q week. This work is not well performed
and the prisoners. a majority of whom
are women. pass the greater portion of
their time. when not undsr the eye OF the
under keeper. In making vile jokes aud
asking peopls whom they meet to give
them money. cigarettes or some other
thing that suits their inclinations at the :
time.
REEKIEG WITH FILTH.
The result OF work one in this manuer
Is that che court room of the General
Sessions 10 resking with dith aud vsrmin.
This court room Is used also by the Court
of Common Pleas aud Orphans Court.
The people who attend the Court of
Common Pleas and Orphans Court are
generally well dressed aud well to do
PEoRAgf AZ v AZ 6u 4N'AVSRAVtV VI
cleanliness and luxury. For these PEG.
pie to De compelled to sit on benches
where filth aud vermin may be discov-
cred Is u condition OF affairs that is alb.
soiutely horrible and disgusting to the
greatest degree. No one can deny the
statements concerning vsrmin. Tne
judges have complained about 1t, the
court c~onstabiss know of It, aud no per-
son who knows of the disgusting condt-
ton of this room can be TO &C.
cnpy a bench in it. Jurors aud witnesses
are compelled at times to occupy these
benches. and 1t is In fear aud trembling
aud with the greatest apprehension OF
evil results that they do SO.
Such a condition OF filth In q courtroom
situated 10 the center of an enlightened
community IS shocking IN the greatest
degree. But such is the fact, aud the
other, and an equally important fact is
that Taller Davis has contracted With the
| county to Keep the courtroom clean. A
third and even more important fact is
that the jailer does not do so. he Is paid
for doing this work properly. He receives
about SIC, 600 q year from the county for
doing it and for feeding the prisoners.
His profits on his contract amounts to
asout SIS. GOO q year and perhaps more.
lie receives ample pay aDd there Is no
| excuse for complaint of this character.
AT times the stencil in the courtroom is
so sickening that 1t almost overpowsrs
those present. Windows are opened to
| permit a draught to carry out the a q
seating smell. but the sams draught
carrie. with IL colds aud pneumonia. The
condition of the General Sessions Court
room is of such a horrible character Ghar
IL seems almost impossible that it should
exist.
POSITIVE EVIDENCE.
In THE JERSEY CITY NEWS of Monday
last there WAS an interview with Judge
audspeth, presiding Judge of the Court
of Common Pleas. General Sessions aud
Orphans Court, concerning the coudi-
ton Of the court room. The judge
said:-
sit has become a subject of notoriety.' - said
the Judge, that the court room is filthy and
that vermin can at almost any time be found
crawling over the benches upon ths floor. This
is Disgusting in the extrems: but IL is not all,
Last July I mentioned these facts to the Free
holders, and gave them the control of the
court room until Seprsmbsr 70 place them IN a
good sanitary condition. This Freeholders
pleaded that they had no money to pay for the
repairs and they feared to excsed their app-o-
priation because IL would reuder them Liable to
indictment. The Freeholders did. however,
| place o ventilator in the room, which is by no
means satisfactory. and q day or so before
court opened the carpet was laid down without
the floor being properly scrubbsd or the carpet
cleaned. The result was that the court room
reeked 10 filth as 1t had dons previously
| The iaiIsri is responsible for the cleanliness OF
s asn so ~ n 4 BDsr na ahs re e i sgp a 3 % s &c ssos eh =
4 s6hko ia PaN nv - WY Nsy - SAS
floor where there 10 no carpAt. and to scrub The
benches and to keep the place clean from
vsrmin and other Hith. As a matter Of fact
have learned that the court room il not scrub
bed every day and the sweeping amounts simply
| to a scrape and . promise Unless the room
il thoroughly cleaned daily it cannot be kept Ia
q condition ft for any ons to be in. Many OF the
prisoners brought here daily are covered with
vermin, and the only way to avoid this filth is by
having the benches and floor thoroughly scrub.
bed. The cracks under this benches aud where
| they are fastened to the floor are filled with
vermin and flth. the accumulation OF many
| years. / propose to have thsse benches re-
! moved, and new ones substituted to see il that
| will not help to a degrees the CLEANLINESS of the
place. The Freeholdsrs have promised to put
in the new benches aud to furnish a new carpet
for the space within the bar. When this Is
] done you nny be certain that ! shall sac to it
/ that the court room is properly cleaned every
week.
.Its condition since I have been on the bench
has been ~frightful and very detrimental to the
health of the Judges, lawyers, court constabies
and others who must be here daily"
DAVIS SCARED.
Jailsr Davis Raw this interview, and
/ knowing that the proof of such q dis
| graceful condition Of the court roo Ii is
sufficient, If 1t can be proved that he is
responsible for 1t, to void bis contract
with the county. he sent Il lette TO Judge
| Hudspeth. The letter has the appear
anc. OF having bsen write, by some one
| OF the female friends of the jaiter, and it
reads as follows
HIS Wall.
HUDSON COUNTY JAIL.
JERSEY CRY, Nov. 81, 1898.
Hon. Robert HMdspeth:-
Hon. AND DEAR SfR:-You are credited In the
| last evenings ~ sue OF q Jersey City newspaper
| with having said.-"Thatt the court room reekS
| In filth, and thas vsrmin can be found at almost
any time crawling over the bsnches and upon
the fioor,"' for all OF which ], as jalier, mas
4 much as have contracted TO keen the eutire
1 Court House cleau. am TO be held responsible.
May / ask, in justice to you, IL the above
declaration was made by you?
May ! ask, with all Difference, IL your fret as
sertion-if 1t be yours-is absolutely aud ua-
questioiAbiy truey
II 1t is true, am ] in any manner or to any
degree responsible? Have / not made every
reasonable and honest endeavor to do all that
could be done under the circumstances to place
that court room In . clean AMI sanitary condi-
4 toni WE
Have / nos offered on several occasions to
close up with putty or other substance the sears
and seams ia these benches. to pail 1t them and
| give them in some degree q respectable or semi
respectable aDGearance?
Have you not on each occasion refused my
/ offer?
II / have been guilty of any negligence, sug-
Restions will be welcomed, and I will Q ldeavor.
|. by increased efforts, to set things Alright. III
have done RIl that could be done under the cir
cumstaucss,I ask, In justice to me, that you
my true position TO a hoodwinke1 comrnunity.
Yours respectfully, RoBERr DAVIS.
H~UDsPETH's FURTHER COMMENT.
the Interview / had with Judge Had-
spetp, and he. after reading it. said:-
This Interview is substantially correct, but